Christmas Is Not
Your Birthday: 3. Scandalous Love
The Church of the Wayfarer
Norm Mowery, Pastor
December 15, 2013
Luke 1:46-49
On
Monday morning Linda and I woke up at 1:00 a.m. to watch the funeral service
for Nelson Mandela.
They gathered in
the tens of thousands—presidents, prime ministers, royals, celebrities and
ordinary South Africans—all united to say farewell to a man hailed as a global
symbol of reconciliation.
In what has been billed as one of the
largest gatherings of world leaders in recent history, representatives from
around the world joined street sweepers, actors and religious figures to pay
tribute to Nelson Mandela.
I
was moved with emotion as I watched the world come together—what an amazing
celebration of a special life.
All
because one person was able to put the past behind.
All
because a country could move forward.
All
so that the world could reflect on the ideals of what is right with humankind.
I
kept asking as I heard speech after speech how Mandela and the whole country of
South Africa could put the past behind in such a short period of time.
I
think that it was what could be called Scandalous Love that made it
possible.
Christmas
is the anticipated time of year when family members gather to celebrate the
best of what we hold dear in our relationships.
Yet,
for some, it can also represent the ominous presence of past hurts and even
current relationship pain, making Christmas depressing or lonely.
The church that Bob and Sandy Young
attended in Camarillo will offer a “Blue Christmas Service”. The service is
designed for those experiencing the “blues” for whatever reason this season.
Christmas joy may be impossible
because of events such as illness, sudden death of a loved one, or the burden
of caring for a loved one, the loss of a job, financial difficulties, strained
family relations, that are at odds with bright lights and happy carol singing.
For some people, Christmas may simply
bring up memories of a difficult and troubled past. Perhaps a spouse, child, or
parents are away in military service.
It
is okay to not pretend that
everything is okay.
It is okay to not put on a happy face to sing.
Sometimes it’s better to acknowledge
reality, and that helps to make room for a little joy.
Christmas
is the heralding of God who comes to be with us.
God
is the one who pursues.
What
God wants from us, for Jesus’s birthday and every day, is love.
When We Stray
One
of the most passionate illustrations of God’s love affair with humanity is
found in the book of Hosea—a little book tucked away in the back of the Hebrew
Scriptures. During Israel’s last days of growth and prosperity the Israelites
became lukewarm in their faith and strayed, as God’s people often do in
prosperous times and as we sometimes do.
Israel
had wandered from the Lord, who had brought them out of slavery. The prophet
Hosea says that despite Israel’s faithlessness, God remains faithful.
Hosea
says it this way,
“Go
and love your wife again,
even
though she commits adultery with another lover.
This
will illustrate that the Lord still loves Israel,
even
though the people have turned to other gods.”
Now
that is scandalous love!
I
have to be honest. This is beyond the scope of human imagination. I would be
tempted to walk away from an unfaithful relationship.
This
scandalous biblical account testifies to the outrageous, pursuing love of God
for a broken world.
That
is how much God loves us.
Even
though we turn and love something else more, just like a person who is
unfaithful in marriage, God will take us back.
Hosea
represents God’s relentless pursuing love. God loves us even while we remain
under the influence of unworthy lovers such as
greed,
selfishness,
addiction or deceit.
Trusting the Promise
Mary
had every reason to feel betrayed and abandoned by God just as a lover is
betrayed by an adulterer.
She
was a young teen, unmarried and pregnant. Imagine all of the layers of economic
and social complexity that such an incident would carry for a female
adolescent.
Don’t
forget the possible legal ramifications: death by stoning.
Luke
implies that Mary knew the humiliation that comes from poverty. The Greek word
used in Mary’s song to describe her life situation is tapainos, which means ‘humble.’
Mary
clung through all this confusion to the promise of God, and sang:
“My
soul glorifies the Lord
And
my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
For
he has been mindful
Of
the humble state of his servant.
From now on all generations will call me blessed,
For
the mighty one has done great things for me—holy is his name.
It
didn’t matter what anyone else would say about her condition. Mary hung onto
the promise of God, and responded with a song of boundless faith.
The
Christmas story exemplifies how God’s ways are not our ways.
Mary
trusted in God’s promise, knowing God’s scandalous way of working good out of
seemingly bad situations.
Some
of us haven’t been listening to the angel’s promise that, like Mary, you
are a favored child of God—that God is with you.
