"Embracing God’s Promises" 2012

Isaiah 61:1, 2, 8-10 Luke 1:45-55

Isaiah 61:1, 2, 8-10

The spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me; he has sent me to bring good news to the oppressed, to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and release to the prisoners; to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all who mourn; For I the Lord love justice, I hate robbery and wrongdoing; I will faithfully give them their recompense, and I will make an everlasting covenant with them. Their descendants shall be known among the nations, and their offspring among the peoples; all who see them shall acknowledge that they are a people whom the Lord has blessed. I will greatly rejoice in the Lord, my whole being shall exult in my God; for he has clothed me with the garments of salvation, he has covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decks himself with a garland, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.

Luke 1:45-55

And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her by the Lord.” And Mary said, “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. His mercy is for those who fear him from generation to generation. He has shown strength with his arm; he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts. 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. He has helped his servant Israel, in remembrance of his mercy, according to the promise he made to our ancestors, to Abraham and to his descendants forever.”

So, how was your Christmas?

Seriously, was it wonderful and meaningful this year,

and was your Christmas everything you hoped it would be?

I know it may seem a little early to be asking that,

but in just a few days, won’t that be

what we talk about with our friends and colleagues? …

… so when asked about your Christmas … … how will you answer?

-- how does one determine or judge the quality of a Christmas?

When I was a student, I certainly wanted to know

the basis being used for determining my grade;

and as an employee, it was even more important to know

how my employer decided who got a raise or promotion…

… we need to know the criteria for making such judgments.

* So, by what measure do we decide whether or not

our Christmas has been a good and meaningful one?

Judging from the volume of marketing messages clogging my email,

the many catalogues and sale fliers stuffed in our mailbox…

… that suggests that the perfect Christmas present might lead à

to the wonderful and meaningful Christmas we desire…

… but we do know better than that,

and that there is so much more to having a remarkable Christmas

than just receiving some ‘thing’ that we think we want.

When I was in college, and would come home for Christmas break,

it was always wonderful reconnecting with old friends…

… but even that,

didn’t necessarily lead to a meaningful Christmas.

When my mother was still alive, she used to labor endlessly

and found great delight in bringing our whole family together

to share our stories & laughter over an amazing Christmas meal

… and even as wonderful as that was,

we know that something more and deeper is necessary

to have the truly meaningful and wonderful Christmas,

that our loving God intends and desires for us…

… and that the blessing of an extraordinary Christmas

is not about getting all the arrangements and details just right.

But isn’t it a critically important question for us to answer,

what is it that makes one Christmas better,

more meaningful and significant than another for us?

I’ve given lot of thought to that question this week,

and tried to figure out what it was that made

some of my Christmas memories more remarkable than others…

… and I realized that

some of my most meaningful Christmas experiences occurred

during some of the worst & most difficult times of my life.

One Christmas eve, when I was just a year or so out of college

my job was going nowhere, and lacking any clear direction,

I was dissatisfied, frustrated, unhappy and unsettled…

… and the whole Christmas thing about love, peace, joy and hope

just didn’t connect with me, since I couldn’t see how my life

really mattered or was making much of a difference.

As it happened that year,

I was in the church office between Christmas eve services,

and a college student who had grown up in that church

called because she needed some help.

She and her boyfriend were traveling from Boston by bus

and having trouble getting to her mom’s house for Christmas.

They wouldn’t arrive at the terminal in downtown Washington DC

until well after midnight, and her mother couldn’t drive

that late at night through a snowstorm to pick them up.

So after ushering at the 11 o'clock Christmas eve service,

I agreed to drive downtown to the bus station to pick them up …

… and as it turned out she was 'with child' though not married,

and they were coming home for Christmas to face her family

and figure out how they would deal with the situation.

The connection to the Christmas story was unmistakable…

… and playing the part of the donkey, I did make a difference

by providing a ride to a young unmarried pregnant girl

trying to get to a place of shelter on Christmas eve.

Ever since that night,

when I read the Christmas story and think about Mary,

I remember seeing that young woman in my rearview mirror,

and looking into her very tired, worried & anxious eyes.

That night helps me connect with Mary on that first Christmas;

in that she too was a very young and probably frightened girl,

who had her whole life, her dreams and plans before her,

engaged to marry Joseph to make their life together;

but God had another plan and purpose for her ---

and she chose to submit, accepting God's will over her own.

According to Luke 1:26~ 35

In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin engaged to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin's name was Mary. And he came to her and said, "Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you."

The angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And now, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you will name him Jesus. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High, … and Mary said to the angel, "How can this be, since I am a virgin?"

So, the angel explains it to her,

and Mary's faithfulness and courage always astounds me. vs. 38

Then Mary said, "Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word."

