“Like anybody, I would like to live a long life. Longevity has its place. But I'm not concerned about that now. I just want to do God's will. And He's allowed me to go up to the mountain. And I've looked over. And I've seen the Promised Land. I may not get there with you. But I want you to know tonight, that we, as a people, will get to the promised land! And so I'm happy, tonight. I'm not worried about anything. I'm not fearing any man! Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord!” (Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. - 3 April 1968, Memphis, Tennessee)

Isaiah 9:1-4
Isaiah 9:1-4 is a timely text for a day that remembers the light that dawned in this country when the voice of a twentieth century prophet, Martin Luther King Jr., cried out to lift the yoke of burden from the shoulder of African Americans and break the rod of oppression that kept them enslaved to systems that denied them basic civil rights. I hope that no matter where we stand on the political spectrum we can agree that denying people equal access to seats on a bus or at a lunch counter or the right to vote or what school one can attend based on the color of one’s skin violates the very principles upon which this country was founded. And therefore no matter what we think of Dr. King I hope we can acknowledge he was a man of great courage and conviction whose commitment to justice changed our country for the better. But of course that’s not what Isaiah had in mind when he penned this prophecy as the “he” who brought the land of Zebulun and Naphtali into contempt was the same “he” who would later make glorious their way to the sea. What seems ironic to me, in light of my introductory remarks, is why these two tribes were brought into contempt in the first place. When the tribes of Zebulun and Naphtali were given the prettiest land in Palestine they didn't obey God’s command and kill the resident Canaanites but lived among them, which meant at some point a Zebulun Romeo fell in love with a Canaanite Juliet and that was not kosher. Of course that’s not the reason the Assyrians brought anguish to these two lands, that happens much later, but it would seem that the very thing that Dr. King preached about having “been to the mountaintop” is at odds with God’s demand for racial purity in the conquest of the original Promised Land. But then the prophet who penned the prophecy could not fully foresee the future that was being promised. The great light that would shine over deep darkness did not come from Jerusalem but from the land corrupted by Romeo and Juliet’s romance. The “he” that would make glorious the way of the sea would lift the yoke of burden and break the rod of the oppressor not by ethnic cleansing but by bearing the anguish of the cross on his shoulders and banishing the deep darkness of death with the light of resurrection dawn. So maybe it is a timely text for a twentieth century prophet who knew himself to be a sinner but by the grace of God a saint as well, a man who like most prophetic voices resisted the call at first but once claimed by the vision did not withdraw even when he knew it would lead to his death. 

Epiphany 2 A - John 1:29-42

John 1:29-42

When Jesus asks John’s disciples “What are you looking for?” they answered by asking Jesus “where are you staying?” It doesn't make a lot of sense unless it was the only way they could avoid admitting they didn't really know what they were looking for. But Jesus knows exactly what they are looking for and where they will find it. “Come and see” invites them into a relationship that will change their lives forever. And it all happened around four in the afternoon. Imagine that. Lifelong Lutherans generally don’t identify a day when they were “saved” let alone a specific hour in the afternoon. Not that we don’t experience moments of spiritual renewal or refreshment. But to be baptized into faith before we could walk let alone “come and see” means we grow into our faith as a gift that is familiar and yet always new. We are continually invited into a life of “come and see” and like Andrew share with others the truth we have come to know. “We have found the Messiah.” Although if Andrew were a Lutheran he would have told his brother, “The Messiah found us.” Which truthfully is what happened that day around four in the afternoon.

Epiphany 2 A - 1 Corinthians 1:1-9

1 Corinthians 1:1-9

The opening verses to the Corinthian correspondence follow the Pauline pattern of over the top thanks for the faithful (the Galatian letter being the exception) before getting down to the heart of the matter. “I hear there are quarrels among you…” (1:11) While Paul might not have always “given thanks” for his brothers and sisters in Corinth he did have affection for them and hoped that they might live more fully into the gifts God had given them. To our great benefit his struggle with those puffed up with pride produced “Love is patient and kind…” which is as good a prose as has ever been penned. The foundation upon which 1 Corinthians 13 “love is” depends is the faithfulness of God who called the Corinthians into fellowship (1:9) and enriched them with gifts so that they might be a blessing to each other and subsequently the world. We might lament of all the ways in which the church has not lived out the grace of its calling but I think a better approach is to marvel at the ways the church works despite its being led by and inhabited by less than perfect humans. So we should not be surprised that the Corinthians coveted the gifts without giving credit to the giver. Or that the Galatians gave up the radical freedom of the Gospel for the familiar security of the law. We should be surprised that despite our failings we will be blameless on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ, which might mean we try harder in the here and now to live into our inheritance.  

