Advent 4
Preaching
Lectionary Preaching Workbook
Series IX, Cycle B
Object:
Theme of the Day
Our Savior is coming!
Collect of the Day
A prayer urging Christ to come and free us from sin, making us more eager to receive His promises. The emphasis is on God's act in bringing us Christ to prepare us for Christmas.
Psalm of the Day
Psalm 89:1-4, 19-26
* A royal Psalm of Ethan (perhaps a Levite musician); prayer of a king for deliverance; a national lament.
* Having been defeated in battle (vv. 38-45), the king extols God's faithfulness (vv. 1-2) and remembers the Lord's unalterable covenant with David (vv. 3-4, 19-26). The Davidic Covenant is renewed at the Christmas event.
* David is said to be mighty only because God elected him (v. 19). Predestination affirmed.
Luke 1:46b-55
(See Advent 3.)
Sermon Text and Title
"God Always Keeps His Promises (Even If He Doesn't Do It Our Way)"
2 Samuel 7:1-11, 16
1. Theological Aim of the Sermon and Strategy
To explain the importance of the Incarnation (how it makes salvation possible and makes God sweet to us), but also how it and God's other promises happen in unexpected ways. The sermon also provides insights about how to understand the Old Testament.
2. Exegesis (see Introduction to Selected Books of the Bible)
* The text is likely the work of Deuteronomistic editing of an earlier source. This text may be an expression of the conflict in Israel that developed over the eventual erection of the Temple.
* David wishes to build a temple, but the prophet Nathan is commissioned by the Lord to inform the king that this task will be undertaken not by him, but by his son [Solomon]. For the present, the Lord desires that the Ark of the Covenant remain in a tent (vv. 1-12).
* Instead the Lord would give David a great name (v. 9). The Davidic Covenant, the promise that his kingdom would endure forever, is established (v. 16).
* With this covenant a father-son relationship is hereby established between Yahweh and David (or his heir) (vv. 13-15).
* These promises and the desire to build a temple have close parallels to ceremonial texts of the royal house in Egypt.
* Parallel passages include Psalm 89:19-37 and 1 Chronicles 24:28-29. The latter text is more about Solomon as the one who implements David's plans to build the Temple.
3. Theological Insights (see Charts of the Major Theological Options)
* Besides prefiguring the Messiah who would preserve the Davidic Covenant in the Davidic line, the text also witnesses to predestination and providence. God determines to work salvation through David as well as when and by whom the Temple will be built. (See the Psalm of the Day.)
* Martin Luther has spoken of the importance of the incarnation, of Jesus' humanity:
It is because of His [Christ's] humanity and His incarnation that Christ becomes sweet to us, and through Him God becomes sweet to us. Let us therefore begin to ascend step by step from Christ's crying in His swaddling clothes up to His passion. Then we shall easily know God. I am saying this so that you do not begin to contemplate God from the top. But start with the weak elements.
(Luther's Works, Vol. 17, p. 331)
The incarnation is also essential to our salvation, because if Jesus were not divine God would not be our Savior, and if not human He cannot have borne our sin.
* Luther claimed that the eternal house of David can only be found in the Messiah through whom David's line continues (Luther's Works, Vol. 47, pp. 199-200, 300-301).
* Concerning stories of the Davidic line in the Old Testament (especially this text), Karl Barth wrote:
The king Jesus Christ is the true subject and hero of these stories of the kings… Because Jesus Christ is the divinely elected king of Israel, it is necessary that the victory and rule of David, the wisdom and wealth of Solomon, the praise given to good kings, should be almost unambiguously expressed in the picture.
(Church Dogmatics, Vol. II/2, p. 391)
* God fulfills His promises in ways we do not expect. But this is also true of Christ. He does not show up as one expects Him to be. Luther makes this point: "Yes, but what the Lord God has in mind is this: Man, you ought to accept Christ just as God sends Him, not as you want Him to be" (Complete Sermons, Vol. 5, p. 81). This is Luther's theology of the Cross.
5. Gimmick
Tell the story: To build a Temple for the Lord, when up to that time the Lord's home (the Ark of the Covenant) had been located in tents would be a great development for the previously nomadic people of Israel (vv. 4-11). But the prophet Nathan comes before the great King David and tells him that this monumental task could not be done by him (vv. 12-13)! Instead, through Nathan, God promises to build a house for David, to make him the father of an eternal kingdom (v. 16). Eventually God built a temple for Himself but not the way David wanted it. And David's kingdom has been eternal but not the way he and the world would have imagined it realized. God keeps His promises but in His own way, not ours!
6. Possible Sermon Moves and/or Stories/Examples
* The promise of David's kingdom being eternal was not kept in the obvious sense. There has been no Davidic king in Israel for nearly 2,600 years. But raise the question if there has not been a king of the Jews, or the world, forever -- certainly since Jesus.
* It is as the evangelical author and radio host Joni Eareckson Toda put it: "God never closes a door without opening a window." David could not build a Temple but occasion was given for his son Solomon to do it. Years later David's heirs are not ruling modern Israel, but the Son of God is ruling as David's heir.
