Advent 2011: Christmas and the Magi

On Christmas Eve we celebrate one of the biggest events in history, the day God came to earth to make his dwelling place among us, so that one day we might dwell with him. In most manger scenes on church lawns and court houses the Magi are present at the birth of Jesus, but in the Bible these wise men do not show up until nearly two years later. They were following the star that announced Jesus’ birth, and when they saw his star in the East they could only follow it and travel at night. Such a journey would take a long time, and require a great deal of planning since there was not an interstate, or a Walmart, or a Motel 6 to leave a light-on along the way. The purpose in saying that is not to burst anyone's bubble. Please enjoy your manger scene. The truth, is however, better than Drummer Boy Legend.

After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem and asked, “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.”

When King Herod heard this he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him. When he had called together all the people’s chief priests and teachers of the law, he asked them where the Messiah was to be born. “In Bethlehem in Judea,” they replied, “for this is what the prophet has written:

“‘But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,
are by no means least among the rulers of Judah;
for out of you will come a ruler
who will shepherd my people Israel.’”

Then Herod called the Magi secretly and found out from them the exact time the star had appeared. He sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and search carefully for the child. As soon as you find him, report to me, so that I too may go and worship him.”

After they had heard the king, they went on their way, and the star they had seen when it rose went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was. When they saw the star, they were overjoyed. On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. And having been warned in a dream not to go back to Herod, they returned to their country by another route. (Luke 2.1-12, NIV)

The quote is from the NIV because it uses the more accurate rendering Magi rather than the more generic wise men. Do you know what a Magi is? A Magi is a person who is kind of a combination astronomer, scientists, doctor and philosopher all rolled into one– That’s why we call them wise men. They were well educated and they were also very wealthy. It also says in Matthew, that they came from the east, meaning they could have come from Persia, or India, or from China. We don’t really know. We do know that they had to cross the Middle Eastern desert and that trip probably took them about four to six months to make in order to get to Israel.

Isn’t it ironic that Jesus was born just thirteen miles away from the epicenter of Judaism in Jerusalem, where all of the Jewish scholarship in the world at that time was concentrated, but not one of the Jewish religious leaders went to search for the messiah? These wise men that did go to see Jesus weren’t necessarily even believers in Yahweh God, they were “pagans” yet they came from a far away land to worship him and give him gifts. The Magi stand out because they did not rest on the laurels of what they already knew, nor did they speculate about God as if they were somehow experts on God, but when these guys saw the change in the sky they knew it was significant and they set out on a quest to know what it meant.

Sadly, there are far more speculators in the world than there are wise men. Speculators are people who say, “Well, I think … My idea is like…. I really imagine ….” Honestly, Who cares? Who set them up to be an authority? Just because you think something doesn’t make it true or even a reality. Speculators just guess, they conjecture, and your guess is as good as mine what is true. Those who are wise are the people who diligently search for the truth, they search what is real, not just opinions that please them. They take the time and effort to find the answers to life’s questions. That’s what these Magi did.

The problem with many of people today is that we all want to know what’s real but they don’t want to take the time to find it out. Few of people even have enough gumption to Google it, let alone do any real study, or search out any real answers. The Magi saw this star come down low over the earth like no other star and they knew that this had to mean something. They knew enough to know that stars don’t just hover above the earth. This was no ordinary light in the sky, and they went to see what it was.

The second thing to love about these guys is that unlike Herod they were not threatened by the truth. Instead they sought to ally themselves with the truth. Herod felt threatened by it and sought to destroy it, but the Magi were people of character and integrity. They wanted truth to triumph, no matter how much their lives had to change because of it. So much so, that they spent more than two years and many of their resources on pursuing

You also have to love these guys humility. When they realized who Jesus was they worshiped him, not their religion, not their past, they let him become their future, they even put their lives at risk after they met Jesus, and they went home another route to avoid Herod. It was a dangerous decision to defy a king on his own territory. These guys changed their religion, their loyalty, and their lives because of what they found. There willingness to act is what separates wise men from plain old wise guys.

