Sermon: Aborting Christmas
Text: Matt 2:13-18
Occasion: Holy Innocents
Who: Mark Woolsey
Where: Providence REC
When: Sunday, Jan 21, 2007 (which is really Epiphany III)
0. Preamble
May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable n Thy sight, O Lord, my strength and redeemer. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
I. Intro
Zacharias� vision, John the Baptist�s birth announcement, Zacharias muted, ancient Elizabeth pregnant, the Annunciation, the Magnificat, a virgin with child, John the Baptist �genuflects� in utero, John�s birth, a tongue loosened, the census imposed, Bethlehem visited, Inns full, the stable birthing room, Jesus born, the feeding trough, an angel army, shepherds run, circumcision, Simeon rejoices, Anna evangelizes, �3 wise guys� worship, Joseph dreams, and a family flees. There. I think I�ve presented the whole Christmas story in one sentence, having listed every significant event. And yet, I left one thing out. I�ve left a hole in Christmas. Christmas isn�t complete without it. Not only did I leave it out, but it�s left out of almost every Christmas play & every nativity story, sacred or secular. Although today there is a minor feast to commemorate this event, at the time it originally happened, it was probably the most intense few hours of the sequence. It�s pathos rivals that of the culmination of Holy Week, and it reveals an aspect of the Christmas season that comes out in no other way. When incorporated instead of ignored, it corrects serious misconceptions in our celebrations. It moves Christmas out of Sunday school and into the dark alleys & tough places of life. If this season were a movie, including this scene would change the rating from "G" to "PG-13" or "R".
Of course, the missing event in this Christmas litany is the slaughter of the innocents at the order of King Herod. It comes to us in the Book of Common Prayer as the collect and propers for "The Holy Innocents".
II. King Herod
King Herod does not come down to us as a name of honor in spite of the fact that he�s often called �the Great�. You might be surprised to find out, then, that he came from a pious family. Although neither his father nor mother was a Jew, his father worshipped the Jewish God. His father was also a friend of some high-placed officials in Judea, and sided with a Roman faction in their successful struggle to gain control over the area. In return he became the �power behind the throne�. He started his son Herod on his political career, getting him appointed governor of Galilee at 16. In the beginning Herod even gained the favor of the people by going after bandits that were terrorizing the area. However, his political life became a soap opera, rising and falling from power until finally he was forcefully installed by the Romans as King Herod. He executed some fantastic building projects, including the Temple in Jerusalem where our Lord worshipped, and which Jesus even called His Father�s house. However, one online encyclopedia (Jona Lendering, http://www.livius.org/he-hg/herodians/herod_the_great01.html) relates concerning Herod that:
With building projects, the expansion of his territories, the establishment of a sound bureaucracy, and the development of economic resources, he did much for his country, at least on a material level. The standing of his country -foreign and at home- was certainly enhanced. However, many of his projects won him the bitter hatred of the orthodox Jews, who disliked Herod�s Greek taste - a taste he showed not only in his building projects, but also in several transgressions of the Mosaic Law.
The orthodox were not to only ones who came to hate the new king. The Sadducees hated him because he had terminated the rule of the old royal house to which many of them were related; their own influence in the Sanhedrin was curtailed. The Pharisees despised any ruler who despised the Law. And probably all his subjects resented his excessive taxation.
And so it was all downhill from here. He was married 10 times, killing at least two of his wives and two of his children out of paranoia over his throne. King Henry VIII of England has nothing on him! When a teacher and some students tore down the Roman eagle which Herod had attached to the temple, he had them burned alive. Worse, when he realized he was not much longer for this world, and that no one was particularly distressed by that, he had the heads of all the prominent families come to his palace. Once there he imprisoned them and ordered his sister to put them all to death upon his own demise so that there would at least be some form of mourning in Israel when he died. Fortunately she did not carry out this last wish. It was THIS Herod to which the wise men came, looking for the new king that was born. Although there is no corroborating extra-biblical evidence concerning the Bethlehem baby bashing, it is entirely within the character of this evil man.
Another online encyclopedia, wikipedia, quotes the historian Josephus concerning his last illness:
(Ant. 17.6.5): But the disease of Herod grew more severe, God inflicting punishment for his crimes. For a slow fire burned in him which was not so apparent to those who touched him, but augmented his internal distress; for he had a terrible desire for food which it was not possible to resist. He was affected also with ulceration of the intestines, and with especially severe pains in the colon, while a watery and transparent humor settled about his feet.
He suffered also from a similar trouble in his abdomen. Nay more, his privy member was putrefied and produced worms. He found also excessive difficulty in breathing, and it was particularly disagreeable because of the offensiveness of the odor and the rapidity of respiration. He had convulsions also in every limb, which gave him uncontrollable strength. It was said, indeed, by those who possessed the power of divination and wisdom to explain such events, that God had inflicted this punishment upon the King on account of his great impiety.
