As I sat down to do my worship planning for the third Sunday in Advent, I wanted to preach on the gospel lesson. I’m drawn to texts that are narratives of a story and the story of the angel Gabriel putting a smack down on old Zechariah was exceptionally appealing to me. But I have already preached on that text several times, most recently last year, so I thought I should pick a different text. I was trying to decide between the Isiah text and the 1 Thessalonians text. I have preached on them both before, but a very long time ago so I knew they would both be fresh, so to speak. Looking at my worship plan, I noticed I tend to preach on the New Testament more than the Old Testament and I figured my Hebrew could use a little exercise (especially now that my son is starting to ask me a lot of Hebrew question), so I eventually settled on the Isaiah text. But when I sat down to actually translate the Isaiah text, I had seconds thoughts. I fired up my laptop, pulled some books from the shelf, and opened my Bible to the text. When I read the section heading for the Isaiah text, I laughed.
The section heading for the Isaiah text is “The year of the LORD’s favor”. I thought to myself, “well I can’t preach this text, at least not this year.” I figured I would have no way of convincing anyone that the year 2020 was the “year of the LORD’s favor”. The year 2020 has been filled with some of the worst political unrest I have ever seen. I don’t know how many more sleezy commercials or snide Facebook posts I can handle. The year 2020 has been filled with racism and rioting. It is depressing to see the seemingly endless cycle of violence begetting violence begetting violence... Finally, the defining characteristic of the year 2020, the thing that the year 2020 will be known for throughout history, is the Coronavirus. The Coronavirus has separated and isolated family and friends, it is estimated to cost Americans 16 trillion dollars, and it has killed close to 1.6 million people worldwide. A few weeks ago, I saw a video that amused me. Lord, I pray this isn’t blasphemous, but the video was a parody of an online dating commercial. In the parody the devil was trying to find his perfect match. The devil in the parody says, “I took out all hope, joy, and happiness and there she was, my perfect match, the year 2020”. I am not sure what year Isaiah is talking about, but I am fairly certain the year 2020 is not the year of the LORD’s favor.
I almost picked a different text to preach on, but I have learned over the years that there might be more behind the text I choose to preach on then an intellectual or creative decision on my part. Sometimes I pick a text I am going to preach on months in advance and almost without fail somehow that text shows itself to be timely and applicable on the Sunday to which it was assigned (it’s almost as if God’s Word is always timely and applicable regardless of the day or decade in which it is preached). So, I thought I would put this Isaiah text to the test. Let’s see if the prophet Isaiah can convince us that the year 2020 is “the year of the LORD’s favor”.
In Isaiah 61:1-2a we read, “1 The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is on me, because the LORD has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners, 2 to proclaim the year of the LORD’s favor and the day of vengeance of our God.” Let’s start by identifying the speaker, the one who has been anointed to “preach good news to the poor”. Earlier, in chapter 11, the prophet Isaiah identifies this speaker when he writes, “1 A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse; from his roots a Branch will bear fruit. 2 The Spirit of the LORD will rest on him—” The speaker is the “shoot” “from the stump of Jesse”, that is He is a descendant from that all but dead family tree of David. In Luke chapter 4 Jesus makes it crystal clear which one of David’s descendants has been anointed to preach good news to the poor. There Jesus stands before those gathered around Him in the synagogue, reads our text from Isaiah 61, and then says, “Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.”[1] (mic drop) Jesus identifies Himself as the speaker; Jesus is the one who has been anointed to speak good news to the poor.
Now let’s figure out who the poor are. It is worth pointing out that while the word “poor” may very well include those who have little to no money, the word “poor” is not limited to financial matters. The word “poor” refers to all types of afflictions. In the context of our text, it is clear that we are talking about a spiritual poverty that causes people to be brokenhearted and bound in captivity. What is it that had the first readers of this Isaiah text broken and bound? I am sure the Babylonian captivity had them feeling broken and bound just as the year 2020 has you feeling broken and bound, but there is something that is far worse than Babylonian captivity and the year 2020 that has us all broken and bound. That something is of course, sin.
