Second Sunday In Advent
Preaching
Lectionary Preaching Workbook
Series VI, Cycle C
Object:
COMMENTARY ON THE LESSONS
Lesson 1: Malachi 3:1-4 (C)
For those who always include an Old Testament passage in worship, this is the appropriate one for next Sunday. However, it was probably written about 460 B.C., give or take, and is not likely to be your choice for the main sermon passage. The theme of this passage is essentially that of the Gospel passage, the promise of God's forthcoming presence for the purpose of refining the people. The messenger brings this news which will ultimately be good news, but is probably going to bring dismay first of all. This might be of interest to a study group, but is not going to excite a turn of the millennium congregation. We'll concentrate on Paul and Luke.
Lesson 1: Baruch 5:1-9 (RC, E)
Lesson 2: Philippians 1:3-11 (C); Philippians 1:3-6, 8-11 (RC); Philippians 1:1-11 (E)
Paul, writing from prison, sorely misses his friends in Philippi. He prays for them, that their love may overflow, that they may use good judgment in knowing and doing what is right, that God's righteous will might be fulfilled in them. Although Paul has written in a jovial, joyous mood, he does raise some issues which we must solemnly ponder. His message is, essentially, that a Christian's life is to be a sacrifice to God. That's an admirable goal. But the great majority of us are much too involved in the give and take of everyday life to genuinely make such a commitment -- unless we can agree that to tackle the problems of life, working, raising children, doing housework, maintaining the home, and all the other demanding tasks, like seeing your doctor, getting the kids off the school, then to the soccer game, and just generally being a good citizen and loving spouse, parent, and friend, are part of that commitment.
Our church newsletter contained a quote by Herman Wouk:
Perhaps for saints and for truly holy folk ... fully conscious prayer is really an everyday thing. For the ordinary worshiper, the rewards of a lifetime of faithful praying come at unpredictable times, scattered through the years, when all at once the liturgy glows with fire. Such an hour may come after a birth; it may flood the soul at the time of a death or at no marked time, for no marked reason. It comes, and he or she knows why they have prayed all their lives.
We all must cope with the demands of everyday living, and it seems to me that it is in our common life, every bit as much as in our religious life, that we honor God and do the divine will.
Gospel Lesson: Luke 3:1-6 (C, RC, E)
Enter John the Baptist. I must be honest at the outset and admit that I have never cared much for John. I have never liked In-Your-Face preaching styles very much. In preparation for this book I have listened to many preachers, men and women of several denominations, including some radio and television evangelists. While I'm aware there are many people who are persuaded by blunt, sometimes angry sermons, I'm not one and frankly can't understand how anyone can benefit. Oh, certainly there are times when we must preach a hard gospel. Peter Marshall's colorful words about the prophet Elijah come to mind: "His words had blades in them." But any time we plan to preach doom of one kind or another, we'd better be sure we either use the word "we" and not "you" or else we'd better be sure our own lives are in 100 percent perfect order -- which not many are. I think of two fiery orators from around here -- one left the church in disgrace, one resigned with serious emotional problems.
But now, we seem to have an exception. John's life was exemplary. John Miller, Professor Emeritus of Religious Studies at the University of Waterloo in Ontario, writing in a provocative book, Jesus At Thirty, claims that those who responded most enthusiastically to John's message were the down and outers, the prostitutes, the alcoholics, the petty criminals. And also, he writes: "That Jesus joined those alienated masses in their trek to John, as our sources tell us he did, would tell us that he, too, at this time of his life, was one of them and was searching for religious alternatives -- that he too was moved by John's fiery call to repentance and the promise of forgiveness of sins through baptism."
We'll get back to the effect of all of this later. The point here is that John was a legitimate preacher of the promise of consequences of misdoing, together with the promise of forgiveness and new life, and that he exerted a profound influence on Jesus, as well as on those troubled souls who felt alienated from the mainstream of Jewish religion. Miller contends that it was here, and now, at the sound of John's words, that Jesus first began to discover who he was. At the baptism, soon to follow, Jesus would receive the vision which would reveal at last his destiny.
