Third Sunday of Advent
Scripture Reading for Today:
Isaiah 61:1-4
The Year of the Lord’s FavorThe Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me, because the Lord has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners, 2 to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor and the day of vengeance of our God, to comfort all who mourn, 3 and provide for those who grieve in Zion— to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of joy instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair. They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the Lord for the display of his splendor. 4 They will rebuild the ancient ruins and restore the places long devastated; they will renew the ruined cities that have been devastated for generations.
8 “For I, the Lord, love justice; I hate robbery and wrongdoing. In my faithfulness I will reward my people and make an everlasting covenant with them. 9 Their descendants will be known among the nations and their offspring among the peoples. All who see them will acknowledge that they are a people the Lord has blessed.” 10 I delight greatly in the Lord; my soul rejoices in my God. For he has clothed me with garments of salvation and arrayed me in a robe of his righteousness, as a bridegroom adorns his head like a priest, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels. 11 For as the soil makes the sprout come up and a garden causes seeds to grow, so the Sovereign Lord will make righteousness and praise spring up before all nations.
Psalm 126
A song of ascents.1 When the Lord restored the fortunes of Zion, we were like those who dreamed. 2 Our mouths were filled with laughter, our tongues with songs of joy. Then it was said among the nations, “The Lord has done great things for them.” 3 The Lord has done great things for us, and we are filled with joy. 4 Restore our fortunes, Lord, like streams in the Negev. 5 Those who sow with tears will reap with songs of joy. 6 Those who go out weeping, carrying seed to sow, will return with songs of joy, carrying sheaves with them.
Luke 1:46-55
Mary’s SongAnd Mary said: “My soul glorifies the Lord 47 and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, 48 for he has been mindful of the humble state of his servant. From now on all generations will call me blessed, 49 for the Mighty One has done great things for me— holy is his name. 50 His mercy extends to those who fear him, from generation to generation. 51 He has performed mighty deeds with his arm; he has scattered those who are proud in their inmost thoughts. 52 He has brought down rulers from their thrones but has lifted up the humble. 53 He has filled the hungry with good things but has sent the rich away empty. 54 He has helped his servant Israel, remembering to be merciful 55 to Abraham and his descendants forever, just as he promised our ancestors.”
1 Thessalonians 5:16-24
16 Rejoice always, 17 pray continually, 18 give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. 19 Do not quench the Spirit. 20 Do not treat prophecies with contempt 21 but test them all; hold on to what is good, 22 reject every kind of evil. 23 May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. 24 The one who calls you is faithful, and he will do it.
John 1:6-8
6 There was a man sent from God whose name was John. 7 He came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that through him all might believe. 8 He himself was not the light; he came only as a witness to the light.
The Audacity to Hope
by Bernard Tam
Bernard Tam is a coffee enthusiast, neighbourhood connector and one of the pastors at The Living Room Church in Midtown, Toronto. Regularly you can find Bernard at local specialty coffee shops learning to be present in the neighbourhood while enjoying every sip of locally roasted coffee. He is also one of the cohosts of the Canadian Asian Missional Podcast - a conversation that engages with the movements of the Canadian Asian Church.
Advent is one of my favourite seasons in the church calendar. Scott Erikson, in Honest Christmas, writes: “Advent means ‘coming’ in Latin, and these weeks are meant to prepare our hearts, minds, and souls for the arrival of God-with-Us, Jesus Christ, born to the virgin Mary a couple of millennia ago. You’re supposed to feel the wait – the anticipated arrival of something you want so badly – and by feeling the wait deeply, you’ll be even more satisfied by the celebration of the arrival of Christmas Day.” This sense of anticipation and waiting; longing for the arrival is considerably different than much of our practices of Christmas. The focus is on Christmas Day instead of tending to the Advent season. It can be a meticulous and intentional time of pausing the hectic rush of holiday shopping, festivities and the frantic to-do lists, time to consider hope.
Recently, on a recent day off from school, I had taken my kids downtown to explore. I hoped to take them on a walk to explore different parts of the downtown core and to encourage them to listen, observe, learn and be curious about our city.
That morning we visited the rush of a busy mall; observing the Christmas music, beaming lights, Santa visits, massive Christmas trees and the abundance of sales. Right beside the mall was a small church with a memorial known as the homeless memorial. This little spot was to remember all the homeless who have died in the city. Immediately beside the memorial were small tents where people without homes lived. The juxtaposition between the mall and this tiny church was palpable. It was like two different worlds adjacent to one another living parallel lives; anticipating Christmas.
As we stood in the in-between, I paused to consider the different circumstances surrounding hope. Christmas (particularly through the Advent season) is about anticipated hope. In the midst of the fury and the cold, I wonder how people are engaging or sitting with hope? Considering people who have homes and those who do not, people who have family and those who have not, people in war-torn situations and those living in relative peace, what does hope look like? Do circumstances make it difficult to hope?
In today’s lectionary reading we are directed to Isaiah 61. Isaiah was attributed to writing these words in a time of disturbance for the Israelites. They were living in captivity while waiting and hoping for God’s messianic restoration. Etched in these words is the longing for the arrival of someone. Someone who is sent by and anointed by God. This person is bringing good and hope-filled news to the people. Not just the message of good but the tangible good and hope.
This person will recognize the broken-hearted, the captives, the marginalized, the lost, and the prisoners in the community. They will bring freedom and healing. The Jubilee, the long-awaited Jubilee is upon us. The sacred and restorative mulligan, a chance to start again. The words of Isaiah paint this kind of hope for generations of people.
It would be another few hundred years between Isaiah and the arrival of Jesus. In Luke’s writing, we are reminded of Jesus proclaiming these very words from Isaiah and declaring “Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.” How long have the people waited for this fulfillment?
But at the same time, we also recognize that disbelief and the loss of hope. Even these beautiful words Isaiah wrote became mere words on paper. Those hearing Jesus read and speak, were stuck to a hope that they have manufactured. It is very different than the disruptive, subversive, transformative and renewing message and embodiment of hope that Jesus brings. Is Isaiah 61 possible? The good news to the marginalized? To experience the day of the Lord? To the absence of mourning?
As we enter into this season of Advent what does hope look like for you?
Does our hope resemble the audacious words of Jesus; the fulfillment of the impossible?
Could these Advent quiet moments bring us to a place where we can open up to this kind of hope (particularly in such a time as these)?
Perhaps it is hard for you to hope; weighed down by the burdens and trials of life and society.
Could we (the larger collective we) hope for others whose shoulders and hearts are burdened?
I close with a portion from A Liturgy of Longing by Rev. Sandra Maria Van Opstal (found in A Rhythm of Prayer, Edited by Sarah Bessey)
We believe you are at work bringing peace. Trust peace – flourishing, wholeness, and well-being. You defend the cause of the fatherless, motherless, and the widow.
You love the strangers…
We believe and we feel overwhelmed – sometimes it is hard to believe that you actually care about the injustice and suffering. When we don’t see your work. When we sense the apathy from the church. When we feel small and forget that we were designed to be different and make things different…
Give us courage to be honest with ourselves about why and how we are doing justice…
Enable us to discover the beauty of justice and inspire action in others. Embolden us to display your goodness in the world…
Thank you for reading the New Leaf Advent Reader, a collection of reflections from writers across Canada. If you are enjoying the reader, sign up to receive the readings in your inbox each day here: SIGN UP
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