Month: July 2014

Scriptures: John 1: 1-14 and Philippians 2:5-11
Pastor: Rev. Kim P. Wells

When I was growing up, one of my favorite hymns was “At the Name of Jesus.” I was captivated by the majestic, awe-inspiring words and tune. Maybe some of you know it:

At the name of Jesus
Every knee shall bow,
Every heart confess him
King of glory now;
‘Tis the Father’s pleasure
We should call him Lord,
Who from the beginning
Was the mighty Word.

Hymns are a way that we articulate and celebrate our faith. This hymn, not included in the current New Century Hymnal, echoes the ideas in the two hymns that were read for us this morning from the gospel of John and the letter to the Philippians. Scholars believe that these passages were both independent writings, poetry or hymns, that were used in worship in the early church before the gospels and epistles were written.

These hymns extol the exalted Jesus as Christ: Pre existent with God since before the beginning. A participant in the original process of creation. God in human form who lived and died and returned to heaven to rule over creation once again. A sacrifice made to redeem humankind from sin. These hymns show us Jesus, the Savior, the Messiah, the Christ (the Greek term for Messiah). They tell of Jesus as the human face of God.

In the first part of this series on the many faces of Jesus, we talked about the historical Jesus. He was a Jew, from Palestine, lower class, and likely illiterate. Within 3 decades of his crucifixion, Jesus is known as God. How did this exalted face of Jesus emerge from his humble historical beginnings?

Let’s look back at the message and ministry of Jesus. The gospels were written decades after Jesus’ death by those who were not eyewitnesses. Scholars are clear that while Jesus probably did not say verbatim much of what is attributed to him in the New Testament, what he did say was radical and subversive to both the religious and political authorities of his day. Jesus was known as a prophet. The job of a prophet is to critique the power structure and to re-call the community to God’s vision of justice which includes special care for the most needy and vulnerable in the community. In broad strokes, it can be agreed that Jesus spoke with authority of the realm of God and the intentions of God for the human community.

So Jesus is painting pictures and telling stories and stirring things up and mobilizing people’s imaginations to embrace an alternate view of reality. A reality in which every person is beloved by God. Every person is worthy of respect. Everyone is treated with compassion and generosity. There are no victims and there is no violence. Jesus is re-visioning Eden and he is getting people to catch on to this vision and orient their lives to these values which, incidentally, do not come from the thin air, but from the Jewish scriptures. Jesus is choosing the justice themes from his heritage and recasting them for his audience which is what prophets do.

Evidently, he is good at this. His message is compelling. There appears to be no self interest in his ministry. And somehow that came through in ways that attracted people to Jesus especially those at the bottom of the socio/economic/religious ladder. We can imagine that Jesus was charismatic not in a flamboyant way for self promotion, but in an intense, sincere way. The communities that formed around his message and his witness experienced a different kind of reality, a new way of being in the world. And this spread.

So, how do you talk about this compelling experience? How do you talk about something life changing? How do you convey the intense experience of transcendence that Jesus embodies? How do you share the sense of awe, wonder, and authority that you feel about Jesus’ ideas and actions? How do you express his fearless love? What can be said about a person who transforms your entire view of reality? What are the words and images that will tell this story?

Well, in that time, in that setting, there were a number of ways to do that. Other religions in that context had gods born in a cave with a star and animals near by. Other religions had figures that came back from the dead. Other religions had leaders that healed people and did miracles. Judaism had its prophets, like Elijah who multiplied food and Moses who had power over the water. Many of the themes and images and stories that we have of Jesus are echoes of those from the Hebrew scriptures and from other near Eastern religions of his day because that is how people knew how to speak about important, significant
religious figures.

We also want to note that the language and legacy about Jesus reflects a context which was anchored in the system of sacrifice for patronage, power, and standing. At that time, people believed in gods that were often thought to be angry and hostile and required sacrifices for appeasement. In a religious context in which people are trying to stay in the good graces of the gods so that they will be saved, rescued, and blessed, it makes sense to talk about Jesus as a sacrifice that links people to God’s good graces.

In this scenario, Jesus creates a new path for humans to be in right relationship with God. In a context of sacrifice, what sacrifice can be given to appease God for human sin? Only a sinless, perfect sacrifice. Can humans come up with anything to meet this debt? No. But, it was thought, in Jesus, God provided the perfect sacrifice. God made it possible for humans to be reconciled to God’s good graces. In the exalted, cosmic view of Jesus as the Savior, he is presented as the new Adam, getting it right, and redressing the sin of the first Adam.

