Introduction:
Traditionally, Advent Sunday is the
first Sunday in the Church’s calendar and it is the point when Gospel readings
chosen for Sundays change from one to the next.
This year we enter lectionary Year B and most of the readings will be
from Mark’s Gospel. Mark is sometimes
described as a Gospel-writer in a hurry since in, what is the shortest of the books
telling the story of Jesus’ life, there is very rarely any time for extra
detail. Mark gets straight to the point
and leaving us to work out why things are important enough for him to include!
So even though the lectionary will take us on a leisurely year long walk through Mark’s story – you may want to set yourself the challenge of making the time to sit down and read or listen to the whole Gospel in one or two sittings. David Suchet would be more than happy to read it to you! His recordings can be found here: https://www.biblegateway.com/audio/suchet/nivuk/Mark.1 and you can listen to the whole Gospel in about an hour and a half.
(Image with thanks to Revd. Elaine Hall - Supernumerary Minister in Ceredigion Circuit)
As we begin
our worship together you may wish to light a candle to remind you that you are
worshipping alongside God’s people across the world and joining with the whole
Church in heaven and on earth.
Preparation
O Lord, open our
lips
and our mouth shall proclaim your
praise.
Reveal among us
the light of your presence
that we may behold your power and glory.
[Common Worship – Morning Prayer for Advent]
Hymn StF 317 At the Name of Jesus
Advent Liturgy – in church we would normally light an Advent
Wreath at this point of the service.
In the final chapter of the Bible
we hear words of Jesus:
‘These words are trustworthy and
true … and behold, I am coming soon.
Blessed is the one who keeps the words of the prophecy of this book.’
[Revelation 22.6,7]
As we enter Advent,
let us place our faith in the promises of God’s word
and be vigilant in watching for His coming,
Jesus says, ‘Surely I am coming
soon.’
God’s people reply, ‘Come, Lord Jesus!’
[Revelation 22:20]
We sing verse one of Tell Out
My Soul and the first candle is lit.
1Tell out, my soul, the greatness of the
Lord!
Unnumbered blessings, give my spirit voice;
tender to me the promise of his word;
in God my Saviour shall my heart rejoice.
Prayer of Confession
Forgive us, O
God,
that our response to the gospel has not always been in evidence.
Too often we have hidden our light under a bowl
remaining silent when we should have spoken of you.
Thank you, dear God,
that you are the God of second chances
help us
that when opportunity comes again we may not be found wanting,
for Jesus’ sake. Amen
[Adapted from
Prayer Handbook 2019-20]
Almighty God,
full of mercy,
forgives our sins
and grants us newness of life
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen
Hymn StF 173 – Into the Darkness of this World -
Reading: Psalm
80:1-7,17-19
Psalm 80[a]
For the director of music. To the tune of ‘The Lilies of the Covenant’.
Of Asaph. A psalm.
1 Hear us,
Shepherd of Israel,
you who lead Joseph like a flock.
You who sit enthroned between the cherubim,
shine forth 2 before Ephraim,
Benjamin and Manasseh.
Awaken your might;
come and save us.
3 Restore
us, O God;
make your face shine on us,
that we may be saved.
4 How
long, Lord God Almighty,
will your anger smoulder
against the prayers of your people?
5 You have fed them with the bread of tears;
you have made them drink tears by the bowlful.
6 You have made us an object of derision[b] to our neighbours,
and our enemies mock us.
7 Restore
us, God Almighty;
make your face shine on us,
that we may be saved.
…
17 Let your
hand rest on the man at your right hand,
the son of man you have raised up for yourself.
18 Then we will not turn away from you;
revive us, and we will call on your name.
19 Restore
us, Lord God Almighty;
make your face shine on us,
that we may be saved.
Reading Mark 13:24-37
(ESV)
The Coming of the Son of Man
24 “But in
those days, after that tribulation, the sun will be darkened, and the
moon will not give its light, 25 and the stars will
be falling from heaven, and the powers in the heavens will be shaken. 26 And
then they will see the Son of Man coming in clouds with great power
and glory. 27 And then he will send out the angels
and gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of
the earth to the ends of heaven.
