First Sunday of Advent (Year A)
1This is the word revealed to Isaiah, son of Amoz, concerning Judah and Jerusalem:
2In the last days, the mountain of Yahweh’s temple
will be raised up as the head of the mountains,
towering over all the hills.
Every nation will flow into it like a sparkling stream.
3Many peoples will come and say,
“Everyone, come! Let’s go up higher to Yahweh’s mountain,
to the house of Jacob’s God; then Yahweh can teach us The Way
and we can walk in God’s paths!”
Zion will be the center of instruction,
and the word of Yahweh will go out from Jerusalem.
4Yahweh will judge fairly between the nations
and settle disputes among many peoples.
They will beat the swords they used against each other
into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks.
No nation will take up weapons against another,
nor will they prepare for war anymore.
5O house of Jacob, come let us walk
in the wonderful light of Yahweh!
Prayer:
All-Loving God, give us grace to cast away the works of darkness, and put on the armor of light, now in the time of this mortal life in which your Child, Jesus the Christ, came to visit us in great humility; that in the last day, when he shall come again in his glorious majesty to judge both the living and the dead, we may rise to the life immortal; through him who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.
Happy New Year!!!
Well, for the church, anyway. Today is the first Sunday of Advent and Hope is the theme. I must confess that when I read the Gospel lesson today, I wasn’t filled with hope. But it’s not the passage itself that is bothersome. No. The Gospel lesson has been interpreted as, and the emphasis of the church for ages now has been, the “Second Coming,” which can be seen by the assigned prayer (or Collect). I’ve said this before but I find this a little off.
The Gospel Lesson is not about the supposed “Second Coming” but the then soon coming war between the Jews and the Romans. Jesus’ message to his first followers[2] was that they should understand the war as his coming in judgment upon Israel (Judea) and be prepared since no one knew the “exact day and hour” (v. 36; MSG).[3]
In other words, the Gospel lesson has nothing to do with the supposed “Second Coming” and everything to do with a past event. A very tragic event certainly. But it’s in the past and has nothing to do with us, our time, or the future.
But then I read the Lesson from the Jewish Scriptures. Isaiah 2 is a passage full of hope and longing. It’s the promise of the consummation of the ages — the time when God’s Realm and our realm become One at last (Revelation 21.1-7).[4] And the great thing about it is that it’s already started!
If we take the Gospel Lesson for what it’s meant to be — the beginning of God’s Realm “on earth as it is in heaven” — then we see in Isaiah God’s promise of what the “end” will look like. And, more importantly, the goal to which we should be working. As St Paul tells us in another place, “My dear sisters and brothers, stay firmly planted — be unshakable — do many good works in the name of God, and know that all your labor is not for nothing when it is for God” (1 Corinthians 15.58; VOICE; adapted).[5]
In other words, the work we do for God — feeding the poor, caring for the sick, serving immigrants and others cast aside by society, etc. — are like bricks used in building God’s Realm. And all of this is possible because of the incarnation; of God becoming human in the person of Jesus of Nazareth.
As we prepare for the arrival of Emmanuel — of God with us — let’s keep God’s promise of the future always in our mind’s eye. For we know that one day — and I pray it’s soon — “Every nation will flow into God like a sparkling stream.” That “we’ll beat the swords we used against each other
into plowshares and our spears into pruning hooks.” That one day — and I pray it’s soon — “No nation will take up weapons against another, nor will we prepare for war anymore.”
That, my dear sisters and brothers, is our hope for the future. Therefore, “Let’s not get tired of doing good, because in time we’ll have a harvest if we don’t give up. So then, let’s work for the good of all whenever we have an opportunity, and especially for those in the household of faith” (Galatians 6.9-10; CEB).
~~~
In the Love of the Three in One,
Br. Jack+, LC
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[1] Scripture quotations marked (TPT) are from The Passion Translation®. Copyright © 2017, 2018 by Passion & Fire Ministries, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. ThePassionTranslation.com.
[2] Jesus was addressing the disciples and used the personal pronoun “you” over 20 times depending on the translation.
[3] Scripture quotations marked (MSG) taken from The Message. Copyright © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene H. Peterson. Used by permission of NavPress Publishing Group.
[4] Unless otherwise stated, all scripture quotations and references — and scripture quotations marked (CEB) — are taken from The Common English Bible. Copyright © 2011 by Common English Bible.
[5] Scripture quotations marked (VOICE) are taken from The Voice Bible, copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The VoiceTM translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society. All rights reserved.
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