God interrupting our lives

Do we believe that God still interrupts people’s lives to work through them?[i]

Do we believe that God still works through people for the good of the world?

Often when I have preached on the passage we have just heard; I focus on Mary’s song. It is a wonderful, powerful, revolutionary set of words. It has been banned at times because it has inspired people to stand up to corrupt governments.[ii]

this morning we will do an imagining exercise. I am going to address some parts of the passage to you

·         Sit comfortably

·         Breathe in; out; in; out

·         “You are truly blessed!

·         The Lord is with you.”

·          “You are truly blessed!

·         The Lord is with you.”

·          

·         How do you feel? What is it like hearing those words?

·          

·         Don’t be afraid! God is pleased with you.”

·         “Don’t be afraid! God is pleased with you.”

·          

·         What comes to mind?

·         What does God say to you?

·         How do you respond?

·          

·         “The Holy Spirit will come down to you, and God’s power will come over you”

·           

When have you done something you didn’t think you could do? Was God part of that?

It is easy to think that miracles no longer exist.

It is easy to believe in a God who cares and died to save us.

But a God who is part of our lives, interfering in our lives, that is harder to believe.

Surely if God was going to give someone a special job, like giving birth to the saviour of the world, it would be someone special. That isn’t the story we have.

I know for me, I find it easy to think that God could use other people rather than me, people who are kinder, or more patient, or more trusting in God, but that isn’t how God works.

Mary, a young woman, is greeted by an angel,

By the way – angles are God’s messengers, and not necessarily cute.

Mary, a young woman, is greeted by an angel,

She is baffled and confused

Am I am hearing things?

Why me?

Then the message about having a child

And Mary says – it is not possible

And she is correct

It is not possible to give birth to a child without a mingling if egg and sperm. Even a young woman 2000 years ago knew enough science to know you don’t get pregnant on your own.

There is an old chorus, “Nothing is impossible when you put your trust in God,”. I think too often we take that to mean God will do anything we want God to do.

From today’s reading I think it means we can do anything God gives us to do.

Have a child in old age

Give birth as a virgin

I look around the room and I ma aware that there are people who have raised children not their own

There are people who are surf lifesavers and paramedics

There are people who listen to those who need someone safe to talk to

There are people who visit, who work in op shops, who do all sort of amazing things.

Do you believe that God loves you?

Do you believe that God looks on you with love?

Do you believe that God works through you and others for the good of creation?

Do you believe that God is still active, in large and small ways, in the mundane and the miraculous? [iii]

We have been reading passages from the Old Testament for a few months. Sometimes it seems like the birth of Jesus is the finale of the story – the long-awaited Messiah is born.

But it isn’t the end of the story. It is part of the story of God’s ongoing relationship with people and all creation.

God doesn’t stop being involved in people’s lives when Jesus is born.

God continues to interrupt our lives.

God continues to send people into our lives with messages of hope for us.

God continues to send people into our lives with stories of God’s activity.

Think - how many wonderful things there are that God wants to accomplish

through us.[iv]

·         Mary is confused by the angel’s greeting

·         Then she considers his words

·         Queries them

·         And accepts that God can do what is impossible for mortals

This Christmas, or maybe Boxing Day, I encourage you to think about

·         the times when God has interfered in your life

·         When God has sought you out, given you the ability to do what you thought you could not.

Who have been God’s messengers in your life, angels speaking words of hope and words of challenge to you?

Do we believe that God still interrupts people’s lives to work through them?[v]

Do you believe that God has worked, and continues to work in your life?

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[i] http://www.workingpreacher.org/craft.aspx?post=1611

[ii] Spill the beans

[iii] http://www.workingpreacher.org/craft.aspx?post=1611

[iv] http://www.workingpreacher.org/craft.aspx?post=1611

[v] http://www.workingpreacher.org/craft.aspx?post=1611

New Temple and New Life

There are fires and drought in Australia, and rising sea levels in the Pacific Islands;

The unemployment rate is 18% amongst people aged 15-19; [i]

Wages are stagnating and interest rates on investments are close to zero;

I am not surprised that people wonder what is going on with the world.

We read in the Scriptures how the people of Israel

were slaves in Egypt,

escaped to wander in the desert for many years

invaded and taken into exile

released by King Cyrus of Persia

They too must have wondered what the future held for them.

