Readings: Isaiah 2: 1-5; Psalm 121; Romans 13: 11-14; Matthew 24: 37-44
Today is the first Sunday of Advent – Year A. We begin a new year in the Church’s liturgical calendar. Advent is a time of joyful expectation of the coming of the Messiah. Advent is the thousands of years the Jewish people waited for and expected the Messiah squeezed into four weeks of intense spiritual preparation for the celebration of the birth of the Saviour of the world; the fulfilment of the promise God made to his people Israel that he would send them a messiah.
The Messiah would:
- Be the offspring of a woman and would crush the head of the serpent. (Gen 3: 15).
- Come from the seed of Abraham and would bless all the nations on earth. (Gen 12: 3).
- Be a ‘prophet like Moses.’ (Deut 1: 15)
- Be born in Bethlehem. (Micah 5: 2)
- Be born of a virgin. (Is 7: 14)
- Have a throne, and his dynasty would last forever. (2Sam 7: 16)
- Be called ‘wonderful counsellor, mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of peace’ (Is 9: 6-7). He will bless his people with peace. (Ps 29: 11)
Advent is a time we recall in great joy the first coming of Jesus, born as a baby in Bethlehem; when God took human nature to save us from our sins and lead us from the path of destruction and sin to the path of light, life, and peace in the Lord. It is also a time we await in joyful hope the second coming of Jesus.
We live in between the two periods of the first coming and the second coming. We have the privilege of reading about his first coming and sharing in the joy and blessing of that coming, advent raises our minds too to prepare for the second and final time when Jesus will come to judge all. We prepare so that the joy we have at his first coming may not be taken from us at the second coming.
As someone said, we are “living in the interval between the lighting of Jesus’ first coming and the thunder of his second coming. The ‘lighting’ of his first coming represents the quiet, hidden beginning of the life, suffering and rejection of Jesus. While the ‘thunder’ of his second coming signifies a sudden, glorious, and universally visible return of power and judgement. What the angel said to the apostles right after Jesus was taken up into heaven applies to us too”: “ Why are you standing there looking up at the sky? This Jesus, who was taken from you into heaven will come back in the same way that you saw him go to heaven.” (Acts 1: 10-11)
As we await Jesus’ second coming, what are we doing? Are we idle staring into the sky or are we busy preparing for the second coming, or are we so busy with the things of this world; distracted by their pseudo beauty and charm that we have no time for the things of God?
Yesterday, just yesterday, I was with a group of people, men and women. One of the persons in the group, a young man, a Nigerian politician. In the midst of our discussion, we ventured into Nigerian politics. What he said shocked me. He said he used to be a Christian but was no longer one. He said to me, “Now that I am a politician, I no longer believe in God.” He said that to make it as a politician in Nigeria, you cannot be a true Christian. “You have to protect yourself with different things. To make it in politics here, you cannot afford to be gentle. Have to protect myself. I have to. I don’t want them to kill me,” he said.
I looked at him and felt sorry for him. I remembered Luke 18: 18. The rich young man who went to Jesus and asked, “Good master, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” When Jesus told him to sell all he owned and give the money to the poor in order to have riches in heaven, and then follow him, he refused. He turned away from Jesus. He chose the world and riches over God and eternal life.
The young Nigerian politician yesterday chose political position and riches over God and the salvation of his soul. What a pity! What about us? This Advent offers us another opportunity to choose God and eternal life.
This is what Advent is about, it is not just remembering the first coming, the birth of Jesus; it is not about looking up to heaven and enjoying the melody of the angels’ voice and singing of ‘Glory to God in the highest heaven and peace on earth among people of goodwill.’ It is not about standing idly by looking up to heaven, it is far more than these. It is a time to rejoice in thanksgiving for the first coming of Jesus, and at the same time, we roll up our sleeves and get to work to prepare for the second coming.
How do we do this? It is simple. We celebrate the first coming and prepare for the second by doing what Jesus told us and taught us to do, to stay awake, to show love and live in love by feeding the hungry, give drink to the thirsty, clothe the naked, welcome strangers, and work for peace. This is a task which cannot be put off till tomorrow. “We are confronted with the fierce urgency of now.” St Paul reminded us of the urgency when he told us that “our salvation is closer than when we first believed…let us cast off the works of darkness and put on the amour of light.” (Rom 13: 15) Let us put on Christ, our hope, light, and life.
Brothers and sisters, this is Advent…. Maranatha! Come Lord Jesus!
Sermon preached by Fr. Ethelbert Ukpabi on November 30, 2025.