In a religious context expecting a Messiah who would be an heir of King David, it made sense to speak of Jesus as a King. In a context in which the wisdom tradition talked about the immortality of the soul, preexistent before birth, then inhabiting a body, and then going on after the body, the image of Jesus present with God at creation fits in. In a context that was dominated by polytheism with gods who were regularly involved with and interacting with humans, it made sense to see Jesus as a divine being, as a god.

The exceptional experience of Jesus is perhaps most strongly conveyed in the presentation of Jesus as a leader with a vision that rivaled the authority of Caesar. There are many titles used for Jesus in the New Testament including Son of God and Son of Man. These titles were not just personally designed for Jesus. These were titles that were used for other authority figures, like Caesar, the head of the Roman Empire who was believed to be the divine son of God. Using these familiar titles for Jesus set Jesus up as a figure of power and authority and vision akin to that of the most powerful leader of the day. In fact, Jesus was crucified in part because he was seen as one who was seeking to create a new kingdom to replace the realm of Caesar. His message was so compelling, so widespread, so strong, that it was perceived as a threat, treason, to the great, vast, Roman Empire. And so Roman authorities put Jesus to death.

And to people who had left home, family, jobs, social connections, and religious traditions to follow Jesus, what did you do with a leader who died a humiliating, excruciating death? That can’t be the last word. Their experience was so intense, so transformative, so hope filled. It surely could not have all been a sham. So what to do with a dead savior? Resurrect him, as was done with other gods and leaders. Have the final outcome, the end result, resolved in the next life. Those who killed Jesus, who persecuted his followers? They might not get it in this life, but just wait until the life to come. Eternal torment awaits.

I grew up thinking that all these things were special and unique to Jesus. Now through scholarship, we know that these special features that we associate with Jesus are associated with him because that’s how you talked about someone extraordinary in those times. These images, titles, and stories conveyed claims for Jesus in ways that his contemporaries would understand. They tell how Jesus was experienced by those around him. They had such a compelling, intense, transforming experience that they talked about him in the most superlative ways they knew how. And they passed those stories on until they were written down and have come to us in scripture.

This exalted way of talking about Jesus, as king of the universe, as lord of all, as the perfect sacrifice, as the one sent by god for this very purpose, as God incarnate, all of this was intended to express how compelling Jesus and his message was. It was a way of conveying the power of who he was and how he was experienced. People lived their lives differently because of Jesus. They committed to following him. To living as he did. Rich people gave away their money. Poor people accepted help and contributed to the community in new ways. People chose to forgive. They left home and family. They gave up social standing and prominence. They changed their lives to live as he did. They imagined and created a different reality because of their experience of Jesus and his message.

The exalted face of Jesus shows the power of his impact and his influence. It conveys the extraordinary transformation that was wrought by his ministry. But as Lord Acton, English historian, politician, and writer of the 19th century so eloquently said it, “Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.” The power that was associated with the exalted Jesus as Messiah, God incarnate, was assumed by the church, a very human institution, movement, and organization, prone to all the pitfalls and temptations of power abuse. Just a few generations down the line, the church, which had been persecuted was persecuting. The church of the poor was rich. The church of no victims and no violence was going into battle and subjugating the masses. The image of Jesus as a divine King was used to authorize and endorse subsequent human kings who then abused their power. The exalted, elevated images of Jesus were used to justify the abuse of power and to serve self interest. All in the name of Jesus, the King, the Lord of Creation, God.

As the exalted imagery of Jesus was passed on, the expectation became not that you would follow him (how could you?) but that you would believe in him. And then, he, the exalted king of the universe, would do things for you. Give you power, wealth, and health. Or give you the strength to endure your God-ordained servitude. If you believed in him. There was the subtle shift from following Jesus, doing as he did, to believing in Jesus and he’ll do for you. When Jesus is imaged as an exalted God, then we can’t be like him, we can’t hope to emulate him. But we can believe and then trust what he will do for us.

So the exalted face of Jesus has been used by Christians as an excuse for not following Jesus, but expecting his great and almighty holiness to be mobilized on our behalf if we only believe. If we believe, he will do it for us. We can trust him, and this can mean that we don’t exert ourselves in living and forgiving and giving as Jesus did.

Yes, we need ways to talk about the unique, compelling tradition of Jesus. But the exalted images of power associated with Jesus have been abused and are still being used to promote personal agendas of power and privilege today.

In the book Balkan Ghosts: A Journey Through History, author Robert Kaplan describes how in 1921, Greece decided to invade Asia Minor, Turkey, to reclaim territory lost in previous conflicts and settlements. This is post World War 1 and there had been vast advances in warfare. But Greece was still living in the past. Kaplan tells us: “A reporter for the Toronto Daily Star, Ernest Hemingway, writes that the Greek officers ‘did not know a god-damned thing,’ while the Greek troops came to battle in the ceremonial, nineteenth-century uniform of ‘white ballet skirts and upturned shoes with pompoms on them.’” [p. 247] In 10 days, the Greeks were driven back to the sea.

