Good News in Strange Places

Advent III

December 17, 1995

Isaiah 35; Luke 1:47-55; James 5:7-10; Matthew 11:2-11

I ENJOY CHRISTMAS TRADITIONS. Especially those having to do with children. Last Sunday at the dinner table Jake asked his cousin Miranda if she was coming to church next Sunday night (which is this evening now.) She said "Why are you asking?" Jake said, "Because I'm in the play."

"Do you want me to come?" Mandy went on with the conversation.

"I don't care," was Jake's response. But of course he cared or he wouldn't have asked. And Mandy told him she'd be here. Another generation is getting into Christmas tradition.

I remember well when our children first were old enough to "say pieces." (I'm looking forward to this evening at 6 o'clock.)

CHRISTMAS IS A BEAUTIFUL TIME

What is "the ideal children's Christmas?" Do you have a romanticized picture of what Christmas ought to be? Or what it once was? Did you ever have a "perfect Christmas?" Some elements I can think of that make a Christmas wonderful for children are (1) TRUST and (2) a sense of SECURITY, as well as (3) ANTICIPATION.

CHRISTMAS TRUTH IS MORE THAN TRADITION

I hope I've made it clear that I love all the lights and traditions and children's pieces and good stuff that comes along with Christmas. But behind the traditions are some very real and very wonderful facts. I don't think I'm a compromiser when I say I can live with Santa and toys and Christmas Trees and still not forget the heart of what Christmas is about. There is a beauty, and a Good News that goes far deeper than even the most warm and wonderful of our Christmas traditions: Christmas really comes to challenge our faith! God comes to where we are. It the situations where we find ourselves, God makes Himself known, and the circumstances may not change immediately, but the Presence is everything.

GOD REACHED OUT AND TOUCHED OUR WORLD
JESUS DOESN'T COME TO FULFILL OUR EXPECTATIONS
Mary's song is beautiful: "My soul magnifies the Lord!" But we can only imagine what a challenge to faith the reality of Mary's situation was. She certainly had to TRUST that God's Word was trustworthy. Her visit to her cousin Elizabeth boosted her faith. Mary's Christmas had little SECURITY as we know it— but Joseph was there to support. And Mary's HOPE was not what she might have expected— but has blessed every generation as she was promised.
John the Baptist was once certain that what he was preaching was absolutely true. He was "on the inside track" with God— and the message was flowing to those outsiders. But now the action had gone past— he was on the inside of a prison, and on the outside of what was really happening. He did not ask with the voice of unbelief. Some have called John's question "A Friday voice of faith." Sometimes we need to make room for honest doubt— and confront God with our questions— or doubt will turn to skepticism and become a permanent fixture in our spirits. John addressed his questions as best he could to Jesus Himself. The answer is worth studying: we cannot simply cling to what we remember of Jesus— what we THINK he OUGHT to be. We need to be open to what HE SAYS— to what HE wants to be doing with us. He is always challenging us to go beyond what we think we know of Him. The moment we think we have Jesus all figured out He does something we never expected.
But we can be certain: Jesus is to be trusted. He came to save sinners. He came to make bad people good, and good people nice.
JESUS DOES COME WHERE HE IS INVITED

CHRISTMAS IS A CONTEMPORARY REALITY

Like John the Baptist, many people are looking at the promise that God cares, and God is with us, that God's name is Emmanuel— from prisons just as real as the one he was in. There are prisons of childhood memories— prisons of abuse— prisons of addictions— prisons of depression. There are prisons of bereavement and sorrow because loved ones aren't here at a family time. It might be neater and nicer not to even mention these— but if you aren't in one of these prisons, you know someone who is. What do we say to them when they say: "What can Jesus Christ do for ME? Are we supposed to believe in HIM, or do we look for someone else?" If we try to tell them about a Jesus we THINK we know— or a Jesus we remember dimly from some Christmas a long time ago we won't be much help to them. If we introduce Jesus by letting Him make us men and women of God— by loving people and not just saving souls— JESUS WILL MAKE HIMSELF REAL TO THEM— and bring HIS JOY.

How do we reconcile the JOY of Christmas with the sorrows of life? How does Christ align with faith when crunch time comes? Two examples come to mind:

One is the common but real burden of getting old. [Mrs. Allen, Ruth Cameron's mother— in a "prison" which has actually become a place of ministry and joy!]

Another is facing the prospect of separation and death. [I recommend "Shadowlands" — either or both of two movies now out in video about CS and Joy LEWIS.] What about Amy Porter who was supposed to be married next week, and instead was buried a couple of weeks ago?

A couple that you don't know— and I know only through correspondence in Bible study, and minister and his wife names Mark and Elaine Forrester, in Nashville, Tennessee, are facing a battle with cancer. With his permission I share his thoughts with you. He writes:

"My wife, Elaine, relapsed with leukemia after being in remission for almost eight years. After five years of remission we were told, "you're cured." We believed it, and were happy as could be. As it turned out, we were under the spell of an illusion. Now that we've been disillusioned— stripped of false assumptions— does that make us blessed? Quite honestly the answer is both no and yes. No, we are anything but fully blessed— because we are broken. As people of faith we still affirm God's abiding love, but seriously question God's power. (When well-meaning people tell us, "don't worry, God's in control of all things and is allowing this to happen for a reason," I want to say, "thank you for your concern, but keep your illusions to yourself.") But finally I must say that our bitter disappointment has created an emptiness that can only be filled by God. And in that regard we are blessed and graced with the ability to discard false expectations while giving root to new seeds of hope and life that permeate this Advent season. In this hour of discontent— as our Friday voice of faith begins to stutter with uncertainty, we are invited to hear the words often sung and believed on Christmas Eve: "the hopes and fears of all the years are met in thee tonight." May we all be disturbed by God's unexpected joy! Amen." [Pray for Mark and Elaine Forrester of Vanderbilt and Nashville.]

Isaiah tells us that in the desert there is a highway to Zion. He promises us that the dry place will become verdant and blossom. It is not always as simple or as stylized as the ideal Children's Christmas. We don't find a Christ who we can use, or who changes life to the pattern we lay out for Him. But this highway is a highway of hope, and a way of real JOY! For Jesus comes and walks with us on the journey.

As Jesus comes, and He does come!, we find TRUST, and we find SECURITY— and we have great ANTICIPATION.

We can enter into our children's traditions in good faith. We may smile at Santa and Rudolph and tinsel and lights, but the Christ of Christmas still is the Prince of Peace. We don't smile at Mary's Song— we worship! And you and I can walk with Her Great Son, Our Savior, along that highway that leads into spring. Let us pray:(Segue chorus: Jesus, Name above all names!)

Closing Story:

Barbara Brown Taylor in a recent Christian Century told of taking a big van load of rich kids to Appalachia to aquaint them first hand with how a lot of the rest of the world lives.

There they met some very real and wonderful people, among whom was a boy named . He soon became one with them, and they prayed together. But . . . .