1st Sunday of Advent, Year B, November 30, 2014

He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead
Happy New Year! Today is the first day of our New Church year its the first Sunday of Advent. Advent comes from a
Latin word which simply put means coming or a-waiting.
There are many comings as we live out our lives. Theres the advent or coming of winter, which is already upon us so
now we dream of the advent of spring. But the most recognized advent of course is this time of preparation, this time of
waiting for the celebration of Christmas.
When we were young it was so hard, we counted the days not only to Christmas, but also to birthdays to the last day of
school and to so many other occasions. As we get older those comings are different, theyre the days until we can
legally drive a car, or graduate from college, or maybe our wedding day, the birth of a child, special anniversaries or even
for some of us ordinations. Whatever they were, whatever they are, whatever they may be, these comings are part of
all our lives.
But what is this season of advent that we are beginning today? Obviously its the coming of Jesus at Christmas, but is it?
We all know he was born over 2000 years ago so really its a part of history. Since he already came, his coming again
seems to be a contradiction. Maybe Advent should be thought of as a time of already.
Confused? I think I am! So lets have a look at this sense of Already. Jesus came into the world on the first Christmas
and while he was with us, he taught us how to be drawn into a relationship with himself and the Father. Its already
happened. So what then are we preparing for this Advent if Jesus has Already come?
We should be preparing ourselves to celebrate his birthday but we should also be preparing for the Not Yet? As we
profess every time we recite the creed, He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead we are preparing
for the return of Christ, because not yet do we live in full communion with God.
Already the realm of God is evident and through baptism its within each one of us, and when we look around at the
mountains and the lakes, we see it all around us. But Not yet has that realm been fully established. So we wait, we
wait for the coming of our reward, the return of Christ and eternal life.
In Marks Gospel Jesus is addressing all of us who have to live in the meantime between the already and the not
yet. Hows he doing that? Hes telling us to stay awake, by living our lives according to Gods will, to be ready and to
prepare ourselves to live in that promised realm of God Not Yet but when it comes.
Waiting for Christmas and waiting for Christ are different. We all know Christmas is Dec 25 and we know what it will be
like when it arrives, but waiting for Christ requires something more. Waiting for Christ is an expectant watchfulness
because we dont know when he will appear, so we must stay awake, we must be prepared.
Those who lived before Jesus was born didnt know the day or hour that he would arrive. They lived their lives in that
constant state of watchfulness. The birth of the Messiah could only be celebrated as a Surprise Party and because
they didnt know the date, it could take place at any time. At the beginning of this advent season, if we think about the
return of Christ, we also have to live in the same way, in constant watchfulness because we dont have a clue when he
will come again.

Every day in the news we hear about people being snatched away by sickness, accidents and car crashes. The Gospel
today reminds us of that need to be ready, to be alert, and to be awake not asleep because we never know when we will
be called.
Jesus is like the house owner who has gone away and he has left us, you and me, in charge of his affairs, each one of us
with our own task. What is that task, what is our role?
Our task and our roles are to stay awake and to prepare ourselves, because we do not know when he will come home.
Its doing our best to live lives of love, compassion, forgiveness, honesty and integrity. Its keeping in touch with God
through prayer, and by recognizing and responding to him in love through every person we meet and experience each
day.
If we live in this way we have nothing to fear. We will be ready for our Lord when and however He comes, and we will
run to meet him as a friend to a friend.
Every year during these four weeks we get ready for Christmas. We put lights on the house, we decorate trees, we shop
for gifts, and we plan dinners all for what should be a celebration of Jesus birthday. Commercialization, advertising, and
the promotion of buy more, get more ask for more sometimes overshadows what we really should be thinking about.
This year along with all of our regular preparation, we need to think about the Not Yet and make that a part of our
planning. We need to reconcile ourselves with each other and with God. We need to prepare ourselves for Christ. Stay
awake for we dont know the time the hour or the day. Get ready for that Surprise Party when He comes again in
glory to judge the living and the dead.