Advent

Today is our third Sunday in the season of Advent.

It feels like Christmas, though.

The culture all around us is pretty much celebrating Christmas, more or less.

So that Christmas Day on the 25th feels like the last day of a season of parties, of feasting, of decorations.

But the church has historically observed this season differently.

Historically, the season of Advent, which begins on the first Sunday of the four Sundays before Christmas Day,

is a season of waiting, of preparation, of hope.

We remember the days of Israel in exile, awaiting a Savior, a Messiah who would come and gather up Israel and deliver her from all her enemies.

At the same time, we as the church await the second coming of that same Savior,

one who will at last set all things to rights.

You could say that the season of Advent is simultaneously the first month and the 13th month of the Christian year.

So in this season, generally, we don't sing Christmas carols that say,

Jesus is come.

We sing in Advent, come Lord Jesus.

In the passages from the Bible tonight, aren't the accounts of Jesus being born and the events following.

We read passages about waiting for a Savior to come and about preparing ourselves for that day.

Now, one of the passages that was read was from a letter that the Apostle Paul wrote to a young church,

to what was a young church, in the ancient city of Thessalonica.

The recipients of that letter were eagerly awaiting the return of Jesus.

They thought it would happen any day.

And so Paul's instructions for them was on how to wait.

What should we do as we wait?

What can we expect when he comes?

So we're going to focus on that passage from 1 Thessalonians this evening.

We'll also look at the passage in Isaiah.

We're going to find that our situation is very similar to the Thessalonians.

So we're going to answer three questions.

What time is it?

What should we do in this time?

And how should we pray in this time?

Basically, when, what, and how.

So let's pray.

Come, Lord Jesus.

Come in our midst and speak to us.

And would your words in us produce faith and hope and love and joy and patience as we wait.

And come Holy Spirit.

If there's anything that you would like to say to us that I haven't prepared, would you make it clear to me?

Please don't let this frail and clumsy instrument impede what you would have to say to your church, the bride.

Amen.

Amen.

all right well and i think the first thing we need to do is to orient ourselves

to where we are in our place in the story of the universe like what point in time are we at in the

history of the world at the beginning of the first millennium jews like in jesus's day jews would have

jews would have had said that we live in the current age and the current age is marked by conflict by

being subject to foreign unjust powers and by suffering injustice and oppression and then a

messiah would come to set all things to rights this messiah would conquer all of israel's earthly

enemies and inaugurate an age to come and this age to come would be a purely good era when god would

rule the world now we believe that a messiah did come but his coming was different than what was

expected um he didn't come as this charismatic military leader who would lead israel to defeat

the roman empire and be crowned the king he came as a poor humble unattractive carpenter from the

hillbilly part of palestine he came to deal with the real enemies of god's people sin and death

he conquered sin by dying for our sins on the cross taking the punishment that our sins deserved

and he conquered death by rising from the dead and on the day to come in the future all of god's people

will themselves experience a resurrection that day will coincide when jesus comes again on that day

he will finally destroy all powers that oppose the good just and peaceful rule of god so history has

unfolded similarly to how the ancient jews expected except that this current age has yet to fully pass

away we're still in the current age and we are in the age to come that has already been inaugurated but

not fully inaugurated so just like we're in the first and 13th months of the christian year at the same

time right we are in the age to come and the current age at the same time it's an already but not yet

period now jesus confirms this in the way he read the 61st chapter of isaiah one of the passages that

aj read earlier so i'm going to read from luke chapter 4 this is where jesus is attending synagogue

Luke 4 · chapter mention

and he reads from isaiah 61 but if we could have uh isaiah 61 on the screen while i read luke chapter 4

