Sermon for the 2 nd Sunday after Christmas, January 3, 2010
“ God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. ”
WHAT IS in a name? All arguments aside, even those from the lovers' dialogue in Romeo and Juliet, a name is a powerful thing. God's spoken Word created all that was ever created, and His very naming of a thing appears to have brought it into being. He gave the first man the power to name all the creatures that he found around him. Almost all names have a meaning more than just a sound. So it was when our Lord was promised to His mother and earthly father. The angel told them both to name Him Jesus .
Jesus is the English form of Y'shua or Joshua , which means God saves or the Deliverer . It was an appropriate name in the first one who carried it and led the children of Israel across Jordan to conquer the Promised Land, delivering them from their desert wanderings. It was also the name of Hosea (or Y'shua) the prophet whom God chose to live a life like God Himself, married to an unfaithful bride, but bringing her from her sullied profession to a redeemed married state more than once. When the angel gave the son of Mary the name Jesus , it signified Who He was to be: the Savior of the world.
As we do at Baptism , the naming of a Jewish boy was done at his circumcision , which we remember on January 1 st every year because Jesus was circumcised on the 8 th day after His birth. Obediently Joseph and Mary gave Him the Name Jesus, Savior . In His own words and in scriptures regarding Him, Jesus would be given many other names, titles and descriptions, as many as 200. Among them are: the last Adam , our Advocate and Mediator, the Alpha and Omega or Beginning and End, the Bread of Life , our Bridegroom , the Chief Cornerstone , our Creator , Eternal Life , the Firstborn From the Dead , the Gate of the sheep and the Good Shepherd , our Great High Priest , the Head of the Church, the Heir of all things, the Holy One, our Hope , the I Am , the Image of God , Immanuel or God with us, Judge of the living and the dead, King of kings and Lord of lords , the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world, Light of the World , the Morning Star , the Only Begotten Son of God, the Resurrection and the Life , the Righteous One, our Rock , Son of David, Son of God, Son of Man, the Way the Truth and the Life , and the Word of God. And He would be given the title of Christ , the Messiah, the Anointed One : a special longed for office sought to bring the world under the dominion of God through the appointment of being God's unique priest, prophet and king. He was all that mankind ever hoped for, and dreaded, and needed, and despised. His life was the watershed of all humanity, dividing forever the saved from the damned.
The name Jesus forever gets a reaction from people. For the most part, it is powerful enough to make even His detractors become quiet, though some will still taunt Him and even use His Name as a curse. His very existence raises the stakes, confronts evil, shines a light on things, lifts up truth, and makes holiness a possibility for us who claim Him as our Savior. Think of a world without Him, and you will know what hell on earth can be. A world with Him is thus far a world divided over Him, but it remains the central question for all people great and small: “What do you say of Jesus Christ, and do you take Him for your own Savior and Lord?”
A great many Scriptures, those we call the Old Testament or Jewish books, prophetically speak of this special Person who was going to come. Jesus read one such passage out to His hometown of Nazareth, that which is our lesson for the Epistle today, proclaiming God's Spirit to be on Him, with God's appointed power to preach the Gospel, heal despair, give freedom to those in spiritual bondage, announce God's day of judgment. That hometown crowd thought He was getting above Himself. We may feel that way ourselves sometimes, when it feels like His presence in our lives judges us severely or cramps our style. The Savior divides the sheep from the goats, but before that He identifies that goat-ness in our lives and asks of us, “Will you let that go and leave it behind you for my sake? Will you follow me and let the tyranny of your sins cease from ruling you?” The name Savior doesn't mean an automatic blind amnesty for all mankind, but the possibility to chose Him and live. He is a lifeboat on the waters of a flood. We may still drown or we may let ourselves be brought onboard.
