“Lessons from Jonah: Confess & Repent”

Scripture: Jonah 2

Last week, we left Jonah wallowing in the sea, after which he was swallowed up by a large fish. Life as he knew it seemed to have come to an abrupt end. But our passage for today finds our brother safe, but still locked up tight in the belly of that fish.
He offers a prayer to his mighty God, which is reminiscent of Psalm 88. It reminds us that no matter where we may go, no matter what our trial, no matter how lost we may be, the Lord is always with us. (Read Psalm 88:1-5) A pretty dark place, to say the least!
Jonah’s situation is also reflective of a poem that was written in the late 18th century by Francis Thompson called the Hound of Heaven. Here are just a few of the opening lines:
I fled Him, down the nights and down the days;
I fled Him, down the arches of the years;
I fled Him, down the labyrinthine ways
Of my own mind; and in the mist of tears
I hid from Him, and under running laughter.
Up vistaed hopes I sped;
And shot, precipitated,
Adown Titanic glooms of chasmed fears
From those strong Feet that followed, followed after.
But with unhurrying chase,
And unperturbèd pace,
Deliberate speed, majestic instancy,
They beat--and a Voice beat
More instant than the Feet--
"All things betray thee, who betrayest Me."

The translation!
- “No matter how fast we run,
- no matter how far we run,
- no matter how convoluted a path we may take,
- no matter where we may try to hide,
- the LORD will
- patiently and
- quietly and
- constantly and
- purposefully
continue to pursue us throughout our lives, and we will never be able to shake Him.
And if we deny his call on our lives, if we deny the love that he has for each one of us, we are, in essence, denying the love that God has placed within each of us.”

Read Jonah 2:1-6

I doubt that many of us could imagine what it is like to spend 3 days in the belly of a fish! And I won’t even try to describe my impression of such a fate, but I do think we could picture what it might be like to spend 3 days in pitch blackness, with no sounds, no voice, no light, no hope – only the despondent beating of our own heart.
That’s where Jonah was as he prayed this prayer to the very same God he had been denying. He now understands that even as he had tried to escape from the gaze of his great Yahweh, even as he had tried to run to parts unknown to him, no thing and no-where is unknown to God. He had done everything that he could to avoid the Lord’s call on his life, but now he says that God was with him all along the way. Verse 2 – “In my distress I called to the Lord, and he answered me. From the depths of the grave I called for help and you listened to my cry.” It wasn’t all that long ago that he didn’t want to hear anything from his Lord, but now he knows that the Lord was always with him and listening to him.

Have you even had those times in your life that were so terrible, you not only wondered where God was, but you yelled at him and blamed him for all the trial and the pain you were struggling with? “God – where are you! Don’t you care? I can’t deal with this on my own! Don’t you care?”

Remember the plight of the disciples when the storm overtook them on the lake, and Jesus was sound asleep in the boat? (Mark 4:35-41) They came to the Lord with the exact same words – “Don’t you care if we all drown?” And Jesus, after calming the stormy waters, replied “Why are you afraid? Have you no faith?” Note that Jesus doesn’t tell them that the storm will go away if they have faith in him, but rather that their fears will subside by faith in him.

When John Wesley was traveling across the Atlantic to begin a ministry in the colony of Georgia, a violent storm struck the ship, and nearly everyone was terrified – except for the entire Moravian contingent, who just continued to pray and sing and celebrate the Lord throughout the entire ordeal! Later Wesley would ask them if they had been afraid. They replied that none of them were – not the men, or the women, or even the children. Their faith in Jesus Christ had allayed all of their fears.

Where was God for the disciples that day on the Sea of Galilee? Where was God for John Wesley that day in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean? Where was God for Jonah that day in the belly of the fish? Where is God for us on those days when the burdens of life threaten to bury us? Right where he always is - patiently and lovingly waiting for us to turn our pain and fears and trials over to him! There is little that God can do for us while we have such a tight grip on our struggle, but when we let them go, there is nothing that the Lord can’t and won’t do for us!!

