December 27, 2015 Sunday School Lesson Matthew 2:13-23 Commentary on the Text

December 27, 2015 Sunday School Lesson Matthew 2:13-23 Commentary on the Text: The journey of the Magi is recounted in Matthew 2:1-12 and demonstrates the trustworthy nature of these three powerful figures. The Magi take the signs and portents of the Lord very seriously. They go to great lengths and some risk to remain obedient to the visions they are given. First they seek the child by going on a kind of pilgrimage journey. When they find Jesus, these stately, royal personages do not hesitate to bow down and worship the tiny baby. They also pay homage to the infant's foretold greatness by offering fantastic, indeed extravagant, gifts to this child born in poverty. Finally the Magi put loyalty over royalty by once more listening to an angel messenger whose counsel warns them of Herod's evil intentions. Having traveled hastily and wearily under a secret night sky to get to the baby, they now furtively slip away to their own lands, as though they too were fugitives from Herod's wrath. Verse 13 begins with these Magi disappearing into the night as mysteriously as they had come. Now one of Matthew's favorite characters makes yet another appearance. An "angel of the Lord" once again visits Joseph with a message. Consider Joseph's possible frame of mind. His wife has just given birth to a son, a child whose conception was so unusual that Joseph's first experience with an angelic messenger was required to encourage him to accept both mother and baby. Not only that, but after the child's rather awkward and untimely arrival, there suddenly appeared on the doorstep of their lodging place an entourage of intimidatingly rich and powerful noblemen. They had actually fallen down and worshiped at the feet of Joseph's tiny, red and wrinkly newborn son. To cap off this bizarre behavior they ceremoniously presented three of the most valuable items one could possess in Joseph's day as gifts for the baby. Instead of giving this new family a chance to settle in and absorb all these events, however, Joseph now encounters another angel! This time, however, the heavenly messenger brings no flowery pronouncements or words of comfort. This time the message is an urgent, frightening warning requiring instantaneous action. Still trying to comprehend the visit and adoration of the Magi, Joseph is now told that no less than King Herod himself wants the baby not worshiped, but killed. Joseph's obedience to the angel's warning is immediate and unquestioning. He turns away from his homeland, his realties, his established livelihood, and goes "underground" for the sake of his family's safety. The extravagant gifts of the Magi now truly become the gifts of "wise men" - for they share the two traits this outcast family needs to survive; they are extremely valuable and yet easily transportable. The medicinal qualities of all three might come in useful for the new mother and baby, and tiny amounts of each costly substance could be sold along the way to buy food and shelter for all. Matthew the narrator now speaks up to add Old Testament authority to the steps Joseph is about to take toward Egypt. This flight serves not only to safeguard Jesus' life, but it will fulfill the established prophecy spoken by the Lord that "out of Egypt I called my Son" (Hosea 11:1). The Old Testament reference here then plays a dual purpose itself. First, it adds authenticity to Jesus' later life and ministry by providing evidence that Jesus' messianic identity had been with him since birth. But the voice of the Old Testament speaking through the Matthean narrative also lends an air of authority to the Gospel writer himself. Verses 19-23 conclude Matthew's infancy stories with a final tale of Joseph's obedience. The angel of the Lord finds Joseph yet again. This time the news is good, although it also requires another act of obedience and trust on Joseph's part. The family is now to leave their new home in Egypt and journey back to the land where Herod recently tried to destroy them. It must be with considerable trepidation that Joseph agrees even to step inside his homeland's borders. Despite the angel's assurance that "those who were seeking the child's life are dead," the long-suffering Joseph finally balks at walking right back into the lion's den when he hears that none other than Herod's son, Archelaus, is now ruling. While it may appear that it is Joseph's fears that bring the family ultimately to "the district of Galilee," Matthew has saved a final prophetic reminder for just this occasion. Having finally settled into the Galilean area, the family ends up in the tiny town of Nazareth. Now Matthew the authoritative narrator speaks up and reveals the Old Testament prophecy that validates even this apparently spontaneous decision on Joseph's part - that the Messiah "will be called a Nazorean."[Nazarean] (This statement does not appear in the Old Testament. Matthew may have been alluding to a general teaching of the prophets.) Matthew shows that Jesus' early childhood consisted of a series of moves - the whole family shifted from pillar to post, giving Jesus a lot in common with modern day "army brats" and "preachers' kids." Jesus' moves fulfill prophecy, but they also make him "from" both everywhere and nowhere. Always the strangers and newcomers, the Joseph/Mary family live both undercover and underground in order to safeguard their child's life. This early experience became a mark of Jesus' later ministry. For it was out of years of a "guerilla" lifestyle that Jesus could sigh and say, "Foxes have holes and birds ... have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head" (Matt. 8:20 NIV). Lesson to Consider: It’s a fleeting moment of wonder, an interlude in which life is suddenly lovely and charming, peaceful and polite. Ah, yes — Christmas. But maybe there is more than sweetness to the story. You know about the shepherds and the angels and the wise men from the East. You’re familiar with Joseph and Mary and the “little Lord Jesus, asleep on the hay.” These characters are known to us all, and our visions of them leave us with a warm and fuzzy feeling. But maybe you suspect that there is more than sweetness to this story. Scratch the surface of any Christmas card image, and you’re going to uncover greed and passion, danger and death. How does Christmas really work? One place to begin to answer this question is the Internet, which conveniently enough includes a site called “How Christmas Works.” It’s a one-stop shop for all your questions about the holiday. Questions like, “Why do people give each other presents on Christmas Day?” Or, “Is December 25 really the day Jesus was born?” Then there’s the mistletoe mystery. What does it have to do with the Christmas story? Absolutely nothing. And how about the 12 days of Christmas? What’s that about? Aren’t there like about 30 days of Christmas, from Thanksgiving until Christmas Day? Of course there are answers to these questions for those who are truly interested. The point is, a cultural and religious tradition like Christmas takes years, even centuries, of formation until it becomes the event it is today, enshrined in the global consciousness in one way or another. Christmas works, and it works via these traditions and legends and customs that have evolved over time. What happens is that all of these cultural accretions help us to “put on” Christmas. To do it right. But how does it work? Really work? Is there a lingering, lasting effect that Christmas produces in us and for us? Could we throw a monkey wrench into the whole business that would cause Christmas not to work? Actually, Christmas almost didn’t happen. Dig beneath the peaceful picture of Mary and Joseph and the baby Jesus, and you are going to find surprises. Take a close look at the gospel of Matthew, and you’ll be stunned by the danger and death that permeate the original Christmas story. You want to talk about catastrophe theory, you can start right here. Christmas should never have happened. You don’t, for example, take your pregnant wife — nine months pregnant with God— put her on a mule, and pack her off on a 120-mile road trip. Second, if you do, you arrange for lodging, and don’t just hope there will be a room in the inn. Third, the child is born in a manger. Think about it. How do children survive these days? Answer is, back then, a lot of them didn’t. Jesus did. It wasn’t a sterile environment to have a child. Wasn’t your typical birthing center. And then there are the wise men who hit a roadblock as they attempt to gain access to Jesus. Sure, the star in the sky is a big help as they make their way to Jerusalem, but once they arrive in the capital they run smack into King Herod, who’s already working on an exit strategy in case this new “king” isn’t found — and killed. To make sure, scores of male children are killed in what today is known as the “Slaughter of the Innocents.” So Christmas almost didn’t come off then — and it often doesn’t come off at all for us now. Of course, we go through the motions.

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