* A greater window was opened to David. It looked like failure. No Temple built; no political kingdom still in place. It looks like failure only because, as Martin Luther noted, human wisdom desires nothing "except that which is high and precious and that which brings honor…" (Complete Sermons, Vol. 1/1, p. 33).
* Luther and Karl Barth claim that it was actually Jesus who makes the events of the Davidic line significant. (See quotations in Theological Insights above.) Would David and Solomon, who were after all monarchs of a second-rate near eastern kingdom, have the sort of renown they have in world history had they not prefigured Jesus? Through Jesus their lives are fulfilled. (We could say this but the Old Testament and its reported events and personalities as a whole, are only significant and authoritative insofar as they point to and prefigure Jesus.)
* The power, authority, and accomplishment promised the Davidic kings are realized in Jesus. God really does keep His promises but in surprising ways and not as we would expect it. You would have thought that an heir to King David would have appeared and exercised more power than Jesus the peasant did. Note that such ruminations bring us back to the human desire to make God conform to our way. God fulfills His promise, the Davidic kingdom is continued in Jesus, but not in our way. We want Christ to embody our own way we think the Messiah should be, not the way God actually sends Him. (Use last Luther quote in Theological Insights.) Keep that in mind if Christmas (Christ's birth) doesn't turn out quite the way you wanted it this year.
* Point out to the congregation why it is important that God kept His promise in ways we could not have imagined. Thus when He promises (in verses elsewhere in the chapter outside our lesson) that there will be an intimate Father-son relationship between Himself and David's heir to build the Temple (Solomon is implied, but not named) (v. 14), we see suggestions that Jesus, the true heir of David, would be Son of God. And just as David is chosen in God's love, not a status he earned by his goodness, so Jesus is chosen by God to assume His divinity and to save us. Think of it: If the promises God made to David in today's lesson had only been realized our way, the way we might think promises to a king would be realized, we would not have the sort of Davidic heir we were given that first Christmas, and so we would not have been saved!
* One other good reason that God keeps His promises but not in our way. God could only keep His promise that the Son of God would be David's heir, become human, if Jesus came first as this sweet vulnerable baby. And as a result God's grace becomes sweeter. Martin Luther nicely described this sweetness. (Use first Luther quotation in Theological Insights.)
A sweet God is One who won't demand perfection in order to be saved and a God who gets in the trenches with us and "surprisingly" saves us.
7. Wrap-Up
Note that this week will have lots of surprises. Things will not proceed exactly as planned. Life is like that. God has promised that Jesus is coming but in ways so surprising that we might not recognize Him. Maybe He and our Lord will show up through friends and family. The good news of today's story of the Davidic Covenant being eternal is a reminder that God always keeps His promises. He will show up! God's coming to us as Jesus was and still is a surprise, but in that sweet little baby, as well as in those other sweet divine surprises of life (love, friendship, success, well-being), we better see how sweet and loving that God of ours is.
Sermon Text and Title
"When You Know Jesus It All Makes Sense"
Romans 16:25-27
1. Theological Aim of the Sermon and Strategy
To help the hearers come to terms with faith in the Incarnation despite doubts; it all makes sense, our lives are likely to be happier and healthier, when we release our presuppositions and approach this set of questions from the perspective of the faith God graciously gives.
2. Exegesis (see Introduction to Selected Books of the Bible)
* A concluding benediction, reflecting a liturgical style not clearly Pauline, and so may be a later appendage.
* The mystery of the Incarnation was long kept secret but is now said to be disclosed through prophetic writings to Gentiles (vv. 25-26).
* Regarding how the prophetic writings (of the Old Testament) disclose Jesus, this is not readily apparent since the Old Testament authors did not know of Jesus (see Theological Insights for the Second Lesson of Advent 3).
3. Theological Insights (see Charts of the Major Theological Options)
* Only from the perspective of faith does the Incarnation make sense. But from that perspective it is a joyful freeing insight. Christ cannot have borne our sin, we would not have forgiveness, the things of the earth would not be redeemed and worthy of enjoyment, if Jesus were not human. And since only God can do these things, Jesus must also be divine.
* Karl Barth was insistent on this point, that we only understand the word concerning Jesus Christ because God Himself elected to unveil it. He wrote:
The revealed word is the mystery not made known to the ages but concealed, Romans 16:25; Colossians 1:26; Ephesians 3:9. In other words, no other reason for its being unveiled can be found or adduced except its actual state of unveiling itself.
(Church Dogmatics, Vol. I/1, p. 133)
* In this regard, Barth affirmed the views of Martin Luther, who wrote on this matter:
Christian faith and Christian life stand in the single literal revelation of God, for where this is not so, no heart can ever rightly be aware of this mystery, which hath been hidden from the world… No creature can come to this knowledge, Christ Himself alone revealeth it to it in the heart itself. There all merit falls to the ground, all powers and abilities of reason, and count nothing with God, Christ alone must give it.
