Eyes
(Prior to the sermon we used Mary Did You Know” by the Pentatonix as an anthem: (You Tube)
“When you kiss your little baby; you kiss the face of God.”
What a powerful lyric; It paints such a vivid picture for our mind’s eye. Imagine that you have the
opportunity to do what the lyric suggests. You had the chance to kiss a baby, to look at that
child knowing that face was the face of God. What an amazing thing to see. What an incredible
experience!
But…. the experience of kissing the face of God is not to be ours, as the stories tell us Christ
was born to us 2000 years ago.
But we keep trying don’t we. Like our ancestors and predecessors have for 2,000 years: we try
to find a way to kiss God, to see God, to make this entity we call God more tangible, less a thing
in the great beyond.
I would suggest to you that it was easier for the ancients to see God: because everything was
God. In the days before Christ humankind dangled by an ignorant thread. They didn’t know
where anything came from: the sun, the moon, the rain, the seasons, life, disease, death: it was
all mystery so it was easy to see God: he was everywhere! And it is easy, given this scenario to
see why the God depicted in the Old Testament was vengeful and sometimes tyrannical: life as
the authors knew it was ok one minute and a disaster the next: for no reason: other than God
was mad!
But humankind, as is our destiny, asked questions. Beginning in earnest 500-700 years ago
with the Renaissance: we have pushed back the darkness and shined the light of knowledge on
darn near every mystery known to us.
And with the light of knowledge, we began to fear God a little less: the more we could see the
less we needed God! And our knowledge has accelerated to the point where it’s pretty easy
know just about anything you want: just goggle it.
Many a modern scholarly paper suggests this is one big reason mainstream churches are
slowly fading from relevance. We know so much many think they can see all there is to see.
BUT: for those of us here: it’s not that easy to see all there is to see!
There is still plenty of darkness for us: in our lives, in our world. The mystery is not about our
physical world; it’s about the world we have created with all our knowledge. And so we came full
circle: It’s a different darkness but it still has us asking the Ancients questions: what has
happened, why did it happen, how could it happen, Where is God? What is God?? Who is
God??
It is our species destiny to ask questions; to be on a quest; to try to make sense of the unknown.
To find light in the darkness, to try to see what we cannot see.
Now: why some people have chosen to make this journey in church and others have not is
above my pay grade and for another sermon: so let’s focus on the quest happening at FPC.
And a quest it is! Sometimes a difficult one, a frustrating one, a mysterious one. To believe in a
God we cannot see.
Shakespeare once said “The Eyes are the Window to the Soul.”
Our souls, our spirits: look out through our eyes: looking for the answers to our questions; the
answers to our prayers; trying to see what we know we cannot see!
I’d like to share a story about a member of an FPC family’s journey.
Once upon a time there was a family; and Joanne was Catholic. And her partner was sort of a
Presby but his soul hadn't seen much light there so he dropped away.
This man used to begin his prayers: Heavenly Father: if you are there, hear my prayer…..
(Their son actually began their path back; Shuck; Sarah and the Music: then Herb and small
groups: Praying for the things I said I needed prayer for).
Praying in that small group, for each other, by name, and for a specific purpose was an
important step in that man’s quest. He had shared a fear, and so did everyone else, and he was
embraced and he was loved anyway. And a little of his darkness was illuminated.
Those prayers were an important step because they answered the man’s prayerful plea:
“Heavenly Father, If you are there” …….
Some of you already know the answer, I hope for others you might find some inspiration in
today’s message: For me: the answer to the man’s question of “Are you there” is Yes.
We CAN see what we thought we couldn’t see: We can see God. Our eyes can see God.
In the people in this room. And in the faces of our families. In the eyes of our fellow man.
God is right in front of our eyes! As John said beautifully in today’s scripture: “God is Love and
God is in each of us.” (1 John 4:7-17)
Our incredible innate ability to love is God in each of us and we are right in front of our eyes.
And you know what’s best about that: when I kiss my new granddaughter’s face; I can kiss the
face of God.
Video: The Man by the River from The West Wing. (Available on You Tube)
Ladies and Gentlemen: the message this morning is a simple one: the next time you bow your
heads and say a prayer asking God for answers: take a deep breath; pick up your head; and
open your eyes. The answers to your prayers is right in front of you!
Steve Vance
December 27, 2015