BELOVED SERVANT January 6, 2008
Adapted from my Sermon for January 9, 2005
Scripture: Isaiah 42:1-9 and Matt. 3: 13-17
How quickly time passes in our Scriptures! A couple of weeks ago at Christmas, Jesus is born. Last week he was already around age 2 when the Magi visited. Now this week, the celebration of Jesus’ baptism, he is already an old man by the life span standards of the first century Mediterranean world. Luke tells us Jesus was around 30 years old when John baptized him in the Jordan.
In our Isaiah reading we heard the first of four poetic passages referred to as “The Servant Songs”. The word servant was used for the first time by Isaiah in the previous chapter, 41. Composed by an unknown prophet during Israel’s exile in Babylon around 586 to 539 BCE, the early Christian Church regarded these prophecies to be about the coming Jesus, the Messiah. This prophet talks about how much he delights in this chosen one, saying, “he will bring forth justice to the nations.”(1b). How will he do this? Gently and nonviolently. He will not do it by preaching loudly/crying out in the streets; and he will not do it violently, “a bruised reed he will not break, and a dimly burning wick he will not quench” (3a). My Harper Collins Study Bible interprets this as “the servant neither strikes the earth nor kills the wicked with his royal command; his voice is not even heard. He brings forth justice in a different way.”[1] The Servant was expected to be a light to the nations (v.6), to open blind eyes (v. 7) and to bring prisoners out of the darkness (v.7). All of these requirements seem to fit the Jesus I know, the Jesus that often said the first shall be last and whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. These are definitely comments about servanthood.
So whether or not the prophet Isaiah was describing Jesus, he certainly was describing someone who had the type of qualities that Jesus had, not the qualities that most people of that day expected in a Messiah, a royal and distant king, leading armies to violently bring about God’s kingdom.
Now let us fast forward to Jesus’ baptism. All four gospels have the same scene with a few minor differences. John was feeling very unworthy to baptize the man he believed was the Messiah, even though we know from the nativity stories that Jesus and John are cousins. There was probably a lot of confusion around Jesus’ identity. He was born in a manger and grew up in a poor neighborhood, yet he was suppose to be the King of the Jews? Some folks who knew the story of Joseph being engaged to Mary but not married to her whispered that Jesus was an illegitimate child. What was the truth?
Well at the time the baptism of Jesus took place, God cleared up any confusion about the identity of Jesus by proclaiming: “This is my Son, the Beloved, with whom I am well pleased.” (Mt. 3:17) Not only did God proclaim this loud and clear, there were also other signs: the heavens opened and the visible symbol of the Holy Spirit, the dove, came down and rested on Jesus. Wow! This is pretty clear stuff. No more confusion! Some say that this event is Jesus’ ordination for ministry. Other resources also say it is in the baptismal waters that Jesus drops the last vestige of his perception of God as one who authorizes force, violence, power to dominate. The old passes away and the new is born.[2] It is only after the baptism that Jesus starts his ministry. Before that time he does not preach or teach, has no disciples and performs no miracles.
Now I want to tell you some wonderful news; when each of you is baptized, the same thing happens. You too are called beloved by God. Many of you may not hear this voice as it is very deep, intimate, and quiet, but as you are baptized, I believe that God is welcoming you into a new life with Jesus and acknowledging how much God loves you, always has, and always will. If you were baptized as an infant or young child, you probably have no memory of it. We read that God knit us together in our mother’s womb; also that God has written your name on the palm of God’s hand. God holds you in a special embrace. You belong to God and God belongs to you. This deep down voice—and I do hope parents and godparents remind their children of their special relationship with God—says that you are loved by God unconditionally and with an everlasting love. Don’t be afraid; trust that you are the beloved. You truly are God’s daughter and God’s son; you are favored by God, and God is well pleased. We have God calling Jesus beloved and well favored, and this is, as I already said, before he does any mission work, any miracles, any great teaching. The same is true with you my friends. God loves you more than you can imagine. If you have had any children, remember how much you loved that child and know that God loves you even more.
In our baptism, the covenant, the holy contract is always two-ways. We promise to follow in the way of Jesus, to resist oppression and evil, and to show love and justice as best as we are able. I especially like the words used in the Episcopal Church, “Will you strive for justice and peace among all people, and respect the dignity of every human being?” If we take these baptismal vows seriously, they will lead us to be a servant. Servant in biblical times did not mean just doing a ministry or service for another; it doesn’t mean a person who is a slave and inferior to another; one author says it means a person “who has laid down one’s identity, independence, and self-determination, not because of feeling inferior to another, but out of respect, honor, love for another.”[3]
For me this love and service need to be done in community. We have small communities like our church and then there is the larger community of Christians everywhere. The gospel of Jesus is intended to create a coming together of people that were once separated, alienated, or alone and make us like family. The community of faith ideally helps us to resist the pressures of our culture and to genuinely do a new thing with love and service. It is in community that we can understand and practice the message of Jesus. There’s nothing like love to heal, to inspire, and to strengthen. It is a way to become free and to become whole.
Our relationship with God and Jesus can and ought to be a personal, intimate one; however we must never forget that we belong to a church where we are sent out and commanded, as we read in Matthew 28:19-20, to: “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you. And remember I am with you always, to the end of the age.” As God has loved Jesus and us with an unconditional, everlasting love, we too are commanded to love, teach and serve each other. So let it be. And never forget that you are God’s beloved, God’s favored one, the one with whom God is well pleased. Praise be to God. Amen and amen!
[1] Footnote on p. 1071
[2] Jeff Krantz, Preaching Peace online.
[3] Graham Pulkingham, “The Spirit, Justice, and Community” online preaching resources from Sojourners.
