God’s people are now God’s Temple: we, like Jesus, bear God’s light and love into the world.

Pr. Joseph G. Crippen
The feast of the Presentation of Our Lord
Text: Luke 2:22-40

Beloved in Christ, grace to you, and peace in the name of the Father, and of the + Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen

It was so vast, Isaiah could barely see anything else except some angels.

In Solomon’s Temple in Jerusalem, Isaiah had a staggering vision of God. The huge space was filled with just the hem of God’s robe. Isaiah fell down in terror, knowing he was unworthy.

Today we come again to the Temple of the God of Israel, but the second one, built after the return from exile. Once more a prophet sees God. Simeon replaces Isaiah. It’s nothing like before.

The Creator of all has again come to the Temple. But not in immensity, only a fraction filling the great worship space. Now the vision is a tiny little baby. Now the Triune God, first revealed to Israel, has come to God’s Temple as a child, God in human flesh.

And know this: because of this child, the dwelling-place of the one true God can no longer be adequately housed in a building. This baby reveals God is permanently changing residence.

Try to grasp the significance of this.

Temples in ancient times were the only sure sign a god was real. They were a place to worship that god, to control that god, a place where the religious elite were in charge, and they were the home of that god.

Ancient peoples believed that what happened to the temple happened to the temple’s god. If you desecrate your enemy’s temple, you humiliate your enemy’s god. If you destroy your enemy’s temple, you defeat your enemy’s god. In short, not much different from our view of church buildings and teachings and traditions today.

This second Temple in Jerusalem was destroyed within decades of Jesus’ resurrection. Judaism was scattered throughout the world, and changed irrevocably. They had to change their ritual and refocus their faith practice with no Temple, no sacrifice, no religious elite, no God-home, at its center.

But years earlier this baby had already pointed to a world where all temples were left behind.

This is the beginning of the end of God belonging only to one people and one place.

This child has come, Simeon says, to be a light of revelation to the Gentiles, “to the nations,” that is, to non-Jews. And yet this child is also the glory of his own people, Israel. All God’s children are included in God’s light and glory, through this child.

This child comes into the Temple of one people and signals the end of all parochial gods who can be possessed and controlled, the end of religion which excludes others. Instead of every people having their own gods and their own temples, and hating and destroying each other, God comes in Christ for all. To cross all borders and walls. To embrace all of God’s beloved children.

Every time we see Jesus come to the Jewish Temple he shows this new reality, confronts the status quo.

Today in God’s Temple Jesus is recognized by Simeon as God’s Son, an astonishing realization. When we begin to recognize that God is in this small baby, we begin seeing that Jesus completely changes how we know and meet God.

The next time we see Jesus in the Temple, he’s 12 and arguing with the teachers there, asserting his authority over elders and scribes many times his age. As an adult he charges into the Temple and drives out the moneychangers, directly challenging the authority of the religious leaders. He refers to his own body as the Temple that will be destroyed, and that he will rebuild after three days, foreshadowing his death and resurrection. And stating directly that God’s home has permanently changed.

At Jesus’ death, the curtain to the Holy of Holies is torn in two. There is no more hidden divine place where only privileged people can go. The glory of God is no longer shut away from God’s people. God’s glory is out and about in the world. And in the resurrection, Christ is proclaimed God of all, the Light of all nations Simeon foretold that shines in all, for all.

And in the world today, everything changes with this.

If God’s House is no longer one particular place belonging to one particular people, where only those who worship or believe the same things are blessed and worthy of life, while all others are condemned, if that’s no longer true, then Simeon’s right: everything changed with this child. In a world where fear and hatred of those who are different is promoted and proclaimed, even by Christians, all of that now ends in this child.

In this baby the astonishing truth of God’s coming to us in the flesh begins to dawn in our hearts and minds: that is, God’s love surely includes all peoples. God is no longer owned by those who build the most impressive temples, the biggest walls, or the greatest armies.

God’s out in the world, in you, in me, in all God’s children, shining light and love on the whole creation.

Because each of you also are filled with the Spirit of God, and each of you are members of the Body of Christ, you are literally God’s temples. “Do you not know,” Paul said to the Corinthians, “that your bodies are a temple of the Holy Spirit within you?” (1 Corinthians 6:19)

You are now God’s dwelling places. In you God lives and moves and has being. In you, God’s radical plan to bring all people together in Christ finds life.

