First-century Christians lived in anticipation of Christ’s return. They expected it at any moment. Such anticipation had an effect on their daily lives. For some, there was perhaps a sense of complacency, a foregone conclusion that Christ’s return was imminent and therefore, little was required of them beyond a personal faith. Others believed that Christ’s soon-coming return was impetus to be busy so that when Christ returned, he would find them faithful.
We would want to believe that the latter describes us more accurately than the former, and yet, can we say that we live in anticipation of Christ’s return? Advent calls us to anticipate the coming of the Christ child in our observances of Christmas, but it also calls us to prepare for the returning Christ. The writer of our text today reminds us that the love of God sustains us as we wait. Therefore, our waiting should be active, not passive, so that we can say, as Elizabeth K. Wells wrote in her nineteenth-century hymn text, “We’ll work til’ Jesus comes, and then be gathered home.”
Prayer: Soon-coming Christ, may we be at work, sustained by your love, faithfully serving you until your return. Amen.
Jim Abernathy
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