Renewal In Christ Mission - Prepare ForThe Big Advent

PREPARE FOR THE BIG ADVENT

This time of the year brings with it colorful scenes in the shopping malls, the numerous Santa Clauses, office parties and the anticipation of opening gifts with family and friends and fun times around the Christmas table. However, for the Christian, this season is exciting because it is a time to prepare for the greatest excitement of all, the revelation of God to humankind.

According to the Armenian Church calendar, we are now in the season of Advent. This is the time, in which we are called to prepare spiritually for the coming into the world and into our hearts, our Savior. Christ has come and He is still coming again, this time especially for you. Our task is to be ready to receive Him. This unique event is a mystery which can only be described as "wonderful".

It is exciting to realize that one of the names of our Lord is "Wonderful". Centuries before His birth in a manger, the prophet Isaiah, inspired by the Holy Spirit, wrote:

"For unto us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called WONDERFUL, COUNSELOR, MIGHTY GOD, EVERLASTING FATHER, PRINCE OF PEACE".

Who is your most favorite personality in the world today? Is it a movie star, a famous musician, a great athlete? What if that person were to visit your home? You would naturally prepare for this most unprecedented event by wearing your best clothes and using your best manners and cleaning the house spotless.

The preparation we are called to make during Advent, however, has to do with the cleansing of our minds and hearts so that the Lord and King of the universe may be born in our hearts. IF JESUS IS BORN A THOUSAND TIMES IN A MANGER, BUT NEVER IN YOUR HEART, HIS COMING WILL NOT HAVE ANY BENEFIT FOR YOU.

The Bible readings which our Church Fathers have selected for the season of Advent stress the need to be spiritually prepared for His coming into our lives. For example, one of the Sunday Gospel lessons during this season, is centered on the parable of the Great Banquet, found in the Gospel of Luke chapter 12, verses 16-24. Jesus tells about a rich and prominent person who prepares a lavish banquet for special guests. His servants go out and personally invite the guests, but each one gives a foolish and unacceptable excuse for not accepting the invitation. The rich and prominent man of the parable symbolizes God who invites all to partake of the food of His table - food which gives eternal life.

And likewise, today, many people make all kinds of excuses for not establishing a close tie with God - some have no time, others are too preoccupied with other activities which take precedence over God. God is reduced to a hobby. The angry host exclaims, "I tell you, not one of those... who were invited will get a taste of the banquet".

The great lesson of this parable is that God has invited all of us to the banquet in His kingdom, and that unlike the ungrateful guests, we should respond to His most kind invitation to enjoy His goodness and eternal life forever. God continuously invites, but few respond. There will come a time in each of our lives, that the invitation will cease if we refuse to respond by faith and love.

In yet another of this season’s Gospel readings, the lesson centered on warnings by Christ to believers and nonbelievers alike. Taken from Luke chapter 17, Jesus tells His listeners that those people who deliberately promote sinful activities and cause innocent children to sin and become wicked and enter into evil lifestyles - in God's judgment, it will be absolutely disastrous for such people. Jesus gravely warns, "It would be better for him to be thrown into the sea with a large rock around his neck than for him to cause one of these little ones to sin. So watch yourselves".

And in that same passage, Christ warns Christians against hostility and the lack of love for each other. He says, "If your brother sins, rebuke him, and if he repents, forgive him. If he sins against you seven times in a day, and seven times comes back to and says, 'I repent,' forgive him." In other words, if we cannot love each other, then we cannot love God and cannot accept Him.

On the first Sunday of Advent, our Gospel reading was centered on the Parable of the Rich Fool (Luke 12:16-21). This interesting parable is about a very successful farmer who has so many goods and properties from the success of his farming business, that he decides to build great warehouses in order to store all his riches and to eat, drink and be merry the rest of his life.

But Jesus ends the parable by saying, as we read in verses 20 & 21, "But God said to him, 'You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?' This is how it will be with anyone who stores up things for himself, but is not rich toward God".

The fault of the rich farmer was that he took life for granted with no consideration or gratitude for his Creator - God had no place in his life - he was immensely rich by earthly standards, but was spiritually bankrupt. His life and heart were too crowded with other things, and there was no room for God in his life. Therefore, when his life came to an abrupt and unexpected end, he had no place in God’s Kingdom.

So then, let us prepare to celebrate Christmas - the coming of our God in the proper manner, with humble hearts and spiritual preparation, so that the Christ Child may have a welcome place in our hearts and be born within, and when our time on earth comes to an end, He may accept us into His Kingdom. Amen.