© Bexleyheath Methodist Church, allrights reserved 2020
FROM THE MANSE
Words of Encouragement from the Manse
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The Coming of the Lord has three dimensions - past, present and future. The Lord has come, is coming and
will come! Most of us prioritise the Coming of the Lord in the past at Christmas, often called the First Advent.
It is an integral part of our tradition. As per the latest information from the government, special provisions
have been made for Christmas celebrations throughout the UK during 23 - 27 December 2020, of course in a
strange and limited way, despite the threats of COVID-19, even in the midst of the pandemic restrictions.
Christmas celebrations are good, but certainly not at the expense of the Coming of the Lord in the present,
here and now. Most of us equally prioritise the Second Coming of the Lord in the future at the Second
coming, often called the Second Advent. This is important, but certainly not at the expense of the Lord's
Coming in the present, here and now.
The Lord has come in the past. We gratefully and joyfully celebrate this at Christmas. But the Coming of the
Lord in the past is not limited to Christmas. There was indeed no time when the Lord had not visited the
people or when God was absent from the world!
The Lord comes to us here and now, in the present. More often than not, we are insensitive to the Coming of
the Lord to us in the present, in the midst of our circumstances here and now. Jesus' parable of the final
judgement by the "Son of Man when he comes in glory" (Matthew 25:31-46) is very eloquent and most
picturesque in reiterating the criteria for the judgement of the nations. What matters is not the faith or the
cult or the practices we uphold and cherish, but what love requires. The question is whether or not our
religious faith and practices make us helpful to others in their desperate circumstances. Can we be "little
Christs" to the less fortunate ones in their needs?
The Lord will come again. We are familiar with the notion of the Second Coming of the Lord, also known as
the Second Advent. We look forward to the coming of God's Kingdom when God's will is done on earth as it
is in heaven. We hope for the sovereignty of God becoming a reality in all aspects, personal, interpersonal
and structural, local, national, regional and global. We look forward to the kingdoms of the world becoming
the Kingdom of Christ and God.
Advent hope instils in us a "passion for the possible". We cannot simply remain as talkative people or
babblers, portraying a false or utopian hope that all will be well in heaven or in the next world. Faith should
never be communicated as a pie in the sky. Advent hope calls for committing ourselves to do all we can for
real transformation here and now. A year ago, I received a telephone call from an unknown person. He was
in need of some urgent help, and hence he wanted to meet with me in person. We met. After introducing
himself, he said: "Please do not say, I don't know. Please do not say, just Google search. Please listen to me
and see whether or not you are able to be of help to me in my pathetic situation." With the support of some
friends, we managed to offer him the needed help. Instead of doing this, if we told him that he would be
alright in heaven and God would take care of him, we would have been hypocrites. Later on, he told me: "We
have lost our neighbourliness though we have neighbourhood watch. We are not willing or prepared to
listen to others. It is unfortunate that 'I don't know and just Google search' have become our slogans."
Certainly, we can listen to people. We can be qualitatively different. Let us just consider the mental agony
that the lonely suffer during this ongoing pandemic and see what we can do. Jesus' words to the lawyer
(Luke 10:37), "Go and do likewise" come to us as a command from God. It is in doing so that we prepare
ourselves for the Coming of the Lord. If not, our celebration of Christmas and our hope of the Second
Coming of Christ will have no meaning. To be a human or a Christian is to be a Good Samaritan! This is
indeed the challenge of Advent hope.
The Lord Jesus Christ Comes!
May the Lord Jesus Christ Come!
Revd. Dr. Chellaian Lawrence
Bexleyheath Methodist Church
29 November 2020
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