SERMON SUGGESTIONS
Title: "I Remember You"
Text: Philippians 1:3-11
Theme: Paul loved his people of Philippi, and so he prayed for them. Thus, Paul displayed his conviction that intercessory prayer has power. His example commends itself to us as well. We who have children far from our homes; those with troubled children; all who are married; those with aging parents; we who value our friends -- and others about whom we care, Paul would, by example, urge us to pray for them all.
1. We pray that their love may overflow (v. 9). Sometimes, people struggle with unhappiness because they do not know how to give love. One secret of a happy life is this: if one wishes to be happy, it will result from loving, not just from being loved. Reuel Howe said, "When someone asks me how to find someone who will love me, I tell them 'Go find someone you can love and then perhaps you will be loved.' " If we genuinely love someone, we serve him best by praying that he has -- or develops -- a loving heart.
2. We pray that they may have wisdom for their lives (v. 9). We all know people who, in all good spirit and even lovingness, make silly choices. Not that we want to pray that anyone be robbed of an irrepressible spirit, or a fun-loving approach to life. But we do pray that they make wise choices. I sometimes play golf with a friend whose college-age son, a few years ago, took a dare, and tried to swim across a fast-moving river. He drowned. That father will grieve as long as he lives. That boy, a fine young man with a marvelous future, made a silly choice on impulse.
3. We pray that they may learn the right way through Jesus (v. 10, 11). I am convinced there can be no true happiness or joy for anyone who does not try to live a blameless life. Of course we all slip from time to time, so forgiveness is essential. We learn the way of a blameless life, and we receive forgiveness through our faith in Jesus Christ.
Title: "Prepare Yourself"
Text: Luke 3:1-6
Theme: In the fourth through sixth verses, Luke is quoting from Isaiah 40:3-5. This was an instruction to those who would precede the king on journeys among his people, instructions to prepare the way -- literally, to prepare their own hearts and lives. That's what is really being said here: a king is coming; prepare yourself. Now, for us, we are preparing to reenact in our own lives the birth of the Savior. I hope that blessed Babe will find a birth place in my life and yours -- and in those of our people. Do you remember the painting which is hanging in Westminster Abbey in London, the one called Christ At Heart's Door? It shows Jesus carrying a lantern, the light of the world, standing at a peasant's cottage, knocking on the door. When the painting was first displayed to a group of onlookers, one of them pointed out to the artist that he had neglected to paint a handle on the door. "I know," the artist is said to have replied. "That's the point. That is heart's door and it can only be opened from within."
That says it, doesn't it? He comes to us with the promise of release from the confines of sin and darkness, comes with light and hope and newness of life. He stops at the door and knocks; but our lives can only be opened to him from within.
1. Jesus stands at the entrance to your life. No one is excluded. No matter what one may have done, whatever our sins, how loathsome one's history. At the moment of his arrival, the possibility of totally new life is ours. We do not have to pay any price at all. That price has already been paid. We have only to open the door to our hearts and welcome him. J. Wallace Hamilton said it:
What humbles me to the dust and
Bows down my soul with awe and adoration,
Is that the mighty God in whose hands
Is all power in heaven and earth.
Who might, if He were less great,
By overwhelming will
Break down my will,
Comes rather to my heart's door, and
Stops there to knock.
2. The time is now to prepare the way. We have some time before we celebrate Christmas. We can, of course, get so consumed in the party-decorating-present-buying aspect of Christmas that Jesus must move on. But there is still time. Certainly, there is nothing wrong with the fun aspect of Christmas: parties, colorful lights, the fragrance of evergreen trees, the laughter of small children. But there must be adequate time for prayer, for reflection about life, for new resolves. There must be an opening of my heart's door to other people, to someone or some people whose need is great, people whose life I can bless in tangible ways. Thoughtful acts of agape love should mark my life each day, if Jesus would find my heart prepared for the greatest gift of all. Last year, as I was walking down the hallway of the church I was attending, a young woman came to me and introduced herself. We had recently introduced a new program of ministry to needy families. She said to me: "My husband and I helped a mother and her children this Christmas. I don't know how much we may have blessed their lives, but for me it was the most wonderful experience I have ever had." Aha. She didn't do it for that reason, but Jesus entered into her heart that season.
