Sermon Archive -- Advent -- Rev. Timothy LH Bernard

December 17, December 24

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December 17 -- Advent 3, Year C -- Rev. Timothy LH Bernard

FIRST READING: Zephaniah 3:14-20

PSALMODY: Isaiah 12:2-6

²Surely God is my salvation; I will trust, and will not be afraid,

for the LORD GOD is my strength and my might,

and has become my salvation.

³With joy you will draw water

from the wells of salvation.

⁴And you will say in that day:

Give thanks to the LORD, call on God’s name;

make known the deeds of the LORD among the nations;

proclaim that this name is exalted.

⁵Sing praises to the LORD, who has done gloriously;

let this be known in all the earth.

⁶Shout aloud and sing for joy, O royal Zion ,

for great in your midst is the Holy One of Israel.

SECOND READING : Philippians 4:4-7

GOSPEL: Luke 3:7-18

John said to the crowds that came out to be baptized by him, "You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? ⁸Bear fruits worthy of repentance. Do not begin to say to yourselves, 'We have Abraham as our ancestor'; for I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children to Abraham. ⁹Even now the ax is lying at the root of the trees; every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire."

¹⁰And the crowds asked him, "What then should we do?" ¹¹In reply he said to them, "Whoever has two coats must share with anyone who has none; and whoever has food must do likewise." ¹²Even tax collectors came to be baptized, and they asked him, "Teacher, what should we do?" ¹³He said to them, "Collect no more than the amount prescribed for you." ¹⁴Soldiers also asked him, "And we, what should we do?" He said to them, "Do not extort money from anyone by threats or false accusation, and be satisfied with your wages."

¹⁵As the people were filled with expectation, and all were questioning in their hearts concerning John, whether he might be the Messiah, ¹⁶John answered all of them by saying, "I baptize you with water; but one who is more powerful than I is coming; I am not worthy to untie the thong of his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. ¹⁷His winnowing fork is in his hand, to clear his threshing floor and to gather the wheat into his granary; but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire."

¹⁸So, with many other exhortations, he proclaimed the good news to the people.

The Gospel of the Lord. Thanks be to God!

SERMON

If you think attending a Bible study is only about the pastor attempting to pass along their wisdom and insights about Holy Scripture, you are mistaken. Your pastors are mutually nourished and challenged by your wisdom and insights as well. Recently two statements were made in Bible studies that have been running through my soul.

The first was a statement made by Pastor Magnuson at a Bible study in which I invited him to participate. He said something to the effect that fundamentalists try to take us back in time and lock us into the time period of the Bible, so then we become frozen in thought and the words of scripture mean only one thing. And if they mean only one thing, they fail to be the living word of God.

On the other extreme, he said, are the secular progressives who discard much of Holy Scripture and seek only plausible, factual answers. If it cannot be explained by reason, then it cannot be true.

Then Pastor Magnuson said, "But Lutherans have never been in either camp, we believe in a third way – a way in which we take seriously the words of scripture and honor them. To unleash the living word among us, we find an equivalent meaning in today's language that breathes life into these ancient words; whereby the Holy Spirit brings them to life for yet another generation of God's faithful people." That was my first insight from a recent Bible study.

The second challenge came one day when I tossed out what I thought was a basic foundational truth of Christianity – that one of the goals of God through the person of Jesus Christ is the salvation of the world. On this day, this astute and faithful woman said, "What do you mean by salvation? Who or what do we need to be saved from today?" It was probably one of those times where your pastor looked neither wise nor insightful. I don't even know if I mentioned Luther's three-fold answer: that we are saved from sin, death and evil.

Since that day I have been wrestling with salvation. Fundamentalists want to lock in its definition that salvation grants life after death and nothing more. Secular progressives, not knowing what to do with it, want to basically drop the term altogether. And here I was in the middle, trying to retain salvation, yet allow the Holy Spirit to breathe new life into it.

This past week something came to me and I offer it to you for your prayerful consideration. This week we have received the salvation of seizures.

I do not know how many of you are aware that my oldest son started having epileptic seizures about a year and a half ago. (Oh, and before I get too far along, I did get his permission to share his story with you.) We have done CT scans and EEG's usually to no avail; though one time last fall they did record some post-seizure activity and he was prescribed an anti-seizure medication. The medicine did a fairly good job with only a few smaller episodes in the year. That was until last month. In the past month Natanael has had 2-4 episodes every week.

But you know what? Natanael had faith. Natanael believed something really and truly was going on in his head that was affecting his body, even when some doctors told him he was faking and that he should be able to control these symptoms. Natanael persisted, and we believed him. We took him seriously.

And his teacher, and classmates, and school administrators, and school's first responders had faith in Natanael. They never once saw him as the boy who cried, "Wolf!" No, each and every time and place it happened, his classmates helped him to the floor, summoned help and stood by caring for him.

And all of you here at Messiah and St. Mark's had faith in Natanael, too, especially the staff. I have been paged in nursing homes, the hospital, and restaurants. Never once was I questioned when I ducked out of a meeting to go get Natanael from school. Never once was I demonstrated nothing but genuine care and concern for Natanael, my family and me. It was the support of this community that allowed us to continue to pursue the truth Natanael was experiencing.

