| Bishop's CornerThe Coming Of Christ
By Bishop Timothy W. Whitaker
 Advent is the
briefest season of the Christian year, but we fill its four weeks with
more expectations than at any other time of the year. Not only does it
coincide with the time of all of our personal preparations for the
festival of Christmas, but also our churches are busier than ever with
special services of worship, programs, concerts and ministries to the
poor. Advent is also a season with a surplus of spiritual meaning as we
center upon the coming of Jesus Christ into the world.
There is one dimension of the meaning of Advent
that is often crowded out by our attention to the coming of Christ as
the child who was born at Bethlehem, and that is the promise of Christ’s
coming at the end of history. Throughout the season of Advent the
readings from the Scriptures appointed in the lectionary contain the
reminder that the Christ who came at Bethlehem will come again to be
revealed as the Sovereign of the world and to establish the kingdom of
God.
Christ not only has a past as the one who lived
the life foretold by the prophets of Israel; he also has a future when
he will come again to be the Sovereign “so that at the name of Jesus
every knee should bend, in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
and every tongue shall confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory
of God the Father” (Philippians 2:10-11).
Our hope in the final coming of Jesus Christ
conditions us to be wary of all utopian dreams. There can never be a
utopia on earth until history comes to a close and Christ establishes
his kingdom. Many secular people believe that poverty, crime, class
conflict, war and all other great social evils can gradually be
overcome through good will and intelligence. Christians who hope for
the coming of Christ understand that, in the meantime, all our efforts
at social transformation will encounter unforeseen complexities,
difficulties, limits and tragedies.
Nevertheless, it is our hope for the ultimate
coming of Christ that enlivens all our little hopes in the present. We
who can see the final future know that good will win over evil, and
such confidence inspires up to contribute what we can to contribute to
God’s purposes for the world. While it is beyond our human ability
to comprehend, we trust that every small act of justice and mercy is
used by God to prepare the way for the coming of Christ. Even though
we cannot establish a utopia on earth by our own efforts, we can
achieve some progress in history as we seek to subject ourselves and
all things to the Sovereignty of Jesus Christ.
Advent invites us to live in hope for the future
coming of the Child who has been “born for us.” As prophesied by
Isaiah, “His authority shall grow continually, and there shall be
endless peace for the throne of David and his kingdom. He will
establish and uphold it with justice and with righteousness from this
time onward and forevermore” (Isaiah 9:6-7).
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