Year of Prophecy
And there appeared to them Elijah with Moses, and they were talking with Jesus. (Mark 9:4)
To say that we, the Church and the world, stand on the brink of a new year would be old news. Looking at our sacred calendar, the Feast of the Transfiguration will be soon upon us, signaling the onset of Lent which leads into Easter and the welcome of spring. Many of us gladly bid “adieu” to a year of personal tragedies and tribulations. Some will fondly remember their triumphs, the announcement of good news. A certain number are fearful of what may come with the further passage of time. The changes and chances of life affect us whether we are newly made in Jesus Christ or yet to experience His love.
Life is messy. Topics we might be tempted to think are “simple,” “cut-and-dried,” or “obvious” are seldom as glaringly so as we find convenient.
Take something as seemingly straightforward as the ministry of the Church. God established it. He attached His promises to Holy Scripture and the proper handling of His Sacraments. We have at our disposal two thousand (and more) years of traditional hymns, liturgies, and prayers that have sifted through the hands of countless people whom we look forward to meeting in the Resurrection. But we as fallible humans misuse even the best in the worst manner.
I mentioned the upcoming Transfiguration Sunday in which Jesus Christ conversed with Moses and Elijah, two outstanding Old Testament leaders. A cause for celebration, correct? However, broadening our scope, there is not one but two Transfiguration Sundays, depending on which lectionary (calendar of Scripture readings) is being used in a given parish. The introductory pages of the Lutheran Service Book display a “One Year Lectionary” and a “Three Year Lectionary” sectioned off into Year A, B, and C.
Simple. Well presented. But, alas. At the LCC West Regional Conference this past October, one presenter lamented the so-called “Lectionary Wars.” Pastors contend online over which of the five orders of Divine Service is the best; whether a Eucharistic Prayer is meet and salutary; whether the pastor should perform the entire liturgy facing the altar (as I do at our sister congregation) or turn towards the congregation (as I do here in Swift Current). Hélas, even in the bosom of the Church, “the fellowship of kindred minds” is not always “like to that above”. The perfected saints and angels are in heaven, while we persist in a messy world.
We must each, Christian or not, confront the reasonable fact that we cannot and will not always get our way. Issues will seldom work out in our favour – though they do more often if we are willing to relinquish some (or perhaps all) control of the outcome. It continually surprises me that, given this is the scenario in our own personal lives, we find ourselves getting worked up over conflicts in the political or global arena which, frankly, do not concern us within our God-given vocation. No one asked our input (God excepted, of course, to whom we pray: “Thy will be done”). But, closer to home, I once again point to scenarios in which church members squabble and contend with one another over the heavenly ministry. Perhaps we can’t have nice things.
Even if we lived in a perfect world, even if each one of us got our way (imagine the chaos!), we would still find reasons to complain. Life is messy. But tough as it may be, it is a gift from God.
For evidence of just how messy life can be – even, yes, lived under God’s direction – we need to look no further than Elijah and Moses. These great men of God were far from perfect. Though they themselves had their own sins to confess, their ministries fulfilling God’s good purposes seemed to make the world messier for everyone involved.
We ought to remember the havoc and devastation that the Ten Plagues wrought on Egypt through the hand of Moses during the Exodus. Less spectacular was the incident where Moses found himself overwhelmed running the Israelites’ affairs all by himself. He was run ragged settling disputes and judging cases. Moses’ father-in-law, named Jethro (also known as Reuel, meaning “Friend of God” in Hebrew), gave him some commonsense advice to ease his burden.
When Elijah departed from Mount Horeb after witnessing God’s thundering Law and hearing Him speak in the “still, small voice” of Gospel, God commissioned the worn and weary prophet to do three things. He was to “anoint Hazael to be king over Syria”; Elisha to be a prophet, and “Jehu the son of Nishri” as king of Israel. (1 Kings 19) Elijah lived long enough to anoint his successor Elisha, who got the second two done on his behalf.
We may be worlds removed from that affair, but twenty-five round centuries ago, that decision on Elisha’s part may have been divisive. While Elisha was setting up Hazael to be king of Syria – an enemy of Israel – we are told, “the man of God wept. And Hazael said, ‘Why do you weep?’ He answered, ‘Because I know the evil that you will do to the people of Israel.’” (2 Kings 8:11-12)
Even as men and women of God, we cannot promise to make anyone’s circumstance better. Even when we may be in the right, our plans or express desires may not be what God has in mind at the given moment. We sit (more or less) idly by when others stubbornly fail to cooperate. We watch the world spin off its axis for one person; for another, doorways open up that may lead to disaster.
But this does not mean that we, as God’s servants living now, have no part whatsoever to play. St. Paul writes to the Ephesians: “Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.” (Eph 5:1-2) Knowing the “days are evil,” Paul anchors the Church’s hope in the goodness of God.
We can only guess what purposes He has in store for us, our neighbours, and the world at any given moment – leave alone a year or half-decade ahead. He may prompt us more or less gently, or goad us on by circumstance, or otherwise bring us to perform His work in a messy or contentious environment. He will put people in our lives whose attitudes do not align with ours; who use precious time and resources to advance their own agendas; who “miss the point” even while we distract ourselves from our own misfortunes. Because we all know from bitter experience that even our closest friends and relatives are subject to the winds of change. Has God given up on us? No.
“No,” Paul writes the Romans, “in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.” God harnesses even wickedness sin (your sin) to serve His purposes. “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.” (Romans 8:37, 28)
No one can easily or fully predict what changes may shape our lives this day, this year, or throughout our lives. That said, one thing is certain: even before the world was created, God chose you to serve Him in everlasting righteousness, innocence, and blessedness. He who has called, gathered, sanctified, and enlightened His Church to be a light in a dark and often dreary world, is and remains faithful. And whatever evil may befall us in this life, we know that we will join the saints triumphant: Moses, Elijah, Paul and Peter, our dearly departed in the Lord; and Jesus Christ Himself who, “rose victorious in the strife for those He came to save.” Alleluia, and amen!
