Christmas Eve 2023 - Good News - No Fairytale

 CHRISTMAS EVE 

 

This year I purchased an Advent calendar.  Each pocket has space for a small gift or card with holiday treats, suggestions or challenges – depending on how you wish to prepare for Christmas.  We could say, the journey through Advent to Christmas day is filled with treasures.  This reflects our story of faith, where we find treasures of a different kind for an eternal purpose. 

 

Each of our weeks in Advent reveals both challenges and treasures as we explored the prophecies about the coming of Christ and we understand that these also point to Christ’s second coming.  Last week I was at St. Charles and we lit the candle of Joy.  Throughout this Advent, something that has been impressed upon me, is that all this joy was proclaimed against a backdrop of darkness.  We have lit the candle of Peace against a backdrop of war.  And we light the candle of love knowing that many in the world are broken and have no understanding of the unconditional love of God.  Our first candle was HOPE.  This might be the most important.  Hope is always the first glimmer of change – of light.  When we hope, we move from a position of depression and resignation to …. Something else is possible… and here we find the motivation for action and change.

 

Our hope is in God.  However, for many, God is so distant that they may say they don’t even believe.  Tonight, we celebrate an historical fact, which for us proves that God is not distant. “For a child has been born for us, a son given to us; authority rests upon his shoulders; and he is named Wonderful Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”

 

The historical fact is that a baby was born who was called Jesus.  He grew to perform wonders, was crucified for claiming equality with God and his followers claimed him to be the long-awaited Messiah.   This part is historical Fact!  It is recorded by non-Christian historians.

 

What do we believe about this fact?  Was there indeed more to the story, and did his followers have the inside scoop on his true identity? Was he the long-awaited Messiah?  We are here because this is what we and so many others do believe.  Our reading from Isaiah tells us that this Son who was born is named Wonderful Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.   This is telling us that this SON, is our Mighty God.  This Son is the Everlasting Father.  This Son is God.   God himself became the word of God made flesh.  This is mind blowing. How can it be that the God of the universe cares so much for us that he became vulnerable for our sake? 

 

There were shepherds in the field that night, on the outskirts of Bethlehem.  I’d like us to imagine the scene.  Though it was a busy night in Bethlehem, the shepherds went about their business of keeping watch over the sheep, noticing the buzz about the township of travellers coming to be counted for the register. 

 

Being a shepherd in the community at that time was not like being an Australian farmer.  This was an occupation, not as low as a tax collector, but it was certainly not an aspired career choice.  Among the shepherds, there were probably also those who were quite young.  Tending the sheep may have been a first job, or a job for the younger son, while the older brother learnt his father’s trade. 

 

Yet the nation of Israel was full of very significant shepherds.  Jacob, whose name God changed to Israel, was a shepherd.  King David was a shepherd and he describes God in the famous 23^rd psalm, as a shepherd.

 

This group of shepherds near Bethlehem were a slightly elevated group, as they were most probably those who cared for the flock who were to be the sacrificial lambs at the religious festivals.  They were a group who understood that a lamb without blemish was the one who would be offered as the sacrifice to take away the sin of the people.  It is suggested that those religious festivals were not necessarily something attended by these shepherds, due to the fact that they actually needed to be working on the Sabbath and were pretty much always ceremonially unclean.

 

What was the scene prior to the Angels visit?  What were these shepherds doing as they settled down for the night?  Perhaps some were sleeping while others kept watch.  Perhaps they had just set up their swags for the night and made themselves a warm drink and were telling stories.  Perhaps, perhaps, perhaps.  There is so much that we don’t know, but what we do know is that there suddenly appeared a great light… the glory of the Lord, and an Angel who proclaimed that he was bringing good news of great joy for ALL the people.  Some traditional translations actually quote the Angel as saying, “Behold… I bring good news..”.  Apparently, the original word translated as “Behold” means something like, “– pay attention…or an NB” -This is an important message -take note! 

The message was; “I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people: to you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is the Messiah, the Lord.  This will be a sign for you: you will find a child wrapped in bands of cloth and lying in a manger."

