First Advent

Isaiah laments that God has hidden, and because the great miracles of old are no longer seen, the people sin. Even then it had been a long time since God had drowned a whole army for the chosen people. It’s been even longer now. And as tempting as it is to hope for God to smite our enemies, God doesn’t do that kind of thing anymore.

The psalmist laments that those who worship God look like fools because God’s face is not known; pleading for the shine of God’s face. This God did, but in a way that looked even more foolish to their scornful enemies. For the incarnation came humble and vulnerable and the Glory God revealed was the Glory of the crucifixion.

Paul says that the Corinthians wait for the revealing of our Lord Jesus Christ. Perhaps, they, as many Christians do today, await the end times expecting some grand miracle, as unmistakable as drowning Pharaoh’s army; a grand gesture that will prove our faith to the scornful. 

Our Gospel tonight is in answer to Peter, Andrew, James and John, who asked Jesus in private when the end times will come. Jesus’ answer is far less clear than we, or perhaps even they would have liked. Jesus unmistakably refers to the destruction of the Temple. He seems to indicate that the Son of Man will gather the elite soon afterwards. However He then admits even He doesn’t know when this will happen.

What is clear here and elsewhere in the Gospels, is that His followers are expected to live as if He is returning at all times. And this is not just for Peter, Andrew, John and James. What I say to you, I say to all: “Keep Awake!” Like many things Jesus says, there’s a both/and aspect to this. The Kingdom is to come, yet it is already here. Jesus does reveal himself again and again to many in visions or epiphanies, and to all of us every time we celebrate the Eucharist. Yet if we are not alert, we can miss his revelation.

As for the coming tribulation and the fear that Peter, Andrew, John & James betrayed in wanting to know when it is. I’d like us to recall that in Larry’s sermon a few weeks back, he reminded us of Paul’s conviction that we are buried with Jesus by baptism into death. That death has come and gone for us, we are as already dead, and we walk in the newness of life with the risen Christ. That to live a Christian life is to live a life as if you were already dead.

What this reminded me of was a true story of a Buddhist nun who went up a mountain to live in a cave until she achieved enlightenment. When she started her descent, indicating that she had achieved enlightenment, a crowd gathered to ask her questions. One asked, “Do you still have a personality?” “Yes,” she said, “I do. I just don’t believe in it anymore.”

To live as if you’re already dead is not to end our daily chores and routines. We’ll still make dinner and pay bills. What we’re getting at here is a Christian detachment. We’ll be exploring this more as we journey through the coming Church seasons. For now, I’d like to mention that even the most enlightened person sometimes falls into believing their personality. That as we go through our daily live and tasks, it will be easy for us to forget we’re already dead. And we can miss Christ’s continuing self-revelation. And so we need to keep awake.

In Mark’s Gospel these are Jesus’ last words of instruction. The rest is narration of the passion ending in the empty tomb. Mark (before the additional ending added later) ends with the women running from the tomb too afraid to say anything. Mark never describes the resurrected Jesus. And so Jesus’ last instruction to all according to Mark is: “keep Awake.”

Advent is a both/and season. We await entering into the sacred time of the incarnation and we await the revealing of our Lord Jesus Christ. Like the inner circle of the twelve it is so tempting to want specifics from Jesus. Like the chosen of old, we want a big show. Vigilance is tiring. Yet God has proven to be subtle. God tends to reveal in the unexpected. Christ tells us to look for him in the lowly, the suffering – even in our own suffering. As we enter this advent season, we, like Marks’ community, stand at the empty tomb, and remember Jesus’ voice saying, “Keep Awake.”