Luke 1:68-79
Before reading the passage for today I want to put it in context. Zechariah, a priest, and his wife Elizabeth were devout and faithful Jews. But they were unable to have children, and by the time of our story, they were “Both getting on in years.” So Zechariah was of course surprised when an angel appeared to him and told him that Elizabeth would give birth to a son. As if that weren’t shocking enough, this wasn’t just any child. This child would be great in the sight of the Lord and would lead people to repent and would “make ready a people prepared for the Lord.” In other words, this child was the prophesied forerunner to the Messiah. When Zechariah questioned the angel about this remarkable news, Gabriel in essence pressed the “Mute” button on him, rendering Zechariah unable to speak “until the day these things occur” the angel said. So throughout Elizabeth’s conception and pregnancy, Zechariah remained silent. Even after the baby was born, still Zechariah was unable to speak. Finally, when Zechariah and Elizabeth take the child to be baptized, as soon as Zechariah names him John, as the angel told him to do, his tongue is set free. The words he speaks after so much silence are these. Luke 1:68-79.
“Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, for he has looked favorably on his people and redeemed them. He has raised up a mighty savior for us in the house of his servant David, as he spoke through the mouth of his holy prophets from of old, that we would be saved from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us. Thus he has shown the mercy promised to our ancestors, and has remembered his holy covenant, the oath that he swore to our ancestor Abraham, to grant us that we, being rescued from the hands of our enemies, might serve him without fear, in holiness and righteousness before him all our days. And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High; for you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways, to give knowledge of salvation to his people by the forgiveness of their sins. By the tender mercy of our God, the dawn from on high will break upon us, to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace.”
Many scholars break down this eloquent speech from Zechariah into two parts. In verses 68-75 Zechariah proclaims the faithfulness of God. God has seen the people and has redeemed them. God has raised a savior for us, just as the prophets foretold. God has shown mercy. God has remembered the covenant. Zechariah speaks in the past tense. But he is not referring only to the ways God rescued Israel in the past. “He’s also employing a popular prophetic practice of speaking as though God has already accomplished what God has shown the prophet [that] God will do. . . . Zechariah is also reminding worshipers that in a real sense, God’s salvation is always both on the way and a present reality.”[1] We await Christ’s coming AND Christ is with us now.
The second part of this passage is more specific, to his son. One scholar says that in verses 76-79, “Zechariah gives his son a broad job description.”[2] And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High, etc.
Most scholars I read left the division of this passage into those two portions, but to me it changes again in verse 78 with what is to come. To me the division seems like verses 68-75 are praising God for the past, verses 76 and 77 are about God’s calling upon this child, and verses 78 and 79 are the “AND SO” portion of the passage. Because of (a), now there is (b), which means (c). Because of (a) God’s faithfulness, now there is (b) the forerunner of the Messiah, which means (c) “the dawn from on high will break upon us, to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace.”
How desperately we need that assurance. That “shadow of death” of course reminds us of Psalm 23, “Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death.” But it is broader than our usual application. All of us have experienced sitting in the shadow. “When the chaos of the world is too much to bear, we sit in the shadow. When the diagnosis is positive, and prognosis is not optimistic, we sit in the shadow. When the job is lost and the source of the next check is a mystery, we sit in the shadow. When we fail to love as we were called to love, we sit in the shadow. When thousands of children die from undernourishment or preventable disease, we sit in the shadow. When a man breaks through the sanctuary of a school and shatters the lives of innocents, we sit in the shadow.”[3]
In the past few weeks we have sat in the shadow. We have sat in the shadow of shooting after shooting after shooting. We’ve had 353 mass shootings in 2015. So far.[4] What has happened to our country, that we think the proper response is always violence? What has happened to our country, that we have more mass shootings than days in the year? What has happened to our country, that the death three years ago of twenty first graders wasn’t enough to make us drop our weapons in horror?
1.4 million Americans died in all wars fought since 1776. That’s the same number of Americans who died via household guns since 1968.[5]
400,000 Americans died fighting in World War II. That’s the same number of Americans who died by household firearms since 2001.[6]
3400 Americans died by terrorism since 2001. That’s the same number of Americans who died by household firearms since five weeks ago.[7]
Speaking of terrorism, between 2001 and 2013, there were 3,380 American deaths by terrorism. In the same period there were 406,496 American deaths by firearms on American soil.[8]
And we’re going to refuse to welcome Syrian refugees because they are dangerous? They’re not the ones we should be afraid of. We are.
