St. John’s Lutheran Church, Toluca, IL – 2nd Sunday of Advent
Isaiah 40:1-11; Psalm 85:1-2, 8-13; 2 Peter 3:8-15a; Mark 1:1-8
Mark 1:1-8
1The beginning of the good news of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.
2As it is written in the prophet Isaiah,
“See, I am sending my messenger ahead of you,
who will prepare your way;
3the voice of one crying out in the wilderness:
‘Prepare the way of the Lord,
make his paths straight,’ ”
4John the baptizer appeared in the wilderness, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. 5And people from the whole Judean countryside and all the people of Jerusalem were going out to him, and were baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins. 6Now John was clothed with camel’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist, and he ate locusts and wild honey. 7He proclaimed, “The one who is more powerful than I is coming after me; I am not worthy to stoop down and untie the thong of his sandals. 8I have baptized you with water; but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.”
. . .
The Voices Crying out of The Rubble
Grace to you, beloved of God, and peace from our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
The word that has occupied my thoughts in preparation for this Second Sunday of Advent is wilderness. Some of us just love it. The kind of wilderness, being deserts, forests, mountains, or untamed beaches, it does not matter. The call to the outdoors and the peace they experience is simply irresistible.
Others among us do not enjoy the wilderness at all. They feel uneasy. They don’t enjoy the isolation. They would rather have clean facilities and the pleasantries of modern life at their reach.
Most of us have some tolerance for the wilderness but usually realize things can get challenging over time, especially under duress. Supplies may start to run low. The elements tend to become more and more merciless. Longer periods of isolation may start to take a toll.
This approach is a little closer to the image of wilderness among people when God was born into the world. Finding oneself in the wilderness could be necessary, especially when traveling from place to place. Nonetheless, the biblical image of wilderness wasn’t meant to be one of spending leisure time in nature seeking healing and renewal. It was quite the opposite. The wilderness was a place where one was exposed and became vulnerable to the dangers and evils of the world. It represented the places or states of isolation where hope could be lost, and the reality of death or the fear of perishing could be too overwhelming for a person or a nation to remain faithful to God.
Since the beginning of the Israeli-Hamas conflict, and especially during this Advent Season, I have been following more intently the witness of our sister church in the Middle East, The Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and The Holy Land.
It is not always obvious to us, but there are Christians currently living and worshiping in the Middle East. Those who have visited that part of the world can attest that the Christian Church, through its various expressions, has been present in the Holy Land since the beginning of the good news of Jesus Christ. The vast majority are Christians who have called home the lands that are now Israel and the Palestinian territories for generations and generations. These Christians, our siblings in faith, are both Jews and Arabs. They are neighbors. They go to the same places to work or to go to school. They share the markets, transportation, hospitals, and everything else that is part of the daily life of communities in Israel, Gaza, and the West Bank. Because of it, many have lost either loved ones, friends, homes, or entire neighborhoods. Some may have lost all of those, especially the ones living in the Palestinian territories. The life as they knew is gone.
In preparation for today, I have wondered how our siblings in the holy land would hear these texts while we long together for the Advent of our Savior and for him to bring about better things. Wilderness has many forms. However, I am not sure we can fully comprehend the agony, the lament, the sorrow, and the righteous indignation Christians in the Middle East may be feeling as they are caught up in the middle of all possible evils of human injustice that Jesus stood against. How is that not too overwhelming to remain faithful to God?
I can say God expects better from God’s people and those who represent them. God expects shalom. God expects peace with justice, compassion, and solidarity, combined with non-violent and inclusive prosperity. While we long for better things, God wishes for us to bear witness to better things.
There is a particular Christian faith community in Palestine that may help us to figure this out through their own witnesses. They gather in an ancient town that is very familiar to us. They named themselves Christmas Lutheran Church, and they worship our Lord in the no longer little town of Bethlehem in the West Bank.
This Advent, Christmas Lutheran Church built its nativity scene differently. They wanted to show the world how it feels. Instead of a baby Jesus and a manger, they collected pieces of broken concrete and arranged them in their sanctuary where the original scene always has been. They surrounded the makeshift rubble with the traditional images of shepherds, animals, and the magi; then, on top of it, they laid a doll child, wrapped like the ones who had died in the past several weeks. They did this to show the wilderness they are navigating as they see it. It is such a powerful image. It reminded me of the words Jesus used to illustrate the coming of the Son of Man and how we can be sure to find our Savior among the most desperate of us when he returns for a visit. Their experience and their witness make those words real for us.
In hope that we will speak in solidarity to them and to all who are living the ultimate desolation as we worship this Sunday, I invite you to listen closely to the words of the prophet Isaiah one more time.
“The spirit of the Lord GOD is upon [us],
because the LORD has anointed [us];
he has sent [us] to bring good news to the oppressed,
to bind up the brokenhearted,
to proclaim liberty to the captives,
and release to the prisoners;
… to 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.
They will be called oaks of righteousness,
the planting of the LORD, to display his glory.
They shall build up the ancient ruins,
they shall raise up the former devastations;
they shall repair the ruined cities,
the devastations of many generations (Isaiah 40: 3-5, 8, 11).”
“Comfort, O comfort my people, says your God.
A voice cries out:
[Out of the rubble] prepare the way of the LORD,
make straight in the desert a highway for our God.
Every valley shall be lifted up,
and every mountain and hill be made low;
the uneven ground shall become level,
and the rough places a plain.
Then the glory of the LORD shall be revealed,
and all people shall see it together,
for the mouth of the LORD has spoken.
The grass withers, the flower fades;
but the word of our God will stand forever.
He will feed his flock like a shepherd;
he will gather the lambs in his arms (Isaiah 61:1,3-4).”
Comfort, comfort my people. May our hearts and minds be changed, and may we love and trust our God above all things. May we believe in the good news of our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
Bridging Faith 