SERMON: "A Season For the Weak"

"A Season For the Weak"
Luke 1:39-55  

Mary was a plain, young, peasant girl – a self-described lowly handmaiden. Some Bible scholars have suggested she may have been as young as 14. She was an unwed, pregnant teenager. And yet – and yet – she was entrusted with this great honor: to allow the Savior of the world to be nurtured within her.

There’s a story told about a wandering scholar in the middle ages who was deathly sick. The scholar was very poor, so he was taken to a hospital for orphans and transients. Assuming that because he was poor he would not know their learned Latin language the doctors began to discuss the possibility of using him for some medical experiments. They rationalized, out loud, that since he was a worthless wanderer it really wouldn’t matter if the experiments were failures. When the wandering scholar heard the comment, he opened his eyes and looked up at those doctors and he said in their learned Latin tongue, “Please don’t call anyone worthless for whom Christ has died.”

If there’s a message in the fact that Jesus, the Christ, was born in a stable among animals, in an obscure village like Bethlehem, to an unknown peasant teenager, it is precisely that his coming was for everyone – that human worth is not measured by wealth or position or power, but only by the fact that everyone is a child of God. All of life is sacred – all of life is useable by God – the lowliest, the littlest, the least is exalted – is lifted up – is significant in God’s eyes.

If you hear nothing else today, hear this: there’s not a one of us who is unimportant to God. No matter what we’ve done in our lives up to this point – no matter how much we have earned – no matter the style of our clothes – we all matter to God. That’s the message of Christmas, at least according to the author of Luke.

Luke’s Gospel has been called by many Bible scholars “The Gospel of the underdog.” There’s just a sensitivity in the book for the least, the lost and the poor – those often overlooked by the rest of society. It is in Luke that we learn the story about the Samaritan who stopped and helped a stranger after a busy priest and pious Levite passed by. It is in Luke that the cleansed Samaritan leper returned to thank Jesus. It is in Luke that we read about the rich man and the poor man Lazarus. In Matthew we read, “Blessed are the poor in spirit;” but, in Luke we read, “Blessed are you poor, for yours is the Kingdom of God.” In Luke Jesus is the friend of outcasts and sinners. Only in Luke do we read the parable about the self-righteous Pharisee and despised tax gatherer; the story about Jesus’ friendship with the tax collector Zacchaeus; the story about the dying thief being granted entrance into paradise; the story of the son who disgraced himself but who found a father waiting for him when he returned.  

In Luke’s day Jewish males thanked God that they were not born “a Gentile, a slave or a woman.” Luke gave every one of them a special place in his Gospel. Luke had Jesus describe his ministry by quoting from the prophet Isaiah: “The spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim release to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord.” (Luke 4:18-19) It is in Luke that we read about the prophetess Anna and of Elizabeth, the mother of John the Baptist; that we read about the widow of Nain and of the woman who anointed Jesus’ feet in the house of Simon the Pharisee; that the pictures of Mary and Martha and Mary Magdalene is made vivid; that we read about Jesus speaking to a group of women on his way to Calvary and a group of women standing on the side of the road weeping.

So, we shouldn’t be surprised that the author chose to write about the birth from a woman’s point of view – from Mary’s point of view. And, that he has her declaring with her own voice: “God has put down the mighty from their thrones and exalted those of low degree; God has filled the hungry with good things, and the rich he has sent empty away.” (Luke 1:52-53)

The author of Luke wrote about the coming of the Savior into the world through the point of view of the mother – Mary – because she represents so much that is significant about the way God is at work in this world doing a new thing. The author of Luke wrote about this historically, theologically significant event from the point of view of Mary because she represents the powerlessness of the young – because she represents humility – because she represents lowliness – because she represents insignificance – because she was not royalty – because she was not well-educated – because she was poor – because she represents everything other than what the insiders in the faith would expect concerning the promised one of God – because she represents the weak of our world. Yes, it is this story we know so well that has birthed this season into a time when the weak are especially paid attention to – cared for – ‘Tis indeed a season for the weak.

Once, in a seminary in Bangalore, Mother Teresa was criticized by another nun. “Mother Teresa, you are spoiling the poor people by giving them things free. They are losing their human dignity.”

Everyone got quiet. Mother Teresa then calmly responded: “No one spoils as much as God himself. See the wonderful gifts (God) has given us freely. All of you here have no glasses, yet you all can see. If God were to take money for your sight, what would happen? Continually we are breathing and living on oxygen that we do not pay for. What would happen if God were to say, ‘If you work four hours, you will get sunshine for two hours?’  How many of us would survive then?” Then Mother Teresa offered, “There are many congregations that spoil the rich; it is good to have one congregation in the name of the poor, to spoil the poor.”

