The Texts for the 2nd Sunday of Advent, December 6, 2015

First Reading: Malachi 3:1-4

1See, I am sending my messenger to prepare the way before me, and the Lord whom you seek will suddenly come to his temple. The messenger of the covenant in whom you delight—indeed, he is coming, says the Lord of hosts. 2But who can endure the day of his coming, and who can stand when he appears? 

  For he is like a refiner’s fire and like fullers’ soap; 3he will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver, and he will purify the descendants of Levi and refine them like gold and silver, until they present offerings to the Lord in righteousness. 4Then the offering of Judah and Jerusalem will be pleasing to the Lord as in the days of old and as in former years.

Psalm: Luke 1:68-79

“Blessed be the Lord God of Israel,

    for he has visited and redeemed his people

69 and has raised up a horn of salvation for us

    in the house of his servant David,

70 as he spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets from of old,

71 that we should be saved from our enemies

    and from the hand of all who hate us;

72 to show the mercy promised to our fathers

    and to remember his holy covenant,

73 the oath that he swore to our father Abraham, to grant us

74     that we, being delivered from the hand of our enemies,

might serve him without fear,

75     in holiness and righteousness before him all our days.

76 And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High;

    for you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways,

77 to give knowledge of salvation to his people

    in the forgiveness of their sins,

78 because of the tender mercy of our God,

    whereby the sunrise shall visit us[h] from on high

79 to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death,

    to guide our feet into the way of peace.”

Second Reading: Philippians 1:3-11

3I thank my God every time I remember you, 4constantly praying with joy in every one of my prayers for all of you, 5because of your sharing in the gospel from the first day until now. 6I am confident of this, that the one who began a good work among you will bring it to completion by the day of Jesus Christ. 7It is right for me to think this way about all of you, because you hold me in your heart, for all of you share in God’s grace with me, both in my imprisonment and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel. 8For God is my witness, how I long for all of you with the compassion of Christ Jesus. 9And this is my prayer, that your love may overflow more and more with knowledge and full insight 10to help you to determine what is best, so that in the day of Christ you may be pure and blameless, 11having produced the harvest of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ for the glory and praise of God.

Gospel: Luke 3:1-6

1In the fifteenth year of the reign of Emperor Tiberius, when Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea, and Herod was ruler of Galilee, and his brother Philip ruler of the region of Ituraea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias ruler of Abilene, 2during the high priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas, the word of God came to John son of Zechariah in the wilderness. 3He went into all the region around the Jordan, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins, 4as it is written in the book of the words of the prophet Isaiah, 

 “The voice of one crying out in the wilderness:

 ‘Prepare the way of the Lord,

  make his paths straight.

 5Every valley shall be filled,

  and every mountain and hill shall be made low,

 and the crooked shall be made straight,

  and the rough ways made smooth;

 6and all flesh shall see the salvation of God.’ ”

Luke 3:1-7 Greek Stidies

Greek Study Luke 3:1-6 – Advent 2C

v1 Luke, as always the historian, identifies seven historical personalities so as to date the ministry of when "the word of God" came to John in the wilderness, v1-2.  Luke's dating of John's ministry dates the commencement of Jesus' ministry to @ 27-29 AD.

δε "of" – marks a seam in the text; note the argument as to whether John is the last prophet of the age of promise or the first prophet of the age of fulfilment.

της ηεμονιας (α) gen. "of the reign" - genitive is adverbial, reference; "with respect to the reign ..." of Τιβεριου Καισαρος gen. " Tiberius Caesar".  This word is usually reserved for empowers or high kings. 

ηγεμονευοντος (ηγενομευω) gen. pres. part. "when [Ποντιου Πιλατου] governed" - genitive absolute participle forms a temporal clause.

τετρααρχουντος (τετρααρχεω) gen. pres. part. " [Ηρωδου] being tetrarch participle is adjectival. The title "Tetrarch" was given to local rulers appointed by the Roman government to serve alongside a local Roman official- he governed one fourth (a tetrarchy) of King Herod’s former domain.  His proper title was Prefect (Herod Antipas 4BC-AD39.  Luke completes the dating my mentioning another tetrarch, Phillip (Herod’s brother) and Lysinius the Roman prefect of Abilene (not Texas).