They left for us some of their reflections on what was happening to them, scripture – narrative, poetry and law. “They give voice to their grief, anger, fear – the whole range of human experience; they testify to the abiding presence of God with them and, most importantly, to their repeated discovery – a discovery that only comes through life and death struggle – that the realm of God is always infinitely larger than human imagining.” Rev Jane Fry Insights Summer 2019

In Ezra, we find the future was not a return to the past.

The temple, the beautiful temple that Solomon had overseen, is destroyed. The people returning for exile, as well as those who stayed in Jerusalem are looking at a different future.

 “The Jews in Ezra are trying to determine what it means to live into a new future that God is creating in their midst. But what that future looks like is only beginning to emerge, and with mixed results.” [ii]

When I first read the Ezra passage, the thing that clicked with me was the rebuilding of the temple. The first Temple was big and spectacular, built with slave labour. The second temple would be built by people who had been in exile, people who had been unable to fulfil the religious rituals.

This time the resources need to build the temple would be given, rather than taken.

Still the future was unknown, they were still under foreign rule, though foreign rule that left them alone much of the time.  And they were still on the trade crossroads, a small nation vulnerable to attack.

What would the future be like?

What did God have in store for them?

The Luke reading is set for next week, but I included it this morning.

Zechariah is in the Temple, doing his priestly duty. Priests were from the tribe of Levi. Zechariah would not have been on duty all the time, but on roster.

With the bushfires at present, I wondered what would be rebuilt first if the Peninsula went up in fire. Would it be individual homes?

Community facilities?

Shops?

Businesses?

Schools?

Hospitals?

The answer to the question is biased today because of money and insurance and uneven access to resources. I would hope that as a community, decisions would be made on the basis of need not money. That school and hospitals would have priority, that community spaces and shops and places of employment would quickly return.

That the good of all, rather than the individual, would prevail.

The people returned from exile and set up a space to worship God.

The people are restored - not to reclaim the land, but to worship God [iii]

Being able to worship, to offer sacrifices, was important to the people of Israel.

Is worshipping as a gathered community important to you?

Zechariah was in the Temple while people were praying. The people of Israel are again under foreign rue, this time the Romans, who kept a close eye on what was happening.

God had not deserted the people. While Zechariah was fulfilling his duty, an angel appeared and told Zechariah he and Elizabeth would have a child. His response reminds me of Abraham and Sarah – we are too old; this is not possible. Next week we will hear of another person who told an angel – this is not possible.

When we read the scriptures, particularly the Old testament, we see the best and worst of humanity, we see how they dealt with personal and national crises. We read of the place of worship and the Temple in their lives. and continually we read of people who have heard God speak, who have been visited by angels, who have done the impossible.

The people were looking for a future without slavery and imprisonment, a future with freedom and peace.

We know that future is in Jesus,

in a life without slavery to sin,

with peace that the world cannot give,

life that is always listening for God

waiting for God

moving with God

life that is free to serve and love

as we are loved and served by Christ.

During Advent we wait, we wait to hear the stories of Christmas again, but we also wait for the renewal of creation; for the coming of the Kingdom of justice and peace.

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[i] https://www.smh.com.au/business/the-economy/young-and-out-australia-s-hidden-scourge-of-youth-unemployment-20180622-p4zn4k.html

[ii] https://www.workingpreacher.org/preaching.aspx?commentary_id=2570&fbclid=IwAR3QQ26t2rT-nX-uQLPRT1h4l45bsKXksbNiOxPvKo-u5nD804aEUtrJWmY

[iii] https://www.pulpitfiction.com/narrative-notes/2-15?fbclid=IwAR1x0r5nctdGwzDzepE8tcg4hfL0oGRs8FkSqljb0H6E_IDQ4_tc5wkgK5Y

Prepare ye the way

 Short recap:

Abram and Sarai are visited by angels and told they will have a son, which they did. Abram had more than one, but THE one was Isaac. Isaac fathers Jacob and Esau – Jacob is also known as Israel, has twelve sons, which become the twelve tribes of Israel.

One of Jacob’s sons was Joseph, who was sold into slavery by his brothers. He ends up in Egypt, and saves his family when famine hits their homeland.

