Based on Exodus 34:29-35 & 2 Corinthians 3:12- 4:2 and Collect for the Last Sunday of Epiphany [See Below]
O God, who before the passion of your only begotten Son revealed his glory upon the holy mountain: Grant to us that we, beholding by faith the light of his countenance, may be strengthened to bear our cross, and be changed into his likeness from glory to glory; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen
Ray also has a
checkered past. No doubt many of you
have heard that He may have been involved in a murder that took place outside
of an Atlanta night club after the Super Bowl in 2000. In
that case, Ray pleaded guilty to obstruction of justice and testified against
two of the men he was with that evening.
But that is not the entire story- Ray Lewis is a man who gives back to his
community- he has established a community foundation in Baltimore that helps
economically disadvantaged youth. Ray has
also been outspoken about his faith and the work that God has done in his life-- in fact there
was a Sport Illustrated Article on the very subject a few years back - entitled
“the Gospel according to Ray.” One of the things in the article that Ray says
is that, "God has done
something in my life…”[1]
Ray implies that some sort of transformation
has occurred in his life through the work of God.
Last week while at the gym- I overheard some folks
speculating about Ray’s commitment to his faith given his checkered past.--I
bring up Ray Lewis this morning not to put Ray Lewis’ life of faith on trial or
to speculate about its authenticity, but rather I mention his story to simply
raise the question, is God in the business of transforming people’s lives and
if so, how might God be at work in transforming you and I?
The biblical witness is such that when people find themselves
in the presence of God something profound happens. After forty days on the mountain fasting and
praying in the presence of God- while God chiseled out the Ten Commandments, Moses
is transformed – he is so transformed that his physical appearance, his
countenance changes- When Moses comes back down the Sinai mountain with the Ten
commandments in hand - to present the ten commandments to the Israelite people
his face is aglow- awash in light. Moses
is literally shining The Israelite
people find this experience so unnerving, so discombobulating that Moses puts a
veil over his face so as to not frighten them.
Jesus in the great
transfiguration moment on the mountain becomes dazzling white, and his face
shines like the sun.
And finally Paul in his second letter to the Corinthians
today speaks about how the Corinthians are being transformed – In verse 18 he
writes “And all of us, with unveiled faces, seeing the glory of the Lord as
though reflected in a mirror, are being transformed [are being transformed]
into the same image…”
The biblical witness leaves no doubt that when people come in
contact with God, when people experience God’s divine presence transformation occurs.
But you know what-- that’s the bible- that’s thousands of
years ago, does God still work like that today in our lives?
Anyone remember the content of the prayer that I offered at
the beginning of the service in our opening collect? Why
don’t you turn back to the front page of your bulletin. Notice that--Right smack dab in the middle of
the prayer---I prayed that we might “be strengthened to bear our cross… [we
might] be changed into his [Christ’s] likeness”
So just five, ten minutes ago, you and I, we were on our
knees and imploring God to change us, asking God to transform us to be more and
more like Christ, to be strengthened to bear the crosses of the ministry of our
lives.
Now often when I think
of word’s like transformation in churchy contexts- I think of grand of
conversion experiences- Jesus showing up at our bedsides in a moment of
desperation- I think of dramatic moments when someone is overwhelmed by the
presence of the Holy Spirit—and yes sometimes- some of us have those
mountaintop experiences, but for the most part- those things don’t happen very
often and for some of us those things may never happen--- but might God be at
work in a different way in our lives?
I think for the most part --the transformation that God is
working within us is incremental--- for most of us there is a gradual deepening
of our faith over time- a slow and
steady progress that most often moves more
like a tortoise than at the break neck speed that we live our lives.
God’s transformation happens in- the week in, week out
encounter we have with Christ at the table behind me- bread and wine, God’s
presence in the body and blood slowly shaping and transforming us,
God’s
transformation happens in the moment by moment encounters of peace and silence
we find in a life filled with prayer transforming us to know the peace of God
that surpasses all understanding.
God’s transformation happens, in the moment by moment choices
we make to love rather than hate, to speak words that lift up rather than ones
that tear down transforming us more and more into Christ’s likeness.
One of the things that the story about Moses tells us was that
when Moses came into God’s presence- he lifted the veil off his face- he opened
himself up to the fullness of God presence—I wonder how we might unveil our
hearts, how we might open our minds more fully to experience the transformation
that God is working within each of us.
What burdens do we need to lay down? What sin do we need to
let go of? What priorities need to be
rearranged?
God is working in us and through us and on us, but we cooperate
with that transformation by placing our hearts and our lives in the cross-hairs of God’s love---- so that we might know that
love more fully and bask in the transformation that God is working within
us.
AMEN
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