There are problems with carrying forward the images of Jesus as king, monarch, and God especially when the language used is ancient. In some ways, it undercuts the very message that it was intended to convey. The challenge to every age is to carry forth the message, the contents, but not necessarily the container. New times call for new containers.

The challenge for the church of every age, is to find ways to express the alternative universe that is presented and embodied by Jesus, this new creation, this transformation of the spirit as well as of society, in ways that are compelling and have power and authenticity while holding on to the self giving humility and poverty of Jesus. For the very way that Jesus lived as a person is what inspired the exalted expressions of his legacy.

How do we put Jesus at the center of our lives, our choices, our behavior, that poor peasant from Palestine, in a world caught up in consumerism, greed, self indulgence, entitlement, violence, and vengeance? How do we express the life giving power of forgiveness? How do we convey the transformative power of giving? How do we create a different reality?

New ways of communicating the eternal message of Jesus are needed. New language and messages of hope are called for in this and every age. What we have in the Bible and in ancient documents tells us their story. We must make it our own. And add our stories to those that have gone before us. We are the ones who need to be finding new ways to convey the power of the gospel of Jesus.

Jesus was a radical and a subversive rebel. He was undermining the structures of society that were thought to be keeping things stable. He alienated those in authority. He attracted those at the bottom of the social/economic/religious ladder. He wanted to upset the apple cart and he wanted to create a new reality, a new status quo. Here we are reminded of the sentiment attributed to St. Francis of Assisi. Preach the gospel at all times and if necessary use words. May our tribute
to Jesus be not only in our words and hymns but in our actions. Amen.

A reasonable effort has been made to appropriately cite materials referenced in this sermon. For additional information, please contact Lakewood United Church of Christ.

Scripture Lesson: John 3:16-17
Pastor: Rev. Kim P. Wells

In the year 2000, candidates for the Republican nomination for president gathered in the Des Moines Iowa Civic Center for a televised debate. In the course of conversation about the usual – abortion, school violence, and ethanol – the candidates were asked which “political philosopher or thinker” they “most identified with.” The responses included John Locke, the founding fathers, Theodore Roosevelt, Abraham Lincoln, and Ronald Reagan. Oh, and there was one last response – Christ – offered by George W. Bush. [Jesus in America A History: Personal Savior, Cultural Hero, National Obsession, Richard Wightman Fox, p. 384-5]

There’s no question that Jesus Christ is an influential figure and not only because he changed the heart of W. In countless ways and contexts, it can be asserted that Jesus Christ, who began as a Palestinian peasant over 2000 years ago, is top ranked today as a figure of influence even celebrity.

In 1966, John Lennon remarked that the Beatles were more popular than Jesus. [Fox, p. 377] Later he apologized for the overstated comment. Today, we have become used to such insolence, but a performer would be hard pressed to say such a thing because the popularity of Jesus seems to be growing, or at least it is more universally recognized.

Jesus is a major figure in music, film, literature, and of course, art. A few examples include The Tale of Two Cities, JC Superstar, The Passion of Christ, Last Temptation of Christ, and the list could go on and on and on.
Jesus is recognized as a figure influencing social change. He is revered by civil rights activists including Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. He is honored by Dorothy Day and the Catholic Worker movement. Jesus was influential upon Cesar Chavez and the National Farmworker movement.

Jesus is a revered figure not only in Christianity. He was admired by Mohandas Gandhi. He is respected by the Dalai Lama. For Muslims and Jews, he is considered a prophet. BaHai’s revere Jesus. Hindus and Buddhists honor Jesus. He is considered an avatar for the Hindu god Vishnu.

Jesus is a significant figure not only for what some of us may consider positive initiatives in society, but he is also a key symbol for the Ku Klux Klan, the Lord’s Resistance Army in the Congo, militia groups and hate groups in the US and the world over.

Capitalists, socialists, fascists, pacifists, the armed forces, and so many other diverse factions and groups, claim Jesus as an ally.

Jesus is a frequent subject of tattoos. I saw a woman this past week with a tight, short spaghetti strap dress on, high platform shoes, looking like a street walker on 34th Street, and there on her back was a huge depiction of the crucifixion of Jesus. What does that mean to this woman? To have a huge tattoo of Jesus dead on the cross adorning(?) her back?

