Exodus 4:1-4:17 Moses pt. 2 1-18-09
Last week we started looking at the story of God calling Moses to liberate his people from Egypt.
The Israelites multiplied in Egypt to the point of outnumbering the Egyptians, so a new Pharaoh enslaved them. Forced labor designed to kill them did not work, so he commanded all Israelite baby boys to be thrown into the Nile.
Moses’ mom places him in a makeshift ark and positions him to be found by a daughter of the Pharaoh. When Pharaoh’s daughter finds Moses she raises him as her own. Moses most likely gets educated among the Egyptian elite.
When Moses is about 40 he attempts to give justice to an Israelite being beaten by an Egyptian taskmaster. He kills the man, and hides his body in the desert.
When the Pharaoh finds out, he attempts to kill Moses, so Moses flees to Midian and lives there for 40 years.
One day, God appears to Moses through a burning bush – a flame burns the bush, but does not consume it. In the conversation so far Moses finds out God’s name – “I will be what I will be. I am what I am.” YHWH.
These 4 Hebrew letters form what’s known as the tetragrammaton. God says this is his name forever, his title for all generations.
God commands Moses to tell the Israelite leaders that God has heard and seen what is going on and has come to liberate them. God will lead them out of Egypt to the land of Canaan.
Then God tells Moses, “They will listen to your voice, and you shall go with the elders to tell the king of Egypt ‘we’re outta here.’”
Read Text
Then Moses answered, "But suppose they do not believe me or listen to me, but say, 'The LORD did not appear to you.'"
The LORD said to him, "What is that in your hand?" He said, "A staff." And he said, "Throw it on the ground." So he threw the staff on the ground, and it became a snake; and Moses drew back from it.
Then the LORD said to Moses, "Reach out your hand, and seize it by the tail"-- so he reached out his hand and grasped it, and it became a staff in his hand -- "so that they may believe that the LORD, the God of their ancestors, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has appeared to you."
Again, the LORD said to him, "Put your hand inside your cloak." He put his hand into his cloak; and when he took it out, his hand was leprous, as white as snow. Then God said, "Put your hand back into your cloak"-- so he put his hand back into his cloak, and when he took it out, it was restored like the rest of his body -- "If they will not believe you or heed the first sign, they may believe the second sign.
If they will not believe even these two signs or heed you, you shall take some water from the Nile and pour it on the dry ground; and the water that you shall take from the Nile will become blood on the dry ground."
But Moses said to the LORD, "O my Lord, I have never been eloquent, neither in the past nor even now that you have spoken to your servant; but I am slow of speech and slow of tongue."
Then the LORD said to him, "Who gives speech to mortals? Who makes them mute or deaf, seeing or blind? Is it not I, the LORD? Now go, and I will be with your mouth and teach you what you are to speak."
But he said, "O my Lord, please send someone else."
Then the anger of the LORD was kindled against Moses and he said, "What of your brother Aaron, the Levite? I know that he can speak fluently; even now he is coming out to meet you, and when he sees you his heart will be glad.
You shall speak to him and put the words in his mouth; and I will be with your mouth and with his mouth, and will teach you what you shall do. He indeed shall speak for you to the people; he shall serve as a mouth for you, and you shall serve as God for him. Take in your hand this staff, with which you shall perform the signs."
Excuses, excuses, excuses…When God calls us to do something, is there any excuse we can give that He will consider valid?
Would our God who knows us intimately inside and out ask us to do something we cannot do?
God asks Moses to do an incredible thing – liberate over a million souls entrapped in brutal slavery. Moses does what we all do when we sense a call to do something good or even extraordinary.
He looks at himself and assesses his own ability. Can I succeed in this endeavor? If I think I can, I might move forward, if I think I can’t, I won’t. As Moses grades his ability to do what God calls him to do, he comes up short in his own eyes. He knows he has no credibility with his own people or the Egyptian rulers. He knows his inarticulate speech and his speech impediment make him unqualified.
So Moses asks God, “What if they don’t listen to me or what if they don’t believe you’ve actually appeared to me?”
This is a relatively strong argument given his failed attempt to be a liberator 40 years earlier and his status as a murderous outlaw. He has a death warrant waiting for him in Egypt and his people do not trust him.
But God had already told Moses explicitly, “They will listen to your voice” – Your fellow Israelites and the Egyptians will hear you.
Moses challenges God’s previous promise, but God doesn’t get angry. Other prophets appearing later in Israel’s history will object based on natural weaknesses too. Jeremiah claims to be too young to speak for God. Isaiah claims to be a man of unclean lips – unworthy to speak God’s Word.
God displays amazing patience and attempts to get Moses’ eyes off of himself and onto Him.
He asks Moses, “What is in your hand?” And Moses replies, “A staff.” As a shepherd, Moses used this staff to support his steps in the wilderness, to guide his father’s flock to good land, and to drive away wild animals. This staff comes to represent the power of God to guide Moses’ steps through the desert of Sinai, to lead God’s people to the Promised Land, and to strike down the enemies of God.
God tells Moses to throw it on the ground, and the moment he does, the staff turns into a snake. Moses responds the same way you or I would. He jumps out of the way. He’s not startled like we would be at the sight of a gardener snake, he’s fearful of his life and runs away.
Next, God tells Moses to grasp the snake by the tail. Any snake handlers here today? Anyone know the proper way to hold a poisonous snake?
You grab it behind its head so that it cannot turn and bite you. The most dangerous place to grab a snake is by the tail. Grab a snake by the tail and it will wrap around and bite you.
God looks for Moses to grab the snake in the worst possible spot to reveal his faith in Him. Do you feel Moses’ relief when the moment he grabs the snake it turns back into a staff?
God interprets this event by saying; this power I give to you is so that the people will believe that I have appeared to you. The people will believe you if you throw down your staff and it turns into a snake. Yeah God, that ought to do it.
Without any preamble, God tells Moses to put his hand inside his cloak. He does so and when he takes it out, his hand is leprous – diseased – as white as snow.
OK, this just seems mean. Leprosy is a contagious and ritually defiling skin disease. People with this disease are separated from the community and the law will later require them to announce their presence by dressing differently, keeping their hair messy, and crying out, “Unclean! Unclean!” in public places.
In an instant, Moses has leprosy. I guarantee you Moses does not reply (looking at hand) “Huh, that’s interesting.” I imagine an agonized wail and a scene where it looks like Moses fights his own hand.