επι + gen. "during" αρχιερεως (ευς εως) sing. "the high priesthood" - Annas and Caiaphas are both mentioned but the priesthood is singular as Caiaphas is functioning as the formal high priest with Annas as the “power behind the throne”. The Romans had removed Annas from serving in 14.

v2 ρεμα του θεου (ος) gen. "the word of God" – not using “λογοσ” as does John, this is an ablative of source - ρεμα means “matter or thing regarding" so this is a prophetic and verbal message not an incarnation/theophany or written one.

επι + acc. "came upon” reminiscent of the OT judges used in the LXX of divine inspiration. 

εν + dat. "in [the desert]" - a place of reflection, retreat and revelation; likely the area north west of the Dead sea leading into the Jordan valley.

  
v3 του Ιορδανου (ος) gen. "[all the country] around the Jordan" - genitive is partitive; referring to a specific region, here Luke literally “grounds” his narrative in the present. 

κηρυσσων (κηρυσσω) pres. part. "preaching" - modal, expressing manner, John came preaching (NOT baptizing which follows as a result of his preaching!) Funny, how he has not come to be known as John the Preacher! All of the following clause define what John preached.

βαπτισμα (α ατος) "a baptism" in the koine meaning, “to be overwhelmed or overcome by”.  So the word is used both figuratively and literally. It is often used to describe water immersion (but only in post Scriptural use) and to be overwhelmed by/with the Spirit, in tribulation ("fire") and in teaching ("into the Name"). So John preached a message concerning repentance for the forgiveness of sins which resulted in baptism as an outwardly expressed sign of that repentance, not so much of cleansing. Jesus' (and the church’s) later baptism by the Spirit is prefigured by John's water baptism in the Jordan.

Here an interesting discussion on baptism might follow, but…naah.

μετανοιας (α) gen. "repentance" - genitive is adjectival, limiting "baptism", so this is strictly a “repentance type” of baptism. I have spoken in the past of the Greek origin of this word (from agriculture, to turn a team of oxen by persistent persuasion). The Hebrew origins of this word also influence its meaning, shuv which involves a turning back (literally a returning - return to the Lord your God – Joel 2:13) rather than a mere expression of sorrow but the more interesting word is the one that follows; αμαρτιων (α) gen. "sins" – αμαρτιων (hamartia) comes from military jargon and means “to shoot an arrow and miss the mark”, hence to disqualify you from being an elite archer and condemning you to be an infantry grunt and therefore one of the first causalities in battle!  “Sin” has consequences.

v4 ως "as [it is written]" - - quotation from Isaiah 40:3-5. εν + dat. "in [the book]" for Luke this is an unusual formula.

λογων (ος) gen. "of the words" so for Luke this use of “word” as opposed to the former, (the word of the Lord in v2) indicates written versus verbal communications.

φωνη (η) "a voice" – literally a sound esp. when use without the definite article, so it may be understood as a description of a "calling." 

βοωντος (βοαω) gen. pres. part. "of one calling" 

την οδον (ος) "the way/road" - Luke sees John fulfilling Isaiah 40:3-5 as the one who prepares a way through the desert for the return from exile.  

κυριου (ος) gen. "for the Lord" - genitive, so "the Lord's way", or the King’s Highway

  
v5 Note the imagery of road building here.  Both the Assyrians and the Persians, (and later the Romans) were road builders, enabling the deployment of troops and merchants.

πληρωθησεται (πληροω) fut. pas. "shall be filled in" - (potholes?)

τα σκολια adj. "the crooked roads" - twisted. I am reminded of the county and township roads that form squares on a map. Here is an image of Fairfield, a village which, along with Osborn, merged in 1950 to form Fairborn.  Note the ‘layout” of streets, it is positively Biblical (see page 3)!  

The adjective here serves as a noun, so not an existing road, but a place too rough and steep to normally take a road. This intimates power over the terrain that requires a hegemony far greater than that of Herod, Phillip, etc. we’re talking interstates highways here not dirt paths.

εσται (ειμι) fut. "shall become [straight]" - Note the position of the verb to-be before the subject serving to emphasize the reality of what will be.

  
v6 σαρξ (ξ κος) "mankind" – literally flesh- used here for kin plcae of the Hebrew phrase "living being" i.e. “humaintty” cf. Genesis 2

το σωτηριον adj. "salvation" - Note how Luke replaces "glory" with "salvation" from the original quote. 

