Introduction to the reading ...
In the 11th chapter of Matthew's gospel, one can feel the pressure of Jesus' opposition building. John the Baptist has been arrested by King Herod. In verses 16 and 17, Jesus says that people are like children: "I invite them to play like we're having a wedding; in other words, to play a happy game, but they refuse. So I invite them to play a sad game, like we're having a funeral, but they don't want to do that either. People are just contrary, critical, hard to please."
Here is Matthew 11:1-19 ...
Now when Jesus had finished instructing his twelve disciples, he went on from there to teach and proclaim his message in their cities.
When John heard in prison what the Messiah was doing, he sent word by his disciples and said to him, 'Are you the one who is to come, or are we to wait for another?' Jesus answered them, 'Go and tell John what you hear and see: 5the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor have good news brought to them. And blessed is anyone who takes no offence at me.'
As they went away, Jesus began to speak to the crowds about John: 'What did you go out into the wilderness to look at? A reed shaken by the wind? 8What then did you go out to see? Someone* dressed in soft robes? Look, those who wear soft robes are in royal palaces. What then did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet. This is the one about whom it is written,
"See, I am sending my messenger ahead of you,
who will prepare your way before you."
Truly I tell you, among those born of women no one has arisen greater than John the Baptist; yet the least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he. From the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven has suffered violence, and the violent take it by force. For all the prophets and the law prophesied until John came; and if you are willing to accept it, he is Elijah who is to come. Let anyone with ears listen!
'But to what will I compare this generation? It is like children sitting in the market-places and calling to one another,
"We played the flute for you, and you did not dance;
we wailed, and you did not mourn."
For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, "He has a demon"; 19the Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, "Look, a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax-collectors and sinners!" Yet wisdom is vindicated by her deeds.'
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It is impossible to go through life without being criticized. Have you noticed that? If you try to accomplish something, you will be criticized. If you are satisfied to loaf, you will be criticized for that. I heard about a department store that made a big fuss over its millionth customer. The store president made a speech in her honor. She was given gifts. Her picture was taken for the paper. After these ceremonies, the customer continued to her original destination - the complaint department.
If anyone ever received lots of criticism, surely it was Jesus. The religious establishment called him a blasphemer. He was accused of being a glutton, a drunkard, a Samaritan, and a friend of sinners. The Bible refers to him as "despised and rejected of men." His own family thought he was acting irresponsibly. In the 11th chapter of Matthew's gospel, one can feel the pressure of Jesus' opposition building. John the Baptist has been arrested by King Herod. In verses 16 and 17, Jesus says that people are like children: "I invite them to play like we're having a wedding; in other words, to play a happy game, but they refuse. So I invite them to play a sad game, like we're having a funeral, but they don't want to do that either. People are just contrary, critical, hard to please."
The first criticism of Jesus in this text comes from John the Baptist. This was the person who earlier had said of Jesus, "I am not worthy to wipe off his sandals." But John has now been suffering through an episode in Herod's prison system and he's not thinking straight. Perhaps the conditions were as bad as some of the prison systems today such as the LA County, California prison system where there are 6 people to a cell but there are only bunk beds for 4 so 2 of them have to sleep on the floor which is drenched with seepage from the cell toilet. In such conditions disease runs rampant. Perhaps John the Baptist has some illness that led him to be confused about Jesus so he finally sent an emissary to ask Jesus is he really was the Messiah. Jesus responded by telling him to judge him by his actions: The poor have the gospel preached to them and the sick are healed. Yes, said Jesus, I am the Messiah. John's question was so much a criticism as a question of doubt and Jesus was secure enough not to be blown away by John's question as to his identity.
Jesus answered them, "Go and tell John what you hear and see: the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor have good news brought to them. And blessed is anyone who takes no offense at me." (vs 5-6)
Yet there were others who took offense at Jesus. In fact, according to our lesson today, the crowd took offense at Jesus.