God tells him to put his hand back inside his cloak – touch your bare chest with your diseased hand! This would spread the disease! But Moses settles down and obeys and when draws his hand out of his cloak, the disease hasn’t spread, instead, his hand is restored.
God reveals his power to Moses. “I am the God who has power over disease and healing. I am with you. I am sending you. Get your eyes off of yourself and onto me.”
Then God tells him that if the people won’t believe these signs he is to draw water from the Nile and pour it on the ground. When he does so, it will become blood. Moses can’t practice this wonder here in the desert, but it does foretell the first plague God uses to reveal his presence to the Egyptians.
Even after this experience, Moses returns to assessing himself and his ability or lack of ability to do what God calls him to do.
He says, “I’ve never been an eloquent speaker. I have a speech impediment that remains even now after I’ve met you and we’ve spoken together.”
His objection is twofold. He’s not competent, lacking the qualifications for being a good motivator of the Israelites or the Egyptians. And, he has a physical disability – a speech impediment.
Have you ever felt incompetent for a given task? Have you ever seen yourself as unfit physically, mentally, or spiritually for what God wants you to do or say?
Moses tells God, “I believe you are all that you are, but I am still who I am – same old stuttering Moses.”
Again, God attempts to get Moses’ eyes off himself and onto Him. God says, “Who gives speech, who makes them mute or deaf, seeing or blind? It’s me! I not only know your difficulty, but I made you the way you are. Go! Do as I say and I, the God of speech will teach you what you are to say.”
We see an ongoing biblical pattern of God using weakness for his strength. In the Bible we continually see the weak made strong, the last coming first, the lowly being made great. The pattern exists to draw attention to God instead of glorifying the human agent of God’s work.
The ultimate weakness – the death of Christ on a cross – is the greatest strength of God to forgive and the greatest strength for those who receive from him. He offers forgiveness, love, and a new kind of eternal life.
Through this entire dialog, God remains with Moses and reveals his identity and promises to enable Moses to do what he’s asking him to do. God is not upset. He doesn’t mind it and maybe even likes it when we come to him in honesty and talk about why we resist what he wants us to do.
But then Moses says something wrong. Moses simply says, “Yahweh, please send someone else. All excuses aside, I don’t want to go. Send someone else.”
This makes God angry. The text says literally, “God’s nostrils flared.” His anger flames against Moses. Blatant refusal to do what God asks Moses to do and what God asks us to do makes God angry.
Even in his anger, God gives Moses a partner in his brother Aaron. He’s already on the way to meet Moses, so it was probably already God’s plan to send them in partnership, but this wasn’t the way God wanted the conversation to go.
Together, Moses and Aaron approach the Israelite leaders and the Egyptian leaders in order to gain the release of the slaves.
What do we learn from this story? How does this text call us to faith in God? How does this story address our lives as Christ followers?
Did you notice I changed the sign outside the church? It now says, “Messes welcome.”
God’s grace, his forgiveness, his love is sufficient to bring us into relationship with him. The cross of Christ stands as a sign of God’s great love for us. He’s done all that is needful to create relationship with us.
If we enter into that relationship – if we draw near to the burning bush of God’s love to hear from God we will hear him offering forgiveness and love. Then he will give us marching orders for our lives.
We live in the age of what Peter calls the “priesthood of all believers.” God’s Spirit moves within all believers for carrying out of God’s will.
None of us have arrived and become perfect. We don’t become great and then get used by God to do his will. He works within our messiness, our imperfections, and our fears. He knows what we can and cannot do and he knows his ultimate power to let his will be done in us and through us.
God asks us to get our eyes off of ourselves – our own weaknesses and past failures – and to fix our eyes on God. He will not ask us to do what we cannot do. He only needs us to utilize his power to carry out our lives of service.
I think it was Fred Craddock who recently wrote about his desire at an early age to be a preacher. He felt called by God to proclaim God’s Word. When given his first opportunity to preach, he studied hard and rose to the pulpit. He spoke poorly for a grand total of 5 minutes. His next sermon wasn’t much better or longer.
If Craddock had kept his eyes on himself – his seeming lack of ability and his obvious failure – he would have abandoned his call, but because Craddock kept his eyes on God and the surety of his call, he has been used by God to preach for over 35 years. He’s been instrumental in training and building up today’s preachers.
What is God calling you to do? God remains active in our world today. How does he want you to participate in his activity? How does he want you to speak for him or act on his behalf?
If we don’t know, we need to get straight to listening.
If we do know, what excuses do we use to get out of doing what God wants us to do? What will my family think? Will my husband think I’m crazy? Will I be laughed at? Will I still be happy? Will I fail? I’m not qualified. I’m not gifted. I have a physical difficulty.
God welcomes dialog. He will patiently listen and interact with us based on our objections. One thing God can’t stand is out and out refusal.
We each have a job to do in this life. We have a calling to act for and even speak for God. The question is not our ability, but God’s power working through us. The question isn’t who we are, but rather who God is. He is the God who made you, loves you, and will enable you to go down the path he has for you.
Let’s get our eyes off ourselves and onto God and get on with living in active obedience to him.
Monday, January 19, 2009
January 11, 2009 "Moses pt. 1" Exodus 3:1-15
Exodus 3:1-15 Moses 1-11-09
When I say “Moses” what images, words, and ideas come to mind?
For the next several weeks we want to recapture the life of Moses. We need to gain a biblical, and not just a Hollywood version of Moses.
Some applications will be given within the story, but primarily, I want us to let the story of Moses’ life and what God does through him speak to us. Dicing up the story and bringing three neat points to bear would limit the scope and magnitude of God’s work of salvation for Israel.
Let’s allow this story to give our community and us individually what we need. Listen for God’s interaction with you today within this narrative.
Let’s begin at the beginning. Genesis, the first book of the Bible, gives the message of God’s creative acts and the beginning of his covenant relationship with his chosen people. God promises Abraham that he will raise up a great nation through his children. He says, “I will be your God and you will be my people.”
At the end of Genesis, the family of God travels to Egypt to buy food because of a terrible drought. At the time Joseph is the Pharaoh’s right hand man, so they are given Egyptian land and everything they need to live. Genesis ends.
430 years of silence lie between Genesis and Exodus. God promised that Abraham’s people would multiply abundantly so they would be as numerous as the stars in the sky – an uncountable multitude.
At the end of Genesis they number about 70. At the beginning of Exodus, 430 years later, they number between 1 and 2 million. This seems unbelievable, but I did some rough math on these numbers and it’s more than possible given even moderately busy mothers.