III. The Massacre
It�s no wonder then when we read in verse 13:
Now when they had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream, saying, �Arise, take the young Child and His mother, flee to Egypt, and stay there until I bring you word; for Herod will seek the young Child to destroy Him.�
At this point Herod gives the order to slaughter all male children 2 years old and younger in the Bethlehem area.
Verses 14 & 15 give us some information whose use to us today may not be immediately apparent:
When he arose, he took the young Child and His mother by night and departed for Egypt, and was there until the death of Herod, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying, �Out of Egypt I called My Son.�
At this point Matthew has Jesus recapitulating the history of Israel in his own life. Matthew�s quote of Hosea 11:1 (Out of Egypt�), which he applies as a prophesy concerning Jesus, was originally written concerning the whole nation of Israel. As explained in Genesis, under the patriarch Israel, the infant nation was called out of the Promised Land and into Egypt. Later, as the nation grew strong and entered its youth, God called them back. This is exactly what happened to Jesus. This is an important theme throughout the New Testament: the history of the nation of Israel summed up, focused, and recapitulated in the life of Jesus. The one major exception to this is that Jesus passed all His tests, while the nation of Israel failed theirs. For example, consider God�s analysis of Israel�s wandering in the wilderness between Egypt and Canaan:
But they continued to sin against him, rebelling in the desert against the Most high. They willfully put God to the test by demanding the good they craved. They spoke against God, saying, �Can God spread a table in the desert?�� When the Lord heard them, he was very angry; his fire broke out against Jacob, and his wrath rose against Israel, for they did not believe in God or trust in his deliverance. (Ps 78:17-19,21-22)
Compare this against Jesus� own desert wanderings:
Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. All this I will give you,� he said, �if you will bow down and worship me.� Jesus said to him, �Away from me, Satan! For it is written: �Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.�� Then the devil left him, and angels came and attended him. (Matt 4:8-11)
Because Jesus passed His probation and endured the cross in our stead as our representative, we were raised with Him and forgiven all our sins. This identification was so close that all our unrighteousness was credited to Him, and all His righteousness was credited to us. II Cor 5:21 states:
God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.
When I was researching this sermon by reading other sermons, I saw some clever titles:
The Grinch That Stole Christmas
It Isn�t a Christmas without a Cross
A Scrooge Christmas
and my favorite,
Let�s Keep Herod in Christmas
But I chose to name this sermon �Aborting Christmas� because there is another recapitulation that occurs over and over in history and is represented by this slaughter. It occurred in Israel a thousand years before when they would sacrifice their children on Molech�s altar (II Kings 23:10), and it occurs today.
IV. Abortion
Surely not in the enlightened West! You must refer to some lingering pagan practice deep in �darkest Africa�, or somewhere in the primitive South American tropics. But surely not in this country! Not only is it in this country, but it�s in this state, in this very city.
When Herod commanded his rank deed, Bethlehem and its environs were probably populated with 1500 people. From this we can extrapolate that perhaps 10 to 20 children were ripped from their mothers and savagely put to death. In the United States, every 10 minutes this many children lose their lives to abortion. 1.3 million souls a year. And the vast majority are healthy and whole; their only crime, like those innocent babes in Bethlehem, is being inconvenient. In both cases, then and now, children are ripped from their mothers. At least in the Christmas story they were taken from their mother against their mother�s consent. Now-a-days, they are still ripped from their mother, but it is with their mother�s cooperation, not resistance.
Here is a fascinating web page from National Right to Life (http://www.nrlc.org/abortion/facts/fetaldevelopment.html):
Fetal Development
From conception to birth
Illustration by R.K. O�Bannon Day 1: fertilization: all human chromosomes are present; unique human life begins.
Click photo to enlarge.
Day 6: embryo begins implantation in the uterus.
Day 22: heart begins to beat with the child�s own blood, often a different type than the mothers�.
Week 3: By the end of third week the child�s backbone spinal column and nervous system are forming. The liver, kidneys and intestines begin to take shape.
Week 4: By the end of week four the child is ten thousand times larger than the fertilized egg.
Week 5: Eyes, legs, and hands begin to develop.
Week 6: Brain waves are detectable; mouth and lips are present; fingernails are forming.
Week 7: Eyelids, and toes form, nose distinct. The baby is kicking and swimming.
Week 8: Every organ is in place, bones begin to replace cartilage, and fingerprints begin to form. By the 8th week the baby can begin to hear.
Click photo to enlarge
Weeks 9 and 10: Teeth begin to form, fingernails develop. The baby can turn his head, and frown. The baby can hiccup.
Weeks 10 and 11: The baby can "breathe" amniotic fluid and urinate. Week 11 the baby can grasp objects placed in its hand; all organ systems are functioning. The baby has a skeletal structure, nerves, and circulation.
Week 12: The baby has all of the parts necessary to experience pain, including nerves, spinal cord, and thalamus. Vocal cords are complete. The baby can suck its thumb.
Week 14: At this age, the heart pumps several quarts of
blood through the body every day.
