A few weeks ago, I was talking to Kirsten and Sarah, who were waiting for a camera battery to recharge as they recorded our children's Christmas pageant. The conversation turned to the upcoming sermon about things we learn about our faith journeys in the darkness of the night. I mentioned the text was the conversation between Mary and the angel Gabriel. Sarah, an actor, screenwriter, and producer, who also does improv theater immediately began a monologue of Gabriel's side of the conversation. I said, "write that down, and we'll use it in the sermon." So she did, and we did. The sermon began and ended with Gabriel's voice from the balcony sharing the conversation found in the sermon. The good news - her comments opened up the imagination of the listeners and were a lot of fun. The challenge - I tried to tie in some of my other thoughts for the sermon. The title "Driving at Night" would have been different, if I had not published it before Sarah's creative spark. The sermon was fun to do, but the body of the sermon did not quite match Gabriel's conversation.
“Advent Journeys: Driving at Night” SAPC, Denton; December 5, 2021; Advent, 2021 series; Luke 1: 11-20; 16-38
Luke 1: 26 In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth, 27 to a virgin engaged to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. 28 And he came to her and said, “Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you.”[b] 29 But she was much perplexed by his words and pondered what sort of greeting this might be. 30 The angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. 31 And now, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you will name him Jesus. 32 He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his ancestor David. 33 He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.” 34 Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I am a virgin?”[c] 35 The angel said to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born[d] will be holy; he will be called Son of God. 36 And now, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son; and this is the sixth month for her who was said to be barren. 37 For nothing will be impossible with God.” 38 Then Mary said, “Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word.” Then the angel departed from her.
Sarah Adams in the balcony: Gabriel Visits Mary
“Hey. Hey. Hey. Mary. You up? Pssssttttttttttt Mary. PSSSSTTTTTT MARRRRYYYYYY. MARY!
Oh good - you’re up. Hey. Yes, I know it’s 2am - why? (pause) No, you’re not seeing things. *to self* why do people always think they are seeing things when an angel of the Lord talks to them?
No no no, don’t rollover. I have something to tell you. Look - I know it’s … odd to get a visit from an angel in the middle of the night - not to mention on a weekday - but I have news for you, girl. Like, big news. Like, the biggest of the big news. Like world-changing news - like the biggest - yes I’m getting to it.
Geez! Ok. *deep breath* You’re going to have a baby. Oh, no, no no, not ‘someday’ - like 9ish months from now, give or take. Yes. I know. “
how is this possible, you’re a virgin’ - simply a technicality. Calm down Mary - *then quickly* Ok ‘calm down’ was a poor choice of words. I apologize for that. Listen. I don’t know how you’re feeling - and I won’t try to pretend. I do know this must be a lot - like, a lot a lot - for a human to comprehend.
You’re newly engaged and now you’re going to have a baby, call him Jesus, he will be the Son of God, change the world forever and literally save humanity … I can only imagine what thoughts are swirling around in your mind. “Why me?” “Why now”
“Will this hurt?” Want my advice? *beat* well I’m going to give it to you anyway. This isn’t just some on a whim idea. This has been a big plan of God’s for quite some time. Look, when I tell you God’s mentioned this plan in the break room once, God has mentioned it a thousand times.
Introduction: The angel Gabriel talking to Mary in the night.
The text does not tell us that Gabriel visited Mary at night;
and we know for a fact Gabriel did not visit Zechariah at night;
but it makes sense that Mary’s encounter with Gabriel took place in the darkness of night, when dreams and voices from God may come together.
Insights from the night.
We continue our journey to Bethlehem, focusing on things we see, or people we see, or insights we make on our journey to meet the Christ-child.
this morning, we reflect on what we discover on our journey in the night - in our dreams, imagination, in the voice of God that comes to us in the darkness.
Move 1: Insights from the darkness of night.
a. When I was a kid, we used to travel from Denton to Virginia by bus. taking the bus from Dallas to Washington, DC.
1. I suppose now I would ’t think it was very cool, but as a kid, it was lots of fun.
2. People to meet.
3. Bus stations to visit all across the country.
4. two days' worth of food to snack on as we went.
b. But the best time for me was the nighttime.
1. The bus - dark and quiet.
2. Just the rhythmic, road noise.
3. And the lights - I loved driving through the towns and cities and seeing the lights in the night.
c. Darkness can bring clarity and focus in the moment.
1. the darkness shuts out everything else and allows us to have a singular focus.
