Advent 2
Lk
21:25-36
12/6/15
On Wednesday night after the Advent
service, little Eli Schiff came up to me as I was shaking hands and said with
great enthusiasm, “It’s almost Christmas!”
Now the word “almost” on the Wednesday of the first week of Advent may be a little overly optimistic. But I knew
what he meant. It certainly is the time of year when everyone is gearing up for
Christmas. Decorations were already up
in downtown Marion before Thanksgiving.
Now everyone is putting up their Christmas trees and outdoor Christmas
lights. The Sunday school is working on
the Christmas program.
I knew what Eli meant. And I also knew how Eli felt. He was
expressing the excited anticipation of the arrival of Christmas. I can remember
feeling that way too when I was his age.
And I am willing to bet that Eli is no different than I was as a
child. There was so much excitement
about the arrival of Christmas. Of
course, that didn’t mean I couldn’t wait to celebrate the incarnation of the
Son of God. It meant that couldn’t wait
to see what presents I was going to get.
I can remember sitting in the pew at
the Redeemer Lutheran Church in Warrington, FL where I considered the Advent
wreath to be a countdown to opening presents.
Each candle got you closer and closer to the excitement of Christmas Eve
– for that is when our family opened gifts.
By the time I arrived at the day of December 24 the excited anticipation
was almost unbearable. Time seemed to
slow to a crawl as I waited to go to church, so that we could then come home
and open the presents.
In the Church, we call the time that
leads up to Christmas “Advent.” The name Advent is derived from a Latin word
which means “coming.” Advent is a season
when we prepare to celebrate the coming of the Son of God as he was conceived
by the Holy Spirit and then born of the virgin Mary in Bethlehem.
Yet that word “coming” which
explains Advent has a meaning that goes beyond the preparation to celebrate the
birth of Jesus Christ. During Advent we
are focused on the arrival of Christmas on December 24 and 25, and all that
goes with it. But there is more to it
than that. Eli can’t wait for Christmas
to arrive. But what if he is wrong? You see, Advent is also that season when the
Church remembers that Christmas may not
come this year.
Last Sunday the Gospel lesson was
about the coming of Jesus into Jerusalem at the beginning of Holy Week. Today, the Gospel lesson also takes place
during Holy Week. We learn that during
that week some were speaking of the temple, how it was adorned with noble
stones and offerings. They were right. The temple was an amazing sight. But then Jesus said, “As for these things
that you see, the days will come when there will not be left here one stone
upon another that will not be thrown down.” In reply they asked him, “Teacher,
when will these things be, and what will be the sign when these things are
about to take place?”
Jesus says that the temple will be
destroyed. This was a shocking
statement. Most likely, the prospect of the temple’s destruction evoked
thoughts in the disciples about the Last Day.
After all, Jesus had already spoken in Luke’s Gospel about the arrival
of the kingdom of God and the Son of Man.
He had told them, “Stay dressed for action and keep your lamps burning,
and be like men who are waiting for their master to come home from the wedding
feast, so that they may open the door to him at once when he comes and knocks.” Jesus had said, “You also must be ready, for
the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.”
Our Lord told the disciples that the
period leading up to the destruction of the temple would be a time of wars, great earthquakes and
famines. He warned that it would be time
of persecution. Jesus had already said after entering Jerusalem that a day was
coming when the enemies of Jerusalem would lay siege to it – when they would
set up a barricade around the city before tearing it down to the ground.
Now Jesus said, “But when you see
Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then know that its desolation has come near.” He said that the believers would know when
the temple was about to be destroyed. It
would be no surprise. And when they saw
that it was about to happen, Jesus told them exactly what they were to do. He said: “Then let those who are in Judea
flee to the mountains, and let those who are inside the city depart, and let
not those who are out in the country enter it, for these are days of vengeance,
to fulfill all that is written.”
The destruction of the temple was
something they would see coming, and Jesus told them what they should do. But Jesus had already said that his coming
would be at an hour they did not expect. It would be an entirely different kind of
event. And we hear about it in our text.
