Luke 1:68-79

&nb= sp;

Zechariah sings a song of hope

when John is born.

A sermon preached by

Rev. William O. (Bud) = Reeves

First United Methodist Church

Hot= Springs, Arkansas

December 2, 2007<= /o:p>

I heard a cute story recently about a children’s program at a public elementary school. Because they were cautious about b= eing too religious, they had a nice little program scheduled, and the content centered around family, friends, and fun times during the holidays—al= l of which are good things, but none of which are the reason we have Christmas.<= span style=3D'mso-spacerun:yes'> The program was called “Chri= stmas Love.” For the grand fi= nale, a line of kids was supposed to march across the stage with pieces of poster board spelling out the words “Christmas Love.” Their backs were turned to the aud= ience, and at the exact moment, they were supposed to turn around to spell the wor= ds with the letters on their poster board.&nb= sp; Moms were backstage to make sure they marched out in the right order, but once they got on stage, they were on their own. Sure enough, one little girl holdi= ng the “M” in “Christmas” got her sign turned upside down. So the moment came, and= the kids turned around, and what the audience saw was not “Christmas Love” but “Christ was Love.” Without meaning to, the elementary students had told the truth of the Christmas story after all. They had set the stage for a real celebration of Christmas!

What we are going to do during the season of Advent is to set the stage once again for the coming of the Christ Child at Christmas. We are going to try in every way possible, despite the misunderstandings of the secular world, to prepare our hearts to receive the newborn King. We are going to do that by focusin= g on several announcements that precede and accompany the birth of Christ. These announcements, some angelic = and some human, are all God-inspired, and each of them conveys a different qual= ity or characteristic or reality about Christmas. Today we want to talk about HOPE.

Luke sets the stage fo= r the birth of the Messiah by telling the story of Zechariah and Elizabeth and the birth of their son John. Zech= ariah was a priest in Jerusalem, and Elizabeth was descended from a priestly family. They were highly resp= ected, but also somewhat pitied because they had never been able to have children.=

One day Zechariah was = chosen to do what for many priests was a once-in-a-lifetime privilege. He was chosen to enter the inner sanctuary in the Temple and offer incense to the Lord. This was like going into the very presence of God, and lo and behold, when he go= t in there, there was an angel of the Lord waiting on him! The angel told Zechariah that he a= nd Elizabeth would finally have a child, a son, and he would be a gift from Go= d. He would have a special purpose= 212;to turn the hearts of the people toward God and to get them ready for the comi= ng of the Messiah.

When Zec= hariah heard these words, he responded with a reverent, “No way! How could this be so! Elizabeth and I are too old to be changing diapers!”

= The angel replied, “I am Gabriel, and I came from God’s own presenc= e to give you this message. Because you have not believed, you will not speak un= til these things happen!”

= By this time, the crowd outside the sanctuary had begun to worry about Zechariah. He was so old, maybe he had a heart attack and keeled over in the middle of the ceremony! Finally he came out, bug-eyed and speechless, and they knew he had seen some sort of vision. When he got home= , he was able to communicate the angel’s announcement to Elizabeth, and she was ecstatic to have= her dishonor taken away.

= When the child was born, Zechariah and Elizabeth took him to the Temple to be circumcised and named, as = was the Jewish custom. Everyone a= ssumed that they would name him Zechariah, after his father, but Elizabeth gave him the name John. They turned to the still-mute Zech= ariah and asked him what he thought the child’s name should be. He wrote on a tablet, “His n= ame is John.” Immediately he c= ould speak again, and out of his mouth came a song of praise to God, which is our Scripture text today.

