December 19, 2010
Romans 1: 1-7, Matthew 1: 18-25
In Matthew 1: 24, Joseph demonstrates his obedience to God even when faced with a wife-to-be who is "with child" that is not his. And in Romans 1: 5, Paul calls us to show our devotion to God through an obedience of faith – that same kind of faith in God Joseph had. Joseph was willing to risk everything as he responded faithfully to God's call. For it is in risking "what has been... for what may be," that faith is formed and enriched... transforming the ordinary into the extraordinary and allowing miracles to happen. Unfortunately, many of us aren’t quite there in our faith, and so are reluctant to risk what we have and who we are in submitting to the will of God... even though God's faithfulness is certain. Trust is hard at times... even in God, isn't it?
However Joseph, following a dream, was willing to risk everything for the miracle of Christmas to happen. So, today’s lesson about Joseph… is also about us. May I suggest that we are all called to let go, to have faith in a higher power, and to say YES to what God will do in us… and in His church. Regardless of what it may be, God is counting on it. Just as God was counting on Joseph to say YES to being the earthly father of Jesus, God is counting on our YES.
In Matthew, Joseph's "Yes" to God is crucial in establishing "the genealogy of Jesus (the Messiah), the son of David, and the son of Abraham." Without Joseph’s "Yes," Jesus does not have Joseph for a father... and a line of descent as the "son of David." Without our YES, our obedience of faith... whatever thing God is counting on doing in us and through us... whatever miracle... does not happen?
Obedience of faith is what we do when we follow Jesus’ way, close to God. The church and our connection to one another as the body of Christ helps to strengthen our bond with God. It’s this journey together that increases and grows one’s faith. That is why during the baptismal covenant, we promise to "surround the person with a community of love and forgiveness that they may grow in their trust of God." It is why a child’s parents promise to "nurture their child in Christ's holy church that by their teaching and example, the child may be guided to accept God's grace for them self, to profess their faith openly, and to lead a Christian life." Obedience of faith is not grown in isolation, but in communion with others who know God.
Matthew suggests that the birth of the messiah hinges on what Joseph chooses to do. It depends on Joseph's trust in God's involvement in everything that is going on. Joseph’s obedience of faith is an example of trust in God for all of us to follow. In those times of uncertainty, when life can be turned upside down or we wonder how we are going to deal with everything that is going on – to simply trust God IS enough.
Without Joseph’s trust, what happens? Does he send Mary away? Is the child, destined to save humankind, born? It is all up to him. By Jewish law the child is his if he says so... whether he's the biological father or not. By publicly naming the child, Joseph would establish that he is legally the child's father. According to Matthew, Joseph's choice is every bit as crucial as Mary's choice to give the child life. The Holy Spirit makes the child the Son of God who "will save his people from their sins." But Joseph's YES is needed to give the child a name: Jesus, son of David, from whose house the Messiah is to come. Joseph must trust God and he does. Joseph is open to the presence of God, he trusts, and he says, "Yes." Joseph shows his devotion to God through obedience that comes from faith. He takes [Mary] as his wife, a son is born; and he names him Jesus." Joseph's "Yes" mattered. So, too, does our willingness to say "Yes" to God's calling.
Some have said that Joseph is the person in the Christmas story most like us. He is presented with circumstances beyond his control, faced with a life far different from what he might have planned for himself. He has every reason to throw in the towel and divorce himself from the situation. But even as God trusts him, Joseph trusts God's presence in the muddled up mess of his life. He says, "Yes!" to God."
An obedience of faith leads us to where God would have us be. An obedience of faith leads to our doing what God would have us do. Placing our trust in God involves knowing God is right here, working through us. For Joseph, this meant being the father of Jesus. For us... well... it means being whoever God would have us be (as opposed to what we would be). Joseph, more like us than we can imagine, is our example. Joseph is able to trust God completely. For him, the soon to be born Jesus becomes a priority over everything else in his life. He does not fear the future at all. Someone once said faith is like "the bird that feels the light and sings to greet the dawn while it is still dark." That was Joseph’s faith… and is to be ours as well.
May the same obedience of faith be ours this Christmas season and for years to come.
Saturday, December 18, 2010
Saturday, December 4, 2010
“Even Now”
December 5, 2010
Isaiah 11:1-10; Matthew 3:1-12
It’s really hard, sometimes, for me to relate to Matthew’s wild-eyed prophet-of-doom, John the Baptist, and the whole wilderness and wild honey thing? Maybe it’s his unsettling message of "the wrath to come" and his image of a judgmental God, waiting to send us into an "unquenchable fire," that is so hard for me to accept? Yet on the other hand, Isaiah’s image of God’s reign of peace when the lion and the lamb will lie down together provides a much more comforting scenario. Maybe it’s because the peace it depicts is something we all long for in a life full of conflict?
