|
|
|
|
“Jesus Will Come Again”
In a
picture, I saw a man sitting on a busy street in a market
place. There he sat as people were hustling and bustling all
around him. There on his little cart was a large sign which
said, “The Lord Jesus Christ Will Return!” The truth of the
matter is that this man’s sign provides the key message of
Advent. “The Lord Jesus Christ Will Return!”
Advent has
been a focused time at the beginning of the Christian year
to contemplate, anticipate and respond to this great truth.
It is the time of the year we do so. But when I looked at
the picture, no one was paying attention to this man’s sign
except the photographer. Everyone else is walking by as if
the sign means nothing. The sign is there, yes, but it makes
no difference in the peoples’ lives. Well, at least not that
April day at this market place in Norwich, England in 2010.
Advertisers and even Christian publishers promoting Advent
have made it into just an extended Pre-Christmas season in
which it is used as a worship prop for the month of
December. However, when this is the focus, we keep Advent
from making a difference in our lives as a congregation.
Absolutely, the birth of Jesus matters, but we cannot leave
Him lying in the Manger, wrapped in swaddling clothes, in a
stable in Bethlehem of Judea, because His birth means so
much more. You see children of God, what matters most about
Jesus’ birth in Christmastide is what the incarnation of God
in Jesus begins to unleash in the cosmos (the world),
starting here on earth with us. In John’s gospel, we find
these words, “And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us,
and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the
Father, full of grace and truth” (John 1:14).
Therefore,
as we enter this glorious Advent season, let us not get side
tracked by the world’s theological definition of Advent and
Christmas, which is selfish commercialism. But, let us savor
the real meaning of Advent as we worship and celebrate the
Incarnate/Glorified Christ, remembering that “The Lord Jesus
Christ Will Return!”
Jesus, Our Advent,
Reverend
Shirley Williams-Hayes
|
|
|
|
