“A Busy God” (Zephaniah 3:16-20)

S-1525 3SIA/3C 12/13/15; Hymns: (O)#355; (S)#819; L.S. #818; #353; #813; (C) #349,

Texts: Zephaniah 3:14-20; Philippians 4:4-7; Luke 7:18-28

Theme: “A Busy God” (Zephaniah 3:16-20)

Question: “How Busy are you during this Season?” (14^th Sermon at Trinity).  

Faithful followers of the Savior, Christ is Risen! He is Risen indeed! Alleluia! The text is the O.T. reading: “On that day it shall be said to Jerusalem: ‘Fear not, O Zion; let not your hands grow weak.  The Lord Your God is in your midst, a mighty One who will save; He will rejoice over you with gladness; He will quiet you by His love; He will exult over you with loud singing. I will gather those of you who mourn for the festival, so that you will no longer suffer reproach. Behold, at that time I will deal with all your oppressors. And I will save the lame and gather the outcast, and I will change their shame into praise and renown in all the earth. At that time I will bring you in, at the time when I gather you together; for I will make you renowned and praised among all the peoples of the earth, when I restore your fortunes before your eyes,’ says the Lord”  (Zephaniah 3:16-20)

INTRODUCTION: In Nomine Iesu 

Oh most beautiful Bride of Christ the facts are true and real. During this time of year many people feel gloomy and glum, depressed and disheartened, sad and scared.  We are so busy and don’t know which way to turn   Too many invitations to attend, backing, cleaning, decorating, buying gifts and wrapping them too, and sending out cards. Loss of loved ones doesn’t help. Medical concerns add to the burdens of life. Too many activities, too little time. Overextended and under-befriended.  Put in layman’s term, we are busy, busy and getting busier by the second and our world is spinning out of control.

But take heart today as you listen to God’s Word through the prophet Zephaniah whose name means: “God is Hidden!” But He is not hidden. Instead, through the O.T. reading we learn that our God is busy. Busy making sure we don’t become overextended and overexerted, fatigued and frazzled; instead He wants us to know of His gracious will for our lives.

However, we don’t know any better. Instead of enjoying this season of Advent and prepare for the Joy that the Savior came into the world to offer sinners like us, we become busy and anxious about all of the things we need to do. In the process, the devil gets hold of us, distracts us, and takes away from us the celebration of the Babe of Bethlehem and turns our focus inward, on what we have to do instead of what the heaven-sent Child has done.

Our busyness drives us away from our loving God. Our busyness adds pressure to our lives that need not be there. Our busyness tires us out. Our busyness makes us sick because we don’t know what to do with ourselves. We are torn between wanting to slow down and do what everyone else is doing and we don’t want to be left out. PAUSE.

In our busy life, the prophet of God extends to us on this third Sunday of Advent, the joy that the God of all grace and compassion offers to burdened people. He draws our attention to the living and powerful Word. Please follow along and mark how busy this gracious God is in our lives. “On that day it shall be said to Jerusalem: ‘Fear not, O Zion; let not your hands grow weak.  The Lord Your God is in your midst, a mighty One who will save¹; He will rejoice² over you with gladness; He will quiet³ you by His love; He will exult⁴ over you with loud singing. I will gather⁵ those of you who mourn for the festival, so that you will no longer suffer reproach. Behold, at that time I will deal⁶ with all your oppressors. And I will save the lame and gather the outcast, and I will change⁷ their shame into praise and renown in all the earth. At that time I will bring⁸ you in, at the time when I gather you together; for I will make⁹ you renowned and praised among all the peoples of the earth, when I restore¹⁰ your fortunes before your eyes,’ says the Lord”

These words of the Prophet bring joy to the heart, first to the people of Judah and then to you and me. This is what the pink candle is all about! The God who promises judgment also brings joy! In these great promises we hear of 10 different ways our Lord is busy blessing us with reasons for joy.

