First Wednesday of Advent
Scripture Reading for Today:
Isaiah 54:1-10
“Sing, barren woman, you who never bore a child; burst into song, shout for joy, you who were never in labor; because more are the children of the desolate woman than of her who has a husband,” says the Lord. 2 “Enlarge the place of your tent, stretch your tent curtains wide, do not hold back; lengthen your cords, strengthen your stakes. 3 For you will spread out to the right and to the left; your descendants will dispossess nations and settle in their desolate cities. 4 “Do not be afraid; you will not be put to shame. Do not fear disgrace; you will not be humiliated. You will forget the shame of your youth and remember no more the reproach of your widowhood. 5 For your Maker is your husband— the Lord Almighty is his name— the Holy One of Israel is your Redeemer; he is called the God of all the earth. 6 The Lord will call you back as if you were a wife deserted and distressed in spirit— a wife who married young, only to be rejected,” says your God. 7 “For a brief moment I abandoned you, but with deep compassion I will bring you back. 8 In a surge of anger I hid my face from you for a moment, but with everlasting kindness I will have compassion on you,” says the Lord your Redeemer. 9 “To me this is like the days of Noah, when I swore that the waters of Noah would never again cover the earth. So now I have sworn not to be angry with you, never to rebuke you again. 10 Though the mountains be shaken and the hills be removed, yet my unfailing love for you will not be shaken nor my covenant of peace be removed,” says the Lord, who has compassion on you.
Psalm 124
A song of ascents. Of David.1 If the Lord had not been on our side— let Israel say— 2 if the Lord had not been on our side when people attacked us, 3 they would have swallowed us alive when their anger flared against us; 4 the flood would have engulfed us, the torrent would have swept over us, 5 the raging waters would have swept us away. 6 Praise be to the Lord, who has not let us be torn by their teeth. 7 We have escaped like a bird from the fowler’s snare; the snare has been broken, and we have escaped. 8 Our help is in the name of the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth.
Matthew 24:23-35
23 At that time if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Messiah!’ or, ‘There he is!’ do not believe it. 24 For false messiahs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect. 25 See, I have told you ahead of time. 26 “So if anyone tells you, ‘There he is, out in the wilderness,’ do not go out; or, ‘Here he is, in the inner rooms,’ do not believe it. 27 For as lightning that comes from the east is visible even in the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. 28 Wherever there is a carcass, there the vultures will gather. 29 “Immediately after the distress of those days “‘the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from the sky, and the heavenly bodies will be shaken.’ 30 “Then will appear the sign of the Son of Man in heaven. And then all the peoples of the earth will mourn when they see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven, with power and great glory. 31 And he will send his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other. 32 “Now learn this lesson from the fig tree: As soon as its twigs get tender and its leaves come out, you know that summer is near. 33 Even so, when you see all these things, you know that it is near, right at the door. 34 Truly I tell you, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened. 35 Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.
WHAT IF?
by Paul Lucas
Paul Lucas is a pastor, IT guy, researcher, writer, husband, and father. He is a pastor at Crossings Community Church and is currently working on a doctoral dissertation on interpreting church belonging with social psychology at McMaster Divinity College, where he also works as an IT assistant. He lives near Acton, ON with his wife Payge and their three kids.
What image does the word “mystery” conjure up for you? For me, it ranges from a wonderful novel that draws me into the unknown to the breathtaking night skies I experienced when camping in the summer to the terrifying moments I had in the hospital. The element of mystery is an odd mix of fun and dread. Both a game we play with kids and the very thing that keeps our minds racing at night. But there’s another aspect of mystery, and that’s the mystery of God. That also invokes a lot of emotions. What does it mean to accept and worship God in all the mystery that surrounds him? What does it mean to rest in the presence of an incomprehensible, unfathomable, and indescribable creator?
