2nd Sunday after Christmas, Year C. Jan.5
Luke 2:13-15, 19-23
Rev. Misa Furumoto
Happy New Year! While the world has already moved on from Christmas, we in the church are still celebrating the Christmas season. It lasts until tomorrow, January 6th, which is Epiphany Day. Epiphany means the moment when Christ was revealed to the world, and we remember the visit of the Magi on this day. The Christmas story shows us that the news of Jesus’ birth first reached the shepherds—poor and marginalized people—and then the wise men from the East, who were Gentiles. This reminds us that God sent His only Son to show His eternal love not just to the Israelites but to every single person on Earth. No one is left out. No one is alone. This is the heart of Christmas.
This morning’s Gospel, from Matthew, tells us what happened to baby Jesus and His family after the Magi’s visit. King Herod had asked the Magi to inform him when they found the baby who was to become the King of the Jews. However, after seeing Jesus, the Magi were warned in a dream not to return to Herod. So, they went home by another route. While the Gospel doesn’t explicitly say so, it was likely an angel who gave them this message.
After the Magi left, an angel appeared in Joseph’s dream, telling him to flee to Egypt because Herod wanted to kill Jesus. Joseph obeyed immediately. We don’t know exactly how many days had passed since Jesus’ birth, but the journey with a newborn must have been incredibly difficult. Once they arrived in Egypt, they stayed there until Herod died. When Herod passed away, an angel appeared to Joseph again in a dream, instructing him to return to Israel, specifically to Nazareth in Galilee, which became Jesus’ hometown.
So, what can we learn from this story?
The first point is that God continually communicated through dreams. God sends messages through angels in dreams—first to Joseph, telling him to accept Mary and name the baby Jesus, then to the Magi, warning them not to return to Herod, and again to Joseph, guiding him to flee to Egypt and later return to Israel.
The second thing we learn is that Joseph and the Magi obeyed without hesitation. They acted immediately on the messages they received. Think about it—if you had a dream like that, would you believe it and act on it right away? Most of us wouldn’t trust our dreams so easily, and we don’t expect angels to appear in our daily lives either.
Joseph’s dreams may have been quite different from the dreams we experience today. If we were to act solely on our dreams believing that they were messages from God and something went wrong, we might even blame God. That’s not what we call faith.
Another thing, in Japan, many people visit shrines and temples for Hatsumode on New Year’s Day and draw sacred lots called omikuji to learn their fortunes. These fortunes do not tell only a level of luckiness but also include advice like “Change your purse if you want wealth” or “Don’t rush into marriage.” I don’t know how seriously people take these words, but they probably read them, then go like “okay, sounds good”, or “well, I’ll try” like that. But the angel in Joseph’s dreams was not like omikuji. It was much more significant because he knew the words were precisely from God. And this unwavering trust and obedience to God’s word is the way of life that Jesus Himself exemplifies, and it serves as a precursor to the way of life He expects from His disciples and followers.
So, how do we obey God’s words while we don’t dream like Joseph and angels don’t appear anymore? Let us realize that we have something Joseph didn’t have: the teachings of Jesus Christ. We know what he said, what he did, and how to follow him. Following Jesus isn’t always easy, but we also know that we have help—the Holy Spirit.
When we feel lost or unsure of what to do, let’s ask ourselves, “What would Jesus do?” And let’s pray, knowing that whichever path we choose, God will always be with us.
As we begin this new year, let’s make a fresh resolution to read the Bible every day. By trusting God, new paths will open for us.
In the name of the Father, of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, Amen.