More than a warm feeling
Commentary
Object:
The Christmas story is one of the best-loved stories in the Bible. It is so familiar that we might want to just enjoy its beauty and bask in its warmth. But it deserves more serious attention. This is the beginning of the story of the Christ event, a decisive act of God that has made a great difference in human history and promises to make even greater differences for the future. It is also an event promising newness of life to all who will receive it. The lectionary readings invite us to explore the depth of the meaning of the birth of the Savior.
Isaiah 9:2-7
The hope of humankind and the promise of the prophet come together in this passage in a way that has caused people to cling to it through the ages.
This passage comes from the collected works of Isaiah of Jerusalem, the first of the three great prophets who contributed to our book of Isaiah. It can be treated as a self-contained passage. Isaiah had his ministry among the powerful people of Israel between the years 742 and 688 BCE. This was during the time when the Jewish nation was divided into two nations. The "Northern Kingdom" was still intact. It had recently formed an alliance with Syria and attacked their kinsmen in the "Southern Kingdom" of Judah. That was a bad memory. But the greatest threat at the time was from the rise of the Assyrian empire, an aggressor that was known for its cruelty. It would soon destroy the Northern Kingdom and threaten Judah. The people were weary of war and oppression. They yearned for peace, but they had only begun to experience the war and the oppression that was in store for them.
In this context, the prophet promised the birth of a new king who would eventually bring peace. Some have seen in this passage such a clear picture of a promise fulfilled in the birth of Jesus that they believed the prophet must have been foretelling the event. Scholars tell us that it is more likely that it was originally a psalm composed to celebrate either the birth or the enthronement of a new king on whom the people hung their hopes. The passage was eventually incorporated into the book of Isaiah and became an expression of Israel's hope for the coming of a messiah, one anointed to be king. That was a hope that would sustain the people of Israel through the grim centuries of their defeat and oppression. Christians believe that hope has been fulfilled in the birth of Jesus.
In reflecting on that expectation, Christians may well ask: "Just how is it that Jesus has brought light out of darkness, and an end of oppression, and a time of disarmament and peace?" We may better ask: "How is it that Jesus has brought the possibility of those things -- and what must we do to see that possibility realized?"
Titus 2:11-14
A Christian's life should be shaped by the memory of the coming of the grace of God that brought salvation for all, and by the expectation of the coming of "the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ." The brief lesson we read today establishes the theological foundation for all that is said in the letter.
The pastoral epistles were written rather late in the time when the scriptures were emerging. It was a time when the people realized that it would be necessary to establish some ecclesiastical structures and some understanding of the lifestyle appropriate for Christians. Most of this letter is taken up with such practical matters. Paul, or some later church leader writing in his name, was giving instructions to Titus, the pastor of the church in Crete -- and all other pastors too.
But this is not just a matter of teaching good manners. It is a matter of letting life be shaped by the memory of the Christ event. In that memory, Jesus Christ is called "God" and "Savior." This reflects the emergence of the church's realization of just who Jesus really was. The appearing of the grace of God is said to be for "all" -- not just for some, but for the whole human race. That memory itself should bring training in right living.
It is not only a memory of a past event that shapes a Christian's life. Titus 3:4-7 makes it clear that the Christian's life is shaped by an ongoing interaction with the living God through the Holy Spirit, "so that having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life" (Titus 3:7).
Christians are to be a people with a purpose: "Jesus gave himself for us that he might redeem for himself a people of his own who are zealous for good deeds" (2:14). This suggests, but does not enlarge upon, the belief that the church is to be a new chosen people of God through whom God can work to complete the work of God in the world.
The words "while we wait for the blessed hope and manifestation of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ" (2:13) suggest that an expectation of the second coming of Christ was very much a part of the faith of the early church. The expectation was not as immediate as it had been in the earlier epistles. In those earlier epistles, the Christians thought the second coming would happen so soon that it would not be worth the trouble to appoint bishops and to get organized. However, expectancy was still a part of their faith -- and it should be a part of ours. God is still alive and at work in our lives and in our world. For that reason, there should be expectancy. Today many Christian thinkers are trying to recover that expectancy without giving way to the excesses of premillennialism. Two of those are: Jurgen Moltmann (In the End -- The Beginning [Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2005] and others) and Thomas G. Long (Preaching from Memory to Hope [Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press, 2009]).
