For years, wise teachers of preachers have been advising
that sermons should be prepared with the Bible in one hand and
the newspaper in the other. The point is that sermons have to be
relevant to the day-to-day lives of our people, and the best way
to insure that would be to focus on what is going on in our
people's world. Good advice, don't you think?
So what has the newspaper (or the TV or radio or internet or
whatever) had for us this week? Well, it's been quite a
smorgasbord. The dominant story has been the soap opera from
Chicago and Governor Rod Blagojevich's attempt to auction off the
Senate seat of President-elect Obama. We first got wind of it
Tuesday with the Governor's early-morning arrest and the news
conference that laid out the sordid details via bleeped-out
wiretap recordings. Wednesday happened to be Blagojevich's 52nd
birthday, but instead of hearing me sing to him, he heard himself
described as either the most corrupt politician in America or at
least the most stupid. The sermon could well be on the love of
money being the root of all kinds of evil. That is obviously
true, and that will certainly preach.
Throughout this miserable mess, we have been reminded
repeatedly of Chicago's infamous history of political chicanery.
If Governor Blago's alleged offenses are proven in court (and he
still is innocent until proven guilty [unless the president
labels him an enemy combatant, at which point all bets are off]),
he will be the fourth Illinois governor of the last eight to be
sent to prison. A .500 batting average is wonderful
in Chicago if you play for the Cubs or the White Sox, but, this
one...? And, amazingly, according to news reports on Friday, our
big-haired offender has an approval rating of eight percent. I
say "amazingly" because I cannot imagine who comprises the eight
percent. Does he have family we don't know about? Or are these
all folks who were hoping to buy that Senate seat? Noted in all
is the fact that our President-elect came out of that cesspool,
but apparently unscathed. So we have a Tale of Two Politicians,
and with apologies to Charles Dickens, the best of men and the
worst of men. A couple of sermons there - one might say be
careful where your allegiance lies and quote the psalmist saying
"It is better to take refuge in the LORD than to put confidence
in princes." (1) Another might affirm the fact that we can grow
beyond our background and surroundings and use disciples like
Matthew or Peter or Paul as examples. That will preach too.
Of course, we are probably just as happy for the political
soap opera to divert us from the ongoing disaster known
euphemistically as the economy. Reports continue to show that
things are worsening as businesses keep failing and unemployment
keeps rising. What is going to happen with the big three auto
makers and the more than three-million jobs that depend on them
is still an open question because Washington fiddles while
Detroit burns. Perhaps generations to come will look back on
2008 as the year that America elected its first African-American
President, but the generation that is living through it will
probably look on 2008 as the year of the bailout. We are still
in the middle of the mess with no idea as to the eventual
outcome. We have learned, to our chagrin, that even those whom
we relied upon for straight answers and sound advice are as
clueless as anyone. "There is none righteous, no not one" (2) is a
text that comes to mind. Of course, Jesus talked a lot about
money and possessions - fully one-third of his parables dealt
with the subject. There are lots of sermons about depending on
God rather than money, and they have particular resonance these
days. Preach, brother, preach.
We might have a sermon on environmental stewardship in light
of the Bush administration's "midnight regulation" relaxation
this week of protective standards for communities endangered by
questionable mining practices. A ruling was approved to make it
easier for coal companies to simply dump the rock and dirt waste
that is blown off the tops of mountains in "mountaintop removal"
coal mining into streams and valleys with no need for cleanup.
Hmm. "The earth is the Lord's," (3) says the psalmist, not the
mining companies' stockholders. The news of the rioting in a number of cities
in Greece over the police killing of a 15-year-old boy might give
us an advent theme as we remember the Thessalonian Christians of
2000 years ago who gave up worldly pursuits in anticipation of
the imminent return of Christ. They waited...and waited and
waited. They waited so long that they eventually had to sponge
off other church members to survive. The apostle Paul got wind
of it and blew his stack - "Anyone unwilling to work should not
eat. For we hear that some of you are living in idleness, mere
busybodies, not doing any work. Now such persons we command and
exhort in the Lord Jesus Christ to do their work quietly and to
earn their own living." (4) Yes, we wait for the coming of Christ,
but, in the meantime, we have work to do. I am reminded of the
old bumper sticker: "Jesus is coming; look busy."
