WHEN IS THE BEST TIME?
Rev. Barry W. Szymanski, J.D.
November 29, 2009
First Congregational Church of Wauwatosa
1st Sunday of Advent
Luke 21:25-36
‘There will be signs in the sun, the moon, and the stars, and on the earth distress
among nations confused by the roaring of the sea and the waves. People will faint from fear and foreboding of what is coming upon the world, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken. 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, stand up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.’
Then Jesus told them a parable: ‘Look at the fig tree and all the trees; as soon as they sprout leaves you can see for yourselves and know that summer is already near. So also, when you see these things taking place, you know that the kingdom of God is near. Truly I tell you, this generation will not pass away until all things have taken place. Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away. ‘Be on guard so that your hearts are not weighed down with dissipation and drunkenness and the worries of this life, and that day does not catch you unexpectedly, like a trap. For it will come upon all who live on the face of the whole earth. Be alert at all times, praying that you may have the strength to escape all these things that will take place, and to stand before the Son of Man.’
SERMON
Have you ever read a novel where the last chapter is first? The authors of novels written this way entice you into the story because you, the reader, then want to know what could have possibly occurred for the situation in that story to unfold. So you read the book as the characters develop and as the details of the story are disclosed. When I read a book like that I most often then re-read that first, but last, chapter to see how it all worked out. Have you ever taken a class where the instructor sets out a complicated problem in the first session, and everyone in the class is in awe, yet the instructor guarantees that by the end of the semester you will be able to master problems like that and more? And the instructor was right!
Have you ever attended a physical education class, such as martial arts, tennis or soccer or football, where some complicated move is shown, and you think to yourself, ‘I’ll never be able to do that!’ but in just a few weeks you can do it, and in more weeks following, you master the move? That is pretty much the situation of today’s Gospel reading. Jesus discloses the last chapter of the book of our human existence. Jesus advises us of the future – that there is an end to the world, as we know it. Not like in the movies. But rather that our world, both personal and the earth itself, has a physical end.
This morning you have heard the Gospel translated in what is the New Revised Standard Version – it is the Bible that is in your pews. Another version, a very modern version, is called The Message. This is what its translation is: “It will seem like all hell has broken loose sun, moon, stars, earth, sea, in an uproar and everyone all over the world in a panic, the wind knocked out of them by the threat of doom, the powers-that-be quaking. And then—then! —they’ll see the Son of Man welcomed in grand style—a glorious welcome! When all this starts to happen, up on your feet. Stand tall with your heads high. Help is on the way!”
I want to read yet another version, the Contemporary English Version: “Strange things will happen to the sun, moon, and stars. The nations on earth will be afraid of the roaring sea and tides, and they won’t know what to do. People will be so frightened that they will faint because of what is happening to the world. Every power in the sky will be shaken. Then the Son of Man will be seen, coming in a cloud with great power and glory. When all of this starts happening, stand up straight and be brave. You will soon be set free.” Regardless of the translation, these are quite powerful words for the first Sunday of Advent.
When the Advent season begins we may expect biblical stories, perhaps about Mary the mother of Jesus, or Joseph, who raised Jesus, or Shepherds, or the Wise Men from the East, or John the Baptist, or one of the prophets who foretold of Jesus, the Christ. But instead the liturgy’s lead Gospel story is about panic, earthquakes, the seas and oceans in an uproar, and people fainting in fear. Stuff of large screen movies.
But in the Gospels, we are told by Jesus that the Son of Man will come again in His glory -- and in His power. This is not an isolated story – not one that just one Gospel author chose to tell. All three synoptic gospel authors tell this story! It made a strong impression on each of them. This is a passage also woven into John’s Gospel. [John 5:29, 12:44+] And it continues into the Book of Acts, where, in the very first chapter, we are informed that after Jesus ascended into heaven, two men were standing near the disciples and told them, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into heaven? This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.” Acts 1:11. Jesus identified himself as the Son of Man.