When we wash John Larry with water today and pray God’s Spirit on him, we do what Simeon did. We say, “Now, in this child, we see God’s anointed one, God’s Christ sent into the world.” John joins all of you, all of us, in the mission we share to bear God’s light and love to all people.

And God lives in him. John becomes a temple of God, like you.

As God’s temples, moving in the world, you shine God’s light into the dark places.

You bear the grace and forgiveness you’ve received wherever you’ve been planted. Spirit-filled, you live as God’s presence in the world, bearing God into the darkness. And the light shines for all to see.

In the name of Jesus.  Amen

 

Jesus calls you to fish for people, to be God’s love in the world, and gives you all you need – not for results, but because it’s what being faithful is.

Pr. Joseph G. Crippen
The Third Sunday after Epiphany, year A
Texts: Matthew 4:12-23, with reference to John 21; Isaiah 9:1-4

Beloved in Christ, grace to you, and peace in the name of the Father, and of the + Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen

“Follow me, and I will make you fish for people.”

That’s today’s sequel. Last week Jesus said, “Come and see.” You were invited, with Andrew and the other disciple and Simon, to come and see what God is doing in Jesus. To see God’s Word in your midst.

But now that Word has come back with the next invitation: Follow me. Follow me and I will make you fish for people.

And that’s where we get stuck. Do you believe that following Jesus means that you, of all people, will fish for others? What does that even mean? Get new members for a congregation? Knock on doors asking if folks know Jesus? Lead an evangelism crusade? Does fishing for people mean doing all or some of that and counting up the numbers of people you’ve saved, like fish in a net?

If it does, we have a problem. Lutherans from the northern hemisphere tend to grow the church through birth rates, passing on the faith to the next generation, not through evangelism. But if following Jesus means fishing for people, and we just don’t do that, are we being faithful?

Actually, two ways of faithful “good-news telling,” evangelism, are in the Gospels.

In Matthew, Jesus starts his ministry calling Peter and the others to learn to fish for people, and he ends it at the Ascension by giving them a commission: Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing, teaching them to obey me. For many Christian traditions, this is evangelism: find as many people as you can who don’t know Jesus and draw them in. Get more and more Christians in the world, spreading over the planet.

In John’s Gospel, Jesus doesn’t ask this. There Jesus speaks of loving as God loves. That’s the commandment, the commission. In John, after Easter, when Peter is challenged about his love of Christ, he has one job given him, three times: feed my lambs, tend my sheep, feed my sheep.

So Matthew’s community remembered Jesus insisting on going out and getting people in. And John’s community remembered Jesus insisting on loving others with God’s sacrificial love, feeding God’s sheep, caring for God’s people. Both have rich history in Christian life. Both are so early in the tradition we have to assume Jesus taught both emphases. Perhaps Jesus thinks there’s more than one way to follow faithfully.

But do we believe fishing for people is doable in our multi-faith world?

A hundred years ago, we wouldn’t ask that. Most Christians assumed all people needed to be Christian, and were lost in darkness and risking eternal damnation if they weren’t.

But today we know God’s children express their faith in God in very different ways, but in ways that often have much in common. Christian and Buddhist and Jewish and Muslim mystics all understand each other’s way of sensing God’s divine presence in their lives. The major religious traditions of the world share a deeply similar ethic of love of neighbor. The three religions who trace back to Abraham even claim the same God.

We proclaim that this shared God is Triune, has come to us in Christ Jesus in the flesh, and intends to love the whole creation back into the life and love of God. But we’ve learned that because we believe all that to be true about God, we don’t need to condemn others who believe differently, and certainly don’t need to hate them. If God is who we Christians claim, God’s love for all overrides any judgment we’d make about what they believe.

And, we have Jewish and Muslim and Hindu neighbors. We live in a global community. We’ve learned the value of respecting others’ beliefs. The common tradition shared by all religions that speaks of universal human rights, of care of the creation, of food and shelter and education for all, is something we can build on together with people of other faiths, even if we disagree in our beliefs.

