Do You Have The Face Of Faith Fulfilled When You Have A Vision Of Volunteering To Glorify God?
Good Morning Friends,
Yesterday was the Feast Day of Saint Stephen, the second day of Christmas. And it is all tied up in the idea of the incarnation, for Stephen demonstrates the nature of what it means to have Christ in us. God became one of us in order to meets us and Stephen demonstrates what it means to extend the relationship back. No, I am not suggesting we all become martyrs, but I am suggesting that we are all potential heroes especially when we extend the relationship with God in service. The method of entering into this relationship for Christ was leaving a glorious throne and becoming limited, for the Infinite became finite. Today we have the stories of Mary, Joseph, and Jesus demonstrating just how both ordinary and extraordinary the situation was in being part of the promise given to Abraham and his family of faith. And we have examples of the members of the larger family of God in the lives of Simeon and Anna helping us to grasp what all this waiting for Christmas was all about. So, this morning I would like to extend the story suggesting that the lives of Simeon and Joseph, Mary and Anna and our suffering in service too can become a signature of Christ’s presence in us in sharing the message of the season. You see there is a connection between serving with conviction and sacrificing our pride and privilege. Even years after the fact, Paul could not forget the face of Stephen as he sat on trial before the Sanhedrin. Joseph and Mary and Simeon and Anna were amazed in the presence of Jesus even as an infant. They all I think had a wonderful countenance about them that is instructive for us too when we serve. So, Do You Have The Face Of Faith Fulfilled When You Have A Vision Of Volunteering To Glorify God?
Scripture: By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to set out for a place that he was to receive as an inheritance; and he set out, not knowing where he was going. By faith he received power of procreation, even though he was too old—and Sarah herself was barren—because he considered him faithful who had promised. Therefore from one person, and this one as good as dead, descendants were born, “as many as the stars of heaven and as the innumerable grains of sand by the seashore.” By faith Abraham, when put to the test, offered up Isaac. He who had received the promises was ready to offer up his only son, of whom he had been told, “It is through Isaac that descendants shall be named for you.” He considered the fact that God is able even to raise someone from the dead—and figuratively speaking, he did receive him back.
Hebrews 11:8, 11-12, 17-19 (NRSV)
After these things the word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision, “Do not be afraid, Abram, I am your shield; your reward shall be very great.” But Abram said, “O Lord God, what will you give me, for I continue childless, and the heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus?” And Abram said, “You have given me no offspring, and so a slave born in my house is to be my heir.” But the word of the Lord came to him, “This man shall not be your heir; no one but your very own issue shall be your heir.” He brought him outside and said, “Look toward heaven and count the stars, if you are able to count them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your descendants be.” And he believed the Lord; and the Lord reckoned it to him as righteousness. The Lord dealt with Sarah as he had said, and the Lord did for Sarah as he had promised. Sarah conceived and bore Abraham a son in his old age, at the time of which God had spoken to him. Abraham gave the name Isaac to his son whom Sarah bore him.
Genesis 15:1-6; 21:1-3 (NRSV)
When the time came for their purification according to the law of Moses, they brought him up to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord (as it is written in the law of the Lord, “Every firstborn male shall be designated as holy to the Lord”), and they offered a sacrifice according to what is stated in the law of the Lord, “a pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons.” Now there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon; this man was righteous and devout, looking forward to the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit rested on him. It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Messiah. Guided by the Spirit, Simeon came into the temple; and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for him what was customary under the law, Simeon took him in his arms and praised God, saying, “Master, now you are dismissing your servant in peace, according to your word; for my eyes have seen your salvation, which you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, a light for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to your people Israel.” And the child’s father and mother were amazed at what was being said about him. Then Simeon blessed them and said to his mother Mary, “This child is destined for the falling and the rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be opposed so that the inner thoughts of many will be revealed—and a sword will pierce your own soul too.” There was also a prophet, Anna the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was of a great age, having lived with her husband seven years after her marriage, then as a widow to the age of eighty-four. She never left the temple but worshiped there with fasting and prayer night and day. At that moment she came, and began to praise God and to speak about the child to all who were looking for the redemption of Jerusalem. When they had finished everything required by the law of the Lord, they returned to Galilee, to their own town of Nazareth. The child grew and became strong, filled with wisdom; and the favor of God was upon him.
Luke 2:22-40 (NRSV)
Stephen, full of grace and power, did great wonders and signs among the people. Then some of those who belonged to the synagogue of the Freedmen (as it was called), Cyrenians, Alexandrians, and others of those from Cilicia and Asia, stood up and argued with Stephen. But they could not withstand the wisdom and the Spirit with which he spoke. When they heard these things, they became enraged and ground their teeth at Stephen. But filled with the Holy Spirit, he gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God and Jesus standing at the right hand of God. “Look,” he said, “I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God!” But they covered their ears, and with a loud shout all rushed together against him. Then they dragged him out of the city and began to stone him; and the witnesses laid their coats at the feet of a young man named Saul. While they were stoning Stephen, he prayed, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.”
Acts 6:8-10; 7:54-59 (NRSV)
Beware of them, for they will hand you over to councils and flog you in their synagogues; and you will be dragged before governors and kings because of me, as a testimony to them and the Gentiles. When they hand you over, do not worry about how you are to speak or what you are to say; for what you are to say will be given to you at that time; for it is not you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you. Brother will betray brother to death, and a father his child, and children will rise against parents and have them put to death; and you will be hated by all because of my name. But the one who endures to the end will be saved.
