Song of Simeon

Sermon Luke 2:21-40 Christmas 1 December 27, 2015

Song of Simeon

Christmas Eve we spoke of ordinary people and ordinary places. We spent time learning about how God appeared to the most unsuspecting people in places of insignificance. We were left to consider who else like Mary has God used to fulfill God’s promises of love? Has it been you? Or me?, Your neighbor? Or perhaps the stranger down the street?

We learned about the ordinary insignificant towns of Nazareth and Bethlehem and were left to consider how are we, in our community the source of goodness and wonder for those around us? How are we aware of the power of the ordinary in our midst?

Friends, we are all returning to the ordinary of our routines and back to the grind of life. We have much to consider about the power of God among us as we go forth. God’s presence is always in the ordinary. As we read these stories from Scripture we discover more and more about how God is present always in the ordinary. It is our challenge to discover God in these moments.

God’s promises were fulfilled within the ordinary rituals of the practice of life. God continued to be revealed through the faithful journey of Mary and Joseph as they continued their routines of living out their faith rituals.

We might ask ourselves, what rituals we have that we are faithful to?

How are we living our faith journey beyond the season of Advent and Christmas? How will we keep the sentiment of the Christ child in our hearts throughout the whole year?

May I suggest keeping the ritual of coming here to this place each week over the past month, may the ritual of your presence here spill over into the New Year and all year long. Your presence has made a difference for all of us. We have felt united in faith and in our story of life, and in our shared relationships.

You see, Mary and Joseph did the same, they continued the pattern of their life faithfully and that allowed for the promises of God to shape their current and future relationships.

Mary had already learned through the voices of angels, shepherds, and wise men, that words are powerful.

Words are powerful enough to curse or to bless.

Words carry with them either curse or promise.

Words are powerful enough to harm for life. They carry much weight, enough that wars have been built on the words of others.

Words are used by the powerful to diminish and denigrate the weak.

Words are used by the mighty to slay the even the purest, to keep them lowly.

And in the midst of this the power words spoken by prophets of old and of today break through with words that sting and sing with strength and courage for the weak and the lowly.

How, we say?

They break through-By listening to those who step forth by the power of the Spirit to speak the truth when the truth must be heard.

And so Simeon, a beloved faithful man who had been waiting his whole life for a glimpse of the promise of the Messiah, scans the crowd at the Temple that day, and behold!,

He sees them,

the couple carrying the child,

stand out,

and he rushes to them

knowing that this IS the Child!

The promised one,

come to save the world.

An old man comes forward and takes the baby in his arms and begins to sing a song.

He praises God for this child. He comes and holds this baby because the Spirit of God has come upon him. Three times Luke affirms that he has been led to this baby by the Spirit. It is clear that we are to hear that Simeon has been called by God to claim this child.

As we listen to his song it’s not just about praising God for this child who brings salvation to the world,

 but it’s the prophecy,

the forward telling about the conflict that even salvation brings.

This child will cause the rise and falling of many.

There will be people who will be confronted with their own frailties, their own injustices and their own corruption.

People for generations into the future will be faced with decisions about who this child is and whether to follow and believe he is from God bringing salvation and new life to all.

Words MATTER! Where are we in this generation, as the forward telling of the conflict salvation brings enters into our lives?

How are we seeking to proclaim love, justice, peace among one another, in the community, and in our world?

Simeon and his story of holding on to a promise his whole life, a promise he lived out by being active in his ordinary world, a promise he chose to allow to guide him in all his ways, a promise based on love, the fulfillment of God’s love for him and for the world would appear to him.

As I shared on Christmas Eve, the story of Christmas is the story of love. It’s the story of a people lost in darkness seeking to find a way home. It is the story of a people seeking comfort from their pain and their struggles, their brokenness and their suffering. The story of Christmas is the love story of God made complete through the clashing of heaven with earth as God became flesh and dwelt among us.

The story of Christmas is NOT over. The love story of God lives on in us. The love story of God is how God’s Word goes forth.

