WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:05.639 Good morning Christchurch. Good morning. It's that time of year again isn't it? 00:00:06.320 --> 00:00:09.259 Where everyone has started to make New Year's resolutions. 00:00:10.160 --> 00:00:15.179 Can I get like a show of hands to see how many people so far have made a New Year's resolution? 00:00:17.539 --> 00:00:19.660 One? Crikey. Two? Three? 00:00:23.440 --> 00:00:29.280 Out of you who have made one, how many of you so far have kept your New Year's resolutions? 00:00:30.000 --> 00:00:35.520 One? Some people have already failed. 00:00:35.820 --> 00:00:36.679 So here are some facts. 00:00:37.259 --> 00:00:43.019 So 22% of people fail their New Year's resolutions after a single week. 00:00:44.159 --> 00:00:48.840 And only 9% succeed in actually keeping their resolution all year. 00:00:49.519 --> 00:00:53.740 But hopefully, if you've already failed then it's okay. 00:00:54.560 --> 00:00:57.560 I'll give you a new one hopefully within the next 10 minutes. 00:00:58.539 --> 00:00:59.900 So today is also Epiphany. 00:01:01.280 --> 00:01:02.840 But what is Epiphany all about? 00:01:02.840 --> 00:01:05.240 I asked my mum this. 00:01:05.579 --> 00:01:08.719 She's normally my guinea pig when I ask people things. 00:01:08.820 --> 00:01:12.400 And I asked mum, right mum what do you think Epiphany is? 00:01:13.480 --> 00:01:20.680 And she said it's that day when Christmas is over and we remember and celebrate the three kings. 00:01:20.680 --> 00:01:24.260 I mean, that's pretty much bang on really. 00:01:24.860 --> 00:01:30.960 Except we don't actually know if there was exactly three people who went to see Jesus. 00:01:31.980 --> 00:01:36.060 And we weren't sure if they were kings or not. 00:01:37.560 --> 00:01:40.500 But actually, she's not too far off. 00:01:41.420 --> 00:01:44.840 But in reality, there is much more to Epiphany than this. 00:01:44.840 --> 00:01:47.240 So why do we actually celebrate it? 00:01:48.320 --> 00:01:51.719 Epiphany is about Jesus' contact with the wise men. 00:01:52.579 --> 00:01:55.800 But the question is, why is this important? 00:01:56.120 --> 00:01:57.800 Why was that contact with wise men important? 00:01:59.540 --> 00:02:04.600 This is important because it was Jesus' first contact with the Gentiles. 00:02:04.920 --> 00:02:07.520 And the Gentiles were the non-Jewish people at the time. 00:02:07.519 --> 00:02:12.659 But then, I suppose it's also important to ask, why is this important? 00:02:13.139 --> 00:02:14.319 Why is this contact important? 00:02:15.379 --> 00:02:22.219 It was because at that time, God had only really had contact with the Jews regularly at this point in history. 00:02:23.079 --> 00:02:26.000 So I suppose we can ask again, why is this important? 00:02:26.280 --> 00:02:27.060 Why is that important? 00:02:27.800 --> 00:02:30.439 It's because it was symbolic of what was to come. 00:02:30.439 --> 00:02:38.000 The wise men from the East recognised that it was God that was leading them to someone who was worthy of being worshipped. 00:02:38.979 --> 00:02:41.939 And later on, we would see this baby, this Jesus. 00:02:42.620 --> 00:02:48.340 He would later go on to make a sacrifice that meant it was possible for not just the Jews, 00:02:48.740 --> 00:02:52.520 but for everyone, including us, to have a relationship with God. 00:02:52.520 --> 00:02:57.580 So again, I would just like to stress the importance of Epiphany. 00:02:58.180 --> 00:02:59.480 It's almost like a prelude. 00:03:00.219 --> 00:03:06.800 And that through Jesus, everyone, including us, can have a relationship with God. 00:03:08.100 --> 00:03:13.500 So what actually happened in the story of Epiphany? 