Luke 2:1-20
What can we say about the Christmas story that has not already been said? We are tempted just to enjoy its warmth and beauty, but the Christmas story tells us some very important things. It is the beginning of the story of the Christ event. Let's look at the story again and see what it is telling us about that event.
First, Luke tells us that it is a story about something that happened in real human history. Luke goes to some trouble to locate this event in relationship to things that were going on in secular history at the time. (Scholars tell us that he sometimes didn't get all of his information right but that only shows how important he thought it was to show the relationship.) It is clear that this is not just a lovely story that someone made up. The Christ event was an event in the continuum of the same history that includes the recent war in Afghanistan, and the same history that includes your life. It was a decisive event that made a difference in the course of that history. That is important.
Further, Luke shows us that this event was something that happened in the context of the real humanness of life. It happened in the midst of such things as people being in love and having babies, and town gossip, and people paying taxes, and shepherds going to work at night, and all kinds of things like that. It is a story that happened in real human life, a life like yours. That is important because it is about human life.
The angel's message adds some important information. That message was not just about the birth of a baby. It was about the whole event that would follow from it -- the life of Jesus, the things that happened to and through him, the movement that followed from the event, and the differences that event made. The angels tell us that the story is about something God did. The very God who created all things and who is still creating and sustaining this creation and coming to meet us in every day of our lives is the one who did something important in this event. Christians believe that it is indeed the pivotal act of God. Furthermore, it is a self-revealing act of God. The things that God did in that life and that event are the same things that the living God is still doing.
The mention of the "city of David" relates this event to the ongoing work of salvation and of self-revelation that God has done through the history of the people of Israel. The first chapter of Luke's gospel is occupied almost entirely with establishing that connection. Further, Luke helps us to know that Jesus came in fulfillment of Israel's hope for a messiah.
The angel makes it clear that this story is about the coming of a savior. It is important for us to learn that the biblical understanding of salvation shows it to be something much bigger that the popular idea of salvation makes it to be. It is not only going to heaven after you die. It is about God working in life and history to save persons and nations from all of the things that hurt and oppress and destroy and to save them to the fulfillment of God's high purpose. God is working to open to us a promising new possibility here and now as well as hereafter.
Finally, the angels tell us that the good news they brought is for all people. It is interesting that the word "all" is used in both of our New Testament lessons. Titus says: "For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all" (Titus 2:11). This makes it clear that God's saving work is for all people, for the whole creation. And Isaiah, who gives us our lesson from the Hebrew scriptures, is somewhat unique among the writers of the Hebrew scriptures in that he believes God's saving work is for all nations, not just for the people of Israel (see Isaiah 2:1-4). The salvation that God offers through Jesus is for all people. The Christmas story tells us that we need to know about the Christ event and its meaning.
Application
The message on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day should be something very personal for the hearers. A very good message might be built around the points outlined in the exposition above. The pastor could introduce the sermon by telling the people that it is important to remember that the Christmas story is the beginning of the whole story of Jesus and of all that it can mean. Then say that "we are going to look at the several things the Christmas story tells us about the life of Christ. Then we are going to ask, 'What can that mean to me?' 'What difference can that make in my life?' "
What can it mean to us that the life of Christ is an event that happened in the same real human history that is going on around us right now? What can it mean to us that it happened in a very human setting? What can it mean that it happened as a part of the story of the people of Israel? Many people have never thought about that. It is important for them to know that it was a real world event.
What can it mean for us to know that the Christ event is something that God did? It is important for us to believe that God is real and entered into human history to do something special and decisive, something that can make a difference in our lives. It is important for us to know that what God did in and through Jesus can show us what God is still doing today.
What can it mean for us to know that God acted to send a savior? It is important for the people to know that salvation is not only going to heaven after we die. It is also God working to give the possibility of fullness of life here and now, both for persons and for all humankind. It is not only something that God did. It is something that God is still doing.
What can it mean to us that the good news that the angel brought is for all people? Here it will be wise for the preacher to reverse what might seem to be the logical order. Talk first about what it means that salvation is for all people. Can that make a difference in the way we think about others? Then become very personal and ask: "What can it mean that the salvation God brought through Jesus is for you?" This is where the Christmas message should become very personal and very powerful.
