Loving God, you continue to come to us whether in joy or sorrow, darkness or light.  Grant us an awareness of your presence with us no matter where we are on the journey, and fill us with your Spirit; through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.

            Since the beginning of Advent, we have covered a lot of ground in our readings each Sunday.  Two weeks ago, the prophet Jeremiah was in prison in Jerusalem while the city was under siege by the Babylonian army.  Then, last week, the Babylonians had captured Jerusalem and had carried off most of the population to Babylon.  Last week we heard the prophet Isaiah’s words of comfort for those who were in exile and longed to go home.

         This week, we are hearing every refugee’s dream.  A new king takes over (because Persia has now defeated the Babylonians), and tells the Jewish exiles that they can go home.  They can go home, they can rebuild the Temple in Jerusalem, and they will be assisted by their Babylonian and Persian neighbours.  It almost sounds too good to be true!  Yet, it turns out that they will need as much help as they can get.

         When the exiles return to Jerusalem, what they find is a pile of rubble.  Many of their houses must have been uninhabitable.  Those who had been farmers most likely found fields full of weeds.  It’s not as though they went back and immediately started rebuilding the Temple.  First, they had to rebuild their lives and their community.  And, as many of you already know, rebuilding is never easy.

         Rebuilding dredges up a whole host of emotions.  There is sorrow over what has been lost.  There might be some excitement over the possibilities for the future.  There is likely frustration over how long it seems to take.  There are set-backs along the way that make it seem as though it will never be finished.  There is maybe some longing for what was – for the new is never quite as good as the old.

         And so, when the people of Judah gather together and lay the foundation for a new Temple, it seems entirely understandable that some of them are shouting for joy and some of them are weeping and wailing, and you can’t even tell the sound of the one from the other.  In fact, in some ways it is similar to people’s reactions when they realize that Christmas is coming.

         Some – who have perhaps seen many Christmases – are sorrowful over what has been lost.  Some are remembering the loved ones who are no longer with them.  Some are rebuilding their lives and their families after separation or divorce.  Some have experienced a loss of income and maybe can’t afford to do what they have in the past.  Some are perhaps far away from family and friends and find it to be a lonely time of year.

         At the same time, some who are younger are excited about what they might find under the tree on Christmas morning.  Some might be looking forward to seeing relatives and friends that they haven’t seen in a while.  Some just love Christmas carols and are happy to be able to sing them or to attend Christmas concerts.  And some just love the beauty of the season – the coloured lights, the decorations, the trees, and the gently falling snow.

         Ultimately, however, the things that bring us sorrow and joy, and even some of the things that stress us out at this time of year – they are all things that we have added to the reason for the season.  Before the birth of Jesus, nobody was “getting ready for Christmas” in any of the ways that we think about that phrase now.  Mary and Joseph were perhaps getting ready to have a baby, but that’s about it.  Otherwise, there were just a whole lot of people who had been longing for years for a Messiah – a Saviour – to come.

         Incidentally, Cyrus – who was king of Persia and gave the edict to rebuild the Temple in Jerusalem – is the only Gentile in the Scriptures who is referred to as God’s messiah (Is. 45:1).  The word “messiah” means “anointed one”, and in Cyrus’ case, he was not the Messiah, but he was a messiah – one who had been anointed by God to set the people free.  However, God had even bigger plans in mind when it comes to the long-awaited Messiah.

         He would save not only Israel, but all people.  He would save people, not just from an occupying foreign power, but from the power of sin and death.  He would not only be a descendant of David, but would be God-with-us (Immanuel).  He would not go after power and riches like earthly rulers, but would humble himself, living among the poor and the forgotten and the helpless.  He would bring, not just freedom from captivity, but forgiveness and eternal life.

         It would still be several hundred years from the rebuilding of the Temple until the birth of Jesus.  However, today we get a glimpse of the future in our reading from Luke.  Lurking in the background as Simeon comes to the now rebuilt Temple is this verse from Malachi: “the Lord whom you seek will suddenly come to his temple” (3:1).  In Simeon’s case, the Lord appears in the Temple in the baby Jesus, who is brought there by his parents.  This is indeed good news, not just for Simeon, but for all those who will encounter Jesus for many years to come.

         And so, whether you are experiencing joy, or sorrow, or both, take heart, for God is with us.  When you are trying to rebuild and are running into setbacks along the way, take heart – for God is with us.  And, in the midst of a dark and often stressful time of year, take heart – for God is with us through Jesus Christ, who continues to be the light in the darkness, and new life in the midst of death.  Thanks be to God!  Amen.

Advent 3 (NL 2)                                Ezra 1:1-4; 3:1-4, 10-13

December 15, 2019                        Luke 2:25-32

St. Luke’s Zion Lutheran Church

Pastor Lynne Hutchison

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