Words matter, friends!

How will the words of our mouth be acceptable in God’s sight as we live the rituals of our faith in our ordinary ways?

Mary treasured all these words she received along the way in her heart, they sustained her and gave her strength.

Jesus as he grew gave us the Beatitudes, the Lord’s Prayer, so many other words of power to grant us what we needed to go forth as his followers for generations to come.

Hear these words I say every year as Howard Thurman speaks

When the song of the angels is stilled,
When the star in the sky is gone,
When the kings and princes are home,
When the shepherds are back with their flock,
The work of Christmas begins:
To find the lost,
To heal the broken,
To feed the hungry,
To release the prisoner,
To rebuild the nations,
To bring peace among people,
To make music in the heart.

Don't ask yourself what the world needs.

Ask yourself what makes you come alive and then go do that.

Because what the world needs is people who have come alive!!

God, in Christ, has come alive in us this Christmas and this is just the beginning. A

Christmas Eve December 24, 2015 NMPC

Bulletin Christmas Eve December 24, 2015 NMPC

Prelude

Welcome

The Word became flesh and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth. We have beheld his glory! Rejoice the Lord is Here!! Alleluia, Amen!

We are welcomed in the name of Christ. We are glad you are here tonight as we celebrate the birth of Christ. Tonight we will hear God’s Word, sing familiar hymns, we will hear how the world was forever changed through the willingness of ordinary people to respond to God, we celebrate with a modern day nativity and come to the fullness of our joy of salvation through the Sacrament of the Lord’s Supper, and finally be sent out into the night through our candle light singing of Silent Night.

Let us worship God!

Choral Opening: Light of peace, calm our despair, Light of hope, lift us up when we fall, Light of joy brighten our days, Light of love, teach us your ways.

Call to Worship

L: Tonight we celebrate the one moment, the one birth, and the one life that forever changed the world!

P: O come, O come, Emmanuel

L: Because you came to us, we have experienced the ultimate hope to combat even the darkest moments.

P: O come, O come, Emmanuel

L: Because you came to us, we have seen the fullness of love to the highest degree.

P: O come, O come, Emmanuel

L: Because you came to us, we have seen the face of peace in its purest form.

P: O come, O come, Emmanuel

L: Tonight, we celebrate your birth that unleashes hope, love, peace, and joy into the world from now until the day of your return.

P: O come, O come, Emmanuel

Lighting of the Advent Wreath                                                                 Arvidson family

Congregational/Choral Response: Light of life, Maker of day, gather our shadows and cast them away. Beacon of Truth, gleaming and bright, shine in our hearts, shatter our night.

Unison prayer: Gracious God, your Spirit has led us throughout the days and nights of our Advent journey. Thank you for opening our eyes to see more of your presence in our world and in our lives. We rejoice in your ultimate gift of sending a Savior who has taught us the fullness of what hope, love, peace and joy are all about. Joy to the world, the Lord is come! Amen.

Opening Hymn #41 O Come All Ye Faithful

“The People and Places of the Nativity” Looking at the significance of ordinary people and places of the nativity story.

The story of Christmas is the story of love. It is the story of a people lost in the darkness seeking to find a way home. It is the story of a people seeking comfort from their pain and their struggles, their brokenness and their suffering. The story of Christmas is the love story of God made complete through the clashing of heaven with earth as God become flesh and dwelt among us. How can this birth happen in such and unexpected way and in an unexpected place? We visit some of those places where God came into unsuspecting towns and called on the most ordinary people to fulfill God’s promises.

The Promise

Hundreds of years before Jesus’ birth, God chose a barren woman named Hannah to give birth to a son who would become one of Israel’s greatest prophets. But this was only a shadow of what was to come! Centuries later, God chose a young woman named Mary to be the mother of our Savior. She was a young girl, engaged to a man, eager for her wedding to take place. Like many young women she had her idea of what life would be like as she kept her wedding plans in her thoughts. Who else like her has God used to fulfill the promise of God’s love? Is it you? Or your neighbor? Or perhaps, the stranger down the street? When Mary learned she was expecting she traveled to see her cousin Elizabeth. They shared the joy they had as they carried within them the promises of God.

