Thank you for journeying with me this Advent - I hope you've enjoyed it as much as I have!
Merry Christmas, enjoy celebrating the Good News that God became flesh and dwelt among us and dwells among us now in our world in all its messiness.
I'll leave you with this reading from John chapter 1 which I did for yesterday's Online 9 Lessons and Carols service:
For to us a child is born,
to us a son is given,
and the government will be on his shoulders.
And he will be called
Wonderful Counsellor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.Of the greatness of his government and peace
there will be no end.
He will reign on David’s throne
and over his kingdom,
establishing and upholding it
with justice and righteousness
from that time on and forever.
The zeal of the LORD Almighty
will accomplish this.Isaiah 9:6-7 (NIV)
Tonight we celebrate God becoming one of us, with all of these qualities - wonderful, counsellor, mighty God, everlasting Father, Prince of Peace - packed into a tiny, frail human baby form.
He chose to come into our world into an outpost of the Roman empire that was full of rioting and terrorist activity, into a city full of people where he was not welcomed, the only place for the new born baby a feeding trough for animals and a fragile political situation which meant his parents had to flee their home as refugees to Egypt.
This is our God, human and yet divine, our Wonderful Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
Emmanuel, God with us.
As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our flesh and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature deserving of wrath. But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved. And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God's handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.
(Ephesians 2:1-10 NIV)
Grace is central to the Christian gospel - that it is not by anything we have done that we are saved but rather it is the free gift of God.
It reminds me of one of the best sermons I ever heard about grace by our Pastor at South Parade Baptist Church, David Morris. He preached this sermon about 10 years ago and I can still remember it! The analogy he used to describe how we often misunderstand God's grace was this:
Imagine you've gone to visit an aunt, she's told you that she would like to give you a gift of money - £5000 in cash to spend on whatever you want. You thank her profusely but then realise that you've got to go home on the bus with all this cash. So you timidly ask if you might have a brown envelope to put the money in. She then flies into a rage and says "a brown envelope? A brown envelope, I couldn't possibly let you have a brown envelope!"
This is how we think God will react when we ask him for something when he's already given us so much!
One of the most important things about grace is that it's not at all about anything we've done, good or bad. So many people misunderstand the Christian message, thinking it's all about getting brownie points to get into heaven. Paul makes it clear in today's reading that our good works come out of God's grace (see the last verse) but are not something we do to earn God's grace. I couldn't put it better than Archbishop Desmond Tutu:
To be like this God, who gives up on no-one, who loves us, not because we are loveable but that we become loveable only because God loves us, God loves us with a love that will not let us go, a love that loved us before we were created, a love that loves us now, a love that will love us forever, world without end. A love that says of each single one of us: “I love you, you are precious and special to me, I love you as if you were the only human being on earth, I love you and there is nothing you can do to make me love you more because I already love you perfectly.”
How incredibly, wonderfully, it is that God says to you, to me: “There is nothing you can do to make me love you less. I take you, I take you very seriously, I take you – you – body and soul, you the visible and the invisible of you, I love you, I love you, I love you.
Read the full sermon here.
1 I will sing of the LORD's great love for ever; with my mouth I will make your faithfulness known through all generations.
2 I will declare that your love stands firm for ever, that you established your faithfulness in heaven itself.
3You said, I have made a covenant with my chosen one, I have sworn to David my servant,
4 'I will establish your line for ever and make your throne firm through all generations.'
Psalm 89: 1-4 (NIV)
We very rarely associate Christmas with longevity. Christmas is a fleeting thing. It's something we look forward to every year but it's over very quickly. That's why lots of our Christmas songs say 'I wish it could be Christmas every day' - precisely because it isn't.
Having said that, we do celebrate it every year. None of us, even in our secular society, can imagine a time when we won't celebrate Christmas any longer. The date is a fixture in our calendars. What will I be doing on 25th December 2025? I'll be celebrating Christmas!
