I preached this sermon on the fourth Sunday of Advent. I enjoyed preaching it. If I have ever preached the Isaiah text, I do not remember. It was fun to dig into the Isaiah text a bit. it might have been fun to push harder on the idea of Ahaz not being willing to ask God for a sign.
“Ornaments: the Special Ones” SAPC, December 22, 2019, Isaiah 7: 10-16
Again the Lord spoke to Ahaz, saying, 11 Ask a sign of the Lord your God; let it be deep as Sheol or high as heaven. 12 But Ahaz said, I will not ask, and I will not put the Lord to the test. 13 Then Isaiah[d] said: “Hear then, O house of David! Is it too little for you to weary mortals, that you weary my God also? 14 Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Look, the young woman[e] is with child and shall bear a son, and shall name him Immanuel.[f] 15 He shall eat curds and honey by the time he knows how to refuse the evil and choose the good. 16 For before the child knows how to refuse the evil and choose the good, the land before whose two kings you are in dread will be deserted.
Introduction: Ornaments tell our stories. Some of the stories are love stories.
Maybe you have ornaments that reveal some of your love stories.
A child’s photo in the ornament.
Or, an ornament marking your first year as a married couple.
Or an ornament from a special friend.
On my mom’s tree having from the angel at the top of the tree is one of those ornaments with my brother’s photo. it is one of those ornaments that reveals the love of a parent and a child. Why it hangs from the angel is another story that I better not tell since my mom is listening and my she probably does not want me to tell.
Move 1: God insists on giving the gift of love to us.
a. Back up for a second and remember that King Ahaz is the King of Judah, who is caught in the power struggle between Syria and Assyria.
a. From King Ahaz’ view, all he can see is the world’s powers pressing in on Judah.
1. he knows he cannot overpower them.
2. He recognizes that Judah and his reign are threatened.
3. He is a man who looks to the world, and all he sees is trouble.
b. The prophet Isaiah comes to him in the midst of the problem with a word from the Lord - ask for a sign.
1. In other words, turn to God.
2. King Ahaz declines - “I will not put the Lord to the test.”
3. Before we applaud him for not trying to test God, we hear Isaiah’s critique and wonder:
Does Ahaz not care what God might do
or does Ahaz does not think God
or does Ahaz not think God can do anything that might help
or maybe Ahaz will not ask God for a sign because the sign from God might not be what he wants.
Somehow, King Ahaz, the king of God’s people, the one who ought to be in right relationship with God, is not willing to turn to God.
Maybe we recognize Ahaz in ourselves?
b. But even Ahaz’ refusal to ask for a sign will not stop God from giving a sign.
1. God insists on sending a sign.
2. Even if Ahaz will not ask, God is going to send a sign, a child, one named Immanuel.
3. Immanuel, which means God with us.
4. Immanuel, the name given to the Christ-child.
c. For whatever reason, King Ahaz does not think it is time to ask for a sign from God.
1. But God chooses to send a sign anyway by coming to be with us.
2. Immanuel arrives.
Move 2: God with us means God cannot stop loving us.
a. the term “God with us,” has taken on different meanings through the years.
1. In the 17th century, during the bloody Thirty Years war fought in Europe “God with us,” or “Gott Mitt Unz” was a password used by the Swedish army under Gustavus Adolphus.
2. In the 18th century, the phrase “God with us” was inscribed on the coat of arms of king Frederick I, the powerful Prussian king.
3. In WWI, the phrase was inscribed on the helmets of German soldiers.
4. In WWII, it was inscribed on the belt buckles of the German soldiers and became a symbolic phrase of Nazism.
5. “God with us” describing the worldly power and might that tried to overcome others.
6. “God with us” taking on the meaning we give it from our worldview where power is most important (see Barbara Lundblad Union Theological Seminary New York, NY; http://www.workingpreacher.org/preaching.aspx?commentary_id=1942 for more thoughts on this; also, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gott_mit_uns)
7. King Ahaz would have understood that kind of sign, one that was about power and might.
b. But God lives out Immanuel in a very different way - by coming as a child to join with us in the vulnerability of our humanity.
1. Immanuel, who will grow up to teach and preach love, not worldly power.
2. A baby who cannot overcome the power of the world with might, but a baby who can bring love into the world.
3. Surely King Ahaz would have been disappointed that God’s sign was a baby.
4. What better symbol of God’s love than a baby?
5 What begins with a baby in Bethlehem continues to a cross in Calvary then to the resurrected Christ who sends the disciples into the world to teach and preach his message of love.
3. God insists on loving the world.
b. Michael Brown suggests that Advent asks the question: “What does it mean that Jesus comes as Word made flesh?” (Journal for Preachers, Advent, 2019; “advent and the power of Positive Faith,” Michael Brown, 17-18).
1. The answer is not found in riches, or power, or control.
2. In fact, the answer is not found in the pageantry or cantatas or celebrations.
3. The answer is found in the infant cradled in mary’s arms, Immanuel who announces for all to hear:
God loves you;
God desires to be with us;
God comes to love a broken world and make it whole.
Conclusion: I heard a story recently about a young boy at a Christmas party that had one of those white elephant gift exchanges. You know the kind when you choose the gift you want, but then it can get taken from you by a person choosing after you.
Most of the gifts were toys a boy would like. the young boy, in fact, had already opened a fun toy, but then it was stolen from him. When he chose again, he ended up with a picture frame ornament. As you might imagine, no one who chose after him took the picture frame from him. He was stuck with it.
The adults supervising the party were worried about him. they did not want his party experience ruined by this odd gift for an 8 yr old boy. So, they offered to let him choose something else instead of the picture frame ornament.
He said no, he would keep the picture frame ornament.
they insisted he could choose another gift that would be more fun.
Finally, he told them, “I am going to put my picture in the frame and give it to my grandmother as a Christmas gift. She’ll love it.” And, he did.
And she did. HIs picture frame ornament hangs from the Christmas tree every year.
Imagine how great it must be to know without a doubt that someone loves you.
Imagine the God who comes as Immanuel and know without a doubt the God who loves you.
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