In our Old Testament lesson Isaiah said, "O that you would tear open the heavens and come down so that the mountains would quake at your presence - to make your name known to your adversaries, so that the nations might tremble at your presence!"
And in our gospel Jesus said, "The sun will be darkened and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will be falling from heaven, and the powers in the heavens will be shaken. Then they will see the Son of Man coming in clouds with great power and glory. Truly I tell you, this generation will not pass away before all these things have taken place."
Even our epistle from Paul says, "…you are not lacking in any spiritual gift as you wait for the revealing of our Lord Jesus Christ…"
These lessons look forward to the end of the world. During the first century, the new church was sure that Jesus would return during their lifetime - he said he would.
This message was time-sensitive – the young Christian sect had to get it out - and the message spread like wildfire. The only problem is that it didn't happen - and then they remembered that he also said, "But of that day or that hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father."
The message that Christ is coming is what Advent is all about: the coming of the Messiah. Advent is always the four Sundays before Christmas. Advent looks forward to the coming of Jesus - And it acknowledged that the Messiah comes to us in four ways.
1 - He came in the flesh - he was born as a baby in Jerusalem. A star and the heavenly hosts heralded his coming. But those who noted it were few: Three wise men, a few shepherds and an old prophet and prophetess.
2 - He came in power - healing the sick, driving out demons and bringing hope to a nation that didn't recognize him. "Prepare the way" was the call of John the Baptizer. "Prepare the way of the Lord. Make straight his paths."
3 - He came in Spirit as the Risen Lord to empower the church to spread the gospel to a world broken and torn by strife. The fire of the Holy Spirit danced on their heads and the Word of the Lord was made known. And he still comes in Spirit to guide and direct us.
4 - But most importantly, he will come again - this time in glory - "coming in clouds with great power and glory." This is what we look forward to on this the first Sunday in Advent.
Advent is a season full of hope and anticipation - Advent is pregnant with expectation. Advent is a time of preparation - to prepare for the Lord's coming. We've been preparing for a long time. The Old Testament prophets predicted his coming and the people waited with hope for the Messiah who was to come. But when he came so many didn't recognize him, didn't accept him.
For people in Palestine in the first century - the world was not a friendly place - you could get killed. The Roman army didn't need a reason - they just took what they needed and did what they wanted. They totally destroyed the temple and drove the people out.
This new sect, the one called Christian, was not a favored religion - they were hunted and killed. And the church grew - it thrived - Nero was the anti-Christ and war and pestilence marked the beginning of the end. Jesus was going to return - in power and glory.
But time passed, Christianity became an accepted religion and later the official religion. And the people grew complacent.
This is a pattern that has come down through the ages. World War II was the war to end all wars, Hitler was the anti-Christ and the establishment of the Jewish state in Palestine signaled the beginning of the end. So said Hal Lindsey in his best selling book, The Late Great Planet Earth. He claimed that Jesus would return in 1988. Well, maybe Hitler wasn't really the anti-Christ after all.
So we, as a people, have grown complacent. When I was growing up, there was the cold war - which occasionally heated up. People talked about building bomb shelters. The television and movie theaters were full of information about the Atom Bomb and we were warned to be prepared in case we were attacked.
There were drills at school so we would know what to do if we were bombed. The television and the radio were full of tests of the emergency broadcast system - on a daily basis. We lived with the threat of annihilation. People went to church. Apocalypse - Second Coming - whatever… annihilation seemed to be a real threat.
By the time I graduated from high school we had entered the race for space and John Glenn had made his historic trip around the world and we had mostly forgotten the threat of the A-bomb. In October of 1962, during the Cuban Missile Crisis - people stayed glued to their TVs praying against war. Vietnam followed Korea and our young men and women were sent out in droves.
Lots of people were tired of trying to handle the tension of the constant threat and totally rebelled and so started the peace movement - flower power… make love, not war… for many, drugs were a way to forget the threat… and it was all reflected in the music that became so popular.
Where have all the flowers gone... Johnny's gone for a soldier… Blowing in the Wind… Groups like Peter, Paul and Mary sang their hearts out - protesting against the tension - trying to find relief or expression or to just forget. For some, Jesus was an example they could cling to and proclaim. Others drifted away from the church, from religion, from home and family, and eventually from life.
As the millenium approached people once again predicted the end. There were hundreds of books on the market about the Second Coming, the rapture and prophecy fulfillment. Harold Camping first predicted might return on September 6, 1994. When that did not occur he then predicted the rapture on May 21, 2011. When that didn’t happen, he said no, it was actually October 21. Well, that came and went, and we’re still waiting.
A later prediction was not by Christians, but by New Age-ers. It was based on the really old Mayan calendar with ends on December 21, 2012. A lot of people jumped on that band wagon, but again it did not occur.
And even now we see the kinds of signs that have many wondering if the end is coming soon. Just in the past few months there have been mass shootings, earthquakes, hurricanes bringing death and destruction - a confrontation with North Korea causes anxiety so that Hawaii is reactivating it’s air raid siren system - an oddly shaped large asteroid from outside this solar system recently passed very close to earth bring questions from various corners.
Notice that our Gospel story for today begins in the future tense - the sun will be darkened, the moon will not give light, the stars will be falling. This is yet to come - we do not know when. The lesson then continues in the present tense - learn the lesson of the fig tree, when it puts on leaves, you know that summer is near. It suggests that the coming of Christ is a certainty that makes a difference in how we live our lives right now.
Then our story ends with a parable in the imperative. A man is going on a journey. He has put his servants in charge, each with his own work and commands them to "Watch!" This is something that is going to happen and a response is required of us, both as a church and as individuals. The servants are not singled out in this parable as they have been in some of the other parables.
This is the message for all of us. Together we are to keep watch - each with our own work. We are to be prepared to meet our Lord whenever he comes - whether it’s tomorrow or a million years from now. We are to spread the gospel message that Jesus is alive and that he is coming and that he offers us hope of a better world. He offers us those things that the world cannot give us; fullness in our hearts, peace in our minds, joy in our souls. He offers us forgiveness for our sins and eternal life. He offers us stability when our world falls apart around us.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer was a German pastor and theologian. He was hanged by the Nazis in 1945 for his steadfast loyalty to Christ and his unswerving opposition to Hitler and the Third Reich. Bonhoeffer disapproved of the new trend he called "cheap grace" - this talking about love without judgment, belief without loyalty, and forgiveness without repentance.
Bonhoeffer tells us there is a cost for following Jesus. He demands our loyalty, our sincerity. We are not only to pay lip service to Jesus, but we are to follow his example. We must not only talk the talk, but we must also walk the walk. That's what Jesus calls us to do - let our actions speak for us.
Be aware of the fact that Christ is coming. Begin to prepare your life for his appearance. Align your values and attitudes with those of Christ. Make commitments and seek activities that reflect Christ's love for the world. Make the worship of God an integral part of your life - not only on Sunday but every day. To help you reflect on the coming of Christ each day in Advent, I have a book from Living Compass to give each family. We will pass them out during the announcements.u
This Advent be aware of Christ coming into your life. Be involved in and support the work of the church in the world. When you find yourself falling into habits that do not reflect the love of Christ, turn around and start anew. Prepare yourself for the Advent of Christ in your life so that when he bursts in on you unexpectedly you may not be found wanting. Amen.
