It is 29th November 2020. We enter the First Sunday of Advent. We begin the new church year. Advent means coming. The readings are from Isaiah 63:16b-17; 64:1, 3b-8; the second reading is from 1Corinthians 1:3-9; and the Gospel from Mark 13:33-37. We are invited to reflect on Hope as we read about the Second coming of Jesus, our Lord. It is a personal and intimate meeting time. It is the Advent of our souls. It is time to meet Jesus in others.
Norman Vincent Peale, the author of Positive Thinking tells us of his life experience. When he was young, walking with his father, who was pastor was approached a smelly and dirty beggar for some money to buy some food. Seeing the beggar, Norman got disgusted and called him worthless and brushed him aside. But the father told him not to treat anyone worthless and gave a dollar in his hands to give the beggar. Though Norman refused to accept and give to the poor. Yet, the father persuaded him to give what he could afford. He ran after the beggar and gave the money. In return, the beggar gave a big smile said: I thank you, my son, in the name of Jesus. Norman says that in this genuine smile of the man who looked worthless in his eyes he found the real face of Jesus which he never forgot in his life.
Yes, Jesus is with always. It is our duty to make others feel Jesus in us and to recognise Jesus in others too.
There are three ways of Jesus’ coming in our lives. The first coming is the one we celebrate as Christmas. God came among us a human being born of Virgin Mary. The prophet asks God to tear the Heaven and come down to us. We all need God so desperately in our lives. God is our hope and redemption. “O Lord, you are our Father; we are the clay, and you are our potter; we are all the work of your hand.” (Is.64:8). There is so much joy and blessings when God comes down in our life. Advent is the time God takes the initiative to reach us to grant us hope and to bleach our sins out. It is indeed the time of trimming and taming our desires and selfish motives. God wants to mould us and heal us. Another coming of Jesus is that He is born every day in our hearts when we are willing to let go of the past and forgive others. His coming is witnessed in every human being and in creation. Acknowledging God’s presence and being grateful for people, places, and events of life. It is God’s grace has brought us this far in our life. When we realise that we are so assured by grace, there is no need to race so much in our life. we are in God’s hands as clay in the hand of a potter. Potter has the design and the model for our life, we just need to cooperate and nothing to panic and brag about. Advent is the time to be remoulded by God. God gives us everything we need for our life so as live a life of hope, happiness and with a sense of humour. It is not necessary to keep our life in the ICU always. The final coming of Jesus is to judge us according to what we are and what we have done with our life. Christ comes to reclaim each one of us is the coming. “Bow your heavens, O Lord, and come down; touch the mountains so that they smoke.” (Ps.144:5).
The responsorial Psalm praises, “Lord, make us turn to you, let us see your face and we shall be saved.” (Ps. 80:3).
The unlimited presence of God through Jesus is guaranteed for all those who hope in Him. Some of us are confused, misled, and misguided in believing about the Lord’s coming. It looks as though it is not going to happen within our lifetime. “This Jesus, who has been taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.” (Acts. 1:11). Many of us give up not waiting for Him patiently enduring for the prolonged waiting, and unpredicted coming of our Lord. God comes to meet us through His Son Jesus. His coming is for sure for those who are awake, alert, and active. “Be on guard! Be alert! You do not know when that time will come.” (Mt. 13:33).
A student told the teacher that he was equal to 40 mothers. Tickled by the remark, the teacher asked him why he said so. The student replied saying: “sir, a mother can only take one child to sleep, but you are capable of making all 40 of us asleep.”
When the people of Israel cried out to the Lord for their unfaithfulness and sins, God took God’s time in sending His Only Son Jesus. “We have all become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous deeds are like a polluted garment. We all fade like a leaf, and our iniquities, like the wind, take us away. (Is. 64:6). Advent is the time to come closer to God who approaches us through His Son Jesus. But the people were not willing to accept Him as the redeemer. Christ comes to meet us even today through the Word, the Sacraments, and the events and people especially the poor and the vulnerable ones of our humanity. Let us not go after miracles, healers, prophets, tele-evangelists, and religious fast foods. “Besides this you know what hour it is, how it is full time now for you to wake from sleep. For salvation is nearer to us now than when we first believed.” (Rom.13:11). Many of us like the people of Israel having the longing to connect with God and that is what exactly the Advent is attempting do it. Where are we in our lives in terms of relating with God? How far between us and God? How distant are we towards the other person?
Yes, the nativity of the Lord has taken place much long back, yet we remember His birth to inject hope in us. His First coming has happened in human history but regular and unfailing coming into our lives daily is happening even today. But there is a final coming for which we need to prepare ourselves. Anytime from now, He is going to come.
St. Paul assures us that God is faithful to the promise. We will lack nothing spiritually as we are waiting for the Lord Jesus Christ, “who will sustain you to the end, guiltless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (1 Cor.1:9). It is our responsibility to be faithful to God through Jesus. More time we invest in Him, more harvest of grace and blessing we enjoy all through. Our faith in Him enriches our hope. Are we ready to receive the Lord of Hope and Happiness? His coming is being displayed in mystery now. Our preparedness needs to go beyond our material world to the spiritual realm.
The Gospel warns us about the Second Coming of Jesus and invites us to stay awake and alert always. Untiring looking forward with hope is that called to stay awake. Let us do our duty and all that is entrusted to the best of our ability. Constantly doing good to humanity around makes us be alert and active. Whatever was the past, it is now the time of grace, and blessing to do something with our personal life. We all deserve God’s blessing. There is nothing in us that can stop us from receiving God’s blessings. We need to remain in Him physically and spiritually to be fruitful. “Just as the branch cannot bear fruit by itself unless it abides in the vine, neither can you unless you abide in me.” (Jn.15:4). Our loyalty to Jesus is much required to bear witness to Him. By being watchful always, we begin to experience the quality of our relationship with Him. Seeing and loving the face of Jesus is the Advent. May we make effort to experience incarnation in everyone. Have a fruitful day. God bless you.