Advent 4- Lessons and Carols

 

Genesis 2:4b–9,15–25; Isaiah 40: 1–11; Jeremiah 31:31–34; Baruch 4:36–5:9; Isaiah 65:17–25: Luke 1:26-38;

Our Advent Lessons and Carols service today takes us on a journey.

We begin with the creation story, and we are reminded of the first human beings, who were made in the image of God and tasked with caring for creation. They were to reflect God’s image to the rest of creation. The first human beings were to act as priests, and creation was a kind of Temple, with Eden as the Holy of Holies.

But we know that this ideal state didn’t last, and they took the forbidden fruit of the knowledge of good and bad. And perhaps because they weren’t ready for it yet, they were removed from the garden. All they knew was good and now they would gain experiential knowledge of the bad. Life would become difficult. Then their child Cain murdered his brother, and the infection of sin spreads through humanity like a disease.

But God didn’t leave humanity in that state. God set in motion a plan to make a nation for Himself, starting with a baren couple- Abraham and Sarah. God made a child grow in Sarah’s empty womb. In a sense, he was a child that shouldn’t exist. He was inserted into time through an outside power. A human being was miraculously incorporated into the human family, and this was the start of a new nation- Israel.

And the blessing on Abraham was that his family would be blessed to be a blessing to all the families of the earth- they were to be a light to the nations. But they stumbled, and in their sin, were unwilling to live out the mission that they were given, and they felt the consequences of that failure.

Still, God did not give up on them. Isaiah is told to speak to the people, 

“Comfort, O comfort my people, … Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and cry to her that she has served her term, that her penalty is paid, that she has received from the Lord’s hand double for all her sins.”

“A voice cries out: ‘In the wilderness prepare the way of the Lord, make straight in the desert a highway for our God. Every valley shall be lifted up, and every mountain and hill be made low; the uneven ground shall become level, and the rough places a plain. Then the glory of the Lord shall be revealed…”

These are words that would come to be associated with John the Baptist, as the one who embodies the spirit of the prophets, he calls out for the people to prepare for the coming of the Messiah.

The prophet Jeremiah speaks about a new covenant that will be made with God’s people. God says that He will put his law within them, and write it on their hearts. And they will know God. And He will forgive them. … This new covenant will come through the ministry of the Messiah. At the Last Supper Jesus says, 

“this cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood” (Lk 22:20; 1 Cor 11:25).

 God will receive us through the work of the Messiah. And the Holy Spirit will do the work of inner transformation. We won’t be performing the Law as a mere outward act, but as an expression of inward transformation and personal relationship with God.

And from the Apocrypha, we read from Baruch. It is a book named for the scribe of the prophet Jeremiah, and includes reflection on the Exile in Babylon. There are some who believed that the Exile never really ended, since the Ark of the Covenant was lost when Babylon destroyed the first Temple (586 BC), and God’s presence didn’t seem to return to the Holy of Holies of the rebuilt temple, as happened when King Solomon built the original Temple. 

The other 10 tribes were lost to the nations when Assyria took them captive (721 BC), and not everyone returned from Babylon. So, most of the 12 Tribes of Israel remained missing from the Promised Land. Most of the 12 tribes of Israel had been scattered to the nations. And many of them had been absorbed into other peoples. … In Baruch, Jerusalem is told about a future gathering of the children who were sent away- gathering from the East and the West. Christians come to see Jerusalem as symbolizing the church. So, the welcoming of the nations into the church is a fulfillment of this foretold gathering of the children. 

The gathered people of God are told to put on the robe of righteousness that comes from God. St. Paul tells Christians that all who are baptized are clothed with Christ (Gal 3:27; see also Rom 13:14).

And we return to the prophet Isaiah who speaks about God creating new heavens and a new earth, where there will be no more weeping, and even the lion and lamb will be at peace. … This is connected to the 2nd coming of Christ, which is spoken about in Revelation where we read, 

“Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, … And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, ‘Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain any more, for the former things have passed away.’ And he who was seated on the throne said, ‘Behold, I am making all things new’” (Revelation 21:1-5).

  In Advent, this is what we are told to be preparing for.

And our reading from the Gospel of Luke brings us to the very edge of Advent, nearly tipping us into Christmas. Mary is told by the Archangel Gabriel that she will have a child named Jesus, who will be called the son of God. He will be given the throne of David, which means he will be the expected Messiah, and his kingdom will have no end.

We have been on a journey. This is our story. A story of beautiful beginnings and promise, followed by failure and tragedy, to hope of redemption, renewal, and restoration. It is a story of God’s love and unwavering commitment to His people to give them a better future- ultimately, a future where peace and love will reign.

This is a time of preparing our hearts- a time to receive this story as our story. To yearn for the coming of Christ- To yearn with the prophets of the past- to await his coming in the future when he will make all things new- and to yearn for the arrival of his presence within us right in this moment. Amen