The Jesus I Thought I Knew

from my message on 9/9/12, from Matthew 1:18-25, Luke 2:21

I was reading my Windows magazine from Austin Seminar this past week where I saw an article by Prof. Cythia Rigby of their staff.  It was  "Knowing our Limits & Laughing with Joy."  She related her favorite Peanuts cartoon.  Snoopy is on top of his doghouse typing.  Charlie Brown comes up and says, "I hear that you are writing a book on theology.  I hope you have a good title."  "I have the perfect title," thinks Snoopy.  "Has it ever occured to you that you might be wrong?"

We just saw the drama of the 4 rabbis who were so wrapped up in the interpretation of scriptures that they missed the Messiah being born right outside their door.  Has it ever occured to you that you might be wrong?

Today we start a 4 part series on the Jesus I Never Knew.  Today's message is the Jesus I thought I knew.  We might have gotten it wrong.

I start with my memories of Jesus.  It is ok for you to go off with your own memories.  I begin with preschool, simply because our preschool here at WUMC began this past week.  You need to know that for  little boys Spiderman is very big this year.  For little girls, it is Hello Kitty.  One little girl came with her pink cowgirl boots on that had flashing lights.  She was styling.  One father came up to me unsolicited as I was out greeting the families coming in.  He said, "I need to tell you that we love this school.  Our girls are so happy here.  They are getting exactly the values that we want them to have.  They feel safe and loved."   That is my first impression of Jesus too, from preschool, at the Methodist Church in Lubbock.  I knew I was safe and loved. 

I had some conflicting feeling about Jesus.  I remember at any early age going into the sanctuary, in the dark, I don't know why.  I remember feeling afraid, in awe.  This was Jesus' house.  I remember Christmas Eve or some other time where there were candles.  My dad took me to a separate room with my own candle.  I thought it was special for me.  Looking back, I can see that it was probably because I was a fire hazard!

Other conflicting feelings about Jesus.  I must have been around 3 rd grade.  I had the impression that I was supposed to keep rules and be good. One Sunday after worship we were headed to Thornton's Cafeteria for lunch.  The big deal was to beat the Baptists in line there.  As we were driving, mom and dad and 4 kids, I proudly announced, "I caught David with his eyes open during the prayer."  To which my parents replied, "And how did you know that?"  Oops, I had just incriminated myself.

Growing on up as a senior in high school, I made a personal decision for Jesus Christ as my Savior.  It was at a revival.  It was very emotional.  I felt forgiven of my sins by Jesus.  I knew that I could not save myself by being good enough, or keeping all of the rules.  I felt a burden lifted.

Going on to college, I read the Bible for the first time.  I found that Jesus was alive and still speaking through the words of the Bible.  I felt a call to ministry, so I went on to seminary.  Please don't go to seminary unless you feel called.  It can be very challenging.  Your views of Jesus can be called into question.  I learned about exegesis, where you dig out the meaning of the Bible.  I learned about the historical-critical method where you try to find out the kernal of truth of the Bible in its original context and then apply that truth today.  At the end of my seminary experience, we had the Perkins Revue, where we shared skits and songs of our life together.  I wrote a song called These were a few of my former beliefs, to the tune of These Are a Few of My Favorite Things from The Sound of Music.  I can't remember all of it, but one verse went something like this:

Walking on water, and parable of seeds,
Five loaves and two fishes, five thousand he feeds... ....you get the idea

Then the refrain each time:  When I'm praying in my closet, and I'm feeling sad.  I simply remember my former beliefs, and then I don't feel so bad.

As a pastor I have experienced Jesus in family systems training, Jesus as CEO in Total Quality Management, in conflict resolution, and today as spiritual direction as I try to spend time in quiet and reflection. 

So every time, I thought I had Jesus figured out, I came to this:  has it ever occured to you that you might be wrong?

So today I say to you that Jesus won't be contained, be constrained, or be classified by us.  He won't be controlled by governments, political parties, military forces, or even the religious institution.  Jesus won't be defined by us.  He defines us.

Which brings us to the scriptures for today.  Matthew first identifies Jesus as Messiah.  Messiah means "anointed one."  In the Old Testament, prophets and kings were set aside by anointing, by having olive oil poured over them.  There grew the expectation of The Anointed One, God's chosen instrument.  In Matthew and Luke, the baby is to be named Jesus.  Jesus is an updated form of the Old Testament name of Joshua, which literally means, the LORD saves.  Jesus is called to save his people from their sins.  In Matthew, Jesus is callled Emmanuel, which means God with us. 

I need to confess to you today that I find this concept a bit scary.  I don't want Jesus to be with me always and everywhere.   There are places and times that I would rather hide.  We don't want God with us.  It can be in those dark places of our thinking or doing or speaking.  We don't always say the word Jesus as a blessing.  Sometimes we utter "Jesus" as a curse. 

The opposite is also true.  We are desperate for a God with us, Emmanuel.  We have been promoting this path of discipleship.  More than 100 of you have taken the Assessment of my Spiritual Journey.  Pastor Jim has been scoring those blindly.  He was sharing with us as a staff his general impressions of what he saw represented in those surveys.  He said that there was a lot of loneliness, a hunger for a relationship with God and with a faith community.  This is exactly what God wants for us and the reason we have Jesus, God with us.  I know you are wondering why we are reading this birth stories here in the dog days of summer.  We should read them at Christmas.  It is crazy isn't it, to read them at this time of year.  We are doing it to illustrate that is is just as crazy to have a God that wants to be near us, all of the time, Emmanuel.

So this message of "has it ever occured to you that you might be wrong" comes down to this:  you might need to give up the Jesus that you thought you knew in order to receive the Jesus who is.  The only way to know him is to follow him, to be his disciple, to grow in relationship with him.

Let me sing it:

Sweet little Jesus boy, born in a manger
Sweet litte holy child, didn't know who you wuz

Didn't know you'd come to save us Lord, take our sins away,
Our eyes wuz blind, we couldn't see, we didn't know who you wuz.

Long time ago, you wuz born,
Born in a manger Lord, sweet little Jesus boy
You have shown how, and we are trying,
Master, you have shown us how, even as you were dying.

This world treat you mean Lord, treat me mean too,
But that's how things are done down here, we didn't know it was you

Sweet, little Jesus boy, born in a manger
Sweet little holy child, we didn't who you wuz.

The good news I have to share is that sometimes you have to give up the Jesus you thought you knew in order to receive the Jesus who is.