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Good Shepherd Lutheran Church Today's Frontline Devotion January 7, 2008 Hopes and Fears 3 |
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Frontline Devotion for Monday, January 7, 2007 by Fritz Foltz
Matthew 2: 16-18 When Herod saw that he had been tricked by the wise men, he was infuriated, and he sent and killed all the children in and around Bethlehem who were two years old or under, according to the time that he had learned from the wise men. Then was fulfilled what had been spoken through the prophet Jeremiah: A voice was heard in Ramah, wailing and loud lamentation, Rachel weeping for her children; she refused to be consoled, because they are no more.’
On Christmas Eve we sang, “The Hopes and Fears of All the Years are Met in You Tonight” In the quiet of these moments let us imagine we are in a lavish royal palace conversing with King Herod. For what would an oriental king hope? I imagine he might speak of law and order. If we pushed Herod for particulars, he might ask us to understand he is trying to do a good job with very little help. If shepherds want security, then they had better co-operate, because there can be no security if everyone pursues his own dreams. If the wise men want to pursue their version of truth, then they had better accept his order, because it is better to be a stupid fool than a dead wise man. And if God wants to remain silent, then we had better obey our government in order that we might survival with our lives and not lose that for which we have worked so hard.
If Herod could summarize his hopes in one sentence, I suspect he would claim, "I work for peace".
Our hopes for peace are found in the Christ Child. Our fears, Herod’s fear, are also found in the realization that Christ’s way might mean the end to some of our privileges. The wondrous gift is mysterious beyond our expectations.
God who usually remains so silent in this world might speak “I love the Herod in you. Lay down your cares, lay down your fears, lay down your most precious assumptions, and lay down every one of your weapons. Deny yourself and follow me. Lose your life in me and you shall find it."
Part of the Herod in us responds "Yes, yes. This is he who brings order from chaos. Peace is giving ourselves to this Christ and his law". However, another part cries out, "No, no. I shall not give up what I have. Never! To surrender to this love is to give up too much".
That is Herod’s response. Matthew defines the consequences of Herod’s fear in two terse sentences. He kills many innocent children in order to maintain his rule and the order that goes with it.. Mothers scream, refusing to be comforted, because they will never again hold their children.
At Christmas time we proclaim God comes to rescue us from this kind of world. His peace carries us beyond our deep-set obsession with survival. His peace delivers us from anxiety. But it also brings profound challenge and great demand. He reveals hidden thoughts, incites great joys, and provokes deep fears. And so as we give thanks to God for this Christmas gift, we also pray with great trembling, “Cast out our sins. Enter in. Be born again. Be born in us today.”
Let us pray: Come, Christ Jesus, overcome our fears of losing our security and wealth. Be born again in hearts that we might become people of peace. We pray in Jesus’ name. Amen.
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