Luke 1:10-20, 26-38; Daniel 8:15-17; 9:20-23
Robert M Watkins
In scripture, the angel Gabriel has the task of interpretation. He comes to explain to Daniel, then to Zechariah and Mary, what it is that God has in mind. As we look at these stories, we find that Gabriel’s message is consistent and constant–Fear not! For the prophet, for the priest, and for a young woman, each of whom faced unforgiving, overwhelming crises, the message is the same–Fear not! God is afoot; all shall be well and all manner of things shall be well!
Wouldn’t that be wonderful if it was wrapped beneath our Christmas trees with a big bow on top? A cessation of fear, a removal of worry, and a world at rest in the presence of God are such wondrous gifts that we assume them impossible pipe dreams in our current context. The world wobbles, tossed about on human unpredictability. There is no rest for the weary as the news continues unabated of the latest conniption in the global markets, international politics, and even here at home. We feel frightened and uncertain. We are not sure what 2012 will look like, and we are loathe to make any sort of predictions about what might come. Who has any sort of grip on things right now?
We are not alone in this circumstance. A glance through biblical history reveals that such moments come with startling–and perhaps troubling–regularity. Nations totter, hopes dim, and outlooks grow skeptical. Daniel was a visionary in a strange land, a faithful Jew in the heart of a pagan empire, still shocked by the collapse of Jerusalem and the exile that snatched him to Babylon. All the promises of God seemed in question. All the hopes of faith were slackened by an inescapable reality that faith did not save them. His dreams were haunted by strange creatures and terrible sights of cosmic war. He was left blasted and confused by what he dreams. Zechariah is old, feeling it in his bones. He carries with him a quiet ache that nothing can quite soften–he watches his wife silently grieve that they have no children. Most days they are happy enough, but then reality will strike in an unguarded moment–they see friends dandling grandchildren on their knees; they watch in the Temple as fathers bless their sons; they see other families dedicating children to the Lord; and their own emptiness comes slamming home. Mary is betrothed to Joseph, but now all her planning, joy, and expectation are upside down–this strange visitor tells her so–she is with child–but she is just a child herself–how can this be? What will happen now? Fear grabs her. Three separate circumstances, but each utterly familiar, really. There is nothing new–human beings face conundrums and contradictions every day, every hour. We are not alone in our suffering.
Yet, the message comes that the biblical experience of hope is available for us. To Daniel, Zechariah, and Mary, the angel Gabriel comes, saying the same thing, “Fear not!” He speaks to us, as well. “Fear not, O 21st Century people!”
Then Gabriel gives everyone a reason for hope.
Gabriel reminds his hearers that God is working. They are in the presence of the Living God. As such, there is never a moment when God’s creative will is not at work, never a time when God is not ordering chaos, when God is not bringing life from non-being. That is who and what God is. In the presence of God, nothing is complete, nothing is fixed in place, and no power is ultimate save that of God alone.
On the one hand, that is a bit off-putting–we want to know that everything has limits, that not everything will last forever, and that there will come moments when all is actually said and done. Does Gabriel imply that we are doomed to incompletion, that we will never achieve settledness, and that chaos wins in the end?
No.
Gabriel means that there is always hope. No hurt, pain, or suffering is ultimate. There is no moment that is hopeless. There is no crisis that is fixed like Jupiter’s hurricane that roars on for eternity, spinning its red spot endlessly around the planet. Through God, there is hope–a hope that nothing can quench, that nothing can dim, and nothing take from us.
This year, there seems to be an especial urgency about getting Christmas going. Stores launched Christmas early this year. Thanksgiving dishes were not yet cleared as the merchants clanged the pans and sounded the alarms that the best shopping needed to be done NOW! A neighbor of ours turned their yard into a festival of lights on November 15! Some of us near them had not yet removed Halloween pumpkins from the front stoop. I kid you not–I got my first Christmas card in the mail the second week in November!
Why the rush? Why the near frantic run to get Christmas going?
I think because we are quietly afraid that Christmas might not come this year. We may not voice such a thought aloud. We may not even consciously acknowledge that such a thought could even worm its way into our minds. But we seem anxious to get Christmas fired up, to spangle the neighborhood with Christmas cheer, and to start shouting carols and “Jingle Bells” as loud as we can to drown out all the other noise that clamors around us at a crescendo. We are a bit amok, truth be told.
Gabriel’s message rings loud and clear–
FEAR NOT!
I made a choice this year to choose the hymns for worship this season, and, by gum, I decided to choose nothing but the good ol’ carols that we all know, even though none of them acknowledge waiting until Christmas morning to sing of Christ’s birth–he is born right now, right here! None of this Advent stuff, not this year. Why? Because we need it; we need to know that Christ born, that Christ is here, and that the angelic choirs sang ages ago of peace on earth and good will to all of us poor humans. We need to know that there is no waiting period for Christ. He is here now, his redemption is now, and his peace is now.
FEAR NOT!
Do be afraid, for behold good tidings of great joy. Dark as it is, the world is showered in light that nothing can quench nor overcome. Big as the problems are that we face, God is bigger still. Lonely as it feels to be awash in worry, God is love, and in that love, God take us to himself.
FEAR NOT!
God is with us.
