Post date: Jan 3, 2014 6:46:17 PM
From the pastor…
Christmas & Epiphany
Incarnation & Enlightenment
We go to press with the Betheletter just before Christmas, so my thoughts are all about the Christmas story and its meanings for us. There are many, but the one that is most powerful for me today is the meaning of incarnation. We all know the story of Mary and Joseph, their trip from Nazareth to Bethlehem, no room in the inn, so Jesus was born in a first century barn (maybe a cave) where the animals were kept, with a manger for a crib.
The heart of the matter is that Jesus was born as one of us, to live with us, and to know us in every human way, while also being fully and completely of God – but God in the flesh. That is what incarnation is – Immanuel – that is , God with us. God with us in our ordinary everyday lives, God with us in good times and bad, God with us in joy and in sorrow, God with us in celebration and in grief.
Because of this, we have promises from God that God always keeps:”I will never leave you or forsake you”, and “Lo, I am with you always”. These are promises of a Christmas God who we can count on to be here and to be now.
So, what about Epiphany and Enlightenment?
Epiphany means manifestation, and its symbol is light. Therefore because God has chosen to be with us, and the light of God shines in the darkness, it is possible for us ordinary everyday Christians to be led by God’s extraordinary presence.
The days immediately ahead of us are filled with uncertainty about our future. In what ways will we as a congregation live to do God’s work? Perhaps a Christmas/Epiphany approach will be ours for now, so that we trust that God is with us and decide to let God show us the way.
In Christian hope,
Pastor Alan.