And now... Christmas Part II!
Texts: Isaiah 62:6-12; Ps.97; Titus 3:4-7; Luke 2:8-20
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Good morning! And Merry Christmas!
What a time to be marking this moment of God’s extraordinary act of
entering our world not as some ethereal royal Superman… but as a common baby
boy.
He moves out of the darkness and security of Mary’s womb…and into
the uncertainty… and fragility of being born among straw and farm animals to
regular human parents.
Talk about trust and lowering one’s self to be below the angels!
God with us…Emmanuel… coming to us through Jesus.
He is a child born in what was essentially on the streets in ancient
Palestine… a reminder that the one who comes to bring more light, more love,
more compassion, more mercy into the world is not that unlike you and me.
So it makes sense in Luke’s telling of the birth story… the ones
who hear the news first of this most important and amazing newborn are the
shepherds.
Shepherds during this time were not romantic figures.
They were kind of stinky.
They were not part of the polite society.
Some scholars report that they weren’t trustworthy enough to
testify in court.
They were the rough and tumble Jewish working class of the First
Century.
It’s to this group that the angel comes to declare that “I am
bringing good news of great joy!”
“I am” comes to the shepherds…out there in the field tending to
their sheep.
The poor… the lowly… the easily pushed aside…the ignored and
marginalized become the first receivers of the news of Jesus’ birth.
This seems so fitting!
Because if there’s going to be anybody on the planet who could
stand to be told that there is something really good that’s coming… it’s the people
who the world would sooner forget than to give comfort.
Jesus entering the world as one with the marginalized has served as
the hope for those who are the disenfranchised and disinherited throughout
history.
The 20th century theologian Howard Thurman took great
comfort in God coming first to the poorest of the poor.
In his most well-known book “Jesus and the Disinherited” Thurman talked
about what the life and ministry of Jesus means to those who are not the powerful
and the elite.
As a black man growing up in segregated Daytona Beach, Florida,
Thurman found in the story of Jesus a kinship… in fact…a true king-ship.
Following this one who is God manifested in human flesh and blood provided
an important blueprint for Thurman’s life and ministry.
Jesus demonstrates how love can resist the tyranny of unjust
systems… and even break through the barriers erected against the righteous
without succumbing to bitterness.
Jesus… the man… demonstrated how to maintain dignity and extend it
to others even as the Roman oppressor mocked and scorned him… throughout his
ministry and all the way to the cross.
By demonstrating how to remain grounded in love even while facing
hatred and systems which placed limits on his citizenship… Jesus has served as
that wonderful counselor the prophet Isaiah envisioned for the future….for
generations of people who have struggled in this world.
The selection of the shepherds to be the recipient of this angelic
good news is no accident.
This is a great gift for a people who were living in an occupied
land and under the thumb of a Roman Empire which counted citizens
but didn’t care about them.
And like any really awesome gift…they can’t wait to share it with
everyone!
This band of men who have crashed the Holy Family’s makeshift birth
cottage and crowded around the manger to see this incredible gift of hope
wrapped in bands of cloth…are overcome with excitement.
Upon seeing Jesus for themselves… they could not keep quiet.
We can almost see them… and their sheep… bleating and baahing… as
they head back to their fields praising God that the Messiah… the one who will stick
up for the oppressed of Israel… has been born in Bethlehem.
Huzzah!
This joy… this exhilaration… like that of the shepherds is exactly the
response God is looking for from us on this Christmas day.
OK…maybe not running up and down Bemiss Road with bleating sheep
and shouting praises to God at the top of our lungs.
But if we have felt touched and moved by Jesus and how Jesus
teaches us that sticking with love is the way to answer the bullying and
nihilism that seems so pervasive in our world… then we shouldn’t be shy about acknowledging
that we draw strength…inspiration…courage… from our faith in Jesus.
I’m not talking about forcing your belief in Jesus on another
person.
But when a person who is struggling and is in the place of feeling as
if their back is against the wall turns to you and asks you for counsel…
give them Jesus.
The Jesus born on the streets.
The Jesus whose parents couldn’t find room in the inn.
The Jesus who could heal the sick everywhere but his hometown.
The Jesus who knows what it is to be deserted by his friends.
The Jesus who was killed and then came back because the Spirit of
Love cannot be contained in a grave.
The Jesus you have known…and who has known and loved you.
Once again… I see the signs that this is a community of believers
who know Jesus.
As the forecast started showing that we were in for some bitterly
cold temperatures… this St. Barnabas community stepped up.
On very short notice… we have collected warm items from our homes
and those of friends and neighbors to help those in need.
Blankets…coats… hats… all items to help the unhoused in Valdosta
and Lowndes County make it through these next few bitterly cold days.
Perhaps one day… our prayers for those suffering and in need will
be answered.
Maybe the hearts and minds of leaders in this community and so many
others across the country will be moved to answer our housing crisis.
Then… we might see earth become a little more heaven-like.
Howard Thurman wrote a poem called “The Work of Christmas”…which I
think captures the spirit I see our little church shepherding into the world:
When the song
of the angel is stilled
When the star in
the sky is gone
When the kings
and princes are home
When the
shepherds are back with their flock
The work of
Christmas begins:
To find the
lost,
To heal the
broken,
To feed the
hungry,
To release the
prisoner,
To rebuild the
nations,
To bring peace
among brothers,
To make music
in the heart.
In
the name of God…F/S/HS.
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