You can see how the process works. The Bible in one hand
and the newspaper in the other. There are lots of sermons in the
news stories, and there is great value in that.
But I want to expand the process this morning. Let it not
only be the preacher with both Bible and newspaper. YOU do it
too. There is even greater value there. What prompts me to say
so is our encounter with the lectionary texts for the third
Sunday in Advent which the church sees this morning. Both the
Isaiah passage as well as the famous verses of Mary's Magnificat
from Luke simply soar with words of hope. And when we are
confronted with one piece of bad news after another in the papers
each day - political scandals, economic turmoil, continuing wars,
and so on and so on and so on - the temptation to despair can be
overwhelming. We NEED that voice of hope. Listen for it. You have the newspaper; you also have your BIBLE!!! What do you find? The
words of the Christmas carol come to mind:
"Do you hear what I hear?"
Said the night wind to the little lamb.
"Do you see what I see?
Way up in the sky, little lamb,
Do you see what I see?
A star, a star, dancing in the night
With a tail as big as a kite,
With a tail as big as a kite" (5)
Something new and unexpected in the air. Think about the
texts. First, Isaiah 61. It comes from a period a bit more than
500 years before the birth of Christ. It was directed to a
people who had grown up in exile; their grandfathers had lost the
war with Nebuchadnezzar and had been marched off to Babylon in
chains. Now the exiles were being permitted to return to their
ancestral lands, a home they had only heard about. But the land
"flowing with milk and honey" of which the ancient stories spoke
was now a waste. Picture the scenes we see after a hurricane
hits, or an earthquake or a tornado, and you have a sense of what
awaited God's people upon their return to Jerusalem and the
surrounding towns and villages. Nearly every home, farm or
business had been torn down and left in disrepair. The city wall
was gone. Their famous temple had been razed to the ground. The
people were devastated, distraught and depressed.
Enter the prophet, commissioned by the God of all the
universe and anointed to speak the unexpected - good news to
people living in terrible times. Gift after gift the creator
will lavish on these beloved people. The horrific conditions of
their everyday lives will be reversed: the oppressed will hear
good news, the brokenhearted will be embraced, captives and
prisoners will be set free, all who mourn will be comforted. As
the prophet proclaims on behalf of the Almighty: "I will make an
everlasting covenant with them...they [shall be known as] a
people whom the Lord has blessed."
Said the little lamb to the shepherd boy,
"Do you hear what I hear?
Ringing through the sky, shepherd boy,
Do you hear what I hear?
A song, a song high above the trees
With a voice as big as the sea,
With a voice as big as the sea."
Now, fast forward the scene through five centuries. A
little town in the hill country of Judea. The home of Zechariah
and Elizabeth, a woman who, after years of trying, is finally
pregnant with her first child. A demure, devout young cousin is
visiting. Engaged to be married, she is also pregnant...WITHOUT
trying. She tells her cousin the strange story of an angelic
visitor and his announcement of her delicate condition. What
would Elizabeth say? In Franco Zefferelli's film, "Jesus of
Nazareth" the scene is played out with the two ladies. Mary is
worried about Joseph not believing her story. Elizabeth says,
"Tell him that God gives life where no life was thought to be
possible."
Mary knew what was ahead for her. The whispers and the
ridicule of neighbors. The stares, the silent treatment, the
distance from those who used to call themselves "friends." Even
worse would be the harsh words from her family. And then, no
matter what she might say, the look that could be on Joseph's
face, the one that could as easily say "death" as "divorce." But
what do we hear from her? Again something utterly unexpected:
"My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my
Savior, for he has looked with favor on the lowliness of his
servant. Surely, from now on all generations will call me
blessed; for the Mighty One has done great things for me, and
holy is his name." Really? Then, with eyes of faith, just as
the prophet of old did, Mary sees a world to which others are
blind: "He has brought down the powerful from their thrones, and
lifted up the lowly; he has filled the hungry with good things,
and sent the rich away empty."
Said the shepherd boy to the mighty king,
"Do you hear what I hear?