Fast forward, and a new king of Egypt. The people are mistreated, and they are desperate to leave. Then comes Moses. He hears God speaking to him, runs away, comes back and leads the people to safety. The journey in the wilderness is known as the Exodus. It lasts for forty years, which also means a long time.

The people settle in the land. Fast forward, the people want a king, God warned them it was a bad move, they didn’t listen. A series of Kings, some good and some bad. The people are living more and more like their neighbours and less and less in the way God taught them, so in comes the prophets; people who spoke God’s message of justice and righteousness. The prophets warned of trouble to come if the people didn’t change their ways.

By this time God’s twelve tribes are now in two groups - there is a northern kingdom [Israel] and southern kingdom [Judah]. Both are taken over by invading armies, Assyrian and Babylonian.   

Last week we heard a passage of hope from the prophet Jeremiah.

This morning, another prophet, this time Isaiah.

Both these prophets had announced to the people, get your act together, trust God, stop living at the expense of others, don’t store up treasure while other people don’t have enough to eat. You are all God’s people, so don’t some of you lord it over others.

But the people did not take notice.

Now many are in exile.

Isaiah speaks the word of God:

Encourage my people!

    Give them comfort.

The comfort is not a hug, but the news that captivity is over, their sins are forgiven, it is time to return home.

What might God’s comfort look like today? What good news do people need to hear?

…….

I wonder what Isaiah would write for us.

Maybe he would write about inequality and the sins that allow homelessness and poverty

Maybe he would write about the way we are killing the earth – I sometimes wonder if we are reaping what we have sown. Drought; bushfires; low water, or no water in our rivers.

The prophets wrote of the outcome of sin, not only individual sin but the sin of the community and nation.

The prophet Isaiah is bringing good news of a renewed future, a return from exile, but more than that.

God is coming to them in power and glory,
so get ready.

Or if you are or were a Guide or Scout - it is ‘be prepared’.

Be prepared because God is coming,

Clear a path

God is coming in power and glory;

God is here;

God who exiled you for your sins.

God is coming.

Make a path,

clear the obstacles out of the way,

flatten the mountains and raise the valleys.

Woah - Sounds a bit heavy handed, surely it is God who created those mountains and valleys. And they look beautiful. Does God really want them flattened?

One commentator spoke of this not being a passage for spectators,

it is a passage for those embarking on a journey.

A journey home

A time to return to God and the land.

The shortest way from Babylon back to Judea was through the Syrian desert. It is unlikely that people travelled that way, they would have followed the water sources and moved in an arc rather than a straight line. [i] 
Another Exodus, but this time it will not take 40 years wandering in the desert.
Another grand reminder of God’s faithfulness.

“Clear a path in the desert!

    Make a straight road

    for the Lord our God.”

What if this is not about a geographic journey, but a faith journey.  

Israel was a nation, but also God’s people.

What might it mean to make a path straight in the desert;
to make a straight road for God?

When we watch police drams on TV, like Death in Paradise, the criminal always runs and often tries putting obstacles in the way of the police. I wonder what obstacles we put in the way of God, and in the way of others.

The focus then moves to the contrast between God and people. The Prophet asks, why proclaim the message of God to humans, humans are like grass, they wither and die.

The gulf between the ways of God and of God’s people is large.

‘The people have sinned, but God has stayed true.
The people are fragile, but God is powerful.’ [ii]

The season of advent is about getting ready.

While you clean the house, put up the tree, make the spare room ready for visitors and think about what to feed people, how do you make a place ready in your life for God?

If Jesus was coming to Broken Bay Uniting Church on Christmas morning, would it make a difference?

If Jesus was coming to your place for Christmas day, what would you do to welcome him, what food would you offer, who else would you invite?

What will you do to make space in the church;

and in your life;

for Jesus this Christmas?

This passage reminds me of this song:

Sing:

Prepare ye, the way of the Lord

Prepare ye, the way of the Lord

Prepare ye, the way of the Lord

Prepare ye, the way of the Lord

What does God’s comfort look like today?

What are we doing to prepare the way of the Lord?

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[i] http://www.workingpreacher.org/preaching.aspx?commentary_id=2254

[ii] http://www.workingpreacher.org/preaching.aspx?commentary_id=3491

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 [PL1]

Advent 1: Hope Jeremiah Style

Hope is a word that is often used – I hope it rains or I hope we find a carpark, or I hope we make it on time. a child might say I hope we have spaghetti for tea.

