The Expectant Parents -- And An Unexpected Baby
Worship
They Came Together In Bethlehem
Messages for the Advent/Christmas Season
Object:
Third Sunday In Advent
Isaiah 11:1-10; Luke 2:1-5
They Came Together In Bethlehem:
The Expectant Parents -- And An Unexpected Baby
Some time ago I read a story in a church newsletter written by a pastor in Tennessee. He told about his congregation's being in a new sanctuary for their first Christmas there. It was going to be a great Advent Sunday. The choir had put in extra time working on their music. He had prepared a sermon on "The Unexpected God." The church was full that Sunday, and the service began with the singing of "Hark! The Herald Angels Sing." Just as the affirmation of faith ended, a boy announced from the back of the church, "Mr. Bob Buford's house is burning down!" Mrs. Buford, who was in the choir, fainted and fell. They revived her, and she and some firemen rushed to the fire. The congregation tried to settle down and continue the service. But suddenly a woman came in and said, "The whole town is burning up!" The preacher pronounced the benediction, and everyone ran out the door. Only one house burned after all. That afternoon the preacher thought about all this, and knew the effort to help a person was more important that the music and the sermon. He remembered too how the first Christmas took place in the midst of human suffering, and how, "When no one was looking, our unexpected God slipped in among us and changed the world forevermore."1
That is the way God does things. People in those days long ago in that land far, far away looked for God in the Temple. But the unexpected God appeared in the hay of a dirty stable in a little country town.
On these Sundays we are thinking together about the theme, "They Came Together In Bethlehem." Now we look at this: "The Expectant Parents -- And An Unexpected Baby."
In ages past the prophet Isaiah wrote about the coming of the Messiah. He told how he would grow out of the family tree of David, Israel's greatest king. He would not judge by what he saw, but with righteousness he would judge the poor and decide with equity for the meek. And because of him a new time would be ushered in when "the wolf shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid, and the calf and the lion and the fatling together, and a little child shall lead them."
Then we come to this passage in the Gospel of Luke where we find this simple story unfolding. Today we look at only the first five verses, which tell us briefly that when Augustus was the emperor of Rome there was a census. The people went back to their own hometowns to register. Joseph and Mary went from Nazareth to Bethlehem, "The House of Bread," the home of David, because Joseph was from that long family tree. Mary was expecting a baby.
Alan Culpepper writes in The New Interpreter's Bible that it is significant that Saint Luke gives us this very brief account, after having spent all of chapter 1 writing about Elizabeth and Mary. But this brief account tells us what everybody knew. Augustus had brought peace to the Roman Empire. However, it is Jesus the Savior who brings "peace on earth, good will to men."2
It is through the lives of these expectant parents that God does the unexpected with this unexpected baby.
Nobody in those days expected anything of a baby. They respected power. The Romans perfected power. They inflicted power. That is why they had the Pax Romana, the peace of Rome. Nobody was able to fight them.
Nobody in those days expected anything of Bethlehem. It was just another little country town in an out-of-the-way province of Rome. But it is to this town these expectant parents journey.
Then we see coming together in Bethlehem these expectant parents and the great purposes of God in this unexpected baby.
It is through this unexpected baby that God sends us what we need. It is the gift of Christmas. We see God's gifts to us coming together in Bethlehem.
I
First, this unexpected baby brings unexpected power. He brought the power of God into this world of human experience.
Luke tells us this baby was born when the emperor of Rome was Caesar Augustus. He was the symbol of power in the world. The power of Rome was present throughout all the empire. But here is this baby bringing into this world an unexpected power -- the power of God.
For the next three centuries those who followed the one born in Bethlehem were persecuted and executed. The power of Rome came down hard on them. But then after 300 years an unexpected thing took place. A young army general named Constantine was converted and became a Christian. He had his soldiers paint a cross on their shields. And under the sign of the cross, he took over the empire and became the emperor. His mother Helena traveled to the Holy Land to find the place where Jesus was born in Bethlehem, and she had a church built over that place. Christianity was legalized, and the empire became known as the Holy Roman Empire. What an unexpected turn of events.
God has sent us the gift of power.
Jesus promised his disciples and us, "You shall receive power."
During a Christmas pageant a little girl was playing the part of one of the angels. It came time for her to say her line, "Glory to God in the highest...." But she forgot the rest of it. She tried it again, and still could not remember. She tried again and came out with, "Glory to God in the highest ... and I'll huff and I'll puff and blow your house down!"
