ADVENT I

December 1, 2024

“Tear Open the Heavens”

     “O that you would tear open the heavens and come down, 

          so that the mountains would quake at your presence—

      to make your name known to your adversaries, 

               so that the nations might tremble at your presence!

     When you did awesome deeds that we did not expect,

          you came down, the mountains quaked at your presence.”   (Isaiah 64:1, 2b-3) 

     Happy New Church Year!  I’ve always loved how the Christian church goes its own way in deciding when a new year begins, rather than going by the calendar of most of the Western hemisphere.  After all, for anyone looking for a new beginning, or a sense of starting anew, this beautiful time guides us in anticipation and hope.  

     Throughout the Old Testament we read the prophecies and promises that tell us of the Messiah, God’s promised Savior, the One sent to save God’s people from their sins and relieve them from the burdens of the law.  You can imagine how the people of Israel, after being oppressed for generations by foreign powers, clung to the hope of a leader who would bring them to a position of prestige and strength.  Many envisioned the miraculous arrival of a warrior king with an army to enforce his rule and destroy all who would oppose him. 

     Isaiah is filled with poetic, dramatic images, such as this passage from chapter 64, in which the prophet calls upon God to “come down” and show the world that the very mountains would shake in his presence.  As the prophet pleads with God to tear open the heavens, we envision a barrier existing between God and humanity.  The suffering and hardship brought about by sin and evil does create a distance between people and God, and it may well seem impenetrable.  The image of God fiercely ripping into the fabric of human wrongdoing tells us that God’s strength is greater than the barrier created by sin and evil, and he will rescue and protect us.

     The centuries come and go, and the world still hungers for the reassurance that God will come and be present among us, overcoming the forces of evil and hatred.  As we gather for worship during these weeks, we once again will hear the timeless message of God’s commitment to his people, the events leading up to the arrival of the promised Messiah, and how the world was changed for all time.  

     The prayers during Advent are some of the earliest of the Christian church, and are timeless in expressing our trust that God is with us in the world and in our lives, and that his faithfulness endures to all generations.

  Stir up your power, Lord Christ, and come.  By your merciful protection awaken us to the threatening dangers of our sins, and keep us blameless until the coming of your new day, for you live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.  AMEN.

(Evangelical Lutheran Worship, P. 18, First Sunday of Advent)

Anticipating the fulfillment of the prophecies,

Your friend in Christ,

Mary Rogers