John 1:1-14
What’s the Word? Huh.
What word was with God?
In John’s storytelling — it was God.
It was — ‘gratuitous self-donation.’
It was self-giving.
It was what was
before there was
rejection - violence - prejudice
accusation - condemnation.
The utter brilliance of
John’s prologue
is that it does not let
any power — speak first
any culture — set the norm
any ruler — dictate what is to be
any gods of the day — tickle our fancy.
It is as though John
will let — no other story own the day
among those who say they
follow Jesus.
It is as though John
is setting us up — with this word
that has no place to abide among us
and yet it does.
This Word becomes vitally alive
even though
we want nothing to do with it
even though
we will not accept it or receive it
John is writing in a day
when violence was — the word.
Some might even say it was — the way.
Some might say — the necessary evil.
Some might say — the rule.
In other words
it is like every other day - even today.
It is how we — become us
and they — become them.
John’s storytelling right from the beginning
sets before us
a word that had been
the word of the day - violence.
Think of it this way.
One child is in a room full of toys.
She is loving it — all is well.
Then, child #2 enters this room
that is completely full of toys.
Where does child #2 head?
You got it — that one toy in the hands of child #1.
Ahhh, the desire — to have
what is in the hands of another.
and then it meets
the desire — to keep what is in hand.
As a parent and a grandparent
I have seen it happen again and again.
The little buggers explode into
acts of violence - screaming - tantrums
that I would never have expected
from my child - my grandchild,
It may be a bit much to call it warfare.
It may be a bit much to call it violence.
I may be a bit much to give it any
consideration at all - they’re just kids, right?
But then again,
Cain and Abel were brothers.
That - didn’t end well.
And the whole story line
that makes up
humanities storytelling since then
hasn’t gone well.
I would suggest that the gospel writer John
is handing everyone who reads
his version of the Christ story
an opening
into a whole new life
that really has no witness
since
God’s gratuitous self-donation - in the beginning.
In the beginning
was a love meant to be
the substance — the character
of God’s creative masterpiece — Humanity.
Hmmm.
But that love…that
gratuitous self-donation
that
light that shines in the darkness
that
Word that became flesh
was…well…it was
voted off the island.
The gospel writer John follows up this
Prelude to his Gospel
with a storyline
in which self-giving love
has no place
in a world
that is always trying to preserve
a fundamental principle
of human society:
us verses them.
Within the vision of John’s gospel
that he received
through coming to grips with the life and death of Jesus
he finds there is a love
that will never abide by
us verses them
no matter who the US is
no matter who the THEM is.
Therefore, we will see in John’s writing
the story of Jesus
[ presented also by Matthew, Mark, and Luke ]
that the world ( now - get this )
did not know — did not accept.
We look back at this Word of Love
and wonder
how could they not see it - know it - accept it.
Well, that goes back to who
the Creator is:
gratuitous self-giving
A love that gives
without condition
without meeting goals
without being nice or when we are naughty.
Yikes - that’s sheer foolishness.
Isn’t it?
As we sit in the season of the birth
of the Christ of God - the Word of God
the love of God translated into everyday human life,
I have a suggestion.
The National Alliance on Mental Illness ( NAMI )
has put out a commercial this year.
It shows a reflective Santa
sitting on the roof of a house
distraught and embarrassed and ashamed
about his participation in over a 1000 years of
labeling people as either
naughty or nice.
Well, consider this — was
Jesus the — son of God
Jesus the — incarnation of God
Jesus the — Word of Love made flesh
who lived
within — the daily likes of the world
within — the cultural norms of the world
within — the values of his people
within — the fundamental principles of society
considered naughty?
Was he?
Well…it all depends on the lens you wear.
If he is seen as one who would dare to
unveil the violence of the world
violence that is too often covered over -
violence that is even condoned
with words like:
kids will be kids
family before others
those folk are not like us
they are all to be avoided
we have to think of ourselves first
then
yes, Jesus was as naughty
as one can be.
If — he is seen as one led by
the Holy Spirit - the Spirit of Truth
the Paraclete
(that is translated as the Defender of the Accused )
who
always placed himself among and alongside
the rejected - the expelled - the convicted
the ones society counts as less or no one
then
yes, Jesus was as naughty
as one can be.
AND YET,
for us — he is the Savior
for us — he is God in the flesh
for us — he is the life of God’s eternal Reign
walking around
as though
it was — and is — and will be
the life that is meant for us all.
And yes,
according to the four gospels,
Jesus was naughty
for he did not - would not
go along with
the word of violence
that works so well in the world
but has no place
in the life of Jesus
and
the life of Jesus’ followers.
Let me end with this story.
There was a King - a powerful King.
His ego was big. His heart was small.
He was ruled by fear - He ruled by violence.
In what is designated as the gospel for
this First Sunday after Christmas,
this King
( we know him as Herod )
was so afraid
that one day
his family would lose their place
as the power and authority of the day
this King became for us
the incarnation - the embodiment
of the violence of our fear-filled world.
And the Word of Love
had to flee into exile until it would grow into
the Jesus
who as one person notes
becomes the love that
puts up no resistance to violence
in order that
this Word of Love - this God in the flesh
becomes another way for us
to live in a broken and violent world.
And the Word became flesh and lived among us,
and we have seen his glory the glory of a father’s only son,
full of grace and truth.
AMEN
No comments:
Post a Comment