EpiphanyEphesians 3: 1-12 Matthew 2: 1-12Christmas has happened. The infant child, Jesus, has been born and is lying in a manger being attended to by his parents Mary and Joseph. At some time after his birth the peace of the Holy Family was disturbed by shepherds coming off the lands to seek out the baby as had been told them by the angels. Their visit over, the shepherds have now returned to their flocks. Peace and quiet returns to the Holy Family.But not for long. Magi from the east arrive on the scene. Just who or what are the Magi? From foreign lands they had become a tribe of priests. They were teachers and instructors of the Persian kings. They became men of holiness and wisdom, skilled in philosophy, medicine and natural sciences. They were soothsayers and interpreters of dreams. They would also have been followers of Astrology and believed that they could foretell the future by looking at the position of the stars at a person’s birth.The course of the stars in the heavens had been disturbed by some brilliant star. It looked as if God was breaking into his own order and announcing some special thing. Indeed, he was, the birth of his Son, Jesus Christ. It was the Magi’s knowledge of the stars in the heavens that told them of the birth of a king. At this time there was a feeling in the world, an expectation that something was about to happen.Here we see the first sign of what Jesus was to achieve. Up to now people had been waiting for God and in their hearts they had a desire for God. It was to this waiting world that the Christ child came.In our world of today we see about us many signs of unrest. From the fighting in the Middle East and civil unrest in other parts of the world to the gun crimes in countries with much laxer laws than we have. We see riots and public disorder in towns and cities and we the rise of domestic abuse all around us. It is as if we have, once more, a world waiting for a peacemaker to come among us, a return of the Son of God.The second coming of the Son of God will happen. But that way is being prepared for that coming now. Through baptism we receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. A gift that we have with us for all time. As we travel on our way through this world we do so in the company of the Holy Spirit. Our belief in God and in his Son, Jesus Christ, gives us the opportunity to repent of our sins, our wrongdoing. With this cleansing of our soul a pathway is cleared. It is as if a giant rubber has erased our sinfulness. If all Christians repented then huge swathes of sinfulness will be cleared. It will be like a huge eraser being used to clear away the wrongdoing in the world. Epiphany means an awakening or realisation. With the birth of Jesus the world is being woken to the presence of the Son of God. His coming among us has brought us all closer to God through his teaching. By his death on the Cross our sins have been forgiven. The slate is wiped clean. We have a marvellous opportunity to encourage others to do likewise, to turn to God, to work for peace. Peace in the world and peace in our hearts. That is our goal. Bringing the world to recognise that Christ came to save us all, to bring us closer to God, and to love our neighbour. If we abide in that love then peace will come upon us.Collect for EpiphanyO God,who by the leading of a starmanifested your only Son to the peoples of the earth:mercifully grant that we,who know you now by faith,may at last behold your glory face to face;through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,who is alive and reigns with you,in the unity of the Holy Spirit,one God, now and for ever.
First Sunday of ChristmasColossians 3:12-17 Luke 2: 41-endThe build up to Christmas has reached its climax with the great day arriving, and now moving into history. Following the events leading on from Christmas we now learn of the child Jesus and what happened in Jerusalem. But we do not have the full story. The Bible reading tells us that Jesus was twelve years of age. At his time in history and in his culture a boy of twelve was deemed to be an adult. The reading explains to us that his parents had been looking for him amongst friends and family.Hence, we have a young man in the Temple learning about his heavenly Father in surroundings, and using rituals, which must have fascinated him for this would have been his first visit. The fact that he was missing for a day was not that remarkable. Because the women travelled slower than the men, they would start off on their return earlier. It would not be until the evening that the men and women would come together. In the meantime, each would think that Jesus was with the other.Jesus was found in the Temple Court listening to the Sanhedrin discussing religious and theological questions. Jesus was behaving like any other student, asking questions and learning from replies. It was at some time, up to this point, that Jesus must have realised his special relationship with God. He must have had thoughts as time passed. Then, with manhood coming upon him, there must have been a sudden thought in his consciousness of his special relationship with God.In this passage of scripture, we have the point when Jesus realises who he was. It did not make a big change in his character. He did not become all haughty. He did not look down on others. The real Son of God does not despise human lives.As we grow in years we progress in our learning. We gain knowledge, we learn social skills, we learn about society in general and find our own place within it. Much of this we learn from our parents. By their example and by their interaction with others necessary skills are passed down to us. In these formative years we, like Jesus, increase in wisdom. Coming to church is where we learn about God, about his Son, and about the spread of the gospel message throughout the world. This First Sunday of Christmas we learn about Jesus beginning to understand his relationship with God. We too have a relationship with God. We too have the opportunity to allow this relationship to develop deeper. Acknowledging God as a name on a sheet of paper as we sing praise to him is just scratching the surface. These first few weeks are an opportunity to delve deeper into the pages of the Bible, or the hymn book, or psalter. In all of these pages the love of God leaps out at us. Calling us and beckoning to us to come closer to him, to accept him into our life.In Jesus’ case his mother Mary treasured all of these things of his early years. She kept them in her heart. We too have the opportunity to treasure the early years of Jesus. We may not have been there to witness them for ourselves. But we have the word of scripture. We also have a degree of understanding of those words.Collect for the First Sunday of ChristmasAlmighty God,who wonderfully created us in your own imageand yet more wonderfully restored usthrough your Son Jesus Christ:grant that, as he came to share in our humanity,so we may share the life of his divinity;who is alive and reigns with you,in the unity of the Holy Spirit,one God, now and for ever.