We are indeed walking in darkness and sitting in the shadow of death.
We have a gun problem in America. And we have an anger problem and a violence problem and a bigotry problem. Regardless of where you place the blame, we as Christians cannot sit idly by while the president of the largest Christian university in the world says, “If more good people had concealed carry permits, then we could end those Muslims before they walked in.”[9]
A few minutes ago we declared during our Advent candle lighting: With faith in the light of the world, we light the second candle of Advent, the candle of peace… Peace that is stronger than our deepest fears; Peace that comes as the sun rises upon us; Peace that leaves us breathless with anticipation. May the song of peace resound in our souls.
But this is not about sweet, mushy, stand in a circle and sing Kumbaya peace. Peace is not complacency. Peace is not choosing to be ignorant. And peace does not come via a magic wand.
In the wake of this latest shooting, I posted a prayer on Facebook. It says: Comfort us, O God, but do not let us get comfortable with the bloodshed. Give us peace, but only as we beat our swords into plowshares. Give us hope for a better world because we commit ourselves to create it. Light the way out of our sorrow by the flame of justice we carry.
Zechariah’s song says God will guide our feet into the way of peace. God will guide, but it’s our choice whether to follow.
I want to suggest one way we can do this. It’s a challenge I want you to consider. What would it be like if, from now until Christmas, you participated in a fast from violence? It would mean giving up any violent video games. And violent movies. And violent TV shows. (Yes, that means your Law & Order reruns!) I’ll let you decide what it means about watching football! Fasting from violence would mean giving up violent speech, like “I was so mad I wanted to kill him” and “she was asking for it.” If you’re not willing to do this, at least pay attention to how violence has invaded our common phrases: getting away with murder, killing time, traffic was murder, loose cannon, bang for your buck. Will changing your language change your world? Probably not. But it will help you see how pervasive violence is, how it has invaded our culture. And, as they say, acknowledging it is the first step.
But that’s not all we can do. We can write to or call our representatives. We can sign petitions. We can get involved in the political process. We can teach our children and grandchildren that violence is not an option. We can talk to people who disagree with us. We can speak up against hate speech and stand up to bigotry. We can refuse to let fear be our guide. We can believe we can make a difference.
It is so easy to get discouraged. It is so easy to think things will never change for the better. And it is so easy to think that somebody should do something. We forget that we are somebody.
In the 1950s Rev. William Holmes Borders, Sr., wrote a poem that was made famous first by Jesse Jackson and then by others. It’s called “I Am – Somebody.” It is often delivered in call-and-response form, with the audience repeating each line after the speaker. It begins “I am … Somebody. I may be poor. I may be young,” etc.
Well, today I want to try a different approach, to remind us that WE are the somebody who can do something. So please repeat after me.
I am
Somebody.
I am
Somebody.
I may be old.
I may be young.
But I am
Somebody.
I am only one
but together
we are many.
I am only one
but together
we are mighty.
I am
Somebody.
I can make a difference.
I am
a child of God
called by God
to bring the light.
The dawn from on high
will break upon us,
to give light
to those who sit in darkness.
The dawn from on high
will break upon us,
to guide our feet
our hands
our hearts
our minds
into the way of peace.
The dawn from on high
will be our shelter.
I will not be silent.
I will not be afraid.
I am
Somebody.
I am
God’s child.
Amen.
[1] Bratt, Doug. Advent 2C, Center for Excellence in Preaching.
[2] Branch, Robin Gallaher. Feasting on the Word, Year C, Volume 1, p. 33
[3] http://fatpastor.me/2012/12/22/declare-that-the-dawn-is-coming/
[4] http://shootingtracker.com/wiki/Mass_Shootings_in_2015
[5] https://twitter.com/neiltyson?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
[6] Ibid.
[7] Ibid.
[8] http://www.cnn.com/2015/12/04/us/gun-violence-graphics/index.html?sr=fbCNN120515gun-violence-graphics0319AMStoryLink&linkId=19333564
[9] https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/acts-of-faith/wp/2015/12/05/liberty-university-president-if-more-good-people-had-concealed-guns-we-could-end-those-muslims/