Advent 1

(Here is the sermon I preached on Sunday, November 29, 2020–1st Sunday of Advent. You can find the full recording of the service on the church website)

Maybe you’ll recognize who said this portion of this famous speech:

Gentlemen may cry, “Peace! Peace!” — but there is no peace. The war is actually begun! The next gale that sweeps from the north will bring to our ears the clash of resounding arms! Our brethren are already in the field! Why stand we here idle? What is it that gentlemen wish? What would they have? Is life so dear, or peace so sweet, as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery? Forbid it, Almighty God! I know not what course others may take; but as for me, give me..

You probably know the ending and may have the urge to complete it too. But leave it hanging for a moment. The speech comes from Patrick Henry spoken on March 25, 1775 in Richmond, VA, about a year before the Revolutionary war. Now, if you’re like me, it feels weird leaving the speech hanging like that without saying the ending, doesn’t it? We so desperately want to finish it. It feels incomplete otherwise. It’s missing the culmination of where Henry was going.

But it’s also missing the beginning part of his speech, too. The part that sets up the section I read to you. That set up is important. The beginning part builds up the argument. It lays a foundation for the rest to make sense. Without the beginning or the ending, what we have is an incomplete speech that leaves us uncomfortable and unsatisfied.