Visually, you can find Jesus represented as a yogi in the lotus position, as a business man in a suit, as a homeless person asleep on a park bench. You can find images of Jesus depicted laughing, crying, and dying. African or Aryan. At a computer or cell phone in hand. Toting a cross or toting a gun. As President of the US, as a Zombie, or astride a tyrannosaurus rex. I even found an image of Jesus flipping the bird. The only thing I did not find was Jesus having sex, and I am sure if I looked long enough the internet could have provided that, too.
Perhaps the greatest testament to the notoriety of Jesus is the popularity of Christmas. Christmas is celebrated the world over by people of all cultures and religions. It is the most celebrated holiday in the world.

This morning we listened to those beautiful words from the Gospel of John extolling the love of God in Jesus: “For God so loved the world that God gave the only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal live. Indeed, God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.” These words, written well after Jesus died, convey the importance of Jesus to the community the writer was addressing and beyond. They are words which have come down to us encapsulating the meaning of Jesus. God’s gift to the world to show God’s eternal love. A gift to save the world, to foster life, to embody the good, to show the way. This teaching was specifically addressed to people within the Jewish tradition both those who had chosen to follow Jesus and those who had not. The writer wants people to know that there is a decision to be made about Jesus. If you believe, then you are saved. The word used for belief implies to have faith in, to be committed to, to put trust in, to rely on, to place confidence in. So, if you believe in Jesus, then you are saved. The word for saved is used in various settings implying healing, wholeness, and deliverance. It can be used to refer to this life, suffering, sickness, or danger. It can also be used to refer to the life of the spirit, to eternal damnation or eternal life, to the outcome at the end times. Which side do we want to be on?

Who does not want to be on the side of good, the right side, the side of God, the side of Jesus, however we may envision that? Who does not want to be saved, to be delivered in whatever way that we may conceive of that? When presented with the choice, with the decision, most of us want to believe and be saved. We have mentioned how Jesus is ubiquitous, imaged, portrayed, and conveyed in countless ways. I think this is indicative of our desire to be on the right side of things. We want to show our alignment with Jesus and thus with God. We want to know we are loved and cared for by a power beyond our own. Jesus gives us
access to that; he is a symbol of that.

Last week we read from the first chapter of John, “The word was in the world. . . but the world did not recognize the word.” The invitation, the option, the opportunity was there. But some missed it. The story before the verses we heard this morning is the story of Nicodemus, a Jewish leader who comes to Jesus by night. He is seeking. He, too, wants to be saved, whatever that may mean to him. He knows that Jesus is offering something that makes a difference and he wants to get in on it. As the story proceeds, Jesus talks to Nicodemus about being born anew, or from above, or again. Nicodemus is confused and doesn’t understand.

One aspect of the meaning of saying “yes” to God through Jesus is the willingness to change. To be born anew. To be remolded. To see things differently. Embrace a new kind of life. Following Jesus is marked by an openness to a continual process of growth, transformation, and change.

Now what about change? I could tell you numerous things I would like changed about my husband. Let’s see. Where to start? But I surely do not want to change. We don’t like change. People never really have liked it even in ancient times. Change is fine if it involves someone else changing to suit our desires. Otherwise, we’re not so enamored with change. In the Nicodemus story, Jesus talks about submitting to the Holy Spirit that blows where it wills. It might puff us in to a new locale, out of a familiar relationship, into a new movement for social change, out of a lucrative career, into a new perspective about something important, out of old prejudices, or even on to a cross. It’s no wonder Nicodemus ends up sneaking off back into the darkness. Taking Jesus on those terms is quite a challenge and a commitment and it’s beyond him in this story and beyond many others as well, then and now.

We see that Jesus offers salvation. He wants to remake us in God’s image. But I
think that we find it easier, more palatable, more convenient, to remake Jesus in
our image. We want to be aligned with Jesus and his saving love, so we find ways to portray him, image him, and reconstruct him, that suit our sensibilities. We enlist him in our causes so that we appear to be on the same side, the side of what is good and right and true. We appear to believe so that we will be saved. In my estimation, much of this occurs subconsciously, inadvertently, and naively. “The word was in the world. . . but the world did not recognize the word.”

This has been a difficult week. I get my news from reading the newspaper and from the radio. Every time I glanced at the latest headline or hit the button on the radio, the world seemed to get more depressing and depraved. A passenger jet shot down out of the sky over Europe? Israel sending ground troops into Gaza notching things up instead of working for peace? Isis creating more chaos in Syria and environs? The inside scoop on Boko Haram, the group that kidnapped the girls in Nigeria. They are carrying out beheadings with swords according to the rituals of some ancient sacred writings. Then there is the crazy dysfunction of our government and the Supreme Court. And our STEM governor who doesn’t seen to want to be influenced by what scientists have to say about global climate change. I know there were some wins for gay marriage this week, but overall, this was a week for despair. Or maybe I should say, another week for despair. We simply seem to be going the wrong direction.