An Alternative Application
A Jewish man once explained that he did not believe that Jesus is the messiah because the messiah is supposed to bring in the reign of God and peace on earth. He said that has not happened yet, so Jesus must not be the messiah. He raised an interesting question for Christians. The prophet Isaiah said that there will come a day when the weapons of war will all be burned for fuel because they will not be needed any more. Yet the place where Isaiah lived when he promised that, and the place where the life and work of Jesus came to its climax, is even now the center of a conflict that could involve the whole world in a destructive war. What are we to make of that?
Christians believe that Christ did indeed come bringing the possibility of peace on earth. He came showing us the love of God and teaching us what it would mean to let love shape our lives. He has indeed put the possibility before us, but God is counting on us to pick up the possibility and translate it into a reality.
Some people -- most people -- seem to believe that the way Jesus taught was unrealistic idealism. The disarmament that Isaiah described is something few people would actually be willing for their nations to try. The way of love that teaches us to be as committed to the well-being of all people as we are to our own seems very foreign.
Yet in the few historical events in which it has been tried, it has proven to be effective. Consider the end of colonialism in India, the end of apartheid in South Africa, and the end of communism in Poland. There are people who believe that it can work. World history was in a very tense time when the United Nations celebrated its fortieth anniversary. The cold war was just beginning to wind down. The heads of state and other dignitaries who gathered were full of anxiety. One person who was invited to speak to the assembly was Mother Teresa of Calcutta, the elderly nun who had just been given a Nobel Prize for her work with the destitute and dying in India. She summarized the message she brought. "Love one another." She really believed that love offers a real possibility.
There is another aspect of the message about the coming of the Savior. The messiah also came to bring the possibility of fullness of life for individual persons. Are you enjoying fullness of life right now? In just the same way that Jesus offered the way to peace on earth, he offered the way to wholeness for us. He described the way in the Sermon on the Mount: trust God to provide and seek first God's kingdom (Matthew 6:25-33). Learn to love as God loves (Matthew 5:43-48). The messiah has indeed put the possibility before us. But we must act on it to make it real. Paul told Titus to teach the people to allow their lives to be shaped by "the grace of God that has appeared bringing salvation to all..." (Titus 2:11).
Many who have dared to try to live according to God's promise have found that it can indeed lead to fullness of life. A certain twelve-step group has adopted an interesting way of ending their meetings. They pray the Lord's Prayer in unison. Then they all repeat in a shout, "Keep a coming back. It works if you work it." It does indeed work if we work it.
Isaiah 9:2-7
The hope of humankind and the promise of the prophet come together in this passage in a way that has caused people to cling to it through the ages.
This passage comes from the collected works of Isaiah of Jerusalem, the first of the three great prophets who contributed to our book of Isaiah. It can be treated as a self-contained passage. Isaiah had his ministry among the powerful people of Israel between the years 742 and 688 BCE. This was during the time when the Jewish nation was divided into two nations. The "Northern Kingdom" was still intact. It had recently formed an alliance with Syria and attacked their kinsmen in the "Southern Kingdom" of Judah. That was a bad memory. But the greatest threat at the time was from the rise of the Assyrian empire, an aggressor that was known for its cruelty. It would soon destroy the Northern Kingdom and threaten Judah. The people were weary of war and oppression. They yearned for peace, but they had only begun to experience the war and the oppression that was in store for them.
In this context, the prophet promised the birth of a new king who would eventually bring peace. Some have seen in this passage such a clear picture of a promise fulfilled in the birth of Jesus that they believed the prophet must have been foretelling the event. Scholars tell us that it is more likely that it was originally a psalm composed to celebrate either the birth or the enthronement of a new king on whom the people hung their hopes. The passage was eventually incorporated into the book of Isaiah and became an expression of Israel's hope for the coming of a messiah, one anointed to be king. That was a hope that would sustain the people of Israel through the grim centuries of their defeat and oppression. Christians believe that hope has been fulfilled in the birth of Jesus.
In reflecting on that expectation, Christians may well ask: "Just how is it that Jesus has brought light out of darkness, and an end of oppression, and a time of disarmament and peace?" We may better ask: "How is it that Jesus has brought the possibility of those things -- and what must we do to see that possibility realized?"
Titus 2:11-14
A Christian's life should be shaped by the memory of the coming of the grace of God that brought salvation for all, and by the expectation of the coming of "the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ." The brief lesson we read today establishes the theological foundation for all that is said in the letter.
