Advent 2 year A 07 Sermon
What do you think stops a lamb... from lying down with a lion?
Seriously
Fear dread panic... terror... survival instinct?
Ok what would stop a lion licking a lamb
like an ice cream and devouring it?
doesn’t see it as food, the lion is full already?
I saw an intriguing example of this...
in the news this week did you see it?
A Bengal tiger... in a zoo in Thailand... feeding piglets... dressed in little tiger coats. Of course, the staff of the zoo, were just doing this...
to amuse their visitors ...but it was how they did it that caught my attention...
The only way they could get both predator and prey ... to accept each other... was to convince them they were family...
once convinced...a powerful predator becomes protector and provider... once convinced ...vulnerable and helpless prey...
come to feel safe and nourished.
Now, if you’re a cynic... you might wonder if this was all some kind of con... maybe the animals are drugged, maybe it’s trick photography...or digital animation...it doesn’t seem realistic..or it only works with sheep of the same species...but it’s not natural... [pause]
And Isaiah knew that...Isaiah knew it’s not natural.
But there it is anyway... in his vision...and we have to deal with Isaiah’s words and images...and somehow ...
we have to allow God... to speak to us through them...
just as the ancient Hebrew people did
Predator and prey together... Lambs lions wolves calves bears and cows children and cobras for heaven sake...living in safety and harmony...
‘They will neither harm nor destroy...on all my holy mountain, for the earth... will be as full
of the knowledge of the LORD...as the waters cover the sea.’
The powerful and the vulnerable...
living peacefully together... now that’s a real contrast
to the survival of the fittest...isn’t it? [pause]
Isaiah’s vision enchanted me... when I was a little girl ...I remember telling my minister...I wanted that time to come while I was still alive. I imagined myself playing with all the animals... even the scary ones.
And Isaiah’s imagery has captivated artists for centuries ....as in Edward Hicks peaceable kingdom...painted in the early 19th century…
But what on earth was happening... when the prophet Isaiah... had his vision in the first place...
700 years before Jesus was born?
Well...the powerful Assyrian Empire... was about to devour... the weak and vulnerable kingdom of Judah... and its capitol Jerusalem.
The lion with the lamb... was a well-known theme... in the sacred Jewish texts ...
a potent symbol of deliverance... for Judah...
through the royal house of David...son of Jesse.
Did you notice Isaiah’s words
“A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse
from his roots... a branch will bear fruit. The Spirit of the Lord will rest upon him—the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding, the Spirit of counsel and power…Righteousness will be his belt...
and faithfulness...the sash around his waist.”
Blank slide
“The lion and the lamb...[pause] in the Greek... its lion... in the Hebrew its sometimes wolf...
but we’re not going to quibble are we?
Painting slide
We’re not going to quibble... because clearly this is meant to be a vision... of “Paradise Regained,”
of “the Garden of Eden... Restored,” and even better ...of God’s kingdom come... on earth...
And in 700 BC... with Assyrian armies swirling around ... Isaiah’s vision of a new Eden... would seem unbelievable
and that... is precisely the point.
It’s a vision...a dream...it’s the prophet’s way...
of calling us to trust...only in the future God has in mind ... and not in what we despairingly assume...
is natural... calling us to trust in a future...
that we creatures...simply can’t achieve on our own.
Like lions and lambs...such harmony is unnatural for us without God’s help.
Christian understanding of Isaiah’s vision varies widely... from the literal – as in there will come a day when God will change the nature of wild animals...
to the highly symbolic...as in at the coming of the Messiah ... all fear of insecurity, danger, and evil...
will be removed...not only for individual humans...
but for all the world. And in Roman’s 15...Paul’s reference to Isaiah’s vision...encourages natural enemies...Jew and Gentile... to believe Jesus is tied to this marvelous vision.
Word slide
May the God who gives endurance and encouragement
give you
reveal words
a spirit of unity among yourselves... as you follow Christ Jesus, so
reveal words
with one heart and mouth... you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Reveal words
Accept one another then...just as Christ accepted you,
in order to bring praise to God.
Blank slide
And Paul continues...For I tell you...
Christ has become a servant of the Jews... on behalf
of God's truth...to confirm the promises made to the patriarchs... so the Gentiles... may glorify God for his mercy...as it is written... "Therefore I will praise you among the Gentiles;... And again in Isaiah, "The Root of Jesse will spring up ...one who’ll arise to rule over the nations... and the Gentiles will hope in him...
as well as the Jews.