Luke 4 · chapter mention

okay jesus came to nazareth where he had been brought up and as was his custom he went to the

synagogue on the sabbath day and he stood up to read and the scroll of the prophet isaiah was given to him

he unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written the spirit of the lord is upon me

because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor he has sent me to proclaim liberty to

the captives and recovering of sight to the blind to set at liberty those who are oppressed to proclaim

the year of the lord's favor and he rolled up the scroll and gave it back to the attendant and sat down

and the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him and he began to say to them today this scripture

has been fulfilled in your hearing

jesus boldly claims to be the fulfillment of this prophecy from isaiah but look what he doesn't say

he doesn't say the day of vengeance of our god he finishes right before he gets there

now this day of vengeance is what the jewish people were waiting and hoping for and jesus is

effectively saying i've come to inaugurate the new age but not fully not yet this part is to come later

the kingdom is breaking in now with good news for the poor the captives the blind and the oppressed

the kingdom will be finally consummated at a later date and so we find ourselves

ourselves in this in between already but not yet era living simultaneously in both the current age

and the age to come

so that's when we live now how do we live how do we live in this already and not yet time

so in the letter to the the the thessalonians paul is giving the thessalonian christians instructions

on what it means to live in light of some specific issues they were facing paul really loved this church

it was a dynamite church like if you attended you would you would feel the warmth and the love people

had for one another you would feel greeted they were full of hope and love and joy and you would have

heard that they were facing tough times but still they were full of joy now now some members of their

church have died and it really distressed and confused them because they believed that jesus's return

would happen before any of them had physically died so when they physically died they were um confused

distressed

now it's probably the hardest thing to deal the the hardest thing to deal with in the already but not

yet is is suffering

this problem of suffering whether it's due to the brokenness of the world or the brokenness or frailty

of our bodies or due to injustice or due to oppression or persecution and the thessalonians were facing all of this

and we're wondering how does this fit in with what we had expected to happen

some had had their property confiscated some were prevented from practicing their trades because of their

confession as of jesus is lord

some were shunned by their families some were insulted some were beaten some were put to death

this was persecution of the worst kind

so how were the thessalonians to respond

how do we live in the midst of brokenness and pain and injustice

well paul's letter builds in pace and tone until he gives these rapid fire instructions in first

1 Thessalonians 5:16

thessalonians chapter 5 verse 16 rejoice always pray without ceasing give thanks in all circumstances

now the verse delineations here make it seem like these are three separate commands but these are all

one thing in the midst of sorrow we maintain constant joy by never failing to pray and by always giving

thanks now logically

i mean these these instructions seem destined for a shipwreck i mean how does one wake up each morning

to be reminded again of the death of someone dear to them and remain joyful

how does um how does one wake up every morning and once again face the constant suffering of their own

