Month: December 2017

“I don’t celebrate Christmas!”

So said one of the callers who called in to the Tom Sullivan Show this past week. He was answering the question which Tom had put out to his radio listeners: “Is Christmas a religious holiday, or not?” I was not so surprised that someone in our country doesn’t celebrate Christmas; what got my attention was that the caller identified himself as a Christian pastor.

It was enough for me to stop playing with my Rodney Reindeer stuffed toy, turn off the CD which was playing, “Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer,” and postpone my plan to grab a couple Christmas cookies and spiced cider.  That’s how much he had my attention.

The caller explained that while he could have fellowship with other Christians who do celebrate the holiday, he and his family do not observe Christmas because it is not a religious celebration. He added that many of our Christmas traditions have pagan roots, including the choice of December 25 as an appropriation of pagan celebrations of the winter solstice. To him, Christmas is not religious.

I pondered his comments as I placed some of Karen’s gingerbread cookies on my Frosty the Snowman plate and filled my Santa cup with some cider. As I looked toward the living room, I noticed that an angel ornament had fallen off the brightly-decorated tree to land near the beautifully-wrapped present I had gotten for Karen. I walked over and put it back on the tree next to a plastic snowflake, being careful not to step on the poinsettia.

“He may have a point,” I thought, as I lingered underneath the sprig of mistletoe, hoping Karen would walk by . . .

Okay, so most of what I’ve just said was an “imaginary illustration” (that sounds better than saying I just lied to you). Except for the caller and what he said*; that was real, and it did cause me to think about the interaction between the Bible’s proclamation of the Savior’s birth and the public, or private, celebration of that birth. Following are some of my thoughts on this matter:

1. The charge that our celebration comes from pagan roots is not new. People have asked me about it and even sent me articles connecting Christmas to everything from the Roman winter holiday of Saturnalia, to druid tree-worship, to satanic temptations of greed and envy (did you realize that Satan and Santa have the same letters??). That may be true, and I would avoid celebrating Christmas if by doing so I were worshiping trees, greed, or the start of winter. Or if by doing so, I led other people into such false beliefs. (1 Corinthians 8:9-10) What do I mean when I wish someone Merry Christmas – “Go be a druid” or “Christ our Savior is born”? To me, obviously, it is Christ and his birth which I celebrate.
2. Our modern American Christmas is a recent development. Over the centuries, many, if not most, Christians have not observed the holiday. Some churches, such as the Puritans, forbade such festivities in England and even in Boston – making it illegal to celebrate. I am happy to say that Lutherans – including Martin himself – kept the celebrations and added to the traditions.
3. Even though some of our Christmas traditions were adapted from questionable roots, it doesn’t mean that our appropriation of them is wrong – as long as the original meaning is stripped away and Christ is proclaimed through them. For example: pagans did (and do) have reverence for evergreen trees as a sign of life during the dark of winter. The ancient Greeks used them in worship, as did the Romans who tied bits of metal and wood to their trees to honor their gods. But to a Christian, the evergreen is a sign of resurrection and eternal life, brought to us by Jesus, the child born that first Christmas. The ornaments we put on (okay, some of the ornaments we put on) symbolize Christ and the promises of our faith. Our sanctuary’s tree is decorated with what are called, “chrismons,” which are Christian symbols such as mangers, stars, triangles, crosses, and fish. Whatever meaning any of those symbols may have had before Christ, they now proclaim him even to those who cannot read.
4. We don’t need any of our traditional Christmas trappings – snowmen, reindeer, Santas, trees, lights on our houses, or even giant blow-up lawn decorations – to celebrate Christ coming into the world to save us from our sins. Such things are what we call “adiaphora,” which means things neither commanded nor forbidden by Scripture, like the robes or clerical collars we pastors wear, or the seasonal altar cloths (paraments), or the use of an organ, or having a Christmas tree in the sanctuary: we can worship God, proclaim his Gospel, and minister the sacraments – things which are commanded, with or without any of those things.
5. Non-religious activities, songs, movies, and decorations can be an enjoyable part of our Christmas celebrations. It’s okay to have a winter-themed holiday and sing songs about snowmen and sleigh rides. It’s okay to give gifts and eat goodies (disclaimer: within reason and according to your specific dietary restrictions and needs). It’s okay to watch the Grinch. As long as the messages are consistent with the Christian faith – love, forgiveness, reconciliation, generosity and care for the needy, etc. – enjoy them.
6. Appropriation can go both ways. If we use evergreen trees in our celebrations, our society has taken over the powerful biblical symbol of the rainbow and given it a meaning far different from what God intended: his promise never to destroy the world again by a flood. The cross, a sign of God’s love and sacrifice for our sake is used in numerous movies as a sign the person wearing it is unbalanced. And as we are discussing, Christmas has become largely a secular winter celebration, a chance to get off work (except for pastors!), party, and get gifts. To many people, it’s not much different than Thanksgiving or Labor Day. That’s more my concern, than Christians “redeeming” things from the world and using them to serve Christ.
7. Finally, there are two powerful examples in Scripture – one in each Testament – which illustrate believers appropriating pagan things and using them for good. In Exodus 12, when the Israelites finally leave Egypt after the last plague, it says that many of the Egyptians gave the Israelites their silver and gold. Verse 36 says, “Thus they plundered the Egyptians.” Here were pagans giving their resources to the people God had chosen as his own. They didn’t refuse the riches because the pagans had owned them first. Then, in Acts 17:22-31, we read how Paul used a pagan altar inscribed “To the unknown god,” to explain to the Athenians who the real God is and what he did for them through Jesus Christ. We call such use “redeeming the culture,” and speak to a Christian using worldly things for eternal purposes.