1 Samuel 2:1-4        Luke 1:39-42;46-49

Hymns#9 O Come, O Come, Emmanuel

Nazareth   

Long before Jesus was born, the prophet Isaiah promised that the Savior of the world would be born of a virgin. For hundreds of years, the people of Israel waited and wondered who it might be. In time the angel of the Lord appeared to Mary. Now Mary and Joseph were from Nazareth. Nazareth was an insignificant agricultural village not far from the trade routes to Egypt. It is a place that no one but a prophet would have foretold that this would be the place of Jesus’ origins. “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” one of the first disciples Nathanial said to Jesus. And yet, how many insignificant small towns across this nation and this world are the very place where God calls people into lives that make a difference for the whole world. Presidents and CEO’s and sports heros, and doctors, lawyers, teachers, moms and dads, and so many others who count the support of their small hometown to be the source of their success. In our community how are we the source of the success of those around us? Let us be witnesses to the power of God at work even here.

               

Isaiah 7:14                Matthew 1:18-23

Hymn #38 It Came Upon a Midnight Clear

Bethlehem                  

The town of Bethlehem was a small town too. It had fewer than a thousand people. It was however a town that could claim fame. King David was born there. Yet, if we look back in Scripture, David was first a shepherd boy before he was called by God to become King. God promised that one day a shepherd king greater than David would come from Bethlehem. So, Jesus was born in Bethlehem and raised in Nazareth all to fulfill the promises of Scripture for the salvation of ALL God’s people. As we hear how Jesus was born, let us imagine all the places we have lived and consider the ways God has used our ordinary live in those places to fulfill the promise of God’s love. Let us open our hearts for God to take us and use us even now to be the source of restoring God’s love to all.

Micah 5:2-5             Luke 2:1-7

Hymn #44 O Little Town of Bethlehem

Time with the children        Bethlehem Flash Mob

A Flash Mob is a large public gathering at which people perform an unusual or seemingly random act and then disperse, typically organized by means of the Internet or social media. Tonight we will come to Bethlehem in a way we have never come before. We come to Bethlehem to see this thing that God has done. We come bringing with us what we would like to be present with God’s own Son. We bring with us that which we think belongs at the manger today. Each year we greet the Christ child. Each year we gather at the manger. This year in 2015 as we gather let us flash mob the nativity with what we understand the manger of Bethlehem to look like tonight. Come little ones, come young ones, come one, come all, come forward now.

               ‘Twas the Night of Jesus’ Birth

Hymn #25 Away in a Manger

Countryside of Judea              

God promised that one day the whole world, all the nations would be restored to God. God promised that the Messiah would come announcing this Good News that God will cross the country sides and shout from mountain tops and raise up valleys until all have heard of his marvelous love. When Jesus was born the good news of his birth covered the country side of Judea where shepherds were watching over their flocks by night. Angels of the Lord, came to give these shepherds, who made their home in the fields, the good news of the Savior. Judea was
known as part desert, part agricultural, but, never self-sufficient enough to be independent. It wasn’t an area of a trade route so it missed out on a sizable economy. Yet, God chose to reveal to this countryside the news of the word become flesh. What are some unsuspecting places where you have heard good news? How can we keep our hearts open to hearing God’s good news wherever we are? Perhaps the angels still sing, just as God still speaks.

Isaiah 52: 6-7            Luke 2:8-20

Hymn #23 Angels We Have Heard on High

Jesus was born in a small town, raised in a small town, never traveled much beyond Galilee yet his purpose was not limited to his geographic location. Jesus said, “I am the Light of the world.” He came to fulfill God’s promise of love. He came and dwelt among us, he came as one of us. He came bring light to the darkness. Friends tonight we are here to witness the love of God shine in our hearts. May we hear the voice and may we trust the promise. Amen.