The Israelites grow in number so quickly that they begin to outnumber the Egyptians.
When a new king begins ruling Egypt, he feels threatened by the Israelites and decides to subdue them before they can join with Egypt’s enemies and overthrow him.
No one knows how the Israelites became slaves – whether it happened overnight or gradually – but the design of the Egyptian king is plain. Hebrew slaves offer help in his public works, and forced labor will keep them from multiplying further – busy slaves don’t have time to become parents.
As he forces more and more work on the slaves it becomes clear that the labor is designed to kill the Israelites. Images on Egyptian monuments show taskmasters with giant whips in their hands. They try to work the Israelites to death.
Work alone could not stop the Israelites from multiplying, so the king instructs the midwives to kill all the male Hebrew babies they help deliver in order to stop the increase in population. The midwives prove terrible executioners and even give a wonderfully fanciful excuse, saying, “The Israelite women are vigorous and give birth before we arrive.”
So the king takes a more direct approach and orders all Hebrew baby boys to be thrown into the Nile.
Moses arrives on the scene at this point. He’s born to unnamed parents who somehow avoid the death squads by hiding their son for three months. When Moses’ mom cannot hide him any longer she does all she can for her son.
She makes a small basket boat out of reeds and natural sealants. The text uses same word for the craft Noah built at God’s command. She builds an ARK for her baby, places Moses inside, and floats him down the Nile. She does all she can for her son and leaves the rest in the hands of God.
The daughter of Pharaoh finds Moses floating down the river while Miriam – Moses’ older sister – watches nearby. The woman wants to keep the baby, so Miriam asks her if she can get one of the Hebrew mothers to nurse the baby for her and she agrees. The irony is so sweet. Miriam gets Moses’ own mother to nurse him and she gets paid by the Pharaoh for her service.
So, Moses grows up in the Pharaoh’s house. At some point Moses learns of his Israelite heritage because the text says that when he’s about 40, he goes out to see his own people at labor.
He watches an Egyptian beating one of his people and because no one was watching, Moses kills the Egyptian and hides his body under the sand.
The very next day he watches two Israelites fighting and Moses attempts to intervene. The man in the wrong says, “Who made you ruler and judge over us? Are you thinking of killing me as you killed the Egyptian?”
Moses thought he got away with murder, but someone must have seen and the news spread. Pharaoh hears of Moses’ treachery and tries to kill him. Moses flees for his life to a place called Midian.
For 40 more years the people of God groan under their slavery and Exodus 2:24 says, “God heard their groaning and he remembered his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac and with Jacob. So God looked on the Israelites and was concerned about them.”
God hears, he remembers his promises, he considers the circumstances of people, and he shows concern.
Now we have our text for the day – Exodus 3:1-15.
“Moses was keeping the flock of his father-in-law Jethro, the priest of Midian; he led his flock beyond the wilderness, and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. There the angel of the LORD appeared to him in a flame of fire out of a bush; he looked, and the bush was blazing, yet it was not consumed.
Then Moses said, "I must turn aside and look at this great sight, and see why the bush is not burned up." When the LORD saw that he had turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush, "Moses, Moses!" And he said, "Here I am."
Then he said, "Come no closer! Remove the sandals from your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground." He said further, "I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob." And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God.
Then the LORD said, "I have observed the misery of my people who are in Egypt; I have heard their cry on account of their taskmasters. Indeed, I know their sufferings, and I have come down to deliver them from the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land to a good and broad land, a land flowing with milk and honey, to the country of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites.
The cry of the Israelites has now come to me; I have also seen how the Egyptians oppress them. So come, I will send you to Pharaoh to bring my people, the Israelites, out of Egypt."
But Moses said to God, "Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh, and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?" He said, "I will be with you; and this shall be the sign for you that it is I who sent you: when you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall worship God on this mountain."
But Moses said to God, "If I come to the Israelites and say to them, 'The God of your ancestors has sent me to you,' and they ask me, 'What is his name?' what shall I say to them?" God said to Moses, "I AM WHO I AM." He said further, "Thus you shall say to the Israelites, 'I AM has sent me to you.'"
This is my name forever, and this is my title for all generations.”
Moses, an 83 year old resident alien of Midian tends his father-in-law’s flock. One day he leads the flock to Horeb and he sees a bush on fire, but the fire does not consume the bush.
He’s been in the land for decades, but this event catches his eye. This isn’t a red colored bush. It isn’t a bush catching the rays of the sun in a remarkable way, no this is a marvelous and miraculous occurrence catching Moses’ attention.
The Lord appears as a visible manifestation – a flame that does not consume a bush.
Instead of ignoring the sight or running in fear, Moses draws near to take a closer look. Something wonderful is happening and Moses chooses to probe the mystery.
Did you ever wonder if the burning bush represents something? I wonder if this unconsuming fire represents what is happening to Israel. They are burned by brutal slavery, but remain unconsumed by it.
Maybe the burning bush represents how God will again use nature to have his will be done as he did when he destroyed the inhabitants of the earth by flood. It might foreshadow the plagues to come…Or it might just be the creative way God chose to draw Moses near to him.
Either way, God calls out of the bush, “Moses, Moses,” and Moses replies, “Here I am.” Moses replies in perfect prophetic fashion. When you hear God speaking, you want to reply like he did. “Here am I,” meaning, “At your service, or what is it?”
God says, “Come no closer! Remove your sandals for the place you stand is holy.”
The noun “holy” appears here for the first time in the Bible. God marks off this place as sacred. His presence makes the ground holy. This spot is not mundane; it’s remarkable because God is here.
God commands Moses to take off his sandals. He may consider the leather sandals Moses wears impure because they are made from dead animal skins, or maybe God wanted a show of submission and humility from Moses. In the future the priests ministering in God’s presence will do so with bare feet.
Moses takes his sandals off and God declares who he is. He says, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” God declares he’s the God of Moses’ earthly father, and the God of the covenant people Abraham and all of his descendants.
At this, Moses hides his face. He fears contact with the God of his people.
God continues to speak and tells Moses that he is a God of action. He observes the misery of his people. He hears their cries because of their slave masters. He knows their suffering. God declares, “I have come down from heaven to deliver them.” He promises to lead the people out of Egypt and into the land of Canaan.
It is a land flowing with milk and honey. It’s a land of plenty – able to support the flocks and herds of God’s people.
This is great news for Moses and everything goes along swimmingly until God says, “Go, I send you to Pharaoh to bring my people out of Egypt.” The promises of God are glorious and inviting until God lets Moses know he is the instrument God will use to carry out his plan.