Sometimes it seems we use the word hope when we mean wish.

““Hope is a feeling of desire and expectation that things will go well in the future”  ^[i], or to “expect with confidence” ^[ii]

Jeremiah is writing while imprisoned. Jeremiah was a prophet; he lived and spoke God’s word even when it made him unpopular.

Jeremiah spoke of the impending doom because of the sins of the people; “unethical economic practices, violating the Sabbath, sacrificing young children”; these actions, and others, hurt not only God’s people, but the land itself. ^[iii]

Jeremiah had predicted the coming destruction and exile, and the King of Judah puts Jeremiah in prison. [iv]

Jeremiah spoke the word of God, both messages of doom and messages of hope. In the midst of turmoil, where leaders were in exile, the people of Jerusalem who were still in the city were running out of food and water and Jeremiah was in prison, he spoke the words of hope we heard this morning.

This is not hope that things will return to how they were.

This is not wishful thinking.

Here Jeremiah anticipates the future messiah, the future saving by the hand of God. He announces what will be.

Jerusalem will hear the laughter of celebration; the land will be productive; the king will rule with justice and people will live in peace.

Hope is not necessarily happiness. Hope is trusting on God’s promises. Putting our faith in what is possible, even when it seems impossible.

A little earlier in the book of Jeremiah, Jeremiah buys a field. Who buys land when you are about to be overthrown by a neighbouring empire? [v]

Jeremiah did not speak of hope, he lived in hope and acted on that hope.

I have a story book now – A Child’s Garden: A Story of Hope.

The theme of advent 1 is hope. I wonder how hopeful the people effected by the ongoing drought are. I wonder how hopeful the people who have lost homes and animals and livelihoods and loved ones in the bushfires are feeling this advent.

In Advent we wait, with the people of Israel who waited, who yearned for a different future.

In Advent we wait, not just for the birth of the baby Jesus, though that is important, but we also wait for the coming of Jesus, day after day;

that our living may more closely resemble the life of Jesus

that we may see the signs of the kingdom, the green shoots of new life that grow in the midst of despair and turmoil.

And just as the boy in the story watered, protected and cared for the green shoots, we need to not only wait for a new future, but to actively work towards God’s promised future.

“In Advent, the church proclaims an alternative reality that grows out of confidence in God’s righteousness. The promise of God’s righteousness both convicts and makes new. Advent invites us to name the places in our lives and society that are at odds with the divine vision of justice and righteousness. There may be a wide gap between what is and what we wish were so. And yet the promise of Advent is that the Lord is our righteousness. This promise allows us to proclaim an alternative reality in which all things will be made new.” [vi]

This advent, what will you do in the waiting?

The waiting for God’s Kingdom – a kingdom of love, forgiveness, reconciliation over self-preservation. [vii]

“Advent is not about what God will do in spite of us
 or about waiting to be saved,
but about what God will do through us and
within us to save the world.”[viii]

How will you be like Jeremiah, not only speaking hope, but actively living into the hope we have in God.

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[i] https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/hope

[ii] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hope

[iii] https://www.workingpreacher.org/preaching.aspx?commentary_id=4219

[iv] https://www.monasticpastor.com/2019/11/good-days-coming.html?fbclid=IwAR1umvrv8R9WP3g1teQ_JewzkYPKAlwl211n3n_zuMQoZtARKyEpMTshZfY

[v] Kathryn M. Schifferdecker | 2 Comments

http://www.workingpreacher.org/preaching.aspx?commentary_id=448

[vi] Anne Stewart | 1 Comme

http://www.workingpreacher.org/preaching.aspx?commentary_id=2693

[vii] https://www.pulpitfiction.com/narrative-notes/2-13?fbclid=IwAR1QH7lJisqwgp-zLesFdLkmIbjgf4INYanBJPJp73ecsn6fgI_9aUuB9K8

[viii] https://www.pulpitfiction.com/narrative-notes/2-13?fbclid=IwAR1QH7lJisqwgp-zLesFdLkmIbjgf4INYanBJPJp73ecsn6fgI_9aUuB9K8