The sermon felt like a struggle to me, which surprised me since I really enjoyed learning about "The Cherry Tree Carol" this week and including it in the sermon. I did not have enough fun with it, so it did not work as well as it could have to set up the Gospel of Matthew story.
I watched The Bishop's Wife Saturday night to refresh my memory before using the illustration from it in the sermon. Neat movie. The illustration was intended to be used in a discussion of prayer, but it seemed to work fairly well in the context of this sermon.
When using the Polar Express illustration, I called it the Polar Bear Express. I did not catch the mistake, but several of the Sr. Highers did. It gave them a laugh, and it made me feel good to think they were listening well enough to catch the mistake. I did not have anyone mention to me, which may mean that everyone was being gracious, not many were listening at that point, or they did not catch it!
“Angelic Advice - Change” SAPC, December 16, 2018; Matthew 2: 13-23; Advent 3
Matthew 2: 13-23 Now after they had left, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, “Get up, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you; for Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy him.” 14 Then Joseph[h] got up, took the child and his mother by night, and went to Egypt, 15 and remained there until the death of Herod. This was to fulfill what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet, “Out of Egypt I have called my son.”When Herod saw that he had been tricked by the wise men,[i] 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.[j] 17 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.”
The Return from Egypt
19 When Herod died, an angel of the Lord suddenly appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt and said, 20 “Get up, take the child and his mother, and go to the land of Israel, for those who were seeking the child’s life are dead.” 21 Then Joseph[k] got up, took the child and his mother, and went to the land of Israel. 22 But when he heard that Archelaus was ruling over Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there. And after being warned in a dream, he went away to the district of Galilee. 23 There he made his home in a town called Nazareth, so that what had been spoken through the prophets might be fulfilled, “He will be called a Nazorean.”
Introduction: "The Cherry-Tree Carol" is a ballad. The song itself is very old, reportedly sung in some form at the Feast of Corpus Christi in the early 15th century. Somewhere along the way, it became part of Appalachia ballads.
The ballad relates an apocryphal story of the Virgin Mary, presumably while traveling to Bethlehem with Joseph for the census.
“Cherry Tree Carol”
Joseph and Mary walked through an orchard green
There were cherries and berries, as thick as might be seen
There were cherries and berries, as thick as might be seen
Mary said to Joseph, so meek and so mild:
Joseph, gather me some cherries, for I am with child
Joseph, gather me some cherries, for I am with child
Then Joseph flew in anger, in anger flew he
Let the father of the baby gather cherries for thee!
Let the father of the baby gather cherries for thee!
Then up spoke baby Jesus, from in Mary's womb:
Bend down the tallest branches, that my mother might have some
Bend down the tallest branches, that my mother might have some
And bend down the tallest branches, it touched Mary's hand
Cried she: Oh look thou Joseph, I have cherries by command
Oh look thou Joseph, I have cherries by command (Songwriters: Ashley Hutchings / Kenneth Nicol / Simon Care / Kellie While
The Cherry Tree Carol lyrics © Peermusic Publishing
for more infö, go to https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/biblical-topics/post-biblical-period/the-origins-of-the-cherry-tree-carol/; (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Cherry-Tree_Carol; I discovered this carol from Milton Brasher-Cunnigham’s blog)
Kind of a fun story to share about what Joseph might have been thinking.
The Gospel of Matthew tells it a bit differently.
In Matthew, an angel appears to Joseph.
Angels in Mathew seem different to me than the angels in Luke.
In Luke, we get the angel Gabriel, or heavenly host announcing good news from a brightly lit sky.
In Matthew, the angel is talking about really difficult circumstances, even the threat of death.
In Luke, when the angels say, “Do not be afraid,” it feels like they are not to be afraid of the incredible possibilities that await.
In Matthew, when the angel says, “Do not be afraid,” it seems pretty clear that there is much of which to be afraid.
Let’s look for a few minutes at what the angel has to say to Joseph in Matthew.
Move 1: Angelic advice - keep on changing.
a. Put that advice into context - Joseph has been doing the right thing - thus we are told that he is righteous.
1. Joseph has been making decisions and changes to his life.
2. Joseph is not known as a righteous man by accident - he has made changes in his life to reflect his obedience to the rules of his faith tradition.