In Genesis, God makes a promise to Noah and his family to establish a covenant and seal it with a sign. They were walking into a complete unknown, leaving behind a terrifying transformation that they were emerging from. God’s promise to them tells them that they are not going back. As a result of this story, I find myself reflecting on the moments of mystery in which we have found ourselves.
There’s a story of a conversation which Socrates had with an oracle named Pythia, where Pythia told Socrates that he was the wisest person in Athens, and Socrates responded, “I know that I know nothing.” As we learn more, we become more aware of what we do not know. I am reminded of the time we spent a couple years ago digging into the background of our community, accessing the needs, and talking to people in different walks of life. We certainly gained a deeper understanding of our own community, our churches, and our cultural context. We also had an overwhelming sense that only through God’s power could we move ahead, as there were so many unknowns. As we dug into the unknown, the unknown only grew, and when that happens, there’s nothing we can do except fully rely on God.
According to the writer of Hebrews, Abraham understood God's power, that he was capable of even rescuing from death, and that he knew God's promise would be fulfilled through Isaac. Abraham didn’t know what was happening. Abraham didn’t know how God was going to keep his promise. In the midst of this painful mystery, he clung to the one thing that he knew to be true, that he could have faith in the promises of God.
My mind is not naturally drawn to rest. That verse, “Be still and know that I am God,” is not exactly one which I find easy to follow. And the thoughts that stir in my head do not turn into actions but just simmer and stew. The one benefit is that it gives my therapist a lot to work on!
In Psalm 124, the psalmist reflects on what life would be like if God wasn’t with them. We see an example of God’s promise being established, an example of faith in that promise, and a reflection of what God’s promise brings to our lives,
What if the Lord had not been on our side?
Let all Israel repeat:
What if the Lord had not been on our side
when people attacked us?
They would have swallowed us alive
in their burning anger.
The waters would have engulfed us;
a torrent would have overwhelmed us.
Yes, the raging waters of their fury
would have overwhelmed our very lives.
Praise the Lord,
who did not let their teeth tear us apart!
We escaped like a bird from a hunter’s trap.
The trap is broken, and we are free!
Our help is from the Lord,
who made heaven and earth.
Lately, my therapist has been working on helping me encounter head-on some of the fears that lie beneath. In my head swirl these “what if” questions, which cause me to desperately cling to control, fearful of losing control. And one thing I have learned is that these “what if” questions are rarely answered. In our sessions, my therapist has invited me to answer the questions. To dig into the what ifs, to confront the fears I have been pushing aside for years. And what makes this uncomfortable much of the time is that the answer is often “I don’t know, but I cannot control that.” In other words, it’s a mystery.
Every once in a while, God gives us a different type of mystery. A mystery reflected in the unrelenting faithfulness of our saviour. A mystery where, despite our mustard-seed sized prayers, we see the mountains move. A mystery where the Holy Spirit uses broken vessels to bring about an eternal plan of redemption. The psalmist asks “what if,” but in a different manner. What if God wasn’t with us? What would have happened? Out of that flows praise.
So, let me ask, “What if?”
What if Christ was not made flesh?
What if he looked upon his creation and said, “Too far gone.”
“They are a lost cause.”
“Beyond repair.”
What if our eternal Creator had not established his plan of redemption before the breath of life entered human lungs?
What if our Creator had turned his back on the lineage of Christ, the deceivers, the warmongers, and the murderers?
What if he looked upon humanity and refused to stoop to their level?
What if the eternal architect of the cosmos was not born and didn’t need to be held, rocked, nursed, cleaned?
What if Emmanuel did not take on flesh and make his dwelling among us?
What if the Holy Spirit did not come to indwell us?
Praise the eternal Lord, for we have hope. God is surely with us.
Maybe mystery is clinging to our heavenly Dad, not knowing where he is taking us but knowing that he loves us. Perhaps mystery is clinging to our Saviour, who came in the flesh and dwelt among us. Maybe mystery is walking in step with the Holy Spirit, who loves us and draws us into the same love that shaped you, me, and Jesus Christ when we were in our mothers’ wombs.
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