 

Why was it important that these shepherds understood the message?  My guess is, that the shepherds were tasked with passing the message on, and not just the message that a baby was born, but the divine nature of this baby.  They went and found the baby Jesus and told everyone who’d listen, the message that the Angels had told them.  People heard and were amazed.  They couldn’t dispute the message because it was heard and witnessed by the whole group. 

 

Through divine proclamation they knew that this baby was no ordinary child.  This baby was the Messiah, the Lord.  They had been waiting for the promised Messiah for about 4000 years.  The prophecy from Isaiah was about 800 years before this holy night.  On this night the Angels declared that he, the Messiah was born.  It is important that we note that this Good News is for ALL people.  The shepherds were no longer outsiders who enabled others to partake in the story of God with His people.  This was a message of God, who came for ALL people.

 

Hearing this story over the years, and now with the, perhaps, confusing array of Christmas fairy tales and magical stories, this story can become lost in the baubles, glitter and tinsel as just another magical story, however, this is history - a true story.

 

This story comes to us from the Gospel of Luke.  Luke was a physician and Greek-trained historian who begins his Gospel by telling us the reason for his writing.  He begins his Gospel by saying; “Many have undertaken to draw up an account of the things that have been fulfilled among us, just as they were handed down to us by those who from the first were eyewitnesses and servants of the word.  With this in mind, since I myself have carefully investigated everything from the beginning, I too decided to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus, so that you may know the certainty of the things you have been taught.”

 

The Gospel of Luke is not a fairy tale.  It is a well-researched account of the life and ministry of Jesus.  Luke travelled for some time with Saint Paul and, in his travels, he interviewed and researched the facts surrounding the story of Jesus so that he could pass the message on with authority…  So that they and we can know that the story passed down to us is not passing on myths and legends, but the facts.

 

Two thousand and twenty-three years later we continue to tell the greatest story ever, about how the God who created us, came to us as a baby.  The Messiah, the lamb of God, born to die for the sin of our turning away from God, and bring us back to God. 

 

Here is the important extra part of the story; We have more than a story to pass on.  We have abundant and eternal life to proclaim.  Christmas is only one episode of this incredible story.  Jesus grew up, performed miracles, set people free from oppression by his amazing love, and he died to pay all spiritual debts that keep us separated from God the father.  Not only that, but he rose from the dead, proving his power even over the grave.  But wait… there is more…  Jesus also then went back to be with the father, but he sent us all his Holy Spirit to be with us now and always.

 

All this is testified by Luke in his writings.  Those shepherds who heard the Angelic message testified that they really and truly saw the Angels and heard the divine message.  Luke interviewed many eye-witnesses to the ministry of Jesus and he shares their testimony.  Today, we, gathered here, are all invited to become part of the greatest story of all time.  There is certainly a darkness in our world tonight.  The world is certainly not the way that things ought to be.  Our world is broken and we are invited to ask the God of the universe to live in us, by his Holy Spirit, so that we can bring his light of Hope, Peace, Joy and Love, to a world that God loved so much, that he came and died to save it.

 

There is no fiction in the story of our faith.  Our invitation today is to heed the message of the Angels and come to Jesus.  The historical fact is that he was born.  The faith fact is that he is the Messiah – He is God become flesh…. Such an amazing act of Love!  The word of God to us today is “Peace be with you, and Joy.”  He says, “Here I am.  I am the gift for you.  Will you receive this gift?” 

Will you respond to that love, and call that baby born 2023 years ago your Lord – your king and saviour?  It is Christmas and God loves you.  Receive God into your life.

 

Rejoice 17th December 2023 Advent 3B

2023 12 17  Advent 3 B

Isaiah 61:1-4, 8-11  •  Psalm 126   •  1 Thessalonians 5:16-24   •  John 1:6-8, 19-28

“Rejoice, and again I say Rejoice” is the traditional antiphon of the 3^rd week in advent.  We might greet our Children with a similar sentiment, “How exciting!  It is nearly Christmas! Rejoice!” And we may have visions of various gatherings and celebrations, however the setting for these words of Saint Paul, were very different.

