Sermon for December 6, 2015: Second Sunday of Advent
Rev. Amy Welin: The dawn from on high shall break upon us, To shine on those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death, and to guide our feet into the way of peace.
We light the candle of peace on the Advent wreath today, in a world overflowing with violence and anxiety, which resists and even crushes the messengers of peace. We live under the pall of terrorist threats and economic uncertainty, with the painful memory of Sandy Hook and San Bernardino. If we could implore St Nicholas to leave us a little present today (because today is the Feast of St Nicholas), which of us would not implore the Wonderworker to leave us peace instead of coins or chocolate?
It is clear that the way of God is the way of peace. Yet in our world, peace is elusive. The angels bring glad tidings that are inconceivable at best. We find that the language of God’s prophets often is more confrontational than peaceful, their words provocative and harsh instead of conciliatory.
What is the peace of God about? How shall we find peace in Advent, in a tumultuous fearful, angry world that is rushing toward Christmas? There are some hints in our scripture lessons today.
Zechariah’s experience of God’s peace emerges in a time of disability, as he gradually comes to see how God could intervene in his life. He spends time with the rituals of his faith.
Zechariah is a priest of the tribe of Aaron. He has served God all his life. He and his wife are quite elderly, and they are childless, which is especially sad in an era in which children were a sign of God’s blessing and the only security of old age. While Zechariah works in the Temple, preparing to burn the incense, he is visited by the Archangel Gabriel, who promises him a son and tells him to name the boy John. Knowing the laws of nature, Zechariah is incredulous. How can this be? (The priest seems to lack faith in the power of the Almighty, doesn’t he?) For his disbelief, Gabriel renders Zechariah mute. The canticle we use today is the psalm of praise that Zechariah sang – the first words he spoke after his son John was given his name – the name which means YHWH is gracious.
John the Baptizer, the son of Zechariah and the kinsman of Jesus, knows the peace of God deep in his heart, and it seems to sustain him. John is not a suave man. He is abrasive, loud, and obnoxious. Without worrying about what people think, John tells the truth about Israel, which has fallen short of standards of the Reign of God. He demands repentance, which is to say a complete turnaround of heart and mind and not just a confession. I wonder if John’s sense of call, to serve God as a prophet, to prepare the way for the Messiah, may have emerged from his understanding of his miraculous birth. John’s ministry is so powerful that he frightens kings and governors as well as the Temple hierarchy. John has disciples and many enemies. His sense of God’s peace is so deep that it sustains him during times of uncertainty, imprisonment, and rejection.
Give to St. John’s ParishYou have to love the paradox of the ways in which God operates. The peace of God unsettles everything. The peace of God is about a lot more than just a nice, warm feeling of contentment. Although they are connected, the peace of God is different from peace on earth. It grows out of a relationship of love as well as knowledge. WE can develop this relationship, through rituals and knowing our own story.
When we exchange the peace of Christ during our service, it is an expression of a blessing that we extend to one another. (It is not just a friendly hello or the intermission in the service). Praying that the peace of the Lord be with you, I beseech God to share with you a profound sense of beloved-ness, the same grounding and the holiness that nourished John and Zechariah and Jesus in earthly life. When we experience this, we are changed, not for a few minutes or even for a day, but for always, through a joyous relationship with the God who loves us deeply and without limit.
If you want to know more about it, try meditating on God’s love for you, for 10 minutes each day.
Ask God how much you are loved and where God is in your life story. And wait for the answer.
We can hope that the work of diplomats and politicians will bring peace – or at least an end to war – in the world. For personal transformation, there is no greater power than God’s peace. The peace of God is not passive or fleeting. It is a lifeline to eternity. Those who work in the spirit of the peace of God today are not naïve or weak. They know something of the only power that can transform the world.
May the peace of God, which surpasses all human understanding, keep your hearts and minds in the knowledge and love of God, and of God’s son Jesus Christ.