So, is Christmas religious or not? I would say it has largely lost that meaning in our culture and society. That it still retains any focus on Christ is a testamonly to the Holy Spirit working through his people to proclaim the Gospel and to do so whatever the season. Let us continue to tell the world about their Savior, so that the true meaning of Christmas will take hold in their hearts.

And as for Karen and me, whether we hang pictures of snowmen or bake cookies or put a bow on our cat, we will celebrate Christmas. For us, Jesus will always be the “Reason for the Season.” May he always be that for you as well!

May the Lord bless you and keep you, may the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you, may the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace. Amen.

Read: Luke 2, Acts 17, 1 Corinthians 8

*I hasten to add, that if we did have any mistletoe, I would stand under it waiting for Karen to walk by . . .

“Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.” (Hebrews 13:8)

In my previous blog, I illustrated the changeability of the “truths” which people hold, by describing some old magazine advertisements that used questionable “scientific” claims and now-embarrassing social attitudes to purvey their products: from the antique Coca Cola ad which proclaimed it is “the  ideal brain tonic, specific for a headache, relieves mental and phisical (sic) exhaustion” to the Lux Toilet Soap ad which admonished women, “You’ve WON him, now you must KEEP him” by using its cosmetic-cleansing properties to remove old makeup. We laugh at such ads or just shake our heads, but must admit that one day people will laugh at things we think are true and reasonable. For example, there are the pharmaceutical ads on TV which show happy, attractive people doing enjoyable activities with smiling friends and family while a purring voice-over describes the possible side-effects of the drug – including heart attack, stroke, coma, and death. But at least you won’t have itchy skin any more!

Another example comes from my own days in Junior High. Our history class was discussing the Civil War and the topic of slavery came up. I remember watching and listening in amazement as the consensus of the students changed from one extreme to another: one day they all agreed slavery was bad (my view), and the next day they argued that it was mostly beneficial and that the slaves were better off because they had food and shelter. Fortunately, I think the class went back to the “slavery=bad” view by the time we moved on to a new subject. But, the idea of what was “true” changed depending which opinion was in favor on which day. Even though I was not yet the sophisticated, highly educated, clear thinker which I am now, this flip-flop caught my attention as to the unreliability of consensus “truths.”