We who were created to offer perfect service to God have been broken by sin. In three more chapters the prophet Isaiah reminds us that “All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags.”[2] Sin leaves a blemish, a stain, a residue on everything we do. We can’t sing a song, pray a prayer, or give an offering without sin attaching itself to our action. We are broken by sin.
Further, we are bound by sin. Eight chapters before this the prophet Isaiah reminds us that “We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way.” Not only does sin prevent us from doing the good we want to do, it also causes us to do the evil we don’t want to do. It seems we all have a sin that we can’t seem to shake. Whether it is lust, gluttony, greed, sloth, wrath, envy, or pride, it seems as if there are certain sin we are bound to do again and again, certain sins that cause us to cry out time and time again, “create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me. Cast me not away from your presence and take not you holy Spirit from me.”
Sin has us all broken and bound. We are the poor to whom Jesus was anointed to preach good news. So, let’s hear it. Let’s hear the good news that supposedly causes poor sinners like you and me to think of the year 2020 as the year of the LORD’s favor. In verse 3 the prophet Isaiah tells us Jesus bestows on us poor sinners “a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair.”
Jesus places a “crown of beauty” on your head. Now, I know what you are thinking. Crowns are for winners, but, as I have already stated, sin has made losers of us all. Because of sin we deserve to have our heads covered with ashes; we deserve to hang our heads low with a reminder that ashes to ashes, dust to dust we will all be overcome by death. However, even though we had been defeated by death, Jesus places a crown on your head. The King of kings went toe to toe with the wages of sin, and though the contest left Him stricken, smitten, and afflicted, in the end Jesus proved Himself victorious when on the third day He rose from the dead. In chapter 25 the prophet Isaiah say it this way, “Death has been swallowed up in victory”[3] For no other reason than His love for you, Jesus takes His crown of victory over death and places it on you.
And then Jesus anoints you with the “oil of gladness”. I should probably explain this is a good thing. The ancient Israelites used oil to mark a person as one who had been chosen by God for service. King, prophets, and priests were all anointed with oil. Oil is for people who are fit for service, but, as I have already stated, sin has made us all unfit servants. However, despite our unfitness, Jesus anoints you with oil. The Prince of peace stood before the mirror of God’s holy law and saw perfection. Though He was tempted in every way just as we are Jesus is without sin. Everything thought He had, every word He spoke, every action he took was pure perfection. In chapter 35 the prophet Isaiah say it this way, “He had done no violence, nor was any deceit in His mouth”.[4] For no other reason than His love for you, Jesus takes the oil of His perfection and anoints you for service.
Finally, Jesus cloths you with a “garment of praise”. A garment such as this would be worn at a celebration, like a wedding banquet. Only those who wore the appropriate garments would be welcomed into the banquet hall. This could be concerning for us because, as I have already stated, we were in desperate need of new clothes. Our cloths have been stained and re-stained with a lifetime of sin. However, even though we show up at the banquet wearing the most unwelcoming cloths, Jesus fits us with a garment of salvation. It is a garment that was sown in His suffering, dyed in His death, and tailored by His resurrection. In chapter 61 the prophet Isaiah says it this way, “He has clothed me with garments of salvation and arrayed me in a robe of righteousness”. For no other reason than His love for you, Jesus stands at the entrance to the banquet hall of heaven ready to put a garment of salvation on you.
Politically, economically, and socially the year 2020 is a hot mess. But today through the Prophet Isaiah Jesus reminds you that the crown of victory has been placed on your head, the oil of perfection covers all that you think, say, and do, and you have been custom fit with a garment of salvation. Therefore, this year like every other year is the year of the LORD’s favor. So, let us cry out with the prophet Isaiah, “10 I delight greatly in the LORD; my soul rejoices in my God. For he has clothed me with garments of salvation and arrayed me in a robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom adorns his head like a priest, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.” Rejoice, my fellow believers! Today on the third Sunday in Advent in the year 2020, we get to celebrate another year of the LORD’s favor. Therefore, I will say it again, rejoice! Amen
[1] Luke 4:21
[2] Isaiah 64:6
[3] Isaiah 25:8
[4] Isaiah 53:9