Labor and Delivery

In just a few days we will gather again in this space and one of the glorious Christmas hymns we will sing is "Joy to the World." I expect everyone here knows the words, at least to the first verse, by heart. "Joy to the world, the Lord is come: let earth receive her king; let every heart prepare him room, and heaven and nature sing." Let every heart prepare him room. That one particular phrase seems to me actually more a part of Advent than Christmas. My own sense of much of what Advent is about is preparation, preparing our hearts for Jesus’ birth. Prepare him room. It’s a wonderful phrase. There was a piece in the paper yesterday about holiday guests and it mentioned the importance of preparing the guest room. And preparing it with more than just clean sheets. Maybe some flowers or special soaps. Something special. Special preparation in a special room for a special guest. Prepare him room.

This morning’s gospel reading lends itself to this theme. It’s the story of the annunciation, or more formally "The Annunciation of Our Lord Jesus Christ to the Blessed Virgin Mary." The church has always seen this as an important story within the gospel message of Jesus’ life, death and resurrection. Churches are named for the Annunciation. In addition to today, the actual Feast Day of the Annunciation, on March 25, is a very significant holy day within the church calendar. The angel Gabriel comes to the maid Mary and announces to her that she will conceive and bear a son who will be the son of the most high. And Mary says, yes. Mary prepares room in her very body for the special guest who is coming.

These are wonderful images to carry with us during Advent, especially as our lives get busier and busier and fuller and fuller. Let every heart prepare him room. Let us prepare room in our hearts for the most special guest who is coming.

During this Advent time, I would never want you to toss out the image or the activity of preparing room in your hearts and lives for Jesus’ coming.

But I got to thinking this week…
Thinking about a completely different way to look at Advent and rooms.

In the verses just before the portion of Second Samuel that was read this morning, King David has just defeated the Philistines and triumphantly brought the Ark of the Covenant to Jerusalem. The ark is the very symbol of God’s presence with God’s people. The ark represents "God with us"; almost equivalent to Immanuel, "God with us." David is concerned that the ark is kept in a mere tent, and he resolves to "prepare a room", to build a house for the Lord. The Lord replies to David, "Are you the one to build me a house to live in?" Then in the passage we heard today, the prophet Nathan says to David, "the Lord declares to you that the Lord will make you a house." The Lord will build the house… a house for David to metaphorically fill with the people of God. The context and significance of this entire passage in Second Samuel are complex, but the words got me thinking…

Thinking about a completely different way to look at Advent and the process of preparing rooms…

The story of the annunciation to Mary is indeed an important story in the gospels. And if Mary hadn’t accepted God’s plan for her, God only knows what would have happened to the world. But the annunciation story isn’t really about Mary. It’s about God. About God’s desire to come into the world. God desires physically to come into the world. God yearns to redeem human life. So God sends Gabriel to announce the plan. God, the Holy Spirit, conceives a Son.

And Mary brings that Son into the world. Mary gives birth. That’s the part of the story where Mary is the main and indispensable character. Mary gives birth. Mary brings Jesus physically into the world. To put it in somewhat bald and modern terms, if there is a room that is important to Mary in this story it is the labor and delivery room. If we are to learn from Mary, to be inspired by her model, perhaps we should picture ourselves in that labor and delivery room. Whether our role is mother or father or midwife or physician, our function is to bring this baby into the world.

And maybe God has already prepared the room. God said to King David, "I will build you a house. You fill it. Fill it with the faithful people of Israel." Some scholars like to point out that Jesus was born at just the right time and just the right place; that the world was prepared socially, politically, in terms of transportation and communication… the world was ready, the room was prepared. It was Mary’s role then to birth Jesus into that world. Today we are called, as Mary was then, to bring Jesus into a world that is ready and waiting.

Our world is full of rooms already prepared by God. And God waits longingly to enter into those rooms. God desires to be in our world. Our call is to give Jesus birth in our world today.

God has prepared the rooms. God has prepared room in our hearts. Someone, I think, said that we have God shaped holes in our hearts, a God-shaped empty space within that can only be filled by God. From the very first beating of our hearts, the room is there in our hearts for God, but we must bring God into it. We must give Jesus birth in our own hearts and lives.

Another room that God has prepared is this very room around us. God has prepared this space, made it holy. This space is prepared for the birth of the Savior; the air almost sparkles with eager anticipation. But it is our prayers, our voices and our songs here on Christmas Eve that will make Jesus’ presence real here. We are to bring Jesus into the world, to give him birth. Right here. On Tuesday evening. At 7:00.

Jesus could get here without us, of course. God is present in all places and all times. In fact, this sanctuary candle that burns reminds us of Jesus’ real presence here in the sacrament. And Jesus could get here on Tuesday evening without us, but what would be the point? He’d have a lonely evening. It is our voices, our songs and our prayers, that will bring Jesus into our lives here this year. Everything is prepared, but if Jesus is to be born for us here this year, we must give him birth.

There are other rooms prepared in our world today. Rooms prepared and waiting for the birth of the Savior. These are not the best of times in the world. They are not the worst of times either, but surely there are many people this Advent, 2002, whose hearts are empty because of anxiety, or hardship, or fear. People whom we know, perhaps well, or people whom we will encounter this holiday season… People who have an empty space in their hearts that is aching, waiting to be filled… People who have room in their lives for the birth of Immanuel, if we will bring him there. We must give him birth.

And one more thought. A few weeks ago I mentioned that I was not going to rail (from the pulpit at least) against the secular hoopla of Christmas that now begins sometime in October each year. Isn’t it possible that this hoopla is part of God’s way of preparing the world, preparing room in the world, for Jesus to be born. No matter whether economic and political times are good or bad, Christmas is a time each year that opens up hope and generosity and goodness within people’s hearts, even within the hearts of those who would not profess themselves Christians. The room is open; the space prepared in the world, in peoples’ hearts, but it is up to us to give Jesus birth.

There are many images before us this time of year. Do not abandon the Advent image of preparing a room in your heart, a special room for a special guest. And do not forget the image of Mary and Joseph and a donkey on a dusty road. Today they would be drawing very near to Bethlehem and to that quiet manger. But let me give you another image to carry with you in the last few days of Advent and the glorious twelve days of Christmas-tide that are just ahead. Imagine yourself, as you enter into each and every room that is a part of your journey these days… imagine yourself carrying a tiny child in swaddling clothes. As you enter this room, or your own living room… as you visit your neighbor or enter a store… as you enter a motel room when traveling or arrive into the home of family or friends… Picture an image of yourself, cradling a tiny child in your arms, and imagine that the angel Gabriel has said to you, "This child whom you bear in your arms shall be named Jesus. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High. He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end."

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