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Hespeler, January 14, 2024 © Scott McAndless – Second Sunday after the Epiphany
1 Samuel 3:1-20, Psalm 139:1-6, 13-18, 1 Corinthians 6:12-20, John 1:43-51

Could you possibly find a more alarming outlook on the status of religion than the one that opens our reading this morning from First Samuel? “The word of the Lord was rare in those days; visions were not widespread.” Yes, I know, people come to religious sanctuaries for a variety of reasons. Some are looking for a brief escape from the troubles of life. Some are happy to be seen there by others so that they will be well-regarded. Some may just enjoy the nostalgic feeling of being there.

That is all well and good. But if there is not a moment, at least from time to time, when the voice of God just breaks through and people receive a vision or hear a word and they know that it has come from God, then what is the point? But we are told that “The word of the Lord was rare in those days; visions were not widespread.”

Irrelevance

Is that not an indication that faith in the God of Israel had become irrelevant? Sure, there were still some people who came out to the sanctuary and went through all the proper motions of the worship of Yahweh, but it had become just a matter of tradition and habit. People are not having an encounter with God. So, what was the point?

That description of the problem particularly struck me when I read it because it seemed familiar. Is that not precisely the complaint that many raise about the state of the Christian church in our society today? It is irrelevant! People are just going through the motions! People just don’t get from it what they really need.

I don’t necessarily agree that all of that is true, but the complaints are raised often enough that we cannot just brush them off. So, let us take a look at what had gone wrong at the sanctuary at Shiloh in the days when Samuel was a child there. Maybe there will be some other points of connection that speak to our situation.

Eli’s Blindness

So, why was “the word of the Lord was rare in those days; visions were not widespread.” We have an indication almost immediately after the problem is stated. It says of Eli, the priest in charge of the sanctuary at Shiloh, that his “eyesight had begun to grow dim so that he could not see.” And I know that you could just understand that as a description of a common age-related disability back when things like cataract surgery and eyeglasses were undreamt of. But I think that a careful reading of the story makes it clear that this is not just about a visual impairment.

For one thing, the note about Eli’s eyesight comes so quickly after the statement about visions not being widespread that you can’t help but make the connection. Eli’s problem is not that he has a physical disability. The state of his eyesight is symbolic of a deeper, much more spiritual problem that he has.

And this is borne out as you continue into the story and if you read the larger context. There are clearly many things at the sanctuary at Shiloh that Eli isn’t seeing, but the reason has nothing to do with his eyesight. Above all, he chooses not to see what his sons are doing.

Eli’s Children’s Abuse

Hophni and Phinehas, his adult children, have taken over priestly duties from their father. But they have made it a habit to abuse their power. They are using their authority as priests over the sacrifice to extort the best cuts of meat from the worshippers for themselves. And, much worse, but distressingly familiar, they are using their positions to rape and abuse the young women who participate in the life of the sanctuary.

I know that you sometimes get the impression that the whole phenomenon of religious leaders using their power and authority to abuse the people who are placed in their spiritual care is a modern problem. It never used to be discussed; it never even came up. Whereas in more recent years, we’ve seen it happening everywhere. So much so, that I’m probably safe to say that every major denomination and religious group has had its own share of scandals in this regard over the last few decades.

But, as the case of Hophni and Phinehas should make clear, this is not because abuse of spiritual authority is a modern invention. It has always happened. Whenever a certain group of people are given an extraordinary amount of power over others, there will be a certain proportion who will be tempted to abuse that power.

As we’ve seen, it can happen in almost any organization. There have been lots of scandals in hockey and other sports, in the business world and in various youth organizations. We might like to think that churches should be exempt, but they’re clearly not. In some ways, the spiritual dimension of religious authority does have a way of amplifying the potential.

Eli’s Inaction

 So, what the sons of Eli have been doing with their priestly authority is horrific. But they are not the biggest problem, at least not as far as this story posits. The problem is the blindness of Eli. Not his physical blindness, but his refusal to see what his sons are doing and to put a stop to it.

God says that explicitly to Samuel: “For I have told [Eli] that I am about to punish his house forever for the iniquity that he knew, because his sons were blaspheming God, and he did not restrain them.”