του θεου gen. "of God - genitive here is treated as subjective; so "all humanity will witness God's global work of salvation."

  

What Song will you sing?

“There will be signs in sun and moon and stars, and on the earth distress . . .”  (Lk 21:25) is easier to take when we remember the Song of the Angels: “Glory to God in the highest heaven and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!” (Lk 2:15) — P.K.

Who is John? Well, all his neighbors wondered the same thing at the time of his birth. (Lk 1:66) No one in his family had ever held the name: “John.” (1:62) But Zechariah insisted to give him that name. Actually, it was Elisabeth who first spoke it, Zechariah being struck speechless by the Gabriel as a sign. (1:20) Yet, his tongue is freed the moment he writes the words: “His name shall be John,” on a tablet. (1:63) 

After that, Zechariah proclaims the “Benedictus,” the psalm reading for this Sunday taken from Luke 1:68-79. It is well known to those who say the daily prayers of the church as it is the response to the Gospel reading in the services of Vigil or Matins.

That canticle is truly amazing as it foretells God breaking in from on high to keep the promises made to Abraham. It also proclaims John as a prophet. The hand of the Lord is with him. (1:66) It also introduces the theme of John’s proclamation: He will go before the Lord to prepare the way; to give his people knowledge of salvation by the forgiveness of their sins, because in the tender compassion of our God, the down from on high will break upon us. 

When John disturbed the silence of the wilderness around the Jordan, the place where he has spent most of his life (1:80), it should not surprise that he proposes baptism for repentance and the forgiveness of sin. He is the prophet, the last prophet before the Messiah does indeed come to seek those who sit in darkness and the shadow of death.

The other thing that might strike us is that immediately after telling of Zechariah singing his song and a brief synopsis of John’s life that sets the stage for chapter 3, Luke tells us of the birth of the Messiah whom John already knew: Jesus, the Son of Mary, announced by Gabriel, the same angel who foretold John’s birth. When John recognizes Jesus in Mary, his own mother blesses Mary — the Hail Mary — and Mary sings the song known as “Magnificat.” (1:41-42 and 1:46:55) 

The two canticles are rightly called “Gospel Canticles,” and, as mentioned before, are used to respond to Gospel reading at daily prayer. The Gospel, as Luke hopes to spell it out, is set forth in them. Our reading ends with an echo of last weeks reading as well: all flesh shall see the salvation of God. (3:6) Last week we were invited to lift up our heads because that salvation was even at hand. (21:28) The Gospel message of the canticles was there as well.

So when John preaches  Baptism and repentance and forgiveness of sin, maybe we need to see it in the light of Benedictus and Magnificat, and perhaps Gloria (2:14) as well, since it has been sung when our story in  chapter 3 comes around. 

Yes, I know, John is advertised as a firebrand preacher who called people: “a brood of vipers.” (3:7 and Mt 3:7) That is next week’s Gospel text. But, John is also not merely condemnatory in Luke — unlike Matthew. No, John is conciliatory he does not just condemn but teaches better living — as does just about all of the Gospel of Luke. For example: The great sin of the Rich Man is to not notice and be reconciled with the poor man, Lazarus, at his gates. (16:19-31) There as in John’s preaching recalled next week, Abraham looms in the background. 

It is hard, even in Luke, to make John a preacher of “Love,” unless one has the proper perspective on “Love.” Graham Green in Power and the Glory has the drunken priest describe God’s love this way:  “It set fire to a bush in the desert, didn’t it, and smashed open graves and set the dead walking in the dark. Oh, a man like me would run a mile to get away if he felt that love around.”

But, that love, once only written in Isaiah 40 and quoted by Luke in verses 3:4-6, now has to gain a voice. It is much like John’s father’s fate: The word written on the tablet suddenly set loose the tongue held in chains to that point. God’s promise is seen in the baby John and now praise must follow, the redemption of Zechariah and Elisabeth has been seen, surely the redemption of Israel will and must follow. The written word now gains and gives voice. Likewise with Isaiah. (quoted from the Greek New Testament in our reading) 

40:1 “Comfort, comfort my people,”

    says your God.

2 “Speak tenderly to Jerusalem.

Tell her that her sad days are gone

    and her sins are pardoned.

Yes, the Lord has punished her twice over

    for all her sins.”