This making Jesus in our image, enlisting him in our causes, getting him on our side, it doesn’t seem to be saving us – from ourselves or from anyone else. Here is Jesus, a ubiquitous figure, portrayed and displayed in profusion, and look at the shape things are in. Jesus offers us salvation through healing, wholeness, justice, reconciliation, compassion, and community. He faced death for the well-being of others. He is a gift of salvation to the world. But he will only save us if we let him. Amen.

A reasonable effort has been made to appropriately cite materials referenced in this sermon. For additional information, please contact Lakewood United Church of Christ.

Scripture Lessons: Isaiah 11:1-9 and Mark 9:33-37
Pastor: Rev. Kim P. Wells

Why Jesus? Why are we, over 2,000 years after the life of this poor Palestinian Jew, why are we paying him any mind? Why are we singing and praying to him? Around the time that Jesus lived, there were other healers. We are not here for them. There were other prophets. We are not here for them. There were other would-be messiahs. We are not here for them. There were other miracle workers. We are not here for them. Why Jesus? When you think of how long ago Jesus lived and in such a different world, it’s almost bizarre that we even know that he ever existed. Why Jesus?

I have three ideas to suggest that give some account for why Jesus stood out in his lifetime and continues to do so today. The first is the new vision that
Jesus offered. In his preaching and teaching, Jesus imagined a different reality. The stories he told turned the reality that people knew on its head. We heard an example in the scripture lesson this morning. The disciples are having a conversation that seems entirely natural. Who’s on top? Who does Jesus like the most? That’s hierarchy and competition just as we all see it each and every day. And the response of Jesus in the story? The first will be last; the first will be a slave to all. He completely upsets the apple cart.

Then, Jesus talks about a child. A child? They were not thinking of a child as
someone naive, innocent, impressionable, and eager. In that context a child was of the lowest social standing and worth. Think of the images we have seen recently of the virtually abandoned, helpless, powerless children that are coming here from Central America. They have nothing. They are completely at the mercy of others. Vulnerable and dependent. That’s the kind of child Jesus was referring to. Become like children and you will experience God. There you have it again. Jesus offering a teaching that reveals a completely different reality.

Jesus deconstructs the default settings of the people in terms of their assumptions about the nature of reality including economic identity, hierarchy, patriarchy, religion, racism, gender, and culture. Jesus exposes all of these things for what they are: social constructs. These are all things that we use to categorize, to define, to stratify, and to divide people. In his teachings, Jesus shows that these things don’t have to be accepted. He deconstructs current assumptions and offers an alternative reality.

Jesus shares a vision of a reality in which all people are of equal worth and value as human beings. It is an egalitarian vision in which everyone has a significant role to play. There are no haves and have nots. No privilege. Money does not talk in Jesus’ new vision of reality. Jesus portrays a reality of egalitarian social relationships, material simplicity, non violence, and harmony with nature.

In his new vision, Jesus does not convey a God that keeps score, careful accounts, or maintains a pecking order. Jesus does not teach about a God that punishes. He does not portray the classic warrior God. Jesus does not give us a “Santa in the sky” keeping track of who’s naughty and nice. Jesus deconstructs that God and reveals a God that is forgiving, creative, trusting, vulnerable, and self giving. Jesus shares a new vision of reality based on a new vision of God. He turns the world upside down.

Here are just a few examples from the Gospels that show Jesus revisioning the
social and religious constructs of his time. The widow’s mite. Someone on the
bottom lifted up as a model for those considered above her. The Good Samaritan. The wrong person does the right thing. The prodigal son. Shouldn’t he have been punished for his sin? The workers in the vineyard. The people who work a short time are paid the same as those who labored all day. The sower profligate with the seed. What farmer would waste precious seed on the path, on the rock? There are many other examples which show Jesus challenging the power structure, economic system, the social definitions, and the religious assumptions of his time showing them for the imperfect human constructs that they are and offering a new vision of how life can be.

There were other would be leaders of Jesus’ day who simply worked from the constructs that were there. There were those seeking armed rebellion against the Romans. There were those promoting religious orthodoxy to purify and strengthen religious devotion. There were those who were trying to exercise power within the context as it was. Jesus was changing the game, offering a different reality.

That is one reason Why Jesus? He frees us from the social constructs that produce victims and injustice and oppression and offers an alternative reality that is life-giving and joyful.

