Fourth Sunday of Advent - A

Object: Two stuffed animals: a lion and a fox.

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Hello, everyone! (Let them respond.) Are you ready for our story today? (Let them respond.) Excellent! And, after we hear our story, I have a game for us to play today, too, so let’s get started!

There is an ancient legend first told by Christians living in the catacombs under the streets of Rome which pictures the day when Jesus went back to glory after finishing all his work on earth. The angel Gabriel meets Jesus in heaven and welcomes him home. “Lord,” he says, “Who have you left behind to carry on your work?”

Jesus tells him about the disciples, the little band of fishermen and farmers and housewives.

“But Lord,” says Gabriel, “what if they fail you?! What if they lose heart, or drop out?! What if things get too rough for them, and they let you down?!”

Genesis 15:1-12, 17-18
Today interactions are handled through contracts. Contracts are legal agreements that involve work, services, or pay. Contracts can be (and sadly often are) broken when one party does not live up to the terms of the contract. Contracts are important, but they are not the way God interacted with Abraham. God’s way was deeper than the letter of the law on a contract.

While he was saying this, a cloud came and overshadowed them, and they were terrified as they entered the cloud. (v. 34)

Remember Pet Rocks? Some marketing genius in the mid-seventies packed rocks as pets that provided solid companionship and required next to no maintenance. The rocks came in boxes with ventilation holes and instructions for their care. Though the fad was short-lived, it lasted long enough to make its creator a millionaire.  And more recently, they’ve become a craze again in South Korea.

As you all know, Terry Waite, the Archbishop of Canterbury's special envoy from 1980, was involved in negotiations to secure the release of hostages held in the Middle East. Between 1982 and the end of 1986, 14 hostages, for whom he was interceding, were released. But he himself was kidnapped in Beirut in January 1987 while involved in secret negotiations to win the release of hostages held in Lebanon, and he wasn't released until November 1991.

The story of the transfiguration is one of those passages that have given the phrase "mountaintop experience" to our language. Peter, James, and John had joined Jesus and escaped from the crowd for some spiritual "R and R" up in the wilderness of (probably) Mount Hermon. Night had fallen and their eyes were heavy. Suddenly, they awoke with a start. Just yonder they saw Jesus take on something of a supernatural "glow" -- his face and clothes "as bright as a flash of lightning" (Luke 9:29). Then Moses and Elijah appeared and spoke with the master.

The Church Year Theological Clue

Boldness is necessary to accomplish ministry, especially that which is prophetic and points to judgment. Our dear Lord is boldly assertive and wants there to be no doubt about what his Father has sent him to accomplish. He provides both a lesson and model for us.

Our timidity in the face of odds is not becoming to those who profess to follow Christ. Only when it covers a determined soul for the faith is it in keeping with our commitment. Let's face it, some of the most timid souls in church can be downright raucous at athletic events!

You have all made promises; and kept them, but some you have broken. Maybe you didn't intend to break it, but when the time came to fulfill it, it simply wasn't in your power to keep it. Or, upon re-thinking it, you decided it wasn't a good promise, so you reneged upon it.
And, you've had promises made to you; and they've been kept - some of them, but who has not been hurt by having a promise made, and then broken?