3 Listen! It’s the voice of someone shouting,

“Clear the way through the wilderness

    for the Lord!

Make a straight highway through the wasteland

    for our God!

4 Fill in the valleys,

    and level the mountains and hills.

Straighten the curves,

    and smooth out the rough places.

5 Then the glory of the Lord will be revealed,

    and all people will see it together.

    The Lord has spoken!”

The Angel Gabriel’s words have proven true and become true in  flesh both in John and later in Jesus. Surely Isaiah’s words will find likewise fulfillment. 

You have read, most excellent Theophilus, (Lk 1:3) the ordered account set out for you from eye witness reports. Now, will those words remain locked in a prison of a heart that cannot speak or act in response to hearing of the presence of the Love of God come to his people? Is God’s presence, God’s Love to you a thing that you will run a mile to get away from? Who will lie at your gate and in what state are they whom you have not reconciled yourself to? The Songs of the father of the prophets, the Mother of God, even the Angels invite you to believe and join with the mother of Faith — church — to join singing those canticles, to hum them in the streets as beggars and those who are mourning under sorrows load fill your eyes. You are invited to hear Zechariah’s words: “You my child will be called the prophet of the most high, for you will go before the Lord to prepare the way. To give God’s people knowledge of salvation by the forgiveness of their sins, etc” and know that Zechariah was singing about John but that mother church is singing about you. So, you, Theophilus, what will you sing?

The Readings for Advent 1, November 29th, 2015

First Reading: Jeremiah 33:14-16

14The days are surely coming, says the Lord, when I will fulfill the promise I made to the house of Israel and the house of Judah. 15In those days and at that time I will cause a righteous Branch to spring up for David; and he shall execute justice and righteousness in the land. 16In those days Judah will be saved and Jerusalem will live in safety. And this is the name by which it will be called: “The Lord is our righteousness.”

Psalm 25:1-10

1 To you, O LORD, I lift up my soul;

my God, I put my trust in you; 

    let me not be humiliated,

    nor let my enemies triumph over me.

2 Let none who look to you be put to shame; 

    let the treacherous be disappointed in their schemes.

3 Show me your ways, O LORD, 

    and teach me your paths.

4 Lead me in your truth and teach me, 

     for you are the God of my salvation;

    in you have I trusted all the day long.

5 Remember, O LORD, your compassion and love, 

    for they are from everlasting.

6 Remember not the sins of my youth and my transgressions; 

    remember me according to your love

    and for the sake of your goodness, O LORD.

7 Gracious and upright is the LORD; 

     therefore he teaches sinners in his way.

8 He guides the humble in doing right 

    and teaches his way to the lowly.

9 All the paths of the LORD are love and faithfulness 

    to those who keep his covenant and his testimonies.

10 For your Name's sake, O LORD, 

    forgive my sin, for it is great.

11 Who are they who fear the LORD? 

    he will teach them the way that they should choose.

12 They shall dwell in prosperity, 

    and their offspring shall inherit the land.

Second Reading: 1 Thessalonians 3:9-13

9How can we thank God enough for you in return for all the joy that we feel before our God because of you? 10Night and day we pray most earnestly that we may see you face to face and restore whatever is lacking in your faith.

  11Now may our God and Father himself and our Lord Jesus direct our way to you. 12And may the Lord make you increase and abound in love for one another and for all, just as we abound in love for you. 13And may he so strengthen your hearts in holiness that you may be blameless before our God and Father at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all his saints.

Gospel: Luke 21:25-36

[Jesus said:] 25“There will be signs in the sun, the moon, and the stars, and on the earth distress among nations confused by the roaring of the sea and the waves. 26People will faint from fear and foreboding of what is coming upon the world, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken. 27Then they will see ‘the Son of Man coming in a cloud’ with power and great glory. 28Now when these things begin to take place, stand up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.”

  29Then he told them a parable: “Look at the fig tree and all the trees; 30as soon as they sprout leaves you can see for yourselves and know that summer is already near. 31So also, when you see these things taking place, you know that the kingdom of God is near. 32Truly I tell you, this generation will not pass away until all things have taken place. 33Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.

  34“Be on guard so that your hearts are not weighed down with dissipation and drunkenness and the worries of this life, and that day does not catch you unexpectedly, 35like a trap. For it will come upon all who live on the face of the whole earth. 36Be alert at all times, praying that you may have the strength to escape all these things that will take place, and to stand before the Son of Man.”

