Sermon - November 27, 2016
SCRIPTURE TEXT: ROMANS 13:11-14
11 Besides this, you know what time it is, how it is now the moment for you to wake from sleep. For salvation is nearer to us now than when we became believers; 12the night is far gone, the day is near. Let us then lay aside the works of darkness and put on the armour of light; 13let us live honourably as in the day, not in revelling and drunkenness, not in debauchery and licentiousness, not in quarrelling and jealousy. 14Instead, put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires.
“From this time forth, we are invited to dream along with God of a new heaven, a new earth, a new way of being human, reshaped into God’s image as we were supposed to be from the beginning.”[1]
One of the cherished parts of each of my days is when I first awaken. I pull on a coat since (winter has arrived) and head outside. My dogs stand at the doorway excited to see what smells await them in the yard- whether deer have walked through the yard, or another animal they would love to befriend, perhaps even a jogger running by. It is still dark out often when this routine takes place- a little darker now than some mornings as winter is upon us. The sun is hardly up, if at all. Can you see it?
I love it as our two little dogs explore their world. As they explore, I find myself looking east. My breath altering the appearance of the world with its grayish-colored cloud rising toward heaven as I slowly continue to wake up.
Living in a manse for as long as we have, I am in the habit of looking at the church each morning to make sure there is no damage to it- no damage I can see. It has happened before while I have served God that an unnamed-someone vandalized the church by setting a small part of it on fire and then putting it out quickly. I have trained myself to be attentive. But today it’s safe. There is stands as it always does.
I stand there and I smile. I do not complain about the cold or the rain because of their inconvenience- that happens later when I walk to work and my pants get a little wet around the cuffs. No, I stand there imagining- maybe dreaming of the new heaven and new earth Paul speaks about when he salvation is upon us. I am just there.
I have woken up. “Night is far gone; the day is near.”[2] In those moments I am living between the two poles we all face, two poles that become more pronounced as advent begins:
What will this day hold me for me and what do I hope it will hold for me?
Paul, as he writes Romans 13, is feeling the same way I do on those mornings looking at the church wondering what the future holds for her. He is filled with emotions, with expectations, about the future of the church in the society in which she was born into.
Beneath Paul’s words we find a message of hope in this passage. As we begin advent, the first candle on our wreath beckons us to find a way to articulate our hope for the future now that salvation is coming close. “The night is far gone; the day is near.”[3] What can we see in the future?
Move 1- hard to muster
So as I begin unpacking this text in my mind I must confess that I feel like a broken record sometimes- saying and thinking the same thing about a scripture text especially when it comes to speaking about hope.
Now is the time the scripture says, now is the moment for salvation to come so close to us, now expectation grow within us as Christmas trees, advent candles, devotionals, and carols become part of our daily lives.
Contextually, we know that the first century church, the church that existed immediately after Jesus’ ascension working under Paul’s teaching, dealt with a tremendous amount of daily suffering. We know, working backwards through history, the Israelites who lived during the work of the prophet’s time, whose words fill out Old Testament with stern warnings against sin and specifically idolatry, also dealt with great amounts of suffering. It often felt like “night” to them. They wondered where is God when we need Him the most. How is salvation close when God seems far off? It often felt like night- dark, alone, cut off, abandoned.
Everyone knew the promises of God to abide forever. They know the promises of God to never leave or forsake as they have heard the words that Jesus says he “will be with them always, even to the end of the age.”[4] I have said this before, we know it to be true, and we can each easily articulate it. Hope can be hard to muster using the biblical context as a foundation.
Moving toward a more current context, what about now, today? Is it possible that living in the suburbs, with warm homes, leftover turkey and stuffing in the refrigerator, safe worship spaces to express ourselves in, in which to gather regularly, and generally good lives, is it possible to find hope hard to muster as the biblical audience did? The words of Paul say that it is.
Like me standing in the yard looking at the morning dawn, the possibility exists that we do not know what is going to happen next. And so we hope for a good day.
Move 2- lay it aside
So if every context that can be placed back upon the text is correct, if the world in which humanity exists is challenged with the metaphor of “night,” and hope can be hard to muster because we cannot directly locate salvation in the dark, which is in the process of drawing close to us, then we do indeed need to lay “aside the works of darkness.”[5] We need to “live honorably as in the day… and put on the Lord Jesus Christ.”[6]
We need to focus not on what divides us but what can link us together for we need each other. Paul’s words call us to greater awareness of how our lives should be changing as we come close to the incarnation of Jesus. How, again going back to my story, the gray cloud which could serve to confuse what I see around me, does not diminish the light of God that is dawning upon us.
Salvation is drawing close for, and to, us. God is drawing closer and closer. The Child grows in His mother’s womb. It is getting close.
How are we able to speak about the dreams we have for what this year will hold for us?
Conclusion
The first Sunday in advent beckons us to dream, to hope, for what is to come. We are thankful for the blessings God has given us. You likely shared some of those blessings around the table on Thursday with each other. Now what is it you are expecting and hoping from God as Advent begins?
This is not a “go out and tell the world how great Jesus is” message. (Jesus is great by the way). No it is an invitation to stand there before God, and wonder, and hope, about what God is going to do in your life. What will you say to God? What do you hope God is going to say to you? What is the miracle you are expecting and where is the place where you can share with God is doing in you with someone else?
The darkness is leaving. Day is about to begin again. Salvation is getting closer minute by minute. So what response does that call you to offer God?
[1] Joanna M. Adams, Feasting on the Word: Year A, Volume 1. Page 19
[2] Romans 13:12 NRSV.
[3] Romans 13:12 NRSV.
[4] Matthew 28 NRSV.
[5] Romans 13:12 NRSV.
