Present End-Times – 29 Nov 2015 – First Sunday in Advent

Time is of the essence in knowing where we are and who we are. Advent is particularly vital in that regard. The church runs counter to the culture in this month before Christmas, smacking up against consumerism and triumphalism.

Let this Sunday set the context of the church as standing for what is eternal and ultimate––balm in the season of sorrow for many who live through this social, joyous, partying time with memories of loss or regret or loneliness. Let the promises of the eschatological goodness of God shine through because some voices will be decrying the state of things, anticipating a devastating Second Coming of Christ.

Now, you may know there are two schools of thought in the Christian community regarding the Second Coming. One school believes that Jesus will indeed come back in a cosmic way, much like Luke describes. . . .

The other school of thought thinks that the Second Coming was the product of . . . the literal way [of thinking] pictured by Luke. These people think that the motif of the Second Coming is a figurative way of saying that God continues to work to help the world to manifest God's purposes among as many people and in as many places as possible. There won't be one great transformative event, but God is always at work.

[Both] viewpoints . . . infuse us with hope, whether hope for the return of Jesus on the clouds, or the hope that comes from recognizing that God is perpetually at work in every situation to try to lure people into joining God's purposes. And, both of these viewpoints believe that the season between now and whatever comes next is a time not for passivity but for passion. – Ronald J. Allen

We do not need to fear that these texts are all hell breaking loose because the wrong political party is in power––no matter who has the reins. Instead, we are reminded that God has the last word, and it is forgiveness, hope, and joy.

Luke 21:25-36

No cowering required! The day of deliverance may seem fearsome, especially in many contemporary portrayals of warfare, terror and disaster. . . . Amidst all this, Jesus' counsel seems oddly comforting: “Stand! Raise your heads! Redemption is near!” God acts to save, not to terrify. . . God beckons us to consider the future that we may yearn for but cannot imagine with any clarity—for it will surely be beyond our expectations, filling us with inexpressible joy.

Yes, a child will be born in Bethlehem in a few short weeks, but there is yet better news for us—Immanuel is also the one-who-is-coming, the one who makes all things new, the one whose arrival will commence the new age, when all shall be well, and all manner of things shall be well. – Scott Haldeman

Jeremiah 33:14-16

The prophet announces the promise that those who have been pulled away from their people will be re-united, and the two kingdoms will once again be one.

But the chapter opens with Jeremiah in prison and the city under siege (33:1–5), and so preachers speaking in these troubled times can say with the prophet that the promises of a righteous kingdom are never void. . . . [This text] insists that God's engagement with this world is moving steadily toward a real practice of righteousness and justice. Preachers can call for social structures that prevent some from taking advantage of the vulnerable, but also for growth in personal character that protects the structures from corruption. – Paul E. Koptak

1 Thessalonians 3:9-13

How shall we traverse the busy-ness of this time of year? The body of Christ envelops us in the promise of satisfying community and solitary rest.

Bound by Spirit and yet separated physically, the teacher/evangelist desires continually to be among the young church soon again—to see, hear and touch those whose strivings in the faith provides him with such joy and hope. Such is the gift of balance between days together and days alone for the Body—a balance not easy to achieve and hold.

Dietrich Bonhoeffer writes: “Only in the fellowship do we learn to be rightly alone and only in aloneness do we learn to live rightly in the fellowship. It is not as though the one preceded the other; both begin at the same time, namely with the call of Christ … (Life Together [New York: Harper and Brothers, 1954], 77–78). – Scott Haldeman

Ronald J. Allen is professor of preaching and New Testament at Christian Theological Seminary, Indianapolis, Indiana.  

W. Scott Haldeman is associate professor of worship at Chicago Theological Seminary, Chicago, Illinois.

Paul E. Koptak is professor of communication and biblical interpretation at North Park Theological Seminary, Chicago, Illinois.

Homily Service 40, no. 1 (2006): 5-14.

