Matthew 2:13-23
December 26th, 2010
This passage always, always, always makes me stop and ask the question: Why is it again that I think the bible is such a great book? Just to review this story: Jesus birth, that wonderful moment we all just celebrated with candle light service, time with family and friends, gifts and wonderful, warm, comfort food, is the direct cause of the slaughter of innocent children in the town of Bethlehem. It’s not the ending to the Christmas story we want. Herod hears that this child is born and is called King of the Jews – and that’s Herod’s title. Herod was not the sort to take kindly to such challenges. So, lacking complete information on Jesus’ whereabouts – and apparently lacking the patience to collect complete information – he just has all the children under age 2 in Bethlehem killed.
Jesus escapes, which might seem like a redeeming aspect to the story, but Jesus is saved because God is protecting Jesus. Joseph receives divine guidance and gets Jesus out of there to Egypt where he remains until the threat – namely, Herod – is gone. Which is all well and good, but there’s no way to not wonder why God wouldn’t save all the other innocent children. Surely their deaths cannot be a part of God’s plan, or even a plot thickener in the story of God-with-us.
And of course, this passage is only the tip of a disconcerting scriptural iceberg. We have God acting in all sorts of unsettling ways in our scriptures. Punishing people by sending in foreign armies to kill them and take their homeland; throwing people into the outer darkness and unquenchable fire; cutting people out of the kingdom of God; hardening people’s hearts so they can’t change their ways even if they want to; and the list goes on and on. It’s all there in the bible. And I ask myself (and maybe you even ask yourself) does the bible deserve such an exalted place in our lives?
So, in the spirit of all the top 10 lists done at the close of every year, this morning I offer my top 10 reasons that reading the bible is still a good idea.
# 10: The bible is a book for outsiders. History is generally written by the winners for the winners. Society rewards those who fit in and play by the rules and punishes those who are different. There are plenty of good things going on for people who already have much – who already fit in. This is a book that offers good news for the poor, the outcast, the weighed down and heavy burdened. Even though I am not always a part of this group, I cherish the fact that our scriptures are not written solely for the winners.
#9: When I realize that I am often the insider, I get to laugh at myself. Even though the bible is written for outsiders, all is not lost for those of us on the inside. We are given, at every turn, a chance to get on board, join the parade and follow Jesus. And along the way, through the stories, we get to look honestly at ourselves and laugh because we so often get things wrong. So many times the disciples think they’ve got it all figured out only to find out they are missing the point. Jokes are made at their expense all through the gospels, and as we laugh at them, we get to laugh at ourselves.
#8: Even though I’m created in the image of the divine…there are times I’m an ego-centric, self-delusional, self-centered, rationalizing fool.
When these difficult passages come up in the lectionary, my first impulse is to ignore them, avoid them, rationalize them, or move on to something more palatable. But, when I claim this whole book as my scripture, I am claiming something outside of myself, outside of my own agenda and ego, as an authority for my life. That is a good thing. We Americans seem to value being our own authority – being independent and having the right to do anything we want as long as it doesn’t impinge on other people’s rights. But I think there is great value in submitting to an authority other than ourselves.
Obviously this is only a good thing if we are submitting to a credible, transcendent authority – not an earthly one who will be, at times, an ego-centric, self-delusional- self-centered, rationalizing fool. It really matters who or what you choose, and we have chosen to trust God, as known through the life of Jesus, as attested to in the scriptures. The scriptures aren’t perfect – they are not the ultimate authority, but they help get us outside ourselves, they help point us to a credible authority that transcends our agendas – to God. Because I believe this, I have decided to give the scriptures the benefit of the doubt, to grant them some credibility and authority even when they rub me the wrong way or challenge deeply held beliefs. And as a sometimes ego-centric, self-delusional, self-centered, rationalizing fool, if I’m going to grow in my faith and understanding I need something outside myself guiding me from time to time.
#7: The scandal of the incarnation
One of the most compelling things to me about the Christmas story is the concept of incarnation: God becoming evident, even present, in human beings: taking on our flesh and blood, our strength and frailty. And the incarnation includes being present in the rest of creation as well. It’s God here, pulling us, shaping us and creation toward the realm of God. This not only matches what I know of my own experience of the divine, it informs how I see the world. When I connect with that divine presence in me and all around and in others and in nature, it affects how I act, what I do. And when I participate in the divine movement, I find in those moments great fulfillment. At the center of our scared story is the incarnation and that is a beautiful thing.
