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12.27.09

1st Sunday after Christmas

IMAGE BREAKERS

MICAH 5:2-5a: LUKE 1:39-55

The Wonder of Christmas

Shattering Expectations

Christmas is all about seeing things differently, breaking traditional images, and getting outside the box

Mary’s visit to Elizabeth isn’t just a meeting between two pregnant women, it’s the introduction of a Messiah named Jesus to a prophet named John
The kick of an unborn child isn’t simply a sign of fetal vitality, it’s the muscle-flexing of John the Baptist leaping for joy

Mary’s unplanned pregnancy isn’t really a problem for her

It’s a reason to rejoice in the great things God is doing
And the child that Mary is carrying will be a mighty king, but not a traditional king in any sense of the word
He will be the Messiah God uses to bring down the powerful from their thrones and lift up the lowly

Christmas shatters our expectations and pushes us outside the box

It blows away our understandings of what usually happens when two women get together to support one another
It helps us to see things differently—to see a hug between Mary and Elizabeth as a meeting between Jesus and John, a kick in the belly as a fist-bump of recognition, a song of praise as a celebration of God’s ability to turn the world upside down

Iconoclasts

Christmas shatters the traditional images of what we think the world is all about

It attacks our traditional images, ideas and institutions
An image-breaker is the definition of the word “iconoclast,” and Christmas definitely shatters the icons of our culture
People who are image-breakers aren’t devoted to destruction
In fact, the work they do is usually quite creative and constructive
By shattering the icons of the past, they help to create a better future
Iconoclasts do what tradition-minded people say cannot be done, and they do it by seeing things differently

Elizabeth and Mary were both image-breakers because they saw things not for what they were but for what they might be

First century conventional wisdom would have trapped these women in the box of second-class citizenship, with the extra constraint of shame placed upon Mary because she was an unwed mother
But when Mary greets Elizabeth and John gives her a kick in the womb, Elizabeth exclaims, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. Why has this happened to me, that the mother of my Lord comes to me?”
With the help of the Holy Spirit, Elizabeth sees that God is breaking tradition and doing things differently by sending the Lord Jesus into the world through a young girl named Mary

Mary is also an image-breaker

Her simple knowledge of human biology tells her that what the angel Gabriel told her is impossible, yet she believes that with God, it is possible for her to have a baby without a human father
That takes faith that is beyond the conventional
Her response to this news is to simply accept what Gabriel said to her as possible with God, and to praise God for looking with favor upon her, even though she has done nothing to earn or deserve God’s attention
The gift of Jesus is a pure gift—all she has to do is accept it in faith and trust God to continue to work good in her life
“His mercy is for those who fear him, from generation to generation,” she sings, going on to predict how God will turn the world upside down—scattering the proud, bringing down the powerful, lifting up the lowly and feeding the hungry
She knows that God isn’t trapped by traditional ideas or institutions and that God will show favor to those who respect God—not on those who have the most power or possessions
God’s mercy is “for those who fear him”—not for those who have the biggest bank account

Breaking Into the World

The Prophecy of Micah

That God’s design was to shatter the expectations of the world is evident in the words of the prophet Micah

At no time did anyone ever expect a great king to come from such an insignificant little village as Bethlehem
Yet, that tiny village in such a remote part of the world became the place from which, not one but two, great kings would come
David was the first king to emerge from there, and of all the earthly kings to sit on Israel’s throne, David was, by far, the greatest
The nation of Israel flourished under the leadership of David like it had under no other king
Not even Solomon, with all his wisdom, was able to do for Israel what his father David did

The second great king to come from Bethlehem was Jesus Christ

It is this king of whom the prophet Micah speaks
This king, unlike the other rulers of Israel, will not be an earthly monarch
Instead, he will become the King of kings and Lord of lords
His kingdom will not be an earthly kingdom but a heavenly one because he will be the Savior of all the earth
Unlike Israel’s earthly rulers, who often exploited the poor and oppressed the weak, this King will shepherd God’s flock with the strength of the Lord, bringing security, justice and peace to all who are part of his flock

Shattering the Images of the World

So what could it mean for us to celebrate Christmas in such a way that we, too, work to break some of the traditional images that are part of our celebration of Christmas, and part of the normal routine of our daily living?