That first night when the star appeared it burned bright in the darkness to tell the whole world that God’s Son had been born in the world. And all who followed the light whether shepherds or wise men eventually came to bow before the son of God, and worship him. Others saw the light and ignored it.People still respond the same way today. Most see the light and speculate, filling the air with their haughty and empty presumptions. Others simply ignore it. A few, out of fear, try to stamp it out, but some like the Magi, in wisdom seek understanding, and for them Christmas is not only the birth of a child, but the promise of better things to come. May you be the later.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Advent 2011: Week Four, Peace on Earth

I remember being in first grade, my family had just moved back to El Paso, Texas from Vancouver, BC Canada and I was playing outside with my neighbors when my Mom put some small cereal box cutout in the window with scotch tape. There were ornaments, and manger personalities. I stopped playing and pointed to my Mormon neighbors, and I was excited by the colorful window dressings. Then a long banner that was made to look like a red ribbon with gold letters. It red, “Peace on Earth, Good will to men.” I remember how it hit me. My thoughts about it did not penetrate my neighbors. It was just Christmas stuff, but I went in and spoke to my Mom. I asked her, what that meant and I got the usual answers, its peace because Jesus came, its peace because we can go to heaven now or (my personal warm fuzzy) its peace because he was a baby sleeping in a manger. At seven I knew that none of that made much sense. It was warm and sentimental but it did not fit, why would the birth of Jesus mean peace for humankind. The Little Drummer Boy implies that it was the radiant presence of the child that made everyone feel at peace. I still wondered why would Jesus’ birth mean peace for humanity?

Every year we hear Linus quote the KJV of the passage, to tell us of the night that Jesus was born. That Mary and Joseph had to travel to Bethlehem for a government census, and that while they were there she went into labor, and gave birth to a son, and had to lay the child in a manger because they had no place to stay but a stable. At that very moment, shepherds in the field saw a group of angles praising God, who then announced the birth of the Christ child to them and invited them to come and see that it was true, but in the KJV account there is a misnomer, “peace on earth goodwill toward men.” Let’s look at the verse afresh, along with Luke’s entire account of the birth of Christ:

In those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be registered. This was the first registration when Quirinius was governor of Syria. And all went to be registered, each to his own town. And Joseph also went up from Galilee, from the town of Nazareth, to Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and lineage of David, to be registered with Mary, his betrothed, who was with child. And while they were there, the time came for her to give birth. And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in swaddling cloths and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn. And in the same region there were shepherds out in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with fear. And the angel said to them, "Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger." And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying,

"Glory to God in the highest,

and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!"

When the angels went away from them into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, "Let us go over to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has made known to us." And they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby lying in a manger. And when they saw it, they made known the saying that had been told them concerning this child. And all who heard it wondered at what the shepherds told them. But Mary treasured up all these things, pondering them in her heart. And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them. And at the end of eight days, when he was circumcised, he was called Jesus, the name given by the angel before he was conceived in the womb. (Luke 2.1-21)

In Romans 5.1-11, and again in Ephesians 2.14-18 the thought is expressed that since the fall of Adam in the garden humanity has not been at peace with God. From that moment on, sin separated humanity from God. It was not just because they ate fruit, and not just because they disobeyed a rule, but because the betrayal was an attempted to overthrow God as King of kings and Lord of lords. The serpent’s temptation was, “You will be like God.” Actually, Adam and Eve were already like God, but the serpent sowed distrust, and doubt in us toward God. He implied that God was withholding something from them that was better than what they had now. “Eat and you will be your own God,” was the implied message he was selling. Furthermore Adam’s decision was not out of deception, Eve it says was deceived, but Adam’s sin was the greater sin because he knew what he was doing, and he committed a treasonous act against God willfully. Romans chapter seven squarely places the blame on Adam, not Eve. From that time onward humankind has lived as an enemy of God. However, through Christ, mankind can choose to return to God. Jesus, the Prince of Peace, is the peace accord between humankind and God. When we surrender to the Prince of Peace, the terms of surrender are, let God be God, and put your heart, your will, your strength, your possessions under his control, and in return he will give eternal life: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. That is the message of Jesus’ birth.

When you pull back all the sentimental imagery of the manger and Christmas, it is about the birth of the King of kings and the Lord of lords. This is about dominion, the change of the global order, and life and death. That is why King Herod sent out soldiers to murder every child under the age of two when he found out about the Christ child being born. That is why the three Magi came from the east in the first place. (More about them on Christmas Eve), but the coming of Jesus Christ was a powerful watershed event, the clash of kingdoms, and it was ultimately the reestablishment of the Kingdom of God on earth under the leadership of the Prince of Peace, who reconciled humanity to God, and gave the gentle terms of surrender. For those who surrender to God’s goodwill there is peace.