40 years prior, Moses gave a lame attempt to provide justice for one slave. It ended with Moses committing murder and fleeing into exile. Now God asks Moses to revisit his failure and be his instrument for the liberation for God’s people – over 1 million souls.
The correct response to God’s call to action found throughout the Bible is, “Here am I.” Instead, Moses says, “Who am I? Who am I that I should do this?”
He replies with Minnesotian humility and even outright evasion. “Who am I” he says, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and liberate the Israelites?”
Moses sees himself doubly unfit for the task. He’s not qualified to appear before the Pharaoh, and he’s unfit before God to do such a deed. Moses is right on both counts. He’s not special in the Pharaoh’s eyes, and he’s not special in God’s eyes except that God choses him to be his instrument of liberation.
I wonder if we respond in similar ways to God’s command of our lives. He probably doesn’t call us to liberate an enslaved people, but what does God ask us to do as his followers?
What is his general command to us all? What is his specific call on our life? If we know, do we respond with “Who am I?” or do we reply, “Here am I. I’m available for whatever you ask...even if it’s really scary and seemingly doomed to failure.”
God doesn’t want Moses’ ability, he wants his availability. So he redirects Moses’ attention from his own life to God’s existence. He says, “I will be with you.” The question is not who you are, but who I am and I will be with you.”
Moses again tries to wiggle out of his call. He says, “If I come to the Israelites and say the God of your ancestors has sent me to you and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ what shall I say to them?”
He basically says, “OK, God, you are with me, but who are you? What is your name?”
God says, “Ehyeh’ ser ehyeh.” I am who I am. God gives Moses his name.
The significance of God giving Moses his name cannot be overstated. At the time, to know a name, was not just to know the letters that signified the person’s identity. It was to have some influence with the person being named.
Moses can invoke the name of God and in so doing, address God – bringing his identity to bear in whatever circumstance he’s in.
God entrusts Moses with his name, and it’s a mighty trust. God’s name is dangerous if misused. That’s why one of the 10 Commandments is, “Do not take the Lord’s name in vain.” Don’t use God’s name without purpose, flippantly, or abusively.
But what is this name God gives Moses? “I will be who I will be.” God identifies himself as a verb – a double verb of being. It’s such a mysterious name that it’s been translated a dozen ways.
“I can be and can do anything. I am the existing one. I am because I am. I am that I am.” Or, most prolifically, I am who and what, and where and when, and how and even why you will discover I am” (Mettinger).
The vagueness of God’s most holy name conveys infinite potentiality even as it conceals information. “I am that I am,” but in some way Moses must know and we must know that God says, “I am for you.”
Conclusion:
I encourage you to reflect on this story this week. Let this story get into you and have its impact.
Do we draw near to the mystery and wonder of God, or do we run? He doesn’t send burning bushes all the time, but the evidence of his active life surrounds us.
Think about God’s identity as an active God. Mull over his mysterious name. Consider God’s desire not necessarily for your ability, but for your availability to him.
When I say “Moses” what images, words, and ideas come to mind?
For the next several weeks we want to recapture the life of Moses. We need to gain a biblical, and not just a Hollywood version of Moses.
Some applications will be given within the story, but primarily, I want us to let the story of Moses’ life and what God does through him speak to us. Dicing up the story and bringing three neat points to bear would limit the scope and magnitude of God’s work of salvation for Israel.
Let’s allow this story to give our community and us individually what we need. Listen for God’s interaction with you today within this narrative.
Let’s begin at the beginning. Genesis, the first book of the Bible, gives the message of God’s creative acts and the beginning of his covenant relationship with his chosen people. God promises Abraham that he will raise up a great nation through his children. He says, “I will be your God and you will be my people.”
At the end of Genesis, the family of God travels to Egypt to buy food because of a terrible drought. At the time Joseph is the Pharaoh’s right hand man, so they are given Egyptian land and everything they need to live. Genesis ends.
430 years of silence lie between Genesis and Exodus. God promised that Abraham’s people would multiply abundantly so they would be as numerous as the stars in the sky – an uncountable multitude.
At the end of Genesis they number about 70. At the beginning of Exodus, 430 years later, they number between 1 and 2 million. This seems unbelievable, but I did some rough math on these numbers and it’s more than possible given even moderately busy mothers.
The Israelites grow in number so quickly that they begin to outnumber the Egyptians.
When a new king begins ruling Egypt, he feels threatened by the Israelites and decides to subdue them before they can join with Egypt’s enemies and overthrow him.
No one knows how the Israelites became slaves – whether it happened overnight or gradually – but the design of the Egyptian king is plain. Hebrew slaves offer help in his public works, and forced labor will keep them from multiplying further – busy slaves don’t have time to become parents.
As he forces more and more work on the slaves it becomes clear that the labor is designed to kill the Israelites. Images on Egyptian monuments show taskmasters with giant whips in their hands. They try to work the Israelites to death.
Work alone could not stop the Israelites from multiplying, so the king instructs the midwives to kill all the male Hebrew babies they help deliver in order to stop the increase in population. The midwives prove terrible executioners and even give a wonderfully fanciful excuse, saying, “The Israelite women are vigorous and give birth before we arrive.”
So the king takes a more direct approach and orders all Hebrew baby boys to be thrown into the Nile.
Moses arrives on the scene at this point. He’s born to unnamed parents who somehow avoid the death squads by hiding their son for three months. When Moses’ mom cannot hide him any longer she does all she can for her son.
She makes a small basket boat out of reeds and natural sealants. The text uses same word for the craft Noah built at God’s command. She builds an ARK for her baby, places Moses inside, and floats him down the Nile. She does all she can for her son and leaves the rest in the hands of God.
The daughter of Pharaoh finds Moses floating down the river while Miriam – Moses’ older sister – watches nearby. The woman wants to keep the baby, so Miriam asks her if she can get one of the Hebrew mothers to nurse the baby for her and she agrees. The irony is so sweet. Miriam gets Moses’ own mother to nurse him and she gets paid by the Pharaoh for her service.
So, Moses grows up in the Pharaoh’s house. At some point Moses learns of his Israelite heritage because the text says that when he’s about 40, he goes out to see his own people at labor.
He watches an Egyptian beating one of his people and because no one was watching, Moses kills the Egyptian and hides his body under the sand.
The very next day he watches two Israelites fighting and Moses attempts to intervene. The man in the wrong says, “Who made you ruler and judge over us? Are you thinking of killing me as you killed the Egyptian?”
