Ministry Matters: "The trouble with liking everyone | Trump's favorite minister | The work of solidarity" in Nashville, Tennessee, United States for Monday, 12 December 2016-------
The curious trouble with liking everyone by Rebekah Simon-PeterBigstock/darko64As Christians, we’re called to love everyone. It’s certainly not easy — as family dynamics, church politics and presidential elections make clear — but with soulful intentionality it can be done. Kudos to you if you’re grooving on that wavelength!
Yes, we’re called to love everyone. But don’t worry if you don’t like everyone. Like and love are not the same thing. In fact, liking everyone, especially at church, is usually a bad sign. I’d go so far as to say that if you like everyone at your church, it’s an indication that your church may be in decline.
As I see it, if you like everyone at church, you probably have one of four situations going on.
A. You’re not paying attention.
B. You’ve recently been unexpectedly snatched from the jaws of death. All of life is joyous and nobody, I mean nobody, could rain on your parade.
C. You’re not telling the truth. You are caring and kind to people, but deep down inside certain people bother you. A lot.
D. Everyone at your church is just like you. With few exceptions, fellow churchgoers look, sound, think, believe, process, dress and talk in a way that is pleasing to you. What’s not to like?
If you chose A, wake up! Life is passing you by. The good and the bad. Widen your circle.
If you chose B, enjoy it while it lasts. This too shall pass, my friend.
If you chose C, breathe a sigh of relief. Being bothered by others is a good sign. It means that there is a certain amount of diversity at your church. Perhaps it’s generational, or theological or political or cultural. Or maybe it’s simply that they lead with the head and you lead with the heart. Or they like to jump into things and talk incessantly while you like to take your time and keep your own counsel. Diversity can be annoying in the short-term, but it’s vital for long-term sustainability. You need those differences, even if you don’t like them. Healthy DNA, robust ecosystems, and strong economies all depend upon diversity.
If you chose D, sit down; we need to talk. While this might seem incredibly positive, it’s not. Liking everyone brings a curious trouble. Too much harmony isn’t actually desirable. It means there is not enough diversity in your church. More specifically, it probably means there’s a lack of daring, risk-taking, adventurous, visionary, overly-emotional or off-the-wall people at your church. Instead — the qualities of stability, dependability, and predictability probably rule the day. The truth is, you need all of the above in your church. And you need to develop greater emotional intelligence to deal with them.
While liking-everyone-harmony keeps the annoyance factor at bay, it also means that you’re missing out on new ways of thinking, sensing, and understanding. In this day and age, when the world around is constantly changing, we need the ability to be nimble. Otherwise, we’ll never try new things. The healthiest churches have a variety of personalities and preferences. When guided by a strong Kingdom-oriented vision with lots of buy-in, different personalities and preferences working together can unleash tremendous momentum for good.
Jesus’ own circle of followers included people who didn’t like each other: the quiet and the headstrong; those who stepped out of the boat and those whose faith was smaller than a mustard seed; fishermen and scholars, tax collectors and the heavily-taxed, siblings in competition, Pharisees and Zealots. Because of the varied gifts they brought to the table, the movement survived. I imagine they grew to love each other in time, but I doubt they all liked each other.
Can you imagine if all Jesus’ disciples were clones of Peter? Or Martha? Or Mary? Or Bartholomew? Jesus knew the value of diversity, and practiced it. What about you?
Okay, let’s say you realize you need more diversity. You’re open to it. You get that your church can’t survive without it. You’re even ready to have people in church you don’t necessarily like. But you can’t seem to get there. You have invited people and they don’t come. You have extended a welcome but no one has taken you up on it. No worries.
Here are some ways to begin to connect with people you may not like. And to get comfortable with people who are different from you. It all starts with meeting people you might normally avoid. Here’s how:
1. When you’re out and about, observe who you avoid, judge, or steer clear of. These are the very people to go toward. Not because they need you necessarily, but because you need them. If you think “Tsk, tsk!” when seeing them, open your mouth and say hello.
2. Notice someone who has an outrageous hair style, an unexpected mode of transportation, an unusual job, an unfamiliar accent, a different skin color or a surprising fashion sense. Make eye contact. Smile. Say hello. Strike up a conversation.
3. Visit a store you don’t normally shop in. Or dine in a restaurant you don’t normally eat in. While you’re there, speak to someone you wouldn’t normally talk to. Even if it’s just about the weather.
4. When you’re ready to go deeper, ask people what they love about their lives. Ask them where they find beauty in the world. Ask them if they would pray for you.
At first, you might not like any of these people. As you get to know them more, they might really rub you the wrong way. Perfect. It means they have something you need — a new way of looking at the world, a different style of communication, a distinctive way of processing information or a unique way of understanding God.
Now that you’ve gone out of your way to meet new and different people, look for those same kind of stretch-your-boundaries-folks at church. See if you can identify people there that you wouldn’t normally talk to. People you suspect would upset you. Go out of your way to meet them and get to know them.
Finally, pay attention to your differences and see what you can learn from them. Discover the ways your personalities and preferences complement each other, instead of duplicate each other. You might just learn to love them. Even if you don’t like them. As you find ways to do Kingdom work together, you’ll discover the curious strength of partnering with people you may not even like.
Rebekah Simon-Peter blogs at rebekahsimonpeter.com. She is the author of The Jew Named Jesus and Green Church.
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The work of solidarty
By Mark Lockard 
Hannah Adair BonnerMinistry Matters Radio
On this episode of Ministry Matters Radio, Mark Lockard speaks with pastor, author and activist Rev. Hannah Adair Bonner about living out the church's call to justice work alongside marginalized communities. They discuss how people outside of marginalized communites can be meaningful allies, and think through how our Christian call is naturally inclined to solidarity with others.
On this episode of Ministry Matters Radio, Mark Lockard speaks with pastor, author and activist Rev. Hannah Adair Bonner about living out the church's call to justice work alongside marginalized communities. We discuss how people outside of marginalized communites can be meaningful allies, and think through how our Christian call is naturally inclined to solidarity with others. Listen to the conversation below.
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3 life-changing lessons from Donald Trump’s favorite minister by Rabbi Evan MofficNorman Vincent Peale. Photo: Wikimedia COmmons
Earlier this year a friend of mine delivered a sermon at Marble Collegiate Church in New York City. Facebook comments soon informed him that the church had once been headed by Donald Trump’s favorite minister.
That minister was Norman Vincent Peale. Reverend Peale presided at his marriage to Ivana. Trump has spoken about Peale’s extraordinary sermons and teachings.
Simple wisdom
Regardless of what one thinks about Trump, his favorite minister warrants renewed attention. While Peale was popular in the 50s and 60s, he fell from the public eye because of some of his more conservative political positions. His writings were also seen as simplistic and backwards-looking.
But there is a difference between simplistic and simple. Peale’s writing is far from simplistic. It does, however, convey some simple and overlooked guidance for living happier and more productive lives. What are they?
1. Always be optimistic because optimism makes happiness more likely. Even in trying circumstances, which each of us faces, optimism benefits us. It helps us cope when things go wrong, while increasing the chance we can create a better outcome. This is not just faith talking. It is science.
Researchers have discovered what they term “the optimism bias.” The way we view the future helps shape what it turns out to be. When we view it positively, we reduce anxiety and stress. And we focus on creating the future we envision.
Israeli research
Much of the research in this area has, interestingly, come out of Israel. The world’s foremost optimism expert, Dr. Tali Sharot, writes that “The tendency for positive predictions to create positive outcomes is rooted in fundamental rules governing the way the mind perceives, interprets and alters the work it encounters.
“The mind has a tendency to try to transform predictions into reality because our behavior is influenced by our own subjective perceptions of reality.”
In other words, what we believe is more likely to come true because the belief generates the action we need. We will work harder to realize our beliefs. Peale knew 60 years ago what researchers are proving today.
2. Find meaning in tragedy. Shakespeare said, “There is nothing either good or bad but thinking makes it so.” In other words, we assign meaning to life’s events.
Certain events like the death of a loved one inevitably produce sadness. Yet, they can also lead us to make positive changes in our life. They remind us of what matters most. They can help us renew other relationships.
We can find hope, as Peale recognized, even in the worst circumstances. And we can turn our tragedy into a lifeline for others. Consider the victims of cancer and Alzheimer’s whose survivors have raised tremendous funds to help find a cure, so others do not experience the same tragedy.
3. Pray with intention. Peale was an extraordinary preacher. Yet his colleagues said he always got tremendously nervous before getting up to speak.
What calmed him and gave him focus were a few simple prayers. They gave him the push to share his message with the thousands who needed it.
Peale understood prayer is not simply about saying something to God. It is also about saying something to ourselves.
It tells us of who we are and what we are called to do. It gives God an opening to into our hearts and minds so God can help use our gifts. It reminds us that God has our back.
300 years ago a Jewish mystic said “God dwells where we let him in.” Prayer is a way of opening the door so God can come in. And when God comes in, we find the inner strength to live fully and pursue the happiness for which we were created.
Evan Moffic is the author of What Every Christian Needs to Know About Passover and What Every Christian Needs to Know About the Jewishness of Jesus. He blogs at RabbiMoffic.com.
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Safety pin or a cross?
By Kira SchlesingerBigstock/MbruxelleAfter a contentious election, in which racist, sexist, and xenophobic rhetoric was used, the number of hate incidents reported to the Southern Poverty Law Center rose sharply. Suddenly, safety pins became kind of a thing – wearing them, changing your Facebook profile picture to a safety pin, etc. The concept of a safety pin as a sign to others that you are a “safe” person was allegedly taken from the British where, after the European Union Referendum vote (commonly known as “Brexit”) and a similar rise in hate incidents, the safety pin signaled to those who might be subject to abuse on public transportation that the wearer was a safe person to sit next to.
Pursuant to the modern-day social media cycle, the safety pin was in favor, then it was deemed “slacktivism,” followed by the spread of news that the safety pin was being co-opted by white supremacists, and a backlash to the backlash. Some artists and businesses created attractive-looking safety pins for profit, and the whole thing spun wildly out of control. Now that the cycle appears to have come to an end, the safety pin ended up being more about virtue-signaling than actual solidarity or allying with marginalized and vulnerable people.
The whole debacle around the safety pin caused me to wonder about why people wearing a cross (or in my case as clergy, a clerical collar) might not be considered “safe.” Ideally, if I wear a cross, an instrument of death, around my neck in testimony to my belief that God became incarnate as a brown-skinned member of a religious minority who was executed by an exploitative and violent empire, shouldn’t that signal that I stand on the side of the vulnerable and marginalized in present-day society? Regrettably, that is not the primary witness of Christian culture in our day and age.
Rather than being known for protesting with the Sioux tribe at Standing Rock, as some of my clergy colleagues did, we are known for throwing tantrums about Starbucks holiday cups and people wishing us “Happy Holidays” instead of “Merry Christmas.” Instead of Christians being known for generosity, we are known for being stingy and tipping poorly, particularly when we go out to lunch after Sunday services. Rather than being known for our commitment to the poor, marginalized and vulnerable, we are represented as close-minded, bigoted and intolerant.
I am aware that these things are not true of all Christians. But when that is what people think of when they think about Christianity, we must do some soul-searching. As C.S. Lewis wrote in Mere Christianity, “When we Christians behave badly, or fail to behave well, we are making Christianity unbelievable to the outside world.” Yes, we are all sinners in need of God’s grace, and we will all have bad days where we will blow our fuse or make the wrong choice; no one is perfect. But when the predominant narrative about Christians is so far from the fruits of the Spirit that Paul names, it is no wonder that a cross is not a symbol of safety for those who might be vulnerable to hateful attacks.
I dream of a world where seeing a person with a cross around their neck means that he or she is a “safe” person who would protect the vulnerable and stand up against hate incidents, that a person of color or someone speaking a different language could sit next to that person on public transportation and not be afraid of harassment. I pray that the Church’s witness to the world would be more about seeing every person as a bearer of the divine image and less about judgment based on color, bank account, or immigration status.
One of my favorite collects in the Book of Common Prayer reads, “Lord Jesus Christ, you stretched out your arms of love on the hard wood of the cross that everyone might come within the reach of your saving embrace: So clothe us in your Spirit that we, reaching forth our hands in love, may bring those who do not know you to the knowledge and love of you; for the honor of your Name.” That is the mission of those of us who wear outward and visible signs of our faith, to reach forth our hands in love that the world might know the love of Christ.-------
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Trump's xenophobia as a summons for sermons
By William H. WillimonBigstock/andykatzWhile America’s election of Donald Trump as president is probably a bad thing for America, it’s a great boon for us preachers. There we were, mired in a homiletic swamp of psychotherapeutic drivel, ladling out sweet-sounding platitudes to somnambulant congregations, mouthing superficialities on subjects about which Scripture couldn't care less. Then, without actually intending to, America elected Trump. For the first time in years I’m on a sermonic binge, cranking out stirring sermons on adultery, truth-telling, divorce, lying and fear.
Did I mention adultery?
Now comes news that Dictionary.com chose xenophobia as its word of the year! Lord thou hast delivered mine enemies into my hands! (1 Samuel 24:4) The folks at Dictionary.com define xenophobia as "1. fear or hatred of foreigners, people from different cultures, or strangers; 2. fear or dislike of the customs, dress, etc., of people who are culturally different from oneself." We preachers more forthrightly define xenophobia as unchristian.
In a statement, Dictionary.com noted that, "Some of the most prominent news stories this year have centered on fear of the 'other'." President Obama said that Trump's rhetoric should not be dignified as “populist;" Obama called it "nativism... xenophobia" pure and simple.
In a March CNN interview Trump said that his views on refugees, immigration, Muslims and race are not xenophobic; his statements are based, in his words, on "intelligence." Trump’s claim that he is thinking intelligently about others is a good opportunity for us preachers to be reminded that we think differently, not because we’re of the political right or left but because we think Christian.
Christianity’s default position, in debates about immigration or otherness is hospitality — hospitality that is based upon God’s hospitality of us in our otherness in the cross of Jesus Christ. It’s fine to debate under what conditions we will admit and integrate newcomers so that they are free to thrive in North American culture. However, let’s admit that as Christians we are “prejudiced” toward hospitality, openhandedness particularly toward those in need because that’s the way God in Christ has treated us and commanded us to treat others.
Who God is and what God has done in Christ is the theological basis for Paul’s, “Welcome each other, in the same way that Christ also welcomed you, for God’s glory” (Romans 15:7 CEB). We actually believe that in a world of boundaries, borders and otherness, Christ has mysteriously, wondrously united Jews and Gentiles showing no regard for ethnicity, gender, race or class (1 Corinthians 12:13). The God we met in Jesus is relentlessly connective, self-giving and communicative; so ought we be.
