Can any one name a generation since
the death and resurrection of Jesus that there
have not been “signs” of the apocalyptic end of humanity as predicted in
the Bible? The truth of the matter is
that every generation has witnessed the “signs” of the end . . . every
generation. We have seen it all even in
our day . . . the “signs: . . . famine, war, poverty, injustice, violence,
suffering, and on and on the list could go.
Despite the “signs”, we are still here.
When will tomorrow come?
If we, the followers of Jesus, are
going to take seriously these words that we have heard in the Gospel of Mark this morning, then we
should be an anxious lot as the “signs” of the end are all around us. And, yet, as we hear these words each year at
the start of the Advent season . . . we are still here. We are not anxious. Like the villagers in the story about the boy
who cried “wolf”, we have heard this warning way too many times to take it
seriously. Tomorrow never comes.
Years ago the rock group, Five Man Electric Band, sang a song
about signs. Of course the song was not
about the end times of Apocalypse . . . it was about the times when signs were
used to keep people out because they were different. Hippies weren’t supposed to apply for jobs,
people weren’t allowed to trespass on property, and even in the church there
were signs. Though the song was not
about the end times, the song got the point across the about annoyance of
“signs”. The song said in its chorus:
Sign, sign, everywhere a sign
Blockin' out the scenery, breakin' my mind
Do this, don't do that, can't you read the
sign?
Aren’t signs kind of annoying? Like the song says, they block out the
scenery . . . they weigh us down with rules of what we can do and what we can’t
do. I, for one, do not care for signs .
. . in particular those signs, like billboards, that litter the landscape screaming
for us to visit this place or to buy this product or that product. I find such signs to be eye pollution and
wish Montana would do as other state have done and outlaw such signs. But, the fact is that “signs” are annoying .
. . especially when they do not deliver on what they are saying . . . sort of
like this passage of scripture we hear for the seemingly millionth time. Annoying because it seems as if tomorrow
never comes.
How are we to live our lives fully
when we are banking on tomorrow and tomorrow never comes?
On this first Sunday of Advent our
theme is “peace”. The simplest
understanding of “peace” is the absence of conflict and strife . . . it is a
state of tranquility . . . a harmony in personal relationships . . . no war. In each of our own minds we have an
understanding of “peace” and what it means to us . . . and, for most of us it
is based on an understanding that tomorrow will come, thus we do not have to
worry about tomorrow. Don’t believe me? How many of you ever go to bed at night and
wonder whether or not you are going to wake up?
We bank on tomorrow . . . the sun always rises; but, here are the words
of Jesus telling us that tomorrow might not come and that it could happen at
any moment because “No one knows about the day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor
the Son . . .”
With such a launching—apocalyptic
visions—how are we to focus on “peace” as its first Sunday’s theme?
Though Jesus was probably never a Boy
Scout, he does suggest their motto in all of his warnings . . . “Be
prepared.” Being prepared is a big part
of what we spend our lives doing. We run
through things over and over again so that we know what to do when something
happens. We either physically do it or
we mentally do it. Psychologists and
counselors tell us that we should run through our minds exactly how we would do
something before we actually do it. This
is real popular among sports teams and athletes . . . they run through how they
see the game being played out or the race being run . . . so that they are
prepared and know how they are going to act and react in any given
situation. To this, Jesus tells us to be
prepared.
Be prepared and then to go about your
business as usual. Preparation seems to
make a difference. I know that by taking
a first aid class I am prepared to handle most any situation that arises
needing minor medical care . . . cut your finger off? I know what to do. Same thing when I was learning to drive a car
. . . I was taught how to change a tire when it went flat. So, when I got a flat tire I was ready. Just knowing that we have prepared ourselves
for whatever the future can throw at us helps us to feel a sense of “peace” . .
. it relieves the anxiety . . . allows us to function. Preparation is a difference maker in our
lives.
None of us knows what tomorrow may
bring. None of us knows if tomorrow will
ever happen. But, we do know that what
we do today can make a difference for how we receive whatever does happen
tomorrow. It allows us to go to bed at
night and sleep. As it is with our daily
lives, so it is with our faith.
Jesus asks us to go about the business
of God . . . to work on our relationship with God . . . to work on our
relationship with one another . . . to be about the business of kingdom building. Too often we forget that the promise of
eternal life does not begin tomorrow, but that it begins that moment we embrace
Jesus as our personal Lord and Savior.
Eternal life is not tomorrow, but it is now . . . we are living in the
midst of our eternity now. Because we
are we need to be about that work that God calls us to now. We are to take care of business now. If we take care of business now, why do we
need to worry about tomorrow. If we
don’t have to worry about tomorrow . . . have we not entered into the realm of
“peace”.
Tomorrow never seems to come and so we
must deal with what we have been given.
We must make our lives a reflection of God’s love for us and for
others. We must embrace the gift of life
that is ours and make the most of what we have.
Let us find satisfaction in the knowledge that the presence of God is
always with us, that we are in the midst of the eternal promise, and that we
are getting our ducks all in a row between us and God and one another. In this we find “peace”. Who cares what the “signs” say, we now this
moment. This moment is all we can truthfully deal with because we never know
when tomorrow will come.
At the end of the song Signs the words describe seeing a sign
that welcomes everyone . . . to come in, kneel and pray. It is a sign for a church. The singer enters the church, participates in
the service, and then the collection plate comes by . . . the singer has no
money to put into the plate . . . no fiscal contribution to make. Caught off guard the singer gets a pen and
makes up a sign and the sign read:
"Thank you, Lord, for thinkin' 'bout me.
I'm alive and doin' fine."
We see the signs around us . . . signs
of all the generations before us and those yet to come . . . we hear the call
to be prepared in uncertain times . . . and, the best that we can do . . . the
best that we can offer is to live today for God and one another. This is the work we have been called to do .
. . it is the only we can do. By going
about the business at hand and doing the best that we can in loving God and one
another we have prepared ourselves for tomorrow. If we are prepared, we are in a place of
“peace”.
When tomorrow never comes . . . we can
still know “peace”. Let us enter the
season of Advent prepared and knowing that we have “peace” whether or not
tomorrow ever comes. We are doing just
fine. Amen.
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