07-29-18
“Faces of Our Faith – Anna”
Rev. Kevin Hay
Luke 2: 21-38
21After eight days had passed, it was time to circumcise the child;
and he was called Jesus,
the name given by the angel before he was conceived in the womb. 22When the time came for their purification
according to the law of Moses,
they brought him up to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord
23(as it is written in the law of the Lord,
“Every firstborn male shall be designated as holy to the Lord”),
24and they offered a sacrifice according to what is stated in the law of the Lord, “a pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons.”
25Now there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon;
this man was righteous and devout,
looking forward to the consolation of Israel,
and the Holy Spirit rested on him.
26It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit
that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Messiah.
27Guided by the Spirit, Simeon came into the temple;
and when the parents brought in the child Jesus,
to do for him what was customary under the law,
28Simeon took him in his arms and praised God, saying,
29“Master, now you are dismissing your servant in peace,
according to your word;
30for my eyes have seen your salvation,
31which you have prepared in the presence of all peoples,
32a light for revelation to the Gentiles
and for glory to your people Israel.”
33And the child’s father and mother
were amazed at what was being said about him.
34Then Simeon blessed them and said to his mother Mary,
“This child is destined for the falling and the rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be opposed 35so that the inner thoughts of many will be revealed—and a sword will pierce your own soul too.”
36There was also a prophet, Anna the daughter of Phanuel,
of the tribe of Asher.
She was of a great age,
having lived with her husband seven years after her marriage,
37then as a widow to the age of eighty-four.
She never left the temple but worshiped there
with fasting and prayer night and day.
38At that moment she came, and began to praise God
and to speak about the child to all who were looking
for the redemption of Jerusalem.
Leader: For the Word of God in Scripture,
For the Word of God among us,
For the Word of God within us
ALL: Thanks be to God
Sermon – “Faces of Our Faith” Rev. Kevin Hay
One of my favorite songs is by a band called Mumford and Sons
I may have referenced them in a sermon before
they are a Britsh, quasi-bluegrass, folk, rock band
and while they are a secular band
the lyrics to the songs often have a bit of a spiritual influence to them
as the lead singer – Marcus Mumford
is a preacher’s kid too…
maybe that’s why I like them so much!
I even had the privilege of hearing them play a few years ago
at the Merriweather Post Pavilion in Columbia, Maryland
it was quite the production, almost like being at a U2 concert,
but for folk music…
but one of their songs really speaks to me
both in the tone of the song
and in the lyrics…
especially the chorus to the song which says:
Keep the earth below my feet
For all my sweat, my blood runs weak
Let me learn from where I have been
Keep my eyes to serve and my hands to learn
Keep my eyes to serve and my hands to learn
it’s a song that I often find myself reflecting on
as a reminder to stay grounded, humble, connected to the earth
it has almost become a prayer of sorts
as I say over and over to God
Keep the earth below my feet…
I pray as I go throughout the ups and downs of ministry and life…
Keep the earth below my feet…
but of course, with a song that speaks to me so much
I often find myself reflecting on the words
maybe even too much…
and I’ve always been really intrigued by the last part of the chorus
Keep my eyes to serve and my hands to learn
Keep my eyes to serve and my hands to learn
what in the world does that mean?
Eyes to serve and Hands to learn?
it almost seems like it’s backwards…
it would make more sense for our
hands to serve and our eyes to learn, wouldn’t it?
but maybe our passage today would say otherwise…
Today, we begin a series for the next few weeks
on Faces of Our Faith – Bold, Untold Stories
we’ll be focusing in on lesser known stories
of more ordinary people of faith in the Bible
who do what they can with what they have
to make a difference
not necessarily the big heroes of the bible
but the more ordinary people of faith
just like you and me…
last week during the opening to Sunday school,
John Dan talked about Christmas in July
and the white flowery things blowing in the air like snow…
well… we really do have Christmas in July
as today’s passage takes us all the way back to
right after the Christmas story
and the birth of Jesus…
and over the next few weeks we’ll move forward in the story of faith exploring various characters in the New Testament…
this week, we have the story of Anna
a story that just takes up a few verses of our passage today
as Jesus’ parents take their son to be committed to the Church
to be circumcised just after his birth…
just like we often take our newborn babies to be baptized…
and the Prophet Simeon was there
a righteous and devout man
who proclaims that the prophecy is being fulfilled in Jesus
providing hope and fulfilling God’s promise with the people of Israel.
and then enters Anna into the story
for just a few verses, 36-38
She was also a prophet, the daughter of Phanuel
and it says she was of great age
she was married for 7 years to her husband
and then lived as a widow to the age of 84
now 84 years in today’s time is certainly an accomplishment
but in those days,
before all our medical advancements and technology
and understanding of health and the human body
84 was much more like living past 100…
and we’re told that…
She never left the temple but worshiped there
with fasting and prayer night and day.
and as Jesus’ parents brought him to be committed to the Church
after Simeon proclaims the prophesy being fulfilled
Anna enters the story
as Lisle Gwynn Garrity says in her artist reflection
“Luke could have easily left Anna out of the story.
But she leans in – from the margins, from the shadows,
from the edges of the scene to approach her newborn king.”
here we have an ordinary woman of faith in Anna
whom Luke could have easily left out
yet, he chose to include her in the story
as Lisle Gwynn Garrity continues
“Perhaps Luke knew that those on the outside
seemed to have the nearest access to Jesus.
Those on the margins saw what others could not yet see.
They knew without really knowing,
because it was the kind of knowledge
that shifts the chemistry of your heart.”