Notice these 10 reasons and write them on the tablets of your hearts so that when you are so busy, you don’t have time, or when you are overworked and overextended with the busyness of day today things; remember also, that Your God is busy working things for your good and for His glory.

1.      He will save you through the King of kings and Lord of lords—the Babe of Bethlehem. 

2.      He will rejoice over you. This is a fabulous language of the Holy Spirit at work over you and filling your heart through the precious gifts of His Word and Sacrament.

3.      He will quiet you with His love. There is nothing in the world that can calm your heart, head and mind like Jesus’ love.

4.      He will exult over you with loud joyful singing. Hallelujah is our chorus; Joy to the world is our good news. This is the most majestic music in history, for our ears, hearts and heads.

5.      He will bring back His people from exile. That is to say, He will bring relief from oppression.

6.      He will in the fullness of time take out all the bullies of this world. Just think of it beloved; there will be NO bullies in heaven.

7.      He will “change” the lame, heal the sick perfectly and raise the dead. All because of the Perfect Savior, who does everything perfectly for us who are imperfect but become Perfect through His grace.

8.      He will take away all shame. In heaven there will be no shame and no blame. But bliss and joy and peace.

9.      He will reunite the outcast, the forsaken and abandoned because of the Son back again to Himself. This is our Awesome, Amazing and Almighty God.

10.  He will restore...joy galore...raise the rafters, celebrate, rejoice, think pink, joy.

These are 10 beautiful and blessed reasons to help us be joyful. You should know children of the heavenly Father that the number 10 stands for the perfect work, of the perfect Savior for the imperfect people like you and me.

We see in our Awesome, Amazing and Almighty God that He really is busy. Busy removing the judgments, punishments, and the power of the devil, busy forgiving us our many sins, busy clearing away our enemies and driving fear away, busy destroying the power of the grave, busy rejoicing over us, busy saving us, busy blessing us, and busy renewing us. All of this He does on account of His Son, the Babe of Bethlehem. Because of the Perfect life of Jesus-the heaven-sent Savior we become perfect in His sight and receive the great blessings that fill our hearts, heads and homes with the true and lasting joy.  PAUSE.

Sadly in our human nature we are always busy in the wrong way. This busyness distracts us and destroys the joy that should be ours. Our minds are busy even when we are not physically busy. In the darkness of the night we begin to question if God cares, or if He is near us.  Satan comes among us and distracts us; just as it was with John the Baptizer who was distracted. Though he was in jail and wasn’t busy physically, yet his mind was very busy. In the Gospel reading we are told: “The disciples of John reported all these things to him. And John, calling two of his disciples to him, sent them to the Lord, saying, ‘Are you the one who is to come, or shall we look for another?’ And when the men had come to him [Jesus], they said, ‘John the Baptist has sent us to you, saying, ‘Are you the One who is to come, or shall we look for another?’” (Lk. 7:18-20)

Of course He is the One. He is the One who does everything right for our benefits. He is the One who is busy in our lives taking away our busyness that makes us anxious and nervous and replace it with His love and peace. He does ALL of this because He IS the Perfect God and Perfect Man who does everything perfect for us who are imperfect so that we might become Perfect in the sight of God.

This is the Savior of Mankind—yours and mine. He is the Babe of Bethlehem. He is the One who rally us in faith and instill confidence, not to bring dismay.  For this is Jesus speaking – Jesus!  The coming Judge and King is also our Savior…and He knows better than anyone that our sins have been paid for, because He paid for them on the cross.  He comes again therefore, not with judgment for you, but for your “redemption” – the fulfillment of God’s salvation plan, which includes destroying all evil and the Evil One, and making all things new.  Including you, with that new and glorious resurrection body that never gets sick, dies, or sins again.  He promises to be this busy GOD FOR YOU!

On account of this promise, we take to heart the words of Paul in the Epistle lesson who exhorts us to, “Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice.  Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God” (Phil. 4:4-6).

