Christmas 1- Jesus increased in wisdom and in years
We read in our Gospel lesson that Jesus “increased in wisdom and in years”. He sits in the temple among the teachers and is asking questions and giving answers. After the holiday celebrations have ended Jesus is still in the temple engaging the things of God. He is participating in learning the ways of his people. There was a development in Jesus. He learned. His character developed.
Jesus is at about the age when Jewish boys have their Bar Mitzvah. It is a time when they are considered to make a transition from boyhood to manhood. They will responsibly enter into the worship of God as adults. Jesus would have entered the worship with the men at this point- entering into the inner courts of the temple with Joseph to make the offering of the Paschal Lamb, which would then later be eaten by him and his family. … Before their Bar Mitzvah the sin that boys commit is the responsibility of their parents. After their Bar Mitzvah it is now their responsibility to live according to the Law. So, there is an expectation that not only will people grow older physically, but their character will develop. They will become wiser. They will develop virtue. They become responsible people.
We read something similar about Samuel who lived in the Temple with the priest Eli. It says, “the boy Samuel continued to grow both in stature and in favor with the LORD and with the people”. That implies not only a physical growth, but also an emotional and spiritual development. If you grow in favor with God and with people that means there is a development of the virtues and a cutting off of vice that has taken place as his character has developed.
If Jesus was in need of sitting among the teachers and learning then so are we. Jesus and the prophet Samuel developed and matured, not only in body, but also in character and wisdom. That is the way we have been designed as human beings.
The theological word for this is “Sanctification”, which is the process of becoming holy. Sometimes it is called “Theosis”, which means becoming like God. Sometimes it is called “transformation” or “spiritual formation”. We might also talk about “discipleship”, which means something like “apprenticeship”. They all mean basically the same thing. It means we grow and develop into the people God is hoping we will become.
For some time I have been reflecting on a statement by a Christian teacher named Dallas Willard. He said that we have somehow come to the idea that we can be Christians without being disciples. That being a Christian is just a kind of label we attach to ourselves. Those who are really serious Christians, well they are the ones who are into discipleship, which involved bible study, prayer, and other spiritual disciplines that help to shape our character. But, somehow we got the idea that this isn’t for all Christians, only for those Christians who are really very serious. Dallas Willard will point out that the word “Christian” is very rare in the Bible, but the word “disciple” occurs very often. “Disciple” implies learning. It implies an apprentice learning from a master. So we are expected to grow and develop our spiritual lives.
The overall goal of God’s mission is to bring human beings back into relationship with Him. Part of the restoration of this relationship is the restoration of the human being to holiness. We read in the Old Testament the command “be holy for I am holy” (Lev 19:2; 20:7) and it is quoted in the New Testament in Peter’s fist letter (1 Pet 1:14-16). In 1 Timothy 4:7 we read “Train yourself in godliness”. It is said in many different ways but it is all over the New Testament. We are to be a holy people.
Jesus dealt with sin on the cross and so there is a way in which we are considered holy as we accept what was done for us by Jesus. But, that’s just the beginning. When we accept what Jesus did we also accept a way of life. We cannot accept Jesus as our master and Lord and then ignore what he and his Apostles taught about how to live.
In a way then, the Church is to be a training gym so people can train in the ways of God and become more like Jesus as they grow closer to God. The church is a place we can train to become the kind of people God originally intended us to be- so that we will think as God meant us to think, feel as God intended us to feel, makes choices as God would have us make choices, have relationships and behave as God would have us. Not because we are being controlled, but because we become who we were truly were meant to be. It is about entering into freedom. It is the freedom of a bird to fly as she learns to use her wings.
This development won’t happen without our planning for it and wanting it. God won’t force this on us. In our reading from the letter to the Colossians, Paul implies that our intension and focus matter. He uses many words that are about our action. Holiness isn’t something happens to us as we passively sit back. Holiness happens as we do what Paul is saying- “clothe yourselves” (3:12); “Bear with one another… forgive” (3:13); “let the word of Christ dwell… teach and admonish… sing” (3:16); “give thanks” (3:17). These are all things Paul is telling us to do. It involves our choices and our actions.
Our decisions matter. We will not become holy by accident, or outside of our own decisions. We have to Intend to. We have to plan for it. We have to work at it. Actually, something we don’t often talk about is that we are always being shaped spiritually. Everything you do, every thought you have, shapes your soul. Sitting in front of the TV. Shopping. Talking to friends. Reading the newspaper. It all shapes us. No one ever evangelized us to believe in consumerism. No, we just hear advertising, and engage in a pattern of actions that have an effect on our souls until we become consumers through and through. To relax we shop. We expect to be entertained. We become convinced that the next toy or house or car or whatever will make our lives better. As we participate in the ways of consumerism our soul is shaped and we become consumers. So anything we engage in has an effect on our souls.
In a sense, we have to work even harder than previous generations because we are no longer a society that surrounds us with ritual and expectation that lead to a saintly character. It was expected during Jesus’ day that all children would learn the law and the traditions of the people- how to pray, how to fast. It was in the air as a part of that culture. There was a momentum that pulled children along into maturity. Jesus and his family would make pilgrimages to the temple, probably 3 times per year. They would regularly worship and pray in the home and in the synagogue. The whole village would have had a unified expectation regarding ethics and what it meant to be a good person. … We no longer have that kind of momentum as a part of our society pulling our children along towards holiness. That is why we need to be very intentional about what is causing the shaping of our soul. If we don’t decide, then there are forces in our world that will decide for us and they will begin shaping our souls.
In our Colossians reading, Paul uses the symbol of baptism. In the early days when a person was baptized they would have taken off their old clothes and then gone into the water to be baptized. When the person came out they would have been given a white robe. The robe a priest wears is symbolic of this kind of a garment. A priest puts on the garment of a baptized person. It is white to symbolize being washed and made clean. Paul uses these ritual actions to make a spiritual point.
Earlier in our reading from Colossians (Col 3:1-11), Paul talks about all the things we take off- the old garment: “sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry.” (3:5-) … he goes on- “anger, wrath, malice, slander, and obscene talk… [lying], seeing that you have put off the old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator” (3:8-10). Paul is describing all these things as a garment. He tells us to get rid of the old garment, the old self, the non-Christian, non-baptized self. And now he’s going to tell us to put on the new garment- the new self, the Christian, baptized garment. He tells us, “clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience” (3:12). He is describing what a baptized, Christian life is supposed to look like. He is describing the clothing of a disciple of Jesus.
Paul encourages us to take off that old garment and throw it in the trash. Let’s train as Apprentices of Jesus. And train ourselves in holiness. This doesn’t mean we never mess up. Of course we will, and we will have to be patient with each other, but the overall trajectory of our lives will be towards holiness. As we train and cooperate with the Holy Spirit, the more the character of Jesus will shine through us. AMEN
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