Christmas

So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. - Luke 2:16-18

When I read this most familiar passage, one thing that strikes me time and time again - the excitement.  The shepherds, after an encounter with angels, head off to find what it is the angels were proclaiming. And they found, “Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger.”

There were things they did not do.  They did not stand there and ponder.  They did not stand there and discuss if there was some scientific explanation to what has just happened.  They did not go to the prominent clergy of the day and ask their opinion about these events.  They did not go to civil authorities to make sure no laws were being broken.

The Scripture says they simply “spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child…” They were excited!

On this Christmas morning, shouldn’t that be our response also?  While we open presents and admire our trees and share our meals…. Will our excitement this day be centered in the right thing?  Not that there is anything wrong with enjoying our day, and hopefully we all will, but the real excitement comes from knowing that we are celebrating the birth of the Savior; that is the story we have to tell today, tomorrow and every day of our lives.

And may we all be “amazed at what the shepherds said to them.”

Christ is born!

Merry Christmas!

Burst

“And you, my child, will be called a prophet of the Most High; for you will go on before the Lord to prepare the way for him, to give his people the knowledge of salvation through the forgiveness of their sins, because of the tender mercy of our God, by which the rising sun will come to us from heaven.” Luke 1:76-78

            This passage is from Zechariah’s song found in the first chapter of Luke.  If you know the story, an angel had come to Zechariah to announce that he, in his (and his wife’s) old age, was to become a father.  After Zechariah questioned what he was hearing, he was rendered speechless; only after he confirms (via a writing tablet) that his son is to be named John as per the angel’s instructions, does he regain his voice.  And he does so in this burst of a song.

            In his song, Zechariah describes the role of his son…it is to, first: “go on before the Lord to prepare the way for him,” secondly, “to give his people the knowledge of salvation through the forgiveness of their sins,” and then finally remind people “of the tender mercy of our God, by which the rising sun will come to us from heaven.”

            What a burst of poetry from Zechariah.  This turns out to be the job description of his son, whom we have come to know as John the Baptist.  But as we head into Christmas 2012, I can’t help but think this is the job description of every believer and truster in Christ.  And in the troubled times we find ourselves in, this job description is both so needed, and so filled with good news.

            Are not you and I called to “go on before the Lord to prepare the way for him?”  As we get ready to celebrate the first advent of Christ, is there yet another Advent of his coming that we are to prepare the way for?  If you’re like me, as I trip through the evening news, I am ready.  The events in Connecticut just make me even more so ready.  It is no coincidence that among the very last words of the Bible you find, “Come, Lord Jesus.” (visit Revelation 22:20,21).  The apostle John was so ready then; and we should be so ready now.

            Are we not also are to be ready “to give his people the knowledge of salvation through the forgiveness of their sins?”  Almost every news item I see tends to deal with issues caused by sin. There is no way around that fact. I write this not as someone who is perfect, put as someone who can describe himself as “chief of sinners,” just like the apostle Paul described himself (visit 1 Timothy 1:15).  This is just a fact about me and a reflection on the true condition of humanity.  The good news is that there is a wideness in God’s mercy, as the classic old hymn proclaims.  And it is the truth.  Believers and trusters in Christ are not perfect, but they do not stand condemned as we would deserve.  We are, undeservedly and magnificently, forgiven. 

            Why do we have this? Because of the of “tender mercy of our God, by which the rising sun will come to us from heaven.”  What a wonderful phrase.  Too often I tend to fall into the habit of thinking of God as a harsh judge.  Here we are reminded that God is filled with “tender mercy.”  The reality is I am far harsher on myself than God has ever been, and ever will be. May the tender mercy of our Lord be the reality in our lives.

            That, my friends, is worth bursting out in song about.  Will you sing with me?

Numb

The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it? “I the Lord search the heart and examine the mind, to reward a man according to his conduct, according to what his deeds deserve.” Jeremiah 17:9-10

Some of the pain is wearing off.  The pain of what happened in Newtown, Connecticut is turning over to a bit of resigned detachment.  At least for me.  I can’t imagine the pain that families in Newtown are experiencing; so because I can’t imagine it, I have become, not unconcerned, but resigned to the situation I guess. 

                                                                    

For all my friends that are so passionate, well, good for you.  If you feel tightened gun laws will make things better, go for it. There was a time when I would have quickly joined you in the effort. On the other hand, if you feel that relaxed gun laws are the ticket, that the thought that someone might be packing is going to be a deterrent, well, go for it.  I understand that it works well in the right situation.  There are statistics that back up that point of view.

I’m not a gun owner, but I have no passion for any legal or political debate or action following the atrocity in Connecticut.  Because all of the debate misses the point.  Humanity, at its core is damaged.  Yep, we are damaged goods.  Always have been and nothing has changed.  Don’t believe me?  I ran into an article yesterday afternoon that talked about the worst U.S. school massacre ever.  Nope, didn’t happen Friday; didn’t happen in last 10 or 20 or 50 years.  It took place way back in 1927 when a man bombed a school killing 45 including 38 children. I’ll include a link to wiki article below. 

The point is the problem is…people.  We are damaged goods.  Jeremiah knew it way back when…  He writes, “The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?”

