Advent week 3

Psalm: Psalm 126 or Luke 1:47-55
Old Testament: Isaiah 61:1-4, 8-11
Gospel: John 1:6-8, 19-28
Epistle: 1 Thessalonians 5:16-24

Here we are, I can't believe it is week three of Advent. I hope everyone's preparations for Christmas are coming together.

This week is a bit of a paradox in the advent season. One of the things we have mentioned in the past two weeks is that waiting isn't very fun; in fact, it can be down right painful. We have also been discussing how we wait during this time of Advent, and in all our lives, for the return of Christ. This week, however, we add a surprising layer- joy. The third Sunday of Advent has traditionally been the Sunday of joy and I find it quite surprising. I don't think of joy when I think of waiting. I don't think of joy when I think of preparation. When I think of preparation, I think necessities getting done so we can have joy when the party starts. It seems like Christmas Sunday should be the Sunday of joy, not during advent.

Yet the Church has decided that this is the Sunday to celebrate joy. Our passages this week strike me as odd as well. On the one hand we have Psalm 126 extolling the joy that came when the captives were restored to Jerusalem. They have reason to rejoice, the waiting is over and the fortunes of Israel were restored. Then we have John 1 talking about the work of John the Baptist. We have already discussed John, but we can note that this passage isn't really one of joy, rather it again seems to be about waiting and preparation.

On the other hand however, we have Isaiah 61 and 1 Thes. 5. Isaiah 61 is the passage that Jesus quotes at the start of his ministry in Luke. The prophet in Isaiah and Jesus in Luke are proclaiming the favor of the Lord despite how things appear. In the midst of judgment and trial, rejoice for the Lord is at work. Isaiah calls the people to rejoice before their fortunes have been restored: to rejoice in the waiting(v.4)

1 Thes. 5 however is the clearest passage of the week of how we are to wait. Our passage begins "rejoice always." We are to rejoice when life is difficult and we don't see the hand of God restoring us from our captivity. The writer even goes on to answer at least a little bit of how that is possible; pray without ceasing, be grateful, and live in the Spirit. The Spirit of Christ allows us to be joyful while we wait. As we wait for the Day of the Lord we are not left to ourselves. Christ through his Spirit is here and active. He is the one who sanctifies us and is faithful to prepare us for the Christ's return.

So after three weeks, I think we can add our hardest layer yet. We are to wait with Joy. It is two weeks exactly until Christmas. That is two weeks until we celebrate when the Light came to earth in the Flesh. This week, I hope we all have time to listen to the carol "O come, o come Emmanuel" and reflect where joy is present in this song. I don't know, it's just a thought I had since it's my favorite advent song. Maybe if I give an assignment someone will respond. Blessing on you this week.