Second Sunday After Epiphany

January 20, 2008

St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church

The Rev. Hannah Anderson

"God's Common Cure"

In case you haven’t noticed, there have been a number of mid-winter illnesses striking the area.  From flu to a severe cough to an achy body with a temp, people have been experiencing the sort of illness that forces you to stop and rest.  All of these illnesses are highly contagious—and the problem many are facing is that the flu or cold or cough keeps being recycled among family or office members from person to person.  Again, there is no remedy other than stopping and resting.

 

In the body of Christ, we experience times of achiness and malaise, too.  There is literature that assures us when we have had more than a fair share of stressors, we in the church might experience slight to severe illness.  It has nothing to do with whether or not we have been faithful.  It is a normal part of life within an organism or living body.  And we are just that as the body of Christ.

 

We at St. Stephen’s have experienced a number of stressors in our common life together. Let me just name a few:  Deaths, hospitalizations or critical illnesses in the lives of people we love, working our way out of a deficit budget into a robust budget that will carry us into the future with enough staffing for a growing congregation,  ongoing renovations that should be completed soon, the ability to flex and accommodate outside groups that are increasingly in need of our space, recognition of the needs of the poor, the hungry and homeless in our community and finding ways to respond to their critical needs within the limits of our staffing and resources.  These are only a few, which have been particularly heavy during the past few months.  Top it off with Christmas and snow and a pending recession, and you’ve got the perfect mix for catching a flu or sniffles of sorts in the body of Christ.  Even in the middle of deep joys such as celebrating Gwen’s special day last Sunday and starting a class to welcome new members, we may find ourselves trying to fend off a bit of discouragement that comes to us church-goers from time to time.

 

God’s cure for such malaise is relatively simple but hard to do:  stop and rest; read Scripture and pray.  Take time to be refreshed and renewed, fed through the Sacrament of Holy Eucharist, strengthened by the Holy Spirit.  If we consider that today we are gathered to receive God’s common cure, let’s hear what God has to tell us.

 

We begin with the Collect, the gathering prayer which reminds us that Jesus Christ is the light of the world.  We, as His followers, are to be ‘illumined by Word and Sacraments’ so that we might shine with the radiance of Christ’s glory.  Right away we are reminded that Word and Sacrament are the basic ingredients in this chicken soup for the soul.

 

When we turn to Isaiah, we draw strength from his story.  Even Isaiah, a prophet appointed to the nations by God, experienced spiritual malaise.  He writes that even in the middle of living faithfully, he became discouraged.  Isaiah began to think that he had labored in vain; spent his strength for nothing.   Rather than taking him off the job, God chose instead to use this man in deep despair and malaise to become a light to the nations.  Isaiah’s humanity did not disqualify him; it made him more real and accessible not only to God but to the people he would lead.  Only when Isaiah experienced his own wilderness could he identify with the Israelites living in exile and wilderness.  His very human nature drove him closer to God and God’s people.

 

In Psalm 40 we hear of a person in the pit, with feet in clay or mire crying out in despair.  Not only did God deliver that person, giving him sure footing, but God blessed him with a new song, a song of praise and thanksgiving.  From desolation, God brought this person consolation and wholeness.  The Psalmist does not hold that cure close to his chest, but proclaims it boldly, out loud to the great congregation so that others who might be in despair would hear his words of hope, of consolation.

 

The Apostle Paul, in his letter to the Corinthians, is dealing directly with people who have caught a bad flu-like condition, where the illness has taken a toll by dividing the congregation into groups that have pitted themselves against each other.  This is one of the worst sicknesses possible in the body of Christ and is potentially deadly.  Paul knows that.  He crafts a letter that reminds them from the beginning of their identity in Christ, as people worthy to be called saints.  And then he goes on to underscore the strengths that form their immune system:  Because of the grace that has been given you in Christ Jesus, you have been enriched in him, in speech and knowledge of every kind.  You are not lacking in any spiritual gift; He will strengthen you to the end.  God is faithful and has called you.  (paraphrase, mine)  See I Corinthians 1: 1-9  Paul offers the sick a way to wellness by reminding them of who they are and to whom they belong. 

 

The Gospel according to John offers us one final portion to the cure of renewal and hope we seek today.  Jesus has already been baptized by John at this point in the story.  Yet people are not sure of who He is or what to do next.  They were a bit confused and had what we might call fuzzy thinking.  Fortunately, John was not confused.  He could see and speak clearly about Jesus as the Lamb of God, the One for whom people had been waiting.  Without hesitation, he pointed him out to his followers and said, ‘This is the One you are to follow, not me.’  He rightly pointed them in the direction of Jesus and let them go.  Whenever we get confused, we need others to remind us that it is Jesus we are to seek and follow.  He leads us to health, to wellness, to reconciliation, to shalom of body, mind and spirit.

 

Today you may be in the throes of spiritual discouragement, achy with weariness or emptiness.  Or, you may be feeling well and strong, vital in your faith.  The strange thing is that when we come together to worship, God provides the renewal and healing some of us need through the strength or clarity of others who are also present.  We don’t even need to know who is who.  What’s important to remember is this:  From time to time, we may feel a bit under the weather, even in the church.  It does not mean that we are unfaithful.  It means that we are gloriously human.  It also means that we need one another to share in the common cure when we are soul-sick.  Together we gather, stop, rest in God’s Word, receive holy bread and wine, are redirected toward Jesus Christ once again and sent out into the world to shine as God’s people.  This day, may you be healed from worry or dismay.  May you find your way back to the One who is the true Light.

 

AMEN.