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O Adonai — “O Lord”
The Fourth Sunday Of Advent
We beseech thee, Almighty God, to purify our consciences by thy daily visitation, that when thy Son Jesus Christ cometh he may find in us a mansion prepared for himself; through the same Jesus Christ our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
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The Fourth Sunday Of Advent
O Adonai -- “O Lord”
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A Sermon by
Fr. Mead
✛
A Fight and a Death
Grace be unto you and peace, from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
The Nine Lessons and Carols for Christmas is understandably one of the most beloved services of the year. The glorious themes of Christ’s Birth are treated in the texts, winged by the haunting phrases of the music. However, let me point out that the altar is still vested in the purple of Advent, the season of preparation for Christmas. It is a little like the purple of Lent, the season of preparation for Easter.
Purple indicates not only preparation, but also the work that goes with it. This means to prepare not only by getting presents for one another and by decorating our homes and so forth; it means to prepare inwardly, spiritually, for the coming of Christ – that is, the coming of Christ into our lives.
Here are two stories of Advent possibilities. One cries for the coming of Christ as the gift of the Truth. The other yearns for his coming as the gift of Life.
1) Somewhere, right now, there is a fight in a community – it could be a college or school, a social club, a business corporation, or a church. A faction seeks to oust a leader. They adamantly want him to go; they lack adequate grounds. The vast majority supports the leader; they think the adversaries, if they feel as they do, should bring their issues out into the open where everyone can see and judge. Realizing that their complaints will not stand in the light of day, uses daggers in the dark; secret meetings, whispering campaigns, various maneuverings: the old dismal story of internecine warfare as conducted in such communities. The leader and the majority suffer and persevere, hoping that sooner or later the light will disinfect the distortions that grow in the dark; and that time will heal or banish the ill will. The situation is ripe: “Cast away the works of darkness, O ye children of the day!” Jesus said to his enemies, “You shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free,” adding, “So if the Son makes you free, you will be free indeed.” (Jn 8:31ff)
2) Recently I spoke with a new widow. As I wished her a blessed Christmas, I realized this was her first Christmas without her beloved; and so I added, “particularly.” Her voice registered grief and gratitude together in response. Jesus said, “The hour is coming, and now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God: and they that hear shall live.” (Jn 5:25) He meant “the dead” not only in the bodily sense, but in other ways in which it is possible to be dead. One can have a physical exam and get a clean bill of health and yet in the soul and spirit be quite sick unto death. The widow will soon face other anniversaries to remind her of her loss, but the voice of the Son of God can keep her and her departed husband in life. If she will, Christ will make his comforting Advent to her. “Do not marvel at this,” said Christ, “for the hour is coming when all who are in tombs will hear [my] voice and come forth… He who hears my word and believes him who sent me, has eternal life; he does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life.” (Jn 5:28-29; 24)
I have been a priest now for forty years. Our Lord said we shouldn’t marvel, but I do. The power of God in action and the ongoing wonder of Jesus still amaze me. I have seen it repeatedly, yet I still marvel at how Christ’s truth humbles pride, quenches anger, cleanses hearts, enlightens minds and brings peace. I still marvel at how the Word of God brings new life, gives faith and courage, revives energy and bestows hope, even in the valley of the shadow of death – the death that parts us from those we love and which will come to each of us. I marvel every Christmas, because Jesus of Nazareth, whose birth we celebrate, is none other than the risen Christ, our Lord and Savior, the living God. Prepare ye the way of the Lord. Even so, Come Lord Jesus. Amen.
Our King and Savior draweth nigh. O come, let us adore him.
