Thought for the Week 2020 – Advent 4

Luke 2: 1 - 20

¹ In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world. ² (This was the first census that took place while Quirinius was governor of Syria.) ³ And everyone went to their own town to register.

⁴ So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. ⁵ He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child. ⁶ While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, ⁷ and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no guest room available for them.

⁸ And there were shepherds living out in the fields near by, keeping watch over their flocks at night. ⁹ An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. ¹⁰ But the angel said to them, ‘Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. ¹¹ Today in the town of David a Saviour has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. ¹² This will be a sign to you: you will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.’

¹³ Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,

¹⁴ ‘Glory to God in the highest heaven,
    and on earth peace to those on whom his favour rests.’

¹⁵ When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, ‘Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.’

¹⁶ So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. ¹⁷ When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, ¹⁸ and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. ¹⁹ But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. ²⁰ The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told.

 

Advent 4 – Do Not be Afraid: There is Good News!

Right now we need hope in a time of despair; we need life in the midst of death. Covid-19 has had a massive impact on our entire world during 2020. Nothing since WWII that has affected just about every human being in the world in the way this virus has done. And as we come towards the end of the year there is a mixture of fear with hope. It was very recently that three vaccines reached a stage of development where they could start to be administered. And people began to see a light at the end of the tunnel. But even more recently we have learned of a new variant of the virus which spreads much more easily and rapidly. The hospitals are at the point of being overwhelmed, family gatherings for Christmas are all but cancelled, church buildings are closing once again. The light at the end of the tunnel looks like it is being smothered. Who can we turn to?

‘Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Saviour has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord.’

The greatest story ever told is right here in Luke 2. God became man and made his dwelling among us. The Creator became a part of the creation. We call it the ‘incarnation’ – meaning that God became human and took on human flesh. God came to be with us in such a real, physical, tangible sense. And part of the message is stated by the angels who appeared to the shepherds: ‘Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people.’ How are we feeling right now? Are we afraid because of the news of the rapid spread of the new variant of the virus? Are we anxious and fearful of what the future might hold? There is good news! There is a reason for joy for all people! A Saviour has been born! Yes, there is uncertainty and we might be anxious about what is happening in our world. But we can trust in the Good News of the Saviour, and rest in him – there really is Good News in the midst of so much bad news.

After the first angel had given the message, he was joined by ‘a great company’ of angels. Imagine what that must have looked like to those shepherds! And they said,’ Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favour rests.’ Who are the people ‘on whom God’s favour rests’? Does he have favourites? God’s favour rests on all people, but sadly not all people recognise or accept it. The peace of God is available for all people – we can receive his peace, love and joy if we will turn to him. There is peace on earth for all who will turn their backs on selfish, proud living, and come to God in humility, confession and repentance. God has the very best for us – and the proof of that is his willingness to send his only Son to live for us, to die for us and to rise again.

Much as we might be saddened by the way this Christmas is so different, nothing can replace the joy of what Christmas is really all about, and nothing can take away the peace that Jesus brings.

 

Prayer

Father, no matter what else is happening in life, we rejoice today in the Good News that your Son was born. We praise you that we can know God With Us every day of our life. We thank you that no matter what else is happening in our world right now, Jesus is our King, our Saviour and out Friend. May we know your love, strength, protection, joy and peace in our lives every single day, and not just at Christmas. Amen.

Thought for the Week 2020 – Advent 3

Matthew 1: 18 – 2: 2

¹⁸ This is how the birth of Jesus the Messiah came about: his mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit. ¹⁹ Because Joseph her husband was faithful to the law, and yet did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly.

²⁰ But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, ‘Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. ²¹ She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.’

²² All this took place to fulfil what the Lord had said through the prophet: ²³ ‘The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel’ (which means ‘God with us’).

²⁴ When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary home as his wife. ²⁵ But he did not consummate their marriage until she gave birth to a son. And he gave him the name Jesus.

2¹ After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem ² and asked, ‘Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.’

