The Third Sunday After the Epiphany
January 25, 2026
Prayer:
I certainly do not know everything
I do not even know how much I don’t know;
Nor do I know how much of what I know is impartial, faulty or false
So, I pray, we pray…
Source of all truth
Help us to hunger for truth
Even if it upsets, nullifies or overturns what we already think is true.
Guide us into all the truth we can bare, even if it stings or angers us
And stretch us to bare even more
So that we may always choose the whole truth and help a hurting and desperate world.
Grant us passion to follow wisdom wherever it leads. May it be so.
I remember that nearly all of my baseball coaches from little league to college would say, “Keep your eye on the ball.” I always had a hard time understanding that wonderful piece of advise. As a kid, I thought that meant to stick your eyeball out over the plate. Little did I know as a kid the that phrase meant to coordinate the speed of the ball with the twist of your body and hit it with this big piece of wood.
I remember other times in my ancient Greek class, the professor would say to us at 7:00 am, do you see the beauty of the structure and the profound meanings within the words. Ah, no!
I remember other times when I’d stare at a piece of art long enough until, all of a sudden, it came to life in my minds eye.
And, seeing from a different perspective, I remember other times that I was the recipient of racism and sexism by others different from me, and I wondered what I did wrong, unaware of the hurt and fear they must be feeling.
Seeing with new eyes, fresh eyes, is what this sermon is about, or at least, it is for me. I’ve been thinking about this for a while. I believe we need to see, or better yet, use our faith as how we see as an ongoing kaleidoscope of inspiration, renewal and practice. I have way too many times fallen prey to using my faith like a cute little cat sitting next to me as I once in a while pet its fur as it comforts me. Or, using God as some kind of celestial slot machine dropping little prayers of desire here and there hoping for a jack pot.
Seeing with fresh eyes implies that eyes can get dry and blurry and eventually useless. This is what I don’t want to do. And I’m pretty sure that most of you don’t want to either. It’s easy to get complacent in our practice while we are frustrated with all the sh*t happening in the world.
The “seeing” part, however, is what I wanted to focus on today. Like some of you, I’ve been wrestling with how to present my faith, or really my religious identity, in ways that are loving, authentic and life-giving. In particular, and like many of you, should I call myself a “Christian.” At this part of my life, I do not. I am too afraid or really embarrassed to be associated with groups that have bullied, hurt or disenfranchised marginal people under the banner of Christian values. That being said, I do want to create and re-create how I see my faith practiced. This is very important these days. How my life will unfold in the years ahead is very real and personal, as I’ve also joined the ranks of retirement. (My last official day of employment was this past Wednesday.)
I’m still learning that how we see Jesus will inform us how we see God. How we see God will inform how we can see the world. How we see the world, at least for me, is trying to find a sense of purpose, identity and belonging as we relate to those around us.
I, in recent months, have been looking at how Bible characters had seen or not seen Jesus. One of my favorite stories is our Gospel reading today from Matthew 4, how Andrew and Peter were out in their boats fishing and Jesus called to them. It says they immediately left their nets and followed Him. The other gospels fill in some details. The two brothers, probably with some other fisherman, namely the sons of Zebedee, had been fishing all night, frustrated, worried and tired. While washing their nets that morning, Jesus climbed up in Simon Peter’s boat. Perhaps remembering seeing Jesus as a teacher on the shore and scoffing at him with tolerance and disbelief (and maybe curiosity), Peter allowed it to happen. Somehow, the fishermen were drawn into Jesus’ request to go out further. How can we go out further in our faith? These tired fishermen reluctantly obeyed. Jesus told them to throw their nets out into the water. After a moment, I presume, they were filled to capacity. Excitedly and amazed, they pulled their catch in. Then, it said that Peter, feeling guilt and shame, finally saw Jesus in a new light. That light was the beginning of how the rambunctious, opinionated compulsive Peter changed and grew throughout his life.
Another character was Zachaeus who was desperate to see Jesus. So, he did what he needed to do, climbed a tree for a better look. Something changed in people when they deeply saw Jesus. Like the blind man in Bethsaida, where Jesus came up to him, spit on the ground, put the muddy spit on the man’s eyes. After the man washed his eyes, Jesus asked him, “Do you see anything?” His first cleansing brought him blurriness and disorientation. Then another act of Sabbath-breaking muddy application brought him to full clarity, at least that he knew he could physically see. His new journey also began.
I wonder how you adjust your spiritual vision. What are your practices that help you keep your eyes open? Or ,what events have helped you stay alert? Or, do you like me, fall into blurry complacency at times.
I really enjoy developmental psychology, that is the progress and development of how we think. In one of his books, Brian McLaren wrote about the process of spiritual development. His first stage is Simplicity, where we think we have it all worked out. A + B = C. Everything about God is simply black or white. His second stage he calls Perplexity, where thinking is challenged and you don’t like it. Doubt emerges; the simple answers of Stage 1 no longer suffice. The equation doesn’t make sense anymore. I remember in one of Dave’s classes when I was frustrated going to class each week because my old paradigms of certainty were quickly drifting away like an unmoored boat. His third stage is Complexity, where there is a period of deep questioning, disorientation, and feeling stuck. Old answers don’t work, but new ones aren’t fully formed, sometimes leaving one feeling lonely or isolated. And the fourth stage is Harmony. Moving beyond fixed answers to embrace mystery and relationship. The focus shifts from specific beliefs to loving God and neighbor, and accepting nuance and paradox. And often seeing faith as a journey. This spiritual evolution is often true for many of us that have come from high order churches or fundamentalist backgrounds.
Many of you are in the Working Groups. I am part of the working group 1, where we are trying to develop a new language to describe our faith and Seekers church. We sometimes struggle, but are truly trying to articulate who we are in a way that makes sense to others. We don’t want to water down our principles and core definitions, but rather define qualities of who we are in everyday relatable words. We are making headway.
In an effort to listen to non-Seekers, I have in the last couple of weeks, attempted to get a glimpse of how people were thinking with regard to Christianity, Christian and “church.” I went around to several people and surveyed what initially comes to mind when these words were spoken. These people were in their 20’s, 30’s and 40’s, black and white. I heard negative words like “extreme, trauma, strict, backward preaching, judgmental, fake, people-pleasers, hypocrites, scary, money-hungry, a means to fear death and exploitive.” Some said the typical words like “faith, community, bible and celebration.” No one, however, said it gave them hope, or support or love or freedom or connection or respect of differences or purpose. I’m assuming that many of these folks have had religious trauma and oppression, and/or maybe stuck in Stage 2-Perplexity. Please don’t think that we Seekers have the “answer.” Or, that we don’t think those things that were just mentioned. I do believe we strive to be open and honest. But we have a long way to go.
Seeing with new eyes, this journey we are on, this adventure, I believe we must continue to ask ourselves critical questions. And this is what I leave with you today. How does my faith inform how I live? Am I willing to let go of old messages that may have fit a long time ago and adopt new messages and practices for today? Am I willing to face my fears of losing an identity as a “Christian church” and being open to change, particularly as comes to meeting the needs around us? Are we willing to see our faith as a movement, rather than holding on to ideals of what we might lose if we are different? And, are we willing to see, really see, our faith as an ever evolving, ever challenging, ever powerful force to bring change to the world?
As we attempt to put our boats out further and climb a tree, always remember that Jesus said the greatest commandment is to LOVE.
Benediction:
Go slowly
Consent to it, but don’t wallow in it
Know it as a place of germination and growth
Remember the light
Take an outstretched hand if you find one
Exercise unused senses
Find the path by walking it
Practice trust
Watch for dawn
May it be so.