Thought for Today
Proverbs 15:30 The light of the eyes rejoices the heart, and good news refreshes the body.
Proverbs 25:25 Like cold water to a thirsty soul, so is good news from a far country.
Luke 3:18 So, with many other exhortations, he proclaimed the good news to the people.
Luke 4:43 But he said to them, "I must proclaim the good news of the kingdom of God to the other cities also; for I was sent for this purpose."
Tomorrow is the Third Sunday of Advent. During worship tomorrow, like many other congregations, ours will light the Candle of Joy, the pink candle in our Advent Wreath. Advent is a time of anticipation. We anticipate the birth of the Savior, the Christ, the promised Messiah. Advent should be a time of great anticipatory joy.
The scriptures in the Revised Common Lectionary used by so many denominations and congregations, including ours, have been focused recently on the appearance of John the Baptizer. We know that this John was Jesus’ cousin, the son of Zachariah and Elizabeth. When we look at the words of John the Baptizer recorded in the Bible, we don’t find any mention of joy.
What we do find are “Luke 3:3 He went into all the region around the Jordan, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins,” “3:9 Even now the ax is lying at the root of the trees; every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire." and, "3:16 I baptize you with water; but one who is more powerful than I is coming; I am not worthy to untie the thong of his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.”
There is not much joy in axes, cutting down, burning and fire. Few of us would find our hearts refreshed by John’s ‘good news.’ Few of us consider sermons about repentance and the need for forgiveness to be good news.
During Advent we hear and sing songs about joy, about the birth of a king, about little towns and silent nights. For most of us these familiar songs do engender a warm, joyful feeling in our hearts. We are reminded of Christmases past, of the joy of our childhoods, of hot cocoa on cold days, of tinsel and wrapping paper and all of the joys of our childhoods.
As adults, it is easy for us to lose sight of the magnitude of what transpired so long ago. “No priest, no theologian stood at the manger of Bethlehem. And yet all Christian theology has its origin in the wonder of all wonders: that God became human.” (Dietrich Bonhoeffer, I Want to Live These Days with You, pg. 365)
We are in the anticipatory phase of the greatest event in human history since there has been any human history. Since Genesis 2:7, “then the Lord God formed man from the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and the man became a living being,” nothing else has even approached being so significant, so important.
From the fourth Friday of November, Black Friday, until all the returns and exchanges are complete some time in January, many Christians are awash in a rising tide of material commercialism. Many are consumed by and obsessed with buying just the right gift, sending just the right card. Our ears ring with shopping mall sound systems blaring carols. Every newscast, every radio broadcast abound with stories of crowds scurrying about, buying everything in sight. “You better hurry up and buy “X” because shoppers are emptying the shelves everywhere.”
"1 Kings 19:11 Now there was a great wind, so strong that it was splitting mountains and breaking rocks in pieces before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind; and after the wind an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake; 12 and after the earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire; and after the fire a sound of sheer silence.” And, the Lord is certainly not in any mall.
The Lord was in the manger of Bethlehem. That is the good news of Advent. That is the joy of Advent. The Lord, our Creator God, was in the Son, the Incarnate Creative Word of God. That is good news.
Stay safe, watch, listen, anticipate the miracle of Incarnation, trust God,
Pastor Ray