The Hope of Elizabeth (Rev. Andy Whitaker Smith)
I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: there’s nothing like FUMC in Advent. “Outward visible sign of an inward spiritual grace” and in Advent it becomes all the more visible.
Hanging of the Greens, decorating, symbols, lights—all reminders and declarations that Christ is born. Even the act of putting up decorations is part of the outward sign—that we get to be a part of the re-creation, the re-telling of the story.
“Yes, every Whoo down in Whooville liked Christmas a lot—but the Grinch….who lived just north of Whooville did not.”
As many of us go through the HEART THAT GREW THREE SIZES study and sermon series in THE CURRENT—we may ask: Is it really just the Grinch who doesn’t want to celebrate? “Where are you Christmas?” When have we asked that?
Because the reality is: I don’t always feel like celebrating Christmas; nor do I feel like getting ready for Christmas.
Part of the tragedy of the Grinch and his grumpiness, if we take a moment to consider: he has no hope. No hope that things will change or get better. How can I hope when EVERYTHING is falling apart?
Luke 1 in Advent is usually the story of Zechariah….but it’s also the story of Elizabeth, who gives birth to John, who is related to Mary, who gives birth to Jesus. So, as usual, while everyone else is freaking out and making a spectacle, the humans who really make Christmas happen are the women of the story, quietly in the background.
“During the rule of King Herod….” Already lets you know it’s not good. Many of us know enough of the Christmas Story to realize that Herod was not a good king to those of Jesus’ people. Zechariah who belonged to the priestly division of Abijah. His wife Elizabeth was a descendant of Aaron. Abijah, one of King David’s sons. Elizabeth was a descendant of Aaron, the first High Priest, which was considered a prestigious lineage. Upstanding, reputable people going through very personal pain.
This is the beginning of the Advent story: They were both righteous before God, blameless in their observance of all the Lord’s commandments and regulations. They had no children because Elizabeth was unable to become pregnant and they both were very old.
Elizabeth isn’t given much attention, even though she’s the human who begins the fulfillment of Christmas. Zechariah is set to perform his priestly duties in front of the people, the angel Gabriel appears before him to declare that Elizabeth will conceive a child they’ll name john, and Zechariah is terrified and confused, and the angel strikes him mute.
And while Zechariah and all the people seem to be panicking, Elizabeth remains quiet, in the background….waiting….
As we’ve been going through this grinch study written by Matt Rawle, who’s a United Methodist pastor in Louisiana, one of the things I’ve appreciated is the recognition that Advent begins in darkness, it begins in silence, it begins in hardship. The lights don’t shine, the music doesn’t play, the decorations don’t go up.
“During the rule of King Herod….” There’s an acknowledgement of the difficulty of the people Christ will come to save.
This Advent Series focuses on the four themes of advent alongside four characters of Advent to see how they live these themes in their reality—the Hope of Elizabeth. Elizabeth’s story begins in the quiet ache of long disappointment, reminding us that hope often feels distant long before it becomes visible.
I walk around this church every once in a while, look at the different rooms, think of memories, possibilities. In the Vanguard classroom, there are Christmas portraits, one of the shepherds who show their terror of the angels; and in my office is an exhausted Joseph and Mary, sleeping beside the baby Messiah, in his manger. Both depict the reality of Christmas. God comes in the midst of reality, God breaks through that reality, but God does not sugarcoat that reality. God declares and reminds us in the birth of Jesus Christ the hope that: in the midst of what you’re going through, I’m here, too.
Our church windows remind us of this, and that need for the images and messages to last through the millennia, through life. I come in the sanctuary and chapel at times when things are great….and when things are not. And it’s usually when things are not great that I am reminded of how long these iconographies have lasted for people….in even worse situations.
I once heard a story of a family visiting a church, and the child would not be still or quiet….until they came into the Sanctuary, and they just took in the beauty, the vastness, the holiness. The church as a building needs to look different, it needs to look other-than, to remind us what can be different. This Advent Season, I invite you to come and look at the decorations….in whatever season of life you’re in. Let them stop you…let them connect with you.
And while the church as a building needs to look other-than, it also needs to be accessible… and that’s where the people …we…come in. We need to show others they are accessible here, that god is accessible to them. “That’s what Christmas is all about.” God saying to the world: I’m here for you, I am here with you.
Advent is about waiting for Christmas. But what if we don’t have time to wait for Christmas? We need to be Christmas. We need Christmas…and we need to be Christmas to our community. We need to be the very decorations and symbols we see here. To show that someone—THE ONE—is here for you. Forrest White’s latest Missions newsletter article retold the story of Jesus healing ten people, but only one came back to be with Jesus. And Forrest wrote: I want to be like the one who came back. Advent is about coming back to Jesus, as well as Jesus’ people.
We may ask: how can I be that, when I don’t feel that?
I never liked “FAKE IT TIL YA MAKE IT.” It just seemed so….fake. But then I remember something John Wesley was told in the beginning of his ministry, when he felt challenged: “Preach faith till you have it; and then, because you have it, you will preach faith.”
The reality is we can’t change inwardly until we change outwardly. That’s why we’re Methodists. The methods and the practices outwardly is what changes us inwardly.
THE STORY OF ELIZABETH CONTINUES: Afterward, his wife Elizabeth became pregnant. She kept to herself for five months, saying, “This is the Lord’s doing. He has shown his favor to me by removing my disgrace among other people.”
Advent meets us in those places where our hearts don’t match the season’s brightness, where we quietly wonder, “Where is joy supposed to be right now?” and discover that God’s work often starts long before our emotions catch up.
Advent reminds us that outward practices mold inward hope, and gratitude, kindness, and simple daily disciplines can create space for God’s transforming work. Just as a simple invitation to “share something good” can spark warmth in a community, our intentional practices help cultivate hope within us and around us.
That’s why we’re Methodists, because the methods, the practices, shape us—shape our senses, shape our expectations, shape our way of being—so that we become “an outward visible sign of an inward spiritual grace.”
We become symbols of Advent.