Read Jonah 2:7-10

Jonah is confessing Yahweh as his one and only God who must be followed. Verses 8 and 9 seem to have become Jonah’s evangelistic call – not to the people of Nineveh, but to himself. This reluctant prophet had come to the realization that his refusal to do as the Lord had asked him was his attempt to “cling to a worthless idol”. And that “idol” was his hatred for the people of Nineveh. It was his false belief, it was his rejection of God’s truth, it was a
Jonahesque image that had no place in God’s heart. But now he was turning back to his glorious Lord, with a song of thanksgiving, and with a renewed hope in grace, and a promise to do as his heart was urging him to do – to follow his Lord once again.

And at this promise, the fish regurgitates the prophet. Another interesting image, isn’t it? Here we have the man had been languishing in hell, so to speak, and now he is brought back into the light of a new day. Was he being “born again”? It’s about as close to that concept as anything I can think of! He was certainly being given a second chance to serve God in heaven’s way and not in man’s way.

What does your pit, your storm, your fish, your hell look like? And how did you ever wind up in that place to begin with? Upon reflection of his experience with the Moravians and their attitude regarding that violent storm, John Wesley would write in his journal – “I can conceive no difference comparable between a smooth and a rough sea, except that which is between a mind calmed by the love of God and one torn up by the storms of earthly passions.” (A. Skevington Wood, The Burning Heart, Emeth Press, 2007, pg. 60) Is that the difference between living in the belly of your fish, or emerging into the light of a new day in Christ? Between letting your fear of the storms of life nearly destroy you, or letting your faith in Christ Jesus calm the violent waters of your soul?

Jonah found the answer for his being freed from the terror of going to Nineveh. He confessed that his life had been focused on “worthless idols”, and that as long as he looked to his own way, his own understanding, God’s grace could never work within him. He had to let go of the burdens and doubts and fears that were pulling him away from God, and let his Lord begin working his wonderful ways within him once again. He confessed his misguided attitudes, he turned his life back toward the Lord, and salvation was his once again. And that is our answer, too.

To paraphrase Jesus’ words from Mark 4 – “Why are you so afraid? Let your faith grow and sustain you in God this very day.”

"Lessons from Jonah: You Can't Escape God"

Scripture: Jonah 1 (Selected verses - 1:1-6;8-10;13-17

We’re probably all fairly familiar with Jonah’s story – God calls him into ministry, but he didn’t like the assignment so he tries to run away. The Lord pursues him, catches him up in the belly of a large fish, leads him to Nineveh where the mission was fulfilled, and where this servant of God continues to complain that he still doesn’t like the outcome.

There may be a lot of Jonah in each of us, and while we may remember his story, there are probably several lessons that we have overlooked in this reluctant servant. Many of us are called to some ministry or mission, while we would much prefer that the Lord would let us work in a totally different field or endeavor. Unfortunately for us, Divine Will always takes precedent over the human version.

The book of Jonah is quite different from the other prophetic narratives, in that it is historic in nature, and offers very little of the actual prophecy that he would be called to share with the people of Nineveh. This is the story of a man called by God to accomplish a specific and very trying Divine mission, and he wouldn’t be very amenable to this commission!
For the next 4 weeks, we will consider the predicament that Jonah found himself in, the ways in which he responded to the Lord’s call, what God did about his reluctance, and what each of us needs to learn from Jonah, this hesitant prophet.

Read Jonah 1:1-6

The people of Nineveh were cruel and violent– this was the capital of the Assyrian Empire, which brutally attacked, overthrew, and enslaved many other nations. This powerful people were constantly attacking Israel, and they were seen as the worst enemy that would ever come up against them. And in the early 700’s BC, they would be the means of conquest and enslavement of the 10 tribes of the Northern Kingdom. And while we may empathize with Jonah for not wanting to go to these people, we also need to see the Lord’s viewpoint in the matter.
After all, who would need to know the mighty Yahweh more than Nineveh? Who could possibly need a second chance more than those who are immersed in such cruel treatment of other nations? The Lord wants everyone to come to know his truth for themselves, and this just might be the reason that each of us may receive the same call to mission and ministry.