The central question for us today is, are we surrendered to Jesus Christ? Are we at war or at peace with God? This promise of peace is not a gift of warm-fuzzy peaceful feelings, or inner tranquility; this is the peace that comes to those who are no longer struggling to be god of their own life. This is the peace of not being the enemy of God. This is the peace, of knowing that when judgment comes, that according to the terms of surrender you will not be tried for high treason. Because one day, Philippians 2.9-11 tells us, the whole world will be subdued, and every knee will bow, and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

I believe that is why we read that the ordinary Joes, and the humble parents of Jesus, were the first to receive this good news. The three magi don’t come until almost two years later. That first night it was Mary, Joseph, and the shepherds along with a few animals. Not because God is opposed to either wealth or power, he has both. If however, we are honest, there are few poor people in the world who believe them selves to be invincible, or in charge, or self-sufficient. It is easier for those who are poor or powerless to accept the gospel of Peace, the terms of surrender to Jesus are much more palatable than the terms of surrender that have been shoved down their throats repeatedly by the harsh realities of life, by government, and everything else that they perceive as oppressing them.

For those with power and wealth, the terms of surrender are the same, but as Proverbs 10 & 18 point out many perceive their wealth or power as a strong tower, as a shield, as impenetrable. Many with wealth or power perceive themselves as not in need of rescue. They do not see the need for surrender. Its not that God opposes people because of wealth or power, but that God opposes those who are proud. Often the rich and powerful are never humble enough to surrender. As lords, as kings, of their own destiny, there is nothing more difficult for a king to do then become the vassal of another king.

There is a scene in the movie Brave Heart, where a group of British lords is coming out to greet the Scottish King and nobility. So oppressed are the Scotts that the British King no longer comes to greet the King of Scotland, he just sends an English lord to receive the annual payment and pledge of loyalty to avoid destruction. At that point the English lord makes sport of the Scottish King and tells the other lords in his company that they will watch a King kiss their behinds. To their surprise the Scotts rebel, and a war begins, but the attitude of both in the movie reflects the lack of humility of Kings and Lords everywhere, and the general refusal of those in power to surrender their power, even if its costs them everything. The famous missionary, Jim Elliot, once said, "He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain that which he cannot lose." The inverse is also true, if you fight to keep what you cannot take with you, rather than surrender to gain what you cannot loose, that makes you a great fool.

Thinking about those ordinary Joes working the late shift that night, those shepherds, (despite Christmas lore), were the low men on the social ladder. Working all night, watching a bunch of stupid stinking sheep, their own lives potentially in danger for a bunch of cattle. As ordinary as they were, they got to see the glory of God, they got to see angels, and they saw the Christ child. Likewise, when you and I humble ourselves, when we surrender to the kingdom of God, we too can see the glory of God displayed. We get to see God work, not because we are powerful, rich, or something special in our own right, but because we have recognized that we are not. We have seen our need for God, we have humbled ourselves, let God be God, let God be King and Lord of our lives, and in that process we too get to experience the works of God.

Have you ever wondered why people see greater miracles in Africa, or Latin America or China? I believe that it has to do with oppression. The people in those places are so crushed by oppression that without God they have no hope. Therefore they are completely dependent on God. Especially if following God has come at a price of social exclusion or some kind of additional oppression by worldly rulers and authorities. I would submit to us that Advent is a time for us to renew our commitment, to review the terms of surrender. It is a time of putting God in charge, of believing that God’s governance is better than our own, and of believing that just as God sent angles, and demonstrated his love for those humble shepherds and Jesus’ earthly parents, that God also desires to show his glory to us who surrender themselves today, as we await his soon return.

To go back to my childhood question, peace on earth is something that belongs to those who have surrendered to God’s will. Making peace with God is the way for us to prepare not only for Christmas, but also for Jesus’ imminent return.

Advent 2011: Week Three, Joy to the World

The third week of Advent is about joy. The third Sunday is also known as John the Baptist Sunday in the Christian church calendar, because it was John who came as the one to prepare hearts for Christ. It is recorded in John 3.22-36 that John said his joy was made complete as the friend of the bridegroom, because he had kept the bride safe and prepared the way so that the groom could claim his bride. John’s role was finished and now the bridegroom must become the focus, John must decrease as Jesus increased. That he said would result in all who believe being given the Spirit without measure, and eternal life. For this reason, no Advent season would be complete without John the Baptist. In Luke 1.39-80 it says,

In those days Mary arose and went with haste into the hill country, to a town in Judah, and she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. And when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, the baby leaped in her womb. And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit, and she exclaimed with a loud cry, "Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! And why is this granted to me that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For behold, when the sound of your greeting came to my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy. And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her from the Lord." And Mary said,

"My soul magnifies the Lord,
and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
for he has looked on the humble estate of his servant.
For behold, from now on all generations will call me blessed;
for he who is mighty has done great things for me,
and holy is his name.
And his mercy is for those who fear him
from generation to generation.
He has shown strength with his arm;
he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts;
he has brought down the mighty from their thrones
and exalted those of humble estate;
he has filled the hungry with good things,
and the rich he has sent away empty.
He has helped his servant Israel,
in remembrance of his mercy,
as he spoke to our fathers,
to Abraham and to his offspring forever."

