December 18, 2011
The Gift of Promise
- 2 Samuel 7:1-11
- Rev Ruth Chadwick Moore
“But Mom, you promised!” Most parents have heard this expression from their children. I know I have. But Mark and I were pretty careful about making promises to our three children as they were growing up. (I think I would usually say something like, “Well I can’t promise, but I will try really really hard to do that for you.”) We need to be careful about making promises, because a promise is a declaration that something will or will not happen and our children count on that. A promise indicates what may be expected. A promise demands and elicits trust.
The scripture texts for today celebrate and remind us of God’s gift of promise – a promise proclaimed to David and then fulfilled in the birth of Jesus. Today we have two great Advent figures – King David and Mary the mother of Jesus – two people who can be called people of the promise. The theme of promise runs throughout the bible from God’s promises to Noah and Abraham in Genesis all the way to the promise of a New Jerusalem in the Book of Revelation. The bible could even be called the Book of Promise, because it is filled from cover to cover with God’s promises to always be faithful and present with us. But God’s promise to David that his “house” will endure forever is one of the highlights of God’s promises to us and it leads us directly to the New Testament story of Jesus’ birth.
When we meet David at this point in the history of Israel, David has won many victories and has now conquered Jerusalem and established it as his capital city. Recognizing that he owes his victory to God, David decides to build a “house” or a temple to God in Jerusalem. But the prophet Nathan tells him that instead of David building a house for Yahweh it is Yahweh or God who will build a house for David. That’s what confused me at first because David tells us that he is already living in a house of cedar. But the house that God has in mind is not another building but is instead a dynasty; a royal family for Israel led by descendants of David. The word “house” then means descendants, children, a continuation of a family, a name, a people.
One of my favorite Christmas books is The Donkey’s Dream, which old Isaiah read to the children today. As the donkey moves and dreams we see that he is carrying a city on his back as well as a sailing ship and a fountain and a rose. It is not until the end of the story that we see what he has been carrying all along – a pregnant woman in a blue robe spotted with stars. Actually all the things the donkey is carrying are symbols of the Virgin Mary. In the psalms the mother of the messiah is called the City of God. From ancient times the ship has symbolized a womb and a cradle. Mary is called a spiritual vessel and the fountain is a well of living water. The rose is a symbol for Mary – like in the song Lo, How a Rose E’er Blooming. Mary is also called the “Queen of Heaven,” and in paintings she is almost always robed in blue, the color of the heavens. But the children don’t know the history of the Mary symbolism in the book. They just like to see the pictures and hear the story of how Jesus came to Bethlehem and was born. The child who listens and understands this book has a head start on David, who had to be convinced by Nathan that it is not we who must build God a house, but God who chooses to house and dwell in and among us. God houses in Mary, showing us that it is in and with people and not temples that God wishes to live. It is we who house God, not the other way around. So the word “house” has two meanings here – God houses or dwells in us and God promises to continue David’s house, to continue his family and rule and throne forever. It’s just that God does this in such an unexpected way.
If we continue to read the Old Testament – especially the Book of Kings – it is hard to see how this promise to David is fulfilled. With a few exceptions, the kings that followed David were not very powerful and with the destruction of Jerusalem in 587 B.C. Israel no longer even had a king. But, a promise is a promise, and God’s promise to David is not revoked or forgotten. It is in Luke that we hear of God’s promise to David being fulfilled – it is fulfilled in Jesus the Son of David. At the heart of the story of the announcement of Jesus’ birth to Mary is a reminder of God’s promise to David. “The Lord God will give him the throne of David his father, and he will rule over the house of Jacob forever, and of this kingdom there will be no end.” The unlikely recipient of this promise is Mary of Nazareth. Mary says yes to the promise and is open to receive and live into a future that she never imagined. Overcoming her initial turmoil and confusion, Mary accepts her mission with trust and her willing response allows God’s promise of a messiah from the house of David to come into being. As Mary provides a temporary “house” for the gestation of Jesus, we learn that the promises of God to David almost 1,000 years before will come true in Jesus. Jesus, who is also called Emmanuel – which means God is with us. And Jesus will be a great ruler just like King David and his reign will last forever. Once again God has found another way to be with and among us – this time in the incarnation of Jesus Christ.