Special Music        O Holy Night                          Michael Teets

The Lord’s Supper

             Invitation-ALL welcome

Explanation of intinction.

Prayer,

You created light out of darkness

and brought forth life on the earth.

You formed us in your image

and called us to love and serve you.

When we were unfaithful

and turned from your ways,

you did not forsake us,

your love remained steadfast.

You delivered us from captivity,

made covenant to be our sovereign God,

and sent prophets to call us back to your way.

In the fullness of time

you sent your only Son Jesus Christ to be our Savior.

In him, your Word, dwelling with you from all eternity,

became flesh and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth,

and we beheld your glory,

Immanuel! Remembering your gracious acts in Jesus Christ,

we take from your creation this bread and this wine

and joyfully celebrate his dying and rising

as we await the day of his coming.

With thanksgiving we offer our very selves to you

to be a living and holy sacrifice,

dedicated to your service.

Gracious God,

pour out your Holy Spirit upon us

and upon these your gifts of bread and wine,

that the bread we break

and the cup we bless

may be the communion of the body and blood of Christ.

By your Spirit make us one with Christ,

that we may be one with all who share this feast,

united in ministry in every place.

As this bread is Christ's body for us,

send us out to be the body of Christ in the world.

Institution,

Communion

Prayer

Empower us by your Spirit, O God,

to be Christ's presence in the world

even as Jesus was God-with-us.

Give us courage

to speak his truth,

to seek his justice,

and to love with his love.

Keep us faithful in your service

until Christ comes in final victory

and we shall feast with all your saints

in the joy of your eternal realm.

John 1:1-14 as I read John the candles will be lit. It will begin with the light from the Christ candle the light of the world has come to us and we will spread the light from our hearts out into the world this Christmas. Hold the unlit candle to the flame.

Lighting of candles

Hymn #60 Silent Night

Dismissal Receive the Lord as he enters this night. Go in peace. Amen.

 credits: Reformed Worship Planner, Book of Common Worship, Light of Hope Choral Advent piece. 

LONGEST NIGHT SERVICE

BELOW YOU FIND THE BULLETIN SERVICE OUTLINE FOR LONGEST NIGHT WORSHIP FROM 2012. YOU CAN FOLLOW THIS SERVICE TODAY FROM YOUR HOME OR OFFICE, FROM WHEREVER YOU ARE ON YOUR LONGEST NIGHT'S JOURNEY. AT THE VERY BOTTOM IS THE LITANY FOR THE ADVENT CANDLES TURNED INTO REMEMBRANCE CANDLES-BLESSINGS 

First Presbyterian Church

Mt. Vernon, Indiana

Lynta Carter                                                                                 Reverend Monica Gould

Organist                                                                                                                                   Pastor           

               Third Sunday in Advent           Blue Christmas           December 16, 2012

Order of Worship

*Please stand as you are able; the congregation is invited to read the words in bold.

Prelude                                    

Gathering                                                 

Welcome and Announcements

*Call to Worship

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God,

 and the Word was God.

The Word became flesh and dwelt among us,

full of grace and truth, and we have seen his glory.

In him was life, and that life was the light to all.

The light shines in the darkness,

and the darkness did not overcome it.

*Opening Prayer

*Opening Hymn                               Come Thou Long Expected Jesus                                       #135

Advent Candle Litany                                                                                                                   (insert)

*Hymn                                                   In the Bleak Midwinter v. 1,2

In the bleak midwinter, frosty wind made moan Earth stood hard as iron, water like a stone; Snow had fallen, snow on snow, snow on snow, In the bleak midwinter, long ago.

Our God, heaven cannot hold Him, Nor earth sustain; Heaven and earth shall flee away, when he comes to reign; In the bleak midwinter, a stable place sufficed, The Lord God incarnate, Jesus Christ

The Word

Scripture Readings   

Psalm 22:1-11The Lord knew abandonment, darkness and loss.