Then he adds, “I the Lord search the heart and examine the mind, to reward a man according to his conduct, according to what his deeds deserve.”  That my friends, is a frightening thought.  If the Lord only knew what was on my heart sometimes…  Well, the problem, he does know what is on my heart.  All the time.  That is why Jesus could say things like, “You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘Do not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.’ But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment.” (visit Matthew 5:21-22)

Jesus knew what we are like…deep in our hearts.

But ultimately Jesus was about grace.  And that is why we so need Jesus today.  As I told my congregation on Sunday, such acts of violence cannot be rationally explained or theologically dismissed.  But the need for the grace is stronger than ever and Jesus is the answer.  If ever there has been a time for Jesus, it is now.

Grace for me for being numb. Grace for all of us for having ‘deceitful hearts.’  Grace for thinking that the answer lies in changing politics and laws. Grace, because Jesus is the way through all this.  He is the one who can, not just forgive hearts, but change them also.  The answer for our hearts is Jesus.  Always has been. Nothing has changed. 

Thank God.

Link to the Bath School Disaster 

Plan

“But when the set time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those under the law, that we might receive adoption to sonship.” – Galatians 4:4,5

            There is a plan. 

We may not always be on the in on the details and how it will work out, but there is a plan.  So many of us struggle under life conditions; drifting from one thing to another. Never really planning a step but just moving forward seemingly randomly.

            Nothing is random.  There is a plan.

            I have a friend who is really struggling right now. He is struggling with being forced into retirement through circumstance; he is struggling, and understandably so, with what God has in mind for him in the future.  I can’t help but think that God has great ministry yet for him to do.  But that tends to be my orientation; I always think that the best is yet to come.

            There is a plan.

            But in the end, it is God’s plan.

            We are creeping into the Christmas season (although liturgically it is Advent).  We celebrate the birth of Christ; we re-tell very familiar stories. Sometimes things get a little…cute, shall we say?  

            We tend (as I have mentioned before) to trivialize what Christmas is about.  Thousands of Christmas lights in synchronized dancing to music are still ultimately trivia.  Santa’s appearance at every store, mall and school, just reinforces the trivia. 

            But in the passage above, Paul does not trivialize. He writes, “But when the set time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those under the law, that we might receive adoption to sonship….”    

            There is a plan.  There is nothing random here.  It is not trivial

            Christmas is about what was to come.  His Son.  Born.  To redeem.   That we might receive.

            What a plan. For you.  For me. 

            And, for my friend.

Tight

“I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.” John 15:5,8   

I can remember, oh a hundred years ago when I was an electrician out on the left coast, working with someone, who when asked, “How are you doing today,” would respond, “Great! Just hanging with the Lord.”  Seems this fellow was close with Jesus.  I remember admiring that, though as I also recall, the fella himself was kind of annoying.  I guess being tight with Jesus doesn’t make someone perfect.

The Scripture above is all about being tight with Jesus. Jesus uses an illustration of him being a vine, and his followers being the branches. Stuck on Jesus.  Tight. Which makes the guy’s statement, “Just hanging with the Lord” deeply meaningful.  For if we are the branches attached to that vine….then we are to be hanging with the Lord…literally.  Tight.

How is your hanging going anyway?  Are you (or am I) being tight? With the vine? The reading above says that if you are tight, you will bear “much fruit.”  The fruit we bear will be in direct relation to how tight we are.  And if you are not bearing much fruit…then maybe it’s time to check how close you are to that vine.  Is the vine within arm’s reach, or have you let the vine go so you need binoculars to find it again?

“I am the vine; you are the branches.”  Friends, bear fruit.  Much of it. 

Be tight.

Trivia

“In the past God spoke to our ancestors through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom also he made the universe.” - Hebrews 1:1-2

It’s easy to get Jesus wrong.  Charles Wesley once wrote:

Gentle Jesus, meek and mild,
Look upon a little child;
Pity my simplicity,
Suffer me to come to Thee.

It’s easy think of Jesus that way.  But in a sense, Jesus gets trivialized by such words.  Yes, we get the idealized version of Jesus.  Yes, at times Jesus was gentle and meek and mild.  At times.  At other times however, he overthrew vendor’s tables (visit Matthew 21:12).  You know, he’d get arrested if he did that in the Heinz Field parking lot.

At other times his words were cutting.  At one point, he called certain people (religious professionals – like me) a “brood of vipers.” (visit Matthew 23:33)  I’ve never been near a brood of vipers, but I’m guessing it’s not a pleasant experience.

The passage from Hebrews is a good Advent passage.  I’ll be preaching from it later in the month.  But it is a reminder that even during Christmas when we celebrate the birth of the Christ child, don’t trivialize who this child is.  He is the way God has spoken to us “in these last days.”  This child, meek and mild, is the “heir of all things.” Let me translate that phrase.  Everything is given to him.  Everything.

Finally the author of Hebrews reminds us that through this child “he made the universe.”  Yes, the manger scenes are cute.  He seems meek and mild.  But he is the creator of all things.  Resting in the straw.

So who are you going to be celebrating this Christmas?  The greatest single person ever.  God incarnate.  Jesus. 

Don’t trivialize him.