Merry Christmas!

Advent and Resurrection

On the eighth day, when it was time to circumcise him, he was named Jesus, the name the angel had given him before he had been conceived. When the time of their purification according to the Law of Moses had been completed, Joseph and Mary took him to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord (as it is written in the Law of the Lord, "Every firstborn male is to be consecrated to the Lord"), and to offer a sacrifice in keeping with what is said in the Law of the Lord: "a pair of doves or two young pigeons." (Luke 2:21-24)

Taking Jesus' body, the two of them wrapped it, with the spices, in strips of linen. (John 19:40)

"Here is my servant, whom I uphold,
my chosen one in whom I delight;
I will put my Spirit on him
and he will bring justice to the nations." (Isaiah 42:1)

Now there was a man in Jerusalem called Simeon, who was righteous and devout. He was waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him. It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not die before he had seen the Lord's Christ. Moved by the Spirit, he went into the temple courts. When the parents brought in the child Jesus to do for him what the custom of the Law required, Simeon took him in his arms and praised God, saying: "Sovereign Lord, as you have promised, you now dismiss your servant in peace. For my eyes have seen your salvation, which you have prepared in the sight of all people, a light for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to your people Israel." (Luke 2:25-32)

So she [Mary] came running to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one Jesus loved, and said, "They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we don't know where they have put him!"
Finally the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went inside. He saw and believed. (They still did not understand from Scripture that Jesus had to rise from the dead.) (John 20:2, 8-9)

The child's father and mother marveled at what was said about him. Then Simeon blessed them and said to Mary, his mother: "This child is destined to cause the falling and rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be spoken against, so that the thoughts of many hearts will be revealed. And a sword will pierce your own soul too." (Luke 2:33-35)

"Woman," he said, "why are you crying? Who is it you are looking for?" (John 20:15)

"I, the LORD, have called you in righteousness;
I will take hold of your hand. I will keep you and will make you
to be a covenant for the people and a light for the Gentiles,
to open eyes that are blind, to free captives from prison and to release from the dungeon those who sit in darkness." (Isaiah 42:6-7)

There was also a prophetess, Anna, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She never left the temple but worshiped night and day, fasting and praying. Coming up to them at that very moment, she gave thanks to God and spoke about the child to all who were looking forward to the redemption of Jerusalem. (Luke 2:36-38)

Jesus said, "Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet returned to the Father. Go instead to my brothers and tell them, 'I am returning to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.'" (John 20:17)

When Joseph and Mary had done everything required by the Law of the Lord, they returned to Galilee to their own town of Nazareth. And the child grew and became strong; he was filled with wisdom, and the grace of God was upon him. (Luke 2:39-40)

Jesus came and stood among them and said, "Peace be with you!" After he said this, he showed them his hands and side. The disciples were overjoyed when they saw the Lord.
Again Jesus said, "Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you." And with that he breathed on them and said, "Receive the Holy Spirit. (John 20:19-22)

Therefore I will give him a portion among the great,
and he will divide the spoils with the strong,

because he poured out his life unto death,

and was numbered with the transgressors.

For he bore the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors. (Isaiah 53:12)

Christmas Reflections II

Here are two historical moments, pregnant with anticipation, hope, uncertainty, sorrow, and longing. The birth of a carpenter’s son, with the usual laws of nature disrupted by G-d himself, occurring on a quiet night in an ordinary town. And sacrificial death of that same child, complete with mock coronation, fulfillment of prophecy, and perfectly balanced paradox of a Servant King.

I imagine the universe inhaling, holding its breath in expectation, for each of these events. All of heavens hosts waiting to burst forth to the shepherds as soon as G-d let it be so, and the chill of that dark hour on the cross. When he breathed his last, It is finished, did creation slowly sigh, or silently weep for her King?

John answers a question from my last reflections: How much did Jesus know and when did He know it? Jesus, knowing all that was going to happen to him, went out and asked them, “Who is it you want?”

And, Jesus also gives us the reason for Christmas: For this reason I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. I am here for this very purpose, to take on the Father’s will, to be a guilt offering, to heal you through my very wounds.

Mary bookends the stories, not that she be exalted, but that by this essential human relationship, we remember our Savior’s full humanity, from his birth in a manger, to his death on a cross.

