SERMON FOR ADVENT II, DECEMBER 5, 2021

          Luke starts his gospel by locating it in the time line of history. He names names:    “In the fifteenth year of the reign of Emperor Tiberias, when Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea, and Herod was ruler of Galilee, and his brother Philip ruler of the region of Ituraea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias ruler of Abilene, during the high priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas, the word of God came to John son of Zechariah in the wilderness.” While these seven powerful men enjoyed their status and authority, while they maneuvered to control the future, two insignificant Jewish boys, John and his kinsman Jesus, were born and grew up in obscurity. Who would have guessed that their story would eclipse that of the high and mighty. As one New Testament scholar points out, “By the time Luke’s community was reading these verses, none of those seven is still alive, yet the story of John and of Jesus, the one John heralds, is still being told. And today these proud and powerful men are just footnotes to the story of Christ . . . .”    At the very beginning of his narrative, Luke points to the mysterious, almost deceptive way, God works in our midst. God slips into the world and does these great things through ordinary people and familiar situations:    two surprise pregnancies, two couples doing their best to cope, two little boys raised, like countless others, according to the customs of their particular community. Nothing much to notice here, or so it would seem. But Luke invites his readers to take a second look, to see God’s handiwork in unexpected, even unlikely places.         

          The first chapter of Luke contains two well-known songs or canticles, Mary’s Magnificat and the Benedictus of Zechariah, which we read as today’s psalm. Zechariah was a priest, married to Mary’s kinswoman; they become the parents of John the Baptist. The angel Gabriel comes to Zechariah to tell him about the holy birth, much like the annunciation to the Virgin Mary. Luke writes: In the days of King Herod of Judea, there was a priest named Zechariah, who belonged to the priestly order of Abijah. His wife was a descendant of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth. Both of them were righteous before God, living blamelessly according to all the commandments and regulations of the Lord. But they had no children, because Elizabeth was barren, and both were getting on in years. Once when he was serving as priest before God and his section was on duty, he was chosen by lot, according to the custom of the priesthood, to enter the sanctuary of the Lord and offer incense. Now at the time of the incense offering, the whole assembly of the people was praying outside. Then there appeared to him an angel of the Lord, standing at the right side of the altar of incense. When Zechariah saw him, he was terrified; and fear overwhelmed him. 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. You will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth, 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. 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.” 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.” 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. 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”    (Luke 1:6-20).

          Zechariah’s and Elizabeth’s situation is a familiar one. Remember their ancestors, Abraham and Sarah? They too were an elderly, childless couple. They too were promised a son who was destined to play a pivotal role in God’s plan. And in both cases one partner of the couple had a hard time accepting the news. Sarah laughed with disbelief when she heard; Zechariah questions the messenger outright and is granted a sign as confirmation of Gabriel’s word; it appears to be a reprimand as well. Poor Zechariah won’t be asking any more questions or raising any further objections for the time being; the ability to speak will not be restored to him until that word is fulfilled. Then when it is, he erupts in song, celebrating the birth of his son with praise of God’s faithfulness: “Thus he has shown the mercy promised to our ancestors, and has remembered his holy covenant, the oath he swore to our ancestor Abraham, to grant us that we, being rescued from the hands of our enemies, might serve him without fear, in holiness and righteousness before him all our days.” A promise made to Abraham and Sarah, a promise kept. A promise made to Zechariah and Elizabeth, a promise kept. A promise made to Mary, its fulfillment visibly growing inside her with each passing day. John, who in today’s Gospel emerges from the wilderness as an adult to prepare the way of the Lord, serves as Jesus’ herald even before either of them is born. While the two kinswomen are pregnant, Mary goes to visit Elizabeth. Luke writes: When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the child leaped in her womb. And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit and exclaimed with a loud cry, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. And why has this happened to me, that the mother of my Lord comes to me? For as soon as I heard the sound of your greeting, the child in my womb leaped for joy. And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her by the Lord” (Luke 1:41-45).

          God’s promises echo from one generation to another. They cannot be silenced. The prophet Isaiah proclaimed the word of the Lord to his people in Babylon. They would return from the wilderness of exile, just as they had come out of their wilderness wandering into the promised land after the exodus from Egypt. The Lord would ease their passage and bring them safely home — “every valley shall be filled, and every mountain and hill shall be made low.” Now the prophet’s words are realized anew in the ministry of John. He proclaims a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins, a lone voice in the wilderness whose message will trouble those who rule from the courts of power — “the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough ways made smooth.” John prepares the way for the Lord; then Jesus takes the stage and a new story begins. It promises the happiest of endings — all flesh shall see the salvation of God. And blessed are we who await in faith the fulfillment of what is spoken to us by the Lord. Amen.