Scripture
Reading: Isaiah 64:1-9
Oh, that you would rend the
heavens and come down,
that the mountains would tremble before you!
2 As when fire sets twigs ablaze
and causes water to boil,
come down to make your name known to your enemies
and cause the nations to quake before you!
3 For when you did awesome things that we did not expect,
you came down, and the mountains trembled before
you.
4 Since ancient times no one has heard,
no ear has perceived,
no eye has seen any God besides you,
who acts on behalf of those who wait for him.
5 You come to the help of those who gladly do right,
who remember your ways.
But when we continued to sin against them,
you were angry.
How then can we be saved?
6 All of us have become like one who is unclean,
and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags;
we all shrivel up like a leaf,
and like the wind our sins sweep us away.
7 No one calls on your name
or strives to lay hold of you;
for you have hidden your face from us
and have given us over to[b] our sins.
8 Yet you, Lord,
are our Father.
We are the clay, you are the potter;
we are all the work of your hand.
9 Do not be angry beyond measure, Lord;
do not remember our sins forever.
Oh, look on us, we pray,
for we are all your people.
This morning,
we begin the season of Advent. Our
readings are all focused on the theme of the first Sunday of Advent, Hope. We heard already a reading from the prophet
Isaiah, and now we turn to the songbook of the Bible, the book of Psalms and
read a portion from Psalm 80. Listen to
these words as we invite God to redeem and restore us:
Scripture
Reading Psalm 80:1-7, 17-19
Hear us, Shepherd of Israel,
you who lead Joseph like a flock.
You who sit enthroned between the cherubim,
shine forth
2 before Ephraim,
Benjamin and Manasseh.
Awaken your might;
come and save us.
3 Restore us, O
God;
make your face shine on us,
that we may be saved.
4 How
long, Lord God Almighty,
will your anger smolder
against the prayers of your people?
5 You have fed them with the bread of tears;
you have made them drink tears by the bowlful.
6 You have made us an object of derision to our neighbors,
and our enemies mock us.
7 Restore us, God
Almighty;
make your face shine on us,
that we may be saved.
17 Let your hand rest
on the man at your right hand,
the son of man you have raised up for yourself.
18 Then we will not turn away from you;
revive us, and we will call on your name.
19 Restore
us, Lord God Almighty;
make your face shine on us,
that we may be saved.
Here ends this reading of the word of God
for the people of God. Thanks be to God.
Amen.
Prayer for Understanding
Lord we thank you for the gift of your Word and as we think on
these things open our hearts and minds to hear your word to us. Amen
Message
Where are You, God?
Today is the first Sunday of Advent
for 2020. Advent is a season of waiting….we are waiting for Christmas. For children, this means we are waiting for
Santa to come and deliver our toys. But,
for those of us who are not waiting for toys, we are waiting for Jesus to break
into our world. We remember the way he
came the last time – embodied as a helpless baby, weak and dependent on others.
And, we believe Jesus will return to the world as the Messiah who will come and
lift us up. The next time Jesus comes,
we will be the weak ones who are dependent on others. We want Jesus to come and care for us, we
want Jesus to come and rescue us.
The forth verse of “O Little Town of Bethlehem” says:
O
holy Child of Bethlehem,
Descend to us, we pray;
Cast out our sin and enter in,
Be born in us today.
We hear the Christmas angels
The great glad tidings tell;
O come to us, abide with us,
Our Lord Immanuel!
We are
impatient people….we don’t like waiting.
This year, things have been extremely difficult for us impatient people
– we are waiting for the pandemic to end….we are waiting for a vaccine to
arrive…we are waiting for cautions to be lifted and for everything to get back
to normal --- for our jobs to be steady; for our schools to be back to their regular,
in-person schedule; and for our hospitals to empty out.
The candle we light on the first
Sunday of Advent is the Candle of Hope.
This week, we read from the Prophet Isaiah and recall the plight of the
Jewish people who hoped for and waited for their Messiah for centuries. They prayed and waited for Jesus to come from
one generation to the next. In the
twenty-first century, we have trouble waiting in line for a few minutes….it is
difficult to imagine waiting for someone to arrive after centuries. Yet, like the ancient Jews, we are waiting
for Jesus to return to earth once again, to restore what is broken, and to
right the wrongs we live with.
Americans use the word “hope” to
represent something we “want.” We are
not sure it will happen the way we want, but we “hope” it will. “I hope the Eagles will win today’s football
game.” “I hope I finish my book club
book before we meet on Wednesday.” “I hope
Lucia finishes her outstanding assignments before the trimester ends.” These are wishes, these are wants, but they
are not guarantees.
In the Bible, and in Christianity, we
use hope differently. The word Hope in the Bible means a secure assurance. It is a trust placed in a trustworthy
God. God has not failed us in the past,
and therefore, if God claims God will do something in the future, we are
assured it will happen.
This week, I read about the history of
an ancient Christian symbol: “The Hand of God.” Apparently, this symbol is a
traditional decoration for Christmas trees.
It looks like a hand reaching down out of the clouds. During the first 8 centuries of Christianity,
it was the most accepted symbol of God.
The “Hand of God” symbol presents an Eternal Father, reaching out in love
to the “lost” people of the world.
I find it comforting to remember that God
is always present with us. God’s hand
reaches out into our world, to save us, to rescue us, to pull us out of the
mire of our pain, our fears, and the chaos we live with. The hope of this season is that God keeps
God’s promises – In Deuteronomy 31, God says: “Be strong and courageous. Do not be
afraid or terrified because of them, for the LORD your God goes with you; he
will never leave you nor forsake you.”
We have hope for tomorrow, because God goes with us.
We
enter Advent today…an Advent like no other.
We have to wait just a little bit longer…wait for Jesus….wait for the
vaccine to come…wait for Covid-19 to end.
And, we can trust in God and Hope for a better world to come. As Isaiah the prophet proclaimed God’s
words: “Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your
God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my
righteous right hand.” The Hand of God
reaches down to us, to uphold us, strengthen us and guide us.
May it always be so. Amen!
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