Who are those people in our lives?
those ordinary people of faith?
those faces of faith?
those people leaning in from the margins, from the shadows
who just seem to have access to Jesus in ways we can’t seem to find?
who see what others can’t yet see…?
the artist says about the image on the front of our bulletins…
“When drawing this image,
I referenced photographs of Mother Teresa
because I imagine her, like Anna a few centuries before,
having eyes for the divine and devoting her entire life
to the pointing it out for others.”
eyes for the divine
faithful devotion
Keep the earth below my feet
Keep my eyes to serve and my hands to learn
as I’ve worked through the devotion on this story
that we’ll be using for our Bible Study that starts back up August 7th
the devotion asks you what parts of the image are you most drawn to?
and as I look as this image of Anna the Prophetess on our bulletins
that is inspired in part by Mother Teresa
what I’m most drawn to first
are her eyes
she seems to have such patient eyes
kind eyes
eyes that are pointing to the divine
to God’s love
just as the artist describes it
“having eyes for the divine and devoting her entire life
to the pointing it out for others.”
and next I notice her hands
prayerfully clasped together
held up to her mouth as she prayerfully seeks God’s will
through years of faithful devotion
and finally
I notice her skin, full of such distinguished layers of wrinkles
on her hands and her face
around her eyes, mouth, and nose…
showing years of perseverance and wisdom…
eyes for the divine
faithful devotion – prayerful perseverance,
waiting for her moment to come…
Keep the earth below my feet
Keep my eyes to serve and my hands to learn
Lisle Gwynn Garrity describes Anna saying…
“Perhaps being at the end of her life
helped her to see the world with eyes sharpened for the holy.
Perhaps living most of her years as a widow
kept her hiding in the shadows,
to keep from taking up too much space,
when Simeon approached first
to announce praise and prophesies on behalf of the newborn child.
Perhaps being a prophet made her both patient and persistent,
trusting that the right moment to share her wisdom
would, indeed, come.
and that moment did indeed come
that moment for her to share her wisdom
wisdom developed over many years
of having eyes for the divine
years of faithful devotion – prayerful perseverance,
finally came
and our story says that:
38At that moment she came, and began to praise God
and to speak about the child to all who were looking
for the redemption of Jerusalem.
We often talk about how the first evangelists were women
on Easter Sunday
as they left the empty tomb
sharing the good news of the Risen Christ
but perhaps we forget about people like Anna
ordinary people of faith, just after Jesus’ birth
leaning in from the margins, from the shadows
after years of having eyes for the divine
after years of faithful devotion – prayerful perseverance,
praising God and proclaiming to all who were looking,
the redemption of Jerusalem
Who are these people in our lives today?
people with eyes for the divine?
people of faithful devotion and prayerful perseverance?
how might God be calling us to follow their example?
I remember a man at the church where I grew up in Birmingham
who seemed to have eyes for the divine
a man of faithful devotion and prayerful perseverance
his name was Bob Hunter
much like Anna who never left the temple but worshiped there
with fasting and prayer night and day.
Bob Hunter was always at the Church
he was there every Sunday morning
always serving as an usher and greeter
passing out bulletins, taking up the offering
unlocking the church before worship and locking up after…
and he seemed to always be there throughout the week as well
faithfully devoting himself to the Church
in whatever ways he could…
I can think of a few people around here
both men and women…
that remind me of Bob…
and he was always so kind and welcoming
he always had a look in his eyes that could calm your spirit…
as if he too
had the nearest access to Jesus
as if he too
saw what others couldn’t see
as if he too
knew some things, without really knowing that he knew them…
I remember coming home after graduating college
moving back in with my parents
as I began looking for a job
and I bounced around waiting tables and doing temporary jobs
while I kept searching for my career to really get started…
and every time I went to church on Sunday
which wasn’t necessarily every Sunday in those days…
Bob Hunter was there…
and every time I saw him at Church
he was so eager to talk to me
about what was going on in my life…
how was the job hunt?
was there anything he could do to help me?
and offering me words of encouragement and support…
and after a few months of this
as I continued to bounce around and search for what was right…
sadly – Bob was diagnosed with Cancer
and began undergoing treatment…
but the next few times I went to Church
Bob was still there
being the same person
welcoming me as I entered the doors
handing me a bulletin
and he was still so eager to talk to me
about what was going on in my life…
how was the job hunt?
was there anything he could do to help me?
and offering me words of encouragement and support…
and I remember thinking to myself
why is he still doing this?
he has so much bigger things going on in life…
than to worry about what’s going on in my life…
one day, I went to Church and the struggles of searching
was really beginning to weigh on me
and I think he could tell when he asked me how I was doing,
that I didn’t really wanna talk about it…
and I was getting pretty discouraged
and Bob turned to me and said…
“Well, maybe God’s just got other plans for you.”
“… maybe God’s just got other plans for you.”
and it turns out God did have other plans for me…and in those simple words
this man who had so many other things to be worrying about
than poor Kevin and his job hunt after college
became a prophet to me
seeing things that I couldn’t yet see
and pointing me to them…
having eyes for the divine
and devoting his entire life to pointing it out for others.
we’re not all called to be super heroes in the Church
but God calls each one of us to a life of faith
where we seek to have
eyes for the divine
God calls each one of us to
a life of faithful devotion – prayerful perseverance,
waiting for our moment to come…
and when that moment comes,
just as it did for Anna, or Mother Teresa, or Bob Hunter…
God calls us to
praise God and proclaim to all who are looking,
the redemption, hope, and love, in Jesus Christ.
Keep the earth below my feet
Keep my eyes to serve and my hands to learn
Keep my eyes to serve and my hands to learn
AMEN