And Paul uses Isaiah’s ancient vision... to encourage Jesus’ followers... to hope and strive for peace... regardless of how the natural world behaves ...inspiring natural enemies... Jews and Gentiles...slaves and free... to hang in there together to build a better world... [pause]
Blank lion and lamb slide
You know I looked up the word predator on the internet… and here’s what I found…
Slide words
pred·a·tor
1. An organism that lives by preying on other organisms.
2. One that victimizes, plunders, or destroys, especially for one's own gain. [pause]
Blank slide
Where in our world today...do we see predatory behaviour?
Well military aggression is an obvious example...
but what about those who gain economically from the weakness or naiveté of others...
What about those who stand to gain sexually...
from the vulnerability or poverty of others.
What about those who abuse their authority to gain power in the workplace... by intimidating others.
And what about those who get their way all the time at home...by bullying or manipulating...
every one else in the family... with fear. [pause]
When we stand with the prophets... when we declare ourselves to be followers of the Christ... then it seems to mewe must stand against...anything that prevents God’s peaceable kingdom from becoming reality...
And we must stand for... the protection of all who are weak and vulnerable and voiceless...and if that’s us... if we are the ones who are weak and vulnerable and voiceless... we stand up for ourselves in the face of fear surrounded by others who follow the Christ.
And if we have fallen to the temptation... to dominate and control others through fear...then we repent
and make restitution...for the harm we’ve done... even the harm our ancestors have done.
And because all this is so unnatural to us...
and because we haven’t evolved otherwise...
...the first step we need to take... is to pray for God’s help... in changing our attitudes and our actions...
we simply can’t do it alone... [pause]
Painting slide
Like the tiger and the piglet...I pray that we’ll sniff each other out... and that we’ll recognize...
the fragrance of the peace of Christ on one another ...I pray we’ll know each other as family...
Start music now
And so as an act of community…I’d like you to bring your Christmas cards forward now… to hang upon this tree…our tree…along with mine and those of the children...So in this season that celebrates Jesus birth our tree might be a symbol of our life together… as a family… in Christ… May we all be instruments of his peace.
Seriously
Fear dread panic... terror... survival instinct?
Ok what would stop a lion licking a lamb
like an ice cream and devouring it?
doesn’t see it as food, the lion is full already?
I saw an intriguing example of this...
in the news this week did you see it?
A Bengal tiger... in a zoo in Thailand... feeding piglets... dressed in little tiger coats. Of course, the staff of the zoo, were just doing this...
to amuse their visitors ...but it was how they did it that caught my attention...
The only way they could get both predator and prey ... to accept each other... was to convince them they were family...
once convinced...a powerful predator becomes protector and provider... once convinced ...vulnerable and helpless prey...
come to feel safe and nourished.
Now, if you’re a cynic... you might wonder if this was all some kind of con... maybe the animals are drugged, maybe it’s trick photography...or digital animation...it doesn’t seem realistic..or it only works with sheep of the same species...but it’s not natural... [pause]
And Isaiah knew that...Isaiah knew it’s not natural.
But there it is anyway... in his vision...and we have to deal with Isaiah’s words and images...and somehow ...
we have to allow God... to speak to us through them...
just as the ancient Hebrew people did
Predator and prey together... Lambs lions wolves calves bears and cows children and cobras for heaven sake...living in safety and harmony...
‘They will neither harm nor destroy...on all my holy mountain, for the earth... will be as full
of the knowledge of the LORD...as the waters cover the sea.’
The powerful and the vulnerable...
living peacefully together... now that’s a real contrast
to the survival of the fittest...isn’t it? [pause]
Isaiah’s vision enchanted me... when I was a little girl ...I remember telling my minister...I wanted that time to come while I was still alive. I imagined myself playing with all the animals... even the scary ones.
And Isaiah’s imagery has captivated artists for centuries ....as in Edward Hicks peaceable kingdom...painted in the early 19th century…
But what on earth was happening... when the prophet Isaiah... had his vision in the first place...
700 years before Jesus was born?
Well...the powerful Assyrian Empire... was about to devour... the weak and vulnerable kingdom of Judah... and its capitol Jerusalem.
