Advent 1
Dear friends in Christ. Today we begin a brand new Church Year in which we will once again hear the events of Jesus’ life for us and for our salvation. We will again hear the main teachings of the Holy Scripture. What glorious things now await us in the new Church Year that lies all fresh and new in front of us! What blessings to our faith and soul await us as we weekly come into our Lord’s house to hear His word and to receive the gifts that He wants to give us here: the forgiveness of sins and strengthening of our faith!
This is a new Church Year. And what does the new year remind us of—be it in the Church or the secular calendar? Certainly one thing it reminds us of is the passage of time. Although each Church Year begins with Advent and each year of the secular calendar begins with January and there is a cycle until we come to the beginning of the next year, each new year for us means we are another year older as time marches on. And marches on toward what? We know that there is not just one unending cycle after another, infinitely; instead, we know that all human history is marching toward a goal—the Last Day, the day that Jesus will return in glory to judge the living and the dead, the day of resurrection of the dead, the day when the Christian will finally be with his/her Lord in heaven in both soul and body. Although we don’t know when that day will be, we know that it is coming.
And because it is coming our years and days, now, have significance. They are not pointless. Instead what we do now determines our eternal destiny come that Last Day—the day of resurrection and judgment. Are we treasuring that gift of faith that the Lord created in our hearts? Are we in Church where we hear Jesus’ holy word and receive His body and blood? Are by faith receiving the forgiveness of our sins? Are we working with the Holy Spirit and fighting against sin? Are we living lives of love of God and neighbor? Or, are we thoughtlessly going through life, paying attention neither to our soul nor to faith? If so, especially give heed today to—and let all of us hear—Advent’s message: a message of salvation and joy; and a message of repentance and renewal. As St. Paul says in our text of us Christians: you know the time.
1. The message of Advent is, first of all, a message of salvation and joy. What does St. Paul say in our text? For salvation is nearer to us now. That’s what the new year proclaims: we are one step closer to the day of Jesus’ return, our final salvation, the time when we will finally be rid of sin in our bodies and no longer be tormented by the devil and his allies, the time when we will no longer suffer the effects of sin—in short, the time that we will be soul and body in heaven. The Church Year that just passed and the Church Year we are beginning today reminds us that, yes, Jesus still hasn’t returned yet—but what? The day of His return is nearer to us now. The only thing that we are waiting for is Jesus’ return—and why? All the rest of the work for our salvation Jesus has already come and done. Advent is the season preparing us for the celebration of Jesus’ birth—when the true God became also true man, placing Himself under God’s holy law to keep it for us and to suffer and die in our place for our sin/disobedience/ rebellion against God’s holy Law. And because Jesus reconciled us sinners to the holy God by His holy life and His innocent suffering and death, and because Jesus’ resurrection announced to the whole world God’s forgiveness and peace, the Last Days have already begun with Jesus’ death and resurrection. Nothing more needs to be done; we only await Jesus’ coming on the Last Day. For salvation is nearer to us now.
That’s Advent’s message of salvation! Our Savior has come and brought about the salvation of the world. And what is so wonderful for us is what we heard in today’s Gospel reading as Jesus entered Jerusalem in fulfillment of that prophecy: “Behold, your King is coming to you.” Certainly it was true in a wonderful and perfect way on that first Palm Sunday as Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey to suffer and die. But Advent’s message is still today, “Behold, your King is coming to you.” He still comes to each of us, His dear Christians, in His holy word and sacrament to strengthen our faith and give us His gifts and graces. Although Jesus will come in all His glory on the Last Day, He still comes just as He had in all other past Church Years to us today in all lowliness and humility in His holy word and sacrament.
Each one of us Christians can say, “Jesus has come to me!” because the very fact that we are Christians means that Jesus has come to us in His holy word and sacrament. Now that He has come to us—not only to bring about for us salvation but to each one of us personally, His dear Christians—we, with joy, await the time when He will come again—this time in His full glory to bring His dear Christians, both soul and body, home to Him in heaven. That’s what St. Paul means here as he says in our text: For salvation is nearer to us now than when we first believed. Our final salvation, when we will be with Jesus in heaven, is nearer now than it was when we first were brought to faith/ converted. But all that time in between the moment of our conversion to the time of our death or the day of Jesus’ return, whichever is first, is a time of grace for us in which Jesus continues to come to us to give us His salvation, gifts and blessings. Advent’s message is one of salvation—Jesus came and brought us forgiveness of sin and eternal life—and that’s why it is one of joy. What a glorious message to hear again at the beginning of the new Church Year: salvation is nearer to us now than when we first believed.