We Wesleyans are bold to believe that the radical hospitality we sinners have received in Jesus Christ is not some heroic stance reserved for a super saint like Paul; it’s a presently available life based upon what Jesus did for us and daily does in us in the power of the Holy Spirit. My church is constituted by God as a showcase of what God can do among ordinary folk who dare to live under the commands of Christ rather than what nine out of 10 Americans think is OK. True, we’ve got a way to go before we are truly obedient to the expansive embrace of Christ’s salvation, but at least the church knows that Jesus is determined to make us name each and every “other” as sister and brother in Christ.
Even my cold heart managed sympathy for The Donald during his speech at the RNC. If he truly believes what he said then (and veracity is always up for grabs with The Donald) he must be the most fearful man in America. I longed for the opportunity (which I’ll probably never get) to preach to Donald the good news that, “If God has loved us in this way, we also ought to love each other…. There is no fear in love, but perfect love drives out fear…. If anyone says, I love God, and hates a brother or sister, he is a liar…. Those who claim to love God ought to love their brother and sister also.” (1 John 4:11,18,20,21)
On the first Sunday of Advent, the pulpit loomed before me and I lacked much enthusiasm for my task. Then Dictionary.com told me that xenophobia was the word of the year. Isaiah 2:1-5 grabbed me by the collar and demanded a hearing. Romans 13:11-14 suddenly handed me the sort of message that you can’t hear on CNN and I was off and running toward a sermon.
I think I’m going to like the Trump administration after all.
Even though this sounds awfully Ivankaesque of me, if you would like my take on the sin of xenophobia and what Jesus can do about it, if you would like for your church to make a vibrant witness in this challenging time of xenophobic peril, please buy my book, Fear of the Other: No Fear in Love, published by Abingdon for $14.99.
It’s even better than The Art of the Deal.
William H. Willimon is Professor of the Practice of Christian Ministry at the Divinity School, Duke University. He is recently retired after serving eight years as Bishop of the North Alabama Conference of The United Methodist Church. Bishop Willimon is the author of Fear of the Other from Abingdon Press, and Pulpit Resource, a homiletical weekly published in partnership with Abingdon Press and Ministry Matters.-------
Is the War on Christmas over yet?
By Joseph YooBigstock/krisrobinOne of the most annoying things that come out of the Christmas season is the so-called “War on Christmas” narrative that dominates news and social media feeds. The worst part of this is when some Christians claim they’re being persecuted because people won’t wish them a “Merry Christmas.”
Would it be possible to agree that American Christians are far from being persecuted? (Especially since there are actual Christians being persecuted throughout the world.)
And frankly, it’s not really the job of Starbucks, JC Penney or Macy’s to spread Christmas cheer or the Christmas story.
They’re in business to make money — and to do everything they can to bring a lot of people into their stores. So they’re going to be as generic and as broadly appealing as possible.
Why would I expect JC Penney to spread the Christmas story to their shoppers? Why would I expect Starbucks to tell the story of Christ’s birth on their cups?
That’s not their job.
It’s ours, isn’t it?
Shouldn’t we hold ourselves accountable for putting “Christ” in Christmas rather than demanding that others do?
The ironic thing about all this is that we’re talking about a war on Christmas while we’re treating Christmas as if it’s our own birthdays. We go to these retail stores, often spending more money than we have, stocking up on gifts, as if that’s the meaning of Christmas. Then we go around accusing the stores of taking “Christ” out of the season and crying persecution because our Starbucks cups don’t mention anything about Christmas.
Sometimes I feel like we harp on this issue because it’s the easiest one to deal with. Like when a church is declining, instead of assessing ourselves and really discerning what we could change and do better, we double down on changing the landscape or the color of the carpets. It’s easier to deal with those things and feel accomplished than work on changing the things that might actually make a difference.
I’m not a big fan of memes and bumper sticker theology but this one is worth repeating:
Want to keep Christ in Christmas? Feed the hungry, clothe the naked, forgive the guilty, welcome the unwanted, care for the ill, love your enemies, and do unto others as you would have done unto you.
I apologize for the Jesus Juke.
While I sincerely hope that you have a blessed Christmas, remember... we're celebrating the birth of Jesus and — to quote Mike Slaughter — Christmas is not your birthday.-------
When we talk salvation, sexuality matters
By Cameron MerrillBigstock/newnowIn only a couple of weeks, most of us will sing one of our best songs: "Now in mystic union join, Thine to ours, and ours to Thine." Following the way the words run, the Wesleyan Christian imagination longs for participation in Trinity's life. We call this union "salvation." And yet, even as we sing these words, our imaginations are consumed with trying to foresee the future shape of our union as a church.
For most of my life, I have generally associated myself with progressive, liberal thought. So when progressive pastors and other leaders offer a wise word to us regarding the continuing struggles around sexuality and church division, I am naturally inclined to read them.
A particular form of the argument is made again and again by those voices, one that I believe has a key pitfall. The flaw at the heart of the common progressive argument is that the conversation on sexuality and the Christian life is an important one, it just isn't the main one. This progressive claim is a lovely argument of politeness and even an honest yearning for many seeking to find a way forward together, not at all unlike the arguments of tolerance, diversity, and multiculturalism reflected in the wider progressive social view.
But what if that argument is still fundamentally flawed? What if that argument — that sexuality is important but not central enough to our faith to be a source of unity or division — is based on the same logic as the colorblindness and post-racial politics so beloved in progressive thought? Or, to put it differently, perhaps the same logic that says sexuality is an important issue that should still be bypassed for larger, deeper concerns is functionally the same logic maintaining white supremacy as normative even as we celebrate possibilities for multicultural diversity.
Progressive voices in the church, seeking to esteem our non-heteronormative brothers and sisters, might in fact be perpetuating the same tolerance-based arguments that reestablish white male heteronormativity as the good, the true, and the beautiful. Maybe it isn't surprising to find liberal arguments leading to conclusions largely similar to conservative ones, where people identified within the LGBTQIA community are still somehow on the outside. Those inside the "normal" keep trying to say this matter of sexuality and homosexuality isn't central because for those in the norm, it simply does not have to be.
In his recent article on a possibly divided United Methodist Church, Rev. Dr. James Howell claims that sexuality, while an important thing, is not the main thing because, fundamentally, salvation is the main thing. Our chief constructions of belief are claims about God and who God is and what God is doing — the essence of salvation — and therefore, sexuality is important as a part of our claims of holiness, but not essential. I find this claim confusing given our emphasis on sanctification as true holiness of heart and mind, but in either case the idea is that sexuality is adiaphora, or perhaps as other progressive voices would claim, not "status confessionis."
There is certainly something desirable about bracketing off sexuality as important-but-not-essential. Indeed, beginning in grade school our social formation shapes us to do just that, reducing sexuality to a private action, a place of shame and pleasure, a quiet matter kept to the spaces between bedroom walls. Theologians whom I respect and admire regularly note how little Jesus explicitly says about sexuality, all the while ignoring the larger framework and scriptural language of sexuality, marriage, desire, and unfaithfulness that underwrites the story from beginning to end.
In doing so, we diminish the richness of the metaphor of the Lord as the Bridegroom with a jealous, erotic desire for his Bride, the new Israel. We mostly ignore the theological tradition where Origen kept his students from studying the Song of Songs until properly instructed, or the continued work of Sarah Coakley and others who call us to see how similar and essential the language of desire and the erotic is to the mystical experience of salvation in the Christian life. We push aside the experience of so many Christians with complex sexual identities deeply intertwined with their experiences of salvation. We do this to categories that we usually laud as part of our beloved "Quadrilateral."
More than these, however, is my fear that this "important but not the main" argument is a subtle Gnostic temptation. We do so love to dislocate and disembody the divine. And maybe it's the season, with its beautiful focus on the mysteries of the Incarnation, amplifying that fear. Sexuality is fundamentally a claim about our bodies and how the body experiences grace. If grace is "a transformation that depends in large part on knowing yourself to be seen in a certain way: as significant, as wanted," then sexuality in the fullest sense is the bodily communication of grace's depths.[1] It is the discovery of one's self as a human being in and through the desire of another. Sexuality is love enfleshed...or is it Jesus who is love made flesh? In any case, "this is my body, given for you" seems unambiguously salvific and erotic.
To separate sexuality as a secondary experience apart from "higher" considerations of salvation would be to undo Athanasius' hard work. Making salvation a concept apart from how the body experiences it would be to unravel our Trinitarian, Christological, and soteriological fabric simultaneously. When our core confession is that God became human, fully divine and fully fleshed in order to renew humanity and restore knowledge of the Creator, then salvation is necessarily a bodily experience, and one that encompasses — not bypasses — our sexuality.
We might wonder what would change in our self-understanding if we see sexuality as essential to the Christian experience of salvation. I doubt that our conversations will become magically clearer or less divisive. But we might find that we have actually been arguing about the right thing and the main thing, namely the reality of salvation that comes in learning to love and to be loved, the slow work of sanctification that takes shape in and through the sacramentality of the body.
I can feel the desire to affirm sexuality's importance without it being central. I agree with Rev. Howell; our sexuality is easily misunderstood, easily misconstrued, and easily mismanaged. But I am not so sure the Spirit agrees with our desire to minimize. I am deeply afraid that to do so would be a peril well beyond the possibilities of denominational dissolution.
Perhaps we can, following the Spirit's direction, learn to share in the body's grace for all of its complexities. Perhaps we can learn to listen for the stories of salvation experienced by enfleshed bodies in such a way that the church takes on a whole new shape in the world. Perhaps we can again look for the ways that the Spirit sanctifies bodies, delighting in lives continually enfolded into one another as they are enfolded into Trinity's own: "Second Adam from above, Reinstate us in Thy love. Let us Thee, though lost, regain, Thee, the Life, the inner man: O, to all Thyself impart, Formed in each believing heart."
[1] Rowan D. Williams, “The Body’s Grace,” in Theology and Sexuality: Classic and Contemporary Readings, edited by Eugene F. Rogers, Jr (Malden, MA: Blackwell, 2002), 311.-------
Christmas is not your birthday
By Mike SlaughterBigstock/YastremskaI received an email this week from someone I have never met, Chris Thompson, who identified himself as a blogger and columnist with the Alaska Dispatch News. Chris wrote:
Dear Pastor Mike,
I'm the religion columnist for Alaska's largest daily newspaper. I recently discovered your book The Christian Wallet. As we are in Advent, would you comment why I hear so few pastors addressing the issue of money as do you?
At the time of year we should see the greatest charity to one's fellow man, we are seeing instead the greatest charity to oneself.
Chris went on to say:
The other night I attended a wonderful Advent concert, in the true spirit of Advent, at a Catholic church whose main purpose was to raise money for Catholic Social Services and its homeless shelter. Well-advertised, few came to a large church and little money was raised for a great need.
I'm trying to raise consciousness in our community about the same issues as you are but finding little receptivity. Your thoughts?
Great questions! As I explained in my email back to Chris, pointing him to Christmas is Not Your Birthday for additional insight, soft-secular Christians have turned the day in which we honor Jesus’ birth into a materialistic, gluttonous self-focused feast. Too many of our American churches have taught a “me centered” gospel. The gospel has been reduced to how God can bless you, prosper you and increase your wealth.
Not only is that a false gospel, but this consumeristic “me” focus only fuels the debt cycle that many of us are experiencing and fails to heed Jesus’ call of self-denial. One of the mantras that I continually use to remind our Ginghamsburg folks is that we are to live simply so other people can simply live. For 12 years we have challenged our families at Advent to spend as much on the “widow and orphan — the least and the lost” as they do on their own families each Christmas. Note the emphasis on “equal” amount. Is this not what Jesus meant when he said, “Do unto others as you would have others do unto you?” Through this sacrifice, God has worked miracles of biblical proportions (See ginghamsburg.org/miracleoffering).
Christmas is not YOUR birthday! Let’s stop professing allegiance to Jesus while celebrating his birth with an orgy of materialism. Jesus followers are to be actively rebuilding the ancient ruins and restoring the places long devastated (Is 61:4), not increasing our debt load through our society’s obsession with me, more, bigger and better.
Mike Slaughter is the almost four-decade chief dreamer and lead pastor of Ginghamsburg Church and the spiritual entrepreneur of ministry marketplace innovations. Mike’s call to "afflict the comfortable" challenges Christians to wrestle with God and their God-destinies. His newest resource is Down to Earth (Abingdon Press; 2016), a paradigm-shifting, four-week Advent study with Ginghamsburg Executive Pastor of Discipleship Rachel Billups. Down to Earth Includes book, DVD, Leader Guide, Youth Study, Children’s Leader Guide and a seasonal devotional.-------
Not alone
By Paul BonnerPhoto courtesy of Tara Wood via FacebookOn a seemingly normal trip to the grocery store, something extraordinary happened; a bit kindred you might say. It was four-year-old Norah’s birthday, and she shared her joy with a new friend.
An elderly gentleman walked by Tara Wood, a mom with two kids. Norah, the birthday girl, smiled and waved. She said, “Hi old person! It’s my birthday!” Mr. Dan (the “old person”) “stopped in his tracks, smiled, and said, ‘Well hello, little lady! How old are you today?’” The two chatted for a few minutes and then went their separate ways in the store.
A few minutes later, Norah told her mom she wanted a picture with Mr. Dan, so Tara tracked him down. Mr. Dan was on the last aisle of his grocery trip and suddenly “here is this little girl again,” he said. “And so they posed together, and then they hugged each other like they were long lost friends,” Wood said. The family thanked him for his time. Mr. Dan teared up and replied: “No, thank you. This has been the best day I’ve had in a long time. You’ve made me so happy, Ms. Norah.”
A step further
The story doesn’t end there. Norah’s mom posted the picture and anecdote on social media, and it prompted thousands of reactions. Someone who knew Mr. Dan and his circumstances messaged Wood: It had been six months since he lost his long-time wife, Mary. It was a difficult season for the widower. So Norah’s family decided to call Mr. Dan and go visit. They carried gifts, including a framed copy of their grocery-store picture, some pictures Norah had colored, and some delicious treats.
Much more
Admittedly, Mr. Dan had been experiencing some difficult days: feeling sorry for himself, doubting his beliefs, and months of interrupted sleep. “Sadness and anxiety had made his mind wander at night, but since meeting Norah, he has slept soundly every single night.” Their friendship continues and brings meaningful connections for both families. The love shared goes both directions, offering a true example of the importance of connecting with those around us.
Question of the day: How can we connect with others in meaningful ways?
Focal scriptures: Ruth 1:6-18; Galatians 5:16; John 16:20-22
Ruth 1:6 So she prepared to return with her daughters-in-law from the plain of Mo’av; for in the plain of Mo’av she had heard how Adonai had paid attention to his people by giving them food. 7 She left the place where she was with her two daughters-in-law and took the road leading back to Y’hudah.
