Openness to Those Wise for the Light of Christ

2 Christmas C January 2, 2022

Jeremiah 31:7-14 Ps

Eph. 1:3-6,15-19a Matthew 2:1-12

Lectionary Link

The use of language is for communication purposes. So, events of communication have purposes. Like this sermon today. Besides being in my contract as a requirement of my employment and justifying my large salary, the purpose of this language event for me would include the attempt to provide some insights on the appointed readings from the Bible, but to try to finish with a charge about what it means for you and me to live the Gospel after we leave the liturgy. In this sermon a language event, I am trying to persuade you about certain values, but not just blindly; I am also trying to show corresponding persuasive techniques with what the Gospel writer and preacher was trying to do.  For a language event to be effective, a speaker needs to understand the audience and what might be relevant to their cultural symbols.  An audience might include people with diverse backgrounds and so the speaker may have to make multiple appeals.

 

Today, we've read the story of the Magi as it was presented in the Gospel of Matthew.  What was the Matthew preacher trying to do with this parable of the magi?  The preacher was appealing to an audience.  From the rest of the Gospel of Matthew, we know that the audience included many Jews who had come to follow Jesus as the fulfillment of the prophetic expectations presented in the Hebrew Scriptures.   Matthew, the preacher made an effort to present the life of Jesus in direct parallel to the events in the life of Moses, and show how Jesus surpasses Moses in being the new direction that God is leading people in.

 

And even though there is a dominant Jewish readership for Matthew, the writer of Matthew also knew that the message of Jesus Christ had come to significant success among the Gentiles.  How does one present the mission to the Gentiles as being crucial from the beginning of the life of Jesus?

 

For this we have the parable of the magi.  They are wisemen and foreigners.  What is the writer of Matthew presenting?  Matthew is showing that the Gospel of Jesus was meant to fulfill the universal appeal of the God of the Jews to entire world.  The Jews had been so oppressed by Gentile overlords for so many years, it was hard to think that the message about the love of God was for the Gentile too.

 

Just like St. Paul tried to show how the message of God was for the Gentiles, the Gospel of Matthew was showing how a Christ-centered Judaism was meant for the entire world, even for the diverse peoples of the Roman empire.

 

What did a foreign person need to find the significance of Jesus in a presentation of God?  Any foreigner, any Gentile, needs wisdom, needed to be wise to follow the natural signs of nature, the guiding stars to come to see the significance of Jesus to the world.

 

The magi parable highlights that natural wisdom can lead anyone, including a foreigner to the significance of Jesus Christ.  The way in which the magi morphed into kings, is because of the impressive gifts, and because of Hebrew Scriptures where it is written that kings would come to an event of light.  In Isaiah 60, it is written, "Nations will come to your light, kings will come to the brightness of your dawn."  Who did Matthew believe to be the light?  Jesus Christ.

 

Can we appreciate how the writer of Matthew writing four decades after Jesus, believed that a Christ-centered Judaism was how Judaism can become a universal religion appealing to the entire world and fulfill the universal intent of God, whose Temple according to the prophet, was to be a house of prayer for all people.

 

Matthew was trying to show how God's house, God’s realm,  belonged to everyone, including foreigners, who were prefigured in the story of the magi.

 

So, what does this mean for us today, for Episcopalians, who may be often God's frozen chosen?  Matthew was writing for Jews but telling them through the story of the magi that Jesus Christ was relevant to the Gentiles who through wisdom could come to know him.

 

Even though we are Episcopalian, we should not be only Episcopalians in the largesse of our open hearts to how God makes a loving appeal to many, many people in our world.

 

While we might appreciate our liturgy and pieties of our particular tradition, let us be open to the appeals of a loving God to all people.  People who practice love and justice have the correct wisdom and we can affirm this kind of wisdom wherever we find it.

 

We are asking for God's blessing on our La Misa in English this year as a way for us to see the universal appeal of the love of Christ beyond our normal practice of liturgy.

 

Let us be willing for the magi beyond our own preferences to arrive at Christ as the light of the world who shows us the way to the love and justice of God.  Amen.

Sunday School, January 2, 2022 2 Christmas C

 Sunday School, January 2, 2022     2 Christmas C

Sunday School

Taking a long trip

Did you ever drive on a long trip with your family for a special vacation?  To Disneyland?  Disneyworld?  Lego Land?  

Do you remember the trip?  Do you remember how excited you were as you waited to arrive at your destination?

The story of the Magi or Wise Men is about three people who took a long trip because they could not wait to arrive at special event, the event of the birth of a very special person who would change their lives and the life of this world.

The Magi or Wise men were foreigners.  They came from other countries to travel to Bethlehem to see Jesus.

This journey is the story of the early church.  The early church was a large group of foreigners who left their homes and their ways of living with the gods of the Roman Empire and they accepted the God who was known to them because of Jesus Christ.  They experienced the birth of Jesus Christ into their lives and so they gave everything, all of the most important gifts of their lives to follow Jesus Christ and to share this message of the Gospel to everyone.

