Sunday, February 2, 2025
/The Presentation of Our Lord
Malachi 3: 1-4; Psalm 84; Hebrews 2:14-18; Luke 2: 22-40
The Rev. James M.L. Grace
In the Name of God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. AMEN.
What an abundance of riches we have in today’s readings! We have all the heavy hitters today – it is like today is the AFC/NFC championship games of the Bible. It’s huge! Who’s gonna win the epic matchup between Malachi and today’s Psalm? What is the over/under on today’s matchup between Hebrews and the Gospel of Luke? Who will get the Gatorade bath today? Will it be Clint, Jeff, or John? Who knows. Anything can happen on any given Sunday, right?
Regrettably, even with such an impressive spread of amazing scripture from which to choose, I am not going to talk about any of it. “Oh he’s going to be talking politics, I knew it” Anybody thinking that? We are going someplace completely different today – to the book of Exodus– the second book of the Bible. Exodus tells the story of what? Moses leading his people out of slavery in Egypt and forging a new identity and relationship with God out in the desert at the base of Mt. Sinai.
Why Exodus, why now? Here is the reason. In Exodus, chapter 13, we meet the Hebrew people after the dramatic parting of the red sea and their freedom from bondage. The Hebrews are nomadic at this time, and they have journeyed east out of Egypt toward Canaan. On their journey they stop and camp at a place called Succoth, near the Sinai peninsula.
At Succoth, God speaks to Moses. And this is what God says – you can read it in Exodus chapter 13 verses 1 and 2 of your Bible. God says “Consecrate to me all the firstborn; whatever is the first to open the womb among the Israelites, of human and animals, is mine.” Why is God saying this, and what does it mean? After liberating the Hebrews, God is instructing them about sacrifice. The Hebrews in the desert are going to grow into God’s people now that they are free. And this is the really, really crucial point: the Hebrews were liberated from bondage – why? Because slavery is wrong? Ok, that is true, but that’s not why God liberated the Hebrews. Exodus is noticeably clear that the Hebrews were liberated not just so that they could be free – they were liberated so that they could worship God freely. Exodus is so focused on worship of God that the whole second half of the book (about 20 chapters) is focused on how the Hebrews are to worship God. We learn in Exodus that central to the worship of God is sacrifice.
And for good reason. None of us grow at all unless we are willing to sacrifice something. Sacrifice is central to our worship with the Eucharist. When we pass a collection plate, that is a time of purposeful sacrifice.
In Exodus 13, God commands the Hebrews to consecrate not the third or fourth child, but the first child – the child who is in line to receive the greatest inheritance from their parents. The first child is to be consecrated for perpetual service of God
Mary and Joseph are following that exact commandment from Exodus 13:1-2, when they bring their firstborn son, Jesus, to the temple to be presented. From the very beginning of his life, Jesus is consecrated – set apart for service to God. What Mary and Joseph did was observe the Torah, and consecrate their firstborn son, Jesus.
Did you all know that we are to do the same? We like Mary, Joseph, and Moses, are all called to sacrifice. Life has no meaning without it. The sacrifice God asks from us is our firstborn. Not meaning firstborn children, but God wants absolute priority in our life. How do we offer God the best, the first of what we have, rather than just offering our leftovers to God?
Here is how I do it - here is how I make sacrifice to God on a daily basis. Each morning, I get on my knees and I say this prayer “God, I offer myself to you, to build and do with me as you will. Relieve me of the bondage of self that I may better do your will. Take away my difficulties that my victory over them may bear witness to those I would show of your power, your love and your way of life. May I do your will always. AMEN.” Saying that prayer helps me to consecrate my day – to make a sacrifice first thing in the morning – so that I can offer my next 24 hours to the service of God.
Whatever happens in the day to follow, I attribute to the will of God. So here is the question for all of us, me included. Have we set apart this day, have we invited God to consecrate it, have we asked that God’s will be done in all that we do? Have we given this day to God? If you have not, it is never too late to start. You can do so at this very moment. AMEN.