The Lesson of the Fig Tree
28 “From
the fig tree learn its lesson: as soon as its branch becomes tender and puts
out its leaves, you know that summer is near. 29 So also,
when you see these things taking place, you know that he is near, at the
very gates. 30 Truly, I say to you, this generation will
not pass away until all these things take place. 31 Heaven
and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.
No One Knows That Day or Hour
32 “But
concerning that day or that hour, no one knows, not even the angels in
heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. 33 Be
on guard, keep awake.[a] For you do not know when the time will
come. 34 It is like a man going on a journey, when he
leaves home and puts his servants[b] in charge, each with his work,
and commands the doorkeeper to stay awake. 35 Therefore
stay awake—for you do not know when the master of the house will come, in
the evening, or at midnight, or when the cock crows,[c] or in the morning— 36 lest he
come suddenly and find you asleep. 37 And what I say
to you I say to all: Stay awake.”
Reflection
‘Be on guard,
keep awake. … Stay awake … Stay awake.’ (Mark 13.33,35,37 ESV))
Can you feel the breathless nudging
here. Three times in 5 verses Jesus
says, “Stay awake!” Right into the darkest
time of year (for us in the Northern Hemisphere), when our bodies are urging us
to slow down and go into a form of hibernation come Jesus’ words with Mark’s
customary breathlessness, “STAY AWAKE!”
Just as we reach that time when we may be aching for rest, the Church year
throws us into a season of preparation, of watching and waiting. It’s almost as if those wise ancestors have
shared their own learning, that in the depths of winter what we need is a shake,
a prod and the alarm-call that urges us, “Stay awake!”
Mark’s Gospel is widely considered to be
the earliest of the three synoptics (so called because they seem to look at
Jesus’ life through similar lenses – whereas John takes a very different
perspective.) The ‘breathlessness’ of
his account may reflect his sense of urgency in recording the Apostles’ stories;
of their time with Jesus. Life was short
in the first-century and the church would have known that those who were
first-hand witnesses would not be around forever: this would be especially true
if the persecutions predicted by Jesus, earlier in chapter 13 have already
begun and lives are being threatened.
However, it is equally possible that it reflects the revolutionary mood
of first century Palestine where in Israel, many Jews wanted to see the
overthrow of the pagan Roman regime and the full restoration of Israel as God’s
covenant people. A series of especially oppressive
emperors rose during that century and so did the hunger and thirst for the overthrow
of their rule.
Removed, as we are, by time and space from
first-century Israelite life, we may miss this mood of revolution. Perhaps we have become so familiar with
expressions such as, ‘Jesus is Lord’ and ‘thy kingdom come, thy will be done’
that we do not hear them as radical statements challenging the might and power
of the Roman empire. Yet that is exactly
what they are!
First century Christians risked their lives
when they resisted the Imperial decree to offer homage (or worship) and
declare, ‘Caesar is Lord!’ When John
writes the book of Revelation, he uses a complex code to try to protect his
readers since what the book contains is a revolutionary charter declaring that
the Empire will fall and Christ will be enthroned as King of kings and Lord of
lords. (Revelation 17.14)
Similarly, Paul’s words in Philippians which have become familiar and comfortable take on a quite different feel when we understand that he is sitting in a Roman jail where he is being kept by the emperor’s authority. He writes to the Philippians that, despite the threat to his life, he will continue to offer obedience and bow the knee to none but the One who alone has the right to be called ‘Lord’ – Jesus whose Lordship is conferred not by any human authority or because of military might but because ‘God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name.’ (Phil 2.9 ESV)
So, Mark’s breathless writing and Jesus’
insistence that his disciples ‘stay awake’ takes on a different energy, once we
understand that they are addressed to a society that hummed with revolutionary
expectation. The disciples had come with
Jesus to Jerusalem for the Passover feast, and they had sensed the rising
tension. The question that was foremost in the minds of
Jesus’ disciples, amidst this increase in tension and even after his death and
resurrection was ‘Will you at this time restore the kingdom of Israel?’ (Acts
1.6)
Jesus does not entirely quash their
expectations – after all he had taught them to pray, ‘Your kingdom come, your
will be done on earth as it is heaven.’ However,
he tries to adjust their perspective. He
tries to help them see that the heavenly agenda does not move according to the
same timetable as the earthly one. Whilst
their minds are fixed on the overthrow of earthly power structures which, for
them, and possibly even for us, seem to depend on demonstrations of might
(usually through violence,) Jesus continues to encourage them to understand
that the kingdom of God works on a completely different basis. The kingdom of justice and joy will not be
established using the same violent oppression as the kingdoms of injustice and
misery that the people long to see ended.
