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Sermon:
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This past fall, I was fortunate enough to get the opportunity to study in Israel. Very fortunate since Sewanee, my seminary, helped cover most of the costs for me to go on this journey.
And Sewanee recommended I go study at St. George’s College in Jerusalem. Which ended up being an excellent choice. Particularly because they offered a course called the Palestine of Jesus. It was a chance to walk, as much as it is possible to do so, in the literal footsteps of Jesus during His life among us in this world.
Since we were trying to walk on the same path as Jesus, we of course started in Bethlehem. The place, where we just heard, Jesus was born. The place and event that we are celebrating here today.
But before we made our way to the birthplace, we made a stop first. We stopped to Herodium. The palace of King Herod the Great, the ruler of Israel under the Roman Empire. The king of Israel at the time when Jesus was born.
Herodium, in Herod’s day, was quite a spectacular place. It is a little ways out Jerusalem. Kind of like a cabin or retreat home in the country side. Except that this palace was on a great hill so that you could see anyone coming near for miles and miles.
The stones which the palace was built with were the finest stones you could find in the Roman Empire. There was a massive pool to add to the luxury. And in the middle of the palace, there was a staircase leading downward to a tomb where Herod was to be laid to rest. Where he was to receive a lavish funeral to match his lavish lifestyle. As we were told in our class, Herodium was designed to be a sign of "luxury, power, and privilege."
But for all the glory of this palace, it is now nothing but a ruin. There are some stones that stand, but only to give a sign of what once was there. The path up and down is mostly dirt and gravel. It is no longer a sign of luxury, but instead, it is the sign of a king that is no more. Lost in the sands of time.
And think about it: how many of you here had heard of Herodium before today? How many of you are familiar with King Herod the Great, other than his name and the fact he is talked about in the Bible? How many of you would have even thought about visiting Herodium if you ever got the chance to go to Israel?
On the other hand, we have Jesus. As many of you know by now from our recent classes, Jesus was born in a cave. A place, as we hear about in the Gospel this evening, that His parents went to only because there was literally no other place for them to go. A place they stayed in out of desperation.
Herodium, in Herod’s day, was quite a spectacular place. It is a little ways out Jerusalem. Kind of like a cabin or retreat home in the country side. Except that this palace was on a great hill so that you could see anyone coming near for miles and miles.
The stones which the palace was built with were the finest stones you could find in the Roman Empire. There was a massive pool to add to the luxury. And in the middle of the palace, there was a staircase leading downward to a tomb where Herod was to be laid to rest. Where he was to receive a lavish funeral to match his lavish lifestyle. As we were told in our class, Herodium was designed to be a sign of "luxury, power, and privilege."
But for all the glory of this palace, it is now nothing but a ruin. There are some stones that stand, but only to give a sign of what once was there. The path up and down is mostly dirt and gravel. It is no longer a sign of luxury, but instead, it is the sign of a king that is no more. Lost in the sands of time.
And think about it: how many of you here had heard of Herodium before today? How many of you are familiar with King Herod the Great, other than his name and the fact he is talked about in the Bible? How many of you would have even thought about visiting Herodium if you ever got the chance to go to Israel?
On the other hand, we have Jesus. As many of you know by now from our recent classes, Jesus was born in a cave. A place, as we hear about in the Gospel this evening, that His parents went to only because there was literally no other place for them to go. A place they stayed in out of desperation.
Jesus is the son of two extremely poor and impoverished parents. They came from a town of roughly 100 people in the backwaters of the north of Israel. Nazareth: A town so small that the Gospels are about the only source that refer to it. That until archaeologists actually dug it up in modern times, people weren’t even sure it actually existed.
But even though this cave housed this poor newborn from the middle of nowhere, it is still standing there today. But it doesn’t look like a cave anymore. Our Orthodox brothers and sisters have ensured that it is a place treated with the upmost respect and dignity. When you go in, you will find beautiful icons all around, candles lit in honor of this tiny baby, and silver encrusting a great deal of the place. And currently, it is going through renovation to ensure people can continue to worship there for years to come.
Here we have it. Herodium, the palace of the king, is a ruin, filled with dirt and gravel. And this same insignificant cave is encrusted with precious metals and honor and glory.
But even though this cave housed this poor newborn from the middle of nowhere, it is still standing there today. But it doesn’t look like a cave anymore. Our Orthodox brothers and sisters have ensured that it is a place treated with the upmost respect and dignity. When you go in, you will find beautiful icons all around, candles lit in honor of this tiny baby, and silver encrusting a great deal of the place. And currently, it is going through renovation to ensure people can continue to worship there for years to come.
Here we have it. Herodium, the palace of the king, is a ruin, filled with dirt and gravel. And this same insignificant cave is encrusted with precious metals and honor and glory.
As Greg, the dean of St. George's College and our guide on this journey to Bethlehem told us, the power of Messiah is found in a village, not in the palace. That is, true power doesn’t lie with the king, but instead with this tiny child.
