Rev. Jeffrey T. Howard
Sermon Isaiah 9:2-7 A Child is Born
Eagle Rock Presbyterian Church
December 21, 2008
Today we have arrived at the fourth and last Sunday of Advent. Our wait for the coming of Immanuel, God with us, is almost over. Four candles are lit on the Advent wreath. The amount of light the wreath gives off has been increasing each week as we prepare ourselves to walk in the glory of God. But today one candle remains unlit until Christmas Eve and we still walk in darkness, waiting for glory to arrive. Will you pray with me?
Father in Heaven we long for the day when you will be Immanuel, God with us. We have been waiting so long, walking in darkness, and hoping for your light. Come quickly and bless us with your presence. We pray all of this in the name of our Lord, Jesus Christ. Amen.
Isaiah 9:2-7 2 The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who lived in a land of deep darkness-- on them light has shined. 3 You have multiplied the nation, you have increased its joy; they rejoice before you as with joy at the harvest, as people exult when dividing plunder. 4 For the yoke of their burden, and the bar across their shoulders, the rod of their oppressor, you have broken as on the day of Midian. 5 For all the boots of the tramping warriors and all the garments rolled in blood shall be burned as fuel for the fire. 6 For a child has been born for us, a son given to us; authority rests upon his shoulders; and he is named Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. 7 His authority shall grow continually, and there shall be endless peace for the throne of David and his kingdom. He will establish and uphold it with justice and with righteousness from this time onward and forevermore. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will do this.
Seven years ago today I boarded a train at Union Station in Washington DC bound for New York City. I arrived in midtown Manhattan at Penn Station and dropped my bag at a nearby hotel. Then I began to walk down Fifth Avenue toward Wall Street. It was a long walk and I could have taken the subway or taxi, but I needed some time to think and pray. So I began the long walk buried deep in the canyons of skyscrapers that makeup New Your City.
That day, seven years ago, I was walking in darkness as was much of our nation. Just a few months before, on September 11, 2001, two groups of terrorists flew airplanes into the World Trade Center. We all watched as those towers fell to the ground. And now I was in New York walking slowly to the site were those buildings once stood.
On December 21 we are all walking in darkness. This is the longest night of the year, the Winter Solstice, the day each year when, because of the tilt of the earth, the northern hemisphere experiences the shortest days and the longest nights of the year. But coinciding with the Winter Solstice is Christmas were we place our hope in the coming light. So as we walk in darkness Christ gives us light, the glory of God as a lamp to our feet.
As I walked down Fifth Avenue on the afternoon of the Winter Solstice I realized that I was seeing a great light. Normally the sunset cannot be seen from the streets of Manhattan because of the great height of the buildings. But the streets have been designed in such a way that the avenues point in the direction that the sun sets on the shortest day of the year. So as I walked south on Fifth Avenue the sun was setting directly in front of me filling the canyons of New York City with amazing light. On the shortest day of the year the people of Manhattan receive the maximum amount of sunlight. So while I walked in the darkness of the tragedy of 9-11 I saw the great light of God’s creation setting before me.
Walking in darkness is not unfamiliar to us. We have all walked in darkness not knowing what the doctor will say, not knowing if we have enough to pay the bills, not knowing if the ones we love will stay with us. In darkness we walk in fear, guilt and loneliness thinking that maybe God has abandoned us.
The people of 8th Century before Christ in Jerusalem certainly walked in darkness. The hated Assyrians had destroyed Aram and Israel their neighbors to the north. Their king Ahaz polluted the temple in Jerusalem by permitting the worship of Assyrian gods. God seemed to have abandoned them and with the absence of the glory of God in Jerusalem the people walked in darkness.
The prophet Isaiah ben Amoz had predicted that a young woman would conceive and bear a son who would be called Immanuel, God with us. And as this boy grew the people place their hopes and fears on this descendant of David. They hoped that the child, Hezekiah, would return the Glory of God to Jerusalem. And now with the death of King Ahaz this eleven year old child was to be crowned king.
The prophet Isaiah returned for the coronation and witnessed the great joy of the people. It was the same joy they had experience when the harvest was brought in, the same joy they felt whenever peace replaced war. The people felt this joy because young Hezekiah had great faith in the LORD, his God. They called him “Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” And they believed that Hezekiah would bring the nation endless peace because he would rule, as God wanted, with paramount concern for the poor, and the widows and orphans. They hoped that if Hezekiah would rule with justice and righteousness then peace would reign, because God would mobilize the army of heaven to defend them against their enemies. With Immanuel coming to the throne, even as a little boy named Hezekiah, the glory of God had finally returned to Jerusalem and the people who had walked in darkness for so long finally saw a great light.
We too as we walk in darkness are searching for a great light. Maybe this light is the light of a star hovering over Bethlehem, or the light of the sun on the Winter Solstice, the light of the child Hezekiah, or the light of the candles burning here today. All of these may point us to the light, but they are not light.
The light we are searching for came into the world two thousand years ago. He was born in Bethlehem, grew up in Nazareth, and was baptized by his cousin John in the river Jordan. He began his ministry in the region of Galilee. And this ministry is the light we have all been looking for. Listen to these words from the Gospel of Matthew.
Matthew 4:12-16 12 Now when Jesus heard that John had been arrested, he withdrew to Galilee. 13 He left Nazareth and made his home in Capernaum by the sea …14 so that what had been spoken through the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled: … 16 the people who sat in darkness have seen a great light, and for those who sat in the region and shadow of death light has dawned."
The light the prophet Isaiah was looking for, the light we who walk in darkness are looking for is Jesus Christ. In Jesus Christ the light of the world has come. This is what we celebrate at Christmas. Even though we walk in the darkness we have the Christmas hope that the light of Christ will shine in our lives.
As I made my way down Fifth Avenue in New York I realized, as I felt the warmth of the sun on my face that God was with me. The great darkness that I had experienced was lifted and I experienced joy for the first time in months. As a result of this experience I decided to make some changes in my life. I wanted to be closer to my church where I was becoming more involved as a Bible teacher. I sold my home and moved into the city. I took a job at the Washington National Cathedral and lived in an apartment across the street so I could pray there whenever I wanted. All of this prepared me for a decision a year later to go to seminary and pursue ordination in the Presbyterian Church. While walking in darkness on the Winter Solstice I saw a great light which led me to Jesus Christ.
This is my Christmas wish for you. That no matter what darkness you are passing through right now, the light of Christ will fill you with God’s love and the assurance that God is with us no matter what happens. This is the message of Isaiah that whatever we have done in the past is over and we can now celebrate with great joy the coming of Immanuel, God with Us. Amen.
