Sunday, December 8, 2024
Second Sunday in Advent

Philippians 1:3-11
I thank my God for every remembrance of you, always in every one of my prayers for all of you, praying with joy for your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now. I am confident of this, that the one who began a good work in you will continue to complete it until the day of Jesus Christ. It is right for me to think this way about all of you, because I hold you in my heart,[b] for all of you are my partners in God’s grace, both in my imprisonment and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel. For God is my witness, how I long for all of you with the tender affection of Christ Jesus. And this is my prayer, that your love may overflow more and more with knowledge and full insight to help you to determine what really matters, so that in the day of Christ you may be pure and blameless, having produced the harvest of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ for the glory and praise of God.

Luke 1:68-79
68 “Blessed be the Lord God of Israel,
for he has looked favorably on his people and redeemed them.
69 He has raised up a mighty savior for us
in the house of his child David,
70 as he spoke through the mouth of his holy prophets from of old,
71 that we would be saved from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us.
72 Thus he has shown the mercy promised to our ancestors
and has remembered his holy covenant,
73 the oath that he swore to our ancestor Abraham,
to grant us 74 that we, being rescued from the hands of our enemies,
might serve him without fear, 75 in holiness and righteousness
in his presence all our days.
76 And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High,
for you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways,
77 to give his people knowledge of salvation
by the forgiveness of their sins.
78 Because of the tender mercy of our God,
the dawn from on high will break upon us,
79 to shine upon those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death,
to guide our feet into the way of peace.”

Out of Silence a Song Appears

Our readings pair together to make two points. First, from Paul’s letter to the Philippians, we have a description of Christian community, an example of how to be with each other, to hold each other in our hearts as partners in God’s grace, to pray for each other, that our love may overflow more and more with knowledge and full insight, to help us determine what really matters. Again, the world is too much with us. We are reminded again and again to reflect on what really matters.
And in the second reading from Luke, we are given the reason for this way of life, the basis for this community, namely, God’s redemptive grace given to us in the Christ child.

In this second week of Advent we continue with the story of Christ’s birth, reading from the Gospel of Luke. “In the days of King Herod of Judea, there was a priest named Zechariah.” So Luke begins the story. Luke is preparing us to hear a great story.
King Herod the Great lived from about 72 to 4 BC. Herod was power hungry, tyrannical, and decadent. In the year 37 BC, he captured Jerusalem and took over as ruler of Judea. He was a vassal of the Roman Empire and backed by Roman power. His egocentric building projects bankrupted Judea and required enormous taxation. Even though he claimed to be a Jew, Herod was held in contempt by the Jewish people. So when Luke begins the story with “In the days of King Herod of Judea,” we can read between the lines. Luke is telling us that this was a dark and terrible time for the Jewish people. But even so, God’s providence was at work. Luke presents the story of Christ the Messiah within the sweeping historical context of God’s plan of redemption for Israel.

At the very beginning of Luke’s Gospel, into this dark time there appears an unknown priest, this man Zechariah, chosen at random to go into the temple and offer incense at the altar. All the people are gathered outside the temple praying, and Zechariah goes into the temple, alone. While he is there, alone in the temple, an angel appears to him. Zechariah is terrified!

Zecharia and his wife, Elizabeth, were unable to have children, and now, as they are getting older, they have given up on this idea. They are good people, living good and solid lives, doing their jobs, living humbly, serving God and God’s people. Zecharia is simply going about his ordinary day, doing his job in the temple, and then, out of nowhere, an angel appears to him. Imagine what this was like for Zecharia!

Have you ever had a sudden realization? A moment when something new appeared to you–a new insight, so vivid and clear, yet indescribable, even terrifying–the realization: “I am here right now, and this whole thing is a miracle. What is this? Breathing, heart beating, hands, feet, snow on the ground, blue sky…The ordinary appears as suddenly extraordinary. Something wakes up in your soul. Perhaps you were visited by an angel?

As it turns out, the angel tells him that his wife, Elizabeth, is going to have a baby. “You will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth,” the angel says. But Zechariah basically says, “I don’t believe you. How can I really know this is true?”
And to this, the angel says, “I am Gabriel.”
Now, this is a good response. “I am Gabriel.” In other words, when the angel Gabriel speaks, you’d better listen up. And because of his doubt, Gabriel makes Zechariah mute. Meanwhile, all the people are waiting for him outside, wondering what’s going on. Finally, Zechariah stumbles outside the temple, and he can’t talk. The people realize something is going on. Something’s up. Something really big. Something epic.
We know it’s big because after appearing to Zechariah, the angel Gabriel appears to a woman named Mary in a town way over in Nazareth. Gabriel tells Mary, too, “You are going to have a baby.” So now, we have double pregnancies, both surprises, both announced by the angel Gabriel. This is really something unusual.
Next, Mary and Elizabeth get together to compare notes. They are so happy. And at this point, all the action stops, and Mary sings a song. “My soul magnifies the Lord.”
Luke is telling us that this is an important story. This is such a great story, such an important story, that right in the middle of it, everything stops, and there is a song. The song is a commentary on what is happening. It’s just like we see even now, in Broadway musicals, or opera, or oratorio. Shakespeare used it, too. The action is flowing along, and then, everything stops, and there is a song. This tells us to listen. The song emphasizes what is going on. This indicates to us that we are hearing an important story, a great story, a life-changing story.
Meanwhile, back home, Zechariah is still mute. He can’t talk. He is lost in silence because of his doubt. Until Elizabeth finally gives birth. Someone asks Zechariah what he wants to name the baby, and since he still can’t talk, Zechariah writes on a tablet, “John.” Suddenly, he can talk again, and he begins to speak, praising God. This is Zechariah’s song. Out of his silence, this song appears. Like Mary’s song, his is a commentary on what is happening. It’s a song of joy and praise to God. This song, Zechariah’s Song, is our text this morning. The father of John the Baptist praises God, preparing the way of the Lord.

Emerging from silence, Zechariah sings:

“You child, will be called the prophet of the Most High, for you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways.” Here we have the message of Advent. Prepare the way of the Lord.

“Blessed be the Lord God of Israel,
for he has looked favorably on his people and redeemed them.

He has raised up a mighty savior for us
in the house of his child David,
as he spoke through the mouth of his holy prophets from of old,
that we would be saved from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us.

Thus he has shown the mercy promised to our ancestors
and has remembered his holy covenant,
the oath that he swore to our ancestor Abraham,
to grant us that we, being rescued from the hands of our enemies,
might serve him without fear, in holiness and righteousness
in his presence all our days.”

So we tell the story again. And we prepare the way of the Lord, and we remember what matters most. Amen? Amen.