One day, Christ will come like a thief in the night, when we least expect it. If we're to be prepared, we need to get our act together, because the closer we conform to the standard of his righteousness, the less we have to fear
Being made clean reverses our lives, turns us upside down for the better. Too often we want a faith that will make the world a better place but that will not change us. We fear reversal change, but that’s what makes the Good News so radical, so life altering, so wonderful!
Cataclysmic events will occur in the last day. The message here is both about the natural order and about the realm of spiritual powers. The stars will fall, to be sure, but with their fall will come the fall of the spiritual powers that oppose the work of God.
Sometimes, we believe that if a religious experience isn’t mystical, it isn’t really religious... that it has to be accompanied by spiritual goose bumps. Sometimes, the goose bumps are there, but it’s plain old common sense that gets you to that point. Just ask Naaman.
According to a legend, a traveler penetrated an enchanted forest. In a glade, he found a sundial. On the sundial were the words, “Stop traveler. It is later than you think.” We know that, don't we? We know that our days will come to an end.
These first days of Advent speak not of the coming of the Baby Jesus in a manger, but rather his Second Coming, when he will judge the world. We’re supposed to prepare for that day, but we’re never told when it will be.
When I was a kid, I was terrified of spiders, even Daddy Long Legs. My sisters and brother didn't help. They enjoyed picking Daddy Long Legs up by a long leg and chasing me around the yard! Since then, my fears have grown up a little.
It seems a stretch to call a season of waiting a blessing. No one is happy when they have to wait. We associate waiting with dentists’ offices and traffic jams. Advent is a time of waiting. But when it’s done right, it’s far from inactive. It’s a time of joyful, creative waiting.
Jesus healed a bunch, but the next morning there were that many more. People came from everywhere. But then Jesus was nowhere to be found. He'd gotten up before daybreak and slipped away to be alone with God in prayer. That upset his disciples.
O.K., so I learned a new word this week: Somnambulism. It's a fancy term for sleep walking. Jesus told his disciples, "Watch, keep alert, and pray; for you don't know when the time is" (v. 33).