G. Archer Frierson
Austin Seminary Board of Trustees
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Advent Devotional for December 1
• Matthew 24:36-44
In all honesty my preparation for Advent involves searching my hall closet for our Advent wreath, buying new candles, and changing the dining room tablecloth before setting up the wreath so that we are ready for Advent candle lighting, devotions, and prayer. I prepare, mindful of the long arc of this season: I anticipate the comfort and joy of the birth of God in our midst. We draw near again to the church’s annual feast of the Nativity of Christ, born to unite heaven and earth, born so that death and sin are not our end, born for the salvation of all creation.
So it is jarring to read this passage, the initial Gospel text this Advent, with its stern declaration about the coming of the Son of Man. I lean toward Christmas, so it is disconcerting to consider instead the days of Noah, the ones taken and the ones left, and the thief breaking into our home.
Yet Advent begins this way. With the end. It begins with the Son of Man who comes to judge. We may anticipate comfort and joy but first we start with the end times. Some will be found worthy and some found wanting. Underscored here: we cannot know the time or day of the Lord’s coming again so we must be prepared at all times.
This reading is a part of Matthew’s discourse on the coming judgment (24:1– 25:46). Let us notice that this section ends with the parable of the sheep and the goats. Matthew shows us what it looks like to live in expectation of the coming of the Son of Man: it is in our care for “the least of these.” So while some have preached these texts to force Christ’s disciples into fearful obedience and others have preached these texts to turn followers of Jesus toward a fascination with the afterlife, Matthew preaches: live expectantly! And this means deeds of mercy, forgiveness, deep care for the lost and the least.
Are we ready? May our preparations enable us to stand blameless before the one who will come again in glory.
The Reverend Dr. Jennifer L. Lord
The Dorothy B. Vickery Professor of Homiletics and Liturgical Studies
For the glory of God and to proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ, Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary is a seminary in the Presbyterian-Reformed tradition whose mission is to educate and equip individuals for the ordained Christian ministry and other forms of Christian service and leadership; to employ its resources in the service of the church; to promote and engage in critical theological thought and research; and to be a winsome and exemplary community of God's people.We hope that you are preparing the way for the Lord in your life as you read these meditations and prayers. And, we hope this Advent season is a meaningful one for you. Please know that Austin Seminary’s dedicated, diverse, and loving community of faith is not complete without you. Did you know?
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