The Gospel of Jesus Christ, you see, flips the social order – it elevates the humble and puts down the pompous.  (1) And those of us who have said “yes, Jesus is Lord of our life and the community of faith of which we agree to be in ministry with", must take that message to heart if we are really serious about following Jesus. The only wealth we have as a church or as individual Christians is whether the poor and weak and disenfranchised are drawn to us – understand us to be a people and a place where all are welcome. It is not how large our endowment fund is or how large a staff we have or how beautiful our building is that is the measure of our faithfulness, but whether those that are poor of body, mind, wealth, spirit, or standing in the community are able to find comfort within our fellowship.  

Mary envisioned a day when God would exalt the have-nots, the lowly, like her. She believed God began to pull it off by honoring her with the birthing rights to allow God to become one of us – to enter the world in this most loving act. And you and I, as Mary’s brothers and sisters, are being called/are expected to continue the birthing of God in this world.  

As far as Mary’s neighbors and the religious and political leaders of the day were concerned, Mary certainly shouldn’t have been in a position to have such a major role in history. But, you see, God needed to make a point – and that point is that everyone is important in God’s kingdom. We are chosen not because of who we are but because of how God can use us – because of our willingness to let God work in and through us. God can transform the world through the lowly, the different, the insignificant when we say “yes” to the invitation to let God work through us.  

It was a new day for the world when Jesus was born. He brought with him a whole new set of values. A manger exalted over a mansion – peace exalted over power – and persons seen as persons, no matter how small, no matter how big, no matter what color the skin, no matter the amount of hair on the head, or what street in the city they lay their tired heads. The gift we have to offer God is not our social position in this world nor the possessions we have accumulated; but rather, it is ourselves – complete with warts – handicaps – personality quirks – whatever our weirdness or uniqueness. God can use us with whatever we have to offer if we say “yes.”

“’Tis a season for the weak.” Mary, Bethlehem, a baby, a manger, you and me - God can use us. All it takes is our willingness to be used – our statement of faith – our “yes.”

O God of us all and all that we are or aren’t, we pause because we are mindful of your great gift. We marvel at the thought that you can use us like you used Bethlehem and Elizabeth and Mary and Joseph and an infant – we even hesitate in disbelief because we cannot find too much good in ourselves for you to use. Help us in these moments to believe you accept even us and help us to accept the invitation to be used by you.

And now, as we move toward the close of the Advent season and the focal point of all our preparation may our spirits be lifted up – may hope, peace, love, and joy again fill our every pore – may the wonder of Christ’s birth bring healing to each and everyone of us. For it’s in his name we pray.  Amen.


Dr. Bill Bouknight, “Mary’s Revolutionary Song,” Collected Sermons (ChristianGlobe Networks, Inc., 2002), 0-000-0000-13.
Addendum:

It's not Marxism or socialism, it's Christianity! Sorry, Rush, I think the scriptures support Pope Francis' encouraging and prophetic word in this era just as prior popes and other Christian leaders have since Jesus himself - even many non-Christians hold these axioms to be important tenets of how life should be lived/ordered/organized and what is important. This is not to defend the Catholic Church, my own United Methodist denomination, nor any other denomination or popular religious figure of being guilty of abusing our resources to the neglect of the poor and disadvantaged throughout history. That's no reason not to call ourselves to repentance and to a reemphasizing the good news for all people - yes, it's that generosity and love and charity and joy and kindness and peace are fruits of the spirit and for everyone - the meek and lowly as well as the rich and powerful. Yes, we're guilty of going through cycles of emphasizing this aspect of who we are but that doesn't make it less true for all generations. And yes, we Christians have plenty to do to get our own houses in order! We do indeed suffer from being too well off, too comfortable, too greedy!

(While I never did find the particular article I was looking for to further reference my disappointment in Rush's comments, the below articles certainly provide further wings for thinking. The one observation in particular I was trying to find was one reminding us all that Jesus lived and taught long before Karl Marx did, which means Marx may have been guilty of using some concepts similar to some of Jesus' teachings in order to popularize his oppressing political agenda, but the popes and other religious leaders down through the centuries have not been so mislead by Marx. Oh, and I did read Rush's comments in full and find them even more offensive than I thought I would.)

Mary C. Curtis, "The Message of Pope Francis Can Survive Rush and the Rest," The Washington Post, 12/6/2013.
Trent Horn, "Rush Limbaugh Doesn't Get Pope Francis," Catholic Answers, 12/4/13.