Moses thought he got away with murder, but someone must have seen and the news spread. Pharaoh hears of Moses’ treachery and tries to kill him. Moses flees for his life to a place called Midian.
For 40 more years the people of God groan under their slavery and Exodus 2:24 says, “God heard their groaning and he remembered his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac and with Jacob. So God looked on the Israelites and was concerned about them.”
God hears, he remembers his promises, he considers the circumstances of people, and he shows concern.
Now we have our text for the day – Exodus 3:1-15.
“Moses was keeping the flock of his father-in-law Jethro, the priest of Midian; he led his flock beyond the wilderness, and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. There the angel of the LORD appeared to him in a flame of fire out of a bush; he looked, and the bush was blazing, yet it was not consumed.
Then Moses said, "I must turn aside and look at this great sight, and see why the bush is not burned up." When the LORD saw that he had turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush, "Moses, Moses!" And he said, "Here I am."
Then he said, "Come no closer! Remove the sandals from your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground." He said further, "I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob." And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God.
Then the LORD said, "I have observed the misery of my people who are in Egypt; I have heard their cry on account of their taskmasters. Indeed, I know their sufferings, and I have come down to deliver them from the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land to a good and broad land, a land flowing with milk and honey, to the country of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites.
The cry of the Israelites has now come to me; I have also seen how the Egyptians oppress them. So come, I will send you to Pharaoh to bring my people, the Israelites, out of Egypt."
But Moses said to God, "Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh, and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?" He said, "I will be with you; and this shall be the sign for you that it is I who sent you: when you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall worship God on this mountain."
But Moses said to God, "If I come to the Israelites and say to them, 'The God of your ancestors has sent me to you,' and they ask me, 'What is his name?' what shall I say to them?" God said to Moses, "I AM WHO I AM." He said further, "Thus you shall say to the Israelites, 'I AM has sent me to you.'"
This is my name forever, and this is my title for all generations.”
Moses, an 83 year old resident alien of Midian tends his father-in-law’s flock. One day he leads the flock to Horeb and he sees a bush on fire, but the fire does not consume the bush.
He’s been in the land for decades, but this event catches his eye. This isn’t a red colored bush. It isn’t a bush catching the rays of the sun in a remarkable way, no this is a marvelous and miraculous occurrence catching Moses’ attention.
The Lord appears as a visible manifestation – a flame that does not consume a bush.
Instead of ignoring the sight or running in fear, Moses draws near to take a closer look. Something wonderful is happening and Moses chooses to probe the mystery.
Did you ever wonder if the burning bush represents something? I wonder if this unconsuming fire represents what is happening to Israel. They are burned by brutal slavery, but remain unconsumed by it.
Maybe the burning bush represents how God will again use nature to have his will be done as he did when he destroyed the inhabitants of the earth by flood. It might foreshadow the plagues to come…Or it might just be the creative way God chose to draw Moses near to him.
Either way, God calls out of the bush, “Moses, Moses,” and Moses replies, “Here I am.” Moses replies in perfect prophetic fashion. When you hear God speaking, you want to reply like he did. “Here am I,” meaning, “At your service, or what is it?”
God says, “Come no closer! Remove your sandals for the place you stand is holy.”
The noun “holy” appears here for the first time in the Bible. God marks off this place as sacred. His presence makes the ground holy. This spot is not mundane; it’s remarkable because God is here.
God commands Moses to take off his sandals. He may consider the leather sandals Moses wears impure because they are made from dead animal skins, or maybe God wanted a show of submission and humility from Moses. In the future the priests ministering in God’s presence will do so with bare feet.
Moses takes his sandals off and God declares who he is. He says, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” God declares he’s the God of Moses’ earthly father, and the God of the covenant people Abraham and all of his descendants.
At this, Moses hides his face. He fears contact with the God of his people.
God continues to speak and tells Moses that he is a God of action. He observes the misery of his people. He hears their cries because of their slave masters. He knows their suffering. God declares, “I have come down from heaven to deliver them.” He promises to lead the people out of Egypt and into the land of Canaan.
It is a land flowing with milk and honey. It’s a land of plenty – able to support the flocks and herds of God’s people.
This is great news for Moses and everything goes along swimmingly until God says, “Go, I send you to Pharaoh to bring my people out of Egypt.” The promises of God are glorious and inviting until God lets Moses know he is the instrument God will use to carry out his plan.
40 years prior, Moses gave a lame attempt to provide justice for one slave. It ended with Moses committing murder and fleeing into exile. Now God asks Moses to revisit his failure and be his instrument for the liberation for God’s people – over 1 million souls.
The correct response to God’s call to action found throughout the Bible is, “Here am I.” Instead, Moses says, “Who am I? Who am I that I should do this?”
He replies with Minnesotian humility and even outright evasion. “Who am I” he says, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and liberate the Israelites?”
Moses sees himself doubly unfit for the task. He’s not qualified to appear before the Pharaoh, and he’s unfit before God to do such a deed. Moses is right on both counts. He’s not special in the Pharaoh’s eyes, and he’s not special in God’s eyes except that God choses him to be his instrument of liberation.
I wonder if we respond in similar ways to God’s command of our lives. He probably doesn’t call us to liberate an enslaved people, but what does God ask us to do as his followers?
What is his general command to us all? What is his specific call on our life? If we know, do we respond with “Who am I?” or do we reply, “Here am I. I’m available for whatever you ask...even if it’s really scary and seemingly doomed to failure.”
God doesn’t want Moses’ ability, he wants his availability. So he redirects Moses’ attention from his own life to God’s existence. He says, “I will be with you.” The question is not who you are, but who I am and I will be with you.”
Moses again tries to wiggle out of his call. He says, “If I come to the Israelites and say the God of your ancestors has sent me to you and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ what shall I say to them?”
He basically says, “OK, God, you are with me, but who are you? What is your name?”
God says, “Ehyeh’ ser ehyeh.” I am who I am. God gives Moses his name.
The significance of God giving Moses his name cannot be overstated. At the time, to know a name, was not just to know the letters that signified the person’s identity. It was to have some influence with the person being named.
Moses can invoke the name of God and in so doing, address God – bringing his identity to bear in whatever circumstance he’s in.
God entrusts Moses with his name, and it’s a mighty trust. God’s name is dangerous if misused. That’s why one of the 10 Commandments is, “Do not take the Lord’s name in vain.” Don’t use God’s name without purpose, flippantly, or abusively.