Oh, precious people of God, you His Bride, as the Lord has been this busy for us in salvation and deliverance, you and I in this Advent season can be busy in joy and praise! AMEN

Now the peace of God…

SOLI DEO GLORIA  

“God Prepares” (Zephaniah 1:7-8)

S-1455 23SAP/3A 11/16/2014 Hymns: (O) #459 (S) #307; (C) #53

Texts: Zephaniah 1: 7-16; 1 Thessalonians 5:1-11; Matthew 25:14-30

Theme: “God Prepares” (Zephaniah 1:7-8)

Question: “Are you prepared for Christ’s return?”

Faithful followers of the Savior, Christ is Risen! He is risen indeed! Alleluia. The text for our meditation this morning is from the O.T. Lesson: “Be silent before the Lord God! For the day of the Lord is near; the Lord has prepared a sacrifice and consecrated His guests. And on the day of the Lord’s sacrifice—‘I will punish the officials and the king’s sons and all who array themselves in foreign attire’” (Zephaniah 1:7-8).

Beloved in the Lord, last Tuesday (11/11/14) we observed and celebrated Veterans Day. However, many people don’t think of or appreciate the sacrifice of our Veterans. They only think of the day as another day off from work. How tragic and how sad!

Because of these Veterans and the sacrifices they have procured—some even giving up their lives, you and I are able to enjoy freedom of religion, speech, travel and democracy. May we always honor and give thanks to the Lord for the sacrifice of these brave men and women and their families.

Listen to a story of one such Veteran—Robert O’Neil. Robert was part of Seal Team Six that was sent on a mission to kill Osama Bin Laden. On May 2, 2011 Seal Team Six landed in the compound that housed Osama in Pakistan. They went to work quickly and within 15 minutes Robert found himself standing within two feet from Osama. Having recognized him, he shot him 3 times before he collapsed to the floor and died.

I saw a special this past week on Fox News about the “Man who killed Osama Bin Laden.” What I appreciated about this humble man and his service to this great Nation, were these words: “The mission was not about me. It was about killing the one who has brought havoc to thousands who lost their lives and others whose lives were changed forever.” Robert went on to say: “…They (Seal Team Six) felt that the mission would be worth sacrificing their own lives. ‘We are going to die eventually, this is a good way to go and it’s worth it to kill him!’ He said they thought. ‘He's going to die with us!’” Think about it. These men were willing to sacrifice their lives for the success of the mission.

On a far grander scale, with these living, breathing, and active Words; the prophet Zephaniah tells us of the greatest mission the world has ever seen—to bring about the deliverance of God’s people from someone who is far worse than Osama Bin Laden—SIN and its consequences—death and hell. Our heavenly Father sends His Son, on a mission to be the Savior of mankind, and redeem us from God’s justice.

Through the inspired Word of this prophet of God, we are told that God Himself will prepare a sacrifice. He Himself will consecrate His people. He is the Agent behind the scene bringing about deliverance and redemption to those whose lives have been tormented and tortured by the devil and his cohorts ever since the fall of man. God promised our parents in the Garden of Eden (The first Gospel) these words: “I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise His heel” (Gen. 3:15). PAUSE.

Beloved in the Lord, let it be known among us that it is not our service that causes Him to rejoice over us. It is not our self-denial that moves Him to delight in us and it is not our sacrifice that pleases God. If that was the case, we would do all of these things, but all of these activities are NOT the key to our salvation and redemption.

Listen to how David painted it for us: “For You will not delight in sacrifice, or I would give it; You will not be pleased with a burnt offering. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, You will not despise” (Psalm 51:16-17).

Again listen to the voice of God through the pen of David: “Hear, O My people, and I will speak; O Israel, I will testify against you I Am God, Your God. Not for your sacrifices do I rebuke you; your burnt offerings are continually before Me. I will not accept a bull from your house or goats from your folds. For every beast of the forest is Mine, the cattle on a thousand hills. I know all the birds of the hills, and all that moves in the field is Mine. ^‘If I were hungry, I would not tell you, for the world and its fullness are Mine. Do I eat the flesh of bulls or drink the blood of goats? Offer to God a sacrifice of thanksgiving, and perform your vows to the Most High, and call upon Me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you shall glorify Me’” (Psalm 50:7-15). Here is the promise—God will deliver US.