 

The background information on this letter to the Thessalonians informs us that they had been grieving the death of a church member.  St. Paul addresses this earlier in his letter and then he exhorts them; “Rejoice ALWAYS”.   Now this seemingly insensitive statement is not what I would ever recommend in similar circumstances, however, St. Paul has a unique relationship with these people, who know the trials that St. Paul has also been through.   Saint Paul had been stoned, whipped and thrown in prison…. More than once.   Yet this is the man who says, “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.”

 

This verse, “Rejoice, Always”, and some other similar “Christian” exhortations have been used in the past almost like a Pollyanna type Christianity that denies any negative emotion.  That is not what Saint Paul is encouraging.  For those who are unacquainted with “Pollyanna”, “Pollyanna” is the old movie featuring a young girl who always found something to be glad about.  A great attribute to encourage, but sometimes this unending positivity can be like salt on the wounds of those who are hurting… and we remember the lamenting and desperate crying out to God in the Psalms and from the prophets.

 

Saint Paul’s exhortation to the people to rejoice always, and to give thanks in all circumstances is, however, reminiscent of Job who, after loosing everything, refused to curse God and die – but instead says, “Though He slay me, yet will I wait for and trust in Him;”.  We submit our lives to God even though we are hurting, because we know He loves us.  Our act of praise is a step of faith and trust in God’s bigger and better plan.  This praise is a break through in the spiritual realm, where we prove our allegiance to God…. And it causes demons to flee.

 

You might have already noticed that there is a link between the season of Lent and Advent.  We use purple for both.  Both are a time when we reflect, and we put special effort into turning to God and getting our lives to line up with the values of the Gospel.  The penitent aspect has traditionally been part of Advent, and we see this reflected in our readings calling us to Repent and PREPARE.  Over the years, we seem to have put more emphasis on the joyful expectation as we prepare for Christmas, but perhaps ironically, on this Sunday of Joy, we rejoice in the gift and promises of God against a back drop of suffering.  This is not a “Pollyanna” joy, but a deeper act of faith – a sacrifice of praise that we offer to God, regardless of the darkness in our world.

 

Last week, I was asked to pray for the youth in this Christmas period.  We have an ever-increasing problem with youth crime and the request was motivated by a desire to intervene for those youth facing the temptation to make wrong choices which could set them on a path to destruction.

 

I reflected afterwards that these are the kinds of things that we need to be doing during our “Purple” advent time, praying for the concerns of our community and being involved in actions where appropriate.  We also have a growing population of homeless.  I shared last week that a friend has a daughter who turned 14 a couple of weeks ago.  A week after she turned 14 she ran away from home to be with her 16 year old boyfriend.  My friend was totally devastated but can not legally do a thing.   Please keep them all in your prayers.  She is one of three of my close friends with very similar stories… these things are happening all the time and I ask you to pray.  And perhaps pray without ceasing.  These are dark times.

 

I know that God is wanting us to pray about our community’s issues– in the least.  And praying leads to caring and caring leads to action and action leads to change…  In our praying, we praise God and we rejoice.  Why?  Because when we rejoice in the face of hardships, we are making that statement of faith which declares the victory.  In this, we declare that we trust in God and we have faith that God will have the victory.  We thank God for his answers to our prayers because we trust in His Love and care for us and for the things that concern us.  We pray with Joy that God has given us a part to play in caring for the people he loves.

 

We need to be involved in the issues that are faced by our community, not just because we suspect that Jesus cares about them too…. We KNOW that he does – but the ministry of Jesus on earth has been left to his body on earth – and we are that body of Christ.

 

One of my favourite readings is the one we find in our 1^st reading from Isaiah; “The spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me, because the LORD has anointed me; he has sent me to bring good news to the oppressed, to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and release to the prisoners; to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all who mourn; to provide for those who mourn in Zion”.  This is a scripture that is repeated in the Gospel of Luke, where we are told that Jesus read this passage from Isaiah, then sat down and said, “Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.”  This was the ministry of Jesus and because we are the body of Christ, this is our ministry also.

 

Social Justice is a major part of the Christian church.  However, more than that, Social Justice should be a major concern for every Christian.  There are so many people today, who need to have the message of Good News proclaimed to them.  There are so many who need their broken hearts healed and so many oppressed, who need to know that God, through us, brings them love and freedom.