Remember that sometimes we have to take journeys to reach important destinations in our lives.  We have to take a journey through school and education to learn important things which will make ourselves better.

Think about your life as a journey.  The star of God is leading you to new discoveries in your life.  We celebrate the story of the Wise Men because it shows us that we are on a journey to know what the birth of Christ means in our life.

Sermon

  Is Christmas over?  Yes and No.  Christmas Day is gone but the season of Christmas last for 12 days.  Perhaps you’ve heard the song about the 12 days of Christmas.  The song is about getting to open one Christmas gift for each day of the Christmas season.  How many of you opened all of your Christmas Gift on Christmas gifts on Christmas day?  How many of you adults said in July after buying something expensive,”   Dear this is my Christmas and birthday gift?”  How romantic!

  So today is the 10th day of the Christmas Season and when will the Christmas Season end?  It  will on Tuesday night at midnight because, do you know what day Thursday is called?  It is called The Epiphany.  And what season begins on The Epiphany?  Epiphany.

  Today we have read about the wise men who came to see the baby Jesus.  Did any of you play a wise man in the Christmas Pageant?  What did the wise men bring the baby Jesus?  They brought gold, frankincense and myrrh.  Most of us might like gold for a gift…but frankincense and myrrh?  It depends upon how much one is into aroma therapy to appreciate those two gifts.

  How many of you like getting gifts at Christmas?  Well, if you like getting gifts at Christmas then you should thank the wise men, because they are the ones who inspired giving gifts at Christmas.  So let us say to the wise men.  Thank you for starting the gift tradition.

  But the wise men are not just important for the giving of gifts at Christmas time.  They are important for something else.

  Did you know that the wise men were from a different country than Jesus?  And they travelled a long distance to come and visit him.

  Let me ask you a question.  Do you like chocolate?  How many people in this room like chocolate?  If someone who had never had chocolate came to visit us, should we let them have chocolate?  Why should we share our chocolate?  If is it good an sweet, why should we share it?  Does everyone have the right to taste and enjoy chocolate?

Now if we like chocolate and if we should share chocolate with everyone, what about God?

  If we know that God is close to us, should we let everyone know that God is close to them to?  Or should we hide it from them.  Should we let other people know that God loves them and is close to them too?  Why?  Because the best things in life have to be shared with everyone.  The wise men were looking for the best thing in life and they came a long distance to find it.  They found the best person in life in Jesus Christ who is person who taught us that God is very close to us and who taught us that God loves us.  Should we keep that a secret or should we share it?  Just like everyone should be able to enjoy chocolates, everyone should be able to know that God loves them and that God is close to their lives.  That is one of the meanings of the story of the wise men today.  Let us remember that God’s love is for everyone even for the people whom we don’t know.  So let us always be ready to share God’s love with the new people we meet.

Intergenerational Family Service with Holy Eucharist

January 2, 2022: The Second Sunday after Christmas

Gathering Songs:

 We Three Kings of Orient Are, Away in a Manger

Liturgist: Blessed be God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit

People: And Blessed be God’s Kingdom, Now and forever. Amen.

Liturgist:  Oh God, Our hearts are open to you.

And you know us and we can hide nothing from you.

Prepare our hearts and our minds to love you and worship you.

Through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.

Song: We Three Kings ( Blue Hymnal # 128)

1-We three kings of Orient are, bearing gifts we traverse afar, field and fountain moor and mountain, following yonder star.  O, star of wonder, star of night, star with royal beauty bright; westward leading still proceeding, guide us to thy perfect light!

2-Born a King on Bethlehem’s plain, gold I bring to crown him again, King for every ceasing never, over us all to reign. O, star of wonder, star of night, star with royal beauty bright; westward leading still proceeding, guide us to thy perfect light!

Liturgist:         The Lord be with you.

People:            And also with you.

Liturgist:  Let us pray

O God,  you have wonderfully created, and yet more wonderfully restored, the dignity of human nature: All us to share in the divine life of him who humbled himself to share our human life, your Son Jesus Christ; who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

 Litany of Praise: Chant: Alleluia

O God, you are Great!  Alleluia

O God, you have made us! Alleluia

O God, you have made yourself known to us!  Alleluia

O God, you have provided us with us a Savior!  Alleluia

O God, you have given us a Christian family!  Alleluia

O God, you have forgiven our sins!  Alleluia

O God, you brought your Son Jesus back from the dead!  Alleluia

Liturgist: A reading from the Letter of Paul to the Ephesians

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, just as he chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world to be holy and blameless before him in love. He destined us for adoption as his children through Jesus Christ, according to the good pleasure of his will, to the praise of his glorious grace that he freely bestowed on us in the Beloved.

Liturgist: The Word of the Lord

People: Thanks be to God

Liturgist: Please join in reading from Psalm 84

How dear to me is your dwelling, O LORD of hosts! * My soul has a desire and longing for the courts of the LORD; my heart and my flesh rejoice in the living God.

The sparrow has found her a house and the swallow a nest where she may lay her young; * by the side of your altars, O LORD of hosts, my King and my God.

