The Maestro and the Messiah

What you have been watching is a busker playing a violin in the foyer of the L'Enfant Plaza Station in Washington DC. An everyday occurrence for the thousands of commuters who pass through those turnstiles. But this was no ordinary day.

The man on the violin is Joshua Bell, a virtuoso who was playing that week to packed theatres in the US capital. He is the best. What's more, the instrument he's playing is a $3.5 million Stradivarius.

The Washington Post set up the street performance as a test. Would ordinary people going about their daily business, recognise & respond to the exceptional if they stumbled upon it? In 45 mins, Bell played 6 classical pieces; the pieces on show that week, backed by an orchestra which music lovers paid hundreds of dollars per ticket for. He made $32 as a busker. A dollar here & there.

The paper then interviewed commuters as they left the building & told them just what had been presented to them. Some remarked at how good the violin player was, some didn't think much of it. Most simply ignored him. How could anything good come from the subway? The people simply walked on.

He did everything a maestro should do, but because of the context, they would not recognise it.

Then, after half an hour, one woman stopped. She stopped & listened. With a smile on her face, she enjoyed the show. For those few short moments, it was just her & the music. She was Stacy Furukawa. The only one who recognised the maestro. Stacy is a lover of classical violin. That year, having heard Joshua Bell was touring Washington DC, she was in the audience at Bell's only other free concert at the Library of Congress just three weeks before this day at the station.

And there he was. Musical royalty, begging for money. The context did not seem right. It was not befitting his true status. She wasn't sure what was going on, but she didn't want to miss it.

She stood there both stunned & embarrassed. Surprised that the maestro would be playing at the underground & embarrassed at the ignorance of her fellow passengers & the insult of those who dropped their coins in his violin case.

She said afterwards, "It was the most astonishing thing I've ever seen in Washington. Joshua Bell was standing there playing at rush hour, and people were not stopping, and not even looking, and some were flipping quarters at him! Quarters! I wouldn't do that to anybody. I was thinking, Omigosh, what kind of a city do I live in that this could happen?"

A few weeks later, Bell toured the Capitals of Europe & then returned home to the US where he received the Avery Fisher prize, the award for the top classical musician in America. But the people just walked on. 

A few months back I went to watch the Socceroos play a World Cup qualifier at the MCG. It was very exciting, my first trip to the 'G' and to a WC qualifier. 80,000 were there & as we all walked to the stadium there were all manner of people selling things outside. There was a ferris wheel, food vendors, souvenirs etc. But there were two guys doing tricks with a ball. No hands, just kicking the ball. The people walked on.

2000 years ago, the people of Israel were going about their daily business. The Romans ruled the land (tax) but they let the Jews do their regular thing; farming, fishing, Temple worship. They were not looking for a maestro, but they were looking for a messiah. They had a rough idea of what to expect. A warrior like David, a prophet like Moses & a Priest like Melchizadek. He would free them from Roman rule & see that Israel ruled over all other nations.

But while they were waiting, they went about their normal daily life. Then one day, a man named JtB, stepped out of the crowd & said, "The Messiah is coming". But despite their expectations of a grand entrance, he simply stood among them. He was Jesus from the small village of Nazareth. He did all the things the Messiah was supposed to do. He was better than they imagined. But the people walked by, going on with their daily life.

He taught in ways which surprised people. But he was not properly trained so, apart from a few disciples, they put him out of their minds.

He did miracles. So many miracles they could not be ignored. All the miracles any messiah should do & more. But they said: "Nazareth! Can anything good come from there?" (John 1:46) And they went on with their lives.

He cast out demons with the finger of God & they said, 'I guess that means he has a demon'. Life went on.

And then he spoke out about the corruption of Israel's leaders. They who were supposed to protect the flock were really wolves in sheep's clothing. So they killed him. And they went on with their lives.

And yet, amidst all the shame – the Son of God here amongst the people – there were a few who recognised him.

We read in the Bible of an old man & an old woman. Simeon & Anna. They had heard the publicity from the Old Testament prophets that the messiah was coming. And they waited. Year after year they waited. Until the day came when a couple from Nazareth presented their baby in the Temple, Simeon took the child in his arms & said,

"Sovereign Lord, as you have promised, You now dismiss your servant in peace. For my eyes have seen your salvation, which you have prepared in the sight of all people, a light for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to your people Israel." (Luke 2:29-32)

There were learned scholars from the East, the Magi. Most likely, having studied the Scriptures left behind by Daniel in captivity, they were moved by the Spirit to follow a start to the west. They went looking for the promised one. "Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews?” They asked.

Then there were the disciples. Just a handful. Many of them fisherman. Not actively looking for the Kingdom of God, but just going about their daily business. Life goes on, day after day.

And then, he appears. John the Baptist recognises him and makes the announcement to the passers by. And it has an interesting effect.

35The next day John was there again with two of his disciples. 36When he saw Jesus passing by, he said, "Look, the Lamb of God!" 37When the two disciples heard him say this, they followed Jesus. 38Turning around, Jesus saw them following and asked, "What do you want?" They said, "Rabbi" (which means Teacher), "where are you staying?" 39"Come," he replied, "and you will see." So they went and saw where he was staying, and spent that day with him. It was about the tenth hour. 40Andrew, Simon Peter's brother, was one of the two who heard what John had said and who had followed Jesus. 41The first thing Andrew did was to find his brother Simon and tell him, "We have found the Messiah" (that is, the Christ). 42And he brought him to Jesus. (John 1:35-42)

He brought him to Jesus. That’s interesting. In an age when Christians seem nervous about telling even those closest to them about salvation in Christ, it seems so simple. He brought him to Jesus.

After thinking about this for a while now, a few things occur to me;

• That doesn’t mean they could answer every question. Even John the Baptist we read had questions about the role of Jesus while he was in prison. There will still be questions. Throughout your entire experience of knowing Him, there will be questions. And he gives answers. Slowly but surely.
• It doesn’t mean they were perfect. You will still stumble, you will still fall, you will still make mistakes, but you are alive with the forgiving, living God. Not perfect, just forgiven.
• They still needed personal growth. This was not the end of their journey, it was just the beginning. It will take time & it will take effort, but it’s God’s will that Christians grow. If you decided anything as a result of being here today, decide not to be where you are as a Christian this time next year. Set that as your goal & see what God does.
• They were qualified for ministry. Sure, they weren’t running the whole show, they weren’t doing much of anything, but they were qualified to tell people about Jesus & so are you; no matter how long you’ve been a Christian.

After you stop reading this, your life will go on just as before. And you have a decision to make. Will you stop and notice him or will you walk on by. The Bible says he’s not far from any one of us, but sometimes we feel very far from him. I wonder if we have been moving so quickly, we never noticed him there all along?

Will you be one who stops and listens? Will you be one who recognizes him for who he really is? Will you be one who tells someone close to you? Will you be one whose life is changed? Or will your life simply go on as before?