Testing the Lord - Isaiah 7 - Advent 4A

Testing the Lord

Tony E Hansen

Reflection on Psalm 80, Isaiah 7: 10-16, Matthew 1: 18-25

Opening prayer

God does something for Ahaz. God asks Ahaz for anything, but Ahaz says “I will not put the Lord to the test.”

Someone was given the ultimate prize: anything they could ask to have or see, but this person refuses an exceptional gift.  But why?

When Jesus was in the desert, he tells the tempter, do not put the Lord to the test.

Why ?

When we are offered the world, visions, and all that could be, what are we seeing, hearing in those offers?

When the world is offered to us on a platter, question the offer .

Are we witnessing God, the offer or our ego?

Are we looking to profit well for ourselves or our neighbors?

People fail and we know that we do.  We might see these offers and want to genuinely take them, but for what purpose ?

What purpose is the offer given to us? Is it a test to us to see where our heart is? 

The Gospels tell us, for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

So given an awesome opportunity, do we take it and hoard it?  I got mine - off with the rest of you.  Or do you think about this and consider what is being offered? 

Politicians are given great opportunities and some of them live in the moment to serve, and some live in that moment to serve themselves. True leaders are not necessarily ones we elect but ones that rise to meet the needs of the community and they walk with God by them. 

Good leaders and good people won’t just take the divine gifts and give a finger to others or use that position to inflict pain onto others. Nor will they use the divine gifts to judge and divide between who receives good and who gets none. 

Yes being good isn’t just recognition and honors and praise. It is doing the necessary and expressing the love of neighbors through our work, our thoughts and ultimately our being. 

So an offer so great to be, ought be considered too great. What would you ask for ? Money, health, status or some other thing?

What Ahaz chose, in that moment, was wisdom and faith. Wisdom and faith that God has already given great gifts to us, to him. No other signs are needed.

Same for Joseph in Matthew’s gospel. We often overlook that he was planning to divorce, but God intervened. (As God does) Then Joseph leaned into his faith and took her as his wife.

Joseph probably felt lost and sad that she was pregnant.

Yet when we are sad and feel lost, the words of the psalm can be how we ask for help. We know we fail and we will fail. We know we turn from the face and the light of God into ourselves and busy thoughts.

That is when we need to stop and think and lean into faith and wisdom to know that we don’t have all of the answers. We can look to the divine for them and find clarity. Because often it is us walking through a fog and cloudy misunderstanding. It is us tripping our own thoughts and forgetting that there is a path. Look through the fog and cloudy - find God ready to help.

We can look for restoration and God will be there. That is an offer that God provides without judgment. That is an offer ready for you to receive. That is an offer that does not need a test or transaction.

Again, live with the steadfast Love of God in your heart and your interactions with people and you will find restoration, love abounding and wisdom.

That is wisdom: the serenity to accept things I cannot change and courage to change things I can and the wisdom to know the difference.

That is faith in our Creator.

Thanks be to God

Reflections for Lessons and Carols - Year A 2025

Reflection for Lessons and Carols 2025

Tony E Hansen

Reflection for Genesis – Creation and Covenant

The first divine gift is Creation aka beginnings. These stories from Genesis remind us that all were created by our Creator and given bountiful gifts in a beautiful garden we call Earth.  God gives us the task of stewardship over this creation – these gifts. 

Remember that you are a child of our Creator and have been given so much. You and I were made in the image of our Creator:

“So God created humans in his image,  in the image of God he created them...”

Another of our gifts is the covenant with the Holy One.  Covenant implies relationship, and relationships means sharing. Our covenants with God help us to understand our purpose; that we are meant to be here in this place and in this time. 

God is here all the time. That covenant remains even when we fail.  So when you are looking for answers or solace, then look for God who is ready to help.  In turn, part of our covenant means to be there for others around us – to be the living face of God for all to see. God wants us to share these gifts not just to hold them close to our chest. So How do you share your gifts? 

Reflection for Micah and Psalm 103 - God of Peace and Love.

Abounding steadfast love, forgiveness and peace - gifts from God.  Yet for us,  in order to truly understand peace and justice, we must be that love and forgiveness in our ways. When we do, we might grow to be what we are meant to be. Thus, when we ask God to forgive our debts let us also be willing to forgive. Else we are weighed down by our brokenness, our misery and angers. 

From a broken world searching for meaning, that meaning can be found in God’s mission for us. God’s mission for us is not one of wealth and power but peace and loving kindness for all people: whether we agree or disagree. Why because God loves us so much - that abounding steadfast love is so great it breaks forth into this world , into your life and into the people around you. 

Beloved, we are God’s children and the gifts of love, forgiveness, peace and justice are ready for you. When you practice love and forgiveness, you will find peace and justice flourish around you.  When you realize this, you receive wisdom, another gift of God.

