Joy in the Midst . . .

Third Sunday in Advent

Isaiah 12:2-6; Zephaniah 3:14-20; Luke 3:7-18

Advent is something of an anomaly for contemporary Christians – we are moving headfast toward a celebration of our Savior’s birth, and at the same time we are thrust into an opportunity to consider the return of our Lord at the end of the age. Confusing images – parallel themes – prophecy and history intertwined in expectation and mystery – yearning for peace in a season of hope – knowing that joy and love are right around the corner.

The first two weeks of Advent this year have been heavy and burdensome. Part of that comes as a result of my decision to listen to the prophets. This morning we hear from three of them – Isaiah, Zephaniah, and John the Baptizer. They remind us that we are in an “in-between” time – and that we have much work to do as we continue to wait.

I told you last Sunday morning that Susan asked me before the service began if we could “have a little joy around here?” Last week the answer was “not yet.” This week, the answer sounds a little more like “Why not” or “Well, it’s about time, don’t you think?”

I want to put another image in front of us this morning before we dig into the texts. Do you remember the movie “Castaway” from a few years ago? Tom Hanks was the star – played out most of the movie alone. His character was a man named Chuck Noland, an executive with Fed Ex. Suddenly and violently in the early moments of the movie, Noland’s plane is caught in a violent thunderstorm in the South Pacific, and he is marooned on an uncharted island, hundreds of miles off his predicted course. His early efforts on the island are spent discovering if he will be able to survive on the meager resources available. He repeatedly attempts to escape the island by raft, only to be beat back by the tides. The scene shifts forward 4 years, and we realize that Noland is now a man who is no longer waiting for rescue, but is simply in the process of day-to-day survival – and doing so somewhat successfully, with one caveat – psychologically he is a man who has been radically changed by his circumstances and his environment.

I wanted to put that image in front of us this morning in order to suggest to us that our season of Advent should not represent or help facilitate that kind of mindset or scenario in any form or fashion. While Chuck Noland was hopeless, we are people filled with hope. His was a world of rather pointless waiting – ours is a world of active waiting – purposeful waiting.

It has happened to me before during Advent – forgetting some of the truths of the season. This year, I had forgotten to remind us that while we wait, we wait actively. For eschatological believers, waiting is an active pursuit.

I watched a movie the other night that some had suggested I watch – “Glory Road.” Maybe you’ve seen it. It’s the story of Don Haskins, from right here in Enid, who moves into the ranks of Division 1 NCAA Basketball coaching during the mid 1960’s. He took the job at Texas Western out there in El Paso, Texas. He made use of his personal experience to put five black players on the court for the first time in NCAA history, and his gamble paid off with a national championship. During the movie, Haskins works to instill within his new players a sense of discipline and technique that requires they practice the fundamentals of basketball – over and over – until they are chomping at the bit for an opportunity to actually play a game. Many of us who love sports have been through that process – the process of practicing and practicing – waiting for the opportunity to play – knowing that our time is coming – but also knowing that it was not yet. So, while we waited, we prepared.

That was the message of one of our prophetic voices for this morning. John the Baptizer reminded the people who would listen that he was simply the forerunner, and that they should prepare their hearts for the coming of the Messiah. Christ was coming, and soon. He was coming, and they needed to prepare for his coming.

John’s message is one we have heard through this Advent season. We are to prepare. We are to get ourselves ready for the return of our Lord. It’s a simple point, but one that we lose sight of during Advent – Advent is not about getting ready to celebrate the birth of Christ – rather, Advent is about preparing the people of God for the return of Christ by remembering what is was like to wait for Him to come the first time. We are not getting ready for His first Advent – we are preparing for His return.

I read somewhere this week a question I had already asked myself – where was the good news that John had to offer? It is exactly and precisely the good news that Jesus was coming. We get bogged down in the rest of His message – the part that calls us to repentance and personal cleansing. But rather than that part of the message being a burden, it should be for us a blessed opportunity for rejoicing.

Most of us decorate our homes for Christmas. Do you think about the process of decorating as you are doing it? We are using symbols of the season to remind us of the meaning of Christmas. A tree that reminds us of new life, and of a cross that has purchased our redemption. Lights, which remind us of the light of the world coming into our very dark world. Gifts which remind us that we have received the eternal gift of God’s Son. So many symbols – so many opportunities to remember God’s good gifts, and the joy that is ours because Christ has come into our lives.

Isaiah introduces the truth of joy into our Advent. Listen to Isaiah again!! “With joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation. And you will say in that day: Give thanks to the Lord, call on his name; make known his deeds among the nations; proclaim that his name is exalted. Sing praises to the Lord, for he has done gloriously; let this be known in all the earth. Shout aloud and sing for joy, O royal Zion, for great in your midst is the Holy One of Israel.” Joy and praise. Singing and proclamation. Active responses from the people of God, directed toward the promise that God is coming. For contemporary Christian people, additionally active responses that Christ has already come into our midst.

There is even more good news. The prophet Zephaniah reminds us of more good news. “Rejoice and exult with all you heart, O daughter Jerusalem! The Lord has taken away the judgments against you . . . you shall fear disaster no more . . . The Lord your God, is in your midst . . . He will renew you in his love.” These are good words of promise – words that should produce within the hearts and lives of believers a symphony of praise and gratitude, expressed in honest joy and gladness.

Friends, it should be easier for us – this side of the first coming of our Lord. We have seen testimony of His presence among us. God is truly in our midst. We have seen evidence of His presence – not just in the lives of others, but in our own lives as well. He is in our midst, and so we should be experiencing joy in our midst.

I know it’s difficult. This past Wednesday, I told the Wednesday evening crowd (and I continue to use that phrase loosely) that nearly everyone I ran into during the early part of the week was having difficulty getting past the business of the season in their efforts to enjoy the season. That saying that’s out there on the marquee – “We are all too blessed to be stressed” – it’s one thing to say something like that – it’s another thing entirely to believe it and to be able to live it out.

This is where the message of the prophets becomes our message. We live in a world where people are stressed. We have a message for them – they can experience the joy of the season – most simply by meeting the Savior of our world, and experiencing His Joy. You and I can tell them – but they want to see if the message is true. They want to know if our lives are more joyful as a result of knowing Christ. We have a message to share, and an obligation to live out that message in our lives.

Years ago, in my counseling work I ran across a book entitled, “Happiness is a Choice.” The premise of the book is stated in the title – in our lives – happiness is a choice. Well, the same is true of joy. Joy is a choice. We choose joy in our lives. But joy is more than a choice – it is also a result of our choice. The abiding nature of joy becomes a continuous statement of our present Christian promise – we are people of joy – most specifically because Christ is present in our midst. We are “present tense” believers – joy is ours – now, and in this present time. We don’t have to wait – it is ours now, for the claiming.

Jan read Paul’s good word to us this morning as we began our service of worship. “Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”

That is our reality – God is in our midst. Christ has come, and the Spirit of God indwells every believer. We are people who have received redemption. We are people who live in a reality of joy, even as we wait for the return of our Lord and Savior.

How great our Joy!!! Amen, and Amen.

Richard W. Dunn, PhD.