Isaiah 64:1-9; Ps. 80; I Cor. 1: 3-9; Mark 13: 24-37
Lord Jesus, come into our world and heal its wounds
Come into our homes and make them holy;
Come into our work and make it fruitful;
Come into your church and save it from falling;
Come into our minds and keep them clear;
Come into our lives and make them good;
Come quickly, Lord Jesus. Amen That is a Prayer for Advent written by Theodore Parker Ferris, rector of this parish for thirty years, 1942-1972. And it is Advent ... beginning today and for the next four weeks the Church will worship with special emphasis on expectation and preparation; special emphasis on longing and on surprise. "Long lay the world in sin and error pining," is the line from the Christmas hymn, "Oh Holy Night." The reading from Isaiah speaks to us of that world and its longing. Probably written a little more than 500 years before the birth of Jesus, just after the return from exile in Babylon, it is redolent of longing and of hope ... and of despair. Longing and hope that God will, like the potter, re-shape and re-form God's people into a people saved from themselves. And despair over their self-selected separation from God, their worship of any god other than the God of Israel. The prophet cries out to God to act and cries out to the people to be ready for God to act. And God did. In God's good time. One holy day he claimed the life of a young woman, who one holy night gave birth to Jesus. God acted. And I am certain the people of Isaiah's generation would have been astonished at the way in which God acted. . For generations they had expected and longed for a royal conqueror Messiah. They did not expect the divine potter to re-shape and reform through a young woman and her child. In Matthew's Gospel the very first words we read, before we get to the story of the birth of this Messiah, are a geneology of Jesus. It begins with Abraham, the patriarch to whom God promised descendants as numerous as the stars in the heavens, who would be blessed and be a blessing. It comes through David, the greatest King of Israel, and his royal line - in all 48 generations of a lineage. But here and there are names that surprise us: Tamar, who tricked her father-in-law into giving her a child by disguising herself as a prostitute. And Rahab, the prostitute who sheltered and hid the two men that Joshua sent in to Jericho as spies. Some people, and I am one of them, think Matthew probably wants to make the point that that God will work through any one God chooses, often times through some who would not be thought of as likely candidates. Yes, God accomplishes divine purpose in surprising ways through surprising people. Count on it. +++ We all know the story of the child of Bethlehem. One of the things we do in Advent is ready ourselves for the re-telling of what happened for us that holy night. Ready ourselves to receive the gift of the child once more and with thankful hearts. The other thing we do in Advent is prepare for his second coming. And today's Gospel reading from Mark addresses that time. The child of Bethlehem has grown into the man who is nearing the very end of his life and his earthly ministry. Soon he will suffer and die and be raised up by God on the third day. Now, he tells his friends of a time in the future, only God knows when, when certain signs will be clues to the second coming. "Therefore, keep awake," Mark has Jesus say to his friends. And then: "What I say to you, I say to all: Keep awake." That is the call to us in Advent. Keep awake. Though we may prefer simply to prepare to celebrate Jesus, we are called to expect, prepare for and yes, long for that second coming. We know the story of the holy night as it has been told for thousands of years and of what came after it. But we do not yet see or know what the story will be of the second coming. We have to trust on the basis of what we do know that it will be wonderful because it will be the fulfillment of God's purpose and desire for God's world. It will be wonderful, and it will be surprising, just as surprising a way for God to act as was the incarnation. We might even miss the signs of it if we aren't preparing ourselves, expecting it to happen, indeed longing for the divine potter to finish the work of reshaping and reforming. +++ "And what I say to you, I say to everyone: Keep awake." The Chronicles of Narnia, C.S. Lewis' beloved classic, has been made into a film, not an animated production, but a film. It will debut soon, I believe. We are in fact going to have a couple of forums on Narnia in the new year. In preparation for seeing the film, I have been enjoying a reunion with the Chronicles of Narnia on cd as I commute. Read by the likes of Vanessa Redgrave and Michael York and other distinguished British actors, they make delightful listening that has sent me straight to the books to re-read favorite passages. If you too have read the series you may remember that the youngest Pevensie child is Lucy, and it is Lucy who has more encounters with Aslan than any of the other characters in the series. [Aslan is the magnificent golden lion, who, in the very first book, "The Magician's Nephew," is present and active at the Creation of the world of Narnia and who dies on the stone table at the hands of the white witch and is raised to new life and who guards and guides the creatures of Narnia and the children from afar, as well as in actual encounters.] It is Lucy, as I say, who has more encounters with Aslan than do the other children. This is because Lucy is always looking for Aslan. Lucy often speaks to Aslan, even when she cannot see him. And Lucy listens for Aslan. On one occasion her brother, Edmund, who hasn't been looking for or watching for or listening for Aslan declares that he wishes Aslan would come and rescue them. Lucy responds that he is here, right here with them. Edmund concentrates then on being able to see Aslan. After a time, he spies a shadow, accompanying them. Lucy explains that it is Aslan's shadow. Edmund tries very hard to focus and slowly, slowly the great golden figure of Aslan takes shape and form before his eyes. He is looking for him ... finally he is looking for Aslan, longing to see him. Expecting to see him, rather than playing the sceptic when Lucy sights him. Aslan is a surprising and beautiful sight. He is never there long enough for the children. They always want more of him. They always long for the next sighting. Lucy is the one who seems to know that she will see him again. Even when she grows too old to come back to Narnia. She will recognize him when he appears in her own world in whatever form he takes - in our world, yours and mine. Advent calls all of us to be Lucys. Advent calls out the Lucy in each of us. Keep awake. Look for the signs of Christ's coming even as we prepare to remember his first coming into the world. My guess is that if we concentrate on expecting him, prepare ourselves for sightings of him, give ourselves up to our longing for him, he will show himself. There will be foretastes, such as the tender new leaves on the fig tree, harbingers of the time when he comes again in glory. The same Theodore Parker Ferris was entertaining some seminarians one winter afternoon. The story goes that he called them to the windows in what is now the livingroom of the rectory, the two windows on either side of the fireplace. And said to them, "Gentlemen, there is my garden." Well, of course, all they could see was bare bushes and cold, bare soil. And they hardly knew what response was expected of them. After a rather uncomfortable pause, Dr. Ferris continued that he knew with absolute certainty that beneath the cold, bare soil new life was in the making. In the spring his garden would come alive with buds and tender shoots and new leaves, and in summer it would be lush with bloom and blossom. Under the soil, even in winter that garden was actually awake, active, waiting, preparing for the new life of Spring. That is a story for Advent, if I ever heard one. And that is the way of our God; our God who is always on the way to us. So let us keep awake. And watch. And expect. And prepare. And long for the day of the Lord. Lord Jesus, come into our world and heal its wounds;
Come into our homes and make them holy;
Come into our work and make it fruitful;
Come into your church and save it from falling;
Come into our minds and keep them clear;
Come into our lives and make them good;
Come quickly, Lord Jesus. Amen. A Prayer by Theodore Parker Ferris
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