We humans like to domesticate
things. The first thing we appear to
have domesticated is dogs. They’ve been
domesticated so long there’s no way to trace exactly what their wild ancestors
were. We also domesticated cattle,
sheep, cats, and all sorts of creatures.
We also like to domesticate the
geology around us. None of us lives in a
natural environment – at least I don’t think any of you live in a cave. We shape the world to our liking. We domesticate it. It is no surprise then that we also like to
domesticate God and the Bible.
Neither of those domestications are
all that smart. While Christianity is
based on the belief that Jesus of Nazareth was God come to life as a human that
is God coming to us – not us domesticating God.
And of course the Bible is among the
wildest and most out of control writings in human history. We, however, try to domesticate it into a
tame book of history and good advice. Not
so! You’ve heard me say before that the
traditional Christmas pageant is a highly domesticated story. Stars, angels, shepherds, Wise Men, and a
stable with Joseph, Mary and a baby lying in a manger.
There’s nothing wrong with it in and
of itself, but it is wrong when that gets in the way of what the Bible’s
authors actually intend. There are two
versions of Jesus’ birth in the Bible.
One is in Luke’s gospel. One is
in Matthew’s, which we read today. Both
authors tell a story of darkness, mystery, and fear. Both gospel writers include satire in the
stories (always easy to lose sight of that).
And Matthew’s gospel is more about fleeing threats and killing than
anything else.
So, let’s look at Matthew. Matthew suggests that Jesus was born in a
house – actually Joseph’s house – in Bethlehem.
Bethlehem was a dusty hamlet of no consequence. You know how you drive into city or village
and there’s a sign saying, “Home of….” And then they list some famous person
who was born there? Or maybe they list
their high school’s sports titles. Have
you ever seen a sign that lists some high school sports triumph from like 45
years ago? I find myself thinking, “And
since then…?”
Well, if there had been such a sign in
Bethlehem in Jesus day it would have been a very worn and rotted sign that
said, “Welcome to Bethlehem. Birthplace
of King David” and then listing his birthdate 1000 years before. Never overestimate the importance of
Bethlehem. Nothing of significance had
happened in it for over 1000 years!
Jesus is born. Matthew gives nothing about shepherds and
angels, just another baby in just another house in just another village. Unknown to the inhabitants of that house some astrologers
from far to the east -probably Parthia- are looking for them. These astrologers have seen a star.
I typically imagine this star as an
obvious and bright object appearing in the sky, and it leads the Wise Men like
a carrot to where Jesus is. Not so. Ever looked at the night sky in a truly dark
place and realized the countless dim stars that are there? Even now many of them are not counted or
named. Other than Matthew there is no historical mention of a new star
appearing at that time. Some suggest a
comet, but that’s a stretch. What you
have is a number of astrologers, court priests, again, probably from Parthia,
noticing something and deciding to follow it.
In those days it was a common belief that when people who would become
great kings were born a new star would appear.
Matthew is building on that.
The Bible makes no mention of how many
of these wise men there were or how long it takes them or anything. Just, sometime later they arrive in Jerusalem
seeking where the child who has been born King of the Jews.
These astrologers are not an innocent
appearance. The vast Parthian Empire
existed to the east of the Roman Empire.
Here’s a piece of first century history I always forget: The Parthian
Empire was larger and more powerful than the Roman Empire was at that
time. Two global super-powers side by
side. Rome’s eastern territories, like
where Jesus was born, was of tremendous military significance to Rome. If the Parthians ever conquered them Rome
would lose their land infrastructure around the Mediterranean Sea.
These were very dangerous, very
unsettled times. And from the
perspective of Herod in Jerusalem, when court priests of the chief enemy empire
show up talking about the next King of the Jews, he sees a threat on many
levels. He hatches a plan to both save
his own legacy but also keep the these Parthian astrologers from doing too much
spying. That’s a whole different topic.
For us, we want to focus on these
enemy ambassadors as they make their way to the dusty hamlet of Bethlehem, five
miles from Jerusalem. They show up –
again, who knows how many - and I doubt their appearance was welcome. The gifts they bring are highly
symbolic. Gold, a gift fit for a
king. Frankincense, an incense used in
religious rituals, a gift fit for a High Priest. And then downright unnerving, myrrh. You may remember well that myrrh was used as
an embalming spice in those days.
Picture this – you are parents of a
newborn. You’re at homing having dinner
and there’s a knock at the door. A group
of travel worn and unkept foreigners are there asking to come in and give
gifts. Now these gifts are not the
hottest items currently selling on Amazon.
No, they’re strange. Strangest of
all they give you a coffin for your child.
How about putting that in a children’s
Christmas pageant – dirty foreigners bringing in a coffin? Nope, we don’t want a realistic nativity
scene! Keep it domesticated!
Do you get a sense of how weird this
all is the way Matthew tells it?
The foreigners then leave, double
crossing Herod, which puts him in a tyrannical rage. Joseph, Mary, and newborn Jesus have to
uproot from their home and flee to Egypt as political refugees. It is a dark and difficult story.
We use the arrival of the Wise Men to
note the revelation of God to all the nations of the world. Right from his birth Jesus is opening God’s
grace and mercy to the whole world. God’s
grace and mercy are not national possessions, or the possessions of any exclusive
religion. They are God’s boundless
openness and desire to gather all things into his goodness. No limits, no boundaries, no gatekeepers.
God’s actions in the Christmas story
are good and wonderful. It is a
beautiful story. But it is not good news
for all. The powers that be – represented
by Herod – do not like it. This innocent
little baby in a dusty village where nothing ever happens poses a threat. It must be eliminated. If you know the story well you know that
Herod orders the killing of all the babies in and around Bethlehem two years of
age and younger. That is why Joseph and
Mary flee to Egypt.
What is the
actual historical truth behind it all isn’t important. The story speaks the truth of the way earthly
power doesn’t want God’s goodness.
It seems to be human nature to want to
draw lines and categorize people as in or out, good or bad. We see: races and nations, assets and
liabilities, resources, potentials, good and bad, smart and stupid, riches and
poverty.
But I think God
just sees a world in need. It is a world
in need of what God has to offer. If the
world would accept it, it would be better on the whole. But those who hold power in the world, in
other words those whom the world’s systems favors don’t like it. To them it means loss.
I pray that we
have the sight to see what God is really up to.
I don’t think Epiphany is about what you do. It is about seeing what God is doing and
rejoicing in it. Right from Jesus’ birth
his is attracting all nations of the world – even the enemy pagan
Parthians. Ironically they worship him
while Herod, representing the Roman Empire, seeks to kill him.
May you recognize God’s star at its
rising, for God is doing that all the time.
I’m not talking about literal new stars.
It is God’s actions at work, and they may be things few other people
see. But may you to see God’s goodness
come to life. And may it nurture your
faith for ever new revelations of God to the world.
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