Truth is not determined by popular vote.

This first became evident to me even earlier, when I was in first or second grade. Our teacher asked us whether the sun is closer to the earth in the summer or in the winter. Everyone but me raised their hands to vote “summer.” But for some reason, I waited and voted “winter,” much to the jeers and laughs of my fellow pupils. Their laughing stopped when the teacher said, “Yes, Richard – you’re right!” This was an early lesson for me that truth is not determined by popular vote. (Okay, if our class had been in the Southern Hemisphere, they would have been right and I would have been properly laughed at. But we weren’t.)

So where do we go for the truth? Is there something that is unchanging and reliable, that doesn’t vary with the passage of time, popular attitudes, or the latest scientific theories? Fortunately, we have such a dependable source. It is God’s Word, given through the prophets, embodied in the person of Jesus Christ, and recorded in the Bible. Isaiah 40:8 proclaims, “The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever.” Jesus affirmed this in Mark 13:31: “Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.”

The Bible is God’s written Word, and that is where we find dependable, unchanging truth. It is, as Psalm 119:105 attests, “a lamp to my feet and a light to my path,” dependably guiding us in a world of changing ideas, attitudes, truisms, and “scientific facts. As I promised in my last blog, here are some of the reasons why I fully trust God’s Word for all matters of faith and life:

1. It is a matter of faith. I believe the Bible is what it claims to be: the inspired Word of God. It claims to have been written by men moved by God’s Spirit to convey his revelation to the world, and I trust it to be true. I know this is my “subjective” belief, but without this foundation, Scripture just stands alongside other great writings, subject to the same kinds of flaws and levels of importance they have. But because of faith, God’s written Word has authority over me, no matter what issues I encounter in areas of evidence or interpretation. Jesus loves me, this I know. . . why? . . . for the Bible tells me so – and I believe the Bible as a matter of faith.
2. It is a matter of authorship. Because God is the ultimate Author of Scripture, it is always absolutely true. God tells the truth because
   • he knows the truth about everything. He is all-knowing (omniscient), whether it is men’s hearts or the reasons things happen or the science behind creation or what will happen in the future. He knows the end of something from its beginning (Isaiah 46:10).
   • he tells the truth because he “will not lie or change His mind; for He is not a man that He should change His mind” (1 Samuel 15:29).
   • he wants us to know the truth because he loves us and desires that we turn from darkness and enter into his light, for our eternal benefit (John 1:9, 3:16).
3. It is a matter of reliability. We can have full confidence that the Bible texts we have today are true to what the original writers wrote under God’s inspiration. There is more textual evidence for the books of the Bible than for any other ancient book. For example, the earliest copy of Julius Caesar’s Gallic and Civil Wars dates to about 1000 years after he wrote it. In comparison, the earliest fragment of John’s Gospel dates to 115 AD, or less than 30 years after it was written. A scrap of Mark’s Gospel in Greek is believed to be among the Dead Sea Scrolls, which dates it to within 40 years after Christ’s death and resurrection. And speaking of the Dead Sea Scrolls, they have pushed back by 900 years the copies of Old Testament books available to us, and they agree with the newer texts we had been using. One other example: when the King James Version was written (1611), there were five ancient manuscripts of the Greek New Testament available to the translators; since then, another 5,000 such manuscripts have been found and the texts are almost completely the same (with minor variations due to copying variations). There are no contradictions when it comes to doctrine or historical accounts in either Testaments. Finally, related to the charge that the Roman Catholic Church picked and chose which books would go into the Bible, suppressing  or changing books they didn’t like: no one church ever had such control over the Bible; the books were copied and distributed in many places around the ancient Mediterranean world until a consensus was reached, before there even was a church known as “Roman Catholic.”
4. It is a matter of preservation. Related to the reliability of the biblical texts is the fact they still exist after thousands of years of opposition and persecution. Many have burned Bibles and persecuted to the death those who read and believe it, yet in spite of such horrendous suppression the Bible still flourishes and is available around the world in every medium and almost every language. God has preserved his Word among us, and indeed has allowed it to spread until, as Paul wrote in Romans 1:8, the faith is being preached in the whole world.
5. It is a matter of consistency. The Bible was written over a period of at least 1500 years in three languages by dozens of (inspired) human authors. The books vary in style from historical narrative, to songs and poetry, to proverbs and prophecies, to biographies and parables; yet they combine to tell a consistent story of an all-powerful, holy, and loving Creator God against whom we rebelled, yet who in mercy has provided us forgiveness and eternal life through the substitutionary death of his own Son. The thread of God’s plan winds its way throughout the scriptures, culminating in the return of Christ one day to bring everything to completion.
6. It is a matter of validation. Although the truth of the Bible does not require validation by other fields of study, it is still encouraging to see how many times the Bible has been shown to be true by discoveries in archaeology, history, and science. While this subject is way too big for me to adequately present here, a few examples may be helpful.
   • Skeptics used to criticize the Bible for speaking of the Hittites because their existence had been lost to history, until archaeologist rediscovered that powerful civilization in 1884.
   • Another validation was the victory by British General Allenby in World War I over a Turkish army in Palestine, using the same tactic used by Saul’s son Jonathan to defeat the Philistines at the same location (1 Samuel 14).
   • Critics said the Bible was wrong when it said in Daniel 5 that the last king of Babylon was named Belshazzar. Wrong, they said, it was Nabonidus. But as more recent archaeology has shown, even though the last king of the Babylonian empire was Nabonidus, he didn’t like the city of Babylon and moved away from it, leaving his son to rule in his place. His son’s name? Belshazzar, of course.
   • And there are stone inscriptions which corroborate biblical events and the names of kings, including Omri, Ahaziah, and David.
7. It is a matter of changed lives. As predicted by the Bible itself, people of every nation, tribe, and language have embraced Jesus Christ by the power of God’s Word. Their lives have been changed for the good in consistent ways: feeling grace and forgiveness, and being able to forgive others; being at peace even in death’s shadow, being confident of eternal life with God; sacrificing one’s time, resources, and life in Christ’s service; improving society and helping the hurting; accepting martyrdom not as a way to kill others, but to bless them; and cleaning up their lifestyles to reflect biblical standards of morality and holiness. God’s Word is not just about God’s power, it is God’s power to effect salvation. As Paul wrote in Ephesians 1:13, “In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit,” and in Romans 10:17, “So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.”

God’s Word is not just about God’s power, it is God’s power.

There is much more that could be said about each of these reasons – in fact  much more has been said in the many good books on Christian apologetics that are available. Here, I have just touched on them to show the range of reasons I accept and trust the Bible to always be true.

Unlike those who seek fickle ideas that by tomorrow are “just so yesterday,” may you find the unchanging and unshakeable truth of God’s Word, fulfilled ultimately in Jesus Christ, who “is the same yesterday and today and forever” (Hebrews 13:8). And in finding him, may you find a peace that passes all understanding!

May the Lord bless you and keep you, the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you, the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace. Amen.

Read: Hebrews 13 and John 14:1-6

“The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever.” Thus reads Isaiah 40:8, one of the lessons from this past Sunday, the Second Sunday in Advent.

I thought of this verse while reading an email from a cousin of mine who likes to forward articles, videos, humorous photos, and inspirational stories. In yesterday’s email, my cousin sent a collection of old print advertisements under the caption, “You read it and just shake your head – it can’t be . . .” The caption is absolutely correct; I had to laugh while reading them, thinking to myself, “I can’t believe these were actually used as advertisements. Did we really think that way back then?” Back then, as in the 1950’s and 60’s, when I was growing up.