 

Advent 3 – God With Us

Our Nativity plays would be very different if we only had Matthew’s account, and didn’t have Luke’s version as well. Paintings and Christmas card pictures would also be very different. There would be no stable scene or innkeeper (not that Luke mentions a stable or an inkeeper anyway, but that’s another matter!). A ‘Matthew only’ Nativity would focus on Joseph, and whilst we might include an angel, we wouldn’t have the angel visiting Mary or the shepherds – his only role would be appearing to Joseph in a dream. There would be no explanation of how Mary came to be ‘pregnant through the Holy Spirit’ nor anything about the journey to Bethlehem – we would simply assume that Bethlehem was where they lived. The main part of the story would focus on the Wise Men and Herod – no shepherds! The paintings and plays would be set in a house in Bethlehem, with the Magi bringing gifts, and Herod glowering in the corner!

But our Bibles are rich because we have more than one angle on this story (and other stories). No contradictions in the different accounts – Matthew alone or Luke alone would be like black and white: together they give us a colour picture of the Nativity! And although Mark and John do not describe the birth of Jesus, their Gospel accounts add further dimensions to what we know of the birth, life, ministry, teaching, miracles, death and resurrection of Jesus!

Two weeks ago we looked at the prophecy in Isaiah 7 that Matthew quotes here in verse 23 of our reading: “‘The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel’ (which means ‘God with us’).” It was a prophecy written about 700 years before the birth of Jesus, and Matthew (inspired by the Holy Spirit) is in no doubt that it has reached its fulfilment in the birth of Christ which he is writing about. Both Matthew and Luke, writing independently (and each taking a very different angle on the story), include the fact that Mary was a virgin. And Matthew makes it clear that this is a fulfilment of prophecy. And not only that, but this ‘name’ (or almost a ‘nickname’) would apply – Immanuel, meaning ‘God With Us’. It is interesting that neither the son of Isaiah, born in Isaiah 7, nor the Son of God born in Matthew 2 was actually named Immanuel. Nevertheless, it is clear in both cases that God was with the people. That’s what the reminder was at the time of Isaiah; and most importantly, when Jesus came it was fully realised! When Jesus came, God was truly with us in a way he never had been before. He was fully man and fully God – ‘The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us.’ (John 1: 14)

Today, we still have ‘Immanuel’ because God is still with us. He promised it and we can know that it is true. We face uncertainty, change and anxiety. Everything is different this Christmas compared to last year. And we are all hoping that next Christmas will be ‘back to normal’ – However, today there is fear and uncertainty. But through it all we can know Immanuel: God is with us, he never leaves us and he will come with us as we pass though these troubled times.

A few years from now (if we are still here) we will look back on this very different Christmas in 2020 – and I pray that we will say, ‘Yes, although there was a lot of uncertainty and worry, and so much was different, the thing that really marked out that Christmas was the knowledge of Immanuel – God really was with us in a wonderful and powerful way.’

 

Prayer

Almighty God, we praise you for the Good News of the incarnation at Christmas – a reminder of Immanuel, God With Us, and always with us. We thank you for your Word, recorded and preserved for us in the Bible, and for the joy of the stories of the Nativity that we find there.

Father, we come to you in worship this year, but you know that we also come with some fear and anxiety in our hearts at the moment. We pray for peace for all of us – may we trust in you to never leave us and to go with us through all that we are facing in our world and our community this year. Amen.

Thought for the Week 2020 – Advent 2

Psalm 62

¹ Truly my soul finds rest in God;
    my salvation comes from him.
² Truly he is my rock and my salvation;
    he is my fortress, I shall never be shaken.

³ How long will you assault me?
    Would all of you throw me down –
    this leaning wall, this tottering fence?
⁴ Surely they intend to topple me
    from my lofty place;
    they take delight in lies.
With their mouths they bless,
    but in their hearts they curse.

⁵ Yes, my soul, find rest in God;
    my hope comes from him.
⁶ Truly he is my rock and my salvation;
    he is my fortress, I shall not be shaken.
⁷ My salvation and my honour depend on God;
    he is my mighty rock, my refuge.

⁸ Trust in him at all times, you people;
    pour out your hearts to him,
    for God is our refuge.

