Sermon: Awake in Hope

Lectionary: Advent 1(B)

Texts

• Isaiah 64:1-9
• Psalm 80:1-7, 17-19
• 1 Corinthians 1:3-9
• Mark 13:24-37

Introduction

Back in October and November, my social media feeds were inundated with advertising for all sorts of Advent calendars, for kids to adults, for humans and pets. Traditional chocolate ones, cookies, tea, coffee, wine, beer, liquor, cosmetics, socks, candles, dog treats, cat treats, and probably dozens and hundreds more that I haven’t seen. Now that we are in December, all those ads have stopped. Because clearly, if you haven’t gotten your Advent calendar already, it’s too late.

The Advent season is a time for waiting and preparing? But for what, or whom, really? The popular mind and the Advent calendar market at least gets the waiting and counting down part of Advent.

In the broader world, the timeframe occupied by Advent is a time of preparing for Christmas. And we do that through decorating, cleaning, shopping, cooking, baking, traveling, and so on to create a memorable and meaningful Christmas celebration. Is that the purpose of Advent – to prepare for the best celebratory event we can manage?

Perhaps Advent is a time to prepare and wait for Christ? But what exactly does that mean? Are we again preparing to celebrate the remembrance of the arrival of baby Jesus? The activities of Advent lead toward the remembrance and celebration of Christmas, so its primary focus might appear to be that.

The theme for today, the first Sunday of Advent, is hope. What are we hoping for? What fulfillment of hope are we waiting for?

And finally, there is the admonition to “keep awake” in our gospel reading. In what way do waiting and keeping awake help explain Advent and hope?

Prayers of Lament and Deliverance

The reading from Isaiah and the reading from Psalms both contain words that look back to God’s powerful acts in the past and a longing, and even demands, for God to re-enact similar great works to bring about salvation in the present time. Both are literarily categorized as laments, and their liturgical function was quite likely as prayers. The lament in Isaiah was written in the context of the Babylonian exile of the southern tribe of Judah after the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple. The Psalm lament was most likely written in the context of the Assyrian conquest of the northern kingdom of Israel.

In light of destruction and devastation suffered by a community, these laments raise up cries for God to act like he did in their long-ago historical memories. Both question where God is and why he has allowed this destruction and suffering to come to his people. Although the Isaiah lament contains a brief mention of the people’s sin, both laments place most or all of the responsibility on God. Both end with call to God for him to act and restore and save his people. Although not explicitly stated in the texts, both laments end with an implied confidence and hope that God will act.

The gospel text in Mark was also formed and read within a community that was probably experiencing some degree of intermittent persecution and suffering from within their own Jewish community and outside from the Roman empire. They too, are longing for deliverance and salvation.

Our Context is Different

That is what makes this set of Advent readings difficult for us to understand. Even though we likely have difficulties and challenges, none of us are likely facing truly existential challenges. We have a life that is mostly comfortable, and challenges we face, we generally don’t have too much trouble handling.

I think that if we are truly honest, many of us really don’t need God’s intervention. We are content with how things are, and we don’t really need or want God to intervene and shake things up.

Yet in places around the world, people and communities are facing dire challenges to their very existence. Some are more well known and publicized than others. Ukraine, Israel, and Palestine are among a few that immediately come to mind. Much closer to home, we remember the very recent landslide and loss of life and property in Wrangell. Right here at home, even next door to where we are meeting today, Humanity in Progress exists only because there are those within our very community who find meeting their basic needs a challenge.

Deep within us, even though our immediate circumstances may be quite comfortable, we know that there is something wrong with this world. Even though there are enough resources to take care of everyone, the dominant powers are unable and unwilling to do what it takes to care for all. Many of us have bought into the philosophies and priorities of the dominant powers and, even if we don’t overtly recognize it, we subconsciously divide people into who we think are “more-deserving” and “less-deserving”.

Keeping Awake

Perhaps one part of incorporating “keep awake” into our lives this Advent is to become more intentional about how we view and judge the world around us. Throughout scripture God is described as not showing partiality and those who follow God are also to be impartial in their dealings with others.[1] Maybe we are the ones who need the “breaking through” of God into our lives to reveal our hypocrisies and correct our partialities.

Another element of “keeping awake” may be to reawaken us to the reality that disasters and suffering can easily befall any of us. What is our response when something terrible upends our lives? One line of thought, common in some circles, is to accept whatever happens stoically and even be thankful[2] because “all things work together for good for those who love God”.[3]

If you want to do that, great. That is your choice. But don’t if it is only because you were taught that is the “proper Christian response” to tragedy and suffering.

