Going Home

 Going Home

John 1:1-18   |   1/5/2014

The Church of the Wayfarer

Norm Mowery, Pastor

          Which of these statements is true?
                    When Dorothy returns from her whirlwind trip to Oz, she realizes that    "there is no place like home."

                    On the other hand, Thomas Wolfe's famous novel tells us, "You    can't go home again."

                    Who has it right?

                    Can you go home again?

         
          What do you think?

          All of us yearn for "home"—a powerful word that stirs up deep emotions.

          If you ask anyone of any age to describe the home where they grew up they can talk for a long time.

          For better or worse, home, and the memories of home, become part of our very being throughout our lives.

          Over the holidays Linda and I saw two movies. They both talk about going home. They were ‘Nebraska’ and ‘Saving Mr. Banks.’ Both were very good.

          "Home" is supposed to be a safe haven,

                   a port in the storm,

                             a place where the door is always open,

                                      and you can count on being welcomed.

          Home is supposed to be that place where you will always be accepted, just the way you are.

          But what if we didn't have a home to which to go back?

          What if there were no one and no place that welcomed us?

          I have been thinking of this quite a lot because with my mother’s death. I am wondering if I will ever have a reason to go home to Dry Run, Pennsylvania.

          Our church is just completing its seasonal homecoming celebrations of Advent and Christmas.

          Today is the last day of the Christmas season that is why the Christmas decorations are still here.

          This morning we are reminded of John's promise that, "the true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world.”

          Jesus was coming home!

          Throughout Advent we have been watching for that light.

          We journeyed through Advent,

                   that season of waiting,

                             counting down and expecting.

          We may not have been preparing "Welcome home" banners for Jesus, but we have been lighting candles on the Advent wreath knowing that the Christ had actually chosen to come to us and dwell among us.

          Christmas is a homecoming celebration like no other.

          Christmas is the celebration that Jesus did indeed come home again.

          The Word, who "was with God ... and was God" came back to dwell among God's people whom he had known from the very beginning. "The Word became flesh and lived among us" –that is the miracle of Christmas.

          Jesus is home!

          The next miracle is the celebration of Epiphany when we rejoice that, "The light shines in the darkness and the darkness did not overcome it".

          But there is a problem.

          Jesus "was in the world, and the world came into being through him; yet the world did not know him.”

          It seems that Thomas Wolfe was right—you really can't go home again. The homecoming celebration fell flat because, when the guest of honor showed up, it turned out that no one recognized him.

          Or even worse—if they did know him, they did not open their hearts to him and welcome him.

          It's one of the saddest verses in the Bible—Jesus comes into the world that he has known even before the world knew itself and the world ignores him.

          They "did not know him!”

          How could his own people not recognize or acknowledge him?

          Why can't Jesus go home again?

          What is going on here?

          We know how we want our homecomings it to be.

          We want a Folgers’s Coffee moment when the smell of brewing coffee floats up the stairs to awaken sleeping parents with the homecoming of their long-absent son. They hurry downstairs to envelop him in hugs and smiles; this is what homecoming is supposed to look like.

**Video—Folger’s Coffee

          We want the happy ending.

          We would like it to be a "tie a yellow ribbon 'round the old oak tree" moment when the hesitant returnee discovers that, not one, but 100, ribbons have been fastened to the branches of the tree as a symbol of welcome and joy.

          We would like an over-the-top, full-out, heartfelt homecoming, complete with love, welcome and recognition.

          We have all seen those heart-warming videos of dramatic homecomings of a returning soldier from the battlefield.

          They always manage to choke up the viewers.

          Often the scene takes place in a school.

          A child is sitting in the classroom listening to the teacher when, suddenly, there is a knock at the door.

          There is a moment of confusion because no one seems to know who this uniformed stranger in the doorway is, until suddenly there's a cry of recognition and the child springs out into the open arms of the loving parent.

**Video—Military Dad Homecoming

          It's impossible to watch that without tears.

          This scene speaks to our hearts because the reunion is so loving, so true.

          It is a homecoming in a hug.

          Everybody needs a home team:

                    It's the people you call when you get a flat tire or when something                               terrible happens.

                    It's the people who know everything that's wrong with you and love                                    you anyway.

                    These are the ones who tell you their secrets, who get themselves a                                       glass of water without asking when they're at your house.

                    These are the people who cry when you cry.

          But what if there was no recognition?

          What if the father or mother stood there, proud and expectant in military dress, and no one came running?

          What if their arms were open and no one stepped forward?

                    How sad.

                   How empty.

                   How lonely.

          That emptiness is what Jesus experiences.

          Somehow, Jesus' own creation, did not know him and did not respond to him.

          Jesus came home but there was no loving response.

          The welcoming shout and joyous hug never materialized for Jesus.

          Jesus went home and the hearts of his people were closed.

          The door of their spirits slammed shut in Jesus' face.

          How can this be? What went wrong?

                   How can the people of God not recognize the Son of God?

          John hints at the answer when he says, "But to all who received him, who believed in his name, Jesus gave power to become children of God".

          Clearly many people—even most—
                   - were not ready to receive Jesus when he arrived home,
                   - they felt unprepared, like they hadn't had a chance to clean up and                                     present their best face,
                   - they underestimated just how eager Jesus was to be part of their lives
                   - thought they would have to impress him or offer a clean house,
                   - they were too caught up in their day-to-day lives to know just how                                    much           they needed the forgiveness that Jesus came to offer.

          For whatever reason, they did not recognize the transforming power and renewing love that Jesus brought with him.

          The people did not know him—maybe they were not looking for him.

          Jesus would later say, “Seek and you will find.”

          If we are not seeking or looking, we will not find or recognize God who is right in front of us.

          The key to a happy homecoming is spirits that are ready to receive and hearts that are open to believe.

          If we are not open to receiving, the gift is offered in vain.

          When we're willing to be open and to welcome the God who knocks on the doors of our hearts, we will be given the power of faith.

          But it takes that first step, the willingness to welcome the Christ into our lives.
          So, back to our opening question from The Wizard and Thomas Wolfe?

                   There is no place like home. Or,

                   You can’t go home again.

          Perhaps the answer lies with us.

          Jesus always wants to enter our lives.

          Jesus is knocking at the door.

          Now is the time to open our hearts and say, "Welcome home!"

          I wonder:

                    Who might not feel welcome in our churches? Does Jesus?

                   Who is missing from our congregation?

          Somewhere out there I saw a bumper sticker: "You are a child of God. Please phone home."

          Let’s do it. Will you open your heart just now and welcome him in?

          Song ‘Going Home’

Pastoral Prayer for Communion Sunday

          Merciful Lord Jesus,
          At your generous table, we share the cup of life and the bread of strength.         Here our errors can be cleansed, our lives made new and our futures secured by your grace.
          As we eat and drink in remembrance of you, so let us live in remembrance of you.

          Let us care for the needy, in remembrance of your mercy.

          Let us resist evil in any form, in remembrance of your victory over evil.

          Let us show compassion to all, in remembrance of your tender care of the suffering.

          Let us forgive those who have sinned against us, in remembrance of the forgiveness you have lavished upon us.

          Let us be constant in prayer and worship, in remembrance of your faithfulness.

          Let us be quick to nourish hope and faith in others, in remembrance of the comfort and strength we have found in your Presence.
          In the name of the one whose prayer we now pray together saying…..