“As Was His Custom”
Nehemiah
8:1-3, 5-7, 8-10
Luke
4:14-21
Ever so silently we have moved
from the season of Christmas into the season of Epiphany, now three Sundays
into it. There has been no fanfare, no preparation, no building up for Epiphany like there was with
Christmas. In many ways, our silent and
overlooking movement to this season is characteristic of the Gospels
themselves. Birth stories have given way
to ministry stories. Stories of the
infant Jesus have given way to stories of the adult Jesus. Very little is mentioned about the in between
years. No fanfare, no preparation, no
building up stories moving us to the beginning of Jesus’ ministry thirty some
odd years after he was born. Only a silent movement from birth to ministry. Only a silent movement from
Christmas to Epiphany.
And yet, it
is in this season when we make some of the most radical and amazing claims
about who we believe is the one who was born Christmas
morning. Epiphany means manifestation or
appearance of the divine. In Jesus
Christ, we have seen the manifestation and appearance of the divine, of God’s
self-giving grace and love. In Jesus
Christ, we have seen God’s very self, the very Word of
God in the flesh.
And yet, this
season of Epiphany is about something else as well. It’s about more than our Christology of the
true nature and identity of Jesus of Nazareth.
The season of Epiphany is also about all those times even now in our own
lives in which we see the manifestation and appearance of the divine in our
midst. I’m not talking about seeing
visions of angels or bright lights, or seeing mountains being moved and valleys
being made high, or even seeing strange things that have no explanation. I’m talking about knowing within our heart,
mind, and soul, that we have seen God, encountered God, and been in the
presence of God’s divine glory.
In February
of 1987 at a farmhouse in
Did Nancy Fowler and the thousands
of other people truly see an epiphany of the divine? Many people claim they did, however others
say that it is just a case of desperate people longing for a hopeful sign. Whatever happened in
Our texts for this morning gives us an important witness for the
power of God’s presence through the reading and the hearing of Scripture. Our Old Testament text from Nehemiah reminds
us that as God’s people the reading and hearing of God’s Word is central to
worship and to being a faithful people.
For the Israelites, the Torah, or
Law of God, was more than just words on a scroll; it was the tie that bound
them together to the events in which God had directly intervened in their
lives. The Torah reminded them how God
had freed them from the bonds of slavery and delivered them from the oppression
at the hands of the Egyptians. The Torah
reminded them of God’s gift of the bread from heaven that fed them and nourished
them during their long journey in the wilderness. And most importantly it reminded them of
God’s manifestation and appearance to them at
The reading and hearing of the
Torah for the Israelites was a momentous and significant occasion; one that
brought people together from all over the place; one that made them weep and
rejoice. It was an occasion of
celebration and feasting for the life that God gives, for the freedom and
deliverance by God’s almighty hand, for the presence of God in their lives, and
for the commandments of God, which lead to righteousness and salvation.
This Torah – this way of life –
this Word of God is worth more than gold and is sweeter than holy. This is the lesson taught by the ancient
rabbis to their young students. Before
the children could read, they were invited to lick the Torah scroll on which
the Rabbis had placed a drop of honey, so that the children will know from
earliest memory the sweetness of God’s word to God’s people.
Every Sunday we gather together as
God’s people in worship to read and hear God’s word for us. In doing so, we enter into a conversation,
not just with the Biblical texts, but also with God. Through the Holy Spirit, God continues to
speak to us and reveal to us who God is and what God is doing, even in these
ancient writings from long ago. In the
reading and the hearing of God’s word in scripture is the reminder of our
shared story with the Israelites and our own story of God’s direct intervention
through Jesus Christ in our own life together.
In Jesus Christ, we too have been
freed, freed from the bonds of slavery of sin and death. In Jesus Christ, we too have been given the
true bread from heaven that feeds and nourishes us during our journey of
faith. In Jesus Christ, we too are in
the presence of the living God in our lives.
In Jesus Christ, we too have been given the commandments of faith and
obedience, which lead to righteousness and salvation and eternal life. The hearing and the reading of the word in
worship should be our moment to celebrate.
And yet, for many people, worship is the least celebratory event for
them in the week.
Michael
Lindvall, in his book The Christian Life, gives a quote from a book entitled, Teaching
a Stone to Talk by Annie Dillard, who writes,
“On the whole, I do not find
Christians, outside the catacombs, sufficiently sensible to conditions. Does anyone have the foggiest idea what sort
of power we so blithely invoke? It is
madness to wear ladies’ hats in church, we should all
be wearing crash helmets. Ushers should
issue life preservers and signal flares; they should lash us to our pews.”
In many ways, the quote from Annie Dillard is indicative of
just how we have lost the sense of what it means to worship. Worship is not for entertainment purposes
only, and is not to be done passively.
In worship, through the reading and hearing of the Word, we are
encountered in a powerful way and then called to be different than we were when
we first walked in the doors.
How we come to church and listen
to God’s word is as every bit as important, and more, as just coming. Every Sunday morning, we should always
approach worship as active participants with the same questions: What is God’s
word for us today? What is God’s word
for me today? How will we apply God’s
word to our daily living? How do I make
myself relevant to God’s word? What will
I give of myself during this time of worship that will allow me to be more
faithful and obedient when I walk out of the church doors?
In worship,
through the living word of the living God, we become acutely aware of our need
for God’s continual presence and gift of grace in our lives, and we are lead to
God through the Spirit into the very presence of the one, who is the source of
our life, Jesus Christ.
It was the
custom of the people of God to come together from far away to hear God’s word
for them. And it was Jesus’ custom to
go to the synagogue to hear God’s word read and proclaimed. In doing so, they encountered the living and
active God, an encounter that caused them to weep in joy and in sorrow, an
encounter that moved them to respond in faith and obedience.
If it was their custom, then it should be our custom as well. Rejoice my friends, for the word of God has been fulfilled in your hearing today. Amen.