That is not the power God sends. It is a different kind of power. We find this power in unexpected ways and in unexpected places for unexpected uses. It is the power of God which he sends upon us, gives us, which enables us to be his servants, his witnesses, and his people. It is a power which enables us to endure, to keep on going, to go through times of suffering and times of danger. It is a power which enables us to respond to life in Godlike ways.
On a trip to the Holy Land we went to the Holocaust Museum in Jerusalem. There is a tree there which was planted in memory of Oscar Schindler, the man who saved the lives of so many Jews in the Nazi death camps. I stood there by that tree and thought about the movie Schindler's List. At one point in the story Schindler talks with a Nazi officer who tells him he has the power to exterminate a person. But Schindler says to him, "That is not power. Anyone could do that. But to have a man come before you and to say, 'I could take your life if I so choose, but no -- instead, I pardon you!' That, Commander, is power!"
We have been given the power to live Godlike lives in Godlike ways, not to destroy, but to create; not to tear down, but to build up; not to seek for ourselves, but to serve.
This unexpected baby brought unexpected power.
II
Second, this unexpected baby offers unexpected peace. He brought the peace of God into this world of human experience.
Luke tells us also this baby was born when Quirinius was governor of Syria. All of those Roman provinces had governors who were there for one reason -- to keep the peace. But here is this baby bringing into this world an unexpected peace -- the peace of God. The peace of Rome was imposed upon everyone. But the peace of God was offered to everyone.
God has sent us the gift of peace. That is the song of the angels -- "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among men with whom he is pleased." Jesus said, "My peace I give to you." Saint Paul wrote, "The peace of God passes all understanding."
Though this peace is available to us we do not always possess it. Sometimes we miss it.
In his book, Christmas Gifts That Always Fit, James W. Moore tells about a man who lived in Athens, Georgia. While waiting for a bus he saw a machine which, for 25 cents, would tell him his name, age, hometown, and other information. He decided to try it. He put in the quarter and the machine said, "You're Bill Jones. You are 35. You live in Athens. You are waiting for the bus to Greenville, South Carolina. It is delayed." He thought that was incredible and decided to try it again, and got the same answer. But the machine told him the bus was delayed a little longer. Then he decided to fool the machine. He went across the street to a store and bought some of those glasses with the mustache and eyebrows. He came back and put in another quarter. The machine said, "Well, it's you again. You are still Bill Jones. You live in Athens. You are 35 years old. You want to go to Greenville, South Carolina. But while you were horsing around, you missed your bus!"3
Sometimes we miss the peace of God. We miss it because we look for it in the wrong way in the wrong place for the wrong kind of peace. We find this peace of God in unexpected ways and in unexpected places for unexpected uses. It is the result of responding to life in Godlike ways.
Father William J. Bausch tells of the man who always has a special feeling each year when he receives his first Christmas card. It reminds him of the lady who lived next door when he was growing up. She was 95 years old. Often he would deliver to her the groceries his mother would buy for her. One day during Christmas he went over to take the groceries and she gave him the usual tip. But he decided not to accept it this time. She insisted that he take it. He sat there for a long time and talked with her. She told him about her early life, their country church, and Christmas. Finally, when he left her house he went across the street to the store. He could buy a lot of candy with the tip she gave him. But then he thought of her and how alone she was. He decided to buy her a Christmas card, and he searched through the cards looking for just the right one. Then he saw it. It had on the front a country church just like the one she had told him about. He bought the card, signed his name to it, and took it back over to her house. When she came to the door, he held it out and said, "Hello, Mrs. Hildebrand. Merry Christmas." She began to cry, thanked him, and wished a Merry Christmas to him. A few weeks later she died in her sleep. Her night-table light was on. On the table there stood the Christmas card he had given her. It had brought some joy into her life.4
We are given the peace of God which comes from living in Godlike ways, sharing the peace of Christ.
This unexpected baby brought unexpected peace.
III
Third, this unexpected baby is an unexpected person. He brought the person of God into this world of human experience.
Luke tells us that during this time of Caesar Augustus and Quirinius a man named Joseph went from Nazareth to Bethlehem with his wife Mary, who was expecting a baby. Here is this baby bringing into the world an unexpected person -- the person of God. The person of God is shared with all the world, "For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in him should not perish, but have everlasting life."
God has sent us the gift of a person. He comes to us himself.
