Introduction
It is December 05. Only 20 more days before Christmas. I want to know what you are doing to get ready for Christmas this year.
I think we all know what our secular friends and neighbors do to get ready for Christmas. And, if we are honest, we do many of the same things. Let me list some of the things:
-shopping for presents
-put up the Christmas tree and lights
-Christmas parade
-church school programs
-shopping for presents
-family get-togethers
-office or factory party
-spouse's office or factory party
-shopping for presents
-school programs
-exchanging names
-a big meal
-shopping for presents
-lots of beer, wine, whiskey
-caroling
-choir cantatas
-shopping for presents
For a lot of people, Christmas is too busy, too expensive, too much food, too much cholesterol, too much booze, too little sleep, too little exercise.
The risk is this: Too early we put up the trees and decorations. Too quickly we sing the carols. Too easily we give over the holidays to a fat man in a red suit. We may not miss the parties and the gifts and the "Ho, Ho, Ho." But we may miss the Child Who quietly and without fanfare appears in a manger. We may talk of peace on earth but may miss Him Who brings peace on earth and goodwill to all men.
Our text this morning – the words of the angel to Zechariah – talk about John the Baptist. John's mission, says the angel, is "to make ready a people prepared for the Lord." His mission, in other words, is to make people ready for Christ's first coming at Christmas and His second coming at the end of time.
The angel hits the nail right on the head. To get ready for Christmas we must get ready for the Lord. When it comes to getting ready for Christmas, even God's people fall into the trap of thinking first of presents, parties, family get-togethers, lights, trees, and Santa. The great Dutch painter, Rembrandt, had the right idea.
In his portrayal of the nativity scene, Rembrandt focused attention entirely on the Babe in the manger. He did this by painting a shaft of light so that it falls exclusively on the Christ-child. Although he included other figures, they are shrouded in shadows. Rembrandt wanted nothing to detract from the significance of that baby -- who was God in the flesh. He wanted Christ to be the sole object of adoration.
I Going Before the Lord
A Our Scripture passage introduces Zechariah and his wife, Elizabeth, to us. The bible tells us that "Both of them were upright in the sight of God, observing all the Lord's commandments and regulations blamelessly" (vs 6).
This elderly couple had two dreams or wishes in life. Their first wish was that they could witness the coming of the Messiah. As God-fearing Jews Zechariah and Elizabeth prayed for this every single day.
The Messiah. The Christ. Every Jewish child of God was waiting for His appearance. For centuries they dreamed and spoke with longing of His coming. The Messiah – a great warrior king Who would slay the enemies of God and His people. The Messiah – the suffering servant Who would die for the sins of the people. The Messiah – the Mighty God, the Son of God, God with us. That was their first great wish.
Their second great wish was for a child, a son, of their own. You see, over the life of this elderly couple there hung a great sorrow: they were childless. To be childless in Israel was a great disgrace (cf Lk 1:25). In spite of their obvious and sincere piety, many of their neighbors undoubtedly saw their childlessness as a sign of God's punishment (cf Lev 20:20f; 2 Sam 6:23; Jer 22:30, 36:30). And, to have children was a sign of God's blessing (cf Gen 1:28; Ps 127; Ps 128). Zechariah and Elizabeth had, however, given up all hope of this blessing. After all, Elizabeth was barren and they were both well along in years (vs 7).
B One day, an angel of the Lord appeared to Zechariah and said to him,
(Lk 1:13) "Do not be afraid, Zechariah; your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you are to give him the name John."
"Your prayer has been heard." What prayer is that? Zechariah was in the holy place of the temple burning incense to God on the golden altar. The offering of incense was symbolic of the prayers of God's people. When the signal was given, the chosen priest would offer the incense. As soon as the people saw the ascending smoke they would fall down before the Lord and spread out their hands in silent prayer. For several minutes there would follow a dead silence in the temple sanctuary and in the surrounding temple-building and courts. Can there be any doubt what a devout priest of God, like Zechariah, would pray for at such a moment? He would pray for the coming of the Messiah and the era of salvation. But he would also be praying for his wife and her barren condition.
