“Christ Among The Pots And Pans”
A Sermon by the Rev. Dr. Hilary J. Barrett for Advent 4
Preached at Pleasantville UCC, December 19, 2010
Isaiah 7:10-17 and Matthew 1:18-25
“Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son,
and shall call his name Immanuel.”
(Isaiah 7:14b)

Have you hit your pre-Christmas low yet?  Have you had your pre-Christmas melt-down?  It can be triggered by almost anything you know: too much shopping; too much traffic; too much Muzak; too much consumer-driven holiday cheer; too many lines at too many stores with too many people.  It can be triggered by too little understanding of the real reason for the season; too much hectic, frenetic activity; too much food; too much drink; too much, too much, too much.

The other day a friend of mine hit his pre-Christmas low when he went to Starbucks and while he was ordering they asked him what his favorite Christmas song was.  When he answered, “Good King Wenceslas,” they said: “Is that a song?”  To which he replied, “Yes it is and if you’d like I can sing all seven verses for you right now.”

“Good King Wenceslas” is about a king who goes out to do good deeds on the day after Christmas; he goes out to give alms to the poor on the Feast of Stephen.  It’s not a carol that everyone knows by heart, but when did it become so obscure that the young baristas at Starbucks had never heard of it?  The last four lines of the carol pretty much sum up the very best part of the season:

Therefore, Christian men, be sure
Wealth or rank possessing
Ye who now will bless the poor
Shall yourselves find blessing

It ain’t “Jingle Bell Rock,” but it is a “Christmas song” that speaks a true Word about Christmas.

Personally, I hit my pre-Christmas low last Monday when I was given this gift:

(Show the doll and show what it does.)

Now, from what I understand, these dolls are coveted items among some folks these days and, as soon as this worship service ends, I’m hoping to find someone whose been looking high and low for just such an item.  But, seriously: there is something about this little doll that – for me – simply lays bare what’s wrong with the way we practice Christmas in our culture. 

Without embracing the Grinch within, it’s probably a good thing to be honest with ourselves about what can make this time of year difficult.  It’s hard to live with the contrast between what the season is really about and what it has become for so many.  We try too hard to find the perfect gift and fear that, if we don’t, it says something significant to the people we love about the quality of our relationship.  We gather with friends and family and bump up against the challenges that are part and parcel of those relationships.  Our hearts want to get to the Manger, but the noise and distractions of the season can make it far more likely that we will instead take a wrong turn down a dark cull de sac.  And personally, I have a knack for getting lost in cull de sacs.  And if all of this weren’t bad enough, there is the unrelenting violence that circles our globe -- the wars and rumors of wars that we hear about every day; the report from the doctor; and talk of layoffs at the office.  It’s hard to imagine that the Lord of Life could really be born in our hearts today.

The Advent wreath tells us that we are not that far from Bethlehem.  But if you are anything like me then the chances are good that, between today and Christmas Eve, you still have a fair distance to travel in order to make it to the manger.  And I’m not just talking about getting the presents wrapped and decorating the tree – I’m talking about getting our spiritual houses in order.  I’m talking about making a conscious decision to slow down, to breathe, and to remember to smile at people.  I’m talking about praying for that person in the grocery store who has parked their cart diagonally across the cereal aisle -- or the one behind you in traffic who’s hell-bent on getting wherever they’re going in a big hurry.  I’m talking about having more compassion for the people you deal with at work and more patience for the ones you live with at home.  I’m talking about trusting God’s faithfulness more, and believing God’s promises more.  I’m talking about making room for the possibility that, with God, all things are possible: even wildly unexpected things.  It’s not that far to Bethlehem, but between this spot and that place there are still plenty of lessons to be learned along the way.

Over the last few weeks the Confirmation class has been reading the biblical stories associated with the season of Advent and Christmas, and one of the things that they are good at is spotting inconsistencies in the biblical text.  They spotted one right away in the reading from Matthew’s gospel regarding the naming of Jesus.  Listen to it again:

Now…an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and [said]:
“Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife,
 for the child conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. 
She will bear a son, and you are to name him Jesus,
for he will save his people from their sins.”   
All this took place to fulfil what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet:
   ‘Look, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son,
   and they shall name him Emmanuel’,
which means, ‘God is with us.’  When Joseph awoke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him; he took her as his wife, but had no marital relations with her until she had borne a son;  and he named him Jesus.

To which the Confirmands quickly asked: “Well, which one is it: Jesus or Emmanuel?”

The name “Jesus” is the Greek derivation of the Hebrew name, “Yeshua” (Joshua) and both of these names – Jesus and Joshua – mean “God saves.”  The name “Emmanuel” means “God-with-us.”  Emmanuel: God-with us.  Yeshua: God saves.  The truth is: both names are correct.

The Wycliffe Bible has a translation of the New Testament in Pidgin Hawaiian: it’s called, Da Jesus Book, and that translation puts it this way:

“She goin born one boy,
an you goin name him Jesus,
cuz he goin take his peopo
outa da kine bad stuff dey do.”

Jesus does take us out of the kind of bad stuff we do – and he takes us out of the kind of bad stuff we have to endure.  That’s one of the most important ways that God is with-us.  St. Teresa of Avila – a 16^th century mystic – called this God-with-us: “Christ among the pots and pans.” 

God with us in all our flesh-and-blood realities.
God with us in all the ways we mess up our lives.
God with us even with all the bad stuff we do.
God with us in all the daily tasks and all the daily challenges.
Emmanuel: God-with-us.
God with us in all our ordinary times and days.
God-with-us in the cancer clinic and at the local nursing home.
God-with-us when the pink slip comes and when the beloved child sneers, "I hate you!"
God-with-us when a loved one stares at you with an absent gaze and asks, again, "What was your name again?"
And God with us – even in those times when we are so angry with God that we cannot believe that God ever was with us or ever will be with us again.[1]

Emmanuel: God with us. 
Jesus: God saves. 
The truth is: both names are correct. 

Getting to the manger is not an easy thing to do.  There are bound to be some low points along the way.  But on this fourth and final Sunday in Advent, when the manger is just about in sight, we are reminded that the names of Jesus have much to teach us about his true nature and his true power: God does indeed save.  He saves us from ‘the kind of bad stuff we do.’  And he is indeed with us.  Christ among the pots and pans.  Christ in the messy middle of our lives.  Both things are true.

“She goin born one boy,
an you goin name him Jesus,
cuz he goin take his peopo
outa da kine bad stuff dey do.”

O Come, O Come, Emmanuel!  Amen.