December 2, 2012
Advent 1
Fr. Philip Eberhart
On Guard! Ready for His Return
In almost all times, since Jesus spoke these words, the
generations of Christians have had an expectation of His soon returning. We have combed the Word for the signs of His
coming and try to get a “prophetic edge”, so as to know what we cannot
know: The day and the hour!
Jesus was crystal clear on these things – the time of His
returning was set by the Father and not subject to review! “There will be signs in the sun, the moon,
and the stars, and on earth distress among nations…” – “the powers of the
heavens will be shaken.”
So often in our desire to know as God knows, we get ahead of
Him and say or do things that are without warrant in Holy Scripture, especially
when it comes to the consideration of the end of day and Jesus soon return.
Do I believe we are in the days Jesus spoke about? Days of signs – days of distress among
nations – confusing days. I do. As Paul said it one generation after Jesus,
“We are closer now than ever before!”
Every generation can say that.
And every generation has had signs and distress to which they can point.
Are our days unique?
Maybe. Could be.
Again we are left with the critical uncertainty that is the
essential character of the Kingdom of God -
Here now and not yet!
Jesus last day on earth, He was faced with the question from
the disciples: “Will you now restore the
Kingdom to Israel?” (Acts 1:6) His answer then was and it remains:
“It isn’t for you to
know the times and the seasons that the Father has set by His own authority…
RATHER (BUT YOU) You will receive power
when the Holy Spirit comes on you, and you will be my witnesses, in Jerusalem,
and all Judea and in Samaria, and to the uttermost parts of the earth.”
So what does readiness for the return of Jesus look like?
The last paragraph of our Gospel reading this morning, Jesus
gives us a few hints:
Be On Guard!
“On guard!” – The cry of the swordsman just entering into
battle.
Be in a state of readiness.
Have your sword in hand – at the ready!
All of this isn’t for the battle itself though.
SO THAT… kind of like ‘Therefore’ – these are words we pay
attention to in Holy Writ:
“So that your hearts
are not weighed down with dissipation and drunkenness and the worries of this
life, and that day catch you unexpectedly, like a trap.
Over and over Jesus tells His disciples to “be ready.” The parables He told in this same vein – the
10 virgins, five who were prepared with oil and five who were not; The wedding banquet, and in our reading today,
the parable of the fig tree. In Matt
24-25, Mark 13,and in Luke 12, 17 and in 21 (our reading), Jesus spends time
making clear to the disciples that a time is appointed and that it will have
definite signs – but the point of it all is that we BE READY.
What does READY look like?
Are we ready physically and mentally? That was Jesus’ warning – “that your hearts
are not weighed down.” The writer to
Hebrews urges us to “lay aside every weight and run the race with perseverance,
looking unto Jesus, that author and the finisher of our faith.”
Several times this week, the subject of discipline, and
shaking, that are written in that 12th chapter of Hebrews came up in
conversations. Friends, yes, I believe
that we are nearer the end than ever before – that almost goes without
saying! It’s interesting to me that the
writer to Hebrews refers to these days, all of these days since Jesus coming,
as “in these last days (1:2).”
Jesus uses three words in our reading to warn us:
Dissipation: Let me
use a modern word: hangover!
It’s
what’s left over after the party!
The
diminishment of faculties that accompanies drinking to excess.
Drunkenness: Jesus
repeats himself.
Let
yourself not be taken up with either the cause or the effect!
The worries of life;
the cares
of this world; anxiety about things pertaining to this earthly life;
Jesus
chooses a word for life here that indicates the physical affairs of our
daily existence – Biotikos
I’m reminded of his parable of the sower or of the
soils: one of the soils was so
thorn-laden, so weed-ridden that it could not support the life of the Word of
God. This is what Jesus is warning us
against. Over and over and over
throughout His teaching we come to the conclusion:
“Seek ye first the
kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added unto
you.”
BE ON GUARD. Being a
disciple of Jesus means having the priorities in the right order when it comes
to our earthly life and our spiritual life.
The season of Advent is a time of penitence in that we are
doing the work of that re-ordering of our priorities – taking note of the
places where the cares of this world have crept in and become our main
focus.
Secondly, Jesus said, “Be Alert at all times, praying…”
Jesus wants us in a state of alert readiness. Ready for His return in every aspect of our
lives – our spiritual lives, our physical lives, our financial lives, our moral
lives. In every way, ready and living
with the right priorities in the right places.
Paul’s prayer for the Thessalonian community is most fitting
this morning as we close:
“May
the Lord make you increase and abound in love for one another
and
for all, just as we abound in love for you.
And may he so strengthen
your
hearts in holiness that you may be blameless before our God and
Father
at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all his saints.”
Increasing in love for Jesus and one another.
Friends, we are going to need each other in the days to come
– “as we see the day approaching, we must
be encouraging one another, not drawing apart but drawing together.” Paul says that the purpose of his hoped for
visit is to “see you face to face and
restore whatever is lacking in your faith.”
The point of our togetherness isn’t just good food or great
fellowship, it is to encourage one another, to worship together and to restore
in each other what is lacking in our faith. God speaks to His people, through
His people!!
And finally, all of this is set in the golden setting of
prayer together!
Friends, our worship here is a setting of prayer. Our days of prayer are to be done
together. Some are afraid to pray with
another person – for fear of not sounding spiritual enough, or not knowing what
or how to say something. How we sound and what we say are not the right focus!!
When we come together to pray, we are to focus on God. Focus on or relationship with Him and on
hearing His voice, as much or more that Him hearing our voice!!
The readying power of prayer is something that is almost
entirely neglected in our culture. Sure
we pray, but its sometimes a perfunctory function of our spiritual lives. Something we have to do, to get to an end –
to feel better about our day or to check off the box of prayer.
What we are talking about is relationship – prayer is the
stuff of relationship with God!
Jesus spent hours and hours and hours in prayer, as the Son
of God! He got his instructions for the
day – his direction in ministry – his walking orders, from the Father and he
said, “I do nothing, unless I see my Father doing it.” Likewise He told us, “Apart from Me, you can
do … Nothing.” Prayer is the way into the
heart of the Father and the mind of Christ, that we seek so desperately. Not prayer that has many words and lists, not
praying for, but prayer that is being with.
When the disciples stood before the Sanhedrin in Jerusalem
after Pentecost, during the great time of miracles and amazing expansion of the
church, it was said that “They (the leaders of the Jews) took note that these
men had been with Jesus!”
May that be said of us, my friends! Let us so prepare our hearts and minds by
spending time wisely in these last days, spending time in His Word and being in
prayer together, soaking in His presence, that those who meet us will say,
‘These people have been with Jesus!”
That is my prayer for you in these Advent days, that you
will feel and be drawn into the very presence of Jesus, for it there and only
there that we find the strength needed for these days and the place to stand
before Him on that Day.
Amen.
A Prayer of Self-dedication (BCP, 832)
Almighty and eternal God, so draw our hearts to you, so
guide our minds, so fill our imaginations, so control our wills, that we may be
wholly yours, utterly dedicated to You; and then use us, we pray, as you will,
and always to Your glory and the welfare of Your people, through our Lord and
Savior Jesus Christ.
Amen