But Jonah makes the decision that either a) Nineveh is not worthy of Yahweh’s message, or b) that he is frightened nearly to death of the consequences of his going there, and that he’s not going! So he catches a ship out of Joppa, and heads for places unknown. But he was so focused on his image of Nineveh that he completely forgot who he was really dealing with. God will not be denied! His Will, his needs, his plan will take place, and we have to understand that he will bring it into being with us or without us, and if the plan is that we are to be the ones involved, then we will serve whether we like the idea or not!
And Jonah was about to learn this very valuable lesson through the most violent storm this ship’s crew had ever experienced. The gods that the crew members worshiped couldn’t help; jettisoning the cargo didn’t help; but God, even without Jonah’s prayers, would show this ill-fated venture just why the storm was battering them.

Read Jonah 1:8-10

The sailors had cast lots, and the lot fell on Jonah. And as they begin to question him regarding his transgression, we read of the fear that fell over them. The storm was bad enough, but apparently they knew of Yahweh and his great power, and the mere fact that someone had gone completely against the word that had been given to them, had driven them to an even greater distress.
These are rough, rugged men of the sea who have never worshiped Jonah’s God, and even they know that to deny this great God can be a terrible mistake. Jonah knew the power of God, and yet he thought that he could run away from his Lord. A very foolish and misguided man.

How about us? Don’t we know just who our God is, and what he can do, and what he may intend to do through us? And how many times do we say “Not me, not now, Lord. Ask someone else!” Now, it may be that God will allow us to say “No” for a few times, but at some point, we will have no choice but to say “Yes Lord, as you will”. And trust me when I tell you this, as I am first hand evidence of his will. I tried to avoid his call on my life for over 46 years, and finally, he got me in a place where he could get my attention and I couldn’t move, and I had no choice but to say “Yes Lord, as you will.”
And that time will certainly come to you, too, so why wait? Avoid all the struggle, all the anxiety, all the avoidance, all the “no’s”, and say “Yes” the next time you feel his call on your life!

But Jonah wasn’t at that point yet, and would choose drowning instead of saying “yes” to God, and he would tell the other men to throw him over the side, intending to take that ultimate and final swim with the fishes. Jonah was so set upon not doing what God wanted, that even death would seem to be a preferable alternative!

Read Jonah 1:13-17

To the sailors’ credit, as misguided as it was, they weren’t quite ready to drown the man who God was trying to use. But the more they tried to escape the storm, the worse the storm got, and as they prepared to do as Jonah said, they offered prayers and pleas to Yahweh to spare them from his wrath. It would almost seem as though these pagan men had greater faith in God than Jonah did! Makes you wonder, doesn’t it?

The story is told of a man who got a permit to open the first tavern in a small town. The members of a local church were strongly opposed to the bar, so they began to pray that God would intervene. A few days before the tavern was to open, lightning hit the structure, and it burned to the ground.

The people of the church were surprised, but pleased -- until they received notice that the would-be tavern owner was suing them. He contended that their prayers were responsible for the burning of the building. In a strongly-worded deposition the church [flatly] denied the charge.

At the conclusion of the court hearing, the judge wryly remarked, “At this point I don't know what my decision will be, but [it] appears [that] the owner of the tavern believes in the power of prayer, and these church people don't.”
--From The Prairie Rambler, June 1993, 6.

Do you believe in the power of prayer? When either you call on God in the name of Jesus, or when he calls on you to share his gospel with others, are you ready to live with the results of your actions?

Jonah was not going to have a choice in the matter. He may have thought that Nineveh deserved the Lord’s wrath, and was afraid that if they received this message, that they just might choose to change their evil ways! And while that may have been God’s plan, it wasn’t Jonah’s!