Preparation

In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world. And everyone went to his own town to register. (Luke 2:1, 3)

Jesus, knowing all that was going to happen to him, went out and asked them, "Who is it you want?"
"Jesus of Nazareth," they replied. “I am he," Jesus said. (John 18:4-5)
Then the detachment of soldiers with its commander and the Jewish officials arrested Jesus. They bound him and brought him first to Annas, who was the father-in-law of Caiaphas, the high priest that year. (John 18:12-13)

He was despised and rejected by men,
a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering.
Like one from whom men hide their faces he was despised,
and we esteemed him not. (Isaiah 53:3)

So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child. (Luke 2:4-5)

Pilate then went back inside the palace, summoned Jesus and asked him, "Are you the king of the Jews?"
Jesus said, "My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight to prevent my arrest by the Jews. But now my kingdom is from another place."
"You are a king, then!" said Pilate. Jesus answered, "You are right in saying I am a king. In fact, for this reason I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me." (John 18:33, 36-37)

While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn. (Luke 2:6-7)

He grew up before him like a tender shoot,
and like a root out of dry ground.
He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him,
nothing in his appearance that we should desire him. (Isaiah 53:2)

Then Pilate took Jesus and had him flogged. The soldiers twisted together a crown of thorns and put it on his head. They clothed him in a purple robe and went up to him again and again, saying, "Hail, king of the Jews!" And they struck him in the face. (John 19:1-3)

He was oppressed and afflicted,
yet he did not open his mouth;
he was led like a lamb to the slaughter,
and as a sheep before her shearers is silent,
so he did not open his mouth. (Isaiah 53:7)

And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger." (Luke 2:8-12)

Carrying his own cross, he went out to the place of the Skull (which in Aramaic is called Golgotha). Here they crucified him, and with him two others—one on each side and Jesus in the middle. Pilate had a notice prepared and fastened to the cross. It read: JESUS OF NAZARETH, THE KING OF THE JEWS. (John 19:17-19)

Yet it was the LORD's will to crush him and cause him to suffer,
and though the LORD makes his life a guilt offering, he will see his offspring and prolong his days, and the will of the LORD will prosper in his hand. (Isaiah 53:10)

Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests." When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, "Let's go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about." (Luke 2:13-15)

When Jesus saw his mother there, and the disciple whom he loved standing nearby, he said to his mother, "Dear woman, here is your son," and to the disciple, "Here is your mother." From that time on, this disciple took her into his home. (John 19:26-28)

So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told. (Luke 2:16-20)

Later, knowing that all was now completed, and so that the Scripture would be fulfilled, Jesus said, "I am thirsty." When he had received the drink, Jesus said, "It is finished." With that, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.

But when they came to Jesus and found that he was already dead, they did not break his legs. Instead, one of the soldiers pierced Jesus' side with a spear, bringing a sudden flow of blood and water. (John 19:30, 33-34)

But he was pierced for our transgressions,
he was crushed for our iniquities;
the punishment that brought us peace was upon him,
and by his wounds we are healed. (Isaiah 53:5)

Christmas Reflections I

I promised I'd record my reflections on the exercise of juxtaposing the Holy Birth narrative with the Passion.

My first reaction was the extraordinary amount of preparation necessary for Christ's coming. I firmly believe that this was G-d's plan from the beginning - this was not plan B. The momentum of all nature was moving towards this moment from before the dawn of time. The Birth of the Savior of the world took thousands of years of preparation; this is His Great Plan, yet how often do I expect immediate results in my own life? He is always perfect in His timing.

But the intention of the plan never ended in Bethlehem, and as I’ve read and reread John’s account of the Passion Week, I’m always curious as to how much Jesus knew and when he knew it. Calvin suggests that when Jesus knew that the time had come for him to leave this world and go to the Father (Jn. 13:1), “This should be noted carefully, for it refers to Christ’s knowledge that his death was a passing on to the heavenly kingdom of G-d.” Did he know this passing would come with a painful, albeit brief, separation?

I wonder what Mary thought, hearing the words of the angel in her memory, as she birthed her son in less than desirable conditions. This dichotomy permeates Christ’s life – the high, kingly priest contrast with the lowly, humble birth, life and death. The Servant King, meek and loving in his last days, serving his closest friends.

Regardless of how much or when He knew it, His purpose is clear. Zechariah’s testimony claims the history of G-d’s provision of salvation, and that Christ will enable us to serve him without fear in holiness and righteousness before him all our days. This verse does not allow me to be content with just “being saved.” This is engaging, participatory, and continues to carry the momentum of all creation towards the fulfillment of G-d’s purposes on this terrestrial sphere, and beyond.