Why Jesus? Here’s a second idea that I think explains Why Jesus? Jesus had integrity. His words and deeds, his teaching and living, his saying and doing were consistent. His ideas and visions were completely integrated into his behavior and action. And this is how it was in the Jesus community. In many other leaders, we see their high ideals, their charisma, and it’s compelling, but their actions fall short of those ideals. They say one thing and do another. This undermines the power of their message. But in Jesus, the tradition that we are given shows someone who is completely walking the talk. His message and his lifestyle are in complete alignment.

Jesus didn’t just talk about serving, he served. He didn’t just talk about God having concern for the sick, he had concern for the sick. He didn’t just talk about God’s compassion for the lost, he sought out the lost and invited them in to community. I think that is a second explanation for why his legacy lives; why he is still revered today.

Here’s a third thought about Why Jesus? The tradition that we have about Jesus shows us someone who is completely self giving. He is concerned about others. He is concerned about that state of the world. He is concerned with creating egalitarian community. In the legacy we have of Jesus’ life and ministry and teaching, there is no indication of self interest, of self absorption, of individualism, or entitlement. We get no sense that Jesus is seeking popularity, notoriety, power, or wealth. According to the ways of the world, there is nothing in it for him. As we heard this morning, Jesus is remembered for teaching, the one who is the greatest is the one who serves. Jesus didn’t get a palace, a security detail, a bank account in Switzerland, a private jet, none of it. He got the cross.

While people may not feel a personal desire to emulate Jesus, even those outside of Christianity find Jesus noteworthy for his integrity and his self giving service for no personal gain.

In the community gathered around Jesus, people had an experience of an egalitarian world, where the default settings of status and worth and expectation no longer applied. The message of Jesus ennobled the poor. It was freeing to the rich and those with privilege and status. Everyone was released from the status quo and invited to find new life in self giving service, generosity, justice, and compassion. All were beneficiaries of the love and generosity of God in the very gift of life itself. They experienced an amazing life giving freedom. In the new reality lived out by Jesus and his followers, people experienced divine transcendence and joy.

And people were so moved by the experience of Jesus that they left home, family, job, and even religion, to be part of the Jesus movement. To give themselves to the life of the world. It was powerful beyond anything they could have hoped for or dreamed about.

The three things combined, the new vision, the consistency of words and deeds, and the embodiment of self giving, I think help explain Why Jesus? then. I also think they account for Why Jesus? now, for us.

We, too, need a new vision for a different future. This need comes home to us in the situation of children around the world and in our midst. Yes, there are the vulnerable children like the ones from Central America, the kidnapped girls in Nigeria, the children of Israel and Palestine, and those in poverty areas of the US. Their situation is a travesty. We need a new vision of a world that is safe and nurturing for all children. And at the other end of the spectrum are the children of mainstream American society. They have their own TV channels. There are ads specifically directed at babies. Children are treated as a lucrative consumer market because they have the power to get their parents to buy them things. We have given children immense control and power though not over themselves. This situation, too, is a travesty. This reflects the values and social constructs of our society.

Children today are the product of a society that is individualistic and that has all kinds of matrices of status and place and position and power. Of a society based on hierarchy, privilege, domination, and competition. Do before you get done to. Our society is rife with constructs that define and divide.

And a brief walk through Toys R Us shows us the warring madness of our society. There are rows of toys, games, and video games that encourage and promote violence. You must kill to win. Again, this reflects the values of our society.

We look at our kids and we see that we are consumed with violence, greed, individual entitlement, and self absorption. This is just the kind of world that Jesus deconstructs. His teaching points out the false assumptions that we labor under. We are shown the truth of our folly. We see how we are controlled by social constructs that maintain the status quo for good or ill.

Jesus also offers a new vision for the church. In the church, we have over 2000 years of interpretation, theology, and tradition, that stresses certain themes and perspectives, and that privileges some concepts and people over others, usually to serve human power constructs. We have religious default settings about God, Jesus, Christianity, and other religions. Jesus’ new vision frees us from all of that as well. Our faith tradition challenges us to critique, to examine, to be open, to grow. To be born anew.

Why Jesus today? Because we, like the people of the context of the historical Jesus, need to be confronted and challenged by a teacher who would deconstruct our default settings, our definitions, our carefully constructed economic, religious, and social arrangements and assumptions. The social constructs of our setting cry out for transformation. We desperately need new visions of a different reality. We need freedom from the shackles that bind us.

I get several emails a day from a certain political party. It doesn’t matter which one. And every day, it’s another battle. There has been another attack. There is another call to fight. It is all so antagonistic, polarized, negative, and violent. There is no attempt to create another reality, to change the game, to work for transformation to another model. The names change but the game keeps going. Jesus changed the game. He exposed the reality he saw and offered something else. So, why Jesus? He offers a new vision that recasts reality.

