Today is the day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it. Psalm 118:24

The Gwinn United Methodist Church in Gwinn, Michigan

251 West Jasper at M-35. PO Box 354. 906-346-6314. gwinnumc@aol.com

Our church has adopted the Five Practices of Fruitful Congregations

Radical Hospitality. Passionate Worship. Intentional Faith Development. Risk-Taking Mission and Service. Extravagant Generosity.

Gwinn United Methodist Church

Sunday Sermon Ministry

Feb. 19, 2012    Transfiguration Sunday

Rev. Geri Hamlen

 

Scriptures:   II Kings 5:1 -14,  Mark 9: 2 - 10

 

Message in Music                        Joy in Serving the Lord                                     Choir

  We are a congregation who responds to the beauty of music by  saying:

 ‘Amen!’ or ‘Praise God!’

 

The Message                                          Light of the World                                             Pastor Geri

We thank the choir for singing about the joy in serving the Lord.  Because we are grateful for being on the other side of the crucifixion of Jesus.   Right?  We are the resurrection people, living in the post-atonement, after-the-fact reconciliation, future tense turned to the now-reality of God’s kingdom on earth, as it is in heaven.  Hallelujah, praise the Lord.   We are so much better off than those disciples in the Gospel of Mark.

 

They were pretty baffled in our reading this morning, weren’t they?  There’s Peter, James and John, up  on a mountain… apart, by themselves and whammo…Bright light, dazzling white, Jesus transfigured.   What was going on !?!  And then came Elijah with Moses…Jesus sure was hanging with the big guys of the Old Testament, wasn’t he?  Do you think that was a joyous time for those disciples?    No…the text tells us…in spite of Peter’s mis-placed suggestion that they build three dwellings…the truth of the matter was that they were terrified. Scared…not enlightened.  Not transformed.  Not lifted up…but rather, just plain scared.

And as if that wasn’t enough, then came the cloud that over-shadowed them…threw them into a darkness all out of proportion to the dazzling white light of Jesus.  Out of that shadow came the voice…the voice of God…’This is my Son, the Beloved; listen to him.’  Where have we heard that before?   Anyone know?   How about back on January 15…5 Sundays ago when we celebrated the Baptism of our Lord…do you remember Mark 1:9 – 11?

 

           In those days Jesus came from Nazareth…and was baptized by John in the Jordan.  Baptized…just as Seth & Bret were baptized this morning.  In the river Jordan… just like Naaman was cleansed after several washings in that river.   And just as Jesus was coming up out of the water, he saw the heavens torn apart (just like the curtain of the temple will be torn in two, from top to bottom, at the moment of Jesus’ death) and the Spirit descending like a dove on him.  (point to the dove)  And a voice came from heaven, ‘You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased.’

 

Some scholars speculate that God’s voice from heaven at the Baptism of Jesus was to assure Jesus himself of his role and calling in life.    Up on the mountain of Trans-figuration , however, God’s voice is directed to the disciples…to give them the heads up on what and who they were following around.    Joy?   No…I don’t think so.   Not yet.   Not that day.  They were too much in the middle of something that was really hard to figure out.  

 

Did any of you read the Worship page in The Mining Journal from yesterday’s paper?   There is a seminary student, Ann Gonyea from Ishpeming, who was writing about the Gospel of Mark…her title is:  Mark’s Jesus is interesting.    Something of an understatement but it caught my eye and she did make the point that Jesus, as God’s Son, the Beloved, is complex:

 

 ‘And what about Mark’s Jesus?  He’s rebuking and correcting and challenging people and things at every turn.  Besides trashing the temple in anger, he kills a fig tree for doing exactly what a fig tree would be expected to do.  He calls Peter ‘Satan’ two seconds after he recognizes Jesus as the Anointed One. 

           He repeatedly questions the disciples’ faith and intelligence, even telling them if they get into God’s kingdom, they may be counted among the least.  This is not the compassionate and patient, kind and gentle Jesus who inspired WWJD bumper stickers and wrist bands.’        