This past week there was an opening at the hospital for Natanael to go in to have a 2-3 day EEG. The dangerous and scary part of this test was that Natanael would have to go off his anti-seizure medicine prior to the test so that they might possibly record an actual seizure, as it was happening.

We went in on Tuesday morning and he had 25 electrodes glued to his head. They began monitoring his brain's electrical activity at about 10 am . With only one very brief episode during the day I confided to the doctor that evening that my fear was that he would not have any significant seizure activity and we would still not have any answers.

The doctor said, "Yeah, sometimes we have people hooked up for six days and still cannot find anything." That was not very comforting to me.

Natanael had a difficult time settling down so that he could get to sleep, but eventually, at about 11:30 , we both were tired enough to where I thought we would get some sleep.

At 4:05 am , I awoke to Natanael having a full-blown seizure, and he had another almost seven hours later. While it is absolutely heart-wrenching to see your child convulsing, and in so much pain afterwards, I also unexpectedly felt an overwhelming sense of joy. Our prayers were answered! All of what Natanael had said was going on in his body was now vindicated. What we believed for so long to be true, was indeed proven to be true! That vindication of the truth saved us! God saved us through the vindication of truth, which allowed our identities – our very sense of self – and our faith, to remain intact and whole.

And in the afternoon, while Natanael slept, I wrote this sermon when I read the ancient words of Isaiah's. He said,

"Surely God is my salvation; I will trust, and will not be afraid,

for the LORD GOD is my strength and my might,

and has become my salvation.

With joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation.

Needless to say, we were drinking deeply from the wells Wednesday night! The water of salvation came to us through the vindication of the truth! God saved us from further despair, doubt, and worry, through the salvation of seizures.

I was fortunate enough to be vindicated this past week, but how about you? Have you ever held onto a belief when others seemed to circle around you, sometimes taunt you, tease you, ridicule you, or question your motives? And yet, deep down you believed that what you were proclaiming was the truth, so you kept on saying what you believed needed to be said for the truth to be known? I do hope you get to experience some vindication so that you may know that God is still present and active in our lives. But do not let that stop you. For some, like John the Baptist, God will vindicate us after we have died. Truth always has a way of rising to the surface so that it can be told.

John the Baptist went around proclaiming a message that he believed to be true, a message that God had planted in his own heart and mind. As he proclaimed the good news, people gathered, and as people gathered, he more boldly proclaimed his message. He challenged the people to be generous; if you have two coats, give one away, and do the same with food, give some of that away too. He told tax collectors and those in the military, not to cheat or use your power to take more than is yours.

And what happened? Many people came to him to be baptized. They believed in his simple message that sharing resources - being generous in giving - was truly good news. It was good news for both the one who receives and the one who gives. Still more and more people came to John and soon the question arose, "Are you the Messiah? Are you the one God has sent to save us?" John said, "No, I am not the Messiah, I am not your savior. I will baptize you with water, but the one who is to come will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire."

That was the truth proclaimed by John. He believed that was the message God had given him to proclaim. But was he vindicated?

Yes! God has vindicated him! His challenging words placed him firmly on the right-side of God. Imagine if he could see his words today! Imagine if he could see that his words are still alive, still beating, still challenging, still growing, still drawing people to faith, still expecting people to make way in their own hearts and minds for the coming of Christ who will vindicate all efforts in making the truth known! I think John the Baptist drinks from the well of salvation!

You may have an even better, concrete definition of what salvation means in today's terms, if so, I would like to hear it. But having Natanael's reality vindicated this past week tasted a lot like what I would envision salvation to taste like. It is my hope that we all get a taste of our truth being vindicated so that we all can drink deeply from the well of salvation and proclaim, "How sweet it is…" Thanks be to God! Amen.

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December 24, 2004 -- Advent 4, Year C -- Rev. Timothy LH Bernard

GOSPEL: Luke 1:39-55

In those days Mary set out and went with haste to a Judean town in the hill country, ⁴⁰where she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. ⁴¹When Elizabeth heard Mary's greeting, the child leaped in her womb. And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit ⁴²and exclaimed with a loud cry, "Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. ⁴³And why has this happened to me, that the mother of my Lord comes to me? ⁴⁴For as soon as I heard the sound of your greeting, the child in my womb leaped for joy. ⁴⁵And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her by the Lord."

⁴⁶And Mary said,

"My soul magnifies the Lord,

⁴⁷and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,

⁴⁸for he has looked with favor on the lowliness of his servant.

Surely, from now on all generations will call me blessed;

⁴⁹for the Mighty One has done great things for me,

and holy is his name.

⁵⁰His mercy is for those who fear him

from generation to generation.

⁵¹He has shown strength with his arm;

he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts.

⁵²He has brought down the powerful from their thrones,

and lifted up the lowly;

⁵³he has filled the hungry with good things,

and sent the rich away empty.

⁵⁴He has helped his servant Israel,

in remembrance of his mercy,

⁵⁵according to the promise he made to our ancestors,

to Abraham and to his descendants forever."

