1.
Please pray with
me. May the words of my mouth and the
meditation of our hearts be pleasing in Your sight, O Lord, our Rock, and our
Redeemer. Amen. The message from God’s Word today is taken
from Romans 15:12-13 where St. Paul quotes Isaiah the prophet saying, “The root of Jesse will come, even he who
arises to rule the Gentiles; in him will the Gentiles hope.” May the God of
hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the
Holy Spirit you may abound in hope. (Rom 15:12–13) The message is entitled,
“Stir Up the Power of Hope,” dear
brothers and sisters in Christ.
2.
Many years ago, a
young man wanted to become a pastor. One
day he visited his Lutheran grandmother in Houston, TX. As they chatted in her
living room, the young man picked up the Sunday bulletin he found lying on the
coffee table and began reading it. A curious word appeared there: “Collect.” “What’s
a ‘collect,’ Grandma?” He asked. “Well, I guess that’s the collection,”
Grandma drawled in her southern Texas accent. “You know, when they take up the money.” Her answer sounded reasonable. We often have
ways of giving answers to questions we know nothing at all about. But as the
young man kept scrolling down the page he came to another word, “Offering.” He was puzzled again. “Grandma,”
He said, “if the collect is the
collection, what’s the offering?” “Well,
maybe they had two collections,” she replied. That was the end of the conversation about
collects. Clearly, Grandma had no idea what she was talking about. It wouldn’t
be till he went to seminary that the young man learned what a collect was.
3.
So, what is a
collect? A collect is a short prayer that collects the thoughts the church
wishes to bring to God for a particular occasion or need. A collect begins with
an invocation to God—Father, Son, or Holy Spirit. Often there’s recognition of
a divine attribute associated with the person of the Holy Trinity being
addressed. Then comes a request for something only God can provide. A reason is
usually given for the request—that it would bring glory to God. And then comes
the conclusion in which the prayer is offered in the name of the two other
members of the Trinity. Each Sunday of
the Church Year has at least one special collect that relates to the season.
But there are also collects to be said after Holy Communion. And there are
collects for worship orders other than the Divine Service. There are collects
for celebrations and special needs.
4.
In the Anglican
Church, the Collect for the Last Sunday of the Church Year goes like this: “Stir up, we beseech thee, O Lord, the wills
of thy faithful people; that they, plenteously bringing forth the fruit of good
works, may of thee be plenteously rewarded; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.”
That collect isn’t in our Lutheran list of collects, maybe because it seems to
teach works-righteousness. But in England it’s so famous that the Last Sunday
of the Church Year is called “Stir-Up
Sunday.” That’s the day families go home and start stirring up Christmas
pudding and other holiday treats. Prince Albert is supposed to have started
that tradition.
5.
We Lutherans do
have “stir up” prayers, though—and in
plenty of time for starting our holiday baking. In fact, these “stir up” prayers, these collects, will
help collect the thoughts of our midweek Advent sermons this year. Our first “stir up” prayer is the Collect for the
First Sunday in Advent: “Stir up Your
power, O Lord, and come, that by Your protection we may be rescued from the
threatening perils of our sins and saved by Your mighty deliverance; for You
live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.
Amen.” Now that’s a theologically
beefy prayer, and it suggests what we want to talk about for this first midweek
service. This prayer calls on our Lord Jesus to come and do what his Father
intends. We ask that by his power he protect us, rescue us, deliver us from the
perils of our sins. Nothing here about rewards and pudding. It’s all about
rescue, the purpose for which Jesus came. Jesus has answered that prayer. And
he will
answer it. Certain that this prayer is
answered, that Jesus has
come and rescued us, we are people with something we all need for living: Rescued
by Jesus, Who Has Stirred Up His Power and Come, We Are Children of Hope.
6.
Hope is always
best when it’s not something we invent or imagine: “I hope the kids make it home
for Christmas.” “I
hope to get all the cards in the mail by Monday.” “I hope . . .” whatever. Real
hope, hope that doesn’t disappoint, is based on a promise. Paul begins our text
by quoting from that great prophet of promise, Isaiah: “The root of Jesse will come, even he who arises to rule the Gentiles; in him will the Gentiles hope” (v 12). Rescued by Jesus, who has
stirred up his power and come, we are children with sure hope.
7.