Our Lord said: “And there will be
signs in sun and moon and stars, and on the earth distress of nations in
perplexity because of the roaring of the sea and the waves, people 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,
straighten up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.”
Jesus describes an unexpected
arrival that is accompanied by cosmic signs of distress. At the center of all of this is the coming of
Jesus Christ – his second coming. Jesus says, “And then they will see the Son of
Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory.”
During Advent we are preparing to
celebrate Jesus’ first coming, when he was born of the virgin Mary in Bethlehem. This is the beginning of his saving
mission. It begins in a weak and humble
way – a helpless baby lying in manger. Its culminating moment is even weaker
and more humble – a helpless man who has been tortured and now dies as he hangs
nailed to cross, taunted by those below. Ye this is God’s will to save
you. For Jesus hangs there weak and
humble in your place. He bears your sins – your desire to put
yourself first; your desire to avoid humble service. He receives the Father’s judgment against
your sin. He dies your death and is
buried in a tomb for you.
Yet the Son of God’s descent as a
humble sacrifice for your sin was never meant to be a one way trip down into
the grave. Already at his
transfiguration Jesus spoke with Moses and Elijah about his coming exodus. His
mission arced down … and then back up.
On the third day he rose from the dead and began your resurrection. In his ascension he was exalted to the right
hand of God the Father. Weakness and
humility now have nothing to do with
Jesus.
Advent prepares us to celebrate the
Son of God’s entrance into the world.
Christmas has a tender quality that even the world can appreciate. Yet the Gospel lessons for the first two
Sundays in Advent will not allow us to get lost in schmaltzy
sentimentality. Last Sunday we heard
about the coming of Jesus into Jerusalem to
die. This Sunday we hear about the coming of Jesus in power and glory to
raise the dead and judge.
Advent says that we must be ready
for Jesus’ return – we must live in the knowledge that Christmas may not arrive this year.
And we must set aside those things that hinder this recognition.
In our text, Jesus talks about being
prepared for his return. He says, “But watch 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 trap. For it will come upon all who dwell on
the face of the whole earth. But stay awake at all times, praying that you may
have strength to escape all these things that are going to take place, and to
stand before the Son of Man.”
Partying and cares of this life –
does that sound like the days leading up to Christmas? In many ways the “Christmas season” is simply
an intensification of what happens during the rest of the year. It is an additional level of what Jesus
described as thorns in the parable of the sower. He said, “And as for what fell among the
thorns, they are those who hear, but as they go on their way they are choked by
the cares and riches and pleasures of life, and their fruit does not mature.”
Advent reminds us that instead,
Jesus calls us to live as people who are looking for his return. So let us live as people whose ongoing prayer
is “Come Lord Jesus!” Let us live as
people whose lives in the present have been transformed by the One who will
come again. Earlier in this sermon I
mentioned Jesus’ words “Stay dressed for action and keep your lamps burning,
and be like men who are waiting for their master to come home from the wedding
feast.” In the same place Jesus said, “You
also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.”
Immediately prior to this our Lord had
said: “Fear not, little flock, for it is your Father's good pleasure to give
you the kingdom. Sell your possessions, and give to the needy. Provide
yourselves with moneybags that do not grow old, with a treasure in the heavens
that does not fail, where no thief approaches and no moth destroys. For where
your treasure is, there will your heart be also.”
The life that is looking for Jesus’
second coming seeks to give gifts … not to receive them. It treasures God’s Word and his gifts of the
Means of Grace … not things. For through these means it is Jesus who comes to
us now as he gives us forgiveness and life – real life that will last. Life that will begin in all its fullness when
the Son of Man comes in a cloud with power and great glory to raise and
transform our bodies.
So yes, it’s almost Christmas. But
right now it is Advent. And Advent
teaches us to pray that there will be no Christmas this year. Maranatha. Come Lord Jesus.
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