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Take Up Your Cross And Follow Me.

The Transfiguration on the mountain top overshadowed by a cloud is the culmination of prophecies and promises given by God on other mountain tops engulfed in clouds. From Moses to Elijah to Christ, everything is coming together until finally on yet another mountain called Calvary, Jesus offers you salvation through his exodus on the cross. Isn’t that amazing how everything just comes together? So unlike the disciples who told no one what they had seen, May you thank the lord and sing his praise and tell everyone what he has done.

“This is my Son, my Chosen; listen to him!” This command by God to listen. To listen to Jesus, sounds pretty straight forward on the surface. But what God is doing here, is driving the point home to those three disciples, Peter, James and John, driving the point home to us as well that Jesus is the Christ. The Messiah, the Chosen One by God, that he not only is the Son of God, but the very one that God told Moses that he would send. In Deuteronomy 18, Moses tells the people, “The Lord your God, will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, it is to him you shall listen, For God will put his words in his mouth.”

The story of the Epiphany is not a Christmas story. Rather it is the story not about three kings, but two...Herod and Christ.

In our gospel this morning, we hear how John leaped for joy, when Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting. Even in utero, there is cause for joy and celebration! But who would have guessed that a simple, “hello” would be the cause for so much excitement?!

Like painting a house involves a lot of prep work, in our gospel this morning, John the Baptist is also urging people to do some prep work, preparing for the coming of the Lord. For many people, Christmas is a lot like painting their house. They are eager to just slap up the Christmas decorations, put up the lights and the missile toe, hang the wreath on the front door and do their home makeover without any prep work. But without preparing our hearts and minds for the incarnation of Christ, without preparing ourselves for his coming again on the day of the Lord, than Christmas just becomes another season.

Do you think God have a plan for you, or is God just flying by the seat of his pants waiting to see what you’re gonna do? At times, it seems as if God doesn’t have a plan for you, or if he does, it seems that he hasn’t shared it with you. Those times when you are stuck in a rut, you pray about it, but a year later you’re still there. Those times when you are looking for direction, meaning, or purpose, those times when you are weighed down by the worries of life, and you wonder, “What is God’s plan for my life?” Those times when you feel like you are just going through the motions, going through life aimlessly.

The last thing we want, is to hear the truth about ourselves. But that is what Jesus cane to do. Jesus says, ”For this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. “ He came to speak the truth about us...twice. First to tell us that we all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God and that we should repent, or turn back to God. Jesus tells us the truth, by holding up a mirror in front us that shows us our own self-centeredness, or our own selfishness to show us who it is that we worship and idolize...in other words, who we put first in the grand scheme of things. But in the end, that truth also reveals that we are in bondage and will never be free. That in the end, everyone is in bondage to death.

Unlike the Temple, which was built by human hands to offer sacrifice to God, In Christ, we see God’s sacrifice for us. On the cross, Christ took upon himself our sins and the sins of the entire world, once and for all so that .all who believe in him shall not perish but have eternal life. This is the new covenant. And this new Covenant is not just a prediction....it is a promise.

You’re not the only ones who like to sit in the back of the church. In our gospel this morning, the Bible tells us that Jesus is sitting in the back...doing what some church goers do best...people watching. In other words, Jesus is watching what people are putting in the collection plate.

In our gospel this morning, Lazarus isn’t the only one bound, he isn’t the only one who is blinded with a veil over his face. Mary and Martha are also bound by their hopes in what could have been...blinded by their tears and grief over the brother’s death. If only they had sent word to Jesus sooner. If only they had tried harder. If only Jesus would have been there, then their brother would not have died.

In our Gospel, the disciples were arguing about who was the greatest. You want to know who is the greatest? It’s not the one with the most money or the fanciest house. It’s not the one with a corner office or the most diplomas on their wall. It’s not the one with the biggest car or smallest carbon footprint. It’s not the one who can quote chapter and verse. The greatest in the kingdom of God, is the one who is servant to all.

It is up to us to decide if we are going to volunteer. Up to us to decide if it is a worthy or noble cause. Up to us, to decide who it is that we are willing to help or serve. But, being a Christian, being a follow of Christ, following his example, means that we are to lead lives of service. Or in the words of Jesus, “you must be slaves of all.” And we do this....not in order to become great. We do this...not in order to achieve fame or success. We do this...because the Son of Man came not to be served, but to serve and give his life as a ransom for you, so that you are free to give your life in service to others.

The rich young man did not trust Jesus when he gave him the good news that he would have treasure in heaven. He trusted in what he had already. His status, his possessions, his own good deeds. He trusted in the tangibles of life. We need to trust what Jesus says, and what he has done.

When we stumble, when we trip over our words actions, or those of another, the only thing we can do is allow ourselves to be picked back up. To reach out to Christ who by his death ands resurrection; forgives your stumbles and mis-steps, who pours out his grace to heal your scraped knees, bruised egos and battered hearts. And when we are lifted up in faith, God can use us to lift up others who have fallen or fallen away. This is what it means to be the church, to reach out to each other, to help each other, when we stumble...because in the end, we’re all in this together.

Jesus asks his disciples. Jesus asks, “who do people say that I am?” If you were to ask that question of yourself, who do people say that you are? Do they know that you are a Christian? Do they know who you are by what you wear or by what you do? Do they know you by your name, or by your actions? Do they know you...by the cross... you bear?

First Jesus puts his fingers in the man’s ears. Can you imagine what that would be like? Having someone put their fingers in your ears? That would get your attention in a hurry. And then he put some of his spit in the man’s mouth. Well if the fingers in your ears doesn’t grab your attention, having someone else spit in your mouth and grab your tongue surely would! Now that Jesus has this man’s undivided attention, he said to the man, “Ephephatha,” which means “be opened.” and immediately his ears were turned on, and his tongue was loosened.

Jesus says, “it is not what goes in to a person, that defiles them, but rather what comes out.” Jesus says that it is from the heart, that all evil intentions come: fornication, theft murder, adultary, avarice, wickedness, envy, slander....it is these things that make a person unclean...and no amount of Purell can wash away the evil that lurks inside every human heart.

“Eat my flesh and drink my blood.” In the context of Holy Communion, these are words of invitation and comfort. Words of forgiveness and grace. We hear these 7 words, receive the bread and wine...the body and blood of Christ...and we hear and eat the promise, “Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood have eternal life, and I will raise them up on the last day.” This is Good News! So, why then are these 7 words so offensive, that people would just get up in the middle of a sermon and walk out?

The bread of life is a greater miracle than the manna God sent in the dessert, greater than the bread the angel brought to restore Elijah, greater even than the loaves Jesus had just multiplied to feed a crowd of more than five thousand! And yet, we continue to want and desire the manna that fills our stomachs. Continue to order bread off the menu of life that leads to death. Maybe this is because we don’t trust the promise...don’t really trust that if we eat of this bread that we will live forever, so instead we live for today.