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Time to Get Busy Waiting

Grace and peace to you from God, our Creator and Sustainer, our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit that abides in each of us.

So, throughout the fall our stewardship campaign theme was Now is the Time. As we focused on that theme we talked about how Now is the Time to get going; now is the time to make changes; now is the time to step up and do what it takes to get our facilities updated and expanded. In general we said, now is the time to get active and make things happen!

So it is pretty ironic that our Advent theme is Now is the time to wait! In many ways Advent is a season filled with irony. As I have shared before the term ‘advent” literally means coming, or arrival. In other words, the Season of Advent is a time when we await the coming, or arrival, of Christ. Advent is a season of waiting! Isn’t it ironic that in the church this is a season of waiting and, yet, for most of us, this is the busiest time of year. For most of us there is decorating, shopping, work parties, school parties, greeting cards to get mailed and so much more. Here at Salem we have special worship services to prepare for, the choir is practicing for the Christmas Cantata, the children are rehearsing for their Christmas program, and…wow, I get tired just thinking about everything there is to do. And when I think we only have 28 more days to fit all this in, I really get nervous, don’t you? There is so much to do and so little time and I thought this was supposed to be a season of waiting! And isn’t waiting about not doing anything?

Well, according to Jesus, waiting is not about doing nothing. It is about being active in this world in a different way. Our story today begins with one of the disciples asking Jesus about when the end of this age will come. He asks Jesus to let them know what signs to look for so they might know when the end would be. But Jesus will have nothing to do with it. First, he says, look, I dot know that, only the Father knows, but he goes on to say, until that time live differently from the rest of the world. Live as though the new age is coming now. You now, for many of us when we hear this story and we immediately think about the Left Behind series; that story about how before Christ comes back, many will be raptured, that is taken to heaven while many others will be left behind to live through a time of tribulation. But, such a reading of this story is not correct. In fact, it misses the point completely. Jesus wasn’t telling this story to scare anyone or to foretell of an unknown time. No, he was telling this story, as we heard two weeks ago when we talked about apocalyptic literature, to offer hope to all in need of hope.

Remember, this was time when most lived in poverty, most people were oppressed and most had been forced to live on the margins of society because they were seen as not worthy. But Jesus comes along and says, “That isn’t right. In fact, I am here to remind you that God is present in this place and all are welcome in God’s presence.” Jesus knew that most people lived in fear of the government, in fear of the religious leadership and in fear that their God had cast them aside. But Jesus says, while you wait for my return, don’t be deceived by the false prophets and the false teachings of Satan in this world. Don’t let Satan, sneak into your life, like a thief in the night, and deceive you into believing that you are alone and that you are somehow not worthy.

In Jesus’ day most lived their lives filled with fear that they had been forgotten and today many live the same way. Today, many believe our society, our government, and the whole world has forgotten them, but Jesus says that is not true. God has not forsaken you and through each of us, God desires that all creation be redeemed.

Many today will tell you that how you live your life now doesn’t matter, but today Jesus reminds us that what we do in this life while awaiting His return, does matter. He reminds us of how the people of Noah’s day lived as though the end would never come. And yet, while Noah prepared for God’s will to be done, his neighbors and others ignored the signs. The world then, and now, is filled with signs that God’s kingdom is coming, and yet, so often we ignore them. So how are we to live in these times filled with signs? We, are to live differently than the rest of the world. We are to be countercultural, subversive, and offer nonviolent resistance in the sure hope of God's coming triumph.

Our challenge during this Advent Season is to remember that now is the time to rekindle our relationship with our Lord. Now is the time to get to know God in a whole new way. Now is the time to put our faith into action. And, as we do all these things we are reminded that now is the time to actively wait for our Lord. Now is the time to realize that because Christ has come, because Christ is present and because Christ will come again that our future is filled with a great hope; the hope of a great light that will overcome all darkness. Now is the time to bring to mind all our fears and to attempt to overcome them so that we might be agents of change in this broken world.

Stay awake, says Jesus. In other words, while you are waiting, get to know God and God’s ways. While you are waiting fill your life with God’s word and come to know how God calls you to live. While you are waiting, don’t let the fears of this world keep you from making a difference in this world. Look around you, there are many in need and you, everyone of you, can be active and live into God’s mission of reconciling the world to God’s self.

Yes, Advent is a time of waiting, but not a time of rest. It is a time to prepare ourselves that is our minds, our souls and our hearts, to take action. Advent is a time to get active in God’s mission, so that Satan does not deceive us into thinking that God has forsaken us. God is alive and well and God is present in our lives.

So as we live into God’s kingdom this Advent Season, may we actively wait his coming because now is the time. As Paul said to the Romans, “You know what time it is, how it is now the moment for you to wake from sleep” (Romans 13:11). It is time for all of us to wake from our sleep, be active in Christ’s mission, and actively await His coming again. May all of us wake up and recognize Christ all around us and become active in His mission to reconcile the world to our Father in heaven. Amen.

Tags: Sermons