00:03:14.300 --> 00:03:19.560 So first, we see the Magi arrive from the East, being directed by a star. 00:03:19.560 --> 00:03:28.300 It's not really explained how they knew to come, but we just know that God worked through them 00:03:28.300 --> 00:03:31.860 and they just saw this star and they knew it was special and they followed it. 00:03:32.500 --> 00:03:37.500 And eventually, they come from the East and they end up appearing to King Herod, 00:03:38.319 --> 00:03:44.259 telling him that there is going to be a baby who was born, who is going to be king, 00:03:46.159 --> 00:03:49.080 or in the Bible it says, the anointed one. 00:03:50.379 --> 00:03:53.039 So Herod probably wasn't quite so thrilled at this news, 00:03:53.439 --> 00:03:54.860 considering he was the king at the time. 00:03:55.560 --> 00:03:59.439 And he asked his priest where this Messiah was to be born. 00:04:00.939 --> 00:04:06.740 And they said that, Herod's priest said that Micah had predicted and prophesied 00:04:06.740 --> 00:04:11.560 that the baby was to be born in Bethlehem. 00:04:11.560 --> 00:04:14.340 So there Herod goes. 00:04:14.340 --> 00:04:26.720 He sends this Magi off and they find this baby and they arrive bringing gold, frankincense and myrrh. 00:04:26.720 --> 00:04:32.880 Again, we don't actually know what these gifts symbolise, 00:04:32.940 --> 00:04:37.240 because the Bible doesn't actually directly say and give a symbolic meaning to them. 00:04:37.240 --> 00:04:47.560 But from ancient history, we can tell that these are expensive gifts and these are gifts that are worthy for a king. 00:04:47.560 --> 00:04:57.439 So what we know is that frankincense is a white fragrant resin that was burned and used in worship as an offering to God, 00:04:58.000 --> 00:05:02.180 symbolising that, or could be, that Jesus was the son of God. 00:05:02.180 --> 00:05:05.220 So we see myrrh being brought. 00:05:06.800 --> 00:05:08.819 And myrrh was a spice that was used in Embarnam, 00:05:09.639 --> 00:05:13.220 which could prefigure the death that he was going to receive. 00:05:13.220 --> 00:05:18.580 And, of course, the other gift they brought was gold. 00:05:18.740 --> 00:05:20.120 And we all know what gold is. 00:05:20.200 --> 00:05:20.760 Gold is gold. 00:05:21.200 --> 00:05:25.400 It's a very expensive metal and is a symbol of divinity and royalty. 00:05:27.180 --> 00:05:33.900 But ultimately, we don't exactly know what the meaning of each specific gift is. 00:05:34.000 --> 00:05:36.160 Other than that, it was really important. 00:05:37.580 --> 00:05:41.440 This baby was really, really important and was going to be a king. 00:05:41.439 --> 00:05:44.600 But the next part of the story is really interesting. 00:05:45.339 --> 00:05:56.839 So we see the Magi, after seeing Jesus, they returned via a different route after being warned in a dream not to go back to Herod. 00:05:57.779 --> 00:06:03.980 And this is really, really brave because Herod was not really a nice guy. 00:06:05.220 --> 00:06:09.159 We can see in history that Herod ended up killing three of his own sons. 00:06:09.980 --> 00:06:11.000 He was brutal. 00:06:11.439 --> 00:06:24.500 So to actually actively oppose the king and to just go home a different way and not to go back to Herod, that was really, really brave. 00:06:25.439 --> 00:06:28.519 And by doing this, they risked their own lives. 00:06:28.519 --> 00:06:32.439 So that is the story of Epiphany, really. 00:06:33.659 --> 00:06:48.639 And as we look Epiphany back in hindsight, we can see that the reason the Magi came was to show us that not just the Jews, but us as well, that we can have a relationship with God through Jesus. 00:06:48.639 --> 00:06:57.539 So the question I want to ask you today is, where are you on your relationship with God this new year? 00:06:59.319 --> 00:07:02.139 Maybe you've never had a relationship with God. 00:07:02.139 --> 00:07:04.819 This is actually a bit of a two-way thing. 00:07:05.479 --> 00:07:11.099 So it might actually be that this new year might be the first time you ever try it. 00:07:11.879 --> 00:07:12.439 Who knows? 