child and rejoice

or to deal with the constantly aching psychic scars of previous abuse

and to be joyful always

i don't

i have an idea

some of my suffering isn't as extreme as

yours nor as extreme as many of our brothers and sisters around the world

um

but from personal experience and from what paul says here

um

i think the key is is in verse verse 18

paul is um paul is not saying we won't ever be sorrowful

and he doesn't present himself this way

in in second corinthians he presents himself as

sorrowful yet always rejoicing both at the same time

right

he also doesn't say we are to be thankful for all circumstances

but thankful in all circumstances

right i mean jesus is presented this way too

um

when his friend dies

we don't find jesus saying

ah lazarus died

thanks be to me

right

he uh he wept

he wept

he

he snorted

he was angry and indignant at this death

what unlocks these instructions

to be always rejoicing

and praying

and being thankful

is found here in verse 18

this is the will of god

in christ jesus

for you

now paul uses this phrase

in christ

over and over in his letters

and if

some of you are english teachers

um

and if paul was one of your students

you might get the red pen out

and start scratching out all these times

he uses the word

in christ

redundant redundant

redundant

but paul's like making a point

uh when he says

in christ over and over

he wants us to know

and believe

and trust

something

he's very insistent

that we understand

that what is central

to our existence

in this in-between time

is our union

with christ

our intimacy

with him

our sharing

in his sufferings

and his life

and his death

and his resurrection

happiness comes

and goes

but lasting joy

is experienced

when we find ourselves

fully

and utterly

dependent on him

this is what

god's will

is

for his people

right

it's not to have our acts together

to look good

it's to be completely

and fully dependent

on our creator

happiness may be

impossible to have

during suffering

but it seems that

joy

is tied

inextricably

to sorrow

and suffering

joy

is

is grounded

in hope

and hope is produced

and even sustained

by suffering

this is one of these

um

ironies

these paradoxes

the christian faith

we live in a time of

already but not yet

we are to be both

joyful

and

suffering

or we are to be joyful

while we're suffering

so this

this joy

um

produces

perseverance

and character

and ultimately hope

so with that in mind

having discussed

when we live

the time we live

this already but not yet

and what we are to do

in this already but not yet

this

always rejoicing

always praying

always being

uh

thankful

uh

let's ask

what are we

to pray for

and if we're to pray

continually

uh

what should be the content

of those prayers

paul said

we should give thanks

in all circumstances

this is one thing

give thanks

in all circumstances

um

now remember how i said

not give thanks

for all circumstances

i can tell you how

our family

does this

we use like this

kind of watered down

ignatian spirituality

light

um

when we gather around

the dinner table

um

i don't know if you know

anything about

ignatian

spirituality

but there's this thing

called the daily examine

um

where you

go through these

steps

and you

review your day

and you review

your emotions

and then you pray

from one of these

moments in your day

um

and and

when you review

your day

you're gonna

generally feel

one of two things

you're gonna feel

consolation

that um

god was present

in the situation

showing his goodness

to you

or you're gonna feel

a desolation

you're gonna be

angry or resentful

about something

or sad

or depressed

like god

wasn't

present

right

um

so i've

i've done this

before

and

there's a lot

of new people

in our church

since i did this

two years ago

um

so i'm gonna do it

for you again

uh

the the idea

that we would

in our

suffering

still experience

joy

or

still

be able to be

thankful

is a bit of a paradox

right

and and paradox

sounds like

pair of ducks

so

when we gather

at the table

we we have some dinner

and this is our ritual

at dinner time

um

we talk about

our yay ducks

and our yuck ducks

for the day

and so we we say

like what what were

like the great things

that happened

and that's our yay ducks

um

and then we thank god

for those good things

that happened

and then uh

we talk about

our yuck ducks

um

and then uh

we talk about those

and then and then we ask

like well

actually how

how was god

being good to us

what what did we learn

in that

so

if something happened

that was bad

oh but my uh

my friend was there for me

or my mom was able to

uh hold me

and cuddle with me

like let's give thanks

to god

for that

so um

this is the way

our

this is the way

our family

tries to uh

be grateful

in all circumstances

and you can do this

as as you go to sleep

at night

review your day

um

review your yay ducks

and your yuck ducks

and uh

and give thanks

for both

the good

and the ways

god showed

his goodness

to you

in the bad

um

so that's

that's giving

thanks

um

in addition to

uh

thanks and praise

is is there something

that we should be

consistently

asking for prayer

like asking god

for stuff

is probably the easiest

thing to do

out of all the

different ways

to pray

right

um

because we feel

like we want

and need a lot

of things

so we ask

for those things

um

but uh

is there

a refrain

that we could have

is there some

kind of content

the content

that could

uh

train us

and disciple

us

into hope

right

well the bible

gives us

a refrain

for our prayers

and it's one

that i

i rarely use

i don't pray

this very often

i venture to say

and guess

that very few

of us

pray this

prayer

regularly

and it's a

prayer

that we're

taught to say

in this season

of advent

and we've

prayed it

a number

of times

already

tonight

and it's

a prayer

that issues

from the

holy spirit

himself

right

paul writes

in romans

eight

likewise

and this is

in a passage

where god

where paul is

talking about

this already

but not yet

uh

time

like creation

is groaning

for the sons

of god

to be revealed

and paul writes

likewise

the spirit

helps in our

weakness

for we do

not know

what to pray

for as we

ought

but the spirit

himself

intercedes

for us

with groanings

too deep

for words

so it might

remain a mystery

so we'll never

know what the spirit

is groaning for

actually we do

we do know

one thing

and it's found

in the last

chapter of the bible

in revelation

Revelation 22:17

chapter 22

verse 17

this verse says

the spirit

and the bride

say

come

the spirit

and the bride

say

come

come

come

come

come

come

lord

jesus

do you

pray for

that

do you

pray for

the lord

to come

back

do you

want

him

to come

back

quickly

i hardly

ever do

and

it just

seems

absurd

that i

don't

and it

leads me

to question

like how

deep

really is

my love

for my

king

that I'm not asking for him to come on a regular basis.

Now, the verse says,

the spirit and the bride say, come.

Spirit and the bride say.

So the spirit and we, the church,

who are called the bride say, come.

We are the bride.

Well, what is a bride?

