Sermon Third Sunday of Advent
Sermon
Location Faith Lutheran – Date Dec. 14th 2008
Third Sunday of Advent – Year B
Primary Text: Isaiah 61:1-4, 8-11
Isaiah is one of my favorite books of the bible. It speaks to so much that occurs in our life. It condemns those looking out for only themselves, brings comfort to those under persecution, and gives God praise and exultation.
A quick bible lesson, Scholars often break Isaiah into three sections, chapters 1-39, First Isaiah, Chapters 40 to 55, Second, and Chapters 56 to 66, Third Isaiah.
First Isaiah comes from the period before the Jewish exile into Babylon in 587 BCE, here Isaiah warns of the coming exile into Babylon, it is full of judgment and salvation oracles. Second Isaiah comes from during the time of the exile. Here the exiles hear how they will be freed, there is much talk of comfort and salvation.
Last weeks Isaiah reading comes from second Isaiah. “Isaiah 40:1 Comfort, O comfort my people, says your God.” This language speaks comfort to the exiles, and tells of their coming freedom. As Christians we also read it as speaking of the coming of Christ. “A voice cries out: "In the wilderness prepare the way of the LORD, make straight in the desert a highway for our God.”
Our reading for today comes from Third Isaiah. Third Isaiah comes from the period after Judah’s freedom from exile, and talks of their return to their lands. They see how God has worked to destroy Babylon through Persia and how God caused the Persian ruler, Cyrus, to allow the Judeans to return to their lands. And so we would expect third Isaiah to be all rejoicing and praising, with no need for more comfort. But that is not the case. The first lines from our Isaiah text say. “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; 2 to proclaim the year of the LORD's favor, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all who mourn;”
Isaiah oracles show that God realizes that in the midst of freedom and times of good cheer, there are still problems, comfort is still needed. Even in the return from exile, there is concern, there are still those oppressed, there are still captives, prisoners, and those who mourn.
The same occurs during Advent and Christmas.
Even at this festive time of year we go through hard times, there are deaths, sickness, economic and employment uncertainty and other stresses during a busy time of year. God realizes this, when we mourn God comforts us, when we are sick God brings healing, and when there is economic uncertainty God provides, when we are full of stress God brings peace.
Isaiah says, God will “provide for those who mourn in Zion-- to give them a garland instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, the mantle of praise instead of a faint spirit.”
It is finally after this proclamation of God’s promise of comfort and liberation that Isaiah sings praise to God for what God has done. Another great reminder of God’s grace closes out the passage. “For as the earth brings forth its shoots, and as a garden causes what is sown in it to spring up, so the Lord God will cause righteousness and praise to spring up before all the nations.” The earth’s nature is to bring forth shoots, and a gardens nature is to grow what has been sown, and so God’s promise of to bring righteousness and praise, comfort and healing, is not a one time thing, God promises to always give us comfort.
The 4th Chapter of Luke gives us the story of Jesus in the Synagogue in his home town of Nazareth.
“When he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, he went to the synagogue on the Sabbath day, as was his custom. He stood up to read, 17 and the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written: 18 "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, 19 to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor." 20 And he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant, and sat down. The eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him. 21 Then he began to say to them, "Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing."
Jesus uses those words from Isaiah to declare that he will be the one to bring comfort to all who mourn. And the beauty is that it does not matter who we are, God causes praise to spring up from all nations. In a Halloween episode of the Simpsons, Bart is transformed into a human sized fly, and Marge remarks, well, he may be a hideous freak, but he is still my son.
God comes to those who often get called the freaks of this world, those who are oppressed, brokenhearted, captive, prisoners, and those who mourn, and God provides for them and God brings praise into their lives and our lives when we feel like we are freaks and do not deserve anything. The Theologian Paul Tillich said in a sermon, “You are accepted, … Do not try to do anything now; perhaps later you will do much. Do not seek for anything, do not perform anything, do not intend anything. Simply accept the fact that you are accepted!” Just as Marge loves her son no matter his appearance, God loves us. We are accepted, and for that, we praise. During advent, we especially give praise to God for sending the one who brings us comfort and clothes us in the “garments of salvation and the robe of righteousness.”
As we prepare for Christmas during advent, it is with hope that we hear those words, that the one that came, and is coming to us, is the one who has declared that he will bring good news to the oppressed, bind up the brokenhearted, proclaim liberty to the captives, and release the prisoners. The one who comes brings comfort to all those who mourn. That is truly reason to praise. And even when praise is being given, God gives the comfort still needed.