Why Jesus today? We, like the people of Jesus’ day, need leadership and models of integrity. People who don’t just talk, but who act. People who don’t just come to church and sing and pray, but who offer themselves for the life of the world. And we need clergy of integrity who don’t take advantage of others and who are not afraid to get their hands dirty. We need leaders who don’t just speak about peace, but who take the radical risks necessary to create peace. We need leaders who expect more of themselves and people who hold them accountable.

How many politicians today wave the banner that they are Christians, but then have no sympathy for those Central American children? They see no need to help those kids. In their default setting, these children are poor and high maintenance. They drain resources. They are not our responsibility. They are a distraction from the needs of our own kids who are US citizens. So much for their Christian faith and values. They are more interested in being re-elected than in humanitarian concern for these poor, brown children. Why Jesus? We need to aspire to integrity.

Why Jesus today? In our setting of give me, give, me, give me, we need to create a culture of service, giving, and communitarian values. Children should grow up asking themselves How can I serve? What can I do to better the world? What can I do to help someone? Generosity and helping others needs to be valued with no expectation of gratitude or payback. Jesus’ model of giving and service is the antidote we need to the tyranny of the self.

Why Jesus today? Because we still need exactly what Jesus offers. And this is what the church has to offer the world: Communities in which people experience the ministry of Jesus in an intense, transforming way as they did in the first century. Communities that make a powerful witness to new visions for society in which all people are treated equally and deserve to be treated with love, compassion, and respect. Faith communities that are living what they say. Congregations that are oriented to the common good, the needs of the world and not simply self preservation. Communities that are dedicated to service.

In that kind of faith community, people have intense, compelling, transformative experiences of the divine within themselves, each other, and the world. And it is worth giving your life to.

There was a bright spot in the news this week. Amidst all the scrambling around to figure out what do to with these children crossing our southern border, Deval Patrick, governor of Massachusetts, offered two locations in his state to house the children and provide for their needs while the situation is being sorted out. He explains the reasoning for his offer:

I have come down where I have for two main reasons, love of country and lessons of faith.
We are a great Nation.  Unlike any other superpower, America’s power, to paraphrase a great man, comes from giving, not from taking.  America, and this Commonwealth in particular, has given sanctuary to desperate children for centuries.  We have rescued Irish children from famine, Russian and Ukrainian children from religious persecution, Cambodian children from genocide, Haitian children from earthquakes, Sudanese children from civil war, and New Orleans children from Hurricane Katrina.  Once, in 1939, we turned our backs on Jewish children fleeing the Nazis, and it remains a blight on our national reputation.  The point is that this good Nation is great when we open our doors and our hearts to needy children, and diminished when we don’t.
The other reason I have offered our help is more personal, less about patriotism and more about faith.  I believe that we will one day have to answer for our actions — and our inactions.  My faith teaches that “if a stranger dwells with you in your land, you shall not mistreat him,” but rather “love him as yourself; for you were strangers in the land of Egypt.”  (Lev. 19:33-34).  We are admonished to take in the stranger, for “inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these,” Christ tells us, “you did it to Me.” (Matthew 25:43, 45).  Every major faith tradition on earth charges its followers to treat others as we ourselves wish to be treated. 
I don’t know what good there is in faith if we can’t and won’t turn to it in moments of human need.  And I thank Cardinal O’Malley, Bishop Borders and the many other faith and lay leaders I’ve spoken with for reminding me of that.

[http://www.mass.gov/governor/pressoffice/speeches/statement-on-sheltering-of-unaccompanied-minors-in-ma.html]

This man has experienced Jesus. And he is so moved by that experience of a new reality embodied in service, generosity, and self giving, that he is offering what he can for the well being of these children, poor, vulnerable, defenseless, of little worth or status, regardless of the cost – personal, political, or economic. That’s what happens when you follow Jesus. That’s what it means to be the church. That’s Why Jesus? Yesterday, today, and tomorrow. Amen.

A reasonable effort has been made to appropriately cite materials referenced in this sermon. For additional information, please contact Lakewood United Church of Christ.

Scripture Lesson: Micah 4: 1-5
Pastor: Rev. Kim P. Wells

About 2,015 years ago or so, we don’t know the exact date because people did not keep records as we do today, a baby boy was born to a Jewish family in Palestine, a remote, rural, agricultural province of the Roman Empire. He was named Jesus. Because he was Jewish, he was circumcised and he went to the synagogue and the Temple for worship and the required festivals.

