Sermon
Search
No
sooner had the winners in the recent mid-term elections been announced,
than the political pundits began speculating about who would run in
the 2008 presidential election. It's hard for me to get enthused about
2008 while we are dealing with issues resulting from the election
of 2006, but there are historic possibilities on the horizon that
are interesting. On the Democratic side, Hillary Clinton and Barack
Obama, a woman or an African American may be their party's pick.
Recently on
National Public Radio there was a discussion of race and gender
in politics. The question was, "Are Americans ready to elect
either a woman or an African-American to the presidency? Who are
we more likely to elect first, a black president or a woman president?"
Some people
hold fast to the old gender stereotypes. They might say we cannot
elect a woman to the presidency because women aren't tough enough.
In the middle of hard-nosed international negotiations the president
cannot burst into tears. You know how women are-they get so emotional.
When an international crisis arises we need someone who is controlled
under pressure and can act logically rather than emotionally. And
what would happen if the president got pregnant? A pregnant first
lady is one thing, but a pregnant president? That is really something
to think about.
In the Bible
there is a recurring theme. God makes promises that cannot be kept
unless a child is born, but the ones to whom the promise is made
cannot have children because they are either too old or are barren.
God promised Abraham descendants as numerous as the stars in the
heavens. But both Abraham and Sarah were pushing one hundred years
old. The notion that she would become pregnant was so preposterous
that Sarah broke out laughing at the angel who bore the message.
God asked people to believe in promises that only God, and not they
themselves could fulfill. Humanly speaking, there was nothing for
them to do but trust and obey.
In Luke 1 we
are introduced to Zechariah and his wife Elizabeth. He is a priest,
and she is a descendant of Aaron. They were righteous people…
so righteous that Luke says they were blameless in the sight of
the Lord. They took everything to God in prayer, including their
desire to have children. But after years of praying and no offspring,
they gave up. They were now too old. They stopped shopping for cribs
long ago and started pricing walkers.
Zechariah was
chosen to burn incense in the Holy of Holies, the most sacred and
fearful room in the temple. They believed that the presence of God
Almighty dwelled there. It wasn't just a ceremonial rite. The prospect
of standing in the very presence of God was a terrifying thing.
Terrible things could happen if the priest didn't enter the Holy
of Holiness with a right spirit. As Zechariah entered, many on the
outside prayed. Just as he was ready to place the incense, an angel
appeared before him. Luke says, "Fear fell upon him."
After the angel
told Zechariah to calm down, he said. "God has heard your prayer.
You and the Mrs. will conceive. You'll have a son and his name will
be John." Zechariah replied, "But Elizabeth and I aren't
spring chickens. How will I know this is true?" For asking
that question, the angel zipped Zechariah's lip and he wouldn't
be able to say a word until his son's first cry.
Think about
it… a prophet who cannot speak. He has a dandy of a story to
tell but he can't tell it. It is as if the angel said, "We've
heard enough of you for a while." Elizabeth's husband can't
talk, and Mary's husband-to-be, Joseph, doesn't talk. For someone
who plays such an important part in the Christmas drama, you would
think he had something to say. But we don't hear a peep from Joseph.
Months later
the angel Gabriel appeared to Mary and told her that she would have
a son. It's interesting that her response to Gabriel is almost the
same a Zechariah's. He said, "How shall I know this? I'm an
old man." Mary said, "How can this be, since I have no
husband?" But Gabriel didn't zip Mary's lips shut. Only the
women get to do the talking.
When Mary learned
that her relative Elizabeth was also pregnant, she went to meet
her. The young and pregnant one greets the old and pregnant one.
Elizabeth's son leaps for joy in her womb and she is overcome with
the Holy Spirit. Praises flow like fountains from Mary and Elizabeth.
Both are utterly amazed at what has happened to them. They don't
compare how round their tummies are, or complain about back pains
or swollen ankles.
No, these women
have important things to say. They are all "emotional"-laughing
and crying and singing about the fact that the world as it is, is
not the world as God wants it to be. The Son of the Most High will
be born to a humble young woman with no power or influence. When
his time comes, there will be a shakeup.
Did you hear
that the CEO of one of the big corporations was given a $53 million
bonus because the stockholders are happy with his performance that
made them money? Apparently they have not heard Mary and Elizabeth
carrying on. "He has shown the strength of his arm, he has
scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts, he has put
down the mighty from their thrones." Emotional Mary and
Elizabeth prophesy that God doesn't look kindly upon a world where
few at the top control the world's resources while the majority
of people in the world never have enough. "He has filled
the hungry with good things, and the rich he has sent away empty."
During a discussion
in a college class called, "Population and Environment,"
a classmate said, "I don't think it is right to bring a child
into a world as messed up as this one is." Given the proliferation
of war, terrorism, hunger, and global warming, that is a reasoned,
rational thought. I've heard this kind of thinking before, and the
ones who say it are always men.
Someone said,
"A pregnant president wouldn't be a bad thing; for I know of
no one has higher expectations for the future of the planet, who
is fiercer in wanting to protect the vulnerable, who is more heroically
hopeful about the world, than those who are pregnant."
Those who believe
that only men are allowed to speak and lead in the church better
take notice. In the story that marks our way to Bethlehem, it is
the women who point us to the mysterious ways of God while the men
sit and don't say a word.
In these opening
verses Luke pushes practicality and rationality aside to open our
eyes to the marvel and mystery of God's ways.
National Public
Radio has airs a series of essays by people from all walks of life
called, "This I Believe." Recently a Jesuit monk named
Richard Rohr declared, "I believe in mystery." He said,
"Life has taught me to love mystery and not feel the need to
change it or make it un-mysterious. This has put me at odds with
many other believers I know who seem to need explanations for everything…
Whenever I want to say "only" or "always," someone
or something proves me wrong. We love closure, resolution and clarity,
while thinking we are people of "faith"! How strange that
the very word "faith" has come to means its exact opposite."
Continue reading
Luke 1 from verse 57 and you will find that Elizabeth has had her
baby. All her friends and family have come to the house for the
circumcision. They tried to name him Zechariah after his father,
but Elizabeth said, "No, his name is John." "But
you don't have any relatives named John. They looked to Zechariah,
wanting to know what he would call the boy. He wrote on a piece
of paper, "His name is John," and at that moment he could
again speak. That gave everyone something to talk about.
I don't know
how long it will be before we have a pregnant president. But on
this Christmas Eve morning we remember the witness of two pregnant
prophets who told us about the people and the situations that need
our love and attention, and the God who deserves our praise at Christmas.
All of the sermons
that have appeared in text form on our Web Site since August 1996
are available here in the On-Line version. Use the search engine
below to find the sermon you want. You may search by date, sermon
title, or content. The sermons are full-text searchable.
|
