Sermon – 12-01-24 – Advent 1 – Cycle C
Scripture: Jeremiah 33:14-16; Psalm 25:1-10; 1 Thessalonians 3:9-13; Luke 21:25-36
Sermon Title: “Hope Is a Star”

Hope is a star that shines in the night, leading us on till the morning is bright.
When God is a child there’s joy in our song.
The last shall be first and the weak shall be strong,
and none shall be afraid.
These words were written by Brian Wren.

Hope is an indication of certainty. “Hope” in Scripture means “a strong and confident expectation.”

Hope is needed in our personal lives. If things are going well, we need hope that God will be with us even when things are not going well. If things are not going well, we hope that things will get better. This is not a light-weight hope. We cling to hope. Hope is the heavy lumber, assembled well, under the bridge. We trust it. We feel the firmness.

So it is with our relationship with God. The more we pray in thankfulness, the more we experience God taking care of us, the more we see God alive in the world around us, the more we praise God together – together, not alone – we are building hope and trust. If this is not so in our lives, we need to find a good model, a good mentor.

During the Babylonian times, hope seemed to be a lost commodity. But in our Jeremiah scripture today, hope is fulfilled – well sort-of. God tells Jeremiah “I will cause a Righteous Branch to spring up for David – meaning the people in the line of David. We read these words in various translations of the Bible: fair and just / justice and righteousness / judgement and righteousness / what is right and just throughout the land. Surely this prophecy, this promise refers to Jesus, the Messiah.

After appearing on earth around the year 0, as we now calculate years, Jesus returned to heaven where he is currently residing. There is so much to come. We heard in our Luke passage today, “People who are afraid will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory.” This is where our hope resides. We who are afraid of approaching doom and evil shall check our supply of hope. The Messiah will come again.. The chaos on earth will become peace. Our salvation will descend on us – being saved by the Holy Spirit.

We can’t forget the “righteousness” Living toward claiming the title of righteousness” is an everyday activity. Doing what is right? Being kind. Not being insistent on our own way. Wanting what is best for the other person. Wanting the other person to know Jesus as we do or wish we did. Thinking of the other person leads to justice. Wanting for the other person to have a warm house and electricity. Wanting the other person to have food and medicine. Wanting the other person to succeed. This is justice. Now wanting this to happen will not cause it to happen. We must “do, we must act.”

How does the communion service help us in our quest for hope? Being in silence, open to the presence of God in our hearts is the way. If we truly want to feel the hope that will chase the fear, we need to be praying for it to happen. We need to have open hearts. We could be telling Jesus that we are ready for a full does of hope. Then we can relax and feel at peace. When Jesus, the Messiah, comes again we will be ready – ready to be judged on our righteousness and acts of justice. But we shall not wait in fear. We shall wait in blessed hope and action. Amen