Happy are they who dwell in your house! * they will always be praising you.

Litany of Thanksgiving: Chant: Thanks be to God!

Litanist:

For the good earth, for our food and clothing. Thanks be to God!

For our families and friends. Thanks be to God!

For the talents and gifts that you have given to us. Thanks be to God!

For this day of worship. Thanks be to God!

For health and for a good night’s sleep. Thanks be to God!

For work and for play. Thanks be to God!

For teaching and for learning. Thanks be to God!

For the happy events of our lives. Thanks be to God!

For the celebration of the birthdays and anniversaries of our friends and parish family.

   Thanks be to God!

Liturgist:         The Holy Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to Matthew

People:            Glory to you, Lord Christ.

In the time of King Herod  when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, asking, "Where is the child who has been born king of the Jews? For we observed his star at its rising, and have come to pay him honor to this king of the Jews." When King Herod, who was also called the King of the Jews, heard this, he was frightened, and as well as the people of Jerusalem.  He called together all the chief priests and scribes of the people and he asked them where the Messiah was to be born.  They told him, "In Bethlehem of Judea; for so it has been written by the prophet: 'And you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for from you shall come a ruler who is to shepherd my people Israel.'" Then Herod secretly called for the wise men and learned from them the exact time when the star had appeared. Then he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, "Go and search for the child; and when you have found him, come and tell me so I can go honor him too. When they had heard the king, the wisemen went in the direction of the star until it stopped over the place where the baby Jesus lay. The wisemen were joyful to arrive at their destination. They enter the house and they saw the child with Mary his mother; and they knelt down and honored him.  Then, opening their treasure chests, they offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. They were warned in a dream not to return to Herod so they left for their own country without telling Herod where the Christ child could be found. 

Liturgist:         The Gospel of the Lord.

People:            Praise to you, Lord Christ.

Sermon:

Children’s Creed

We did not make ourselves, so we believe that God the Father is the maker of the world.

Since God is so great and we are so small,

We believe God came into our world and was born as Jesus, son of the Virgin Mary.

We need God’s help and we believe that God saved us by the life, death and

     resurrection of Jesus Christ.

We believe that God is present with us now as the Holy Spirit.

We believe that we are baptized into God’s family the Church where everyone is

     welcome.

We believe that Christ is kind and fair.

We believe that we have a future in knowing Jesus Christ.

And since we all must die, we believe that God will preserve us forever.  Amen.

Litany Phrase: Christ, have mercy.

For fighting and war to cease in our world. Christ, have mercy.

For peace on earth and good will towards all. Christ, have mercy.

For the safety of all who travel. Christ, have mercy.

For jobs for all who need them. Christ, have mercy.

For care of those who are growing old. Christ, have mercy.

For the safety, health and nutrition of all the children in our world. Christ, have mercy.

For the well-being of our families and friends. Christ, have mercy.

For the good health of those we know to be ill. Christ, have mercy.

For the remembrance of those who have died. Christ, have mercy.

For the forgiveness of all of our sins. Christ, have mercy.

Youth Liturgist:          The Peace of the Lord be always with you.

People:                        And also with you.

Song during the preparation of the Altar and the receiving of an offering

Offertory: Song during the preparation of the Altar and the receiving of an offering

Song: We Three Kings (Blue Hymnal # 128, vss.3-4)

3-Frankincense to offer have I: incense owns a Deity nigh; prayer and praising gladly raising, worship him, God most hight. O, star of wonder, star of night, star with royal beauty bright; westward leading still proceeding, guide us to thy perfect light!

4-Myrrh is mine; its bitter perfume breathes a life of gathering gloom; sorrowing, sighing, bleeding, dying, sealed in the stone-cold tomb. O, star of wonder, star of night, star with royal beauty bright; westward leading still proceeding, guide us to thy perfect light!

Doxology

Praise God from whom all blessings flow. Praise Him, all creatures here below.

Praise Him above, ye heavenly host. Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.

Prologue to the Eucharist

Jesus said, “Let the children come to me, for to them belong the kingdom of God.”

All become members of a family by birth or adoption.

Baptism is a celebration of birth into the family of God.

A family meal gathers and sustains each human family.

The Holy Eucharist is the special meal that Jesus gave to his friends to keep us together as the family of Christ.

The Lord be with you

And also with you.

Lift up your hearts

We lift them to the Lord.

Let us give thanks to God.

It is right to give God thanks and praise.

It is very good and right to give thanks, because God made us, Jesus redeemed us and the Holy Spirit dwells in our hearts.  Therefore with Angels and Archangels and all of the world that we see and don’t see, we forever sing this hymn of praise:

Holy, Holy, Holy (Intoned)

Holy, Holy, Holy Lord, God of Power and Might.  Heav’n and earth are full of your glory.

Hosanna in the highest.  Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. 

Hosanna in the highest. Hosanna in the Highest.

