“But each in his own order: Christ the first fruits, then at his coming those who belong to Christ. Then comes the end, when he delivers the kingdom to God the Father after destroying every rule and every authority and power.  For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet.  The last enemy to be destroyed is death.”

– I Corinthians 15:23-26

 

Dear Servants,

 

Welcome to Advent!  This is the season of anticipation.  The first four weeks of the liturgical calendar build up in anticipation of our celebration of the birth of Jesus our Lord into our world.  Emmanuel, God with us!  We acknowledge that God’s plan for saving the world was always to bring Jesus to us.  But even while we celebrate the incarnation, we also anticipate Jesus’ return to us, his second coming! Each week we express this in our liturgy, “Christ has died, Christ is risen, Christ will come again”.

Paul is reminding the people of Corinth that the life in Jesus they have already experienced is just a foretaste of what’s to come.  He is calling them to live with the expectation that God will destroy every rule, power, and authority that opposes Him, including death!

What are you anticipating this season of Advent? Will this be simply another December rush towards Christmas day, or can you begin to see yourself living from the incredible news of the incarnation towards Jesus’ victorious return?  How can your obedience to Jesus this week cooperate with what God will ultimately accomplish in the whole world?  Can you pray for yourself, ‘Come Lord Jesus’? How can our congregation anticipate all that God will do?  Please continue to pray for the vestry leaders as we seek the Lord for wisdom.  Let us live this Advent with great expectations!