December 13, 2009

2009 12 13

Good News in the Midst of Tough Times

Zephaniah 3:14-20
Isaiah 12:2-6
Philippians 4:4-7

I'll be home for Christmas
You can count on me
Please have snow and mistletoe
And presents under the tree
Christmas Eve will find me
Where the love light beams
I'll be home for Christmas
If only in my dreams                        (Words & music by Al Kent - Don Gannon)

By now, most of us have already made our plans for our Christmas Eve and Christmas Day celebrations.  We know who will be going where.  We know who is hosting, and who will be traveling.  Possibly our greatest Christmas tradition is simply being together.  We want to be with family and friends as we open our presents and give thanks to God for the gift of his Son, Jesus.

But we know that sometimes this just isn't always possible.  Sometimes our work schedules do not allow us to travel.  Maybe we don't have enough room or resources to host others.  Sometimes the people we love are too far away to be with us.  I think of all our military families.  Sons and daughters, mothers and fathers, brothers and sisters...serving across our country and around the world.  These people keep an ever-vigilant watch.  I know that I am thankful for the sacrifice that these people and their families make at Christmastime.

This time of year also reminds me of families who may feel broken or incomplete through the loss of a job or a loved one.  Even with the tinsel, tree, and trimmings, there may still be a spirit of heaviness and loss that can turn a green Christmas blue.  The Bellevue Ministerial Association is hosting a "Blue Christmas" service this year for people who may simply not feel like celebrating Christmas.  After all, how can you celebrate, when you have been separated from your joy?

I think that it would be very easy for most of us to write off Christmas this year.  Times are tough.  Money is scarce.  Jobs are few and far between, and happiness in short supply.  Fortunately, I am not here to talk about happiness.  The word for this day is joy.  J-O-Y.  JOY!

We are not the only generation, and we are not the only people to live in tough times.  We would be kidding ourselves is we believed that.  There are people in this room who have lived through wars and conflicts and people who have seen the Great Depression with their own eyes.  And to see people caught in dire straits, we have no further to look than in the Bible.  Zephaniah is considered to be one of the minor prophets...not because his message was trivial, but because it is one of many shorter prophecies.  Zephaniah came with a message from the Lord.  Like other prophecies, it didn't look good.  The people of Judah had turned away from their God.  They were worshipping other gods, and now the Lord's judgment was against them.  Most of the three chapters of this book, tell of the disaster that would come upon the people and rulers of Judah.  But Zephaniah's prophecy ends with a "song of joy". 

14 Sing, O Daughter of Zion; shout aloud, O Israel! Be glad and rejoice with all your heart, O Daughter of Jerusalem! 15 The LORD has taken away your punishment, he has turned back your enemy. The LORD, the King of Israel, is with you; never again will you fear any harm.

Although they have rejected their God, he has not rejected them.  He will neither forget them nor forsake them.  Despite their blatant disobedience, he will save them from destruction.  God will bring his people back to himself.

17 The LORD your God is with you, he is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing."

"He will rejoice over you with singing."  I think that most of us understand that we are to worship God.  We are to celebrate him and all that he has done for us...all that he continues to do for us.  However, Zephaniah flips this whole concept of joy upside-down.  Not only do we celebrate him, but God also rejoices over his people whom he has redeemed.  Maybe we view God as some stoic almighty figure with stern gaze and a pointing finger.  Maybe we can imagine him as frustrated and angry with the world...with the people he has created.   But God has joy.  God has joy when his people turn their hearts back to him.  And he celebrates over us with singing.  Imagine God singing.  Imagine his joy when one person turns his or her heart to him.  That same joy is available to us today and every day of our lives in him. 

But I understand.  I understand the ways of this world.  I have seen the darkness of this world.  I lived in it for most of my years.  I know what is out there.  This world wants us to be happy...fat, drunk, happy and ignorant of God's love.  Most people are content to get by with a couple of beers in the fridge, a couple of bucks in their pockets, a smile on their faces, and sin in their hearts.  Most people cannot fathom God's joy in their minds...because it is supposed to live in our hearts.  Eventually, the beer is drunk, the money disappears, and the smiles begin to fade.  All that remains is the darkness and sin.  And I am telling you...this is not what God wants for us

The Lord is with us.  God wants joy in our lives.  He wants us to sing out to him, so that he may sing over us.  The joy that Zephaniah proclaims, Paul echoes in Philippians. 

4 Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! 5 Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near.

Paul is calling out to us and the world.  Rejoice!  It was so important that he said twice.  Rejoice!  Why?  What good reason do I have to rejoice?  If I lose my job, or if my loved one dies, or I cannot be near those whom I love...why should I rejoice?  The Lord is near.  The Lord is near.  The answer is simple.  Maybe it is too simple.  However, when the Lord is near, you are never alone. 

6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

We get too wound up, too caught up, and too wrapped up in the things, the places, and even the people of this world.  And I am not saying that you should not mourn the loss of a loved one during the holidays.  You should, and you must.  And I 'm not saying that other problems losses should not make you sad.  They will.  But don't let the world steal your joy.  Take your worries, take your concerns, take your losses to the Lord, and you will have peace.  This peace, the peace of God, is beyond all understanding...all human comprehension.  This peace will guard your hearts and minds in whom?  In Christ Jesus.  Do not let the world steal your joy.  The Lord is near, and when the Lord is near, you are never alone. 

I think that this is the message of that first Christmas Eve.  Remember the shepherds?  Remember how the angel came before them in Luke 2?  They were terrified.  The shepherds probably thought that either the world was coming to an end or they were being struck down by God.  They were scared out of their minds.

"But the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people.  Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. (Luke 2:10-11, NIV)

The angel did not come to invite them to a party and a good time.  The angel did not promise them worldly happiness and fun.  The news of a savior was a message of great and supernatural JOY!  Emmanuel...God with us. 

Zeph. 3:17 The LORD your God is with you, he is mighty to save. . He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing."

This week in our season of Advent, we are, in a way, turning the corner.  In the first week, we saw that in the birth of the Christ child, there is hope for a world devoid of any real hope.  In the second week pf Advent, we saw last week, that God sent a messenger named John, preaching repentance and salvation from sin.  This message of salvation brings peace to all people who will turn their hearts toward God.

But this week...in this third week of Advent, the coming birth of Christ brings the promise of joy.  Living in a time and a world that wants to steal our happiness, God has sent a savior to seal our joy.  That's good news.  That was good news 2,000 years ago, and it is good news still today.  Do you know this joy? 

Philippians 4:4-7, NIV

4 Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! 5 Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. 6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.