JESUS’ CALL TO VULNERABILITY (IT SCARES ME)

This Lenten season I am thinking about Jesus’ making himself vulnerable.  I think it fair to say that Jesus died because he made himself vulnerable.  I do not like the implications.

Vulnerability has an interesting relationship with power.  Generally, we (I certainly) avoid vulnerability with one of two expressions of power, shields or spears.  We might empower ourselves with various psychological defensive barriers of protection (shields), or we might become the aggressive bullies (spears).  (I even alternate between the two.)  Strangely, the powerlessness of vulnerability emanates its own “power.”  It is like light coming into darkness; sometimes those in darkness do not want to be exposed without their shields or spears.  Jesus’ vulnerability displays his absolute God-dependence.  Jesus’ vulnerability exposes the need of all people to be completely God-submitted in order to be embraced by Life.  Some receive that revelation with joy and embrace Jesus; some shy away to rely upon themselves; and some try to eliminate the vulnerable Jesus.

Vulnerability starts, of course, with the Incarnation.  Paul lays it on the line for all Christians in Phil 2:1-11.  If Christians are to have any proper response to being united with Christ, it must be this: lowering ourselves beneath others (1-4), which means creating a state of mind (a command to obey) that is found in Christ Jesus (5), who made himself nothing to take the nature of a servant, and who humbled himself becoming obedient to death (6-8).  The proper response to Jesus is nothing less than that.  Another way to say this is that Jesus made himself vulnerable to save vulnerable people who must recognize their vulnerability.  Christians have that same calling.

Lord, I do not really like the implications of being called to become vulnerable like Jesus.  I balk at dropping my defenses.  I resist becoming vulnerable.  But, once again, I know I belong to Jesus, and I do know that deep down I want you to change me.  Help me to become a vulnerable servant obedient unto death.  Please accept my hesitant prayer.  Amen.

LENT: WHY HUMAN FRAILITY IS GOOD

Lent is a good time to be frail.  Jesus is God become frail.

The frailty of Jesus.  My church has been preaching a series on the humility of Jesus using the first part (vv 6 – 8) of an early church hymn/poem (vv 6 – 11) in Philippians 2:

Who [Jesus], being in very nature God,
        did not consider equality with God
            something to be used to his own advantage;
rather, he made himself nothing
        by taking the very nature of a servant,
        being made in human likeness.
And being found in appearance as a man,
        he humbled himself
        by becoming obedient to death—
        even death on a cross! (Phil. 2:5 - 8 NIV)

[Note:  The introduction to the hymn, verse 5 is a command, not a suggestion: “Have this disposition in you as Christ Jesus!”]

The humility Paul commands here, which is found in Christ, is not what people generally extol as the “virtue” of humility, a mere non-prideful attitude.  The humility of Jesus means that he accepted frailty.  What do I mean by frailty?  It is the opposite of the self-reliance and self-effort toward self-motivated ends.  The acceptance of frailty is the recognition of absolute weakness apart from God.  The Incarnational, self-emptying of the essence of God in Jesus meant that he shared in human frailty.  However, in the frailty of human form and nature, Jesus was completely obedient.  Jesus became dependent on his Father.  In doing so, Jesus became the “new Adam” (Paul’s analogy in Rom 5:15; 1Cor 15:45) who ushered in a new era of God’s life and grace.  In the frailty of human form and nature, Jesus conquers sin and death.

Application:  Why is humble frailty a good disposition?  It leads us to dependence on God and obedience.  Following this hymn/poem of 2:8 - 11, Paul reminded his “saints at Philippi” that in their obedience God was enabling them to will and act according to his purposes (2:12 – 13).  That is what I want in my life.

The “test” of life is whether I live for my own desires by my own strength or whether I live as a created person dependent on my Creator.  This test is not a final examination; it plays out daily.  I read a statement a few days ago, “The greatest teacher of God’s presence in our life is our life.”*  What struck me in reflection is that my life is a constant testimony to me – as much or more so as to anyone else.  When I accept my frailty, I seek to be near my God.  I experience increased order in my life, the peace that comes from the Presence of God.  I witness it.  When in my “strength” I seek my own way, there is more chaos in my life.  I can testify to that as well.

For Paul frailty was quite personal:  At one point in his life, Paul pleaded for God to take away some physical frailty, a “thorn in the flesh” (2Cor 12:7 – 8).  In response, God told Paul: “Sufficient for you is my grace; for [my] strength is made complete in weakness” (2Cor 12:9).

Lord, help me to see clearly and accept fully my frailty so that you might enable me in my weakness through your Spirit to be of real service in your Kingdom.  Amen.

*James Finley as quoted in Rohr’s Daily Meditations, 3/15/24.

JESUS IS NOT THE SOLUTION -- THE SCANDAL OF THE INCARNATION

I dislike billboard slogans like, “Jesus is the solution” of “God will fix your problems.”  What sorry, cheap theology!  As we are coming up to Advent in a little over a week, I am thinking about the scandal of the Incarnation.

“…who being the expression of God’ essence… emptied himself and took expression as a slave, becoming in appearance human… humiliated himself, being obedient up through death, the death of a cross” (Phil 2:6-8)

No one in their imagination creates a suffering, humiliated god who makes himself a slave.  Particularly charlatan Christians and prosperity preachers want nothing to do with a god who willfully puts himself at the bottom of human ranking.  They preach a god who makes people (themselves) rich and makes all one’s problems magically vanish.

That is not Jesus.  Jesus understands suffering and humiliation.  Jesus entered the chaos of human existence.  He does not remove it.  However, he still enters it.  As the Risen-Incarnate Jesus, he embraces us and walks with us through the brutal side life.  In creation, God breathed order into the midst of chaos and brought about life that exists within chaos (Gen 1).  In the same way Jesus breathes order and Life into the midst of the chaos of our lives.

I need to clarify that I need no sympathy.  My life has been easier than over 99% of the world’s population.  Still, I know that at those times of chaos, Jesus was there.  Also, I tend to believe beneath our active imaginations that would create a god who is above it all, we essentially long for One who comes down to us.  I do.

The Incarnation is a glorious scandal!

Lord, help me this coming Advent season to evermore appreciate your Incarnation.  Amen.