A Fresh Perspective - November 30, 2007

The theme of Advent is the coming of Christ. Christians celebrate the mystery and wonder of God "coming" to us in the person of Jesus of Nazareth. Christians believe that Christ's coming was a saving event - that his life, death, and resurrection disclosed God's love and that it functions to bring redemption to humanity. How this all works, of course, is subject to numerous interpretations. The early Christians also believed that Christ would come back soon (Paul thought it would be in his lifetime). Many Christians are still looking for a decisive, cataclysmic return of Christ to bring about God's promised new world.

The Greek word that is used to describe Christ's "coming" is "parousia," the root meaning of which is "presence." It was often used of the "royal presence" of kings and rulers. Some Christians do not conceive of Christ's "coming" as a literal, bodily return, but as a manifesting of the "presence" of Christ who is already here. New Testament scholar N. T. Wright says, "If we spoke of Jesus' royal presence within God's new creation, rather than thinking of his 'coming' as an invasion from outside, our talk about the future might make more sense. It would also be a lot more biblical."

I'm not sure what kind of future "coming" to expect, but I am convinced that the Christ who died and was raised by God hasn't left. He tells his disciples at the end of Matthew's Gospel, "I am with you always, to the end of the age." No one is going to be "left behind," because Christ hasn't left; he is here among us to be known and experienced by those with "eyes to see and ears to hear."

The Spirit of the living Christ is like the wind; he comes and goes as he wills (Jn. 3:8). We cannot manipulate or control him, but we can be watchful and ready. We can be prayerful by maintaining a discipline of set prayers and by maintaining a daily posture of prayer. We can love others, because where love is, God is (1 Jn. 4:16). We can be generous, kind and compassionate, reflecting the life that Jesus lived as one of us. We can worship with other Christians, because in most churches you can still find the living Christ. Christ delights in fellowshipping with "sinners." (If you find the perfect church, don't join it, or you'll ruin it!)

God's new world, for which Jesus taught us to pray - "Your kingdom come . . . on earth as it is in heaven," is "not yet" here in full, but is "already" here in part. Look for it - in a meal delivered to a sick or homeless man or woman, in friendship extended to a lonely person, in a loving home opened up to a foster child, in the gift of forgiveness given to the undeserving, in kind words spoken to turn away anger, in the smile of a little child.

Christ comes again and again and again, in many ways, through diverse means. Open your heart. And let him change it.

Chuck Queen is Senior Pastor of Immanuel Baptist Church, Frankfort. You can access his sermons and past articles at www.ibcfrankfort.com. He welcomes your comments at cqueen@fewpb.net.