Friday, December 26, 2008
Wednesday, December 17, 2008
Sermon: Isaiah 61:1-11 – The Spirit is Upon Me
Rev. Jeffrey T. Howard
Eagle Rock Presbyterian Church
Sermon: Isaiah 61:1-11 – The Spirit is Upon Me
December 14, 2008
We have arrived at the third Sunday of Advent and are continuing in our study of Isaiah. So far in Advent we have seen three voices emerge from this most important book. We have heard the voice of the prophet, Isaiah ben Amoz, speaking from eighth century Jerusalem preparing the people for the onslaught of the mighty Assyrian Empire. We have heard the voice of a poet with the people of God in exile after the Babylonians destroyed their city in the sixth century. And we have heard from the voice of a preacher accompanying the people of God as they returned to their destroyed city at the end of the sixth century. The common question that was being asked over two and a half centuries was, Is God still with us? And the answer that is given throughout the book is the Hebrew word “Immanuel” which means, “Yes God is with us.” We have the same question as we approach Christmas, “Is God still with us?” And the answer still rings true from Isaiah, God is with us.
Will you pray with me? Lord Immanuel we await your coming at Christmas. Prepare our hearts to receive you. Open our minds and our hearts to believe in you that you are truly God with us. Amen.
NRS Isaiah 61:1 The spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me, because the LORD has anointed me; he has sent me to bring good news to the oppressed, to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and release to the prisoners; 2 to proclaim the year of the LORD's favor, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all who mourn; 3 to provide for those who mourn in Zion-- to give them a garland instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, the mantle of praise instead of a faint spirit. They will be called oaks of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, to display his glory. 4 They shall build up the ancient ruins, they shall raise up the former devastations; they shall repair the ruined cities, the devastations of many generations. 5 Strangers shall stand and feed your flocks, foreigners shall till your land and dress your vines; 6 but you shall be called priests of the LORD, you shall be named ministers of our God; you shall enjoy the wealth of the nations, and in their riches you shall glory. 7 Because their shame was double, and dishonor was proclaimed as their lot, therefore they shall possess a double portion; everlasting joy shall be theirs. 8 For I the LORD love justice, I hate robbery and wrongdoing; I will faithfully give them their recompense, and I will make an everlasting covenant with them. 9 Their descendants shall be known among the nations, and their offspring among the peoples; all who see them shall acknowledge that they are a people whom the LORD has blessed. 10 I will greatly rejoice in the LORD, my whole being shall exult in my God; for he has clothed me with the garments of salvation, he has covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decks himself with a garland, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels. 11 For as the earth brings forth its shoots, and as a garden causes what is sown in it to spring up, so the Lord GOD will cause righteousness and praise to spring up before all the nations.
When the preacher arrived in Jerusalem with the people of God after being freed from Babylonian captivity by a decree from the Persian King, Cyrus, they saw the ruins of their beloved city. All that remained was a pile of rocks and the people Babylon did not want: the poor, the sick, the homeless, the disabled, and the aged. Who could blame them for wondering if returning to Jerusalem was worth all the trouble. At least in Babylon the exiles had jobs, homes and food on the table. In Jerusalem the marginalized had heard the poet years before declare God’s decree of comfort but as yet nothing had happened. Something dramatic was needed to convince the people that God had truly returned to Jerusalem and was with them.
The preacher assembled all the people of Jerusalem and the returning exiles on Mount Zion to hear an important proclamation. The preacher announced that he had been anointed by God; that means that he was the anointed one, the Messiah, the Christ. This anointing gave him the authority to speak on behalf of God. The spirit was also upon him so that he could speak as a prophet giving God’s word to God’s people.
The preacher told them that he had brought good news from God, very good news. He was there to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor. All of the people knew exactly what this meant. The law of Leviticus mandates that every fifty years a jubilee should be called as God’s way of ensuring justice for all people. Every fifty years all debts were forgiven and all people were permitted to return to their ancestral homes. So if you were a poor widow who was forced to sell your land for food, on fiftieth year you got your land back. If you were disabled and had to mortgage your land to survive, at the jubilee your mortgage disappeared. So the preacher was telling everyone to return to their homes and rebuild because all of their debts were forgiven and their land was restored.
The concept of a jubilee sounds very foreign to us. We live in a nation that believes strongly in personal property rights. The land we own is ours until we sell it to someone else or when we can no longer pay the mortgage and lose it to foreclosure. But in biblical times it was understood that people did not own land. Land belonged to the one who created it, God. People were allowed to live and work on the land and pass it on to their descendants because the use of the land was a gift from God. God’s justice demanded that people not be forced from the land. He had given them just because of economic conditions. So every fifty years God declared a jubilee when everyone could return to the land that God have given them. The preacher was giving the people some really good news. God had taken their land away because of their idolatry. But with the declaration of the jubilee God was canceling their debt and allowing all of them to return home to rebuild.
The reason God had declared the jubilee was to demonstrate to all the people of the earth God’s great glory. To this end he entered into a new everlasting covenant with his people. God would bless his people and his people would proclaim to the world that they had been blessed by God. This covenant is still in force today. God has richly blessed us with forgiveness of sins and a good life. We are called to proclaim this blessing of God to all people. This is the mission of the church: to acknowledge that we have been richly blessed and the demonstrate God glory to the world by proclaiming it to everyone we meet, everyone in Eagle Rock, everyone in the world, that we have been blessed by God.
Eventually Jerusalem was rebuilt but it was never fully restored to it former glory. The Persians, the Greeks and later the Romans occupied and controlled it. The people prayed for the day when another preacher would come, be anointed by God, and proclaim another jubilee year. The waited for the day when the poor, the homeless, the mentally ill, the aged, the widows and the orphans would return to their ancestral land as God had promised.
Then one day in the first century, a young rabbi from Nazareth preached his first sermon from Isaiah chapter 61. He had been proclaiming good news to the marginalized people of Galilee. Listen to what happened from Luke, Chapter 4.
Luke 4:16-21 16 When he came to Nazareth where he had been brought up, he went to the synagogue on the sabbath day, as was his custom. He stood up to read, 17 and the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written: 18 "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, 19 to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor." 20 And he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant, and sat down. The eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him. 21 Then he began to say to them, "Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing."
Like the preacher five hundred years before, Jesus was claiming to be the anointed one, the Messiah, the Christ. Jesus was claiming that the Spirit of God had come to him giving him the authority of Moses. And with that authority Jesus had come to proclaim good news to the poor. This good news was a year of jubilee. All debts were to be forgiven and the people restored to their ancestral homes. Of course Jesus’ words were treasonous. By speaking them Jesus had endangered his own city. If anyone found out what Jesus had said the Romans might crucify all the men in the village. So they argued with Jesus and a mob tried to throw Jesus over a cliff. But Jesus and the good news he was spreading could not be silenced. A jubilee had been called by God’s Messiah.
