Kings

 Eastern Parkway United Methodist Church 

 
 

 

 A warm welcome to each worshiper today. We celebrate you and offer you our friendship and love. We are a congregation of people who seek to grow spiritually, to become more like Christ in His compassion and acceptance of everyone while growing more aware of what it really means to be Christians today. 

As a Reconciling Congregation, EPUMC affirms the sacred worth of persons of all sexual orientations and gender identities and welcomes them into full participation in the fellowship, membership, ministries, and leadership of the congregation.  

  

943 Palmer Avenue, Schenectady, NY 12309 / 518-374-4306 epumc943@gmail.com / www.easternparkway.org 

Order of Worship 

January 8, 2023 

10:00 a.m. 

*You are invited to rise in body or spirit. 

  

Prelude Prelude Johann Sebastian Bach 

 
 

Greeting and Announcements 

 
 

Mission Statement: 

We are a faith community striving to be, to nurture, and to send forth disciples of Jesus Christ. 

  

Call to Worship: 

Welcome to worship this day! 

We have come seeking God’s blessings and love. 

They shall be given to you. 

We have come seeking forgiveness and healing. 

These will be offered to you. Open your hearts to receive God’s Good News. 

We open our hearts to all of God’s words and ways for us. AMEN.  

Nancy C. Townley 

  

*Hymn We Three Kings #254, vv. 1, 2, 5 

              

Prayer of Confession: 

We are incredibly stubborn, O Lord. We have entered the season in which Your Light has been given to the world, your blessings have been poured out on the world, and yet all we can think about is our own problems, our own needs, our own desires. Help us to desire you, Lord. Help us to yearn for your presence. Pour your baptismal waters over us again, cleansing us from our self-pity and arrogance. Nourish and heal us so that we may joyfully serve you. Wash away our jealousy, greed, and all negative thoughts and behaviors that stand in the way of our truly being the people you have called us to be. Again let us receive the blessings offered in creation, in the birth and baptism of Jesus, and in the ministry of the saints of light. We ask this in Jesus’ Name. AMEN. 

  

Assurance: 

The love of God is always offered to us, freely, joyfully, for all eternity. Rejoice, dear friends, this is the Good News of our Lord. AMEN. 

  

Receiving New Members 

  

Pastor:  Today we celebrate our unity as the body of Christ, widening the table through the joyful welcome of new members, affirming our faith together in Christ. Today we have the joy of receiving Becky and Peter Oliver as new members of Eastern Parkway United Methodist Church! We rejoice that we are one with each other in the family of God and we celebrate the gifts you bring to our church.  As you join in the worship and service of this congregation as members, I ask you now: 

Do you believe in God, who creates, redeems and sustains the world? 

Becky and Peter: I do. 

Do you affirm Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior? 

Becky and Peter: I do. 

Will you seek to be Jesus’ disciple and to follow his teaching and example- welcoming those on the margins, speaking out against injustice, and showing God’s love wherever you can? 

Becky and Peter: I will, with God’s help. 

Will you be a faithful member of this congregation, sharing in its worship and ministry through your presence and your prayers, your study and your service, your gifts of time, talent, and treasure, and so fulfill your calling to be a disciple of Jesus Christ? 

Becky and Peter: I will, with God’s help. 

Pastor:  By your baptism you were made one with the body of Christ, the church.  Today we give thanks for every community that has been your spiritual home, and we celebrate that your journey of faith has lead you to Eastern Parkway. 

Congregation:  We, your church family at Eastern Parkway United Methodist Church, welcome you with joy into the common life of our congregation.  We promise you our friendship and our prayers as we share the hopes and labors of the church.  By the power of the Holy Spirit, may we all continue to grow together in the knowledge and love of God, and to walk together in the way of Christ. 

