1st Advent
Luke 21:25-36
And there will be signs in sun and moon and stars;
and upon the earth, the nations will be constricted with anxiety and doubt with
the advent of these spiritual revelations, as before a roaring sea and waves.
And men will lose their inner strength of soul out of fear and foreboding of
what is coming over the living earth: for the dynamic powers of heaven will be
shaken. And then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud, in the sphere
of life, with dynamic power and great radiant glory.
And when these things begin to
happen, stand upright and lift up [raise] your soul to the spirit, for your
deliverance draws near.
And he gave them a comparison, saying, ‘Observe
[behold] the fig tree and all the trees when they burst into leaf. Seeing this,
you know yourselves that summer is near. So also when you see these things
happening, you know that the kingdom of God is near.
Amen, the truth I say to you: this present age of
Man’s being shall not pass away until all has happened.
Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will
never pass away.
Guard yourselves lest the perceptive power of your
hearts be smothered by excess of food and drink and by over-concern with the
cares and worries of life, and the light of these spirit events break upon you
suddenly like a snare…for it will come upon all who dwell upon the face of the
whole earth. So be awake in the spirit at all times, praying, so that you may
have the strength to live through all these things that are about to take
place, and to stand before the Son of Man.
1st Advent
Luke 21: 25 – 36
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| He Qi |
Novice sailors need some time to learn to remain upright
with the pitch and roll of the boat. For the great sea, the mother of all life,
is only sometimes a calm, smooth place. Unlike solid ground, she is in constant
movement.
There is the well-known incident in Matthew’s gospel
(Matthew 8: 23 -27) Jesus
and his disciples have mounted a boat. It is the end of a long day, and Jesus
falls asleep. A sudden squall erupts and the waves start to swamp the boat. His
disciples wake Him—“ Lord, save us! We are going to drown!” Jesus notes the
smallness of their trust, and calms the wind and the waves. Their fear gives
way to amazement.
Times of great change such as ours require us to become
sailors on life’s high seas. It is clear that fear and foreboding are of no
help. We need to find an inner center, a core of uprightness and calm. This
inner stabilizer is the Christ in us. When life becomes unsettled, begins
furiously to change, He is our calm center, the core of our uprightness
Today’s gospel reading talks about life’s heavy weather. The
poet says:
I can't talk about God and make any
sense,
And I can't not talk about God and
make any sense.
So we talk about the weather, and
we are talking about God.
Pause with us here a while.
Put your ear to the wall of your
heart.
Listen for the whisper of knowing
there.
Love will touch you if you are very
still. [1]