How are we to handle this call for jubilee today? With one in ten mortgages in default and banks needing government support to survive what are we doing to bring good news to the poor? What are we saying to the people who are losing their homes? Maybe, we should think of making a drastic change in the way we deal with real estate in America. Our belief in private property and our desire for maximum profit had led us into an economic mess. So what if we tried something new? What if we said that God owns all the property and the people use this property as a gift from God? What would that mean in modern America?
As Christians I think it is time for us to stand up for biblical principles even if they are unpopular. If we are truly the follower of the anointed one, the messiah, the Christ and if we are called to proclaim the good news to the poor, then we should advocate a radical shift of our economic system away from personal property and the pursuit of profit to a system based on the requirements of justice that we find in scripture. We need to do this because God we worship is the God of justice and righteousness. And as God’s people our mission is to care for those in need.
Father in heaven, we thank you for all the blessing that you have poured down upon us. We will respond by proclaiming to the world all that you have down for us. And we will proclaim the good news to the poor in our community. We will do this because it will allow your glory to shine everywhere on earth. Give our leaders the wisdom to design an economic system that is consistent with your call to care for those in need. We pray all of this in the name of our coming Lord, Jesus. Amen.
Eagle Rock Presbyterian Church
Sermon: Isaiah 61:1-11 – The Spirit is Upon Me
December 14, 2008
We have arrived at the third Sunday of Advent and are continuing in our study of Isaiah. So far in Advent we have seen three voices emerge from this most important book. We have heard the voice of the prophet, Isaiah ben Amoz, speaking from eighth century Jerusalem preparing the people for the onslaught of the mighty Assyrian Empire. We have heard the voice of a poet with the people of God in exile after the Babylonians destroyed their city in the sixth century. And we have heard from the voice of a preacher accompanying the people of God as they returned to their destroyed city at the end of the sixth century. The common question that was being asked over two and a half centuries was, Is God still with us? And the answer that is given throughout the book is the Hebrew word “Immanuel” which means, “Yes God is with us.” We have the same question as we approach Christmas, “Is God still with us?” And the answer still rings true from Isaiah, God is with us.
Will you pray with me? Lord Immanuel we await your coming at Christmas. Prepare our hearts to receive you. Open our minds and our hearts to believe in you that you are truly God with us. Amen.
NRS Isaiah 61:1 The spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me, because the LORD has anointed me; he has sent me to bring good news to the oppressed, to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and release to the prisoners; 2 to proclaim the year of the LORD's favor, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all who mourn; 3 to provide for those who mourn in Zion-- to give them a garland instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, the mantle of praise instead of a faint spirit. They will be called oaks of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, to display his glory. 4 They shall build up the ancient ruins, they shall raise up the former devastations; they shall repair the ruined cities, the devastations of many generations. 5 Strangers shall stand and feed your flocks, foreigners shall till your land and dress your vines; 6 but you shall be called priests of the LORD, you shall be named ministers of our God; you shall enjoy the wealth of the nations, and in their riches you shall glory. 7 Because their shame was double, and dishonor was proclaimed as their lot, therefore they shall possess a double portion; everlasting joy shall be theirs. 8 For I the LORD love justice, I hate robbery and wrongdoing; I will faithfully give them their recompense, and I will make an everlasting covenant with them. 9 Their descendants shall be known among the nations, and their offspring among the peoples; all who see them shall acknowledge that they are a people whom the LORD has blessed. 10 I will greatly rejoice in the LORD, my whole being shall exult in my God; for he has clothed me with the garments of salvation, he has covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decks himself with a garland, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels. 11 For as the earth brings forth its shoots, and as a garden causes what is sown in it to spring up, so the Lord GOD will cause righteousness and praise to spring up before all the nations.
When the preacher arrived in Jerusalem with the people of God after being freed from Babylonian captivity by a decree from the Persian King, Cyrus, they saw the ruins of their beloved city. All that remained was a pile of rocks and the people Babylon did not want: the poor, the sick, the homeless, the disabled, and the aged. Who could blame them for wondering if returning to Jerusalem was worth all the trouble. At least in Babylon the exiles had jobs, homes and food on the table. In Jerusalem the marginalized had heard the poet years before declare God’s decree of comfort but as yet nothing had happened. Something dramatic was needed to convince the people that God had truly returned to Jerusalem and was with them.
The preacher assembled all the people of Jerusalem and the returning exiles on Mount Zion to hear an important proclamation. The preacher announced that he had been anointed by God; that means that he was the anointed one, the Messiah, the Christ. This anointing gave him the authority to speak on behalf of God. The spirit was also upon him so that he could speak as a prophet giving God’s word to God’s people.
The preacher told them that he had brought good news from God, very good news. He was there to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor. All of the people knew exactly what this meant. The law of Leviticus mandates that every fifty years a jubilee should be called as God’s way of ensuring justice for all people. Every fifty years all debts were forgiven and all people were permitted to return to their ancestral homes. So if you were a poor widow who was forced to sell your land for food, on fiftieth year you got your land back. If you were disabled and had to mortgage your land to survive, at the jubilee your mortgage disappeared. So the preacher was telling everyone to return to their homes and rebuild because all of their debts were forgiven and their land was restored.
The concept of a jubilee sounds very foreign to us. We live in a nation that believes strongly in personal property rights. The land we own is ours until we sell it to someone else or when we can no longer pay the mortgage and lose it to foreclosure. But in biblical times it was understood that people did not own land. Land belonged to the one who created it, God. People were allowed to live and work on the land and pass it on to their descendants because the use of the land was a gift from God. God’s justice demanded that people not be forced from the land. He had given them just because of economic conditions. So every fifty years God declared a jubilee when everyone could return to the land that God have given them. The preacher was giving the people some really good news. God had taken their land away because of their idolatry. But with the declaration of the jubilee God was canceling their debt and allowing all of them to return home to rebuild.
The reason God had declared the jubilee was to demonstrate to all the people of the earth God’s great glory. To this end he entered into a new everlasting covenant with his people. God would bless his people and his people would proclaim to the world that they had been blessed by God. This covenant is still in force today. God has richly blessed us with forgiveness of sins and a good life. We are called to proclaim this blessing of God to all people. This is the mission of the church: to acknowledge that we have been richly blessed and the demonstrate God glory to the world by proclaiming it to everyone we meet, everyone in Eagle Rock, everyone in the world, that we have been blessed by God.
