josephholubsermons


 

December 13, 2009  Advent 3
Luke 3:15-18

Quest In Search of HOME

So where or what is home for you?  We most often answer that question by referring to our place of origin.  For me, home in terms of place of origin is the northern Illinois city of Rockford.   

But even though over half of my life has been spent there or near there , it is not home to me anymore. Almost every cherished relationship I ever had there is gone.  It no longer feels like home.        

So, if home is not necessarily one's place of origin, then what is home?  Maybe a better way to ask the question is, "Where do you feel at home?"  For me, home is about more than merely a place.  "Place" is a very important part of home, but any of you who have ever relocated to a new place and long for the old place know that what you miss the most are the relationships, the friendships, the connections, the commitments and involvements you made in that place - that's what made it home.

If there is a place on this earth that I call "home", for both Marcia and me, it is the upper Arkansas River Valley in central Colorado at the base of the mighty peaks of the Sawatch Range, where we have a "home."  It is 70 miles from here. But after a year and a half in this place, I now include this place as a part of the geography I call home.  Why? - because of the relationships that are here; because of the sense of purpose that is here; because of the mission we share; because of the love and  sense of common purpose that is shared between us.     

For me, Advent and Christmas and the biblical stories we associate with the season are very much about HOME - about a longing for home - about a quest for not just that place we call home but the experience of being and feeling at home.   For me Advent represents the human quest for home and all that we mean by home.    

During Advent we think of the biblical Israelites and their centuries-long yearning and searching for a messiah.  We think of their times of up-rootedness when they felt disconnected from their homeland and from God whether it be their bondage under Pharaoh, or their homeless wanderings in the wilderness, or their time of exile in Babylon, or the times living under oppression.  The Old Testament scripture for today is Zephaniah's vision of a time of joyful celebration when the Israelites would return home, that is, return to the experience of centering on their relationship with God in a place called Jerusalem.  Fro them, home was relationship and place. 

In Luke's version of the Christmas story, Mary and Joseph were required to journey to Joseph's place of origin, a place called Bethlehem.  It was in that place where Jesus was born that they received the gift of new life and relationship.  Suddenly home was not limited to a place, but the emphasis was now, more than ever, on relationship.  Luke tells us they returned to Nazareth where the "child grew up and became... filled with wisdom..."  (Luke 2:40). Luke is the only gospel that tells us anything at all about Jesus' childhood and his relationship with his parents;  part of Luke's point being that home, for them, was now defined by their relationships with Jesus and one another. 

I think of the characters to which Matthew introduces us called the Magi or the Wise Men.  Who were these characters but foreigners and outsiders, who were on a quest to find and experience something more than they had experienced in life thus far?   For me, these Magi symbolically represent the universal human quest and yearning for HOME - for a deeper purpose and sense of centeredness and belonging.

And that brings us to John the Baptist, who had spent his adult life wandering around the wilderness preaching a ragged message of repentance.  But by the way Luke tells the story, John too was on a quest, and when John encountered Jesus, he recognized that he had found his "home" in Jesus; and even recognized that his own message paled in light of what was to be experienced in Jesus saying, "I baptize you with water, but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire."

You see, these stories remind us that we all are on a journey in search of all that we mean by home.  Our quest causes us to travel many roads, to go to many places, people and experiences.    On our quest we travel the road of career and work - the road of learning and education - the road of marriage and family - the road of self-improvement and personal growth - the road of exhilarating experiences - the road of healing and recovery of something broken  - the road of coping with a chronic illness  - the road toward retirement and financial security - on we go on our quest in search of HOME.  We could call it an Advent Quest.  

There is a Hindu parable about a guru who had a disciple with whom he was very pleased. The disciple had shown a remarkable level of spiritual maturity and had found peace and joy in simplicity and service to others. The disciple lived in a little hut in a small village. Every morning, after his devotions, the disciple washed his loincloth and hung it out to dry.

One day, he discovered the loincloth had been eaten by rats. So, he had to get another one, but the rats ate that one also. "This won't do," he thought, so he got a cat to take care of the rats. The cat took care of the rats, but now he had to provide for the cat. So, he got a cow to provide milk for the cat.  But, he discovered that now he had to provide fodder for the cow. So he decided to till and plant the ground around his hut and begin farming. Soon he found no time for contemplation and  service to others. He hired servants to help attend to his farm. Now he found he needed to acquire more land to provide for the servants. Overseeing all of this was difficult and stressful, and was a nightmare to manage, so he got married to have his spouse help him. Over time the disciple became the wealthiest and most powerful man in the region forgetting completely about contemplation and service to others.