 
 

Scripture Reading Matthew 2: 1-12 

 

The Visit of the Magi 

2 In the time of King Herod, after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, magi[a] from the east came to Jerusalem, 2 asking, “Where is the child who has been born king of the Jews? For we observed his star in the east[b] and have come to pay him homage.” 3 When King Herod heard this, he was frightened, and all Jerusalem with him, 4 and calling together all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Messiah[c] was to be born. 5 They told him, “In Bethlehem of Judea, for so it has been written by the prophet: 

6 ‘And you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, 
    are by no means least among the rulers of Judah, 
for from you shall come a ruler 
    who is to shepherd[d] my people Israel.’ ” 

7 Then Herod secretly called for the magi[e] and learned from them the exact time when the star had appeared. 8 Then he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, “Go and search diligently for the child, and when you have found him, bring me word so that I may also go and pay him homage.” 9 When they had heard the king, they set out, and there, ahead of them, went the star that they had seen in the east,[f] until it stopped over the place where the child was. 10 When they saw that the star had stopped,[g] they were overwhelmed with joy. 11 On entering the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they knelt down and paid him homage. Then, opening their treasure chests, they offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. 12 And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they left for their own country by another road. 

 
 

Sermon Kings 

 

Happy Epiphany, friends. 

Last week, we looked at the aftermath of this story—at Herod’s mass slaughter of babies in Bethlehem, and Mary, Joseph, and Jesus’ flight to safety. This week, we’re backing up at looking at these verses about the actual meeting between these three wise guys and the Holy Family. 

What strikes me the most about the Magi, wise men, wise guys, etc, is their reactions to the big moments throughout this story. Look at it this way: what do you think when you see stars? Do you see them at all? Do you look up at night to point them out? And in a more urban area with lots of outdoor lights, it’s even harder to make them out. It takes someone with a special heart to even notice them. I learned that when I had kids. I’m not a star person. I don’t think about what’s “up there”. But Daniel, my oldest, loves star gazing. One summer night he sat in our backyard looking up and told me, “Mommy, I love the night sky. It’s just like Star Wars.” My daughter, Lily, wishes on the first star she sees every night, and loves to tell me about constellations. When we talk about the wisdom of children, and Jesus urging us to come to us with a childlike heart, this is exactly what we’re talking about. Many of us lose touch with this kind of tenderness as we get older, but the Magi have retained it. It allows them to find Jesus when others never would have. 

Not only do they regularly look at, and analyze, stars, but they notice one in particular, that happens to be over Jesus, as particularly brilliant. It looks so bright and wondrous to them that they conclude it must be pointing to a king. I get that they’re professional astronomers, and that stars are more precious to them than anything, but dang is that a BIG reaction to a star. Can you imagine not only noticing a very pretty star, but deciding that, because it exists, the world must have a new king? That’s some hard core faith. It’s also die hard commitment. They grow so invested in the star pointing to a king that they leave home and go searching for it. Based on details we get later in the story, this is no short trip. They spend two full years tracking down the origin of this star. This is the most important discovery they’ve ever made. What have you or I ever been so committed to? Family? Career? Friendship? Jesus is a bedrock beneath any of those things, and the Magi recognize that. 

If I spent two entire years looking for one person, the search alone would be more than enough of a gift, right? Well, not to the Magi. Now, interestingly, and contrary to the hymns we’re singing this morning, we don’t actually know that there were three Magi. We have no idea how many there were, only more than one. We guess three because they bring three presents. Maybe they did the First Century equivalent of “okay, we’ll just put all our names on this”?  

If you were meeting Jesus, would you try to bring a gift? And if you did, what would you pick? I’d be questioning what Jesus could possibly need from me, and that self-doubt would not only stop me from bringing a present, but also inhibit my relationship with him. The Magi want to be very close to him. They decide to go with symbolic gifts—gold for a king, frankincense for a God, and myrrh for someone who is going to die. That last one is a real creepy gift for a baby, y’all. It was after this exchange that Mary discovered the importance of making a gift registry. I’d like to say I’d go see Jesus right after this, representing Wise Women of the world, bearing gifts of diapers, formula, and frozen dinners. But, all joking aside, perhaps the very best gift any of us could give to Jesus, knowing that he lived with very little in this earth and needs very little from mere mortals like us, is just acknowledging who he is. On that front, the Magi knock this one out of the park. Without anyone helping them, they find the Good News about Jesus. The evangelists that have seen the glory and shared it are a small but formidable group of people now: Mary and Joseph, the shepherds, and the Magi. 

