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Advent Sunday
29th November 2009

Thy Kingdom come

When beggars die there are no comets seen; the heavens themselves blaze forth the death of princes. (Julius Caesar, Act 2, scene 2).

I don't remember much about the things I studied for O level English Literature, but those lines sprang to mind as I read today's gospel text. The heavens themselves blaze forth the death of princes. Omens and portents; signs of great changes; momentous happenings; world-shattering events.

In today's gospel reading, Jesus tells his disciples "There will be signs in the sun, moon and stars, and on the earth, distress among nations confused by the roaring of the sea and the waves. People will faint from fear and foreboding of what is coming upon the world, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken".

Omens and portents, in the Shakespearean mould? It depends whether we think he was speaking literally or metaphorically. But either way, these events make it clear that something momentous is going to happen. Something or someone is coming.

Coming: in Latin, advent… in Greek, parousia.

Jesus is speaking of his own return - "you will see the Son of Man, coming in a cloud, with power and great glory", and this could hardly be more momentous - the second coming. And what a contrast with the way Jesus entered the world the first time around: born as a helpless baby, to poor parents; forced to flee as a refugee, earning a living through the toil of his hands; and after a brief period of public popularity, betrayed by one friend, abandoned and denied by the others, ridiculed, humiliated, tortured, and finally executed in an excruciating manner - a manner of execution which, incidentally, the Romans later outlawed as being too barbaric at a time when they were still happily throwing people to the lions for public entertainment!

And yet in God's great plan, it was through the first coming, its superficially disastrous end on the cross, and of course the resurrection, that the second coming becomes possible.

In both comings, Jesus' agenda is the Kingdom of God. Now let's just be clear, when Jesus talks of the Kingdom of God, he isn't talking about heaven, he's talking about the reign of God in the hearts and minds of all those who turn to him; he's talking about the reconciliation of his creation with himself, creation becoming what he had created with all the potential to become. And it seems that he has chosen to do this in two steps.

Through Jesus' life on earth, he sowed the seeds of the Kingdom and overcame the powers that could have prevented those seeds from growing. When he returns, his Kingdom will be universal, the roll-out will be complete.

In these "between times" in which we live, we can use our free will to opt in or to opt out. When he returns, his Kingdom will be fulfilled, his authority will be complete. In these days, between Jesus' first and second coming, we have been entrusted with the promotion of his Kingdom of peace, justice, compassion, and mercy.

And so amongst the busyness of this season, as we all prepare for Christmas, Advent is really a time to slow down; to pause and take stock; to reflect and think, maybe assisted by Advent Bible study notes. And so as we prepare to mark the day when God became man, let's reflect on what that event truly meant. Is the sacrificial love and grace we have received in Christ reflected in the way we live our lives and in our attitude towards other people? And as we look forward to his return, how are we getting on with the sacred mission he has entrusted us with, to build his Kingdom on earth?

Amen

© PCC St Martin's and St Paul's Canterbury 2008 - 2009