Through all of this we see that it is God who prepares the sacrifice. We behold this so clearly in the story of God telling Abraham to take his son, his only son Isaac and sacrifice him. Along the way “…Isaac said to his father Abraham, “My father!” And he said, “Here I am, my son.” He said, “Behold, the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for a burnt offering?” Abraham said, “God will provide for Himself the lamb for a burnt offering, my son.”(Genesis 22:7-8a). PAUSE.

Indeed God provides the sacrifice. We heard this clear teaching from Jesus’ own lips, “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through Him” (John 3:16-17). And John the Baptizer points to this sacrifice with these words: “The next day he saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29).

The sacrifice that God has prepared—is His—the Lamb that was slain on the Altar of the cross. This Lamb is the sacrifice for the sins of the world—and your sins. So that when the end of the world comes; and the judge eternal is seated on His throne you will not be damned, but delivered. You will not be sent to hell, but ushered into the glories of heaven. You will not taste death but live with Him forever and ever.

Oh, the blessings of this greatest sacrifice that has been prepared for us. In this place God offers this sacrifice to us at His table. This is His work and His gift to us. From the table of the Lord, we get to eat and drink for our benefits and the strengthening of our faith. From this sacrifice we receive grace and mercy that are eternal.

Our sermon hymn captures this thought well with these words: “Draw night and take the body of the Lord, and drink the holy blood for you out-poured. Offered was He for greatest and for least, Himself the Victim and Himself the Priest” (TLH 307 v1).

Indeed, here is the greatest sacrifice prepared by God for us sinners. This is the Lamb that was put to death on the cross for us. The Angel of death HAS passed us by! This is the victory that He prepared and won for us! And He covers us with the proper garments of His righteousness. May we continue to cherish this blessed sacrifice offered, prepared and given by God to us sinners today and always. Amen and Amen.

Now the peace…

SOLI DEO GLORIA

“Mighty to Save” (Zephaniah 3:16-17)

S-1350-3SIA/C 12/16/2012 Hymns: #; #95; #47

Texts: Zephaniah 3:14-20; Philippians 4:4-7; Luke 7:18-28

Theme: “Mighty to Save” (Zephaniah 3:16-17)

Question: “What is it like to be next to someone stronger than you?” Armour, SD

Faithful followers of the Savior, Christ is Risen! He is Risen indeed! Alleluia! The text for our Third Sunday in Advent is from the O.T. Lesson: “On that day it shall be said to Jerusalem:
‘Fear not, O Zion; let not your hands grow weak. The Lord Your God is in Your midst, a mighty One who will save; He will rejoice over you with gladness; He will quiet you by His love; He will exult over you with loud singing’” (Zephaniah 3:16-17).

INTRODUCTION:

O precious Bride of Christ, I don’t need to remind you of the evil in this world. You have heard it, you have seen it and you have been sick by it. On Friday morning a little after 8 our time in Newtown, CT a madman shot and killed 27 precious souls for no apparent reason. As I heard the news I got sick to my stomach that I couldn’t eat. I kept thinking those children that died are a little older than my grandson Brody. I couldn’t fathom the idea that a young, beautiful and defenseless life would be wiped out in a matter of seconds for no clear reason.

As I have listened to the 24/7 news of this terrible tragedy, one commentator after another have asked these questions: “Why did God let this happen? Why didn’t God stop it? Where is God in all of this?” The truth is: “I DON’T KNOW.” However, we do know for the last 50 years we have been systematically taking Him out of the public square. He is no longer welcomed in our schools. No prayers can be offered at graduation. No longer can we put a cross as a memorial for those who died for the sake of this great country. No longer are we permitted to put a crèche in front of stores. He is not welcomed in our homes, towns and public squares. What do you expect from a godless society ! However, He has always been here, hidden and concealed in the flesh of the Babe of Bethlehem and the powerful pages of the Holy Bible.

