Calvary United Methodist Church November 29, 2015 HOPE IS HERE Rev. Dr. S. Ronald Parks Children s Sermon: Luke 18:35-43 It is the joy of the people God to share the kingdom, the power and the glory with every one of every age and station in life. We welcome the children to the front of this worship space to celebrate the gifts of Advent. Hey, good to see everybody! Happy New Year! Actually on the calendar it s about five weeks away, but we celebrate the new year of telling the story of God s love on the first Sunday of Advent, which is the season that we now find ourselves in. And if you look around, there are a lot of things that are different in the sanctuary than they were earlier this week or last Sunday. For example there is this large thing with lights on it back there. What is that? (A Christmas tree!) It s a Christmas tree, exactly right. All the colors in the sanctuary have turned to blue, which is the season of waiting in anticipation for Christmas to come. And the word Advent is something that you don t often use in the English language, but it has a very specific meaning. It comes from another language, the language of Latin, and it means to show up or to arrive. So Advent is literally the season of waiting for us to celebrate God showing up on December 25, which we call
Christmas Day. Of course. That s what we celebrate in terms of God showing up on earth in our lives the first time. And Advent is kind of like a backwards countdown. When you count down you go from like one number that s high to a number that s low, probably zero. And speaking of New Years, one of the most famous countdowns happens on New Year s Eve at midnight in Times Square where they drop the how many of you guys actually stay up to watch that happen on yeah, exactly! That s my suspicion too! We are in the sack at 10:00 on New Year s Eve just because we re up early every day. And this countdown is a countdown of 4, 3, 2, 1 or a count up 1, 2, 3, 4 of the four Sundays leading to the birth of Jesus. And the first candle of Advent is the Candle of Hope because we believe that Jesus is the hope of humanity. So, we are going to light one of the blue candles on that wreath over there. I need a volunteer who enjoys playing with fire. That would be Zach. Alright Zach. And while you do that, we re going to sing the Advent Candle song and I realize it s been a year since you ve sung it so Miss Deb is going to play along so we don t have to sing it acapella and be embarrassed. So, while Zach lights the candle, we all sing: (song)
Now, I bet over the Thanksgiving holiday, if you got together with some relatives, they had one question for you and that is: have you started to make a Christmas list. Am I right? Has anyone asked you if you have things on a Christmas wish list? Anybody? Okay, a couple of you. Apparently the rest of you are just going to buy them whatever they want and they will have to just make do with it, right? So, here s a question for you: What are you hoping for? What gifts do you hope you ll get on Christmas? (I want a teddy for Christmas) You want what for Christmas? A Teddy? How could you refuse this little one? She wants a teddy for Christmas. It s been a while since I had to shop for little kids, for people your age, so I had to get on line and I went to Toys R Us and guess what? They have their Top Ten Toys for 2015 and I wondered if any of these things were on your list. So take a look at the screen. Here they are in no particular order, Toys R Us Top Ten. This one got me right out of the gate. I added this to my list immediately. This is a Nerf gun, a blaster. There is a Barbie Saddle N Ride Horse. You like that? (I want that) You want that? (Yep!) Public service, I m helping them build their lists. There is the R2D2 Robotic Droid. Yeah, anybody buy tickets yet for Star Wars on the 18 th? I know you won t hold your hands up because you are too embarrassed. I tried, but they were all sold out.
Little Live Pets Clever Keet. (I want that too) You want that too? (Yep!) Boy, it s a good thing you showed up today! Fisher-Price Ultra T-Rex. That looks kind of cool. I might want one of them! Fisher-Price Smart what? (I want the other one!) You want what, this one back here? That one? Yeah, that s cool, isn t it? Is that something you could share or do you need two of them? Let s move on! The Fisher-Price Smart Toy Bear. This is computer, somehow it links to your computer and you can download programs to it. The Disney Doc McStuffins Take Care of Me Lambie. (I like that!) You like that? Excellent! This is the Lego Dimensions, it is an interactive thing. There is a Shopkins Fashion Boutique Playset. (I want that!) You want that too?! Oh, my goodness! The Paw Patrol Paw Patroller. This one you like? Alright! Cool! Now, we ve added to your Christmas Wish list, right?
But here s the interesting thing about gifts and Christmas and giving. Not every gift that we hope for comes in a box! And a lot of times, the gifts that we want the most are the ones that we have the most difficulty saying that we want. They are the ones that we kind of take for granted. But when we don t have certain gifts that either God gives to us or that we get from each other, we certainly notice it right away. There s a story that Jesus tells about a man who wanted a very special gift and it was a gift that he had no trouble telling other people that he wanted. And this story comes from Luke 18: A blind man sat on the side of the road. He hoped someone would help him. As Jesus approached, he heard the sound of the crowd of people travelling with Jesus. What s going on? he yelled out. Someone answered, Jesus of Nazareth is coming. The man began shouting, Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me! But those in the crowd told him Shhhhh! Be quiet! Don t bother him! So the blind man yelled even louder, Help me, Jesus! Jesus heard the man and he stopped. What do you want from me? he asked. Now, this is a blind man. What do you think the blind man wanted from Jesus? Go ahead? He said, I want to see! You are exactly right! Look around, Jesus said. Your faith has made your hope a reality. And immediately, the blind man could see. So what was the first thing that the blind man did once he got his sight? He praised God, and he got up from where he was sitting along the side of the road and He followed Jesus. The first thing he did after receiving that gift of sight. The blind man hoped for one gift and but he got two! He got his sight back and that was the thing that he knew that he wanted.