And Mary remained with her about three months and returned to her home.

Now the time came for Elizabeth to give birth, and she bore a son. And her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had shown great mercy to her, and they rejoiced with her. And on the eighth day they came to circumcise the child. And they would have called him Zechariah after his father, but his mother answered, "No; he shall be called John." And they said to her, "None of your relatives is called by this name." And they made signs to his father, inquiring what he wanted him to be called. And he asked for a writing tablet and wrote, "His name is John." And they all wondered. And immediately his mouth was opened and his tongue loosed, and he spoke, blessing God. And fear came on all their neighbors. And all these things were talked about through all the hill country of Judea, and all who heard them laid them up in their hearts, saying, "What then will this child be?" For the hand of the Lord was with him. And his father Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied, saying,
"Blessed be the Lord God of Israel,
for he has visited and redeemed his people
and has raised up a horn of salvation for us
in the house of his servant David,
as he spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets from of old, that we should be saved from our enemies
and from the hand of all who hate us;
to show the mercy promised to our fathers
and to remember his holy covenant,
the oath that he swore to our father Abraham, to grant us
that we, being delivered from the hand of our enemies,
might serve him without fear,
in holiness and righteousness before him all our days.
And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High;
for you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways,
to give knowledge of salvation to his people
in the forgiveness of their sins,
because of the tender mercy of our God,
whereby the sunrise shall visit us from on high
to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death,
to guide our feet into the way of peace."

And the child grew and became strong in spirit, and he was in the wilderness until the day of his public appearance to Israel.

When a child comes into the world it is always joyful, but in that first encounter between Mary and Elizabeth, both with child, there is a supernatural joy shared by these two women. In any other set of circumstances these two women in first century Palestine might be less than cheerful. Mary is under suspicion of adultery or at least fornication. Elizabeth is old, and her pregnancy could be dangerous, but these two women are filled with joy because they are carrying the hope of the world, the prophet who will announce the Messiah, and the Messiah himself.

We know that for Mary it was not easy, because her husband to be, Joseph, questioned her fidelity, and did not except her explanation of her pregnancy until an Angel of the Lord spoke to him. We can infer that neighbors still sat in judgment unconvinced. Then before long she had to journey to Jerusalem and to Bethlehem, a long difficult journey, even if you are not pregnant. Within two years they will have to flee for their lives to Egypt. Yet often we forget that when these Bible personalities entreat us to live lives filled with joy that they did not live pampered or unfettered lives. Instead they entreat us to live in joy in spite of circumstances. Like the circumstances of a teen mom whose character has been impugned, or like Paul, writing us about joy from prison where he would soon loose his life.

In contrast, happiness, is the temporary feeling created by chance occurrence. The root word, hap means chance; luck; occur by chance. It is also the root of happen, happenstance, haphazard, and hapless. Words that we generally associate with chaos and pain. Joy is a state of blessedness. It is a decision to recognize what is good regardless of happenstance. So when the Bible tells us about people of old having joy, it is not some carefree flippant attitude in the midst of crises, nor a sheltered existence, but it is the recognition that regardless of life’s events there is something to be glad about. In this case, their joy is that a Savior is to be born, Christ the Lord. Joy to the World the Lord is come, let earth receive her king. Let every heart prepare him room, as heaven and nature sing, Joy to the World. When Isaac Watts penned those words to that famous carol he was himself under scrutiny for his non-conformist views. Yet he too knew the joy of the Lord in the midst of his circumstances, in much the same way Mary burst into song after greeting Elizabeth.

Mary sang and she was joyful because God chose her, a girl of humble means, to bear the Son of God. Even though at the moment life was hard she noted that one day, in retrospect, they would call her the most blessed of women. In Catholic, Orthodox and other old order churches Mary is esteemed, while sometimes in Protestant churches the fear that she will be worshipped is so strong that they give her no honor at all. Nonetheless, Mary knows that in-spite of her circumstances that God has blessed her, and ultimately the world around her, despite those difficult and trying events. Mary knew that God did not impunge her character; only people did that.

