Good Morning, Church!
*Turn around and tell your neighbor – PAY ATTENTION.
There is a Bible scripture I’d like to share because way too often we tend to forget that we are PRECIOUS in God’s sight, that we are loved. And, someone might need to hear these words. They come from Isaiah 41 & 43
I took you from the ends of the earth,
from its farthest corners I called you.
I said, ‘You are mine;
I have chosen you and have NOT rejected you.
10 So, do not fear, for I am with you;
do not be dismayed, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you and help you;
I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.
Now, he who created you; he who formed you, says:
“Do not fear, for I have redeemed you;
I have called you by name; YOU ARE MINE.
2 When you pass through the waters,
I will be with you . . .
and when you pass through the rivers,
they will not sweep over you.
When you walk through the fire,
you will not be burned;
the flames will not set you ablaze.
3 For I am the Lord your God,
the Holy One of Israel, your Savior;
Let us pray TOGETHER,
*Holy Spirit, thou art welcomed into this place.
Open our eyes to see,
Open our ears to hear,
Our minds to understand,
And warm our hearts to believe.
Now may the words of my mouth and the meditation of all of our hearts, TOGETHER, be pleasing in your sight, Oh Lord our Rock and our Redeemer. AMEN.
What is the first word, or the first image, that comes to mind when you hear the word *EMPOWERMENT?
ME? I see someone walking around all tough like Brutus from Popeye’s or like *Tom or Jerry after they have being wronged.
I see that type of attitude that communicates FEAR ME.
Every day I see online short videos and read stories of people who have faced horrible situations, people who have been wronged, BUT one difficult or risky decision changed the course of their lives OR left behind a trail for history to tell truth afterwards.
The summarized scriptures we just read are about people who took chances, or risks in the midst of difficult times.
One of the stories is about how the family of the patriarch Jacob, aka Israel, got to Egypt. His sons went to Egypt for food because of a famine that was sweeping the land, only to find out that a brother they had sold as a slave (Joseph) years earlier due to jealousy –– was now a man with POWER, with lots of POWER, A POWER that was delegated to him in “exchange” of his “supernatural wisdom.”
BUT, years went by, his family stayed in Egypt, Joseph died, and the story says that because they exponentially grew in numbers, and a new pharaoh – who did not know Joseph - a ruler who governed out of fear and with threats – rose to power, and was concerned of an uprising, felt threatened.
So, he, meaning Pharaoh, had the Israelites subjected to hard servitude. The problem was that the more Egypt oppressed Israel, the more Israel multiplied and spread.
Pharaoh’s next strategy was to have his people kill the Hebrew baby boys at birth. Appealing to mob action, he inflamed prejudice and suspicion, stirring up the masses.
Meaning, that a few powerful was to control and enslave the powerless, the vulnerable,
to the point that Pharaoh asked midwives, who are bringers of life, to be instruments of death. Only that it didn’t work, because their call to bring life forward was too deeply ingrained in their character.
So, God found a couple of midwives who knew who they were as humans beings – by call, by principle, and by ethics; women who FEARED a god they did not know, but were willing to take a chance to bet their lives to save as many lives as they could.
I don’t know about you, but to me, this sounds like civil disobedience before they knew the term. So it looks like the voice of the God of the enslaved found wholeness in the hearts and minds of those who had the power of life and death in their hands.
How do we understand power? Is it the ability to do what we want to do?
In this story it is about Pharaoh ordering, “Kill the babies.”
How easily manipulated are we to the point that we compromise faith and values?
Jesus asked his disciples, who does people say I am? . . . and you? How about you? Who do YOU say I am. Are you going to allow others to intimidate you and make you compromise?
After Jesus set the record straight through Peter’s confession – You are the Christ, the Son of God –Jesus told them, Keep quiet. In other words, don’t go around provoking others’ attitude. He knew it was a matter or time.
When Jesus was in the mount of Transfiguration with Peter, James, and John, Jesus also told them, do not say anything of what you have seen and heard here. WAIT.
There is a right time.
This was an insider moment, a called-out community moment, just like the midwives.
It Is NOT about power, but about EMPOWERMENT. It is about knowing who we are.
EMPOWERMENT is about knowing who we TRULY are, what we have been called to do, and about what is RIGHT.
EMPOWERMENT is about overcoming what limits us, what holds us back or down.
To be empowered, one must be willing to take risks, to renounce to something, to leave something behind.
Will we always receive the results of what we hope for? Honestly, no.
HOWEVER, one thing we will always get through EMPOWERMENT is the capacity of growing stronger and more confident.
EMPOWERMENT is about defeating the evil that limits or oppresses us.
It is about Jesus identity in us transforming our identity and trust in Jesus.
God blessed the midwives, we are told, for their faithfulness.
Peter’s name was changed from Simon to Petros, Petra, Rock.
We are transformed back into the image and likeness of our Creator God.
We have been promised that “The gates of Hades will not prevail” (16:18)— will not prevail against the body of Christ.
We do not need to live in fear of any attack, demonic or human.
We are stronger than we think.
Finally, we have the keys and the binding and loosing (16:19) to EMPOWER and to be EMPOWERED, to share the identity of Christ with the world.
*
We are empowered to invite, to encourage, to instruct, AND to act.
We are empowered to Forgive, to Free, to Liberate.
We are empowered to heal, to Correct, to find the strength to apologize, and to rescue.
We are empowered to overcome, but not to enslave.
We are empowered to renew and to release.
We are empowered to, like the midwives, dare to believe in and act for God.
Then, like the midwives, we are blessed.