The “live” sermon today was especially lively with a lot of interaction with the congregation (always good to know there are some out there awake and alert!). But the message (as shared below) is the same call to “look… look carefully… look intently… and be changed, transformed”.
The sermon text is after the sermon audio…
Sermon “Look and Be Transformed…” Sunday April 18th 2021. St. Stephen’s, Goldsboro, NC. The Reverend Alan Neale
Words from today’s Collect, today’s prayer: “Open our eyes…”
It was June 18, 1815, the Battle of Waterloo; Wellington and Napoleon led opposing armies. In those days no immediacy of news, what was happening on the battlefield was communicated to ships to British sea-shore to Winchester Cathedral, and then by semaphore signals, to London.
Late in the day this message was flashed to London: “W-E-L-L-I-N-G-T-O-N—D-E-F-E-A-T-E-D—“ Just at that moment fog clouds set in and so news of defeat quickly spread throughout the city. People throughout the land were sad and gloomy when they heard the news that
their country had lost the war.
Suddenly the fog lifted, and it was discovered there was more to the message. The message had four words, not two. The complete message was: “W-E-L-L-I-N-G-T-O-N—D-E-F-E-A-T-E-D—T-H-E–E-N-E-M-Y!” Sorrow was turned into joy; defeat was turned into victory!
Remember the text? “O God, open our eyes”.
Today Tom Brown reads to us from the Acts of the Apostles but for some unknown, peculiar, senseless reason the compilers of our lectionary choose to end half-way through verse 19. So Tom with prophetic timbre urges us to repent, challenges us to get busy wiping out our sins but he did not have the joy to read nor we to hear the conclusion of verse 19… and God will pour out showers of blessing to refresh you, God will revive you with fresh air.
This experience seems to me a lot like that of the British at home in 1815… they received only half the message but, looking intently and patiently, the whole story became clear.
Remember the text? “O God, open our eyes…”.
I read only this morning in Daniel 4 of King Nebuchadnezzar who, having thrown three men into the fiery furnace, was amazed and then transformed to see a fourth… the angel who kept them unharmed.
The times are innumerable, countless, myriad when I have been searching through closets, cupboards and drawers and then Wendy appears and discovers my quest in a moment; I think it’s magic but I still haven’t worked it out.
Believe it or not, we spend some of, much of, our time with eyes half-open; if we look at all, we look at a glance and rarely behold the whole story, the whole message.
Five times in our Gospel today, Luke uses one of two words for “look” or “see”. Five times! Without a doubt, clearly, one mission of the Resurrected Lord is to challenge, encourage, even dare the disciples to look, to see with intent and with expectation.
One word Luke uses is theoreo – it suggests a deep gaze, almost a stare, that begins to capture the onlooker so that seeing leads of experiencing, seeing leads to participating in the object.
The other word Luke uses is idete – it suggests perceiving, recognizing the significance of what is seen so
that then leads to mental and spiritual insight.
Yesterday to celebrate the old man’s birthday, Wendy took me to dinner at Barrique’s (thank you Geoff for the recommendation…). We had been seated for about fifteen-twenty minutes and then three, no four, young (very young) girls/ladies came into the room bursting with joy and laughter, energy and delight – the more I watched them, the more I felt I began to participate in their dance of life; and later I thanked the grandmother for such a display.
You see, the commitment to look, watch, observe and, at the same time, a willingness to be changed, altered, transformed by what we see is integral, fundamental, crucial to the Christian lifestyle; thus Jesus called his disciples then and thus Jesus calls his disciples now.
The Psalmist writes (Psalm 118:17-18):
Be generous with me and I’ll live a full life;
not for a minute will I take my eyes off your road.
Open my eyes so I can see
what you show me of your miracle-wonders.
I’m a stranger in these parts;
give me clear directions.
My soul is starved and hungry, ravenous!—
insatiable for your nourishing commands.
Even a piece of broiled fish, yes even that, becomes significant, pulsating with meaning, demanding interpretation and requiring a change of outlook… and this happens when “O God, you open our eyes…”
But, friends, God is good and, yes, all the time. What She/He asks of us, from us, She/He enables us to give.
And so Luke uses two words to describe the process, the pattern, the procedure by which this God of grace showers grace on us so that “our eyes may be opened and we may be changed”.
“He showed them his hands and feet…” – edeichen ἔδειξεν. He literally exhibited, made known, substantially “showed them” so that they might see and be transformed.
And “he opened their minds…” – διήνοιξεν dianoigo. Their minds were opened up… completely and fully; opened all the way across, so opened as to rouse the faculty of understanding and the desire for learning. All this done for them, and now done for us “so that we might see and transformed.”
Friends in our beloved country right now, yours by birth – mine and Wendy’s by choice – in this beloved country our eyes are being almost daily confronted by horrors of murder, by claims of injustice, by expressions of hatred. Doubtless, some of us would rather not look too intently, would rather not assimilate the angst and pain that comes from paying attention, it seems at times simply too much to view, to watch, to observe.
And yet our God calls us to pay attention and to be open to be changed, transformed.
As your pastor, I will not tell you what conclusions you should reach (albeit temporary, albeit in process) but I must urge you to look, to see, to behold and to be willing to be transformed.
Thus the Gospeller Luke and the Psalmist charge us.
All it took, to observant eyes and open hearts, was a “piece of broiled fish”; what will it take for us to see… to look… to perceive and to be transformed.
This morning look with such eyes as bread is broken and wine is poured… and be transformed.
AMEN