Matthew 11:2-11
December 13, 1998
Sermon preached by Rev. Donald Ng at the First Chinese Baptist Church of San Francisco
Disappointments
Probably the worst thing that can happen on Christmas morning is opening a present and discovering that it wasn’t what you thought it would be! What’s even more embarrassing is opening that present in front of the person who gave you the gift. You smile and try putting on the best face you can possibly muster. You’re disappointed that Santa Claus didn’t have what you wanted on his list. How many of you have had that happened to you?
In the Scripture Lesson for today, we read in Matthew 11 that John the Baptist was beginning to have some second thoughts about Jesus. Earlier, John had baptized Jesus and had identified Jesus as “the one who …is coming,” the “more powerful” one, the one who “will baptize…with the Holy Spirit and fire,” the one who carries a winnowing fork…in his hand” to separate the wheat from the chaff.
But now, John is not too sure, and he sends his disciples to Jesus to ask, “Are you the one who is to come, or are we to wait for another?” What provoked this doubt in John? Why was John appearing to be disappointed in Jesus? Every indication is that his wariness grows out of the fact that Jesus has not lived up to John’s expectations.
John has read his Bible, and he knows what to look for in a messiah. He knows the prophetic promises, that “a fire will come out against all the house of Israel (Ezekiel 5:4) and “if any nation will not listen, then I will completely uproot it and destroy it, says the Lord” (Jer. 12:17). John looks and he listens, but he sees no fire and hears no uprooting.
What John thought Jesus was going to do, didn’t happen. What he expected Jesus to unwrap was his power to judge Israel and to uproot nations turned out to be another powerful gift that even John couldn’t understand.
Jesus was Offensive
When John’s disciples asked Jesus, ”Are you the one who is to come, or are we to wait for another?” Jesus’ reply to John’s disciples—“Go and tell John what you hear and see:
the blind receive their sight,
the lame walk,
the lepers are cleansed,
the deaf hear,
the dead are raised,
and the poor have good news brought to them.”
Rather than Jesus ushering in the messianic age by bringing on wrath and judging nations, Jesus was bringing healing and deeds of mercy. He was not a winnowing folk separating the chaff from the wheat. Instead, what he did offended people.
Jesus offended his own family. At one point, they thought he was a little crazy and sought to spirit him away.
He offended the rich young ruler by requesting that he sell all his goods and give the proceeds to the poor.
He offended Nicodemus when he told him that he “must be born anew.”
He offended the religious leaders by associating with tax collectors and sinners.
And we see that Jesus appears to have offended John the Baptist as he languished in prison. After announcing that Jesus was the Messiah on the banks of the Jordan River, John became offended that Jesus was dining with Pharisee sinners or with women like Mary and Martha. Maybe according to John, Jesus was enjoying too much of life like attending wedding banquets. After all, Jesus was not an ascetic leader like John.
Does Jesus Offend You?
I can understand why John the Baptist was offended, can’t you? Jesus is offending us even today.
Jesus sees us to be no better than “prostitutes and crooks.” He tells us that we should not judge others, lest we be judged for the same sins. He offends our sense of justice! After all, we are upstanding members in our city!
Jesus offends us when he refers to us as children. He said, we must be like a little child to enter the kingdom of God. We do have minds of our own, you know. And by the way, there are some questions we want answers for first!
How about getting our final rewards? Jesus said that the one who finds the Lord’s mercy at the very end of life is going to receive the same reward as those of us who have followed Jesus from our youth. This offends us. Does that seem fair? Of course, not!
I’m Going to Offend You Too
I’m going to offend you too! You probably don’t want to hear this, but you kind of knew that sometime during this Christmas season, someone would say, “Let’s put Christ back into Christmas!” I don’t apologize if I am about to offend you.
For most Americans, Christmas means shopping and being in debt. Over 50% of retail revenues for a fiscal year are generated during Christmas shopping. The average American will spend $365 per child on toys, games, hobbies, tricycles, and battery-operated cars this year.
When our daughter, Lauren was in elementary school, probably the in second or third grade, the school announced that there is going to be “Holiday Shopping Days.” Evidently, parents were asked to make small craft items to sell. Proceeds will go to the school for good causes. When Lauren asked for some money to go shopping in school, we of course, gave her some so that she won’t feel left out. No parents want their kid to feel left out.
When she got home that afternoon, we couldn’t believe what she bought. She lovingly bought something for her brother and for Mom and Dad. Then we found this purple yarn Octopus with button eyes. We asked for whom this was for? She said it was for me! We knew we didn’t give her that much money to go shopping to include buying something for herself. And on the outside of the shopping bag, we discovered that the teachers allowed Lauren to shop on credit! She was approved with a credit line of $20!