Have you ever considered that God is doing something marvelous a midst our difficult and trying events? I am convinced that God never wastes a hurt. No matter who or what inflicts it, God will use it in our lives to bless us, grow us, and shape us.

The theme of her second verse was that this child would level the playing fields. Remember the words of Isaiah that John the Baptist, the voice of one calling in the wilderness, would make straight and level the path of the Lord, every valley filled, every high place made low. Our God levels the playing field of life, by making it possible that everyone can come to him regardless of life station.

Then Mary ends with the reminder that I have tried to capture all through this Advent season. God helped Israel, he remembered them with mercy, just as he promised to Abraham, and the descendants of Abraham (even those of us who are children of Abraham by faith). God was faithful, and kept his word, so there is much to be joyful about. We should have confidence that he will do it again. The whole world should be filled with joy. Therefore every heart ought to prepare him room.

That was the mission of John the Baptist from birth. Elizabeth’s friends and neighbors were amazed that God would give her a child in her old age. They thought that was the blessing. Then on the eighth day after his birth, preparing to circumcise him, they asked his name. “John” she said. The priest and those involved wanted to name him after his father, Zechariah, but Zechariah, scribbled out, “His name is John.” When he did, the Lord opened his mouth, and Zechariah prophesied what John the Baptist, his son, would him self proclaim in thirty years. Zechariah had been mute since the angle told him his wife was with child and he doubted, now suddenly he can speak. God has loosened his tongue, and the neighbors were freaked out, the priests were in an uproar. Everyone asked, “Who is this child that was conceived in old age, that his father could not speak until he had faith, and that his circumcision comes amidst prophetic words?”

Zechariah said, this child is the prophet of the Most High sent to prepare the way of the Lord. He will proclaim, salvation, forgiveness, and the tender mercies of God. He will give light to those in darkness and in the shadow of death, and guide them in the path of peace. He will prepare room in every heart for the coming Messiah. He will level the paths, and he did.

Then in chapter three it records that he took aim at the self-righteous and called them a brood of vipers, and that he told them that they could not rest on their lineage, but that God could raise up children of Abraham from anywhere he wanted to. When the people asked what should they do, he spoke he told them to make room in their hearts for their neighbor who had nothing. He told them to make room in their hearts for others by not taking advantage of their authority. He told them, even King Herod, to stop living immoral lives. He leveled the paths from King to Peasant. Regardless of their station in life he told them to prepare room for God in their hearts by treating everyone as though they are made in the image of God, because, in the words of 1 John 3 from last week, you cannot love God and hate your neighbor. Likewise you cannot be joyful in all circumstances if you let circumstances dictate your responses to life. Preparing him room means bringing justice to those who have none, living holy, asking for forgiveness, and seeking knowledge of God.

The message is still the same. In the midst of Advent or any other time of year. Preparing him room, making room for God in our lives includes resisting the pressure to give in to circumstances over what is right. It means that doing right does not depend on anyone but you. Damn the outcome! Damn the circumstances! Do what is right . . . In Matthew 11.12 it says, “From the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven has suffered violence, and the violent take it by force.” The NIV says it best, “the kingdom of God has been forcefully advancing.”

Coming to Christ is easy, living it out is hard. Having joy in spite of circumstances, doing the right thing, preparing him room by doing right by others? This is the real spirit of Advent, it is the spirit of Christ, and Christmas. Because Christmas is about more than presents under a tree or jingle bells. One more present will not bring joy to the world, but a joyful believer, living out the mission of Christ, will level the paths, make straight the way, and bring hope and love to a world without any of the above.

Here the words of John the Baptist.

"The voice of one crying in the wilderness:

'Prepare the way of the Lord,
make his paths straight.
Every valley shall be filled,
and every mountain and hill shall be made low,
and the crooked shall become straight,
and the rough places shall become level ways,
and all flesh shall see the salvation of God.'"

This Advent are you preparing the way of the Lord in your heart? Are you acting justly? Do you extend mercy? Has the plight of the those who are in humble circumstances touched you? What about joy? Are you choosing joy, or are you wallowing in your circumstances? What about the circumstances that you let control your responses to others? Have you let others steal your joy, thus inadvertently making them god over your life? As you celebrate this Christmas season, prepare the way of the Lord in your life and the lives of others by choosing joy rather than yielding to circumstances.

Who is St. Nick?

I thought everyone might enjoy this website about the real St. Nicholas (Santa Claus). It is interesting and explains the origins of many traditions at Christmas and some of the lore surrounding the man.

http://www.stnicholascenter.org/pages/who-is-st-nicholas/

I hope you enjoy it.