That is the real sign of a sick institution. It is not the evil that some individuals do, it is the failure of the institution itself, which is what Eli represents, to safeguard everyone the institution touches. When we prefer blindness, when we refuse to see or to challenge what some powerful people are doing in any organization, that is the root of the problem.

Shifting our Focus

And if it is at all true of the church today that the word of the Lord is rare in these days and visions are not widespread, that has to be part of the reason. The church has wanted to pursue power and authority and has enabled its most influential leaders to that end. Some of those leaders have used that power and authority to serve themselves. Thus, the church is brought into disrepute, and it can no longer speak the word of God.

But if we can learn some humility, and if we can learn to shift from protecting our own privilege and authority to protecting vulnerable people, I do believe that, as we make ourselves vulnerable to God, God’s voice will break through to us. When we stop looking after ourselves first, we will be set free to look for the visions that God will send us. That is where the healing begins both for Shiloh and for us.

Samuel and the Ark

But that is not the only reason why the word of the Lord was rare in those days and visions were not widespread. We see another big indication of what had gone wrong in the story itself. Samuel, this young boy who has been devoted to service in the sanctuary by his mother, is apparently sleeping somewhere in the temple complex and he is in the same room as the Ark of the Covenant.

Now, I don’t know if that set off alarm bells for you when you read it, but it certainly did for me. If you are at all familiar with the Ark of the Covenant, you know that it was the primary symbol of the presence of God with the people of Israel. According to what it says elsewhere, the Ark was to be kept in a special chamber in the temple (or at this point in time in the Tabernacle) called the holy of holies. God was said to be more present there than anyplace else on earth.

The Day of Atonement

How holy was it? It was so holy that no one ever entered the place except one day a year, the Day of Atonement. On this day and only this day, the High Priest was to enter into the presence of the ark only after carrying out an atoning sacrifice.

But even then, they took special precautions. Before the High Priest entered, the temple servants would tie a rope around his ankle just in case God decided to strike him down. That way they wouldn’t have to wait an entire year for the next High Priest to go in and remove the body. Now, we don’t actually know if that rope story was true or just a legend that spread. It’s not actually in the Bible. But, true or not, it is certainly an indication of the kind of respect that they had for the Ark and the care they took when in its presence.

But there seems to be none of that reverence or expectation in this story. The Ark seems to simply be in some random room in the temple complex – a room that also appears to be a dormitory for acolytes like Samuel who serve there. There seems to be no indication whatsoever of any expectation that this cultic object could allow someone to have an encounter with God. They have either forgotten or they never knew that such a thing was possible.

Why it Takes so Long

Which is why, when it actually happens, it takes so long for anyone to even recognize it for what it is. Samuel just assumes that it is Eli, the revered elder priest, who is calling out for assistance in the night.

You can’t really blame Samuel for that, of course. He’s just a child and has never had any reason to even dream of such things. No, the real person to blame is once again poor blind Eli. If only he could have seen – and I am not talking about the physical sight that had failed him but the more important inner sight that had failed – if only he could have seen, perhaps the voice of God would have broken through sooner. But, no, it takes three tries – three times when God calls out to the sleeping Samuel – before Eli finally figures out that something else might be going on here.

Our Inner Blindness

Now what does any of this have to do with the crisis we face in the church where we seem to be living in days when the word of the Lord is rare; visions are not widespread? I am a firm believer that God has never ceased to speak to God’s people. Visions have never ceased to be sent. But if we do not expect them, will we receive them? And if, like Eli, we suffer from inner blindness, it will be all that much harder.

And what does that inner blindness look like for us? What might be preventing us from detecting the words and actions and power of God at work among us? Often, I suspect, it is because the eyes of our hearts are diverted and looking for meaning elsewhere. For the church as an institution, our focus may be fixed on our own standing within society as we mourn a loss of power and influence.

As individual believers, we become distracted by the temptations of our consumer society. We get caught up in the endless scramble to build wealth or flee from poverty which has become the only concern of our capitalist society. Above all the voice of God gets drowned out by the incessant noise of our social media-driven perpetual misinformation machine and confirmation bias.

The Right Response

All of these things mean that we do not expect God to speak to us or send us any visions that might contradict what we have already decided to believe. That is why the word of the Lord is rare in our days; visions are not widespread. It is not because God does not speak but because we will not listen.