Week 15: The baby has an adult�s taste buds.
Month 4: Bone Marrow is now beginning to form. The heart is pumping 25 quarts of blood a day. By the end of month 4 the baby will be 8-10 inches in length and will be one half of its birth weight.
Week 17: The baby can have dream (REM) sleep.
Week 19: Babies can routinely be saved at 21 to 22 weeks after fertilization, and sometimes they can be saved even younger.
Click photo to enlarge
Week 20: The earliest stage at which Partial birth abortions are performed. At 20 weeks the baby recognizes its� mothers voice.
Click photo to enlarge Months 5 and 6: The baby practices breathing by inhaling amniotic fluid into its developing lungs. The baby will grasp at the umbilical cord when it feels it. Most mothers feel an increase in movement, kicking, and hiccups from the baby. Oil and sweat glands are now functioning. The baby is now twelve inches long or more, and weighs up to one and a half pounds.
Months 7 through 9: Eyeteeth are present. The baby opens and closes his eyes. The baby is using four of the five senses (vision, hearing, taste, and touch.) He knows the difference between waking and sleeping, and can relate to the moods of the mother. The baby�s skin begins to thicken, and a layer of fat is produced and stored beneath the skin. Antibodies are built up, and the baby�s heart begins to pump 300 gallons of blood per day. Approximately one week before the birth the baby stops growing, and "drops" usually head down into the pelvic cavity.
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Sources Used:
Bergel, Gary (Produced by NRLC) "When You Were Formed in Secret." 1998.
Flanagan, Geraldine Lux. Beginning Life. The Marvelous Journey from Conception to Birth. New York: DK Publishing Inc., 1996.
Hopson, Janet L. Fetal Psychology. Oct. 1998. 07 Jan 2003.
http://www.leaderu.com/orgs/tul/psychtoday9809.html.
Internet Sources:
"Fetal Development." 07 Jan 2003.
http://www.w-cpc.org/fetal1.html.
"When Does Life Begin? Abortion and Human Rights." National Right To Life.
Note that even at three months, the so-called cut-off point set by the Supreme Court, the child�s heart has been beating for weeks. Abortion stops a beating heart. If it�s not a child, then what is it?
What should we do? First of all, look at the last verse of our Gospel passage today:
A voice was heard in Ramah,
Lamentation, weeping, and great mourning,
Rachel weeping for her children,
Refusing to be comforted,
Because they are no more. (Matt 2:18)
I ask you to weep. Weep for the children who died, weep for the mothers who give their bodies to be violated, weep for the doctors who kill instead of heal, and weep for you. Remember, just as murder is counted not only against those who actually kill a person, but also those who hate without reason, so God looks at the heart and judges us. This is not a comfort, but a terror. We might be able to falsify our face before others, but we cannot hide our heart before God. He knows what we have done, wish to do, and are capable of.
Have mercy upon us, miserable sinners.
This is why I requested our pastors to use the liturgy of the Litany for today.
Good Lord, deliver us.
O Lamb of God, that takest away the sins of the world;
Have mercy upon us.
O Christ, hear us.
O Christ, hear us.
Lord, have mercy upon us.
Lord, have mercy upon us.
Christ, have mercy upon us.
Christ, have mercy upon us.
Lord, have mercy upon us.
Lord, have mercy upon us.
This is right-to-life Sunday, the anniversary of Roe-vs-Wade, and Doe-vs-Bolton, two cases before the Supreme Court decided on Jan 22, 1973, that invalidated every abortion law in the land. And there were many of them.
V. Hope
After having attended worship here for the last 6 years, I feel I know each of you at least tolerably well. While I can�t say for sure that none of you have had an abortion, from what I know of you, I suspect none of you have. But just as I urged each of you who think they are above this sin to weep and repent, so I urge each of you who may have had an abortion, or have urged someone else to have one and now grieve over it, to have hope. There may be some that read this sermon on the web, or who may hear it in a different context than Providence Church, and you have aborted your child, or taken your wife, daughter, or girlfriend to have her �problem� fixed. To you who grieve over this I say there is hope. To those who read this and chuckle, there is no reason to hope. You have made your bed, and eventually you must sleep in it. But to those who hurt, there is hope. When Jesus Christ took our sins, He took them entire. Not the part, but the whole. He bore our sins that we may be made clean. Not based upon our works, our repentance, our tears, or even our faith. His decision to save us was His alone, based upon his mercy. And it was sufficient. If you grieve, then you can have faith. When He determines to have mercy, He also supplies the faith to receive it.
VI. Eat the flesh, drink the blood
So what should you do who have had, or have participated in an abortion? Eat the flesh and drink the blood. Pardon me?! What?! Not the child�s flesh, and not his blood, but our Lord�s flesh and His blood. It will save you. When you come to Him in this Eucharist in faith, He cleanses you. Your stain is removed, and your sins are forgiven. Trust, eat, drink, and sin no more.
VII. Postscript
This is the word of God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Soli Deo Gloria!
