Why Do We Have to Go Through the “Advent” Season?
A friend from East Nusa Tenggara once said that one thing he missed from his hometown was the thick Christmas atmosphere that was really felt approaching December. He continued his nostalgia by saying that when entering a month ending in “ber” (September, October, etc.), Christmas songs would definitely be played everywhere, from public places to being heard in each person’s home environment. It seemed that what his friend said was true. Even in other areas, it was the same, although the atmosphere was not as thick compared to other cities in Eastern Indonesia. At least in shopping centers, Christmas songs were also heard. Entering the end of November to the beginning of December, several churches had already held Christmas celebrations.
The excitement of the Christmas atmosphere above is not entirely wrong, but sometimes it makes us forget one important point in the pilgrimage of faith before Christmas arrives, namely the Advent period. The Advent period in the liturgical calendar and the traditions of the early churches is a time of waiting for the coming of the Lord. Like a coin with two sides, the waiting for the coming of the Lord in Advent also has two sides. On the one hand, we prepare ourselves to celebrate and remember His birth thousands of years ago, but on the other hand, our waiting is also directed towards His return to the world to perfect our salvation at the end of time.
The calls for repentance, vigilance, and vigilance of the faithful are an integral part of this waiting period. So the excitement of the Christmas celebration should be preceded by active reflective action to prepare ourselves through a waiting period as part of the awareness of believers to prepare themselves to welcome His return. As Christ's call once shook His people, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!"
Various Signs of the End Times and Proof of God's Sovereignty
The text that we want to reflect on together in this Christmas journey Advent 1 is part of Christ's message according to the Gospel of Luke regarding the end of time. God's power will shake the universe. The earth and the heavenly bodies will be affected. This picture echoes the eschatological prophecies of Isaiah 34:4, Joel 2:10, Hag. 2:6,21. These spectacular changes reveal the coming of the Lord, which will be a moment of restructuring of everything that exists now. God makes a very strong statement of His power. Those (the nations) who have held power on earth for their own benefit will feel great fear. Their power over the world will end with the coming of the Lord, which is depicted by the descent of the Son of Man from the clouds. It also means that the Kingdom of God will be fully fulfilled.
How should believers respond? Many of us have been imagining the end of the world with fear, when in fact we should have peace of mind during that time because the coming of the Lord means that salvation for believers is near. For the recipients of Luke's Gospel who were at that time plagued by persecution and uncertainty, this news was truly a release from what they had endured because believers were given a share in His glory.
Believers must be wise in reading the signs of the times. The Lord Jesus likened it to the activity of looking at the signs on a fig tree to know the change of seasons. With the arrival of different seasons, the way people deal with them will also be different. As is the astuteness and wisdom of God's children to read the signs of the times.
What is Our Part?
The coming of the Lord which is getting closer must be welcomed with joy and relief. However, we also have a role in welcoming His coming. That is why the Lord advised the disciples to always be on guard by not being lulled into fulfilling endless lusts and excessive worries about food, drink, clothing and wealth that hinder focus on the Kingdom of God.
So to face this, all believers need to equip themselves in prayer and constant repentance to God. This must be done so that our hearts are always directed to Him. Aren't we now also in the same nuance as what can be described as "the end times". Wars, natural disasters, crises in various aspects of life, should be enough of a sign for us to always be on guard and repent. Later when the time comes and He comes back, we will be ready.
To Ponder
Let us ponder the following question: How have we experienced the Advent season so far? Have we used it as a moment of repentance?