"Let it happen to me, just as God wills – as God has said,

according to God's will, God's purpose and plan not mine."

This is simple and absolute surrender to the will and purpose of God.

Mary obediently responds to God's call and His agenda for her:

- risking the loss of reputation in her home community,

- the rejection and shame of an unmarried pregnancy,

even putting at risk her pending marriage to Joseph.

She trusted, and willingly accepted discomfort & inconvenience,

quite simply courage, for sake of fulfilling God's will

"If that is what God wants of me, than let it come to pass"

That is humble, glorious and obedient Christian discipleship,

an example and pattern of faith worthy for us to follow…

… that whatever God commands as revealed in Scripture,

whatever is the right thing, of faithful service and integrity;

however difficult, inconvenient, humbling, bothersome,

embarrassing, messy, uncomfortable or even unpleasant.

And that, I believe is the clue and guide to our pathway

toward having a most meaningful and wonderful Christmas…

… that is, unrestrained submission to the Lord as our priority.

The world may see Mary as a non-descript nobody, just a young girl,

an insignificant, hardly worth notice; with little to offer;

yet through Mary, God acted -- redeeming all Creation.

We honor Mary not because she was so special or different from us,

but because she was so ordinary - yet uniquely chosen by God.

And she exemplifies the truth, that when ordinary people

take God at His word, and when we place our trust in the Lord,

anything placed in God's hands, becomes extraordinary.

In Mary

we see an ideal example and model of Christian discipleship:

- humility; in responding to God's will,

without doubt or dispute;

but grateful that God would choose her,

amazed at her place within God's plan.

- faithfulness; in accepting and desiring God's will,

though it was difficult and inconvenient,

and quite different than 'her wedding plans'.

- usefulness; in obedience and fulfillment of God's will,

so that God was able to use Mary in a wonderful way,

because submitting her all to her God was her priority.

- courage; in accepting God’s will, plan and purpose.

She trusts entirely the promises of God,

however difficult, demanding that may be.

Mary is an extraordinary model of faithful discipleship,

in that she freely and willingly submits her all;

body, mind and spirit to the will and purpose of God,

and so she serves God's will and purpose and plan.

Mary’s place in the Christmas story exemplifies our call,

to embrace God's agenda, in place of our own,

and like Mary, to bring and bear Christ into our world

by living lives that proclaim the Good News…

… and by honoring Christ; and by our walk in faith with the Lord,

we can make a difference as a blessing in the world around us.

So what does this mean? What can you and I do

toward a measurably more meaningful and wonderful Christmas?

Mary answers that question back in verse 38:

"Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word."

We all have opportunities every day if we are willing to look,

to do things though small, but significant and extraordinary,

when they serve to embrace God's will, purpose and plan,

as perhaps something, that only a Christian would do.

Perhaps encountering someone in need, feeling dejected or alone,

a child of God, we can be a hopeful blessing and encouragement

and serve as a reflection of God's own loving compassion.

It may be that someone we encounter,

will do or say something terribly wrong, hurtful or offensive;

which then, for Christ's sake, we choose to let it go,

and so forgo our rightful resentment and revenge… à

à … choosing instead to practice pardon, mercy and forbearance,

simply because we love Jesus, who lives and dwells in our heart.

If we will look and listen for where and how God's Spirit leads us,

then even in the mundane, the ordinary and every day of our lives,

there will opportunities to make a real difference to someone …

… which will make for a measurably better and deeper,

and a much more meaningful and wonderful Christmas.

What Mary did physically in the flesh – by offering her own body,

through the indwelling and growing of God's presence within

is exactly what we as Christians are called to allow

God's Spirit to accomplish in and through us.

With her physical body, Mary literally gave birth to Jesus,

giving birth to God’s gracious mercy and love for this world,

exactly as we are called and equipped to do spiritually…

… for as Mary gave birth according to God's will and loving purpose,

so too each of us has also been specifically chosen and called

to bear, to bring and reveal Jesus Christ out into our world.

The measure of Christmas is not to be found in the superficial,

not in the materialistic or worldly nor even religious ritual,

but within our relationship with God through Jesus Christ…

… which will probably go no deeper or further or be more real

than our love, our care, our forbearance and compassion

toward one another and for all of God's children.

Mary is honored, and blessed by God, not because

she was somehow more spiritual, more righteous or even sinless,

but because she took God at His word, she accepted and

followed what she was told despite her fear and doubt.

May what the Bible has to say about Mary, also be said about us.

vs. 45~48

And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her by the Lord… 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.

May what Scripture has to say about Mary, also be said about us,

that we obeyed, trusted and embraced the promises of God.