Eventually Jerusalem was rebuilt but it was never fully restored to it former glory. The Persians, the Greeks and later the Romans occupied and controlled it. The people prayed for the day when another preacher would come, be anointed by God, and proclaim another jubilee year. The waited for the day when the poor, the homeless, the mentally ill, the aged, the widows and the orphans would return to their ancestral land as God had promised.
Then one day in the first century, a young rabbi from Nazareth preached his first sermon from Isaiah chapter 61. He had been proclaiming good news to the marginalized people of Galilee. Listen to what happened from Luke, Chapter 4.
Luke 4:16-21 16 When he came to Nazareth where he had been brought up, he went to the synagogue on the sabbath day, as was his custom. He stood up to read, 17 and the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written: 18 "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, 19 to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor." 20 And he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant, and sat down. The eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him. 21 Then he began to say to them, "Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing."
Like the preacher five hundred years before, Jesus was claiming to be the anointed one, the Messiah, the Christ. Jesus was claiming that the Spirit of God had come to him giving him the authority of Moses. And with that authority Jesus had come to proclaim good news to the poor. This good news was a year of jubilee. All debts were to be forgiven and the people restored to their ancestral homes. Of course Jesus’ words were treasonous. By speaking them Jesus had endangered his own city. If anyone found out what Jesus had said the Romans might crucify all the men in the village. So they argued with Jesus and a mob tried to throw Jesus over a cliff. But Jesus and the good news he was spreading could not be silenced. A jubilee had been called by God’s Messiah.
How are we to handle this call for jubilee today? With one in ten mortgages in default and banks needing government support to survive what are we doing to bring good news to the poor? What are we saying to the people who are losing their homes? Maybe, we should think of making a drastic change in the way we deal with real estate in America. Our belief in private property and our desire for maximum profit had led us into an economic mess. So what if we tried something new? What if we said that God owns all the property and the people use this property as a gift from God? What would that mean in modern America?
As Christians I think it is time for us to stand up for biblical principles even if they are unpopular. If we are truly the follower of the anointed one, the messiah, the Christ and if we are called to proclaim the good news to the poor, then we should advocate a radical shift of our economic system away from personal property and the pursuit of profit to a system based on the requirements of justice that we find in scripture. We need to do this because God we worship is the God of justice and righteousness. And as God’s people our mission is to care for those in need.
Father in heaven, we thank you for all the blessing that you have poured down upon us. We will respond by proclaiming to the world all that you have down for us. And we will proclaim the good news to the poor in our community. We will do this because it will allow your glory to shine everywhere on earth. Give our leaders the wisdom to design an economic system that is consistent with your call to care for those in need. We pray all of this in the name of our coming Lord, Jesus. Amen.
Friday, December 12, 2008
Sermon Isaiah 40:1-11 Prepare the Way of the Lord
Rev. Jeffrey T. Howard
Sermon Isaiah 40:1-11 Prepare the Way of the Lord
Eagle Rock Presbyterian Church
December 7, 2008
On this second Sunday of Advent we are continuing in our study of Isaiah. Last Sunday we heard from the preacher of the late 6th century before Christ writing in Isaiah as the people of God made their way back to Jerusalem. When they saw the destruction of their beloved city they wondered if God had abandoned them. They asked if God would ever return to Jerusalem. Last Wednesday night we listened as the 8th century prophet in Isaiah spoke to King Ahaz trying to assure him and us that there is no reason to fear because God is with us. Today we will hear the decree of God concerning his people and the task given to the poet writing in Isaiah during the Babylonian exile. But before we hear from God will you pray with me?
Lord Jesus Christ we await your coming in glory at Christmas. Prepare us for your arrival by filling the valleys in our hearts and setting us on the straight paths. We ask that your comfort us with your love. Amen.
NRS Isaiah 40:1 Comfort, O comfort my people, says your God. 2 Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and cry to her that she has served her term, that her penalty is paid, that she has received from the LORD's hand double for all her sins. 3 A voice cries out: "In the wilderness prepare the way of the LORD, make straight in the desert a highway for our God. 4 Every valley shall be lifted up, and every mountain and hill be made low; the uneven ground shall become level, and the rough places a plain. 5 Then the glory of the LORD shall be revealed, and all people shall see it together, for the mouth of the LORD has spoken." 6 A voice says, "Cry out!" And I said, "What shall I cry?" All people are grass, their constancy is like the flower of the field. 7 The grass withers, the flower fades, when the breath of the LORD blows upon it; surely the people are grass. 8 The grass withers, the flower fades; but the word of our God will stand forever. 9 Get you up to a high mountain, O Zion, herald of good tidings; lift up your voice with strength, O Jerusalem, herald of good tidings, lift it up, do not fear; say to the cities of Judah, "Here is your God!" 10 See, the Lord GOD comes with might, and his arm rules for him; his reward is with him, and his recompense before him. 11 He will feed his flock like a shepherd; he will gather the lambs in his arms, and carry them in his bosom, and gently lead the mother sheep.
God has convened a grand council in heaven. All of the heavenly host have been summoned to God’s throne to hear God’s decree concerning his people. All of the angels are ready to take God’s decree and proclaim it to the four corners of the world. Everyone is ready for God to come, ascend the throne, and speak the words that will transform all of creation
The prayers of God’s people have been pouring into heaven for years. Some of these have been prayers of anger because God has permitted his own city, Jerusalem, and his own temple to be destroyed by the Babylonians. Others have been prayers of disillusionment because God’s people have questioned if the God of Israel is really God, or is it time to worship Marduk, the Babylonian god instead. Still other prayers are of repentance; people are begging God for forgiveness and restoration of their city. These prayers and so many more have come to heaven and now God is ready to make a new decree.
God enters the council and sits on the throne in his majesty and power and speaks:
NRS Isaiah 40:1 Comfort, O comfort my people, says your God. 2 Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and cry to her that she has served her term, that her penalty is paid, that she has received from the LORD's hand double for all her sins.
God has decreed that the time of punishment for Judah’s idolatry is over. Now, all of heaven is directed to bring comfort to God’s people. The angels are told to stop bringing messages of condemnation and begin speaking tenderly and gently to God’s people in exile. They are to tell the people that God has forgiven their sins, and is once again ready to bless them richly. This is the day to put away the sackcloth and ashes and rejoice for the Lord has come to redeem them. God is on the way back to Jerusalem.
The angels take this great message of hope and proclaim it to God’s people. Hear what they had to say:
NRS Isaiah 40: 3 …"In the wilderness prepare the way of the LORD, make straight in the desert a highway for our God. 4 Every valley shall be lifted up, and every mountain and hill be made low; the uneven ground shall become level, and the rough places a plain. 5 Then the glory of the LORD shall be revealed, and all people shall see it together, for the mouth of the LORD has spoken."
