“Advent’s Shout Is ‘Hosanna!’, Not ‘Alleluia!’”
In the name of the Father and of the X Son and of the Holy Spirit.
[Amen.]
Dear fellow Advent hosanna-shouters, grace, mercy, and peace from
God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord. [Amen.]
“‘Hosanna in the highest!”
That ancient song we sing;
For Christ is our Redeemer,
The Lord of heav’n our King.
Oh, may we ever praise Him
With heart and life and voice
And in His blissful presence
Eternally rejoice!”
(Lutheran Service Book, © 2006 Concordia Publishing House, St. Louis, MO.
443:3)
Gospel
Reading........................................................................................
St. Matthew 21:9
And the crowds that went before him and that followed him were shouting,
“Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the
Lord! Hosanna in the highest!”
Prologue: By now you’ve probably realized that during the
penitential pre-Christmas and pre-Easter seasons of Advent and Lent we
eliminate the Alleluias as much as possible. But have you ever wondered why
we do that and why “Hosanna” is an appropriate substitute during Advent? In
order to answer that we have to first of all explain the meanings of
“Alleluia” and “Hosanna.”
“Alleluia” comes from the New Testament Greek language whereas its
counterpart “Hallelujah” comes from the Old Testament Hebrew language. The
word in both languages means “Praise the Lord!” It’s an especially
appropriate response of glory and honor to almighty God for His atoning
victory over sin, Satan, and death itself by Christ’s substitutionary
suffering, death, and triumphant resurrection from the dead.
“Hosanna,” on the other hand, is the one-word prayer: “Save us, O
God!” That one-word prayer begs for and even anticipates the special
God-ordained atoning work of Jesus Christ. But in order for Him to
accomplish His special work for the temporal and eternal benefit of sinful
mankind, Jesus had to be clothed with our human flesh and blood. The Holy
Spirit brought about that necessary ingredient by His immaculate conception
of the Virgin Mary. All of that preceded what Immanuel came to do in order
to rescue, redeem, and reconcile sinners. For that reason, …
“Advent’s Shout Is ‘Hosanna!’, Not ‘Alleluia!’”
Okay, having provided that hopefully understandable explanation as
to why we use “Hosanna” and not “Alleluia” during Advent, let’s now move on
to two very significant Advent emphases that proceed forth from the one-word
“Hosanna” prayer. As we do so, we recall once again that …
I. An Advent Emphasis Is That Humble King Jesus Came, Comes, and Will
Come Again. (4-5)
1When they drew near to Jerusalem and came to Bethphage, to the Mount of
Olives, then Jesus sent two disciples, 2saying to them, “Go into the village
in front of you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied, and a colt
with her. Untie them and bring them to me. 3 If anyone says anything to you,
you shall say, ‘The Lord needs them,’ and he will send them at once.” 4This
took place to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet, saying, 5“Say to the
daughter of Zion, ‘Behold, your king is coming to you, humble, and mounted
on a donkey, and on a colt, the foal of a beast of burden.’”
Perhaps you’re also wondering why in the world the Holy Week
account of Jesus entering Jerusalem on a donkey only days before His
crucifixion death is appointed for the First Sunday in Advent, the time
before His birth. Well, the answer is in the meaning of the word “Advent.”
It’s a Latin word that means “come to,” “arrive at,” “approach.” You see,
Advent is largely a time of imposed waiting for and anticipating Christmas.
Of course, we Americans aren’t too fond of having to wait for things. Our
society has become so instantaneous that we expect to get whatever we want
whenever we want it … and that’s usually right now! Many of the HGTV
segments illustrate that truth. Young newly-married couples seek to get
their dream house right away … no waiting for it … no working up to it … no
anticipating it.
Advent affords us the opportunity to learn or relearn the fine art
of waiting for … and anticipating … and appreciating Christmas more fully
when it FINALLY does arrive. Advent is a miniature of what we experience
waiting for Jesus to return to take us to Himself in eternal glory … and
what the Israelites experienced in their 4,000+ years of waiting for the
promised Messiah to arrive.
