The author of Matthew wants us to understand that Jesus
quickly became famous both for his message and for his ability to perform
miraculous healings, which ability was a confirmation of the validity of his
message. He became the first century
equivalent of a rock star who provoked excitement, curiosity, and became the
latest hope for a nation living under the thumb of Rome. Jesus,we can safely assume, understood that the success of
his ministry depended upon becoming well-known, and we can also assume that he knew that fame is a two-edged sword, as much a danger as an opportunity.
His fame did turn out to be dangerous for Jesus, and it continued to be a serious problem long
after the first century.
His followers in succeeding generations, that is, created what has become a vast
international Christian establishment of bishops, synods, seminaries, general
assemblies, and media of various types dedicated to transforming the first
century prophet into the saviour Christ of today. That Christ is their source of
authority. Every pastor in every
denomination and nation depends on him to legitimize their right to stand in
front of their congregation week after week and speak “in his name.”
That Christ is spiritual and universal. And reasonably safe. We can control him (usually). He comforts us. He inspires us through wonderful music sung
by Mormon Tabernacle choirs. He is the
Christ we want to keep in Christ-mas, the “baby Jesus” of Sunday school
pageants. That Christ is the inspiration
of a crusading mentality that allows his modern disciples to look down on their
neighbors of other faiths and pass laws that require certain kinds
of people to sit in the back of busses. That
Christ allows his followers to sing songs of praise Sunday morning, gossip
about each other Sunday afternoon, and engage in bitter disputes with each other
all during the week. In his name, they engage
in acrimonious, sometimes horrible fights that split churches and denominations
down the middle. In his name, avowing
the right set of doctrines takes precedence over compassion.
Let us make no mistake.
This safe, universal, spiritual Christ is not the controversial,
politically dangerous Jesus of the gospels.
The story we are following here is not about our invented Christ. It is about Jesus of Nazareth, the
carpenter’s son, who of necessity became God’s famous prophet for the sake of his people. He had to be famous. We know that. But we should not let that necessity blind us to all of the the massive folly his followers have perpetrated in the name of the safe saviour Christ. Fame is always dangerous. (And, gentle reader, don't slide past that hard truth by hurrying on to say, "Yes, but... There is, of course, a "yes, but"; but we like to go there too quickly so we don't have to face the truth of what we've done to Jesus of Nazareth.)
