December 11, Third Sunday of Advent

Lesson: Malachi 3.1-2

Sermon Title: Preparation

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INTRODUCTION:

  1. Friday (December 9, 2005), Helga and I were on our way home from Madison listening to WOLX.

    1. Their website declares: "All Christmas, all the time: 94.9 FM WOLX is Madison's official non-stop Christmas music station now through Christmas Day."

    2. They were playing "Silver Bells."

    3. You probably know much of the lyric.

Silver Bells

Jay Livingston and Ray Evans

City sidewalks, busy sidewalks.
Dressed in holiday style
In the air
There's a feeling
of Christmas
Children laughing
People passing
Meeting smile after smile
and on every street corner you'll hear

Silver bells, silver bells
It's Christmas time in the city
Ring-a-ling, hear them sing
Soon it will be Christmas day

Strings of street lights
Even stop lights
Blink a bright red and green
As the shoppers rush
home with their treasures
Hear the snow crunch
See the kids bunch
This is Santa's big scene
And above all this bustle
You'll hear

Silver bells, silver bells
It's Christmas time in the city
Ring-a-ling, hear them sing
Soon it will be Christmas day

      1. Silver Bells has catching a lyric and a memorable tune.

      2. I wondered who wrote it and why.

    1. The song was written by Jay Livingston and Ray Evans for the movie, The Lemon Drop Kid."

    2. They wanted to call the song, "Tinkle Bell" but their wives persuaded them that tinkle had its own meaning.

    3. There was a silver bell on one of their desks, so the song became "Silver Bells."

  1. The bells had nothing to do with church bells, nor with the bells of the Salvation Army.

    1. The song is a sentimental, seasonal favorite.

    2. Most of the seasonal music has little to say about the PROMISE, PURPOSE or PREPARATION for Christmas.

    3. The music feeds the feelings and nostalgia for the secular holiday season.

  2. There is much to be said about the PROMISE, PURPOSE and PREPARATION for Christmas.

  3. The theme for today is PREPARATION.

"A brand--new pastor began at his first congregation. (1)

"Within that first week, two members died. In the next week, there were two more! In his first month, he had presided over eight memorial services.

"Consequently, his time had been greatly limited and his sermon preparation took the toll. So he simply preached that first Sunday's sermon over and over again across the next three Sundays.

"Well, the leadership of the congregation sought out the Regional Minister to complain. 'What should we do? This new pastor has used the same sermon four times in a row!'

"The Regional Minister was indeed surprised, but after a moment asked them what the sermon was about. The members puzzled over this simple question. They hemmed and hawed, but they really couldn't remember.

"The Regional Minister then declared, 'Let him use it one more time.'"

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MAIN BODY:

  1. As I have analyzed it, every that we do requires preparation.

    1. Host the annual Christmas celebration

      1. Clean the house.

      2. Plan and produce the meals.

      3. Don't forget to invite the guests.

      4. It all takes preparation.

    2. Think of the host of activities that require preparation.

      1. Meetings.

      2. Worship.

      3. Work.

      4. Trips.

      5. Vacations.

      6. Sermons.

      7. Newsletters.

      8. And the list goes on and on.

      9. Even if you eat at a "fast food" place it still requires preparation.

    3. We cannot imagine what would happen without preparation.

  2. It is the same with the coming of the messiah.

    1. Listen once again to the words of Malachi 3:1-3 (NRSVA):

1See, I am sending my messenger to prepare the way before me, and the Lord whom you seek will suddenly come to his temple. The messenger of the covenant in whom you delight--indeed, he is coming, says the LORD of hosts. 2But who can endure the day of his coming, and who can stand when he appears? For he is like a refiner's fire and like fullers' soap; 3he will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver, and he will purify the descendants of Levi and refine them like gold and silver, until they present offerings to the LORD in righteousness.

    1. See, I am sending my messenger to prepare the way before me.

    2. Why does the Lord, the messenger of the covenant who is coming need a messenger to prepare the way before him?

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  1. What is the work of the messenger.

    1. The work of the messenger is to arouse interest in the coming of the Lord, the messenger of the covenant.

      1. The messenger came preaching wearing strange clothes.

      2. People wanted to know who he was.

      3. He was quick to tell them that he was not the Lord, the messenger of the covenant.

      4. His power of presence and of preaching aroused the whole countryside so that even the learned of Jerusalem were coming to question him.

    2. The work of the messenger is to create curiosity in the personhood of the Lord, the messenger of the covenant.

      1. The Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, "Who are you?"

        1. He confessed and did not deny it, but confessed, "I am not the Messiah."

        2. And they asked him, "What then? Are you Elijah?"

          1. He said, "I am not."

        3. "Are you the prophet?" He answered, "No."

        4. Then they said to him, "Who are you?

          1. Let us have an answer for those who sent us.

          2. What do you say about yourself?"

        5. He said,

"I am the voice of one crying out in the wilderness,
'Make straight the way of the Lord,'"
as the prophet Isaiah said.

      1. Now they had been sent from the Pharisees.

        1. They asked him, "Why then are you baptizing if you are neither the Messiah nor Elijah, nor the prophet?"

        2. John answered them, "I baptize with water. Among you stands one whom you do not know, the one who is coming after me; I am not worthy to untie the thong of his sandal."