But there is still hope for us. Eli, as blind as he was, figured it out eventually. And when he taught Samuel to respond and say, “Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening,” I don’t think he was just trying to teach the boy. He was trying to teach himself as well. He had finally gotten to the place where he was willing to hear what God had to say no matter what it cost him – and it did cost him a great deal. That is what finally allowed the voice of God would break through. That is what will allow it to break through for us as well.

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Hespeler, January 7, 2024 © Scott McAndless – Baptism of the Lord
Genesis 1:1-5, Psalm 29, Luke 2:22-40, Mark 1:4-11

Last week, on New Years Eve, I decided to preach on the gospel passage from the lectionary for the day – the story of Mary and Joseph and the month-old Jesus in the temple. But, if you were here last week or if you have listened to the sermon since, you will know that I really didn’t get very far into the story at all. In fact, I didn’t even get past the first three verses.

That is okay as far as I am concerned. When God is speaking to you through even just a few words of scripture, I think it is always wise just to stop and stay with those words for a while so that you make sure you don’t miss anything that God might have to say.

The Rest of the Story

But none of that is to suggest that the rest of the story – the part after the first three verses – isn’t important. After they had gone to the priest and made a sacrifice of two turtle doves, Mary and Joseph turned around and went back out into the large open space that was known as the Court of the Gentiles.

I want you to try to imagine the space. On any given day, you would expect to find it just packed with people. Many had come, of course, to carry out the prescribed sacrifices and religious observances. But that was hardly the only reason why they came.

Many were seeking for God in some way and instinctively knew that this was the place where they might find God or hear God’s word. In the porches you could hear poets, prophets and philosophers giving their public speeches to the curious crowds. Scribes would also be teaching about the law and its application. And the people gathered around eagerly hoping to learn and grow. But people also sought to hear from God in a more direct way.

One Man’s Quest

 Take, for example, that man over there. He does not come all the time to the temple like some do, but when he got up this morning he just felt as if he had to be here. He was a man who was deeply troubled by the state of his nation. He felt as if it had lost track of what it was supposed to be. And now, because of its failures, the nation was occupied by foreign invaders.

And so, he had implored God to console the nation and to send God’s anointed one who would lead it into liberty and hope for the future. And after praying for this hope for a very long time, he had become convinced that God had heard his prayer. He would see the Messiah that he longed for before he died.

Such a Long Wait

Oh, but the wait had been so long. And now he was getting very old, and he had begun to fear that he would not live to see it all come to pass. But today, when he rose, he was filled with this overwhelming sense that, if he came to the temple, God would show him something. God would give him hope.

So that man, his name was Simeon, was just entering into the courtyard from the main gate into the temple. He was looking around expectantly but did not yet know exactly what he might see.

Anna the Prophet

There was another revered elder there. Her name was Anna. She was one of the many prophets who were constantly present in the temple, proclaiming the word of God to any who would listen. Anna was a widow. Married young, she had lived with her husband only for seven years until he died. Ever after, she had remained a widow. So long now that no one could remember whether she was eighty-four years old or if she had been a widow for eighty-four years! (Yes, the original Greek text is ambiguous on that point.)

But whichever it was, everyone had great respect for this woman and her wisdom. So much so that they would often bring her gifts of food and drink so that she did not even need to leave the temple precincts. She remained there night and day and was constantly in prayer and often fasting. For Anna was not just there to speak the word of the Lord to the people. She was still searching for answers for herself.

She, like Simeon, was discouraged about the state of her people. She was looking for God’s help and consolation. She had not only come to look for an answer today like the other man. It was as if she lived in constant expectation that at any moment God would act.

One Family Among Many

And somehow they knew – they both knew – that God had answered when they saw the most ordinary of things in the temple court. They saw a young couple carrying their month-old child away from the place of the sacrifice for purification. There must have been dozens of such families in the temple most every day.

What was it that marked this family as different? Traditions of Western Art aside, they couldn’t have had literal halos over their heads. There could have been nothing that would have been evident to everyone else. It must have been something that happened inside both Simeon and Anna simultaneously – what Luke calls the action of the Holy Spirit. They were suddenly just sure.

