334 SE Tecumseh Road  P.O. Box 5  Tecumseh, Kansas 66542  (785) 379-5005  Fax - (785) 379-5061                  Josh Gooding, Pastor

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Epiphany Ephesians 3:1-12  My dictionary says that epiphany means appearance, or manifestation, such as the manifestation of Christ to the Gentiles, symbolized by the visit of the wise men to that lowly manger in a lowly stable, long ago. The dictionary also talks about a sudden realization, a sudden grasp of meaning. And so, I’m reading the apostle Paul for this week. Now mind you, Paul is one of those looming authority figures for me, one of those disciples who sets a standard which I can never hope to achieve. In other words, he intimidates me, makes me feel inferior – even though I respect and admire him, he nevertheless makes me feel inadequate. So I’m just reading along in Ephesians, and come across this phrase: Although I am the very least of all the saints…(3:8) Paul – the least? This great disciple and apostle – the least? In reading this passage I experienced a kind of epiphany moment, a sudden discovery, a sudden grasp perhaps. In the face of the greatness of God and the greatness of Jesus Christ, Paul – the great Paul – is revealed to be merely human, with all of the limitations which that implies. Paul is always well aware of his past as one who persecuted both Jews and Gentiles, and he is honest about who he was. For that reason Paul gives thanks to God for the grace which has been bestowed upon him so that he, in turn, may now serve as God’s messenger “to bring to the Gentiles the news of the boundless riches of Christ.” (3:8)   People have many ways of responding to their pastors, and speaking as one who for only a few years has served in that capacity, some of those responses are nothing short of intimidating. Some have the (false!) notion that pastors are different, better, less sinful. Some will joke that pastors have a “pipeline to God”, but secretly they’re not joking at all. When pastors come around we need to “clean up our act”, making sure our language and behavior does not “offend” the pastor. I have news for you – God makes some unusual choices in picking out those who serve as messengers, and I’m one of those “unusual” choices. (You’re free to use your own descriptive terms.) But consider this – aren’t we all a bit “unusual”? Are we not all the least of the saints? Even so, bestowed upon us, upon all of us, is God’s grace. With that, all of us – motley bunch though we may be, Big Springs UMC, Tecumseh UMC, others- all of us imperfect creatures are yet the very ones about whom Paul writes: through the church the wisdom of God in its rich variety [may] now be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly places. This was in accordance with the eternal purpose that he carried out in Christ Jesus our Lord, in whom we have access to God in boldness and confidence through faith in him. (3:10-12) We are imperfect indeed – Paul, pastors, the laity, all of us who together make up the body of Christ. But – with God’s grace, we can do incredible things. We can be a source of light. We really can – with God’s grace. - Pastor Piet - January 6, 2008; Epiphany of the Lord