Epiphany 2 A - Psalm 40:1-11

Psalm 40:1-11

Waiting for the Lord is only remembered as a “waiting patiently” process when feet are finally planted firmly and the new song is sung. When one is stuck in the miry bog or languishing in the desolate pit the only song you sing is a lament and the prayers that are cried ask for an answer yesterday. Not that we are unable to wait with faith and trust and hope; it’s just that “I waited patiently for the Lord” might make waiting patiently seem to be the only faithful response to being stuck. So while those who are on the other side of being stuck are right to proclaim the glad news of deliverance with songs of praise it would be more helpful to those who still languish in bogs of depression and doubt if our songs of saving help were sung in harmony with the laments they still sing. I’m not saying that we can’t count on God’s deliverance but I’ve come to believe if you can’t get there with me or I can’t get there with you God’s faithfulness means we are given to each other so that the place of desolation, or for that matter the place of deliverance, is not so lonely. 

Epiphany 2 A - Isaiah 49:1-7

Isaiah 49:1-7

“You are my servant” is a dialogue between the “Holy One” and the “polished arrow” who wonders aloud if it was all for nothing. “I have labored in vain…” The one hidden away in the quiver is only as good as the One who draws the bow which is why the arrow expresses confidence in the archer. “My cause is with the Lord…” Even so the plan for vindication before kneeling kings and prostrated princes would not be without pain. God does not work outside the boundaries of our human experience and chooses to use what is weak to shame the strong and what is foolish to confound the wise. (1 Corinthians 1:27) That is not to say God’s way of working does not have real life human consequences and for no fault of their own the lives of the “deeply despised” lit up the night skies of Auschwitz; but then that is why God was nailed to wood and died screaming like a wounded animal. You want pretty? Go somewhere else. God does not offer solutions to human savagery that deny human free will to act in ways that are less than human. In the end humans are responsible for what happens in this world. Salvation is revealed when you and I recognize it is not too light a thing for us to be servants who make a choice for a different world. It might mean crucifixion. No. It will certainly mean crucifixion. But then in the dialogue between what is and what will be crucifixion always anticipates resurrection. “Is it too light a thing that you should be my servant…” 

The Baptism of Our Lord Year A - Matthew 3:13-17

Matthew 3:13-17

Matthew’s version of Jesus’ baptism has more dialogue than Mark or Luke but all three end in the same way. God declares Jesus the beloved Son with something like a dove coming out of heaven to “alight” on him after which Jesus is driven (Mark) or led (Matthew, Luke) into the wilderness to be tested, tried and/or tempted for forty days. The point is not to be missed. Jesus baptism is followed by forty days of fasting followed by three temptations that target the very words that sustained Jesus through the forty days. “You are my beloved Son.” Our baptisms are intended to give us the same confidence so that like Jesus being tempted after suffering solitary silence in the wilderness we might declare, “I am baptized!” as a statement of defiance against all that would make us believe we are less than loved. It doesn't mean all will go well with us in our everyday but rather that we might claim the promise of the future; “Do not fear. I have called you by name. You are mine.” (Isaiah 43:1) in the present. “In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33) The promise of God that operates outside of human institutions allows those of us who were baptized before our ability to remember to none-the-less name the day we were saved as the moment when the Spirit of God alighted upon us and declared us beloved. But that is only because In the end “I am baptized” is not about our decision but rather God’s declaration, “You are my beloved.” 

The Baptism of Our Lord Year A - Acts 10:34-43

Acts 10:34-43

“I truly understand that God shows no partiality…” I don’t think we can fully comprehend the magnitude of this statement. Everything Peter had been taught about God would have led him to believe the opposite. God is very particular and shows partiality to one nation as a treasured possession out of all the nations of the world. “I will be your God and you will be my people.” (Exodus 6:7) You don’t get any more partial than that. And more to the point Peter heard Jesus say he came only for the lost sheep of the house of Israel, (Matthew 15:24). But all that changes when Peter dreaming on the roof of his house is instructed to eat things formerly forbidden. His dream translates to a Spirit led field trip to the house of a Roman centurion named Cornelius where the Spirit falls upon the Gentiles in the same way it fell upon the disciples on the day of Pentecost. And so Peter, who no doubt was pleased to be the one to whom God was partial, (You are the Rock upon whom I will build my church – Matthew 16:18) enters the house of Cornelius and eats and drinks with “goyim” and that is certainly not kosher. I wonder what sacred cows we would give up if like Peter we came to a new understanding and the God we thought we knew by living inside our religious box told us to eat and drink with those who color outside the lines because God is not as partial as we are. It might not be pretty but I think it might just be the picture God intended to paint.

