Restore Us, O God: Love
Psalm 89:1-4, 19-26 12/18/2011 Fourth Sunday of Advent
The Church of the Wayfarer, Carmel-by-the-Sea, CA
Dr. Norm Mowery, Pastor
What's the craziest thing you have ever done for love? To what lengths would you go for the one you love? Has love ever inspired you to make some vaguely ridiculous,
over-the-top actions? I’ve noted elaborate marriage proposals that pop up in the news from time to time.
· I remember one man who paid to have his marriage proposal flashed across the jumbotron at a baseball game.
· Another that I heard about invited his girlfriend into a small plane so that they could have a bird's-eye view of a hayfield where the farmer had mown out the words "marry me."
· Another guy took the risk of proposing to his girlfriend on live morning television as millions watched.
· Our own Amber Hess was proposed to by Gus who rewrote a video game. While the two of them played the game one of the characters popped the question! Each of these people took a risk;
because these proposals could have gone wrong.
Instead, they had the desired effect—the answer in each case was yes! The point I want to make is that daring openly to express our love can have wonderfully satisfying results. It's not just new love that encourages dramatic displays of devotion. Love can invite sacrifice and determination at any age and under many circumstances.
· Consider the father who drives all night to avoid missing his first grader's school play.
· Or the mother who sits at her desk every day to write to her son during his yearlong deployment overseas.
· There's the insurance agent who donated his kidney for his coworker in the next office cubicle.
· Even animals can demonstrate a humbling sense of loyalty and devotion; think about the beagle that refused to leave the site of a car accident which left its owners badly injured.
· Concerned neighbors fed the dog for weeks until the owners could finally reclaim this faithful animal that just wouldn't give up. What would you do for the one you love?
What wouldn't you do for the one you love?
There comes a time when it's not enough to simply declare love; words can seem empty without convincing actions to back them up.
A constant theme in love songs is the celebration of
tangible,
visible
devotion on display for all to see.
· Love is the thousand yellow ribbons on the old oak tree;
· it's Marvin Gaye vowing that there's no mountain too high,
no river too wide
or any valley too low
to keep him away from his beloved.
This is what love looks like. The Psalm for today tells of God's love for the world. The psalmist sings God's love song for the world to hear as God's unbreakable covenant is proclaimed.
God's steadfast love will be recklessly poured out on God's beloved.
Psalm 89 is filled with action verbs, reflecting a God in motion, unstoppable because of the power of this love.
· It says that there will inevitably be obstacles to love, but God is prepared.
· God will not allow the enemy to outwit the beloved.
· Any foes will be crushed and haters will be struck down.
This is not a fairy tale,
sticky-sweet,
unrealistic love;
this is a relationship that will be tested by daunting obstacles but which will continue because of the faithfulness of God. In this enduring covenant,
God promises "my faithfulness and steadfast love."
The beloved will respond to this lasting relationship with the heartfelt cry, "You are my Father, my God, and the Rock of my salvation!"
This is what God would do for love—God enters into this relationship wholeheartedly and without reservation.
God declares unending love without abandon. This is Christmas love. This kind of love demands courage.
As we celebrate Advent and Christmas, we're fully aware of where God's love is leading us.
· The love might begin in the soft manger, but it inevitably will lead to the harsh noonday sun reflecting on the Cross.
· God knows this but does not shy away from the pain that is coming.
· God's extravagant love is demonstrated in God's willingness to give sacrificially.
· God bestows the most precious gift, God's Son, knowing that this offering will not
be appreciated, honored, or at times, even recognized.
The price is great, almost beyond measure.
The gift of Christmas is that God looks at the cost without blinking. God does indeed care enough to send the very best.
The best is the gift of Christ.
It's the gift -- - that makes the angels sing, - the shepherds run to attention, - the magi travel to worship - and it's the gift that continues to bless us even today. God's love is an "always" love;
the psalmist assures us that God is steadfast in devotion and faithfulness.
This covenant is reminiscent of a marriage vow;
the divine promise is to be faithful until parted by death.
