Advent 1, November 29, 2015

For a theme for this Advent-Christmas-Epiphany Season, I chose to preach on angels, because they play an important role in the Christmas story as they reveal the plan of God for our salvation. The English word gangelh comes from the word in New Testament Greek meaning gmessenger.h We also find the word gangelh in the word gevangelism,h which means to tell the good message of Salvation. The Christmas angels, the Easter angels, and the Ascension angels are all messengers with a message from God about our salvation through Jesus Christ.

The angel to look at today is Gabriel when he visited Zechariah, the father of John the Baptist. This is recorded in the First Chapter of the Gospel of St. Luke, Luke 1:5~25, 39~80.

When the priest Zechariah was in the Temple offering prayers and incense, the angel Gabriel appeared to him and gave the message that Zechariah and his wife Elizabeth would have a son. This son would prepare the people of Israel for the coming of the Messiah. From the time of his birth he would be a person dedicated to God, and he would be filled with the Holy Spirit. Being filled with the Holy Spirit would make him a prophet of the Lord. And as we see in the events surrounding his birth, both his father and mother are also prophets filled with the Holy Spirit and proclaim the salvation of the Lord in word and song.

There is only one big problem, which Zechariah points out to Gabriel. He and his wife are both old and his wife is barren and cannot have children. He thought the message of the angel was impossible nonsense. gHow can I be sure of this? I am an old man and my wife is well along in years,h he asked (1:18). He knew he was talking to an angel. He knew that the message was from God, and yet he could not believe the message. He could not believe it because it was against logic and he was sure they could not have a child. And so his question, gHow can I be sure of this?h is really not a question for more information, but a rejection of the message. He doubts the authority of Gabriel. Zechariah wants proof, he wants a sign.

The angel shows his credentials. gI am Gabriel. I stand in the presence of God, and I have been sent to speak to you and to tell you this good newsh (1:19). The words of the angel are the words of God. It is a message directly from God. Therefore the message is true and will come about just as the angel says.

Zechariah asked for a sign, so he is given one. He did not believe the words spoken by Gabriel, so he will not be able to speak words until the baby is born. And so it was.

As the story proceeds, Zechariahfs wife Elizabeth did become pregnant and bore a son. When Zechariah insisted on the name gJohn,h which the Angel said the child must be named, it showed that he did indeed now believe and trust the words of the angel, and so now could speak again and praise God. And the neighbors saw this miracle, too. We read, Luke 1:66, gEveryone who heard this wondered about it, asking, eWhat then is this child going to be?f @For the Lordfs hand was with him.h

We could talk about the many details in Luke Chapter One, but personally I think the most interesting for me is the dialog between Gabriel and Zechariah, and how Zechariah responded to the Gospel message. I think this is important because if I were Zechariah, I would probably act the same way he did. And so, I need to learn something from him.

How would I react if I saw an angel? How would I or you know it were an angel? How would we know it was a message from God? For Zechariah, it was in the Temple at the hour of sacrifice and prayer. This would correspond to our church worship, perhaps at the time of the Lordfs Supper. The message of the angel is spoken to us in the Bible readings, in the sermon, in the hymns and prayers. Is there ever a time when we react like Zechariah? We read Zechariahfs reaction in verse 12, gWhen Zechariah saw him, he was startled and was gripped with fear.h We might be startled in church if the preacher says something or if the Bible reading speaks right into the middle of our hearts and lives and conscience. If our sin is revealed, if we see the judgment of God, if we see our unworthiness before God, we might be gripped with fear, the fear of judgment.

Or like Zechariah, we might dismiss the Gospel as nonsense and impossible fantasy: Jesus born of a virgin? Raised on the third day? It is unscientific and illogical. How could that forgive my sin? This is the common reaction of most people when they hear the Gospel message. Christians too must think about these things because it is the heart of the message. And we believe it by faith.

Our faith is based on the same faith as Zechariah. He wanted proof, he wanted a sign. Gabriel gave him the sign that he could not speak until he would believe the angelfs message and named his son gJohn.h We too want proof, some sign. The proof of the Gospel is the death and resurrection of Jesus on the third day. That is the only proof there is. But when our faith is weak, we want signs that will make our faith stronger. I am going to suggest a sign. This sign is the love of Christians who believe the Gospel. Because they love the Lord God with all their heart and mind and soul, they love their neighbor as themselves. They love their family, their friends, and even their enemies. They live as if they have already been resurrected. That is to say, they live out their baptism where they were drowned to sin and raised up to live with Christ. When Zechariahfs son was born, he was given the name spoken by the angel. When we are reborn in baptism, we are given the name of the Triune God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

Zechariah confessed his faith by writing on the tablet, gHis name is Johnh (1:63). We confess our faith in the words of the Creed and the Lordfs Prayer.

It is the job of an angel to gevangelize,h to tell the good message. This Christmas when we tell the Christmas story, we become the angel messengers of God. It might be fun to have wings and a halo, but as we see in the case of Gabriel, it is not always an easy job. Our message also is not understood or believed; it is challenged, attacked, it is mocked. Jesus is turned into Santa and the angels into reindeer. But we know the truth. We know the Gospel. We know the message of salvation and eternal life. We would write, gHis name is eJesus.fh

Amen.

Michael Nearhood, Pastor
Okinawa Lutheran Church

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