In that context, babies were born into two kinds of families – peasant artisan families who were poor, or aristocratic elite families that were rich. Jesus was born to a poor family. as were most of his followers during his lifetime.

There is also agreement that he was a teacher/preacher/prophet figure. But he was by no means alone in that role. The people of Palestine were chafing under Roman rule, like the Ukrainians under the Soviets in the 30’s. Or the American colonists under English rule in the 18th century. The rights of the Jews in Palestine were curtailed and they were being squeezed for money and labor by the Romans. Of course, bad times heighten the desire for deliverance. The Jews were hoping and praying that the promised Messiah would come to end their oppression and misery. And there were many who vied for that role. Would-be Messiahs were common in Jesus’ day. He was not the only candidate for Messiah.

In addition, we want to remember that this was a primitive society in which there were many healers and miracle workers and exorcists. The people did not have the scientific information that we have today about health, biology, and mental illness, etc. so there were those who were credited with having the ability to heal and cure others. This was not uncommon.

There is historically verifiable evidence that Jesus was crucified in Jerusalem as an enemy of the Roman state when Tiberius was Caesar of the Roman Empire and Pontius Pilate was the governor of Judea. Crucifixion was a punishment for treason, so in some way Jesus was perceived as a threat to Roman domination.

As a Jew in that context, we know that Jesus spoke Aramaic, not Greek or Hebrew, but a more local dialect, Aramaic. This was a preliterate context in which only 3% of the Jews could read any words, copy a word, and perhaps write their name. They were from the upper crust elite. So we know that Jesus could not functionally read or write. A stunning, incredulous idea for people like us who are used to everyone who’s anyone knowing how to read and write.

So, we have no writings from Jesus. Or from any eyewitnesses to his life. The gospels were written between about 70 and 95 CE, in Greek, decades after Jesus’ death, based on oral tradition and various written documents that had begun to circulate. There are references to Jesus in the writings of the Jewish historian Josephus who was born after Jesus was killed. There are some references to Jesus and to Christians in Roman texts of the second century. But there are no written, direct, first hand, eyewitness accounts of the life of Jesus. Again, that is just the way things were then. Most people left no writing. Most people were not mentioned in any records that were kept. So there is no paper trail directly back to Jesus, much as we would like there to be one.

“Just the facts, ma’am,” was a catch phrase for Joe Friday and his colleagues on “Dragnet.” Given what can be known from archeology, inscriptions, the few preserved written records, New Testament sources, other first and second century documents, there is precious little factual, historically verifiable information that can be known about Jesus. We know he was born and he was male. We know he was an observant Jew which makes it hard to understand how the religious movement gathered around him promoted anti-Semitism. But Jesus was a Jew and and he was considered a teacher and prophet and that he, like many of his day, expected the end of the world imminently. We know he spoke Aramaic and could not read or write. We know he lived in a remote rural province that was under the thumb of the oppressive Roman Empire. We know he was crucified, a victim of capital punishment. So, those bumper stickers, “My boss is a Jewish carpenter” and “Jesus was a low wage worker”? They’re not far off.

There is much more that can be said about Jesus and we will look at some of that in the weeks to come, but to begin, we must honestly recognize what we can factually know about the historical Jesus. That undergirds the faith and hope of our witness as followers of Jesus seeking to bless the world with divine love and peace as he did. Anything else that is said about Jesus must take the historical Jesus into consideration and should not be in conflict with the facts that we have such as they are.

Several years ago, I was part of an interfaith conversation at the University of South Florida for high school and college students. During the question and answer time someone asked about the views of different faiths regarding homosexuality. When it was my turn to respond from the Christian perspective, I shared the range of views within the Christian tradition from those who see homosexuality as a sin, going against the intentions of the God of creation, to those who see it as part of the glorious diversity of God’s creation and accept it as a natural part of the fabric of life. When I said this, a hand shot up. A high school student stood up and informed the group that what I said was not true. She told us that, “Jesus said that homosexuality is a sin. He said it. That’s what true Christians believe.” I mentioned that there are no references in the Gospels or in the New Testament to Jesus saying anything about same gender sexual activity. The student was undaunted and went on: “I know Jesus said it. My pastor told us that’s what he said, so I know he said it.” I encouraged her to go home and read her Bible.

There are so many things that we can say about Jesus. There is a myriad of facets to his influence on religion and human history. There are various faces of Jesus that speak to the spiritual needs of humankind. And we will explore some of those aspects of legacy of Jesus in the weeks to come. But behind it all, there is a person. And the little that can be factually known about this historical figure needs to be incorporated into our understanding of who he is and what he means to us and the world. Amen.