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Monday, December 24, 2007

Joy to the World?

By Rev. Jerry Herships

I know there is question that is on everyone’s mind this time of year, “how did I agree to coming to church this late? Some of you are thinking, “I haven’t been here since last year. I don’t even know if I belong here.”

Have you ever felt like you don’t belong? Some of you might be feeling that way right now. Thinking to yourself, “If I didn’t love my mom so much, I would so not be here.” Or, “I swear if he asks for money or my soul I am walking out that door.” For the record, that feeling is not all your fault. It is our fault. It is the fault of the church. Many times in our history, the church has created for itself a little club. A club that says you have to talk this way, or dress this way or like this kind of music, or pray like this to belong to our club. To get past our holy velvet ropes. And if you don’t, there’s the door. What the church didn’t expect is for so many people to go…. “C-Ya!” Whoops!

It is a lousy feeling to feel like you don’t belong. I remember many times I have felt this way. Usually it is any time I set foot on any type of sporting event field. I just did not get that gene. I didn’t get the pass, punt, kick, catch, run, slap shotty kinda DNA.

I’ve had friends that wouldn’t pick me last, but it was usually because they had lost a bet. Even I felt sorry for them, “Oh tough break. Sorry you got me.” It’s not so bad now. I mean I like the Av’s like a lot of people, and like most people I get just as excited when they score a touchdown. See that was the part that was a drag. It was just this feeling that no matter how much I try to talk the talk, or walk the walk, I am going to get this wrong. And this will highlight the fact that I am an outsider. Sadly, many Christians are good at making people feel like an outsider. There is a famous quote by Gandhi that says, “I like your Christ, I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ.” Ouch! Or as my friend Dave would say, “I hope you know I love God, I’m just not real crazy about his fan club.” Welcome to Christmas Eve service! There are probably two groups of people in the room right now. One saying, “This is my Christmas Eve celebration?” and those inside going “woo hoo!” preach it, brother. And I am sure there are still others going, “Are we going to get out of here by midnight?” I still got presents to wrap.

I love the church but that wasn’t always the case. I was a C & E Christian for a long time. Christmas and Easter. That was the only time you saw me in the church. Even then it was like, “you said there would be doughnuts right?” O.K. I’m in. I think this is an important topic. Feeling welcome. Creating Hospitality. Treating the outcast like yourself. This is the story we have here today. How the least of the group can be called by God to do a miraculous thing. I am also going to talk about the importance of joy. Not the sweet syrupy kind that grosses you out. But real joy.

TONIGHT I AM ONLY GOING TO FOCUS ON TWO THINGS: Being the outsider, and joy. Make sure you come back next week when I will tell you how great you are. If you already know how great you are…that’s another sermon. J Stay tuned.

A lot of people who hear this story, don’t know how nasty the Shepherds are. Or at least how they were viewed. Think of pushers and pimps. Bingo. If you are about my age, you are thinking Huggy Bear from Starsky & Hutch. (James: insert picture of Huggy Bear) Sorry to put that image in your head, but that is a more accurate societal and cultural view of the Shepherds than what is normally viewed. I think we sometimes picture these nice, clean, morally upright type citizens. Did you know it was illegal to buy milk from a Sheppard? And wool. And a baby kid. The reason it was illegal was that it was assumed that what they were selling wasn’t theirs. They were fencing stolen goods (you can tell I spent a lot of time watching Kojak). They were not allowed to hold judicial office and they couldn’t be a witness in court. They were the outcasts of society. No one would spend the time of day with them much less talk to them. Actually, there was an exception. An angle. An angel that decided that these people would be the first people to hear about the birth of Jesus. With all the options that God had on who to deliver the news to first…. I mean there were people of high stature in the community. There were scholars, and priests, and Governors and Emperors and upstanding citizens of all kind. Yet God chose to deliver the message first to some people who were outside of society, both physically, and metaphorically. God first delivered this most important of messages, the news that there was about to be a huge shift in the way the world works, He first delivered that news to the Shepherds. The nasty, dirty, smelly, untrustworthy Shepherds. Apparently God didn’t see them that way. What God saw was children. God’s children. See, God was not concerned what they looked like, or what they smelled like, or what their job was, or what kind of reputation they had. God looked deeper. God didn’t care then and God doesn’t care now. (Begin to change clothes) God looked deeper. God saw people that needed to hear a message. So God sent an angel and God sent them a message. A message of great joy.