But what I am particularly interested in today is not how they knew that God was doing something. My particular interest is in what they did with what they were suddenly so sure about. Because these two people had so much in common. They were both old. They were seeking the same thing from God. They both came to the same sudden realization when they saw the small family. But they each reacted so differently.

Simeon’s Response

Look at Simeon. He got to the family first. And the first thing he did was snatch the boy right out of his mother’s arms. I hope that he asked first, but it doesn’t say that he did. But then, once he had the child in his arms, what did he do? He prayed to God: “Master, now you are dismissing your servant in peace, according to your word, for my eyes have seen your salvation, which you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, a light for revelation to the gentiles and for glory to your people Israel.”

And I know it is all very pretty and poetic, but I hope you don’t let the fancy words make you miss what he is saying here. He’s saying, “Look, I have done my part. I have prayed. I have waited. I have been looking for the consolation of Israel for all these many years. And now, finally, God is stepping up and starting to do something great. So now, I am checking out. I am donezo. Let me die now.

Checking Out

Now, I don’t believe that Simeon is literally asking God to strike him dead. He may be old, but I don’t think he is expecting that he is going to go home and breathe his last. If he were that frail, would Mary have allowed him to hold her baby? No, what he is saying is that he feels as if he has done his part. He has kept the faith. He has prayed for the consolation he has hoped for. But now it seems that he is tired, and he is done.

In fact, he explicitly says that it is up to others to take over where he is leaving off. He says to Mary, “This child is destined for the falling and the rising of many in Israel and to be a sign that will be opposed so that the inner thoughts of many will be revealed—and a sword will pierce your own soul, too.” So it apparently falls now to the child to do all the hard work and face the opposition. And Mary herself will have her share of suffering too.

Simeons Among Us

So, Simeon has clearly decided that he has finished contributing. And I can totally appreciate how he feels. In all my work in the church, I have known so many saints who have given so much for the work of the church over the years. And then they look up and, like Simeon in this passage, see that there is big change coming on the horizon. They appreciate the change, maybe even welcome it, but they also aren’t ready to deal with it directly. They step down and they look to others to carry on.

And clearly this is sometimes the right decision. I will always honour anyone who has given long and faithful service. I also recognize that sometimes people cannot deal with certain changes well. It just sucks all of the energy out of them and, because their vision is limited to what they have seen before, they can’t implement the changes needed. And of course, sometimes their decision to step down can empower someone else to step up. Sometimes that is how we find the new leadership that we need.

Anna’s Response

But at the same time, Simeon’s response is not the only response. Remember Anna? She has just had the same insight that Simeon has. She recognizes with clarity that this little child is the fulfillment of all her hopes and dreams. She is also pretty much as old as Simeon. Maybe, if you read it as saying that she has been a widow for 87 after being married for 7, she is even more than 100 years old!

But Anna, despite having all the same reasons as Simeon to check out, give up and retire, doesn’t react like that at all. Instead of prompting her to quit, the sight of Jesus spurs her to action. She “began to praise God and to speak about the child to all who were looking for the redemption of Jerusalem.”

Simeon was overwhelmed by the change that the coming of the Messiah had brought – overwhelmed in a good way, but it still caused him to withdraw. But look at what it did for Anna. It energized her. Why, you could barely contain her as she ran about telling everyone in the crowded temple courtyard about the amazing thing that God was now doing.

Thankful for Simeons

You know, I am thankful for the Simeons that God has given us in the life of the church. I am thankful for the men and the women who have served long and faithfully – who have held onto their faith in times of trial and testing.

It has not always been easy for them in the life of the church. There have been times of worry and anxiety. There have been times when people got angry and tempers were frayed. But they continued on, not because it was easy or always fun, but because it mattered. They continued because they believed that God would come and would redeem his people.

We are all thankful for such faithful service and when people come to the point when they feel the need to step down because they can’t manage the next step in change, let us celebrate them with joy.

Thankful for Annas

But thank God for the many Annas – both men and women – that God has sent us. They are energized by the new thing that God is doing among us. They can’t wait to tell everyone about it either. And sure, they might have been hanging around the temple for many years and they are so very used to the way that things have always been done. But they aren’t afraid of the new thing that God is doing among us.

We may all come to the point in our lives when we have to choose between being Simeon or Anna. But just remember that it is your choice. And anyone can be an Anna.

Sunday School is taking a break today. See you next week!