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Sunday November 27, 2011 "A Strange Way to Start" Isaiah 64:1-9 |
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Location: Blogs Brad's BlogBrad's Sermons |
 | | Posted by: Brad Miller | 11/29/2011 10:04 AM | It does seem like a strange way to start, doesn’t it?
A lament? With weeping? With cries to God not to forget us?
Isn’t today the first Sunday of Advent? Isn’t this the season in which we prepare for the celebration of the coming of the Messiah? Isn’t this a time of reflection and anticipation and joy?
Well, yes, it is the first Sunday in Advent. And, yes, today we begin our preparations for the celebration of the birth of Jesus. And yes, it is a time of reflection and anticipation and, of course, joy at the reality of the God news… Emmanuel! God with us!
Of course, that is from our vantage point in 2011. We have visited this season, many, many times before. Many of us have heard all the stories. Stories such as the angel appearing to Mary to announce that she will become the mother of God’s son; the dream of Joseph; explaining how he is to protect Mary and the child; the forced travel for tax purposes, the birth of the baby in the most rustic and restless of settings; the threats of a king; the seeking wisemen and the faithful shepherds. These stories are part of our Christian heritage and stories that we love to tell and hear. Besides being remarkable stories of human perseverance and faith, they are stories of God’s grace and presence. They are stories that awe us. They are stories we should revel in, and even more importantly, stories we should repeat over and over again.
But there are other stories in our Holy Scriptures that we should also remember, stand in awe of, and repeat, over and over again. This mournful and pleading lament is the culmination of one of those stories.
The prophet Isaiah speaks this lament on behalf of the Hebrew people. It is the lament of a community that is in pain, having been overrun by the Babylonians, and forced into a devastating exile. The temple lies is ruins, and the very next verse after this passage reads, “Zion has become a wilderness, Jerusalem a desolation.” The lament is a cry of pain seeking understanding. Where is God? Why has this happened?
Within the body of this lament, Isaiah begins to struggle with the answers to those questions. This is not a people who do not believe in God. The lament makes clear that they understand the pure power of God. They know that God can make the moments shake and the oceans rise. They understand that God can make mighty nations tremble in God’s presence. The lament recalls the awesome deeds of the past. It makes clear that the Hebrew people have no other Gods, because there is only one God!
And then Isaiah’s words take a soul baring, self revealing turn: We know, he says, that you are always there for those who happily do what is right. But, we have not done right. We know how angry you are with us. And yet, we have kept right on sinning. And then the almost plaintive plea: “Is there any hope for us? Can we be saved?”
Whether we always recognize it or not, this is the tension of Advent: the tension between God’s judgement and God’s gracious promise. The tension is played out in our understanding of who God is, understanding that we have fallen short of God’s glory, yet all the while knowing full well the realized promise of the messiah.
The Hebrew people knew first hand the comforting hand of God’s presence. They understood that it was God’s grace that led them to the promised land and then sustained them. But like many modern people, the Hebrew people are in despair of their situation, not knowing where to turn.
It does seem like a strange way to begin Advent, doesn’t it?
But a powerful way to begin Advent. I am convinced that this is where we need to begin. As we contemplate the coming of the Messiah and prepare for that celebration, we are forced to turn inward and ask a really important question: Why is a messiah needed?
Isaiah hits it right on the head. Because we are human, and too often, we think we can handle everything on our own. Because we are human, we sin. Because we are human, we need to be reminded that God is in control, not us. Because we are human, we need God’s grace to forgive us. Because we are human…
That is where we connect with the Hebrew people: in our humanness. We look around and see that there are things we just don’t understand, and sometimes we wonder just where God is in all of this. The Hebrew people did exactly the same thing. The Hebrew people waited for God to break into their existence, into their lives. We also wait, but our waiting is somewhat different. We wait in the knowledge that the Christ has come, but still, we wait for Christ’s return.
The Hebrew people waited for the promised shalom of God’s presence, and we also seek that sense of peace. And peace is at the heart of our Advent preparations. The need for peace, the return to peace, the promise of peace. But Isaiah hints, rather loudly, that until we repent, until we truly open ourselves to God’s presence, until we live our lives – all of our lives all the time – honoring God and abiding by God’s will, that peace will not come. Because in the end, peace is simply God’s forgiveness made manifest.
We, like the Hebrews, live in a time of brokenness – broken institutions, broken promises, broken lives – and we are not entirely sure what to do about it.
We do know that brokenness is not healed by the acquisition of things. We are not made whole by hiding from the problems we encounter. Brokenness is not vanquished by ignoring God. Our brokenness will only be overcome when we allow God to enter our existence and heal us.
But of course, we are not passive observers to all this. That is why this lament to begin Advent is so important. At the same time we ask God to enter our lives and mold us, much like the potter molds the clay, we must also face up to our own behavior, our own attitudes and our own sin. The messiah did not come to congratulate humanity for a job well done. The messiah came because humanity had made a mess of things. The messiah came to remind us that God is always present, and if we follow God’s will and God’s way, we can step away from our failures and move on. The messiah came to offer us a chance to begin again.
Have you ever wondered where God is? Most of us have.
Have you ever wondered how you would move on from a devastating loss? Most of us have.
Have you ever made such a mess of things that you just couldn’t find a way out? Most of us have.
The Hebrew people also felt all those things. And so they waited for the messiah. Isaiah speaks for his brothers and sisters and acknowledges that they know that all they can do is wait: “O Lord, you are our father; we are the clay, and you are our potter; we are all the work of your hand. Do not be exceedingly angry, O Lord, and do not remember iniquity forever. Now consider, we are all your people.”
The Hebrew people waited on the promises of God, and so do we. Like the Hebrew people, we know of God’s power and grace, and through Jesus Christ, God’s presence among us. The beauty of being on the other side of the cross is that our waiting is blessed by the reality of the presence of God’s Holy Spirit, here and now.
And so, we wait and we prepare. But there something else we must do. The Hebrew peoples experience shows us that we can’t just wait for the messiah’s return. We need to celebrate God’s power, recognize our own sin, ask forgiveness and allow God to mold us into something good and, dare we ask, holy.
So before we truly celebrate, we must understand that there is a reason that the MESSIAH had to come…to reach God’s people where they live and work and breathe and help them start anew.
It is a strange way to start Advent, this cleansing self-disclosure of mistakes. But I think it is the right way to begin our Advent journey…and it just might be the way should be begin every worship service, or maybe, we this is how we should begin every day.
To begin the Advent journey, let us confess together, so that the celebration of God’s presence might begin. Please join me in the confessing litany in your bulletin.
Leader: Eternal God, so much seems strange in this age of change.
People: New technologies blur the boundaries of life and death.
Leader: Fresh discoveries challenge ancient notions of right and wrong.
People: From age to age, you are the same, but are we?
Leader: Our abilities outpace our wisdom.
People: We have improved ability to cure,
Leader: But not to care.
People: We demand our rights,
Leader: But cannot right our wrongs.
People: Faithful God, you alone hold steady and true.
Leader: Apart from you we draw no breath.
People: Apart from your wisdom we form no thought.
Leader: Apart from your truth we have no sight.
People: Apart from your love we have no life.
Leader: Apart from your care we have no hope.
People: Merciful God, ground us firmly in your wisdom, that we may rightly discern the opportunities and dangers developing all around us. Let us hear your word for our times. Speak to warn and to recommend, to caution and to encourage, that we may honor you and be of service to others, for Jesus’ sake.
Amen.
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