Readings:
Sermon:
With a new year starting it feels as if Christmas celebrations were a long time ago. But only now might you have had the chance to really look at the gifts you received. Some of them absolutely what you hoped for. Others might be a bit more like the gifts that Sir John Betjeman was thinking of when he wrote, “And hideous tie so kindly meant”, in his famous poem called Christmas. That’s the thing about gifts, they are given, you hope, with love and kindness, but that doesn’t mean they are what you were hoping for. But sometimes it’s the unexpected gift that stays with us and actually turns out to be just right.
All of this has been going through my mind as the Church celebrates the wonderful Feast of the Epiphany. We remember that wise men travelled from the East, following a star all the way to Bethlehem so that they could worship Jesus. And they didn’t come empty handed as they brought with them special gifts for the Christ child. Gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh.
What might Jesus have said about the gifts he had been given if he could? What might Mary and Joseph have said in response to the generosity of the wise men, who came with their valuable but impractical gifts? The gospel story sheds light on what these gifts are all about and how they, each in their own way, say something important about what this Christ child is to become.
The gift of gold reveals that this child, fragile and small, starting his earthly life in the most humblest of places, on the very edge of society, is a king. Not like Herod who seems only to be out for himself. Jesus, as king, will walk amongst the poor and disenfranchised, the children and the women, the sick and the lepers, all those who nobody else wanted to walk alongside. His kingdom will be God’s and it won’t look like any other kingdom. At its heart will be love, compassion, justice and freedom. Jesus as king will shock everyone.
The gift of frankincense reveals that this child is someone who will be worshiped and adored. Not necessarily by the rich and powerful, but by all those who understand what Jesus’ kingdom is all about. Those who recognise that a new world order is coming, and one that is not based on greed and selfish pursuits, will find that all they can do is worship. The shepherds and the wise men of the Christmas story show this to everyone. As he grows up Jesus will gather crowds around him who will find that their only response to this king in their midst is praise and celebration. And that happens all the way to Jesus’ triumphant entry into Jerusalem on a donkey, where the crowds shout hosanna to their king.
Which takes the story of the child of Bethlehem, the king who is to be worshipped, to its seemingly shocking conclusion. The final gift of myrrh speaks of the suffering and death that Jesus will endure. This beautiful baby Jesus, lying in a manger, will grow into a man who, by sharing the Good news of God, will challenge everything that is known. And those who are threatened will find they have no choice but to put this man to death on a cross. This final gift, and its strong perfume, is left hanging in the air, but the hope of the Easter that will come is also there. Jesus will die but he will be raised from death and, as the gifts of gold and frankincense have already shared, he will be king and he will be worshipped for all time.
Gifts are complicated. The gifts Jesus receives are powerful, awe inspiring and terrible. But they say everything about him. They tell the world what his journey through life, following the will of God, will be about.
This Epiphany you can think about the gifts you have been given. And I’m not just thinking about material gifts left under the Christmas tree. God has given gifts to everyone, although you might not always know what. This Epiphany I invite you to think what God has given to you. They might be welcome gifts, and there might be some which are challenging. The task we have been given is to think how to use these gifts for the glory of God and Jesus the King. How they can be used that makes you and others want to worship. And how these gifts can be used even when it’s difficult and hard, and when the new life and joy of Easter feels a long way away.
God’s gifts to you might not always be what you were hoping for, but they are from God who loves you and simply longs for you to be everything God knows you are.
Questions:
- How do you respond to the story of the wise men visiting Jesus?
- What gifts do you think God has given to you and how will you use them this year?