ADVENT:
CHRISTIANS’ EMPATHY WITH ISRAEL IN EXPECTATION AND WAITING
The few weeks
prior to Christmas are often spent celebrating the birth of Christ. The birth
of Christ is vital to remember and right to celebrate. Nonetheless, the Advent,
e.g. his second and first comings, are often neglected. I often lament the
neglect of Advent during the month of December. More than a personal matter, I
believe it is a matter of remembering and living within the reality of the life
of Christ and the story of God and his people. Why then should Christians
observe Advent, which is certainly not synonymous with Christmas? I should
suggest that an overarching reason for observance of Advent is Christians’
empathy with Israel in expectation and waiting. The church is surely able to
relate to Israel because we too are in waiting and possess eager expectation,
not of his first coming but his second. In fact, Advent focuses more on
Christ’s second coming than his first. Certainly, we should remember the
expectation of Israel awaiting the Messiah; yet, we too await the second coming
of Messiah, which is a certainty. The heart of Advent then is not only expecting
but also waiting. As Israel long awaited and expected the coming of Jesus, we
too await and expect him to return as well as other aspects of Christ’s work
and character which are crucial. I would like to submit three primary
imperatives for which we wait and expect.
We Wait for and Expect Christ’s Return
We
first wait for and expect Christ’s return. Jesus assures his people that he
will one day return for them to be with them forever (John 14:3). We, his
people, should take comfort in the fact that he is coming. We now wait with
eager expectation. Our waiting, however, should not be confused with
hopelessness, i.e. it is wrong to lie down and give up our call and commitment
to Christ on earth because we are aware that this world is temporary. Rather, we
should not waste our time here and proclaim the greatness of our God so that
all may know and see his splendor; doing so then allows others to realize that
there is more. With so much evil and destruction in our world, it might be
tempting to see our lives here as pointless; God, however, has placed each of
us here with a purpose. Therefore, waiting does not mean stagnant living;
instead, it means living with a purpose because of the realization that
something more is coming. To be wait well, we must expect well, i.e. living
life with purpose (waiting well) is rooted in our hope and belief that we
belong to God and will be received unto him upon the return of Jesus Christ.
Thus, we wait for and expect Christ’s return, which is the hope and heart of
Advent.
We Wait for and Expect the Holy Spirit’s Work Now
We
not only wait for and expect the return of Christ, but we also wait for and
expect the Holy Spirit’s present work. The Holy Spirit exists eternally but was
not offered freely to all of God’s people until the day of Pentecost. Now he
indwells God’s people. Jesus promised a helper and comforter after his
ascension, namely the Holy Spirit (John 15:26). Our waiting then is not
employed on our own, for we have the help, strength, and power of God himself. Thus,
we should expect the Holy Spirit’s work in our lives and in our world. If we
believe God is presently at work among us, why do we fear, why do we worry, and
why do we live without his hope? The Holy Spirit’s work is not a future event;
it is rather now and always. Praise God for his literal presence in our lives.
With Jesus’ promise and the assurance of God, we relate to Israel because we
expect his present work, not only his future work. Israel expected God to work
in their midst; we do the same, as we wait for and expect the work of the Holy
Spirit in our daily lives.
We Wait for and Expect God’s Justice
Finally,
we wait for and expect God’s justice. We live in an unjust world. Let us take
comfort, however, in the fact that this world is temporary. There is no
contradiction between living life with purpose and realizing that this unjust
world is only temporary, for we have been placed in an unjust world with the
purpose of declaring God’s justice among all peoples. Even in this unjust world,
God’s justice is executed. Furthermore, a day is coming when God will wipe away
every tear and will destroy injustice for eternity. Till then, we live as
extensions of God’s justice, righteousness, and indeed his mercy. God’s
complete and total justice over all injustice is certainly coming. We must live
with this hope and assurance. Israel long awaited Messiah to make right the
injustices of the world; yet, they missed him, although Jesus Christ did
exactly that with his death, burial, and resurrection, and one day he will
return to finalize his ever-prevailing plans. This should cause joy in our
hearts. Like Israel, we too wait for and expect the certain justice of God to
reign over injustice.
Something Better Is Coming
We
live and rest in the assurance that something better is coming. Perseverance of
the saints is a centuries old concept for good reason; how discouraging and
pointless if this life and this world is all there is. While we are given a
call and a purpose in this unjust world, God’s justice and judgment are coming.
Till then, however, God the Spirit comforts and helps us, as we await the
second coming of Jesus Christ. Let us rejoice in God’s present work in our
lives and live with eager anticipation of our Lord and Savior, as did Israel.
Advent is a glorious time of waiting and expecting so let us then live people
who wait well and who expect well.