Let us pray,
Location Faith Lutheran – Date Dec. 14th 2008
Third Sunday of Advent – Year B
Primary Text: Isaiah 61:1-4, 8-11
Isaiah is one of my favorite books of the bible. It speaks to so much that occurs in our life. It condemns those looking out for only themselves, brings comfort to those under persecution, and gives God praise and exultation.
A quick bible lesson, Scholars often break Isaiah into three sections, chapters 1-39, First Isaiah, Chapters 40 to 55, Second, and Chapters 56 to 66, Third Isaiah.
First Isaiah comes from the period before the Jewish exile into Babylon in 587 BCE, here Isaiah warns of the coming exile into Babylon, it is full of judgment and salvation oracles. Second Isaiah comes from during the time of the exile. Here the exiles hear how they will be freed, there is much talk of comfort and salvation.
Last weeks Isaiah reading comes from second Isaiah. “Isaiah 40:1 Comfort, O comfort my people, says your God.” This language speaks comfort to the exiles, and tells of their coming freedom. As Christians we also read it as speaking of the coming of Christ. “A voice cries out: "In the wilderness prepare the way of the LORD, make straight in the desert a highway for our God.”
Our reading for today comes from Third Isaiah. Third Isaiah comes from the period after Judah’s freedom from exile, and talks of their return to their lands. They see how God has worked to destroy Babylon through Persia and how God caused the Persian ruler, Cyrus, to allow the Judeans to return to their lands. And so we would expect third Isaiah to be all rejoicing and praising, with no need for more comfort. But that is not the case. The first lines from our Isaiah text say. “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; 2 to proclaim the year of the LORD's favor, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all who mourn;”
Isaiah oracles show that God realizes that in the midst of freedom and times of good cheer, there are still problems, comfort is still needed. Even in the return from exile, there is concern, there are still those oppressed, there are still captives, prisoners, and those who mourn.
The same occurs during Advent and Christmas.
Even at this festive time of year we go through hard times, there are deaths, sickness, economic and employment uncertainty and other stresses during a busy time of year. God realizes this, when we mourn God comforts us, when we are sick God brings healing, and when there is economic uncertainty God provides, when we are full of stress God brings peace.
Isaiah says, God will “provide for those who mourn in Zion-- to give them a garland instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, the mantle of praise instead of a faint spirit.”
It is finally after this proclamation of God’s promise of comfort and liberation that Isaiah sings praise to God for what God has done. Another great reminder of God’s grace closes out the passage. “For as the earth brings forth its shoots, and as a garden causes what is sown in it to spring up, so the Lord God will cause righteousness and praise to spring up before all the nations.” The earth’s nature is to bring forth shoots, and a gardens nature is to grow what has been sown, and so God’s promise of to bring righteousness and praise, comfort and healing, is not a one time thing, God promises to always give us comfort.
The 4th Chapter of Luke gives us the story of Jesus in the Synagogue in his home town of Nazareth.
“When he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, he went to the synagogue on the Sabbath day, as was his custom. He stood up to read, 17 and the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written: 18 "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, 19 to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor." 20 And he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant, and sat down. The eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him. 21 Then he began to say to them, "Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing."
Jesus uses those words from Isaiah to declare that he will be the one to bring comfort to all who mourn. And the beauty is that it does not matter who we are, God causes praise to spring up from all nations. In a Halloween episode of the Simpsons, Bart is transformed into a human sized fly, and Marge remarks, well, he may be a hideous freak, but he is still my son.
God comes to those who often get called the freaks of this world, those who are oppressed, brokenhearted, captive, prisoners, and those who mourn, and God provides for them and God brings praise into their lives and our lives when we feel like we are freaks and do not deserve anything. The Theologian Paul Tillich said in a sermon, “You are accepted, … Do not try to do anything now; perhaps later you will do much. Do not seek for anything, do not perform anything, do not intend anything. Simply accept the fact that you are accepted!” Just as Marge loves her son no matter his appearance, God loves us. We are accepted, and for that, we praise. During advent, we especially give praise to God for sending the one who brings us comfort and clothes us in the “garments of salvation and the robe of righteousness.”
As we prepare for Christmas during advent, it is with hope that we hear those words, that the one that came, and is coming to us, is the one who has declared that he will bring good news to the oppressed, bind up the brokenhearted, proclaim liberty to the captives, and release the prisoners. The one who comes brings comfort to all those who mourn. That is truly reason to praise. And even when praise is being given, God gives the comfort still needed.
Let us pray,
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