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January 1, 2017 at Advent Lutheran Church in Cedarburg, Wisconsin. Also, New Year’s Day! Name of Jesus. Luke 2:15-20. “But Mary treasured all these words and pondered them in her heart.” The reason Jesus was born a human being.
In my message of Sunday, December 18, 2016 I spoke about how the text of the Bible evolved and changed over time as more information became available and more stories were shared.
I remember from seminary days the somewhat startling announcement by our faculty that in the year 1975 when I began my studies for ministry we knew more about Jesus and the Gospel than any other time in history. Except of course, now, in 2017 because we have learned even more!
The reason that conversation came up was because someone in one of our classes said;
“I wish I could go back to the time of Jesus so I could see what it was really like.”
“No, you wouldn’t,” said the professor, “Because, as we know from scripture, the disciples and virtually everyone else that encountered Jesus either didn’t understand him or rejected him outright!”
After centuries of archeological findings, academic, scholarly research and prayer, we do indeed know more about that time in history than ever before. That is one of the most exciting things about research.
For instance, even our text for today was written long after the event it describes, scholar’s think about 100 years after the death of Christ. The defining moment of course, which St. Paul repeatedly reminds us of, is the presence of the risen and living Christ.
And once that encounter had taken place the Gospel narrative was written down after centuries of oral tradition. And remember that all of history is really interpretation, and often enough we think we can know of a certainty how and why something happened.
It’s not that easy, and it’s not that simple. It is believed that perception of a truth or reality is 100% accurate for the holder of that perception. I believe that, and it indicates why people can have such disparate interpretations of the same event, teaching or belief.
An even bigger problem when trying to understand “What really happened,” when Jesus lived and preached is the traditional churches insistence on presenting Jesus only or mainly as a deity to be worshiped, as if his humanness was irrelevant. In my opinion it has had the effect of watering down if not making his radical call to justice anemic or watered down to the point of irrelevancy.
If all you need to do is worship and glorify this perfect God-man then it is easy to live any kind of life you want to live with no responsibility for the very people Jesus constantly demanded we not only notice, but love and serve.
Ionically, one of the most helpful books that I have read regarding the historical Jesus was written by a Historian who also happens to be a Muslim. Reza Aslan. He wrote this book titled “Zealot,” which carefully examines the life and teachings of Jesus from a historical rather than religious perspective.
And there is a bonus. In the Author’s note that begins the book he writes:
“When I was fifteen years old, I found Jesus.”
He goes on to explain that in those early years he became an evangelical born-again Christian, so even though he later returned to his Muslim roots, he is in intimately familiar with the Jesus religious phenomenon, and as a historian with a historical perspective from the Jewish setting that the story of Jesus takes place.
The title of his book captures perfectly I think the mission of Jesus. Zealot. When read in context the Gospel reveals exactly how zealous and how dangerous to the religious status quo Jesus was. Even though Jesus paid with his life, his tactics were nothing short brilliant.
He spoke to the heart, spirit and conscience of the people. He turned everything upside-down. He pointed out their religious hypocrisy, their greed and selfishness. He knew that to repay violence with violence creates a never-ending cycle of death and destruction so he said turn the other cheek.
And yet he also says in the Gospel of Matthew 10:34:
“Do not think I have come to bring peace on earth. I have not come to bring peace, but the sword.”
The sword he is talking about is the sword of truth, reminiscent of ‘The pen ismightier than the sword'coined by Edward Bulwer-Lyttonfor his play Richelieu; Or the Conspiracy, 1839:
“True, This! -
Beneath the rule of men entirely great,
The pen is mightier than the sword. Behold
The arch-enchanter’s wand! - itself a nothing! -
But taking sorcery from the master-hand
To paralyses the Caesars, and to strike
The loud earth breathless! - Take away the sword -
States can be saved without it!”
A new kind of zealotry this, our world can be saved without the sword of violence and death! Love your enemies? Are you mad? Pray for those who persecute you? Incredible. If someone takes your coat give them your shirt also! That’s crazy!
These sayings of Jesus are not to be followed literally, but something much bigger than that. They ridiculous demands point to a life style of compassion, forgiveness and grace – rather than hatred, retribution and death!
This too was written back into the text after the events had transpired and we knew how the story would end.
I’ve always enjoyed threading and thinking about Mary’s reaction to everything that was going on with and around her.
“But Mary treasured all these words and pondered them in her heart.”
Mary didn’t know for sure what all of this meant or the text would tell us, instead she pondered, let the words sink in, trusted that God’s promise was the one thing that she could depend upon.
My very favorite Latvian saying or idiom is translated:
“It eventually it will be good, and if not it will also be good.”
Or as a more recent, shorter English language version says it:
“It’s all good!”
We know that strictly speaking neither of these sayings are literally true but capture the sentiment that we should be optimistic and trust that eventually things really will turn out the way they should.
I was fascinated when recently the Physicist Stephen Hawking, who has lived with the debilitating disease ALS said;
“Everything in the universe happens exactly as it should!”
But in a lecture, he gave on the origin of the Universe and the fluctuations of it he countered Albert Einstein and said;
“It appears God really does play dice.” (with the universe!)
In the end, as always, and both frighteningly and beautifully so, it comes down finally, to faith!
AMEN.
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