8 Na‘omi said to her two daughters-in-law, “Each of you, go back to your mother’s house. May Adonai show grace to you, as you did to those who died and to me. 9 May Adonai grant you security in the home of a new husband.” Then she kissed them, but they began weeping aloud. 10 They said to her, “No; we want to return with you to your people.” 11 Na‘omi said, “Go back, my daughters. Why do you want to go with me? Do I still have sons in my womb who could become your husbands? 12 Go back, my daughters; go your way; for I’m too old to have a husband. Even if I were to say, ‘I still have hope’; even if I had a husband tonight and bore sons; 13 would you wait for them until they grew up? Would you refuse to marry, just for them? No, my daughters. On your behalf I feel very bitter that the hand of Adonai has gone out against me.” 14 Again they wept aloud. Then ‘Orpah kissed her mother-in-law good-bye. But Rut stuck with her. 15 She said, “Look, your sister-in-law has gone back to her people and to her god; go back, after your sister-in-law.” 16 But Rut said,
“Don’t press me to leave you
and stop following you;
for wherever you go, I will go;
and wherever you stay, I will stay.
Your people will be my people
and your God will be my God.
17 Where you die, I will die;
and there I will be buried.
May Adonai bring terrible curses on me,
and worse ones as well,
if anything but death
separates you and me.”
18 When Na‘omi saw that she was determined to go with her, she said no more to her.
Galatians 5:16 What I am saying is this: run your lives by the Spirit. Then you will not do what your old nature wants.
John 16:20 Yes, it’s true. I tell you that you will sob and mourn, and the world will rejoice; you will grieve, but your grief will turn to joy. 21 When a woman is giving birth, she is in pain; because her time has come. But when the baby is born, she forgets her suffering out of joy that a child has come into the world. 22 So you do indeed feel grief now, but I am going to see you again. Then your hearts will be full of joy, and no one will take your joy away from you.
For a complete lesson on this topic visit LinC.-------
This Sunday, December 18, 2016Fourth Sunday of Advent: Isaiah 7:10-16; Psalm 80:1-7, 17-19; Romans 1:1-7; Matthew 1:18-25
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JOSEPH’S DREAMS by Brett YoungerMatthew 1:18-25
Saint Joseph is the patron saint of cabinetmakers, confectioners, engineers, immigrants, house hunters, travelers, pioneers, pregnant women, fathers, and married people, as well as Manchester, New Hampshire; San Jose, California; Sioux Falls, South Dakota; Nashville, Tennessee; Austria; Belgium; Bohemia; Canada; China; Korea; and Vietnam. It’s an impressive list, but Joseph’s connection to Nashville, for instance, seems tenuous at best. Joseph should be the patron saint of visionaries, romantics, and dreamers.
We might imagine that after several months of pretending to be interested in china patterns and bridesmaids dresses, Joseph figured out that the role of the husband-to-be is to say, “Yes, dear.” The rabbi and organist are lined up. The flowers are ordered. Planning for the bachelor party has surreptitiously begun.
Things are going according to schedule until Joseph learns the unthinkable. His life is suddenly in shambles, his trust betrayed, his future undone, and his insides torn up. He isn’t responsible for Mary’s unplanned, unforgivable, indefensible, inexcusable pregnancy. Joseph’s dreams have been destroyed. He wants to ask Mary, “How did this happen?” but he doesn’t really want to know how this happened. Nor does he want to hear his buddies at work laugh and say, “Joseph, you sly dog.” Joseph decides to break off the engagement quietly.
When people ask he will say nothing more than, “The marriage just wasn’t going to work.” The right thing to do is to put all this behind him quickly, get on with his life, and let Mary get on with hers. Joseph will find a safer, more manageable, predictable wife.
Then he has a dream in which an angel says, “Joseph, don’t be afraid. Go ahead and marry her. The child belongs to God. It’s a boy and it’s God with us.” Without an ultrasound, Joseph knows it’s a boy—or maybe it was just a dream. When he wakes up, he is more confused than ever.
In some ways, Joseph stays in the background in the Christmas story. Luke hardly mentions him. Joseph is in a supporting role. He doesn’t get a single line of dialogue in all of the New Testament.
In manger scenes, Mary and Jesus are center stage and Joseph is in the shadows. He’s often hard to distinguish from the shepherds. In the crèche on the coffee table, if Joseph’s head gets knocked off—as often happens to ceramic Josephs—you can always promote a shepherd. In paintings, Joseph looks worn with fatigue, his face lined with anxiety. He seems like he would be more comfortable at a funeral than a birth.
It’s easy to imagine Joseph as cautious and careful. Carpenters aren’t usually considered thrill seekers. “Measure twice, cut once” is the rule. When Matthew describes Joseph as just and righteous, we picture an earnest, meticulous craftsman whose carpentry business is all the excitement he wants.
This long-expected Jesus is coming pretty fast for Joseph. He’s being asked to assume responsibility for a girl and her baby with only a voice in a dream to go on.
Leaving Mary is the reasonable thing to do. It’s not hard to ignore an angel’s whisper. Even if Joseph could convince himself to believe Mary, no one else will. He should shake it off and call his lawyer. Acting honorably is easy—dismiss the dream as just a dream and walk away. Haven’t you forgotten dreams with more details than this one?
Against all odds, Joseph pushes aside the arguments and follows the dream. He’ll marry this pregnant teenager and be the adopted father of her child. He’ll take this huge risk on the basis of nothing more substantive than a dream.
This curious, astounding roll of the dice puts me in mind of Noah building the ark when there’s no rain in the forecast; Peter, James, and John dropping their nets to follow; Frodo Baggins hanging the ring around his neck; and Neo taking the red pill from Morpheus. Joseph doesn’t sound safe, careful, or cautious. When faced with the choice of doing what’s reasonable or taking a big chance, Joseph embraces the unexpected. Behind his worried face there must be a big grin waiting to burst out.
He knows he’ll have to learn to deal with whatever lingering doubts he has about Mary. He’ll have to learn not to hear the snickers. The embarrassment is his too now. When the baby is born and people count the months, they won’t think of Joseph as quite so honorable. He knows that he’ll gaze into the face of a baby and be unable to see the reflection of his own.
Joseph is a wonderful visionary who desperately wants the dream to be true. When Joseph marries her, he secretly thinks, Whether it’s true or not, this is what I want to believe.
What kind of person pays attention to a dream and listens to angels? God’s angels speak this word to all of us: “Don’t be afraid to believe, to walk a different path, to follow dreams.” We’re tempted to live a careful life, a careful faith, keep six of the Ten Commandments, go to church three out of four Sundays, give money we don’t need and time we can spare, try to do more good than bad, offer some grace and some judgment, believe the parts of the Bible with which we already agree.
God invites us to wish for what’s true. God’s people long for God, even if they sometimes wonder what that means. The yearning itself is following God’s dreams for us. Whenever we’re dissatisfied with a cautious faith, it’s because God wants more for us.
God invites us to stop being so cautious. Dream of yourself loving God with all your heart—caring not at all about the expectations of those who have forgotten how to dream. Dream of the people you love letting go of jealousy and cynicism, offering only words of kindness to one another. Dream of the church as a family where male and female, black and white, rich and poor, liberal and conservative, straight and gay, old and young, saints and sinners gather to give thanks to God. Dream of a world where people take chances to help others and discover that God is not only our hope, but that God has placed that hope within us. Dream of God waiting for us to take one step in the direction of grace and discover the love that’s always with us.… read more
WORSHIP ELEMENTS: DECEMBER 18, 2016 by Joanne Carlson BrownFourth Sunday of Advent
Color: Blue or Purple
Scripture Readings: Isaiah 7:10-16; Psalm 80:1-7, 17-19; Romans 1:1-7; Matthew 1:18-25
Theme Ideas
On the fourth Sunday of Advent, we hear the prophet foretell of Emmanuel, we see Joseph's dream of Emmanuel, we hear the psalmist's longing for a savior, and we hear Paul's affirmation of a savior. On this Sunday before Christmas, we speak of God with us—in yearning, in promise, in certainty. It is an "almost ... not yet ...ah, it's here" time. Can we be open to the surprise of wonder a child of promise brings us this year?
Call to Worship (Isaiah 7, Matthew 1)
We have been looking for a sign.
Emmanuel—God with us.
We have been waiting for a savior.
Emmanuel—God with us.
The time is near—can it be?
Emmanuel—God with us.
Come let us worship the God of sign,
wonder, and promise.
Call to Worship (Isaiah 7, Psalm 80, Romans 1, Matthew 1)
The prophet foretold it, the psalmist longed for it,
Joseph dreamed of it, Paul proclaimed it.
God is come to us, to be with us, to restore us, to save us.
Let us come in awe and wonder,
to worship the God who makes it all so.
Contemporary Gathering Words
Christmas is a time of anticipation.
We can hardly wait.
Christmas is a time of giving.
We are ready to receive.
Christmas is a time of hope and promise.
We are looking for it.
Could it be? Is it here? Let us come and see;
Let us open ourselves to the wonder of it all.
Praise Sentences (Isaiah 7, Psalm 80, Matthew 1)
Stir up your might, O God,
and come to save us!
Emmanuel—God with us.
Restore us, O God.
Let your face shine,
that we may be saved.
Emmanuel—God with us.
Opening Prayer (Isaiah 7, Matthew 1)
O God,
in this time of worship,
may we be open to your promises, your love,
and your transformation.
May we vision and dream.
May we be surprised.
May we receive the life you give us.
May we encounter Emmanuel—God with us.
And may we never be the same. Amen.
Opening Prayer (Isaiah 7, Matthew 1)
We come this morning,
tired from rushing around,
tired of trying to meet
the demands and expectations
of the season.
Slow us down.
Help us center our thoughts.
Restore in us a childlike wonder,
and a belief that dreams
really do come true.
We call on your name.
Be with us and in us, Emmanuel.
Amen.
Prayer of Confession
O God,
we are easily distracted and slightly jaded,
and cannot believe Christ is almost here.
There are still presents to be bought—
never mind wrapped.
There are parties to attend, cookies to be baked,
trees to be trimmed.
Sometimes we cannot wait
until all this hubbub is over.
Where is the time to sit, to sleep—
never mind to dream?
We can get so caught up in the busyness of the season
that we miss the gift the season is meant to be.
We have heard the scriptures and stories so often
that they have become white noise.
For our frenetic pace, for our exhaustion,
for our tunnel vision, for our missing the wonder
and awe of a baby born to fulfill promises
made long ago, forgive us.
Restore to us the sense of surprise
that you came to us as a little baby,
unexpected, yet longed for.
God of the visioners and dreamers,
may we always be ready
to receive your gifts. Amen.
Words of Assurance (Isaiah 7, Matthew 1)
God comes to us in dreams and visions,
in prophecies and affirmations,
in longing and in hope,
in salvation through a little child.
Claim this promise for yourself,
and let God's healing love fill you.
Benediction (Isaiah 7, Matthew 1)
Look, a young woman is with child and shall bear a son.
He shall be called Emmanuel.
We go forth with anticipation and longing.
Share the good news—Emmanuel—God with us,
is coming.
We go with joy and hope, trusting in the promises
of God.
Benediction (Isaiah 7, Matthew 1)
Go forth with a dream in your soul
and a song in your heart,
knowing that God's promises
are always fulfilled.
The time is almost here.
Get ready for wonder!
From The Abingdon Worship Annual edited by Mary J. Scifres and B.J. Beu, Copyright © Abingdon Press. The Abingdon Worship Annual 2017 is now available.… read more
WORSHIP CONNECTION: DECEMBER 18, 2016 by Nancy C. TownleyFourth Sunday of Advent
Color: Blue or Purple
Scripture Readings: Isaiah 7:10-16; Psalm 80:1-7, 17-19; Romans 1:1-7; Matthew 1:18-25
CALLS TO WORSHIP
Call to Worship #1:
L: We are always looking for evidence that God is with us.
P: That sign is in the One to come--the One that God is sending.
L: We want to know for sure that everything is in God’s care.
P: And so we cry to the heavens in our distress. Our cries are heard! God is responding in love and hope.
L: Let us come before God with expectant hearts and spirits!
P: Let us be ready to receive the blessed gift of the Savior. AMEN.
Call to Worship #2:
L: In the midst of darkness, God brings a new light.
P: Thanks be to the God of light.
L: In the midst of confusion and fear, God brings hope and peace.
P: Thanks be to the God of peace.
L: In the midst of strife and stress, God comforts and soothes us.
P: Let us praise God who truly loves us and brings us new life. AMEN.
Call to Worship #3:
[Using THE FAITH WE SING, p. 2092, “Like a Child,” offer the following call to worship as directed.]
L: Who will come to save us? Who will the Lord send to heal our wounds?
P: Will God send the mighty angelic host? Will God send a great warrior?
Choir: singing verse 1 of “Like a Child”
L: But a child has no voice, no power, no influence. Why would God send a child?
P: A child cannot change the world. Why would God send a child?
Choir: singing verse 2 of “Like a Child”
L: A child needs to be loved and cared for. We need to pay attention to a child.
P: So much of our energy will be consumed in caring for the child.
L: We need to reach out in love--after all, aren’t we God’s beloved ones?
P: The child is the blessed gift that God sends, teaching us again about loving and caring.
Choir: singing verse 3 of “Like a Child”
Call to Worship #4:
L: This is the fourth Sunday of Advent, a time to rejoice in the wondrous things that God is doing.
P: Our hearts are filled with the hope that is coming into the world.
L: The time is fast approaching, not for parties or presence, but for the awareness of God’s loving gift to us--the gift of the Christ child.
P: Help slow us down, Lord, that we may realize that your gift of love is at the center of our lives and our celebrations.
L: Thanks be to God who again reminds us of God’s eternal love.
P: Open our hearts, O Lord, to receive your blessed gift. AMEN.
PRAYERS, LITANY/READING, BENEDICTION
Opening Prayer
Lord of all life and all seasons, help us open our hearts to hear the words of promise and love that you send to us. Like Joseph, may we trust in your abiding love and power. Prepare us to receive your gift of grace and peace. In Jesus’ Name, we pray. AMEN.
The Lighting of the Advent Candle: The Candle of Joy: REJOICE!
Reader 1:
The prophet Isaiah tells us that a young woman shall bear a son and shall call Him Emmanuel--God with us.
Reader 2:
God is no longer a distant God, but is in the here and now.
Reader 3:
As Joseph trusted in the message of God’s angel, so we can trust in God’s message of redemption and love.
Reader 4:
Rejoice! God is lavishing us with God’s love and peace.