3. God will see to it that this is a memorable Christmas if you prepare the way in your heart. Isn't it a wonder, God never disappoints us. Turn the emphasis from an effort to find happiness into an effort to give happiness, and wonders will unfold. To your amazement, that happiness which does not leave you gasping, "I'm so glad when Christmas is over," on December 26 will be yours.
ADDITIONAL ILLUSTRATIONS:
"How odd of God
To choose the Jews."
-- Housman
"But not so odd
As those who choose
The Jewish God
And spurn the Jews."
-- Anonymous
"Your edict, King, was strong,
But all your strength is weakness itself against
The immortal unrecorded laws of God.
They are not merely now: they were, and shall be,
Operative for ever, beyond man utterly."
-- Antigone (by Sophocles)
____________
"Is it possible, I wonder, to say that it is only when you hear the Gospel as a wild and marvelous joke that you really hear it at all? Heard as anything else, the Gospel is the church's thing, the preacher's thing, the lecturer's thing. Heard as a joke -- high and unbidden and ringing with laughter -- it can only be God's thing."
-- Frederick Buechner
____________
Many years ago, I shared in performing a wedding ceremony with Dr. Henry Hitt Crane, one of America's best known preachers back in the '40s and '50s. As we sat in my office, he the distinguished and celebrated preacher and author, I the neophyte pastor, Dr. Crane, then eighty years old, shared something with me, what he depicted as a distillation of all his learning and experience of the Christian faith. He said this: "The older I get, the more certain I feel that the meaning of the gospel is summarized in just one matter: how I treat other people. If there isn't love there, then the whole thing means nothing."
____________
Psalm Of The Day
Luke 1:68-79 -- "Blessed be the Lord God of Israel."
Prayer Of The Day
Dear and loving God, our days are filled with frantic activities. Earning a living isn't easy for some of us. Discouragement and weariness settle in us sometimes and we lose heart. Down deep, however, we know there is One who stands ready to bring new energy, new hope into our spirits. Grant, then, that we not lose touch with that renewing Spirit. We pray in the holy name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Lesson 1: Malachi 3:1-4 (C)
For those who always include an Old Testament passage in worship, this is the appropriate one for next Sunday. However, it was probably written about 460 B.C., give or take, and is not likely to be your choice for the main sermon passage. The theme of this passage is essentially that of the Gospel passage, the promise of God's forthcoming presence for the purpose of refining the people. The messenger brings this news which will ultimately be good news, but is probably going to bring dismay first of all. This might be of interest to a study group, but is not going to excite a turn of the millennium congregation. We'll concentrate on Paul and Luke.
Lesson 1: Baruch 5:1-9 (RC, E)
Lesson 2: Philippians 1:3-11 (C); Philippians 1:3-6, 8-11 (RC); Philippians 1:1-11 (E)
Paul, writing from prison, sorely misses his friends in Philippi. He prays for them, that their love may overflow, that they may use good judgment in knowing and doing what is right, that God's righteous will might be fulfilled in them. Although Paul has written in a jovial, joyous mood, he does raise some issues which we must solemnly ponder. His message is, essentially, that a Christian's life is to be a sacrifice to God. That's an admirable goal. But the great majority of us are much too involved in the give and take of everyday life to genuinely make such a commitment -- unless we can agree that to tackle the problems of life, working, raising children, doing housework, maintaining the home, and all the other demanding tasks, like seeing your doctor, getting the kids off the school, then to the soccer game, and just generally being a good citizen and loving spouse, parent, and friend, are part of that commitment.
Our church newsletter contained a quote by Herman Wouk:
Perhaps for saints and for truly holy folk ... fully conscious prayer is really an everyday thing. For the ordinary worshiper, the rewards of a lifetime of faithful praying come at unpredictable times, scattered through the years, when all at once the liturgy glows with fire. Such an hour may come after a birth; it may flood the soul at the time of a death or at no marked time, for no marked reason. It comes, and he or she knows why they have prayed all their lives.
