God gives gifts even as we sleep
No crib. No angel host. No songs of joy
(of angels or Mary). No fast-running shepherds to see and tell good news. Matthew does
not pay any great attention to the domestic drama of Jesus’ birth lavished upon
us lovingly by Luke – how different our Christmas story would be if we only had
Matthew. Instead his is an epic story of visionaries from the East and a
bloodthirsty tyrant who kills babes and children to hold on to power. It is a
story of a refugee family on the run from fear and oppression. It is the story
of strange messages in the night – of dreams which save a family and some
scholars from certain slaughter. It is a story to wake us up! But it is also a
story of what God can do and is powerless to prevent, in the dark.
Three times in this second chapter,
sleepers wake up with a life-saving night-time dream directing their steps to
safety and to life. The first occasion is after the wise sky-watchers have
bowed down and worshiped the child-king Jesus. Having followed a night star all
the way to Bethlehem, a dream by night directs the scholars home, safely
avoiding Herod.
It is in the night time that God speaks more clearly than ever to Joseph, telling them to run. It is under the
cover of darkness that the vulnerable family flee to Egypt. And darkness then
spreads across Bethlehem as Herod’s soldiers wipe out a generation of her children. And
again, it is through the dream world of Joseph that the message once more comes
that it is safe to return home, but this time to Nazareth.
Here is the advent theme of ‘Wake up’! Wake
up – this is a real world where dictatorial tyrants hold onto power at all
costs and think nothing of slaughtering their own to keep in control. Wake up!
This is real world where families flee to lands of safety away from oppressors.
Wake up! This is a real world where
dreams from God break in and bring life. In the face of grim realities in this passing world, salvation springs from the heavenly kingdom of profound hopes and dreams.
There is a lovely prayer in the Anglican church of New
Zealand’s service of Night Prayer which goes like this:
The angels of God guard us through the night,
and quieten the powers of darkness.
and quieten the powers of darkness.
The Spirit of God be our guide
to lead us to peace and to glory.
to lead us to peace and to glory.
It is but lost labour that we haste to rise up
early,
and so late take rest, and eat the bread of anxiety.
For those beloved of God are given gifts even while they sleep.
and so late take rest, and eat the bread of anxiety.
For those beloved of God are given gifts even while they sleep.
We are told that Matthew was writing chiefly for his fellow Jews, and that Luke’s gospel was written primarily for non-Jews. It’s strange then that it was not the local Jewish shepherds [as in Luke] that came to visit the new-born Jesus in Matthew’s gospel, but foreigners, non-Jews from the east. Perhaps both evangelists were trying to be inclusive by their choice of story.
ReplyDeleteRight at the start of the Gospel story here we have echoes of the universal appeal of Jesus to people across the world. In the last chapter of Matthew we shall read the ‘Great Commission’ where Jesus sent the disciples to “Go and make disciples of all nations”. But in this chapter foreigners from afar come to visit and worship Jesus.
So, the relevance of Jesus’s coming for all mankind ‘book-ends’ Matthew’s gospel. We ought to read the chapters in between in this world-wide context, and not just see them as events in Palestine two millennia ago, or with our particular local experience. The blog points out two of today’s parallels in the same part of the world with rulers sending out soldiers whose actions kill children, and flights of families for safety. The gospel events are not just ancient history or tradition, but still apply somewhere in the world today.
Chapter 2 is full of real named places: Bethlehem, Judea, Jerusalem, Egypt, Nazareth, Galilee. I got out my atlas of the Bible to locate them and to consider the distances walked and travelled to find a safe place to live. And I think of real named places today: Aleppo, Mosul, Calais, Turkey, Greece. How far do today's refugees have to travel? And where is today's equivalent of Egypt offering refuge to those fleeing danger?
DeleteTonight I had a good look at Herod. Besides slaughtering all the young boys he was responsible for many other murders.
ReplyDeleteHe had Mattathias Antigonas executed, helped by Mark Anthony.
He had 45 of his leading men killed.
John Hyrcanus was strangled.
He eliminated his brother in law Aristobulus, an 18 year old High priest by drowning.
Maria Alexandria his mother in law was executed.
He killed his second wife Miriamme.
He eliminated people suspect of revolt.
He killed three sons.
300 military leaders were executed.
along with a number of Pharisees.
The man clearly was deranged.
Colouring his profile even more.....Herod spent lavish sums of money making taxation high.
DeleteHe is responsible for Temple Mount, the Harbour Caesarea, Masada, Herodium, Alexandrium, Hyrcaria, Machaerus, Sebaste and other Pagan citys He also developed water supplys for Jerusalem.
A strange man indeed.
What strikes me is the slaughter of the babies. I wonder why God allowed the babies to be killed. He sent us a baby to save us. How did the mothers of the dead babies feel? Would they have had faith if they had heard about Jesus? I remember the Jews and wonder what sustained their faith during the holocoaust. I feel for those who lost their faith. How do the Yezidi Christians and refugees around the world sustain their faith. How do those in intolerable situations of ill health, addiction or violence sustain their hope. How do we help them?
ReplyDeleteJesus was a refugee.
I wonder what I can do for the refugees. What can I do about those who lost their homes in the jungle in Calais.