The prophet Zephaniah speaks to the people of his day and ours with words of comfort and hope. He speaks of the Hero, the One who will save with might and strength. He speaks to the people living right here in Armour and in Newtown, CT. He speaks to our wounded, broken and bleeding hearts. He speaks words that help us see beyond the tragedy and terror, carnage and chaos to the life and love of the Babe of Bethlehem.

Listen to Zephaniah please, ‘Fear not, O Zion; let not your hands grow weak. The Lord Your God is in Your midst, a mighty One who will save; He will rejoice over you with gladness; He will quiet you by His love; He will exult over you with loud singing.’ Yes, fear not. The Lord Your God is in your midst, Emmanuel has come to save. God’s answer to sin and evil in the world is His Son, the God who took upon Him flesh and blood and came to be with us in the manger of Bethlehem.

The prophet Zephaniah, whose name means “The Lord has Concealed” speaks of the depth of our sin and then turns to the greater depth of God’s Grace to restore and heal, to return the captive and give them freedom and liberty to live under Him in peace and protection.

Yes, Jesus is the answer to the evil and wickedness of this world whether it is in your back yard, across the state, in Newtown, CT or in the Middle East, Jesus is the One who comes to save. As per his name, Zephaniah “The Lord has Concealed” this mighty Savior is concealed in the Babe of Bethlehem.

Jesus the little tiny Baby who is dependant on His mother’s breast for sustenance holds her and all people in His loving arms. This is the One who is mighty to save; because He saves in an unusual way. He doesn’t come on the scene with machine guns or power, but He comes in humility to earth and permits others to do evil and wickedness to Him. PAUSE.

Zephaniah in the text states: He will rejoice over you with gladness; He will quiet you by His love; He will exult over you with loud singing.’ Throughout the centuries lovers have written letters and songs of love to each other. God has a song for us too. His song is the one that reminds us of His love and grace for us sinners. He wants us to see Him as the Hero who woos us to His presence so that our hearts might be filled with joy and peace.

No wonder we love Christmas so much. It is more than tinsel and trees, glitter and glamour, gifts and gadgets, no it is the Hero who walks into our broken and captive world to save it from the punishment of hell. One of the hymns of Christmas that affirms why it is such a blessed time for us is the hymn, “Savior of the Nations Come.” “Savior of the nations, come, Virgin’s Son, make here Thy home! Marvel now, o heav’n and earth, that the Lord chose such a birth.” In this little tiny Baby we see “Gibor Yosheah” {Hebrew} the Hero who saves. PAUSE.

Rene Gerard, a Frenchman who studied mythology (study of how the world or humankind came to be in its present form), one day as he was reading some work stopped in his tracks as he considered the Heroes of the past. He considered the Babylonians, Egyptians, Romans, Greeks, Persians, Goth and others; he was intrigued to find out that all of the Heroes were top down heroes—men of power, prestige and position. But when he studied Christianity, to his amazement he discovered the story of salvation is from the bottom up. Christianity is different from all others. Christ the mightiest power in the entire universe becomes the poorest and humblest person in the world to save the world.

With this new found knowledge, this Frenchman became a believer and follower of the One who is mighty to Save. Because he needed a Savior and in Jesus Christ—he found the Savior that loved him enough to die for him on the tree of the cross. What is ironic that this man, though born on December 25, 1923, the day we observe and celebrate the birth of the Savior, wasn’t a Christian until the Holy Spirit moved Him in the study of salvation. Through this study He discovered there is only One Savior, One Hero, One God—Jesus Christ. PAUSE.

O most precious people of God, perhaps you have watched a movie or read a book where a princess has been held captive by a wicked person. Throughout her jail time, she hopes against all odds that her prince charming comes to her aid and rescues her.

