Advent Week 4 - 2012 Series

Today is the fourth Sunday of Advent

The whole reason for the Advent was to initiate the new covenant and to save the lost.

Mary’s Song - Luke 1:46-55

“My soul glorifies the Lord

and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,

for He has been mindful

of the humble state of His servant.

From now on all generations

will call me blessed,

for the Mighty One has done great things for me -

holy is His name.

His mercy extends to those who fear Him,

from generation to generation.

He has performed mighty deeds with His arm;

He has scattered those who are proud in their inmost thoughts.

He has brought down rulers from their thrones

but has lifted up the humble.

He has filled the hungry with good things

but has sent the rich away empty.

He has helped His servant Israel,

remembering to be merciful

to Abraham and his descendants forever,

just as He promised our ancestors.”

Christmas is a time when we, as faithful followers and servants of Jesus, rejoice in the arrival of the Christ Child, the Light of the World. But, the shadow of an unimaginable tragedy has been cast over the celebration this year; the massacre of 20 elementary school children and six adults.

Many folks were asking last week, “Where is that Light, where was God?” Wouldn’t it be a better question to ask where we are in relationship with God? Where was God in the following decision?

Maddalena Douse is one of the smallest premature babies ever to survive in the U.K. — thanks to a pair of scissors.

When she was born six months ago at just 23 weeks, she was so tiny doctors did not know if they should try to save her.

But when they put her on the scales she weighed 1 pound, the minimum weight for a baby to be considered viable — so they fought for her.

Only when she was safely on a ventilator did doctors discover the scissors had been accidentally left on the scales, and that 8-inch Maddalena in fact weighed only .84 pounds, or about 13 ounces.

The lucky baby has now been discharged from the Royal Sussex Hospital and is expected to grow into a healthy child.

“She now weighs 5½ pounds and is getting stronger by the day," Maddalena's mother, Kate, said. "She’s our little miracle, and we’re so glad to have her home in time for Christmas.”

Just take a look at this sentence …

“But when they put her on the scales she weighed 1 pound, the minimum weight for a baby to be considered viable — so they fought for her.”

Where was God in that picture? Did the doctors and nurses gather around the baby and ask God to help them save this precious little life? No, they put her on a scale, if she made the weight she would be rescued. If she was too light she would be discarded like an amputated limb. Some group had chosen a weight and that weight was the deciding point as to whether it was worth making the investment or not to save a baby or let it die. Too much money for too little of a chance for survival. Maddalena would have been thrown away if not for the scissors.

This is just a glimpse of the downward moral spiral that inevitably takes place when ever God is removed from any decision.

But, at Sandy Hook Elementary School these were little innocent children who had not yet even reached the age of accountability so why were they killed. Where was God?

When you look at the history of Israel in the Old Testament you can see that God would judge the nation based on its faithfulness to the covenant they had with God or on their rejection of Him and His law.

Were they faithful to their relationship and walking with Him in love or were they seeking their own pleasure at their own peril?

For instance, when the Lord raised up Babylon in order to discipline Israel for their unfaithfulness the righteous Israelites were taken into captivity right along with those who had rejected Him and turned to false gods for their worship. Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, all of them being righteous young men, were all taken captive along with all who had abandoned their faith in God.

Is it too simplistic to say that these young children in Connecticut died as a result of the sin which our nation is not only allowing but embracing? Is it possible for us to run headlong away from God and His protection and then to wonder and doubt when our own actions cause suffering and pain?

With these questions in mind, where do we stand as a nation?