All of the people of God living in exile, separated from their nation and their city and their God were symbolically wandering in the wilderness just as their ancestors had centuries before. But as a result of God’s decree that the people should be comforted, a highway will be built from Babylon back to Jerusalem so God’s people could return home and God’s glory could return to Mount Zion, Jerusalem. Through this restoration God’s glory would be displayed so brightly that God would be revealed to all people of all nations of the earth.
Then one of the angels saw a poet living with the exiles in Babylon. The angel approached the poet and said:
NRS Isaiah 40: 6 … "Cry out!" And (the poet) replied, "What shall I cry?" All people are grass, their constancy is like the flower of the field. 7 The grass withers, the flower fades, when the breath of the LORD blows upon it; surely the people are grass.
The poet in the Isaiah sees the suffering of God’s people in exile. She sees how a once great people are now servants in another land. They are bowed over. Their glory has faded. Repeated proclamations from God communicated through the prophets Jeremiah and Ezekiel have convinced the people that the exile and destruction of Jerusalem was their fault. Their idolatry was the reason for their suffering. The people just can’t take another proclamation of judgment from God.
But the angel replied:
NRS Isaiah 40: 8 “The grass withers, the flower fades; but the word of our God will stand forever.”
Even though the people of God have been humbled by God’s judgment the new decree must be heard and obeyed. They need to know, and the poet needs to tell them that God has decreed comfort for all of his people. They are forgiven and will be restored to their city and their country. They need to know that God is returning to Jerusalem and they have to rebuild and be ready for God’s return.
Then the angel told the poet that she is to return to Jerusalem to proclaim to the people who remain there that God is returning:
NRS Isaiah 40: 9 “Get you up to a high mountain, O Zion, herald of good tidings; lift up your voice with strength, O Jerusalem, herald of good tidings, lift it up, do not fear; say to the cities of Judah, "Here is your God!" 10 See, the Lord GOD comes with might, and his arm rules for him; his reward is with him, and his recompense before him. 11 He will feed his flock like a shepherd; he will gather the lambs in his arms, and carry them in his bosom, and gently lead the mother sheep.
The people who remained in Jerusalem after the Babylonian exile were the poor, the mentally ill, the aged, and disabled, all the people that Babylon did not want in their city. These marginalized people were left behind to eke out whatever kind of living they could from the rubble of the city. It is to these people that the poet is to return proclaiming the new decree of God. The poet is to proclaim that God is returning for them. God will return in might to protect them from those who would do them harm. And God will protect them, heal their wounds, and feed them just as a shepherd would care for his sheep. This gospel of good news to the poor was the message that the angel of God wanted the poet to proclaim to God’s people in Jerusalem and to all the people of the world.
Eventually, Jerusalem and the temple were rebuilt. By the time of King Herod, Jerusalem was a large city in the Roman Empire and the Temple had been expanded to dimensions that even exceeded the magnificent structure Solomon had built, but the poor, the mentally ill, the aged, and the disabled remained. The God of justice and righteousness had not yet returned. The people longed for the day when God would come like a good shepherd to care for his people.
Then one day a man appeared in the wilderness. And like the poet before him he proclaimed the good news that God had decreed comfort for all his people and forgiveness for all who repented. The Good Shepherd was about to return to Jerusalem. Luke talks about it in this way:
Luke 3:2-6 …the word of God came to John son of Zechariah in the wilderness. 3 He went into all the region around the Jordan, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins, 4 as it is written in the book of the words of the prophet Isaiah, "The voice of one crying out in the wilderness: 'Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight. 5 Every valley shall be filled, and every mountain and hill shall be made low, and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough ways made smooth; 6 and all flesh shall see the salvation of God.'"
In Jesus Christ, God has finally returned to Jerusalem to heal the sick, clothe the naked, and feed the hungry. In Jesus Christ, all of our sins have been forgiven. In Jesus Christ, we have been restored and renewed and ready to rebuild our fallen world.
So here is the good news that I have for you this morning. God has decreed that you are to be comforted. All of your sins have been forgiven. Your God has come to care for you, to heal your illnesses, to give you something to eat and a place to stay. You are to proclaim this good news of God’s love to everyone you meet. You are to lead then out of the wilderness were they now live, and bring them to new life in Jesus Christ.
Father in Heaven, we thank you for all the comfort we have received in Jesus Christ. We thank you for feeding us and binding our wounds as our shepherd. We thank you for forgiving our sins and restoring us to new life. We pray all of this in the name of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Amen.
Sermon Isaiah 40:1-11 Prepare the Way of the Lord
Eagle Rock Presbyterian Church
December 7, 2008
On this second Sunday of Advent we are continuing in our study of Isaiah. Last Sunday we heard from the preacher of the late 6th century before Christ writing in Isaiah as the people of God made their way back to Jerusalem. When they saw the destruction of their beloved city they wondered if God had abandoned them. They asked if God would ever return to Jerusalem. Last Wednesday night we listened as the 8th century prophet in Isaiah spoke to King Ahaz trying to assure him and us that there is no reason to fear because God is with us. Today we will hear the decree of God concerning his people and the task given to the poet writing in Isaiah during the Babylonian exile. But before we hear from God will you pray with me?
Lord Jesus Christ we await your coming in glory at Christmas. Prepare us for your arrival by filling the valleys in our hearts and setting us on the straight paths. We ask that your comfort us with your love. Amen.
NRS Isaiah 40:1 Comfort, O comfort my people, says your God. 2 Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and cry to her that she has served her term, that her penalty is paid, that she has received from the LORD's hand double for all her sins. 3 A voice cries out: "In the wilderness prepare the way of the LORD, make straight in the desert a highway for our God. 4 Every valley shall be lifted up, and every mountain and hill be made low; the uneven ground shall become level, and the rough places a plain. 5 Then the glory of the LORD shall be revealed, and all people shall see it together, for the mouth of the LORD has spoken." 6 A voice says, "Cry out!" And I said, "What shall I cry?" All people are grass, their constancy is like the flower of the field. 7 The grass withers, the flower fades, when the breath of the LORD blows upon it; surely the people are grass. 8 The grass withers, the flower fades; but the word of our God will stand forever. 9 Get you up to a high mountain, O Zion, herald of good tidings; lift up your voice with strength, O Jerusalem, herald of good tidings, lift it up, do not fear; say to the cities of Judah, "Here is your God!" 10 See, the Lord GOD comes with might, and his arm rules for him; his reward is with him, and his recompense before him. 11 He will feed his flock like a shepherd; he will gather the lambs in his arms, and carry them in his bosom, and gently lead the mother sheep.
