Prayer for Advent

Prayer for Advent.  I Thessalonians 3:9-13

 

    The Apostle prays for the Christians at Thessalonica “ Now God Himself and our Father,  and our Lord Jesus Christ, direct our way unto you.  And the Lord make you to increase and abound in love one toward another, and toward all men, even as we do toward you: to the end he may stablish your hearts unblameable in holiness before God, even our Father , at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ with all his saints.” 3:11-13

 

   This is Advent.  In every chapter of this letter of Paul and especially at the end of each chapter the second coming of Christ is mentioned.  Note the Apostle begins with the Lord increasing them and helping them to abound in love one toward one another.  So Advent is about Christian love?  I think a while back I preached a sermon on process and the product.  The Christian life is a process and it is a journey.  What we produce is not as important I think we said as the process.  That sounds like a contradiction.  Let me spell it out.  If we do such and such for whoever or the Church and it is not done in the spirit of love and cooperation but we get there so to speak, what does it mean?  The ends justifies the means? HMmmmmm?  I do not think our Lord would approve of that.  I think the process is the journey and the end is in God’s hands.  This is challenging is it not?

 

   I found a quote by a wonderful Christian author who explains the root of much of our trouble with this.  Michael Ramsey, 1905-1988 was one of “ the greatest Anglican archbishops of the twentieth century and a man of spiritual depth who inspired a generation of Christians” from Glory Descending,  by Douglas Dales: “ The Death of Individualism- ‘ Individualism ‘ has no place in Christianity , and life in Christ truly means its extinction.  Yet through the death of ‘individualism; the individual person finds himself or herself.  For through membership in the Body, the single Christian is discovered in new ways, and becomes aware that God loves him or her in all their singularity , as if God had no else to love….”   And in another section he explains this:

“ Life in the Church”- “ We do not know the whole fact of Christ incarnate unless we know His church , and its life as a part of his own life. …Christianity is never solitary.  It is never true to say separate persons are united to Christ, and then combine them to form the Church.  For to believe in Christ is to believe in one whose Body is a part of himself, and whose people are his own humanity…..for without the Church a Christian does not grow, since Christ is fulfilled in the totality of all his members.”

 

     So if our love must abound toward one another we should work on that one I believe.  This is difficult but necessary for our life in the Church.  Is someone hurting?  We can pray.  We can make hopeful initiatives to them in seeing them when they are not in the services.  We can share the love of Christ with them.  The Apostle also says, “ abound in love toward one another and all men”  .  All are included here.  All men.  Notice all of this prayer Paul places in the context of the coming of Christ.”  abound in love one toward another, and toward all men, even as we do toward you: to the end he may stablish your hearts unblameable in holiness before God, even our Father , at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ with all his saints.” 3:11-13”

 

    “Stablish your hearts unblameable in holiness before God “  While our Christian lives are celebrated in unity with other Christians, we pray that our own individual hearts would be established unblameable in holiness before God.  This is God’s work in us but we have a responsibility to listen and live in His presence in the midst of a “ crooked and peverse nation, among whom ye shine as lights in the world; holding forth the word of life” Philippians 2:15  Notice the tension here.  It is God we pray stablish our hearts and make them unblameable in holiness before Him but you and I are to respond to that light within us , that is the light of Christ if we are His children at all in this place and generation.

 

    Why?   Why should we want to do this?  Primarily because we love Him, but also because the Apostle reminds us that our Lord is coming with all his saints.  Luke reminded us that Advent is about the coming of our Lord: 21:25

 

²⁵ And there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity; the sea and the waves roaring;

²⁶ Men's hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken.

²⁷ And then shall they see the Son of man coming in a cloud with power and great glory.”

   Advent is a wonderful time of year with all its beauty. Advent prepares our hearts for Christmas.  It is a time of hope .  It is a time of prayer.  It is a time of love expressed in so many ways to our Christian brethren and to all men.  It is a time of holiness lived before God.  Take time to pray.  Take time to love .  Take time to be holy. Our Lord’s birth is drawing near.  We will reflect and listen to His Word spoken , preached and lived.  This is the way of the Church in this time.  It is our way as its members, and the body of Christ in this place.