So, does Jesus’ call in John make more sense to us today? Love others. Feed God’s lambs. Care for God’s beloved ones, no matter who. It seems so. But maybe we don’t have to walk away from Jesus’ call in Matthew either.

Following isn’t an either/or proposition. And we’re already both fishing and loving.

Think of all that we do together as Lutherans in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. We’re definitely loving, feeding God’s sheep. We give millions of dollars yearly, starting with your stewardship of money in this place, to end world hunger, to alleviate suffering in places struck by disaster. And we’re casting nets, too. Your stewardship supports mission start up congregations all over the Twin Cities, and the U.S. People who don’t know Jesus are being reached and drawn into life in Christ.

And we’re doing both together here at Mount Olive. From our Longer Table Loan program to Community Meals and daily ministry with our neighbors in need, we take “feed my sheep” very seriously. We’ve a task force working on how we might make a difference in the housing crisis amongst our neighbors. But the hospitality in this place also takes the Matthew path. People are invited to come and see here, to worship alongside this community, to meet Jesus in the flesh in us.

And individually, I see this all the time. You people witness to God’s reign coming near, Jesus’ message today, and to the light in the darkness, our word from Isaiah, with your lives, your love. Your grace in caring for others and inviting them here to find God’s grace.

Both of Jesus’ calls to follow are ones you know and do. Not always perfectly, and sometimes we hesitate in our following. But if you look, there’s evidence of such faithful following in a lot of places.

And good news: the message isn’t yours, it’s God’s. God’s doing it already.

God’s reign has come near, Jesus said. God’s reign. That’s the message you’re proclaiming with your life and your love – together as the ELCA, as Mount Olive, and individually. When you live that, you’re just living what God’s already doing, revealing God’s astonishing, transforming love. Is it increasing numbers of members here or elsewhere? Doesn’t matter. Jesus didn’t count, and many didn’t follow him. But God’s reign of love has come near, regardless.

And, light from God is shining in the darkness of this world. God’s light. That’s the message you’re proclaiming with your life and your love, together and individually. You’re just living what God is already doing. Shining God’s light of love for others to see hope, that’s all. Are you always effective? Who knows? But God’s light is shining in the world, regardless.

Fishing or loving, both are promises from God to you and the world.

I will make you fish for people, Jesus says. I’ll make it happen. You are God’s love for the world, Jesus says. You already are. So – feed God’s lambs. Cast the nets. Work with others, and do your thing, too. Be the Christ you are. God will handle the rest.

In the name of Jesus.  Amen

When we “come and see” what Jesus is about, we are drawn into the transformative fellowship of being the Body of Christ and we are called to shine the light of God’s reconciling love throughout the earth.

Vicar Bristol Reading
Second Sunday after Epiphany, year A
Texts: Isaiah 49:1-7, 1 Corinthians 1:1-9, John 1:29-42

In the Gospel of John, the first words we hear from Jesus are a question: “What are you looking for?”

Jesus asks this of some curious onlookers who have been following him. They’re disciples of John the Baptist. While John seems completely confident that Jesus is the Messiah, the two disciples aren’t sure yet. That’s why they’re looking. They’re watching Jesus to see what all the fuss is about. John has said that Jesus is Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world, that Jesus can baptize with not just water but with the very spirit of God. Understandably, that’s something that these followers want to see! So, they trail behind Jesus, and they watch. And Jesus turns and confronts them with this question: “What are you looking for?”

It seems a little obvious, doesn’t it? They’re looking for… him. They’re looking for some kind of evidence that he’s the Messiah John claims he is. But the question “what are you looking for” goes beyond sight: it is a question about seeking. It is about what is perceived with the heart, not the eyes. Jesus is asking, “What are you hoping to find? What is your soul longing for?”

The disciples answer Jesus with a question of their own, “Where are you staying?” and he says simply, “Come and see.” Instead of dismissing them or scolding them, Jesus welcomes and invites them. “You’re looking for me? Well, come and see. Come and stay a while.” So they do. The text says the two “remain” with Jesus for a time.

And whatever they saw while they were with him, whatever they heard, whatever they felt… was transformative. When they first met Jesus, the two respectfully called him “Rabbi,” teacher. But after spending time in Jesus’ presence, they call him “Christ,” Messiah. Coming into relationship with the Jesus changes them. Not because they find facts or gather proof, but because they personally experience relationship with the incarnate God.

