This coming Sunday I was offered a chance to give the sermon at our early service in Nicholasville. I like to follow the common lectionary as much as possible. This year the lectionary is heavily based on the twin realities of the season of Advent. The gist of the sermon is that while Christians can indeed reflect on the first coming of our Lord and Savior two thousand years ago, to stop there is a major problem. Advent is about more than that. It is also about the reality of the second coming of Christ and the closing out of the period of history that we currently find ourselves in. For the past two thousand years we have simply been in the beginning of the in-breaking kingdom. While that sounds like a long time to our finite minds, the truth of the matter is that in God's mind, it is simply a split second. We serve a mighty, faithful, patient God and for that I am truly thankful.
In order to see the difference between us and God, I have been contemplating when Christmas begins and how it should be celebrated. In reality, Christmas has turned into a culturally specific thing instead of the theological truth that we find in Scripture. For example, in the earthly kingdom Christmas starts on the day after Thanksgiving and quickly sprints up to Christmas Day. It is a time of hurriedly preparing Christmas parties and feasts, buying other folks things they really don’t need or want, and about going out and seeing who has the prettiest Christmas lights in town. It is about kids worried that they were not good enough for Santa’s visit this year and about adults worried that those credit card bills will begin to pour in before the next pay check. It is about silver bells ringing, children singing and sleigh rides jingling. It’s about a reindeer with a red nose, a snowman with frosty toes, and a Grinch who stole. It is a month long season of revelry, excitement, headaches, and running out of time to do nothing. We hear of the "must have" toy of the season and parents who pay way too much for a piece of plastic made in China that is not on store shelves now but will be made in excess come January. We are focused on the end of the year and we reflect on the fact that another year is almost over and hope the next one will be even better. We like to think of the local food pantry, toys for tots, and the Salvation Army as good places to give during this season because we are feeling extra generous right now.
But I'm afraid that with this kind of cultural thinking, we have missed what it means to be Kingdom people. The church calendar that follows Tradition and Scripture says "Wait just a minute. Don't rush ahead too quickly." We need to stop and catch our breath. It tells us that before we can celebrate Christmas, we must first endure the season of Advent. And yes, I do mean endure. According to the Tradition of the church, Advent is much more like Lent and much less like Christmas. It is a time of fasting, not feasting. It is a time of anticipation, waiting, crying out to God and saying "Come quickly, Lord Jesus." In reality, Advent comes at the beginning of the calendar, not at the end. It is about recognizing that we have not helped those in need the other eleven months of the year and that we need to do better about helping them over the next eleven. It is about knowing that the food pantry needs items every month to feed the hungry, the clothing closet needs help to clothe the naked all year long, and the sick need someone every day, not just a few weeks in December. Advent should be a time of more reflection and less activity while at the same time it should be a reminder that we need to look ahead with expectation and anticipation as we reach out to a world that has not yet received Christ. It should be a time of giving of ourselves instead of simply giving out of our bank accounts. It is about hearing the words of John the baptizer as he cries out "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near."
You see, we will have plenty of time later in the year to celebrate Christmas and the nativity of our Lord. Let's not move too quickly to that place without first enduring Advent. In the church calendar these words certainly ring out, "For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven..." Christmas and Epiphany are coming, but not yet. It is not time. I pray that you will remember that over the next couple of weeks as we continue during this season of Advent and that you will not move too quickly ahead. Be patient. Be watchful. Be prepared. Be expectant. "The farmer waits for the precious crop from the earth, being patient with it until it receives the early and the late rains. You also must be patient. Strengthen your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is near."--James 5:7b-8 Until next time...
+ May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you--Amen+
God bless+,
Dustin
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