Isaiah promises a time when the world will be ruled by justice and righteousness, and the poor and the meek of the earth will get their due; in fact, all of life will be transformed so that peace will reign and there will be no more pain and destruction throughout all of God's creation. Not only will the lion and the lamb lie down together, a baby, the most helpless among us, will play happily over a den of snakes. Imagine that!
For Isaiah's people, this hope of peace rests in a ruler who will be a complete surprise, "a shoot from the stump of Jesse." What a great image that is! How can a stump of a chopped-down tree produce the life and hope, the promise and power Isaiah speaks of? He said, “God chops down the tallest trees of Lebanon (representing the rulers of all the mighty kingdoms surrounding Judah and Jerusalem)
Isaiah addresses the people’s situation, offering a poetic promise of a shoot – new life – yet to come forth from the lifeless stump of their “chopped-down” nation, Israel. Jesse was the father of David, who represented the glory days of Israel, its time of greatest power and prestige, the time people always talked about, and how they loved to think of themselves. It was their hope to live the glory days again. But it had been ‘cut down,’ taken away, when the Assyrians destroyed the northern kingdom of Israel and marched to the gates of Jerusalem. The people of Judah knew the bitterness of conquest and exile, violence, and the constant threat of war. Life seemed unfair, and they wondered if God had left them.
Although Isaiah considered Assyria an instrument of God to punish the unfaithful, he still offered the people words of hope. “No,” he said, “God has not forgotten you.” As bad as it may get, things will change: one will come, like David, who will be anointed with the Lord’s powerful Spirit of understanding and wisdom that will allow him to judge and rule in a way that will transform all of creation. Isaiah promises, “One is coming who will bring justice, deliverance and peace. So, hold on to your dream of a better day.”
Years later another prophet came along talking about the nearness of God's kingdom and the One who is coming. On first hearing, his message seems very much one of fear and judgment, where no one is safe from "the wrath that is to come." It doesn’t matter who you are, only what you do (and soon) that counts. “Even now,” he says, “the ax is lying at the root of the tree; (and) every tree …that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. It’s all a bit scary, isn’t it?
Yet think about what John says at the beginning of today’s text. Referring to himself, he quotes a different part of Isaiah: “…O comfort my people,' says your God. 'Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, …she has served her term… 'In the wilderness, a voice cries out: prepare the way of the Lord, make straight in the desert a highway for our God.'"
John the Baptist is the one Isaiah said would bring the good news, the one who tells us to prepare the way of the Lord. Someone is coming, John says, so do something, now – repent. Get rid of anything blocking the way of the One who is coming – greed, selfishness, hostility, resentment, doubt and despair. Reshape your lives so that the poor and the marginalized are brought back into the life of the community. Strive for peace and justice. Because, what you do matters!
This is the season of Advent, a season for waiting – not just waiting to celebrate the birth of the baby Jesus, but for the coming of the one who fulfills Isaiah’s beautiful dream of peace as well. And what we do as we wait matters. We can either participate in God's dream of peace for us… or not. We can turn toward God and away from everything that keeps us from the peace and wisdom and righteousness of God… or not. We can radically re-orient our lives, clear a path, and prepare the way of the Lord… or not. We can transform our lives and the life of this community and the world, as we reach out beyond these walls, speaking and living words of peace… or not.
Each one of us stands in need of repentance every day, not to make God love us, but so we can come closer to experiencing the enormity of God's love for us and God's amazing grace at work in our lives. What we do matters, yet God’s grace trumps all.
The good news for us today is the same as it was for Isaiah’s people. Regardless of what your life has become, God has not forgotten or abandoned you. After all these years, the dream of peace is for you, as well. Henri Nouwen spoke of this hope when he wrote, “We are not loved by God because we are precious; we are precious because God loves us.” So, underneath the call to repent is a call to return home to the God who loves us and longs for that dream of peace to become our lived reality.
But that can be a scary thing as well, because it means our transformation into what God wants us to be. It means every one who comes through these doors seeking to be healed, reconciled, and welcomed home will be. And it means the ministry of this church will be a blessing in this community, as we proclaim and attempt to live the Good News to those who have no church home, who think they never want to be part of a church again, or who have never attended a church. Imagine, God working through us!
You see, we are messengers, too. When we live our lives – in peace, in justice, in caring for one another and for God's good creation – we are living the good news. It is important people still hear God’s message. Prepare the way. Even now.
