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Advent 4_2009
| 21.12.2009, 10:14 | |
| Rev. Tatiana Cantarella Micah 5:1–5а; Hebrews 10:5–10; Luke 1:39–55 CELEBRATION OF GOD'S LOVE Last Sunday of Advent is the time of the most intense expectation. The church moves from anticipation of fulfillment of God's promise to realization of this fulfillment. The realization, of course, is only partial and fragmentary. The Babe is to be born in Bethlehem's manger but much suffering and struggle lie ahead for him until the completion of his earthly mission. And much suffering and struggle lay ahead for the people of God in that the final fulfillment of all that God has promised will not be realized until the Second Advent, the return of him who was a Babe but is now reigning Savior and Lord. This paradoxical feeling captured in our readings today is also reflected in beginning words of Dickens' «Tale of two cities»: «It was the best of times, it was the worst of times; it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness; it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity; it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness; it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair; we had everything before us, we had nothing before us; we were all going directly to Heaven, we were all going the other way”. These words so truly reflect both the times of Dickens as well as our times and times of Micah, times of Joseph and Mary, any other time that followed the Fall. It was and is the best of times; it was and is the worst of times”. Many people say that these are especially hard time and that it was so much better in the past and things only get worse. Perhaps there is some truth in it, but today in the 4th Sunday of Advent as we look at all the candles we lit: candles of hope, peace, joy and love, let us heed the words of Scriptures and see real reasons for celebration of God's love, however bad our times may be. I am not calling you to escape from reality, or feast in time of plague. I am calling you to response of faith of those who know that God is the God of shimmering surprises, of outlandish innovation and renewal. When we've built our hopes and conformed them to some unrealistic and prideful vision of ourselves and of our tomorrows, God unfailingly whittles us and our false confidence down to size. If, on the other hand, we have steeped ourselves in the waters of despair, God intrudes to point us beyond our pessimism to God's vision of new life. God always surprises no matter what circumstances we find ourselves in but it is the faithful hearts that find such surprises pleasant and promising. It is this confidence that we find in our Scriptures today that gives people in the midst of the «worst times» all the reasons for hope and celebration of God's loving kindness! Micah's words were spoken in a context of hard times for the people of God, perhaps the fall of Jerusalem in 587 BC. Chapter 4 speaks so poignantly of the siege and 5:1 sadly describes the predicament of the people who are penned up in the city and whose king has been humiliated. In such situation there's little reason for hope that future will be anything other than filled with gloom. There's little reason to hope that there even will be tomorrow. Yet, suddenly, the prophet begins to speak in tones of joy: the future of the people of God is not as hopeless as it appears because God's loving kindness is about to do something unthinkable. Little Bethlehem, of small consequence in so many ways, will give to Israel the One who will rule in peace and redeem the people (5:2). It will not be another ordinary ruler, but the one whose origins are «from ancient days» and who «shall be great to the ends of the earth». The rule of this wonderful king is yet to come but its joyful effects are already felt in the hearts of those who are aware of his nearness. He is coming and when He comes, exiles will be able to come home. But we have to understand that historical exile with all of its oppressions becomes here as a paradigm of the bondage of the nation to its sin. The new and coming king will liberate the people of God from this bondage, the birth of the royal child serving to signal end to the people's servitude. When the mother has borne her Child, those who are lost will be restored to the household of God. Author to the Hebrews understood that as well and his words about the coming of Jesus guard us from romantic and sentimental Christmas. We are reminded of the purpose of Jesus' coming into the world: to do the will of God. His utter faithfulness will create the new and living way (10:20) by which our approach to God is redefined. Christ entered into the world to "sanctify” us, to break the bondage of sin by the offering of his body which not only refers to his death but to his life lived in total loyalty to the Father. Many who heard that sparkling promise, perhaps regarded this bright tomorrow as too good to be true (many would today too)! And when read literally these words are too good to be true, for no Davidic king ever arose to liberate his people from the bondage of Babylonian (or any other) servitude. The promise of Micah would be nothing more than a gorgeous pipe dream if it were not for the birth of Mary's son in Bethlehem's stable. Into the besieged city He comes – the city of the human heart – with the majesty and strength of God. And he comes with priceless gifts to those who receive him, gifts of security and peace. Those who realized it as Micah spoke were filled with the deepest and unquenchable joy! The times of Mary were also the worst of times and yet, she recognized them to be the best of times, for God was about to do something incredible and she was going to be a part of it! If we realistically evaluate the times when Jesus was born we'd consider Mary's joyful song that we heard a few minutes ago an expression of madness: what was she celebrating? Jesus was about to be born in a world like ours, perhaps even worse than ours. It was the age of tyranny, the world in which poverty, famine and suffering were a fate of most people (with only few people as an exception). Yes, they lived in the worst of times and they knew – it will only get worse. It was clear, you only had to look at Cesar's army violently dealing with all those who could pose a threat to his power, on Herod's tax collectors who