 

Now all this is easy to say, but what does it actually look like in our own experience?  The Anglican community has articulated the five Marks of Mission.  These are:  To proclaim the Good News of the Kingdom; To teach, baptise and nurture new believers; To respond to human need by loving service; To seek to transform unjust structures of society, to challenge violence of every kind and to pursue peace and reconciliation; To strive to safeguard the integrity of creation and sustain and renew the life of the earth.

 

Unfortunately, even in the church we can disagree over just what these social justice issues are, and so our voice is divided and loses power.  What I would like us to consider is, which is the voice least heard? 

 

Doctor Sues wrote a book called, “Horton Hears a Who”.  The plot of the story is that the whole world of the who’s was built on a dandelion seed.  The world of the who’s somehow came unattached and adrift.  One Whoville scientist built a machine to cry out for help, in the hope that someone out there would hear and save them.  It just so happened that Horton was a huge elephant with huge ears, and he heard the cry for help and acted.  Unfortunately for Horton, no one in his world believed him.  They thought he was crazy and treated him like a mental case and tried to imprison him… they took the dandelion seed to destroy it.

 

To me this is speaks so clearly as a parable of many issues where the weak and vulnerable have no voice.  The powers in control call the shots and have the rest of those who would like to stand up for the vulnerable, walking on eggshells for fear of facing their own persecution.  Would it change our perspective in standing up and speaking for the vulnerable if we lived in the reality of the imminent return of Christ?

 

John was a man, sent by God.  John’s very life was a miracle.  His mother was yet another of the many significant barren women in the Bible.  An Angel appeared to John’s father, Zechariah to announce that his wife, Elizabeth, would bare a son, and he should be called John.  John mean’s “God’s Grace.” – Very significant!

 

God’s chosen messenger was John.  John proclaimed a message from God and people responded.  To put this into perspective; remember that the last book of the Old Testament was 400 years before the ministry of John.  For 400 years there had been no “Word of the Lord”.  There was no prophet and there was no revival.  The people of God continued to go through the motions of the traditions of the Law of God.  Did they still believe that the Messiah would come?  The messiah had been promised for at least 4000 years.  In that time there were prophets and there were miraculous interactions from God… then 400 years of silence.

 

John appeared and proclaimed, “Repent for the Kingdom of God is near”.   He describes himself as the voice prophesied about in the book of Isaiah,…  a voice in the wilderness that cries, “prepare the way of the Lord”.   The Israelite nation was under Roman control at the time of John.  In the light of hardship and friction in the nation, John calls the people to repent and be baptised… the Kingdom of God is near.”  I imagine that there were plenty who said, “sure… I’ll believe it when I see it”.  However, this voice of one crying out in the wilderness brought a sense of expectation and joy in the midst of the darkness. 

 

There is friction in our world now.  And we are called to be a voice crying out, “repent for the Kingdom of God is near”, but there will be more than a few who will say, “sure, I will believe it when I see it.”  BUT, the Kingdom of God IS near.  The Kingdom is part of who you and I are, as we have the Holy Spirit of God in us… and that Holy Spirit is upon us… anointing us to proclaim Good News to the oppressed etc.. and the year of the Lord’s favour.

 

The year of the Lord’s favour is a reference to the Old Testament “Year of Jubilee” which was celebrated every 50 years. It was a prophetic ritual foreshadowing its fulfillment in Jesus Christ.  At this time, land was returned to family clans, debts were cancelled and slaves were set free.  The fulfillment of the prophecy was when Jesus came and paid the price for our sins and cancelled the debt that was owing for sin in turning away from God.  It is the year of God’s favour or Grace – John… “God’s Grace” – God’s undeserved favour.

 

The ministry of Jesus, was to set PEOPLE free.  People need to know the message of God and of God’s care… God’s love and God’s grace.  They hear this and they experience this through us.  The world is dark with the rising cost of living, homelessness, war… depravity…  confusion and rebellion.  So much brokenness. 

 

We don’t light the candle of joy lightly.  We light it as a statement of faith.  We know that Christ has already defeated death.  He has paid the one sufficient sacrifice for the sins of the world.  Fully aware of the darkness in our world, we claim the joy that we have in the complete and finished work of Christ and the love of our God.  It is a sign to the powers and principalities that we trust in God.  There is a power in praising God that breaks through the chains that bind us… and we are truly set free.  Rejoice, and again I say Rejoice!

