The Catastrophic Epiphany of the Word of God

PRAYER OF CONSECRATION Wake up, sleeper, rise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.  Abba, I belong to you. I lift up my heart to you. I set my mind on you. I fix my eyes on you. I offer my body to you as a living sacrifice. Abba, we belong to you.  Praying in the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit, amen.  Matthew 3:16–17 As soon as Jesus was baptized, he went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on him. And a voice from heaven said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.” CONSIDER THIS Previously, on the New Year—New Word Wake-Up Call series, we asked the question: HOW DO YOU PUNCH THE DEVIL? This is your cue to say—no, shout: BY SAYING THE WORD OF GOD!  I'm still living in the after-party of Jemima and her mother's celebration of the Christocentric Declarations on the way to school. You too? Good! Because there's more.  I keep thinking back to our text from yesterday when Jesus punched the devil in the face by saying God's Word.  Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’” (Matt. 4:4) Years ago, I was led into a catastrophic epiphany as relates to this text by one of my pastors, Jason McAnally. Though Jesus quotes Deuteronomy 8:3, Jason suggested to me he had been eating the Word that had just come from his Father's mouth. You will remember, that just prior to the Holy Spirit's leading him into the wilderness to fast for forty days and nights, he was baptized in the Jordan River. But do you remember the words that came from his Father's mouth as he was baptized? (hint: Matt. 3:17) “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.” If you've got a few extra minutes this morning, go back and look at the whole temptation story in Matthew 4. You will see that each of the wily words of Satan is aimed at Jesus's core identity and meant to take him out of the will of God. This is why we punch the devil in the face by saying the Word of God. If we forget who we are and who we belong to, we will quickly lose our way in the wilderness of this world. This is mostly what is broken about us as people. We don't know who we most truly and deeply are, and we listen to a thousand other lying voices who will readily tell us.  Consequently, this catastrophic epiphany concerning the Word from the mouth of God Jesus was feasting on in the midst of his wilderness fasting—it became my new word for that new year. What the Father said over his Son at his baptism he says over you and me at our baptism into the life of Jesus. My Son, my daughter, my beloved; with you, I am well pleased. And every day for the past twenty years, I go over it in the morning. When we start working with words from God the Holy Spirit engraves them on our hearts and in our minds. We never forget them, because they remember us.  Back in those days, I lived about an hour from the Abbey of Gethsemani. I used to frequent that monastery to walk and pray. I came across a little card with a set of declarations written on it entitled, "A Litany of the Person." It was written by an anonymous monk at the Abbey. I thought to write another of my pastor-mentors, Peg Hutchins, because she had taken this litany and had it made into a large banner and hung at Asbury Seminary as a means of grace for our students.  It is another set of declarations concerning who we are that flow out of the Word of God. I am printing it below for the prospering of your soul.  A Litany of the Person image of God born of God's breath vessel of Divine Love after His likeness dwelling of God capacity for the infinite eternally known chosen of God home of Infinite Majesty abiding in the Son called from eternity life in the Lord temple of the Holy Spirit branch of Christ receptacle of the Most High wellspring of Living Water heir of the Kingdom the Glory of God abode of the Trinity God sings this litany eternally in His Word. This is who you are. All of it flows from this baptismal declaration of our deepest identity, a Word from the mouth of God.  “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.” (Insert your name), you are my son/daughter, my beloved; with you, I am well pleased.  Now, let me ask you again, How do you punch the devil? Yes, by saying the Word of God!  THE PRAYER FOR ILLUMINATION Lord Jesus—Word of God from before the beginning—our Great Teacher, Thank you for bringing us into your baptism of belovedness. Would you loose this word from the mouth of God into my deepest identity? I can't shed the lies by trying not to believe them. I need the truth to displace the broken words spoken into and over my life. I need your Word. My son. My daughter. My beloved. With you, I am well pleased. When you say that, I hear, "I love you. I like you. And I'm proud of you." And it changes the way I see me and the way I see others.  Lord, it will be for your glory, for others' gain, and for my good.   Praise God from whom all blessings flow. Praise him all creatures here below. Praise him above ye heavenly host. Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. Amen!