"Your prayer has been heard." In other words, the Messiah is coming. "Your prayer has been heard." In other words, "your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son." No wonder Zechariah was disbelieving and incredulous: the two greatest dreams of his life were about to be fulfilled.
C There is, of course, a connection between the two events, between the appearance of the Messiah and the birth of a son. The angel says about Zechariah's son, "he will go on before the Lord."
The angel is speaking here of a forerunner. In the Ancient World, a forerunner was sent before a king to announce the king's coming so that people and towns could get ready. Among military forces, the term refers to that part of the army that rushes ahead to prepare for the arrival of the main force. Zechariah's son, John, was to be a forerunner for the Messiah. "He will go on before the Lord." He will tell people to get ready because the Messiah is coming.
This fulfills what various of the Old Testament prophets spoke of:
(Lk 3:4) As is written in the book of the words of Isaiah the prophet: "A voice of one calling in the desert, 'Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him.'" (cf Is 40:3)
(Mal 3:1) "See, I will send my messenger, who will prepare the way before me. Then suddenly the Lord you are seeking will come to his temple; the messenger of the covenant, whom you desire, will come," says the LORD Almighty.
According to God's eternal plan of salvation, the Messiah does not appear until His coming is first announced by a forerunner. Zechariah's son will be that forerunner.
II In the Spirit and Power of Elijah
A John the Baptist, as forerunner, is to go on before the Lord, "in the spirit and power of Elijah." The prophet Malachi had spoken about this:
(Mal 4:5-6) "See, I will send you the prophet Elijah before that great and dreadful day of the LORD comes. (6) He will turn the hearts of the fathers to their children, and the hearts of the children to their fathers ..."
Elijah. With Moses, Elijah was one of the two greatest figures of the Old Testament. In the Old Testament dispensation no one had such power at his disposal as Elijah; the forces of God's Kingdom were bound to and with Elijah for a time. That's why Elijah could pronounce judgment on sinners whether they be king or subject, rich or poor. That's why at Elijah's word there was neither dew nor rain for 3½ years. That's why the drought ended at Elijah's word after the 3½ years. That's why Elijah could call down fire from the Lord on Mount Carmel. That's why Elijah could appear unafraid before the king who had been looking all over the world for him. That's why he could later call down fire from heaven to strike down those soldiers who came to arrest him. Strengthened in the power of the Lord, Elijah was a fearless prophet of old.
B John the Baptist will go on before the Lord, "in the spirit and power of Elijah."
Everything about John recalled the prophet Elijah: his clothing, his food, his home in the wilderness, and his message. The only difference is that John would be even greater than Elijah. Said Jesus:
(Lk 7:28) I tell you, among those born of women there is no one greater than John ...
John is so great because "he will be filled with the Holy Spirit even from birth" (Lk 1:17). During Old Testament times the Holy Spirit descended upon people temporarily and equipped them for some task or another, and then departed. John, however, will be permanently and continuously filled with the Spirit from the very beginning of his life. It is clear that John was chosen by God; and, even before he was born, the hand of God was on him to prepare him for his work.
When we spend a few moments examining John's ministry and life, we see a man who proclaimed God's Word with the boldness of an Elijah. It becomes clear that John was no respecter of persons or offices. To the crowds coming out to be baptized by him, John said,
(Lk 3:7) "You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath?"
This is hardly designed to win friends among the people. He did not hesitate to set armed soldiers straight:
(Lk 3:14) "Don't extort money and don't accuse people falsely--be content with your pay."
John even rebuked King Herod because of his incestuous relationship with his brother's wife and all the other evil he had done (Lk 3:19). To all who would listen, John preached "a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins" (Lk 2:3). "Repent," he said, "for the kingdom of heaven is near" (Mt 3:2).
John's message sounds a little harsh in this season of goodwill. The sermons of John the Baptist don't make good Christmas cards. But this is all part and parcel of John's calling to "go on before the Lord, in the spirit and power of Elijah."