 

And hymns like Joy in Serving the Lord.

 

There’s a gap here, isn’t there?  A chasm.  A valley between the light of God’s love through Jesus which creates this very real joy that the choir sings about, on the one hand… and the darkness of fear and grief and confusion and hopelessness of real stuff that is going on all around us, on the other hand.

 

You know, so many people live in that gap, that valley. There are friends and neighbors and family members who can only see the disconnect between the Jesus that we ‘happy people’ sing and praise and witness to on this side of the coin and then they flip it over and see all the yuck stuff of life and the Bible sometimes just seems to make it all worse and more confusing.   And they can’t believe it’s the same coin.   How can light be dark?  And dark be light?  All at the same time?  How can we possibly believe that there is a light in the world so strong that it overcomes all of the darkness?   Can you explain that to someone…out of your own personal experience of Jesus Christ?   Has Jesus transfigured and transformed your life so that you can indeed reflect and share his light into a world that so badly needs it?

 

Well…I’m blessed.  As one of my friends says…I just love the way God works!   In both of the Bible Study groups this week, we found ourselves facing this very same chasm, valley, disconnect.   In James, we looked at the way the Bible says ours is a Jealous and angry God while, at the same time being a merciful and grace-giving God.   How do you reconcile those two elements?   And then in the letter to the Romans, we looked at how disobedience by the Jews led to mercy for the Gentiles and how does God work that out?

 

Those are hard things to put into words, aren’t they?  And yet that is exactly what we are called to give witness to and to declare, as disciples of Jesus Christ…no matter how scared or sad or confused we are.   Jesus is the light of the world….even in the midst of chaos and difficulties.   As we enter into the season of Lent, I invite you to use this time of self-examination and reflection, to put into your own words…how it is that Jesus is the light of the world.   Think back to Season of Advent…when we lit the candles affirming…Hope, faith, love and joy and then the Christ candle.  Candle, candle, burning bright, shining in the cold winter night.   Candle, candle burning bright, fill our hearts with Christmas light.   Remember the Christmas lights, here in the Sanctuary and out there on the trees and houses and down in the park. O Holy Night, the stars are shining brightly…this is the night of our dear savior’s birth.    And then the light of that bright star hanging over the stable with the manger.  Silent night.  Holy night.  All is calm.  All is bright.  

 

We have lived our way through this Season of Epiphany, the season of light shining through to help us understand and embrace the Good News of that baby born to be our savior.  We have been blessed this day with these beautiful Sun Catchers.   By the baptism of these boys.   We know that the light of God has been with us since the very first day of creation and the Transfiguration of Jesus was God’s way of showing us, even of telling us…Listen to my Son, the Beloved.  Listen so you can see…so that the light of God’s love can truly shine through and around and in you in such a way that all the world may come to know the love of God through Jesus Christ.   Can you do that?  Will you do that?   Let’s stand and sing together, 2173, Shine Jesus Shine.   I’ve asked the Musicians to sing the verses for you so that you can both read and hear the words and then we’ll all join in together for the chorus…

 

Hymn of Dedication            Shine Jesus Shine  TFWS 2173 

The Congregation will sing the Chorus.  String Challenged will sing the verses. 

 

 

Chorus:  Shine, Jesus shine, fill this land with the Father’s glory,

           Blaze, Spirit, blaze, set our hearts on fire;  

flow, river, flow, flood the nations with grace and mercy, s

end forth your word, Lord, and let there be light.

 

Verse 1:   Lord, the light of your love is shining

in the midst of the darkness shining;

Jesus, Light of the World, shine upon us,

set us free by the truth you now bring us.

 Shine on me, shine on me.    Chorus

 

Verse 2:   Lord, I come to your awesome presence

from the shadows into your radiance;

by the blood I may enter your brightness,

search me, try me, consume all my darkness. 

Shine on me, shine on me.       Chorus

 

Verse 3:   As we gaze on your kingly brightness,

so our faces display your likeness;

ever changing from glory to glory,

mirrored here may our lives tell your story. 

Shine on me, shine on me.   Chorus