Let us pray: May these words bring encouragement, inspiration, and hope in the name of our loving God who was and is and is to come. Amen.
“Whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction, so that by steadfastness and by the encouragement of the scriptures we might have hope” (Romans 15:4). So that by steadfastness, or a “steady and unwavering course in love, allegiance, or conviction,” ( https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/steadfastness) and the encouragement of the scriptures, we might have hope. That we might have hope. Ooof, sometimes, in these times, it can be pretty tough to find, hold on to, hold out any, cling to, or have, hope. Things can get, and have gotten, pretty hopeless in our world today. I’m not going to even try and deny it. Whether in the deterioration of this fragile earth our island home, the polarization of our society and politics, the ongoing pandemic and war, increase in the number of people without houses, increase in the number of people suffering from addiction, increase in the number of people, especially young people, besieged with mental illness and contemplating suicide, to say nothing of the difficulty and complexity of our own families, friends, and relationships and the knots they wrap us up in. Life is hard. Life is messy. Family is complicated. Relationships with others and with ourselves are tough. And, it’s hard to stay hopeful. For some among us, the holidays can be the bleakest and toughest of times as they bring back past trauma, potential new trauma, and the bitter pain of the loss of loved ones. I invite you to be gentle and tender with yourselves and with others, remembering that the holidays are not all happy, joyful, and hopeful times for many people, and that’s OK. In our human lives here on this earth there are no simple, clearcut answers, no easy solutions to fix and tidy everything up, no bow to tie around it all. But…today’s lesson and this season of Advent, this season of waiting, and watching for what is to come, invite us to squint our eyes, turn our heads to the side, and open our ears, hearts and minds, to be encouraged and reminded by what happened in that tiny little town of Bethlehem so long ago. If ever there was a life-changing, awe-inspiring, hope-creating event, it has to be the birth of a new baby. A true miracle of life. The precious fragility, tiny perfection, and limitless possibilities to come, a new beginning, a new future, a new hope.
What Paul reminds us of today is that these stories, and our traditions at this dreary and cold time of the year, are meant as lights for us, guiding, encouraging, reminding us of what is to come, offering hope. The coming of God into our world in the form of a human baby, the Creator of the Universe incarnate, dwelling here among us, as one of us, has ENORMOUS and everlasting implications. And not just this single event of a baby’s birth, but beyond the manger, star, shepherds and angels, forward to the teaching, healing, status-quo upending, ultimate love-sacrificing life of Jesus, and the glorious love-over-death resurrection. In these stories of God’s love come down to earth, we find instruction, teaching for our lives, encouragement as we get to know and understand God’s dream for us and our world, and ultimately, hope. Hope that we so desperately need in our lives. Hope to get us through, hope that invites us to look toward the future, toward what is to come, to the advent of what God’s love will achieve in our world.
I wonder, in these times of Advent can we begin to imagine, to envision together the coming of God’s reign here on earth? God’s gracious rule, when and where, the prophet Isaiah tells us, a little green tendril will push up and grow and grow. And this new life, this messiah, the anointed one to come will bring justice to the poor and equity to those who are overlooked. In this advent, natural enemies, predator and prey will hang out together in harmony, wolves with lambs, leopards with goats, calves with lions, and a vulnerable little child will be the one to lead them all. And there will be no more hurting or destruction, because the whole earth will fully know God’s goodness and love, it will be inundated, soaked in it like the waters of the Pacific. This is certainly an awesome and amazing picture of the hope that is to come---advent.
And in this season, as we journey with Mary and Joseph, let us seek encouragement and hope in what has been written about the coming of the baby Jesus and in these future images of unity, peace, and harmony. Paul instructs us to do our part to usher in this dream of God, to kindle and grow this hope of what is to come, by doing our best to live in harmony with one another, by working to welcome one another the way that Christ welcomes us, with open and loving arms, shining the light of God’s hopeful, caring connectivity, on the desolation, hurt, and hopelessness of our world today. Where we do the best that we can to live in harmony with others, to see them as God sees them, to show them, as Jesus showed them: dignity, value, belovedness. Where we welcome one another as Christ has welcomed us, as children, adopted, invited, claimed, beloved. In so doing, we make God smile. And we join in helping bring about God’s loving plan for us. We bring hope. We offer hope. We live together in hope.
Siblings in Christ, prepare yourselves for the coming of Jesus. Take encouragement and regain hope from the stories of what has come, what is coming now, and what will come. Wait, and watch, and hope together this Advent for what is to come. And may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