Isaiah has much
to say about the promise of this root of Jesse. He will be born of a virgin (Is
7:14). “His name shall be called
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace“ (Is
9:6). And he will be “pierced for our
transgressions; . . . crushed for our iniquities; upon him [will be] the
chastisement that [brings] us peace, and with his wounds we are healed. All we
like sheep have gone astray; we have turned—every one—to his own way; and the Lord [will lay] on him the iniquity of us all” (Is
53:5–6). Yes, the root of Jesse will do that, Isaiah promised, so that in
him the Gentiles—and all people—will hope.
8.
As a result,
people who walk in darkness, Isaiah also promises, will see a great light (Is
9:2). A custom that developed among
German Lutherans and spread to many other Christian churches is the lighting of
an Advent wreath. Each candle on the wreath signifies one week of Advent and
each signifies a theme. The first candle, for example, signifies “hope,” given to us by Jesus, the
promised descendant of David.
9.
Faith begins like
that, as a faint flame in our hearts as we hear this good news. As we keep
listening and take to heart each Gospel promise, the light flickers and begins
to grow steady. We’re assured by the promise that we are children of God. We
have that sure hope. And, hope in a
promise then gives something more. Rescued by Jesus, who has stirred up his
power and come, we’re children with, second, the sure hope of peace. “May the God of hope fill you with all . . . peace in believing,” writes Paul in his
benediction (Rom 15:13).
10.
This is the
season of peace. It’s in our Christmas carols, “peace on earth, good will toward men.” It’s in those Christmas
cards. Popes and politicians express blessings and wishes for peace. But if you think about it, living as children
of peace shouldn’t be that hard for us during the holidays. You and I have all
the resources we need to be instruments of peace. The peace on earth that the
angel choir celebrates at Jesus’ birth is a proclamation; it’s not an empty wish. With the birth of Jesus, the Sin-bearer of
humanity by dying for us, God is at peace with the human race. He declares us forgiven.
He’s not angry anymore. Judgment Day in a sense already took place at the
cross. The war is over. You and I can lay down our arms of rebellion.
11.
People who
embrace the peace of God in Christ are peacemakers. Instead of blaming, they
forgive and focus on the new creation we are in Christ. We see badly behaved
people not as enemies, but as lost souls Jesus wants to find. We see ourselves
as instruments of peace. Usually, when a
husband and wife come for marriage counseling, each wants to blame the other.
They come loaded with evidence to prove their point. But since when did proving
your partner guilty ever make for a peaceful marriage? Blow off steam, sure.
Then, “What can each of you do to improve
your marriage?” As soon as each partner starts thinking that way, each
partner becomes a peacemaker. And they can fall in love again! It works not only in marriage. It works with
co-workers, friends, in the church. It can even work if it’s one-sided. “What can I do to improve this relationship?” Ask
it as a prayer. God will answer. Jesus made peace. It spread to you and me when
he created the new man or woman in us, brought us to faith. Now it’s ours to
take to others.
12.
And that, for
children of hope, is pure joy. Yes, rescued by Jesus, who has stirred up his
power and come, we are, finally, children with the sure hope of joy. “May the
God of hope
fill you with all joy,”
St. Paul says in our text (v 13). You’ve
heard about the man who told his pastor, “Pastor,
you don’t have enough joy. You need to be more joyful.” Then he went on to
criticize the pastor’s sermons and just about everything else he did! Rejoice,
Pastor! It reminds me of the sign I saw on an office wall once: “The floggings will continue until morale
improves.” Scolding someone for lack
of joy isn’t how you make him joyful. Joy comes from the love and forgiveness
of Christ and as the Holy Spirit takes up residence and causes spiritual fruit
to grow. As we meditate on our blessings in Christ, his powerful rescue from
the perils of our sin, a wave of relief floods our souls, freeing us to rejoice.
13.
And it doesn’t
hurt to have a brother or sister in Christ to encourage us, listen to our
sorrows, share our burdens, help us in our daily tasks. It could be a friend, a
wife, a husband, a member of this church, a member of another church—a caring
person who shares your faith, whom you can trust, who will pray with and for you.
Oh, what a difference that makes in our joy as children of God!
14.
A promise, peace,
and joy—these are blessings you possess as children of hope who have been
rescued by the Savior. We don’t work these qualities up. Our Lord Jesus blesses
us with them as we cling to him in faith.
Yes, Lord Jesus, stir up your power and come to us! Powerfully deliver
us from our sins and make us God’s children, trusting in your promise, living
in your peace, rejoicing in your love. In your name we pray. Amen.
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