Luke 21 Greek Studies

Greek Study Luke 21:25-38

v 25 της γης "the earth" - "The whole world." εθνων (ος) gen. "nations" - [anguish] of nations, Gentiles, peoples - the word can describe geopolitical, language groupings or tribes, so "all the people will be in…" της συνοχη (η) "anguish" 

θαλασσης και σαλου gen. "[at the roaring] and tossing of the sea" - probably ablative denoting origin, the sound that comes from the sea an allusion to Psalm 46:3. 

  
v26 αποψυχοντων (αποψυχω) gen. pres. part. "will faint" – idiom: a Hapax legomenon, literally, to stop breathing from φοβου και προσδοκιας (α) "terror, [apprehensive of what is coming]" - Possibly a hendiadys (a single idea is being expressed in two words joined by και).

των ουρανων (ος) gen. "the heavenly bodies" - NIV understands "powers" as referring to the stars but in the Greek this word usually refers to earthly authorities, yet here cosmic bodies (planets, stars) seems more likely. For the ancients, the stars of the night sky were associated with heavenly powers and authorities which is why in the NRSV it is rendered. "The powers of the heavens.”

  σαλευθησονται (σαλευω) fut. pas. "will be shaken" 

v27 οψονται (οραω) fut. "they will see" του ανθρωπου (ος) gen. "[the Son] of Man" ερχομενον (ερχομαι) pres. part. "coming" πολλης adj. "[power and] great [glory]" - This description of the coming of the Son of Man is expanded in 9:26 where we are told "he comes in his glory and the glory of the Father and of the holy angels." Unlike Luke, who uses the genitive "of the holy angels" Mark uses the preposition "with". 

  
v28 αρχομενων (αρχων) pres. part. "when [these things] begin" a temporal clause.

γινεσθαι (γινομαι) pres. inf. "take place" 

ανακυψατε (ανακυπτω) aor. imp. "stand up" διοτι "because" υμων gen. pro. "your"  απολυτρωσις (ις εως) "redemption"- released by the payment of a price, therefore deliverance. If we take v35 literally, the "redemption" is from the persecution of the Jewish rebels by the Roman armies around 70. If, on the other hand, we regard that v25 and following is about the future return of Christ, then either we are looking at "deliverance" from the great tribulation, or "redemption" in eternal terms. εγγιζει (εγγιζω) pres. "is palpable" – within reach. 

  
v29 παραβολην (η) "this parable" - in the sense of illustration, rather than a riddle - this is a teaching not a kingdom parable. The "lesson" supports Jesus' teaching that the signs of the coming "desolation" will be easily understood, namely Jerusalem under siege. 

ιδετε (ειδον) aor. imp. "look at"  Mark has "learn from".

  
v30 βλεποντες (βλεπω) pres. part. "you can see" - with the adverb "already", untranslated, "as soon as you see."

v31 οταν + subj. "when you see" ταυτα "these things" – i.e. the events associated with the destruction of the temple, particularly the siege of Jerusalem.

γινομενα (γινομαι) pres. part. "happening" - 

εγγυς adv. "near" – spatially; literally “at hand, within reach”.

  
v32 η γενεα αυτη "this generation" – i.e. Jesus' contemporaries.

παντα "all these things" - "these things" is assumed, and properly so since Mark has "all these things", but we are again left wondering what makes up the "all". Presumably it is again the events associated with the destruction of the temple, but there are other possibilities, eg. the "dreadful commotions" "before the end of the age."

  
v34 προσεχετε (προσεχω) pres. imp. "be careful" - the present tense expressing the idea of a constant state of alertness.

βαρηθωσιν (βαρεω) aor. pas. subj. "will be burdened” a futuristic subjunctive. The sense is of our minds ("hearts") becoming insensitive, such that spiritual insight is dulled. μεριμναις (α) "the anxieties" - the worries of βιωτικαις adj. "of life"

αιφνιδιος adj. "suddenly" - Best in the sense of "unexpectedly".

v35 επεισελευσεται (επεισερχομαι) fut. "it will come [upon]" ους καθημενους (καθημαι) pres. part. "[all] those who live" 

  
v36 αγρυπνειτε (αγρυπνεω) pres. imp. "be [always] on the watch" - be alert, stay awake, be watchful, be vigilant. Along with the phrase "in every moment (always)" underlines the idea of "constant watchfulness", in the sense of a sentry on guard in a watchtower being always alert. 

