Sermons

“Preparing the Way of Joy”

Isaiah 35:1-10; Matthew 11:2-11 – Rev. Rebecca Littlejohn

Vista La Mesa Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), La Mesa, California – December 11, 2016

Holy God, bless the speaking and the hearing of these words, that we might join the mighty throng walking in the way of your Christ and rejoice in bringing all people alongside us in the journey. We pray in Jesus’ name, Amen.

My sister was trying to explain her sense of direction to me once. She has a sense of direction, she said, but there’s only one direction, and that is Forward. It seems to me that scripture is telling us this morning that this is true, in the kingdom of heaven. This highway, the Holy Way Isaiah tells us it’s called, is so blessed that no one can take a wrong turn, not even those who have no idea what they’re going. All you have to do is go forward.

Have you ever gotten lost? There are a lot more tools to help us find our way around these days, but think back to the olden days before GPS and maps on phones. Are you one of those people who are just as likely to get lost before you get where you are going as you are to just get there? Does anybody here regularly factor in extra travel time for taking wrong turns? If so, Isaiah’s description of this highway in the wilderness probably sounds like a huge relief. And if you’re not prone to losing your way, this is still a good deal: It’s always nice to be able to travel without fear of lions and other ravenous beasts.

It’s not just the barriers of directional challenges and wild animals that are being removed on this highway of God’s in the wilderness. The blind will see, the lame will leap like deer, the deaf will hear, and the speechless will sing for joy. The thirsty, drought-stricken land will be watered, the weak hands will be strengthened and the feeble knees will be made firm. There are enough ‘for instances’ of barriers being removed that it seems clear that the point is that all the barriers that might keep any one of God’s children from joining the parade will be dismantled. There is nothing left to keep anyone from joining in, not even simple fear. “Say to those who are of a fearful heart,” Isaiah commands us, “‘Be strong, do not fear! Here is your God.’”

It seems fitting that this week in which we focus on the Joy of the season is bookended, here at VLM, with active examples of bringing people on the margins into the house of God. Yesterday at Welcome Saturday, numerous folks from within our congregation gathered with other neighbors who are going through hard times, to share in a hot breakfast, to offer the chance to take a shower, to provide clothes and blankets and other necessities. Next Saturday, we will begin our annual rotation of Interfaith Shelter, welcoming in 12 or so men, women and children, to live with us here for two weeks, as they work toward a more stable situation. And today and into this week, we will be collecting the gifts you have been buying for the families at the El Nido shelter, to ensure the women and children there won’t feel forgotten or left out of the celebration of Jesus’ birth. This is the everlasting joy that Isaiah is writing about.

Is it because of Christmas cards that our superficial impressions of joy are so static, so still-life? Joy is a moving thing, an active thing. And not just in the dance-around-the-kitchen-while-you’re-baking-cookies sort of way. The true joy of Christmas isn’t even always that much fun in the moment, but it’s rewarding in a much deeper way. The true joy of Christmas comes when we do whatever we can to bring more people onto that highway in the wilderness that has suddenly burst out in blossoms and reeds and rushes, where no one can go astray. The true joy of Christmas comes when we successfully remove barriers that have been separating people or keeping people from moving forward. And this isn’t, of course, just about serving those without homes.

There are people in this room who have experienced the healing power of Jesus in their lives. You know who you are. Whether it was cancer or addiction or injury or heartbreak or depression, there are those here who have felt the powerful relief of being set free from the thing that was keeping you from walking the highway. Some of you experienced this healing power through the vessel of loving relationship, perhaps even with other folks in this room. Sometimes even just listening deeply and compassionately to one another can channel the healing power of Jesus. There is that short line from the 23^rd Psalm: “you restoreth my soul.” And isn’t amazing when that happens?

When John’s disciples came to Jesus, trying to figure him out, Jesus referenced the signs of the kingdom of heaven we read about in Isaiah 35. The blind were having their sight restored; the lame were walking. But did you notice that other thing he said? “And blessed is anyone who takes no offense at me.” Why would he add that on? What does it mean? But aren’t we glad he did?

We may not have it in us to restore sight to the blind or give the deaf hearing (though some of you are working on that on!). But Jesus says we get to be included even if we just “take no offense.” We’d like to think that’s a “gimme” but if we’re honest, we have to admit that we don’t always respond well when others are blessed, even if the blessing they receive is something we don’t need. We so easily get caught up in whether people deserve things, or whether they’ve earned what’s being given. We divide ourselves from others, so that we can’t see their wins as our own. When we do this, we separate ourselves from the joy of Christmas. It’s like we’re walling ourselves off from that highway in the wilderness that leads to the kingdom of heaven. Getting lost is one thing; intentionally going the wrong direction is a whole other thing again.

The truth is that Jesus is so much easier to take than John the Baptist. But Jesus is right to point us back toward John for just a moment here. Wonderful things are happening, but we are so easily tempted to reject them if they don’t please us in just the right way. By asking us what we thought the whole point of John coming first was, Jesus is reminding us that the steps of repentance can’t be skipped. If we want to get on the highway of Joy, there are certain kinds of baggage we’ve got to leave behind. If our hearts are so small that they can’t rejoice when someone else gets something they didn’t earn, we’re not going to find that highway so easy to travel. If the water finally arrives to satiate the drought-stricken land, and we want to use all of it for our own lawn, we’re not going to see the flowers blooming in the river beds. Perhaps another way of saying it is that the joy of Christmas is not an individual joy; it’s a shared joy. That is, it’s only joy when it’s shared. We can only tap into the joy of Christmas when we’re actively preparing the way for Christ to come into the world by seeking God’s abundance for all peoples. This means repentance. It means sharing. It means cultivating generosity of heart and purse. It means opening up our lives to those who are living in very different circumstances than we are, whether a neighbor down the street, or a child seeking shelter from bombs in Aleppo. The joy of Christmas is an everlasting joy, not a temporary feeling of elation. It grows out of living our lives in the pattern of Christ, aiming always to reflect God’s light and love into the world more brightly.

When we are living in that space, there is only one direction, and that is Forward. No one gets lost, because everyone is holding someone’s hand. And there isn’t just walking on that highway. There is dancing and leaping for joy. Alleluia and Amen.