(All may gather around the altar)

Our grateful praise we offer to you God, our Creator;

You have made us in your image

And you gave us many men and women of faith to help us to live by faith:

Adam and Eve, Abraham and Sarah, Isaac and Rebekah, Jacob and Rachael.

And then you gave us your Son, Jesus, born of Mary, nurtured by Joseph

And he called us to be sons and daughters of God.

Your Son called us to live better lives and he gave us this Holy Meal so that when we eat the bread and drink the wine, we can know that the Presence of Christ is as near to us as this food and drink that becomes a part of us.

The Prayer continues with these words

And so, Father, we bring you these gifts of bread and wine. Bless and sanctify them by your Holy Spirit to be for your people the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ our Lord.  Bless and sanctify us by your Holy Spirit so that we may love God and our neighbor.

On the night when Jesus was betrayed he took bread, said the blessing, broke the bread, and gave it to his friends, and said, "Take, eat: This is my Body, which is given for you. Do this for the remembrance of me."

After supper, Jesus took the cup of wine, gave thanks, and said, "Drink this, all of you. This is my Blood of the new Covenant, which is shed for you and for many for the forgiveness of sins. Whenever you drink it, do this for the remembrance of me."

Father, we now celebrate the memorial of your Son. When we eat this holy Meal of Bread and Wine, we are telling the entire world about the life, death and resurrection of Christ and that his presence will be with us in our future.

Let this holy meal keep us together as friends who share a special relationship because of your Son Jesus Christ.  May we forever live with praise to God to whom we belong as sons and daughters.

By Christ, and with Christ, and in Christ, in the unity of the Holy Spirit all honor and glory is yours, Almighty Father, now and for ever. AMEN.

And now as our Savior Christ has taught us, we now sing,

(Children rejoin their parents and take up their instruments) 

Our Father: (Renew # 180, West Indian Lord’s Prayer)

Our Father who art in heaven:  Hallowed be thy name.

Thy Kingdom come, Thy Will be done: Hallowed be thy name.

Done on earth as it is in heaven: Hallowed be thy name.

Give us this day our daily bread: Hallowed be thy name.

And forgive us all our debts: Hallowed be thy name.

As we forgive our debtors: Hallowed be thy name.

Lead us not into temptation: Hallowed be thy name.

But deliver us from evil: Hallowed be thy name.

Thine is the kingdom, power, and glory: Hallowed be thy name.

Forever and ever: Hallowed be thy name.

Amen, amen, amen: Hallowed be thy name.

Amen, amen, amen, amen: Hallowed be thy name.

Breaking of the Bread

Celebrant:       Alleluia, Christ our Passover is sacrificed for us.

People:            Therefore let us keep the feast.  Alleluia.

Words of Administration

Communion Song: Away in a Manger

1-Away in a manger, no crib for a bed, the little Lord Jesus laid down his sweet head.  The stars in the bright sky looked down where he lay, the little Lord Jesus asleep on the hay.

2-The cattle are lowing, the baby awakes, but little Lord Jesus no crying he makes.  I love thee, Lord Jesus!  Look down from the sky, and stay by my cradle till morning is nigh.

3-Be near me, Lord Jesus; I ask thee to stay close by me for ever and love me I pray.  Bless all the dear children in thy tender care, and fit us for heaven to live with thee there.

Post-Communion Prayer

Everlasting God, we have gathered for the meal that Jesus asked us to keep;

We have remembered his words of blessing on the bread and the wine.

And His Presence has been known to us.

We have remembered that we are sons and daughters of God and brothers

    and sisters in Christ.

Send us forth now into our everyday lives remembering that the blessing in the

     bread and wine spreads into each time, place and person in our lives,

As we are ever blessed by you, O Father, Son and Holy Spirit.  Amen.

Closing Song: We Three Kings (Blue Hymnal # 128, verse 5)

5-Glorious now behold him arise, King and God and sacrifice; heaven sings alleluia: alleluia the earth replies. O, star of wonder, star of night, star with royal beauty bright; westward leading still proceeding, guide us to thy perfect light!

Dismissal:   

Liturgist: Let us go forth in the Name of Christ.  

People: Thanks be to God!  