Reflection for Birth – Matthew 1: 18-25 

Birth is beautiful and messy. It is us observing creation. Even when adopting, the first day, the first moment, We come into being. This is full of excitement and realization. There is a change for those witnessing the birth - chance for renewal themselves.

There is a parent and youth; there is old and new; there is a family with many possibilities as well as worries. This is a beginning for some, and for some, this is renewal. God gives a chance for newness in birth. We were created in darkness, we were born into this world, and through Christ, we are born into light with new life with so much possibility. 

Each day, we begin something new together. Each moment is a chance for rebirth as we consider where we are, where we have been and where we go from here.  That is anxious, scary, breathtaking, and it is exhilarating joyfulness! How can we renew and embrace the joy of birth – the gift of life itself?

Reflection for Luke 2:8-16 and Matthew 2:1-11 - Shepherds and Foreigners.

Beloved, Fear not for good news is with you! Angels appear to the shepherds (those who tend flocks) and are given a sign that they follow – in order to witness -To witness Christ born into our world.

The magi, foreigners, come to the land with hopeful hearts following the Christmas star to witness. We often times take what we have for granted and when someone comes along from a different land, they bring blessings, hope and optimism. I traveled a lot this year, and I saw lots of beauty. Like my foreign exchange student, foreigners can teach us about our land and gifts we have when we first welcome. Today, let the magi teach you to observe all the beauty around you, and most importantly, let them remind you to welcome with God’s love in your hearts.

Shepherds and foreigners were drawn together because our Shepherd, Jesus, was born this day to teach us and to lead us. They are gifts to remind us that our witness begins with the gift of welcome.

Reflection for Hebrews 1 and John 1 – God’s Promise Made Flesh.

The Gospel of John opens with mysticism that echoes creation we read in Genesis. John leans into the notion of divine presence being everywhere and in everything. When you think about it, God made us, you and me in the divine image. In fact, all things came into being from this presence. 

Thus, when you look into your heart, realize that you too were brought into this world through the breath and love of God. See that presence manifest in all the creatures and things of the vast cosmos. It is God’s word that gives life and is a promise for us. Witness that in you and with you.

We read about God’s covenant and promises for us, and through Jesus, the promise is revealed to us. That God lives among us and is with us. God is speaking to us even when we don’t hear. God’s promise is life, love and forgiveness. Our covenant then is to honor that promise.

With that steadfast love and life, we can look into the future, the new year, the day with hope, peace and joy of Christmas each day because we express our part of that promise in us. 

Nothing can separate us from that divine love - not even us. Why because we grow together when we welcome and let God be in us and with us.

That is why we have trust and faith. We can trust God, and we can trust in these gifts - they don’t need batteries or accessories, but these gifts need us to live them and be them.  

Still, we are want to trust God only when our bank accounts are doing ok, people are healthy, or there is calm in the air.  When bills are difficult, the sickness has returned, when you are trying to figure things out, take heart that nothing can separate us from the love of God.  

We may fail and we may falter, but God will be there for us always. 

Renew and witness birth – newness before God’s abundant love and God’s promise for you.

That is the Christmas promise: that hope is real and God is here. Renew yourself in the love of God as we share in the light of Christ.

Thanks Be to God

Lessons and Carols 2025 Year A

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24 Dec 2025 | Christmas Eve “Lessons and Carols”

“All are welcome to the Lord’s table wherever you are on life’s journey.”

Opening Prayer 

Our Father, who art in Heaven, Hallowed be thy name, Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done On earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread And forgive us our debts As we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, But deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory Forever and ever. Amen.

Assurance 

Lighting the Christ candle.

Hymn: Joy to the World.

First Lesson: Creation - Genesis 1:1-5, 27

When God began to create the heavens and the earth, the earth was complete chaos, and darkness covered the face of the deep, while a wind from God swept over the face of the waters. Then God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. And God saw that the light was good, and God separated the light from the darkness. God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, the first day.

Hymn: O Come O Come Emmanuel. 

Second Lesson: Covenant - Genesis 9:12-16

God said, “This is the sign of the covenant that I make between me and you and every living creature that is with you, for all future generations: I have set my bow in the clouds, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and the earth. When I bring clouds over the earth and the bow is seen in the clouds, I will remember my covenant that is between me and you and every living creature of all flesh, and the waters shall never again become a flood to destroy all flesh. When the bow is in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is on the earth.” God said to Noah, “This is the sign of the covenant that I have established between me and all flesh that is on the earth.”

Reflection for Genesis 1,9 – Creation and Covenant

Hymn: Come Thou Long Expected Jesus

Third Lesson: Abounding in Steadfast Love – Psalm 103: 1-8

Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me, bless his holy name. Bless the Lord, O my soul, and do not forget all awesome benefits— who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the Pit, who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy,  who satisfies you with good as long as you live so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s. The Lord works vindication and justice for all who are oppressed. The Lord made known divine ways to Moses, and gracious acts to the people of Israel. The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.

