Sermon – 12-15-24 – Advent 3 – Cycle 3
Scripture: Zephaniah 3:14-20; Isaiah 12:2-6; Philippians 4:4-7; Luke 3:7-18
Sermon Title: “Joy is a Song”

There were five of us, each cozily looking at each other from our own rectangle box on the Zoom screen. This is our Tuesday Bible Study. We invite ourselves into each other’s homes or offices. We each have a different version or translation of the Bible. We open with prayer asking God to be our leader. We read and re-read the next Sunday’s scripture lessons.

We usually start with the Old Testament lesson because that is how life happened – from the Old Testament to the New Testament, looking forward to the second coming of Jesus. You may have noticed that Jesus has not yet come to earth the second time. We say come to earth, but there is the idea that the realm of heaven and the realm of earth are not two separate places – just a different way of being.

So we are reading the passage from Zephaniah, a very small book squashed between Habaukkuh and Haggai. In your version, I see the geographic places of Jerusalem and Israel and Zion. They could mean geographical places. Or they can mean the groups of people who belong to God – God’s people. But right away, I am fixated on geography and history. The other four people see a different message. They tell me that this passage is about joy. It is not about the time when Zephaniah actually prophesied God’s message; it is about the future – future even for us! My four Bible-study mates see the joy of the second coming of Jesus. It is all about Jesus! Forget the returning of the Israelites from Babylon. Forget the rebuilding of Jerusalem. This is about future visions.

Most of Zephaniah is about God’s judgment of ourselves and everyone. But God is looking forward to when his people will be saved from the evil of the world. Our responsibility is to stay focused on God, doing our best to obey God’s will and to stay in his arena. The ones who do not stay in God’s arena he will put aside – as in vanquish them.

We do not need to worry about the end times if we keep Jesus alive in our hearts. The people whom we label “evil” now will no longer be a threat. They will either be converted from evil or they will be gone! Let us be vigilant that we stay in God’s good grace. This is exciting news for whenever Jesus appears the second time

But if you are being harrassed now. If someone or something is stalking you and is catching up to you now, counting on the second coming of Jesus is not of much value. Your fear is causing all kinds of havoc with your health and how you are functioning. Where is the joy?

One sample of joy is our community meal – our Soup ‘n’ Such. One family of five children and a mother walked in the freezing and windy night from near Dollar General to our church for the joy of warmth, a tasty meal, and companionship There is the joy!

Joy is in helping one person at a time, Joy is singing Christmas carols. When we see the artificial baby, named Jesus, in the manger, there is joy. When God is a child there’s joy in our song. It is a baby thing. But the baby in our heart is a real thing! Not pretend. This baby will bring us salvation. What is that? It is the forgiveness of our sins. But it is so much more. It is the freedom of our souls; not freedom to sin all over again, but the freedom to open our hearts and receive the love that, in turn, flows into the hearts of people around us. Imagine, just imagine this flow of love.

We should be saying, “Watch out, people who don’t know God! Be careful or this Holy Spirit will catch you, this Holy Spirit that no one can stop.” You know, believers, that God’s wind cannot be stopped. If God wants to blow us into us into a new career, into a different town or state or country, if God wants us to be a social worker for a good, honest helping organization, he will put us there and we will meet bits and pieces of joy or sometimes overwhelming joy.

But do we need to wait for joy? Joy can be a decision. We can change our thinking from stone-like fear and iron-clad reality to thinking that lets the imagination stir within us. John the Baptist was a reality person. He preached practicality. Change your ways, repent, be baptized by water!
John was practical but he knew about the Holy Spirit. He preached that the Holy Spirit and the Messiah would come. John believed this not because he read a book but by lived experience. The Holy Spirit had been involved in the conception and in the birth of John the Baptist, cousin of Jesus.

So let us not demand scientific knowledge about joy. Let us look for joy, let us look for joy in the midst of sadness. Let us be open to the joy of salvation that is waiting to fill our hearts. Amen