Sermon 11-27-22
Isaiah 9:2, 6-7: The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of deep darkness a light has dawned. […] For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the greatness of his government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on David’s throne and over his kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and forever. The zeal of the Lord Almighty will accomplish this.”
Psalm 25:1-10 (as basis for Call to Worship) 25:1 To you, O LORD, I lift up my soul. 25:2 O my God, in you I trust; do not let me be put to shame; do not let my enemies exult over me. 25:3 Do not let those who wait for you be put to shame; let them be ashamed who are wantonly treacherous. 25:4 Make me to know your ways, O LORD; teach me your paths. 25:5 Lead me in your truth, and teach me, for you are the God of my salvation; for you I wait all day long. 25:6 Be mindful of your mercy, O LORD, and of your steadfast love, for they have been from of old. 25:7 Do not remember the sins of my youth or my transgressions; according to your steadfast love remember me, for your goodness' sake, O LORD! 25:8 Good and upright is the LORD; therefore he instructs sinners in the way. 25:9 He leads the humble in what is right, and teaches the humble his way. 25:10 All the paths of the LORD are steadfast love and faithfulness, for those who keep his covenant and his decrees.
Hope
Today we begin our Advent season. Today, this first Sunday of Advent, we begin with our first theme, that of Hope.
700 years before Jesus was born, several thousand of the Jewish people were resettled, and made captives of the Assyrian empire. Isaiah was speaking about this time in history as a time to have hope for a Savior.
In the early 700s BC, more than 700 years before Jesus was born, Isaiah made the following prophesy:
“You have multiplied the nation, you have increased its joy; they rejoice before you as with joy at the harvest…
For the yoke of their burden, and the bar across their shoulders, the rod of their oppressor, you have broken…
For a child has been born for us, a son given to us; authority rests upon his shoulders; and he is named Wonderful Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”
It was 700 years after that prophecy that Jesus was born. 700 years of waiting. That is a very long season of waiting, of Advent!
Think for a moment, what enslaves you? What negative thoughts plague your mind? What habits hold you captive, the ones that won’t let you go? Think for a moment. What in your life keeps you down?
Certainly you are not enslaved the same way that the Jews of the 8th century BC were. Yet everyone has something that plagues them, be it grief, anxiety, depression, or sadness. We all suffer somewhat, to some extent.
Yet, do you have hope? I’m sure you do. You have hope that the negative feelings will not last. You have hope for happiness, ease of life, and maybe even joy. So now, take a moment, and think of the last time you felt those beautiful feelings. Was it yesterday? Last month? Last Christmas? You have felt good at one point or another. And therein lies Hope. You know that if you felt it once, you can feel it again. This is being Hopeful.
But what of the feeling of hopelessness? Some of you have felt this as well. Some of you have felt such despair that you did not know how to get up in the morning. You did not know why you should continue trying. You gave up. Maybe you are feeling this now.
Over the millennia, the Jewish population has been enslaved, oppressed, and executed in mass. As a population, there could be a great deal of hopelessness.
The Black population was enslaved for over 200 years here in the United States, and still after they have been free for 100 years, they do not have equality in the “land of the free”. They surely must feel hopeless.
For 7 years gay marriage has been legal in the United States, yet just last week there was another mass murder at a gay bar. And Clarence Thomas, a Supreme Court judge, has written that he would like to revisit laws, prompting the LGBTQ+ community to worry that any strides they have made toward acceptance may be wiped out. This community must be feeling hopeless.
Where do all these people find hope?
For the Jewish population, they turn to the Hebrew Bible. There they can find comfort in the words that God will protect them, will always love them, and gives them everlasting life.
Have you ever been to a Black church or seen Gospel music performed? Or listened to the words of Abide With Me?
I fear no foe, with Thee at hand to bless;
Ills have no weight, and tears no bitterness.
Where is death's sting? Where, grave, thy victory?
For the LGBTQ+ community, there are more and more churches opening their hearts and doors to let all be welcome.
Where do each of these groups find hope? There is hope in the coming of Christ.
I spoke yesterday morning with a friend about her hopes. Because she is poor, she constantly hopes for better times. Her dreams include travel, good dinners at restaurants and an abundance of money. She hopes for the love of a lifelong partner. Her hopes have created despair about the things she does not have.
So hope in and of itself is a double edged sword. Does your hope for a better life, better health and more love create a hole in your heart? This seems to me to be more like hopelessness than hopefulness. My friend used to have these things, and still does intermittently, when she can save up for them. Yet she stays stuck in the fear that her hopes will not be realized.
So we did an activity together. First I asked her what does stress and anxiety do to her? She remembered that stress, anxiety and fear create disease and cause us to age faster. These negative emotions are something that is in most of our lives. It is part of the human condition, and I don’t expect it to magically disappear.
The next thing I did was to ask her to remember her favorite vacation, where it was, the best moment during that vacation. So I now want you to do the same. Think of what you hope for. When did you have it last? How did it feel in your body? What did you see? Hear? Smell? Taste? Just take a moment and stay there, remembering this wonderful feeling.
Next I asked her how that felt, and she agreed it was wonderful! It made her happy. I asked her how it felt to feel hopeless, that the things she hoped for felt so far away. She didn’t like it, it felt like despair. I asked her what she wanted to feel more of: happiness or despair? Of course, it was happiness!
And it is your turn: what do you want to feel more of? I am sure it is happiness as well.
Finally, I reminded her that she cannot make the sadness go away forever. It simply is part of the human condition. I reminded her that she can go to the happy place in her mind, and feel that to balance the sadness. Happiness is also part of the human condition.
What is most fascinating to me is how I react. I also get sad. I find it very hard to get out of it, too. When I am in that place of sadness, hopelessness, or despair, I don’t feel God. Perhaps at those times my soul is no longer connected to my body. It’s weird, but I find it very hard to ask for help in those times. Yet, I have, and of course it feels so much better!
The weird thing is, though, that I get closer to God, closer to the feelings of hopefulness and happiness, when I am helping another person. Like when I was talking to my friend. When I am leading the prayer circle at church. When I am bringing hope to someone else. That is when hope – the hope that Christ brings – rises in me. Perhaps that is how any of us can go from hopeless to hopeful. By being the servant of God that we are asked to be; by being the ray of hope for someone else.
So, one more time, let’s bring more hope into the room. I want you to think of a wonderful past Christmas memory. Where was it? How old were you? How did you feel, physically and emotionally? What sounds can you hear, perhaps Christmas music? What smells were there? And what tastes? Steep in that magical memory of Christmas Past. Hold that as your hope for this Christmas too. And finally, share that feeling and that hope with all those you come in contact with.
Amen.
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