We find this person in unexpected ways and in unexpected places for unexpected reasons. God meets us along the way, makes himself known to us, and invites us to give our lives to him.
Albert Schweitzer wrote these words about him:
He comes to us as One unknown, without a name, as of old, by the lakeside, he came to those men who knew him not. He speaks to us the same word: "Follow thou me!" and sets us to the tasks which he has to fulfill for our time. He commands. And to those who obey him, whether they be wise or simple, he will reveal himself in the toils, the conflicts, the sufferings which they shall pass through in his fellowship, and as an ineffable mystery, they shall learn in their own experience who he is.5
Martin Luther was preaching during the Christmas season, describing what it must have been like for Joseph and Mary and this baby, and how much help they needed. He said to his listeners that maybe they were thinking they would have done something had they been there then. "Well, do it now," Luther said, "for there are people all around us. Do something for him now."6
Paul Tillich wrote about the Nazi war crimes trials. During those proceedings a story was told about some Jews hiding out in a cemetery. They slept in the graves at night. One night a young woman gave birth to a baby boy in one of those graves. He was delivered by an eighty-year-old gravedigger. When the baby cried out the gravedigger held him up in his hands and said, "Great God, hast thou finally sent the Messiah to us? For who else than the Messiah himself can be born in a grave?"7
We have been given the person of God. The Messiah was born in a manger. He leads us to live in Godlike ways, to do Christlike things and to do them for him.
When we give our lives to him we discover unexpected power and unexpected peace and we even live like this unexpected person.
Thanks be to God!
____________
1. Ron D. Williams, "First Church Informer," First United Methodist Church, Millington, Tennessee, June 22, 1994.
2. R. Alan Culpepper, "The Gospel of Luke," The New Interpreter's Bible, Volume IX (Nashville, Tennessee: Abingdon Press, 1995), p. 63.
3. James W. Moore, Christmas Gifts That Always Fit (Nashville, Tennessee: Dimensions For Living, 1996), p. 75.
4. William J. Bausch, Storytelling The Word (Mystic, Connecticut: Twenty-third Publications, 1996), p. 209.
5. Albert Schweitzer, The Quest For The Historical Jesus (New York: Macmillan, 1950), p. 403.
6. Moore, op. cit., p. 18.
7. Paul Tillich, The Shaking Of The Foundations (New York: Scribner's Sons, 1948), p. 165.
Advent 3
Candlelighting And Prayer
Lighting Of The Third Advent Candle
Leader: Scripture reading -- Isaiah 11:1-10
Leader: This candle we light today reminds us of the light of Peace the prophets had in their expectation of a Messiah who would bring peace to the world.
People: Praise be to God.
Prayer
O God, our Heavenly Father, the creator of all that is, the sustainer of life, who also participates in it with the coming of thy Son, Jesus Christ, into the world, we call upon thee today to hear our prayers and to accept the worship and praise we give to thee.
We thank thee, Father, for the greatest gift, the gift of thy Son and our Savior King. May we open our hearts and lives to him, and may he find a place to live in us.
We thank thee, O God, for the gracious ways thou hast been at work in our lives, for thou has delivered us, sustained us, strengthened us, and has caused our lives to overflow with good things. For all that life is we thank thee, O God.
We thank thee for the church of Jesus Christ, for this church and the dedicated people who serve the cause of Christ through the mission and ministry of this church.
Continue to bless us with the leadership of thy Spirit, and lead us all to service, mission, and witness.
Bless all in our church and community who suffer from illness, sorrow, burdens, ignorance, deprivation. Bring healing, help, wholeness, and make us the instruments of thy peace.
And we pray in the name of him who came to be all things to all people. Amen.
Advent 3
Children's Message
Looking At Our Chrismons: A Manger
Good morning. I am so glad to see all of you here today. It is now what Sunday in Advent? That's right. It's the Third Sunday. We are moving right along, and soon Advent will be over.
On these Sundays I am talking with you about the Chrismons on our Chrismon tree. A Chrismon is what? Yes, it is a Christ-monogram, and it tells us something about Jesus Christ.
Today we look at this one. It is a manger. Our scripture lesson today tells us that Joseph and Mary went on a long trip to Bethlehem. They got there late at night and could not find a place to stay. The only place they could find was in a barn where animals were kept. It was really a cave carved out of the side of a hill. And a manger was a place which held hay. The animals ate the hay out of the manger.
