In the gloom of the year’s end, three candles in the dark! The Church may have the only words of Joy that people will hear: who will attend our worship that may be overwhelmed by grief of dreams unmet, by the cynicism of getting and guilt-gifts? Scriptures for this weekend exhort the hearer to expect a specific Presence who will change the world-system into closer alignment with the original design of One who craves universal justice, peace and righteousness.
We begin with a powerful oracle found in the eclectic writing of Third Isaiah (61: 1-4, 8-11). “The spirit of the Lord God is upon me…to bring good news to the oppressed, to bind up the brokenhearted…to proclaim liberty to the captives…to comfort all who mourn…” Recalled by Jesus as his mission-statement, we can be likewise touched by a nurturing vision, this Advent as we wait, as we expect a heavenly inbreaking. To a people who are living among ruins, these words are a reminder that God has not forgotten them. The coming of a Stranger proclaims the year of the Lord’s favor.
To the Thessalonian Christians, Paul writes exhortations to a holy life, as they’ve been touched by the ChristChild (I 5:16-24). “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks….abstain from every form of evil”. Central to all of these reactions is the admonition to “not quench the Spirit”. Paul evidently expected the Ultimate Advent to soon appear, looking for our entire sanctification at the hand of God. “The one who calls you is faithful, and he will do this.” Who is this Stranger?
What more can we say about John the Baptizer, as met in John 1:6-8, 19-28? He successfully evades those who try to put him in a box: “I am the voice of one crying out in the wilderness…” One phrase leaps out at me: “AMONG YOU stands one whom you do not know, the one who is coming after me…” What? AMONG US? This is scandalous to think that God walks, eats & breathes with US! They kept looking for this Stranger–and this Advent, so do we.
The days around me are filled with folks Doing Things, desperately trying to drag a nostalgic Christmas Spirit in with the Yule Log. Outside of a few necessary family traditions, I’m trying to be in a more passive stance. The ChristChild continues to break in when & where we least expect it, despite our frantic busyness. Open the eyes of my heart, Lord, that I may recognize your face on my crowded street!
God Bless Us Everyone! Horace Brown King
My sermonic preparations can be found every Tuesday at this space on Facebook; or at horacebrownking.com
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