Luke 1:26-38 Probably the Bible verse known by the most people is John 3:16. Most of you can say it on cue: For God so loved the world that he gave his only son, so that those who believe in him may not perish but may have eternal life.
The verse isn’t a part of our Advent or Christmas readings, but it is in the background of all of it. For God so loved the world.
It is in the background of the story we hear this morning about King David. Sitting in his palace, feeling quite full of himself – he has, after all, defeated all his enemies. I imagine David’s approval ratings were sky high. And so now, with satisfaction, he looks around and says, “It’s a darn shame, isn’t it? I have this nice house and poor old God has to live in a tent. I’m going to do the right thing and give God a nice house of his own.
But God, as David comes to learn, doesn’t want a nice house. “I don’t need a temple,” God says to the prophet Nathan. “I have lived in this tent for many years now, moving in it from place to place, along with my people. Remind David, please, that I have taken him and all of Israel where they needed to go, when they needed to go. And I will continue to do that, always.”
God so loves the people that God promises to be with them always, wherever they are.
And it is in the background of our gospel story, where the angel Gabriel comes to Mary and announces the good news. You will conceive and bear a son; his name will be Jesus – the Savior. The power of God will overshadow you. Through it all, Mary, wherever you are, God will be with you.
Because God so loved the world that God gave his only Son, the boy-child of Mary.
This Son will be called Jesus, the Savior, the Deliverer. But he is known by many names, one of them Immanuel, which means God-with-us.
God loved the world so much that being confined to a temple was not sufficient. God loved the world so much that even traveling in a tent was no longer enough. God came down to earth, took on flesh and blood and bone, becoming fully human. God’s promise is true and eternal: to be with us.
And this means, for us, that no matter what hardships you are facing, no matter the pain and sorrow that befalls you, no matter the threats you encounter, God is with you.
For refugees – those who flee Gaza, those who flee Ukraine, those who have fled gang warlords, corrupt governments, famine or bullets – God is with you.
The God of exiles, refugees, and migrants still shines a light in today’s present darkness. For God so loves the world – all of it. all of us.
This is the most important thing for us to know.
Because hope can be a slippery thing in this world. Keeping faith in the promises of God is sometimes not an easy thing. It was not always easy for King David, and for all those leaders who went before or came after him. It is not always easy for all who have sung the psalm – I will sing the wonders of your love, proclaiming your faithfulness to all generations.
It was not always easy for Mary, the mother of God. When she sat on a donkey’s back feeling her labor pains, when she knew not where she would find shelter. When she, her husband, and newborn fled the wrath of Herod, becoming refugees in Egypt. When she watched the empire crucify her son – God’s Son.
But Mary knew. She knew in her heart that God will bring down the powerful with love, the strongest force there is. She knew this, and her cousin Elizabeth knew that Mary knew this. When Mary entered Elizabeth’s house, a few verses down, the child in Elizabeth’s womb leapt for joy and Elizabeth, the mother of John, sang these words about Mary: Blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her by the Lord.
May you share in this belief. May your hope be steadfast and strong. May you know God’s love, which never leaves you.
