“And there will be signs in sun and moon and stars, and upon the earth distress of nations in perplexity at the roaring of the sea and the waves, men fainting with fear and with foreboding of what is coming on the world; for the powers of the heavens will be shaken. And then they will see the Son of man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. Now when these things begin to take place, look up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near. And he told them a parable: ‘Look at the fig tree, and all the trees; as soon as they come out in leaf, you see for yourselves and know that the summer is already near. So also, when you see these things taking place, you know that the kingdom of God is near. Truly, I say to you, this generation will not pass away till all has taken place. Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away. But take heed to yourselves lest your hearts be weighed down with dissipation and drunkenness and cares of this life, and that day come upon you suddenly like a snare, for it will come upon all who dwell upon the face of the whole earth. But watch at all times, praying that you may have strength before the Son of man.”
INTRODUCTION
One day, a young woman received a bouquet of flowers at work with a card that read, “Happy 20th! I’ve made reservations for dinner tonight at our favorite restaurant.” That evening at dinner Her husband surprised her with a pearl necklace and upon placing it around her neck said, “Happy 20th! You’ve made me the happiest man in the World.”
Though clearly moved by her husbands romantic attention the wife exclaimed, “But I don’t understand dear Why do you keep saying Happy 20th? We’ve only been married for one month.” Looking seriously into his wives eyes, the man said, “I never told you what happened to my father. He disappeared on the day after he forgot his 20th wedding
anniversary. No one really knows what happened to him and my mom isn’t talking. So I decided it’s best not to take any chances. Happy 20th dear!”
THE CHRISTMAS TIME OF YEAR
We are now entering one of the busiest times of the year, Christmas time. There are presents to be bought. Relatives to be visited. Church services to attend. Christmas time is suppose to be a time of joy, a time of celebration, a time of Peace on Earth, Good will to Men. But instead, many of us find ourselves so overwhelmed by all that we are
suppose to do, that we begin to worry that in the midst of all this chaos we might miss an event or forget that special someone. Overrun by all this activity the season can easy become a time of stress, a time of worry, a time of chaos. In face of all this anxiety one might be led to ask, What’s the real reason for this season?
It can be like the Peanuts comic strip where Linus and Lucy are standing at the window looking out at the rain falling. Lucy says to Linus, "Boy, look at it rain...What if it floods the earth?" Do you ever feel that way as you look out on Christmas? Instead of seeing joy and peace you only experience anxiety and stress. Have you ever felt that this
Christmas madness was on the verge of overwhelming you like the genesis flood? Thankfully our comic doesn’t end with Lucy’s fearful question, For Linus then says to Lucy, "It will never do that...in the ninth chapter of Genesis, God promised Noah that would never happen again, and the sign of the promise is the rainbow." With a smile on
her face, Lucy replies, "Linus, you’ve taken a great load off my mind." To which Linus responds, "Sound theology has a way of doing that."
TAKE HEED LEST YOU BE CAUGHT UP
Perhaps that’s what we most need at this time of year, some sound theology to lighten this great load called the Christmas season. Today we prepare ourselves for Christmas by first starting with Advent. In the church calendar the new year starts today. Advent means "arrival,” or “coming." It refers to the "coming" of Christ. But of course, you say.
This is Advent. This is the time we prepare for the coming of the Christ Child, born in a manger. This is the time we wait to celebrate the birth of the Son of God on Christmas day. But that’s just one half of the story. That’s just one side of the coin. For Jesus says to us,
“take heed to yourselves lest your hearts be weighed down with dissipation and drunkenness and cares of this life, and that day come upon you suddenly like a snare, for it will come upon all who dwell upon the face of the whole earth. But watch at all times, praying that you may have strength before the Son of man.”
And that day come upon you like a snare? What day? Why the day of Christ’s return! The day Christ returns to judge the living and the dead. “And there will be signs in sun and moon and stars, and upon the earth distress of nations in perplexity at the roaring of the sea and the waves, men fainting with fear and with foreboding of what is coming on
the world; for the powers of the heavens will be shaken. And then they will see the Son of man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. Now when these things begin to take place, look up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.”