Comfort, O Comfort – 7 December 2014 – Second Sunday of Advent

Advent confronts us with stern and frightening images as well as seemingly impossible hope while we prepare for the birthday that sets all others in its orbit. This time of premature celebrating (Christmas parties in Advent?) brings difficulty for many. One of the writers in Homily Service in 2005 made note of that.

There are those who find this season to be particularly painful or lonely or stressful. It can be a difficult holiday road. As one person said, “Once Thanksgiving ends, I just want to get to New Year's Day and be done with it.”

But the Advent road takes us on a different journey. Not just preparations for Christmas, but a path leading to a life of integrity and purpose.

When the Israelite people are living in exile and filled with disappointment and despair, the prophet Isaiah announces hope to them. He tells them to build a superhighway across the desert. This road will lead them home. . . .

“In the wilderness prepare the way of the LORD, make straight in the desert a highway for our God. Every valley shall be lifted up, and every mountain and hill made low . . . Then the glory of the Lord shall be revealed…” (Isaiah 40:3–5a).

An engineer who has firsthand experience with road construction explained the process of “balancing the cut and fill.” If you're able to take dirt from a hill and put it in a valley, you don't have to borrow it from somewhere else. These are the best kinds of road projects—when the “cut and fill” is balanced.

John the Baptist is our crew manager, bidding us to do some baptismal road construction, that is, living our faith in the world. The valleys of despair are to be filled in with hope. The mountains of arrogance and the hills of selfishness need to be leveled. The uneven ground of materialism, and the rough places of hatred and injustice need to be smoothed over. Our baptism calls us to do this road work in our jobs, our families, our communities. Through politics, through church, through giving of our resources.

– Craig M. Mueller

Mark 1:1-8

And, as befits this roadwork, the Gospel reading on this Second Sunday of Advent gives us the Baptizer. John’s prophesies about the one for whom the roads are leveled and valleys raised up. 

Mark begins his gospel, the good news of Jesus Christ, not with a birth narrative but with the preaching of John the Baptist. By placing John the Baptist within the setting of the prophecy of Isaiah (although the quote is actually a compilation of Isaiah 40:3, Exodus 23:20 and Malachi 3:1) and giving him clothing and food like that of Elijah, Mark places John the Baptist, and thereby the story of Jesus, in the continuation of God's unfolding plan. That plan began at creation, continued through the prophets, found its climax in Jesus and will continue after the resurrection in the lives of the readers until the end of time when the Son of Man will come again.

– Carrie Lewis La Plante

Isaiah 40:1-11

To people without hope, people living under the oppression of terrorists, the prophet urges patience and hope. The end of exile is near.

Having lived under Babylonian rule for nearly sixty years, the people need the promise that deliverance will come. The prophet does not leave them with only the image of coming salvation but gives them an immediate task: “Cry out!” From the highest mountain, the people are to shout to all the cities that, transient as life is, God power is sure and certain to give them their freedom, return them to their home, and establish their lives once again in safety.

I leave you with a question meant to tie these readings and our preparations throughout Advent into a whole that looks for and relishes the assurance of God’s hand at work in our lives. Perhaps this question can prompt your thinking on this day, dear preacher. God be with you.

As we step up into pulpit or ambo, or as we step out into the midst of the assembly to preach, what God do we proclaim? When, with Isaiah, we say “here is your God” to whom or to what do we point? How in liturgy and architecture is this image of God expressed—at the font, table, and cross? In stained glass or icon? In majesty or humbleness of space?

– E. Byron Anderson

Carrie Lewis La Plante is pastor of Redeemer Lutheran Church in Indianola, Iowa.

Craig M. Mueller is pastor of Holy Trinity Lutheran Church, Chicago, Illinois.

E. Byron Anderson is the Ernest and Bernice Styberg Professor of Worship and the Director of the Nellie B. Ebersole Program in Music Ministry at Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary in Evanston, Illinois.

Homily Service 39, no. 1 (2005): 3-14.