Empty Saviors and the True Savior

Here's an excerpt from my sermon this past Sunday, the first Sunday of Advent.

Jeremiah 33:14-16

Jeremiah gives Israel a glimpse of the hope
that awaits them. The hope that could possibly come at any moment. The promise of a descendant from David’s lineage who would rescue them, who would save them, who would be their messiah. The problem was that many of the Israelites interpreted God sending the messiah as something that would be political-that the messiah would be a great conqueror and military leader. They longed to be released from the clutches of Rome who occupied the Mediterranean world and the Ancient Near East.

They anticipated the arrival of the Messiah
they way I anticipate getting that 1st slice of warm pound cake my wife bakes when I’m good. They had listened to the prophets for so long that they waited and rehearsed every year the coming of the promised one. The coming of the one who will do what is just and right and who will save them. You see everything that had happened before and it would all happen again…
…God had acted for Israel before…and he would act for them again.
…God had rescued his people before…and he would save them again.
History would repeat itself. Israel’s story, God’s story would repeat itself. But in the mean time they took matters into their own hands and put their hope and trust in empty saviors!

How often do we do that? How often do we
pin our hope to job security, financial security, education, wealth, status, relationships. We’ve all done it before and we will probably all do it again but what God wants is for us to turn to him and look to him alone as our savior, specifically the baby born so many years ago in a lowly manger filled with smelly animals, crude conditions and rude sounds. Because after all what happened that night had happened before and would happen again, a baby(wrinkled, red, crying) makes it’s way into the world, nothing new or special, nothing different than how other babies come into the world. And yet it was completely different than any other birth, for that little baby boy was “Light of Light, very God of very God; begotten, not made, being of one substance with the Father” as the Nicene Creed states. Finally the promise of the prophets has been fulfilled.

We don’t have an empty savior, a political
messiah, an empty promise of redemption, a story that has no plot and no meaning. Paul writes in Colossians 1:19-20. We have a savior and a story that we need to tell people about this Christmas! The cross is our hope, it is what the prophets looked forward to-because it is the cross that God used to reconcile the world to himself, to bring hope, peace, and love. The same is true when we take the Lord’s Supper or Communion. We find in the elements of juice and bread symbols that point us to the body and blood of our Lord the way Christmas trees point us to presents, lights, and decorations. In gathering for Communion we join our lives together, we join our hearts and minds together, we acknowledge that we not only need God but we need each other to make it each day, to live out our faith so that we too can point others to the Messiah. So that we can find our place in the story of Life, the only story truly worth repeating.

Communion is a leveling act for the body of
Christ. We all come as broken sinners to the table to find healing, wholeness, peace, and of course grace. Communion is not about a bunch of hocus pocus or about something magical it is a symbol that points us to the grand story of redemption of renewal. As we receive the cup and the bread this morning may we be ever mindful of the baby whose body was broken for you and for me, the baby whom we are preparing to celebrate his arrival. Just like the Advent season and all the rituals and traditions that we do in our families and will continue to do we gather this morning in the name of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit to experience something that we have all experienced before and we will all experience again. May we be forever changed this morning.

The Sacred Meal by Nora Gallagher

This brief look into the practice of communion is insightful and helpful for anyone wanting to better understand the “practice” of communion. Nora Gallagher explores communion in light of her own story, her own journey as part of The Ancient Practices Series published by Thomas Nelson. One will not find a detailed history or theology of communion but rather a modern understanding of how such an important Christian practice impacts our daily lives. Gallagher is an Episcopalian, so she writes out of her own context of experience communion (and helping to serve communion as Lay Minister). Her gift for words is evident as she blows the dust off of the church-worn words of this ancient discipline and breathes new life into this means of grace for Christians the world over.

I especially found it to be enriching as I read it during the week of Thanksgiving and as I was preparing to celebrate communion with my own church on the first Sunday of Advent. While I disagree with some of Gallagher’s musings that are too far to the left for my own theology, many in mainline or liturgical churches will find this book extremely valuable for re-imagining the role that communion, the Eucharist, or the Lord’s Supper plays in the life of Christians.

For more information about the book or to order a copy www.brb.thomasnelson.com/

First Communion

I preached and led in communion for the first time in a full church service this Sunday. I have served communion to students many, many times, as well as in the contemporary service at FBC. I have even helped deacons distribute the elements in church services and at nursing homes, but Sunday was historic for me. As I prepared what to say, I continually thought about the first time Martin Luther celebrated Mass as an ordained priest. According to the story, Luther was so nervous that he trembled so much the wine in the goblet spilled out all over the floor. Thankfully we don't use goblets and that didn't happen Sunday. It was a wonderful time for me, to get to gather around the Lord's Table to celebrate together. As I was preparing last week, I reread Henri Nouwen's book Can You Drink The Cup?. It is a wonderful book that asks the question that Jesus posed to James and John when they wanted to know if they could sit at Jesus' right hand. In his characteristic style Nouwen weaves the gospel with life to make one see with fresh eyes the way of the Savior. This quote stuck out in my mind, "We need to remind each other that the cup of joy, that precisely what causes us sadness can become the fertile ground for gladness." So often we forget this truth, but the cross is a living reminder of the source of our sadness, the death of our Lord and Savior becoming the source of gladness as we experience new life and walk with him daily. Perhaps as you approach Holy Week you can be encouraged that the difficulty you are going through will eventually turn to praise to God.