The pastoral epistles were written rather late in the time when the scriptures were emerging. It was a time when the people realized that it would be necessary to establish some ecclesiastical structures and some understanding of the lifestyle appropriate for Christians. Most of this letter is taken up with such practical matters. Paul, or some later church leader writing in his name, was giving instructions to Titus, the pastor of the church in Crete -- and all other pastors too.
But this is not just a matter of teaching good manners. It is a matter of letting life be shaped by the memory of the Christ event. In that memory, Jesus Christ is called "God" and "Savior." This reflects the emergence of the church's realization of just who Jesus really was. The appearing of the grace of God is said to be for "all" -- not just for some, but for the whole human race. That memory itself should bring training in right living.
It is not only a memory of a past event that shapes a Christian's life. Titus 3:4-7 makes it clear that the Christian's life is shaped by an ongoing interaction with the living God through the Holy Spirit, "so that having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life" (Titus 3:7).
Christians are to be a people with a purpose: "Jesus gave himself for us that he might redeem for himself a people of his own who are zealous for good deeds" (2:14). This suggests, but does not enlarge upon, the belief that the church is to be a new chosen people of God through whom God can work to complete the work of God in the world.
The words "while we wait for the blessed hope and manifestation of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ" (2:13) suggest that an expectation of the second coming of Christ was very much a part of the faith of the early church. The expectation was not as immediate as it had been in the earlier epistles. In those earlier epistles, the Christians thought the second coming would happen so soon that it would not be worth the trouble to appoint bishops and to get organized. However, expectancy was still a part of their faith -- and it should be a part of ours. God is still alive and at work in our lives and in our world. For that reason, there should be expectancy. Today many Christian thinkers are trying to recover that expectancy without giving way to the excesses of premillennialism. Two of those are: Jurgen Moltmann (In the End -- The Beginning [Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2005] and others) and Thomas G. Long (Preaching from Memory to Hope [Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press, 2009]).
Luke 2:1-20
What can we say about the Christmas story that has not already been said? We are tempted just to enjoy its warmth and beauty, but the Christmas story tells us some very important things. It is the beginning of the story of the Christ event. Let's look at the story again and see what it is telling us about that event.
First, Luke tells us that it is a story about something that happened in real human history. Luke goes to some trouble to locate this event in relationship to things that were going on in secular history at the time. (Scholars tell us that he sometimes didn't get all of his information right but that only shows how important he thought it was to show the relationship.) It is clear that this is not just a lovely story that someone made up. The Christ event was an event in the continuum of the same history that includes the recent war in Afghanistan, and the same history that includes your life. It was a decisive event that made a difference in the course of that history. That is important.
Further, Luke shows us that this event was something that happened in the context of the real humanness of life. It happened in the midst of such things as people being in love and having babies, and town gossip, and people paying taxes, and shepherds going to work at night, and all kinds of things like that. It is a story that happened in real human life, a life like yours. That is important because it is about human life.
The angel's message adds some important information. That message was not just about the birth of a baby. It was about the whole event that would follow from it -- the life of Jesus, the things that happened to and through him, the movement that followed from the event, and the differences that event made. The angels tell us that the story is about something God did. The very God who created all things and who is still creating and sustaining this creation and coming to meet us in every day of our lives is the one who did something important in this event. Christians believe that it is indeed the pivotal act of God. Furthermore, it is a self-revealing act of God. The things that God did in that life and that event are the same things that the living God is still doing.
The mention of the "city of David" relates this event to the ongoing work of salvation and of self-revelation that God has done through the history of the people of Israel. The first chapter of Luke's gospel is occupied almost entirely with establishing that connection. Further, Luke helps us to know that Jesus came in fulfillment of Israel's hope for a messiah.
The angel makes it clear that this story is about the coming of a savior. It is important for us to learn that the biblical understanding of salvation shows it to be something much bigger that the popular idea of salvation makes it to be. It is not only going to heaven after you die. It is about God working in life and history to save persons and nations from all of the things that hurt and oppress and destroy and to save them to the fulfillment of God's high purpose. God is working to open to us a promising new possibility here and now as well as hereafter.