Christmas DayHebrews 1: 1-4 John 1: 1-14Christmas is observed in many different ways up and down the land. Much depends upon circumstances almost as much as tradition. The great day arrives with an atmosphere of expectation. Presents, may be scattered beneath a traditional tree or just neatly stacked up in piles, one for each person. The excitement is enhanced by just looking at what is in each pile. Guesses are made as to what may be in each parcel.In some houses a token present may have been opened already whilst the remainder are opened after church and maybe even after lunch. That feeling of excitement accompanies you to church. There you hear again the Christmas story about the birth of the baby Jesus in the manger. An event which shaped the world.Now, two thousand years later we still rejoice in this birth. What is it that grips us so firmly? Is it the carols we sing. Carols that we soon learnt as we trod the streets singing carols from door to door. Until, that is, the advent of double glazing. Now the first an occupant knows of your singing is when you knock the door hoping for some gratuity for your efforts. Or is it the coming together of the family from all parts to share in a Christmas feast? Whatever the reason we still observe Christmas.Christmas is so special because it is the time that the Saviour of the word was born. To a lowly family the Christ child entered the world. He grew to adulthood learning the aches and pains that we all learn as we develop. From falling over and grazing his knee to learning social skills these were all lessons that he would learn, or so we can only guess.Together with the shepherds we kneel before him in thanksgiving and prayer just as the shepherds. They witnessed his birth which we remember this day. From the hills they came to the stable to see this special event. People who earned their living through hard physical work left all that behind to gather at the foot of the manger.Next in the Christmas story we learn of the visit of the Magi. They came with their riches and status also to visit the Christ child. Right at the start of his life he mixed with people of all social class. He was to be the Saviour of the world, not just to the hard working people striving to earn a living through their own hard work, but to all people right up to the ruling leaders. His influence reached out to all people regardless. And so, today, we gather in celebration. From the youngest among us to the eldest. From those who are at the start of their life to those who are here with a life time of experience behind them, we are here in celebration.The Christ child is born. He is the Son of God. He came that we should believe in him, learn his love, and turn to God through him. In accepting him into our lives our sins are forgiven. O come, all ye faithful, Christ is born. Hark, the herald angels sing. Peace on earth. Today that has to be our prayer. Peace on earth to all mankind.A very Merry Christmas to you from Gill and myself.Collect for Christmas DayAlmighty God,you have given us your only-begotten Sonto take our nature upon himand as at this time to be born of a pure virgin:grant that we, who have been born againand made your children by adoption and grace,may daily be renewed by your Holy Spirit;through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,who is alive and reigns with you,in the unity of the Holy Spirit,one God, now and for ever.
Fourth Sunday of AdventHebrews 10: 5-10 Luke 1: 39-45The race towards Christmas is nearly over. Yet it is strange to think of it as a race. We are in a Repentance is the fact of showing that you are very sorry for something bad you have done in the past, and wish that you had not done it. season of preparation and when you are preparing for something it may be usual to take things a little easy at the start. It is when you arrive at very little time remaining that the pace speeds up. You start dashing around trying to ensure all of the last minute jobs have been completed.The season of Advent does have an element of this kind of preparation. Have all of the presents been bought, the cards written and posted, the food for the Christmas dinner bought (will the turkey fit in the oven?). But Advent does have more to it that these things.Through Advent we have had the phrase, “Repent, make way for the Lord” ringing in our ears. Have we had the time for this repentance? Just what does it mean? Repentance does mean saying sorry but in what form should it take?To repent means that you are very sorry for something bad that you had done in the past and that you are showing how much you regret what you had done. But more than that. Repentance also means that you wish that you had not done whatever it was that you had done.‘Turn away from sin’, is a phrase often heard and quoted. It is a part of the action of repentance. To say ‘sorry’ alone is not quite going the whole way. A little more is required of us. We have to turn away from our sinful way. In some ways it goes back to the times of ancient Rome when a soldier who wished to show they were sorry would turn round and walk away. This is what we are doing when we are repenting. We are acknowledging our error and turning away from doing it again.When we are saying sorry to a neighbour or friend a short snappy ‘sorry’ is often not sincerely meant. It certainly is not accepted as a true expression of regret. Also, once said (with fingers crossed behind ones back trying to protect you from an insincere confrontation) the wrong has not been righted.Repentance in Advent is concerned with our position with God. God knows all about us. He knows when we are contrite, he knows if we are like the Roman soldier who just turns his back to demonstrate his sorrow. He certainly is aware if we have our fingers crossed. In Advent we come before God to cleanse our souls from all of our wrong doings. We purge ourselves before him. We also show contrition and a determination to leave behind our sinful past, to turn away.This is the real meaning of Advent. We are awaiting the coming of our Lord. We are making ready the path before him. As we would for any important guest, we make sure that everything is done in preparation for their arrival. We prepare ourselves. We make ourselves ready and acceptable to him. We do not want to leave it until it is too late.Collect for the Fourth Sunday of AdventGod our redeemer,who prepared the Blessed Virgin Maryto be the mother of your Son:grant that, as she looked for his coming as our saviour,so we may be ready to greet himwhen he comes again as our judge;who is alive and reigns with you,in the unity of the Holy Spirit,one God, now and for ever.