Luke 2:4-7 Jesus was familiar with being an outcast and a stranger.

Hymn                           In the Bulb there is a Flower v. 1 (Hymn of Promise)                       #678

In the bulb there is a flower; in the seed, an apple tree; in cocoons, a hidden promise: butterflies will soon be free.

In the cold and snow of winter there’s a spring that waits to be, unrevealed until its season, something God alone can see.

Matthew 2:16-18 For some a holiday only reminds them of horror and pain.

Luke 6:17-23 Surrounded by sorrow and sadness, our Lord offers hope and comfort.

Hymn                           In the Bulb there is a Flower v. 2 (Hymn of Promise)                         #678

There’s a song in every silence, seeking word and melody; there’s a dawn in every darkness bringing hope to you and me.

From the past will come the future; what it holds, a mystery, unrevealed until its season, something God alone can see.

Matthew 11:28-29 a promise to carry us in all our times and all our ways

Revelation 7:15-17 the Lord will wipe away our tears, even as they are shed.                                                             

Hymn                           In the Bulb there is a Flower v. 3 (Hymn of Promise)                       #678

In our end is our beginning; in our time, infinity; in our doubt there is believing; in our life, eternity.

In our death, a resurrection; at the last, a victory, unrevealed until its season, something God alone can see.

The Prayers of Intercession

The Prayer of St. Francis

Lord, make me an instrument of your peace,

Where there is hatred, let me sow love;

Where there is injury, pardon;

Where there is doubt, faith;

Where there is despair, hope;

Where there is darkness, light;

And where there is sadness, joy.

O Divine master, grant that I may not so much seek

To be consoled as to console;

To be loved as to love.

For it is in giving that we receive;

It is in pardoning that we are pardoned;

And it is in dying that we are born to eternal life. Amen.

*Hymn                                         O Little Town of Bethlehem  v. 1,3,4                            #155

The Lord’s Supper

All are invited to the Table. Please come forward take a piece of bread from the loaf and dip it in the grape juice and partake. Please take a candle and return to your seat.           

Invitation

            Prayer

                  The Lord be with you

                  And also with you

                  Let us pray:

            Communion

            Prayer

Sending 

An usher will light the candle at the end of each aisle. Worshipers will then pass the light to their neighbors, with the unlit candle tipped to receive the flame.

*Hymn                                                      Silent Night                                               #164

* Charge and Benediction

*Postlude                                  

           In the face of a stranger, Christ is seen.                          In the face of a friend, Christ is known.

          Turn to those around you, and know Christ Jesus, and share together the peace of Christ.       

CANDLE LIGHTING: LITANY OF REMEMBRANCE

ONE: We light this candle to remember those persons who have been loved and lost. We pause to remember their name, their face, their voice. [pause] We give thanks for the memory that binds them to us this season which anticipates Christ.

C: May God’s eternal love surround them.

TWO: We light this second candle to redeem the pain and loss: the loss of relationships, the loss of jobs, and the loss of health. As we gather up the pain of the past, we offer it to You oh God. Asking that into our welcome hearts and open hands, you place the gift of peace.

C: Refresh, restore, renew us, Oh God, and lead us into Your future.    

THREE: We light this third candle to remember ourselves this Christmas time. We pause and remember the past weeks, months and for some of us, years of down times. We remember the poignancy of memories, the grief, the sadness, the hurts, and the pain of reflecting on our own mortality.

C: Let us remember that dawn defeats darkness.

FOUR: This fourth candle is lit to remember our faith and the gift of hope which God offers to us in the Christmas story. We remember that God, who shares our life, promises us a place and time of no more pain and suffering.

C: Let us remember the one who shows the way and who goes with us into our tomorrows.

