Sermon for SMHP, Year B, Advent IV, Dec. 24, 2017
46And Mary said, “My soul magnifies the Lord,
47and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, 48who
has looked with favor on the lowliness of the servant.
Surely, from now on all generations will call me blessed;
49for the Mighty One has done great things for
me, and holy is God’s name.
50God’s mercy is for those who fear the Lord from
generation to generation.
51God has shown strength with God’s arm; The Lord
has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts.
52God has brought down the powerful from their
thrones, and lifted up the lowly;
53God has filled the hungry with good things, and
sent the rich away empty.
54God has helped God’s servant Israel, in
remembrance of God’s mercy,
55according to the promise made to our ancestors,
to Abraham and Sarah and their descendants forever.”
26In
the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee called
Nazareth,27to a virgin engaged to a man whose name was Joseph, of
the house of David. The virgin’s name was Mary.28And he came to her
and said, “Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you.”29But she
was much perplexed by his words and pondered what sort of greeting this might
be.30The angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have
found favor with God.31And now, you will conceive in your womb and
bear a son, and you will name him Jesus.32He will be great, and will
be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give to him the
throne of his ancestor David.33He will reign over the house of Jacob
forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.”34Mary said to the
angel, “How can this be, since I am a virgin?”
35The
angel said to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the
Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be holy; he
will be called Son of God.36And now, your relative Elizabeth in her
old age has also conceived a son; and this is the sixth month for her who was
said to be barren.37For nothing will be impossible with God.”38Then
Mary said, “Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to
your word.” Then the angel departed from her.
Every Sunday
in December, we have sung those words.
Words which we have sung before this December, to be certain, because
that hymn, “The Canticle of the Turning” is a favorite for many here at St.
Mark Hope and Peace.
We’ve been
singing that hymn, and we’ve been saying the Magnificat together, and we’ve leaned in to the promise that the world
is, indeed, about to turn. At a
time when it is challenging for many of us to believe that God is going to turn the world, away from selfishness
and sin and toward love and justice.
We’re
working on believing it, right? Because believing
is what we do. And because we know
that God can turn the world even when the world seems bent on its own
destruction.
We know that
God broke into the world at a time when God’s people were despairing, living
under oppression, economic injustice, the constant threat of war. God broke into that world--became incarnate in that world, in
order that the world might turn, back toward love of neighbor—all
neighbors. And that world received the
greatest prophet, the wisest rabbi, and the kindest humanitarian it has ever
known.
All wrapped
up in one person.
God did that
then. Turned the world through one
remarkable child born to two remarkable parents.
God turned the world!
And we know
that the world will turn again.
If we have
been paying attention, we even know how.
The world
will turn when there are people willing to answer as Mary did: “let it be with me according to your word.”
They will be
ordinary people—we know that too. The
ones whom God calls to turn the world are not usually kings, or captains of
industry, or winners of awards. God
calls people like Mary—a maiden from Nazareth.
And shepherds, and other ordinary folk:
Abraham, Samuel, Esther, Martin Luther, Katie Luther, Dorothy Day.
God calls
people who have been set apart not by wealth, not by power…but by their
willingness to say “Here I am” when God calls their names.
The world
will turn—our world will turn,
when enough people follow Mary and the shepherds in saying “Here I am” when God
calls.
Refugees
need homes and jobs?
“Here I am.”
Kid being
bullied at school?
“Here I am.”
Injustice
and inequality running rampant? The
voiceless need someone to speak for them?
“Here I am.”
Bear the
likeness of God for all the world?
“Here. I.
am.”
And that is
what do while we wait for God to turn our world. We don’t wait passively. Christians are called to be pacifists, not
passive(ists). We wait clothed in the
words of Mary, mother of us all: Let it
be with me according to your
word.
Because the
world turns when each of us attends to the change that needs to be made in
us.
Institutions
turn when the people who make up the institution decide to live
according to a word of love and justice.
Neighborhoods
turn when individual neighbors decide to work together for the good of
all.
While we
wait for our world to turn from a path of destruction back toward the gospel of
love and peace, we bear God’s likeness to everyone we meet. We allow incarnation to live in us. We provide a living witness to God’s power at work in us, at work in our world,
and working slowly in the hearts of those who natter on about keeping Christ in
Christmas while striking his witness from every other aspect of life. We love them too, love them so hard
they can’t help but see the power and grace that God has showered on them, that
God calls us to shower on each other—including our neighbors who are brown and
poor and disabled. Especially our neighbors who are brown and poor and disabled.
“Here am I,
the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word.” Let that be our mantra…this Adventmas Eve and
always. And let us keep watch, dear
friends…for the world is about to turn.
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