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Malachi 3: 1-4

Luke 1: 68-79

Philippians 1: 3-11

Luke 3: 1-6

St. Thomas Evangelical Lutheran Church

3800 East Third Street

Bloomington, Indiana 47401

(812) 332-5252

Sermon for the Second Sunday in Advent (December 10, 2006)

Liturgical Color: Blue

Reverend Kelli Skram

"Look to the Body"

If you are not too overwhelmed by the busyness of the season or too exhausted from the stress of studying for finals, you may have sensed that something seemed a bit out of place in our worship this morning. Did you notice our Psalm for this second Sunday in Advent was not a psalm? Or, at least, it did not come from the book of psalms. Rather than singing a psalm in the traditional sense today, we sang words from the gospel of Luke. As it happens, this passage from the first chapter of Luke is very much like the psalms we usually sing or read in that it is a hymn or, at least, a segment of a hymn. It also happens that the wording in these verses (68-79) echoes the ideas found in a few of our regular psalms (Ps. 34, 67, 103, and 113).¹

Over the years, this hymn from the gospel of Luke (which is also known as the Benedictus) has been sung in monasteries and other faith communities during matins, or morning prayer.² What a way to begin the day—recalling the words of Zechariah. You may remember that Zechariah was a priest and the husband of Elizabeth. When an angel told Zechariah that he and Elizabeth were about to become parents, Zechariah had his doubts. And we are told that because of Zechariah's disbelief, an angel of the Lord made him mute. As the pregnancy progresses, as new life takes shape, Zechariah watches in stunned silence. Zechariah greets his newborn son for the first time, still unable to speak. It is only after the child has been named that Zechariah's speech is restored. Months of wordless watching, and the man can no longer contain himself...hence, his inspired outburst of poetic praise.

Beyond the beauty of this hymn, something else is striking about the first chapter of Luke. The text is teeming with body parts. Anatomical references abound in Luke, chapter one. In today's text alone, there are two verses in which we hear about "hands" (vv. 71, 74). Another verse makes mention of "mouths" (v. 70). In verse 79, the focus is on "feet". And there is yet another reference to a part of the body, one that is not apparent when we read the text in English. Verse 78 speaks of the "tender mercy of our God". Well, in the Greek, the literal reading is "out of the bowels of God's mercy". I can't imagine why those translating the text chose not to stick more closely to the original wording! In truth, though, the translators were not simply shying away from unpleasant imagery; rather they were trying their best to be faithful to the underlying meaning of the Greek text. Since, in this particular case, it is pretty clear the word is meant more metaphorically, to speak of one's deepest, innermost being, today we read, "by the tender mercy of our God..."³

Now, if you go back a few more verses in chapter 1 of Luke, you'll find additional references to: the mouth (v. 64), tongue (v. 64), heart (vv. 51, 66), hand (v. 66), ears (v. 44), womb (vv. 41, 43, 44) and an arm (v.51). So why the abundance of body parts in this segment of scripture?

Of course, we can never know for certain. But one thing is clear. Every reference to the flesh, whether literal or metaphorical, points us toward a single truth—that God has a hand in all this activity. God is at work in the much longed for birth of John. God is at work in the conception of Jesus. And God is at work, loosing Zechariah's lips, allowing him to sing a song of promises fulfilled and promises in process.

This morning the words of a father invite us to wait with hope-filled expectation. Zechariah's song summons us to seek the signs of a mystery in the making. This time of Advent is one during which we watch...and we listen. As we prepare to celebrate our Lord's coming, we pause to ponder the promise that the Most High has a hand in our human reality. In his sermon last week, Lyle shared a few words about the signs that surround us.

This morning, we take a cue from our text and we look to the body for evidence that new life is on the way. Today, we pay special attention to signs of transformation in and among the body of believers. For as much as we who call ourselves brothers and sisters may hurt one another, frustrate one another, even anger one another, there are nevertheless signs that new life dwells in and among us for the sake of the whole world.

When I served in the parish in California, I found that members of the congregation often missed the signs in their midst, and it certainly was not because they were lacking in faith or intelligence. I think they missed many of the signs in their midst because their daily lives led them in so many different directions. People didn't have many opportunities to see or hear about all the signs of God's work among that body of believers.

Well, friends in Christ, the signs are present...in the body of believers that gathers here at St. Thomas. Recently, this congregation's leaders have been amazed by the generous outpouring of gifts toward the capital campaign. Those tangible gifts are signs that this community intends to put flesh on its prayers and make ministry happen for many years to come.

Friends in Christ, the signs are present...in the ever evolving body of believers that is Lutheran Campus Ministry. This past week I had the joy of sitting with a few of our students as they planned for a campus-wide fundraiser. They have decided to use their time and talents during spring semester to raise money and awareness for an organization working to fight pediatric AIDS.⁴

Friends in Christ, the signs are present...in the body of believers that is the ELCA. For a number of years now, our denomination has been in dialogue with several other denominations, and we have crafted common faith statements with these sisters and brothers in an effort to enhance our collective ministry in the world. Just this last month, another bridge was built between the ELCA and the Orthodox church, as church leaders came together in a statement and affirmed our common faith in the holy trinity.⁵

Friends in Christ, the signs are present, among and beyond the body of believers known as the Church. And the song of Zechariah reassures us that despite the weariness of this world, regardless of the trials that cloud our vision from time to time and make it hard to see the signs...the hand of God reaches into the lives of real people.

Today we experience the real presence of God once more as we gather around the table. The one who always has a hand in our lives, the one who conceives new life, the one who hands over his body for our sake comes today to feed us. And so now, we anticipate that moment when we will see it with our eyes