Lily Tomlin said once that , “Why is it when we talk to God, it’s praying, and when God talks to us we are crazy?” God had a message for them. And God has a message for us as well. It is a message that everyone gets to hear. Did you catch that? In verse ten? Good news of great joy for ALL the people. That just might be my favorite verse in the bible. I’ll have to think about that. It has GREAT JOY for ALL the people. That sounds awesome! It is the news of a Savior. This is not just any day type news. In fact, the word savior is not used very much in the gospels. It is used in the first chapter of Luke, in John and twice in Acts, but that’s it. This is a big deal. One place it was commonly used was of the Roman emperor. Israel had long used this as a political title for God. So we can see that right from the get go, this is not going to be business as usual. HUGE, HUGE news….and God gave it first to Huggy bear. (show other picture of Huggy bear)

So what about this joy that the angel talks about? He tells the shepherds not to be worried. I am guessing easier said than done. I’m thinking this is not the kinda thing that happens everyday to the shepherds. “Another day, another appearance by an angel.” The text tells us they were terrified. Ya think? Yea?! I would love to think I would be cool and have it together, but come on, who is kidding who? I would freak out! Once they gather themselves, the angel tells them that he/she/it (doesn’t it feel weird to call an angel “it”…so impersonal) has “good news of great joy” Now if we are a bible geek, we know that the words “good news” is another way of saying the gospel. It is clear that this should be a joyous thing to celebrate. Put another way, the angel is telling us we are about to get the gospel of joy. THAT is the coolest way I have ever considered the birth of Jesus. Actually, it is great joy so it should be, the Gospel of JOY. Now THAT is something I can get behind.

Here is my question. If Jesus is the Gospel of JOY, and we are supposed to do our best to be Christ-like…(you see where I’m going with this)…are you a gospel of JOY? Are you joy to the world? I’ve mentioned it before, but it seems apropos to mention it here. When we say the benediction every week we end with, “may our light so shine, and our joy be so obvious, that all who see us may come to know God.” Now I have to tell you, I get to look out and watch everyone say this. Many times, this is what it looks like, (act out a dreary benediction). What is up with that? You have heard people say about someone, “the lights are on but nobody’s home?” Here, many times, it is just the opposite, people are home, but the lights aren’t on! Now I can’t answer for you if you are one of those people. Only you can do that. But the question remains, are you sitting in the dark? Or is your joy so obvious? I got to tell you, I have sat in the dark many, many days. There are times in our life when it is just easier to sit in the dark. There are times when it is just too much work to even turn on the light. When that happens, it is the job of those of us who do have the energy to turn on the light to help these folks. Be a lighthouse for them. Show them the way. Heck, be a flashlight. The point is, if we are truly trying to not be one of those Christians that Gandhi had met, and we are truly trying to like Jesus, who I think the angel made clear was the gospel of joy, the light of the world, than we need to walk the walk and talk the talk. Because if we don’t, we look like me when I try to talk about sports. We look like fakers. We look like phonies. We look like pretend Christians.

We used to have a saying when I was doing stand-up. We would see someone in the audience that didn’t look like they were having a very good time. We would ask them, “Are you having a good time?” they would usually reply “yes” and we would say, “tell your face.” Not in a mean way, but, when did laughter and joy become such a negative thing? You don’t hear it much at work do you? If you do, count your blessings. That is a BIG thing. Find those people in your life that bring you joy. Do what you have to do to be around those people. Not in a creepy stalker kinda way, but seek them out because that joy that they have, it rubs off. I think God knew that when God sent Jesus. I think Jesus was a much funner fellow than maybe the Gospel projects. Yes, I know funner isn’t a word. Work with me. I have a picture, I mentioned it in the church news letter. It is called Laughing Jesus. Here is a picture. (show Jesus Laughing picture). Now that is a happy guy. THAT is a savior I can totally get excited about. But that is not the image of Jesus we think of. This is (show traditional image). Still cool. Still got the cool hair the awesome beard. Still holy. Just not as fun.

We are moments away from receiving the gospel of joy. Are you ready? I pray our joy is, and will continue to be, so obvious that we will be able to say yes whenever someone asks us “Are you joy to the world?” Joy to all….all the boys and girls, heck, even all the fishes in the deep blue sea…joy to you and me. Merry, Merry Christmas to all. Amen.