Home » Ministers' resources » Worship Resources » Preaching Kits » Year C Luke » Kit 1 » Advent 2

Preaching Notes for Nov. 30 to Jan 4

Advent to Christmas 2

December 7 (Advent 2)

Lection
Luke 3:1 -6
        John the Baptist - Standing at the hinge of history - an intertestamental bridge.
Luke 1: 68 -79
        Zechariah¹s prophecy. - Blessed be the Lord.
Mal 3:1 -4
        The coming messenger of the covenant.
        The purifying force
Phil  1:3 - 11
        Thanksgiving with joy; Sharing in the Gospel;
        prayerful concern; love that overflows; a harvest of righteousness

Call to Worship
Blessed be the Lord God:
with kindness and favour the redeemer has considered his people.
The promises of God are fulfilled and the Saviour comes.
The ancient vows are kept and in the light of
God¹s enduring mercy a new day dawns.

Prayer of approach
In the wisdom of your purpose there is love, Lord.

In the gentle grace of your will there is power;

We gather to offer our lives in worship, to seek your presence and grasp the might of your compassion.

Meet us here and accept us, Lord we pray.

We are aware that too easily we have taken your love for granted: we
have enjoyed the good things of life in your world and seldom paused to
offer thanks; we have been quick to complain when things went wrong for us. The irritations of life have loomed large but we have regarded the pain of others as less important. Our concerns have been for our own comfort while the life struggles of those less fortunate have not concerned us. We have found fault and proudly read the errors of others when acceptance and assistance might have been more use.

Forgive our selfishness, O Lord.

Let the light of your love illuminate our view of your world. Help us to see our neighbour as you see them: to love the unlovable as you love them and care for the careless as you care for them

Show us a new view of your purpose for us that, strengthened by your Holy
Spirit , we may declare by our deeds and our words the wonder of your love
for all.

Lead us into life, Lord.  Amen

Sermon Notes
In the midst of the commercial season John the Baptist made his voice heard. It's always the commercial season. The political season never stops either. Notice how the setting Luke clarifies in terms of who was wielding power and where. Politics and commerce do not have a very good track record when it comes to righteousness and repentance.

But it is not the goodness of people that necessarily makes them historical figures and what Luke gives us is an approximation of the date of the ministry of the prophet in terms of what was happening about him.

John¹s call is for his people to return to the best of their past. To listen to the wisdom of the prophet Isaiah and prepare themselves for the future by turning away from their selfishness and self-interest for a new thing is about to burst upon them. A new judgement.

The prophetic stream of Israel has been like a dormant bulb lying in the soil and John sees himself as the messenger of the new covenant. He is the forerunner who alerts the household of Israel to the approach of the bridegroom. It's time to shine the family silver, dust out the dark corners of the room, shake the mats and be ready.

John does not see himself as the "one who is to come" but he is doing his best to have "what is" ready for what is to come.

It is easy for us, historically remote from the event, to confuse the message of John with the Gospel that is incarnate in Jesus Christ. Certainly  Luke wrote after the events of the resurrection and he saw all the events in the light of the mystery and experience of the ministry of Jesus  but  what John is offering the people of his day is the best' run out model' from the past. It has its own integrity and in many ways it is the foundation on which the message of Jesus is delivered.  It is the context.

Just as cell phones and computers are part of the context of the present.

But John is like a traveller standing on  a high hill. What he knows is the path of the past and what the future holds  is yet to be explored. His task is to make sure that everything possible for the next stage is in hand.  This is all about anticipation - being prepared for what is to be!