= The song of praise that Zechariah sang at the circumcision of his son John is a song of HOPE. In his song, Zechariah declares four reasons to hope. First, he hopes because he knows God’s history with his people. God has always been faithful to remember the covenant he made with Abraham, to speak through the prophets, to save Israel from her enemies. “Thus He has shown the mercy promised to our ancestors,” Z= echariah sings.= [1] God has always been there for his people; why would he stop now?<= /p>

= More than that, God is now doing a new thing.&n= bsp; He is sending a new Savior. The one promised ages ago is now about to appear. “He has raised up a mighty Savior for us in the house of his servant David.”[2]<= ![endif]> The new Savior is the Mes= siah, the one coming to save the people and fulfill the promises.

= The sign of the advent of the Messiah is Zechariah’s and Elizabeth’s son John. This is the third r= eason for hope: “You, child, shall = be called the prophet of the Most High; for you shall go before the Lord to prepare his ways, to give knowledge of salvation to his people by the forgiveness of their sins.”[3]<= ![endif]> Remember those themes; we’ll= hear them again this Advent.

= Finally, Zechariah hopes because a new day is dawning for the people of God. “By the tender mercy of our God, the dawn from on high will break upon us, to g= ive light to those who sit in darkness (just as the prophet Isaiah had predicted!) and in the shadow of de= ath, to guide our feet in the way of peace.”[4]<= ![endif]> For people of faith, a ne= w day is always dawning. God is good—all the time! We c= an live in hope.

= Hope is a critical part of healthy human life.&= nbsp; John Ortberg, pastor and author from California, cites a medical study in w= hich 122 men who had suffered their first heart attack were evaluated on their degree of hopefulness or pessimism about life. Of the 25 most pessimistic men, 21= had died within eight years. Of t= he 25 most hopeful men, only 6 had died in eight years. In this study, hopelessness increa= sed the odds of death by 300%; more than any other medical risk factor, includi= ng high blood pressure, cholesterol level, diet, or exercise program. Ortberg concludes, “It is be= tter to eat Twinkies in hope than broccoli in despair.”[5]

= So where do we get our hope today? What can we depend on as we look to the future? We can find hope in some of the sa= me places Zechariah did.

= Our hope is in God. No big surprise there! But think about it. God is God. History belongs to him. Ultimatel= y God wins, and people of faith win with him.&nb= sp; The cross assures our final victory. We have this hope as a sure founda= tion for every day of our lives, no matter what trials we face. “Blessed be the Lord God of I= srael,” Zechariah sang, “for he h= as looked favorably on his people and redeemed them.”[6]<= ![endif]>

= A few years ago a group of church leaders in Charlotte, North Carolina, invited the= ir favorite son, Dr. Billy Graham, to a luncheon in his honor. Suffering from Parkinson’s disease, Graham doesn’t get out much any more, but they didn’t = want a big address, just a chance to honor him.

= Of course, after saying many wonderful things about him, they did let him take= the podium to say a few words. Dr. Graham told a story about Dr. Albert Einstein, who was traveling from Princeton on a train one time when the conductor ca= me down the aisle asking for tickets. Einstein couldn’t find his ticket anywhere—his pockets, = his briefcase, the seat beside him. The conductor said, “Dr. Einstein, I know who you are. Everyone knows who you are. I’m sure you bought a ticket= . Don’t worry about it.”= Einstein apologized and thanked the conductor. =

= As he moved down the aisle, the conductor looked back and saw Einstein on his han= ds and knees searching under the seat for his ticket. He went back and said, “Dr. = Einstein, really, don’t worry about your ticket. I’m sure you bought one. It’s no problem. I know who you are.”

= The great physicist looked up at the conductor and said, “Young man, I too know who I am. The problem is= , I don’t know where I am going.”

= Billy Graham then pointed out that he was hearing a brand new suit. He had bought it for the luncheon = and one other occasion. “Yo= u know what that occasion is?” he asked the Charlotte church leaders. “This is the suit in which I’ll be buried. But whe= n you hear I’m dead, I don’t want you to remember the suit I’m wearing. I want you to rememb= er this: I not only know who I am; I also know where I’m going.”= = [7]

= Our hope is in God, and through faith in God, we know who we are. We know where we are going. We even know who is driving the train! Our destination is his heavenly Kingdom.