⁹ Surely the lowborn are but a breath,
    the highborn are but a lie.
If weighed on a balance, they are nothing;
    together they are only a breath.
¹⁰ Do not trust in extortion
    or put vain hope in stolen goods;
though your riches increase,
    do not set your heart on them.

¹¹ One thing God has spoken,
    two things I have heard:
‘Power belongs to you, God,
¹²     and with you, Lord, is unfailing love’;
and, ‘You reward everyone
    according to what they have done.’

Advent 2 – Incarnation, not Tradition.

When I was a child, December was the slowest moving month of all. Yes, I had an advent calendar to open, to help count down the days down to, (alternate doors, with my brother) but the month seemed to take so long to get from the 1^st to the 25^th! (There was no chocolate in my advent calendar, and I had the same one every year – we just closed all the doors and put it away until the next year). Now, as an adult, the month of December flies by! Especially since it has been part of my job to lead carol services and so on – they just come around so quickly when you think you have plenty of time to organise them!

So, we are already in the second week of Advent. Presents have been bought, planning has been done, but there is still a lot more to do, and not much time left. This year is going to be a strange Christmas for all of us. It will be the first year for over 20 years when Jen and I have not travelled to see parents on Christmas Day. And the first year ever (since we got married 30 years ago) in which we have not travelled to see parents at all over the whole Christmas period.

Do you feel anxious about Christmas 2020? How will we cope with our traditions all being changed? If you can only join with two other households, how will you choose which family members to see and which not? No ‘Carols by Candlelight’ this year, no Club 707 ‘Christmas Wrapped Up’ for the schoolchildren. Will it really be Christmas?

Christmas is a reminder of the greatest moment in world history – the most amazing, astonishing thing to happen, and the most wonderful. It is a reminder of the ‘incarnation’ – God became a human being and came and lived amongst us. The creator became a part of his creation. God himself took on human flesh – he grew inside the womb of a young woman, was born in poverty and was utterly dependant upon his mother for some years. He did it so that we could have a relationship with him, so that we could know the truth of what it means to follow him, and he did it to win our salvation and the forgiveness of sins. Is any of that cancelled? Certainly not! Is any of that changed by the fact that we can’t have a normal carol service? Absolutely not!

“Truly my soul finds rest in God; my salvation comes from him. Truly he is my rock and my salvation; he is my fortress, I shall never be shaken.” (Ps. 62: 1 - 2) Our salvation is in Christ alone and the facts of his birth, death and resurrection. Our salvation does not come through traditions! My soul finds rest in God, says the psalmist. And again, in verse 5: “Yes, my soul, find rest in God; my hope comes from him.”

This year, despite so many things being different, and despite the anxiety associated with the virus, may we all truly find rest and hope in our Saviour. May we rejoice in the Saviour’s birth, and celebrate it with thanksgiving. May we trust in him to bring us through this difficult time in our history and out the other side into something new! Verse 8 says, “Trust in him at all times, you people; pour out your hearts to him, for God is our refuge.”

 

Prayer

Dear Lord, our Father, we thank and praise you for the truth of the incarnation and all that it means to us in our lives and for our salvation. This Christmas will be different in many ways, but at its heart there will be no difference at all. In its true meaning it is a very real Christmas. So may we once again celebrate, and know your love and presence with us and surrounding us. Please help us to trust in you at all times, and to find rest in you, from whom our hope comes. We pray for all who are troubled and struggling and suffering in many ways – please put your arms of love and comfort around them, and give them peace through the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Thought for the Week 2020 – Advent 1

Isaiah 7: 10 - 17

¹⁰ Again the Lord spoke to [King] Ahaz, ¹¹ ‘Ask the Lord your God for a sign, whether in the deepest depths or in the highest heights.’

¹² But Ahaz said, ‘I will not ask; I will not put the Lord to the test.’

