Word to the Wise
Saturday, January 3, 2009 - Christmas Weekday
[1 John 2:29 - 3:6 and John 1:29-34]Now I have seen and testified that he is the Son of God.
These words are spoken by John the Baptist, but they are really the words of any true disciple. In the Gospel of John, "to see" has the additional meaning of "to believe." But in the "infancy narratives" of Matthew and Luke, the same criteria applies to Elizabeth and Zechariah, Simeon and Anna, the Shepherds and the Magi. All of them come to "see" and testify. For many of us, the "seeing" part is strong, or at least strong "enough," but the testifying part is another matter. Religious faith, in our culture, has become such a private matter that we become afraid of "imposing" it on others. Christmas and Easter are times when a certain amount of "testifying" seems to be "acceptable" (although every year there's another law suit to take down a Christmas crib in some public place). However, true discipleship is more than poinsettias and lilies! It is the child in the manger and the man on the cross, yes, but it is also the preaching, healing, caring and challenging ministry of the life of Jesus in between! "Seeing" is more than "believing." It is "testifying" too! AMEN
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