δεομενοι (δεομαι) pres. pas. part. "praying" – participle is expressing manner, how a person should keep alert; or possibly expressing purpose, "stay awake in order to pray".

κατισχυσητε (κατισχυω) aor. subj. "you may be able [to escape]" - have strength [to pass through safely. 

τα μελλοντα γινεσθαι "that is about to happen" 

σταθηναι (ιστημι) aor. pas. inf. "[that you may be able] to stand" - aorist is ingressive, so the emphasis is on the beginning of the action, so "take a stand" a la Luther (Here I stand!)

εμπροσθεν "before/in front of" - often viewed as a negative image, i.e. like standing in the docket ready to be judged, but the image can also be a positive one denoting a believer's "successful negotiation of the trials.

The Night is Almost Over Now

“What I see around me would drive me insane, if I did not know that no matter what happens, God will have the last word.” — Elder Paisios of the Holy Mountain

I am, by my children’s evaluation an analog dad in a digital world. Actually, I still know as much as they do but I just happen to prefer to do thing a bit “analog.” Watches and writing implements are the dead giveaway here. I like old watch faces, two hands, circular faces, preferably without any other distracting dials. I live nowhere close to the ocean and I have no need to know the phases of the moon. I am also a lover of ink pens. Yes, the ones where, periodically, one has to find ones way to a little bottle of ink and replenish ones supply if one wants to keep on writing.

Analog watches and their modern day rival, the digital watch — which has not won the battle for supremacy by any stretch of the imagination — tell time differently. Maybe it is correct to say they mark and define time differently. I can “see” 8:19 on an analog watch even though it is only 8:18. On a digital watches face it is 8:18 right now until, suddenly, 8:19 “befalls” me and the rest of the world staring its digits. I can “see” the time between 8:19 and 8:45, the time I will leave the house this morning. On the digital watch that time span is a concept that is left to my head to interpret and understand. Using an analog watch, I will probably rise, mindful of “space” on the dial, at about 8:40 and get ready. Using the digital little set of numbers in the corner of my computer screen, I will probably notice at 8:43 that,  O my, I need to go! 

But more about ink pens: It seems somehow efficient that I can sit down at a keyboard and just type away. Convenience rules the day — unless there is a tech problem. The ink pen and its friend the piece of paper have different demands and those demands are not technical emergencies, they are a normal part of the interaction and process of writing. They are the interface between me and the sharing of the thoughts in my head. As I use them, I must always remain “deliberate.”  

The pen is also not disposable. The plastic writing stick in my satchel will quit writing one day and that day it will go to the landfill for which it has been destined by design. The fountain pen at my desk will get serviced and brought back to use — yes, I know how to do that. The plastic job is neat and tidy even without care on my part. The fountain pen wants a certain amount of caution be paid. 

Advent waits for the coming of the Kingdom of God in its fullest. Messiah, Jesus, will bring all things to resolution, to judgment — yes — and to redemption. There is an end in sight. That can be good news. That can be bad news. The end can be anticipated. The end can be dreaded. Its coming can be awaited faithfully. Its coming can be driven from consciousness. 

The realities we live in can be treated like a plastic ballpoint pen — disposable and dispensable and therefore of little meaning past the present. They can be tended like an ink pen — carefully and deliberately tended and valued.

Time can be treated as a surprise — a sudden moment that just shows up but has not been awaited. Time can be treated as the slow swing of the hands on the dial — a space anticipated to end in orderly fashion by orderly movement.

There is always the temptation to play off the world of hope against our world, to talk only of the “not yet” or only of the “here and now.” Redemption is always present and also coming as is judgement. (Bethel Declaration) Believers know that they are tending to both worlds at all times. They see the space between now and not yet as if on a watch-dial. They tend the things of life not as disposable but worthy of care though both, steward and creation are finite. 

In the words of the Bethel Declaration:

In view of God, all history is history of the end; for He is the end, that is, the cancellation of history. This is why every moment is a last moment for the believer and an incomprehensibly great gift of the patience of God who once more gives room for the decision.

