3 His delight shall be in the fear of the Lord. He shall not judge by what his eyes see, or decide by what his ears hear; 4 but with righteousness he shall judge the poor, and decide with equity for the meek of the earth; he shall strike the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips he shall kill the wicked. 5 Righteousness shall be the belt around his waist, and faithfulness the belt around his loins. 6 The wolf shall live with the lamb, the leopard shall lie down with the kid, the calf and the lion and the fatling together, and a little child shall lead them.
A very important part of the Advent/Christmas story is the theme of Justice. Jesus comes into a world that is marked by sin. Sin carries with it everything that is part of our separation from God: and a big part of that is injustice.
The scriptures acknowledge that the poor are often the victims of injustice. Perhaps much of this stems from inhospitality. We are not hospitible to the poor. We often see the poor as objects for ministry or people to be shunned — or someone else's problem.
The Christmas narratives remind us that Jesus was born in a stable. His family rejected from the comfort of an inn had to make do with the abode of animals. The angelic choir announced his birth to lowly shepherds — not the powerful. When Herod caught wind of his birth he ordered the execution of innocent children to kill the Son of God.
During this Advent season we would do well to consider how we treat the poor o come to us for assistance; the foreigner who settles in our midst.
This Jesus, displaced from his own home, comes into our midst to be our Savior.
Prayer: Father, during this season that is too often marked by our own consumerism, help us to remember the lowly in our midst. May we be mindful of their needs and reach out to them with your love — the love with which you sent your Son into the world. In his precious name we pray. Amen.