The Third Sunday of Advent, Year C

Rejoice!

Readings: Zephaniah 3:14-20; Canticle 3; Philippians 4:4-7; Luke 3:7-18

When I was a child my grandmother gave me some of her old books. They were about a little girl named Elsie Dinsmore who was awfully good. I am certain that grandmother gave me the books because she wanted me to be more like Elsie. They had, I am certain, the opposite effect. For Elsie was just too perfect to be believed. She spent her life overcoming terrible tragedies. She always did what was good and right, and as I remember the stories now, it was often at the expense of others. She was quite insufferable, especially since through it all, she never stopped smiling.

Reading over Paul's letter to the Philippians reminded me, just for a moment, of Elsie Dinsmore. There he is in the midst of chaos, singing to these people, "Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say rejoice."

Now you may think that it is easy for someone like Paul to talk that way. After all, he doesn't have to worry about mortgage payments. The crime rate in Philippi is not climbing at an alarming rate. The world is not heading into ecological and economic disaster. He is not about to be attacked by terrorists.

Except for one thing! This joyful hymn is coming from Paul, a person who has experienced great personal tragedy. He has been beaten, persecuted, and thrown in jail for his faith. And yet he is able to call on his inner resources, on his relationship with God, on his faith, not simply to get him through it all, but to enable him to rejoice.

And then there are the Philippians. This community to whom he is preaching is a community under fire. First of all, they are under fire from within. They are bickering amongst themselves about who the leaders of the congregation should be. They also face opposition from other Christian communities who oppose the inclusivity of Paul’s message. The Christians in Jerusalem want these new converts from Philippi, a flourishing Greek community, to assume the traditions of the Jewish roots of Christianity. The Jewish faith means absolutely nothing to them. Finally they are threatened by danger from a hostile environment. Simply by becoming Christians they have opened themselves up to persecution. They live in the Roman Empire where it does not pay to convert.

Paul’s appeal to joy is not simply encouragement. He is calling the people back to God. He knows that faith is their greatest resource. They trust in a God who walks with them. They have experienced the great love of God. God is a part of their daily lives.

The prophet Zephaniah also sings to us across time and place about living joyfully. His fiery message reflects the turbulence of his time, a time of social injustice, a time of secularism. The leaders of Israel have exploited the people shamelessly. They in response have turned away from God. They feel the sting of God’s judgement. They feel abandoned. “Sing aloud, O daughter Zion,” he proclaims with passion. “Rejoice and exult with all your heart. The Lord has taken away the judgements against you.” They are words of transformative hope. His passionate song rings out to the people reminding them of their close relationship to God. Their hope lies in God, who offers empowerment. God continues to call them back into covenant, time and time again. They are God’s people; God continues to walk with them.

John the Baptist also sings out a message of great hope to the converts who have followed him out into the Judean wilderness to be baptised.

“You brood of vipers! Who warned you of the wrath to come?” Not exactly words designed to please the people to whom he was preaching! John is preaching a challenging message. He is preaching against Imperial Rome with its worldview based on ammassing power and material wealth for itself. He is preaching against the religious institutions with their elaborate systems run by powerful priests. The way he lives his whole life speaks out against corrupt power. He baptises in the River Jordan, not in a beautiful Temple with its gilt and opulence. He is preaching out in the wilderness. He is calling people to repentance. He calls them to prepare for what they have been waiting for all these years. He calls them to transform their lives as they await the coming Messiah.

And they respond to the song. “What should we do?” they ask him.

“Share what you have with the poor, “ he tells them. “Be honest in your work. Be satisfied with your wages. Don’t be chaff or you’ll burn in Hell.” John is not one to mince words. These are not the lyrical reminders of Zephaniah. His words are judgemental and harsh. But they sing just the same. Those who are fit for the Lord are those who go beyond lip service and actually produce the fruits of repentance. “You have to make changes in your lives,” John tells them. “You need to be transformed.” Difficult as they may be, these are not earth shattering revelations. For the world to become a better place these people need to act. They need to conduct their affairs with integrity and compassion. Not that it will eradicate all the pain and injustice that exist in the world, but it will be a starting point. It will begin to put things right. His words fill the people with hope, expectation and joy.

What song of joy do we sing as we prepare for the birth of Christ? “How can we sing?” I can hear you saying. Look at the hopeless situations in the world around us! War in Afghanistan, terrorism, violence on our once peaceful streets, failing economies, changing ecology, secularism ... We live complicated lives. How can we possibly rejoice in the terrible society in which we live? How can these passages speak to us of joy when all we can see is turmoil and trouble?

It has been said that Advent is a time for joy, not primarily because we are anticipating the anniversary of the birth of Jesus, but because God is already in our midst. That is something to sing about. Let us prepare for the birth of Christ by allowing God to transform our sorrow into joy, the chaos and turmoil of our world into peace. Experience assures me that if we do, then the world will change for us. It will be bathed in light. It will be beautiful. Hope will be renewed. Like Elsie, we will begin to see the world not for what it is, but for what it will become when God ushers in the Kingdom.