Among the craziest or most politically-incorrect ads were the following: the Del Monte catsup ad that shows a smiling woman holding a bottle with the caption, “You mean a woman can open it?” Then there’s the encouragement to buy your wife a vacuum cleaner, with the promise, “Christmas morning (and forever after) she’ll be happier with a Hoover.” Another ad shows a man holding up a yardstick to his dress-wearing wife under the caption, “How to measure your wife for an ironing table.” And don’t forget the woman boasting that she has all the dates she wants now that she has gained weight from eating ironized yeast, whereas before, “Men wouldn’t look at me when I was skinny.”

But the really scary ads were the ones advocating certain products that are so obviously dangerous we wouldn’t think of using them. For example, there’s the ad for “Asthma Cigarettes: For Your Health.” Yes, seriously. Dr. Batty’s cigarettes “effectively treat asthma, hay fever, foul breath, all diseases of the throat, head colds, canker sours (sic) and bronchial irritations. Not recommended for children under 6.” Which means they are recommended for 7-year olds? Or Lucky Strikes as a weight-loss tool which “No One Can Deny.” Or how about the “Cocaine Tooth Drops” available at all “druggists,” which ad shows two little kids building a toy house out of sticks. Or the cola ad that shows a mom and her baby and asks, “How soon is too soon to start drinking soda pop?” The answer it gives is it’s never too soon, if you want your child to gain acceptance and “fit in” socially as a teen or preteen. Finally, there’s the ad with a smiling woman holding a loaf of green bread with the caption, “Try Penicillin; Made from mold, you can get this drug from your doctor or prepare it yourself.” (I’ve tried to do the last one myself, but Karen always catches me in time and makes me take a fresh slice of bread.)

We can laugh at such ads from our more informed and “enlightened” perspective, but the scariest thing about those ads is how many times they appeal to “scientific studies” to prove why you should use their products. Laboratory tests “proved” the social benefits of soda pop; the longer length of Pall Mall cigarettes means the smoke is filtered more (charts prove it so much even Santa is puffing away!); and clinical experience shows that Mr. Merke’s “New Kind of Hat” will grow hair if worn just 10 minutes a day! Unless those advertisers just made up their studies, their appeal to science shows the temporary nature of most knowledge. What we “knew” then is dangerously obsolete; much of what we assume as true today – including our ads and scientific studies – will one day be laughed at by email readers of the future (if there even is email in the future!). They may look at what we write and say, “That’s just so yesterday!”

Science is a fickle master that would claim to represent proven, objective truth, but it varies with the latest study. It also subject to the politics of whatever scientific establishment currently has authority, and on who is paying the bill for the research. Is it any surprise that studies funded by milk producers prove the health benefits of drinking milk, while a 1996 tobacco industry study of nicotine proved it improved people’s cognitive performance? In 2008, scientists sponsored by the Sugar Association proved the dangers of Splenda, while Splenda’s manufacturer hired scientists who showed it was safe. And a scientist discovered recent DNA in a dinosaur bone, but lost her job because the university for which she worked feared her work would support creationism.

By saying this I am not making the post-modern error that asserts there is no objective truth, and that all so-called “truth” is relative and subjective to each person. If I did, then maybe “asthma cigarettes” would be good for those who believe in them. No, I believe that there are truths and errors, even if the public consensus or attitude toward them changes. We can rightly shake our heads at the Schlitz Beer ad showing a man consoling his wife (who is crying over a burned meal) by telling her, “Don’t worry, darling, you didn’t burn the beer!” It was objectively a bad ad!

What I am saying is that what we are told is true today, may be proven wrong tomorrow. A compliment today may be harassment tomorrow. What was a planet yesterday (e.g., Pluto) may be demoted to a “dwarf planet” today, and then reinstated tomorrow. What had two genders ten years ago now comes in 58 according to Facebook.