Today we light four candles. The first is the candle of Patience, reminding us to watch and wait for what God is about to do. [Light the first candle]
The second candle is the candle of Readiness, enabling us to look at our lives, to get rid of all those things that keep us from God, to change our ways and live as God would have us live. [The second candle is lighted]
The third candle is the candle of Faith, through which we behold the love and mercy of God and believe in God’s presence with us. [The third candle is lighted]
The fourth candle is the candle of Joy, in which we feel the powerful presence of God’s love through the promise of One who will save us. [The fourth candle is lighted]
Reader 1:
Come, see the lights. Let their brightness fill you.
Reader 2:
Come, feel the warmth of the lights. Let them give you comfort.
Reader 3:
Come, draw near to the lights, for God is breaking through to you.
Reader 4:
Come, rejoice in the lights, God is with us!
Prayer of Confession
Lord, we confess that we are rushing headlong into Christmas. It’s only two days away and we still have so much to do. Our preparations are far from complete, and we are exhausted. We wish this whole thing were over so that we could rest. Forgive our shortcomings and our short-sightedness. You have poured upon us blessing after blessing, daily reminding us of your love and presence; yet we have chosen to jump onto this “greased slide” into Christmas. Give us patience. Slow us down. Remind us of the ways in which you are present with us--not in the wrapped packages, the abundance of food, but in the love and compassion that is brought to all. Forgive us, we pray. Make us truly ready to receive your love and the gift of the Christ Child. AMEN.
Words of Assurance
The light of God’s love shines upon each of us in the gift of God’s love, Jesus Christ. This is given for you. Rejoice! You are loved by God, now and forever. AMEN.
Pastoral Prayer
Lord God of love, we have truly succumbed to the “greased slide into Christmas.” We have cluttered our lives with schedules so busy we barely have time to breathe. We plan, prepare, cook, clean, party, and yet wind up exhausted and wondering what in the world happened to the joyous Christmas that we had so long ago. In this place, on this day, you have called us together, to hear your words of encouragement, and to remind us that you are with us. We do not need to rush about in order to have Christmas, for the witness of your love is here among us right now. Open our hearts and help us proclaim your presence. Help us reach out to one another in joy and peace. As we have brought our concerns to you in prayer, remind us again that you hold each and every one of us gently and lovingly in your constant care. For we thank you for your love and ask these things in the name of the One whom you sent to heal and free us, Jesus. AMEN.
Reading:
[Using THE FAITH WE SING, p. 2095, “Star Child,” offer the following reading as directed.]
Choir: singing verse 1 of “Star Child”
Reader 1:
Christmas is for children! Isn’t that right? Look at all the ads in the papers and on the TV--everything for children! So innocent. So trusting! Little do children know about the real world--the world of struggle, the world of greed. They can believe in a little baby and angels and shepherds. They can hear the story of the birth and dream of God’s love. With us adults, it’s just different. There is too much to do. We don’t have time anymore for these sweet stories of Christmas.
Voice:
When did you stop being God’s beloved one? For all of your life, God has and continues to love you. Wonder and witness are not consigned to children--those young in years--they are for everyone. Imagine again the wonder of waiting for the day when you could sing with your whole heart and voice “O Come, All Ye Faithful” and “Silent Night.” Do not lose that wonder. Open your heart to receive and believe, and rejoice!
Choir: singing verses 2, 3, and 4 of “Star Child”
Reader 2:
My heart aches for the comfort and hope of Christmas. Life has been difficult. I want to rest in the assurance of God with us. But fears and doubts have crept into my soul. God, please send to all of us a special sign, the sign of your presence and your love. Please help us let go of the fear and embrace once again the hope of that promised One.
Voice:
Let go of the fears. God is sending you God’s richest blessings. This Child will bring peace. He will teach us of God’s loving presence with each of us. He will bring healing to our wounds. He will teach us how to truly live as God’s beloved children.
CONGREGATION AND CHOIR: singing verse 5 of “Star Child”
Benediction
Place your trust in God, for God is with you. Listen carefully for God’s loving whisper in this time--the words will give you healing and hope. Go in peace and may God’s peace always be with you. AMEN.
ARTISTIC ELEMENTS
The traditional color for this season is PURPLE; however, I prefer BLUE, the alternate color.
The theme for this fourth Sunday of Advent is: REJOICE!
We are almost to Christmas. We have been rushing around trying to get everything done for the “Big Day.” But our scriptures remind us that God is already preparing us to receive the glorious gift; God is placing a spirit of joy and faith in our hearts. In the simplest of ways, God has provided for our salvation. This is a time for happiness and joy. God is with us!
An interesting approach might be to move from darkness into light. In the light of that idea, I am suggesting a layering of fabric, beginning with the darkest blue, dark navy blue, for the first Sunday of Advent, and then adding a royal blue for Advent 2, medium blue for Advent 3, and pale blue (Mary’s color) for Advent 4. White will be used for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day/Christmastide.
Because Advent and Christmas traditions vary in all congregations, you may want to make major alterations to the following suggestions. I will be going with the themes of Advent 1: Watch and Wait; Advent 2: Prepare!; Advent 3: Behold/Believe; Advent 4: Rejoice; and Christmas Eve/Christmas Day: Celebrate!
If you are using Advent Candles, you might consider using pillar candles--three medium blue candles about 6-8” high and one pink 6-8” high pillar candle. Place two of the blue candles on one side of the center riser and a blue and the pink candle on the other side. You may want to place risers so that these candles are elevated.
SURFACE:
Place an 8” riser on the center of the worship table, toward the back. Place two risers about 6” high on the worship center, to the right and left but about 6” in front of the center riser; place a bench or floor riser in front of the worship center. Optional: You may place other risers as needed, but make sure that the center riser is not obscured by any other risers.
FABRIC:
The entire worship area, including all risers, should be covered with the dark navy blue fabric, making sure that the fabric puddles to the floor in front of the worship center. Royal blue fabric was added two weeks ago; last week we added medium blue fabric on each side of the worship table. Each strip of fabric should be about 4 yards long and about 30” wide. This week we add the pale blue strips of fabric, moving in from the edge of the royal blue toward the center. Make sure that you leave a significant border of the royal blue so that the color movement can easily be seen. [The eventual effect will be darker fabric on the outside, moving toward the lighter and eventually white fabric in the center of the worship table. So the color range will appear as follows: dark navy blue - royal blue - medium blue - light blue - white - light blue - medium blue - royal blue - dark navy blue.]
CANDLES:
See the section on lighting the Advent candles. If you are using a separate wreath, not placed on the worship center, you may still use the liturgy for lighting the candles.
FLOWERS/FOLIAGE:
Because the lectionary for this week includes Mary’s Magnificat, you might want to consider placing a single pink rose in the center of the worship table. I would lay the rose down rather than place it in a vase.
ROCKS/WOOD:
The wood that you placed on the worship center last week should be removed.
OTHER:
This will depend on the theme you have chosen.… read more
Gospel: Matthew 1:18-25. Today's soap-opera-watching, worldly wise children can appreciate Joseph's dilemma, if the language about conception is rephrased into plain talk about pregnancy (i.e., after they were engaged, Joseph found out that Mary was pregnant; this was a problem because you are not supposed to be pregnant before you are married). Details about Jewish betrothal practices will interest older children and will add both to their understanding of the corner Joseph was in, and to their appreciation for his brave response to the angel's message. Boys, especially, benefit from exploring Joseph's important supportive role in the Christmas stories.
Elementary-school-age children are not mentally ready to enter the debates about the virgin birth. For them, it is amazing, but acceptable, that God chose to "be with us" by being born as a baby and living among us. Only after they develop the ability for abstract thought will the questions about the virgin birth make sense.
Epistle: Romans 1:1-7. Children will not understand this passage as it is read. It helps to introduce the literary form—that is, the greeting from the letter of introduction which announces Paul's visit to the Roman Christians. The complex sentences and ideas in this passage should be paraphrased. For example:
From Paul to the Christians in Rome: Let me introduce myself. I am a slave of Jesus Christ. God loves me, even though I do not deserve it. And God has given me a job to do. I am to tell the good news about Jesus to people everywhere and help them live as disciples. I plan to come to Rome to share God's good news with you soon. So in advance, I send you God's loving grace and peace.
Like Joseph, Paul knew that God was with him, loved him, and had given him important work to do. The "Emmanuel promise" is that God is also with us and working through us.
Old Testament: Isaiah 7:10-16. This passage presents images and vocabulary problems which scholars debate, so it is not surprising that children can make little sense of the passage as it is read. It does, however, offer children two important truths that will need to be dug out of the text during the sermon.
First, children can hear, with the frightened King Ahaz, that God is with us always—even when two strong kings (or neighborhood bullies or older siblings) are plotting against us. God will be with us when we are facing all sorts of difficult situations, and God will still be with us after even the worst situations have been resolved.
Second, they can hear the promise of a special Son whose name will be Emmanuel, because he will indeed be "God with us," and they can add the word Emmanuel to their vocabulary.
Psalm: Psalm 80:1-7, 17-19. This prayer for deliverance is included among today's readings because of its reference to Joseph. Unfortunately, that reference, and most of the other images of this psalm, assume detailed knowledge of the Temple and Jewish tribes. Children, therefore, will make little sense of it. This one is for biblical scholars.
Watch Words
Use Emmanuel and God with us frequently and interchangeably. Avoid incarnation, a long, strange theological word which means the same thing.
Avoid conception, "that which was conceived in her," and Mary's virginity. Instead, talk about the fact that Mary was pregnant, and God was the father of her baby.
Let the Children Sing
"O Come, O Come, Emmanuel" is a natural choice for this Sunday. While its vocabulary and images are difficult for children, they respond quickly to the change of mood between the verses and the chorus. Simply alert the congregation to the problems mentioned in the verses and the happy "Emmanuel promise" recalled in the chorus. Encourage children to sing the chorus, even if they cannot read all the words in the verses.
"Once in Royal David's City" speaks of God's presence with us in Jesus, in simple words that children can read and understand. The third verse of "Away in a Manger" also recalls the "Emmanuel promise."
If you focus on the work of Joseph and Paul, invite the children's choir or a children's class to sing "The Friendly Beasts," which notes the work each animal did when Jesus was born.
The Liturgical Child
1. Light the fourth candle of the Advent wreath for God's Emmanuel promise, "I will be with you":
God promised that one day a son would be born who would be named God With Us. Jesus' last words before he went back into heaven were, "Remember, I will be with you always." God promises that we will never be alone. Just as God was with us in Jesus, God is with us every day. So today, we light a candle for God's Emmanuel promise. God is with us.
2. "Kum Ba Yah," which means "come by here" is known by many children. As a children's class or choir to sing it as a response to the congregation's prayers of petition and intercession. Or invite the whole congregation to sing the chorus, in response to each of a series of petition prayers. Be sure to point out its meaning before it is sung.
3. Children's Christmas excitement is probably at fever pitch this Sunday. Remember in the church's prayer their hopes for wonderful gifts, anticipation of visits with grandparents and cousins, and delight in other Christmas traditions. Also pray for kindness and patience in the days between now and Christmas.
Sermon Resources
1. Abandonment is one of the deepest fears of childhood. So tell stories about the feeling of being lost in a grocery or department store (remember that young children assume that it is the parent and not the child that has wandered off or gotten lost); of wondering whether your parents have forgotten you when you are the last to be picked up after some activity; of fearing, while waiting with a babysitter or staying alone for the first time, that your parents will never return. You may want to speak of the special fear of children whose parents have divorced—that the parent with whom they live will move out, as did the other parent. Use these stories to set the stage for exploring the value of God's promise to be with us.
2. Feature Joseph exploring his part in Jesus' birth and early childhood. Point out the importance of his quiet, behind-the-scenes role.
3. Explore Joseph's big decision about Mary and Jesus. Note Paul's self-introduction as a person God loves, and for whom God has a task. Point out the similarities in Paul's situation and Joseph's. Then challenge worshipers of all ages to see themselves as persons God loves, and for whom God has tasks.… read more
Isaiah 7:10-16
During a past Christmas season a five-year-old boy was playing with our son and stayed at our house for lunch. As I served their meal I noticed our visitor's good manners, and I complimented him on them. His response was classic: "I'm being polite so that I can get what I want for Christmas." At least he was honest.
If we were as honest as my son's young friend, some of us would have to say, "For me, Christmas is getting what I want." Surely in our better moments Christmas means much more to us than that.
I. Christmas Is a Sign
God's sign to King Ahaz was the birth of a child. The birth of Jesus is also a sign to us. It signifies God's love, mercy, power, and grace. Sometimes it takes a sign to convince us of these realities, just as it did for Ahaz. For the main character in the movie It's a Wonderful Life, it took an angel to convince him of his worth. For Dickens's Scrooge it took a vivid nightmare. For the characters on the "Peanuts" Christmas special, it took Linus's recitation of the story of Jesus' birth.
When our oldest son was about four, we went through a stage of stretching out our arms as far as we could and saying, "I love you this much!" Once when we were in the car, our son made that gesture and said those words—first to my wife and then to me. My wife responded by doing the same thing. Then my son expected me to do it also. I explained to him that I was driving and that it would not be safe. "And besides," I added, "I could never stretch out my arms far enough to show you how much I love you." I was sure that would satisfy him, but in a few minutes he said, "Daddy, when we get out of the car, you can stretch your arms out to show me how much you love me." Sometimes we feel the need for a sign.
II. Christmas Is Grace
Ahaz had not been listening to God or to his prophet. He had not been a righteous king. This king was too busy with affairs of state to pay attention to spiritual things. He thought that problems such as the threat of invasion should be taken care of by practical means. To merely trust God, as Isaiah suggested, would be naive. It is proof of the grace of God that he continued to try to communicate with this errant king.
We, too, have gone astray (Isa. 53:6). We have disobeyed and rebelled. It is evidence of the grace of God that he would continue to seek us by sending his Son.
III. Christmas Is a Miracle
Jesus was born by impossible means—by a woman who was still a virgin. It was a miracle. In fact, Christmas is packed full of miracles—the angelic host, the guiding star, the escape from Herod, and more.
Perhaps the greatest miracle was that the little infant was God making himself known. During World War II a little boy kept a picture of his soldier father on his desk at school. The father had been at war for a long time. The boy's teacher asked him what he wanted for Christmas. He said that for Christmas he wanted his father to walk out of that picture. On the night Jesus was born, God walked out of eternity and into time; he has manifested himself through this sign-child. (N. Allen Moseley)
LIKE FATHER, LIKE SON
Romans 1:1-7
Many people have been told they look just like their father. Family characteristics run deep. This is true of Christ, too. When it comes to his relation to God, we might quote the old proverb "Like Father like Son." On this Christmas Eve, let us hear the Word of God from Romans 1 and learn about God by getting to know his son.
I. The Promise
The gospel was promised long before it was delivered. The prophets were "seers" who knew something was coming long before it arrived. By the time Jesus was born, though, interest in the promised Messiah seemed low.
