The Surprise Continues
Christmas is all about surprises: Lives are never the
same after an encounter with the Christ child. The
time after Epiphany demonstrates many different
ways to respond to God’s call. The baptism of
repentance described in Acts causes people to
immediately speak in tongues and prophesy. When Jesus calls the first
disciples, the fishermen leave their boats and follow him instantly.
On the other hand, Jonah is a fine example of how God also calls
flawed and uncooperative people to carry out God’s purposes. And who
but God would have thought to call Saul, that violent persecutor of the
followers of Jesus, to be a key figure in the spread of God’s word to the
Gentiles?
In scripture and in our own lives, God's gifts don't always come
in the desired form. A suffering Savior, rather than a triumphant
Messiah, was not what everyone expected nor wanted - then or now.
The time after Epiphany ends with the Transfiguration. The clear
message of this event is that neither Jesus nor his followers can stay on
the mountaintop, removed from the mess, suffering, and evil of human
life. The surprise the wise men experienced at the beginning of Jesus'
earthly life continues at its end in His expectation of all his followers,
including you. We are to responsibly be his presence, irregardless of the
cost.
-Pastor Starkey
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