Tag: Infant Jesus

Sermon: Out of Darkness

No, we cannot fix our nation’s ills right now. But we can hope. We can nurture that hope, we can help it grow and spread. For this reason Jesus was born.
And, hope is what we need now in this time of darkness, confusion, hate, and fear. For if there is hope, hate and fear fall away. If there is hope, confusion and darkness are not nearly so scary.

Please join me in prayer…

Lord God, may your peace and Holy Spirit fill this place. Open your scriptures to us, and may I clearly communicate that which you intend us to receive. May your Word take root and flourish within each and every one of us. Through it may we be strengthened and transformed by your unconditional, living, and limitless love for all of your Creation.

In Jesus Name, Amen.

I’ll begin with a quote I heard in Seminary. But, I’ve been unable to find the source or exact wording. So, I’m quoting from memory … plagiarizing and paraphrasing, all at the same time! What a Jewish scholar said (more or less) was, “Christianity did what Judaism never has. It envisioned God in an infant. This is an amazing thing.”

For me, his words are helpful in this era of darkness and uncertainty. Especially now, at the start of Advent. Itself a season of darkness in which we prepare ourselves for the days when hope is reborn, the hope that Jeremiah spoke of.

Infants can do nothing for themselves. For a newborn, that first breath (or any bodily function or sensation) is often a traumatic event. It’s all new, all unknown, it’s scary. They need help, they need comforting, they need nurturing. They need us.

So, why did God begin Jesus’ ministry in a position of absolute vulnerability? Jesus had no choice but to rely entirely upon others, upon us, for everything. Why did the Savior begin his earthly ministry as a helpless, fragile, infant?

Well, since I’m the one preaching this morning, I’ll tell you. … At least I’ll tell you what I think! But first, let’s step back a bit and consider the context of this birth to come.

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An Epiphany Prayer

 

A Prayer of Invocation that begins with a poem by written by Madeleine L’Engle in 1973, entitled “The Risk of Birth.”

Lord God,

“The Risk of Birth” by Madeleine L’Engle

This is no time for a child to be born
With the earth betrayed by war and hate
And a comet slashing the sky to warn
That time runs out and the sun burns late.

That was no time for a child to be born
In a land in the crushing grip of Rome
Honor and truth were trampled by scorn—
Yet here did the Saviour make his home.

When is the time for love to be born?
The inn is full on planet earth,
And by a comet the sky is torn –
Yet Love still takes the risk of birth.

O God, you have invited shepherds and kings – and us – to encounter the infant Jesus here, this morning: an Epiphany we are free to embrace, or deny.

Continue reading “An Epiphany Prayer”