Some of my favorite examples of changing scientific “orthodoxy” are in the field of anthropology. Every few years some scientist finds bones and publishes papers claiming to have found the “missing link” between apes and humans. The media announce, “This changes everything” and “Science has to rewrite its books.” Then, other scientists study the findings, and report that they were either faked (Piltdown Man) or mistaken (Lucy), and another “ancestor” is relegated to the dust bin of scientific history because the bones belong to either a full ape or a full human, or in one case, a pig (so-called Nebraska Man)!

My point is not that scientific study or research is bad; it has discovered a lot and taught us much, and much good has been accomplished. The medicines I take, the computer on which I am writing this blog, and the car I drive are just three examples of the countless ways scientific research and application directly benefit me. My point is that we need to be careful not to jump aboard every new report as if it’s a dependable truth, the final answer to life’s questions. If we do, we will be disappointed and led into error. That may be okay, if we’re talking about which laundry detergent gets our clothes the cleanest; but if we’re seeking the meaning of life and are trying to order our lives to follow God’s will, then we better make sure we have the definitive, unchanging truth as our guide.

Fortunately, we have such a dependable source. That is where Isaiah 40:8 comes in: “the word of our God will stand forever.” Jesus affirmed this in Matthew 5:18 when he said, “For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished.” And in Mark 13:31: “Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.”

The Bible is God’s written Word, and that is where we find dependable, unchanging truth. It is, as Psalm 119:105 attests, “a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.” Why is it so dependable in a world of changing ideas, attitudes, truisms, and “scientific facts”? Tune in next time and I’ll cover some of the reasons why I fully trust God’s Word for all matters of faith and life. For now, I’m heading to the fridge to get me a soda pop so I can be socially accepted by my peers . . .

May the Lord bless you and keep you, the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you, the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace. Amen.

Read: Psalm 119 and 1 Corinthians 1:18-31

Merry Christmas, er, that is, Merry Advent! I’d wish you a “Merry Christmas!” but it’s not Christmas yet . . . even though all the stores and online advertising seem to think otherwise – except for the one that has Easter candy out already! Just kidding (maybe).

This Sunday, December 3, is the day we enter a new church year and a new church season, namely, the season of Advent. Advent means “coming” and refers to someone or something that is approaching us or arriving. It is applied to the four weeks leading up to Christmas as we anticipate the coming of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. The season of Advent is a time of preparation, prayer, and pondering about Jesus’ birth and why he came to earth to become one of us. It is a time to consider what his coming means for our lives, both here now on earth, and in eternity.

The season has been observed at least since the Middle Ages, when it was treated as a somber season of repentance before Christmas, the way Lent is before Easter.

Today, Advent is a season with its own special traditions: special songs and hymns like “Oh Come, Oh Come, Emmanuel,” the Advent wreath, special wall banners, Advent calendars to mark off the days until Christmas, and in some churches, midweek Advent services. Advent is not just four weeks to get through before the real celebration of Christmas.

At the Eddy home, we have a few Advent traditions. First off, we hang a lighted, 26-point Moravian star from our front porch. It’s called a Moravian star because it is popular among members of the Moravian churches. In fact, our star was a gift from a Moravian family Karen provided child care for in Indiana. We also hang an Advent buzzard, either a full-size one made of black cloth and a white sock with buttons for the eyes, or two miniature ones I made out of paper, which we hide on the Christmas tree for people to find. The tradition calls for striking the buzzard as you walk past, saying with force and determination: “I renounce the powers of darkness, and put on the armor of light!” (Romans 13:12). Then there’s the beautiful wooden Advent calendar Karen gave me one year, with little doors hiding scriptural quotes and tiny gifts. Maybe I’ll ask her to put that up for me again this year!