This self-identifying title is widely used in the NT in passages that speak of Jesus suffering. And suffering seems to add to the difficulty of this text in relation to the first Sunday of Advent when we are led to believe solely in the joy of the birth of a child. However when we look at the entire New Testament, indeed the entire Bible, we get a better understanding of the immense scope of salvation history. In the Old Testament we are just beginning to see God’s initial revelation of himself, and of his power, and of his love for us.
Then in the New Testament we learn that the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and of his resurrection. The biblical chain of events from the very beginning of human history, unfolds through the stories of Abraham, Moses, and David, continues with the birth, life, death and resurrection of Jesus, and even now is ongoing in current events, all leading, eventually, to the end of our physical world.
The author of Luke tells us that redemption draws near. We know it is at hand through Jesus, and we trust in Jesus when he tells us that “Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.” This entire Gospel passage has two sides because, on the one hand, is judgment, while on the other, is redemption. Which brings us back to Advent and the reason for the incarnation.
Advent is the season for us to reflect on hope for all that God has done to reveal Himself to us, and in what the Holy Spirit continually leads us to; as well as to reflect on all the love that God shows to us. Let’s look at what God’s revelation meant to a young Rabbi. This is a story told by a man who with a young Rabbi whose four-year-old daughter was in the process of dying. The Rabbi moaned and cried out to God, ‘Why is this happening? I am your devoted servant; and my innocent child is only four years old.’ Months later, when the man felt he could ask the Rabbi a question about the death of his child and the Rabbi’s grief, he asked if the Rabbi’s faith in God was shaken. The Rabbi answered that his faith in God had not been shaken, but was rather stronger than ever. The man asked him ‘why’ and ‘how?’ The Rabbi answered that it was because he had his God to pray to, and to complain to about his daughter’s death, and to rely on, that he was given hope, because he knew God was there. The Rabbi continued by saying that if God were not there to complain to, he would have despaired. It is in that faith and that hope that our spirituality grows.
The Reformed theologian Jurgen Moltman, in his book, “Love, The Foundation of Hope” writes that what he trying to get across to us readers, was “to present the Christian hope no longer as an ‘opium of the beyond’ but rather as the divine power that makes us alive in this world.” God told us to expect a Messiah. An anointed one who would be alive in the world, and give us life.
Many prophetic passages tell us that God will send a Savior. One of these prophets was Jeremiah, who wrote that “The days are surely coming when I, your God, will fulfill the promise I made . . . I will cause a righteous Branch to spring up for David; and he shall execute justice and righteousness in the land. . . . [my people] . . . will be saved . . .” When will this come about? Jesus tells us about trees. TREES! He said that we learn by watching the fig and other trees that we can anticipate summer when leaves begin to sprout.
The parallel Jesus gives us is that when we see certain signs, we are to be aware that the world should expect “the Son of Man coming in a cloud.” Yet there is a great deal of comfort in what Jesus also tells us, because he did not say that we should fall down and be afraid, but rather that we are to stand up and raise our heads, because our redemption is drawing near. Jesus message is one of love for us; and to have loving reliance on him. We are not to be afraid –rather we should be ready to welcome Him as a friend. And even though all that is physical will eventually pass away, he reminds us that his words will not pass away; “heaven and earth will pass away, but [Jesus’] words will not pass away.”
What Jesus reminds us of is that we are to live actively, in faith and hope and to expect an end time. There will be both a conclusion of our bodily life, and ultimately, also for the world as we know it. Jesus, as a friend, counsels us not to spend all of our time in empty activities, or partying to escape life, or drink excessively or use drugs, or even to worry about life! He reminds us that the final day may suddenly catch us “.. like a trap.” If you have ever set an old-fashioned mouse trap, the kind that springs over seemingly faster than the speed of light, you know what Jesus meant, when he used the image of a trap. Our lives can end that suddenly.
I remember reading a Journal newspaper article some years back about a man who was killed while driving southbound on I-94 between Milwaukee and the Illinois state line. He was crushed when a dump truck’s front tire blew out and the entire dump truck fell onto his car and instantly crushed him. That was an unexpected trap of tons of metal and rock! Accidents like that occur without warning, and a person’s life can end abruptly. And in countries now, like Iraq, Pakistan, and Afganistan, many lives are instantly ended by a bomb.
