Ad - huh

There I am, drinking my coffee, reading a non-descript Bible…the kind that does not have gold along the edge…and a person from the neighborhood stops knowing exactly what I am reading. “You Christians must be really excited because of “Christ-mas.” Without much time to think, I pause, and then say, “Well we are, but it probably is a bit more than you think.” The conversation ensues and ultimately I get to this thing we call Advent, to which they say, “Ad-huh?” And there it is, me talking about the “coming of Jesus.” Not just as a baby, but the coming of Christ in Glory at the end-of-time. “You don’t really believe that stuff do you, Armageddon and all that?” Despite the apparent cold-water effect of my comments, the conversation ensues.

My friend is like most people I know, maybe most people in the world. Most of us wake up, born into an area of the world, into a culture, that holds a dominant story. Grow up in China, or Russia, or Qatar, or the United States and there is a dominant story—the way we all think the world, life, the universe is supposed to work. And while the dominant story across this globe is a bit different…most people go about their day with the goal of living their life as best as the can…moving towards something…all the while that dominant story is in the background…in the water…in the air we breathe.

To my conversational companion, his dominant story makes my intimations towards Jesus’ return sound like escapism. Why? Because two smaller stories, both from large meta-story of the Bible, have become a bit twisted.

The first twist has to do with Jesus. With all the pain and suffering in the world, there is a form of Christianity that sees Jesus’ return not merely in judgment, but that he is judging this world “all bad.” The story goes that Jesus will destroy this “bad world” and create a new “good world.” That is the “twist” and that is what leads some to think Christians are “escapists.” That is not what the Bible says. The Scriptures tell us that God created this good, this very good, material world. God’s Word goes on to trace humanity’s departure from the Divine direction with all the attendant consequences…noting along the way that God has not abandoned. Rather, God is reconciling the world to himself by His very coming into the world through Jesus Christ. The world is being restored…not destroyed…it is the ideas of a fundamentally good world being restored which gets us un-twisted.

The second twist has to do with humans. We take seriously God’s command to be stewards of the creation…to take care of it. We work to try and establish justice, to eradicate hunger, to deal with the woes and evils of the world. We have for five centuries (a blip in the timeline of our species) made tremendous gains in medicine and science. We are making progress. In the past, Christians would see God’s hand upon humanity, not only guiding the progress…but cautioning us to not misuse advances for evil. Today however we have outgrown God…we somehow see God as a hindrance to human progress. And so the twist takes place—we think we can (or are) making all the advances on our own…that with enough time we, the human race, can solve all our own problems. When a person holds this view of progress…and then meets me sipping my coffee and reading my Bible talking about the coming of Christ in glory…well the conclusion is that I am an not just an escapist, but rather a luddite as well, further reinforcing the idea that Jesus, the Bible, all of it, should be dismissed.

And if I am honest with myself I hold some of these views. I love science. I am amazed about the progress being made. I get excited when new breakthroughs take place. I get really excited when even I can understand them. It is easy at times, to be optimistic about human progress—and to get discouraged about that old and ancient institution called the Church. But then ISIS smacks me back to the cold reality I would rather escape from. Or I see human progress lead to pollution on such a scale that an entire river completely changes color. These instances and more make the movie genre of dystopia seem remarkably not that far off.

Which is why Advent (and not Ad-huh?) is an important time of year. Historically for Christians, the Church has used the four weeks before Christmas to help us “straighten-out the twists” in our thinking. To remind us of a few things. Advent is meant to:

1.     Remind us that history, this world, is not going round-and-round in a circle until we figure it all out. No, rather as we are being good caretakers of creation, as we are figuring out more about our material world, God has already given us all we need to know about the deep spiritual truths of both who we are…and what our destiny is.

2.     And our destiny points us towards something beyond our own worlds…in fact it has pointed us to “the end-of-time and the beginning-of-eternity.” I know this can sound like a bit of escapism, but suspend for a moment all the Hollywood spectacle, and just ask yourself, “Do you think that all of this is heading somewhere—is there a point?” This is a really important question for each of us, for you, to answer—Do you think that all of this, that YOU are heading somewhere?

3.     I believe I am. I believe that not because of some philosophical system of thought, but because I believe God came to earth in the form of Jesus…and that this Jesus was, and is, the Christ. The testimony from people—people like you and me—that Jesus walked the earth, died at hands of humans in a brutal way, but then rose from the dead and ascended into heaven—this testimony by people of the New Testament, brings into focus all of what God proclaimed through the nation of Israel. I know that is a big leap for many…but it is exactly what gives us, gives me, HOPE.

4.     And this HOPE comes not because “I” have figured it out. No, I have HOPE because the person of Jesus is real to me. Not in some sort of “gooey” feeling sense…but in my heart and mind…in my very soul. So the question then becomes, “Is the person, not the philosophy, but is the person of Jesus real for you?” And if not, “What might it take for him to be real?”

5.     Because I believe in him, I also believe in the end-of-time, but in a different way. I believe that at that moment in history God will come, yes judging, but also putting the world right, and all our striving will come to an end, and all the evil will be totally eradicated.

Next week I want to explore more this idea of God coming and putting the world finally and totally in the right, but for today I want to go back. I want to go back to that coffee shop conversation. I want to invite you to think about your own ideas of time and telos…are you going round-and-round in a world whose meaning is only about you and our short time on earth? Or are you headed somewhere…someplace where your lifespan is more than a breath?

Let’s pray: Almighty God, give us grace to see that you have created us for eternity. We thank you that your Son Jesus Christ came to earth, that he humbled himself for us, for me. I pray you enlighten our hearts and minds to know Him. Give us power to un-twist our story and give us strength, to live right, to cast away the works of darkness, and put on the armor of light. Finally Lord, help us be people of HOPE for the exact reason that we are destined by you to life immortal; I pray this through Him, the One upon who we wait, the One who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.