God’s Love Aright

Sermon Luke 3:7-18 December 13, 2015 3^rd Sunday Advent

God’s Love Aright

The roads are rough. The way to where we want to go is under construction. The detours along the way seem endless. Isn’t there a direct route anywhere? Can’t there be a smooth straight path, perhaps a 12 lane highway void of traffic, with guard rails made of crash resistant materials and weather proof surfaces to assure the traveler of hazard free journeys.

That’s the kind of wish we make about life.

That’s the kind of wish we are making just to get all the presents under the Christmas tree and make it through the holidays unscathed.

But, here we are on the third Sunday of Advent listening to a wild locust eater yelling his way out of the wilderness and accosting the crowds with some unfriendly language. There he was calling people names and passing judgment upon them.

Who did he think he was?

Who do we think he was?

He accuses them of being comfortable in their birthright of faith. Being born into the faith of God has left them complacent and without conviction to be committed to the calling of God for their life.

John the Baptist is pushing the people hard about examining their lives. He is pushing them hard because he says he is preparing them for the coming Savior, the Messiah. He says he is getting them ready.

But, you and I both know he appears at the river Jordan living his life as a prophet at the time that Jesus is already an adult. He is making this ruckus thirty years after Jesus was born in the manger.

So, why are we hearing these words on the third Sunday of Advent when we are on the road to Bethlehem? We are headed to see the sweet baby Jesus in the manger. We are on our way to see the tender child, soft and squishy, precious, and lovely. We sing about the baby and that is who we plan to see and feel good about. Not a grown man, not an adult. We’re not going to Bethlehem to see the grown up Jesus. We want our path to the manger to be smooth and without detour or trouble.

But, the road to Bethlehem is rough and rocky and there is nothing smooth about it.

Mary and Joseph had to face challenges that young people shouldn’t have to face. They struggled with decisions and they had no money, and then they had to travel far at a time in their life where they should have been at home comfortable preparing for a child. Yet, there they were on a rough and rocky road headed to Bethlehem.

And so, how has it been for us?

Has it also been a rough and rocky road trying to make our way to the manger? Every year we think it will be different, and yet every year there are new challenges along the way.

And, this is why we are called to hear the words of the prophet and be ready to receive the Savior at his birth. Because at the birth of Jesus we experience God’s love Aright!

As we witnessed the four baptisms here today, we were witnesses to God’s Love Aright. These young people have made a commitment to Christ.

They have accepted the love of God in their lives and know they belong to God forever. They were firm about their desire to be baptized and they were firm about their love for God and desire to live in God’s love.

So, here we are reminded to consider the meaning of our own baptism as we have witnessed theirs.

Are we committed to God’s claim on us?

What do we need to do to reprioritize our lives?

How can we live focused on the love of God?

Are we asking the same question as the crowd asked John the Baptist?

What should we do?

Because, at this time in our lives as we witness a crazed world around us, we are asking that very question, “what should we do?”

I shared with these youth that baptism doesn’t stop the questions of faith. It is the beginning of faith. It is the steps where we can confidently come to God and ask, what should we do.

John gives the people answers, lots of them. He gives them answers so they can figure out how to live their lives as faithful disciples.

And these are exactly the words we want to hear too!

We want to know how to live faithful lives.

We want to know how to live in ways that honor the baby we worship in the manger. And we really want to live knowing we are being authentic Christians.

And so we who are on the road of life, that is by no means an easy road, have some ways to consider how we travel.

So today we hear about just a few things to get us started on the right road. We are called to share, to be fair, to care, and to be honest. These are ways we bear fruit. These are ways we live out the faith we claim.

Take the power of God with you as you travel. Let the power of God through your baptism move you to share, care, to be fair and to be honest in all of the ways of your life. This is how we live God’s Love Aright. Friends, you belong to God, you always have, and you always will, and the mark of Christ is upon you. Amen.

Be Born In Us

Sermon Luke 3:1-6 December 6, 2015 Advent 2C Communion

Be Born In Us

Yesterday I bought a pine scented candle and a cinnamon scented candle; because those two scents alone tell me Christmas is coming. As I wandered up and down the aisles of the store I realized the moment we are waiting for is almost here.