God has convened a grand council in heaven. All of the heavenly host have been summoned to God’s throne to hear God’s decree concerning his people. All of the angels are ready to take God’s decree and proclaim it to the four corners of the world. Everyone is ready for God to come, ascend the throne, and speak the words that will transform all of creation
The prayers of God’s people have been pouring into heaven for years. Some of these have been prayers of anger because God has permitted his own city, Jerusalem, and his own temple to be destroyed by the Babylonians. Others have been prayers of disillusionment because God’s people have questioned if the God of Israel is really God, or is it time to worship Marduk, the Babylonian god instead. Still other prayers are of repentance; people are begging God for forgiveness and restoration of their city. These prayers and so many more have come to heaven and now God is ready to make a new decree.
God enters the council and sits on the throne in his majesty and power and speaks:
NRS Isaiah 40:1 Comfort, O comfort my people, says your God. 2 Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and cry to her that she has served her term, that her penalty is paid, that she has received from the LORD's hand double for all her sins.
God has decreed that the time of punishment for Judah’s idolatry is over. Now, all of heaven is directed to bring comfort to God’s people. The angels are told to stop bringing messages of condemnation and begin speaking tenderly and gently to God’s people in exile. They are to tell the people that God has forgiven their sins, and is once again ready to bless them richly. This is the day to put away the sackcloth and ashes and rejoice for the Lord has come to redeem them. God is on the way back to Jerusalem.
The angels take this great message of hope and proclaim it to God’s people. Hear what they had to say:
NRS Isaiah 40: 3 …"In the wilderness prepare the way of the LORD, make straight in the desert a highway for our God. 4 Every valley shall be lifted up, and every mountain and hill be made low; the uneven ground shall become level, and the rough places a plain. 5 Then the glory of the LORD shall be revealed, and all people shall see it together, for the mouth of the LORD has spoken."
All of the people of God living in exile, separated from their nation and their city and their God were symbolically wandering in the wilderness just as their ancestors had centuries before. But as a result of God’s decree that the people should be comforted, a highway will be built from Babylon back to Jerusalem so God’s people could return home and God’s glory could return to Mount Zion, Jerusalem. Through this restoration God’s glory would be displayed so brightly that God would be revealed to all people of all nations of the earth.
Then one of the angels saw a poet living with the exiles in Babylon. The angel approached the poet and said:
NRS Isaiah 40: 6 … "Cry out!" And (the poet) replied, "What shall I cry?" All people are grass, their constancy is like the flower of the field. 7 The grass withers, the flower fades, when the breath of the LORD blows upon it; surely the people are grass.
The poet in the Isaiah sees the suffering of God’s people in exile. She sees how a once great people are now servants in another land. They are bowed over. Their glory has faded. Repeated proclamations from God communicated through the prophets Jeremiah and Ezekiel have convinced the people that the exile and destruction of Jerusalem was their fault. Their idolatry was the reason for their suffering. The people just can’t take another proclamation of judgment from God.
But the angel replied:
NRS Isaiah 40: 8 “The grass withers, the flower fades; but the word of our God will stand forever.”
Even though the people of God have been humbled by God’s judgment the new decree must be heard and obeyed. They need to know, and the poet needs to tell them that God has decreed comfort for all of his people. They are forgiven and will be restored to their city and their country. They need to know that God is returning to Jerusalem and they have to rebuild and be ready for God’s return.
Then the angel told the poet that she is to return to Jerusalem to proclaim to the people who remain there that God is returning:
NRS Isaiah 40: 9 “Get you up to a high mountain, O Zion, herald of good tidings; lift up your voice with strength, O Jerusalem, herald of good tidings, lift it up, do not fear; say to the cities of Judah, "Here is your God!" 10 See, the Lord GOD comes with might, and his arm rules for him; his reward is with him, and his recompense before him. 11 He will feed his flock like a shepherd; he will gather the lambs in his arms, and carry them in his bosom, and gently lead the mother sheep.
The people who remained in Jerusalem after the Babylonian exile were the poor, the mentally ill, the aged, and disabled, all the people that Babylon did not want in their city. These marginalized people were left behind to eke out whatever kind of living they could from the rubble of the city. It is to these people that the poet is to return proclaiming the new decree of God. The poet is to proclaim that God is returning for them. God will return in might to protect them from those who would do them harm. And God will protect them, heal their wounds, and feed them just as a shepherd would care for his sheep. This gospel of good news to the poor was the message that the angel of God wanted the poet to proclaim to God’s people in Jerusalem and to all the people of the world.
Eventually, Jerusalem and the temple were rebuilt. By the time of King Herod, Jerusalem was a large city in the Roman Empire and the Temple had been expanded to dimensions that even exceeded the magnificent structure Solomon had built, but the poor, the mentally ill, the aged, and the disabled remained. The God of justice and righteousness had not yet returned. The people longed for the day when God would come like a good shepherd to care for his people.
Then one day a man appeared in the wilderness. And like the poet before him he proclaimed the good news that God had decreed comfort for all his people and forgiveness for all who repented. The Good Shepherd was about to return to Jerusalem. Luke talks about it in this way:
Luke 3:2-6 …the word of God came to John son of Zechariah in the wilderness. 3 He went into all the region around the Jordan, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins, 4 as it is written in the book of the words of the prophet Isaiah, "The voice of one crying out in the wilderness: 'Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight. 5 Every valley shall be filled, and every mountain and hill shall be made low, and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough ways made smooth; 6 and all flesh shall see the salvation of God.'"
In Jesus Christ, God has finally returned to Jerusalem to heal the sick, clothe the naked, and feed the hungry. In Jesus Christ, all of our sins have been forgiven. In Jesus Christ, we have been restored and renewed and ready to rebuild our fallen world.
So here is the good news that I have for you this morning. God has decreed that you are to be comforted. All of your sins have been forgiven. Your God has come to care for you, to heal your illnesses, to give you something to eat and a place to stay. You are to proclaim this good news of God’s love to everyone you meet. You are to lead then out of the wilderness were they now live, and bring them to new life in Jesus Christ.
Father in Heaven, we thank you for all the comfort we have received in Jesus Christ. We thank you for feeding us and binding our wounds as our shepherd. We thank you for forgiving our sins and restoring us to new life. We pray all of this in the name of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Amen.