This covenant is like the covenant we have made with Pixie. You knew that Pixie would come into this sermon someplace didn’t you?!
Pixie is the newest member of the Mowery family.
Pixie is a rescue dog that has been a part of the Mowery Family for a total of one week.
Pixie is an eight pound ball of fluffy joyous loving Maltese mix.
Pixie has changed my life! What a week it has been! I had no idea what was involved in adding a dog to the family.
We have had to make a commitment to Pixie with an ‘always’ kind of love. I am only beginning to realize how big a commitment we have made. We ask,
Why won’t she eat?
Does she need to go out?
Why won’t she stay in her bed?
What is she trying to tell us now?
The thing that I have become most aware of this week is how dependent Pixie is on Linda and me and how we must now schedule our activities around her. She is the one in charge!
When we got Pixie from the Peace of Mind Rescue agency last Saturday we were told that we could return her at any time.
No way! Not! Pixie is ours. We are committed.
The love that we light in our hearts as we light the love candle on the Advent Wreath is not a conditional love. There is no turning back.
It is not a careful love.
There is no prenuptial agreement here.
There is no backing out.
This is dive in,
take no prisoners,
head-over-heels,
no-holds-barred kind of love.
God is willing to give Jesus the beloved
on behalf of this fickle, unappreciative world.
God is willing to give Jesus even if we reject him.
This is what God would do for love:
God will offer that which is most precious. The strength of this love should bring to mind the pledge of parents when they catch the first glimpse of their newborn child.
In that instant an unbreakable bond is formed with the understood vow, "I will always be there for you."
It is fierceness like that of a tigress or a mother bear—“I will fight for you, if necessary,” God says. I will defend you with my life. Although this love will seek to protect
and promises never to abandon,
it does not and cannot promise
an absence of danger, loss or stress.
As we face the longest night of the year this coming week we remember that God promises that the love of God will never end;
the evil that exists cannot prevail.
It's not a gilded path free of pain or sorrow, but rather the faithfulness along a precarious journey;
it's the promise of a love that is steadfast,
strong
and true.
We can count on this love, no matter what comes. As creative as some marriage proposals might be, it's this mature,
lasting love
that every couple really needs.
They need a love that offers the armor and protection that is needed to see them through the ups and downs that await them down the road. That love arrives in a simple package,
laid in a manger,
approachable by all who wish to encounter him.
This gift and promise of God is for everyone.
One could mistakenly believe that Advent is about an adorable baby who mysteriously appears annually at this time of year.
Yet this child who is born to us,
this Son who is given is the Savior of the world.
The Advent season asks us to prepare our hearts to receive a love that is humbling in its passion
and amazing in its depth. God's love does not fade, weaken or diminish.
It's offered to us fresh and new every day.
What are we asked to do for this love? Simply say "yes" to God who is always willing to give us more.
Longest Night
Harry Andersen
Joan Solak
Margaret Nelson
Matt Maybaurer
Compassionate God, as we face the longest night in this time of darkness, we wait for the One who will come to us.
As we revel in the merriment of the season we need to remember there are also many for whom the holiday season isn’t one of joy and good cheer.
We pray for those who cannot see the light in the darkness, that they would find hope in the promise of the Christ child.
Lord, in your mercy, hear our prayer.We pray for those who grieve this Advent season that they would know your hope in the promise of the resurrection.
Lord, in your mercy, hear our prayer.We pray for those who struggle to feel joy because lack of employment, that they would have faith that you will provide.
Lord, in your mercy, hear our prayer.We pray for our military families who are separated by great distance from their loved ones serving in Iraq, Afghanistan or elsewhere, whose tables have an empty seat this Christmas.
Lord, in your mercy, hear our prayer.We pray for those whose family dynamics make holidays not a time of festive joy but of stress and anger.
Lord, in your mercy, hear our prayer.We lift our joys and give over our concerns to your tender care as we pray the prayer that you pray for your disciples of all ages saying……