Are we ready?

Can we see it?

DO we know the sounds or the smells to pay attention to?

I’m trying not to panic as I wait for Amazon to deliver my packages,

as I realize this year-once again-I haven’t even bought the Christmas cards I need to send.

And so I paused there in the middle of CVS on Wednesday and then again on Saturday and asked myself the question,

“Do you even know what you are preparing for?”

I reassured myself of all that was being prepared;

the programs at church,

the gifts for sending off to family,

the enormous work of preparing the manse for guests;

all of these activities are

and have been my way of preparing for Christmas.

My way of understanding the preparations for the coming of the Savior,

is through the activities that surround his coming.

The way of decorating the house for the holidays is one way of preparation.

As mantles are cleaned off to make room for garland, and fall decorations put away to make room for the crèche, corners are swept and cleared to create space for the tree,

our own hearts and minds can drift off to the preparations being made in our hearts. What needs polishing, or mending or straightening out in our relationships, in our goals, in our world?

John the Baptist comes crying from the wilderness with the message of repentance. The message he calls out to the people of the day was to clean house. He called for them to examine themselves. He cried out for a change, an about face, a new look at who they were. His message is no different for us today.

We too are called to clean house, to dust off the cobwebs and take a look at ourselves. Because when we do we discover that self-examination is not a road to condemnation but an avenue to forgiveness. John the Baptist calls out for those who will hear that the kingdom of heaven is at hand. Grace is upon us. In the embrace of grace mercy rises up.

Our dear friend Luke writes his gospel with future readers in mind. He writes to open our senses to hear, see, smell and taste the places he is sharing with us. Writers have a way with words that draw us all into the scene they describe. And even though we stumble over the seven names given, we are made aware that this salvation story happens in an anchored time and place of human history. It is not mythical or fictional but can be traced to actual events and people in the course of the world. This story happens in the context of politics and religion. What better place than in the tension of politics and religion for John to come bursting through with the Word of God.

And so today, what better time and place than in the tension of politics and religion for us to be sharing the message of God bursting forth with the message of “ALL flesh shall see the salvation of God!”

If we are to take seriously the concept that ALL flesh shall see salvation then we are forced to consider all those who have been in the news, we are to consider all those who live behind bars, we are to consider all those who have offended us and those who we have offended. If we are to take seriously this notion of ALL flesh then we have our work cut out for us in order to really be prepared for this notion of peace and this notion of God’s promise. That means ALL people, even those who carry bumper stickers on their cars in support of a politics not our own. That means ALL flesh, ALL people who wear clothes different from our own. Perhaps if we begin to view ALL flesh as God’s people, perhaps we’ll be less afraid as we live in this world of political and religious tension.

Friends, as we make our way to the manger this Advent, we might just be able to let go of salvation as a religious concept and open it up as a new way of life, as a turning and an explosion of our senses to the reality of Christ with us, Emmanuel. This season let us SEE salvation in a way we have never known before. May Jesus be born in us today. For the truth of the message John the Baptist was crying out in history is that the promise of God is that there is no one we can write off and all creation matters to God.

So, as we pray today our hopes and our desires we pray; “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 Emmanuel. Amen.

Hope Forever

Sermon Jeremiah 33:14-16 November 29, 2015 Advent 1 yr C

Hope Forever

God’s promises are new every morning!

Those words stare me in the face from the side of my mug as I sip my coffee during the awakening of the day.

I turn the mug- not ready to see or believe these words-as I wait for the effects of the caffeine to kick in. But, slowly reality comes alive-this is a new day, there is a new dawn, and there is opportunity on the horizon.

The prophet Jeremiah is telling the people who are now living in captivity in a foreign land that there is a new day coming!

There is a day when war will be no more, a day when everyone will be able to return to their homes, and a day when righteousness will rule the earth. There is a day when no one will go hungry and all people will find shelter and there will be enough for the whole world. The days are surely coming says the Lord.

