Fourth Easter, 2004:

The wife awoke one morning unable to speak a word. She had developed severe laryngitis. Her considerate husband, to help her communicate, created a system of taps that stood for certain words and phrases. One tap was "Yes," two taps were "No," and so on. This new vocabulary was very thorough and worked well. Ninety-three taps meant, "Take out the garbage" and ninety-nine stood for "The dryer just stopped."

Now, please take that tongue-in-cheek. It is meant to make you feel better about your spouse by comparing the joke with the reality. (Pause) What do you mean you don’t feel better?

I hope you will resist the temptation over the next few months of comparing me with Bob Copenhaver or comparing Bob Copenhaver with me. Neither comparison would be fair. Shirley and I are so very grateful to you for providing us the opportunity of the coming sabbatical time. Most of you already know and love Bob and Mimi Copenhaver. Those who do not know them will soon learn to love them. One of the great blessings of this vocation is to be a part of a truly loving congregation. As I have said many times, you are a remarkable group of people. Please keep us in your prayers and know that you will be in ours.

The Gospel details an incident in the life of the one called Jesus the Christ. It occurred during the Festival of the Dedication. This latest of the great Jewish festivals was also known as the Festival of Lights, and in Hebrew was called Hanukkah. The date would roughly coincide with our December 25^th and remains one of the great observances in Judaism. The history behind the festival chronicles a series of tragic and remarkable events. In 170 BC, the King of Syria, Antiochus Epiphanes attacked Jerusalem. The estimate is that over 80,000 Jews were killed and probably that many were sold into slavery. The Temple treasury was looted. It was forbidden for anyone to have a copy of the Torah. Circumcision was outlawed and any mother who keep that sign of the covenant was crucified with their children draped around their necks. The Temple was desecrated, the chambers were turned into brothels and the great altar was turned into an altar to Zeus and pigs were offered to pagan gods. It was then that Judas Maccabaeus and his brothers arose to fight their legendary battles for freedom and to deliver their country. In 164 BC, the victory was won and the Temple was cleansed and purified. The great altar was rebuilt and the various vessels and items for the temple worship were restored.

It was to commemorate that time of purification that the Feast of the Dedication was instituted. Much of the history of that time can be found in the apocryphal book of I Maccabees.

The Gospel gives us an account of some folks who were experiencing winter, both physically and spiritually. They were under foreign occupation again. They hoped for, prayed for, and some were fighting for the restoration of Israel. The Messiah would put everything in its proper order, but the Messiah was delayed. On that day Jesus was walking in the Temple, in the portico of Solomon. It was December, the Feast of the Dedication; Hanukkah had come once more. The folks who approached Jesus were searching for the Messiah, but they could not be sure they had found him in the person of Jesus. So they complained that he was holding back. They were tired of the long spiritual winter and couldn’t take anymore suspense. "If you are the Messiah, tell us plainly," they implored.

Is that too much to ask of God when we are willing to commit ourselves to him? "Tell us plainly," is often the cry of those who are experiencing a spiritual winter. They wanted a sign, some concrete, empirical, measurable, tangible proof of who he was. What proof do we still need before we place this one called Jesus the Christ at the center of our lives?

We need to remember that the answer Jesus gave to those who inquired on the portico of Solomon is the same one he gives to us. "I have told you," he said to them. He has indeed told us. Most of those who heard his answer did not accept it, they chose not to believe. Many of those who have heard his answer today still do not believe. The problem, of course, was in them, in us, and not in him. That is always the case. Many seek God in a ritual, a geographic "holy of Holies," a church or temple. God has come in the person of Jesus and tends to show up in lots of places, some of which make us uncomfortable.

What had he done that people could have seen and known that he was, and is, in fact whom he said he was? He said, "My sheep hear my voice. I know them, and they follow me." In order to become one of his sheep, one must hear his voice. Not only that, but we must hear, submit our will, and follow where he leads. Eyes to see and ears to hear are the characterizing features of the people of faith. Learning to hear his voice means we come to trust his guidance. Others may say, "Tell us plainly," but we must follow, secure in the belief that following will deepen our faith. Faith grows in our response to God’s Holy Spirit working within us. Some call those moments’s "coincidences." Practicing hearing his voice very often leads to "God incidences."

When we hear his voice but choose to continue on the path of our own design, it should not shock us when we eventually find ourselves lost and alone. Remember that part of this amazing story is that when we hear his voice, he recognizes us as one of his own. He is the Good Shepherd who comes looking for the lost, hurt, tired, and frightened sheep who took a wrong turn in the path.

This one called Jesus the Christ is no ordinary shepherd. He assures us of the Father’s protection and care, even to eternal life. Thieves and wolves and stray dogs; poison weeds, stagnant water, and rushing streams are not able to take the sheep away from the Father. Whatever we fear most can be taken to the Father’s care and protection.

If your spirit is still in the middle of winter, it is time for you to experience the burst of new life that spiritual springtime brings. The new life Jesus promised begins now and continues forever. Listen for the voice of the Good Shepherd and make the faith response. Follow him. He and he alone, can lead us from winter to spring. Following the Good Shepherd adds color to our lives. Blooms and blossoms appear in places we thought dead and barren and gives us renewed strength for this journey.

Winter is over. Spring has come, physically and spiritually. The potential for new life has arrived. In the marvelous vocabulary of God, he has told us plainly. Amen.