Do you think they expected to find a baby? And one in a humble house, no less? They were looking for a king. Where would you look for one of those? In a country that actually has a monarchy, for one. In the rich part of town. Near people who are in line for the throne. Based on what I think I know, I don’t think I’d find Jesus. The Magi ignored what they knew and pursued what they felt. You don’t find Jesus with your head, using the advice of this society, with rules and logic. You find him with love. Where you find love, he’s already there. How delightful it must have been to find a toddler. I can just imagine the smiles. That is, after they jumped over all the baby gates to get into the house. 

As I told you last week, though, for all the wonderful things the Magi did in this story, they made one huge mistake. They were too trusting. The purity of heart that allowed them to find Jesus left them unaware of the political rivalry that they could stir up by approaching Herod and asking the current king where they may find the new king. God understood. It’s can be dangerous to be so kind. It’s why it feels like there are so few kind people. In his adult life, Jesus sought a balance, and taught it to his followers, of being “wise as a serpent, but gentle as a dove”, of balancing a vulnerable, open heart with an awareness of the injustices and power dynamics around you. God imparts help of this exact nature to the Magi. Knowing the Magi didn’t understand that Herod was manipulating them, that they wouldn’t figure out that Herod employed the help of his scribes to send the Magi to Joseph and Mary just so he could get Jesus’ location out of the Magi, God reaches the Magi the best way the Holy knew how—in a dream. “Don’t go back to Herod,” dream God said, “you took two years getting to Jesus, you can take the long way back home.” The Magi didn’t understand Herod’s cruelty, and they didn’t have to. They just had to trust God. There is a pure, noble way to practice civil disobedience, and the Magi modeled it for us. 

So what can we learn from all of this? Channel that childlike purity of heart. If you feel very out of touch with your own, then go learn from an actual kid. The Magi worshipped God first in Mother Nature. Have you watched a kid collect sticks and rocks, splash in puddles, and eat snow? They have a deep reverence for nature that we would do well do understand. The Holy speaks through it. When you get in touch with that part of yourself, listen to it and follow your heart. Listen to your dreams. Pursue love. Don’t be afraid to look silly. And when you realize something that no one else knows, like that Jesus loves us, share it with the world. 

Amen. 

 
 

*Hymn Good Christian Friends, Rejoice #224 

 
 

Offering  

 
 

Offertory Beyond Christmas W. J. Kirkpatrick  

*Doxology See projection Tune at #229 

*Prayer of dedication             

  

Pastoral Prayer and Lord’s Prayer 

 

Lord of bright and abiding Light, you have shown us, in the person of Jesus your Son, a new way to live. You have poured your light into the world and have asked us to live in the light rather than run and hide in the darkness of doubt and despair. You promise to be our light all of our days and ask us to place our trust in you. The journey in this light is risky. It means that we will have to be very serious about our service to you, giving you our best and offering hope and light to others. In this new year, we bring to you the names and situations of others for whom light seems to be a stranger. They struggle with ill health, economic hardship, broken and damaged relationships, loss of loved ones, and anxiety. We place them in your care. Let your light shine on them, bringing healing and hope. Help us to be bearers of that light in all that we do; for we ask this in Jesus' Name. Amen. 

— written by Nancy C. Townley, and posted on the Worship Connection page of the Ministry Matters website. 

 

Our Father, Mother, Creator God, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy Kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who have trespassed against us. Lead us, not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the Kingdom, the Power, and the Glory forever. Amen. 
 

*Hymn The First Noel #245, vv. 1, 2, 5 

 
 

Benediction 

 
Postlude He Is Lord with O Come Let Us Adore Him Mark Hayes, arr. 

 
 
 

Staff 

Natalie Bowerman Pastor 

Betsy Lehmann Music Director 

Joe White Custodian 

Cassandra Brown Nursery Attendant