[6] Romans 13:13 NRSV.
11 Besides this, you know what time it is, how it is now the moment for you to wake from sleep. For salvation is nearer to us now than when we became believers; 12the night is far gone, the day is near. Let us then lay aside the works of darkness and put on the armour of light; 13let us live honourably as in the day, not in revelling and drunkenness, not in debauchery and licentiousness, not in quarrelling and jealousy. 14Instead, put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires.
“From this time forth, we are invited to dream along with God of a new heaven, a new earth, a new way of being human, reshaped into God’s image as we were supposed to be from the beginning.”[1]
One of the cherished parts of each of my days is when I first awaken. I pull on a coat since (winter has arrived) and head outside. My dogs stand at the doorway excited to see what smells await them in the yard- whether deer have walked through the yard, or another animal they would love to befriend, perhaps even a jogger running by. It is still dark out often when this routine takes place- a little darker now than some mornings as winter is upon us. The sun is hardly up, if at all. Can you see it?
I love it as our two little dogs explore their world. As they explore, I find myself looking east. My breath altering the appearance of the world with its grayish-colored cloud rising toward heaven as I slowly continue to wake up.
Living in a manse for as long as we have, I am in the habit of looking at the church each morning to make sure there is no damage to it- no damage I can see. It has happened before while I have served God that an unnamed-someone vandalized the church by setting a small part of it on fire and then putting it out quickly. I have trained myself to be attentive. But today it’s safe. There is stands as it always does.
I stand there and I smile. I do not complain about the cold or the rain because of their inconvenience- that happens later when I walk to work and my pants get a little wet around the cuffs. No, I stand there imagining- maybe dreaming of the new heaven and new earth Paul speaks about when he salvation is upon us. I am just there.
I have woken up. “Night is far gone; the day is near.”[2] In those moments I am living between the two poles we all face, two poles that become more pronounced as advent begins:
What will this day hold me for me and what do I hope it will hold for me?
Paul, as he writes Romans 13, is feeling the same way I do on those mornings looking at the church wondering what the future holds for her. He is filled with emotions, with expectations, about the future of the church in the society in which she was born into.
Beneath Paul’s words we find a message of hope in this passage. As we begin advent, the first candle on our wreath beckons us to find a way to articulate our hope for the future now that salvation is coming close. “The night is far gone; the day is near.”[3] What can we see in the future?
Move 1- hard to muster
So as I begin unpacking this text in my mind I must confess that I feel like a broken record sometimes- saying and thinking the same thing about a scripture text especially when it comes to speaking about hope.
Now is the time the scripture says, now is the moment for salvation to come so close to us, now expectation grow within us as Christmas trees, advent candles, devotionals, and carols become part of our daily lives.
Contextually, we know that the first century church, the church that existed immediately after Jesus’ ascension working under Paul’s teaching, dealt with a tremendous amount of daily suffering. We know, working backwards through history, the Israelites who lived during the work of the prophet’s time, whose words fill out Old Testament with stern warnings against sin and specifically idolatry, also dealt with great amounts of suffering. It often felt like “night” to them. They wondered where is God when we need Him the most. How is salvation close when God seems far off? It often felt like night- dark, alone, cut off, abandoned.
Everyone knew the promises of God to abide forever. They know the promises of God to never leave or forsake as they have heard the words that Jesus says he “will be with them always, even to the end of the age.”[4] I have said this before, we know it to be true, and we can each easily articulate it. Hope can be hard to muster using the biblical context as a foundation.
Moving toward a more current context, what about now, today? Is it possible that living in the suburbs, with warm homes, leftover turkey and stuffing in the refrigerator, safe worship spaces to express ourselves in, in which to gather regularly, and generally good lives, is it possible to find hope hard to muster as the biblical audience did? The words of Paul say that it is.
Like me standing in the yard looking at the morning dawn, the possibility exists that we do not know what is going to happen next. And so we hope for a good day.
Move 2- lay it aside
So if every context that can be placed back upon the text is correct, if the world in which humanity exists is challenged with the metaphor of “night,” and hope can be hard to muster because we cannot directly locate salvation in the dark, which is in the process of drawing close to us, then we do indeed need to lay “aside the works of darkness.”[5] We need to “live honorably as in the day… and put on the Lord Jesus Christ.”[6]
We need to focus not on what divides us but what can link us together for we need each other. Paul’s words call us to greater awareness of how our lives should be changing as we come close to the incarnation of Jesus. How, again going back to my story, the gray cloud which could serve to confuse what I see around me, does not diminish the light of God that is dawning upon us.
Salvation is drawing close for, and to, us. God is drawing closer and closer. The Child grows in His mother’s womb. It is getting close.
How are we able to speak about the dreams we have for what this year will hold for us?
Conclusion
The first Sunday in advent beckons us to dream, to hope, for what is to come. We are thankful for the blessings God has given us. You likely shared some of those blessings around the table on Thursday with each other. Now what is it you are expecting and hoping from God as Advent begins?
This is not a “go out and tell the world how great Jesus is” message. (Jesus is great by the way). No it is an invitation to stand there before God, and wonder, and hope, about what God is going to do in your life. What will you say to God? What do you hope God is going to say to you? What is the miracle you are expecting and where is the place where you can share with God is doing in you with someone else?
The darkness is leaving. Day is about to begin again. Salvation is getting closer minute by minute. So what response does that call you to offer God?
[1] Joanna M. Adams, Feasting on the Word: Year A, Volume 1. Page 19
[2] Romans 13:12 NRSV.
[3] Romans 13:12 NRSV.
[4] Matthew 28 NRSV.
[5] Romans 13:12 NRSV.
[6] Romans 13:13 NRSV.