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
Sermon Isaiah 64:1-9 We are your People
Rev. Jeffrey T. Howard
Eagle Rock Presbyterian Church
Sermon Isaiah 64:1-9 We are your People
November 30, 2008
This morning I am beginning a series of sermons from Isaiah. During Advent we will be looking at this important Old Testament book. Isaiah was in the Bible that Jesus read and taught from. A Greek translation of Isaiah had been distributed all over the known world by the first century. And Isaiah had enormous influence on New Testament authors who quoted from it frequently. For all of these reasons it is important for Christians to understand what Isaiah says about God.
Isaiah speaks to us in four voices. The first was the voice of a prophet. His name was Isaiah, the son of Amoz. He lived in Jerusalem in the first half of the eighth century before Christ. The prophet spoke at of time of great international conflict. The Assyrian Empire was growing stronger and was becoming a threat to its neighbors. The military alliance between Judah, Israel and Aram was dissolving. During the prophet’s lifetime the kingdoms of Israel and Aram were destroyed by the Assyrians. Judah and its magnificent capitol of Jerusalem were threatened. The prophet called on the people of God to turn away from their worship of foreign gods and return to worship of the Holy One of Israel.
The second voice in Isaiah is that of a poet. We don’t know his or her name. But we do know of the great love and respect that this poet had for the prophet called Isaiah. The poet lived in Babylon with other Jews who had been exiled after the destruction of Jerusalem by the Babylonians. The poet spoke at a time of relative peace, but the people longed for a return to their city and farms. The poet called the people of God to return to the faith of their ancestors in the Holy One of Israel. The poet told them to put away their idols of wood and clay and worship the LORD.
The third voice in Isaiah is that of a preacher. The preacher had great love and respect for both the prophet and poet. The preacher spoke during the time of the return from exile. Babylon had been defeated by the Persian Empire and King Cyrus had permitted the Jews to return to their land and to rebuild their city. The preacher called the people of God to faith in the Holy One of Israel. Even though the magnificent Temple of Solomon had been burned to the ground, the preacher told the people that the LORD was still their God.
The fourth and final voice in Isaiah was that of the editor who in the fifth century before Christ took the writings of the prophet, the poet and the preacher and put them into a scroll which we know as Isaiah. This scroll has been faithfully preserved from then until now, twenty five centuries, by the faithful people of God.
Today we read from the preacher in Isaiah 64:1-9.
NRS Isaiah 64:1 O that you would tear open the heavens and come down, so that the mountains would quake at your presence-- 2 as when fire kindles brushwood and the fire causes water to boil-- to make your name known to your adversaries, so that the nations might tremble at your presence! 3 When you did awesome deeds that we did not expect, you came down, the mountains quaked at your presence. 4 From ages past no one has heard, no ear has perceived, no eye has seen any God besides you, who works for those who wait for him. 5 You meet those who gladly do right, those who remember you in your ways. But you were angry, and we sinned; because you hid yourself we transgressed.
6 We have all become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous deeds are like a filthy cloth. We all fade like a leaf, and our iniquities, like the wind, take us away. 7 There is no one who calls on your name, or attempts to take hold of you; for you have hidden your face from us, and have delivered us into the hand of our iniquity.
8 Yet, O LORD, you are our Father; we are the clay, and you are our potter; we are all the work of your hand. 9 Do not be exceedingly angry, O LORD, and do not remember iniquity forever. Now consider, we are all your people.
As the Jews made their way back to Jerusalem the sight they saw was devastating. Their beloved city was in ruins and their Temple was burned to the ground, no more Holy of Holies, no more Arc of the Covenant, no more God. It must have felt like God had abandoned them.
We have all experienced these times when God is not to be found. After a night of prayers you go to the hospital and doctor says that your mother did not make it through the night. Where is God when it hurts so much? After dinner with the woman you love and want to marry she says “I don’t love you. The relationship is over.” Where is God when it hurts so much? You lose your job and can’t pay this months rent; you may have to live in your car. Where, oh where, is God? Even Jesus experienced the absence of God when he cried out from the cross, “My God, My God why have you forsaken me? The absence of God is not something we ever want to experience but from time to time we do.
When the Jews experienced the absence of God they remembered what God had done for them in the past. God had protected the nation time and again. It was God that had freed the people from slavery in Egypt and gave them the Promised Land. It was God who had protected them from the Philistines and the Assyrians. God could always be counted on, until now. And that made the feeling of abandonment even worse. Why had God blessed their ancestors so much but turned his back on them when the Babylonians came? They knew deep down that it was their own fault; they had turned their backs to God by worshiping idols. But in their anger they blamed God for all that had happened to them.
The Jews finally realized that God was not something that they could control. God was not a good luck charm. Not all prayers are answered. They also realized that the protection from the consequence of sin, that they had always enjoyed, had been removed. Now they had to experience the consequences of what they had done themselves. But they still had one perplexing question: Why had God acted in history to save his people but failed to do the same for them?
We face this same question today. Why did God deliver Israel from Egypt but did nothing to prevent the slaughter of six million Jews in the holocaust? Dietrich Bonhoeffer, a German theologian writing from a concentration camp in 1944 said, “God would have us know that we are men who manage our lives without him. The God who is with us is the God who will forsake us.” Bonhoeffer was reminding us of the Christ who came not as a super hero to solve all the world problems, but as a vulnerable suffering servant.
The Jews returning to Jerusalem experienced the absence of God but were not
driven to despair. Rather they were filled with hope. This hope rested on their belief that God had formed them from the dust of the earth and had breathed life into their lungs. God was their creator, and they were all God’s people. So filled with hope they cried out for God to break open the heavens and return to Jerusalem. And confident that God would return one day, they began the hard work of rebuilding their city and their temple.
God did come back to Jerusalem in a spectacular way. The heavens were literally ripped open and God descended back to earth. Listen to what happened from the Gospel of Mark:
Mark 1:9-11 In those days Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. 10 And just as he was coming up out of the water, he saw the heavens torn apart and the Spirit descending like a dove on him. 11 And a voice came from heaven, "You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased."
This is what Advent is all about. Even though we may experience the absence of God in our lives and all the suffering that entails, Jesus Christ is coming at Christmas. In Jesus Christ, God loves us as much as a potter loves the clay pot he has created. In Jesus Christ, God loves us as much as parent loves a child. In Jesus Christ, God will never leave or abandon us. God is always with us. We read in Isaiah. “You shall call him Immanuel”, God is with us.
Father in Heaven as we await the coming of your son at Christmas we ask that you forgive our sins and pardon us for turning our backs on you. We ask that you never abandon us nor forsake us. We ask that you care for us as your creatures, your children and your people. Send your Holy Spirit to be with us always. And we pray this in the name of our coming Lord, Jesus Christ. Come Lord Jesus. Amen.