Being called “Savior” has its obvious difficulties. It raises everyone's expectations of you. If a young boy or girl were called “ the light of the world ” or “ God's promised deliverer ” today it would certainly bring a hostile reaction from people who immediately would challenge the audacity of it. The challenges to Jesus' Name have gone on now for 2000 years. Yet He stands unsullied, and every accusation against Him has fallen silent, all His detractors given very ample answers to their flawed arguments against His being God's own Salvation for all people everywhere.
What does the Name of Jesus do to you when you hear it? Something in my heart aches a bit: it's a yearning, a love mingled with pain and grief for the evil we caused Him to endure. Everyone's relationship with Him has had some difficult patches, some falling away, some failures to live up to the vows we made at Baptism. If we know anything about Him, it is that we can't get away from Him. I tried once, and it was only pain and sorrow to me. I thought it would mean universal redemption and freedom from religious boundaries and regulations, and it only mean degradation for my own life. If once the Name of Jesus has been uttered over you, He will not leave you alone. You are no longer your own master—even if you ever were. When the Holy Spirit has entered your life, He is on your trail from that day forward. You might still resist to the end and fall endlessly downward, but you'll never be able to say He wasn't there for you. Jesus, your Savior, said, “I am with you, even to the end of the world.”
We try everything else. We try medicine. We try yoga. We try romantic intrigues. We try danger. We try possessions. We try to live a very long time. We try fad diets, political parties, self-help books, new jobs, giant entertainment walls, reading the Great Books, surf the information superhighway, walk labyrinths, hang crystals, read horoscopes, call psychic hotlines, do psychoanalysis, acupuncture, health spas, friendships, and lost causes galore. No other path leads to Him. He is right there, the very path we must walk to be united with God. It's so simple, and so offensive, and so life-changing, powerful, trustworthy, and sadly so seldom used.
Even Christians have a very hard time staying with Jesus. “Follow me” is not an easy command to live out. By that He means: “Hang on! This is going to be rough for a bit. Buckle your seatbelt. Take this helmet and put it on. Don't fret about what you see—you can trust me to get you safely home. Just keep your head and arms inside the vehicle.” It's just like that boat in the raging storm that was taking water and Jesus asleep in the stern. As His followers, we may be disconcerted by what He leads us through. You may face it as fun and excitement, or see only terror and dismay, but it's His life lived through you. Jesus, the Savior , is able to do in you what He was able to do in His own great life. And that always includes a crucifixion.
It's the start of a new year. 2010 can be an awesome time for you and me. “We'll see,” might be your reaction to that statement, and surely the last year may have been a rough ride for some of us. But “We'll see,” is not the Christian outlook. Who is your savior? Who is your lord? Just what is He capable of? And what can't He do?
We hang by one hand clutched to a tree root on the face of a cliff, our bodies dangling over a great potential fall below our feet. That's mankind today, and every day since the world began and then fell over that cliff. Our arm is getting tired. Our grip is growing weak. Our confidence in our own strength is diminished to the point of taking any answer that offers itself. His offer says, “Let go. I am here. I will catch you. You can trust me. But you have to let go.” Our prayer has been answered. Our Savior has spoken to us. His assurance is trustworthy, and still… we cling to a thread. Will we trust the Savior with our lives? Will we believe that His Name is powerful? Jesus said that when we pray with faith in His Name, God answers and gives us everything. In the Name of Jesus, thousands were baptized on the first day of the Church, the lame were raised up healthy, demonized people released from the devil's hold, and the dead raised up. “ Let go. I am here. I will catch you…”
Do you trust this savior? Can you let go of your former answers to your life's problems? Is He able to do all that He promised? Are the Scriptures true?
God exalted His Son and gave Him a name above every name: “ that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” Phil 2:10-11
“When eight days were accomplished for the circumcising of the child, his name was called JESUS, which was so named of the angel before he was conceived in the womb.” Luke 2:21 If we even call Him by His Name, we call Him Savior .
What is in a name? In His Name, we have everything we ever needed.
PFH+