(Ibid., p. 134; cf. Complete Sermons, Vol. 7, pp. 210, 237)
* But all disciplines, even science, operate with certain presuppositions (Thomas Kuhn, The Structure of Scientific Revolutions, pp. 4, 9-10, 36ff; Ludwig Wittgenstein, Philosophical Investigations, pp. 179-180).
* From within the perspective of faith, the Incarnation makes sense, both logically and in terms of how this insight strengthens faith. Karl Barth helps us with the logic of the Incarnation (how Jesus can be divine and human at the same time). Drawing on an activist, Hebraic ontology, he contended that a being is what it does (Church Dogmatics, Vol. IV/1, p. 492). Thus Christ is said to have a human nature because He does all the things humans do and has a divine nature insofar as He does works that only God can do (Ibid., Vol. IV/3, pp. 39ff).
* Luther also explained how the message of Christ strengthens us:
But if you possess faith, your heart cannot do otherwise than laugh for joy and grow free, confident and courageous. For how can the heart remain sorrowful and dejected when it entertains no doubt of God's kindness to it, and of His attitude as a good friend with whom it may unreservedly and freely enjoy all things?
(Complete Sermons, Vol. 3/2, p. 146)
4. Socio-Economic, Political, Psychological, and Scientific Insights
* Cutting-edge research on human brain dynamics in spirituality suggests that commitment to loving God leads to healthier, happier ways of life (Andrew Newberg and Mark Waldman, How God Changes Your Brain).
5. Gimmick
Start with the controversial assertions: The Incarnation, the idea that God has become a human being, makes no sense! You Christians have a crazy idea.
6. Possible Sermon Moves and/or Stories/Examples
* Concede how to reason, the idea that God would become a human being goes against logic. How can the all-powerful God fit in a body? How can Jesus be both divine and human at the same time and still be One? This is in line with Paul's comments in our lesson that the proclamation of Jesus Christ has been long kept secret (v. 25).
* Paul says we can only come to this belief through the revelation of God Himself. Invite the faithful to reflect on how exciting this is. Anytime you believe, Jesus is present with you! Ask the congregation if they believe. With some affirmatives received, proclaim that our Lord is present, right now!
* Even on grounds of ordinary logic, though, Christian claims about the Incarnation are not so impossible. To claim you have to have faith in order to understand the Incarnation is a little like the way science and math work. Certain presuppositions are necessary in any field of knowledge. The proofs of math only function, only have meaning, and are only taken as true insofar as all parties operate with presuppositions that the numeral "2" stands for two entities, and that the realities of the two entities can be assumed. Other signs and their meaning ("+" and "=") must be accepted if math is to make sense. Can't we understand belief in the existence of God as a similar presupposition when considering the field of Christian thinking? Talk abut Jesus makes no sense without that presupposition. But with it, the idea that this God would take on flesh to mediate Himself to us humans begins to make more sense.
* Use the first and next-to-last bullet points of Theological Insights. If Jesus is not divine, God would not be our Savior, and if Jesus were not human, He could not have borne our sin. We can understand His two natures by thinking about how who we are as a function of what happens or is done by us. We are the sum total of these personal interactions. Thus preachers using this book are different people than who they would have been had they never preached. The ideas in this sermon make both reader and author different than they were prior to encountering them. Likewise, what makes Jesus human is that He did the things humans do (is born, eats, dies). But He must be God because He does what only God can do (authoritatively forgive sin [Mark 2:5-7] and raise people from the dead [John 11:38-44]). Remember, if this point about Jesus is understood it is God's work; revel in His presence, making it happen.
* Martin Luther elaborated beautifully on the "so what" of the fact that God became man in Jesus. He notes along with Paul in our lesson how the proclamation of Jesus Christ strengthens us (v. 25). It strengthens our confidence in God's kindness. And that confidence, he adds, leads to a sense of friendship with God, a friendship that leads to joy! Use the Luther quote in Theological Insights.
* Also note that a strengthened confidence in God's kindness and love seems to ensure more joy. Cutting-edge research on human brain dynamics in spirituality suggests that commitment to loving God leads to healthier, happier ways of life (see Social-Economic, Political, Psychological, and Scientific Insights).
7. Wrap-Up
Remind the congregation that to have this Jesus is to have a kind God. And to have such a loving God, such a friend, brings joy, both Luther and modern science say. Christmas is even better for Christians, because we are focusing on Jesus and His testimony to the loving kindness of God!
Sermon Text and Title
"Our Brother, Our Soul-Mate, Jesus, Is Coming"
Luke 1:26-38
1. Theological Aim of the Sermon and Strategy
To appreciate what it means in daily life to believe that God has become incarnate in Christ. We are led to appreciate the intimate relationship we now have with Christ and so with God in virtue of His taking on flesh and being born of a human being like Mary.
2. Exegesis (see Introduction to Selected Books of the Bible Concerning Acts)
* Remarks regarding Historical Background, Central Themes, and Distinct Emphases of Acts apply.
* In the gospel of Luke, additional Central Theses are: (1) The universal genealogy of Jesus (tracing His heritage back to Adam [3:23-28]); (2) Jesus' preoccupation with the poor (a concern reflected much more frequently in Luke than in the other gospels); and (3) A less immediate sense of the coming eschaton than the other Synoptics.
