Good news for all the people

 

2024 12 24 Sermon

Isaiah 9:2-7; Titus 2:11-14; Luke 2:1-20

The world today is in a mess. Wars everywhere. Global economy favors the wealthy. Illness and poverty abound. Partisan politics divide people who insist their point of view is the only valid one. Racism and sexism and agism and isolationism cause painful division today. Two thousand years ago, the isms may have been different, but the result was the same. Some people have power and wealth, and most don’t. Into this messy world, comes God’s activity.

We humans look at our own part of the story, but God has the whole picture in mind, with the back story, the possible alternative endings, and the main plot all in mind. Over and over, God has had influence over God’s people from Adam and Eve, to Noah and Mrs Noah, to Abraham and Sarah, to Moses and Aaron and Miriam, to the prophets Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel, Amos, Micah, and Hosea.

In so many ways, God has called God’s people to be faithful, to trust God. The people repeatedly turned away from God, and worshiped other gods who could not make good on their promises.

… This time, about 2,000 years ago in human time, God decided to speak directly to the people by becoming human. And, God decided to start out as a human baby, fully human, yet fully divine.

It was nine months ago, in Mary’s life, that the Angel Gabriel announced to her she would have a baby who would be the savior of the world. Tonight, God appears in the body of an infant. His name is Yeshua/Joshua/God Saves/Jesus. And Emmanuel/God with us.

It’s hard to imagine that this baby will save the world. We believe he is the child promised in Isaiah, promised to be wonderful counsellor and prince of peace. And we know that like all babies, this baby grew up. He taught and preached and gave his life so we would all know the salvation promised over and over again by God.

… Tonight, the shepherds hear the promise again, from the angels. They are told the birth is good news for all people. This salvation is not our “Get into heaven” card. It is not about individual salvation, but about how God plans for Jesus to bring peace and justice into the world for good.

Jesus’ message is given in words, parables and conversations with the wealthy and the poor folks; and his message is given in actions, through healing and feeding and storm-stilling.

And his message is clear through the intentional inclusion of women and foreigners and children, the intentional inclusion of Pharisees and Sadducees and Romans. His message is given through intentional generosity and servanthood throughout his ministry, including the giving of his life.

The stories of his birth, life, parables, encounters with all sorts of folks have been told repeatedly for two thousand years. We are still telling these powerful stories that lead us to trust in the God who sent him, the divine being he was, even as he walked the earth as a human person.

These stories have been models of how life on earth should be, and once in a while we see it happening before our eyes. Once in a while, a war ends with justice for all parties. Once in a while, justice is brought about through changes in the law and people become committed to ensuring it is true justice. And it feels like salvation has come.

This vision of the good news of salvation for all people can be seen in little ways every day, if we look for it. It is visible in the way some folks at Gloria Dei care for others, offering rides to church, taking Holy Communion to those who struggle to get out, spending a couple hours handing out food.

… On CBS News, David Begnaud does human interest stories. They always touch me, sometimes bring me to tears, and remind me that God is active, that justice and salvation can be real, and present in this moment.

A few months ago, CBS ran a story about a Texas women named Lyn, who is a member of a Social Media program called Nextdoor, which connects people in neighborhoods. One day, she saw a post that someone needed a ride to her chemotherapy appointments. Lynn volunteered. Someone else posted that they had low vision, and needed a ride to work three times a week. Lyn volunteered. Lyn doesn’t have a lot of income, yet she uses her own car, her own gas, to offer such care to others.

After the story ran the first time, CBS aired an update. Philadelphia car dealer and philanthropist David Kellaher noticed Lyn’s story, and arranged to get her a new car. And it was not only a car, but a full package – extended warranty, taxes and insurance, so she could drive her car worry-free for years. This was not only a gift, but a gift with justice – a view of God’s salvation. And Lyn’s response was that she will continue to check Nextdoor for more people who need rides.

… Tonight, in the promise from God through Isaiah, in this story from Luke about the birth of Jesus and the angel’s announcement to the shepherds, we see God’s purpose of salvation for all people. Salvation happens in large and very small, very real ways. And we are encouraged to be part of it every day.  

How can you be part of this good news? Who do you know who needs to hear it, or better yet, experience it? Amen

God at work

Micah 5:2-5a; Luke 1:46b-55; Luke 1:39-45

Finally, our Advent waiting is almost over. At last, we are talking about Mary and Jesus. And our fourth week of Advent is short, just a couple days this year.