But what is this name God gives Moses? “I will be who I will be.” God identifies himself as a verb – a double verb of being. It’s such a mysterious name that it’s been translated a dozen ways.
“I can be and can do anything. I am the existing one. I am because I am. I am that I am.” Or, most prolifically, I am who and what, and where and when, and how and even why you will discover I am” (Mettinger).
The vagueness of God’s most holy name conveys infinite potentiality even as it conceals information. “I am that I am,” but in some way Moses must know and we must know that God says, “I am for you.”
Conclusion:
I encourage you to reflect on this story this week. Let this story get into you and have its impact.
Do we draw near to the mystery and wonder of God, or do we run? He doesn’t send burning bushes all the time, but the evidence of his active life surrounds us.
Think about God’s identity as an active God. Mull over his mysterious name. Consider God’s desire not necessarily for your ability, but for your availability to him.
Monday, January 5, 2009
January 4, 2009 Matthew 2:1-12
Matthew 2:1-12 "Wise Men" 1-4-09
If I tell you I’ve had an epiphany, what do I mean?
I’ve had a sudden intuitive insight into the essential meaning of something. Revelation struck me and I saw something appeared clearly for the first time.
Epiphany can also refer to the appearance or manifestation of something or someone. Today, we begin celebrating the season of the Epiphany of Jesus Christ. We contemplate the revelatory appearance of Christ and look forward to the day when he appears again.
This season begins by watching the Magi meet the Messiah. The text of this story is Matthew 2:1-12 on page xxx of your pew Bible.
Text:
In the time of King Herod, after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, asking, "Where is the child who has been born king of the Jews? For we observed his star at its rising, and have come to pay him homage."
When King Herod heard this, he was frightened, and all Jerusalem with him; and calling together all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Messiah was to be born.
They told him, "In Bethlehem of Judea; for so it has been written by the prophet: 'And you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for from you shall come a ruler who is to shepherd my people Israel.'"
Then Herod secretly called for the wise men and learned from them the exact time when the star had appeared. Then he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, "Go and search diligently for the child; and when you have found him, bring me word so that I may also go and pay him homage."
When they had heard the king, they set out; and there, ahead of them, went the star that they had seen at its rising, until it stopped over the place where the child was.
When they saw that the star had stopped, they were overwhelmed with joy. On entering the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother; and they knelt down and paid him homage.
Then, opening their treasure chests, they offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they left for their own country by another road.
Our plan for the morning is to walk through this story together and then look carefully at the wise men in order to learn lessons about Jesus and his epiphany – his appearance to the Magi and to us.
Matthew’s account of Christ’s birth begins with a minor but interesting historical problem. He writes, “In the time of King Herod, after Jesus was born…” Now, this seems pretty innocuous, but we know with certainty that King Herod died in 4 B.C. Four years before our calendar marks Christ’s birth Herod dies, but our text says Jesus was born during his rule. What’s going on here?
The calendar used at the time marked its first year as the year Rome was founded. It’d be like us changing our calendars to year 1 when we founded the United States of America. In this system the year today would be 232.
In the 6th Century Dionysius Exiguus moved year 1 of the calendar to the birth of Christ. Unfortunately, he goofed up and missed the event by roughly 6 years, so by our current calendar, Christ was born in 6 B.C.
Now it really doesn’t matter when Christ was born, but that he was born. However, the significance of this time shift relates to a possible explanation of the star which leads wise men from the East to Jerusalem in search of the King of the Jews.
These men most likely came from Babylonia which is modern day Iraq. We call them wise men, but the text labels them precisely. They’re “Magoi” or Magi. They’re magicians, mystics, and astrologers. They look for answers to life by examining the heavens.
In this story they seek the meaning behind a particular astronomical happening. We hear them asking around the city, “Where is the child who has been born King of the Jews? For we observed his star at its rising, and have come to pay him homage.”
We’ve heard these words countless times during the Christmas season. Maybe you’ve heard a child say them in a nativity play. We need to hear them again for the first time to notice their strangeness.
The Magi aren’t Jews waiting for a Messiah and they don’t know for sure if anyone significant has been born, but they saw a star as it rose above the horizon that enables them to say “The King of the Jews has been born. Where is he?”
How can they know this? One plausible explanation comes from an interesting explanation of the heavenly light they inquire about.
In the year 6 B.C. – the year Christ was most likely born – Saturn and Jupiter aligned in the sky forming one light. At that time people called Jupiter the “King Star” and Saturn the “Sabbath Star.” The combination – the coming together of – the “King Star” and the “Sabbath Star” leads the Magi to conclude that a king of the “Sabbath People” – the King of the Jewish people has been born. They come to the Jewish capital to find him and to honor this newborn king.
When Herod hears about these Magi asking around the city about the birth of a Jewish King he freaks out as only Herod can.
Herod, an Arab Jew, rules over the area on behalf of Rome. He loves his power. He jealously guards his position of being in charge.
Previously he killed three of his sons in order to retain the crown on his head. So when Herod hears these mysterious travelers from the East asking about the birth of the “King of the Jews” his core value – power over others – is threatened.
All Jerusalem is frightened as well because they don’t know how Herod will respond to the potential birth of another king.
Herod summons the theologians and the clergy to ask them where the Messiah will be born. They tell him the Biblical prophecy of Micah 5:2. The Savior will be born in Bethlehem.
This prompts Herod to meet secretly with the wise men and he sends them to Bethlehem with instructions, “Search for the child; and when you’ve found him, let me know so that I can also go and pay him homage.”
There’s something fishy about Herod’s instructions. Bethlehem rests 10 kilometers from Jerusalem. In a 2 hour walk Herod could find the child and honor him personally, yet he sends emissaries instead. Also, Herod refers to the one born as a “child” not as the “Messiah” and certainly not the “King of the Jews.”
Even now Herod has murder in his heart. He knows, “If Jesus is king, I can’t be king.”
Herod responds like everyone who rejects Jesus as Lord of their lives, “If Jesus is king then I can’t be king. If Jesus is king of my life then I am no longer king of my life. If Jesus rules my life, then I no longer rule my life. I simply cannot have anyone taking my godlike independence and self-determination from me.”
The wise men set out for Bethlehem and as they go they see the star again, and it leads them to the infant Savior. It’s interesting to know that Jupiter and Saturn united three times in 6 B.C. – on May 29th, October 1st, and December 5th. This event usually happens once every 20 years, but when Jesus was born, it happened three times in one year.