So the lessons that we can learn from Jonah are these:

1) You can run from God, but you will never be able to hide from him! Our God is All Knowing and All Present. Wherever we may go, either physically or spiritually or intellectually, God will be there ahead of us. It isn’t a case of his knowing where we are going or what we might think, and can head us off – the truth is that he will already be there and already knows what is on our mind. We can’t escape God and his Will.

2) At some point in our wayward lives, God is going to turn us around and take us to the very place we didn’t want to go to in the first place. This may seem like a rather abrupt turn of events to us, but remember that we could have avoided all the “scuffle and tussle” with God if we had just trusted and obeyed him in the first place!

3) There is nothing that God won’t do to get our attention. He knows exactly what it will take to get us to say “Yes Lord. Your will, not mine.” Jonah had to weather a terrible storm and then take a 3 day cruise inside a huge fish before he was ready to listen. Hopefully, we won’t have to have such an extreme event in our lives to get us to respond to God’s call, but if that is what it would take, that is what can come our way.

Advice for the day: Save God and yourself all the trouble and lost time that comes from your saying “No” to him, and say “Yes” every time he comes and asks you to do some special task in his Holy Name. It will not only involve a lot less torment for you, but the blessings will come your way a lot sooner.

Be his messenger – joyfully, thankfully and prayerfully this very day. You’ll never regret it.

“Anna’s Prophecy”

Scripture: Luke 2:36-40

Last week, we read of Simeon’s prophecy regarding Jesus. He loudly proclaimed to all who would hear that this Baby was the salvation for all the earth, but that many would still oppose his teachings. And his words would have caused no little consternation among the temple priests and the Pharisees. Simeon was a humble man, with few, if any commendations to his credit, and those in positions of authority would have some concerns that these new words regarding Messiah would come from someone like Simeon. What could he possibly be up to?
Even King Herod, as we read in Matthew’s Gospel (2:1-12), was out to squash any evidence of a new “King”. But the Lord would direct the Magi away from Jerusalem after they, too, had found and worshiped Jesus Messiah.

Even as a newly born infant, Jesus was already threatening the status quo of Israel. And today, we read of one more prophecy regarding the Child, and this, too, could be cause of some dismay among the temple hierarchy.

Read Luke 2:36-38

Anna was described as a prophetess who had been married for seven years, and then widowed for another 77 years. It may be interesting to note here that the number 7 had a very special connotation for Israel, as it implied “perfection” or “completion”. We are told that the process of Creation occurred over seven days, or periods (Genesis 1:1-2:3). In Genesis 7:1-10, we read that Noah was directed to take seven pairs of “clean” animals and birds into the ark, and only 1 pair of the unclean. Israel marched around the city of Jericho for seven days, and on the seventh day, they marched around the city seven times before the walls fell down. The Psalms and Proverbs have a number of references to seven days or seven items. And the examples go on and on.
And Anna had “seven’s” associated with her, too. And if that wasn’t enough, she met all the requirements to be considered “pious” by the standards of the day. She had been married once and then widowed, she was elderly, and she would be known for her good works and her fulfilling prayer life. It wasn’t unheard of that a woman would be given prophecy by God, but most prophets were men, and for women, this wasn’t an everyday thing. An elderly, pious widow would be exactly the person who the Lord would speak through.

And what does she tell the new parents about their child? Scripture doesn’t give us much detail, and certainly not as much as we have regarding Simeon, but we do know that she spoke of Jesus as the source of redemption for Jerusalem. There was nothing spoken of Jesus’ goodness, or directly of his Divinity, or specifically of his life, and there was definitely nothing about the glory that he would bring, but they both spoke of his righteous nature, and the redemption that would be his, and the salvation that only God in Messiah could accomplish.

Joseph and Mary had not only heard from God and his angels that his Son would be placed on earth to accomplish the Heavenly will, but they would also hear the same message from several other sources – from shepherds from the fields of Bethlehem, Magi from the eastern reaches of the known world, and now two prophets in the temple – the word and plan of God was beginning to spread across the face of the earth.