Advent 2B 2023 12 10 Peace and Righteousness Kiss

2023  12  10   ADVENT 2B

Isaiah 40:1-11  •  Psalm 85:1-2, 8-13  •  2 Peter 3:8-15a   •  Mark 1:1-8

 

 

The second Sunday in Advent we light the candle of Peace.  As we light it this year, we do so acutely aware of a lack of peace in the world, which can’t help but beg the question; Where is the Peace that the Angels proclaimed at Jesus’ birth?

 

In our Psalm we find the famous imagery of Righteousness and Peace kissing.  In the medieval period there were many great art works depicting Justice and Peace kissing.  Often, they were depicted as two women embracing.  The image, so capturing the imaginations, does little to capture the magnitude of what is implied in the text that we read today. 

 

Psalm 85:10 and 11, in one Biblical translation reads; “Steadfast love and faithfulness will meet; righteousness and peace will kiss each other.  Faithfulness will spring up from the ground, and righteousness will look down from the sky.”  What does that mean and what is it saying to you? 

 

In other versions, Love is translated as mercy and righteousness is translated as Justice.  Faithfulness is commonly translated as “Truth”.  Do these subtle word changes help in understanding what is being proclaimed in this Psalm or do we just enjoy the wash of imaginative language?  It is a beautiful imagery where it seems all is in harmony!  and even in our limited understanding we can sense the promise of something wonderful that is to come.  And in this we sense the spirit of Christmas.

 

I decided to have a look at the Orthodox Jewish version which says this:

 Chesed (true loving kindness) and emes (truth) will meet together; tzedek (justice) and shalom (peace) will kiss each other.  Emes (Truth) shall titzmach (sprout)…

and this is where the translation gets important.  In the Orthodox Jewish version there is a commentary in brackets that explains that the word titzmach (sprout), while being used as a verb in this context, is also the understood code name for the Messiah and indicating the role of the coming Yeshua - Jesus.  Due to this psalm being written when the Israelites were under Persian rule, this prophecy about a coming King needed to be disguised from the rulers, but understood by the people. 

 

Another commentary explains that the word translated as “kissing” is also a little misleading, as the actual word – nasaqu (?) has several translations, including “Kiss”, “fight” and “fought against each other”.  It is a dynamic type of contact – not unlike when we battle within ourselves over some choice we need to make.

This makes a lot of sense when we think about the aspects of Justice and Peace, Mercy and truth.  Justice demands accountability and restitution. Whereas Mercy, or loving kindness, overlooks wrongs and forgives, and Peace is a state without any angst where all is in order.

Truth is an absolute.  Regardless of popular opinion about truth being relative and each of us having our own truth, the Biblical understanding is that truth is a definitive… and plumbline…. And it sprouts… or, it is what Jesus is.  He himself said, “I am the life, the truth and the way”.  The way to what?  The Father.  “No one comes to the father except through him… an absolute.

Love and truth, Justice and Peace.  We need to understand that these traits, personified in the great artworks and in scripture, are not simply personified to be beautiful images for inspiring art, but they are deliberately personified because they each describe a person who embodies all of them perfectly – Jesus the Messiah.

 

In Jesus, the truth and justice of God knew that we had all at some time turned away from God and Justice and truth demanded that mankind be held accountable for this sin – for the turning away from God.  The Mercy, and loving kindness of God, had compassion on mankind and said, I will become mankind and make restitution for them.  Justice and truth were satisfied, and through mercy, Jesus brought about the situation, such that we could be in a condition of Peace – Shalom – Not just our understanding of peace, but peace where all is in the order and harmony in which God created all to be.   Truly this is the Good News and the core and foundation of our faith.  This is why the Angels proclaimed, ““Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favour rests.”

Now that we understand what Jesus has done for us, we can understand why God tells Isaiah to cry out to the people, “Comfort, comfort my people”… the mercy and love of God, longed to have us in a “right relationship” with the himself, but Justice demanded accountability – The prophet proclaims that a saviour is coming and recompense is with him – A harsh word….  Because Jesus had a harsh job to do… but Jesus is our good shepherd and his care for us is loving and protecting.