The Baptism of Our Lord Year A - Psalm 29

Psalm 29

Psalm 29 has ten verses of environmental mayhem leading to an eleventh verse that blesses people with peace. It might not be such a positive image in light of the large scale disasters of 2013. Typhoon Haiyan (Philippines) and Phailin (India), hurricanes Manuel and Ingrid (Mexico), earthquakes in the Philippines, China and the Solomon Islands, tornadoes in Texas and Oklahoma City. Some estimate over 20,000 lives loved were lost in these events alone. Ascribing glory to God through the image of what we see as natural disasters (so called acts of God) may make poetic sense but theologically might cause us to question how the whisper of peace can proceed from a voice that breaks the cedars and makes the solid ground skip like a calf. But if the peace that blesses God’s people is the recognition that “God is bigger than the boogie man” (Veggie Tales) than the peace that stills the storms of 2013, and every year for that matter, is that God is the eye in the center of every storm, which I’m told is a place of calm, or in other words, peace.

Baptism of Our Lord Year A - Isaiah 42:1-9

Isaiah 42:1-9

This is the Word for all who languish in solitary prisons real or imagined, who faint from sorrow and suffering, whose light in life flickers and grows dim. This is also the Word that comes as a light to expose the thoughts and ways and deeds that conspire to blind people to the truth and shroud the world in darkness. This Word is as gentle as a whisper, as soft as a mother’s caress, as persistent as a deep desire and as compelling as a well told tale. It stirs hearts and animates lives to action as it fills imaginations with hopes and dreams of all that is good and right and beautiful and true. But it is a Word that has to be heard to be believed which means we have to be stilled to hear it and humbled to accept it. The trouble is we tend to buy into the lottery ticket life where all that glitters really is gold and our luck is about to change even if the ship we were counting on to come in just sank in the harbor. But what if we were to give up on the world’s way of winning and live more fully into the light of the life that God desires. If the Word does not break our bruised reed we should not be so ready to break bones with sticks and stones. If the Word does not quench our dimly burning wick we should not be so quick to extinguish the flickering faith of others. If the Word does not shout in the streets we might accomplish more by speaking our conviction with gentleness and respect. (1 Peter 3:15) If the Word is persistent and does not grow faint then we should not be crushed by disappointment or detours. In the end God will make all things new and the brightest and best dreams will come true so we, like the Word, speak of the new things that will spring forth and declare with confident hope what will be before it is.

Christmas 2 A - John 1:1-18

John 1:1-18

This is John’s Christmas story, minus the manger, Mary and Joseph, angels singing, shepherds adoring, magi gifting or even the baby Jesus for that matter. You can tell from the very first verse that John’s Jesus is painted with bigger brushstrokes than the Jesus in Matthew, Mark & Luke. It’s called a “Christology from above” which means a word about Jesus that is focused more on his divinity than his humanity. (Calvary member Dr. Bob Machos calls it the magic Jesus.) That’s true throughout John, even at the end when he lays his life down and picks it up again with no help from anyone, thank you very much. In some ways this picture of Jesus as the “In the Beginning Forever Word” is far removed from the Christ whose cry of dereliction from the cross is proof the divine has fully entered the human condition and therefore is more than able to sympathize with our weakness. (Hebrews 4:15) John’s Jesus is always one step ahead of the opposition and clearly in control except for one brief moment midway through the Gospel when his friend Lazarus dies. Then the true light that banishes darkness, the Word made flesh full of grace and truth and the unchanging glory of the great I AM steps out from behind the smoke and mirrors and in two words the “In the Beginning Forever Word” becomes very human. “Jesus wept.” It might be that this is Jesus at his most divine as well, at least I like to think so. Now that would be magic.