* Main Sections of Luke: (1) Births of John and Jesus (chs. 1-2); (2) Activity of John and Jesus' baptism (3:1-22); (3) Genealogy of Jesus (3:23-28); (4) Temptation of Jesus (4:1-13); (5) His activity in Galilee (4:14--9:50); (6) Events and teachings on the way to Jerusalem (9:51--19:27); (7) The last week in Jerusalem (19:28--23:56); and (8) Resurrection (24).
* The story of the annunciation of the birth of Jesus to Mary by the angel Gabriel. She is hailed as "favored one" (v. 28). The child's name is to be Jesus (v. 31). His greatness, status as Son of God, and His reign over the house of Jacob is revealed (vv. 32-33).
* The mode of the birth through the work of the Holy Spirit is indicated (vv. 34-35).
* It is revealed that Mary's kin Elizabeth is pregnant in old age; nothing is impossible for God (vv. 36-37).
* Mary expresses her obedience to God's will (v. 38).
3. Theological Insights (see Charts of the Major Theological Options)
* Focus on Christology and the significance of the Incarnation.
* John Calvin provided a thoughtful exposition of what the coming of the Son of Man in the flesh entails for us. The Incarnation gives us more confidence in God's love:
This gives us good reason for growing confidence, that we may venture more freely to call God our Father, because His only Son, in order that we might have a Father in common with Him, chose to be our brother.
(Calvin's Commentaries, Vol. XVI, p. 43)
* Calvin also noted that Mary's happiness and righteousness (cf. v. 36) reported in the lesson flow from God's undeserved love. Her virtues and excellence are nothing more than the divine kindness (Calvin's Commentaries, Vol. XVI/1, p. 33).
* Luther also reflected on the importance of Jesus:
Therefore, this gospel deals with the great article about Christ, that we should receive Him, kiss and embrace Him, cling to Him, never allow ourselves to be torn from Him nor Him from us. This is the chief article of Christian doctrine, and on it rests our salvation.
(Complete Sermons, Vol. 5, p. 82)
* In a Christmas sermon Luther claimed that Christ takes our births (under sinful conditions) and absorbs them into His own: "… every Christian may rejoice and glory in Christ's death as if he had himself been born of Mary…" (Complete Sermons, Vol. 1/1, p. 144).
* John Wesley spoke of Jesus as a representative of the whole human race (The Works of John Wesley, Vol. 5, p. 55).
4. Socio-Economic, Political, Psychological, and Scientific Insights
* The mystical images of embracing Christ over time may stimulate the flow of pleasurable chemicals in the brain -- dopamine and perhaps even oxytocin (Andrew Newberg, Why God Won't God Away).
5. Gimmick
Start with the narration of the angel Gabriel's appearance to the Virgin Mary. Details of the Virgin Birth are given. Even the status of the child as Son of God, His name Jesus is revealed. Great story. But what does it mean for everyday life, for the holiday preparation?
6. Possible Sermon Moves and/or Stories/Examples
* We learn from our lesson the planned mode of Jesus' birth to a virgin, that He was special (vv. 31, 35). The lesson elaborates on this, as it was revealed to Mary that her child would be Son of God (v. 35)! That His name would be Jesus (v. 31).
* The name Jesus says something very profound about the child. Jesus is the Greek form of the Hebrew name "Joshua." In Hebrew it means "Savior" or "Jahweh saves!" (Keep that in mind when you call His name.) Mary and we learn an awful lot about Jesus from the annunciation of His birth.
* As we penetrate further into the birth we celebrate this week, the importance of it for everyday life becomes even clearer.
* John Calvin sets the stage for these insights. He praised the Incarnation, the knowledge that God has taken on flesh like ours, for giving us more confidence in God's love! (See Theological Insights for the quotation.) The Incarnation entails that Jesus and we have a common Father. We are brothers (or brothers and sisters).
* As siblings, does that entail that we share a common mother? Martin Luther said that there is a sense in which this is true. As he put it, Christ takes our births, which because of original sin transpired under sinful circumstances, and absorbed them into His own pure life and birth. In that sense, "… every Christian may rejoice and glory in Christ's death [and Life] as if he himself had been born of Mary…" (Complete Sermons, Vol. 1/11, p. 144). Jesus really is our life-giving brother. We are celebrating a family birthday, our own births (spiritual births) this week.
* Jesus is family. His celebration is ours. What does it all mean for everyday life? The sort of intimacy with Jesus described here leads to pleasure. Brain scientists are finding from brain scans that religious experiences of this sort of intimacy lead to the secretion of good-feeling brain dope (see Socio-Economic, Political, Psychological, and Scientific Insights).
* This sort of intimacy with Jesus follows from all we share with Him. As Luther put it, we can cling to, kiss, and embrace Him. (Use last extended quote in Theological Insights.)
7. Wrap-Up
Conclude with a boisterous proclamation: Christmas comes soon! Jesus is coming! Our very own brother, the One with whom we share salvation, is coming! Celebrate! His birth is the birth of joy and salvation for us all. And it feels so good.