¹³ Then Isaiah said, ‘Hear now, you house of David! Is it not enough to try the patience of humans? Will you try the patience of my God also? ¹⁴ Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: the virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel. ¹⁵ He will be eating curds and honey when he knows enough to reject the wrong and choose the right, ¹⁶ for before the boy knows enough to reject the wrong and choose the right, the land of the two kings you dread will be laid waste. ¹⁷ The Lord will bring on you and on your people and on the house of your father a time unlike any since Ephraim broke away from Judah – he will bring the king of Assyria.’

 

Advent 1 – Time is in the Lord’s Hands.

Advent is the season in which look ahead and we wait upon the Lord. We look ahead to the coming of the Messiah – remembering the first time he came and in expectation of the second time he will come. In the Bible Course, which some of us have been studying recently, we have just come to the end of the Old Testament. It is the period in which prophets such as Malachi set the scene, and whose words were left hanging in expectation for about 400 years.

Isaiah wrote the words that we have read today, roughly 700 years before Jesus came. These are long periods of time! In the case of Isaiah, it is as if we were reading a book today that is even older than Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales (written between 1387 and 1400), and spotting and interpreting a prophecy about the covid-19 crisis! And the gap after Malachi is similar to the time that has passed since the publication of the King James Bible. It was a long time in which there was silence – no prophets, and no word from God.

The people of God were waiting for the fulfilment of prophecy – they were waiting for the coming Messiah, and they waited a very long time. And finally, by the time the Angel Gabriel visited Zechariah the priest in the temple, and then, six months later, a teenage peasant girl called Mary in Nazareth, the people were longing and desperate to see God do something in order to restore the nation, and get rid of the hated Romans.

It is fair to say that some of the prophecies in the Old Testament that we recognise as being about Jesus are only recognisable because we have that wonderful gift called hindsight! Also, the fact that some of the New Testament writers quoted the relevant passages gives us a huge pointer! At the time Isaiah wrote chapter 7 (and during the 700 years that followed) it is likely that few people would have realised that right in the middle of it we find a prophecy that the Messiah would be born to a virgin. But there it is, in verse 14: “Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: the virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel.” And this verse was quoted by Matthew in Matt. 1: 23 – a verse that we hear read every single year in Carol services.

When Isaiah wrote chapter 7 of his book, he was writing about Middle East politics of the day. Power struggles can change very quickly, as we know. Ahaz, the king of Judah, was fearful about possible attacks from Israel and from Aram. And the Prophet Isaiah says here, bringing the Word of God, that Ahaz could stop worrying, because within the next couple of years both of those lands would be laid waste by a much bigger player – Assyria. And the ‘sign’ was the length of time it takes for a baby to be conceived, born, grow old enough to eat curds and honey, but not be old enough to be able to choose right from wrong. How long is that? A couple of years?

So the theme for this week’s reading is ‘time’. There are the centuries that passed as people waited for the Messiah, and there is the very short time (measured in the period of a baby’s early stages) in which whole nations and empires can rise and fall! How long is God’s time? We have waited nearly 2000 years for Jesus to return and we are still waiting. Meanwhile, we have waited a few months for the development of a covid-19 vaccine. Through it all we trust in God. We trust in the King of kings – and we have no alternative, because who else is there that we can we turn to? God sees the big picture, and sometimes it seems to us that things happen too quickly; and often it seems that we have to wait a very long time. We have limited vision – the length of a day, a year, even a lifetime. But God has the whole of world history in his view, and indeed, in his hands. It can sometimes be difficult to be patient and it can be difficult to trust God, but he is utterly faithful, and we need to learn to rest in his goodness, rest in his peace and rest in his timing, knowing that he knows best and he sees the end from the beginning.

 

Prayer

Heavenly Father, this Advent may we have peace in our hearts as we wait on the Lord. We wait for the Saviour to be revealed in our lives, in our church and in our world. We thank you for the Good News of the Saviour who was born in Bethlehem – at just the right time, even 700 years after the words of Isaiah, and over 400 years after Malachi. May we hold on to the hope and expectation of seeing Jesus come again: we wait with eager anticipation! Please bless us during this Advent season – very different from previous years, but the truth and relevance of the birth of our Saviour remain unchanged. Amen.