We all know what we’ll see this Christmas: presents, given and received, decorations, parties, visits from family members and friends
That’s the way it is
But Mary invites us to see things differently and to find true joy in the gift of God’s favor

God really loves us, and God’s affection has nothing to do with our education, our achievements, our job security, our bank account or our marital status

The surprising insight of Mary’s song is that God “has looked with favor on the lowliness of his servant.” (vs. 48)
She announces that God favors us in our lowliness, in our humility, in our simple willingness to lean on God
And that’s good news for all of us, especially in a year of economic turmoil, layoffs, investment losses and personal instability
When the world doesn’t seem to care, God favors us
When the future seems uncertain, God promises to do great things for us

How can we proclaim that message of hope, not only at Christmas, but every day of the year?

How can we work to shatter some of the images our culture clings to that perpetuate disappointment, despair and hopelessness for so many?
Mary’s words to us declare that Christmas cannot be limited to new insights into our personal relationship with God
It also has to include participation in what God is doing in the world
That means that we must enlist with Mary’s son, Jesus, to bring down the powerful from their thrones, lift up the lowly and fill the hungry with good things

There are any number of images that need to be broken, values of our culture that are contrary to the values of God, that we, as Christians, must work to overturn, not only at Christmas but each and every day that we live

Let me suggest several of them
By seeking to shatter those cultural images, we will do our part in making life better, not only for ourselves, but for those who are less fortunate
And by doing so, we will work to bring the realm of God into reality on earth

Images That Need To Be Broken

The first image that needs to be broken is that Christmas is all about us

Our focus during this holiday season is on what we can do for ourselves
Our motivation in gift giving is this: if we give bigger and better gifts, we will get bigger and better gifts in return
Christmas is not about us; it’s all about God and what God has done and will do for us
When we focus on the gift of God’s love, Christmas becomes more about sharing that gift rather than accumulating more “stuff”

That leads us into the second image that needs to be broken: Getting is more important than giving

A popular bumper sticker reads, “He who has the most toys wins.”
That is the mindset of our materialistic culture
According to the teachings of Jesus, “He who has the most toys loses,” for Jesus teaches, “What good is it if a man gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul?”
Human value is found, not in the accumulation of wealth and material possessions, but in our willingness to share what we have with those who have less

Thirdly, there is the mindset that “What I have is mine to keep,” and that is based upon the false assumption that “I have earned and deserve all that I have”

The message of Christmas declares that the only thing in life that really matters is the gift of God’s love and grace given to the world through Jesus Christ
Everything we have flows into our life as a result of that love and grace
Even life itself is the gift of God, and God’s gifts are never intended to be hoarded
They are given to us to be shared with others

We earn nothing, and all we deserve is our fair share, only what we need to survive

Everything beyond that is to be used to help others
Since we do not earn or deserve what we have, it is wrong for us to think that we own it
Everything comes from God and everything belongs to God
Therefore, whatever God gives us must be used according to God’s will for the benefit of God’s people

Finally, there is the idea that the poor must continue to get poorer while the rich continue to get richer

In our culture, everything is balanced on the backs of the poor
Systems allow them to be exploited and taken advantage of
They do 90% of the work while gaining only a fraction of the profit
Jesus came to reverse that
As Mary reminds us in her song, through her son Jesus, God will scatter the proud, bring down rulers, lift up the humble, fill the hungry with good things and send the rich away empty
God is on the side of the weak, and it is our responsibility, then, to confront systems that oppress and bring an end to injustice
Unless we do, Jesus’ birth is meaningless, and his death and resurrection were in vain

Christmas ought to teach us to see what might be instead of what is

This means that Christmas ought to be more than a season of benevolence toward the hungry and poor, it ought to be a way of life with specific actions year-round that assist the marginalized to embrace new opportunities and changes for themselves
Christmas is all about seeing what might be instead of what is
It’s about breaking the mold of conformity to traditional values
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 from our sins and bring justice to the poor
Image-breakers—that’s what Christmas challenges us to be