Be like the Magi on a Journey

2 Christmas C  January 3, 2016

Jeremiah 31:7-14   Ps
Eph. 1:3-6,15-19a Matthew 2:1-12
 Lectionary Link

  Today is the tenth day of Christmas and what gift did your true love bring you?  If you received the ten Lords a-leaping then you’re already had such excitement that this sermon will be but a yawn.  And tomorrow you have the eleven pipers piping to wake you up to get you back on your post-holiday schedule.  Happy New Year. Today we have read narrative about the Wise men from the East, who brought the Christ child gifts. The magi from the East is a curious story that delights us at Christmastide because we've never been able to experience such a unique astronomical manifestation such as occurred in the star of Bethlehem.  We always do an Oliver Stone version of the magi during the Christmas pageant since for staging purposes we have the magi arrive at the stable.  Those producers do not want us to spend extra money on productions cost so we have to make minor adjustments to the script.  Kings are more interesting than “magi” or intellectuals because Kings wear more elaborate costumes.  How did the three kings traditions get associated with the Magi?  The writer of the books of Psalms and Isaiah wrote about kings coming and bringing gifts.  And Kings, of course, would ride camels and there had to be three of them since there were three gifts?  Well, the Gospel does not say that the magi were kings, and we don’t know if they rode camels, and we don’t know how many there were.  They probably traveled in a large group, a caravan for safety on the road.  And they didn’t arrive at the stable with the shepherds; they visited the Christ child at his home at a much later time.  So, if we are supposed to be about truth, are we worried about Christmas Pageant productions, let alone our famous songs about “We three kings?”  I’m not worried; there is much more to be worried about in this world than this.  Could it be that the magi were used by the Gospel writer to characterized learned foreigners and gentiles of faith who had made an honest search to come to know Christ?  They had read in the book of Numbers about the star that came from Jacob.  And like today, the word star can be a metaphor for a famous person.  And so they were interested in that “star.”  The Caesar had a comet at his birth; and Christians believed that Christ was more than a Caesar; they believed that all creation responded to the Christ. So this story is a statement about what was happening in the early church:  Gentiles from far and wide were accepting Christ as the Messiah and many Jews were not.  The Magi represented all of the foreigners who had found the birth of Christ in their lives.  This story of the Magi proclaims that the life of Christ was not to be locked up in Palestine.  It was not to be held captive by the religious ritual practices of the synagogue.  This story is a proclamation that God belongs within the experience of people of all of the earth; it was the birth of Christ coming to anyone who wanted it which made the message of the accessibility of God’s presence known.    

   Amongst the many lessons that are contained in the story of the magi, I would like to offer a reading of this story that centers upon the notion of the journey as a spiritual quest.  Since the Gospels are spiritual manuals for Christian disciples, it is not far-fetched to understand the journey of the magi as encoding important features of the Christian life.  

  The Christian life can be seen as a journey.  One important feature of journey is a time of dislocation from the familiar settings of one’s life.  Why are we often happy to get home after a vacation?  It’s because we enjoy the convenience and predictability of home life.  Life on the road is new and uncertain. But leaps in learning cannot take place unless we are exposed to new experiences.  New experiences help us to surpass old knowledge, old biases, old prejudices.  The Magi gave up the familiarity of home to make the quest for something new.  

  That brings us to the second point of the magi's journey: Their journey involved faith because it involved risk.  They were driven toward an undefined unknown, yet their hearts burned with hope and anticipation. One of the attributes that we like in children is their curiosity.  They have this insatiable drive, this quest for the new.  It often gets them into trouble but it enlarges their life experience.  The writer to the Hebrews, called faith the assurance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not yet seen.  The magi had this evidence of faith.  This deep sense of outcome before they even arrived at their goal.  We as Christians, live by faith, because we still have not attained to things for which we hope. Hope presents the vision; faith is the mobilization of our lives toward a positive outcome.  

   Next, the magi were star gazers.  They followed their star.  They were in touch with their environment.  They believed that the heavens declared the glory of God.  You've heard it said that there are two types of people: One sees the cup as half empty, the other sees it as half full.  How do you and I read our environments.  Do we see our environment as fatalistically working against us?  Or do we see ourselves as living and moving and being in God.  Do we see the ground of our lives as hallowed ground, a pathway to the new enlargements that God has for us?  Christian faith allows us to interpret our environment as a divine ecology.  In this divine ecology we begin to find God, in bread and wine, and water, oil, fire, in the beauty of nature, and in the people around us.  And we begin to read God's creation as important signs in our spiritual journey.  God’s creation was not made to be a distracting idol or a frightening hindrance to our journey.  We have seen the star.  The magi learned to read God's creation as signs to assist them in their spiritual quest.  

   Fourth, the magi brought gold, frankincense, and myrrh.  We may think that these are exotic gifts.  But I would call them native gifts.  They brought the obvious gifts indigenous to the place where they lived. There is a message for you and me: We should give to God the native talent of our own lives. God does not ask of us the exotic or the impossible; God wants only what come from our natural abilities.  God is delighted to receive the gifts that we already have.   And if we give what we have, we will find that we have more abilities and gifts than we have ever realized.

   Finally, what is the end of the magi journey?  It is to arrive at the birth place of the Christ, the Messiah, the King. Bethlehem.  What is the goal of the Christian life?  It is to be the very place of the birth of Christ.  We must be born again.  We must be the very place where the Christ child is born and experience the elevation our lives to a sense of dignity and worth, a sense of royalty.  The magi reached their goal.  In Christian baptism, we reach our goal when Christ is born in us, but that is only the beginning of the Christian life.  From the birth of Christ in us, we must return home by a different route.  We must bring that message to aid others in their spiritual quest.  

  Remember today, you and I are the magi, the wise persons.   Are we living up to this calling?  Let us today, comfort and exhort one another in this exciting journey of wisdom, hope and faith.  Amen. 