Christmas 2 A - Ephesians 1:3-14

Ephesians 1:3-14

If we were to embody the over-the-top “praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ” language of these passages we would be different people. By that I mean we would be more generous, more forgiving, more loving, more Christ-like to ourselves and as a result to others. Truth is all of our less than loving behavior towards others comes from a less than loving acceptance of ourselves. Our inability to love who we are comes from the belief that we are less than worthy of being loved or on the flip side a belief that we are more than worthy of being loved, which in a strange way is really the same thing. I know I’m oversimplifying things but I don’t think I’m breaking new ground in the thought that those who know and believe and accept that they are loved “lavishly” (1:8) period-end-of-sentence love in the same way. But then we know too much about ourselves, even if we are well schooled in the discipline of denial, to believe a perfect Being could tolerate “sinners” such as ourselves. But what if we were to accept that the God who exists beyond time and space is not that different from the very best parent among us who is inextricably connected to the child of their desire and could no more condemn them to hell on earth or beyond than we could and grieves every moment of separation? And more than that, that God, who in good pleasure loves lavishly, depends on the effects of such radical acceptance to transform self-centered individuals into those who live for the praise of God’s glory. Of course that’s the kind of love that got Christ crucified but then maybe lavish love takes crucifixion as a given.  

Christmas 2 A - Psalm 147:12-20

Psalm 147:12-20
I don’t mean to dispute the accuracy of the scriptures but according to Israel-travel-trips.com “the weather in most of Israel is not extreme by any standard, so that the Israeli winter is at best what New Yorkers would call autumn. That means temperatures between 41° and 65° in Tel Aviv. However, Jerusalem can get as low as 34° at night. Brrrrrr! Who can withstand such an icy blast? Of course winter like autumn may be due to global warming and 3000 years ago Jerusalem was a ski resort. Or maybe snow like wool happened so rarely that the people of Jerusalem were like Texans who having never lived through a real winter that lasts from November to April think of snow as a novelty. (Unless it stays around for more than a day, of course) It does seem an odd reference for a warm climate unless we put it in the context of verses two and three; “The Lord builds up Jerusalem and gathers the exiles of Israel. He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds.” It can get very cold in Babylon and a tiny nation held captive might doubt their favored nation status. But if God controls the weather, even in Babylon, hurling hail like pebbles and stirring up breezes to make waters flow then they are not a small people to be pitied but God’s own people who alone are the keepers of God’s statutes and judgments. It is true for us as well who experience times of doubt, when brokenhearted we are held captive by circumstance and wonder when we will experience peace within our personal borders or be satisfied again with the finest of wheat. The word of encouragement to the exiles returned is a word of encouragement for us to whom the word of God has been revealed, not in an icy blast but in an infant’s cry, not in hail hurled like pebbles but in the child grown to be the Christ crucified and risen.

Christmas 2 A - Jeremiah 31:7-14

Jeremiah 31:7-14

Jeremiah’s “great company” returning from captivity in the north includes the blind and the lame, those with child and those in labor, hardly the kind of folks generally included in a great company. But that is the way of the Lord that is often missed, even by God’s own people. The One whose ways are not our ways and thoughts not our thoughts has an affinity for those cast aside, those who receive no recognition or awards, who are wholly dependent on hoping in the Lord. So God will rescue the remnant from those too strong for them, turning mourning into joy, sorrow into gladness; comfort of the Lord for a people long oppressed. The young and old will make merry, the priests will get fat and the people will be satisfied. But more that, in the remnant returned the Lord who scattered Israel, because they refused to walk straight paths, is also restored for God suffered the separation as much as those who languished in exile. It takes two to tango even if God takes the lead. 

Christmas 1 A - Matthew 2:13-23

Matthew 2:13-23

The nativity according to Matthew has none of the “we wish you a merry Christmas” charm of Luke’s version. Joseph is visited by the angel even though the Virgin Mary still does all the labor. There are no shepherds, angel choirs or a no-room-in-the-inn manger Silent Night “cattle are lowing the baby awakes.” Matthew did give us the star and the magi but the story of the princes coming to visit the peasant just sets up Bethlehem for Rachel’s inconsolable weeping. By that I mean without the Magi’s visit Herod would have been ignorant of the baby born to be King of the Jews and the Bethlehem babies of the future King would have been spared the consequence of his premature enthronement. Of course in the world that Jesus comes to serve and save the slaughter of a few innocents in a small village hardly registers on the atrocity scale. The chorus of loud lamentation began when Eve found Abel’s bloodied body and has continued unabated to this day. There is no “good news” in this story and no amount of exegetical gymnastics will get us there. Rachel cannot be consoled. But the good news that comes later in the Gospel is that the baby Jesus grown to be a man will not escape the fate of his counterparts born in Bethlehem. He dies for them and for Rachel and for the soldiers who following orders did the deed and I would suggest even for the psychopath Herod. Jesus dies because the world God imagined in the beginning became so familiar with atrocity it could only be saved by something it could not ultimately destroy. So God in Jesus as the innocent victim met hatred and violence face to face and for a day or two let it do what Herod hoped to accomplish but on the third day broke the chains of death so that Rachel’s weeping might become a song of exaltation. (Psalm 118) The good news is that Jesus escapes King Herod as a baby in Bethlehem so he can die as a man in Jerusalem which means you and I and everyone else can live to serve a different sort of King.