But more than that, getting his sight back gave him the gift of a whole new life. And what did he do? He immediately turned right around and gave it back to God. He followed Jesus. God always gives us more than we hope for. Do you know why? Because God s love is always more than we can imagine. It s bigger, it s broader, it has gifts in it that we never even thought to ask about. But here s a question for you: what do you think is on God s Christmas wish list? For example, if God had to make a list of the things that God wants from you, what do you think would be on it? What is God hoping for from us in the time of Christmas? Well, there are two things and God is very clear about sharing with us what those two things are. It s called the Shema, and it s from the Old Testament. God is hoping that you and I will give the gift of love and there are two ways that that happens. The first is this: to love God with all of our
Heart. Now, you know what typically people think of when they think of the heart they think about the feelings that you have, to love God with all of the energy that we have in our passions and in our emotion. To love God with all of our soul, the part of God that God has placed within us that s yearning to go home, to be with God, to give ourselves over to God. To love God with all of our mind, every thought that we think, every time that we wonder and make decisions about stuff that we always think of the love of God as part of that process. And to love God with all of our strength, everything that we can do with our bodies, even if it s just handing food to people who are our neighbors or packaging food to send some place far away. That s loving God with our strength, with our bodies, with our abilities. That s the first thing: To love God with all our heart, and soul and mind and strength! But the other gift that God s looking for from us: to love our neighbor as we love ourselves, to care for each other and to share God s love with others. God s love gives us the gift of new life because every day, when you wake up, your life is made brand new. God hopes that we give it away to each other by sharing our lives together.
Now, there is a little gift that we are going to give out to kids during Sunday School and it is kind of an Advent activity book. It has in it a picture of the manger, of the stable in Bethlehem. And there is an invitation inside the book as you go through the activities day by day to take a sticker from this page and to place it on this page, which is sort of like what we do with something called An Advent Calendar. And remember that as each day goes by, we re marking down the days of waiting to celebrate God s showing up the very first time on December 25 which is Christmas Day. Thanks for sharing in our time this morning. Message: (Video) Hope is here. That s why I am here. That s why you are here. For you and me, the birth of our Savior is a realization of our deepest hope, that we matter, and that we are loved.
Our faith tells the story of how we have come to the light of hope. Every story is personal and precious because every one of us is priceless. Yet all affirm hope is here. Christmas is hope and the word of God made flesh. As the Body of Christ, Calvary is called to be the Word of God s hope in that flesh, our flesh. The proclamation of hope demands that we join together in a variety of tasks, activities, programs and missions with one goal: to bring people to God and God to our community. Each one of us is gifted to make a contribution to a greater good. Each of us is uniquely talented. All of us are irreplaceable. No one can do everything. Everyone can do something. God has great expectations, great hopes for our congregation and we have high hopes for our work in His name. A few days ago you received an updated version of a document that has been distributed each year for the past decade. This inventory of our interests and gifts is an invitation for you to think about how you are able and willing to share your time and talents. Copies of the inventory can be found in the pew racks in front of you. There are dozens of service opportunities listed. Check those you feel equipped and interested to share in. What is important for our ministry is that you sense God s call to do something that employs your abilities to make the presence of Christ real to others. If you have completed your copy and brought it with you, thank you. If not, I invite you to do so during communion and the reception of our offering. The inventories will then be brought forward during our final hymns and deposited in the basket here in the front of the sanctuary. We represent many diverse gifts and talents, but there is one Spirit that brings them together and makes us the Body of Christ. Hope is here. Thank God! Hope is also the reason that gathers us around the Table of Grace, for we hope in the sharing of the sacrament that God touches us and
moves in a special way in our hearts and lives to bring about the new life that he promises and the gift of joy. Let us turn to the Liturgy for the Administration of Communion in the Season of Advent which is found in your bulletin and read responsively. One: Today is the first day of the Christian year and the first Sunday of Advent. In churches around the world, the story of our salvation begins anew this morning. Over the next four weeks, we will recall the promises that announced the coming of the Messiah. For us, these prophecies are fulfilled in the birth of the Christ child. To mark the time of preparation for his arrival, we light candles to represent hope, peace, love and joy. Each is a different facet of the grace God has revealed to us in the gift of his Son. All: Loving God, as we enter this Advent season, we open all the dark places in our lives and memories to the healing light of Christ. Grant us eyes to see the gifts he brings. Give us hearts in which to prepare a place for him. May the days ahead be a time of fervent anticipation and grateful expectation, that we may continue to walk in the light of Christ. One: The expectation of Advent is before us. For