In your palace warm, mighty king,
Do you hear what I hear?
A Child, a Child shivers in the cold--
Let us bring him silver and gold,
Let us bring him silver and gold"
Something new and unexpected. A word of hope in a hopeless
world. Do you hear it? That is the message of these Advent
texts. That is the message of the coming of Jesus.
In 1994, two Americans answered an invitation from the
Russian Department of Education to teach morals and ethics (based
on biblical principles) in the public schools. They were invited
to teach at prisons, businesses, the fire and police departments
and a large orphanage. About 100 boys and girls who had been
abandoned, abused, and left in the care of a government-run
program were in the orphanage. They related the following story
in their own words:
It was nearing the holiday season, 1994, time for
our orphans to hear, for the first time, the
traditional story of Christmas. We told them about
Mary and Joseph arriving in Bethlehem. Finding no room
in the inn, the couple went to a stable, where the baby
Jesus was born and placed in a manger. Throughout the
story, the children and orphanage staff sat in
amazement as they listened. Some sat on the edges of
their stools, trying to grasp every word. Completing
the story, we gave the children three small pieces of
cardboard to make a crude manger. Each child was given
a small paper square, cut from yellow napkins I had
brought with me. (No colored paper was available in the
city.)
Following instructions, the children tore the
paper and carefully laid strips in the manger for
straw. Small squares of flannel, cut from a worn-out
nightgown an American lady was throwing away as she
left Russia, were used for the baby's blanket. A doll-like baby was cut from tan felt we had brought from the
United States. The orphans were busy assembling their
manger as I walked among them to see if they needed any
help.
All went well until I got to one table where
little Misha sat -- he looked to be about 6 years old
and had finished his project. As I looked at the
little boy's manger, I was startled to see not one, but
two babies in the manger. Quickly, I called for the
translator to ask the lad why there were two babies in
the manger. Crossing his arms in front of him and
looking at this completed manger scene, the child began
to repeat the story very seriously.
For such a young boy, who had only heard the
Christmas story once, he related the happenings
accurately, until he came to the part where Mary put
the baby Jesus in the manger. Then Misha started to
ad-lib. He made up his own ending to the story as he
said, "And when Maria laid the baby in the manger,
Jesus looked at me and asked me if I had a place to
stay. I told him I have no mamma and I have no papa,
so I don't have any place to stay. Then Jesus told me
I could stay with him. But I told him I couldn't,
because I didn't have a gift to give him like everybody
else did. But I wanted to stay with Jesus so much, so
I thought about what I had that maybe I could use for a
gift. I thought maybe if I kept him warm, that would
be a good gift. So I asked Jesus, "If I keep you warm,
will that be a good enough gift?" And Jesus told me,
"If you keep me warm, that will be the best gift
anybody ever gave me." So I got into the manger, and
then Jesus looked at me and he told me I could stay
with him---for always."
As little Misha finished his story, his eyes
brimmed full of tears that splashed down his little
cheeks. Putting his hand over his face, his head
dropped to the table and his shoulders shook as he
sobbed and sobbed. The little orphan had found someone
who would never abandon nor abuse him, someone who
would stay with him -- FOR ALWAYS. (6)
Said the king to the people everywhere,
"Listen to what I say!
Pray for peace, people, everywhere,
Listen to what I say!
The Child, the Child sleeping in the night
He will bring us goodness and light,
He will bring us goodness and light."
The wail of sirens, the whine of bullets, the blare of
headlines, the cries of mothers, and the sobs of the Mishas of
this world are deafening. They would overwhelm us...if those
were the only sounds out there. But they are not. The newspaper
is in one hand, but the Bible is in the other!
Do you hear what I hear? That is not only the question of
the Christmas carol, it is the question of Isaiah, it is the
question of Mary. It is the question of faith. Do you hear what
I hear? Listen...and be blessed.
Amen!
1. Psalm 118:9
2. Romans 3:10 KJV
3. Psalm 24:1
4. II Thessalonians 3:10-12
5. Words and Music by Noel Regney and Gloria Shayne, 1962
6. Author unknown. Posted by Jeff Spencer, via Ecunet, "Bottom Drawer," #4022,
12/10/99
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