We could say the focus this week is on the little things. Bethlehem is a little town, and a little clan. Mary is a little – meaning young and unimportant – woman, at this time. Although Elizabeth is the female descendant of a high-ranking family, because she was barren until 6 months ago she is also a person of little importance. Mary’s song highlights God’s power to uplift the little and lowly people. And the babies in the women’s wombs are little creatures, at the moment.

Yet this moment in the lives of Mary and Elizabeth is anything but little. Elizabeth is 6 months pregnant by this time, and Mary is pregnant, but maybe just a month or two. By now, Elizabeth has begun to feel baby John move within her. As he grows, she can feel some shifts in position, maybe an elbow or a knee pushing against her insides. Those who have born babies know these feelings will grow stronger and stronger until the baby is born.

Today, as Mary approaches the home of her kinswoman, Elizabeth moves quickly to greet her. Within her, she feels more than a knee or elbow moving. She feels the child leap as she is filled with the Holy Spirit. I was trying to imagine what that felt like, since the womb is such a limited space. Maybe John stretched out to his full length, or shoved arms wide to the sides, or maybe he did a somersault. Yeah, probably a somersault.  

Elizabeth shouts loudly, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb.” She continues celebrating the moment, praising God for the future they see before their eyes. I notice that Elizabeth, the mother of John the Forerunner to Jesus, points to Jesus, just as John will later.

And Mary responds with the song we call the Magnificat. It begins, “My soul magnifies the Lord.” The images in Mary’s song are anything but gentle and sweet. They are not little. … Mary first praises God, just as Elizabeth does, then she puts some power behind her words. She stands with fist raised, as Ben Wildflower imagines her. And declares that the coming of her son means justice for all who are oppressed in any way. … Can you imagine Mary teaching this song to her son Jesus as he grew to manhood?

… Today, we are still singing the Magnificat, and wishing and hoping all its promises were already fulfilled. But we are far from that, because we are all still human, and both saint and sinner.

The people of the city of Bethlehem, Palestine, know all too well how broken the world still is. A year ago, when the war in Gaza was new, Evangelical Lutheran Christmas Church in Bethlehem posted this image, along with the message that Christmas services were cancelled.

The nativity has Baby Jesus wrapped in a black and white checked keffiyeh – a Palestinian scarf – lying in a pile of rubble. Surrounding him are the usual creche figurines: shepherds and sheep, magi and gifts.

Unfortunately, this year, Christ is still in the rubble. There are still no visitors, no Christmas pilgrims, in Jerusalem or Bethlehem. It could just as easily be 2,000 years ago! However, there is still hope in Bethlehem. On Friday evening, there was a sumud service, in which many Palestinians gathered to pray for peace and justice, which is just the promise Jesus made to us so long ago. Bishop Sani-Ibrahim Azar preached. Here is the Sermon PDF .

… God is as active today in healing the world as God was 2,000, 4,000, 6,000, 4.5 billion (the approximate age of the earth), and 13.7 billion years ago (the estimated age of the universe).

In our day-to-day lives, we will see God’s activity if we pay attention. Gloria Dei’s quilters send their offerings to Lutheran World Relief, where people around the world make creative use of the quilts they make. Of course, God is present in the quilters’ time together, as they begin with prayer and study, and we send the quilts off with a blessing.

We also see God’s activity in the people around us – our biological families and our in-law families and our church families and our chosen people families. Here’s a chosen family story, which highlights the way God works.

This picture is of Mike and me with our friends Ned and Joyce on a cruise on the upper Mississippi in 2022. When Joyce and Ned and I (and my now ex-husband) were much younger, we knew each other at Saron Lutheran Church, St Joseph, MI. Our children were about the same age. Ned and Joyce and their daughter moved away after a few years and we lost touch with each other.

Our children grew up. I got a divorce and went to seminary. I got remarried. I had just started serving Hope in Citrus Springs as their pastor and went to talk with some inquiring visitors, which turned out to be Ned and Joyce! We get together often these days for a meal and conversation. Certainly, they are God’s gift to us, and I hope, we are to them. One of our favorite God-incidences!

… This week, I hope you pay attention to how God is present in your lives. And I hope you will tell me the story of what you discovered. Amen