This is one of the important lessons for us to remember during the next 12 days of Christmas. God’s power isn’t in the palace. That is not where He has made Himself manifest to us.
Instead, the power of God is made perfect in weakness, as our patron saint Paul writes in the Second Epistle to the Corinthians. The power of God is made apparent in small towns, with the poor and destitute, with the unknown and insignificant, and with the powerless weakness of the vulnerability of a child born in a cave in the backwaters of the backwaters of the Roman Empire.
And as we see looking forward in Jesus’ life, God’s power is made perfect in absolute weakness. In death. Because it is in His death that Jesus is able to free us and make death itself turn backwards. It is in dying that Jesus conquers death and rises again so that we can rise to new life with Him.
In our lives, it is easy to be entrapped and tempted by power and success. We look to those who have money, power, and victory with awe and respect. We want to be like these people. We too want to have the power and success of others. To not seems to be a failure.
Herod had these things. He had the money, power, and luxury. He had all those things we crave.
And yet, it is a small, poor, powerless child who we remember. It is the one who was charged as a criminal and put to death in the most horrifying way possible who we celebrate. It is not the king we remember, but the wandering son of a laborer, preaching in one of the most impoverished regions in the world. It is not the powerful king we recall every year, but a simple man, the son of God, who was willing to die for us so that we might live again.
As you continue to celebrate the Christmas season from now until January 6, remember who it is that you celebrating. It isn’t a man of power, but a man of compassion for the whole world. We don’t celebrate a story of power and luxury, but instead we give thanks for the story of a still quiet love that God has for us. The love of the One who humbled Himself to the point that He was willing to die so that we could be renewed in life with Him. He was willing to die so that we could be with Him again.
And in reflecting on that story, think about your own life. What is the guiding force in your life and allegiances? Is it power and success or is it the same sort of care and sacrifice that Jesus has shown all of us? Because his death and resurrection affects everything in our lives. It affects what we do, how we treat people, and even what sort of people we interact with. The ways of power and success lead to the fate of Herod, death and decay. But the ways compassion and love led to new life and renewal. So as you reflect, make the wise choice. Let the Christ child into your hearts to transform you and grant you the life and renewal that comes only from the gift of his love for you and for us all. And have hope. Have hope because true power isn't found in the palace. It is found in the power made perfect in weakness of this tiny child who grew up to save us all through His death and resurrection. That power, that true power, is what we celebrate tonight. And that is what we will continue to celebrate every week here at this church.
This is one of the important lessons for us to remember during the next 12 days of Christmas. God’s power isn’t in the palace. That is not where He has made Himself manifest to us.
Instead, the power of God is made perfect in weakness, as our patron saint Paul writes in the Second Epistle to the Corinthians. The power of God is made apparent in small towns, with the poor and destitute, with the unknown and insignificant, and with the powerless weakness of the vulnerability of a child born in a cave in the backwaters of the backwaters of the Roman Empire.
And as we see looking forward in Jesus’ life, God’s power is made perfect in absolute weakness. In death. Because it is in His death that Jesus is able to free us and make death itself turn backwards. It is in dying that Jesus conquers death and rises again so that we can rise to new life with Him.
In our lives, it is easy to be entrapped and tempted by power and success. We look to those who have money, power, and victory with awe and respect. We want to be like these people. We too want to have the power and success of others. To not seems to be a failure.
Herod had these things. He had the money, power, and luxury. He had all those things we crave.
And yet, it is a small, poor, powerless child who we remember. It is the one who was charged as a criminal and put to death in the most horrifying way possible who we celebrate. It is not the king we remember, but the wandering son of a laborer, preaching in one of the most impoverished regions in the world. It is not the powerful king we recall every year, but a simple man, the son of God, who was willing to die for us so that we might live again.
As you continue to celebrate the Christmas season from now until January 6, remember who it is that you celebrating. It isn’t a man of power, but a man of compassion for the whole world. We don’t celebrate a story of power and luxury, but instead we give thanks for the story of a still quiet love that God has for us. The love of the One who humbled Himself to the point that He was willing to die so that we could be renewed in life with Him. He was willing to die so that we could be with Him again.
And in reflecting on that story, think about your own life. What is the guiding force in your life and allegiances? Is it power and success or is it the same sort of care and sacrifice that Jesus has shown all of us? Because his death and resurrection affects everything in our lives. It affects what we do, how we treat people, and even what sort of people we interact with. The ways of power and success lead to the fate of Herod, death and decay. But the ways compassion and love led to new life and renewal. So as you reflect, make the wise choice. Let the Christ child into your hearts to transform you and grant you the life and renewal that comes only from the gift of his love for you and for us all. And have hope. Have hope because true power isn't found in the palace. It is found in the power made perfect in weakness of this tiny child who grew up to save us all through His death and resurrection. That power, that true power, is what we celebrate tonight. And that is what we will continue to celebrate every week here at this church.