There are other responses that are acceptable and exemplified in scripture. Psalm 80, which we read, contains one such example.

Even though the Isaiah, Psalm, and Mark texts are in the context of community and existential challenges, our individual tragedies and misfortunes can feel existential. Just because the texts are communal doesn’t mean they cannot be read as expressing individual lament.

Praying a Lament

How might we pray a lament? Let’s read through Psalm 80 once again.

¹ Give ear, O Shepherd of Israel,
you who lead Joseph like a flock!
You who are enthroned upon the cherubim, shine forth
² before Ephraim and Benjamin and Manasseh.
Stir up your might,
and come to save us!
³ Restore us, O God;
let your face shine, that we may be saved.

The prayer begins by reminding God of who God is, what God has promised, and demands that God act according to God’s character.

⁴ O LORD God of hosts,
how long will you be angry with your people’s prayers?
⁵ You have fed them with the bread of tears
and given them tears to drink in full measure.
⁶ You make us the scorn of our neighbors;
our enemies laugh among themselves.
⁷ Restore us, O God of hosts;
let your face shine, that we may be saved.

The prayer moves to a complaint. The complaint is that God’s inaction is the cause of God’s people’s suffering and God’s reputation to be sullied in the eyes of others.

This next section includes a large portion that was skipped by the lectionary editors, but it adds important context to the psalm.

⁸ You brought a vine out of Egypt;
you drove out the nations and planted it.
⁹ You cleared the ground for it;
it took deep root and filled the land.
¹⁰ The mountains were covered with its shade,
the mighty cedars with its branches;
¹¹ it sent out its branches to the sea
and its shoots to the River.
¹² Why then have you broken down its walls,
so that all who pass along the way pluck its fruit?
¹³ The boar from the forest ravages it,
and all that move in the field feed on it.
¹⁴ Turn again, O God of hosts;
look down from heaven and see;
have regard for this vine,
¹⁵ the stock that your right hand planted.
¹⁶ It has been burned with fire; it has been cut down;
may they perish at the rebuke of your countenance.

¹⁷ But let your hand be upon the one at your right hand,
the one whom you made strong for yourself.
¹⁸ Then we will never turn back from you;
give us life, and we will call on your name.
¹⁹ Restore us, O LORD God of hosts;
let your face shine, that we may be saved.[4]

Once again, the prayer reminds God of God’s early actions in caring for God’s people. And then it again accuses God of allowing destruction to come. It ends with a demand for God to act to restore and save.

The three parts of this lament each end with three refrains. They are similar but with small differences.

The first refrain is “Restore us, O God; let your face shine, that we may be saved.” The second refrain is similar, but changes the first line to “Restore us, O God of hosts.” The third refrain changes to “Restore us, O LORD God of hosts.” The development is from a generic “God” to “God of hosts” to the most personal “LORD God of hosts.” One might imagine the one praying moving from a lament that is within the boundaries of “proper theology”, to a developing anger that causes the prayer to start to break out from “theological boundaries”, to anguish and anger at seeming betrayal in which one’s personal and close friend has failed to act.

What this says to me is that when we are disappointed with God, it is acceptable to express our anger, rage, and disappointment. If as a community, there is something where we think God has failed to act appropriately, it is okay to step out of “proper theology” and express our feelings as a community toward God. God is not threatened by our feelings. If we sincerely believe God is as personal as our theology claims, if we sincerely believe God is as loving and caring as our theology claims, then we ought to be able to express our complaints and disappointments about God without fearing that somehow, we are violating proper boundaries.

Conclusion

If this season of Advent and reminders about waiting for God bring up memories and feelings of disappointment with God, this might be the time to allow them to be expressed. If you are facing challenges this Advent – it might be financial, it might be your health, it might be something family members are facing – it is okay to express your frustrations and anger, and demand that God act.

While we wait for Christ’s return, we are to keep awake. Depending on the season of our individual and communal lives, it might mean working to alleviate the sufferings around us. Or it might mean crying out to God to act. I believe that the key point is to remain engaged with God and God’s desires for the world. To fall asleep is to succumb to the ennui that we are powerless to make any difference, and that God too, is asleep and doesn’t care.

We are the embodiment of Christ in the world. As long as we are engaged both with the world and with God, we remain beacons of hope in the world. We keep hope awake that justice and righteousness will be restored.

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[1] Among the texts: Deuteronomy 16:19, 2 Chronicles 19:7, Job 32:21, Matthew 22:16, Acts 10:35, Romans 2:11, James 2:1, 9 and 3:17.

[2] Ephesians 5:19-20.

[3] Romans 8:28.

[4] Psalm 80 (NRSVue).