    1. The work of the messenger is to identify the person who is the Lord, the messenger of the covenant.

      1. The next day he saw Jesus coming toward him and declared, "Here is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!

      2. This is he of whom I said, 'After me comes a man who ranks ahead of me because he was before me.' I myself did not know him; but I came baptizing with water for this reason, that he might be revealed to Israel."

      3. And John testified, "I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and it remained on him. I myself did not know him, but the one who sent me to baptize with water said to me, 'He on whom you see the Spirit descend and remain is the one who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.' And I myself have seen and have testified that this is the Son of God."

    2. The work of the messenger is to warn people of the purpose of the Lord, the messenger of the covenant.

the Lord whom you seek will suddenly come to his temple. The messenger of the covenant in whom you delight--indeed, he is coming, says the LORD of hosts. 2But who can endure the day of his coming, and who can stand when he appears? For he is like a refiner's fire and like fullers' soap; 3he will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver, and he will purify the descendants of Levi and refine them like gold and silver, until they present offerings to the LORD in righteousness.

      1. Who can endure the day of his coming?

      2. Who can stand when he appears?

      3. He is like a refiner's fire.

        1. Casting lead ads for the Middleborough Gazette.

        2. Used a brown powder flux to remove the dross from the lead.

        3. Only clean lead could be used to create new castings.

        4. Otherwise the plate would have many flaws.

      4. He is like fullers' soap.

        1. An alkali based product derived from certain plants.

        2. The closest that I have been able to come to it is Fells Naptha soap.

        3. You never wanted to have your mouth washed out with Fells Naptha.

  1. We, who live in this time and in this place and in this condition need to hear once again the messenger who is preparing the way before the Lord, the messenger of the covenant.

    1. Maybe you feel a little like Max Gordon and his bride-to-be, Mollie Levy.

"They got a bit of a shock when they tried to get a marriage license. Instead, the clerk handed them a book. (2)

"'So,' Mollie asked, 'what's the book about?'

"'It's about parenting,' said the clerk.

"'Parenting?' Mollie replied. 'We don't need to read the book, we can write one.'

"Max Gordon is 90. Mollie Levy is 82. Between the two of them, they have six children, 14 grandchildren and 17 great-grandchildren. Still, under Florida law, their union was just another marriage that needed safeguarding by the Marriage Preparation and Preservation Act of 1998.

"So the lovebirds sat down with the Family Law Handbook. Mollie had to read it to Max because of his cataracts.

"'The only reason I read it was because I thought we might have to take a test,' Mollie said."

    1. We have a promise in Genesis 3:14-15, NRSVA

14The LORD God said to the serpent,
"Because you have done this,
cursed are you among all animals
and among all wild creatures;
upon your belly you shall go,
and dust you shall eat
all the days of your life.
15 I will put enmity between you and the woman,
and between your offspring and hers;
he will strike your head,
and you will strike his heel."

    1. We have the purpose in Isaiah 42:1-9, NRSVA.

1 Here is my servant, whom I uphold,
my chosen, in whom my soul delights;
I have put my spirit upon him;
he will bring forth justice to the nations.
2 He will not cry or lift up his voice,
or make it heard in the street;
3 a bruised reed he will not break,
and a dimly burning wick he will not quench;
he will faithfully bring forth justice.
4 He will not grow faint or be crushed
until he has established justice in the earth;
and the coastlands wait for his teaching.

  1. We need the preparation in Malachi 3:1-3 (NRSVA)

1See, I am sending my messenger to prepare the way before me, and the Lord whom you seek will suddenly come to his temple. The messenger of the covenant in whom you delight--indeed, he is coming, says the LORD of hosts. 2But who can endure the day of his coming, and who can stand when he appears? For he is like a refiner's fire and like fullers' soap; 3he will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver, and he will purify the descendants of Levi and refine them like gold and silver, until they present offerings to the LORD in righteousness.

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CONCLUSION

  1. It is so sad when Christmas comes and goes and people do not have a clue as to what is happening.

    1. In spite of all the work of preparation the people did not know him.

    2. He attempted to purify the descendent of Levi, the priests.

      1. They rejected the process.

      2. They remained unrefined.

  2. Where does that leave us during this Advent Season of 2005?

    1. We read the scriptures!

    2. The sermon is preached!

    3. The prayers are offered!

    4. The songs are sung!

  3. Do we still need preparation?

There is a story of a young Naval Academy graduate, who after completing his first overseas cruise, was given an opportunity to display his talents at getting his ship underway and out of port. The young officer's efficiency established a new record for getting a naval ship underway. He was stunned, however, when a sailor approached him with a message from their captain. My personal congratulations upon completing your underway preparations exercise according to the book and with amazing speed. In your haste however, you have overlooked one of the fundamental rules--make sure the captain is on board before you leave. (3)

    1. Is the Captain on board?

    2. You can answer that question for yourself better than I can.

    3. I know I need the preparation.

Amen!

1. Jean H. Vandergrift, "A promise kept," June 8, 2003, University Christian Church Web Site, scn.org.

2. From the Ann Landers column, January 30, 2000.

3. Bobby Ives, Greetings, Boat Notes, The Carpenter's Boatshop, Fall 1999 Newsletter, 1.

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