This moment doesn’t just change them, it convicts and motivates them. They leave from this time with Jesus eager to share what they’ve experienced and invite others to do the same: “We’ve found the Messiah – come and see!” They tell friends, they tell family: “Come and see for yourself. Come and experience personal connection with this savior.” So the relationship that is at the heart of this story isn’t only about the relationship between these two potential disciples and Jesus;  it’s also about relationship within community.

These two people are only here getting to know Jesus in the first place because they trusted their leader, John the Baptist. John had a relationship with them, and his testimony convinced them to come and see Jesus for themselves. And then their testimony convinces others. Like a ripple effect, the circle grows wider and wider.

This has always been an important part of the church’s story: sharing how your relationship with Christ has changed you welcomes others into relationship with Christ themselves. And staying in that relationship with one other continues to change you, and draw you even closer to God.

This is why Paul talks about the community of Christ followers as a body, interdependent and interconnected, a body that lives and breathes and moves as a collection of all its parts. God has called you into fellowship, Paul writes to the Corinthians. In other words, God has called you into relationship.

But God’s vision isn’t just for a community of people that are alike, like a sort of club. The circles of those ripples grow and grow. The welcome of God isn’t just about one group of people in one place. Paul writes that there are saints in every place who call on the name of Christ, and they all belong to the same God, like siblings in the same family. In every place”! Just think about that for a moment: The body of Christ is as wide as the whole world! That’s the kind of fellowship you’re called into as a follower of Christ.

If the two disciples in the Gospel story had been listening to John the Baptist, they might have had a glimpse that this is what they were getting themselves into. John said, “This is the lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.” The world. Not the sin of one person, not the sin of one nation, but the sin of the whole world. This Messiah who has come to dwell among us is serious about reconciling all of creation to God.

Anyone who wants to come and see what Jesus is about is going to be called into that same work of expansive reconciliation. Those who would be servants of God are called to be a light to the nations, as Isaiah says, in order that God’s saving love might shine to the very ends of the earth. This doesn’t mean being a coercive or oppressive presence in the world. Scripture says this light is given to the world by God. It is meant to be a gift, not a harm.

Those who would be servants of God are called into fellowship, into intentional community amidst diversity. That means doing the hard work of staying in relationship, which requires practicing forgiveness and reconciliation. It means healing and serving; it means breaking down barriers and building up community.

When you come into relationship with Christ, you can’t stay the same; you can’t only live for yourself, because you’re transformed, and you become part of the body. Other parts of the body depend on you, and you depend on them. Things will get difficult and there will be conflict, but you are also given this promise: God doesn’t leave you alone in this task.

Listen to what Paul says happens to those who come into the body: “In every way you have been enriched in Christ. You are not lacking in any spiritual gift.” Let these words be a reminder that you have been equipped and strengthened to be the community of Christ, to grow in fellowship. You have been equipped and strengthened to be a beacon of God’s love in the world. You have everything you need because God has given it to you, so you can be a gift to others.

And God knows something about being in relationship because God is relationship. God is Trinity, three-in-one.

If we take the incarnation seriously, then we know that this Gospel story about Jesus’ invitation to “come and see” shows us something of the face of God. It shows us a God who asks and welcomes questions, a God who celebrates the curious and the seeking, a God who draws all of creation into intimate relationship, a God whose forgiveness knows no boundaries.

But this story also shows us the power of God’s mysterious Spirit. It’s the Spirit’s presence that has John even recognize Jesus as the Messiah to begin with: “I saw the Spirit descending from heaven,” John declares, “and it remained on him.” But Jesus doesn’t keep the life force of Spirit to himself: he gives it away. He baptizes others with its power, and he teachers over and over that God’s Spirit will never leave his followers, even when the physical person of Jesus is no longer with them. The Spirit will live in Christ followers forever: advocating, empowering, comforting, teaching, transforming.

That Spirit is, right now, living in you, as it is in all those diverse members of the beloved Body of Christ, throughout the world, in every place. That Spirit is, right now, equipping and strengthening you to live out God’s mission of radical love and reconciliation. Can you see it in one another? It is like a light in the darkness. Go out and shine that divine light to the ends of the earth.

Amen.