In view of the world, every moment is at the same time end and beginning, result and cause, and therefore a call to shape the future anew. This is why every moment is a gift of the grace of God for the believer which orders the creatureliness, by which he is called to work and act.

Only where both are fully present – the total devotion to the historical moment and the total detachment from it – can the individual as well as the church speak and act rightly.

The end of history is not brought about by human effort, but is established by God in the return of Christ and in his judgment.

This was written into a time when the German government was held hostage to the apocalyptic utopian visions of a mad man while the church was all too happy to speak of the “here and now,” a phrase that actually occurs in the Ansbacher Consultation, the statement of German theologians welcoming the rise of history’s number one bad boy.

To live Christian is to live as a one traveling Advent. We “see”  time as a definite space before us that ends in God’s eternity. We are not surprised by its end, the fig tree will give its lesson. (Lk 21:31) We steward creation around us with deliberate care in the memory of the ever lessening space on the dial. We tend it in a state of calm, not being terrorized by the news around us because Faith tells us that at the end we raise our heads to see our salvation. (Lk 21:28) We steward it for the sake of the one who gives every atom, every electron of it and hopes to loose none of it. (Ro 8:19-20)

More important, Faith has no demands on the kingdom that will come. It will receive it as salvation allowing only God to give it shape. It will receive it as God’s doing, as yet unseen and unimagined here on earth but with its blueprint firmly established in the heart of the Holy Trinity. Faith longs for no less than a Kingdom all of God’s design. Its coming will not surprise us but its grace will because it will be the disclosure of the depth of love in the heart of the Almighty. 

For now, we pray that we for endurance to see all these things, not falling despair on the way there or surrendering the thirst for God to a sip of the world’s potions that only lead to dissipation and stupor, leaving us too blind to see the King. Our salvation is at hand.

The Texts for Sunday, November 22nd, 2015: Christ the King

First Reading: Daniel 7:9-10, 13-14

 9As I watched,

 thrones were set in place,

  and an Ancient One took his throne,

 his clothing was white as snow,

  and the hair of his head like pure wool;

 his throne was fiery flames,

  and its wheels were burning fire.

 10A stream of fire issued

  and flowed out from his presence.

 A thousand thousands served him,

  and ten thousand times ten thousand stood attending him.

 The court sat in judgment,

  and the books were opened.

13As I watched in the night visions, 

 I saw one like a human being

  coming with the clouds of heaven.

 And he came to the Ancient One

  and was presented before him.

 14To him was given dominion

  and glory and kingship,

 that all peoples, nations, and languages

  should serve him.

 His dominion is an everlasting dominion

  that shall not pass away,

 and his kingship is one

  that shall never be destroyed.

The Word of the Lord

Psalm: Psalm 93

1 The LORD is King;

he has put on splendid apparel; 

    the LORD has put on his apparel

    and girded himself with strength.

2 He has made the whole world so sure 

    that it cannot be moved;

3 Ever since the world began, your throne has been established; 

    you are from everlasting.

4 The waters have lifted up, O LORD,

the waters have lifted up their voice; 

    the waters have lifted up their pounding waves.

5 Mightier than the sound of many waters,

mightier than the breakers of the sea, 

    mightier is the LORD who dwells on high.

6 Your testimonies are very sure, 

    and holiness adorns your house, O LORD,

    for ever and for evermore.

Second Reading: Revelation 1:4b-8

4bGrace to you and peace from him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the seven spirits who are before his throne, 5and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. 

  To him who loves us and freed us from our sins by his blood, 6and made us to be a kingdom, priests serving his God and Father, to him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.

 7Look! He is coming with the clouds;

  every eye will see him,

 even those who pierced him;

  and on his account all the tribes of the earth will wail.

So it is to be. Amen.

  8“I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.

The Word of the Lord

Gospel: John 18:33-37

33Pilate entered the headquarters again, summoned Jesus, and asked him, “Are you the King of the Jews?” 34Jesus answered, “Do you ask this on your own, or did others tell you about me?” 35Pilate replied, “I am not a Jew, am I? Your own nation and the chief priests have handed you over to me. What have you done?” 36Jesus answered, “My kingdom is not from this world. If my kingdom were from this world, my followers would be fighting to keep me from being handed over to the Jews. But as it is, my kingdom is not from here.” 37Pilate asked him, “So you are a king?” Jesus answered, “You say that I am a king. For this I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to my voice.”