"Due to the lack of interest, Christmas has been canceled!" That statement was seen on a bumper sticker. We laugh at such a thought. Christmas may be many things, but a season of little interest it is not. Some companies spend eleven months gearing up for the one-month sale at Christmas time. Many other businesses make at least half of their profits from Christmas sales. They are very interested in this season! Take stock of your own attitude. How are you feeling right now? Exhilarated? Bored? Excited? Depressed? Angry? Joyous? What is Christmas supposed to be? It was a promised event then and a promised blessing now.
II. The Fulfillment
What do you associate with Christmas? Gifts? Family and friends getting together? What about the special foods, like roast turkey and eggnog? In the flurry of activity around the holidays, we should keep this one fact in mind: Jesus did not come into the world to give us a Christmas holiday. He did not enter human history to give us a cause for celebration. So why did he come? Verse 4 gives us the answer. It speaks of Christ's resurrection from the dead. The promised Savior came, was crucified, and was raised from the grave. That affects our destiny. The Gospels tell us that Mary bore a son and that she gave him the name Jesus "for it is he who will save his people from their sins."
III. The Blessing
"Mary Had a Little Lamb" is the title of a nursery song many of us sang as children. It is also a biblical reality. Mary's son Jesus grew up to be what God had intended him to be—the Savior of the world. John the Baptist said of him, "Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!"
That gives us a tremendous blessing, one that is sketched in verse 7. We receive grace and peace from God. That is what we see when we look into the life of Jesus. He is the giver of blessings. Like Father, like Son. (Don M. Aycock)
THE MAN AT THE MANGER
Matthew 1:18-25
In the many elements that compose the Christmas story, the one we are most likely to overlook is Joseph. Certainly Mary and her special child are at the center of the story, and we love to recall the shepherds in the fields and the wise men bearing gifts. Look at the average nativity scene; Joseph is that guy standing in the back of the scene, looking on while everyone else gathers around the manger.
Yet Matthew reminds us here that Joseph was a central and essential character in the Christmas drama. The depth of character shown by Joseph serves as a model for each one of us during this time of celebration.
I. Joseph Was Righteous Before God
Matthew tells us that Joseph was a "righteous man" (v. 19), but I can't help thinking that was an understatement. God selected a special man to serve as the human father and model for Jesus, a man who would demonstrate integrity, honor, and virtue as the boy Jesus grew into a man.
The events described in this text offer one bit of evidence of the kind of man Joseph was. What a bitter blow it must have been to discover that young Mary, who was promised to him in marriage, was bearing a child. Can you imagine the thoughts and suspicions that would have gone through your mind in his situation? How would you have responded, especially in that culture, when you could certainly have exacted a dramatic measure of punishment for what you thought was a betrayal?
Yet Joseph's concern was for protecting Mary from public ridicule and punishment. Even at a moment in his life when he must have felt deeply hurt, he was anxious to protect the one he thought had hurt him. That is a depth of character not often found in his or any other day.
God could use Joseph because he had a compassionate heart and was a man of honor. Do we seek to demonstrate the kind of character in our lives that will enable God to more effectively use us?
II. Joseph Was Responsive to God
Imagine having the kind of dream Joseph had that night, and learning that the basis for his predicament was actually the work of God, and that the child your future wife is bearing is the Messiah, the "anointed one" of God. Yet Joseph's response was a simple one: "When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord commanded him" (v. 24).
God isn't looking for the best and the brightest, the most handsome or beautiful, the most polished or popular. God is looking for men and women who will be responsive to his will; people who are willing to hear and obey. Look at the stories of those men and women who were used by God—people like Abraham and David and others like them; their common characteristic is a responsiveness to God. They were willing to do what God told them to do.… read more1
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Lectionary Readings
(Courtesy of Vanderbilt Divinity Library)
(Courtesy of Vanderbilt Divinity Library)
Sunday, 18 December 2016
Fourth Sunday of Advent: Isaiah 7:10-16
Psalm 80:1-7, 17-19
Romans 1:1-7
Matthew 1:18-25
Scripture Texts: Isaiah 7:10 Adonai spoke again to Achaz; he said, 11 “Ask Adonai your God to give you a sign. Ask it anywhere, from the depths of Sh’ol to the heights above.” 12 But Achaz answered, “I won’t ask, I won’t test Adonai.”
13 Then [the prophet] said,
“Listen here, house of David!
Is trying people’s patience
such a small thing for you
that you must try the patience
of my God as well?
14 Therefore Adonai himself
will give you people a sign:
the young woman* will become pregnant,
bear a son and name him ‘Immanu El [God is with us].
15 By the time he knows enough
to refuse evil and choose good,
he will [have to] eat
curdled milk and [wild] honey.
16 Yes, before the child knows enough
to refuse evil and choose good,
the land whose two kings you dread
will be left abandoned.
Psalm 80:1 (0) For the leader. Set to “Lilies.” A testimony. A psalm of Asaf:
2 (1) Shepherd of Isra’el, listen!
You who lead Yosef like a flock,
you whose throne is on the k’ruvim,
shine out!
3 (2) Before Efrayim, Binyamin and M’nasheh,
rouse your power; and come to save us.
4 (3) God, restore us!
Make your face shine, and we will be saved.
5 (4) Adonai, God of armies, how long
will you be angry with your people’s prayers?
6 (5) You have fed them tears as their bread
and made them drink tears in abundance.
7 (6) You make our neighbors fight over us,
and our enemies mock us.
17 (16) It is burned by fire, it is cut down;
they perish at your frown of rebuke.
18 (17) Help the man at your right hand,
the son of man you made strong for yourself.
19 (18) Then we won’t turn away from you —
if you revive us, we will call on your name.
Romans 1:1 From: Sha’ul, a slave of the Messiah Yeshua, an emissary because I was called and set apart for the Good News of God.
2 God promised this Good News in advance through his prophets in the Tanakh. 3 It concerns his Son — he is descended from David physically; 4 he was powerfully demonstrated to be Son of God spiritually, set apart by his having been resurrected from the dead; he is Yeshua the Messiah, our Lord. 5 Through him we received grace and were given the work of being an emissary on his behalf promoting trust-grounded obedience among all the Gentiles, 6 including you, who have been called by Yeshua the Messiah.
7 To: All those in Rome whom God loves, who have been called, who have been set apart for him:
Grace to you and shalom from God our Father and the Lord Yeshua the Messiah.
Matthew 1:18 Here is how the birth of Yeshua the Messiah took place. When his mother Miryam was engaged to Yosef, before they were married, she was found to be pregnant from the Ruach HaKodesh. 19 Her husband-to-be, Yosef, was a man who did what was right; so he made plans to break the engagement quietly, rather than put her to public shame. 20 But while he was thinking about this, an angel of Adonai appeared to him in a dream and said, “Yosef, son of David, do not be afraid to take Miryam home with you as your wife; for what has been conceived in her is from the Ruach HaKodesh. 21 She will give birth to a son, and you are to name him Yeshua, [which means ‘Adonai saves,’] because he will save his people from their sins.”
22 All this happened in order to fulfill what Adonai had said through the prophet,
23 “The virgin will conceive and bear a son,
and they will call him ‘Immanu El.”[Matthew 1:23 Isaiah 7:14]
(The name means, “God is with us.”)
24 When Yosef awoke he did what the angel of Adonai had told him to do — he took Miryam home to be his wife, 25 but he did not have sexual relations with her until she had given birth to a son, and he named him Yeshua.
John Wesley's Notes-Commentary: Isaiah 7:10-16
Verse 12
[12] But Ahaz said, I will not ask, neither will I tempt the LORD.
I will not — By asking a sign, as if I questioned the truth of his word: but this was deep hypocrisy.
Verse 13
[13] And he said, Hear ye now, O house of David; Is it a small thing for you to weary men, but will ye weary my God also?
David — He reproves them all, because they were the king's counsellors.
Is it a small thing — Is it not wickedness enough.
My God — To vex God's prophets and people, with your oppressions and horrid impieties. And by your ingratitude and unbelief, and disobedience of his commands.
Verse 14
[14] Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.
Therefore — Because you despise me, and the sign which I now offer to you, God of his own free grace will send you a more honourable messenger, and give you a nobler sign.
A sign — Of your deliverance. But how was this birth, which was not to happen 'till many ages after, a sign of their deliverance from present danger? This promised birth supposed the preservation of that city, and nation and tribe, in and of which the Messiah was to be born; and therefore there was no cause to fear that ruin which their enemies now threatened.
Immanuel — God with us; God dwelling among us, in our nature, John 1:14. God and man meeting in one person, and being a mediator between God and men. For the design of these words is not so much to relate the name by which Christ should commonly he called, as to describe his nature and office.
Verse 15
[15] Butter and honey shall he eat, that he may know to refuse the evil, and choose the good.
Butter — The common food of children in that country.
He — The virgin's son.
Know — To discern between things good and evil.
Verse 16
[16] For before the child shall know to refuse the evil, and choose the good, the land that thou abhorrest shall be forsaken of both her kings.
Yea — Not only this land shall be preserved until the virgin's son shall be born, but thine enemies land shall be sorely scourged, and these two kings destroyed within a very little time.
This child — Shear-Jashub, whom in all probability the prophet pointed at, and who was brought hither by God's special command, verse 3. for this very use.
The land — The lands of Syria and Israel.
Forsaken — So far shall Pekah and Rezin be from conquering thy land, that they shall lose their own lands, and their lives too; which they did within two years after this time, being both slain by the king of Assyria.
Psalm 80:1-7, 17-19
Verse 1
[1] Give ear, O Shepherd of Israel, thou that leadest Joseph like a flock; thou that dwellest between the cherubims, shine forth.
Joseph — The children of Joseph or Israel. The name of Joseph, the most eminent of the patriarchs, is elsewhere put for all the tribes.
Cherubim — Which were by the mercy seat above the ark.
Verse 2
[2] Before Ephraim and Benjamin and Manasseh stir up thy strength, and come and save us.
Before Ephraim — Here is an allusion to the ancient situation of the tabernacle in the wilderness, where these tribes were placed on the west-side of the tabernacle, in which the ark was, which consequently was before them.
Verse 3
[3] Turn us again, O God, and cause thy face to shine; and we shall be saved.
Turn us — To thy self.
Verse 17
[17] Let thy hand be upon the man of thy right hand, upon the son of man whom thou madest strong for thyself.
Be — To protect and strengthen him.
Right-hand — Benjamin signifies the son of the right hand, a dearly beloved son, as Benjamin was to Jacob.
Son of man — The people of Israel, who are often spoken of as one person, as God's son and first-born.
Verse 18
[18] So will not we go back from thee: quicken us, and we will call upon thy name.
Go back — Revolt from thee to idolatry or wickedness.
Quicken — Revive and restore us to our tranquility.
Romans 1:1-7
Verse 1
[1] Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated unto the gospel of God,
Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ-To this introduction the conclusion answers, Romans 15:15, etc.
Called to be an apostle — And made an apostle by that calling. While God calls, he makes what he calls. As the Judaizing teachers disputed his claim to the apostolical office, it is with great propriety that he asserts it in the very entrance of an epistle wherein their principles are entirely overthrown. And various other proper and important thoughts are suggested in this short introduction; particularly the prophecies concerning the gospel, the descent of Jesus from David, the great doctrines of his Godhead and resurrection, the sending the gospel to the gentiles, the privileges of Christians, and the obedience and holiness to which they were obliged in virtue of their profession.
Separated — By God, not only from the bulk of other men, from other Jews, from other disciples, but even from other Christian teachers, to be a peculiar instrument of God in spreading the gospel.
Verse 2
[2] (Which he had promised afore by his prophets in the holy scriptures,)
Which he promised before — Of old time, frequently, solemnly. And the promise and accomplishment confirm each other. Deuteronomy 18:18; Isaiah 9:6,7; 53:1; 61:1; Jeremiah 23:5.
Verse 3
[3] Concerning his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, which was made of the seed of David according to the flesh;
Who was of the seed of David according to the flesh — That is, with regard to his human nature. Both the natures of our Saviour are here mentioned; but the human is mentioned first, because the divine was not manifested in its full evidence till after his resurrection.
Verse 4
[4] And declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead:
But powerfully declared to be the Son of God, according to the Spirit of Holiness — That is, according to his divine nature.
By the resurrection from the dead — For this is both the fountain and the object of our faith; and the preaching of the apostles was the consequence of Christ's resurrection.
Verse 5
[5] By whom we have received grace and apostleship, for obedience to the faith among all nations, for his name:
By whom we have received — I and the other apostles.
Grace and apostleship — The favour to be an apostle, and qualifications for it.
For obedience to the faith in all nations — That is, that all nations may embrace the faith of Christ.
For his name — For his sake; out of regard to him.
Verse 6
[6] Among whom are ye also the called of Jesus Christ:
Among whom — The nations brought to the obedience of faith.
Are ye also — But St. Paul gives them no preeminence above others.
Verse 7
[7] To all that be in Rome, beloved of God, called to be saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ.
To all that are in Rome — Most of these were heathens by birth, Romans 1:13, though with Jews mixed among them. They were scattered up and down in that large city, and not yet reduced into the form of a church. Only some had begun to meet in the house of Aquila and Priscilla.
Beloved of God — And from his free love, not from any merit of yours, called by his word and his Spirit to believe in him, and now through faith holy as he is holy.
Grace — The peculiar favour of God.
And peace — All manner of blessings, temporal, spiritual, and eternal. This is both a Christian salutation and an apostolic benediction.
From God our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ — This is the usual way wherein the apostles speak, "God the Father," "God our Father." Nor do they often, in speaking of him, use the word Lord, as it implies the proper name of God, Jehovah. In the Old Testament, indeed, the holy men generally said, "The Lord our God;" for they were then, as it were, servants; whereas now they are sons: and sons so well know their father, that they need not frequently mention his proper name. It is one and the same peace, and one and the same grace, which is from God and from Jesus Christ. Our trust and prayer fix on God, as he is the Father of Christ; and on Christ, as he presents us to the Father.
Matthew 1:18-25
Verse 19
[19] Then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not willing to make her a publick example, was minded to put her away privily.
A just man — A strict observer of the law: therefore not thinking it right to keep her.
Verse 21
[21] And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins.
Jesus — That is, a Saviour. It is the same name with Joshua (who was a type of him) which properly signifies, The Lord, Salvation.
His people — Israel. And all the Israel of God.
Verse 23
[23] Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us.
They shall call his name Emmanuel — To be called, only means, according to the Hebrew manner of speaking, that the person spoken of shall really and effectually be what he is called, and actually fulfil that title. Thus, Unto us a child is born - and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, the Mighty God, the Prince of Peace - That is, he shall be all these, though not so much nominally, as really, and in effect. And thus was he called Emmanuel; which was no common name of Christ, but points out his nature and office; as he is God incarnate, and dwells by his Spirit in the hearts of his people. It is observable, the words in Isaiah are, Thou (namely, his mother) shalt call; but here, They - that is, all his people, shall call - shall acknowledge him to be Emmanuel, God with us.
