KEEP WATCH!BE READY!1st Sunday of Advent

27th November 2016

Today…What is the season we are living in?

Advent is a season observed in many Western Christian churches as a time of expectant waiting and preparation for the celebration of the Nativity of Jesus at Christmas. The term is a version of the Latin word meaning "coming".Latin adventus is the translation of the Greek word parousia, commonly used to refer to the Second Coming of Christ. For Christians, the season of Advent anticipates the coming of Christ from two different perspectives. The season offers the opportunity to share in the ancient longing for the coming of the Messiah, and to be alert for his Second Coming.

Today…What are our current concerns?

The Bible in one hand the papers in the other?

BALANCE?

Matthew 24:36-4424:36 "But about that day and hour no one knows, neither the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.

24:37 For as the days of Noah were, so will be the coming of the Son of Man.

24:38 For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day Noah entered the ark,

24:39 and they knew nothing until the flood came and swept them all away, so too will be the coming of the Son of Man.

24:40 Then two will be in the field; one will be taken and one will be left.

24:41 Two women will be grinding meal together; one will be taken and one will be left.

24:42 Keep awake therefore, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming.

24:43 But understand this: if the owner of the house had known in what part of the night the thief was coming, he would have stayed awake and would not have let his house be broken into.

24:44 Therefore you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an unexpected hour.

Quick contemplation…The CERTAINTY: The Son of God is Coming!

The UN-CERTAINTY: Not knowing the when and how!

"no one knows, not even the Son" (36); "they knew nothing" (39);

"you do not know" (42); if the owner had known" (43);

and "at an unexpected hour" (44).

The problem? (#1)We are numbed by the "same-old, same-old."

"Well here we go again; so what's new?" "Has anything really changed?" we ask.

The problem for us is the sameness, the routine of it all - whether good or bad.

The problem? (#2)The danger is then that not knowing turns either into not believing and despair or

into wild speculation and fears.

What can we do? (#1) Be AWAKE!

What can we do? (#2) Be AWARE!

a servant who takes faithful care of the master's household (24:45-51);

ten maidens, five of whom keep their lamps trimmed (25:1-13);

stewards who care responsibly for what is entrusted to them (25:14-30); or

ones who "not-knowing" still go about unconsciously caring for those in need (25:31-46)

What can we do? (#2) Be AWARE!a servant who takes faithful care of the master's household (24:45-51);

ten maidens, five of whom keep their lamps trimmed (25:1-13);

stewards who care responsibly for what is entrusted to them (25:14-30); or

ones who "not-knowing" still go about unconsciously caring for those in need (25:31-46)

What can we do? (#3) Be ALERT!

The Son of Man is coming and you must be ready.

Embody once again the excitement, the expectation, the surety of God's promise to be near us as we live in faithful discipleship while waiting the coming of Christ our Lord.

We need to see the mystery and the promise of the

extraordinary presence of God in the ordinary routines

of life, or even in those disastrous events that make God's presence so difficult to

envision.