The wise men find Jesus, and in Eastern tradition they bow down before the baby with their heads touching the dust of the floor in submission to him. They offer Jesus precious gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh.
After honoring Jesus and giving him their best gifts, the Magi experience great joy. The text literally says, “they rejoiced with a great joy exceedingly.” After directed in a dream to return east by another route, the Magi return home.
So this is our story. Let’s spend the rest of our time looking closely at the preposterous presence of the Magi in this birth narrative. We’re so accustomed to hearing about them that we no longer realize the scandal of their inclusion.
The Magi linked the study of the stars – astronomy – with the study of the message in the stars – astrology. They believed that humanity dwells in a magnetic-symbiotic relationship with the macrocosm of the heavenly bodies.
So if Babylonia had a daily newspaper, these men wrote the horoscope. They’re the psychics, palm readers, and fortune tellers of our day. They’re the new agers of our time.
The religious establishment rightly opposed them. Rabbis believed God rescued Israel from the astrologers and any power the power the stars might have to direct human life. They so despised astrological teaching and the Magi that one Rabbi of the time wrote, “He who learns from a magi is worthy of death.”
How do these quack astrologers find their way to the infant Jesus and into our Christmas pageants? Their presence must be a historical fact because no writer of Jesus’ life would ever make them up. They’re the fly in the ointment of Jesus’ birth.
Or are they?
What does their presence tell us?
The Magi provide a foretaste of the kind of people attracted to Jesus. The people who loved Jesus naturally were prostitutes, tax collectors on the graft, despised soldiers, a Samaritan adulterer, ostracized lepers, and other sick people.
Jesus walked around with a motley crew in his wake.
The Magi reveal the “mixed bag” nature of every person who has not received Christ’s epiphany. They’re good creationally because God made them, but they’re bad characteristically because of sin. They’re good as bearers of the image of God, but bad spiritually because they remain separated from Him through rebellion. Bruner, 56.
The inclusion of the Magi in this birth narrative throws open wide the gates of the good news of Jesus Christ. It’s for everyone! God’s promise to Abraham that all people would be blessed through him comes to fulfillment in Christ as all people are welcome to receive of him when he appears to them.
The Magi are the first to reveal the truth that Hosea’s prophecy (2:23) is fulfilled in Christ. God says through his prophet, “I will show love to those who were called “unloved,” and to those who were called “Not-My People,” I will say, “You are my people,” and they will answer, “You are our God.”
God desires everyone to receive the epiphany of Christ. God wants everyone to have Christ revealed to them. He wants his son to appear to everyone.
The Magi didn’t have the answers – in fact they had tons of wrong answers – but God chose to appear to them. God chooses to give his Epiphany to the despised astrologers of Christ’s day.
This story tells us we can be critical of doctrines we don’t believe, but we must be careful how we treat people we disagree with.
How do we respond to people we disagree with. Do we fight them or do we invite them to see Jesus in the Bible, our community, and our lives?
Who does our community attract? Does our fellowship here attract the kind of people attracted to Jesus? Do we attract the motley crew that followed Jesus? Do mixed bag people find Jesus here? Paul calls us the body of Christ. Does this body appeal to the sick, misinformed, and ostracized people of our day? Do those who are not God’s people become God’s people here?
Are the Magi welcome here?
Conclusion
We must avoid Herod’s mistake of jealously guarding his power to rule and direct his own life and the lives of others. We can lay down our control and be ruled by our merciful God. Abundant joy awaits those who do.
This story reveals Jesus as the savior of all people. No one need shrink from his presence. He’s available to all. Even if our motives are mixed and our lives are messed up, when he appears, we can worship him and receive him as Savior and Lord.
We can also endeavor to be a community welcoming to those we disagree with and those who most need the epiphany of Jesus Christ. If God has his way, Jesus will appear to them and they will be changed.
If I tell you I’ve had an epiphany, what do I mean?
I’ve had a sudden intuitive insight into the essential meaning of something. Revelation struck me and I saw something appeared clearly for the first time.
Epiphany can also refer to the appearance or manifestation of something or someone. Today, we begin celebrating the season of the Epiphany of Jesus Christ. We contemplate the revelatory appearance of Christ and look forward to the day when he appears again.
This season begins by watching the Magi meet the Messiah. The text of this story is Matthew 2:1-12 on page xxx of your pew Bible.
Text:
In the time of King Herod, after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, asking, "Where is the child who has been born king of the Jews? For we observed his star at its rising, and have come to pay him homage."
When King Herod heard this, he was frightened, and all Jerusalem with him; and calling together all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Messiah was to be born.
They told him, "In Bethlehem of Judea; for so it has been written by the prophet: 'And you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for from you shall come a ruler who is to shepherd my people Israel.'"
Then Herod secretly called for the wise men and learned from them the exact time when the star had appeared. Then he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, "Go and search diligently for the child; and when you have found him, bring me word so that I may also go and pay him homage."
When they had heard the king, they set out; and there, ahead of them, went the star that they had seen at its rising, until it stopped over the place where the child was.
When they saw that the star had stopped, they were overwhelmed with joy. On entering the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother; and they knelt down and paid him homage.
Then, opening their treasure chests, they offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they left for their own country by another road.
Our plan for the morning is to walk through this story together and then look carefully at the wise men in order to learn lessons about Jesus and his epiphany – his appearance to the Magi and to us.
Matthew’s account of Christ’s birth begins with a minor but interesting historical problem. He writes, “In the time of King Herod, after Jesus was born…” Now, this seems pretty innocuous, but we know with certainty that King Herod died in 4 B.C. Four years before our calendar marks Christ’s birth Herod dies, but our text says Jesus was born during his rule. What’s going on here?
The calendar used at the time marked its first year as the year Rome was founded. It’d be like us changing our calendars to year 1 when we founded the United States of America. In this system the year today would be 232.
In the 6th Century Dionysius Exiguus moved year 1 of the calendar to the birth of Christ. Unfortunately, he goofed up and missed the event by roughly 6 years, so by our current calendar, Christ was born in 6 B.C.
Now it really doesn’t matter when Christ was born, but that he was born. However, the significance of this time shift relates to a possible explanation of the star which leads wise men from the East to Jerusalem in search of the King of the Jews.
These men most likely came from Babylonia which is modern day Iraq. We call them wise men, but the text labels them precisely. They’re “Magoi” or Magi. They’re magicians, mystics, and astrologers. They look for answers to life by examining the heavens.
In this story they seek the meaning behind a particular astronomical happening. We hear them asking around the city, “Where is the child who has been born King of the Jews? For we observed his star at its rising, and have come to pay him homage.”
