The Church of the Redeemer

Second Sunday after the Epiphany

January 20, 2002 

This month Maureen and I purchased a laptop.  As with any major purchase we make, we took time thinking about buying this new computer before we actually made our purchase.  After all, I am a faithful viewer of Channel Five News and I usually heed Susan Woronic’s nightly advice of “buyers beware”.  So like many, Maureen and thought about what this computer would be used for, by whom and what hardware and software we felt we needed.  Then we checked our resources and set a budget as to what we felt we could afford.  With an outline of what we felt we needed and what we could afford, I began the actual research I looked up various computer sites on the web, researched what products they had available, the quality of their individual products, and I spoke with their sales people to double check that the computers I found on line could actually do what I wanted. Finally, after doing all of my “in-depth” research, and after deciding I trusted the advisement of those I had spoken with, I bit the bullet and made the purchase.  As I spoke to the sales person, I knew exactly what I wanted, so when he asked about buying different upgrades I of course said no, I had no interest in the enhanced functions these upgrades could provide.  When our computer finally arrived and we had had a chance to turn it on and actually use it, I, for the most part found what I had expected.  That was until a friend of mine came and gave this new laptop a test run and showed me functions and hardware that I didn’t even know I had or needed.  Then he began to describe for me the possibilities this machine would be capable of had I invested in a few of those up grades, possibilities I was unaware at the time I ordered and now wish I had given more consideration to.  I am sure that many of us have had similar experiences when buying items of technology.  Purchasing them because we were aware through others that these items could assist us in our daily lives, trusting that it would be time and money well spent and then finding greater uses for these items after we had begun using them and experimenting with them and then wishing we had invested more in the beginning.  This is how our relationship with Christ can be as well.  At least this is what St. John conveys to us in our reading from his Gospel this morning.

   This morning’s reading from John picks up where last Sunday’s reading from Matthew leaves off. Last week’s Gospel provided us with a first hand account of Christ’s Baptism in the Jordan River.  St. John’s Gospel differs from St. Matthew in that he does not provide a first hand account of the Baptism.  Instead, he tells his readers about this momentous baptism through John the Baptist’s witness to his disciples. As we heard this morning, the day after Jesus was baptized; Jesus again crossed paths with John the Baptist.  It is at this time that John proclaims to his followers that Jesus is the one who ranks ahead of him and comes both before and after him.  And then John continues to proclaim Jesus as the Messiah as he recounts for his followers what had happened at the river the day before.  The next day, Jesus and John cross paths yet again.  And again, John, using Old Testament superlatives, proclaims Jesus as the Messiah to his disciples, and this// time two of John’s disciples decide to break away from John and follow Christ.  Now Christ, realizing he is being followed looks back and speaks his first words in St. John’s Gospel, “What are you looking for?” Or in other translations, “What is it you are seeking?”  An odd question, one would think that Jesus would already know what these two people were “looking for”, but this is not the only time in this Gospel or the others that we find Jesus asking a most peculiar question.  At the well, Jesus asks the man who had made many attempts to enter the healing waters if he wished to be made well.  In the synoptic Gospels, Jesus asks the blind man what he desires before he restores his sight. 

            Perhaps these odd questions are not for Jesus’ edification but our own.  Do any of us ever fully know what we are seeking when we come into this church each week? Or do we approach our faith in the same way I approached buying a computer . . .. by simply seeking out only those things we know we want from our faith without being open to accepting the upgrades God wants to give to us.  In Eucharistic Prayer C, we ask God to open our eyes to see God’s hand at work in the world about us.  We ask God to deliver us from the presumption of coming to the table for solace only and not for strength, for pardon only and not for renewal.  How many times have we sought out God in times of crisis, asking God to keep us safe, to heal us or to protect us from failure without being open to the gifts of reconciliation and renewal? 

            In many ways our desire to seek out God or the Church parallels the many couples from outside our community who come to us inquiring about being married at the Redeemer.  When asked why they wished to be married at the Redeemer, most are honest, telling us because they have passed by the church and admired our beautiful landscape, others have actually visited and have agreed that this is a beautiful space to be married in.  But when asked why a church wedding, why a ceremony based on the Prayer Book, most draw a blank, some are actually bold enough to say they are not interested in that stuff, they just happen to like the space.  In essence they like our space, and desire the ornamental trappings of a “church wedding” but they are not open to upgrading their wedding to a sacramental event that would include God in their covenant with each other. 

            In today’s Gospel, the disciples of John the Baptist when asked what they were seeking responded by asking where Christ was staying.  An odd response, one would expect them to say something to the effect of enlightenment, or the secrets of the cosmos, instead, what they asked through this odd response was how to find what they were unsure they were truly seeking.  What the Gospel writer tells us is that they were willing to trust in the testimony of John the Baptist, and accept this strange man called Jesus as truly the Son of God and to walk with him. They did not know what Jesus could give them, or even what he would give them.  What they did know, was unless they were willing to accept Jesus’ invitation to “come and see” and be open to upgrading their relationship from John the Baptist to Christ they would never be able to experience the greater possibilities available to them. 

            We too are invited by Christ to “come and see” but if we are to “go and see”, we need to be open to exploring the gifts that God has for us even if we don’t think we desire or have a need for these gifts.   Gifts that include grace, that gift from God that tells us we are worthy of God’s unconditional love and forgiveness no matter how unworthy we may feel or be when compared with God.  The gift of assurance, assurance that God’s love for us is constant, that there is no price God is unwilling to pay for our redemption as proven by God’s willingness to give his son for us.  We are also given the gift of confidence, knowing that no matter what we do or where we turn, God will never desert us. If we choose to abandon God, God will wait patiently for our return to him. 

            Each and every day Christ calls us to “come and see”, hoping we are willing to upgrade our relationship with him.  Here at the Redeemer, we were called to “come and see” almost two years ago when the rector enhanced our Thursday service of Morning Prayer to include special intentions for the healing of Amanda Walton.  At that time, this service was focused solely on Amanda’s needs, which were considerable. This was a bold step for us as we entered the uncharted waters of spiritual healing.  As time passed and Amanda’s situation improved, this simple service began to grow, those who attended weekly, began telling others about the service, friends names were added to our prayer list, people began coming to pray for Amanda, for others, and for their own healing.  About a year ago, the Rector added the sacrament of healing through the laying on of hands.  The laying on of hands by the way is an ancient sacramental rite of the Church in which one physically experiences the prayer of another through touch.  Today, many different people attend our Thursday morning service; some are still part of the original group that came to pray for Amanda, others have joined us in need of their own healing or for other family members.  What we have found over the nearly two years that we have been holding this service is, we may have come seeking physical healing for Amanda, however, as we have been on this spiritual odyssey, God has led us to upgrade our intention and has blessed us with far more.  Many beyond Amanda have experienced physical healing, but more importantly, each of us who have been open to and have sought the sacrament of healing for others have found new gifts of renewal, and are   experiencing a greater confidence in their relationship with God. 

            Each day Christ asks us what it is we are seeking and then invites us to come and see, to upgrade our relationship with him by being open to greater possibilities.  So what are we waiting for?  Go and see all of the gifts God has waiting for you.

Amen

The Rev. Craig R. Swan

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