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They
paraded into the hospital early Friday. It was a little after 6 a.m.
Three children, all pre-school age, and three adults. It became clear
to me rather early on that the little boy in his daddy’s arms was to
have some kind of surgery. His mama was by his side. Trailing
somewhat behind was a woman accompanied by the other children, two
little girls. The girls and the woman stared at the newly displayed
Christmas decorations, while the parents registered the boy for his
surgery, then followed the nurse through the secured doors. That’s
when all the trouble started. One of the little girls noticed the
parents and the boy going through the doors and she began to run after
them. “Papa,” she cried. The woman grabbed the child assuring her
that daddy would be back, but the little girl just sank to the floor
and cried.
I looked at her and saw the biggest tears flowing down her tiny
cheeks. This was a little girl with big troubles as she wondered
where her family had gone and, “How much longer,” before they come
back?
There are some questions that we seem to never grow out of. “How much
longer?” is one of those questions. I am guessing that this was one
of the questions of Zechariah, the priest. We find him offering
incense in the Temple, about fifteen months before the first
Christmas. To the right of the altar, an angel had appeared. Not
just any angel, but one of the chief angels, the angel Gabriel. That
is when all the trouble started. We find his story in Luke 1:12-21.
Hear now the word of the Lord:
12When Zechariah saw him, he was terrified; and fear
overwhelmed him. 13But the angel said to him, “Do not be
afraid, Zechariah, for your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth
will bear you a son, and you will name him John. 14You will
have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth, 15for
he will be great in the sight of the Lord. He must never drink wine or
strong drink; even before his birth he will be filled with the Holy
Spirit. 16He will turn many of the people of Israel to the
Lord their God. 17With the spirit and power of Elijah he
will go before him, to turn the hearts of parents to their children,
and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous, to make ready a
people prepared for the Lord.” 18Zechariah said to the
angel, “How will I know that this is so? For I am an old man, and my
wife is getting on in years.” 19The angel replied, “I am
Gabriel. I stand in the presence of God, and I have been sent to speak
to you and to bring you this good news. 20But now, because
you did not believe my words, which will be fulfilled in their time,
you will become mute, unable to speak, until the day these things
occur.” 21Meanwhile the people were waiting for Zechariah,
and wondered at his delay in the sanctuary.
The Word of God for
the people of God. Thanks be to God. In this passage Luke
reported to his readers the trouble experienced by an old man trying
to absorb a new thought. Trouble comes in many forms and seeks the
answer to one question, How much longer?
The Concerned ask, “How much longer?”
To say Zechariah
was concerned is an understatement. Luke said he was terrified,
overwhelmed with fear. E. Earle Ellis sheds some light on this in
describing the scene in his commentary on Luke:
To be the offering
priest was an honor which some priests never received and none were
permitted more than once. As the sacrificed animal burned outside,
the offering priest poured incense over a live coal on the altar
within the Holy Place. As the smoke arose, he prayed some set prayer
for the blessing, peace, and messianic redemption of Israel:
Appoint peace,
goodness, and blessing
Grace, mercy,
and compassion
For us and for
all Israel, thy people…
Blessed be thou,
Jehovah,
Who
blesses thy people Israel with peace.
There the elderly priest was, offering up the prayer that he had
memorized in his youth, back when he wondered how much longer it would
be before he had the chance to offer the incense. Now the time had
come and as the prayer came to an end, the angel stood beside him –
surprise!
The angel came with a Christmas present, tranquility for the troubled,
but the recipient was a bit concerned – startled by his visitor. The
angel tried to calm down the concerned priest, reminding him that he
had just prayed for peace, tranquility, and the angel was sent to
announce that very thing. Perhaps Zechariah had been saying this
prayer for so long, that he forgot what the words meant.
Kirsten Tesh in her Advent Devotional warns us not to say, “Merry
Christmas” without meaning. It can happen. We can find ourselves
saying the Lord’s Prayer or taking communion so frequently that we
forget how these connect us to Christ and we miss out on the gift that
God has for us – tranquility for the troubled.
Trouble comes in
many forms and seeks the answer to one question, How much
longer?
The conflicted ask, “How much longer?”
The angel Gabriel mentioned the joy that John, whose name means,
the Lord is gracious, would bring. “He will turn many of the
people of Israel to the Lord their God. With the spirit and power of
Elijah he will go before him, to turn the hearts of parents to their
children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous, to make
ready a people prepared for the Lord.” This was a force of
tranquility that would address the needs of those too long in
conflict.
This promise
reminds meof the scene in the movie, “Home Alone.” Old Man
Marley is sitting in the church early on Christmas Eve, watching his
granddaughter rehearse with the choir for the evening service. Kevin
is the little boy who had wound up home alone that Christmas, but we
discover that Old Man Marley had been home alone for many
Christmases. He confessed to Kevin in that church that he was there
to listen to his granddaughter rehearse, because he would not be
welcomed at the service when his son was there. Years ago he and his
son had gotten into a big argument and spoke harshly to one another.
“I lost my temper and said I didn’t want to see him anymore,” Mr.
Marley said. They kept to their words and the conflict remained for
all these years. Kevin encouraged the man to call his son and
reconcile. “Give it a shot for your granddaughter anyway. I’m sure
she misses you.” The movie ends with the little boy looking
outside his window. He sees Mr. Marley next door embracing his son
and lifting his granddaughter up in his arms. It is a picture of
tranquility for the troubled.
Many people still
find themselves in the midst of conflict. Old words still stinging,
old wounds still hurting, old divisions still maintained. How much
longer?
Trouble comes in
many forms and seeks the answer to one question, How much
longer?
The Confused ask, “How much longer?”
Zechariah was
confused to say the least. His prayer for a child must have been
prayed years ago, and the prayer that he had just prayed for peace had
been offered day and night for centuries in that Temple. How can it
be that these prayers were to be answered through a new son to an old
couple? The angel shows his appreciation for irony when he responds
that he is one of the chief angels who stands in the presence of God
and was sent to speak these things to the surprised priest. The
priest would get the sign for which he asked, he would not be able to
speak until these things happened.
Meanwhile the
people were outside wondering, “How much longer?”
God’s plan can be
confusing. Tony Snow, the former White House Press Secretary,
recently gave his testimony in a Christianity Today article. Snow had
battled cancer in 2005 and in March of this year discovered that it
had returned. He wrote, “Through such trials, God bids us to
choose: Do we believe, or do we not? Will we be bold enough to love,
daring enough to serve, humble enough to submit, and strong enough to
acknowledge our limitations? Can we surrender our concern in things
that don’t matter so that we might devote our remaining days to things
that do?” Snow does not believe for a second that God gave him
this dreadful disease, but he does believe that God can work through
him in the midst of it. In fact, he is bold enough to believe that
God can use this very confusing time in his life to bless others.
Like Zechariah we might ask, “How can this be?” and we hear Tony Snow
say, “Through such trials, God bids us to choose: Do we believe, or
do we not?”
I wasn’t able to
stay in the waiting room long enough to see if the little girl’s daddy
ever came back, but I’m sure he did. The little girl seemed assured
of this future as she dried her eyes, sipped her juice, and held the
hand of her caregiver. I have not yet seen Emmanuel, God with us,
return as promised, but I’m sure he will. His people seem assured of
this future as we dry our eyes, take the bread and juice, and hold
hands with each other. The very promise brings Tranquility for the
Troubled. Amen.
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