Second Sunday after the Epiphany (Isaiah 49:1-7)  1/19/2014

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I recently watched a very powerful HBO documentary about a young boy, who was actually quite an old man. The documentary was about Sam Berns, a young boy with a very rare disorder called Progeria. The disorder is a rare disease that involves a specific protein that creates a genetic disruption and causes the body to age very rapidly…this young boy of 13 had the body of an 80 year man. The young boy stated quite firmly, however, that the documentary was about his life, not about the disease. But without the disease, there would have been no documentary; without witnessing the incredible challenges of his life, there would have been no obvious contrast for us to see Sam’s incredible strength and hope. As the story unfolds throughout the documentary, the viewer becomes familiar with Sam and his parents (both medical doctors, helping in their own ways to find solutions to Sam’s disease) and you become increasingly aware of the life and character of Sam and his parents; and eventually the disease is merely the context of the story, not the story itself. No, the story itself is a story of courageous hope, courageous dreams, courageous actions that are taken with an abiding faith and confidence that those actions will make a difference. The courageous actions of Sam and his parents create the story, not the disease. Nowhere in the documentary is this fact better illustrated than in the opening few seconds, just as the story begins. We discover a young 13 year old boy, who looks like a man maybe 6 or 7 times that old, intently working on creating something new. He is surrounded by LEGO blocks, LEGO people and entire LEGO creations spread across a very large table. And as he continues to work on his newest creation he says, “When I’m building LEGOs I feel like I can create my own world…” Sam not only created his own world on that large table, Sam and his parents faithfully created a difference in the world at large – in their community and across the globe. His dreams were not simply left on that big table, Sam’s dreams were coming to life because of his courageous faith and his confidence that his actions could make a difference.

To dream in bold and daring ways and to be a courageous and faithful participant in those dreams is exactly the message we hear today from the prophet Isaiah. The people of Israel had suffered for many years under their exile in Babylon. Their lives seemed lost as they were forced into exile from the Holy Land of Jerusalem. We hear of the sorrow and loss of the Jewish people in the early chapters of Isaiah, but as we listen to the words from our Scripture lesson this morning we hear that now there was hope, now they had reason to dream of their restoration to the Holy Land. They must have asked themselves the obvious question: can we dare to finally dream for the return to Jerusalem, can we dare to finally dream that good things will happen to us? We hear this morning the prophet Isaiah speak to the people of Israel in their wondering – yes, dream for yourselves, know that you are blessed as children of God; but that is not enough, that dream is too small. Isaiah speaks to us, “It is too light a thing that you should be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob and to restore the survivors of Israel; I will give you as light to the nations, that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth.” (Isaiah 49:6) Do not dream just for yourselves, for I have created each and every one of you for the saving grace of the world!

Isaiah’s prophecy of a “light to the nations” is a call for action, because you do not put a light under a bushel basket, you place a light on a lamp stand to enlighten the world. Isaiah’s message is a bold invitation for us to take up God’s call, a sacred invitation for us to put our gifts for ministry into action. God has a bold and courageous dream, a dream that his children will strive to use their gifts for the purpose of God’s will and God’s grace, a dream not simply for ourselves but for the whole world. God’s bold dream for us is a call that shapes our ministry together, shapes our mission in the world, and by these actions shapes our understanding of ourselves and our very lives. We must dream, but like Sam Berns, we must have that courageous faith that gives us the confidence to take action, the actions that turn dreams into realities.

Tomorrow we remember the life and legacy of Martin Luther King, Jr. We remember his dreams and the dreams of all those who hope for a better tomorrow, a world that treats every person with justice, peace and love. Tomorrow afternoon we will join with many other churches and ring the bells of the church, taking action to proclaim our support of peace and love throughout this nation and the nations of the world. King’s famous “I have a dream” speech echoed Isaiah’s prophetic call to change the world through faithful, loving, and powerful actions. King dreamed for a time where every person would be judged by the content of their character and not by the false labels assigned by society…a bold dream perhaps, but not an impossible one. And the dream of spreading God’s love throughout the world is a dream that starts today, as King told the people gathered in Washington more than 50 years ago. “We have come to this hallowed spot to remind America of the fierce urgency of now,” said King. This season of Epiphany celebrates and reminds us that we have been given the gift of our Savior, Jesus Christ, the Light of the world; a gift that is present to us now. “And now the LORD says…I will give you as a light to the nations, that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth”…the fierce urgency of now!

Just a few days ago, the young boy who was also the old man, Sam Berns, died at the age of 17 due to complications from his disease. There is great sorrow when a light in the world, a light as bright as Sam Berns, is taken from our midst. But for 17 years, Sam had the courageous faith to follow his dreams, his parents had the love and courage to pursue medical solutions that have helped the disease that took Sam away from us, and they had the courage to pursue their dreams with the “fierce urgency of now.” God calls us to dream big and bold dreams for our world; God calls us to use our many gifts to be a light to the nations, that God’s salvation may reach to our community, to our country and to the world. As we begin this New Year, may this time be an opportunity for us to take up the challenge of spreading God’s light and love in all the world. AMEN