Sermon: "What song would you sing?"

And Mary said, "My soul magnifies the Lord…" Thus begins Mary's song. I love the word that gets translated as 'magnifies.' In Greek it is /mega-luna/ or, literally, a large or great light. Put back into its context and Mary's song becomes, 'My soul sheds a great light on the Lord.' That is a pretty arrogant saying, isn't it? To have the audacity to say, 'I will make the Lord look bigger and brighter than you have ever seen the Lord look before' does sound pretty arrogant. Is that really what Mary is saying?

Even in English the word 'magnify' is powerful. I remember as a child getting magnifying glasses and my brothers, sister and I had great fun with those. If you look through a magnifying glass at something on the horizon, something far away, it is all blurry and out of focus. But if you take the magnifying glass and bring it close to the object, it makes it appear larger, bigger than it really is, and you can see aspects about it that you could not have seen without it. In some ways, it becomes more alive than ever before. Looking at something closely, brings out its texture – like the weave of a fabric, or brings out the contours of its surface, revealing its age or history, like the bark on a tree.

I once heard of a writer who took a one-inch picture frame and would write only about what he could see inside the frame before he would move it. He had more than enough to write about because he could describe what it looked like, as well as what it seemed to taste like, smell like, feel like and the noises it made. But then he wrote about how it made him feel. Looking at something so closely stirs the emotions as you become more intimately connected to it.

Mary's intimate song verges on blasphemy for her listeners. If I were to be in Mary's shoes, I would try to convey these sentiments through my song:

"Hey! Look at me!

I am a poor, young woman,

betrothed, but not yet married.

Yes, I am pregnant.

Do not look at me as someone who has violated a rule of society.

Do not look at me and see me as a loser.

Do not despise me, disrespect me, or hold me in contempt.

Do not hold me back, or hold me down.

Do not judge me for making a poor decision.

I know that the child I carry in my womb could bring about my own death.

I know that.

I also know that this child will be lucky if he survives the first year,

and luckier if he lives to age 5.

I know that, too.

I know that my child will be teased for having been born out-of-wedlock,

and that this child will always have to carry that baggage.

But do you know what you can do?

Look at me.

Look closer.

Closer.

Closer.

I am a scared, and frightened, young woman,

who, not only, is capable of loving

and being loved,

but who also expects love.

I have hopes and dreams for the future.

My heart is alive and beating.

I am sensual

and passionate about all aspects of life.

I have my whole future ahead of me.

All I ask is that you love me,

and love my child.

And when you love

I want you to see God

for God is love."

This is good news for us.

God is not out beyond the galaxies,

beyond what we can see with largest, most expensive telescopes.

Nor is God roaming the skies above, floating by on the clouds.

Nor is God most visible in the actions of our nations,

in our governments or in our policies.

Nor is God most visible in our Church buildings,

our constitutions, or our rules of order.

No, look closer.

Closer.

Closer.

If you are looking out there,

out in the world to see God,

you are looking too far away.

We only have to look within us, to see God.

But don't look at the wrong stuff.

If we point to our successes in life to see God, well,

God is not there.

If we look at the times in which we greatly used our power and authority, well,

God is not there either.

But let us look to the times when we have failed,

or were grieving or in pain,

or when we were left vulnerable, open and exposed,

there we see God.

God came to us through the friend who still accepted us when we failed.

God came to us through the friend who gave us a big hug and let us cry on their shoulder.

God came to us through the friend who helped us make a 'plan B, or plan C,

or plan Z.'

All Mary is saying is that

God is not so much in the glamour of our lives,

but in the gutter of our lives.

All too often we look at our failures as lessons to be learned

so that we do not mess up again.

It appears to be all about us.

Well, if it is all about lessons to learn and choices to be made,

we do not need God for that, do we?

No, all we need are good teachers, and a little common sense.

But what happens if our teachers fail us,

what happens when our common sense is wrong,

what happens then?

It is not all about us. It is about God.

It is about this God who draws us closely,

holds us tenderly,

defends us ardently, and

loves us dearly.

The proverb states the truth:

"Trust in the LORD with all your heart,

and do not rely on your own insight."

We see God most clearly when we are humble and open.

We see God most vividly when we make ourselves willing and vulnerable

to the love that God wills for us.

That is where we see God.

God enters into the sin of our lives

-enters into the things that keep us from loving-

and God comes to us

- through a touch, a hug, a kind word, a kiss-

to let us know, once again, that deep down,

we are all Mary's;

we are all people who want to love

and be loved,

and who have now come to expect love,

just like we expect air to breathe and water to drink.

That is good news.

Love is what is supposed to happen.

And when love does happen

when we are drawn close to another

and can see their faults, their failings,

their sorrows and their joys,

and we love them in spite of it all,

then we will have seen God.

And wouldn't that make you sing?

The love of God expressed to Mary made Mary sing out

and I believe it can make you and me sing out too.

The passionate love of God magnified through others and dwelling with in us makes us sing.

The only question becomes, "What song shall we sing?" Amen.

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