III To Make Ready a People
A John is a forerunner. He goes on before the Lord, in the spirit and power of Elijah, "to make ready a people prepared for the Lord." John's job is to make people ready for Christmas.
"A people prepared for the Lord." A people ready for Christmas. What are they like? What is meant by this? The angel tells us:
" ... to turn the hearts of the fathers to their children ..."
If we take the angel's message literally, a people prepared for the Lord and ready for Christmas are a people reconciled to each other: fathers to their sons, husbands to their wives, brothers and sisters to each other. A people prepared for the Lord and ready for Christmas, then, are a people who have learned to live in peace and righteousness with each other. They are a people who do not fight and quarrel. They are a people who don't gossip about each other and run each other down. They are a people who have learned to forgive and be forgiven. A beautiful example of this was seen in the events following the tragic shooting at Columbine. At that time anger often was met with love. Callers swamped Denver radio talk shows. Some callers called for the punishment of the parents of Dylan Klebold and Eric Harris – the two boys at Columbine High School in Littleton, Colorado who gunned down and killed 14 people and injured 19 others before killing themselves. Those callers who insisted that the parents be punished were followed by others who pleaded that these parents also be prayed for and forgiven – after all, they also lost children in the horrible tragedy. Or, consider this:
Topic: Forgiveness
Subtopic: Examples of Human
Index: 1316
Date: 3/1991.27
Title:
Ara Tchividjian lived as an Armenian boy in Turkey during the Armenian genocide. He saw the Turks kill his grandfather and many of his neighbors. Ara and his mother escaped and eventually ended up in Switzerland.
Ara Tchividjian's oldest son is Stephan, and when Stephan was old enough to understand, his father gave him a gun and said, "Son, if you ever meet those who killed your grandfather, you will kill them. If you do not kill them, you are no longer my son."
Some years later Ara Tchividjian became a Christian. On the day he encountered the love of Christ, he went to Stephan and asked for the gun. He told his son, "If I ever meet those who killed your grandfather, I will throw my arms around them and tell them that I love them."
B "A people prepared for the Lord." A people ready for Christmas. What are they like? The angel tells us:
(Lk 1:16-17) Many of the people of Israel will he bring back to the Lord their God. (17) And he will ... turn the hearts of ... the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous.
John, through the power of the Holy Spirit, will lead many in Israel to turn from sin and to God. He will lead many to repent.
Thomas Cranmer was the archbishop of Canterbury from 1532 until 1556. During his tenure he strongly promoted the translation and spread of the English Bible. When he offended Queen Mary I, she had him tried as a heretic, excommunicated, and burned at the stake. During torture Cranmer denied his convictions, but when tied to the stake at Oxford he strongly disavowed his earlier action. So deep was Cranmer's regret at having signed the retraction that he promised that the hand which had signed the document would be the first to burn.
The brave archbishop kept his promise, holding his right hand steadfastly in the flames.
A people prepared for the Lord and ready for Christmas are a people who repent of their sins and turn to God.
C Back to the question I started this sermon with: how do you get ready for Christmas? To get truly ready for Christmas, we must be a people prepared for the Lord. But are we? If we are, then we have learned to live in peace and righteousness with each other. Is there someone you are in conflict with? Someone you have had a fight with? Someone you have unresolved differences with? To get ready for Christmas you have to straighten out that relationship.
To get truly ready for Christmas, we must be a people prepared for the Lord. But are we? If we are, then we have turned from sin and to God. Is there some sin in your life you have not repented of? Is there something you struggle with every day and it keeps coming back? To get ready for Christmas you have to confess that sin, repent of it, and strive to never do it again.
Conclusion
Today is not only the second Sunday of Advent, it is also Preparatory for the Lord's Supper. So we not only have to ask if we are ready for Christmas, but also if we are prepared for the Lord's Supper.
A people truly ready for Christmas, congregation, are also a people properly prepared for the Lord's Supper. We are to be a people who live in peace and righteousness with each other. And, we are to be a people who have turned from sin and to God.