2. the quiet muffles the day sounds that drown out our thoughts.
3. The darkness can create an atmosphere where we can discover new insights.
Move 2: In the darkness of the night, our imagination can run wild.
a. in the darkness of night, Mary can hear the voice of Gabriel and imagine.
1. She can imagine being chosen by God.
2. Being chosen like Sarah and Abraham were centuries before (in fact, when Gabriel speaks to Sarah, the conversation goes much like it did when the heavenly strangers visited Abraham and Sarah to tell them she would bear a child at her old age and their offspring would be as numerous as the stars in the sky) {interpreting the Prophets, “Isaiah in Luke,” James Sanders, 79)
3. Or Mary can imagine being called like Moses.
4. Or better yet, imagine being Miriam, her namesake. Milton Brasher Cunningham, Blog don’teatalone, Advent Journal: Do not be afraid, December 19, 2020, https://donteatalone.com/advent-journal/advent-journal-do-not-be-afraid-2)
5. Or Daniel, whose story she surely knew, including the fact that the angel Gabriel came to see him.
6. mary can imagine what it might be like to to be pregnant and unmarried
6. to be a teenager and dealing with all of this
7. in the darkness of the night, mary can imagine God choosing her.
8. Mary can imagine the possibilities of what God, the one for whom all things are possible, can do with her. where our imagination can be at work,
b. It is not just about Mary’s imagination, but about the God who comes in the night.
1. . The God who sends the angel Gabriel to Zechariah and then Mary.
2. Zechariah has a legitimate question - who will I know that it is God.
3. “Because I am Gabriel”
not just an angel, but an angel with a name;
not just an angel with a name, but the name that takes us back to Daniel.
Gabriel’s been doing this for awhile.
4. What did Zechariah expect?
5. What do we expect?
After all, Gabriel is an angel sent from the God who has been doing this awhile.
God has been Arriving in the dreams and imagination of people and leading them to become new creations doing things they never imagined, including their participation in God’s ongoing work in the world.
c. Imagine in your life a God who comes to earth.
1. Imagine, like Mary or Zechariah that you are part of what God is doing.
2. imagine the possibilities because the God you meet in the darkness is the God for whom everything is possible.
move 3: Darkness can also be scary.
a. that seems to be a running theme in the story of Christ’s birth.
1. We hear in most of the stories, “Do not be afraid!” which tells us that people were afraid.
2. what is so scary?
3. Is Zechariah scared because Gabriel has joined him in the temple?
4. is Zechariah scared to become a father at this stage of his life?
4. Is Mary scared because Gabriel is talking to her in the night?
5. Is Mary scared about becoming pregnant at this point in her life?
4. are the shepherds scared because the angelic host is talking to them at night while there are in the fields?
b. Probably, but I suspect what scares them the most is being part of God’s plan.
1. Mary may have the angel Gabriel speaking to her, but we are told she was “perplexed,” which also could be translated as “perturbed.” (Milton Brasher Cunningham, Blog don’teatalone, Advent Journal: Do not be afraid, December 19, 2020, https://donteatalone.com/advent-journal/advent-journal-do-not-be-afraid-2)
2. She does not know how things are going to work out for her.
3. She just knows that God is calling her to do something she can barely imagine.
4. But she says, “Here am I.”
b. Scariest part about our journey to Bethlehem is that we will arrive there and discover the Christ-child, who is calling us.
1. Calling us to be a part of what God is doing in the world.
2. Calling us to imagine the possibilities of what God desires of us.
3. Asking us if we will join with Mary and not only imagine the possibilities, but say, “Here am I.”
Sarah Adams in Balcony:
Also, I have a stellar birth announcement planned. After you give birth, I’ll send some angels, I might even go myself, and announce it to a group of shepherds - horns, lights, the whole thing! I know! All these dudes are going to flip their lids. Guarantee the sheep will not be phased. And Mary, one more thing. You can do this. You’ll never be alone and all the help you might need will be provided for. **then really quickly** I mean labor is going to hurt real bad but that’s it - ok off the wake-up Joseph, byeeeeeee.”
11 Then there appeared to him an angel of the Lord, standing at the right side of the altar of incense. 12 When Zechariah saw him, he was terrified; and fear overwhelmed him. 13 But 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. 14 You will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth, 15 for 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. 16 He will turn many of the people of Israel to the Lord their God. 17 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.” 18 Zechariah 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.” 19 The 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. 20 But 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.”
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