If I offend you, I’m glad because Christmas is not shopping on credit. But for all of us—every last one of us—is caught up in this frenzy, often in ways we don’t even realize. The option of simply opting out, of not celebrating Christmas seems more like being an Uncle Scrooge than we want. A life devoid of celebration—of parties and feasts and, yes, even extravagance—is no way to live. And yet, we are not sure on how to put Christ back into Christmas. And of all the possible places that this could happen, the church should be at the center of this discussion.
Here are a few suggestions that we can put Christ back into Christmas:
- Be extravagant with your time rather than your money by designing your own “gift certificates” pledging the donation of your time to help with doing homework, troubleshoot computer problems, baby-sit, or run errands, which they can “cash” in at a later time.
- Be extravagant with your money in ways that benefit “the least of these” by purchasing gifts from non-profit or “third world craft” organizations.
- Establish new traditions that refocus the significance of the season. Teach your children the story of St. Nicholas (from which the story of Santa Claus evolved), the fourth century Bishop of Myra in Asia Minor, who was known for giving anonymous gifts to the poor. Take your children on a “St. Nick” adventure during Advent. Identify a financially fragile family in our congregation or in your neighborhood; purchase a bag of groceries; leave it at their doorsteps with your anonymous note; then knock on the door and run back to your car and drive away before they see you.
These are merely three ideas that we can do. If I have offended you, I’m glad. Sometimes it is only when we feel offended or insulted would we become motivated to see ourselves in relationship with Jesus Christ.
The most offensive message that Jesus said to us is that we think of ourselves so “high and mighty” that God had to sacrifice his Son on the cross so that we may have new life.
Many times our self-righteousness blinds us from seeing that the blind can see and the lame can walk. Our self-righteousness distracts us from believing that the lepers are cleansed and the deaf can hear. Our self-righteousness preoccupies all of our abilities from knowing that the dead are raised and the poor have good news brought to them.
O God, we are the blind who needs to see.
we are the lame who needs to walk.
we are the lepers who need cleansing.
we are the deaf who needs to hear.
we are the dead who needs new life.
we are the poor in spirit who needs good news brought to us.
Baptism
This morning we witnessed the ordinance of Baptism in our church. It is the ultimate act of humiliation and offense because it represents for us that new life in Christ comes only after we have been buried with him. The washing of our bodies with water is the outward and visible sign of the cleansing of our inner being through the grace of our Savior, Jesus Christ. In baptism, we are reminded that it is not our efforts but God’s grace through the saving love of Jesus Christ that we might walk in newness of life.
The Perfect Pot
Let me share with you a story written by one of my American Baptist friends. It’s called “The Perfect Pot.”
For a lifetime, the potter was offended or insulted by God because the pots that he thought were perfect were not perfect enough. Year after year, he tried until the very end when he offers himself to God, that God accepts him as the most perfect gift. God has never wanted our “high and mighty” credentials. All he wanted all along is us, you and me. When we bring to the altar our imperfect lives and ask him for grace and tender mercies, God will be pleased with our perfected faith.
Warning & Promise
Does Jesus offend you? I hope he does. Jesus said, “Blessed is anyone who takes no offense at me.” This proverb means that if we expect Jesus to bring about a time of healing and deeds of mercy, then we are most blessed. This is both a warning and a promise.
It warns that the presence and activity of Christ is always surprising and potentially offensive. The work of God through the ministry of the church will never be safe and free of controversy. It will never be neat, tidy, and pretty.
However, “Blessed is anyone who takes no offense to me” is also an encouraging promise to those who remain faithful to the gospel. And even when the world is offended
and insulted by the acts of mercy and peace that we bring, to the point of ridicule and persecution, Jesus said that we would receive his blessings.
When God came into the world, it was not neat, tidy or pretty. A young peasant couple from an obscure town of Bethlehem gave birth to the Son of God in a stable when there was no rooms left in the motel. And now as we prepare to celebrate Christmas, may our acts of mercy and peace offend the world to discover the true meaning of Christmas. The birth of Jesus the Christ. God with us. Joy is to the world!
Let us pray.
Precious Lord God, Help us to see the true meaning of Christmas. Challenge us to set aside our self-righteousness of seeing ourselves high and mighty so that we can know the real meaning of discipleship. Prepare us to be offended by the words of Christ—moving us to deepening our faith. It is in the name of Christ, that we pray, Amen.