We’ve heard these words countless times during the Christmas season. Maybe you’ve heard a child say them in a nativity play. We need to hear them again for the first time to notice their strangeness.
The Magi aren’t Jews waiting for a Messiah and they don’t know for sure if anyone significant has been born, but they saw a star as it rose above the horizon that enables them to say “The King of the Jews has been born. Where is he?”
How can they know this? One plausible explanation comes from an interesting explanation of the heavenly light they inquire about.
In the year 6 B.C. – the year Christ was most likely born – Saturn and Jupiter aligned in the sky forming one light. At that time people called Jupiter the “King Star” and Saturn the “Sabbath Star.” The combination – the coming together of – the “King Star” and the “Sabbath Star” leads the Magi to conclude that a king of the “Sabbath People” – the King of the Jewish people has been born. They come to the Jewish capital to find him and to honor this newborn king.
When Herod hears about these Magi asking around the city about the birth of a Jewish King he freaks out as only Herod can.
Herod, an Arab Jew, rules over the area on behalf of Rome. He loves his power. He jealously guards his position of being in charge.
Previously he killed three of his sons in order to retain the crown on his head. So when Herod hears these mysterious travelers from the East asking about the birth of the “King of the Jews” his core value – power over others – is threatened.
All Jerusalem is frightened as well because they don’t know how Herod will respond to the potential birth of another king.
Herod summons the theologians and the clergy to ask them where the Messiah will be born. They tell him the Biblical prophecy of Micah 5:2. The Savior will be born in Bethlehem.
This prompts Herod to meet secretly with the wise men and he sends them to Bethlehem with instructions, “Search for the child; and when you’ve found him, let me know so that I can also go and pay him homage.”
There’s something fishy about Herod’s instructions. Bethlehem rests 10 kilometers from Jerusalem. In a 2 hour walk Herod could find the child and honor him personally, yet he sends emissaries instead. Also, Herod refers to the one born as a “child” not as the “Messiah” and certainly not the “King of the Jews.”
Even now Herod has murder in his heart. He knows, “If Jesus is king, I can’t be king.”
Herod responds like everyone who rejects Jesus as Lord of their lives, “If Jesus is king then I can’t be king. If Jesus is king of my life then I am no longer king of my life. If Jesus rules my life, then I no longer rule my life. I simply cannot have anyone taking my godlike independence and self-determination from me.”
The wise men set out for Bethlehem and as they go they see the star again, and it leads them to the infant Savior. It’s interesting to know that Jupiter and Saturn united three times in 6 B.C. – on May 29th, October 1st, and December 5th. This event usually happens once every 20 years, but when Jesus was born, it happened three times in one year.
The wise men find Jesus, and in Eastern tradition they bow down before the baby with their heads touching the dust of the floor in submission to him. They offer Jesus precious gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh.
After honoring Jesus and giving him their best gifts, the Magi experience great joy. The text literally says, “they rejoiced with a great joy exceedingly.” After directed in a dream to return east by another route, the Magi return home.
So this is our story. Let’s spend the rest of our time looking closely at the preposterous presence of the Magi in this birth narrative. We’re so accustomed to hearing about them that we no longer realize the scandal of their inclusion.
The Magi linked the study of the stars – astronomy – with the study of the message in the stars – astrology. They believed that humanity dwells in a magnetic-symbiotic relationship with the macrocosm of the heavenly bodies.
So if Babylonia had a daily newspaper, these men wrote the horoscope. They’re the psychics, palm readers, and fortune tellers of our day. They’re the new agers of our time.
The religious establishment rightly opposed them. Rabbis believed God rescued Israel from the astrologers and any power the power the stars might have to direct human life. They so despised astrological teaching and the Magi that one Rabbi of the time wrote, “He who learns from a magi is worthy of death.”
How do these quack astrologers find their way to the infant Jesus and into our Christmas pageants? Their presence must be a historical fact because no writer of Jesus’ life would ever make them up. They’re the fly in the ointment of Jesus’ birth.
Or are they?
What does their presence tell us?
The Magi provide a foretaste of the kind of people attracted to Jesus. The people who loved Jesus naturally were prostitutes, tax collectors on the graft, despised soldiers, a Samaritan adulterer, ostracized lepers, and other sick people.
Jesus walked around with a motley crew in his wake.
The Magi reveal the “mixed bag” nature of every person who has not received Christ’s epiphany. They’re good creationally because God made them, but they’re bad characteristically because of sin. They’re good as bearers of the image of God, but bad spiritually because they remain separated from Him through rebellion. Bruner, 56.
The inclusion of the Magi in this birth narrative throws open wide the gates of the good news of Jesus Christ. It’s for everyone! God’s promise to Abraham that all people would be blessed through him comes to fulfillment in Christ as all people are welcome to receive of him when he appears to them.
The Magi are the first to reveal the truth that Hosea’s prophecy (2:23) is fulfilled in Christ. God says through his prophet, “I will show love to those who were called “unloved,” and to those who were called “Not-My People,” I will say, “You are my people,” and they will answer, “You are our God.”
God desires everyone to receive the epiphany of Christ. God wants everyone to have Christ revealed to them. He wants his son to appear to everyone.
The Magi didn’t have the answers – in fact they had tons of wrong answers – but God chose to appear to them. God chooses to give his Epiphany to the despised astrologers of Christ’s day.
This story tells us we can be critical of doctrines we don’t believe, but we must be careful how we treat people we disagree with.
How do we respond to people we disagree with. Do we fight them or do we invite them to see Jesus in the Bible, our community, and our lives?
Who does our community attract? Does our fellowship here attract the kind of people attracted to Jesus? Do we attract the motley crew that followed Jesus? Do mixed bag people find Jesus here? Paul calls us the body of Christ. Does this body appeal to the sick, misinformed, and ostracized people of our day? Do those who are not God’s people become God’s people here?
Are the Magi welcome here?
Conclusion
We must avoid Herod’s mistake of jealously guarding his power to rule and direct his own life and the lives of others. We can lay down our control and be ruled by our merciful God. Abundant joy awaits those who do.
This story reveals Jesus as the savior of all people. No one need shrink from his presence. He’s available to all. Even if our motives are mixed and our lives are messed up, when he appears, we can worship him and receive him as Savior and Lord.
We can also endeavor to be a community welcoming to those we disagree with and those who most need the epiphany of Jesus Christ. If God has his way, Jesus will appear to them and they will be changed.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)