Even more of a 'fixture' is God's love for us and his faithfulness to all generations. Mary speaks of this in her song of praise when she meets Elizabeth:
He protects Israel, his servant, *
remembering his mercy,
the mercy promised to our fathers, *
to Abraham and his sons for ever.
Our celebrations of Christmas might not last forever but what we celebrate at Christmas will - that love came down at Christmas, a love to last through all generations.
This is expressed by Christina Rossetti in her carol:
Love came down at Christmas,
Love all lovely, Love Divine;
Love was born at Christmas,
Star and Angels gave the sign.Worship we the Godhead,
Love Incarnate, Love Divine;
Worship we our Jesus:
But wherewith for sacred sign?Love shall be our token,
Love shall be yours and love be mine,
Love to God and all men,
Love for plea and gift and sign.
The LORD your God is with you, he is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing.
The sorrows for the appointed feasts I will remove from you; they are a burden and a reproach to you.
At that time I will deal with all who oppressed you; I will rescue the lame and gather those who have been scattered. I will give them praise and honour in every land where they were put to shame.
At that time I will gather you; at that time I will bring you home. I will give you honour and praise among all the peoples of the earth when I restore your fortunes before your very eyes, says the LORD.
Zephaniah 3: 17-20 (NIV)
We are on the home straight! We've now moved to our final theme of love - as Paul says, the greatest of all virtues.
The first verse (v3) in today's passage is a very significant one for me. God has spoken to me through this verse a few times.
This passage from Zephaniah speaks of the tenderness of our God:
He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing.
A man singing to a child is not an image that is familiar to many of us. My friend Richard wrote an interesting blog post about Zechariah, the father of John the baptist and how he sings over his baby when he is born with a song we say or sing in services now as the Benedictus.
Take this beautiful image and then realise that Zephaniah is saying that this is what God does over us - he sings a joyful song over us. He quiets us with his love. There have been a few occasions in my life when I have completely been quieted by God - to the point of being mute for a period of time. Those of you who know me well will know that this has to have been something supernatural!
There was great singing and joy of course when Jesus was born. The quiet joy of Mary and Joseph (maybe they sang songs together to Jesus the baby?) was echoed by the sound of the whole heavenly host praising God and saying: Glory to God in the highest and peace to his people on earth.
God's love came down at Christmas in the form of a baby. God sings over us with his love.
Here is a beautiful choral piece written imagining the heavenly host singing:
Lux, calida gravisque pura velut aurum et canunt angeli molliter modo natum.
English translation:
Light, warm and heavy as pure gold and the angels sing softly to the new-born baby. - Edward Esch
In that day you will say:
Surely God is my salvation;
"I will praise you, Lord.
Although you were angry with me,
your anger has turned away
and you have comforted me.
I will trust and not be afraid.
The Lord, the Lord himself, is my strength and my defense;
he has become my salvation."With joy you will draw water
from the wells of salvation.In that day you will say:
"Give praise to the Lord, proclaim his name;
make known among the nations what he has done,
and proclaim that his name is exalted.Sing to the Lord, for he has done glorious things;
let this be known to all the world.
Shout aloud and sing for joy, people of Zion,
for great is the Holy One of Israel among you."(Isaiah 12:1-6 NIV)
I want to look at verse 3 of this reading especially today:
With joy you will draw water
from the wells of salvation.
We don't live in the Middle East so it's somewhat difficult to understand the idea of the scarcity of water. Think about how powerful this image of the wells of salvation would be to a village who had been experiencing drought.
Jesus answered, "Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life." (John 4:13, 14 NIV)
Jesus says this as he is talking to a woman at a well.
Consider the image of the well - how do you get water from it?A well needs to be visited, and regularly. Jesus death and resurrection once and for all paid the price for our sin but to enjoy and rejoice in our salvation we do need to keep returning to the well to receive the living water he promises us. We need to be topped up!I think sometimes we see God's blessing as more like an ever flowing tap (like the taps in Starbucks that run non-stop) where the biblical image is one of a deep and full well. The well never dries up but if you don't take your bucket there to be filled it will remain empty.How long have you gone without drawing on the 'wells of salvation'?I read today's psalm in a number of translations and I think you can't beat the Authorised Version for this particular psalm!