This manger on our Chrismon tree helps us remember this about Jesus. It reminds us that he was born to be our King and Savior and that he came into the world in a humble place, a lowly place.
We still sing about that today as we sing "Away In A Manger."
Whenever you look up at our Chrismon tree and see a manger there, remember where Jesus was born -- in a low place, because God sent him down to be with us. And he became one of us. He was not born in a palace, into wealth and power. He was born in a place which was a shelter for animals. Because of that we find shelter in him.
Let us pray. Father in Heaven, thank you for sending your Son down to us. We pray in his name. Amen.
Advent 3
The Beholders
Joseph
Our firstborn is a son.
I look at him, all wrapped in cloth, sleeping in Mary's lap. The angels have told us he is the Son of God. But he is my son, too. He has his mother's eyes, but he has his father's hands. Those tiny hands are destined for the wood and nails of the carpenter's trade.
I am committed to his destiny, this son of ours. But I don't yet know what part I am to play. God chose Mary and me to raise this holy child. God even sent an angel to convince me to be Mary's husband. And the angel told me to name the baby "Jesus." But I've had no more messages since the angel came many months ago. Mary has given Jesus life. What shall I do?
I look forward to teaching him carpentry. Mary says I am the finest carpenter in Nazareth. And I do love my trade. Each wood is unique in color and texture, each one special, from the beautiful cedar to the amazing mustard, an herb, really, but it grows as tall as a tree from the smallest of seeds. But, am I to teach Jesus about trees? What divine destiny is there in knowing trees?'
Is my Jesus the one to lead the people of Israel? If such a leader would help us conquer our fear, then he must know fear, too, and learn courage. If he is to bring strength to the weary and sorrowful, then he must have his own heart broken and learn to let love heal it. He must dwell among us, and understand us, and live his life fully as a man. That is my part, then. God needs me to show my little boy how to be a man.
And so I will. Sweat and hard work will make him strong; laughter and tears will deepen him. When he is happy, he will sing; when he is frightened, he will reach out for help. He will learn to be a true and faithful friend, to trust and to love. His faith will grow, and he will come to know his heavenly Father as well as he knows me.
I give him my whole heart, my life, everything I have to give. I will feed him and clothe him, teach him, protect him. If I have to, I will die for him.
God is his heavenly Father, but I am his papa.
Isaiah 11:1-10; Luke 2:1-5
They Came Together In Bethlehem:
The Expectant Parents -- And An Unexpected Baby
Some time ago I read a story in a church newsletter written by a pastor in Tennessee. He told about his congregation's being in a new sanctuary for their first Christmas there. It was going to be a great Advent Sunday. The choir had put in extra time working on their music. He had prepared a sermon on "The Unexpected God." The church was full that Sunday, and the service began with the singing of "Hark! The Herald Angels Sing." Just as the affirmation of faith ended, a boy announced from the back of the church, "Mr. Bob Buford's house is burning down!" Mrs. Buford, who was in the choir, fainted and fell. They revived her, and she and some firemen rushed to the fire. The congregation tried to settle down and continue the service. But suddenly a woman came in and said, "The whole town is burning up!" The preacher pronounced the benediction, and everyone ran out the door. Only one house burned after all. That afternoon the preacher thought about all this, and knew the effort to help a person was more important that the music and the sermon. He remembered too how the first Christmas took place in the midst of human suffering, and how, "When no one was looking, our unexpected God slipped in among us and changed the world forevermore."1
That is the way God does things. People in those days long ago in that land far, far away looked for God in the Temple. But the unexpected God appeared in the hay of a dirty stable in a little country town.
On these Sundays we are thinking together about the theme, "They Came Together In Bethlehem." Now we look at this: "The Expectant Parents -- And An Unexpected Baby."
In ages past the prophet Isaiah wrote about the coming of the Messiah. He told how he would grow out of the family tree of David, Israel's greatest king. He would not judge by what he saw, but with righteousness he would judge the poor and decide with equity for the meek. And because of him a new time would be ushered in when "the wolf shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid, and the calf and the lion and the fatling together, and a little child shall lead them."
Then we come to this passage in the Gospel of Luke where we find this simple story unfolding. Today we look at only the first five verses, which tell us briefly that when Augustus was the emperor of Rome there was a census. The people went back to their own hometowns to register. Joseph and Mary went from Nazareth to Bethlehem, "The House of Bread," the home of David, because Joseph was from that long family tree. Mary was expecting a baby.