Sunday School, January 3, 2016 2 Christmas C

Sunday School, January 3, 2016     2 Christmas C

Sunday School

Taking a long trip

Did you ever drive on a long trip with your family for a special vacation?  To Disneyland?  Disneyworld?  Lego Land?  

Do you remember the trip?  Do you remember how excited you were as you waited to arrive at your destination?

The story of the Magi or Wise Men is about three people who took a long trip because they could not wait to arrive at special event, the event of the birth of a very special person who would change their lives and the life of this world.

The Magi or Wise men were foreigners.  They came from other countries to travel to Bethlehem to see Jesus.

This journey is the story of the early church.  The early church was a large group of foreigners who left their homes and their ways of living with the gods of the Roman Empire and they accepted the God who was known to them because of Jesus Christ.  They experienced the birth of Jesus Christ into their lives and so they gave everything, all of the most important gifts of their lives to follow Jesus Christ and to share this message of the Gospel to everyone.

Remember that sometimes we have to take journeys to reach important destinations in our lives.  We have to take a journey through school and education to learn important things which will make ourselves better.

Think about your life as a journey.  The star of God is leading you to new discoveries in your life.  We celebrate the story of the Wise Men because it shows us that we are on a journey to know what the birth of Christ means in our life.

Sermon

  Is Christmas over?  Yes and No.  Christmas Day is gone but the season of Christmas last for 12 days.  Perhaps you’ve heard the song about the 12 days of Christmas.  The song is about getting to open one Christmas gift for each day of the Christmas season.  How many of you opened all of your Christmas Gift on Christmas gifts on Christmas day?  How many of you adults said in July after buying something expensive,”   Dear this is my Christmas and birthday gift?”  How romantic!

  So today is the 10th day of the Christmas Season and when will the Christmas Season end?  It  will on Tuesday night at midnight because, do you know what day Thursday is called?  It is called The Epiphany.  And what season begins on The Epiphany?  Epiphany.

  Today we have read about the wise men who came to see the baby Jesus.  Did any of you play a wise man in the Christmas Pageant?  What did the wise men bring the baby Jesus?  They brought gold, frankincense and myrrh.  Most of us might like gold for a gift…but frankincense and myrrh?  It depends upon how much one is into aroma therapy to appreciate those two gifts.

  How many of you like getting gifts at Christmas?  Well, if you like getting gifts at Christmas then you should thank the wise men, because they are the ones who inspired giving gifts at Christmas.  So let us say to the wise men.  Thank you for starting the gift tradition.

  But the wise men are not just important for the giving of gifts at Christmas time.  They are important for something else.

  Did you know that the wise men were from a different country than Jesus?  And they travelled a long distance to come and visit him.

  Let me ask you a question.  Do you like chocolate?  How many people in this room like chocolate?  If someone who had never had chocolate came to visit us, should we let them have chocolate?  Why should we share our chocolate?  If is it good an sweet, why should we share it?  Does everyone have the right to taste and enjoy chocolate?

Now if we like chocolate and if we should share chocolate with everyone, what about God?

  If we know that God is close to us, should we let everyone know that God is close to them to?  Or should we hide it from them.  Should we let other people know that God loves them and is close to them too?  Why?  Because the best things in life have to be shared with everyone.  The wise men were looking for the best thing in life and they came a long distance to find it.  They found the best person in life in Jesus Christ who is person who taught us that God is very close to us and who taught us that God loves us.  Should we keep that a secret or should we share it?  Just like everyone should be able to enjoy chocolates, everyone should be able to know that God loves them and that God is close to their lives.  That is one of the meanings of the story of the wise men today.  Let us remember that God’s love is for everyone even for the people whom we don’t know.  So let us always be ready to share God’s love with the new people we meet.

St. John the Divine Episcopal Church

17740 Peak Avenue, Morgan Hill, CA 95037

Family Service with Holy Eucharist

January 3, 2016: The Second Sunday after Christmas

Gathering Songs:

 We Three Kings of Orient Are, Away in a Manger

Liturgist: Blessed be God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit

People: And Blessed be God’s Kingdom, Now and forever. Amen.

Liturgist:  Oh God, Our hearts are open to you.

And you know us and we can hide nothing from you.

Prepare our hearts and our minds to love you and worship you.

Through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.

Song: We Three Kings ( Blue Hymnal # 128)

1-We three kings of Orient are, bearing gifts we traverse afar, field and fountain moor and mountain, following yonder star.  O, star of wonder, star of night, star with royal beauty bright; westward leading still proceeding, guide us to thy perfect light!

2-Born a King on Bethlehem’s plain, gold I bring to crown him again, King for every ceasing never, over us all to reign. O, star of wonder, star of night, star with royal beauty bright; westward leading still proceeding, guide us to thy perfect light!

Liturgist:         The Lord be with you.

People:            And also with you.

