Many events in
the story of Jesus’ life are echoes of events in the history of Israel. Jesus’
birth was long-predicted. The scriptures of the Old Testament tell us about
signs to look for when the Messiah was arriving into the world.
One of the most important stories in Judaism was the surprising
birth of Isaac when he was born to extremely elderly parents. His birth was a
sign that the covenant God had made with the Jewish people would be fulfilled –
descendants of Abraham would fill the earth. Hear echoes of his birth narrative
as we read the story of another miraculous pregnancy, another pregnancy that
showed God’s covenant and promises for the Jewish people would be fulfilled.
Hear our scripture as we read Luke, chapter one, verses five
through twenty-five:
Proclamation of the Scripture Luke 1:5-25
In the time of
Herod king of Judea there was a priest named Zechariah, who belonged to the
priestly division of Abijah; his wife Elizabeth was also a descendant of
Aaron.
Both of them
were righteous in the sight of God, observing all the Lord’s commands and
decrees blamelessly.
But they were childless because Elizabeth was not able to conceive,
and they were both very old.
Once when
Zechariah’s division was on duty and he was serving as priest before God,
he was chosen
by lot, according to the custom of the priesthood, to go into the temple
of the Lord and burn incense.
And when the
time for the burning of incense came, all the assembled worshipers were praying
outside.
Then an
angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing at the right side of the altar
of incense.
When Zechariah
saw him, he was startled and was gripped with fear.
But the angel
said to him: “Do not be afraid, Zechariah; your prayer has been heard.
Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you are to call him John.
He will be a
joy and delight to you, and many will rejoice because of his birth,
for he will be
great in the sight of the Lord. He is never to take wine or other fermented
drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit even before he is
born.
He will bring
back many of the people of Israel to the Lord their God.
And he will go
on before the Lord, in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the
hearts of the parents to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom
of the righteous—to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.”
Zechariah
asked the angel, “How can I be sure of this? I am an old man and my wife
is well along in years.”
The angel said
to him, “I am Gabriel. I stand in the presence of God, and I have been
sent to speak to you and to tell you this good news.
And now you
will be silent and not able to speak until the day this happens, because you
did not believe my words, which will come true at their appointed time.”
Meanwhile, the
people were waiting for Zechariah and wondering why he stayed so long in the
temple.
When he came
out, he could not speak to them. They realized he had seen a vision in the
temple, for he kept making signs to them but remained unable to speak.
When his time
of service was completed, he returned home.
After this his
wife Elizabeth became pregnant and for five months remained in seclusion.
“The Lord has
done this for me,” she said. “In these days he has shown his favor and taken
away my disgrace among the people.”
Here ends this reading of the Word of God for the people
of God. Thanks be to God. Amen.
Prayer of Illumination
Pastor: God of
the universe, revealed to us in Holy Scripture through the writings of the
prophets and at the preaching of John the Baptist, you have called us to
prepare our hearts for your visitation. Ready us now to hear your Word and to
respond as faithful servants, to the glory of Christ. Amen.
Message A
New Hope
“But they were childless
because Elizabeth was not able to conceive, and they were both very old.” After
Zechariah heard from the angel, he returned home. “After this his wife
Elizabeth became pregnant and for five months remained in seclusion.”
I can’t imagine. If I was Elizabeth,
I suspect I would remain in seclusion for more than 5 months. After a long lifetime, a long child-free
lifetime, I can’t image how shocking it would be to find oneself pregnant.
Zachariah was struck mute until the child was born. It says later in the
scripture that his voice returned at John’s circumcision ceremony. Typically,
sons were named after their fathers and their names were proclaimed at the
ceremony. But, Elizabeth and Zachariah wanted the baby to be named John. The
angel told them to name the baby John. After the child was named, Zachariah
could speak again and he immediately began to praise God and celebrate the
birth of their miracle baby.
After he grew up, under the care and
tutelage of his parents, John became a prophet. He was hailed as the new Elijah
– Jesus said John was “Elijah who is to come.” Before Elijah was taken up into
heaven, he promised he would come back to earth to announce and proclaim the
messiah was here. And, this is what John did. John went out into the
wilderness. He invited people to recommit to God and to wash away their sins in
baptism. Just before he began his public ministry, Jesus was baptized by John
in the Jordan River. John prepared the way for the Lord.
John was born to prepare the way for
the Messiah. He called people to become baptized in repentance for their sins. John was a truth-teller. He wanted everyone to
focus on God and transform their lives for the better.
This season, the season of Advent,
is our time to consider if there are things in our lives we need to change to
as we prepare for Jesus. We are all so busy doing our lives that sometimes we
forget to take stock of what we are doing and ask ourselves if there are things
we need to do differently. Are there activities we need to drop from our live?
Are there behaviors we need to change? Do we need to shift how we spend our
time or what we give our attention to? I
suspect we all have aspects of our lives that are hurtful for ourselves or
others… Do we drink too much? Do we procrastinate? Are we holding grudges? Are
we unfairly judging others? There are things about ourselves we need to change
or let go of.
Over these next few weeks, we will
add to our busyness as we take on the tasks of this season…we will shop…we will
bake…we will decorate….we will travel….we will eat…we will add more and more to
our list. But, becoming busier is probably the last thing we need. We are
entering the Advent season, the season were we are called to prepare our hearts
to receive Jesus…not by buying gifts or putting pressure on ourselves to have
the tinsel placed perfectly on our trees, but by allowing ourselves to stop
some of the things we do that keep us separate or apart from God. So, instead
of pressuring ourselves to get all of the Christmas prep work done, let’s work
on opening our hearts to Jesus and letting go of the stuff that makes it more
difficult for us to put our trust in God and open our hearts to Jesus.
God gives us permission to cross off
some of the tasks on our lists, to breathe in the Holy Spirit, and remember
that God values our attention and adoration. Let us let go of the things that
separate us from God and get ready to welcome Jesus into our hearts.
Amen.
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