Which being interpreted — This is a clear proof that St. Matthew wrote his Gospel in Greek, and not in Hebrew. Isaiah 7:14.
Verse 25
[25] And knew her not till she had brought forth her firstborn son: and he called his name JESUS.
He knew her not, till after she had brought forth — It cannot be inferred from hence, that he knew her afterward: no more than it can be inferred from that expression, 2 Samuel 6:23, Michal had no child till the day of her death, that she had children afterward. Nor do the words that follow, the first-born son, alter the case. For there are abundance of places, wherein the term first born is used, though there were no subsequent children. Luke 2:7.
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The Upper Room Ministries
PO Box 340004
Nashville, Tennessee 37203-0004, United States
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Fourth Sunday of Advent: Isaiah 7:10-16
Psalm 80:1-7, 17-19
Romans 1:1-7
Matthew 1:18-25
Scripture Texts: Isaiah 7:10 Adonai spoke again to Achaz; he said, 11 “Ask Adonai your God to give you a sign. Ask it anywhere, from the depths of Sh’ol to the heights above.” 12 But Achaz answered, “I won’t ask, I won’t test Adonai.”
13 Then [the prophet] said,
“Listen here, house of David!
Is trying people’s patience
such a small thing for you
that you must try the patience
of my God as well?
14 Therefore Adonai himself
will give you people a sign:
the young woman* will become pregnant,
bear a son and name him ‘Immanu El [God is with us].
15 By the time he knows enough
to refuse evil and choose good,
he will [have to] eat
curdled milk and [wild] honey.
16 Yes, before the child knows enough
to refuse evil and choose good,
the land whose two kings you dread
will be left abandoned.
Psalm 80:1 (0) For the leader. Set to “Lilies.” A testimony. A psalm of Asaf:
2 (1) Shepherd of Isra’el, listen!
You who lead Yosef like a flock,
you whose throne is on the k’ruvim,
shine out!
3 (2) Before Efrayim, Binyamin and M’nasheh,
rouse your power; and come to save us.
4 (3) God, restore us!
Make your face shine, and we will be saved.
5 (4) Adonai, God of armies, how long
will you be angry with your people’s prayers?
6 (5) You have fed them tears as their bread
and made them drink tears in abundance.
7 (6) You make our neighbors fight over us,
and our enemies mock us.
17 (16) It is burned by fire, it is cut down;
they perish at your frown of rebuke.
18 (17) Help the man at your right hand,
the son of man you made strong for yourself.
19 (18) Then we won’t turn away from you —
if you revive us, we will call on your name.
Romans 1:1 From: Sha’ul, a slave of the Messiah Yeshua, an emissary because I was called and set apart for the Good News of God.
2 God promised this Good News in advance through his prophets in the Tanakh. 3 It concerns his Son — he is descended from David physically; 4 he was powerfully demonstrated to be Son of God spiritually, set apart by his having been resurrected from the dead; he is Yeshua the Messiah, our Lord. 5 Through him we received grace and were given the work of being an emissary on his behalf promoting trust-grounded obedience among all the Gentiles, 6 including you, who have been called by Yeshua the Messiah.
7 To: All those in Rome whom God loves, who have been called, who have been set apart for him:
Grace to you and shalom from God our Father and the Lord Yeshua the Messiah.
Matthew 1:18 Here is how the birth of Yeshua the Messiah took place. When his mother Miryam was engaged to Yosef, before they were married, she was found to be pregnant from the Ruach HaKodesh. 19 Her husband-to-be, Yosef, was a man who did what was right; so he made plans to break the engagement quietly, rather than put her to public shame. 20 But while he was thinking about this, an angel of Adonai appeared to him in a dream and said, “Yosef, son of David, do not be afraid to take Miryam home with you as your wife; for what has been conceived in her is from the Ruach HaKodesh. 21 She will give birth to a son, and you are to name him Yeshua, [which means ‘Adonai saves,’] because he will save his people from their sins.”
22 All this happened in order to fulfill what Adonai had said through the prophet,
23 “The virgin will conceive and bear a son,
and they will call him ‘Immanu El.”[Matthew 1:23 Isaiah 7:14]
(The name means, “God is with us.”)
24 When Yosef awoke he did what the angel of Adonai had told him to do — he took Miryam home to be his wife, 25 but he did not have sexual relations with her until she had given birth to a son, and he named him Yeshua.
John Wesley's Notes-Commentary: Isaiah 7:10-16
Verse 12
[12] But Ahaz said, I will not ask, neither will I tempt the LORD.
I will not — By asking a sign, as if I questioned the truth of his word: but this was deep hypocrisy.
Verse 13
[13] And he said, Hear ye now, O house of David; Is it a small thing for you to weary men, but will ye weary my God also?
David — He reproves them all, because they were the king's counsellors.
Is it a small thing — Is it not wickedness enough.
My God — To vex God's prophets and people, with your oppressions and horrid impieties. And by your ingratitude and unbelief, and disobedience of his commands.
Verse 14
[14] Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.
Therefore — Because you despise me, and the sign which I now offer to you, God of his own free grace will send you a more honourable messenger, and give you a nobler sign.
A sign — Of your deliverance. But how was this birth, which was not to happen 'till many ages after, a sign of their deliverance from present danger? This promised birth supposed the preservation of that city, and nation and tribe, in and of which the Messiah was to be born; and therefore there was no cause to fear that ruin which their enemies now threatened.
Immanuel — God with us; God dwelling among us, in our nature, John 1:14. God and man meeting in one person, and being a mediator between God and men. For the design of these words is not so much to relate the name by which Christ should commonly he called, as to describe his nature and office.
Verse 15
[15] Butter and honey shall he eat, that he may know to refuse the evil, and choose the good.
Butter — The common food of children in that country.
He — The virgin's son.
Know — To discern between things good and evil.
Verse 16
[16] For before the child shall know to refuse the evil, and choose the good, the land that thou abhorrest shall be forsaken of both her kings.
Yea — Not only this land shall be preserved until the virgin's son shall be born, but thine enemies land shall be sorely scourged, and these two kings destroyed within a very little time.
This child — Shear-Jashub, whom in all probability the prophet pointed at, and who was brought hither by God's special command, verse 3. for this very use.
The land — The lands of Syria and Israel.
Forsaken — So far shall Pekah and Rezin be from conquering thy land, that they shall lose their own lands, and their lives too; which they did within two years after this time, being both slain by the king of Assyria.
Psalm 80:1-7, 17-19
Verse 1
[1] Give ear, O Shepherd of Israel, thou that leadest Joseph like a flock; thou that dwellest between the cherubims, shine forth.
Joseph — The children of Joseph or Israel. The name of Joseph, the most eminent of the patriarchs, is elsewhere put for all the tribes.
Cherubim — Which were by the mercy seat above the ark.
Verse 2
[2] Before Ephraim and Benjamin and Manasseh stir up thy strength, and come and save us.
Before Ephraim — Here is an allusion to the ancient situation of the tabernacle in the wilderness, where these tribes were placed on the west-side of the tabernacle, in which the ark was, which consequently was before them.
Verse 3
[3] Turn us again, O God, and cause thy face to shine; and we shall be saved.
Turn us — To thy self.
Verse 17
[17] Let thy hand be upon the man of thy right hand, upon the son of man whom thou madest strong for thyself.
Be — To protect and strengthen him.
Right-hand — Benjamin signifies the son of the right hand, a dearly beloved son, as Benjamin was to Jacob.
Son of man — The people of Israel, who are often spoken of as one person, as God's son and first-born.
Verse 18
[18] So will not we go back from thee: quicken us, and we will call upon thy name.
Go back — Revolt from thee to idolatry or wickedness.
Quicken — Revive and restore us to our tranquility.
Romans 1:1-7
Verse 1
[1] Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated unto the gospel of God,
Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ-To this introduction the conclusion answers, Romans 15:15, etc.
Called to be an apostle — And made an apostle by that calling. While God calls, he makes what he calls. As the Judaizing teachers disputed his claim to the apostolical office, it is with great propriety that he asserts it in the very entrance of an epistle wherein their principles are entirely overthrown. And various other proper and important thoughts are suggested in this short introduction; particularly the prophecies concerning the gospel, the descent of Jesus from David, the great doctrines of his Godhead and resurrection, the sending the gospel to the gentiles, the privileges of Christians, and the obedience and holiness to which they were obliged in virtue of their profession.
Separated — By God, not only from the bulk of other men, from other Jews, from other disciples, but even from other Christian teachers, to be a peculiar instrument of God in spreading the gospel.
Verse 2
[2] (Which he had promised afore by his prophets in the holy scriptures,)
Which he promised before — Of old time, frequently, solemnly. And the promise and accomplishment confirm each other. Deuteronomy 18:18; Isaiah 9:6,7; 53:1; 61:1; Jeremiah 23:5.
Verse 3
[3] Concerning his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, which was made of the seed of David according to the flesh;
Who was of the seed of David according to the flesh — That is, with regard to his human nature. Both the natures of our Saviour are here mentioned; but the human is mentioned first, because the divine was not manifested in its full evidence till after his resurrection.
Verse 4
[4] And declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead:
But powerfully declared to be the Son of God, according to the Spirit of Holiness — That is, according to his divine nature.
By the resurrection from the dead — For this is both the fountain and the object of our faith; and the preaching of the apostles was the consequence of Christ's resurrection.
Verse 5
[5] By whom we have received grace and apostleship, for obedience to the faith among all nations, for his name:
By whom we have received — I and the other apostles.
Grace and apostleship — The favour to be an apostle, and qualifications for it.
For obedience to the faith in all nations — That is, that all nations may embrace the faith of Christ.
For his name — For his sake; out of regard to him.
Verse 6
[6] Among whom are ye also the called of Jesus Christ:
Among whom — The nations brought to the obedience of faith.
Are ye also — But St. Paul gives them no preeminence above others.
Verse 7
[7] To all that be in Rome, beloved of God, called to be saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ.
To all that are in Rome — Most of these were heathens by birth, Romans 1:13, though with Jews mixed among them. They were scattered up and down in that large city, and not yet reduced into the form of a church. Only some had begun to meet in the house of Aquila and Priscilla.
Beloved of God — And from his free love, not from any merit of yours, called by his word and his Spirit to believe in him, and now through faith holy as he is holy.
Grace — The peculiar favour of God.
And peace — All manner of blessings, temporal, spiritual, and eternal. This is both a Christian salutation and an apostolic benediction.
From God our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ — This is the usual way wherein the apostles speak, "God the Father," "God our Father." Nor do they often, in speaking of him, use the word Lord, as it implies the proper name of God, Jehovah. In the Old Testament, indeed, the holy men generally said, "The Lord our God;" for they were then, as it were, servants; whereas now they are sons: and sons so well know their father, that they need not frequently mention his proper name. It is one and the same peace, and one and the same grace, which is from God and from Jesus Christ. Our trust and prayer fix on God, as he is the Father of Christ; and on Christ, as he presents us to the Father.
Matthew 1:18-25
Verse 19
[19] Then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not willing to make her a publick example, was minded to put her away privily.
A just man — A strict observer of the law: therefore not thinking it right to keep her.
Verse 21
[21] And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins.
Jesus — That is, a Saviour. It is the same name with Joshua (who was a type of him) which properly signifies, The Lord, Salvation.
His people — Israel. And all the Israel of God.
Verse 23
[23] Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us.
They shall call his name Emmanuel — To be called, only means, according to the Hebrew manner of speaking, that the person spoken of shall really and effectually be what he is called, and actually fulfil that title. Thus, Unto us a child is born - and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, the Mighty God, the Prince of Peace - That is, he shall be all these, though not so much nominally, as really, and in effect. And thus was he called Emmanuel; which was no common name of Christ, but points out his nature and office; as he is God incarnate, and dwells by his Spirit in the hearts of his people. It is observable, the words in Isaiah are, Thou (namely, his mother) shalt call; but here, They - that is, all his people, shall call - shall acknowledge him to be Emmanuel, God with us.
Which being interpreted — This is a clear proof that St. Matthew wrote his Gospel in Greek, and not in Hebrew. Isaiah 7:14.
Verse 25
[25] And knew her not till she had brought forth her firstborn son: and he called his name JESUS.
He knew her not, till after she had brought forth — It cannot be inferred from hence, that he knew her afterward: no more than it can be inferred from that expression, 2 Samuel 6:23, Michal had no child till the day of her death, that she had children afterward. Nor do the words that follow, the first-born son, alter the case. For there are abundance of places, wherein the term first born is used, though there were no subsequent children. Luke 2:7.
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The Upper Room Ministries
PO Box 340004
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JOSEPH’S DREAMS by Brett YoungerMatthew 1:18-25Saint Joseph is the patron saint of cabinetmakers, confectioners, engineers, immigrants, house hunters, travelers, pioneers, pregnant women, fathers, and married people, as well as Manchester, New Hampshire; San Jose, California; Sioux Falls, South Dakota; Nashville, Tennessee; Austria; Belgium; Bohemia; Canada; China; Korea; and Vietnam. It’s an impressive list, but Joseph’s connection to Nashville, for instance, seems tenuous at best. Joseph should be the patron saint of visionaries, romantics, and dreamers.
We might imagine that after several months of pretending to be interested in china patterns and bridesmaids dresses, Joseph figured out that the role of the husband-to-be is to say, “Yes, dear.” The rabbi and organist are lined up. The flowers are ordered. Planning for the bachelor party has surreptitiously begun.
Things are going according to schedule until Joseph learns the unthinkable. His life is suddenly in shambles, his trust betrayed, his future undone, and his insides torn up. He isn’t responsible for Mary’s unplanned, unforgivable, indefensible, inexcusable pregnancy. Joseph’s dreams have been destroyed. He wants to ask Mary, “How did this happen?” but he doesn’t really want to know how this happened. Nor does he want to hear his buddies at work laugh and say, “Joseph, you sly dog.” Joseph decides to break off the engagement quietly.
When people ask he will say nothing more than, “The marriage just wasn’t going to work.” The right thing to do is to put all this behind him quickly, get on with his life, and let Mary get on with hers. Joseph will find a safer, more manageable, predictable wife.
Then he has a dream in which an angel says, “Joseph, don’t be afraid. Go ahead and marry her. The child belongs to God. It’s a boy and it’s God with us.” Without an ultrasound, Joseph knows it’s a boy—or maybe it was just a dream. When he wakes up, he is more confused than ever.
In some ways, Joseph stays in the background in the Christmas story. Luke hardly mentions him. Joseph is in a supporting role. He doesn’t get a single line of dialogue in all of the New Testament.