Our Savior is coming!
Collect of the Day
A prayer urging Christ to come and free us from sin, making us more eager to receive His promises. The emphasis is on God's act in bringing us Christ to prepare us for Christmas.
Psalm of the Day
Psalm 89:1-4, 19-26
* A royal Psalm of Ethan (perhaps a Levite musician); prayer of a king for deliverance; a national lament.
* Having been defeated in battle (vv. 38-45), the king extols God's faithfulness (vv. 1-2) and remembers the Lord's unalterable covenant with David (vv. 3-4, 19-26). The Davidic Covenant is renewed at the Christmas event.
* David is said to be mighty only because God elected him (v. 19). Predestination affirmed.
Luke 1:46b-55
(See Advent 3.)
Sermon Text and Title
"God Always Keeps His Promises (Even If He Doesn't Do It Our Way)"
2 Samuel 7:1-11, 16
1. Theological Aim of the Sermon and Strategy
To explain the importance of the Incarnation (how it makes salvation possible and makes God sweet to us), but also how it and God's other promises happen in unexpected ways. The sermon also provides insights about how to understand the Old Testament.
2. Exegesis (see Introduction to Selected Books of the Bible)
* The text is likely the work of Deuteronomistic editing of an earlier source. This text may be an expression of the conflict in Israel that developed over the eventual erection of the Temple.
* David wishes to build a temple, but the prophet Nathan is commissioned by the Lord to inform the king that this task will be undertaken not by him, but by his son [Solomon]. For the present, the Lord desires that the Ark of the Covenant remain in a tent (vv. 1-12).
* Instead the Lord would give David a great name (v. 9). The Davidic Covenant, the promise that his kingdom would endure forever, is established (v. 16).
* With this covenant a father-son relationship is hereby established between Yahweh and David (or his heir) (vv. 13-15).
* These promises and the desire to build a temple have close parallels to ceremonial texts of the royal house in Egypt.
* Parallel passages include Psalm 89:19-37 and 1 Chronicles 24:28-29. The latter text is more about Solomon as the one who implements David's plans to build the Temple.
3. Theological Insights (see Charts of the Major Theological Options)
* Besides prefiguring the Messiah who would preserve the Davidic Covenant in the Davidic line, the text also witnesses to predestination and providence. God determines to work salvation through David as well as when and by whom the Temple will be built. (See the Psalm of the Day.)
* Martin Luther has spoken of the importance of the incarnation, of Jesus' humanity:
It is because of His [Christ's] humanity and His incarnation that Christ becomes sweet to us, and through Him God becomes sweet to us. Let us therefore begin to ascend step by step from Christ's crying in His swaddling clothes up to His passion. Then we shall easily know God. I am saying this so that you do not begin to contemplate God from the top. But start with the weak elements.
(Luther's Works, Vol. 17, p. 331)
The incarnation is also essential to our salvation, because if Jesus were not divine God would not be our Savior, and if not human He cannot have borne our sin.
* Luther claimed that the eternal house of David can only be found in the Messiah through whom David's line continues (Luther's Works, Vol. 47, pp. 199-200, 300-301).
* Concerning stories of the Davidic line in the Old Testament (especially this text), Karl Barth wrote:
The king Jesus Christ is the true subject and hero of these stories of the kings… Because Jesus Christ is the divinely elected king of Israel, it is necessary that the victory and rule of David, the wisdom and wealth of Solomon, the praise given to good kings, should be almost unambiguously expressed in the picture.
(Church Dogmatics, Vol. II/2, p. 391)
* God fulfills His promises in ways we do not expect. But this is also true of Christ. He does not show up as one expects Him to be. Luther makes this point: "Yes, but what the Lord God has in mind is this: Man, you ought to accept Christ just as God sends Him, not as you want Him to be" (Complete Sermons, Vol. 5, p. 81). This is Luther's theology of the Cross.
5. Gimmick
Tell the story: To build a Temple for the Lord, when up to that time the Lord's home (the Ark of the Covenant) had been located in tents would be a great development for the previously nomadic people of Israel (vv. 4-11). But the prophet Nathan comes before the great King David and tells him that this monumental task could not be done by him (vv. 12-13)! Instead, through Nathan, God promises to build a house for David, to make him the father of an eternal kingdom (v. 16). Eventually God built a temple for Himself but not the way David wanted it. And David's kingdom has been eternal but not the way he and the world would have imagined it realized. God keeps His promises but in His own way, not ours!
6. Possible Sermon Moves and/or Stories/Examples
* The promise of David's kingdom being eternal was not kept in the obvious sense. There has been no Davidic king in Israel for nearly 2,600 years. But raise the question if there has not been a king of the Jews, or the world, forever -- certainly since Jesus.
* It is as the evangelical author and radio host Joni Eareckson Toda put it: "God never closes a door without opening a window." David could not build a Temple but occasion was given for his son Solomon to do it. Years later David's heirs are not ruling modern Israel, but the Son of God is ruling as David's heir.