Anticipation

This will be a series of Christmas posts, based on an exercise I did setting the story of the Holy Birth with the Passion of Christ, as well as some prophecies from Isaiah. I'll post the Scripture (NIV) now and my thoughts later. I've stuck with Luke for the Christmas account, and John for the trial, death and resurrection, and tried to stay in chronological order for both.
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But the angel said to him: "Do not be afraid, Zechariah; your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you are to give him the name John. Many of the people of Israel will he bring back to the Lord their God. And he will go on before the Lord, in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous—to make ready a people prepared for the Lord." (Luke 1:13, 16-17)

It was just before the Passover Feast. Jesus knew that the time had come for him to leave this world and go to the Father. Having loved his own who were in the world, he now showed them the full extent of his love. (John 13:1)

God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin's name was Mary. The angel went to her and said, "Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you."
Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. But the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God. You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end." (Luke 1:26-33)

Jesus knew that the Father had put all things under his power, and that he had come from God and was returning to God; so he got up from the meal, took off his outer clothing, and wrapped a towel around his waist. After that, he poured water into a basin and began to wash his disciples' feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped around him. (John 13:3-5)

The angel answered, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God. (Luke 1:35)

Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel. (Isaiah 7:14)

"Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me. In my Father's house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. You know the way to the place where I am going." (John 14:1-4)

And Mary said: "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. He has helped his servant Israel, remembering to be merciful to Abraham and his descendants forever, even as he said to our fathers." (Luke 1:46-48, 54-55)

After Jesus said this, he looked toward heaven and prayed: "Father, the time has come. Glorify your Son, that your Son may glorify you. For you granted him authority over all people that he might give eternal life to all those you have given him. Now this is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent. I have brought you glory on earth by completing the work you gave me to do. And now, Father, glorify me in your presence with the glory I had with you before the world began. (John 17:1-5)

His father Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied: "Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel, because he has come and has redeemed his people. He has raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David (as he said through his holy prophets of long ago), salvation from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us— to show mercy to our fathers and to remember his holy covenant, the oath he swore to our father Abraham: to rescue us from the hand of our enemies, and to enable us to serve him without fear in holiness and righteousness before him all our days. And you, my child, will be called a prophet of the Most High; for you will go on before the Lord to prepare the way for him, to give his people the knowledge of salvation through the forgiveness of their sins, because of the tender mercy of our God, by which the rising sun will come to us from heaven to shine on those living in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the path of peace." (Luke 1:67-79)

"Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am, and to see my glory, the glory you have given me because you loved me before the creation of the world. (John 17:24)

Prioritizing

There's nothing quite like the holidays that makes me set priorities. I've had to say "no" to quite a bit these past two weeks, including induldging myself in blog entries and comments. And, after two requests to open a bakery, I'm done with cookies. Seriously; I can take no more flour, sugar, frosting, eggs, etc. Neither can my middle. I'm only making 'real food' for the next two weeks, and trying to keep it healthy at that.

Work has slipped as a priority. Although it's been busy, my mind is distracted on friends going through hard times, conviction over my own stewardship with money and time, holiday parties, and determining whether my body just needs rest or a solid workout.

Advent is also lost in the cobwebs and shadows, pushed to the bottom of the growing list of things to do this weekend, just above posting to this blog. But that is the heart of this season, to stop, pause, take time, and remember the birth of our Lord. Yet every year it sneaks up faster, the lists get longer, there are dozens of cookies to bake, multiple functions to attend. All on top of everyday life -- grandparents passing, finals, waiting for test results, mourning and joy.

I am glad for some of the shifts I see in my priorities, and though I constantly fail to keep this as my first thought, I continue to seek rest in Him; to wait and anticipate His birth and return.

Hibernation

Lately I've felt like my brain is on 'slow.' I'm chalking this up to Old Man Winter and holiday bussle, not a bout of writer's block, though it might be a combination of the three. I started to feel this after Thanksgiving weekend, as I sat in my grey cubicle absently reading Slate and Jihad Watch in between the dull tasks that are my job. The feeling of brain cells dying is akin to that feeling you get when you sit through a really bad movie and you know you've just wasted two hours of your life that you can never have back.
Lately all my creativity is being poured into writing exercises that really don't fit in this forum, but I promise to come up with something worthwhile soon. Other than that, I'm kind of sick of baking cookies and I still haven't made my traditional holiday treats yet. And my guitar is finally tuned. Whew. That's helping me sleep better.