Liturgist:  Let us pray

O God,  you have wonderfully created, and yet more wonderfully restored, the dignity of human nature: All us to share in the divine life of him who humbled himself to share our human life, your Son Jesus Christ; who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

 Litany of Praise: Chant: Alleluia

O God, you are Great!  Alleluia

O God, you have made us! Alleluia

O God, you have made yourself known to us!  Alleluia

O God, you have provided us with us a Savior!  Alleluia

O God, you have given us a Christian family!  Alleluia

O God, you have forgiven our sins!  Alleluia

O God, you brought your Son Jesus back from the dead!  Alleluia

Liturgist: A reading from the Letter of Paul to the Ephesians

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, just as he chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world to be holy and blameless before him in love. He destined us for adoption as his children through Jesus Christ, according to the good pleasure of his will, to the praise of his glorious grace that he freely bestowed on us in the Beloved.

Liturgist: The Word of the Lord

People: Thanks be to God

Liturgist: Please join in reading from Psalm 84

How dear to me is your dwelling, O LORD of hosts! * My soul has a desire and longing for the courts of the LORD; my heart and my flesh rejoice in the living God.

The sparrow has found her a house and the swallow a nest where she may lay her young; * by the side of your altars, O LORD of hosts, my King and my God.

Happy are they who dwell in your house! * they will always be praising you.

Litany of Thanksgiving: Chant: Thanks be to God!

Litanist:

For the good earth, for our food and clothing. Thanks be to God!

For our families and friends. Thanks be to God!

For the talents and gifts that you have given to us. Thanks be to God!

For this day of worship. Thanks be to God!

For health and for a good night’s sleep. Thanks be to God!

For work and for play. Thanks be to God!

For teaching and for learning. Thanks be to God!

For the happy events of our lives. Thanks be to God!

For the celebration of the birthdays and anniversaries of our friends and parish family.

   Thanks be to God!

Liturgist:         The Holy Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to Matthew

People:            Glory to you, Lord Christ.

In the time of King Herod  when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, asking, "Where is the child who has been born king of the Jews? For we observed his star at its rising, and have come to pay him honor to this king of the Jews." When King Herod, who was also called the King of the Jews, heard this, he was frightened, and as well as the people of Jerusalem.  He called together all the chief priests and scribes of the people and he asked them where the Messiah was to be born.  They told him, "In Bethlehem of Judea; for so it has been written by the prophet: 'And you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for from you shall come a ruler who is to shepherd my people Israel.'" Then Herod secretly called for the wise men and learned from them the exact time when the star had appeared. Then he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, "Go and search for the child; and when you have found him, come and tell me so I can go honor him too. When they had heard the king, the wisemen went in the direction of the star until it stopped over the place where the baby Jesus lay. The wisemen were joyful to arrive at their destination. They enter the house and they saw the child with Mary his mother; and they knelt down and honored him.  Then, opening their treasure chests, they offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. They were warned in a dream not to return to Herod so they left for their own country without telling Herod where the Christ child could be found. 

Liturgist:         The Gospel of the Lord.

People:            Praise to you, Lord Christ.

Sermon:

Children’s Creed

We did not make ourselves, so we believe that God the Father is the maker of the world.

Since God is so great and we are so small,

We believe God came into our world and was born as Jesus, son of the Virgin Mary.

We need God’s help and we believe that God saved us by the life, death and

     resurrection of Jesus Christ.

We believe that God is present with us now as the Holy Spirit.

We believe that we are baptized into God’s family the Church where everyone is

     welcome.

We believe that Christ is kind and fair.

We believe that we have a future in knowing Jesus Christ.

And since we all must die, we believe that God will preserve us forever.  Amen.

Litany Phrase: Christ, have mercy.

For fighting and war to cease in our world. Christ, have mercy.

For peace on earth and good will towards all. Christ, have mercy.

For the safety of all who travel. Christ, have mercy.

For jobs for all who need them. Christ, have mercy.

For care of those who are growing old. Christ, have mercy.

For the safety, health and nutrition of all the children in our world. Christ, have mercy.

For the well-being of our families and friends. Christ, have mercy.

For the good health of those we know to be ill. Christ, have mercy.

For the remembrance of those who have died. Christ, have mercy.

For the forgiveness of all of our sins. Christ, have mercy.

Youth Liturgist:          The Peace of the Lord be always with you.

People:                        And also with you.

Song during the preparation of the Altar and the receiving of an offering

Offertory: Song during the preparation of the Altar and the receiving of an offering

Song: We Three Kings (Blue Hymnal # 128, vss.3-4)

3-Frankincense to offer have I: incense owns a Deity nigh; prayer and praising gladly raising, worship him, God most hight. O, star of wonder, star of night, star with royal beauty bright; westward leading still proceeding, guide us to thy perfect light!

4-Myrrh is mine; its bitter perfume breathes a life of gathering gloom; sorrowing, sighing, bleeding, dying, sealed in the stone-cold tomb. O, star of wonder, star of night, star with royal beauty bright; westward leading still proceeding, guide us to thy perfect light!

Doxology

Praise God from whom all blessings flow. Praise Him, all creatures here below.

Praise Him above, ye heavenly host. Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.

Prologue to the Eucharist

Jesus said, “Let the children come to me, for to them belong the kingdom of God.”