And so, Jesus wants his disciples (both in
the first century and in the twenty-first) to remain awake, both praying for
the coming of God’s kingdom and looking for signs of its arrival. But he also wants them to be able to live in
and interpret this world properly.
In the first half of Mark 13, Jesus makes
it clear that God’s kingdom comes to a world that is in tumult. In the face of turmoil, it is only natural
that people seek explanations for what is happening. Indeed for people of faith, the question,
“Where is God in all this?” is a natural one and one that is often voiced in
the Scriptural sigh, “How long?”
Yet Jesus seems to warn his disciples to be
wary of those who claim to have ‘ready-packaged’ answers from God about the
troubles they will see unfold around them.
Many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am
he!’ and they will lead many astray. (v6)
If anyone says to you, ‘Look here is the
Christ!’ or ‘Look, there he is!’ do not believe it. For false christs and false prophets will
arise and perform signs and wonders, to lead astray, if possible, the
elect. (v21–22)
Jesus acknowledges that the troubles will come but avoids interpreting the tumults of this age as a sign of God’s displeasure (or pleasure.) He suggests that they should adopt a healthy suspicion towards those who claim to be able to interpret such events by forming complex theological theories and timetables about what God might be about to do. (There is an important clue here about how we should approach those who claim to give us insights that only they can perceive.) The work of God’s people is not speculating about what various events mean so much as responding faithfully in those events most especially by meeting any need that they expose.
Year by year and for generation after generation,
many people are displaced and dispossessed by natural disaster and human
activity. They wander hungry and
homeless in a world that is hostile to them.
The faithful response is not to foam at the mouth about God’s judgement
and wrath on the world. No! kingdom
people are called to see those in need and work to meet such needs – to demonstrate
the values of God’s kingdom even when we are living through the worst of what can
happen under the wicked regimes of this age.
All the while continuing to pray for that revolution of peace and
justice that will overturn regimes of evil and oppression in favour of the rule
and reign of God.
The disciples longed to see the fall of the
Roman empire because they experienced the oppression it brought. But Jesus warns them that God’s ways are not
going to be established by earthquake, wind or fire. Natural disaster or human tragedy are not the
means that God will use to establish God’s rule and reign. So, Jesus told them, that they shouldn’t get
carried away with spurious interpretations when they see earthquakes, wars,
famines and even when the Church comes under attack. These things are important (and require a
response) but ultimately they are not necessarily signs of that the fulfilment
of their fundamental desire is about to take place. God’s kingdom of justice will come to replace
human regimes of cruelty and oppression and they should keep watch for its
arrival but not get distracted by the earth-shaking events that are going on
around them.
The passage we have read begins with Jesus
saying, “in those days, following the distress …” (v24)
Having painted the background of a troubled
world, Jesus turns to their question and signals that answers will begin to become
clear following the distress and tribulation. He then goes on to speak of celestial signs
using language that is probably borrowed from Isaiah chapter 13. This quote is significant because it comes
from a prophesy against Babylon. In
drawing from Isaiah in this way, Jesus indicates to his disciples that a
judgement and fall of the Roman empire WILL come. Their questions and prayers will be
answered. The celestial signs, though,
seem to suggest that God’s intervention will come in a way that no human can
manufacture or manipulate.
