Advent: The already and the not yet

Advent: The Already and Not Yet

Things are getting ready. In fact, they have been getting ready for a while now. The day after Halloween the wreaths went up on the street lights downtown. And now, every local shop is decked out in glitter, glitz, tinsel, and lights. And for good reason, Christmas is coming!

               But it’s not here yet.

               And if you have decorated your house with garland and lights, put up a tree, and hung ornaments, there is a good chance that some of the ornaments or keepsakes that you have sitting out for Christmas you have had for years. Maybe even decades. And those ornaments bring back memories of past holidays. Of course you aren’t reliving the past, but you are remembering the past. And for good reason.

               But the past has already happened.

               And that is Advent.  These four weeks leading up to Christmas are called Advent from an old Latin word (I guess all Latin words a kind of old though) which meant “arrival”. So during Advent we are remembering the “arrival”, or “advent” of the Messiah. We look back to when Jesus was born in Bethlehem and we read the prophecies from Isaiah and the Psalms.

               But this has already happened.

               And that is Advent. These four weeks leading up to Christmas are also a time to look forward to when Jesus comes (arrives) again. One day He will do that. Here’s what Jesus said about himself; “then will appear the sign of the Son of Man in heaven. And then all the peoples of the earth will mourn when they see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven, with power and glory. And he will then send his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, and from one end of the heavens to the other…But about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.” (Matthew 24:30-31, 36)

               Advent is about the first “arrival” of Christ, as well as being about the second “arrival” of Christ. Advent is about the past, but also about the future. But Advent is also about the present. It’s in the present, in there right and right now, that we can look back and look forward. It’s today that we can both remember and anticipate.

               That’s a good Advent word too: Anticipate. It means to wait for something to happen expecting that it will happen, and to be ready.

               I know that part of Advent is waiting for Christmas Day to get here. But that’s not really what it has to be all about. Yes, Christmas Day is an exciting day that we have set aside in our calendars to remember the day that Perfect Love came down from heaven and donned flesh and bones to live as a man and die as a man for us, all of us. But Advent is about being ready. Advent is about anticipating something. Advent is about knowing that what you are waiting for will one day happen, even though you don’t know exactly when that will be.

               Advent is about the already and the not yet.

               So during this Advent, this in between time, what are you anticipating? What are you getting for? How are you getting ready?

               Take some time this week to read John 1:1-18 and Luke chapters 1 and 2. Both of these accounts are about Jesus’ First Advent. Then read Matthew 24-26. All three of these chapters are about Jesus’ Second Advent.

               And enjoy this Advent season. Don’t get so caught up in the rush to Dec 25 that you miss everything else going on. Go to church. Sing Christmas carols. Decorate a tree. Kiss someone under the mistletoe. Light a candle. Relax and think about the fact that Jesus came the first time was all because of His love for you. And when He comes a second time, it will be to bring us all home.

               Happy Advent!