Eagle Rock Presbyterian Church
Sermon Isaiah 64:1-9 We are your People
November 30, 2008
This morning I am beginning a series of sermons from Isaiah. During Advent we will be looking at this important Old Testament book. Isaiah was in the Bible that Jesus read and taught from. A Greek translation of Isaiah had been distributed all over the known world by the first century. And Isaiah had enormous influence on New Testament authors who quoted from it frequently. For all of these reasons it is important for Christians to understand what Isaiah says about God.
Isaiah speaks to us in four voices. The first was the voice of a prophet. His name was Isaiah, the son of Amoz. He lived in Jerusalem in the first half of the eighth century before Christ. The prophet spoke at of time of great international conflict. The Assyrian Empire was growing stronger and was becoming a threat to its neighbors. The military alliance between Judah, Israel and Aram was dissolving. During the prophet’s lifetime the kingdoms of Israel and Aram were destroyed by the Assyrians. Judah and its magnificent capitol of Jerusalem were threatened. The prophet called on the people of God to turn away from their worship of foreign gods and return to worship of the Holy One of Israel.
The second voice in Isaiah is that of a poet. We don’t know his or her name. But we do know of the great love and respect that this poet had for the prophet called Isaiah. The poet lived in Babylon with other Jews who had been exiled after the destruction of Jerusalem by the Babylonians. The poet spoke at a time of relative peace, but the people longed for a return to their city and farms. The poet called the people of God to return to the faith of their ancestors in the Holy One of Israel. The poet told them to put away their idols of wood and clay and worship the LORD.
The third voice in Isaiah is that of a preacher. The preacher had great love and respect for both the prophet and poet. The preacher spoke during the time of the return from exile. Babylon had been defeated by the Persian Empire and King Cyrus had permitted the Jews to return to their land and to rebuild their city. The preacher called the people of God to faith in the Holy One of Israel. Even though the magnificent Temple of Solomon had been burned to the ground, the preacher told the people that the LORD was still their God.
The fourth and final voice in Isaiah was that of the editor who in the fifth century before Christ took the writings of the prophet, the poet and the preacher and put them into a scroll which we know as Isaiah. This scroll has been faithfully preserved from then until now, twenty five centuries, by the faithful people of God.
Today we read from the preacher in Isaiah 64:1-9.
NRS Isaiah 64:1 O that you would tear open the heavens and come down, so that the mountains would quake at your presence-- 2 as when fire kindles brushwood and the fire causes water to boil-- to make your name known to your adversaries, so that the nations might tremble at your presence! 3 When you did awesome deeds that we did not expect, you came down, the mountains quaked at your presence. 4 From ages past no one has heard, no ear has perceived, no eye has seen any God besides you, who works for those who wait for him. 5 You meet those who gladly do right, those who remember you in your ways. But you were angry, and we sinned; because you hid yourself we transgressed.
6 We have all become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous deeds are like a filthy cloth. We all fade like a leaf, and our iniquities, like the wind, take us away. 7 There is no one who calls on your name, or attempts to take hold of you; for you have hidden your face from us, and have delivered us into the hand of our iniquity.
8 Yet, O LORD, you are our Father; we are the clay, and you are our potter; we are all the work of your hand. 9 Do not be exceedingly angry, O LORD, and do not remember iniquity forever. Now consider, we are all your people.
As the Jews made their way back to Jerusalem the sight they saw was devastating. Their beloved city was in ruins and their Temple was burned to the ground, no more Holy of Holies, no more Arc of the Covenant, no more God. It must have felt like God had abandoned them.
We have all experienced these times when God is not to be found. After a night of prayers you go to the hospital and doctor says that your mother did not make it through the night. Where is God when it hurts so much? After dinner with the woman you love and want to marry she says “I don’t love you. The relationship is over.” Where is God when it hurts so much? You lose your job and can’t pay this months rent; you may have to live in your car. Where, oh where, is God? Even Jesus experienced the absence of God when he cried out from the cross, “My God, My God why have you forsaken me? The absence of God is not something we ever want to experience but from time to time we do.
When the Jews experienced the absence of God they remembered what God had done for them in the past. God had protected the nation time and again. It was God that had freed the people from slavery in Egypt and gave them the Promised Land. It was God who had protected them from the Philistines and the Assyrians. God could always be counted on, until now. And that made the feeling of abandonment even worse. Why had God blessed their ancestors so much but turned his back on them when the Babylonians came? They knew deep down that it was their own fault; they had turned their backs to God by worshiping idols. But in their anger they blamed God for all that had happened to them.
The Jews finally realized that God was not something that they could control. God was not a good luck charm. Not all prayers are answered. They also realized that the protection from the consequence of sin, that they had always enjoyed, had been removed. Now they had to experience the consequences of what they had done themselves. But they still had one perplexing question: Why had God acted in history to save his people but failed to do the same for them?
We face this same question today. Why did God deliver Israel from Egypt but did nothing to prevent the slaughter of six million Jews in the holocaust? Dietrich Bonhoeffer, a German theologian writing from a concentration camp in 1944 said, “God would have us know that we are men who manage our lives without him. The God who is with us is the God who will forsake us.” Bonhoeffer was reminding us of the Christ who came not as a super hero to solve all the world problems, but as a vulnerable suffering servant.
The Jews returning to Jerusalem experienced the absence of God but were not
driven to despair. Rather they were filled with hope. This hope rested on their belief that God had formed them from the dust of the earth and had breathed life into their lungs. God was their creator, and they were all God’s people. So filled with hope they cried out for God to break open the heavens and return to Jerusalem. And confident that God would return one day, they began the hard work of rebuilding their city and their temple.
God did come back to Jerusalem in a spectacular way. The heavens were literally ripped open and God descended back to earth. Listen to what happened from the Gospel of Mark:
Mark 1:9-11 In those days Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. 10 And just as he was coming up out of the water, he saw the heavens torn apart and the Spirit descending like a dove on him. 11 And a voice came from heaven, "You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased."
This is what Advent is all about. Even though we may experience the absence of God in our lives and all the suffering that entails, Jesus Christ is coming at Christmas. In Jesus Christ, God loves us as much as a potter loves the clay pot he has created. In Jesus Christ, God loves us as much as parent loves a child. In Jesus Christ, God will never leave or abandon us. God is always with us. We read in Isaiah. “You shall call him Immanuel”, God is with us.
Father in Heaven as we await the coming of your son at Christmas we ask that you forgive our sins and pardon us for turning our backs on you. We ask that you never abandon us nor forsake us. We ask that you care for us as your creatures, your children and your people. Send your Holy Spirit to be with us always. And we pray this in the name of our coming Lord, Jesus Christ. Come Lord Jesus. Amen.
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