Scripture: Isaiah 42:1-9 and Matt. 3: 13-17
How quickly time passes in our Scriptures! A couple of weeks ago at Christmas, Jesus is born. Last week he was already around age 2 when the Magi visited. Now this week, the celebration of Jesus’ baptism, he is already an old man by the life span standards of the first century Mediterranean world. Luke tells us Jesus was around 30 years old when John baptized him in the Jordan.
In our Isaiah reading we heard the first of four poetic passages referred to as “The Servant Songs”. The word servant was used for the first time by Isaiah in the previous chapter, 41. Composed by an unknown prophet during Israel’s exile in Babylon around 586 to 539 BCE, the early Christian Church regarded these prophecies to be about the coming Jesus, the Messiah. This prophet talks about how much he delights in this chosen one, saying, “he will bring forth justice to the nations.”(1b). How will he do this? Gently and nonviolently. He will not do it by preaching loudly/crying out in the streets; and he will not do it violently, “a bruised reed he will not break, and a dimly burning wick he will not quench” (3a). My Harper Collins Study Bible interprets this as “the servant neither strikes the earth nor kills the wicked with his royal command; his voice is not even heard. He brings forth justice in a different way.”[1] The Servant was expected to be a light to the nations (v.6), to open blind eyes (v. 7) and to bring prisoners out of the darkness (v.7). All of these requirements seem to fit the Jesus I know, the Jesus that often said the first shall be last and whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. These are definitely comments about servanthood.
So whether or not the prophet Isaiah was describing Jesus, he certainly was describing someone who had the type of qualities that Jesus had, not the qualities that most people of that day expected in a Messiah, a royal and distant king, leading armies to violently bring about God’s kingdom.
Now let us fast forward to Jesus’ baptism. All four gospels have the same scene with a few minor differences. John was feeling very unworthy to baptize the man he believed was the Messiah, even though we know from the nativity stories that Jesus and John are cousins. There was probably a lot of confusion around Jesus’ identity. He was born in a manger and grew up in a poor neighborhood, yet he was suppose to be the King of the Jews? Some folks who knew the story of Joseph being engaged to Mary but not married to her whispered that Jesus was an illegitimate child. What was the truth?
Well at the time the baptism of Jesus took place, God cleared up any confusion about the identity of Jesus by proclaiming: “This is my Son, the Beloved, with whom I am well pleased.” (Mt. 3:17) Not only did God proclaim this loud and clear, there were also other signs: the heavens opened and the visible symbol of the Holy Spirit, the dove, came down and rested on Jesus. Wow! This is pretty clear stuff. No more confusion! Some say that this event is Jesus’ ordination for ministry. Other resources also say it is in the baptismal waters that Jesus drops the last vestige of his perception of God as one who authorizes force, violence, power to dominate. The old passes away and the new is born.[2] It is only after the baptism that Jesus starts his ministry. Before that time he does not preach or teach, has no disciples and performs no miracles.
Now I want to tell you some wonderful news; when each of you is baptized, the same thing happens. You too are called beloved by God. Many of you may not hear this voice as it is very deep, intimate, and quiet, but as you are baptized, I believe that God is welcoming you into a new life with Jesus and acknowledging how much God loves you, always has, and always will. If you were baptized as an infant or young child, you probably have no memory of it. We read that God knit us together in our mother’s womb; also that God has written your name on the palm of God’s hand. God holds you in a special embrace. You belong to God and God belongs to you. This deep down voice—and I do hope parents and godparents remind their children of their special relationship with God—says that you are loved by God unconditionally and with an everlasting love. Don’t be afraid; trust that you are the beloved. You truly are God’s daughter and God’s son; you are favored by God, and God is well pleased. We have God calling Jesus beloved and well favored, and this is, as I already said, before he does any mission work, any miracles, any great teaching. The same is true with you my friends. God loves you more than you can imagine. If you have had any children, remember how much you loved that child and know that God loves you even more.
In our baptism, the covenant, the holy contract is always two-ways. We promise to follow in the way of Jesus, to resist oppression and evil, and to show love and justice as best as we are able. I especially like the words used in the Episcopal Church, “Will you strive for justice and peace among all people, and respect the dignity of every human being?” If we take these baptismal vows seriously, they will lead us to be a servant. Servant in biblical times did not mean just doing a ministry or service for another; it doesn’t mean a person who is a slave and inferior to another; one author says it means a person “who has laid down one’s identity, independence, and self-determination, not because of feeling inferior to another, but out of respect, honor, love for another.”[3]
For me this love and service need to be done in community. We have small communities like our church and then there is the larger community of Christians everywhere. The gospel of Jesus is intended to create a coming together of people that were once separated, alienated, or alone and make us like family. The community of faith ideally helps us to resist the pressures of our culture and to genuinely do a new thing with love and service. It is in community that we can understand and practice the message of Jesus. There’s nothing like love to heal, to inspire, and to strengthen. It is a way to become free and to become whole.
Our relationship with God and Jesus can and ought to be a personal, intimate one; however we must never forget that we belong to a church where we are sent out and commanded, as we read in Matthew 28:19-20, to: “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you. And remember I am with you always, to the end of the age.” As God has loved Jesus and us with an unconditional, everlasting love, we too are commanded to love, teach and serve each other. So let it be. And never forget that you are God’s beloved, God’s favored one, the one with whom God is well pleased. Praise be to God. Amen and amen!
[1] Footnote on p. 1071
[2] Jeff Krantz, Preaching Peace online.
[3] Graham Pulkingham, “The Spirit, Justice, and Community” online preaching resources from Sojourners.
posted by Sermons given at Deering Community Church @ 11:41 AM
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