We all must cope with the demands of everyday living, and it seems to me that it is in our common life, every bit as much as in our religious life, that we honor God and do the divine will.
Gospel Lesson: Luke 3:1-6 (C, RC, E)
Enter John the Baptist. I must be honest at the outset and admit that I have never cared much for John. I have never liked In-Your-Face preaching styles very much. In preparation for this book I have listened to many preachers, men and women of several denominations, including some radio and television evangelists. While I'm aware there are many people who are persuaded by blunt, sometimes angry sermons, I'm not one and frankly can't understand how anyone can benefit. Oh, certainly there are times when we must preach a hard gospel. Peter Marshall's colorful words about the prophet Elijah come to mind: "His words had blades in them." But any time we plan to preach doom of one kind or another, we'd better be sure we either use the word "we" and not "you" or else we'd better be sure our own lives are in 100 percent perfect order -- which not many are. I think of two fiery orators from around here -- one left the church in disgrace, one resigned with serious emotional problems.
But now, we seem to have an exception. John's life was exemplary. John Miller, Professor Emeritus of Religious Studies at the University of Waterloo in Ontario, writing in a provocative book, Jesus At Thirty, claims that those who responded most enthusiastically to John's message were the down and outers, the prostitutes, the alcoholics, the petty criminals. And also, he writes: "That Jesus joined those alienated masses in their trek to John, as our sources tell us he did, would tell us that he, too, at this time of his life, was one of them and was searching for religious alternatives -- that he too was moved by John's fiery call to repentance and the promise of forgiveness of sins through baptism."
We'll get back to the effect of all of this later. The point here is that John was a legitimate preacher of the promise of consequences of misdoing, together with the promise of forgiveness and new life, and that he exerted a profound influence on Jesus, as well as on those troubled souls who felt alienated from the mainstream of Jewish religion. Miller contends that it was here, and now, at the sound of John's words, that Jesus first began to discover who he was. At the baptism, soon to follow, Jesus would receive the vision which would reveal at last his destiny.
SERMON SUGGESTIONS
Title: "I Remember You"
Text: Philippians 1:3-11
Theme: Paul loved his people of Philippi, and so he prayed for them. Thus, Paul displayed his conviction that intercessory prayer has power. His example commends itself to us as well. We who have children far from our homes; those with troubled children; all who are married; those with aging parents; we who value our friends -- and others about whom we care, Paul would, by example, urge us to pray for them all.
1. We pray that their love may overflow (v. 9). Sometimes, people struggle with unhappiness because they do not know how to give love. One secret of a happy life is this: if one wishes to be happy, it will result from loving, not just from being loved. Reuel Howe said, "When someone asks me how to find someone who will love me, I tell them 'Go find someone you can love and then perhaps you will be loved.' " If we genuinely love someone, we serve him best by praying that he has -- or develops -- a loving heart.
2. We pray that they may have wisdom for their lives (v. 9). We all know people who, in all good spirit and even lovingness, make silly choices. Not that we want to pray that anyone be robbed of an irrepressible spirit, or a fun-loving approach to life. But we do pray that they make wise choices. I sometimes play golf with a friend whose college-age son, a few years ago, took a dare, and tried to swim across a fast-moving river. He drowned. That father will grieve as long as he lives. That boy, a fine young man with a marvelous future, made a silly choice on impulse.
3. We pray that they may learn the right way through Jesus (v. 10, 11). I am convinced there can be no true happiness or joy for anyone who does not try to live a blameless life. Of course we all slip from time to time, so forgiveness is essential. We learn the way of a blameless life, and we receive forgiveness through our faith in Jesus Christ.
Title: "Prepare Yourself"
Text: Luke 3:1-6
Theme: In the fourth through sixth verses, Luke is quoting from Isaiah 40:3-5. This was an instruction to those who would precede the king on journeys among his people, instructions to prepare the way -- literally, to prepare their own hearts and lives. That's what is really being said here: a king is coming; prepare yourself. Now, for us, we are preparing to reenact in our own lives the birth of the Savior. I hope that blessed Babe will find a birth place in my life and yours -- and in those of our people. Do you remember the painting which is hanging in Westminster Abbey in London, the one called Christ At Heart's Door? It shows Jesus carrying a lantern, the light of the world, standing at a peasant's cottage, knocking on the door. When the painting was first displayed to a group of onlookers, one of them pointed out to the artist that he had neglected to paint a handle on the door. "I know," the artist is said to have replied. "That's the point. That is heart's door and it can only be opened from within."
