CHRIST COMES AGAIN EVERYDAY
Jeremiah 33:14-16; 1 Thessalonians 3:9-13; Luke 21:25-36
1st Sunday of Advent, December 1, 2024
Rev. Dr. Ritva H. Williams
Today is the first Sunday of a new church year. Biblical, theological and spiritual time is always cyclical, rooted in the rhythms of creation. Each day begins in the middle of the night as darkness slowly gives way to the growing light of dawn, sun rise peaks at noon, gradually fading into the dusk as evening ushers in the night once again. Each church year begins in the darkness of Advent as we watch, wait and pray for Christ’s coming anew as light into our hearts and our world.
Our scripture readings shift to ‘Cycle C,’ the Gospel according to Luke, the physician and co-worker of the Apostle Paul. Luke was not one of Jesus’ original twelve disciples, but he was a well-educated person who loved to do research. Luke tells us in the opening lines of his gospel that after hearing and reading the many accounts of Jesus’ life handed down by eyewitnesses and servants of the word, he decided to write his own orderly account so that all lovers of God would know the truth (Luke 1:1-5).
We meet Jesus this morning in the last week of his earthly life. He is in Jerusalem at the Temple with his disciples. The religious authorities are scheming about how to arrest him in secret. Having watched the widow put her meager offering in the treasury box, Jesus experiences what we call a “liminal” moment when the veils that separate this world from the next become thin. Jesus “sees” the temple in ruins and describes its forthcoming destruction (Luke 21:9-24).
Jerusalem and its Temple were destroyed 40 years after Jesus’ death and resurrection. Some people thought the world was ending. And in a sense they were right, the world as they knew it did end, even though they went on living for decades afterwards. Luke’s gospel was written for those who survived and thrived in the aftermath of that disaster.
For Luke’s first hearers, our gospel reading was like a flash back to the day before Jesus was arrested. They hear again how Jesus sees beyond the veil and seeks to prepare his disciples for war, persecution and the end of the world as they knew it. Our task two thousand years later is to discern what we can learn from Jesus that will help us make the best of our own times, when we can’t tell if the world is ending or beginning again, or just changing directions.
Jesus’ message begins with the declaration, “there will be signs.” Signs in the heavens and on the earth.” Notice how once again, Jesus points us to created world, instructing us to observe its structures and rhythms. To ponder what they might teach us.
Sun, moon and stars mark the passage of time and the steady progression of the seasons. We have no control over these. Winter is coming whether we like it or not. The powers of the heavens include falling stars, comets, meteors and other phenomena that ancient people regarded as omens signaling important changes on earth. These powers of heaven were also a metaphor for things ordinary people had little or no say over, such as empires and rulers.
In the world of Jesus the Roman Empire’s enforcement of the Pax Romana — the Roman peace meant stable and prosperous lives for those living in the home provinces. The Roman peace was brutal and remorseless for those living in outlying provinces, like Judea and Galilee, which were mined for natural resources, slaves, and tribute.
For Jesus’ first disciples, the signs on earth are in direct relationship with the signs in the heavens. Nations — ethne which really means people collectively — are distressed and confused by the roaring of the sea and the waves. Jesus’ audience would have recognized the roaring, rolling sea as a metaphor for the dark, watery chaos of Genesis 1. They knew God formed the vast expanse of the sky to hold chaos back, and established dry land in the midst of the seas to enable life to emerge one earth. But chaos keeps erupting into this orderly world causing people to become distressed and confused, full of fear and foreboding.
The reality is that we live in a chaotic, unruly world where there are many things we have no control over. Every day life, including holiday celebrations can wear us out, leave us exhausted, and even drive us to despair. In the midst of all this, Jesus assures us that there is a way to live and flourish in a world where we have very little control and chaos seems ready to break out at any moment.
Jesus tells us to stand up and raise our heads, to stand tall with confidence, trusting that redemption is drawing near, and better days are ahead. Physical posture, a positive attitude and faith in God are key ingredients. Jesus urges us to look at the fig tree and at all the trees, to see in God’s creation the eternal cycle of seasons, and know that whatever chaos has erupted, this too will pass. Jesus urges us to be guard, to pay attention so our hearts don’t get lost in excess, drunkenness, and anxiety. Jesus urges to be alert, to keep awake at all times, and pray for strength.
We are to be alert, to keep awake so that we don’t miss Christ’s coming “on the clouds.” Again a reference to the veils that separate this world from the spiritual realm. We often miss Christ’s coming to us in everyday life because we are looking for a razzly-dazzly kind of power and glory, some shock and awe production. Yet Christ always comes to us as a “son of man,” a child of earth, the word make flesh, one of us. So Jesus urges us to look more closely, to look more intentionally for Christ’s presence in the ordinary and everyday children of the earth who surround us.
We know that Christ’s presence manifests itself as love. So our second scripture reading should be no surprise. We hear the Apostle Paul praying that the Lord will make the members of the little house church he started in Thessaloniki, increase and abound in love for one another and for all. Christ flow beyond people like us, to include all the people we encounter in our daily lives. We love these others when we threat them with the same respect, care and compassion we show our nearest and dearest.
Paul also asks that the Lord would strengthen their hearts in holiness. To be holy is to be emotionally, psychologically, and spiritually whole and healthy, so that thoughts, words, and actions are integrated and in alignment with the love of Christ. Hearts strengthened in holiness are much less likely to give way to excess, drunkenness or anxiety in the midst of the things we cannot control. Hearts strengthened in holiness are much better able to increase and abound in love for all people, and to see Christ’s presence in all people. Hearts strengthened in holiness are prepared to stand before the Son of Man, to meet our Lord Jesus and all the saints.
To stand before Christ, the Son of Man, the Truly Human One is both encouraging and empowering as expressed in this poem by Pastor Steve Garnaas-Holmes (unfoldinglight.org)
You stand before the Beloved,
not being judged,
but as a model of the Gracious One
to the world,
facing the world with love.
You go before the Loving One,
who is right behind you,
who has your back.
Pray for the strength to stand before Christ,
to body forth that love,
to shine with that light.
Pray that you might always trust
that strong, gentle hand on your back.
Amen. May it always be so.