Secondly, we hope because One is coming to sh= ow us the way. In f= act, he has already come. Actually, t= wo men have come to proclaim the good news of God’s salvation for the planet. John came to bear wit= ness to the Messiah who was coming. Then Jesus was born to be the Anointed One of God. In that lineup we can have hope.

= Bob Mumford, in his book Take Another L= ook at Guidance, tells about a certain seaport in Italy that has a very narrow = passageway into the safety of the harbor. Many ships have broken up on the rocks leading into that seaport. To guide the ships safely into por= t, three lights have been mounted on huge poles in the harbor. As the captain of a ship pulls int= o the narrow strait, the lights are supposed to line up. If they are not lined up, the ship= is off course and in danger.[8]

= We are fortunate that God has lined up all the lights to guide us safely home. The Law, the prophets, and John the Baptist all point to the coming of God’s anointed Messiah. Jesus is the Word of God sent to s= ave the world. The Holy Spirit continues in the world today as a light to illuminate our understanding of = the Word so that we can be saved. When we see with the eyes of faith, they all line up perfectly and provide guida= nce for our lives. “God has raised up a mighty Savior for us.”= = [9]<= ![endif]> Like Zechariah so long ago, that makes our spirits sing!

= Finally, we can have hope today because wit= h God, the day is always dawning. With God there is always hope. Wit= h God we need never give up. We may= be down, but we are never out. Zechariah says, “By the tender mercy of our God, the dawn from on high will break upon us, to give light to those who sit in dark= ness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace.”= = [10]= Do not despair! God has the resources to save you = now and to give you a future with hope.

= One Christmas Eve at Fifth Avenue Presbyterian Church in = New York City, they were getting ready = for their 11:00 p.m. Christmas Eve service.&nb= sp; As the people were gathering, a man named Jim came in. Jim was a recovering alcoholic, so= ber just six months, but his disease had cost him his family, his job, just abo= ut everything. He went in to the sanctuary for the first Christmas Eve since his divorce, and who should sit= in front of him but a happy, cheerful family of four—dad, mom, two preci= ous kids anticipating the joy of Christmas morning. It was more than Jim could take. He got up and walked out of the ch= urch. The pastor met him in the narthex = and said, “Jim, where are you going?”

= Jim replied, “I’m just going out for a Scotch.”

= The pastor said, “Wait a minute! Is your A. A. sponsor available?”

= Jim said, “It’s Christmas Eve.&nbs= p; My sponsor is in Minne= sota. There’s nobody that can help me. I just came in for a word= of hope, and I ended up sitting behind this family. If I had my life together, I’= ;d be here with my wife and kids, too.”

= The pastor said, “Wait right here.” He didn’t know exactly what = he was going to do, but it was time to start the service. As he walked down to the front of = the church, he prayed for a word of hope to give to Jim. He welcomed everyone, then he said, “I have an announcement. If anyone here tonight is a friend of Bill Wilson—and if you are, you kn= ow what I mean—could you step out for a moment and meet with me in the b= ack of the church?” Bill Wi= lson, also known as Bill W., was the founder of Alcoholics Anonymous.<= /span>

= All over the sanctuary, men, women, young and old, got up and made their way to= the back of the church; they understood the announcement. The pastor went back and put Jim i= n the hands of people who cared. Th= en, while he led a service proclaiming that God had become flesh in Jesus, the = Word was being made real in the back of his church. Jim was not just hearing, he was experiencing the word of hope he was looking for.[11] =

= Are you near the point of despair today? Have you made a royal mess of things? Are you feeling overwhelmed by the burdens in your life? Did you= come here this morning needing a word of hope?&= nbsp; Then hear this. God is= still God, and he has always acted to save his people. He sent Jesus to show us the way to life. Where God is—and = he is here—the day is always dawning. Maybe today is the day that the dawn from on high will break upon yo= u, and you can experience what Zechariah announced. You can have hope! Amen!