Advent is not just about watching and waiting for the birth of the Christ child. In Advent we also watch and wait for the one who said he would return. Every time we celebrate the Sacrament of communion we affirm and remind ourselves of this by saying: "Christ has died, Christ has risen, Christ will come again." This is why we call communion an act of
remembrance. On one hand, we remember that our savior has come, born in a manger, crucified on a cross, raised from the dead, and now sitting at the right hand of His heavenly Father
On the other hand, we also remember that He has promised to return to earth as Lord and on that day to take us, his disciples to be with Him in God’s kingdom for all eternity. That is part of the tension, the anticipation and expectation of the Advent season. We remember and wait. But there is one final part one more promise that we need to remember. Christ’s promise to be with us here and now, through the outpouring of his spirit into our hearts. Christ has come. Christ will come and Christ may come at any moment. So be prepared, warns Jesus, for his coming. We are to pray for a spirit of preparedness, he says, that we may have strength for when he comes. The Army has a motto which says, “To have peace, you must prepare for war.” Therefore, the Army is always in the act of preparing for that next war, that next impending conflict, that moment when the “balloon goes up.” When I served a church in upper Maine I was invited by the chaplains of Loring Airforce Base to visit their installation. During our tour of the base we visited an airfield where I met an Airforce reserve pilot who was fulfilling his two week annual duty by serving as a rapid response fighter pilot. We joked about the little likelihood that in June of 1990 he would ever be called upon to fly that aircraft into harms way. To both of our surprise, two month later, Iraq invaded Kuwait. And he was flying a few miles above the desert sands.
As Christians, we are warned to keep looking up, to be prepared at all times for the coming of our Lord and Savior. It is a terrible thing to be unprepared when the Son of God appears. I have a friend named Shelley, who told me about a time when she was on her way to work. Suddenly, as she took a turn in the road she came upon an a recent accident. She was forced to stop just a few feet from one of the vehicles involved in that accident. Shelley said that when she was confronted with the sight of distress on the face of that woman driver just a few feet from her window. She quickly send a prayer up to God asking Him to get her out of there. Almost immediately the traffic began to move. So Shelley thanked God for answering her prayer. In the next moment, She said, she sensed the presence of Christ surround her and she heard him say to her, “O Shelley, why didn’t you pray for that woman in the car.” We can be prepared for Christ’s coming. We can learn to interpret the signs of His approach. And he told them a parable, “Look at the fig tree, and all the trees; as soon as they come out in leaf, you see for yourselves and know that the summer is already near. So also, when you see these things taking place, you know that the kingdom of God is near.”
Shelley told me that as a result of that roadside experience she was convicted of her self-centered style of praying and was led to ask God to teach her how to pray. And teach her He did. More than once since she experienced Christ’s coming, while driving that same road to work God has spoken to her and has given her names of people to pray for. And she will tell anyone who is open to listen about the Christ who met her one day on the road to work. In Advent, the season of preparation for Christmas. We watch and we wait. Because we know that the one who was born so long ago will come again to be
born anew in our hearts. We also declare and tell, to all who will listen, that the one who came, the one who is to come, is also with us here even now. He is looking for those who will make room for Him in their hearts that He might live within them for all eternity.
CONCLUSION
In South Dakota the community of Spencer was devastated by a tornado. Among the many losses, including six victims, was St. Matthew’s Lutheran Church. The day after the tornado a group from the church walked with their pastor through the remaining rubble of that community. It was an unbelievable sight. There was a grain elevator twisted and fallen, a water tower toppled, vehicles and other heavy items strewn around like toys. Whole buildings just gone from their foundations. When they neared the site of the church someone called out "there’s the statue, there’s Jesus!" Sure enough, there it was the traditional white statue of Jesus, that stands at the altar of many small churches with arms
outstretched and loving demeanor. There it, or He was, a beacon to all that was left of a 100-year old Lutheran church. The white paint on the statue was nearly gone and the arms were cracked. But one observer that day said,
“I didn’t notice the damage, it was just so remarkable, so moving and so fitting to look up from the chaos around us and see Jesus, arms outstretched, welcoming, and loving his people.”
What that group of church members were to learn only later was how two young girls, helping to clean up for a family member in a nearby home, had taken time to come over to where the church had been to set aside a few items of church property they found scattered in the area. When they saw the statue lying in the rubble they figured everyone in Spencer needed to know that Jesus was still there, so they stood him up for all to see. That is our task, Yours and mine. To raise up Jesus in this season of Anticipation called Advent. In the Midst of this chaos we call Christmas. That all those around us may see the Christ who is the true reason for the Season.