Rather,
we have been listening to a negative voice that tells us,
“You
have royally screwed up. You have disappointed God.
You
are not favored and God will never be with you.”
The
Bible contains the testimonials of innumerable people who failed. Like David,
in spite of his courageous faith committed adultery with a woman and had her
husband murdered.
What
a royal disaster!
But
who among us has not royally messed up?
God’s
scandalous love is what the message of Christmas is all about.
In
spite of our failures, God wants us and comes to bring us back.
Practicing Scandalous Love
When
Mary faced the shocking and confusing news of her virgin pregnancy, she
immediately sought out wise counsel from her older cousin Elizabeth. There is
no question that this young pregnant teen would be hit with plenty of criticism.
Mary
didn’t need negativity; she needed encouragement. The first words that this
confused young girl heard from her cousin’s mouth was and encouraging reminder:
“Blessed
are you among women, and blessed is the child you will bear!”
How
many miracles are aborted because of put-downs, sarcasm, and negativity?
We
cannot carry God’s miracles full-term, apart from the encouragement that comes
from being connected to a tight network of mature sisters and brothers of faith
who encourage us in God’s purpose.
Encouragement.
When
is the last time you encouraged a young person?
Earl
Harrison offered me encouragement on Friday as we played golf—and boy did I
need it!
We
were on hole #7 on the east course at Rancho Canada. It is a short par 3—only
110 yards. The problem is that the Carmel River is between the tee and the
green.
For
some reason the river psyches me out. My ball goes in every time.
In fact, I hit six in a row in the
river on Friday—one right after the other. They were brand new balls. Earl
didn’t even laugh. He just said, “Try it again, Norm.” I did. And I hit another
and another in the river.
God
not only offers encouragement but also forgiveness. When forgiveness is
offered, wandering people are drawn back home.
Jesus
came to earth as a tiny baby in humble, scandalous circumstances to restore broken
hearts. That is the love we celebrate at Christmas, and it is that kind of love
that we are called to show in return.
Christmas
is all about seeing what might be, instead of what is.
That’s what Elizabeth did when she
welcomed an unwed mother with joy. That’s
what Mary did when she rejoiced in God’s favor.
That’s what Jesus did when he entered
the world to save us and bring justice to the poor.
Many Grinches threaten to steal our joy
at Christmastime.
We think we are buying the right gift
for someone, but it receives a cool reception.
The rush of the season, long lines and
slow traffic replace our joy with frustration. (This week someone cut in front
of me. They had a Jesus sticker on their car. That made me even angrier!)
Some relatives try our patience.
After the season passes, unmet
expectations dampen our spirit, and the holiday blues move in.
More than we would like to admit, we allow the craziness of the Christmas season to be the Grinch that comes into our hearts to steal our joy.
The heart of the Christmas message can give you a new perspective. In essence, God says to you, “I have stepped into the world to bring you joy. That is why I sent Jesus. Circumstances and people may disappoint, but your joy can be filled in me.”
This is what the Christmas story is
all about.
Two themes begin to emerge in the
Gospel of Luke:
Servant hood and joy—the one
follows the other.
On this third Sunday of Advent, we are reminded that authentic Christian living requires service:
On this third Sunday of Advent, we are reminded that authentic Christian living requires service:
waiting
on others,
ministering
to the needy,
lifting
up the fallen.
Joy.
Joy.
It’s what Jesus came to earth to give us.
After receiving Elizabeth’s blessing, Mary bursts into a song of praise.
After receiving Elizabeth’s blessing, Mary bursts into a song of praise.
“My soul magnifies the Lord,” she says,
“and my
spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
for he has looked with favor on the lowliness of his
servant.”
God has “filled the hungry with good
things,” says Mary.
And there is the
key to Christmas joy.
The little-known secret of Christmas
is that our joy is full when we study and learn from
Mary as servant, God as servant, Jesus as servant,
and we become servants ourselves.
When we do, our joy will be full.
When we do, our joy will be full.
George Bernard Shaw said,
“This is the true joy in life,
the being used for a purpose recognized by yourself
as a mighty one:
the being thoroughly worn out before you are thrown
on the scrap heap,
and being a force of nature instead of a feverish,
selfish little clod of ailments and grievances,
complaining that the world will not devote itself to
making you happy.
It is because of the Scandalous love
of God that we can experience overflowing joy today.
Let’s sing: I have the Joy, Joy, Joy,
Joy down in my heart!
