Hi everyone,
Welcome to worship this 4th Sunday of Advent, landing on December 24th, 2023! I know it’s weird that it’s the 4th Sunday of Advent and not Christmas Eve, but that will happen later in the day. But for now, we reflect on this last day of this season of waiting and preparing for Jesus entering into our lives.
The bulletin for this service can be found here. You can download to follow along with, or just rely on the words that will appear on your screen.
For a fuller online worship experience, you can have a candle in your space, lit at the beginning of the service and extinguished with the altar candles at the end of the service after the sending hymn. You are also welcome to participate in communion by having something small to eat and drink ready for the appropriate time in the service. Further instruction as to when to consume will come at that time.
May God’s love fill you with anticipating joy, this end of the Advent season and always!
Astonishing God, send your Spirit upon us this day as we anticipate your presence among us. Open our eyes that we may conceive the gift of you with us, among us, and as one of us, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Travel back in time with me, if you will, to the early 80s, the decade in which I did much of my growing up. There was a relatively unknown band out of Australia that put out a new song that became the anthem for at least the kids in my class. We would sing it all the time, often in taunt against the losing team of whatever sport we were playing, because the song talked about how things just are as they are, we cannot change it. Things will be as they will be, so we might as well accept it. Things just “is what it is” so don’t feel so bad that your team sucks and is losing right now.
We would sing the heck out of this song, not just because it was catchy and fun and so easily rolls out of your mouth and it just feels good to sing it, but also as a nice way to tell our opponents that it’s ok to lose once in a while, to not always be the best, and to pick yourself up and try again (at the same time still remind them that we’re winning).
“Life is Life” was the name of the song, and my goodness did we ever love it. Sha na na na na.
I’m sure you’ve heard this song before. It’s been used in commercials, jingles, and it was even used as the theme song of one of the World Cups. It’s a song that really is timeless and for me, a song that pops into my head from time to time when I think of life just being life.
And to be honest, this past week was one of those times. And as this song was percolating in my head, in fact I couldn’t get it out of my head as I’m sure some of you can’t right now either, I decided to look up the song so I could listen to it. I turned to trusty Google to find it on YouTube and guess what I found?
The song isn’t called “Life is Life” at all. Instead, it’s “Live is life”. L-I-V-E, not L-I-F-E. I know, right? Who else thought it was Life is Life? Sha no no no no.
Crazy, right? I’m still kind of blown away by it all and I admittedly took a long time to try to figure out if it’s “live” (short I) as and verb or “live” (long I) as an adjective. At first I was convinced that it was the verb as it made more grammatical sense although it didn’t really sound like it. I just chalked it up to their Australian accents making it sound different. But after more research than I ever imagined, I’ve come to learn that it’s actually the adjective form with the long vowel sound, because the band actually wrote this song to be specifically about their live performances and concerts. “Live is Life”.
But either case, the new meaning of the song remains roughly the same regardless of how you pronounce it or with whatever accent. And I think this new revelation for me makes the song better, as I said as kids we used to sing this song as a taunt, telling others to lick their wounds and roll with the punches, much like a song called “Life is Life” would do. But now that I know this song is called “Live is Life”, then it’s less of a consoling kind of theme and more of a battle cry to go out there and take life by the horns, give it your all, and live each moment to the fullest and just experience life.
And to me, that is what I feel Mary does in today’s reading. Today, the 4th Sunday of Advent is the Sunday of love. It’s Sunday of Advent that we hear about Jesus’ earthly parents and their encounter with the divine. Today, we get the story of Mary’s encounter, when she learns for the first time that she will be with child. Mary, who we are told is very young, likely in the 12- or 13-year-old range. Mary, who we can assume is quite poor just by the nature of where she is from and the era of this story. Mary, who is not yet married but betrothed, has just been told by some mysterious celestial being that she will bear a child in spite of everything else telling her that she shouldn’t. Quite a smack to the head, isn’t it.
I mean, I’m thankful that I didn’t have to go through this as a 12 or 13 year old, and I’m relieved that none of my kids have either (not yet at least as 2 of them aren’t that age yet). But I can imagine that this kind of news would be scary, terrifying even, to the point that you’d want to give up and just “nope” on out of there. That angel Gabriel can keep his news.
But Mary doesn’t do that. Not for very long anyway. Instead, in just a few short verses she breaks out in the song that we get for our Psalm today, and sings about the glorious wonders of her life and the child in her womb, and the great providence of our God. To Mary, life just isn’t life, but live is life, as even in the face of the fear, the trouble, the uncertainty of it all, she is able to carry on, sing, and give thanks and praise to God.
Sure, we might think, that’s nice for Mary and all. I mean, good for her to figure all that out. She’s going to need that resolve and wisdom if she’s going to be raising the Messiah. But the part that is missing today between Mary getting the news from the angel and her singing, the part that incidentally we’ll get next year on the 4th Sunday of Advent in year C, is about Mary going out and seeking help.
See, Mary gets the news and she heads out to see her cousin, Elizabeth, the mother of John the baptizer. And it was there that Mary receives great encouragement and feels lifted up enough to sing out in joy.
I know, you all might know this story and are bored just hearing me regurgitate it, but I found this really interesting this time around. As the life that Mary is about to lead, the live part that she is called to, the love that she is able to carry from the moment that Jesus is born, to her being among the few at the foot of the cross, comes from community.
I mean, not much community in great numbers, as first it’s just Elizabeth, then Joseph and some sleepy shepherds, and then all but like one of the disciples desert her, but those few are enough.
“Where two or more are gathered” Jesus says. When there is another with us that can understand who, what, and where we are. Those times when we realise that we are indeed plugged into community… there is love.
There is love that reminds us that we are valued and worthy. There is love that redeems us even in the face of adversity and trouble. There is love that gives us the strength to live the life that truly is life.
This is what I see for this 4th Sunday of Advent. That Mary, the mother of our Lord, could have very easily been filled with a fear that would drive her to give up, she instead is filled with a love that moved her to live. The shame she may have anticipated to have was replaced with the support and care of her husband and family and community. The lowliness and unworthiness that she was raised to feel as being from the wrong side of the tracks, the wrong side of the social ladder, and the wrong side of what was socially acceptable for the time, has been put away to make room for the favour of God that she had all along, the blessing of the community to which she belongs, and the life of joy and love in the Spirit that flows through us all.
This is the progression that we get through this season, from divine hope that leads to gracious peace that brings fulfilling joy, we are brought to love. Love ourselves for who we are created to be as God’s people. Love for others who are there with us and help us see the face of the living God. Love for God our Creator, Redeemer, and Saviour, who redeems us and is with us and reminds us of a life worth living.
Wherever we are, whatever we are going through, however we are feeling, know that you are wonderfully made, welcomed into relationship and community, and wholly loved by the God who lifts us up to live life. Sha yes yes yes yes.
So as we finish this season of Advent to move into the season of Christmas, may we wholeheartedly embrace the love of the Christ Child, reminding us of who we are, whose we are, and who is with us always. Thanks be to God. Amen.