CELEBRATE ADVENT: HOPE

Sermon Notes, December 1, 2013

Pastor Jan Sinozich

The first Sunday of Advent celebrates HOPE.  We are preparing, getting ready, for the coming of the Christ.  Advent means “coming,” and Christmas celebrates the first coming of Jesus. (Isaiah 7:14, Matthew 1:23)  We are living the intermediate coming when we allow Him to come into our hearts individually, redeeming us from our sins; He is our comfort and our rest as we follow Him. (Matthew 22:37-40)  We look forward to His last coming, when we shall reign with Him, whether that last coming is our physical death and transition to Heaven, or whether we will see Him split the skies and return much as He left. (Matthew 24)

Advent is a means of grace in which we participate.  Thomas Merton put it this way: “Advent is the ‘sacrament’ of the presence of God in His world, in the Mystery of Christ at work in History.  This mystery is the revelation of God Himself in His Incarnate Son.  But it is not merely a manifestation of the Divine; it is the CONCRETE plan of GOD for the salvation of people and the restoration of the whole world in Christ.”

A sacrament received is an outward sign of an inward grace.  A sacrament also becomes a means of grace as we participate in the practice.  We participate by loving God and loving others.  We love our neighbors as ourselves and proclaim the Good News as the Kingdom of God.  We care for ‘the least of these’ and testify to the reality of God’s reign in our lives.  We show God’s mercy to all people.

Mercy is an expression of God’s love for all His people and His creation.  Wesley emphasized the acts of mercy not to degrade works of piety, but to point out that love of God and love of neighbor are at the center of what our faith is about.  Acts of mercy reveal our true motivation as Christians.  What better time to show mercy than in the Advent season?  Pray that God will open your eyes to ways to help people, and then act as God's Spirit leads.