After all, Advent is about prayerfully preparing for and
contemplating our Savior’s arrival which was and is a threefold arrival.
The Reverend Doctor Douglas Judisch (former professor at my alma mater
Concordia Theological Seminary, Fort Wayne, Indiana) explained it this way:
“The theme … of the Season of Advent as a whole is the threefold coming of
Christ. For, in the thinking of the Orthodox Lutheran Church, the “advent”
of Christ as a general term comprehends three specific advents which must be
carefully distinguished: (1.) His past coming to justify mankind includes
the more than thirty-three years which intervened between His conception and
His ascension into heaven and is also [called] His coming in the flesh or
His coming in humility (aside from the final forty days between His
resurrection and His ascension) or the First Coming of our Lord (in terms of
His incarnate visible appearance to the world). (2.) His present coming
through His word and sacraments embraces the whole long stretch of time (now
two millennia) between His ascension into heaven and His visible return in
glory and may also be called His contemporary or continuous or invisible
coming. [And] (3.) His future coming refers to His sudden visible return to
the world on the Last Day of history to judge all men and is also [called]
the Second Coming of our Lord (in terms of His incarnate visible appearance
to the world) or His coming in glory or His eschatological coming or His
parousia (meaning “appearance” in Greek).
“The concept of Advent as a reflection on a coming of Christ which is
specifically threefold is a presupposition only in the Orthodox Lutheran
Church. Some traditional Roman Catholic theologians have … also spoken of
three advents, but others have described [only] two, … the incarnation and
[His second coming]. Modern theologians of all denominations have even more
wrongly endeavored to restrict the reference of Advent as much as possible
to the yet future coming of Christ in glory.
“The traditional propers of Advent overlap, to be sure, so as to create
an exquisite montage of all three comings of Christ within the liturgical
framework of any given week of the season. Each of its Sundays,
nevertheless, accents one or other of the three comings in a discernable and
logical manner. On [this] the First Sunday of Advent, the emphasis lies on
the present coming of Christ, whereas on the Second Sunday the stress
proceeds to His future advent. On the Third and Fourth Sundays of Advent,
the emphases hark back in somewhat differing ways to the past coming of our
Lord in the flesh.” (This is taken from Dr. Judisch's magnificent work,
Church Year Notes: Semester Domini. This is part one on Advent.) That is,
Christ, who came through the Virgin Mary in Bethlehem’s manger, comes to us
daily in the mangers of the Holy Bible, that contains God’s Holy Word all
about Jesus, the Baptismal font in or over which a person is baptized into
the death and resurrection of Jesus, the sinful pastor’s voice that declares
God’s sin-cleansing gift of absolution gained by Jesus, and the Holy
Communion chalice and paten that contain the body and blood of Jesus hidden
in the bread and wine.
Today’s Introit spoke forcefully to this trait of waiting, the
beginning of which captures today’s Latin title “Ad Te Levavi”: “To you, O
Lord, I lift up my soul. O my God, in you I trust; let me not be put to
shame. Let not my enemies exult over me. Indeed, none who wait for you
shall be put to shame. ... for you I wait all the day long. May integrity
and uprightness preserve me, for I wait for you.” (Ps 25:1-3a, 5b, 21 ESV)
This time of waiting, however, is not without meaningful spiritual focus and
activity. So it is that …
II. Another Advent Emphasis Is Repentant Obedience. (6)
6The disciples went and did as Jesus had directed them. 7They brought the
donkey and the colt and put on them their cloaks, and he sat on them. 8Most
of the crowd spread their cloaks on the road, and others cut branches from
the trees and spread them on the road.