centuries, the faithful both celebrate and anticipate the coming of Christ. Christ came to us; his life poured out in service and sacrifice. Christ is here with us. In ways too numerous to understand, the Risen Lord enters our lives and embraces our troubled world. But we will also remember the words of our Savior: Do not let fear rule your hearts. I am going to my Father s house to prepare a place for you. When all is ready, I will come back to lead you home. Together, we will live in eternal communion. What God has done in Christ is an invitation to new life. What Christ will accomplish in the fullness of time is the source of our hope. All: The good news of Advent is this: Christ has come. Christ is here. Christ will come again. We welcome Christ into our hearts. We follow in his footsteps, guided by his hand and nurtured by the Word. We receive this sacrament as a symbol of our shared hope in what God has planned for his people. One: The transformation of Advent occurs within us. As the King of Kings makes his home in our hearts, we experience peace. When
peace is defined as the absence of fear and conflict, it is elusive, imperfect, and temporary. Like all of our works, the peace we create is flawed. When peace is received in the gift of the Christ child, it is defined by the character and quality of the gracious generosity of God. This form of peace truly passes our understanding. If we allow his peace to reign, it will override the power of pride. If we allow our will to be controlled by it, we become peacemakers; children of our Heavenly Creator. Our voices join those of the angel chorus, proclaiming, Peace on earth. Good will to all! All: God of Creation, we seek the renewal of your Holy Spirit. You are never absent from us. Your presence calms the chaos of our souls. Teach us that perfect peace comes from caring for others as you care for us. Transform our hearts and minds to be one with the Prince of Peace. We receive this sacrament as a sign that we are bound to you and each other by the gift of peace he brings. One: The proclamation of Advent is entrusted to each of us. For behold, I bring you tidings of great joy to be shared with all people. For into every life is born a Savior who is Christ the Lord. We are those who not only hear the Good News; we are the body of Christ. Our words convey the gratitude that comes from humble hearts and thankful souls. The Lord has reached into the darkness of our loneliness and despair & brought us forth into the light of a new day. May the joy we know in Christ carry us through this holy season & the challenges of a new year. ALL: God of Promise and Fulfillment, there is nothing beyond your power and no one outside your grace. You have made us in your image and given us the opportunity to share in the great work of redemption. Fill us with the kind of joy that cannot be contained. Pour us out into the lives of those who are despondent. We receive this sacrament as an expression of the joy you have given to the world in the Word made flesh. One: The affirmation of Advent is revealed in each of us. God s love for his children is so complete and constant that he could not abandon us. At the right time, he stepped from eternity and walked the path of righteousness in the company of the fallen. His name was Emmanuel: God with us. We remember how he invited the despised and the outcast to a banquet of hope. We recall how he ministered to the sick and broken, offering wholeness and healing with
the balm of peace. We bow beneath his cross and rejoice in the majesty of his crown in glory. And of all the gifts and blessings he shares with us, the greatest of these is love. ALL: Lord of Life and Light, everything you ask and expect of us is fulfilled in the relationship of love. With our heart, soul, mind and strength, we give ourselves in loving devotion to you. With passion, courage and vision, we offer ourselves in loving service to one another. We receive this sacrament as an expression of your love for us in union with those who throughout history have heard these words of consecration: One: On the final night of his earthly life, Christ gathered his disciples together in a fellowship of hope, peace, joy and love. At the end of the meal he took bread, blessed and broke it, then passed it to them saying: ALL: Take and eat. This bread is the body of Life, broken by the world. Eat it in remembrance and in hope. One: After that he took the cup, blessed it, and passed it to them saying: ALL: This cup is the sign of the New Covenant. Whenever you share, it remember me. Hold firm to this promise and hope: I will share this feast of love with you again when all things are fulfilled at the banquet of the Kingdom. One: Remembering the birth of the child in the stable, we remember also his life, his sacrifice and his resurrection. ALL: We remember how he poured his love out for each of us. May this time called Advent be a season in which he comes anew into every life. Amen. The table of Grace in the heritage of the United Methodist Church is an open table. All those who love the Lord and desire to share in this sacrament are welcome to come forward. We would invite you, at the ushers discretion, to enter toward the center of the sanctuary and to come forward. There are four stations of communion, one for each section. There are also individual servings here on these tables if you prefer to receive communion that way. The kneeling rails are also placed in the front of the sanctuary if you desire to remain for a time of meditation. There will be hymns on the screens behind me. You are invited to sing along or to take this time to complete the Interest Inventory in preparation for returning it during the final hymns of our wor-
ship service this morning. God has blessed us and brought us together. We come as people of hope. Let us joyously receive what the Lord intends for us. Benediction: The light that we have that burns in our hearts is the Light of Hope and Hope is already here. Let the light shine as we depart from this place into a world that at times is hopeless, we have the answer. Thanks be to God. Amen.