Hymn: O Little Town of Bethlehem. 

Fourth Lesson: God of Peace – Micah 5:2-5a; 6:6,8

But you, O Bethlehem of Ephrathah, who are one of the little clans of Judah,
from you shall come forth for me one who is to rule in Israel, whose origin is from of old,    from ancient days.  Therefore he shall give them up until the time  when she who is in labor has brought forth; then the rest of his kindred shall return to the people of Israel.  And he shall stand and feed his flock in the strength of the Lord, in the majesty of the name of the Lord his God. And they shall live secure, for now he shall be great to the ends of the earth;  and he shall be the one of peace.  With what shall I come before the Lord and bow myself before God on high? Listen here mortal: God has told you what is good, And what YHWH requires of you; to do justice, and to love kindness and to walk humbly with your God?”

Reflection for Micah and Psalm 103 - God of Peace and Justice.

Hymn: It Came upon the Midnight Clear.

Fifth Lesson: Birth – Matthew 1: 18-25 

Now the birth of Jesus the Messiah took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been engaged to Joseph, but before they lived together, she was found to be pregnant from the Holy Spirit.  Her husband Joseph, being a righteous man and unwilling to expose her to public disgrace, planned to divorce her quietly. But just when he had resolved to do this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, for the child conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.  She will bear a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.”  All this took place to fulfill what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet: “Look, the virgin shall become pregnant and give birth to a son, and they shall name him Emmanuel,”which means, “God is with us.” When Joseph awoke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him; he took her as his wife but had no marital relations with her until she had given birth to a son, and he named him Jesus.

Reflection for Matthew 1: 18-25 - Birth

Hymn: What Child Is This. 

Sixth Lesson: Shepherds Visit – Luke 2:8-16 

Now in that same region there were shepherds living in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. Then an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid, for see, I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people: to you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is the Messiah, the Lord. This will be a sign for you: you will find a child wrapped in bands of cloth and lying in a manger.” And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host, praising God and saying,“Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace among those whom he favors!” When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let us go now to Bethlehem and see this thing that has taken place, which the Lord has made known to us.”  So they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph and the child lying in the manger.

Offertory:

Hymn: Hark the Herald Angels Sing!

Seventh Lesson: Foreigners Visit – Matthew 2:1-12 

In the time of King Herod, after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, magi from the east came to Jerusalem, asking, “Where is the child who has been born king of the Jews? For we observed his star in the east and have come to pay him homage.” When King Herod heard this, he was frightened, and all Jerusalem with him, and calling together all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Messiah was to be born. They told him, “In Bethlehem of Judea, for so it has been written by the prophet: ‘And you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah, for from you shall come a ruler who is to shepherd my people Israel.’ ” Then Herod secretly called for the magi and learned from them the exact time when the star had appeared. Then he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, “Go and search diligently for the child, and when you have found him, bring me word so that I may also go and pay him homage.” When they had heard the king, they set out, and there, ahead of them, went the star that they had seen in the east, until it stopped over the place where the child was.  When they saw that the star had stopped, they were overwhelmed with joy. On entering the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they knelt down and paid him homage. Then, opening their treasure chests, they offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they left for their own country by another road.

Reflection for Luke 2:8-16 and Matthew 2:1-12 - Shepherds and Foreigners.

Hymn 139 (NCH) / 265 (Celebration): The First Noel.

Eighth Lesson: God’s Promise Through Jesus - Hebrews 1:1-4 

Long ago God spoke to our ancestors in many and various ways by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by a Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, through whom he also created the worlds. He is the reflection of God’s glory and the exact imprint of God’s very being, and he sustains all things by his powerful word. When he had made purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, having become as much superior to angels as the name he has inherited is more excellent than theirs.

Hymn: O Come All Ye Faithful. 

Ninth Lesson: Word Made Flesh - John 1: 1-5 (Inclusive version)

In the beginning, there was the Word, and the Word was in God’s presence, and the Word was God.  The Word was present to God from the beginning.  Through the Word, all things came into being, and apart from the Word, nothing came into being that has come into being.  In the Word was life, and the life was our light--  Light that shines in the darkness, Light that the darkness did not overcome.

Reflection for John 1:1-5 – God’s Promise Made Flesh.

**Lighting the Candles 

Hymn: Silent Night.

Benediction:

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* Please rise as you are able spirit and body. 

** Please make you way to perimeter of the Church for lighting the candles, sharing the light of Christ, and singing of Silent Night.

New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Priests for Equality. 2007. The Inclusive Bible: The First Egalitarian Translation. Sheed & Ward: Lantham, MD.

Wren, B. 2008. Advent Christmas and Epiphany, Liturgies and Prayers for Public Worship. Westminster John Knox Press: Louisville. Reproduced with permission.