In manger scenes, Mary and Jesus are center stage and Joseph is in the shadows. He’s often hard to distinguish from the shepherds. In the crèche on the coffee table, if Joseph’s head gets knocked off—as often happens to ceramic Josephs—you can always promote a shepherd. In paintings, Joseph looks worn with fatigue, his face lined with anxiety. He seems like he would be more comfortable at a funeral than a birth.
It’s easy to imagine Joseph as cautious and careful. Carpenters aren’t usually considered thrill seekers. “Measure twice, cut once” is the rule. When Matthew describes Joseph as just and righteous, we picture an earnest, meticulous craftsman whose carpentry business is all the excitement he wants.
This long-expected Jesus is coming pretty fast for Joseph. He’s being asked to assume responsibility for a girl and her baby with only a voice in a dream to go on.
Leaving Mary is the reasonable thing to do. It’s not hard to ignore an angel’s whisper. Even if Joseph could convince himself to believe Mary, no one else will. He should shake it off and call his lawyer. Acting honorably is easy—dismiss the dream as just a dream and walk away. Haven’t you forgotten dreams with more details than this one?
Against all odds, Joseph pushes aside the arguments and follows the dream. He’ll marry this pregnant teenager and be the adopted father of her child. He’ll take this huge risk on the basis of nothing more substantive than a dream.
This curious, astounding roll of the dice puts me in mind of Noah building the ark when there’s no rain in the forecast; Peter, James, and John dropping their nets to follow; Frodo Baggins hanging the ring around his neck; and Neo taking the red pill from Morpheus. Joseph doesn’t sound safe, careful, or cautious. When faced with the choice of doing what’s reasonable or taking a big chance, Joseph embraces the unexpected. Behind his worried face there must be a big grin waiting to burst out.
He knows he’ll have to learn to deal with whatever lingering doubts he has about Mary. He’ll have to learn not to hear the snickers. The embarrassment is his too now. When the baby is born and people count the months, they won’t think of Joseph as quite so honorable. He knows that he’ll gaze into the face of a baby and be unable to see the reflection of his own.
Joseph is a wonderful visionary who desperately wants the dream to be true. When Joseph marries her, he secretly thinks, Whether it’s true or not, this is what I want to believe.
What kind of person pays attention to a dream and listens to angels? God’s angels speak this word to all of us: “Don’t be afraid to believe, to walk a different path, to follow dreams.” We’re tempted to live a careful life, a careful faith, keep six of the Ten Commandments, go to church three out of four Sundays, give money we don’t need and time we can spare, try to do more good than bad, offer some grace and some judgment, believe the parts of the Bible with which we already agree.
God invites us to wish for what’s true. God’s people long for God, even if they sometimes wonder what that means. The yearning itself is following God’s dreams for us. Whenever we’re dissatisfied with a cautious faith, it’s because God wants more for us.
God invites us to stop being so cautious. Dream of yourself loving God with all your heart—caring not at all about the expectations of those who have forgotten how to dream. Dream of the people you love letting go of jealousy and cynicism, offering only words of kindness to one another. Dream of the church as a family where male and female, black and white, rich and poor, liberal and conservative, straight and gay, old and young, saints and sinners gather to give thanks to God. Dream of a world where people take chances to help others and discover that God is not only our hope, but that God has placed that hope within us. Dream of God waiting for us to take one step in the direction of grace and discover the love that’s always with us.… read more
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WORSHIP ELEMENTS: DECEMBER 18, 2016 by Joanne Carlson BrownFourth Sunday of AdventColor: Blue or Purple
Scripture Readings: Isaiah 7:10-16; Psalm 80:1-7, 17-19; Romans 1:1-7; Matthew 1:18-25
Theme Ideas
On the fourth Sunday of Advent, we hear the prophet foretell of Emmanuel, we see Joseph's dream of Emmanuel, we hear the psalmist's longing for a savior, and we hear Paul's affirmation of a savior. On this Sunday before Christmas, we speak of God with us—in yearning, in promise, in certainty. It is an "almost ... not yet ...ah, it's here" time. Can we be open to the surprise of wonder a child of promise brings us this year?
Call to Worship (Isaiah 7, Matthew 1)
We have been looking for a sign.
Emmanuel—God with us.
We have been waiting for a savior.
Emmanuel—God with us.
The time is near—can it be?
Emmanuel—God with us.
Come let us worship the God of sign,
wonder, and promise.
Call to Worship (Isaiah 7, Psalm 80, Romans 1, Matthew 1)
The prophet foretold it, the psalmist longed for it,
Joseph dreamed of it, Paul proclaimed it.
God is come to us, to be with us, to restore us, to save us.
Let us come in awe and wonder,
to worship the God who makes it all so.
Contemporary Gathering Words
Christmas is a time of anticipation.
We can hardly wait.
Christmas is a time of giving.
We are ready to receive.
Christmas is a time of hope and promise.
We are looking for it.
Could it be? Is it here? Let us come and see;
Let us open ourselves to the wonder of it all.
Praise Sentences (Isaiah 7, Psalm 80, Matthew 1)
Stir up your might, O God,
and come to save us!
Emmanuel—God with us.
Restore us, O God.
Let your face shine,
that we may be saved.
Emmanuel—God with us.
Opening Prayer (Isaiah 7, Matthew 1)
O God,
in this time of worship,
may we be open to your promises, your love,
and your transformation.
May we vision and dream.
May we be surprised.
May we receive the life you give us.
May we encounter Emmanuel—God with us.
And may we never be the same. Amen.
Opening Prayer (Isaiah 7, Matthew 1)
We come this morning,
tired from rushing around,
tired of trying to meet
the demands and expectations
of the season.
Slow us down.
Help us center our thoughts.
Restore in us a childlike wonder,
and a belief that dreams
really do come true.
We call on your name.
Be with us and in us, Emmanuel.
Amen.
Prayer of Confession
O God,
we are easily distracted and slightly jaded,
and cannot believe Christ is almost here.
There are still presents to be bought—
never mind wrapped.
There are parties to attend, cookies to be baked,
trees to be trimmed.
Sometimes we cannot wait
until all this hubbub is over.
Where is the time to sit, to sleep—
never mind to dream?
We can get so caught up in the busyness of the season
that we miss the gift the season is meant to be.
We have heard the scriptures and stories so often
that they have become white noise.
For our frenetic pace, for our exhaustion,
for our tunnel vision, for our missing the wonder
and awe of a baby born to fulfill promises
made long ago, forgive us.
Restore to us the sense of surprise
that you came to us as a little baby,
unexpected, yet longed for.
God of the visioners and dreamers,
may we always be ready
to receive your gifts. Amen.
Words of Assurance (Isaiah 7, Matthew 1)
God comes to us in dreams and visions,
in prophecies and affirmations,
in longing and in hope,
in salvation through a little child.
Claim this promise for yourself,
and let God's healing love fill you.
Benediction (Isaiah 7, Matthew 1)
Look, a young woman is with child and shall bear a son.
He shall be called Emmanuel.
We go forth with anticipation and longing.
Share the good news—Emmanuel—God with us,
is coming.
We go with joy and hope, trusting in the promises
of God.
Benediction (Isaiah 7, Matthew 1)
Go forth with a dream in your soul
and a song in your heart,
knowing that God's promises
are always fulfilled.
The time is almost here.
Get ready for wonder!
From The Abingdon Worship Annual edited by Mary J. Scifres and B.J. Beu, Copyright © Abingdon Press. The Abingdon Worship Annual 2017 is now available.… read more
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WORSHIP CONNECTION: DECEMBER 18, 2016 by Nancy C. TownleyFourth Sunday of AdventColor: Blue or Purple
Scripture Readings: Isaiah 7:10-16; Psalm 80:1-7, 17-19; Romans 1:1-7; Matthew 1:18-25
CALLS TO WORSHIP
Call to Worship #1:
L: We are always looking for evidence that God is with us.
P: That sign is in the One to come--the One that God is sending.
L: We want to know for sure that everything is in God’s care.
P: And so we cry to the heavens in our distress. Our cries are heard! God is responding in love and hope.
L: Let us come before God with expectant hearts and spirits!
P: Let us be ready to receive the blessed gift of the Savior. AMEN.
Call to Worship #2:
L: In the midst of darkness, God brings a new light.
P: Thanks be to the God of light.
L: In the midst of confusion and fear, God brings hope and peace.
P: Thanks be to the God of peace.
L: In the midst of strife and stress, God comforts and soothes us.
P: Let us praise God who truly loves us and brings us new life. AMEN.
Call to Worship #3:
[Using THE FAITH WE SING, p. 2092, “Like a Child,” offer the following call to worship as directed.]
L: Who will come to save us? Who will the Lord send to heal our wounds?
P: Will God send the mighty angelic host? Will God send a great warrior?
Choir: singing verse 1 of “Like a Child”
L: But a child has no voice, no power, no influence. Why would God send a child?
P: A child cannot change the world. Why would God send a child?
Choir: singing verse 2 of “Like a Child”
L: A child needs to be loved and cared for. We need to pay attention to a child.
P: So much of our energy will be consumed in caring for the child.
L: We need to reach out in love--after all, aren’t we God’s beloved ones?
P: The child is the blessed gift that God sends, teaching us again about loving and caring.
Choir: singing verse 3 of “Like a Child”
Call to Worship #4:
L: This is the fourth Sunday of Advent, a time to rejoice in the wondrous things that God is doing.
P: Our hearts are filled with the hope that is coming into the world.
L: The time is fast approaching, not for parties or presence, but for the awareness of God’s loving gift to us--the gift of the Christ child.
P: Help slow us down, Lord, that we may realize that your gift of love is at the center of our lives and our celebrations.
L: Thanks be to God who again reminds us of God’s eternal love.
P: Open our hearts, O Lord, to receive your blessed gift. AMEN.
PRAYERS, LITANY/READING, BENEDICTION
Opening Prayer
Lord of all life and all seasons, help us open our hearts to hear the words of promise and love that you send to us. Like Joseph, may we trust in your abiding love and power. Prepare us to receive your gift of grace and peace. In Jesus’ Name, we pray. AMEN.
The Lighting of the Advent Candle: The Candle of Joy: REJOICE!
Reader 1:
The prophet Isaiah tells us that a young woman shall bear a son and shall call Him Emmanuel--God with us.
Reader 2:
God is no longer a distant God, but is in the here and now.
Reader 3:
As Joseph trusted in the message of God’s angel, so we can trust in God’s message of redemption and love.
Reader 4:
Rejoice! God is lavishing us with God’s love and peace.
Today we light four candles. The first is the candle of Patience, reminding us to watch and wait for what God is about to do. [Light the first candle]
The second candle is the candle of Readiness, enabling us to look at our lives, to get rid of all those things that keep us from God, to change our ways and live as God would have us live. [The second candle is lighted]
The third candle is the candle of Faith, through which we behold the love and mercy of God and believe in God’s presence with us. [The third candle is lighted]
The fourth candle is the candle of Joy, in which we feel the powerful presence of God’s love through the promise of One who will save us. [The fourth candle is lighted]
Reader 1:
Come, see the lights. Let their brightness fill you.
Reader 2:
Come, feel the warmth of the lights. Let them give you comfort.
Reader 3:
Come, draw near to the lights, for God is breaking through to you.
Reader 4:
Come, rejoice in the lights, God is with us!
Prayer of Confession
Lord, we confess that we are rushing headlong into Christmas. It’s only two days away and we still have so much to do. Our preparations are far from complete, and we are exhausted. We wish this whole thing were over so that we could rest. Forgive our shortcomings and our short-sightedness. You have poured upon us blessing after blessing, daily reminding us of your love and presence; yet we have chosen to jump onto this “greased slide” into Christmas. Give us patience. Slow us down. Remind us of the ways in which you are present with us--not in the wrapped packages, the abundance of food, but in the love and compassion that is brought to all. Forgive us, we pray. Make us truly ready to receive your love and the gift of the Christ Child. AMEN.
Words of Assurance
The light of God’s love shines upon each of us in the gift of God’s love, Jesus Christ. This is given for you. Rejoice! You are loved by God, now and forever. AMEN.
Pastoral Prayer
Lord God of love, we have truly succumbed to the “greased slide into Christmas.” We have cluttered our lives with schedules so busy we barely have time to breathe. We plan, prepare, cook, clean, party, and yet wind up exhausted and wondering what in the world happened to the joyous Christmas that we had so long ago. In this place, on this day, you have called us together, to hear your words of encouragement, and to remind us that you are with us. We do not need to rush about in order to have Christmas, for the witness of your love is here among us right now. Open our hearts and help us proclaim your presence. Help us reach out to one another in joy and peace. As we have brought our concerns to you in prayer, remind us again that you hold each and every one of us gently and lovingly in your constant care. For we thank you for your love and ask these things in the name of the One whom you sent to heal and free us, Jesus. AMEN.
Reading:
[Using THE FAITH WE SING, p. 2095, “Star Child,” offer the following reading as directed.]
Choir: singing verse 1 of “Star Child”
Reader 1:
Christmas is for children! Isn’t that right? Look at all the ads in the papers and on the TV--everything for children! So innocent. So trusting! Little do children know about the real world--the world of struggle, the world of greed. They can believe in a little baby and angels and shepherds. They can hear the story of the birth and dream of God’s love. With us adults, it’s just different. There is too much to do. We don’t have time anymore for these sweet stories of Christmas.
Voice:
When did you stop being God’s beloved one? For all of your life, God has and continues to love you. Wonder and witness are not consigned to children--those young in years--they are for everyone. Imagine again the wonder of waiting for the day when you could sing with your whole heart and voice “O Come, All Ye Faithful” and “Silent Night.” Do not lose that wonder. Open your heart to receive and believe, and rejoice!
Choir: singing verses 2, 3, and 4 of “Star Child”
Reader 2:
My heart aches for the comfort and hope of Christmas. Life has been difficult. I want to rest in the assurance of God with us. But fears and doubts have crept into my soul. God, please send to all of us a special sign, the sign of your presence and your love. Please help us let go of the fear and embrace once again the hope of that promised One.
Voice:
Let go of the fears. God is sending you God’s richest blessings. This Child will bring peace. He will teach us of God’s loving presence with each of us. He will bring healing to our wounds. He will teach us how to truly live as God’s beloved children.
CONGREGATION AND CHOIR: singing verse 5 of “Star Child”
Benediction
Place your trust in God, for God is with you. Listen carefully for God’s loving whisper in this time--the words will give you healing and hope. Go in peace and may God’s peace always be with you. AMEN.
ARTISTIC ELEMENTS
The traditional color for this season is PURPLE; however, I prefer BLUE, the alternate color.
The theme for this fourth Sunday of Advent is: REJOICE!