#6: The bible is a story of unrelenting hope: In one of the most famous Monty Python scenes, in the movie, “Monty Python and the Holy Grail,” King Arthur comes across a knight who refuses to let him pass a bridge. A duel ensues and with every blow Arthur levies against the knight, the knight never acknowledges defeat. After one arm is cut off, he claims it is but a scratch. When the second arm comes off he says it’s just a flesh wound and wonders why King Arthur thinks he has prevailed. In the end, after losing all his limbs and with King Arthur securely on the bridge, the knight suggests they should call it a draw. The humor is found, of course, in the irrational, ridiculous, over-confidence of the knight.
There is a strand of unrelenting hope and confidence in the story of the Hebrew people and the Christians that followed even though at times it seems almost irrational. But rather than inviting mockery or being humorous, it is downright inspiring. This is because the confidence is not in themselves, but in God. This little kingdom of Judah is defeated time and time again, the Jewish people lose their homeland never to get it back, the early Christians are persecuted , yet our scriptures are full of declarations of hope and confidence in God’s love, grace and promise of new life.
My friend often reminds me that the arc of history is bending toward justice. The people in the bible remind us that the hope found in the big picture: it’s not about just them, it’s not about just us, it’s about the possibilities God offers, even in those most difficult moments. Maybe not possibilities we will see, but possibilities in the larger story of human kind. And that story unrelentingly bends toward God’s justice and grace.
5: The bible gives us a common language and story with other Christians. Even though we might disagree on meaning, it is the starting place for Christians all over the world. Engaging the bible makes us a part of a community. We are in conversation with the bible, and so we join a conversation going on among Christians everywhere.
I am not one to claim that everyone should be Christian. I do not believe in converting people of other faiths to mine. But the only time I get a little evangelical is in thinking there is great value to being a part of some major religion. There is value, I believe, in sharing a story with others and walking together on the journey of life as we dialogue with our shared story and each other. Maybe that sacred story for some is the provable, scientific truths they know and discover – and that is what they are constantly in conversation with because surely even the scientific conversation is not over…the questions are not all answered. The same is true for us, for Muslims, for Jews, Buddhists, and on and on. We go back to our sacred texts time and time again because the conversation is not over. And sharing a common story, a common language enriches that conversation in immeasurable ways.
#4: This text has the ability to challenge power and seemingly intractable systems that distort and destroy creation and human beings. Throughout history, the scriptures have been the inspiration for people to challenge and upset major power system – and it has worked! This story about underdogs and outsiders has been the basis for major social change and the inspiration for people that look like they have little power standing up and speaking truth to power and even changing the hearts and minds of those in power.
#3: The bible has inexhaustible insight, and it’s relevant for all stages of faith/maturity as well as at all times in history. Somehow the bible speaks to us at different times of our lives in different ways. We say these scriptures live, that the Holy Spirit is at work bringing them to life today – in all contexts. This means we will never stop learning because our world will never stop changing. As we age, our ability to understand expands, and with that so does our understanding of the bible. We read the passages over and over and we see things we didn’t see before; our faith grows deeper and deeper as we continue to engage the bible throughout our lives.
#2: It’s radical! I am someone who tends toward the conventional. What I love about the bible is that it pushes me to be more radical. It pushes me to live more for others than for my own comfort. It pushes me to see things in new, startling ways, and in the end I am always happy about that – in the end, it always draws me closer to God.
#1: The bible is a witness to how human beings tried to make meaning of the world around them – just as humans have done throughout history – just as we do today. Which takes us back to our passage today. There is enough supporting evidence outside the bible to hypothesize that this passage about the slaughtering of innocent children was based on a real, live event. And surely that event seemed meaningless in the moment. And so Matthew adds things to the story in order to make sense of it, in order to tell people what he thinks God is up to even in the midst of horrific events. And he thinks it would make sense if everything that happened fulfilled prophesies he knew from his own faith tradition. Three times he tells us that what happened – the killing of all the babies and the survival of Jesus – was to fulfill all the prophets said. We may or may not agree with how Matthew makes sense of this, but it’s inspiring to me that humans seek meaning and seek God even in the midst of life’s most terrible events.
We seem built to seek meaning – to seek transcendence. And the bible is a mirror for us of what it means to be human and searching for meaning and for God. Sometimes it shows the best of human beings as they do this, and sometimes the not-so-great parts of human beings. But as a mirror, it provides us both insight into who we are, and a guide that many times helps us stumble onto meaning in our own day and age.
I admit there have been times in my life when I was ready to give up completely on the bible. But that never lasts too long. There is just too much about this book, too much about this sacred story, that has spoken to me over the years…resonated with me and my experience…transformed me and deepened my understanding of God…changed me to be more oriented to the world and the need for justice and grace…there’s just too much to give up completely. I take it all, the clear, the complex, the good, the bad and the ugly. In fact, because that’s all there, that’s what makes it sacred. Amen.