Why would the Lord send so many messages to these new parents? Could it actually be that they needed to be told over and over so that they would continue to believe? Perhaps, but more likely, it was just God’s way of affirming his plan for the people of earth. But we have to ask, couldn’t they have missed it all in their attentiveness over the child? Yes, if they hadn’t been so intentional and focused on the initial proclamations that they had received from Jehovah’s messengers! When we get a message from God, and when we listen to it and receive it and begin to act upon it, for some reason the Lord also continues to give us affirmations along the way. In addition to all that the Lord is for us, he is also our “cheerleader” as we walk and serve him in faith! I truly believe that these prophecies and revelations aren’t so much to be seen as reminders, as they are to be encouragement. The couple treasured the words, and pondered their meaning, and they marveled at what they were hearing, and they were blessed by every word and syllable and breath that uttered them.

You see, Joseph and Mary were expectant in their relationship with God. They never stopped believing that they were part of a “new thing” that was being given to the people, but every time something unique happened, or someone offered a word of glory, or a blessing was given, or some other Godly gift came their way, they were being affirmed in their service to God. Simeon and Anna and the shepherds and the Magi weren’t just prophets or worshipers of the God Child – they were human messengers for the great I AM!

And the Lord will speak to each of us in the same way, and will use us to speak His words of encouragement to others, IF - IF we are open to his ways and expectant of his grace. Have you ever thought that our Lord God Almighty really wants to do this for you? To include you in his plan of salvation for the world? Not simply that he wants you to claim his redemptive act at Calvary for yourself and receive his eternal salvation, but to let him lead you to do his work right here and right now! Are each of us fully expectant of his active presence in our lives?
The shepherds were. The Magi were. Simeon and Anna were. Joseph and Mary were. Elizabeth and Zechariah were. Countless millions of people through the ages have been. But what about today? How many people today are anxious and eager to have the Lord work his way through their life?
The leper said to Jesus “If you choose, you can make me clean.” (Matthew 8:1-4) He was expectant.
The woman with the hemorrhage thought “If I only touch his cloak, I will be made well.” (Matthew 9:20-22) She was expectant.
Jesus tells us “I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If in my name you ask for anything, I will do it.” (John 14:13-14) You see, Jesus wants us to be expectant, too. Faith isn’t just about obligation and obedience – it is first and foremost about expectancy! We are to believe that God will do what he says he will do. We are to believe that God is who he says he is. We are to believe that the things he brings into our lives are for his divine purpose and reason.
Faith and trust in all we do. That is what he truly wants from us.

Read Luke 2:39-40

Luke and Matthew differ a little on what happened next for this young family. Matthew had them fleeing south to Egypt to escape Herod’s assassins before they could begin a normal life together, but Luke sends them directly north to begin making their new home in Nazareth. But these are just details that, while they would have significance in the salvation narrative, have little to do with Jesus’ divinity directly. Luke tells us that Jesus grew up as any child would and would become strong, but his strength would be different than that of other boys, as his would come from his being “filled with wisdom, and the grace of God” – the power of Almighty God would settle on the Boy, and he would grow in a Godly way.
Jesus, in his humanness, would be all that anyone might expect of a child. Jesus, in his Godliness, would be all that the world would ever need in a Savior.

In the next few verses of Luke (2:41-47), which we won’t get into today, we discover the impact of the prophecies and the wisdom that this human child would be exhibiting. He would amaze his parents, certainly, but he would also astonish the teachers and prophets of Israel. He would amaze the common folks, and infuriate the learned. He would heal those who believed in him, and he would challenge those who doubted. And in the final moment, he would accept the sentence of Imperial Rome’s sword and cross, so that he could be Life-Giver to all the earth.

To say that Jesus Christ would be an enigma to the people of this world would be an extreme understatement! He would speak in parables and analogies and allusions that even his closest followers had trouble making sense of, and yet, every single word of his teaching would reveal some great truth of God.