1O sing unto the LORD a new song: sing unto the LORD, all the earth.
2Sing unto the LORD, bless his name; shew forth his salvation from day to day.
3Declare his glory among the heathen, his wonders among all people.
4For the LORD is great, and greatly to be praised: he is to be feared above all gods.
5For all the gods of the nations are idols: but the LORD made the heavens.
6Honour and majesty are before him: strength and beauty are in his sanctuary.
7Give unto the LORD, O ye kindreds of the people, give unto the LORD glory and strength.
8Give unto the LORD the glory due unto his name: bring an offering, and come into his courts.
9O worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness: fear before him, all the earth.
10Say among the heathen that the LORD reigneth: the world also shall be established that it shall not be moved: he shall judge the people righteously.
11Let the heavens rejoice, and let the earth be glad; let the sea roar, and the fulness thereof.
12Let the field be joyful, and all that is therein: then shall all the trees of the wood rejoice
13Before the LORD: for he cometh, for he cometh to judge the earth: he shall judge the world with righteousness, and the people with his truth.
Psalm 96 (KJV)
I thought it might be interesting to try something different and practical today using this Psalm. The psalms are the prayer or song book of the Jews - Jesus would have known them by heart. When we are finding it hard to pray it's often a good idea to turn to the psalms - there's almost a psalm for every mood!
Many of the verses in this psalm begin with an imperative - a command. Some of our own hymns are like this - we encourage each other as we sing and sometimes hymns teach us truths about God. As you consider praying today or this week, perhaps you would like to use these imperatives from this psalm to structure your prayers:
Sing
Singing is a wonderful gift from God. You may well be singing some carols this week. Remember to whom you're singing when you sing those familiar carols! Do you have a 'new' song to sing to God? What do you think this means?
Give
What can you give to God?
What can I give him, poor as I am?
If I were a shepherd, I would bring a lamb,
If I were a wise man, I would do my part,
Yet what I can I give him, give my heart.
(Christina Rosetti)
Worship
How can you worship God this week? You might attend church but perhaps, as St Teresa of Avila said, you might 'find God among the pots and pans'? (Preparing Christmas dinner anyone?!)
Say
Who can you tell the Christmas story to? Who can you share your faith with this week?
Pray (Let...)
What requests have you of God this week? Bring them before Him.
If you're struggling to connect with this Psalm you might enjoy listening to this modern worship song which is based on it:
It being the 400th anniversary of the King James Bible I thought we should have at least one reading this year in that version. I happened to read today's reading in the KJV and thought that this would be a good choice so here it is:
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, To an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you, Who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. Wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season, if need be, ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations: That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ: Whom having not seen, ye love; in whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory: Receiving the end of your faith, even the salvation of your souls.
1 Peter 1:3-9 (KJV)
What a beautiful passage from St Peter. My favourite verse is verse 8:
Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the goal of your faith, the salvation of your souls.
(NIV)
We have not seen Christ but we love Him. There is almost a wonder in Peter's voice here, I think, as of course he saw and knew Jesus personally. He is in awe at the joy felt by those he has preached to and who have come to know Jesus for themselves by the Spirit. Why have we got this inexpressible joy? It's because we know we are being saved - the goal or reason for our faith - our belief that Christ died for our sins and we are saved.
There is some hint again about difficulty and waiting. We have had those themes in our readings already. Peter uses the image of gold being refined. Not a pleasant or soft process, it's a brutal and harsh one - but a process that results in beauty.
It makes me wonder whether Peter ever lived near a smithy and watched the gold being refined himself. Of course, the image has even more gruesome poignancy when you consider those Christians who were persecuted for their faith by the Romans. But after the trial comes the joy. After the sadness comes the joy.
