Epiphany 2A
January 19, 2020
John 1:29-42
INTRODUCTION
This second
Sunday after Epiphany we continue with a strong Epiphany theme: the revelation
of God in the world. We’ll see it in the form of Spirit, and voice, and call. And
in our Gospel reading, we’re hear it in a special name John uses for Jesus: the
Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. If you are familiar with the
liturgy you will likely notice: this is the text on which the song we sing at
communion is based. It’s actually the only time in the Bible that this particular
phrase is used, but it is clearly important – which is why John the Baptist
uses it twice in a row!
That’s
interesting, and important, but it is not what draws me in about our Gospel
text today, or Epiphany in general. In the season of Epiphany, we talk a lot
about seeing God revealed, and this word, see, and other words like it,
play a prominent role in today’s story. So, as you listen especially to the
Gospel story, notice how often you hear words like see, look, behold, found.
Maybe you even want to circle them whenever you hear them. We’ll be making a
quick detour today from Matthew’s Gospel into John’s Gospel, and for John,
words like that, about seeing, are a big deal, so we’re going to explore that a
bit today. Let’s listen.
[READ]
Grace to you and peace from God our
Father and our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
In my dream
life, I live in a house where I know where everything is. Like, I think, “I
need that book,” and I go to the place where the book is, and I find it there,
every time. Does that sort of house exist? Does anyone have one? (Teach me!)
Of course, I
live with a curious 3 and a 4 year old, and a sometimes absent-minded husband,
and I have myself been known to pick something up to do something, get
distracted, put it down somewhere else to do something different instead, and
then come back later and wonder why my car keys are in the fridge. This is one
reason I am almost always late to things – I spend a solid portion of my life looking
for things.
Even if you do
have one of those magic houses where you never lose anything, I think all of us
spend a good portion of our lives looking for something – and a lot of the
time, we don’t even know what it is. I’ve been thinking about that a lot this
week, because what gripped my attention in our Gospel reading are those first
words that Jesus utters to his disciples: “What are you looking for?”
Such a normal question – one we regularly hear in our house! What are you
looking for? But the context of the question causes it to take hold of my
heart, and not let go. As I mentioned, these are the first words Jesus says to
his disciples, in fact the first words he says in this Gospel at all, and first
impressions matter. The Evangelist John is incredibly careful in his writing
and every word choice means something, so I have to assume that this first
question Jesus asks is an essential one in our understanding of entering a life
of discipleship. What are you looking for?
You know, I
think a lot of times, our culture tries to answer this for us. It tells us that
we are looking for a new car, or a bigger house, or whiter teeth, or a new
outfit, or a flatter belly. And then it tells us that if we can find these
things, we will be happy. And then it tells us that these things can be ours,
for a price. Suddenly, we no longer know what we are truly looking for, because
we are so busy trying to acquire what we think will fill whatever void needs
filling. But all the while, Jesus’ question lingers over us, persistently
asking, “But what are you really looking for? What is your deepest
longing? What is your greatest hope? What are you looking for?”
Are you looking
for community in a world in which people feel increasingly lonely and isolated
from one another? Are you looking for authenticity or acceptance, in a world
quick to judge and quicker to hide anything that might not be accepted? Are you
looking for silence in the midst of so much noise? Are you looking for meaningful
connection, and a place to serve, in a culture that encourages us always to
look out for ourselves first? Are you looking for hope, and something to
believe in, when the headlines seem so devastating? Are you looking for some
sabbath rest, an escape from 24/7 busy-ness and demands? Are you looking for
truth, where everywhere you look are cries of “fake news”? Are you looking for
clarity, or direction, in lives so full of spiritual and physical stuff that
you can’t see which way to go? What are you looking for?
I’ll tell you
one thing that I’m looking for (when I’m not looking for my car keys or my
child’s other shoe). I find I am often looking for space, both physical and
spiritual. This was part of the reason I decided to pursue for Lent this year a
theme about simplicity. Over the course of the six weeks of Lent, I’m hoping to
walk with you to learn about how to simplify our lives of all the junk that
gets in the way of us having a deep and meaningful relationship with Christ.
Maybe the clutter distracts you from having time to pray. Maybe something in
your heart is blocking you from letting the Spirit in to guide you. Maybe it’s
a bit of both. During Lent, I hope we can all find a way to get some of the
junk out and find the space just to be with God.
So that’s what
I’m looking for. What are you looking for? In your bulletin, you will
find a quarter sheet of colored paper with this question on it. For the rest of
the service, and the week if you need it, I invite you to think about this
question, and write it on this piece of paper with as much clarity as you are
comfortable. You don’t need to sign it if you don’t want to – I just want to
get a sense of what members in this congregation are looking for. Next week, we
will be electing new council members, and shortly thereafter that council will
hold a retreat during which we will make some goals for the coming year. As we
make those goals, it would be helpful to know what you, the congregation, are
looking for, so that we can work to provide that insofar as it is possible,
through our programing. If we don’t know what people are looking for, how can
we provide it? I’d also like to know, as your pastor, what you are seeking, so
that I can also work to provide that in my preaching this year.
Now, going back
to the Gospel text… how did the disciples answer Jesus’ question?
Interestingly, they seem to dodge it, by asking another question: “Rabbi, where
are you staying?” That word, “staying,” is an important one for John the
evangelist. In Greek the word is meno, which appears over 40 times in this
Gospel and is often translated as “abide.” The reason it is important is that
for John, “to abide” is to be in relationship with Jesus, and for John, is the
very definition of faith, of discipleship: abide with Jesus.
So what does it
mean, then, that the disciples’ answer to Jesus’ question, “what are you
looking for?” is, “Rabbi, where do you abide?” I read that and hear from them a
cry for a life-giving relationship with the Lamb of God. What are you looking
for? I’m looking for you, Jesus, for you to know my heart, for you to
guide my ways, for your peace and wisdom to fill me up. Where do you abide,
teacher, so that I may abide there with you? I’m not sure what exactly I’m
looking for, but I know that I’m going to find it when I abide with you.
Because in the
end, that is what we all are looking for, isn’t it? For a meaningful
relationship in which we find truth, peace, comfort, wisdom and purpose, to
abide for all of time in the one who brings life, who brings it abundantly. For
the one whose very essence is love, who is a light to scatter the darkness of
night. For the one who loves us just exactly as we are, but who also loves us
too much to let us stay in our lostness and our brokenness, and so always is
calling us out into service and into life.
What are you
looking for, people of God?
Let us pray… Abiding
God, we don’t always know what exactly we are looking for, but we know that we
will find all that we need in you. Guide our hearts and our ways, so that we
would find whatever it is that we are looking for. In the name of the Father
and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen.
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