Alan Culpepper writes in The New Interpreter's Bible that it is significant that Saint Luke gives us this very brief account, after having spent all of chapter 1 writing about Elizabeth and Mary. But this brief account tells us what everybody knew. Augustus had brought peace to the Roman Empire. However, it is Jesus the Savior who brings "peace on earth, good will to men."2
It is through the lives of these expectant parents that God does the unexpected with this unexpected baby.
Nobody in those days expected anything of a baby. They respected power. The Romans perfected power. They inflicted power. That is why they had the Pax Romana, the peace of Rome. Nobody was able to fight them.
Nobody in those days expected anything of Bethlehem. It was just another little country town in an out-of-the-way province of Rome. But it is to this town these expectant parents journey.
Then we see coming together in Bethlehem these expectant parents and the great purposes of God in this unexpected baby.
It is through this unexpected baby that God sends us what we need. It is the gift of Christmas. We see God's gifts to us coming together in Bethlehem.
I
First, this unexpected baby brings unexpected power. He brought the power of God into this world of human experience.
Luke tells us this baby was born when the emperor of Rome was Caesar Augustus. He was the symbol of power in the world. The power of Rome was present throughout all the empire. But here is this baby bringing into this world an unexpected power -- the power of God.
For the next three centuries those who followed the one born in Bethlehem were persecuted and executed. The power of Rome came down hard on them. But then after 300 years an unexpected thing took place. A young army general named Constantine was converted and became a Christian. He had his soldiers paint a cross on their shields. And under the sign of the cross, he took over the empire and became the emperor. His mother Helena traveled to the Holy Land to find the place where Jesus was born in Bethlehem, and she had a church built over that place. Christianity was legalized, and the empire became known as the Holy Roman Empire. What an unexpected turn of events.
God has sent us the gift of power.
Jesus promised his disciples and us, "You shall receive power."
During a Christmas pageant a little girl was playing the part of one of the angels. It came time for her to say her line, "Glory to God in the highest...." But she forgot the rest of it. She tried it again, and still could not remember. She tried again and came out with, "Glory to God in the highest ... and I'll huff and I'll puff and blow your house down!"
That is not the power God sends. It is a different kind of power. We find this power in unexpected ways and in unexpected places for unexpected uses. It is the power of God which he sends upon us, gives us, which enables us to be his servants, his witnesses, and his people. It is a power which enables us to endure, to keep on going, to go through times of suffering and times of danger. It is a power which enables us to respond to life in Godlike ways.
On a trip to the Holy Land we went to the Holocaust Museum in Jerusalem. There is a tree there which was planted in memory of Oscar Schindler, the man who saved the lives of so many Jews in the Nazi death camps. I stood there by that tree and thought about the movie Schindler's List. At one point in the story Schindler talks with a Nazi officer who tells him he has the power to exterminate a person. But Schindler says to him, "That is not power. Anyone could do that. But to have a man come before you and to say, 'I could take your life if I so choose, but no -- instead, I pardon you!' That, Commander, is power!"
We have been given the power to live Godlike lives in Godlike ways, not to destroy, but to create; not to tear down, but to build up; not to seek for ourselves, but to serve.
This unexpected baby brought unexpected power.
II
Second, this unexpected baby offers unexpected peace. He brought the peace of God into this world of human experience.
Luke tells us also this baby was born when Quirinius was governor of Syria. All of those Roman provinces had governors who were there for one reason -- to keep the peace. But here is this baby bringing into this world an unexpected peace -- the peace of God. The peace of Rome was imposed upon everyone. But the peace of God was offered to everyone.
God has sent us the gift of peace. That is the song of the angels -- "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among men with whom he is pleased." Jesus said, "My peace I give to you." Saint Paul wrote, "The peace of God passes all understanding."
Though this peace is available to us we do not always possess it. Sometimes we miss it.
In his book, Christmas Gifts That Always Fit, James W. Moore tells about a man who lived in Athens, Georgia. While waiting for a bus he saw a machine which, for 25 cents, would tell him his name, age, hometown, and other information. He decided to try it. He put in the quarter and the machine said, "You're Bill Jones. You are 35. You live in Athens. You are waiting for the bus to Greenville, South Carolina. It is delayed." He thought that was incredible and decided to try it again, and got the same answer. But the machine told him the bus was delayed a little longer. Then he decided to fool the machine. He went across the street to a store and bought some of those glasses with the mustache and eyebrows. He came back and put in another quarter. The machine said, "Well, it's you again. You are still Bill Jones. You live in Athens. You are 35 years old. You want to go to Greenville, South Carolina. But while you were horsing around, you missed your bus!"3
Sometimes we miss the peace of God. We miss it because we look for it in the wrong way in the wrong place for the wrong kind of peace. We find this peace of God in unexpected ways and in unexpected places for unexpected uses. It is the result of responding to life in Godlike ways.