The question then, at least for me, is what are we to do with these stories of promise.? Mary will go on to birth the promise we have been talking about and what difference will it make? I think that answer is in the verses from Luke 47-55 – the verses that we sang in the hymn “ My Soul Gives Glory To My God.” If God wants to house in human beings – to be among the people – he is also asking us to house him. The work of God is most often accomplished through human hands - it is we who are the hands and feet of God. So we in turn become vessels or tents or tabernacles for God to reside in so we can do God’s work. And if God wants human beings to be the houses of the holy – because that is what we become if God is within us – then we ourselves are magnified. We become greater than the sum of our parts. When we wonder what difference it will make if this baby of promise comes into the world, we hear Mary’s song that reveals to us how Jesus’ birth will fulfill the promises of God. God has promised to come to our aid in times of trouble and to be with us always.
Mary’s song of praise is one of the church’s most powerful prayers. It prods us to reflect upon how we have responded to God’s promises to us and how we are to respond to God’s call. Have we tried to ignore it, relying instead on our status, wealth or power? Or have we been poor and simple enough to receive it and house it and take it to heart?
Both of the Luke passages are essential to our understanding of Christmas. The annunciation of the good news to Mary makes it clear that she was able to sing her song because she had listened well and said yes to God. Still, you kind of wonder if God is foolish in choosing humans beings as the foundation of his kingdom and its promises. Not only are we mortal, we are also fickle and unfaithful and easily distracted. Most of the time we miss hearing what God is saying to us and calling us to do. In the noise of our busy lives we don’t listen and we are glad to do so because listening to God requires more of us than we are willing to give. We all have annunciations of some sort or another in our lives – strange and risky moments that catch us by surprise or bring about fear or anxiety. And most of the time it is easier to turn away from them in weakness or despair or even relief. And our ordinary lives continue. We cling to what we know – that ordinary life that pays the bills. But God keeps calling us to help fulfill his promises and further his kingdom on earth. And sometimes God is answered by the most surprising people – like shepherds who become kings and innocent young girls who hear and believe.
It’s never the right time and we are never ready. We’re too busy, we’re too scared and it just seems too hard. We have other, more important things to do and places to be than to allow God to “house” within us and to help fulfill the promises. But if we can say “Here am I, the servant of the Lord” the path might just open before us We can trust that even in this violent, unjust and often despairing world, God’s promises are true and we can sing them “from generation to generation.”
God has promised to be with us always; to love us unconditionally; to save us. As our advent has progressed we have seen how God’s promises of presence, comfort and joy are ours to claim. There are so many gifts of promise in our scriptures and in the stories of God’s people. All of the gifts we have shared during this advent season have been ones of promise. God’s promise to be present with us, God’s promise to comfort us, God’s promise of joy now and eternally. Our fourth gift – the gift of promise – just helps us to remember the other gifts and to remember the greatest promise and greatest gift of all – the gift of a savior who is coming. But as we wait for that promise to be filled I remember also the people of promise like David and especially Mary. It is through them that we learn that God’s promises are best fulfilled not in buildings but in those like Mary who in the midst of turmoil and confusion trusts in God’s promises and then sings about how they can become a reality. It is God’s insistence that he dwell in and among us that enables us to know God’s voice and answer his call and sing like Mary does. It is God with us, Our Emmanuel, our savior Jesus Christ who is of the house of David, who was housed in the womb of a young girl, who is the fulfillment of the greatest promise of all. Good news of great joy is coming for all people because soon a child will be born in the City of David – a savior who is and will be the Messiah, the Lord. God has kept his promise and God’s word of hope is true, – may this promise now find room to “house” in you. Amen.
Sources:
America The National Catholic Weekly, “People of the Promise” by Daniel J. Harrington, December 12, 2005.
Feasting on the Word, Fourth Sunday of Advent, Year B, Volume 1.
The Christina Century, “Open Paths” by Kathleen Norris, December 13, 2005.