This is the Christian message:
It's Friday, but Sunday's coming!
I'll leave you with this wonderful tale from Tony Campolo which is the place I got this phrase from. You may not have time to listen to this now but it is really worth hearing (the video is 6 minutes long).
Psalm 66
For the director of music. A song. A psalm.
Shout with joy to God, all the earth!
Sing the glory of his name; make his praise glorious!
Say to God, How awesome are your deeds! So great is your power that your enemies cringe before you.
All the earth bows down to you; they sing praise to you, they sing praise to your name.
Come and see what God has done, how awesome his works on man's behalf!
He turned the sea into dry land, they passed through the waters on foot— come, let us rejoice in him.
He rules for ever by his power, his eyes watch the nations— let not the rebellious rise up against him.
Praise our God, O peoples, let the sound of his praise be heard;
he has preserved our lives and kept our feet from slipping.
For you, O God, tested us; you refined us like silver.
You brought us into prison and laid burdens on our backs.
You let men ride over our heads; we went through fire and water, but you brought us to a place of abundance.
I will come to your temple with burnt offerings and fulfil my vows to you—
vows my lips promised and my mouth spoke when I was in trouble.
I will sacrifice fat animals to you and an offering of rams; I will offer bulls and goats.
Come and listen, all you who fear God; let me tell you what he has done for me.
I cried out to him with my mouth; his praise was on my tongue.
If I had cherished sin in my heart, the Lord would not have listened;
but God has surely listened and heard my voice in prayer.
Praise be to God, who has not rejected my prayer or withheld his love from me.
Have you ever shouted for joy spontaneously? Perhaps it was watching sport or when you got some great news? I did this week because I beat Baz at University Challenge! (A rare occurrence in our house).
See how the psalmist is recalling what God has done - he recalls the saving of God's people at the Exodus. We're really fortunate as Christians because we can not only recall what God did for his people Israel but also what He has done for all nations in sending Christ to die for our sins.
I decided I would show this video as I was looking for an excuse to post it again (it featured in last year's calendar). I hope it fills you with joy!
More from Isaiah today! It's making me realise what a rich book Isaiah is, looking at these different passages. Here's today's reading from chapter 55:
"For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
"As the heavens are higher than the earth,
neither are your ways my ways,"
declares the Lord.
so are my ways higher than your ways
and my thoughts than your thoughts.As the rain and the snow
come down from heaven,
and do not return to it
without watering the earth
and making it bud and flourish,
so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater,
so is my word that goes out from my mouth:It will not return to me empty,
but will accomplish what I desire
and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.You will go out in joy
and be led forth in peace;
the mountains and hills
will burst into song before you,
and all the trees of the field
will clap their hands.Instead of the thornbush will grow the juniper,
and instead of briers the myrtle will grow.
This will be for the Lord's renown,
for an everlasting sign,
that will endure forever."(Isaiah 55:8-13 NIV)
Verses 8-9 - the first two verses here - are some of my favourite verses in the bible. They remind me that our God is nothing like a capricious human, He is God and is far above us, He doesn't treat us as we deserve or as humans treat each other. These verses always bring me huge comfort.
I've already spoken about how the themes we're looking at are intimately linked. What I realised today (as I didn't put this programme together myself) is that the themes also come in a kind of logical progression. First we read about hope, having hope brings us a sense of peace, experiencing peace leads us into joy...Thinking on the idea of God's thoughts not being like our thoughts, this also means that He has a totally different perspective on our lives from us. He literally has a bird's eye view of our lives from beginning to end. It's like our life is a beautiful tapestry - all we can see is the messy side, the back, and just a small section at a time. God sees the other side and the whole picture He is creating.
He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.
Revelation 21:4
I always think that the last scene of the Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe depicts beautifully the joy of salvation, where the children receive the 'crown of life' (James 1:12). Look how they're 'led forth in peace':
