The Joy of 3rd Advent

3rd Advent 2011 Stir up your power oh Lord and with great might come among us; John affirms he is not the Messiah and that he is the forerunner to Jesus announcing His coming... Again we heard the confirmation of the prophetic words of the Messiah. John has created an interest and word has gotten out. The Pharisees and the Sanhedrin are interested in finding out what John is doing and who he is. There is an expectation of hope in the question. Could John be the one who is to come.

Expected Joy to Come

o Waiting in anticipation, welling up excitement in anticipation. Expectation of the something that you have been waiting.

o Preparing for that day

What are some of the expected joys you have waited to see…

o It could be the joy of the arrival of baby in the family

o It could be the joy of seeing someone you have not seen for a long time – we see this lot with our returning troops.

o There is a joy Tillie has when see the Christmas cactus in bloom. She struggles to tend to the plant and waiting for it blooms. One year it bloomed in February.

o It could be the joy of watching as a beautiful rose begins to open and waiting for the day it comes to full bloom.

Unexpected Joy that Come:

o The surprise of the unannounced returning soldier.

o Me when I came to visit my mother after my senior year in high school

o Maybe it is the unexpected joy of seeing a rainbow and being reminded of God’s presence and promises.

Awaiting the Messiah

If we look close this is what we can see in our Gospel this morning. It is the awaiting of the expected and the unexpected joy of the Messiah.

Israel had been awaiting the Messiah to redeem them. The Messiah would be the one who free them from the political oppression of the government and return their land to them. It was about God fulfilling His covenant promises and the reestablishing them as a nation.

Our scriptures this morning are filled with the promises of joy and what would happen when God reestablished their kingdom. They are filled the promises of God who is interactive in lives of all. It is the promise that He has not forgotten rather that He is present.

God foretells His coming.

John the Baptist in the wilderness. News has travelled to about what he is doing and it has aroused the Jews (meaning the Sanhedrin) who sent priests and Levites to the find out about him and who he was? They were awaiting the Messiah and they were wondering if John might be him or the forerunner.

5 "Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the great and awesome day of the LORD comes.

3 A voice cries: "In the wilderness prepare the way of the LORD; make straight in the desert a highway for our God.

For them these words should have brought joy knowing the Messiah was here. However when they heard that John was neither Elijah nor the Messiah they questioned. Yet in the same mode, John may not be Elijah yet he has the same mission as Elijah and is being used by God to prepare the way. They missed what God was doing in their midst because they set their minds on what they envisioned rather than what God was revealing.

How do we find that Joy? Where does that kind of joy come from?

The first way is by seeing what God is doing around us. It is to have open eyes to see God’s hand around you and me. The Gospel opened with the Levites coming to John and asking him if he is the Messiah. And they question what he is doing. They are curious if he is the Messiah or the prophet Elijah who is to come before the Messiah. Their eyes were open to see what was happening but their hearts were not understanding.

I wonder how many times we are like that. I wonder how many times I am like that. How many times do we see things around us without understanding and we are hesitant to accept or we take it for granted as if it wasn’t anything spectacular; like seeing a rainbow? Recently I have seen a number of rainbows…it is strange for this time of year. It is suppose to be the dry time of the year… When I see the rainbow I look at its beauty but then I also see and am reminded of God of His covenant with humanity. It is a promise that made and it is a reminder of that promise. We can either see just a rainbow or we can see a rainbow and be reminded that God cares for us and of His promises – past and future. That His word is true and that He is faithful.

This was the joy that John had and knew. That God is faithful and the promise of the Messiah was being fulfilled. He saw what God was doing and John found joy in knowing that God was using him to fulfill the promise. It was not about himself – it was about announcing God proclamation to the world – to Israel the Messiah was here.

John's mission Last Sunday we heard John proclaim... "Prepare the way for one who is greater than me." John understood his part in God's plan. He was to be the clarion for Messiah... The one who proclaim and announce Him... He was the one called to prepare the hearts for the one who was coming.

God's plan "Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations." and the LORD took me from following the flock, and the LORD said to me, `Go, prophesy to my people Israel.' God has a great plan. He has a plan for his creation and the restoration of His creation to Himself. The plan is for us to be reconciled to Him and He has done this through His Son Jesus. John the Baptist understood God's plan and he was willing to be used as a vessel by God for the fulfillment of that plan. For John this brought both joy and hardship but the joy far outweighed the hardship. For John the Baptist it was knowing that God - the creator of the heavens and the earth had counted him worthy enough to invite him to be a part of that plan. And John gave his all to do what God had called him to do. Announcing that salvation was at hand… The second point is our Receiving the expectant joy…

When we recognize and see that God is working around we can have that expectant joy of His promises being true and steadfast. That we can hold onto to His word with an expectant joy that what He said He would do He will. Our reading in Isaiah and the Psalm help us see this point.

Here within these scriptures we see the promise of restoration and salvation:

o The restoration given through Jesus- The Spirit of the Lord being upon Him.

o Heal the blind, the oppressed, the broken-hearted recognizing the need for God have a broken-heart that is humble to Him – the assurance), to set us free from the separation from Him

o Then notice the promise of God to those who follow:

o A garland instead of ashes

o Oil of gladness instead of mourning

o A mantle of praise instead of a faint spirit.

It is about God’s work and restoration. It is about God being active in the lives of those who see His hand at work and receive Him. The joy comes in know that God has not abandoned humanity rather He is in the restoration business – restoring and reconciling humanity to Himself.

It is about restoration: His promise to restore – in the Psalm

o The fortunes of Zion, mouths filled with laughter, God in their midst, joy instead of tears…

The third way is embracing that promises and the joy that comes with the promises.

Today is the third Sunday in Advent. It is the day of proclaiming Joy - Christ is near... Christ is nigh. John saw the beginning of Jesus in Judea... And we like John are invited by God to share the joy of His Son to the world. We are invited to share the joy of the birth of His Son - Jesus to the world. Where is our joy found? Do we share the same joy as John in seeing what God has done through His Son Jesus. Like John we can see the fullness of God's love for us when we step back and look. Like John we to can be models of humility by taking ourselves out of the center and giving the glory to God and following Jesus.

The Threshold of the Nativity:

The time is almost here… The hope is come… The celebration of the Nativity of the Lord… The Joy and the Hope…

All through our scriptures we hear the word “REJOICE.”

Scriptures These are the words of the covenant that the LORD commanded Moses to make with the people of Israel in the land of Moab, besides the covenant that he had made with them at Horeb. 2 And Moses summoned all Israel and said to them: "You have seen all that the LORD did before your eyes in the land of Egypt, to Pharaoh and to all his servants and to all his land, 3 the great trials that your eyes saw, the signs, and those great wonders. 4 But to this day the LORD has not given you a heart to understand or eyes to see or ears to hear. "When I passed by you again and saw you, behold, you were at the age for love, and I spread the corner of my garment over you and covered your nakedness; I made my vow to you and entered into a covenant with you, declares the Lord GOD, and you became mine.

RSV A Psalm. O sing to the LORD a new song, for he has done marvelous things! His right hand and his holy arm have gotten him victory.

RSV And you will say in that day: "Give thanks to the LORD, call upon his name; make known his deeds among the nations, proclaim that his name is exalted. 5 "Sing praises to the LORD, for he has done gloriously; let this be known in all the earth. 6 Shout, and sing for joy, O inhabitant of Zion, for great in your midst is the Holy One of Israel."

RSV And the ransomed of the LORD shall return, and come to Zion with singing; everlasting joy shall be upon their heads; they shall obtain joy and gladness, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away.