Now, I used to think that bride was synonymous with wife.

It's not.

Those are two different words, different meanings.

The bride is the one who is on the cusp of getting married.

Imagine a bride fully adorned in her dress,

beautiful, ready to walk down the aisle

and not care if the groom showed up.

Absurd, right?

Nah, that's all right.

He can take his time.

I'll just watch some Netflix,

drink some beers, take a nap,

smoke some stogies, whatevs.

The bride says, come.

She cannot wait for her groom to arrive

and for the wedding to take place.

She can't wait to feast and to party

and to consummate this marriage.

Do we want that?

Are we yearning for that?

Or are we too attached to this world

to really want it?

Come, Lord Jesus.

But not too soon.

I still haven't progressed in my career like I want to.

I haven't done this or that.

I haven't visited the Hermitage in St. Petersburg.

And I'd really like to see how this Star Wars trilogy

wraps up in the year 2019.

So soon, but maybe January 2020.

Thank you.

When we pray, come Lord Jesus.

This is how praying, come Lord Jesus,

can disciple us into hope,

into expectation,

and to disciple us into a number of things.

When we pray, come Lord Jesus,

we detach ourselves from the things that we love

that compete with our love for God.

When we pray, come Lord Jesus,

we chip away at our cynicism,

and we're more aware of the transcendent,

expecting God to supernaturally break

into this dimension at any time.

When we pray, come Lord Jesus,

we are kept from misplacing our hope

in earthly institutions

to ultimately cure the world's evils.

when we pray, come Lord Jesus,

we're strengthened for holy living, right?

Because we are preparing for his return.

When we pray, come Lord Jesus,

with other people,

it makes us sensitive to others' needs

and sense of hopelessness.

We rush in to care for them

and for their needs.

When we pray, come Lord Jesus,

we are shaped into a people of hope.

For this particular doctrine

is integral to our faith.

It's as integral as the Father creating the world,

Jesus dying and rising again.

This is in our creeds.

To not believe this is to not be a Christian, right?

We believe that he will come in glory

to judge the living and the dead,

and his kingdom shall have no end.

In this in-between time,

when rejoicing and prayer and thanksgiving

are constantly on our lips,

let's learn to make,

come Lord Jesus,

a constant refrain,

not just in the season of Advent,

but throughout the year.

In his little book called

The Saints Everlasting Rest,

the English Puritan pastor,

Richard Baxter,

reflects on the new heavens

and the new earth

and the day that Jesus will come

in glory.

And I will close with his words.

Oh, fellow Christians,

what a day will that be

when we,

who have been kept prisoners

by sin,

by sinners,

by the grave,

shall be brought out by the Lord himself.

It will not be such a coming

as his first was

in poverty and contempt

to be spit upon,

buffeted,

and crucified again.

He will not come,

oh, careless world,

to be slighted

and neglected by you anymore.

Yet that coming

wants it not

its glory.

If the heavenly host

for the celebration

of his nativity

must praise God,

with what shoutings

will angels and saints

at that day

proclaim glory to God

and peace

and goodwill

toward men?

If a star

must lead men

from remote parts

to come to worship

the child in the manger,

how will the glory

of his next appearing

constrain all the world

to acknowledge

his sovereignty?

If, riding on a donkey,

he entered Jerusalem

with hosannas,

with what peace

and glory

will he come

toward the new Jerusalem?

If, when he was

in the form of a servant,

they cry out,

what manner of man

is this,

that even the winds

and the sea obey him?

What will they say

when they shall see him

coming in his glory

and the heavens

and the earth

obey him?

Shall not the saints

with inconceivable

gladness cry,

yonder is he

whose blood

redeemed us,

whose spirit

cleansed us,

whose law

governed us,

in whom we trusted,

and now we see

we have not

waited in vain.

O cursed corruption

that would have had us

turn to the world

and present things

and say,

why should we wait

for the Lord

any longer?

Now we see

blessed are all

they that wait

for him.

And now Christians,

should we not

put up that petition

heartily?

Thy kingdom come.

The spirit

and the bride

say,

come.

Let him that hears

say,

come.

Our Lord himself

says,

surely I come

quickly.

Amen.

Even so,

come Lord Jesus.

In the name of the

Father and of the Son

and of the Holy Spirit.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.