Unfortunately, in our culture around us, Advent has totally disappeared and been replaced by the season of “Let’s shop and party and get stuff.” To our society, the Twelve Days of Christmas are the last twelve shopping days before Christmas, rather than the real twelve days that begin on Christmas and last until January 6, the Epiphany,  when we celebrate the arrival of the Wise Men. Even in many churches, Advent is squeezed out as they move straight from Thanksgiving to Christmas in decorations, song choices, and programs. (And yes, we do some of that, too!)

Advent is an important time for Christians because we know that the true meaning of Christmas is more than parties, decorations, gifts, and songs about grandmas getting run over by reindeer. It is about more than even the sentimental “family-discovers-the-true-meaning-of-Christmas” TV specials this time of year (none of which actually gets around to mentioning the name of Jesus!). Advent reminds us each year of just who Jesus is and why we needed him to come to us. We are reminded of the prophecies that foretold His birth and sacrifice for our forgiveness. It truly prepares us to celebrate His birth with our eyes and hearts and minds wide open to the wonderful life-giving miracle of God becoming man.

Advent is about more than just pre-Christmas preparation, because during Advent we recognize that Christmas is only one of three ways that Jesus comes to us. There are actually three Advents:

1. Advent #1 – Christmas, the birth of Jesus of Nazareth, when the eternal Son of God took on flesh and became one of us. We call this miracle of God becoming man the Incarnation. It was essential for our salvation that the eternal Son of God came to earth in order to live a sinless life and become the pure sacrifice for our sins. By his death our sins were paid for, and our punishment canceled. Paul tells us in Romans 5:19, “For as by the one man’s (Adam’s) disobedience the many were made sinners, so by the one man’s (Jesus’) obedience the many will be made righteous.”

Jesus became true man, able to suffer thirst, hunger, pain, sorrow, and death; he also remained true God, able to forgive sins, do miracles by divine power, and provide a sacrifice great enough to atone for all the sins of every human being. As Martin Luther stated in his explanation of the Second Article of the Apostles’ Creed: “I believe that Jesus Christ, true God, Son of the Father from eternity and true man, born of the Virgin Mary, is my Lord.”

2. Advent #2 – the Return of Christ. Christ’s return is sometimes called the Parousia, which is the word used in the Greek New Testament for his Second Coming. Our word advent (actually, adventum) is the Latin translation of that word.

But, whatever you call it, the Bible clearly teaches that Jesus is coming back, visibly and physically. As our Creed states, “He will come again to judge the living and the dead.”

Christ will come with a shout, descending to us in heavenly glory from the clouds. He will bring with him all who have died in him, and at his return resurrect them. We who are still on earth at that moment, will be changed and receive our resurrection bodies. And we will be with him forever.

Christ’s return will set all things right. All authorities will be deposed and all evil and wickedness removed. Those who are in Christ will rejoice and receive their rewards, while the unrepentant unbelievers will face everlasting judgment. All prophecies of Christ’s return will be gloriously fulfilled,

3. Advent #3 – Christ Comes to Us Personally. Besides the other two Advents which have world-wide, even cosmic impacts which affect everyone, there is an Advent in which Jesus comes to us personally to redeem, forgive, indwell, and give us new life. Christ comes to us in the written words of Scripture, when his Spirit moves us to believe and draws us to God. He gives you and me new life in the waters of baptism, and he nourishes us spiritually by his own true body and blood given in, with, and under the bread and wine of Holy Communion. He comes to us daily through prayer and works to change our lives that we might be transformed to become more and more like him. This is the individual Advent each of us needs.

In Revelation 22:20, the Apostle John wrote about Christ, “He who testifies to these things says, ‘Surely I am coming soon.’.” Then John added, “Amen. Come, Lord Jesus!”

We join that chorus and say, “Amen! Come Lord Jesus to us at your birth, at your triumphant return, and to each of us personally through your means of grace.” And to all of you I say, “May Christ come to you powerfully this Advent season.” Amen and Amen!

And now, may the Lord bless you and keep you, the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you, the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace. Amen.

Read: 1 Corinthians 15:51-58, Matthew 28:16-20