Matthew 10:17-22 (NRSV)
Message: The only hymn about Stephen I am familiar with is Good King Wenceslas and I am sure there are many more, but I have not been exposed to them. It starts out as follows: “Good King Wenceslas looked out on the Feast of Stephen, when the snow lay round about, deep and crisp and even. The song is a little odd for a Christmas Carol because in a way it connects death, service, and Christmas, which is not so odd really when one thinks about it but honestly it is not the way everyone celebrates the holidays, especially when it is so very cold for those who have faced Winter storms. But really it is about Saint Wenceslas of Bohemia and us as much as it is about Stephen. That is why I think it would be helpful to us in understanding the hymn and also the feast day by returning to the Scriptures and the role of deacons and other who serve in the body of believers and their connection to Christ. You see Stephen was a man ordained and anointed with the very first group of deacons in the early Church, perhaps within a year or two of the first Pentecost outpouring. The Church in Jerusalem was growing quickly. Jews and converts to Judaism had been believing in the Resurrected Jesus and being baptized from the very first day. The Apostles, all of whom were still in the Holy City, were overworked, because they were taking care of the secular role of the Church, especially feeding the poor, along with leading prayer in the Temple and preaching the Gospel. Exhausted, they looked for a solution, and, as they had found customary, the Holy Spirit answered in prophecy. They were to set aside seven men who had already performed some leadership roles to take over the tasks of care and hospitality. They soon were called “deacons,” after one of the Greek words for service. Of the seven named in Acts, Stephen and Philip were certainly the most prominent. If the deacons were ordained for service but quickly expanded their roles. We see Philip, for instance, going to Samaria and even on the road to Ethiopia, preaching and baptizing. Stephen preached the Gospel too but got a hostile reception, and when he persisted in arguing with fundamentalist Jews, he was killed. The postscript is that Paul, a member of the synagogue known as Saul to them agreed with the murder, and eventually extended the persecution of the Church beyond Jerusalem. And this happened before his vision of the resurrected Christ on the road to Damascus which in a way relates to the vision of Abraham linked to the need for faith. And, as we all know Saul, whose Roman name was Paul would go on to do great things in the name of Jesus. But the story of Paul although interesting is not the key connection between today’s feast and Saint Wenceslas. The connection is the service that Stephen was ordained in the first place to do. He was recognized as being appropriate for the role even as Christ is viewed by Simeon as being appropriate for the high calling of being the Messiah. So too all Christians are called to a triple vocation which we hear about and affirm in our worship and confessions. We learn that we are to imitate Jesus Christ’s incarnation in the offices of prophet, priest, and servant leaders. The connection to Saint Stephen and King Wenceslas and Jesus in the Temple with his parents and Simeon and Anna is the spiritually anointing they all received to be servant leaders that glorify God. They are examples in our season now of how to wait hopefully for the promise. Friends, when we affirm Christ working in the lives of others, we become a visible sign of the promise and share in the story and in the heritage of faith as a member of the family of God.
And So, Jesus Christ led by serving. So did Stephen. So did Wenceslas. So did Simeon and Anna. Joseph and Mary. So, should all of us, attracting humanity to a relationship with God and experiencing God in the process. For the thing is that in this dark world, we need to shine for Jesus Christ like Stephen’s face shined. We need to get off our thrones and get humble in service of those who hunger for a relationship with the divine. And to do this we like Stephen, Mary, Joseph, Simeon, and Anna need to seek to be full of Christ’s faith fulfilled. We need to seek words of wisdom and faithfulness in the face of life not being fair. We need to have a radiant relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ that extends to others in love. Friends, Stephen has the distinction of being the first to ever sacrifice his life for the cause of the Risen Christ. His commitment to Christ was unwavering, and his devotion was unending in the face of real opposition. We would do well to mimic him in a way, for we all must die, and it would be hoped that our death as well as life counted for something good. The great hope is that we would see Jesus and people see Jesus in us before we do die. And the amazing thing is that in the imitation there is a hope in each of us that in life and in death our actions would count for something good. Like the great heroes of the Bible, we need to be filled with the Holy Spirit and the invisible working of God’s power manifested as we share the message of Christmas by being who God called us to be.
Pray on this the third day of Christmas that we unwrap our spiritual gifts. Pray the Spirit of our conviction and devotion is palatable. Pray
that we have the confidence of believing we will someday be with Jesus. Pray we wait hopefully for the consolation and redemption of Christ. Pray even as we wait that we give ourselves to God to be used by God. Pray we serve in ministry to those vulnerable in need of support. Pray we are full of the Holy Spirit and wisdom and continue to grow in grace and in the promises of God. Pray we have a grace that extends beyond salvation to the gifts we have been given so we might accomplish great things for the kingdom of God. Pray we realize that those who present stumbling blocks to the work of Jesus are ignorant of what they do and need our prayers. Pray we learn to serve imitating the love of Christ with the faith of Christ given in the promises of God. Pray we look for the Hero within. Pray we focus on Jesus. Pray we have a generous heart for the poor and those in need. Pray we realize that the coming of Jesus is reflected in the needs of the poor. Pray we are focused on Jesus who knows when we need to take the next step. Pray we take the next step in faith not in fear. Pray we have enough courage to challenge the systems of the world. Pray we have the right spirit. Pray we have the heart of heroes of faith in service to the kingdom. Pray we help open the door to freedom by pointing others to the consolation and redemption found in the birth, life, death, and resurrection of Christ.
Blessings,
John Lawson
Daily Devotionals 