Wake Up! Look Around! Sunday, 11/27/16 1 In an article entitled, What Time Is It? A defense of the Church Calendar, Pastor Gregg Strawbridge invokes

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1 Wake Up! Look Around! Sunday, 11/27/16 1 In an article entitled, What Time Is It? A defense of the Church Calendar, Pastor Gregg Strawbridge invokes the song made popular by the group Chicago, Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is? Yes, we all know the time of day. How could we not, with phones, wristwatches, computers, and alarm clocks blaring the time at us all day long. But how do we mark our years? Many more adults know the IRS deadline for filing tax returns than when the first day of Advent falls. We mark the passage of our years by the things that are important to us: The fishing opener, the last day of school, the opening of deer hunting season. In the Church, we also mark the years by what s important to followers of Jesus. That s why we celebrate special seasons like Lent and Advent, and special days like Christ the King Sunday. Whenever we open our Bibles, we re called to revisit our salvation history. Creation, original sin, the giving of the law, the birth of Jesus, the giving of the new covenant, the resurrection, the giving of the Holy Spirit and the birth of the church are all commemorated in the Holy Scriptures and woven into our annual church worship calendar. When we deliberately mark these Christian seasons, we respond to God s invitation to take this history and make it new again in our own lives, year after year and day after day. But first we have to wake up and look around us, reorienting our lives from a worldly schedule and perspective, seeing it afresh from the eyes of the Scriptures. This morning is the very beginning of the Advent season, the time leading up to our observance of the birth of Jesus, also called Emmanuel, God with us. For the weeks ahead leading up to Christmas, you re invited to join us as we Follow the Star. Just as the Magi followed the star to Jesus, so we too must find a star to navigate our way through these days of Advent, drawing ever closer to Jesus. Our second Gospel reading this morning concerns not the Magi, but another group of people searching for Jesus- the disciples of John the Baptist. I m reading from chapter 7 in Luke s Gospel, verses in the New Living Translation. {Read Luke 7:18-23, NLT} 2 When I read this passage, I was struck by the parallels between the story of John s disciples seeking Jesus and the Magi seeking Jesus some 30 years earlier. In both instances, their journeys to meet Jesus started because they were awake and aware enough to notice 1

2 that something different was happening in the world around them, something that revealed that God was at work, breaking through in a new way. For the Magi, it was the new star that appeared in the night sky. But for the disciples of John, it was a different kind of star. In the words of Jesus, the blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised to life, and the Good News is being preached to the poor. John and his disciples were awake and alert enough to have heard people talking about what Jesus was doing, just as the Magi were alert enough to see the new star. Are you awake? Are your eyes open enough to notice the hand of God doing something new in your life and the world around you? Wake up! Look around! There are new stars all around you, signs of God breaking through in new ways, if only you ll notice them. 3 The next thing to notice about our Magi and disciples is that they began a journey. It would have been so much simpler for the Magi to stay at home and read about the birth of Jesus. John s disciples could have argued with John, saying, Look Master, you ve heard the same stories we ve heard. Isn t it obvious? But that s not what happened. The Magi and the disciples got up and began journeys. And they didn t do so alone. In Jewish culture it was crucial to have at least two witnesses to important events, so it s no great surprise that John sent two disciples rather than one. And as for the Magi? Perhaps they simply recognized that there is strength in numbers, and that the company of friends makes the journey more pleasant. How about you? If you noticed God doing something new in your life today, would you be willing to get up and start a journey? Wake up! Look around! God can and does sometimes choose to simply act in our lives, but most often it seems that when we see God at work in the world, it s an invitation to begin a journey of drawing closer to Jesus. And while there are parts of our inward journeys that only we can travel, there is no doubt that a journey to draw closer to Jesus is richer and more fruitful when we take it with our sisters and brothers in Christ. That s just the way Jesus set things up. We are the Body of Christ. We need each other, and we all need help drawing closer to Jesus. 4 Albert Einstein once said, If I had an hour to solve a problem and my life depended 2