Christmas 1 A - Hebrews 2:10-18

Hebrews 2:10-18

During the summer of 1975 I was the wrangler at Camp Lone Star, LaGrange, Texas. Before the summer was over I had wrecked the rear end of my ‘68’ Chevelle racing a ‘69’ Mustang down a dirt road, chipped a bone in my elbow coming off a green broke colt (suddenly and involuntarily), broke my hand in another horse related incident and was bitten by a Coral snake. (I tried to pick it up because no one told me “red and black venom lack; red and yellow kill a fellow.) Strange as it may seem I still consider it the best summer of my life; maybe because I was a kid from Chicago playing cowboy in Texas and at 19 one does not live in slavery to the fear of death. (Hebrews 2:15) On the other hand (the one not broken) psychologist Ernest Becker’s “The Denial of Death” (Pulitzer prize for general non-fiction in 1974) would make the case that my reckless behavior during the summer of 1975 was a denial of the very real fear finite beings feel whether they acknowledge it or not. The church has been the place where the fearful faithful gather to be confident that death is but the gateway to eternal life and as long as one has a reserved seat by virtue of a personal relationship with Jesus there is no need to be afraid. But we miss the truth of the incarnation when we cast Jesus’ life and death and resurrection as a religious Ponzi scheme where only those who buy into the system are given a get out of (eternal) jail free card. If God in Jesus becomes like us in every way then God must also identify with those who are less than faithful and live out their fear of death in ways that are destructive to themselves and ultimately others. That is not to say bad behavior is excused. But having lived our life and died our death surely God must understand we were set up from birth into a closed system to live in denial of the thing we fear most because we cannot avoid it or in the end escape it. The hope of the scripture that proclaims a merciful God is that God became as we are so that we might become as God is. (St. Augustine) To that point the church is set free from the fear of death when the faithful fearful are as willing to enter into the suffering of others as Jesus was and like Jesus are not ashamed to call all members of the human family sisters and brothers. 

Christmas 1 A - Psalm 148

Psalm 148

This is an “all God’s creatures got a place in the choir” praise the Lord psalm, though I’d rather not be included in the choir when sea monsters get to exalting the name of the Lord. But then Psalm 148 doesn't discriminate. Young and old, women and men, fire and frost, creeping things and flying birds, wild animals and domestic livestock, kings of the earth and peasants (you get the idea) are all commanded to exalt the name of the Lord who created sun and moon, stars and heavens, etc. etc. etc. But one wonders why the whole world should join the chorus if the horn raised up is only for the people who are close to the Lord. Is everyone else supposed to praise Israel’s God from a distance? This is the part of “Praise the Lord” that the psalmist didn’t see coming. Simeon saw it when Joseph and Mary brought the horn “raised up” to the temple on the eighth day for the rite of purification. “Let your servant depart in peace for my eyes have seen your salvation… a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and the glory of your people Israel.” Apparently God does not discriminate either but in preparing for something beyond the psalmist’s imagination intended the horn raised up for Israel to be raised up for those outside Israel as well. It meant the end of things Israel thought essential to praising God; circumcision and keeping kosher to name but two. So what might that mean for us who also believe God has raised up a horn, formerly for Israel, but now claimed exclusively by we who are close to God by virtue of a personal relationship with Jesus Christ? If God determined the law of circumcision and keeping kosher unnecessary for a right relationship what else might be on the table? Well if the psalmist couldn't see it coming neither will we. That’s the nature of God whose ways are not our ways and whose thoughts are not our thoughts who cannot be contained by the universe but is born in a stable. Maybe that’s why the psalm commands everything that is to praise the Lord. Surprise! Merry Christmas.

