Outsiders Becoming Insiders

In 1983 a movie was released that has become a coming-of-age classic. It is The Outsiders. Based on the novel by the same title, it tells the story of two rival gangs in Oklahoma, the Greasers and the Socials. The Socials are the ultimate insiders. They have money and social position that puts them in the place of the privilege and power in the town. The Greasers are from the wrong side of the tracks, are from the working class and therefore the ultimate Outsiders. The story tells of how one Greaser longs to be on the inside but can only look in from outside. As the story continues, this one young man and a girl from the right side of the tracks strike up an unlikely acquaintance. In the end the young man is still an outsider but with dreams of being an insider closer to fulfillment.

Today’s text is the one of the ultimate texts about outsiders becoming insiders. Today is the second Sunday after Christmas but we are going to be discovering Epiphany, the beginning of the unveiling of Jesus to the whole world not just to the Jewish people.

Epiphany is a word that has many meanings. For most people it is that moment when the lightbulb comes on (there is a comic with a vending machine with 6 “types” of epiphanies: Blinding Flash, Warm and Fuzzy, Gradual Dawning, Eastern/Mystical, Cartesian/Cerebral, and my favorite, 2x4 to the Head), that moment in the shower when you go, “That’s it!!!”. That is what an epiphany is. In the church, however, there is a different meaning and it is this: “It comes from a Greek word for manifestation or appearance. For many Christians, Epiphany refers to the manifestation of the divine nature of Jesus”. But the word "epiphany" has another popular meaning: “a sudden flash of understanding or insight; an illuminating discovery, realization, or disclosure (think of the “twist” in a good suspense story).”

Whatever the meaning for you, Epiphany for the church is a big deal. This is when the Wise Men, or Magi, are supposed to have come to Jesus bearing gifts and paying homage to the new king that was born. Now it probably did not happen as we like to imagine and like to see in our Christmas pageants where three boys dressed in robes and wearing crowns come down the aisle carrying boxes to lay at the manger in the sanctuary. There is nothing that tells us how many there were or where they came from. There is nothing that tells us how old they were and if they truly were royalty. But for the church, especially in the Eastern Church, these things do not really matter because it is the coming of the magi that matters. In fact, in the Eastern Church Christmas as we know and celebrate it is not celebrated until Epiphany. It is the time to celebrate with the gifts that are given by the magi as they came to the country where Jesus was born.

But these Magi were outsiders in this story. Not only were they Gentiles, making them unclean to the Jews of Jerusalem, they were Gentiles from the east, probably Babylon, which was the nation that had taken the nation of Judah into captivity all those years ago. The Jews had long memories and they remembered what Babylon had done and how it had affected the Jews. And not only were they from Babylon, they were astrologers, which was condemned in the law. All in all, they were the ultimate outsiders.

But what happened here? The outsiders were the ones who were searching for the new king. They came to Jerusalem where they believed that the new king could and would be found. And they asked the questions that only outsiders would ask, “Where is the child who is born King of the Jews?” Where. They did not know. But it was the insiders who did know. They knew that the child was to be born in Bethlehem and yet they did not seek him out when the announcement was made that these outsiders had come to seek him. The insiders were troubled by this announcement. Perhaps they were frightened of what Herod would do, which was a reasonable emotion to feel given the paranoia and tendency to murder that was known of him. Perhaps they were frightened about what may have happened to them should Rome get wind of a “new” king coming into the mix of Judean politics. Or perhaps they were worried about what may happen to them should a new king come to power. What would happen to their power? Would they have to pay homage to a new king? Yes, the insiders were not looking for a king and so they missed what the outsiders knew and were searching for.

The outsiders became insiders when they found the baby in Bethlehem. They paid homage to the one who was born and were the first to be a part of the new order that this baby had come to establish. Though they did not realize it, the Magi became the first Gentiles to realize that there was something different about this child. They were the first Gentiles to come to the one who had come to redeem the whole world, not just those who were on the inside. With their homage they showed the world what it would do within time. The Magi may not have been Jews, but they were honest seekers. And when told from scripture where and what the king was to be, they rejoiced and went out to continue the search. They had an epiphany and they were willing to act upon it.

We have had an epiphany ourselves. We have been told that the new king has been born and that he is waiting for us to come and behold him.

So, what do we do with that information? There are many times we are like the insiders in this story. We know the story and we know what it means. It means that we are to submit to one who is meek and humble to come as a human child to save the world. But like the insiders we are troubled. We, especially in this culture, do not like to pay homage to anyone but good old number one, ourselves. And when we are told that we are to give homage to a new king, a child even, we resist. We wonder what will become of our positions and our power. What will become of the image that we have attained for ourselves? Will it all be dashed to bits by this new king that has been born? The answer to that question is yes. The new king will take everything that we hold dear and ask us to give it all up to follow him. And what will our answer be?

But there is another point to all of this. We are the ultimate outsiders as well as the Magi. We were on the outside looking in because of our sins. But God, through Jesus, made us able to be insiders. One of the scriptures for today is from Ephesians 1 where Paul describes the fact that we have been adopted into the family of God and that we have all the rights and privileges of the children of God. We are no longer outsiders, but insiders.

What are we to do with this privilege? We are to break down the walls that divide us from each other whether that be race, class, religion or any other barrier that keeps us from each other. There are many “outsiders” who are closer to the kingdom than many insiders because they honestly search for God and come to Jesus through various ways. I like to say that there is only one way to God (through Jesus) but there are many ways to Jesus. The Magi proved that one does not have to be on the inside to discover the king. One only has to be searching and be open to the moving of the Spirit. And when one does that then outsiders truly become insiders. Thanks be to God for the gift of God’s grace that makes the outsiders become insiders. Amen.