The cry of repentance issued forth from the mouths of the Old
Testament prophet Ezekiel: “Repent and turn away from your idols, and turn
away your faces from all your abominations.” (Ezek 14:6 ESV); and Jesus’
cousin, John the Lutheran, uh, Baptizer: “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven
is at hand.” (St Matt 3:2 ESV); and Jesus Himself: “The time is fulfilled,
and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.” (St
Mark 1:15 ESV); as well as the pen of the Reverend Doctor Martin Luther in
the first of his 95 theses: “When our Lord and Master Jesus Christ said,
‘Repent’ (Matthew 4:17), he willed the entire life of believers to be one of
repentance.” In the words of our Synod Catechism simply stated: “Repentant
believers are those who are sorry for their sins (contrition) and believe in
the Lord Jesus Christ as their Savior (faith).” (Luther’s Small Catechism
with Explanation—ESV. Copyright © 1986, 1991 Concordia Publishing House,
St. Louis, MO. Page 226.)
Turning again to the words of Dr. Judisch: “An authentic Advent is
a penitential season. In this period preceding the second greatest festival
of the year, the Feast of the Nativity of our Lord, His church invites her
children to a life of repentance which is even more pronounced than usual
and which they express in acts of special self-denial.
“A true Advent … remains a penitential season. In this respect Advent
bears more similarities to Lent than does any other season of the
ecclesiastical year. The Eastern Churches, indeed, often call Advent
‘Little Lent’ (or ‘Lesser Lent’).
“Despite, however, the features common to Advent and Lent, the
penitential character of Advent is, admittedly, less severe than the season
of Lent. There is, of course, no less emphasis on repentance as necessary
to the Christian life in general and to the forthcoming festivities of
Christmas in particular. The restrictions, however, of Advent are less
austere than those of Lent.
“Advent, nevertheless, still summons individual believers to more
self-denial than usual in terms of time and treasure, food and drink, and
other such matters of daily life. The faithful should, clearly, be devoting
more attention to the Word of God and more time to penitential prayer, both
in the house of God and at home, than would be the ordinary case.” (This is
also taken from Dr. Judisch's magnificent work, Church Year Notes: Semester
Domini. This is part one on Advent.)
Today’s Epistle Reading especially emphasized and illustrated the
obedient sanctified evidence of repentance: “Besides this you know the time,
that the hour has come for you to wake from sleep. For salvation is nearer
to us now than when we first believed. The night is far gone; the day is at
hand. So then let us cast off the works of darkness and put on the armor of
light. Let us walk properly as in the daytime, not in orgies and
drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and sensuality, not in quarreling and
jealousy. But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the
flesh, to gratify its desires.” (Rom 13:11-14 ESV) And today’s Gradual
reminded us: “None who wait for you shall be put to shame … . Make me to
know your ways, O Lord; teach me your paths.” (Ps 25:3a, 4 ESV)
So, in light of all that, perhaps we now better understand and
appreciate why …
“Advent’s Shout Is ‘Hosanna!’, Not ‘Alleluia!’”
But there’s another shout that is spiritually significant. It’s
the shout of today’s Collect: “Stir up Your power, O Lord, and come, that by
Your protection we may be rescued from the threatening perils of our sins
and saved by Your mighty deliverance.” In the echo of that shout let’s
remember and never forget that …
I. An Advent Emphasis Is That Humble King Jesus Came, Comes, and Will
Come Again. (4-5) At the same time, let’s also remember and never forget
that …
II. Another Advent Emphasis Is Repentant Obedience. (6) Let’s do so in
the context of not only the excited anticipation of another Christmas
celebration of our Savior’s incarnate birth, but also the excited
anticipation of His end-time return both of which the Old Testament prophet
Jeremiah spoke in today’s Old Testament Reading: “Behold, the days are
coming, declares the Lord, when I will raise up for David a righteous
Branch, and he shall reign as king and deal wisely, and shall execute
justice and righteousness in the land. In his days Judah will be saved, and
Israel will dwell securely. And this is the name by which he will be
called: ‘The Lord is our righteousness.’” (Jer 23:5-6 ESV)
God grant it all for the sake of Jesus Christ, His humble Son, our
holy Savior. [Amen.]
In the name of the Father and of the X Son and of the Holy Spirit.
[Amen.]
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