Anna and Simeon knew. The Samaritan woman at Jacob’s well would know (John 4:1-42). The demoniac who was infected with a “Legion” of demons would know. (Luke 8:26-39) Gentiles and Jews, men and women, adults and children, learned and illiterate – it has never made any difference. The salvation of Jesus Christ knows no bounds for those who come to him – expectantly!

Are we expectant, in the same way as Simeon and Anna were? They believed that Messiah would come, and they weren’t hung up on what he would look like. For them, an infant child was just as good as a mighty warrior king. They were more concerned with who he was and what he would do for them and for all, than they were over what he looked like.
That is their legacy for each of us – that we might believe and claim the glory of Jesus Christ for ourselves regardless of what we think he should be like, and then tells others what he can do for them.

Be a Simeon, be an Anna, and if just one person comes to believe for themselves, it will all be worthwhile.
Be blessed in him.

“Simeon’s Prophecy”

Scripture: Luke 2:25-35

The child Jesus had been born, and the thrill of the birth moment had passed, but wonder over the words that came from the angel and the shepherds was still with the new Mom and Dad. After all, the child had developed just as any baby would have, he had been born just as any child would have, and he looked and acted just like any newborn baby would. So when would he begin to look and act like God?

Surely, the Son of God would have divine characteristics and attributes about him. But this child – he was about as ordinary as any baby could be! Was this really God’s plan – that the Holy Child, the Lord’s Anointed, the Savior of all the earth, could be mistaken for any other human being?

If so, that meant that there were things that must be done. There was the circumcision and the naming; there was the ritual purification for the mother; as this was the couple’s first child, he would have to be presented at the temple and consecrated to the Lord’s work; and the temple offering could not be overlooked. The law required all of this, in addition to the normal, everyday things that a newly born baby needed. But when was the great God Jehovah going to begin working in his life?

Read Luke 2:25-28a

A righteous and devote man, waiting for the consolation, or redemption, of Israel (Psalm 130). It had been a long time of waiting for Israel – even Isaiah had prophesied about the day when Jehovah would come to save the people from oppression (Isaiah 27). It had been hundreds of years at least, and still the day had not yet arrived. The people still struggled in their subjugation to others, and yet, some continued to trust that God’s promise was true, and that one day, their salvation would be complete. Simeon was one of them, and the Lord had promised him that the day would come in his lifetime.

This was a man who was committed to his God, even though he knew that many, many years had passed without the long awaited promise being fulfilled. He had never given up hope, and now, in this additional promise to him, he knew that he would, one day, see the Lord for himself. And then the Holy Spirit touched his life, and he knew that this would be the day. He was led to the temple, and led to the new parents who were holding a baby. And he knew! He just knew that this had to be the promise of God, his redemption and the redemption of all of Israel, the redemption of all the earth!

Now, we have to remember that Luke, the author of this gospel, was a Gentile, and was, very possibly, writing to a Gentile audience. His emphasis isn’t on the law, it isn’t even on the actual promise that God had given to Israel, but rather on the promise fulfilled for all who will believe. This Simeon was, in all likelihood, a simple man. He wasn’t important, he held no position of authority, he wasn’t wealthy – he was the type of person who you could pass on the street and hardly even notice. But in keeping with God Almighty’s style, this is the very person who the Spirit would reveal the Christ Child to – he would be unimportant to all except God Himself.

And Simeon takes this precious Savior into his arms, unafraid to hold the God of the Universe close to his breast, to stare right into that gentile and loving face, to hear the voice that had spoken creation into being, and to touch the means of his salvation. Do you think he trembled? Luke doesn’t say that he did, but how could he not have? As soon as he saw the tiny baby, he instantly knew that this was God’s blessing to him. And he would pray a prayer of joy unlike anything the people in the temple had ever heard!

And how had this meeting occurred? Was it a joy filled accident? Certainly not. Simeon was there because the Holy Spirit inspired him to be there. Joseph and Mary were there because of their obligation to adhere to the law of Israel. The coming of Jesus into the lives of all humanity would fulfill both the Spirit of God and the Law of God, and he would amaze some and irritate the rest.