We know from many other Gospel stories the religious leaders, the Pharisees, took offense at Jesus. Many mainline scholars today would say the Pharisees are a literary device employed by the gospel writers to portray the conflict in the early church between Peter's followers in Jerusalem who were more Orthodox Jews and Paul's contingency in Antioch who were more Gentile Christians.
Read between the lines in the Acts of the Apostles in the New Testament and the confict between Peter and Paul and their followers becomes clear. Conflict between Christians has been characteristic of the experience from the very beginning. The issues change but the conflicts continue. In the early church a big issue was whether or not a Christian must eat kosher food. That issue was resolved by saying no we do not have to eat kosher food and the church probably lost members over it.
Beyond that issue was the question of whether Jesus was a myth or an actual historical figure. The Gnostics, who were a large group in the early church, said that Jesus was a myth. The orthodox Christians said Jesus was a historical figure. The orthodox Christians won that argument.
Then in the early year 1000 the conflict in the church was over the issue of what role the Holy Spirit plays in the Trinity. Is the Holy Spirit subordinate to the Father and the Son? The Roman Catholic Church thought so but the Greek Orthodox Church thought not and the church split.
In the early 1900s debate raged as to whether Jesus mother was a virgin or not. That question split the church between the fundamentalists who said yes and the neo-liberals who said no.
In the 1970s there was a conflict over whether women could be ordained as Elders and Ministers of the Word and sacrament. It was a heated debate. As you can tell from the leadership of our church, the women won that one in the PC(USA).
Today the conflict centers over whether gays and lesbians may be ordained as Elders and Ministers of the Word and Sacrament. This debate has been raging since 1974 and is still hotly debated as attested at the presbytery meeting we hosted last month. When this issue is finally settled, I imagine some Christians will be disappointed and leave the church and then we will move on to another issue.
So in the big scheme of things the Christian church has been characterized by the beginning by conflict and we follow a leader who was criticized and in fact was a controversial figure. This is Jesus whom we follow. The Bible says that if the spirit of Christ lives in you, you will produce the following fruit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, fidelity, gentleness, and self-control. Are you seeing those fruits in your life? If you are a fruit-producing tree, don't worry unduly about criticism.
As my mother used to always say, "If it's not one thing, it's another." I learned early in my pastoral ministry that criticism comes with the calling. Any experienced pastor who is honest will tell you that. Why should we consider it would ever be any different, considering the criticism Jesus received. The religious establishment called him a blasphemer. He was accused of being a glutton, a drunkard, and a friend of sinners. The Bible refers to him as "despised and rejected of men." His own family thought he was acting irresponsibly. As Jesus told his disciples, "A disciple is not greater than his master." So we should expect no different treatment than Jesus received.
Let me suggest a second way to keep criticism from immobilizing you; sift each criticism for precious grains of truth, even as a prospector sifts through creek sand looking for gold. A caring, constructive critic can be your best friend. Perhaps the first time you hear a particular criticism you may shake it off as invalid. But if you hear it a second time, especially from a second source, you better take it more seriously. The ancient Jewish rabbis had a saying that went like this: "If one man calls thee a donkey, heed it not. If two men call thee a donkey, get thee a saddle." And I'm certain that they didn't used the word "donkey" in the original saying.
We live in an unpredictable world. This is a world where perfectly good people get cancer and suddenly die. Some people are unjustly accused and sent to jail like John the Baptist. The crowd questions the intentions of those who come in peace.
So of course there will always be low times. In fact, there will be times you get so far down that you cannot remember up. But when those times come, remember this: you are not alone. You've got a friend, one whom scripture says sticks closer than a brother - Jesus Christ. This same Jesus extends an invitation that reaches down to us no matter how deep in the pit we are and says, "Come unto me, all you that are weary... all who are carrying heavy burdens... guilt, pain, despair, strained relationships, burned out hearts ... come unto me and I will give you rest."
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The Rev. Dr. Jon Burnham preached this sermon at St. John's Presbyterian Church on December 12, 2010 (Advent 3A)