Christmas 1 A - Isaiah 63:7-9

Isaiah 63:7-9
The amazing thing is that this less than noteworthy nation on the world’s stage, even during its forty year golden age, in what is hardly a garden spot on the planet, recounted God’s favor for them in times of captivity and national calamity and unfulfilled promises. The ransomed of the Lord may have returned to Zion with singing but the everlasting joy was only one verse and a chorus. Things are not going so well. The hard work of restoring national identity in a conquered land and rebuilding a city and temple in ruins all in the context of a less than warm welcome by those who had been left behind by the Babylonians is hardly a list of the Lord’s gracious deeds and praiseworthy acts. But then Isaiah doesn’t think in terms of rewards but rather the riches of a relationship with the Savior who is present with them in all their distress. Not a messenger. Not an angel. The presence of God saved them and lifted them up and carried them home. That is why the most gracious act of God is remaining present with children who, truth to be told, have a habit of dealing falsely with God, no matter what Isaiah says. God’s love and pity redeems them because these people, of all the people on the planet, are God’s own people. In the same way God continues to be present with us, in a restored relationship through the Christ, despite our less than honest ways. In light of that we too can recount the gracious deeds of God in times of personal captivity and calamity and the “not yet” nature of future promises unfulfilled. 

Advent 4 A - Romans 1:1-7

Romans 1:1-7

The letter to the Romans begins with a seven verse sentence all of which serves as preface to “grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.” It could be that Paul, like this blogger, likes run on sentences because periods just waste time. Or it could be that grace to you and peace is easier said than done and needs a seven verse sentence to remind the Romans that while they are not nearly as conflicted as the Corinthians there are some hard feelings between Jewish and Gentile Christians residing in Rome. The promise beforehand through the prophets in the Holy Scriptures about the Son descended from David (think Jew) is also declared the Son of God with power according to the spirit of holiness for the obedience of faith among the Gentiles, so that both Jew and Gentile might be called “God’s beloved in Rome.” I think there a lot of things the church can get wrong and still claim the cross of Christ but living together in grace and peace as God’s beloved is not one of them. The inclusion of Gentiles into what was a Jewish religion goes beyond any of the denominational divisions that define the church today and we would do well to note that those outside the church see our inability to live together in grace and peace as proof the Gospel is not worth the paper it’s printed on. “Christian unity is not an ideal which we must realize; it is rather a reality created by God in Christ in which we may participate” or so said Dietrich Bonhoeffer. Does that mean the divisions that define us are not essential and we should all join hands and sing Kum by Yah? Well, why not? Amen. Come, Lord Jesus. Or in other words, Kum by Yah. 

Advent 4 A - Psalm 80:1-7, 17-19

Psalm 80:1-7, 17-19

Psalm 80 is a lament for the Northern Kingdom of Israel that in 722 BCE was conquered by the Assyrians. It started as a family feud between Judah and Israel but after Israel allied with Aram and threatened Jerusalem King Ahaz of Judah sold his soul to Tiglath-Pileser of Assyria and Israel was history. Of course the psalmist thinks God had something to do with it but the truth is this story is repeated throughout the history of the human race. The pride of kings inevitably leads to the bread of tears for common folk. It’s the poets and the prophets who give voice to the people’s pain pleading “Restore us, O God” and promising “then we will never turn back from you.” Sad to say Israel never does come back and Judah will eventually meet the same fate at the hands of the Babylonians. Not a very happy psalm but then laments are meant to name the pain and not shy away from the reality of suffering albeit from the perspective of faith that holds onto the hope that the God who is angry with the people’s prayers will hear their plea none-the-less and regard their plight with pity. That is how not so happy songs can still be hopeful for laments give voice to faith in the face of sorrow and suffering, so that when scorned and derided by circumstances beyond our control, fed on a diet tears, we pray none-the-less “Restore us, O God!” Amen. Come, Lord Jesus.

Advent 4 A - Isaiah 7:10-17

Isaiah 7:10-17

Ahaz is weary of prophets getting in the way of politics and so even the offer of a sign as high as the heavens and as deep as Sheol can’t get him to swallow his pride and ask the God of Israel for help. God wearied by Ahaz’s feigned piety offers a sign anyway, a sign that Matthew will apply to Jesus though Isaiah was most likely speaking of Hezekiah, neither of which are named Immanuel, by the way, but then that is the way of prophecies. They point to a truth larger than the literal one and the same word that finds fulfillment in Hezekiah and in Jesus finds fulfillment in our everyday. Immanuel, God with us is the point of the promise. God with us when we go our own way, choosing the evil and refusing the good. God with us when we feed ourselves with false promises and illusory hopes. God with us for the day when we tire of wearying God and turn again to the promise as high as the heavens and as deep as Sheol. God with us when we recognize that the hope of God with us is that we would choose to be with God. Amen. Come, Lord Jesus.