In the Isaiah passage, Jesus quotes, he
seems to be hinting that the unfolding of their desire will bring about events
that will shake them, and those who seem impervious to earthly events, more
than the earthquakes, wars and famines:
All human hands will be feeble,
and every human heart will melt.
They will be dismayed:
pangs and agony will seize them;
they will be in anguish like a woman
in labour
They will look aghast at one another;
their faces will be aflame …
…
the sun will be dark at its rising,
and the moon will not shed its light …
(Isaiah 13.7,8,10)
Such apocalyptic visions as those recorded
in the Gospels, in Revelation and in the Old Testament prophets may fill us
with some sense of dread about what it means to pray, ‘Thy kingdom come, thy
will be done…’ It may well be important
for us to remind ourselves, then, as we did at the beginning that as familiar
as these words are, they are inviting God to come and turn our world upside
down. Perhaps it is worth us remembering
the vital difference between those things that God alone can do and those in
which we must take a part. Rather than
getting involved in bringing down the evil regimes, our call is to work to
build God’s kingdom, here on earth.
As Christians, we are part of a
revolutionary movement – a movement works alongside God to usher in a new age
that will see the oppressive and unjust structures of human power overturned. To read the Gospels and fail to see this is,
in my view, to fundamentally misread them.
How else are we to interpret Mary’s words (a versified version of which
we are using as our advent liturgy?)
We may be tempted to soften Mary’s image
into some romantic vision of a pliable and obedient young maiden – but are
these the words of someone who fits that description?
He has shown strength with his arm;
he has scattered the proud in the
thoughts of their hearts;
he has brought down the mighty from their thrones
and exalted those of humble estate;
he has filled the hungry with good things
and the rich he has sent away empty …
(Luke 1:51-53)
Our part of the revolution is to begin
living now as citizens of God’s kingdom and keep alert, watching for signs of God’s
coming.
So as we enter the season of Advent, let us
be shaken into attention by Jesus’ urgent insistence, ‘Stay Awake!’
Let us stay awake to the fact that we live
in a troubled world where people’s lives are shaken by natural disaster and
human activity and commit ourselves to praying for those who do not experience
the security of food to eat, clothes to wear and homes to live in.
Let us stay awake to the fact that our
human systems of government are corrupted by human sin and continue to raise
our voices against systemic prejudice that seeks to favour the rich and
privileged by maintaining a status-quo that condemns too many to poverty and
hunger.
and let us stay away for signs of the
coming of our Lord as we pray ‘thy kingdom come, thy will be done’ and as we
work for and take part in the greatest revolution of them all: the
establishment of the kingdom of God which is a kingdom of justice and joy for
the whole of creation. May God bless us
as we stay alert, watching and praying this Advent. Amen
Hymn – Build Your Kingdom Here
Prayers of Intercession
Watchful at all
times,
let us pray for
strength to stand with confidence
before our Maker
and Redeemer.
That God may
bring in his kingdom with justice and mercy,
let us pray to
the Lord:
Father of life
make known your
glory.
That God may
establish among the nations
his sceptre of
righteousness,
let us pray to
the Lord:
Father of life
make known your
glory.
That we may seek
Christ in the scriptures
and recognize him
in the breaking of the bread,
let us pray to
the Lord:
Father of life
make known your
glory.
That God may bind
up the brokenhearted,
restore the sick
and raise up all
who have fallen,
let us pray to
the Lord:
Father of life
make known your
glory.
That the light of
God’s coming may dawn
on all who live
in darkness and the shadow of death,
let us pray to
the Lord:
Father of life
make known your
glory.
That, with all
the saints in light,
we may shine
forth as lights for the world,
let us pray to
the Lord:
Father of life
make known your
glory.
Let us commend
the world, which Christ will judge,
to the mercy and
protection of God.
The Collect for Advent Sunday
Almighty God,
give us grace to cast away the works of darkness
and to put on the armour of light,
now in the time of this mortal life,
in which your Son Jesus Christ
came to us in great humility:
that, on the last day,
when he shall come again in his glorious majesty
to judge the living and the dead,
we may rise to the life immortal;
through him who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever. Amen
The Lord’s Prayer
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