Father William J. Bausch tells of the man who always has a special feeling each year when he receives his first Christmas card. It reminds him of the lady who lived next door when he was growing up. She was 95 years old. Often he would deliver to her the groceries his mother would buy for her. One day during Christmas he went over to take the groceries and she gave him the usual tip. But he decided not to accept it this time. She insisted that he take it. He sat there for a long time and talked with her. She told him about her early life, their country church, and Christmas. Finally, when he left her house he went across the street to the store. He could buy a lot of candy with the tip she gave him. But then he thought of her and how alone she was. He decided to buy her a Christmas card, and he searched through the cards looking for just the right one. Then he saw it. It had on the front a country church just like the one she had told him about. He bought the card, signed his name to it, and took it back over to her house. When she came to the door, he held it out and said, "Hello, Mrs. Hildebrand. Merry Christmas." She began to cry, thanked him, and wished a Merry Christmas to him. A few weeks later she died in her sleep. Her night-table light was on. On the table there stood the Christmas card he had given her. It had brought some joy into her life.4
We are given the peace of God which comes from living in Godlike ways, sharing the peace of Christ.
This unexpected baby brought unexpected peace.
III
Third, this unexpected baby is an unexpected person. He brought the person of God into this world of human experience.
Luke tells us that during this time of Caesar Augustus and Quirinius a man named Joseph went from Nazareth to Bethlehem with his wife Mary, who was expecting a baby. Here is this baby bringing into the world an unexpected person -- the person of God. The person of God is shared with all the world, "For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in him should not perish, but have everlasting life."
God has sent us the gift of a person. He comes to us himself.
We find this person in unexpected ways and in unexpected places for unexpected reasons. God meets us along the way, makes himself known to us, and invites us to give our lives to him.
Albert Schweitzer wrote these words about him:
He comes to us as One unknown, without a name, as of old, by the lakeside, he came to those men who knew him not. He speaks to us the same word: "Follow thou me!" and sets us to the tasks which he has to fulfill for our time. He commands. And to those who obey him, whether they be wise or simple, he will reveal himself in the toils, the conflicts, the sufferings which they shall pass through in his fellowship, and as an ineffable mystery, they shall learn in their own experience who he is.5
Martin Luther was preaching during the Christmas season, describing what it must have been like for Joseph and Mary and this baby, and how much help they needed. He said to his listeners that maybe they were thinking they would have done something had they been there then. "Well, do it now," Luther said, "for there are people all around us. Do something for him now."6
Paul Tillich wrote about the Nazi war crimes trials. During those proceedings a story was told about some Jews hiding out in a cemetery. They slept in the graves at night. One night a young woman gave birth to a baby boy in one of those graves. He was delivered by an eighty-year-old gravedigger. When the baby cried out the gravedigger held him up in his hands and said, "Great God, hast thou finally sent the Messiah to us? For who else than the Messiah himself can be born in a grave?"7
We have been given the person of God. The Messiah was born in a manger. He leads us to live in Godlike ways, to do Christlike things and to do them for him.
When we give our lives to him we discover unexpected power and unexpected peace and we even live like this unexpected person.
Thanks be to God!
____________
1. Ron D. Williams, "First Church Informer," First United Methodist Church, Millington, Tennessee, June 22, 1994.
2. R. Alan Culpepper, "The Gospel of Luke," The New Interpreter's Bible, Volume IX (Nashville, Tennessee: Abingdon Press, 1995), p. 63.
3. James W. Moore, Christmas Gifts That Always Fit (Nashville, Tennessee: Dimensions For Living, 1996), p. 75.
4. William J. Bausch, Storytelling The Word (Mystic, Connecticut: Twenty-third Publications, 1996), p. 209.
5. Albert Schweitzer, The Quest For The Historical Jesus (New York: Macmillan, 1950), p. 403.
6. Moore, op. cit., p. 18.
7. Paul Tillich, The Shaking Of The Foundations (New York: Scribner's Sons, 1948), p. 165.
Advent 3
Candlelighting And Prayer
Lighting Of The Third Advent Candle
Leader: Scripture reading -- Isaiah 11:1-10
Leader: This candle we light today reminds us of the light of Peace the prophets had in their expectation of a Messiah who would bring peace to the world.
