A while back, the Bible Study group read the entire book of Jeremiah. In looking through my files, it took us 3 months to make our way through the teachings of the prophet. It was a long, hard struggle. Part of what makes that text so difficult is that the first half of the book is a lesson on why Israel fell captive to Babylon. And so for 25 chapters, you read about how God will destroy the world, the covenant with the Israelites, and the aftermath of destruction. The outlook is bleak. All hope seems lost. The relationship with God is broken. And that is the context in which the reading for this morning is set. By the time you get to chapter 33, the book has transitioned. No longer are there curses against the people and destruction, but from chapters 26 to 52, it is a lesson about how to survive. There is a shift from a theme of desolation to one of hope. And there is an anticipation of change…that God will re-establish the covenant and that the Divine promises will be fulfilled. As Jeremiah tells us, “Judah will be saved and Jerusalem will live in safety”.
It’s worth considering this text from Jeremiah alongside the Gospel reading (Luke 21:25-36). Here Jesus is talking to his disciples about the coming of the kingdom of God. If you look back over the last several weeks, he’s been talking about this anticipated change. He’s told the disciples that the Temple would be destroyed, he’s warned of wars and feminine and persecutions…all very bleak. And yet, in this Gospel lesson, we get another turning point…another shift in theme from desolation to hope. Jesus says when you see all these things happening, “stand up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near”. In other words, don’t be scared…be hopeful.
These two lessons remind us what Advent is all about. It isn’t just the last few weeks to bide our time before Christmas, it’s a time for us to reflect on hope. It’s a time for us to prepare for a turning point, a transition, and a change. It’s a time for us to stand up and raise our heads and be on guard for the coming of the kingdom of God.
It is easy to get stuck in the desolation and destruction that surrounds us; all we have to do is turn on the TV, open a newspaper or check the internet. What we so often find is a bleak outlook that could be considered a modern version of Jeremiah’s first 25 chapters. But what helps us to move through these moments and times of crisis is the hope of new life and the anticipation of change. And so this morning, I want to share with you a poem titled “The Litany of Hope and Promise” by the Rev. Gord Waldie (http://worshipofferings.blogspot.com/2009/12/litany-of-hope-and-promise.html).
God, there is so much worry and anxiety around the world.
Things seem so unsettled and unstable.
And yet the story of faith reminds us to hope for the future.
Help us to see the possibilities that always come with birth,
help us to be people of hope,
help us live out Your hope and justice.
Teach us to sing your praise, O God.
Teach us to sing with notes formed by hopes and acts of justice.
Teach us to sing with harmonies shaped by mercy’s wide embrace.
May all the earth join the chorus and dance to your beating heart.
God, through wise ones of old you show us a vision of what could be.
Through mystics and prophets of today you challenge our vision of the present.
Remind us of that vision of peace and justice.
Empower us to live as if we believed it was really possible.
Teach us to sing your praise, O God.
Teach us to sing with notes formed by hopes and acts of justice.
Teach us to sing with harmonies shaped by mercy’s wide embrace.
May all the earth join the chorus and dance to your beating heart.
God today there are many who wonder where their next meal will come from,
today there are many who look for work and income,
today there are many who look for meaning in the face of life's disappointments.
Soon we will sing of a child that is born.
Soon we will here tidings of great joy that shall be for all people.
As we tell the story and celebrate the birth, push us look into the face of the newborn,
and see there a world of possibility.
If indeed the birth of any child is Your message of hope for the future,
may we see that hope this Christmas.
Teach us to sing your praise, O God.
Teach us to sing with notes formed by hopes and acts of justice.
Teach us to sing with harmonies shaped by mercy’s wide embrace.
May all the earth join the chorus and dance to your beating heart.
God, centuries later we hear again the promise of Dame Julian that
All will be well, all will be well, all manner of things be well.
And part of us finds it to be unbelievable that such a promise could be true.
When our despair grows and the shadow threatens to overcome the light,
remind us that we are people of hope.
When we are tempted to find relief from the present in trying to recreate the past,
call us to be people of the future.
When life's music has faded, or become a funeral dirge,
Teach us to sing your praise, O God.
Teach us to sing with notes formed by hopes and acts of justice.
Teach us to sing with harmonies shaped by mercy’s wide embrace.
May all the earth join the chorus and dance to your beating heart.