Read Luke 2:28b-32

His prayer of overwhelming joy is reminiscent of Isaiah 52:8-10 (Read). God had come into the midst of the earth, and this humble, ordinary, faithful man called Simeon, would proclaim that this Child, this gift of God, had been given, not only for Israel’s benefit, but for all of humanity.
This was the long awaited Messiah, the Anointed One of God, the Salvation and Hope for all the earth. And even though Simeon is now prepared and willing to be taken from the earth, Luke never mentions whether he dropped dead on the spot or not. We can only guess what may have come next for this newest of prophets. But I want to believe that, like the shepherds, he could never keep this incredible news to himself.

Isn’t it interesting that God choses the most unexpected and most unusual people to proclaim his word? Prophets from many walks of life and throughout the ages past who would never see the culmination of their prophecies, a teenaged and pregnant girl who had probably never been more than a mile from her home, a bunch of dirty, unkempt and lowly shepherds, wealthy Eastern gentiles, an everyday man of faith, unclean fishermen, men and women who had been freed from the power of demons, a Pharisee who was persecuting the early Church, and on and on. They would all become willing to spread his word, but none had ever expressed an interest in doing so, or at least not in the way that the Lord intended them to.
But that’s the way God works! Isaiah 55:9-11 tells us that we may never understand the way God works in this world, but that his way is far better than ours, and that unlike ours, his way will never fail.

Read Luke 2:33-35

When the shepherds revealed to Mary and Joseph what the angels had told them, they were amazed (Luke 2:16-19). When Simeon told the couple what their child would mean to the people of earth, again, they were amazed. These new parents knew who this child was, but they had taken on the incredible responsibility of caring for the Son of God without ever knowing what his life would be about and what it would mean to them.

Mark Lowery wrote a song some time ago called “Mary Did You Know”. The song itself consists of question upon question, asking Mary if she ever fully understood what Jesus’ coming to earth in human form was really about. It appears that even though she carried God within her own body for 9 months while he was becoming fully human, even though she would care for his every need as an infant and then a child, and would raise him to adulthood, she would be faithful to God’s call, knowing very little of what would come from her faithfulness.

Mary didn’t have the Gospel and epistle writings to study and learn from. She didn’t have the benefit of 2 millennia of scholarly works and studies and learning to teach her. We not only have the most incredible collection of 1st century writings to learn from, but we also have the supporting evidence of 39 books from the Hebrew texts that point to Christ’s coming and works. And yet, with all the writings and explanations that we have at our disposal, are we as faithful as Mary was to all that God called her to do?

We can listen to the lyrics of “Mary Did You Know”, and say yes, he did all of that, and more.
“Mary did you know that your Baby Boy is Lord of all creation?
Mary did you know that your Baby Boy would one day rule the nations?
Did you know that your Baby Boy is heaven’s perfect lamb?
This sleeping Child you’re holding is the Great I Am?”
(Verse 3)

We know all of this, but how often do we share this message with the people of the world? Are any of us less capable than shepherds or fishermen or persecutors of the Church? The truth is that it doesn’t matter who we are when the Lord calls us to share his message of hope with others. Today is the day we call Epiphany – this is the day the word of God came to the Gentiles. The truth of God was given directly to the Magi, but they had to go and see for themselves before they could tell others what they had seen. The truth of God was given directly to Simeon, but he had to see Jesus for himself before he could tell others what he then knew. The truth of God was given directly to Mary, but would she understand just what she was being asked to do?
The Lord speaks to some people to give them his word, but it isn’t for their edification – it is so they can then go and spread his word to others. He called Peter, James, John, and the others to carry his word to the nations. He called Stephen and Paul and Barnabas and Timothy and Silas and millions of others like them to share his word with those who had yet to receive it. And he calls you and me to do the same right here and now.

Are you as willing, as Simeon was, to answer God’s call on your life? It’s not so difficult – it only takes a commitment and love of Jesus to go wherever the Spirit leads you. The Lord will do everything else, he will show us and give us whatever we may need, and what an experience it will be!