The lion with the lamb... was a well-known theme... in the sacred Jewish texts ...
a potent symbol of deliverance... for Judah...
through the royal house of David...son of Jesse.
Did you notice Isaiah’s words
“A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse
from his roots... a branch will bear fruit. The Spirit of the Lord will rest upon him—the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding, the Spirit of counsel and power…Righteousness will be his belt...
and faithfulness...the sash around his waist.”
Blank slide
“The lion and the lamb...[pause] in the Greek... its lion... in the Hebrew its sometimes wolf...
but we’re not going to quibble are we?
Painting slide
We’re not going to quibble... because clearly this is meant to be a vision... of “Paradise Regained,”
of “the Garden of Eden... Restored,” and even better ...of God’s kingdom come... on earth...
And in 700 BC... with Assyrian armies swirling around ... Isaiah’s vision of a new Eden... would seem unbelievable
and that... is precisely the point.
It’s a vision...a dream...it’s the prophet’s way...
of calling us to trust...only in the future God has in mind ... and not in what we despairingly assume...
is natural... calling us to trust in a future...
that we creatures...simply can’t achieve on our own.
Like lions and lambs...such harmony is unnatural for us without God’s help.
Christian understanding of Isaiah’s vision varies widely... from the literal – as in there will come a day when God will change the nature of wild animals...
to the highly symbolic...as in at the coming of the Messiah ... all fear of insecurity, danger, and evil...
will be removed...not only for individual humans...
but for all the world. And in Roman’s 15...Paul’s reference to Isaiah’s vision...encourages natural enemies...Jew and Gentile... to believe Jesus is tied to this marvelous vision.
Word slide
May the God who gives endurance and encouragement
give you
reveal words
a spirit of unity among yourselves... as you follow Christ Jesus, so
reveal words
with one heart and mouth... you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Reveal words
Accept one another then...just as Christ accepted you,
in order to bring praise to God.
Blank slide
And Paul continues...For I tell you...
Christ has become a servant of the Jews... on behalf
of God's truth...to confirm the promises made to the patriarchs... so the Gentiles... may glorify God for his mercy...as it is written... "Therefore I will praise you among the Gentiles;... And again in Isaiah, "The Root of Jesse will spring up ...one who’ll arise to rule over the nations... and the Gentiles will hope in him...
as well as the Jews.
And Paul uses Isaiah’s ancient vision... to encourage Jesus’ followers... to hope and strive for peace... regardless of how the natural world behaves ...inspiring natural enemies... Jews and Gentiles...slaves and free... to hang in there together to build a better world... [pause]
Blank lion and lamb slide
You know I looked up the word predator on the internet… and here’s what I found…
Slide words
pred·a·tor
1. An organism that lives by preying on other organisms.
2. One that victimizes, plunders, or destroys, especially for one's own gain. [pause]
Blank slide
Where in our world today...do we see predatory behaviour?
Well military aggression is an obvious example...
but what about those who gain economically from the weakness or naiveté of others...
What about those who stand to gain sexually...
from the vulnerability or poverty of others.
What about those who abuse their authority to gain power in the workplace... by intimidating others.
And what about those who get their way all the time at home...by bullying or manipulating...
every one else in the family... with fear. [pause]
When we stand with the prophets... when we declare ourselves to be followers of the Christ... then it seems to mewe must stand against...anything that prevents God’s peaceable kingdom from becoming reality...
And we must stand for... the protection of all who are weak and vulnerable and voiceless...and if that’s us... if we are the ones who are weak and vulnerable and voiceless... we stand up for ourselves in the face of fear surrounded by others who follow the Christ.
And if we have fallen to the temptation... to dominate and control others through fear...then we repent
and make restitution...for the harm we’ve done... even the harm our ancestors have done.
And because all this is so unnatural to us...
and because we haven’t evolved otherwise...
...the first step we need to take... is to pray for God’s help... in changing our attitudes and our actions...
we simply can’t do it alone... [pause]
Painting slide
Like the tiger and the piglet...I pray that we’ll sniff each other out... and that we’ll recognize...
the fragrance of the peace of Christ on one another ...I pray we’ll know each other as family...
Start music now
And so as an act of community…I’d like you to bring your Christmas cards forward now… to hang upon this tree…our tree…along with mine and those of the children...So in this season that celebrates Jesus birth our tree might be a symbol of our life together… as a family… in Christ… May we all be instruments of his peace.
