I have a question to ask you. In the World Cup, whose side was God on? You can see and hear me give this Homily/Sermon on https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NyhgYLHCoPw
Was it Argentina? Well Messi certainly made contact with God after that first successful Penalty when he made the sign of the cross and sent kisses up into the sky, but I wondered what he was thinking. I hope he was simply thanking God for giving him the skill that he uses so successfully, but I worry that deep down he was saying “Come on God. Be on our side,” and I worry because that is not what God is like.
You might perhaps suggest that God was on the side of the referee, making sure the game was played fairly, but what about when the ref makes a wrong decision, surely God wouldn’t be on his side then? Thinking about the ref, gets us nearer to what I think is the right answer. God was not on the side of any one team, nor on the side of the Referee, but God was on the side of good football played well whether you win or lose. And God is on the side of football, because it is an example of us humans, men and women, enjoying ourselves, sharing that joy with others, doing something that is simply good fun. So even when England lost, we English didn’t go off in an angry sulk. No we still carried on watching and enjoying the game, and maybe supporting Argentina… or even France !
Now what has all this got to do with Christmas? The answer is that many people in Israel back when Jesus was born were expecting the Christ to be a figure who would drive out the hated Romans and all the other enemies, and make Israel great again as in the time of King David. That’s why the Christ had to be of David’s line and be born in David’s city of Bethlehem. God, they thought, would show the world at last that he was on their side.
But the Christmas message tells a different story, doesn’t it? Jesus may be a king, but his kingship is not of this world. His power is a power of goodness and love, not of dominance and military might, as those of us know well who know the whole story. Remember that even his closest disciples, when he is a man, get it wrong. They ask him, when they meet him risen and alive in a new way after his death, “Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” (Acts 1:6) Jesus does tell them then that they will “Receive power” ; but this is not worldly power, but a power of love, a power found in serving others and sharing with them the good news that God is love.
Sadly indeed tragically, throughout history, men and women have made the mistake of trying to get God on their side, of confusing the power of God with worldly power in which we defeat our enemies. This is such a dangerous thing to do, because worldly power so often becomes revenge or hatred. During the 2nd World War, we British began by rightly defending ourselves against an aggressor; but once we achieved power, air superiority as it was called, we didn’t just bomb military targets but sent in planes to bomb German cities to bits, and thus killed thousands of innocent Germans including thousand of innocent women and children. Yes it is not just the Russians who do things like that !
This is surely why God chooses to come to us, not in power and might, but in a little helpless baby born to a young woman in difficult circumstances. The reason why we hear the Prophet Isaiah a lot in our 1st Readings at this season, is that he was the first prophet in Israel, writing some 500 years before the birth of Jesus, to begin to see, to get a glimpse of the truth, that they had been wrong to think God was on their side. Their view of God had been too narrow. The true God was not a national god but a God bringing love to the whole world. So Isaiah writes : “The nations will see your integrity” (62:1-5) “Wide is his dominion in a peace that has no end.” (9:1-7) “All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God.” (52:7-10)
That is the message that we are called to proclaim every Christmas. That love is stronger than death, forgiveness better than revenge, and that God is especially with all those who try in one way or another to bring joy and love to others. Football is just one way of doing this, but there are many others, quieter ways that most people don’t notice, but just as valuable. Most people didn’t notice that birth in a stable in Bethlehem, and that reminds us that the ways of God working in us are often quiet and hidden, and yet they are so very very important. May God help each of us to find what part we can play in God’s great work of love in the Year that lies ahead.
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