People: Praise be to God.
Prayer
O God, our Heavenly Father, the creator of all that is, the sustainer of life, who also participates in it with the coming of thy Son, Jesus Christ, into the world, we call upon thee today to hear our prayers and to accept the worship and praise we give to thee.
We thank thee, Father, for the greatest gift, the gift of thy Son and our Savior King. May we open our hearts and lives to him, and may he find a place to live in us.
We thank thee, O God, for the gracious ways thou hast been at work in our lives, for thou has delivered us, sustained us, strengthened us, and has caused our lives to overflow with good things. For all that life is we thank thee, O God.
We thank thee for the church of Jesus Christ, for this church and the dedicated people who serve the cause of Christ through the mission and ministry of this church.
Continue to bless us with the leadership of thy Spirit, and lead us all to service, mission, and witness.
Bless all in our church and community who suffer from illness, sorrow, burdens, ignorance, deprivation. Bring healing, help, wholeness, and make us the instruments of thy peace.
And we pray in the name of him who came to be all things to all people. Amen.
Advent 3
Children's Message
Looking At Our Chrismons: A Manger
Good morning. I am so glad to see all of you here today. It is now what Sunday in Advent? That's right. It's the Third Sunday. We are moving right along, and soon Advent will be over.
On these Sundays I am talking with you about the Chrismons on our Chrismon tree. A Chrismon is what? Yes, it is a Christ-monogram, and it tells us something about Jesus Christ.
Today we look at this one. It is a manger. Our scripture lesson today tells us that Joseph and Mary went on a long trip to Bethlehem. They got there late at night and could not find a place to stay. The only place they could find was in a barn where animals were kept. It was really a cave carved out of the side of a hill. And a manger was a place which held hay. The animals ate the hay out of the manger.
This manger on our Chrismon tree helps us remember this about Jesus. It reminds us that he was born to be our King and Savior and that he came into the world in a humble place, a lowly place.
We still sing about that today as we sing "Away In A Manger."
Whenever you look up at our Chrismon tree and see a manger there, remember where Jesus was born -- in a low place, because God sent him down to be with us. And he became one of us. He was not born in a palace, into wealth and power. He was born in a place which was a shelter for animals. Because of that we find shelter in him.
Let us pray. Father in Heaven, thank you for sending your Son down to us. We pray in his name. Amen.
Advent 3
The Beholders
Joseph
Our firstborn is a son.
I look at him, all wrapped in cloth, sleeping in Mary's lap. The angels have told us he is the Son of God. But he is my son, too. He has his mother's eyes, but he has his father's hands. Those tiny hands are destined for the wood and nails of the carpenter's trade.
I am committed to his destiny, this son of ours. But I don't yet know what part I am to play. God chose Mary and me to raise this holy child. God even sent an angel to convince me to be Mary's husband. And the angel told me to name the baby "Jesus." But I've had no more messages since the angel came many months ago. Mary has given Jesus life. What shall I do?
I look forward to teaching him carpentry. Mary says I am the finest carpenter in Nazareth. And I do love my trade. Each wood is unique in color and texture, each one special, from the beautiful cedar to the amazing mustard, an herb, really, but it grows as tall as a tree from the smallest of seeds. But, am I to teach Jesus about trees? What divine destiny is there in knowing trees?'
Is my Jesus the one to lead the people of Israel? If such a leader would help us conquer our fear, then he must know fear, too, and learn courage. If he is to bring strength to the weary and sorrowful, then he must have his own heart broken and learn to let love heal it. He must dwell among us, and understand us, and live his life fully as a man. That is my part, then. God needs me to show my little boy how to be a man.
And so I will. Sweat and hard work will make him strong; laughter and tears will deepen him. When he is happy, he will sing; when he is frightened, he will reach out for help. He will learn to be a true and faithful friend, to trust and to love. His faith will grow, and he will come to know his heavenly Father as well as he knows me.
I give him my whole heart, my life, everything I have to give. I will feed him and clothe him, teach him, protect him. If I have to, I will die for him.
God is his heavenly Father, but I am his papa.
