January 3, 2024

“Happy New Year!” I’m assuming that you’ve either said it, or heard it in the last few days. Have you ever wondered why? Why would people say such a thing? What reason would any informed human have to think that saying this or wishing this is the least bit rational?

On the 1st day of this brand-new year, far east Asia (Japan) experienced a severe earthquake that resulted in the loss of at least 62 lives. The next day, a Japan Coast Guard plane that was on the ground in a Tokyo airport, was hit by a Japan Airlines Jet. The result was deadly for 5 of the 6 personnel on the Coast Guard plane, while all 367 plus 12 crew members of the Japan Air Line were able to evacuate their plane minutes before it became a fireball. Meanwhile in the Mideast, Israel and Hamas and Israel and Hezbollah continue their war with no end in sight and in Europe, Ukraine and Russia continue their devastating war with no end in sight. The African continent is home to a number of atrocities that are often mentioned and then quickly forgotten except by the thousands who are affected by them. Happy New Year?

Meanwhile our beloved United States has become so deeply divided that the people, policies and practices have taken on a tone that feels like tectonic plates threatening to rupture a fault line at any moment that will turn us against ourselves. Our states are not only divided, but within each state there are serious divisions. The other day I was talking to a local police officer and expressed appreciation to him for his work, and acknowledged that day after day he sees evil and how hard it must be to guard one’s self from becoming hopeless and jaded. He said that it is getting worse. Happy New Year?

Week after week you entrust the ministry staff with prayer requests for us to intercede for and praises for us to give thanks for. The needs outnumber the praises and are regular reminders of the amount of disease, loss and other forms of distress that the members of our church live with and under. Has any year ever started out like this? Well, actually, yes, most of them have. So, if for thousands of years, humans have been living with all of this, then what reason would any informed human have to think that saying or wising “Happy New Year” is the least bit rational when we are surrounded with so many expectations of conflict, sorrow, pain and loss?

We can because of God.

Hold the phone!! How can I say that when it sure looks like even God has lost control of the ship? While the simple answer is God, the reason is not simplistic or superficial. We can trust God’s promises of redemption because God has always been honest with us about his judgements. In response to their rebellion “To the woman he (God) said, ‘I will surely multiply your pain in childbearing; in pain you shall bring forth children.” (Genesis 3.16a) For thousands of years, this has been the experience of every woman who has given birth. “And to Adam he (God) said, ‘…cursed is the ground because of you; in pain you shall eat of it all the days of your life …. By the sweat of your face you shall eat bread, till you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken; for you are dust, and to dust you shall return.” (Genesis 3.17-19) And for thousands of years this has been true. Do you see it? God promised pain to the woman and God promised pain to the man. So, what should we expect? Pain, obviously. Therefore, should we be surprised at conflict, sorrow, pain and loss? No. All of this is simply evidence that God meant what he said. But, that is not all that God said, is it?

The same God who is honest with us about his judgment is honest with us about his mercy. The same God who gave us his law that provides us with a divine commentary and definition for our human condition also gave us a means of grace to be saved from our own sin and the colossal mess that we have made in this world. If what God said about our sin is obviously true, then we can and should trust what he said about his grace. “…the LORD said in his heart, ‘…the intention of man’s heart is evil from his youth.’” (Genesis 8.21b) Our evil is not a surprise to God and should not be a surprise to us. God knows the true condition of humanity and has said so. Therefore, we can be honest and realistic about what we can and should expect from our world. Jesus said, “In the world you will have tribulation.” (John 16.33) But, the same God who tells us the truth about our sin and its consequences also tells us the truth about his redemption and its promises. That statement is from the conclusion of the final sermon that Jesus delivered to his disciples the night before he died. So yes, Jesus said that “In the world you will have tribulation.” But he did not stop there. He went on to say, “But take heart; I have overcome the world.” The chaos is real, but it will not last. The pain is real, but it will not win. The loss is real, but it will not endure. The sorrow is deep, but it will not have the final word. “I have overcome the world.”

God’s honesty about our sin is humbling and hard to face. But when we do, we are able to see ourselves and our world for what they are. God’s honesty about his mercy is humbling and amazing to embrace and when we do, we are able to see ourselves and our world for what we are and will be. “And he who was seated on the throne said, ‘Behold, I am making all things new.’” (Revelation 21.5a) So, yes, we can and should say,

Happy New Year,

Bob

Sunday’s text: Luke 2:39-52