Isaiah 11:1-10; Matthew 3:1-12
It’s really hard, sometimes, for me to relate to Matthew’s wild-eyed prophet-of-doom, John the Baptist, and the whole wilderness and wild honey thing? Maybe it’s his unsettling message of "the wrath to come" and his image of a judgmental God, waiting to send us into an "unquenchable fire," that is so hard for me to accept? Yet on the other hand, Isaiah’s image of God’s reign of peace when the lion and the lamb will lie down together provides a much more comforting scenario. Maybe it’s because the peace it depicts is something we all long for in a life full of conflict?
Isaiah promises a time when the world will be ruled by justice and righteousness, and the poor and the meek of the earth will get their due; in fact, all of life will be transformed so that peace will reign and there will be no more pain and destruction throughout all of God's creation. Not only will the lion and the lamb lie down together, a baby, the most helpless among us, will play happily over a den of snakes. Imagine that!
For Isaiah's people, this hope of peace rests in a ruler who will be a complete surprise, "a shoot from the stump of Jesse." What a great image that is! How can a stump of a chopped-down tree produce the life and hope, the promise and power Isaiah speaks of? He said, “God chops down the tallest trees of Lebanon (representing the rulers of all the mighty kingdoms surrounding Judah and Jerusalem)
Isaiah addresses the people’s situation, offering a poetic promise of a shoot – new life – yet to come forth from the lifeless stump of their “chopped-down” nation, Israel. Jesse was the father of David, who represented the glory days of Israel, its time of greatest power and prestige, the time people always talked about, and how they loved to think of themselves. It was their hope to live the glory days again. But it had been ‘cut down,’ taken away, when the Assyrians destroyed the northern kingdom of Israel and marched to the gates of Jerusalem. The people of Judah knew the bitterness of conquest and exile, violence, and the constant threat of war. Life seemed unfair, and they wondered if God had left them.
Although Isaiah considered Assyria an instrument of God to punish the unfaithful, he still offered the people words of hope. “No,” he said, “God has not forgotten you.” As bad as it may get, things will change: one will come, like David, who will be anointed with the Lord’s powerful Spirit of understanding and wisdom that will allow him to judge and rule in a way that will transform all of creation. Isaiah promises, “One is coming who will bring justice, deliverance and peace. So, hold on to your dream of a better day.”
Years later another prophet came along talking about the nearness of God's kingdom and the One who is coming. On first hearing, his message seems very much one of fear and judgment, where no one is safe from "the wrath that is to come." It doesn’t matter who you are, only what you do (and soon) that counts. “Even now,” he says, “the ax is lying at the root of the tree; (and) every tree …that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. It’s all a bit scary, isn’t it?
Yet think about what John says at the beginning of today’s text. Referring to himself, he quotes a different part of Isaiah: “…O comfort my people,' says your God. 'Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, …she has served her term… 'In the wilderness, a voice cries out: prepare the way of the Lord, make straight in the desert a highway for our God.'"
John the Baptist is the one Isaiah said would bring the good news, the one who tells us to prepare the way of the Lord. Someone is coming, John says, so do something, now – repent. Get rid of anything blocking the way of the One who is coming – greed, selfishness, hostility, resentment, doubt and despair. Reshape your lives so that the poor and the marginalized are brought back into the life of the community. Strive for peace and justice. Because, what you do matters!
This is the season of Advent, a season for waiting – not just waiting to celebrate the birth of the baby Jesus, but for the coming of the one who fulfills Isaiah’s beautiful dream of peace as well. And what we do as we wait matters. We can either participate in God's dream of peace for us… or not. We can turn toward God and away from everything that keeps us from the peace and wisdom and righteousness of God… or not. We can radically re-orient our lives, clear a path, and prepare the way of the Lord… or not. We can transform our lives and the life of this community and the world, as we reach out beyond these walls, speaking and living words of peace… or not.
Each one of us stands in need of repentance every day, not to make God love us, but so we can come closer to experiencing the enormity of God's love for us and God's amazing grace at work in our lives. What we do matters, yet God’s grace trumps all.
The good news for us today is the same as it was for Isaiah’s people. Regardless of what your life has become, God has not forgotten or abandoned you. After all these years, the dream of peace is for you, as well. Henri Nouwen spoke of this hope when he wrote, “We are not loved by God because we are precious; we are precious because God loves us.” So, underneath the call to repent is a call to return home to the God who loves us and longs for that dream of peace to become our lived reality.
But that can be a scary thing as well, because it means our transformation into what God wants us to be. It means every one who comes through these doors seeking to be healed, reconciled, and welcomed home will be. And it means the ministry of this church will be a blessing in this community, as we proclaim and attempt to live the Good News to those who have no church home, who think they never want to be part of a church again, or who have never attended a church. Imagine, God working through us!
You see, we are messengers, too. When we live our lives – in peace, in justice, in caring for one another and for God's good creation – we are living the good news. It is important people still hear God’s message. Prepare the way. Even now.
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