Finally, the angels tell us that the good news they brought is for all people. It is interesting that the word "all" is used in both of our New Testament lessons. Titus says: "For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all" (Titus 2:11). This makes it clear that God's saving work is for all people, for the whole creation. And Isaiah, who gives us our lesson from the Hebrew scriptures, is somewhat unique among the writers of the Hebrew scriptures in that he believes God's saving work is for all nations, not just for the people of Israel (see Isaiah 2:1-4). The salvation that God offers through Jesus is for all people. The Christmas story tells us that we need to know about the Christ event and its meaning.
Application
The message on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day should be something very personal for the hearers. A very good message might be built around the points outlined in the exposition above. The pastor could introduce the sermon by telling the people that it is important to remember that the Christmas story is the beginning of the whole story of Jesus and of all that it can mean. Then say that "we are going to look at the several things the Christmas story tells us about the life of Christ. Then we are going to ask, 'What can that mean to me?' 'What difference can that make in my life?' "
What can it mean to us that the life of Christ is an event that happened in the same real human history that is going on around us right now? What can it mean to us that it happened in a very human setting? What can it mean that it happened as a part of the story of the people of Israel? Many people have never thought about that. It is important for them to know that it was a real world event.
What can it mean for us to know that the Christ event is something that God did? It is important for us to believe that God is real and entered into human history to do something special and decisive, something that can make a difference in our lives. It is important for us to know that what God did in and through Jesus can show us what God is still doing today.
What can it mean for us to know that God acted to send a savior? It is important for the people to know that salvation is not only going to heaven after we die. It is also God working to give the possibility of fullness of life here and now, both for persons and for all humankind. It is not only something that God did. It is something that God is still doing.
What can it mean to us that the good news that the angel brought is for all people? Here it will be wise for the preacher to reverse what might seem to be the logical order. Talk first about what it means that salvation is for all people. Can that make a difference in the way we think about others? Then become very personal and ask: "What can it mean that the salvation God brought through Jesus is for you?" This is where the Christmas message should become very personal and very powerful.
An Alternative Application
A Jewish man once explained that he did not believe that Jesus is the messiah because the messiah is supposed to bring in the reign of God and peace on earth. He said that has not happened yet, so Jesus must not be the messiah. He raised an interesting question for Christians. The prophet Isaiah said that there will come a day when the weapons of war will all be burned for fuel because they will not be needed any more. Yet the place where Isaiah lived when he promised that, and the place where the life and work of Jesus came to its climax, is even now the center of a conflict that could involve the whole world in a destructive war. What are we to make of that?
Christians believe that Christ did indeed come bringing the possibility of peace on earth. He came showing us the love of God and teaching us what it would mean to let love shape our lives. He has indeed put the possibility before us, but God is counting on us to pick up the possibility and translate it into a reality.
Some people -- most people -- seem to believe that the way Jesus taught was unrealistic idealism. The disarmament that Isaiah described is something few people would actually be willing for their nations to try. The way of love that teaches us to be as committed to the well-being of all people as we are to our own seems very foreign.
Yet in the few historical events in which it has been tried, it has proven to be effective. Consider the end of colonialism in India, the end of apartheid in South Africa, and the end of communism in Poland. There are people who believe that it can work. World history was in a very tense time when the United Nations celebrated its fortieth anniversary. The cold war was just beginning to wind down. The heads of state and other dignitaries who gathered were full of anxiety. One person who was invited to speak to the assembly was Mother Teresa of Calcutta, the elderly nun who had just been given a Nobel Prize for her work with the destitute and dying in India. She summarized the message she brought. "Love one another." She really believed that love offers a real possibility.
There is another aspect of the message about the coming of the Savior. The messiah also came to bring the possibility of fullness of life for individual persons. Are you enjoying fullness of life right now? In just the same way that Jesus offered the way to peace on earth, he offered the way to wholeness for us. He described the way in the Sermon on the Mount: trust God to provide and seek first God's kingdom (Matthew 6:25-33). Learn to love as God loves (Matthew 5:43-48). The messiah has indeed put the possibility before us. But we must act on it to make it real. Paul told Titus to teach the people to allow their lives to be shaped by "the grace of God that has appeared bringing salvation to all..." (Titus 2:11).
Many who have dared to try to live according to God's promise have found that it can indeed lead to fullness of life. A certain twelve-step group has adopted an interesting way of ending their meetings. They pray the Lord's Prayer in unison. Then they all repeat in a shout, "Keep a coming back. It works if you work it." It does indeed work if we work it.
