lenten blog | February 26, 2024

The cross changed Jesus, and thus God?

Throughout the year, the Southern New England Conference of the United Church of Christ reproduces the Daily Lectionary for use by churches.  These are the suggested readings for February 26th:  Genesis 21:1-7; Psalm 105:1-11, 37-45; and Hebrews 1:8-12.  I would encourage you to read these short selections as part of your Lenten practice.

Names are important in the Hebrew Bible.  In Genesis 21:1, God’s name is Yahweh.  Some versions of the Bible, such as my New Revised Standard Version, insert The Lord in the place of the name Yahweh so you may not see Yahweh printed at 21:1.  The reason for this is that in the Jewish tradition the name of God shares the holiness of God and must never be treated casually, even by accident.  For this reason, when the name of God is found in the text, it is not spoken.  Rather, the title The Lord is inserted piously in its place. 

Whether the name Yahweh appears in your biblical text or not, it is there.  It has meaning.  Its presence, however, is premature in that the name Yahweh is not revealed until Moses approaches the burning bush at Exodus 3:14.  There, the name is explained as “‘I am who I am.’” God is described as the essence of being, of existence itself.  Even though this explanation comes a full book later in the Bible, it is used already at Genesis 21:1.

In today’s story of Isaac’s birth, it is Yahweh, the one who is being and who shares existence, who allows for 90-year-old Sarah to give birth to her first born.  Before getting to that, let’s talk about the names Abraham and Sarah.  God changed Abram’s name to Abraham as they enter into covenant.  The former name means “exalted ancestor” and the latter “ancestor of a multitude.”  In honour of this same covenant, God changes Sarai’s name to Sarah.  Sarah is the only woman in the Bible whose name is changed by God.  The former name means “my princess” and the latter “princess to all.”  Both signify the divine promise that they will be the ancestors of a great multitude. 

The name of Isaac is interesting in that its source story changes.  Isaac means “he laughs.”  In Genesis 17:17, Abraham fell on his face and laughed at God’s promise that he will have a son at the age of 100.  Sarah laughs as well at 18:12 since she is 90.  When Yahweh hears the laughter, it is definitely understood as laughing at God’s promise.  Sarah grows scared and denies laughter, but Yahweh says, “‘Oh yes, you laughed.’” (18:15)  All of this changes in today’s Genesis passage as Yahweh’s promise is fulfilled with Isaac’s birth:  “Now Sarah said, ‘God has brought laughter for me; everyone who hears will laugh with me.’” (21:6)

Names have a profound significance in the Hebrew Bible.  If you have the inclination, look at the footnotes throughout Genesis of what the names of God mean (14:19; 16:13; 17:1;21:33; 28:3; 32:30; 33:20; et al.).  The names are attempts to convey the ongoing interactions of the eternal God in history and with people.  As Abraham’s, Sarah’s and Isaac’s names reflect who they are, God’s names represent the changing relationships of faith.  These name changes reflect the Hebrew Bible’s openness to change as part of the divine nature.

The Bible and especially Christian theology struggle with this idea (Mostly because Christian theology used Greek philosophy as its guide.).  In today’s passage from Hebrews, for instance, we read, “But you are the same …”  That “you” is the glorified Jesus.  Unchanging eternity is a concept meant to honour God, but how can the life, death and resurrection of Jesus not change Jesus, and thus God?  An unchanging God seems to be a disengaged God, but Jesus is God’s lived rejection of such a possibility.  Does the holiness of God require an eternal stasis or does Jesus’ life ask us to think otherwise?  Does Jesus’ cross insist that we not only look at it from our perspective, but also from that of God’s?  The cross should change us.  Did it change God too?
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If you’d like, here is the link to the Southern New England Conference’s daily reading schedule:  www.sneucc.org/lectionary.