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Sermons In Time |
(From December 30, 1990)
Luke 2:22-40
Our World doesn't have a lot of time for lingering, for standing around or even with intention, waiting for something to happen. We do not tarry easily, even if it means that in waiting solutions to serious questions might be found.
The old Rabbi had been a religious dreamer. For most of his life, the dream of deliverance from the despised life of being citizens of a vassal state had obsessed him. The way to deal with this irritation of the soul was to delve deeply into the writings of the prophets and seek to discern the movement of the Spirit of God. His was a life devoted to the hope that God would raise up a deliverer for his people Israel. There may not be a great deal of difference between such a search for hope and a more zealous political approach. For both anticipate a new day and a New World. The old housekeeper had shared the vision, and although she was not the scholar, which was deprived to a woman of that time, her hope was no less intense, and she shared the vision of the Rabbi.
And so, when Jesus was brought to the temple for circumcision on the eighth day of his life, this priest of God, scholar of the word, dreamer of a new world under the rule of God, saw in him the promise of the ages fulfilled. (Luke 2:29-32)
The story of hope is an old one. Abraham, who, as an old man, had no son, found promise in the birth of Isaac in his old age. At al later time, Hannah, after the birth of Samuel, dedicated his to the Lord. She was so pleased to have a son, she made sure that he belonged to the Lord. Surely, childbirth through the ages has been precarious and precious and when the child came, it was filled with hope and promise.
But the child was not born a deliverer. In his cradle he was not the crucified one. During the days of his infancy, words such as "wonderful Counselor," "Mighty God," "Prince of Peace" could be spoken, but they are only words of promise. For them to happen, the Christmas baby had to grow up. The promise is fulfilled in the person the child becomes.
During the days just passed, small children have surrounded many of us. They were a house full at Christmas, and an experience of sheer joy. It has also been a time of wondering. It is a time of promise. What will their lives be like in the days ahead? How will they "turn out?" What will be their dreams, their accomplishments? The words of Gibran on "Youth" were haunting words as these thoughts were contemplated:
And a woman who held a babe against her bosom said, "Speak to us of Children."
And he said: "Your children are not your children. They are the sons and daughters of Life's longing for itself
They come through you, but not from you, And though they are with you, yet they belong not to you.
You may give them your love but not your thoughts. For they have their own thoughts. For their souls dwell in the house of tomorrow, which you cannot visit, Not even in your dreams.
You may strive to be like them, but seek not to make them like you. For life goes not backward nor tarries with yesterday.
You are the bows from which your children as living arrows are sent forth. The archer sees the mark upon the path of the infinite, and he bends you with his might that his arrows may go swift and far. Let your bending in the archer's hand be for gladness; For even as he loves the arrow that flies, so he loves also the bow that is stable."
The child is a promise. He or she is the substance of things hoped form the evidence of things not seen. Like Simeon and Anna, we will not be able to enter their world. It will go far beyond our won. Yet, none of us who see these young children develop would say anything other than how glad we are to see the child grow into maturity. We, in fact, watch with pride every little act which shows growth toward that maturity.
What is striking about such a hope is the amount of nurture and good quality care it takes to make it possible for the child to become that adult which fulfills the promise. How important it was that the child, Jesus, grow to manhood so the promise could become a reality.
As we experience that movement toward maturity, the loving parent gives so much to the child. In the words of Mary, there is the strong sense of History with its understanding of the Law and the Prophets. There is also an awareness of the work of God in human life, which confound the mighty and the powerful. She was intentional in her desire that Jesus know the history of his people, that he understand the Law and the Prophets, and the promise of the ages for which they gave their lives in complete devotion.
Alex Haley, in his own search for the roots of his people brought to our generation a new appreciation for the history of the Black Man in America. Out of that history, there was a new appreciation for the history of every person in the world. The stories are unique. Yet, those stories are so much like the story of our own families, immediately we identify with those roots, and claim our own roots. It is important to understand how closely tied to Ancient Israel Jesus was, even to the point of his challenging interpretations of the Ancient Prophets. How could he have known had it not been for the sensitive and wise parent, both mother and father, who shared the story over and over. He must have listened often in the Temple to the reading of the Word. Neither at home nor at worship did the words fall on deaf ears.
Perhaps there is more wisdom in selective learning than we sometimes allow. Just this week in the Religion and Ethics section of the Eagle there was a story about the loss of religious history in the education of children in our schools. Such a loss of perspective impoverishes the entire society. One ought not to be deprived of good teaching at any level of life. Children can usually handle all the information they can get if there is a wise and caring person helping to process the learning adequately along the way.
As one moves through the stages of development suggested by Erickson, there are little hints, small stories, that show how Jesus developed in wisdom and in stature and in favor with God and man. He developed trust, autonomy, initiative, a good self-image, and the virtue of hope and will and purpose, as well as fidelity, love and care. As he became a man he was autonomous, yet respectful. With his mother, going to a wedding, he did her bidding. With all kinds of people he was able to be respectful as well as intimate and caring.
He certainly lived without guilt, inferiority or confusion about that to which he would dedicate his life. He knew whose he was! And even in his facing the cross, his was a creative act in which he was a person of total integrity and dedication to his purpose.
Such devotion and acceptance of purpose and commitment to justice does not just happen. The nurture of the years growing up gave to the world a great soul. For Jesus to become the man was not just a simple religious experience. Whether Jesus was in the Temple or in the desert, there was a deep nurturing of his spirit that continued throughout his life Even in the beginning of his ministry, his mother showed her own great expectations when she said, "Whatever he says, do it."
As I watched the little ones at play, I saw in them the hope of the years to come. The hope is present, not just in their birth, but in the realization that a company of love, an atmosphere of wholesome nurture, surrounds each of them. And, I thought, how blessed you little ones are! It is with joy I can say with Simeon, "It is a pleasure to be there, to contribute what I may, but I am confident of their promise. Let thy servant stay out of the way!" Thank God the Christmas baby grew up and was faithful in his own life to the promise. It is the hope and promise of every child of God who develops into a wholesome and complete individual. We have beheld His glory, full of Grace and Truth. Amen!
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