Coming ready or not!

Advent is a time of preparation, preparing for an event and the event is remembering that Jesus came into the world. The king of the universe became a tiny helpless human baby whilst at the same time still being God. It is hard to get our heads round the incarnation, fully God and fully human at the same time and on top of that a baby! We do not understand it, I am not sure we are supposed to fully understand it. God incarnate, God amongst us. Not only that it happened 2000 years ago but it is still happening now. Christians when they turn to Christ receive the Holy Spirit as a seal of belonging. Part of God, the third part of the Trinity lives within us. God is still in the world in us. This is heady stuff that we can spend time thinking about, meditating on it and as has occasionally happened through history arguing about.

Advent is a time of preparation. A time to prepare our hearts and minds to once again be ready. Jesus in his teaching also promised that he would come back, we do not know any of the facts around is return, not the date or time, Jesus himself says he does not know when but that it will happen. Only the Father knows when. The words of Isaiah, so often read in church during advent, are as relevant today as they ever have been:

Prepare the way for the LORD;
make straight in the desert
a highway for our God.
Every valley shall be raised up,
every mountain and hill made low;
the rough ground shall become level,
the rugged places a plain.
And the glory of the LORD will be revealed,
and all people will see it together.
For the mouth of the LORD has spoken.”

This text is quoted in the New Testament by Matthew in chapter 3 about John the Baptist but it is also relevant to us today. Are we ready for the glory of the Lord to be revealed both in our lives and in or world?

Christmas is coming whether we are ready or not. Christ has come and is coming again, are we ready...or not?