Year B: Fourth Sunday of Advent
Peace for the House of David
There are four Sundays of advent every year, and these four Sundays focus on the arrival of Jesus in three different ways: (1) his second coming, (2) his presence in the life of the believer, and (3) his incarnation.1
The fourth Sunday of advent focus on the announcement of the impending Christ event.2
Year B, Fourth Sunday of Advent, December 24, 2023
First Reading: 2 Samuel 7:1-11, 16
Psalm: Luke 1:46b-55 or Psalm 89:1-4, 19-26
Second Reading: Romans 16:25-27
Gospel: Luke 1:26-38
Sermon - Peace for the House of David
In 2 Samuel 7, David expressed interest to build a temple for God to Nathan the prophet. After granting his request, Nathan received a message from the Lord that night to put a spin on David’s request.
Instead of David build a house for God, God would build a house for David. For years, the David line clanged to this promise that David’s house would remain forever. It’s because of this promise that the psalmist in Psalm 89 spoke in disbelief when it appeared that the promise was broken during the exile (Psalm 89:38ff).
But now you have spurned and rejected him; you are full of wrath against your anointed. You have renounced the covenant with your servant; you have defiled his crown in the dust. Psalm 89:38–39
For hundreds of years following the fall of Jerusalem at the hands of Nebuchadnezzar, the people waited for the Messiah. Thanks to the writings of Daniel and other prophets, there were signs the people looked forward to. Could this be the kingdom during which the Messiah would appear? Could this be the young boy? Could this be the year?
When John the Baptist began preaching, the people flocked to him because they thought he might be the Messiah, but he denied any possibility that he could be the Lord’s anointed. There was a greater one coming.
And this greater one that was coming into the world had been announced just a few decades before to a relative of John’s mother Elizabeth. This baby, Mary was told, would be named Jesus, and he would accomplish great things, including being the long-awaited son of David.
He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his ancestor David. He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.” Luke 1:32–33
Mary was shocked at the Annunciation, but she welcomed her role in the Divine plan. As the months went on, she traveled to visit her cousin Elizabeth. After arriving, she broke out in a wonderful song that we sing in honor of her called the Magnificat. In the song, she says,
He has shown strength with his arm; he has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts. He has brought down the powerful from their thrones and lifted up the lowly; he has filled the hungry with good things and sent the rich away empty. He has come to the aid of his child Israel, in remembrance of his mercy, according to the promise he made to our ancestors, to Abraham and to his descendants forever.” Luke 1:51–55
The reign of this young child who was to come into the world meant peace and joy, mercy and justice. It meant that those who oppressed God’s people would be brought down from their thrones while those who were poor would be filled and satisfied.
This message of hope still rings true today. Through the good news of the kingdom of God, hearts are comforted, bellies filled, and injustices condemned.
Second Reading - The Mystery Revealed
Now to God who is able to strengthen you according to my gospel and the proclamation of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery that was kept secret for long ages but is now disclosed and through the prophetic writings is made known to all the gentiles, according to the command of the eternal God, to bring about the obedience of faith—to the only wise God, through Jesus Christ, to whom be the glory forever! Amen. (Romans 16:25–27).
Recently, Laura and I were watching a movie where one of the characters said, “The scariest thing to imagine is not that there is some powerful, possibly evil group of men out there pulling all the strings; it’s that there may be no one at all.”
How does this quote compare to the passage above from Paul? What stands out to me is that for years and years the world was dominated by one empire or another: Egypt or Babylon or Greece or Rome. But despite how in control man thought they were, God was working behind the scenes to bring about the kingdom of God.
It’s unexpected. It’s subversive. It’s surprising. But to me it is also comforting—to know that we aren’t alone, to know that the chaos in the world, the suffering the pain, bows down to a greater power. While we may not be able to explain everything or articulate why bad things happen to good people, what we can know is that God’s will ultimately prevails.
God does get what God wants! The will of God persisted during the days of Pharaoh, and the will of God persisted in the days of Nebuchadnezzar. And during this time of the year, we think of how God’s will was ultimately revealed during the time of Rome and Herod through the announcement that Jesus was on his way.
One other note here: sometimes we use conspiracy theories as a source of comfort. It makes us think that we are “in the know” or “in control.” Sometimes, people can become obsessed with conspiracy theories and become like the man who had a hammer and saw everything as a nail. The gospel offers us an alternative. The great Mystery of scripture lets us know that there is One who actually is in control. We don’t have to bow down to the latest fad or becomes engulfed in a flurry of news reports that lead us in a thousand directions. We can trust that this new creation is here to stay, and the One who is behind it all is far greater than any theory we could cook up about how the world is arranged.
Reflections
I didn’t preach this week, so there is no video!
Thanks so much for keeping up with this blog. If you have any suggestions, recommendations, or critiques, you can always comment here or reach out through my website: https://danielr.net.
“Advent is the celebration of the three comings of Christ: his coming in the flesh, which is the primary focus of the feast of Christmas; his coming at the end of time, which is one of the underlying themes of Advent; and his coming in grace, which is his spiritual coming in our hearts through the Eucharistic celebration of the Christmas-Epiphany mystery.”
Keating, Thomas. The Mystery of Christ: The Liturgy as Spiritual Experience. New York: Continuum, 2008. Print.
Fuller, Reginald and Daniel Westberg. Preaching the Lectionary: The Word of God for the Church Today. Collegeville: Liturgical Press, 2006. Print. page 227.