Preparing for Jesus

World Cup Soccer

I’ve been really enjoying the soccer world cup this year. On Thursday morning I woke up at 2am to watch all the excitement as Australia beat the much more fancied Denmark to win a place in the next round. I then came to the men’s coffee on Thursday morning, and it turns out that the men there didn’t really care about the beautiful game - but I still felt my lack of sleep was worth it.

But it was actually a moment in the game against Tunisia that I found really touching. The Australian striker, Mitchell Duke, used his head to flick the ball into the side of the net which of course, sent all the Australian staying up to watch into fits of excitement.

And to celebrate, Mitch Duke made this J formation with his fingers.

Up in the crowds, a little boy by the name of Jaxson, made the same J configuration back.

That boy, who must have been about 5 years old, was Mitch Duke’s son, and I’m sure that will be a moment that he will remember for the rest of his life.

It became all the more special, because this father and son had spent a long time apart due to his soccer commitments.

And so when he was able to achieve such a wonderful result for his country at a world cup, he wanted to share that moment with his son who had missed out on so much.

Now it was one of those real touching moments, but it also reminded us of what it takes to make it at the elite level like this.

Now I love playing sport myself - but I never really made it very far in any sport I played.

Possibly you could argue that it because I lacked some natural ability… perhaps.... but another significant part is that I never really put the effort in.

Even just to make a local rep side you would normally need to be really dedicated. To get above that, you need to make serious sacrifices.

For the elite soccer players at the world cup, we might look at it and think it’s just a game (and look, really, it is), but to get to that level the preparation needs to be made.

Now earlier in the service, we sang that refrain that was famously sung in the musical Godspell.

They were words that the gospels quote with regards to John the Baptist - a quote which actually comes from the prophet Isaiah.

It was quoted of John the Baptist because his role was to prepare the people for the coming Messiah.

There was a preparation that was needed.

It may have been a very different sort of preparation to that which was required by the elite sportspeople - but yet, it is still a preparation that is needed, and without it, we will miss what the Messiah requires of us.

John the Baptist may be have been preparing the people for the first coming - but what we find he says, very much applies to us today as we prepare for the second coming.

Repent

So, what sort of preparation do we need.

Well, let’s start with what John the Baptist says.

If I briefly look at Matthew’s gospel - the very first word that he’s quoted as saying is: “Repent”.

“Repent, for the kingdom of haven has come near”, is the full statement he makes.

But it is this word which becomes so important.

The Greek word more literally means to change one’s mind.

It’s a recognition that we haven’t lived up to the way God has designed this world… we’ve made things about ourselves. And we need to submit to God and hand it over to him.

It’s more than an empty ‘sorry’ that we might offer to try and please someone. It’s a change of mindset.

This was the main message that John the Baptist gives. I want to suggest that it’s actually about as much as we need to do. Because once we have allowed ourselves to recognise we can’t do it on our own - the Spirit will essentially do the rest.

Now, there’s a clarification that needs to be made with this understanding of repentance. The repentance that is required is a mindset change, it’s not something that needs to hang over our head constantly.

What I mean by that, is that you don’t need to constantly be worried that maybe there was some sin that you did yesterday that you’ve forgotten to say sorry to God for.

Yes it is good to make a practice of repentance - this will help us keep in the right mindset, but the forgiveness that God gives is once for all.

You can have assurance that if you have invited Jesus into your life, you are forgiven, whether you’ve missed a sin or not.

Living blameless lives

Okay, so you can see already how very different our preparation is going to be compared with the elite sportsperson’s preparation.

Our’s starts with repentance and then allowing the Spirit to be our guide.

But the passage from 2 Peter 3 that was read earlier adds an interesting dimension to this.

The last verse that was read, namely 2 Peter 3:14, says: “So then, dear friends, since you are looking forward to this, make every effort to be found spotless, blameless and at peace with him.”

Well, this is where the preparation starts to get interesting. Actually, it starts to sound quite difficult.

Trying to be spotless and blameless, well, that seems next to impossible.

And the reality is, it is.

But let’s just look at it. You see, it doesn’t say you need to be spotless and blameless. It is saying you should make the effort - the preparation.

What the Bible is very clear about - is that you are not saved by that effort. You are saved entirely by the work of Jesus Christ. But yet, while it might not be the saving work, it is something that is fitting for someone who has already had their life transformed.

You see, once you have repented and allowed Jesus into your life, it makes a lot of sense to want to try and live accordingly.

We long for this day when Jesus will come again. It will be day when all things will be made right. So why not start trying to live like that now?

Live according to the life that God is preparing for us.

I just want to stress that this striving is not what saves us. But it is something completely fitting for someone who is in Christ.

Conclusion

Do you think of what you do as being preparation for the coming of Christ?

It’s quite possible that you just want to try and get through the day. But in a sense, I wonder if there is room for a change in mindset. Even if just getting through the day is difficult - can we see this as a means to live for Christ.

Because living for Christ does not necessarily mean we need to do some big important task. It can just mean living well in the circumstances that God has placed us.

Our preparation is going to look very different to the elite sportsperson, yet, being people who have been redeemed by Christ, there is a preparation that we should be doing as we wait for the day of Jesus.

It starts with repentance - a change in mindset. And then after allowing the Spirit to transform us, to make every effort to be found spotless, blameless and at peace with God.

Let me pray...