It’s A Virtue
1 Thessalonians 5:12-28
I needed to hear these words today: “And we urge you, beloved, to admonish the idlers, encourage the faint hearted, help the weak, be patient with all of them” (1 Thessalonians 5:14). It isn’t the admonition, the encouragement, or the help that I needed to be reminded about, it is the patience. It’s Advent, and my patience is running low. What a shame, too. This is the season of expectation and hope, of looking forward to what God is doing while celebrating what has already been done. It is a time for preparing and for reorienting. Joy should permeate everything we do; the King of Glory is coming!

But Advent also presents us with more hectic schedules and more complicated calendars. There are family arrangements to work out and money to be spent. There are long lines and short fuses. It is a complicated time of year and I find myself getting antsy about the silliest things. I know I’m not alone. Even good experiences, even kind people, even days filled with good cheer can cause stress, like weddings, for example. As a minister I feel a certain responsibility for this season, to help others experience the joy of Christmas, and that can cause me a good bit of stress as well. And the stress in turn leads to a loss of patience.

But faithful obedience calls for faithful living. As the writer of Thessalonians reminds us, patience is a virtue for which we should strive at all times and with all people. Advent, then, should also be a time for practicing the sort of calm acceptance that the world needs. Lord, I’ll be glad to do all the admonishing, encouraging, and helping that I can, but I’m going to need you to give me the patience that I need, so that I can share your love with others and can live in peace during Advent and beyond. Oh, and Lord, could you hurry up with that patience? I haven’t got all day!

Prayer: Lord, forgive us when we are quick to judge and quick to anger, and help us to live in peace with one another. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Meddling On The Margins

Leviticus 19:1-18

1 Thessalonians 5:12-28

Matthew 6:19-24

A theme that runs through each of our passages today is the economics of God. In Leviticus God charges the Hebrew people to consider the needs of the poor. “When you reap the harvest of your land, you shall not reap to the very edges of your field, or gather the gleanings of your harvest. You shall not strip your vineyard bare, or gather the fallen grapes of your vineyard; you shall leave them for the poor and the alien: I am the Lord your God” (Leviticus 19:9-10). Despite profit margins being what they are God says that we are not entitled to everything our own fields produce. Is this really fair?

Paul says, “And we urge you, beloved, to admonish the idlers, encourage the faint hearted, help the weak, be patient with all of them. See that none of you repays evil for evil, but always seek to do good to one another and to all” (1 Thessalonians 5:14-15). As we seek to invigorate the lazy we are also to show them patience and love, and respond to their actions with goodness and not evil. Is this really fair?

In the gospel Jesus says, "No one can serve two masters; for a slave will either hate the one and love the other, or be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth” (Matthew 6:24). In other words, if we devote our lives to financial security we will not be as attentive to God’s will. We must be willing to forego the wealth in order to follow God. Is this really fair?

Our culture assumes that we will harvest right up to the very edges (and then some, if we can get away with it). Our culture expects those who are lazy to go without. Our culture says that wealth is a mark of blessing and may be pursued with all diligence, even at the expense of our spiritual health. But God’s will is about justice and truth, about compassion and mutual regard. It is about letting others go first and stepping back so that more may pass. It is about leaving 99 healthy sheep to search out the one that is lost, about raining manna on an ungrateful people, about creating a world of blessing and turning it over to us as its stewards.

God meddles in human affairs. How will we respond?

Prayer: Lord, help us to care for one another and to share more freely from what we have been given. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

When It's Tough to Give Thanks

1 Thessalonians 5:12-28

Paul’s words to us this morning may seem a little contrived. “Rejoice always,” he says, “pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you” (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18).

If we didn’t know any better we might accuse Paul of being one of those irritating people who are always just a touch too cheerful, like a morning person in a family of day-break grouches. But Paul had earned the right to exhort others in this manner. Over the course of his ministry Paul was frequently mistreated, beaten, imprisoned, ridiculed, and run out of town. If he could give thanks “in all circumstances”…well, maybe we can, too.

But there’s a weak economy, Paul. What do you say about that?

“Rejoice always.”

But Paul, I don’t’ even know if I trust God anymore. What should I do?

“Pray without ceasing.”

Paul, get serious. My family life is in shambles, my work is stressful and unrewarding, my health is bad, I am lonely and full of despair. I don’t know what to do.

“Give thanks in all circumstances.”

Can it really be that easy? Well, first of all Paul never said it would be easy to follow his admonitions. But no matter, all of this praying and rejoicing and thanksgiving is the will of God, and God’s will is our greatest source of hope. So maybe the season of Advent is the right time to practice following Paul’s advice. And maybe, just maybe, if we can take the first faltering steps down the road of praise and joy we will find ourselves moving with more and more strength, more and more certainty until our lives really do reflect God’s will more often than not.

So rejoice, pray, give thanks because that’s what God wants from us.

Prayer: Lord, we sometimes have difficulty living with joy and thankfulness. Forgive us, and help us to open our hearts and minds to you at all times. Amen.

The Advent of Ricky Bobby

1 Thessalonians 5:1-11

Luke 21:20-28

In the film “Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby” Will Ferrell plays a man with a particular view of Jesus, one which his wife Carley questions:

Ricky: Dear Tiny, Infant, Jesus...

Carley: Hey, um, sweetie, Jesus did grow up. You don't always have to call him baby. It's a bit odd and off-puttin' to pray to a baby.

Ricky: Look, I like the Christmas Jesus best, and I'm sayin' grace. When you say grace, you can say it to Grownup Jesus or Teenage Jesus or Bearded Jesus or whoever you want.

If we’re not careful we can let the season of Advent become only about the “Christmas Jesus” and forget that we are also waiting for Jesus’ second coming and the fulfillment of God’s reign. And it’s no wonder. The “Christmas Jesus” is sweet and innocent and we know about his life, what will happen and when. But the Jesus of the second coming is…well, we don’t know what he’s like and we don’t really know what to expect. So we, like Ricky Bobby, would probably prefer to think about the “Christmas Jesus”, especially at this time of year.

But Paul and Jesus himself want us to keep the second coming very much in mind. “Now concerning the times and seasons, brothers and sisters, you do not need to have anything written to you,” says Paul. “For you yourselves know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night” (1 Thessalonians 5:1-2). According to Luke, Jesus told his followers, “Now when these things begin to take place, stand up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near” (Luke 21:28). Something that comes like “a thief in the night” may be less pleasant to think about than a birth celebrated shepherds and wise men, but Advent is just as much about Jesus’ second coming as his first. Unless we keep that in mind we are only engaged in half of the season.

Prayer: Lord, help us to live with expectation and hope, not only as we celebrate the birth of Jesus, but as we look for the Son’s return as well. In Jesus’ name. Amen.