Rev. Cari Pattison
Woodstock Reformed Church
Sunday, November 27, 2022
Advent 1
“Time to Wake Up”
Matthew 24:36-44
36Jesus said, “But about that day and hour no one knows, neither the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. 37For as the days of Noah were, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. 38For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day Noah entered the ark, 39and they knew nothing until the flood came and swept them all away, so too will be the coming of the Son of Man. 40Then two will be in the field; one will be taken and one will be left. 41Two women will be grinding meal together; one will be taken and one will be left. 42Keep awake therefore, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming. 43But understand this: if the owner of the house had known in what part of the night the thief was coming, he would have stayed awake and would not have let his house be broken into. 44Therefore you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an unexpected hour.”
***
Start with “A Thief in the Night” 1972, I watched in 1999, evening of Y2K, at a Word of Life camp outside of Nairobi Kenya
It was "one of the first films to take on Fundamentalist apocalyptic narratives within a fictional motif." Seen by an estimated 300 million
The Rapture – the mark of the beast – Larry Norman’s “I wish we’d all been ready” – there’s no time to change your mind, the Son has come and you’ve been left behind
This movement later spawned the whole “Left Behind” series, (airplane) which I made the unfortunate decision to read (the junior version of) to my then middle-school-aged brother. It’s a wonder he didn’t give up church altogether after that.
Pollyanna preacher- “Death comes unexpectedly!”
Sermons and films meant to scare the bejezus out of you- or scare Jesus into you
Passages like this, and elsewhere in Paul (Thessalonians) can be embarrassing for us today! What do we make of it?
***
Segue to Advent one- “Arrival” and the significance of this season
Refer to front page of bulletin
And all the little ways Christ comes, in the here and now
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The reappearance of Christ at the apocalypse was expected in short order, for Matthew’s readers / hearers
For some- wrong interpretation- is this world doesn’t matter, so just let it all go to seed and don’t worry yourself about making it better
A world full of risk and danger, which puts responsibility on us- watchfulness is also hopefulness
An odd way to open Advent- a reminder of remembering that the God who lived among us, promises to return- and we are living in the meantime, which are mean times (Joy J. Moore)
Discernment is another theme
Jesus keeps showing up, in the fragile and vulnerable places- strange, exciting, and scandalous places & people
For today, that means the idea of “we don’t know what’s going to happen next, or when- but it tells us who.”
Don’t miss Jesus, when he shows up! For Matthew, faith is this fragile and breakable thing. You don’t need perfect understanding or perfect belief- just hang on and find him in places you weren’t expecting
Maintain faith, in the midst of the instability – don’t get lost in predictions, but find ways to get ready – a communal readiness of active hope
Share the different views on this passage- “this passage seeks to instill an appropriate eschatological vigilance. Ignorance concerning the date of the end may be dangerous, for it may lead to spiritual lethargy. What Matthew wants, is for this news to lead to moral preparation.” – Dale Allison
“Leisurely repentance is foolish. Fear of being caught off guard should motivate one to watch.”
The image is of a thief breaking through the mud wall of a house. (Not a positive picture, here). And imagines of everyday life. We must still work in the field and grind at the mill. We still live in the mundane present.
From the 4th century on, many Christian interpreters have applied this passage to death, rather than the second coming.
So they taught what the rabbis taught: to make sure to repent one day before your death, which of course means to repent every day, because one never knows when death will come.
Maybe the ancient story of Solon and Croesus and Tellus? “A life still lived is a life not yet complete, and who knows what the future will bring? The rich may become poor, the conqueror may become vanquished, the powerful may become powerless. Good things do not make for happiness unless they endure. It is wisdom to look to the end, no matter what it is you are considering.”
But- it’s hard to always live with the end in mind, when we’re going about our daily tasks and lives. Our jobs and meals and interactions. “Constancy of purpose derived from a fixed gaze on the future is rarely achieved, for our minds resist being harnessed toward one end. They are too restless and too readily distracted and too afraid of death.”
Matthew 24 knows that only the end, will tell us the meaning of the present, that only the outcome can give us true perspective. If we daily contemplated our death, or the end of the world, maybe such exercises would help refine our sensitivity to what really matters.
If we dwell imaginatively- without fear- on the future, what might it do to re-shape our lives now?
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Application-
What does it mean to wake up? Be ready? Alert for the Son of Man?
Christ comes in swiftly and unexpectedly
You don’t know when he’s coming- so stay awake and be ready
Live your life like it could be over at any minute- “Live every day as if it could be your last”
Live not only as if this day might be your last, but live as if it could be someone else’s last:
***
When I moved here, Anne and Dave told me about Jogger John…
Jogger John’s passing, and the legacy he left- old Woodstock, sweeping, Vietnam vet, stories of growing up in a catholic school, many mystical encounters with Jesus, fell off his bike on thanksgiving, loved colored pencils and free coffee, and stopping me on the street to tell me stories, and playfully making fun of how fast I was walking
After my first break-up with Mike, I was walking down the street crying. And the light was blinding. He said, “No, you’re a minister! You can’t be sad.” He insisted I borrow that white cotton hat with the broad bill, and I did. Then I washed and bleached and mended it for him.
What I wish I’d done- slowed down, stopped to listen, let him know that he mattered to me.
Thankfully a lot of people did let him know that he mattered, and still matters- attested on Facebook, etc. and:
Service out front on the Green, at the same time as this church service – it’s the end of an era for Woodstock
Sometimes you just kind of think someone will live forever.
Psalm 84: I’d rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God, than dwell in the tents of wickedness- I’d rather be a sweeper in the house of my God
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Pray-
Less about who’s left behind, and rather about all that we will one day leave behind in this world…
But you will never leave us
Help us repent, forgive, and play
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