That says it, doesn't it? He comes to us with the promise of release from the confines of sin and darkness, comes with light and hope and newness of life. He stops at the door and knocks; but our lives can only be opened to him from within.
1. Jesus stands at the entrance to your life. No one is excluded. No matter what one may have done, whatever our sins, how loathsome one's history. At the moment of his arrival, the possibility of totally new life is ours. We do not have to pay any price at all. That price has already been paid. We have only to open the door to our hearts and welcome him. J. Wallace Hamilton said it:
What humbles me to the dust and
Bows down my soul with awe and adoration,
Is that the mighty God in whose hands
Is all power in heaven and earth.
Who might, if He were less great,
By overwhelming will
Break down my will,
Comes rather to my heart's door, and
Stops there to knock.
2. The time is now to prepare the way. We have some time before we celebrate Christmas. We can, of course, get so consumed in the party-decorating-present-buying aspect of Christmas that Jesus must move on. But there is still time. Certainly, there is nothing wrong with the fun aspect of Christmas: parties, colorful lights, the fragrance of evergreen trees, the laughter of small children. But there must be adequate time for prayer, for reflection about life, for new resolves. There must be an opening of my heart's door to other people, to someone or some people whose need is great, people whose life I can bless in tangible ways. Thoughtful acts of agape love should mark my life each day, if Jesus would find my heart prepared for the greatest gift of all. Last year, as I was walking down the hallway of the church I was attending, a young woman came to me and introduced herself. We had recently introduced a new program of ministry to needy families. She said to me: "My husband and I helped a mother and her children this Christmas. I don't know how much we may have blessed their lives, but for me it was the most wonderful experience I have ever had." Aha. She didn't do it for that reason, but Jesus entered into her heart that season.
3. God will see to it that this is a memorable Christmas if you prepare the way in your heart. Isn't it a wonder, God never disappoints us. Turn the emphasis from an effort to find happiness into an effort to give happiness, and wonders will unfold. To your amazement, that happiness which does not leave you gasping, "I'm so glad when Christmas is over," on December 26 will be yours.
ADDITIONAL ILLUSTRATIONS:
"How odd of God
To choose the Jews."
-- Housman
"But not so odd
As those who choose
The Jewish God
And spurn the Jews."
-- Anonymous
"Your edict, King, was strong,
But all your strength is weakness itself against
The immortal unrecorded laws of God.
They are not merely now: they were, and shall be,
Operative for ever, beyond man utterly."
-- Antigone (by Sophocles)
____________
"Is it possible, I wonder, to say that it is only when you hear the Gospel as a wild and marvelous joke that you really hear it at all? Heard as anything else, the Gospel is the church's thing, the preacher's thing, the lecturer's thing. Heard as a joke -- high and unbidden and ringing with laughter -- it can only be God's thing."
-- Frederick Buechner
____________
Many years ago, I shared in performing a wedding ceremony with Dr. Henry Hitt Crane, one of America's best known preachers back in the '40s and '50s. As we sat in my office, he the distinguished and celebrated preacher and author, I the neophyte pastor, Dr. Crane, then eighty years old, shared something with me, what he depicted as a distillation of all his learning and experience of the Christian faith. He said this: "The older I get, the more certain I feel that the meaning of the gospel is summarized in just one matter: how I treat other people. If there isn't love there, then the whole thing means nothing."
____________
Psalm Of The Day
Luke 1:68-79 -- "Blessed be the Lord God of Israel."
Prayer Of The Day
Dear and loving God, our days are filled with frantic activities. Earning a living isn't easy for some of us. Discouragement and weariness settle in us sometimes and we lose heart. Down deep, however, we know there is One who stands ready to bring new energy, new hope into our spirits. Grant, then, that we not lose touch with that renewing Spirit. We pray in the holy name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
