Second Sunday in Advent: The Gift of Hope
During the reign of Herod king of Judea, there lived a priest named Zechariah who belonged to the priestly division of Abijah, and he had a wife named Elizabeth, who was a descendant of Aaron. They were both righteous in the sight of God, following all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blamelessly. But they did not have a child, because Elizabeth was barren, and they were both very old.
Luke 1:5-7
They were both righteous in the sight of God…blameless, but…
Hard things happen to good people. Righteous people. People who follow every dot and tittle of the law and try to honor God with everything they do. Even for a lifetime.
As one friend says, This is the Way. The way of the Messiah is at once joyful and sorrowful.
Cheery Christmas songs might not be so cheery to the barren, the elderly, the faithful servants called to duty, and doing it dutifully, yet harboring hopelessness. Zechariah was interceding for the people while holding private sorrow in his heart. How tender and kind of the Lord to address His faithful priest right there in the center of his service to others and reveal Zechariah’s deepest desire. Then promise to fulfill it against all odds.
There are many Zechariahs in the world today. Faithful, they rise day after day serving the Lord, even as the desires they once treasured deep in their hearts grow dim with disappointment.
It’s important to talk honestly about disappointment at Christmas. Now that we’ve said it out loud, we can address it.
Followers of the Christmas Child worship a humble, gentle-hearted Servant who walked a path of disappointment so humans could hope again. The Messiah is our hope, and all who trust in Him will not be disappointed.
David, in an outpouring of disappointment, spoke to His soul and God in Psalm 22 with this poignant lament:
My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?
I groan in prayer, but help seems far away.
My God, I cry out during the day,
but you do not answer,
and during the night my prayers do not let up.
You are holy;
you sit as king receiving the praises of Israel.
In you our ancestors trusted;
they trusted in you and you rescued them.
To you they cried out, and they were saved;
in you they trusted and they were not disappointed.
Psalm 22:1-5
The human soul is always holding tension. Tension between the real disappointment of now and the hope that God will not disappoint. Some have made up their minds not to hope anymore. Self-protection seems safer than trust. David was in agony; the tension was tearing him in two. So he talked to God honestly about hopes gone wrong. He preached to his soul and reminded it what was true.
In you they trusted and they were not disappointed.
Zechariah seems to have abandoned hope. After all, everyone knew an old lady couldn’t conceive a child. The priest seems to have forgotten the story of his matriarch Sarah, who bore Abraham Isaac in her old age. Maybe he had preached truth to his soul and reminded it what was true when he was a bit younger. But today, the words of the angel came as a shock, an impossible promise. Regardless, the words were true and they came true, every one.
You don’t want to miss this critical context of the Christmas story. Zechariah and Elizabeth’s story of disappointment revealed and hope restored is the prequel to all that came after.
We can't fully understand what happened in Bethlehem if we don't talk about disappointment. #hope #christmas Share on XThe Baby born in a manger changed the trajectory of hope forever.
We are never too old for Jesus to transform our disappointment to hope. No limitation can stop His mighty power from giving us joy instead of mourning and hope instead of despair.
It might not be easy to believe, but it’s true. Let’s remind our souls today to hope again.
Lord, you know me completely. I am waiting for You, King of Hope, this Christmas. Come, Lord Jesus. Amen.
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