“Happy New Year!” I say to myself as I look forward to this
coming Sunday. Oh, I’m too early, you say? Oh, I just wrote a scathing blogpost last week about people putting up their Christmas lights too early and now
I’m already moving to the New Year, you say? Well, I was talking about the
Church year—thank you very much! Yes, I am a Church nerd; however, I am one not
merely as an occupational hazard. No, I care so much about the tradition,
experience, and practices of the Church because I care about how we as human
beings relate to God. As one such Church nerd, it is my duty and great joy to
tell you the good news that we begin a new Church year this coming Sunday with a
new season (Advent), new Sunday School classes at St. John's (Come learn about why the Church
year is awesome!), and a shift in our readings—chiefly we see this in a move
from the Gospel of Luke to the Gospel of Matthew.
During new student orientation in seminary we had an
icebreaker activity with all sorts of nerdy Church questions: Are you high
church, broad church, or low church in your worship style? Do you like praise
music, hymnal music, or no music? Would you rather use Rite I, Rite II, or
Enriching Our Worship? Which Gospel is your favorite: Matthew, Mark, Luke, or
John? I don’t remember my answers to other questions, but I remember that Luke
was my favorite Gospel when I entered seminary. If you asked me last week where
it stands in my Gospel Power Rankings (GPR) I would reply that it is in danger
of missing the four team Gospel Championship Playoff (GCP). Matthew though,
does not sit much higher. So part of me rejoiced this morning when I put away
my big commentary on Luke, but another part grimaced when I picked up the
commentary on Matthew. I especially winced when I read this coming Sunday’s reading (Matthew 24:36-44).
The start of our Church year and the beginning of its first
season of Advent when we prepare for the coming of Christ (past, present, and yet-to-come)
sounds so scary this year with three distinct admonitions. First, nobody knows
when the Son of Man is coming, like those in Noah’s day did not know when the
flood would carry them away. Next, when the Lord comes two will be working in the
field or at the mill, one will be taken and one will be left. Finally, God will
come like a thief in the night. “Keep awake” could be the summary message, or
maybe “Let’s get paranoid!” Sheesh, this is how we start the year? It is a
little different than a gigantic disco ball, college bowl games, and champagne to
ring in the New Year! And yet, I am not giving up hope on the First Sunday of
Advent!
While the four canonical Gospels all have much in common—mostly
that they are about the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth—each
has its own distinct flavor. Matthew’s distinct essence, according to the
scholar R.T. France, focuses upon fulfillment. Jesus came to fulfill! He came
to fulfill the law, the prophets, and God’s plan of salvation! Matthew proves
this over and over again with fifty-four direct quotations from the Old
Testament (OT) and another 262 allusions to the OT. This statistically does not
outpace every book of the New Testament, but it does have more OT per verse
than any other Gospel (R.T. France, The Gospel of Matthew, 10-11)! So why are the OT connections important? And, how might
this salvage a very direct Gospel passage this Sunday? Fair questions.
The theme of fulfillment is important because it will shape
just about every story in the First Gospel, like how the Magnificat’s
upside-down worldview provides a key to unlocking an understanding of Luke or
how the whole first chapter of John (Logos Hymn) gives insight into knowing the
celebratory nature of the Word’s coming in the Fourth Gospel. “All this
happened to fulfill what had been written (in some prophet’s book)” will be a
commonly heard refrain in Matthew, which will bring the theme of fulfillment to
center stage. But, as is the case this Sunday, often the theme of fulfillment will
be like an operating software running in the background. This Sunday we
surprisingly start the Church Year late
in Matthew’s Gospel with a prophetic word about the coming of the Son of Man from
Jesus himself, which is to say the least "trippy." This challenging message is
still about fulfillment though.
The Son of Man comes into the world to fulfill all that was
written in Jewish Scripture and beyond, and as scary as that moment could be (see:
Noah’s flood, left behind series, thief in the night), what Jesus really seems
worried about is someone missing that moment altogether! If we truly believe
that Matthew wrote his Gospel to help his community and others know that Jesus
came to fulfill God’s purposes in this world, then we have the freedom to hear
Jesus’ words differently. Jesus urges those listening to pay attention, so that
all may be part of the fulfillment that the Son of Man brings. When understood
this way these are hopeful words, challenging ones yes, but more than anything
(at least according to Matthew) God wants us to be part of the fulfilling of
all things! That does make me feel like this is a Happy New Year!