* A greater window was opened to David. It looked like failure. No Temple built; no political kingdom still in place. It looks like failure only because, as Martin Luther noted, human wisdom desires nothing "except that which is high and precious and that which brings honor…" (Complete Sermons, Vol. 1/1, p. 33).
* Luther and Karl Barth claim that it was actually Jesus who makes the events of the Davidic line significant. (See quotations in Theological Insights above.) Would David and Solomon, who were after all monarchs of a second-rate near eastern kingdom, have the sort of renown they have in world history had they not prefigured Jesus? Through Jesus their lives are fulfilled. (We could say this but the Old Testament and its reported events and personalities as a whole, are only significant and authoritative insofar as they point to and prefigure Jesus.)
* The power, authority, and accomplishment promised the Davidic kings are realized in Jesus. God really does keep His promises but in surprising ways and not as we would expect it. You would have thought that an heir to King David would have appeared and exercised more power than Jesus the peasant did. Note that such ruminations bring us back to the human desire to make God conform to our way. God fulfills His promise, the Davidic kingdom is continued in Jesus, but not in our way. We want Christ to embody our own way we think the Messiah should be, not the way God actually sends Him. (Use last Luther quote in Theological Insights.) Keep that in mind if Christmas (Christ's birth) doesn't turn out quite the way you wanted it this year.
* Point out to the congregation why it is important that God kept His promise in ways we could not have imagined. Thus when He promises (in verses elsewhere in the chapter outside our lesson) that there will be an intimate Father-son relationship between Himself and David's heir to build the Temple (Solomon is implied, but not named) (v. 14), we see suggestions that Jesus, the true heir of David, would be Son of God. And just as David is chosen in God's love, not a status he earned by his goodness, so Jesus is chosen by God to assume His divinity and to save us. Think of it: If the promises God made to David in today's lesson had only been realized our way, the way we might think promises to a king would be realized, we would not have the sort of Davidic heir we were given that first Christmas, and so we would not have been saved!
* One other good reason that God keeps His promises but not in our way. God could only keep His promise that the Son of God would be David's heir, become human, if Jesus came first as this sweet vulnerable baby. And as a result God's grace becomes sweeter. Martin Luther nicely described this sweetness. (Use first Luther quotation in Theological Insights.)
A sweet God is One who won't demand perfection in order to be saved and a God who gets in the trenches with us and "surprisingly" saves us.
7. Wrap-Up
Note that this week will have lots of surprises. Things will not proceed exactly as planned. Life is like that. God has promised that Jesus is coming but in ways so surprising that we might not recognize Him. Maybe He and our Lord will show up through friends and family. The good news of today's story of the Davidic Covenant being eternal is a reminder that God always keeps His promises. He will show up! God's coming to us as Jesus was and still is a surprise, but in that sweet little baby, as well as in those other sweet divine surprises of life (love, friendship, success, well-being), we better see how sweet and loving that God of ours is.
Sermon Text and Title
"When You Know Jesus It All Makes Sense"
Romans 16:25-27
1. Theological Aim of the Sermon and Strategy
To help the hearers come to terms with faith in the Incarnation despite doubts; it all makes sense, our lives are likely to be happier and healthier, when we release our presuppositions and approach this set of questions from the perspective of the faith God graciously gives.
2. Exegesis (see Introduction to Selected Books of the Bible)
* A concluding benediction, reflecting a liturgical style not clearly Pauline, and so may be a later appendage.
* The mystery of the Incarnation was long kept secret but is now said to be disclosed through prophetic writings to Gentiles (vv. 25-26).
* Regarding how the prophetic writings (of the Old Testament) disclose Jesus, this is not readily apparent since the Old Testament authors did not know of Jesus (see Theological Insights for the Second Lesson of Advent 3).
3. Theological Insights (see Charts of the Major Theological Options)
* Only from the perspective of faith does the Incarnation make sense. But from that perspective it is a joyful freeing insight. Christ cannot have borne our sin, we would not have forgiveness, the things of the earth would not be redeemed and worthy of enjoyment, if Jesus were not human. And since only God can do these things, Jesus must also be divine.
* Karl Barth was insistent on this point, that we only understand the word concerning Jesus Christ because God Himself elected to unveil it. He wrote:
The revealed word is the mystery not made known to the ages but concealed, Romans 16:25; Colossians 1:26; Ephesians 3:9. In other words, no other reason for its being unveiled can be found or adduced except its actual state of unveiling itself.
(Church Dogmatics, Vol. I/1, p. 133)
* In this regard, Barth affirmed the views of Martin Luther, who wrote on this matter:
Christian faith and Christian life stand in the single literal revelation of God, for where this is not so, no heart can ever rightly be aware of this mystery, which hath been hidden from the world… No creature can come to this knowledge, Christ Himself alone revealeth it to it in the heart itself. There all merit falls to the ground, all powers and abilities of reason, and count nothing with God, Christ alone must give it.
(Ibid., p. 134; cf. Complete Sermons, Vol. 7, pp. 210, 237)
* But all disciplines, even science, operate with certain presuppositions (Thomas Kuhn, The Structure of Scientific Revolutions, pp. 4, 9-10, 36ff; Ludwig Wittgenstein, Philosophical Investigations, pp. 179-180).