Our world and our lives are not a movie played on the screen but real life situations. We were held captive by the prince of darkness—wicked satan who desires to keep us bound and jailed in the fiery hell forever. But God sent forth His Son—the Babe of Bethlehem—the Prince of life, light and love to free us from the bondage of sin and evil, to sing the song of love over us and give us joy forever more.

That is why we can still have hope and Christian joy this Christmas even when bad things like this tragedy in Newtown, CT happened. We know why we have hope because so long ago, God in His mercy decided to send One who is Mighty to Save—Jesus. Jesus is your Hero and mine. He is the answer to all of the evil and wickedness in this world. And we can be certain, confident and convinced by the working of the Holy Spirit that God through Jesus has defeated sin and evil, God is stronger than evil and evil people—He is good, great and grand and He is God in the flesh with us and among us and FOR US!

May the words I close with by Pastor Peterson be of great comfort to your hearts no matter the troubles you are going through?

“If we be desperate, let it not be for economic recovery and prosperity. Let it not be for our children to love us and our peers to respect us. Let us be desperate, eager, focused, and hopeful for salvation. If loneliness and disappointment crouch at the door, let us cover the doorposts of our hearts with the blood of Christ and know that whatever befalls us, the angel of death will pass over. Lift up your heads and rejoice. The King comes to you in perfect love.” – DHP Rev. David Petersen.

And the Good News He has. He is Your Hero the One mighty to Save—Jesus, the Babe of Bethlehem. Amen.

Now the peace…

SOLI DEO GLORIA.

“In Your Midst” (Zephaniah 3:14-17)

S-1153 12/13/09 3SIA/3C (O) #61; (S) #62; LS #68; #535; #67; (C) #72

Texts: Zephaniah 3:14-20; Philippians 4:47; Luke 7:18-28

Theme: “In Your Midst” (Zephaniah 3:14-17)

Question: “Have you ever felt you were in the midst of things?”

SOLI DEO GLORIA, Armour, SD

Faithful followers of the Savior, Christ is Risen! He is Risen Indeed! Alleluia! The text for our Second Sunday in Advent is from the O.T. Lesson: “Sing aloud, O daughter of Zion; shout, O Israel! Rejoice and exult with all your heart, O daughter of Jerusalem!
The LORD has taken away the judgments against you; He has cleared away your enemies. The King of Israel, the LORD, is in your midst; you shall never again fear evil.
On that day it shall be said to Jerusalem: ‘Fear not, O Zion; let not your hands grow weak. The LORD Your God is in your midst, a mighty One who will save; He will rejoice over you with gladness; He will quiet you by His love; He will exult over you with loud singing’” (Zephaniah 3:14-17)

Introduction: In Nomine IESU

People of God, families are blessings from the Lord—the Father of all families. Almost all of us treasure our families. Perhaps you remember when your children were little and you and husband were watching TV, or laying in bed, your child[ren] would somehow find a way to get right between you two. They wanted to be in your midst.

I remember vividly my children growing up. Tony is my oldest between him and David is 3 ½ years. When Tony was about 6-7, he would have some friends at the house and as they began to play, before long David would get right in the middle of the boys—right where the action was going on. He wanted to be right in the midst of things. Tony would call, “Mom, David always wants to play with us.” And mom would respond, “It is good for him to play with you!”

Today, the prophet Zephaniah speaks to the daughters of Zion and Jerusalem saying to them, “Sing aloud, O daughter of Zion; shout, O Israel! Rejoice and exult with all your heart, O daughter of Jerusalem! The LORD has taken away the judgments against you; He has cleared away your enemies. The King of Israel, the LORD, is in your midst; you shall never again fear evil”

Yes, sing aloud, rejoice and shout for Your God desires to be with you, among you and in your midst. What comfort these words were to the people of Israel and to the New Israel—you and I to hear again.

Zephaniah, whose name means “The Lord has concealed, the Lord has protected, the Lord will restore” speaks those precious words so that we may know the mystery of God desiring to be with His own created being.