3. He has also recently made some changes in his personal life. Namely, he is engaged to a young woman Mary.; pretty serious commitment.
4. now, he is about to make another change in his life. A big change. He is going to move on from his fiancee when he finds out she is pregnant, and he knows he is not the father.
5. not just an issue of broken trust in their relationship.
6. It is a religious issue as well. To abide by the commandments, to be righteous in the eyes of the Jewish tradition, he cannot stay in a relationship with Mary, who has been unfaithful to him (In fact, a religious hardliner might argue Mary should be put to death for her actions).
7. Joseph decides to make a change - he will treat Mary gently, but nevertheless, he will leave her and maintain his claim to being a righteous man, even in those difficult circumstances.
b. Then the angel appears to Joseph in a dream.
1. “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, for the child conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. 21 She will bear a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.”
2. In other words, do not be afraid to keep changing.
3. Do not be afraid to stay with Mary and be part of this amazing thing God is doing.
4. Do not be afraid to change your understanding of righteousness from what you have been taught to this new way of thinking and acting to which God is calling you.
5. Do not be afraid to step forward, trusting in God to continue to reveal to you what is next.
6. Do not be afraid to stick with Mary and see how things will play out.
c. Joseph changes his plans.
1. He takes the angel’s advice
2. The course of his life is changed.
3. No looking back - now he is tied to Mary and to God in new ways.
Joseph heeds the angels' advice and makes a big change in his life.
Move 2: First change leads to more changes, more life-saving changes.
a. Literally, life-saving.
1. the next time an angel visits Joseph it is after the wise men have left.
2. presumably Joseph and Mary were going to head home - take baby Jesus on tour and show him off to all the relatives and neighbors.
3. get back to home and its routines.
b. But not quite yet. Another angel visit to Joseph.
1. change direction.
2. Do not go home.
3. head to Egypt to escape the destructive anger of King Herod.
4. Not quite the plan Joseph had, but he listens to the angel again, changes directions, and heads to Egypt.
5. A change that saves his life, saves Mary’s life, and save the life of baby Jesus.
the angelic advice leads to life-giving changes.
Move 3: Do you hear the angelic advice to change in your life?
a. IN the movie the Polar Express, a nostalgic sentiment about Christmas is shared: “the true spirit of Christmas is in our hearts.
1. I read an author recently who suggested something different. The author noted the importance of the angels in the Christmas story because the “Angels remind us that the true spirit of Christmas is not in our hearts, but in the one who is coming to transform” (Journal for Preachers, 38)
2. Remember that the angel tells Joseph to name the child Jesus, because he is coming to save us.
3. The Christ-child arrives not as an exclamation point of a great story we tell, but as the one who comes to change the world, to transform our very lives.
4. the coming of Jesus means that when we look in the mirror and see the person who is not quite who we want to be, we can dare to change, and work toward the person we believe God is calling us to be.
c. have you seen the 1947 movie The Bishop’s Wife? it tells the story of n angel named Dudley, played by Cary Grant, who is sent to help Henry, an Episcopal bishop played by David Niven. Henry is mired in the throes of the egotism and politics of trying to build a grand cathedral. As the Christmas season arrives, Henry is so busy trying to get the cathedral built that he forgets the important things in his life, like his wife and daughter. At every turn Henry’s plans are thwarted, eventually permanently, as the cathedral’s major donor, a wealthy, embittered and demanding woman, has an epiphany of sorts when she realizes her money could be put to much better use.
At the film’s climax, Henry is frustrated and disheartened by his plans gone awry, and by his fears that his wife no longer loves him. He sees all of this as the work of Dudley, who in Henry’s mind, seemed more intent on punishing than helping. When Dudley tells Henry, “your prayer has been answered.” Henry, in confusion and disbelief, responds, “That’s not true. I was praying for a cathedral.” “No, you were praying for guidance. That has been given to you.”
And Henry discovers he has changed - instead of building a grand cathedral, he experiences the joy of filling empty stockings of the poor, the joy of sharing love with his family.
Angelic advice changed Henry. Gave him new life.
Conclusion: the angel begins the advice to Joseph with “do not be afraid.”
hear those words.
Do not be afraid to change.
Do not be afraid to be transformed by the coming of Christ.
Do not be afraid of the new life God calls you to have.
Amen.
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