are we ready?

Malachi, a short book at the end of our Old Testament, is thought to have been written about 430 BC. It is one long speech, full of warnings for the people of Israel. Malachi, as with the other prophets, calls the people of Israel to account for their sinfulness,

for despising God,
for offering less than their best,
for marrying foreign wives.

And then the section we heard read this morning:

“… my messenger is coming
to prepare the way before me
The Lord who you seek will come to his temple.”

We are in the season of Advent, a time of preparation and waiting.

In the media there is lots of help in preparing for Christmas,

the number of shopping days left,
how to cook a wonderful turkey,
or what the latest trends in festive food and clothes are.

But we are not preparing for, or waiting for, Christmas Day. We are waiting for the coming of the Lord. During Advent, we prepare for the coming of Jesus – the first coming, over 2,000 years ago; and what is usually referred to as the second coming – the time when the kingdom of God will be fulfilled.

When I talk with couples preparing for marriage, I try to move beyond the wedding day. So much attention goes on dresses and cars and flowers and photos and food. But the wedding day is one day, yes it is an important day, but a wedding day does not make a marriage.

We can prepare for Christmas Day with gifts and food and family and friends and cards and decorations; there is nothing wrong with any of that. But it isn’t preparing for Christmas, for the coming of Jesus. It isn’t preparing us to make space in our lives for the Baby Jesus. It isn’t encouraging us to reflect on the place of Jesus in our lives.

Just as with a wedding, Christmas celebrations are wonderful. But it is only the start.

Christmas is when God says to us, I am searching for you. Like a cosmic game of hide and seek, where people say they can’t see God or know God. God replies, Here I am!

Prophets spoke warnings and promises. It isn’t the way we use the word prophecy in our day, when it can refer to people trying to predict the future. Biblical prophets warned people about the consequences of their action, or inaction. Prophets also reminded people of the promises of God. The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob; the God who led you out of Egypt; the God who led you through the wilderness; are all common phrases, reminding the people of the faithfulness and presence of God throughout their history.

Prophets also reminded the people about the covenant of God, the promise of the rainbow, the desire for God to offer salvation for all people.

Prophets spoke warnings and promises.

The role of the messenger, which we hear about in Malachi, and in the words of Isaiah quoted by Luke, is about preparing the way.

Preparing the way for the Lord
Calling people to repentance
Cleaning and cleansing
Making the paths straight
             And smooth
                       And even
And all flesh will see the salvation of God.

Luke’s gospel from beginning to end, takes salvation for all the world – not just a few - seriously. It is a thread running through the whole gospel. “And all flesh will see the salvation of God.”

How do we prepare?

Are we ready?

Many years ago I worked for a mining company. Many of the metals we have are refined by heat and or fire. That is what smelters do, they melt metal so the impurities can be removed. If you watch a silversmith making jewellery, you may notice them burning the metal, removing any contamination.

Sin is what we call contamination in our lives. The judgement of God is about preparation, not punishment. [Anne Stewart, https://www.workingpreacher.org/preaching.aspx?commentary_id=2699]

What is it that contaminates our life with God?

Being too busy to build relationships with God and Gods people?
ignoring our neighbours in need?
being self-focussed?
offering God less than our best
          selves
           time
            attitudes

What is it that contaminates our life with God?

What needs to change for us to be ready?

When we know a visitor is coming, we might clean the house, make up the bed in the spare room, set the table.

But this isn’t someone coming for a visit. God incarnate, God in the person of Jesus is moving in forever. We can’t just hide our rubbish for an hour or a few days.

Are we ready?

What do we need to do to prepare for the coming of the Lord?

I know we think of Lent as a time to think about where we need to pull our socks up and follow the example of Jesus in living sacrificially, in being better disciples.

But Advent is also a time to slow a bit, to stop and look at our lives.

Is there space for Jesus, have we crowded Jesus out of our lives with a lot of being busy? Even with church activities?

Have we become complacent, or arrogant?

Are we so used to the warnings and promises that the words wash over us?

In Malachi we hear about the one who will come as a messenger, calling people to repentance, he talks of cleaning and cleansing.

What needs to be cleaned in our lives, purges, refined?

John the Baptist is saying to us:

Get ready,
the world is about to change
the Lord is coming!

Don’t just sit there!
Be prepared to meet the one who can see through you

The one who will transform you.

Are you ready for that kind of change?

Are you ready for the cleansing?

The transformation?

Newsletter question: In what ways are you preparing for Jesus to be born anew in your life this Christmas?

peace

 “We'll live in your light and be guided in peace.”  Do we, are we?  Do we live in God’s light, are we guided in peace?

Last Sunday we heard of the appearance of the angel Gabriel to Zechariah, announcing that Elizabeth and Zechariah were to have a child.  Zechariah was unable to speak, but now after the birth, he we have this spoken song, this canticle recorded by Luke.

The canticle tells of the place of God in the history of Israel;

of God speaking through the prophets;

of the covenant with Abraham;

and then Zechariah moves into the future, and speaks of this child, John, as the one who will prepare the way for the Lord.

For Luke salvation or liberation is not primarily about political freedom.   John’s role in preparing the way for the coming one is about forgiveness of sins, not gathering an army to overthrow the Roman occupiers. In the same way, the Messiah leads people on the path of peace, not violent revolution.  Salvation means “We'll live in your light and be guided in peace.”

Serving God without fear, and living as the forgiven and freed people that we are; our whole life dedicated to living as God’s people, as followers of Christ with his passion for justice.   [Texts for Preaching, CD-ROM Edition] and [Sacra Pagina – Luke by Luke Timothy Johnson]

One of my favourite subjects at school was science, and I am now going to show you something from physics.

[slide of stable and unstable equilibrium from Wikipedia]

The first picture shows unstable equilibrium, that is if the ball is moved even a small amount, the ball won’t go back to the same place. The second picture shows stable equilibrium, that is, if the ball is moved it will go back to where it was.

In thinking about peace, there are times when it is like holding our breath, we know it isn’t going to last, it is in unstable equilibrium. A stalemate more than peace.

We see it in our families, as well as in world conflicts. I can remember times when my father and I weren’t arguing, but it wasn’t peace, it was a lull before the next round. My grandmother talked of being able to cut the air with a knife. Those of you who have lived with teenage girls may know what I mean.

What would it look like if we did live in the light of Christ, walking the way of peace? A song we sometimes hear at this time of year is “my grown up Christmas Wish” the chorus goes

No more lives torn apart
That wars would never start
And time would heal our hearts
Everyone would have a friend
That right would always win
And love would never end.

What is on your Christmas list this year?

It is fine to ask for peace from war, but what about peace in our families, actual peace not ceasefires. What about peace in our hearts?

Sound all too idealistic, but if peace doesn’t start within us, we can’t live in peace with our neighbours.

Last week we thought about hope, and the ways in which we might be able to bring hope into the world. Today I have some stars, and you are invited to write down one way in which you are a prophet for peace or one way that you would like your life to show the peace of Christ.

These will also go in and around the manger.

group singing : You bring peace but not as the world gives,

Advent is a time of waiting, of watchful preparation for the coming of the one who is the prince of peace, the one who enters our lives, bringing peace. Peace from fear and anxiety, peace that is life affirming and transforming.  Peace that is durable.

 “Dream. Dream. Dream. Be idealistic. Dream the world can be a better place." -- Archbishop Desmond Tutu

Maybe then we will live in God’s light and be guided in peace.”  

Let us take a moment to reflect on what God is saying to us today.