Shine With God’s Glory
It is said, “Watch out what you pray for! You just might get it!”
This Second Sunday in Epiphany we pray, “Grant that your people, illumined by your Word and Sacraments, may shine with the radiance of Christ's glory, that he may be known, worshipped, and obeyed to the ends of the earth.” Bishop Carrie has been urging those of us in the Diocese of Maryland to focus on practicing Love in community – within the Church community and within the community in which we live. That is, Christianity which is focused on following Christ is not a personal self-improvement program. We pray that we, as “God’s people,” may “shine with the radiance of Christ’s glory.
At Christ’s birth the angels sing, “Glory to God in the Highest, and on earth, Peace, Shalom, among those whom he favors!” [i] Earlier in the first chapter of John we read, “And the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father’s only son, full of grace and truth.” [ii] And now we pray, as a community of Christ, of those he favors, to shine with this same glory. In Christian worship we sing, “Glory to God in the highest…”; “Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit.”
Begging the question: What is this glory we sing about? Just what is this glory with which we pray to shine? Frederick Buechner suggests that “Glory is to God what style is to an artist.” [iii] One can recognize a painting by Picasso, a sonnet by William Shakespeare, or a symphony by Gustav Mahler. In the Hebrew scriptures the word is kabod, which represents the aura, the very essence, of God’s splendor, power and absolute sovereignty. [iv]And it is this aura of splendor, power and sovereignty which both Luke and John assert is experienced and able to be seen in the presence of Christ. Those shepherds and magi who visited him at his birth sensed it and experienced it. Christ reflects the Light and Love of God his Father. Light – the very first thing God speaks into being “In the beginning!”
This glory, or aura of God’s essence, is described throughout both the Hebrew and Christian scriptures as Love of all creation and all creatures; as light that shines in and through all darkness; justice for all peoples; and “peace,” which in biblical terms is shalom. God’s shalom encompasses much more than an absence of war or conflict. Again, Buechner says it “means fullness, means having everything you need to be wholly and happily yourself.” [v] Shalom might be said to be the sum total of justice and peace, or justice for all that leads to ultimate peace among all peoples. And one might add, peace for creation itself.
Not only do we sing of Christ as the Prince of Peace, he says to us and to his disciples in John’s gospel, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not let them be afraid.”[vi] He gives us his shalom for us to give and share with others – all others.
It has been suggested by some of my colleagues that before any meeting of the church, whether vestry, committee, or all-parish meetings, there is a question that needs to be answered first: Does the business of this meeting have anything at all to do with establishing the kingdom of God in our midst? Will we be talking about how we can bring Christ’s peace, Christ’s shalom, to others? To the world? And if the answer is “No,” then there is no reason to meet. In the context of our prayer today, we might ask, “Does what everything we say and do help us to shine with Christ’s glory? We read in the story of the young man Samuel that one night he begins to shine with God’s glory and becomes a prophet. [vii] In our reading from John we see how Nathanael is transformed from sceptic to one shining with God’s glory and becomes a disciple. [viii] And Paul’s pastoral concern for Christians in Corinth who frequent the prostitutes in the temples of pagan gods threatens the glory and life of the entire Corinthian church. [ix] For Christ’s glory which we pray to radiate is the glory of God his Father, and our Father; his God and our God. This glory is the very essence of what it means to be a Christian.
The question then is: just how do we begin to sense this glory and embody this glory we pray for? By letting ourselves be “illumined by…Word and Sacraments.” And there is no better place to start than with Psalm 139. While in seminary studying with The Reverend James Forbes, he shared with us something he learned when he was in seminary. A preacher in the seminary chapel one day recommended reading Psalm 139 once a day for thirty days. He said it would be life changing. Transformative. Illuminating! One reason Psalm 139 is so powerful is that nearly every verse has one of the following words: I, me, my. We seek to be illuminated so we might be those people who radiate Christ’s glory. To get a start on this together as a community of God’s love in Christ, let’s turn to page 794 in the Book of Common Prayer and read Psalm 139 together, followed by a period of silence, with eyes closed if you are comfortable with that. In the silence we will let these ancient words settle down within us and begin to spark and illuminate God’s glory right here in our midst.
(Silence)
Almighty God, whose Son our Savior Jesus Christ is the light of the world: Grant that as your people, illumined by your Word and Sacraments, we may shine with the radiance of Christ's glory. We trust that you as Father, Son and Holy Spirit will walk with us and fill us with your light these next thirty days that we may radiate your glory in all we say and all we do. Amen.
[i]
Luke 2:14
[ii]
John 1:14
[iii]
Buechner, Frederick, Wishful Thinking: A Theological ABC (Harper & Row, New
York: 1973) p.30
[iv]
Brueggemann, Walter, Reverberations of Faith (Westminster John Knox Press,
Louisville: 2002) p.87-89
[v]
Ibid, p.69
[vi]
John 14:27
[vii]
I Samuel 3: 1-20
[viii]
John 1: 43-51
[ix] 1
Corinthians 6:12-20
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