1.
Please
pray with me. May the words of my mouth
and the meditation of our hearts be pleasing in Your sight, O Lord, our Rock,
and our Redeemer. Amen. The message from God’s Word this first Sunday
after the Epiphany is taken from Matthew 2:1-12. It’s entitled, “Connected to God,” dear brothers and sisters in Christ.
2.
In
the movie Star Trek: Generations, Captain Kirk and
the starship Enterprise come upon a phenomenon in outer space called the
nexus. The nexus is a temporal irregularity moving through space. To anyone
inside the nexus, linear time has no meaning. So Captain Kirk can easily go
back and forth in time to a favorite occasion in his life. He can go back and
forth to visit a loved one who has died or relive and change an experience. Being
in this nexus can be so enjoyable, that, once there, no one ever wants to leave. The villain in the movie is a scientist named
Dr. Soran, whose actions are cruel, cold, and violent. It’s easy to be against
him. But toward the end of the movie, we find the motive for his cruelty isn’t
money or power, but connection. Dr. Soran’s motive was to get to the nexus, go
back in time, and reconnect with his family who were killed in a terrible
tragedy. That was it. Yes, even villains want to connect in a meaningful way.
In fact, all people want to be connected.
More important, all people need to be connected to God,
though many, many people don’t know it, Christ Is the Connection to God
All People Need.
3.
That’s
what our life’s journey is about. From the time we’re born, we seek attention,
connection, and relationships. Even as infants, we don’t want to be left in the
crib. We cry. We want to be held. When we’re alone for too long, we get lonely.
As children, when we don’t have close friends in school, life seems empty. When
we’ve had a good time with a bunch of people, it’s hard to leave the fellowship.
Even some of us men, who may not be as good about relationships as women, talk
about male bonding.
4.
So
we all value connection. We value connection so much that we buy into the fairy
tales that help us dream for that perfect love. We look for that romance in
which someone will love us more than him or herself, in which that someone will
understand us deeply, and will always be there for us. But, my friends in
Christ, especially our young ones, so often this eludes us. You see, you and I will never find the
perfect connection in this world, in any person on this earth. Because of sin,
we’ll never find the perfect relationship. We will never find that perfect
connection. Never. Don’t expect your spouse or best friend to be sin free.
There will be times when, despite our best efforts, we hurt one other. There
will be times when we’re not there for each other. Now that I’ve knocked
romance out of the equation, we can get to the main thing.
5.
In
essence, people often look for that great connection in the wrong places, or in
the wrong person. You see, because of our
sin, the nexus between God and man was cut off. That great connection with God
is there, but we try to make that connection with someone or something other
than God. The Wise Men from the East
knew this. These were people with wealth, power, and prestige, very possibly
advisors to royal courts. Yet, we hear Mt 2:2: “For we saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.”
6.
These
people leading “fairy tale lives,”
these Wise Men, wanted to connect with God. They were looking for that
connection, and so they sought that star. They were looking for that connection,
so they journeyed a long way following the star. They were looking for that
connection, so they wanted to worship Christ and have a meaningful time and
fellowship with God, who had come down to earth in the flesh. They understood,
like we Christians understand, that it’s Jesus Christ who makes our connection
to God possible.
7.
The
Greek word epiphania means a showing, a making known, or a revealing. The
Epiphany reveals who Jesus is, Lord and King, Son of God. Matthew mentions
Herod, probably to reveal that Jesus, not Herod, is the true King. It reveals that
Jesus is the King of kings and not your usual king. Herod is dressed in royal
dignity; he’s master at the palace. But the child the Wise Men worship in a
humble setting is the true Master. It’s
not that the Wise Men had any special, inside information. They probably had
read the prophecy in Numbers 24: “a star
shall come out of Jacob, and a scepter shall rise out of Israel” (Num
24:17). Then they saw the star and followed it. They weren’t the only ones who
could see the star or read the Scriptures. They were there, plain for anyone to
see.
8.
They also asked a
simple question, the answer to which could easily be found in the Old
Testament. The top theologians didn’t need to be summoned, but Herod did so,
and they replied straight out of Micah about little old Bethlehem: “But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are too
little to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who
is to be ruler in Israel, whose coming forth is from of old, from ancient days”
(5:2). The information was there. The star and the prophecy were plain to be
seen. Having heard about the star and
Bethlehem, Herod and the leaders of Jerusalem don’t join the Wise Men to go and
connect with the true King. The connection isn’t made. Herod and the leaders
see competition. Herod wants to get rid of the competition instead of seeing
the truth and connecting with the one who really loves him and cares for him.
9.
On
the other hand, the Wise Men see the connection. They go to connect with their
true King, who rules not with worldly splendor, but in peace with caring and
with deep, loving, and meaningful relationships. The Lord who wants us to be
with him and for all eternity that he allowed his eternal connection to his
Father to be broken when he took our sin to the cross. But because he took upon
himself our sin—which had cut us off from God—and suffered himself being put to
death, we are reconnected to God, now and forever in heaven.
10. So as each of you
reaches out to people in the community, we make that Epiphany connection. Through
our warm friendliness; serving with our hands; hospitable, welcoming outlook;
and personal witness, we make CHRIST/ CALVARY LUTHERAN CHURCH the inviting
place of that connection for which people are looking. We turn them away from
their Herod and their Jerusalem and toward Jesus and Bethlehem. This church family is to be that fellowship
where God is revealed to people looking for meaning and connection. This is the
nexus where God makes known the true, perfect love of Christ. Worried about offending? Afraid of losing
friendships? Fearful of being rejected? The Lord reminds you that he will be
with you. He reminds you that in Holy Scripture, he will give you the words to
share, that he will open doors for you. God even used Herod to make the final
connection between the Wise Men and Jesus. He will use you all the more to make
connections for him.
11. Mailings,
advertising, research, and personal invitations continue to be powerful tools
to connect, but the Lord teaches us today that prayer is the foundation of
connection. Snail mail, instant messaging, spam mail, and e-mail are nice, but
don’t forget knee-mail. Yes, k-n-e-e-mail.
Let’s get down on our knees and pray like this: “Lord, I know I have often been neglectful of my Christian
responsibility to make you known in this community. Forgive me. All around me
there are people who are struggling to make that great connection. I know they
are hurting. I know they are looking for that perfect relationship, but only
through you is that powerful connection possible. You are the source of good,
deep, healthy relationships. You are the
source of quality connections in marriages, families, and friendships. So use
me, Lord, to connect with people who feel empty, forgotten, lost,
disconnected. Here I am, Lord. Send me.
Use me. Give me the words to speak and provide me discernment in taking
advantage of the appropriate opportunity in time to witness. Open those doors
for me to connect others to you, and then let your love and the Good News shine
through. In the name of Jesus, I pray.”
12. Today God is
reminding you of your connection to him. You don’t need to look for a perfect
love. You already have it. It has been provided for you with no strings
attached. God loves you more than you can possibly imagine. He sent his Son,
not to condemn you, but to save you, and to connect with you, by dying for you
on a cross. He’s given us the
responsibility to reveal to people in this community and throughout the world
that the perfect connection is here. It’s right here in Jesus. We’ll share with
them about the star and what’s written in Micah. They might not get the
connection at first. In their eyes, Herod at first may look like the real
ruler, but the Spirit will work to reveal the hidden God to them. We pray that
the Lord would give us the strength and the wisdom as the CHRIST/CALVARY family
works to connect our neighbors to Christ through the power of the Holy
Spirit. Amen.
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