Study God’s Scriptures and you will see that is what God wanted from the beginning—to be with us in our midst. We behold Him in the Garden of Eden spending time with Adam and Eve. When He delivered the Israelites from the bondage of Slavery, He commanded Moses to build a tabernacle so that He might come to be with them with His Glory and Grace. And the prophet Isaiah put it this way about God’s desire to be with His people: “Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call His name Immanuel” (that is God with us).

Do see you it? Do you hear it? Do you know it? God’s desire is to be with us and among us —right in our midst. The prophet Zephaniah assures us today of God’s love and desire to be among us not only for a while but for eternity. Even though Zephaniah spoke 6 centuries before the coming of the Messiah, he could look into the future as if this event has already happened. He is speaking of the Messianic work of Christ when He comes to restore and rebuild and renew our lives.

The True Immanuel comes among His people to redeem them from their sins. The Messiah exercises His Royal authority and power to bring victory and peace to His faithful servants and to restore them, renew them and comfort them in His love. When the Lord is in the Midst of His people He is there to bring help, to aid them, to save them. He comes to remove the sin and guilt of those who are fearful because of their sin and guilt. He comes to save those who are captive to the enemies of sin and death. He comes to love those who in their sinfulness are unlovable and unloving. When the Lord is in the Midst of His people, He will be their God and they will be His people (Rev. 21:3).

The Good News is that the Messiah has come in a baby—baby born in a manger. During these Advent Days, we hear again of Christ first Advent as the Babe of Bethlehem—the heavenly Gift. The Gospel writer John put it this way: “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth” (John 1:14). In the original language the word “dwelt” means that He tabernacled among us. That is to say, that He is in our midst.

But what does it mean that God wants to be with us in our midst? What implication is there that He dwells among us? He comes to make the poor rich, the lame to walk, the outcast brought in, the blind to see and the dead to rise. He comes to dwell among us with His peace and presence and power. He comes to bring us joy and forgiveness. He comes to make our heart His manger and tabernacle. He comes to bring us comfort and consolation. He comes to restore us and rebuild us.

The Messiah comes to restore the downtrodden and the outcast so that He may make from the outcasts a great cast of believers to sing His praises. What He comes to do in our midst is more profound and amazing than we can imagine. He comes to us in the power of Baptism. He comes to us in the power of His Word. He comes to us in the grace of His forgiveness and He comes to us in His Sacrament of body and blood.

Our Immanuel is here today. He is in our Midst. What comfort is that? No wonder Zephaniah declares: “Sing aloud, O daughter of Zion; shout, O Israel! Rejoice and exult with all your heart, O daughter of Jerusalem! The LORD has taken away the judgments against you; He has cleared away your enemies. The King of Israel, the LORD, is in your midst”; Yes, SING, SHOUT, and JUMP for JOY. Do it now! Do it always! Do it when everything looks gloomy and bleak. Shout, rejoice, celebrate for He is in Your Midst.

The prophecy of Zephaniah—God’s promise of coming to be in the midst of His people as a mighty Savior—has been fulfilled and is yet to be fulfilled. As one of my professors would always say, “The now and the not yet.” In the Old Testament, God came to be in the midst of His people in the Tabernacle. Yet in the New Testament, God sent His Messiah, Jesus Christ, in human flesh to dwell in their midst. God’s judgment of human sin and God’s forgiveness of humans are accomplished by Christ’s death on the cross. Christ, the Lord, the true King of Israel; our Immanuel, came to bring about salvation, and He won salvation for His own people, but also those people scattered across the globe. This prophecy is fulfilled in the Church of Christ, extending throughout the world. And yet, He has promised to return in the flesh to the world, to be in the midst of all nations to judge and deliver His people.

When my children were little they wanted to be with us in our midst. David always wanted to be in the midst of the action with his older brother and friends. Today, people of God, Zephaniah remind you of God’s deepest and profoundest desire that He wants to be in our midst. What a joy to know that God is now and will be forever IN YOUR MIDST. And our response is? Thanks be to God that He is with us IN OUR MIDST now and always. Amen.

Now the peace…