We enter into this Advent season as we do every year, on the heels of Thanksgiving.

The entrance is abrupt as if we aren’t prepared for it.

It jolts us out of our complacency

and throws us into a whirlwind of activity

that we knew was coming

but thought we had more time.

It happens every year like this-year after year-we say

                                    we’ll do better next year and be more prepared.

But, here we are again this year,

           and for young families there is more to do than the year before

                                                                     and we wonder how it will all get done.

We are jolted into the season set aside to reflect and wait and wonder about the coming of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. He comes to us incarnate-God with us-as a babe all over again every year.

God’s promises are new every morning!

This season;

        let’s give ourselves the chance to witness the newness of the birth of the Christ child.

Let us allow this birth to take form in our hearts.

A newness, a new birth within us as God’s promises are fulfilled in the new day.

You might decide that I need a check with reality because the world around us is still living in fear. Our brothers and sisters of various colors of skin and ways of living are still under attack in a world where freedom is supposed to ring for all people. Little girls are still denied an education. Men are afraid to go out at night for fear of being arrested. There is no longer a place to call safe space.

You might decide to tell me that my words are foolishness because I haven’t recently visited the hospitals or the jails where suffering and pain, death and injustice are still occurring every day.

It is true that for thousands of years it appears the world has not changed. It is true that humans continue to wreak havoc upon one another.

Yet, it is also true that goodness keeps coming forth. It is also true that people are relentless in random acts of kindness. It is also true that wherever we turn there are hardworking people seeking to provide light and happiness and wonder for others.

·         And this is where we find ourselves on the heels of Thanksgiving as we are launched into Advent; hardworking people seeking to bring a little light into a world of darkness through many acts of kindness, love, and care. !!

Today is the Sunday of hope.

Hope is an active way of being.

Hope is more than a desire for a future outcome.

It is a way of living in the present.

Hope provides the reality that we can live to our fullest as each new day dawns despite what rules the world and despite those who seek to diminish us.

There are many people out there who can only make themselves feel good about who they are by discrediting and diminishing everyone around them. If you meet someone like that it is time to turn and go the other way.

Our goal as faithful believers of Jesus is to spend our time talking about the good we see in each other.

This is how we live out an active hope.

Emily Dickenson wrote this short poem about hope:

Hope is the thing with feathers-

that perches in the soul-

and sings the tune without words-

and never stops at all.

As we are launched into the season today, do not despair.

Live into hope.

Live with the faith we have been given through God with us. God, as we witness in Scripture and history, has been faithful throughout all the generations.

Let’s discover together how we can live this Advent season filled with hope and encouragement-not just for each other but for everyone we meet.

Let us make this Jesus we believe in real! The love of God coming to us all brand new, wrapped in swaddling cloths, ready to offer all the love we are able to receive.

Let us share the news of God’s love in a way that people not only hear this but they desire this love too.

Let us reach out with sincerity to our neighbors and our friends and invite them to experience life together.

·         We may be retired but that doesn’t mean we have stopped living and being active and filled with a life of hope for today and tomorrow. God is calling us to share the love of Jesus in every new day that dawns.

·         We may be working full time scrambling to make ends meet, but that doesn’t stop us from smiling as we pass people on the sidewalk or the grocery store or the highway.

·         We may be alone but that doesn’t stop us from proclaiming the truth of God present with us in all of our ways and days.

·         We may be young and wonder where life is leading us. We may be worried about a future we know nothing about. But, that doesn’t stop us from trusting God and being faithful. It doesn’t stop us from actively seeking to show God’s love in our decisions.

·         Getting up every morning is not an option. It is a call of God to get up, receive, and give.

Yes, Advent has snuck up on us again this year.

It is here whether we are ready or not.

And so it was with the coming of our Lord then and now.

His birth, his return, comes without warning.

It comes without fanfare.

It comes as Advent should, as a new day dawning.

Let our hearts be open to receive, ready or not.

Amen.