Before the Messiah was to come, there came the voice of one crying in the wilderness, “Prepare the way of the Lord”.  This voice came from John the Baptist who proclaimed a baptism of repentance.

 

Baptism was not something invented by John and then unique to the Christian church.  The Jewish people were very familiar with baptism and they used it for their converts and also for those entering a new direction in their lives - very much involving God in the process.  It was symbolic of washing away the old and beginning on something new.  We talk about the ONE baptism for the forgiveness of sins…. And there IS only one baptism for the forgiveness of sins, but baptism in John’s time was an understood ritual.  The one baptism for the forgiveness of sins, was the baptism of Jesus as he was baptised with the sins of the world…. And being emersed in, and taking on the entirety of that sin, he made restitution.

 

John’s baptism was a call to repentance.  What do you suppose that meant?  To repent means to change your mind.  The call was for the people to turn back to God.  These WERE God’s people, but in their business of life, much like ours, sometimes they became caught up in other things…. Or maybe they had some emotional hurt that kept them bitter and not practising God’s ways.  Perhaps it was mere selfishness with a desire to live in their own delights and comforts….  Afterall, we are all primarily concerned about our own comfort – it is only natural, and it can be all too easy to simply forget about God. 

 

For all these things, and the fact that God the Son was about to make His entrance, there came a voice in the wilderness that proclaimed that the coming of God’s kingdom was near and it was time to prepare by repenting and being baptised – setting into motion a new course in life. 

 

As we celebrate the season of ADVENT, we call to mind the promises of the prophecy in Isaiah.  It wasn’t just for the first coming of the Messiah, but also proclaiming the second coming.  We still wait for that second coming and the ultimate fulfilment of the prophecy, and we understand, as our message from St. Peter tells us, that with God a thousand years is like a single day… etc…, but we still need a voice proclaiming the message of St. John.  Who is now, the voice that is crying out in the wilderness?  Where is it, and what is the message of that voice?

 

The message is always the same; “Prepare the way of the Lord”!  “Repent and be baptised”, but now although we remember and listen for that voice, we are called to BE that voice.

 

We are John.  John means “Graced by God”.  We are those who have received God’s grace and we need to be the voice declaring that God is near.  God’s Kingdom IS near!  Not just because Jesus is coming again, but because God lives in you and me.  For each of us, we do not know when we will meet Jesus.  Regardless of whether Jesus’ second coming is today, tomorrow or years away, we need to be people who are always prepared, and a people who are a voice of hope in this crazy wilderness of brokenness and hurt, varied opinions and opposing ideologies.  A voice that declares God’s message and encourages people to repent – ie. Change their thinking and turn back to God.

 

Saint Peter tells us that the day of the Lord will come like a thief, and the heavens will pass away with a loud noise, and the elements will be dissolved with fire.  It is a world of trouble.  When we face our world of great trouble, we ought to be so trusting of our God who loves us, that these things do not shake us.  We should not be troubled and despairing.  We have been told the end of the story…. Christ will come and His reign will be one of Justice and Peace. 

We are living in troubled times, but the Kingdom of God is near…. And remember, He who is in us is greater than he who is in the world.  AND that right there, is the challenge, because, I don’t know about you, but I can get seriously distraught over the tiniest of things.  So today, this message is like a serious lesson to myself.

This Advent, let’s prepare ourselves to be ever prepared to meet our Lord, by remembering that he is closer than a heartbeat in all our troubles.  He is the King of Kings, the Prince of Peace ….and we have ultimate Peace with God, not because of our own righteousness, but because with the sprout or branch for Jesse – ie Jesus -  Justice and Peace “kiss” – Justice, truth, and love are in harmony and there is Peace because of the work that Jesus accomplished.  Today we remember, we rejoice and we give thanks to God.  Today, we recognise we have become John… a recipient of God’s Grace and a proclaimer of the Good News that we know by heart….  We, the church of God, are a voice in the wilderness, declaring the word of the Lord, as we point the chaotic world towards a beacon of hope and the bringer of Peace.  Prepare the way of the Lord.