The Signs of His Coming
Isaiah 61:1-4, 8-11
by Jim Westmoreland
What do we look for when we look for the signs of the coming of the Messiah,
God's anointed? The very mention of Christmas fills our minds with many images-- pictures
of gentle snow and evergreen trees, a warm, inviting fireplace. We imagine presents under
decorated Christmas trees and, if we are good "imaginers," we can smell the
aroma of the food, the yeast rolls cooking in the oven and the fresh coffee waiting to be
tasted--so many things inviting us to taste and enjoy. We think of angels and wisemen,
children and pageants, parties and good cheer, a newborn in a manger, memories of
Christmases past, spent with loved ones. Family gatherings and trips to be near those we
haven't seen for some time.
But these images, as much as we delight in them, are not images that fill the minds of
many people. To some, their days are filled with images of the oppression of a life of
poverty or addiction. To some the images that fill their minds are ones of being
brokenhearted, captive to forces over which they have no control, mourning over losses
that dominate their lives. To some who have never heard a positive word of praise are left
with a faint spirit. These are the captivities of many people, including ourselves.
The wonderful images in our own minds are sometimes clouded by oppressive realities in our
lives as well. It is hard to find delight when captivated by fear over personal illness or
that of a loved one. It is not easy to be as excited as the children when we feel more
broken than whole.
The audience for this Advent text from Isaiah are people who are afflicted. They are the
brokenhearted, the captives, in prison, the mourners. Their lives are devastated. In many
ways, both real and figuratively, they are people like us. As we read the text, we see
faces and hear names oppressed, brokenhearted, captives, those who mourn.
Today's lesson from Isaiah paints many images. They are images that also can come alive
with hope and anticipation. These are signs of His coming. The text speaks of good news,
binding up, release, proclamation of good news, gladness and praise. These are promises
that are happening even now, signs and images of hope. These signs are attached to the
images of oppression, prison, captivity and mourning. Hear the prophets words:
v.1-2 The spirit of the Lord God is upon me,
Because the Lord has anointed me,
He has sent me to bring good news to the oppressed,
To bind up the brokenhearted,
To proclaim liberty to the captives,
And release to the prisoners;
. . . To comfort all who mourn.
v.3 . . . The mantle of praise instead of a faint spirit.
Notice the structure follows a pattern: Good News for a bad condition. Whatever our bad
condition might be, God's response is something positive. To those caught in the last half
of these word pairs, the prophet points out the other part of the word pair as God's
reality, God's hope. Hope is given substance in a time filled with images that are often
so much fluff. Images of despair that can so easily drown us give way to images of hope
and anticipation. We know that things are not as they seem, if seen through eyes given
sight by the promises of God.
When we find ourselves oppressed and captive to things or situations around us, we are
given words of hope and deliverance. One is coming who promises to turn our mourning into
gladness, one who brings the "mantle of praise" to lift our faint spirit. The
one to be born brings with Him a new way to look at life. Not a view that ignores
realities of pain and mourning but One who helps us see with new eyes.
This is the passage that Jesus uses in Luke as he sets out on his ministry. The reading of
this passage in Advent prepares us to receive the one who comes with such liberation for
all of us. The signs of His coming are that we see in ourselves our need of deliverance,
our own need of hope, our own need of being set free. We can expect God to do great things
in our lives, and He does. He has been anointed to touch all people, to reach all in need,
to give strength when strength is needed. These are His signs; this is His ministry, which
He has given to us continue; here is our Advent hope.
This is the One who had come among us bringing hope if we are willing to see through new
eyes. Hope that comes to all in distress showing the other side of reality, God's reality.
The reality that allows a pregnant unwed mother to see in her circumstances the activity
of God. Hope that has led a group of wandering peasants to know they are the chosen people
of God.
And so, we look for His signs and we hear words of hope today. "The Lord God has
appointed me to bring good news to the afflicted." Visions of freedom to everyone in
need. Hope for those suffering physical impairment or ill health. "To bind up the
brokenhearted". To help those who are grieving to know hope in the midst of the pain
and grief because one has come amongst them who has broken the power of death.
Our Advent hope rests in the signs of the One who comes to live amongst us, to live amidst
our failures and disappointments to help us to see God at work even in such difficult
times. God gives us new ways to see. To those willing to see, freedom is assured. His
signs are all around us. The Christmas season is full of images that speak of hope, to
those who are willing to see the signs of His presence.
One comes among us declaring that he will clothe us in garments of salvation. No matter
what our condition, God wraps us in the cloak of integrity, wholeness and holiness. A gift
of love. A gift given to each of us, to be received with joy. The Christ child comes to us
this year in a world filled with the talk of war with "weapons of mass
destruction", a year filled with economic uncertainty, a year filled with rising
costs for medicine and for health insurance, and He comes and speaks words of hope. He
comes amongst us and invites us to see the world as He sees it a world in need of
freedom from sin, in need of binding its wounds, in need of the oil of gladness. Ours is a
world that is desperately in need of the mantle of praise. He sees the world as the
creation of God filled with people created by God, declared good. Yet, a world deeply in
need of healing, in need of hope and salvation.
To this world, God gives us His signs and He speaks words of hope. One is coming who lives
among us to bring us hope and healing. We have heard of the signs of His coming. He is our
Advent hope. He is our salvation. When Jesus comes into our hearts, our lives are changed.
We are freed from our sins. We have joy and hope instead of sadness and guilt and anger.
Our changed lives become the signs of His coming to a waiting, searching world. --Sermon
framework by Rev. Roger Haugen, pastor of Zion Lutheran Church in North Battlefield,
Saskatchewan, Canada.