were skinning people of their last pennies and when no pennies were left – their freedom, and the crosses that more and more often rose along the roads as a sign of oppression and execution. And what future did Mary herself have? All she had was a strange vision: a promise of God to make her a part of his salvation plan. But how? Through pregnancy which nearly led her to disgrace and divorce with Joseph, for who in their right mind would believe her explanation? We fail to fully value the power of Mary's faith that was required of her when even a though of being intimate with someone before marriage (unlike today) was an unthinkable fall from moral faithfulness and honor, punished by death. But Mary is overwhelmed not with "risking” her reputation and appearance but by joy of serving and being involved with God becoming part of His plan. She is not blind towards darkness and evil of her world but she preferred to trust that God will be true to His promise. Her choice proclaims: "God's unbelievable promises can and must be believed”. And that is exactly what every believer is expected to do. What was there to celebrate in Judah, what to rejoice in 2000-3000 years ago? What is there to rejoice in and celebrate here in Moscow now? People that we love get sick and die, our jobs are constantly on the line, there is no sense of security any more, no assurance of future for our kids. In many countries we see first struggle for liberty, then gaining of liberty, then anarchy and chaos, millions die of famine while others bathe in luxury. It was and it is the worst of times. But, friends, do any of us have eyes to see that those were and are the best of times. Why? Because the Holy Spirit that touched Mary is also here and now with us. Salvation that God's loving kindness brings still burns in the hearts of people today and no one and nothing can take it away from those who live by it despite the outward look of things. In "Grinch” a creature angry at everyone else's joy tries to steal Christmas. To do that he steals from citizens all Christmas decorations, trees, gifts, food, all the outward expressions of Christmas to which they are all so used to. However, Christmas celebrations continue despite their losses because real celebration and joy lives in their hearts. And like those citizens, prophet Micah, Mary and Joseph, Elizabeth and Zachariah and many of us today have the joy of Christmas (the celebration of renewal Jesus brings) burning in our hearts despite how pessimistically outward things of today's life may look. There are many people like Grinch who complain that life's not the same, that these are worst of times that God's love is nothing but philosophical category. The is no grounds to believe, live, love and related differently than everyone else around. They look at all things bad around us and in us and steal the joy and celebration of what God has already done and is yet to do. I have such people among the people I love. They look at all bad things in people and don't believe that God is creating all things new in Christ, that a new and living way is possible for those who like Micah and Mary choose to believe God's promise when the whole world chants that nothing will change. When I say: in God there IS a different way to live they brush me off: "Tanya, you live in a dream world”. I understand that in many ways these are the worst of times but I also know that the Word that became Flesh lives among us full of grace and truth and shines even brighter in the midst of thick darkness. I know how in my life and other people's lives Christ was born in our hearts and shines the light that darkness cannot overcome. And in the midst of that darkness celebration of God's love is still going on where it always was: in the midst of the humble, thirsting for righteousness, moved by the Spirit of Love and Spirit of Christ. This celebration was already in the hearts of those who desired righteousness and waited for Messiah with faith long before His birth. Celebration of God's love can be found everywhere where there is care and generosity, meekness and mercy, and nothing and no one can steal it from us even if we live in the worst of times. It’s just sometimes we need to look away from ourselves and start seeing the surprising things God is doing. That’s why Henry van Dyke wrote: Are you willing… to forget what you have done for other people, and to remember what other people have done for you; to ignore what the world owes you, and to think what you owe the world; to put your rights in the background, and your duties in the middle distance, and your chances to do a little more than your duty in the foreground; to see that men and women are just as real as you are, and try to look behind their faces to their hearts, hungry for joy; to own up to the fact that probably the only good reason for your existence is not what you are going to get out of life, but what you are going to give to life; to close your book of complaints against the management of the universe, and look around you for a place where you can sow a few seeds of happiness— Are you willing to do these things even for a day? Then you can keep Christmas. Are you willing to believe that love is the strongest thing in the world— stronger than hate, stronger than evil, stronger than death— and that the blessed life which began in Bethlehem nineteen hundred years ago is the image and brightness of the Eternal Love? If you believe that, no one and nothing can steal your celebration of God's love. And while everyone will chant that we live in the worst of times your heart will be filled with celebration of God's love which when living in us makes any time the best of times. Mary could rejoice and believe despite the worst of her circumstances for "blessed is she who believed that what the Lord has said to her will be accomplished”. Many who believe with her bring hope, love, peace and joy; many make celebration of God's love real in other people's lives with their life. This year as we come to celebrate and seeing what happens all around, let us see through darkness, business and evil, may be see what God has done and promised to do, may we gladly receive his will, be faithful to our promises and we too can make celebration of God's love in Jesus real in our own lives and lives of other people. | |
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