* From within the perspective of faith, the Incarnation makes sense, both logically and in terms of how this insight strengthens faith. Karl Barth helps us with the logic of the Incarnation (how Jesus can be divine and human at the same time). Drawing on an activist, Hebraic ontology, he contended that a being is what it does (Church Dogmatics, Vol. IV/1, p. 492). Thus Christ is said to have a human nature because He does all the things humans do and has a divine nature insofar as He does works that only God can do (Ibid., Vol. IV/3, pp. 39ff).
* Luther also explained how the message of Christ strengthens us:
But if you possess faith, your heart cannot do otherwise than laugh for joy and grow free, confident and courageous. For how can the heart remain sorrowful and dejected when it entertains no doubt of God's kindness to it, and of His attitude as a good friend with whom it may unreservedly and freely enjoy all things?
(Complete Sermons, Vol. 3/2, p. 146)
4. Socio-Economic, Political, Psychological, and Scientific Insights
* Cutting-edge research on human brain dynamics in spirituality suggests that commitment to loving God leads to healthier, happier ways of life (Andrew Newberg and Mark Waldman, How God Changes Your Brain).
5. Gimmick
Start with the controversial assertions: The Incarnation, the idea that God has become a human being, makes no sense! You Christians have a crazy idea.
6. Possible Sermon Moves and/or Stories/Examples
* Concede how to reason, the idea that God would become a human being goes against logic. How can the all-powerful God fit in a body? How can Jesus be both divine and human at the same time and still be One? This is in line with Paul's comments in our lesson that the proclamation of Jesus Christ has been long kept secret (v. 25).
* Paul says we can only come to this belief through the revelation of God Himself. Invite the faithful to reflect on how exciting this is. Anytime you believe, Jesus is present with you! Ask the congregation if they believe. With some affirmatives received, proclaim that our Lord is present, right now!
* Even on grounds of ordinary logic, though, Christian claims about the Incarnation are not so impossible. To claim you have to have faith in order to understand the Incarnation is a little like the way science and math work. Certain presuppositions are necessary in any field of knowledge. The proofs of math only function, only have meaning, and are only taken as true insofar as all parties operate with presuppositions that the numeral "2" stands for two entities, and that the realities of the two entities can be assumed. Other signs and their meaning ("+" and "=") must be accepted if math is to make sense. Can't we understand belief in the existence of God as a similar presupposition when considering the field of Christian thinking? Talk abut Jesus makes no sense without that presupposition. But with it, the idea that this God would take on flesh to mediate Himself to us humans begins to make more sense.
* Use the first and next-to-last bullet points of Theological Insights. If Jesus is not divine, God would not be our Savior, and if Jesus were not human, He could not have borne our sin. We can understand His two natures by thinking about how who we are as a function of what happens or is done by us. We are the sum total of these personal interactions. Thus preachers using this book are different people than who they would have been had they never preached. The ideas in this sermon make both reader and author different than they were prior to encountering them. Likewise, what makes Jesus human is that He did the things humans do (is born, eats, dies). But He must be God because He does what only God can do (authoritatively forgive sin [Mark 2:5-7] and raise people from the dead [John 11:38-44]). Remember, if this point about Jesus is understood it is God's work; revel in His presence, making it happen.
* Martin Luther elaborated beautifully on the "so what" of the fact that God became man in Jesus. He notes along with Paul in our lesson how the proclamation of Jesus Christ strengthens us (v. 25). It strengthens our confidence in God's kindness. And that confidence, he adds, leads to a sense of friendship with God, a friendship that leads to joy! Use the Luther quote in Theological Insights.
* Also note that a strengthened confidence in God's kindness and love seems to ensure more joy. Cutting-edge research on human brain dynamics in spirituality suggests that commitment to loving God leads to healthier, happier ways of life (see Social-Economic, Political, Psychological, and Scientific Insights).
7. Wrap-Up
Remind the congregation that to have this Jesus is to have a kind God. And to have such a loving God, such a friend, brings joy, both Luther and modern science say. Christmas is even better for Christians, because we are focusing on Jesus and His testimony to the loving kindness of God!
Sermon Text and Title
"Our Brother, Our Soul-Mate, Jesus, Is Coming"
Luke 1:26-38
1. Theological Aim of the Sermon and Strategy
To appreciate what it means in daily life to believe that God has become incarnate in Christ. We are led to appreciate the intimate relationship we now have with Christ and so with God in virtue of His taking on flesh and being born of a human being like Mary.
2. Exegesis (see Introduction to Selected Books of the Bible Concerning Acts)
* Remarks regarding Historical Background, Central Themes, and Distinct Emphases of Acts apply.
* In the gospel of Luke, additional Central Theses are: (1) The universal genealogy of Jesus (tracing His heritage back to Adam [3:23-28]); (2) Jesus' preoccupation with the poor (a concern reflected much more frequently in Luke than in the other gospels); and (3) A less immediate sense of the coming eschaton than the other Synoptics.