Now, during our earthly lives, a time of grace, we are, in Jesus, certain of a glorious heavenly future, and so live lives of hope. By hope we don’t mean something that is uncertain or unsure, like “I hope this or that.” Instead Christian hope is something certain. It is faith at work. Our hope—our certain hope—is reliance on Jesus and His work and promise. As we face various sufferings and trials in life and the devil tries to get us to think that God is our enemy, we have that firm/certain hope that Jesus reconciled me, the sinner, to God who is working all things for my spiritual and eternal good. As we feel our sins and how greatly we have sinned against the holy will of God and that by our sins we earn/ deserve nothing but God’s wrath, as the devil tries to make us despair of this and so turn away from faith, we, in the certain hope of faith, are assured that in spite of the mountains of sins we are guilty of committing, God, for Jesus’ sake, forgives us our sin and has opened heaven to us; that we are still the children of God—hidden as it may be under trial, affliction and sin. But Advent’s message? Jesus still comes to us giving us forgiveness, giving us that perfect reconciliation with God and that in Him heaven is certain and sure for us! For salvation is nearer to us now than when we first believed.
Not only that, but the Blessed Apostle continues: the night is far gone; the day is at handBecause Jesus is coming again in glory, because as the beginning of the new year reminds us that human history is marching toward a goal—Judgment Day and eternity in heaven for the Christian both soul and body, we Christians do not despair as we see all the evil around us and in us seemingly triumphing. Instead we rejoice because Jesus is coming. The night of this life, this period ruled by sin and death, is far gone, almost over. The day, Judgment Day, the day of our final deliverance is at hand, right around the corner. Now it looks like sin and evil run the show. Now it looks like faith and trust in the Lord amount to nothing. Now it looks like denying self/ not listening to our old sin nature and striving to do the Lord’s will is futile. But instead of “throwing in the towel” we know the time, that the night is far gone; the day is at hand. Jesus’ coming to us now in word and sacrament enlightens, directs and empowers us to live for/ live our lives in light of His Second Coming on the Last Day.
2. As Advent—the beginning of the new Church Year—reminds us of the progression of time and teaches us to ponder what time it is, that we are living in the shortening time before Jesus’ return, we also hear Advent’s message of repentance and renewal. We hear the Blessed Apostle: Besides this you know the time, that the hour has come for you to wake from sleep. For salvation is nearer to us now than when we first believed. The night is far gone; the day is at hand. So then let us cast off the works of darkness and put on the armor of light. Indeed, the night is far gone, but it is still night. So it is vital that we hear Advent’s message of repentance and renewal so that we recognize who we are as Christians—we are still sinners; we still have our old sinful nature; and where we live—in a sinful world continually tempted by the devil and his minions.
So what is Paul’s Advent preaching to us Christians? Besides this you know the time, that the hour has come for you to wake from sleep. We always, not just in Advent, need to hear the call from our Lord to wake up. That’s what He does in His holy Law: He gives us a wakeup call from a life of sin. As Christians, with our old sinful nature living in a sinful world, we can all too easily become lax in regard to our life of faith and good works. Because we hear the message of forgiveness and salvation, the devil easily gets us to think that sin is no big deal, that “Jesus will forgive that one too,” so what’s the big deal?—just go on sinning. We need to hear that our sins are a big deal; and Advent with its reminder/ teaching that Jesus is coming again in Judgment is a call to us to recognize the seriousness of our sin. Advent’s call is a call out of the sleep of sin. It is also a call to take our faith and our sin seriously. After all, the basis of the judgment is on whether we have faith/ trust in Jesus as our Savior from sin, death, devil and hell. That faith in Jesus receives His forgiveness and His holiness so that in the judgment God does not see all of our sin and wretchedness and so shut heaven to us, but sees, instead, the perfect holiness of Jesus and so welcomes us into heaven. But where there is not that faith in Jesus, there is only sin that condemns and in the judgment the jaws of hell open to receive the sinner to suffer eternally in both body and hell.
So then let us cast off the works of darkness and put on the armor of light. Let us walk properly as in the daytime, not in orgies and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and sensuality, not in quarreling and jealousy. Let us never think that we are above these sins. Instead, let us especially now heed Advent’s call and wake up—examine our hearts and lives for sin and by the power of the Holy Spirit strive to root out that sin and, knowing the time is short, that Jesus’ return is at hand, live a life of repentance and faith—crowned by good works. But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires. Dear Christian, Jesus came that first time to rescue us from a life of slavery to sin and the devil and an eternity in hell. He has come and continues to come to us in His holy word and sacraments and has made us a new creation and by that faith He created in us He gives us the wisdom to know the time, that the hour has come for you to wake from sleep, and the power and strength to live a godly life, serving Him in holiness and righteousness.
Jesus has come to us and now through faith we are alive and awake, eager to exercise the fruits of faith, extinguishing sinful desires and increasing in every good work. What a glorious message of Advent—one of salvation and joy and also of repentance and renewal. What a glorious summary of the Christian faith in which we live eagerly awaiting Jesus’ return. INJ Amen.