We are almost to Christmas. We have been rushing around trying to get everything done for the “Big Day.” But our scriptures remind us that God is already preparing us to receive the glorious gift; God is placing a spirit of joy and faith in our hearts. In the simplest of ways, God has provided for our salvation. This is a time for happiness and joy. God is with us!
An interesting approach might be to move from darkness into light. In the light of that idea, I am suggesting a layering of fabric, beginning with the darkest blue, dark navy blue, for the first Sunday of Advent, and then adding a royal blue for Advent 2, medium blue for Advent 3, and pale blue (Mary’s color) for Advent 4. White will be used for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day/Christmastide.
Because Advent and Christmas traditions vary in all congregations, you may want to make major alterations to the following suggestions. I will be going with the themes of Advent 1: Watch and Wait; Advent 2: Prepare!; Advent 3: Behold/Believe; Advent 4: Rejoice; and Christmas Eve/Christmas Day: Celebrate!
If you are using Advent Candles, you might consider using pillar candles--three medium blue candles about 6-8” high and one pink 6-8” high pillar candle. Place two of the blue candles on one side of the center riser and a blue and the pink candle on the other side. You may want to place risers so that these candles are elevated.
SURFACE:
Place an 8” riser on the center of the worship table, toward the back. Place two risers about 6” high on the worship center, to the right and left but about 6” in front of the center riser; place a bench or floor riser in front of the worship center. Optional: You may place other risers as needed, but make sure that the center riser is not obscured by any other risers.
FABRIC:
The entire worship area, including all risers, should be covered with the dark navy blue fabric, making sure that the fabric puddles to the floor in front of the worship center. Royal blue fabric was added two weeks ago; last week we added medium blue fabric on each side of the worship table. Each strip of fabric should be about 4 yards long and about 30” wide. This week we add the pale blue strips of fabric, moving in from the edge of the royal blue toward the center. Make sure that you leave a significant border of the royal blue so that the color movement can easily be seen. [The eventual effect will be darker fabric on the outside, moving toward the lighter and eventually white fabric in the center of the worship table. So the color range will appear as follows: dark navy blue - royal blue - medium blue - light blue - white - light blue - medium blue - royal blue - dark navy blue.]
CANDLES:
See the section on lighting the Advent candles. If you are using a separate wreath, not placed on the worship center, you may still use the liturgy for lighting the candles.
FLOWERS/FOLIAGE:
Because the lectionary for this week includes Mary’s Magnificat, you might want to consider placing a single pink rose in the center of the worship table. I would lay the rose down rather than place it in a vase.
ROCKS/WOOD:
The wood that you placed on the worship center last week should be removed.
OTHER:
This will depend on the theme you have chosen.… read more
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From a Child's Point of View
Gospel: Matthew 1:18-25. Today's soap-opera-watching, worldly wise children can appreciate Joseph's dilemma, if the language about conception is rephrased into plain talk about pregnancy (i.e., after they were engaged, Joseph found out that Mary was pregnant; this was a problem because you are not supposed to be pregnant before you are married). Details about Jewish betrothal practices will interest older children and will add both to their understanding of the corner Joseph was in, and to their appreciation for his brave response to the angel's message. Boys, especially, benefit from exploring Joseph's important supportive role in the Christmas stories.
Elementary-school-age children are not mentally ready to enter the debates about the virgin birth. For them, it is amazing, but acceptable, that God chose to "be with us" by being born as a baby and living among us. Only after they develop the ability for abstract thought will the questions about the virgin birth make sense.
Epistle: Romans 1:1-7. Children will not understand this passage as it is read. It helps to introduce the literary form—that is, the greeting from the letter of introduction which announces Paul's visit to the Roman Christians. The complex sentences and ideas in this passage should be paraphrased. For example:
From Paul to the Christians in Rome: Let me introduce myself. I am a slave of Jesus Christ. God loves me, even though I do not deserve it. And God has given me a job to do. I am to tell the good news about Jesus to people everywhere and help them live as disciples. I plan to come to Rome to share God's good news with you soon. So in advance, I send you God's loving grace and peace.
Like Joseph, Paul knew that God was with him, loved him, and had given him important work to do. The "Emmanuel promise" is that God is also with us and working through us.
Old Testament: Isaiah 7:10-16. This passage presents images and vocabulary problems which scholars debate, so it is not surprising that children can make little sense of the passage as it is read. It does, however, offer children two important truths that will need to be dug out of the text during the sermon.
First, children can hear, with the frightened King Ahaz, that God is with us always—even when two strong kings (or neighborhood bullies or older siblings) are plotting against us. God will be with us when we are facing all sorts of difficult situations, and God will still be with us after even the worst situations have been resolved.
Second, they can hear the promise of a special Son whose name will be Emmanuel, because he will indeed be "God with us," and they can add the word Emmanuel to their vocabulary.
Psalm: Psalm 80:1-7, 17-19. This prayer for deliverance is included among today's readings because of its reference to Joseph. Unfortunately, that reference, and most of the other images of this psalm, assume detailed knowledge of the Temple and Jewish tribes. Children, therefore, will make little sense of it. This one is for biblical scholars.
Watch Words
Use Emmanuel and God with us frequently and interchangeably. Avoid incarnation, a long, strange theological word which means the same thing.
Avoid conception, "that which was conceived in her," and Mary's virginity. Instead, talk about the fact that Mary was pregnant, and God was the father of her baby.
Let the Children Sing
"O Come, O Come, Emmanuel" is a natural choice for this Sunday. While its vocabulary and images are difficult for children, they respond quickly to the change of mood between the verses and the chorus. Simply alert the congregation to the problems mentioned in the verses and the happy "Emmanuel promise" recalled in the chorus. Encourage children to sing the chorus, even if they cannot read all the words in the verses.
"Once in Royal David's City" speaks of God's presence with us in Jesus, in simple words that children can read and understand. The third verse of "Away in a Manger" also recalls the "Emmanuel promise."
If you focus on the work of Joseph and Paul, invite the children's choir or a children's class to sing "The Friendly Beasts," which notes the work each animal did when Jesus was born.
The Liturgical Child
1. Light the fourth candle of the Advent wreath for God's Emmanuel promise, "I will be with you":
God promised that one day a son would be born who would be named God With Us. Jesus' last words before he went back into heaven were, "Remember, I will be with you always." God promises that we will never be alone. Just as God was with us in Jesus, God is with us every day. So today, we light a candle for God's Emmanuel promise. God is with us.
2. "Kum Ba Yah," which means "come by here" is known by many children. As a children's class or choir to sing it as a response to the congregation's prayers of petition and intercession. Or invite the whole congregation to sing the chorus, in response to each of a series of petition prayers. Be sure to point out its meaning before it is sung.
3. Children's Christmas excitement is probably at fever pitch this Sunday. Remember in the church's prayer their hopes for wonderful gifts, anticipation of visits with grandparents and cousins, and delight in other Christmas traditions. Also pray for kindness and patience in the days between now and Christmas.
Sermon Resources
1. Abandonment is one of the deepest fears of childhood. So tell stories about the feeling of being lost in a grocery or department store (remember that young children assume that it is the parent and not the child that has wandered off or gotten lost); of wondering whether your parents have forgotten you when you are the last to be picked up after some activity; of fearing, while waiting with a babysitter or staying alone for the first time, that your parents will never return. You may want to speak of the special fear of children whose parents have divorced—that the parent with whom they live will move out, as did the other parent. Use these stories to set the stage for exploring the value of God's promise to be with us.
2. Feature Joseph exploring his part in Jesus' birth and early childhood. Point out the importance of his quiet, behind-the-scenes role.
3. Explore Joseph's big decision about Mary and Jesus. Note Paul's self-introduction as a person God loves, and for whom God has a task. Point out the similarities in Paul's situation and Joseph's. Then challenge worshipers of all ages to see themselves as persons God loves, and for whom God has tasks.… read more
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CHRISTMAS IS...
Isaiah 7:10-16
During a past Christmas season a five-year-old boy was playing with our son and stayed at our house for lunch. As I served their meal I noticed our visitor's good manners, and I complimented him on them. His response was classic: "I'm being polite so that I can get what I want for Christmas." At least he was honest.
If we were as honest as my son's young friend, some of us would have to say, "For me, Christmas is getting what I want." Surely in our better moments Christmas means much more to us than that.
I. Christmas Is a Sign
God's sign to King Ahaz was the birth of a child. The birth of Jesus is also a sign to us. It signifies God's love, mercy, power, and grace. Sometimes it takes a sign to convince us of these realities, just as it did for Ahaz. For the main character in the movie It's a Wonderful Life, it took an angel to convince him of his worth. For Dickens's Scrooge it took a vivid nightmare. For the characters on the "Peanuts" Christmas special, it took Linus's recitation of the story of Jesus' birth.
When our oldest son was about four, we went through a stage of stretching out our arms as far as we could and saying, "I love you this much!" Once when we were in the car, our son made that gesture and said those words—first to my wife and then to me. My wife responded by doing the same thing. Then my son expected me to do it also. I explained to him that I was driving and that it would not be safe. "And besides," I added, "I could never stretch out my arms far enough to show you how much I love you." I was sure that would satisfy him, but in a few minutes he said, "Daddy, when we get out of the car, you can stretch your arms out to show me how much you love me." Sometimes we feel the need for a sign.
II. Christmas Is Grace
Ahaz had not been listening to God or to his prophet. He had not been a righteous king. This king was too busy with affairs of state to pay attention to spiritual things. He thought that problems such as the threat of invasion should be taken care of by practical means. To merely trust God, as Isaiah suggested, would be naive. It is proof of the grace of God that he continued to try to communicate with this errant king.
We, too, have gone astray (Isa. 53:6). We have disobeyed and rebelled. It is evidence of the grace of God that he would continue to seek us by sending his Son.
III. Christmas Is a Miracle
Jesus was born by impossible means—by a woman who was still a virgin. It was a miracle. In fact, Christmas is packed full of miracles—the angelic host, the guiding star, the escape from Herod, and more.
Perhaps the greatest miracle was that the little infant was God making himself known. During World War II a little boy kept a picture of his soldier father on his desk at school. The father had been at war for a long time. The boy's teacher asked him what he wanted for Christmas. He said that for Christmas he wanted his father to walk out of that picture. On the night Jesus was born, God walked out of eternity and into time; he has manifested himself through this sign-child. (N. Allen Moseley)
LIKE FATHER, LIKE SON
Romans 1:1-7
Many people have been told they look just like their father. Family characteristics run deep. This is true of Christ, too. When it comes to his relation to God, we might quote the old proverb "Like Father like Son." On this Christmas Eve, let us hear the Word of God from Romans 1 and learn about God by getting to know his son.
I. The Promise
The gospel was promised long before it was delivered. The prophets were "seers" who knew something was coming long before it arrived. By the time Jesus was born, though, interest in the promised Messiah seemed low.
"Due to the lack of interest, Christmas has been canceled!" That statement was seen on a bumper sticker. We laugh at such a thought. Christmas may be many things, but a season of little interest it is not. Some companies spend eleven months gearing up for the one-month sale at Christmas time. Many other businesses make at least half of their profits from Christmas sales. They are very interested in this season! Take stock of your own attitude. How are you feeling right now? Exhilarated? Bored? Excited? Depressed? Angry? Joyous? What is Christmas supposed to be? It was a promised event then and a promised blessing now.
II. The Fulfillment
What do you associate with Christmas? Gifts? Family and friends getting together? What about the special foods, like roast turkey and eggnog? In the flurry of activity around the holidays, we should keep this one fact in mind: Jesus did not come into the world to give us a Christmas holiday. He did not enter human history to give us a cause for celebration. So why did he come? Verse 4 gives us the answer. It speaks of Christ's resurrection from the dead. The promised Savior came, was crucified, and was raised from the grave. That affects our destiny. The Gospels tell us that Mary bore a son and that she gave him the name Jesus "for it is he who will save his people from their sins."
III. The Blessing
"Mary Had a Little Lamb" is the title of a nursery song many of us sang as children. It is also a biblical reality. Mary's son Jesus grew up to be what God had intended him to be—the Savior of the world. John the Baptist said of him, "Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!"
That gives us a tremendous blessing, one that is sketched in verse 7. We receive grace and peace from God. That is what we see when we look into the life of Jesus. He is the giver of blessings. Like Father, like Son. (Don M. Aycock)
THE MAN AT THE MANGER
Matthew 1:18-25
In the many elements that compose the Christmas story, the one we are most likely to overlook is Joseph. Certainly Mary and her special child are at the center of the story, and we love to recall the shepherds in the fields and the wise men bearing gifts. Look at the average nativity scene; Joseph is that guy standing in the back of the scene, looking on while everyone else gathers around the manger.
Yet Matthew reminds us here that Joseph was a central and essential character in the Christmas drama. The depth of character shown by Joseph serves as a model for each one of us during this time of celebration.
I. Joseph Was Righteous Before God
Matthew tells us that Joseph was a "righteous man" (v. 19), but I can't help thinking that was an understatement. God selected a special man to serve as the human father and model for Jesus, a man who would demonstrate integrity, honor, and virtue as the boy Jesus grew into a man.
The events described in this text offer one bit of evidence of the kind of man Joseph was. What a bitter blow it must have been to discover that young Mary, who was promised to him in marriage, was bearing a child. Can you imagine the thoughts and suspicions that would have gone through your mind in his situation? How would you have responded, especially in that culture, when you could certainly have exacted a dramatic measure of punishment for what you thought was a betrayal?
Yet Joseph's concern was for protecting Mary from public ridicule and punishment. Even at a moment in his life when he must have felt deeply hurt, he was anxious to protect the one he thought had hurt him. That is a depth of character not often found in his or any other day.
God could use Joseph because he had a compassionate heart and was a man of honor. Do we seek to demonstrate the kind of character in our lives that will enable God to more effectively use us?
II. Joseph Was Responsive to God
Imagine having the kind of dream Joseph had that night, and learning that the basis for his predicament was actually the work of God, and that the child your future wife is bearing is the Messiah, the "anointed one" of God. Yet Joseph's response was a simple one: "When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord commanded him" (v. 24).
God isn't looking for the best and the brightest, the most handsome or beautiful, the most polished or popular. God is looking for men and women who will be responsive to his will; people who are willing to hear and obey. Look at the stories of those men and women who were used by God—people like Abraham and David and others like them; their common characteristic is a responsiveness to God. They were willing to do what God told them to do.… read more1
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Welcome to the new Pulpit Resource from Will Willimon. For over three decades Pulpit Resource helps preachers prepare to preach. Now in partnership with Abingdon Press, this homiletical weekly is available with fresh and timely accessibility to a new generation of preachers.
No sermon is a solo production. Every preacher relies on inherited models, mentors in the preacher’s past, commentaries on biblical texts by people who have given their lives to such study, comments received from members of the congregation, last week’s news headlines, and all the other things that make a sermon communal.
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