All become members of a family by birth or adoption.

Baptism is a celebration of birth into the family of God.

A family meal gathers and sustains each human family.

The Holy Eucharist is the special meal that Jesus gave to his friends to keep us together as the family of Christ.

The Lord be with you

And also with you.

Lift up your hearts

We lift them to the Lord.

Let us give thanks to God.

It is right to give God thanks and praise.

It is very good and right to give thanks, because God made us, Jesus redeemed us and the Holy Spirit dwells in our hearts.  Therefore with Angels and Archangels and all of the world that we see and don’t see, we forever sing this hymn of praise:

Holy, Holy, Holy (Intoned)

Holy, Holy, Holy Lord, God of Power and Might.  Heav’n and earth are full of your glory.

Hosanna in the highest.  Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. 

Hosanna in the highest. Hosanna in the Highest.

(All may gather around the altar)

Our grateful praise we offer to you God, our Creator;

You have made us in your image

And you gave us many men and women of faith to help us to live by faith:

Adam and Eve, Abraham and Sarah, Isaac and Rebekah, Jacob and Rachael.

And then you gave us your Son, Jesus, born of Mary, nurtured by Joseph

And he called us to be sons and daughters of God.

Your Son called us to live better lives and he gave us this Holy Meal so that when we eat the bread and drink the wine, we can know that the Presence of Christ is as near to us as this food and drink that becomes a part of us.

The Prayer continues with these words

And so, Father, we bring you these gifts of bread and wine. Bless and sanctify them by your Holy Spirit to be for your people the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ our Lord.  Bless and sanctify us by your Holy Spirit so that we may love God and our neighbor.

On the night when Jesus was betrayed he took bread, said the blessing, broke the bread, and gave it to his friends, and said, "Take, eat: This is my Body, which is given for you. Do this for the remembrance of me."

After supper, Jesus took the cup of wine, gave thanks, and said, "Drink this, all of you. This is my Blood of the new Covenant, which is shed for you and for many for the forgiveness of sins. Whenever you drink it, do this for the remembrance of me."

Father, we now celebrate the memorial of your Son. When we eat this holy Meal of Bread and Wine, we are telling the entire world about the life, death and resurrection of Christ and that his presence will be with us in our future.

Let this holy meal keep us together as friends who share a special relationship because of your Son Jesus Christ.  May we forever live with praise to God to whom we belong as sons and daughters.

By Christ, and with Christ, and in Christ, in the unity of the Holy Spirit all honor and glory is yours, Almighty Father, now and for ever. AMEN.

And now as our Savior Christ has taught us, we now sing,

(Children rejoin their parents and take up their instruments) 

Our Father: (Renew # 180, West Indian Lord’s Prayer)

Our Father who art in heaven:  Hallowed be thy name.

Thy Kingdom come, Thy Will be done: Hallowed be thy name.

Done on earth as it is in heaven: Hallowed be thy name.

Give us this day our daily bread: Hallowed be thy name.

And forgive us all our debts: Hallowed be thy name.

As we forgive our debtors: Hallowed be thy name.

Lead us not into temptation: Hallowed be thy name.

But deliver us from evil: Hallowed be thy name.

Thine is the kingdom, power, and glory: Hallowed be thy name.

Forever and ever: Hallowed be thy name.

Amen, amen, amen: Hallowed be thy name.

Amen, amen, amen, amen: Hallowed be thy name.

Breaking of the Bread

Celebrant:       Alleluia, Christ our Passover is sacrificed for us.

People:            Therefore let us keep the feast.  Alleluia.

Words of Administration

Communion Song: Away in a Manger

1-Away in a manger, no crib for a bed, the little Lord Jesus laid down his sweet head.  The stars in the bright sky looked down where he lay, the little Lord Jesus asleep on the hay.

2-The cattle are lowing, the baby awakes, but little Lord Jesus no crying he makes.  I love thee, Lord Jesus!  Look down from the sky, and stay by my cradle till morning is nigh.

3-Be near me, Lord Jesus; I ask thee to stay close by me for ever and love me I pray.  Bless all the dear children in thy tender care, and fit us for heaven to live with thee there.

Post-Communion Prayer

Everlasting God, we have gathered for the meal that Jesus asked us to keep;

We have remembered his words of blessing on the bread and the wine.

And His Presence has been known to us.

We have remembered that we are sons and daughters of God and brothers

    and sisters in Christ.

Send us forth now into our everyday lives remembering that the blessing in the

     bread and wine spreads into each time, place and person in our lives,

As we are ever blessed by you, O Father, Son and Holy Spirit.  Amen.

Closing Song: We Three Kings (Blue Hymnal # 128, verse 5)

5-Glorious now behold him arise, King and God and sacrifice; heaven sings alleluia: alleluia the earth replies. O, star of wonder, star of night, star with royal beauty bright; westward leading still proceeding, guide us to thy perfect light!

Dismissal:   

Liturgist: Let us go forth in the Name of Christ.  

People: Thanks be to God!