Consequently Jesus’ counsel to us is that we be alert and pray constantly so that we will have the strength and its to make it through everything that’s coming and be able to stand on our feet before the Son of Man when he comes again in judgment is very good - and practical advice. Life is change.
Change is constantly occurring. The abrupt change from life to bodily death can occur in an instant. Ultimately, even in life, we really cannot control what happens no matter how much we may plan; and worrying does do any good either. Cancer, severe memory loss, heart problems, all these can be pushed off for a time, but eventually we don’t have power over what will affect us – or end our lives. What Jesus offers us is the message that the present moment is a gift to us. Therefore, live the gift. Savor the present moment. Then, when our personal end time comes we can stand up and raise our heads and personally be welcomed by our brother, the Son of Man, our redeemer. We are not to be resigned to simply dying.
And during life we are not to be oppressed in this world either. Rather we are to live in real trust in Jesus; in real hope of his message; in real knowledge of what he taught us; and in the real faith in him and His resurrected life with His Father. That is what Paul was writing about in his letter to the Thessalonians. He tells of his joy that he and his companions feel before God, simply because of them! Paul prayed that the Lord God make that community increase and abound in love. Paul prayed that they be so strengthened in holiness and love that they be blameless before God when Jesus comes with all his saints in glory. What does the season of Advent, as we prepare for the incarnation tell us? Through the incarnation we have learned the ‘mind of Christ’ what Jesus, the Son of God, and the Son of Man, thought. We have learned what he did, who he interacted with, and how he related to those individuals. We learned what he said, and we learned how he prayed. He gave us insights into his bond with his Father, and how his union with his Father affected him and strengthened him, and how it affects us and is able to strengthen us.
Because of Jesus we are more receptive to comprehend God’s activity in our lives. and especially to realize God’s love for us. In a unique way, we can reach a certain degree of empathy with Jesus when we offer our love to others. Part of our Advent preparation is to realize that Christ comes first, in the history of time when he came as a person in the flesh to reveal his divine nature, second, as his spiritual nature comes to us in our most inner being. And third, in his final coming at the end of time, our personal death, and at the end of creation, when he returns in his glorified humanity.
What the incarnation gives us is this: Even though God is often incomprehensible, we have, in Jesus, the Word made flesh, the opportunity to reject speculation about who God is. During this Advent season, as the Gospels unfold Jesus story, and prophets speak, and hymns are sung, we remember and we re-learn that human nature is united to the Eternal Word. We grow in our understanding, however meager, of the divinity of Jesus, the Christ. And we trust in Jesus’ words that “Whoever has seen me has seen the Father.” John 14:9b.
Martin Luther wrote that: “If you want to escape from despair and hatred of God let speculation go. Begin with God from the bottom upwards, not from the top downwards. In other words, begin with Christ incarnate, . . . There is no other way. Otherwise, you will remain a doubter for the rest of your life. To answer the questions, when is the best time for Jesus to have been born? the answer is: just when he was. And when is the best time for the end of the world to come? and the answer is: when God determines that it is time. If we ask, when is the best time for God to end our life? The answer is, when God so decides.
But the question that we must ask ourselves every Advent season, if not every day, is When is the best time for us to welcome God’s son, Jesus, into our very being? When is the best time to give Jesus a home within our very souls?
Let us pray,
Lord God, Your prophet, Jeremiah told us that the days would be coming for certain that you would will fulfill your promise that a child shall be born who shall execute justice and righteousness in the land. Lord, over 2,000 years later we have come to celebrate the birth of that child. Lord, Advent is the annual reminder that we need to answer the call of that child as he asks us to invite him into our hearts. We pray that we bid your incarnate son to enter into our very souls and to take over us in love so that our actions and thought be what he taught us, and that he transform us to be what God, our Father, intended us to be. And that we then work with Jesus to help bring about your kingdom on earth as it is in heaven. Amen.