3 on the solution, I would spend the first 55 minutes determining the proper question to ask, for once I knew the proper question, I could solve the problem in less than five minutes. Einstein was a smart guy. He understood the power and importance of asking questions. And even though the Magi were most likely astrologers rather than wise men, it appears that they and the disciples of John were wise as well, because they all asked questions as they travelled their journeys. The first words out of the mouths of the Magi to Herod were a question rather than a statement. You can easily imagine that they might have given an elaborate account of their credentials and their journey. Instead, they simply asked, Where is the newborn king of the Jews? And they didn t beat around the bush, did they? They asked the one question that was central to their purpose. So, too, with the disciples of John. Notice that in the many accounts of the Pharisees interacting with Jesus how many times they took an indirect path, asking Jesus trick questions about the law rather than simply asking him the one question that really mattered: Are you the Messiah we ve been expecting, or should we keep looking for someone else? Are you asking questions on your journey to Jesus, or are you so certain of yourself that you re more interested in giving answers to other people. Every journey that takes us closer to Jesus has to include an attitude of humility and a focus on the goal. Wake up! Look around! There are so many distractions that threaten to waylay us on our journeys, even within the walls of our church buildings. Whatever star you re using to Guide your Advent journey, remember to keep your eyes on the prize- A closer relationship with the living Christ. 5 The journey of the Magi was marked by an encounter with the Christ. The scriptures record that they fell down before him and worshiped him. The Gospels don t indicate that the disciples of John worshipped Jesus in their first encounter, but we do know that some of them came to believe and became disciples of Jesus. For example, the Gospel of John tells us that Andrew, Peter s brother, was a disciple of John before becoming a disciple of Jesus. Their meetings with Jesus didn t end their journeys, but I believe it changed their lives forever. Certainly it must have changed their conversation on their journeys home. If you ve ever visited a newborn and her parents, you might remember the exhaustion of the parents. But beyond any of the difficulties, what was the predominant emotion? Wasn t it joy? Did 3

4 tears of gladness flow freely? Now take that feeling and magnify it by 1,000! Perhaps that s how the Magi felt after coming face to face with their savior in the manger. I wouldn t surprise me at all if they sang hymns, told stories, and even prayed around their evening campfires. And how about John s disciples? How do you suppose they felt after all the stories they had been hearing became flesh before their eyes? Luke tells us that At that very time Jesus cured many who had diseases, sicknesses and evil spirits, and gave sight to many who were blind. If you had witnessed that first hand, could you have done anything other than worship Jesus? Could you wake up the next day and not continue your life s journey is a new way? As each of us follow our Advent stars, those things that remind us and guide us into close encounters with the Spirit of Christ, we can eagerly expect that we ll look upon the face of God. Maybe not every day, maybe not every time you come to worship on Sunday. But there will be times when we can expect to experience close encounters of the holy kind. We know that God s eager desire is that we seek out his presence and that we find Him. King Solomon write in his Proverbs, [T]hose who seek me diligently find me. The prophet Jeremiah recorded these words of God: When you search for me, you will find me; if you seek me with all your heart. And Jesus himself instructed us to [a]sk, and it will be given you; search, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened for you. God eagerly desires to meet us on our journeys. Wake up! Look around! Are you prepared for worship when God shows up? 6 I used to read the Peanuts comic strip when we received the paper, but somehow I got out of that practice when I started reading the newswires on the internet. But the wisdom of the late Charles Shultz still resonates with me. I suppose this particular comic could be interpreted in a variety of different directions. Snoopy says the secret of life is to keep looking up. Perhaps he says that because that s where his food dish always comes from. Perhaps he means that by keeping a hopeful attitude we ll be happier in life. I want to appropriate Snoopy s words today and suggest that looking up means watching what s happening around us instead of gazing at our feet. It means looking for our star, a sign of God breaking through in new ways in our lives and the world, instead of focusing on ourselves and the past. It means believing in Emmanuel, God with us, who 4

5 draws near to us not only once a year at Christmas, but every day of our lives. Wake up! Look around! The same God who created the cosmos, the same God who parted the Red Sea, the same God who was born in a stable, the same God who left only an empty tomb, is the same God who eagerly desires to meet you, if only you ll take notice of what God is doing and follow the star that God has sent to guide you. 7 What are the stars that you follow in your life? What signs of God s activity this Advent season might guide you into a deeper communion with the Holy One? Some of you are enjoying one of the various Advent devotional books that Laurie has assembled in the lobby for you. Some of you draw closer to Jesus by ringing bells for the Salvation Army or serving someone in need. Many of you have persevered in praying the 6:09 Prayer or the Children s Breakthrough Prayer every day. Maybe making an extra effort to be a regular part of our Sunday worship and Sunday school for the season of Advent could be your Advent star. It doesn t really matter which star you follow, as long as it s a star that leads you closer to Jesus. So Wake up! Look around! Find one or two friends to join you and begin a new spiritual journey. Leave behind some of your well-rehearsed answers and instead bring an assortment of good questions. And when you suddenly find yourself face to face with Jesus, Emanuel, God with us, then be prepared to fall on your knees in worship. And when you resume your journey, as we all must, you ll find yourself changed, refreshed or equipped in some new way to share the Good News. And trust that God will continue to guide you. It might not always be the same star, but God will continue to guide you. Buffalo United Methodist Church serving people for Jesus Christ so that we all may know joy! th Street NW Buffalo, MN Bill Reinhart, Pastor pastorbill@buffaloumc.com 5