The cycle of the church year orders itself around the central point of our faith – Jesus Christ, his birth, life, death, and resurrection. All this follows a narrative path from beginning to end.
Our lives are full of endings and beginnings, happening all around us, every day. At this time of year, we are invited into the season of advent to wait, lament, and hope. Advent prepares us to receive the baby Jesus, a new world in which God’s reign of justice, mercy and love prevail! A world where there is no need for weapons – ”…They shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks...” (Isaiah 2:4) “The wolf shall live with the lamb, the leopard shall lie down with the goat, the calf and the lion …together.” (Isaiah 11:6). The season of advent is the preparation for the coming of Christ. And Christ will restore the kingdom of God. Christ will reconcile the world to himself, and justify all sinners. We, as a world, sit in the midst of the darkness awaiting the light of the world. We, as sinners, are longing to be set free from our captivity to sin, death, devil, and the evil systems of oppression of the world. We cry out, “How long, O Lord? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me? How long must I bear pain in my soul, and have sorrow in my heart all day long? …Consider and answer me, O Lord my God!” (Psalm 13:1-3) In answer to these pleas, we have a promise! John the Baptist appears in the wilderness, declaring, “Prepare the way for the Lord!” God is coming, we know not the day nor the hour, but we wait, patiently, faithfully, eagerly. The light of the world is coming. Jesus will shatter the darkness. We will be at peace! Amen. |
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September 2017
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