The First Sunday in Advent ----- 29 November 2015

Luke 21:25-36
{25} "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. {26} People will faint from fear and foreboding of what is coming upon the world, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken. {27} Then they will see 'the Son of Man coming in a cloud' with power and great glory. {28} Now when these things begin to take place, stand up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near." {29} Then he told them a parable: "Look at the fig tree and all the trees; {30} as soon as they sprout leaves you can see for yourselves and know that summer is already near. {31} So also, when you see these things taking place, you know that the kingdom of God is near. {32} Truly I tell you, this generation will not pass away until all things have taken place. {33}Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away. {34} "Be on guard so that your hearts are not weighed down with dissipation and drunkenness and the worries of this life, and that day catch you unexpectedly, {35} like a trap. For it will come upon all who live on the face of the whole earth. {36} 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."

Now when these things begin to take place, stand up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.

·        I have two children. I love them very much. I was present at their births. I’m not going to give you any details, but let me say that how I remember those events is not exactly the way they actually happened. I’m not saying that those births didn’t happen; all I’m saying is those births are remembered as somewhat different from the real facts.

·        Doctors and nurses may remember those births in a very clinical, factual manner. My wife remembers them and her memories of those events differ from mine. Oddly enough, neither of our children remember anything of the event. We’d all agree, however, that the births were life changing for each of us.

·        The words we hear from Jesus today are frightening. He uses words that carry a lot of meaning for his listeners, images based on the words of the prophets. These words evoke emotions, which could be either fear or hope, depending on the situation of the hearer.

·        We use words like those in our everyday speech. We might say we are hungry enough to “eat a horse” although we probably wouldn’t. We might say that a messy place “looks like a hurricane hit it”, even though we know that a hurricane would do far more damage.

·        Our languages are full of them. A person might be “moon-struck” or a “stick-in-the-mud.” A place might be called a “castle” or a “dump.” Politicians use these types of words to get their messages across. Some of the phrases are references to stories and even myths. What-ever the case might be, the words and phrases carry a content in a sort of verbal shorthand.

·        Jesus’ frightening words in Luke’s Gospel today just might be expression of just was we’ve been talking about. His hearers would be watchful for signs and portents in the skies and in the stars. They would be aware of the sounds of storms and just what storms can do. (I’ve been told that a tornado sounds like a freight train, or is it the other way around?) Those images would be expected and they’d know was Jesus was talking about.

·        When Luke was writing, the destruction of Jerusalem and the leveling of the Temple would be a fresh memory and a painful one. Surely, People will faint from fear and foreboding of what is coming upon the world, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken. Everything comfortable, everything familiar, everything that had appeared unshakable was gone. Truly the powers of the heavens were shaken and everything was changing.

·        Jesus’ words here are for his disciples. All these signs would be visible to them and, as terrible as they may appear to us, they were meant for hope and comfort.

·        Jesus uses the example of the fig tree, saying that when the buds sprout, the summer is near. In the same way, when the signs are seen. God’s kingdom is near. What “near” means is debatable, but presence of God and the Kingdom of God is close and getting closer. The separation between heaven and earth is closing.

·        Jesus goes on to say that this generation will not pass away until all things have taken place. A generation could be a cohort of persons, or a number of years, or even an attitude, such as the attitude of those who did not believe and those who continue to act in a self-centered way.

·        The warning not to give ourselves over to dissipation and drunkenness and the worries of this life is a reminder that we are meant for greater things than distraction from an empty and meaningless life, dedication to pleasure-seeking or the worried life. We all know how easy it is to become distracted by trivial things, let alone the much larger realities of modern life. It could be that this statement is the most important one we encounter this week.

·        So when the signs are perceived, we are to Be on guard… and  Be alert at all times, praying.

·        What is to come is laid out in words that are both symbolic and reflective. They speak of what is to come in the light of the words and attitudes of the prophets as well as reflecting the momentous event that took place shortly before this was written – the destruction of the Temple and the loss of independence for the Jewish people. The order of the world then – and the order of the world now – will be turned upside down and inside out. It will be upsetting, because change – even positive change – is upsetting and quite often fearsome.

·        Will we see these events? Have we already seen them? Maybe we have. Who knows? Perhaps it will take longer than we might think for all things to come to fruition.

·        Our place is not to predict, but to remain faithful and to Be alert at all times. What will come will be for all creation and for the faithful, it will be the fulfillment of promises… in God’s own time. Oppressions will be ended and wrongs will be redressed… in God’s own way.

·        For all creation and all time remains in the hands of God and Now when these things begin to take place, stand up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.

At the end of my sermon, I added this story:  Two hundred twenty years ago the Connecticut House of Representatives was in session on a bright day in May, and the delegates were able to do their work by natural light. But then something happened that nobody expected. Right in the middle of debate, the day turned to night. Clouds obliterated the sun, and everything turned to darkness. Some legislators thought it was the Second Coming. So a clamor arose. People wanted to adjourn. People wanted to pray. People wanted to prepare for the coming of the Lord.

But the speaker of the House had a different idea. He was a Christian believer, and he rose to       the occasion with good logic and good faith. We are all upset by the darkness, he said,             and some of us are afraid. But, “the Day of the Lord is either approaching or it is not. If it       is not, there is no cause for adjournment. And if the Lord is returning, I, for one, choose         to be found doing my duty.

“I therefore ask that candles be brought.”

And men who expected Jesus went back to their desks and resumed their debate.