"Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel, because he has come and redeemed his people . . . to rescue us from the hand of our enemies, and to enable us to serve him without fear in holiness and righteousness before him all our days."

 

         The Song of Hope is the assurance of the victory of God, in the midst of despair and turmoil and concern over our future. Advent begins in the middle of the Apocalypse, in the sayings of Jesus about a time of perplexity and turmoil. Advent does not begin at the start of a light-hearted season filled with happy music and well wishings for "Season's Greetings." Advent begins in longing and even despair: "O Come, O Come, Emmanuel, and rescue captive Israel." It begins with the realization of our trouble, and of what we have not done. To us who sit in lonely exile, the season begins with a song that announces the victory of God.

         But that first song, or first part of the song, is not enough. It is not enough to know that in the end God wins. It is essential to know that, but it simply is not enough. It is not enough because we have a need to enter into God's victory, to experience God's victory, to participate in it.

         In the American church we have a tendency or need to jump from despair straight into the creation of an immediate Utopia, to declare that all your problems vanish when you accept Christ, to sing that "every day with Jesus is sweeter than the day before." But the song of hope is not about an immediate Utopia, it is about what David Tiede calls "God's unswerving determination to rescue Israel from her oppressors." It is an extended saving process. Even though we enter into that salvation by grace, it remains a song of hope.

         So we come to a remarkable moment in this extended singing to God. We hear the Song of Zechariah, who sings in hope about participation in the Kingdom of God. He begins with a recounting of what God has done, even though what he mentions has not happened yet. This is a song of faith, to call that which is not yet to have been completed, because of his trust in the will and plan of God. He sings about what God has done, what God is doing, and how God has acted powerfully in the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ "to enable us to serve him without fear in holiness and righteousness all our days."

         So in the first part of this song, verses 68-75, Zechariah recalls in very powerful, military, this-worldly language, what God has done to rescue his people so they can serve him. This is told in the language of triumph. Verse 68, "the visitation of God," which is the saving activity of God in our lives, to do what only God can do. When Jesus raises the son of the widow in Nain, Luke 7:15, the people say, "A great prophet has appeared among us. God has come to help his people." God helps us in our struggle with our enemies, our oppressors with all the various things in life that defeat us, including death.

         In verse 69, "he has raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David." This is an image of strength in a time of war or battle. It refers to the king in the Davidic line who defeats the enemies of God in battle. The horn of salvation is an image of triumph. An important part of salvation in Christ is its power to release people from addictions, from violence, from anger, from worry. Jesus Christ is the horn of salvation.

         In verse 71, "salvation from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us." Here we have a very historical and this worldly picture of the working of God's kingdom. There are enemies of God and of God's people in the world, and they are and will be defeated. I think I told you before about our church janitor in Mount Vernon, Oleg, who grew up in the Ukraine. On special days they were given red ties to wear to school to honor the Communist government, and he would take his off on the way to school and throw it in the ditch, knowing what that would mean when he arrived without it. He was a courageous little kid, who somehow knew that salvation from our enemies is a reality in Christ.

         The second part of the song is a description, or prophecy, of what John will do. He will go before the Lord to prepare the way for him. He will give knowledge of salvation through the forgiveness of sins. He will guide our feet into he path of peace.

         So David Tiede concludes that John is seen in this song as a participant in the extended saving process and plan of God. As God's salvation is being initiated, John plays an important beginning role. Of all the images of this salvation of God, images of triumph and battle and visitation, John picks up forgiveness of sin and builds his ministry around calling people to repentance and receiving forgiveness as an entry point into the saving power of God. Tiede says, "The word of forgiveness is not so much the end of God's mission as the necessary means, the beginning of the persistent divine project." In Advent we enter into the salvation of God, which is neither quick nor immediate, which is not yet complete, but which through faith in Christ is real and personal.

         What this song of faith says to us is that we must pay attention to the entry point to the great salvation of God. John shows us that we begin, not in triumph, but in repentance and forgiveness. The Song of Hope begins at the cross. The victory of God over enemies, obstacles and temptations does not begin with the horn of salvation, that is, with the triumph over those who do not agree; but God's victory begins in repentance, in the experience of forgiveness through Christ.

         Perhaps you have not asked Christ to forgive you, and you have sought to enter his kingdom by another way. You have tried to rely on your goodness, and you are not experiencing the peace and victory of God. I invite you today to sing the song of hope at the cross. Begin by confessing your sin to Christ, ask for his forgiveness, and simply invite him into your life as Savior and Lord.

         Sometimes we treat forgiveness as an end, and not a beginning. There is so much more to God's kingdom, once we have been forgiven. The goal of the kingdom is not just to feel forgiven, but to serve God without fear in holiness and righteousness all our days.

         I know that I can often get caught in regret. I do a lot of things wrong, incorrectly. I have never been able to color inside the lines. I cannot begin to live up to expectations or requirements. So I often get caught in regret over my lack of perfection or competence.

         But life in God's kingdom sets my heart on another goal. When I move away from feeling regret for my many inadequacies, and give my life and energy to serving God without fear, then the regrets fade. They are usually not very important, anyway. The kingdom of Christ is very large, and it is not about you or about me, it is not about how we feel or about trying to do everything right. The kingdom is about loving and serving God with all our hearts and minds and strength. Such a life is not always pretty, not always neat and correct and pleasing to everyone. It is not something you can ever get right.

         My observation is that the people who make the biggest impact for Christ with their lives don't do it correctly. They do not do it the "right" way, they just love Jesus and so they serve him with love for God and neighbor. They simply are themselves, and live without fear. This is what Christ allows you to be. The victory of Christ in your life sets you free, free from our fears of failure, fears of what others will say, fears of your weaknesses, fears of the resistance within that is revealed whenever you try to do God's will. You have been set free to serve God.

         Zechariah sings a song of hope. In the communion Christ meets us with forgiveness, and with power, with the victory that enables us to serve him without fear, all our days.

        Amen.