00:07:12.519 --> 00:07:13.479 It could change your life. 00:07:13.699 --> 00:07:15.939 I know it's changed mine and so many other people's. 00:07:15.939 --> 00:07:22.779 But I would invite you, if you haven't had before a relationship with God, to just try it. 00:07:24.860 --> 00:07:29.040 Maybe you have had a relationship with God for a while. 00:07:29.040 --> 00:07:37.360 But recently, due to something like business or a really tragic event, you've lost communication with him. 00:07:38.439 --> 00:07:46.720 I would just like you to remember that God is there all the time and he's willing to bring comfort to you if you look to him. 00:07:48.640 --> 00:07:51.180 Or maybe you've been a Christian for a long time. 00:07:52.560 --> 00:07:56.060 Maybe your resolution should be just to be a little bit braver. 00:07:56.060 --> 00:08:01.819 Because you have no idea the impact that you can make on someone's life. 00:08:03.139 --> 00:08:06.259 So for those of you that don't know, I'm the youth worker here. 00:08:07.240 --> 00:08:15.560 And back in September, we started doing, well, started continuing doing the Christian Union in Cleveland School. 00:08:16.459 --> 00:08:23.160 And what this is, is basically young people come along and we talk a bit about God. 00:08:23.160 --> 00:08:25.759 We give them some donuts and they're all happy. 00:08:26.360 --> 00:08:34.659 In September, this girl turns up and she's with a group of friends and she strides into the room and she says, 00:08:35.159 --> 00:08:39.820 Look, I'm an atheist. I don't want to talk about God. 00:08:40.600 --> 00:08:42.480 I'm not here for that. I'm just here for the donuts. 00:08:44.159 --> 00:08:46.080 We said, OK, that's fine. That's fine. 00:08:46.139 --> 00:08:50.860 Just come along and just sit and talk. 00:08:50.860 --> 00:08:54.120 So she was just there chatting with a few friends. 00:08:54.500 --> 00:09:02.320 And after, I'd say, two, three, four weeks, she began to realise that, you know, Christians weren't so bad after all. 00:09:02.320 --> 00:09:06.280 And she became a bit more open and starts to talk. 00:09:06.279 --> 00:09:10.579 So we asked this young year seven girl. 00:09:12.579 --> 00:09:14.799 We asked her, why? So why are you an atheist? 00:09:14.799 --> 00:09:19.339 And she said, well, it's because my mum and dad are. 00:09:20.500 --> 00:09:23.039 And she was very clear, like, they are right. 00:09:23.299 --> 00:09:24.279 My mum and dad are atheists. 00:09:24.359 --> 00:09:25.819 There is definitely no God. 00:09:25.820 --> 00:09:31.520 And then it was really, really interesting because we saw her as she was, like, going through all this in her mind. 00:09:31.800 --> 00:09:35.379 She got to a point where she sort of stopped. 00:09:37.800 --> 00:09:49.500 And then she carried on and said, well, actually, my grandparents, I really love them, but they're Christians. 00:09:49.500 --> 00:09:54.039 And so maybe, maybe there is a God. 00:09:55.080 --> 00:09:56.960 Maybe, maybe there is. 00:09:57.059 --> 00:10:00.940 Anyway, so since then, she has become much more open to talking about God. 00:10:01.960 --> 00:10:11.419 And I just want to say, like, you have no idea the impact that you can have on the people around you. 00:10:11.419 --> 00:10:17.759 Like, that young girl, she saw something in her grandparents that resembled God, that resembled Christ. 00:10:18.279 --> 00:10:25.120 And that whatever she saw was willing to help her change her views, to change her life. 00:10:25.639 --> 00:10:36.399 So maybe, I mean, it might have been one of someone's grandchildren in here, but you have no idea the impact that you can make on young people. 00:10:36.399 --> 00:10:41.179 So, yes, that's one New Year's resolution as well we could do. 00:10:41.419 --> 00:10:47.799 It's just to be a bit braver and to actually talk about this sort of stuff to young people or our family members or even the postmen. 00:10:48.819 --> 00:10:52.759 Because you have no idea the impact you can make on other people.