When the Baptist cried, "Come on in, the water's fine," they came to the river in droves, where they underwent a baptism... of repentance... for the forgiveness of sin. When the angels broke the silence of the night... with their words, "Unto YOU... a child is born," the shepherds ran to the Birthday party. Come morning, they would still be lowly shepherds, but they'd never be shepherds without hope again because they had experienced Christmas! When mother Mary sang her song about her boy, it must have been amusing to the powers-that-be. When she said that her boy would scatter the proud and send the rich away empty-handed... the Caesars of the world must have thrown back their heads and laughed! But it was true. The puppet kings and petty tyrants were through because our God is a promise keeper!
Friends, Christmas is coming and in the secular world, it butts up against and even intrudes on Thanksgiving. Indeed, we're already preparing for an event which will please ourselves and our loved ones. We are preparing for Christmas by wrapping gifts that we purchased, by engaging in traditions that our families embrace, and by serving meals that we prepare. In the world's view, Christmas is focused on gifts and family- both of which I applaud- because joy, giving, and family time are hard to find- but in the church world, we have the season of Advent. In some ways it's an awkward time because we long to sing our carols and because it includes Christ's incarnation and his anticipated second coming. Advent is, in the world's view, "in the way" of Christmas, but for people of faith, it is a time of preparation... for the coming of the Lord!
Advent invites us to focus on Christ and both of our passages do just that. Matthew 3:1-12 invites us to undergo a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sin, and Isaiah lifts up the grandeur and the transforming power of God's gift to us, whom he saw as the "stump of Jesse." Jesse, as you may recall, was the grandson of Ruth, the son of Obed, and the father of David, who was Israel's greatest king. David ruled Israel at the height of its success, but things deteriorated badly after David... and in 722 BC, the Assyrians destroyed the northern kingdom of Israel and scattered ten of its tribes forever. It was a bloodbath... that flew in the face of God's promises. How could the chosen people of God end up in such a dark place? Things seemed hopeless. The great tree that was David had been cut down... but Isaiah saw a stump... and he prophesied that out of this stump... new and more abundant life would come forth. He saw a branch- a person- who would be blessed with the spirit of the Lord, who would delight only in serving and pleasing God...who would judge the poor with righteousness and handle the meek with equity. He saw a man who would not fall for appearances or rumors, but judge the inside of a person and treat everyone with the greatest respect. Through tearful and terror-filled eyes, Isaiah saw a redeemed people... and a peace that passed all understanding. He was either stark-raving mad, or on to something... because he said that the day will come... when the wolf will lie down with the lamb and a nursing child will play over the hole of an asp.
Friends. if you're poor, or poor in spirit; broken or burdened with sin or addiction; in exile, or in a dark place; if you're empty on the inside; if every day seems like the day before... look and see that there is a healing, life-giving, life-changing branch...shooting from the stump of Jesse... because our great God is a promise-keeper. Indeed, Christmas is all about this stump of Jesse, who is the Christ of Christmas. Have a great time this Christmas. Eat and drink, laugh and hug, give and receive a hundred gifts... but make sure and pick up the gift of salvation that God has given to you. Open it, embrace it, surrender to it... because the Christ-child will set you free to be the person whom God wants you to be. For God so loved the world that he came down, down, down to earth- to serve, teach, love, and die- to atone for our sins and he rose again in victory over death, so that we might claim this victory for ourselves. Oh friends, Christmas, Christ-mas, is an opportunity to show the love and grace that we've already received for ourselves... or to receive God's gift of forgiveness and renewal for the first time. It's a big deal which has nothing to do with shopping, football, or even family gatherings. Life in the midst of death, light in the midst of darkness, hope in the midst of despair, peace- not a truce or lack of violence- but deep shalom- in the midst of uncertainty and war- these are the gifts that God offers. Christ Jesus- this is the gift that God presents at Christmastime. The stump of Jesse- Mary's Son- this is the gift that we prepare and wait for on this first Sunday of Advent. Amen.
No comments:
Post a Comment