* Main Sections of Luke: (1) Births of John and Jesus (chs. 1-2); (2) Activity of John and Jesus' baptism (3:1-22); (3) Genealogy of Jesus (3:23-28); (4) Temptation of Jesus (4:1-13); (5) His activity in Galilee (4:14--9:50); (6) Events and teachings on the way to Jerusalem (9:51--19:27); (7) The last week in Jerusalem (19:28--23:56); and (8) Resurrection (24).
* The story of the annunciation of the birth of Jesus to Mary by the angel Gabriel. She is hailed as "favored one" (v. 28). The child's name is to be Jesus (v. 31). His greatness, status as Son of God, and His reign over the house of Jacob is revealed (vv. 32-33).
* The mode of the birth through the work of the Holy Spirit is indicated (vv. 34-35).
* It is revealed that Mary's kin Elizabeth is pregnant in old age; nothing is impossible for God (vv. 36-37).
* Mary expresses her obedience to God's will (v. 38).
3. Theological Insights (see Charts of the Major Theological Options)
* Focus on Christology and the significance of the Incarnation.
* John Calvin provided a thoughtful exposition of what the coming of the Son of Man in the flesh entails for us. The Incarnation gives us more confidence in God's love:
This gives us good reason for growing confidence, that we may venture more freely to call God our Father, because His only Son, in order that we might have a Father in common with Him, chose to be our brother.
(Calvin's Commentaries, Vol. XVI, p. 43)
* Calvin also noted that Mary's happiness and righteousness (cf. v. 36) reported in the lesson flow from God's undeserved love. Her virtues and excellence are nothing more than the divine kindness (Calvin's Commentaries, Vol. XVI/1, p. 33).
* Luther also reflected on the importance of Jesus:
Therefore, this gospel deals with the great article about Christ, that we should receive Him, kiss and embrace Him, cling to Him, never allow ourselves to be torn from Him nor Him from us. This is the chief article of Christian doctrine, and on it rests our salvation.
(Complete Sermons, Vol. 5, p. 82)
* In a Christmas sermon Luther claimed that Christ takes our births (under sinful conditions) and absorbs them into His own: "… every Christian may rejoice and glory in Christ's death as if he had himself been born of Mary…" (Complete Sermons, Vol. 1/1, p. 144).
* John Wesley spoke of Jesus as a representative of the whole human race (The Works of John Wesley, Vol. 5, p. 55).
4. Socio-Economic, Political, Psychological, and Scientific Insights
* The mystical images of embracing Christ over time may stimulate the flow of pleasurable chemicals in the brain -- dopamine and perhaps even oxytocin (Andrew Newberg, Why God Won't God Away).
5. Gimmick
Start with the narration of the angel Gabriel's appearance to the Virgin Mary. Details of the Virgin Birth are given. Even the status of the child as Son of God, His name Jesus is revealed. Great story. But what does it mean for everyday life, for the holiday preparation?
6. Possible Sermon Moves and/or Stories/Examples
* We learn from our lesson the planned mode of Jesus' birth to a virgin, that He was special (vv. 31, 35). The lesson elaborates on this, as it was revealed to Mary that her child would be Son of God (v. 35)! That His name would be Jesus (v. 31).
* The name Jesus says something very profound about the child. Jesus is the Greek form of the Hebrew name "Joshua." In Hebrew it means "Savior" or "Jahweh saves!" (Keep that in mind when you call His name.) Mary and we learn an awful lot about Jesus from the annunciation of His birth.
* As we penetrate further into the birth we celebrate this week, the importance of it for everyday life becomes even clearer.
* John Calvin sets the stage for these insights. He praised the Incarnation, the knowledge that God has taken on flesh like ours, for giving us more confidence in God's love! (See Theological Insights for the quotation.) The Incarnation entails that Jesus and we have a common Father. We are brothers (or brothers and sisters).
* As siblings, does that entail that we share a common mother? Martin Luther said that there is a sense in which this is true. As he put it, Christ takes our births, which because of original sin transpired under sinful circumstances, and absorbed them into His own pure life and birth. In that sense, "… every Christian may rejoice and glory in Christ's death [and Life] as if he himself had been born of Mary…" (Complete Sermons, Vol. 1/11, p. 144). Jesus really is our life-giving brother. We are celebrating a family birthday, our own births (spiritual births) this week.
* Jesus is family. His celebration is ours. What does it all mean for everyday life? The sort of intimacy with Jesus described here leads to pleasure. Brain scientists are finding from brain scans that religious experiences of this sort of intimacy lead to the secretion of good-feeling brain dope (see Socio-Economic, Political, Psychological, and Scientific Insights).
* This sort of intimacy with Jesus follows from all we share with Him. As Luther put it, we can cling to, kiss, and embrace Him. (Use last extended quote in Theological Insights.)
7. Wrap-Up
Conclude with a boisterous proclamation: Christmas comes soon! Jesus is coming! Our very own brother, the One with whom we share salvation, is coming! Celebrate! His birth is the birth of joy and salvation for us all. And it feels so good.
