Our Destination

During Advent we go on two journeys that leads us to the same place, the coming of Immanuel. Think about the journey of the Wise Men and the the journey of the Shepherds. They were two different journeys to see the new born King. Were the Wise Men anticipated meeting the King of Kings, The Shepherds had expectations of who the Messiah was to be. Both were surprised in some ways as Jesus changed everything they thought they knew.

As we have now come to the destination of Advent, we are met with our Savior who meets and exceeds our anticipation. We may have certain expectations for who are Savior should be for us, yet we are always surprised by His power and His love. Jesus meets us where we are, and each of us are in a different place with our own needs and abilities.

Pray and Read Revelation 22:12-17

Revelation 22:12–17 NRSV

“See, I am coming soon; my reward is with me, to repay according to everyone’s work. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end.” Blessed are those who wash their robes, so that they will have the right to the tree of life and may enter the city by the gates. Outside are the dogs and sorcerers and fornicators and murderers and idolaters, and everyone who loves and practices falsehood. “It is I, Jesus, who sent my angel to you with this testimony for the churches. I am the root and the descendant of David, the bright morning star.” The Spirit and the bride say, “Come.” And let everyone who hears say, “Come.” And let everyone who is thirsty come. Let anyone who wishes take the water of life as a gift.

There is no worldly expectation for who is welcomed into the Kingdom of Heaven. Jesus is coming for all who love Him and repent of their sins. Let those who hear that He is coming, do what they can to be prepared and then also tell others to get prepared. This is the story of Advent. The second coming of Christ will be much like the first time He came. We anticipate His coming through the prophecies that have been given and watching for those signs as the Magi or Wise Men followed the star. We expect that He will come soon to redeem His creation as we watch the world fall under corruption and injustice just as the shepherds who were going about their daily duties in the field that night Jesus was born.

The Wise Men traveled far and for a couple of years. They did not know who exactly they would find or how they would find the King. I don’t suspect they thought He would be born to poor sojourners. They may not have even thought that He would be a baby. They were following a celestial star as what their scientific maps, and the writings from the Hebrew culture were telling them. In some cases, they are referred to as Magi or magicians. They were charged by royals to interpret dreams and decipher star placements. Therefore, we would know them as astronomers or astrologist. They would rely on a mix of science and spirituality to come up with their solutions or answers. Truly they were wise, well read, and prestigious. They were philosophers who always seemed to have the best answers. They were famous and wealthy. This is how they knew about the coming of the Messiah. They read through the prophets stories and watched for the signs to appear in Judah and in the sky. But they knew somehow that this would be the King of all Kings. Regardless of who they were, they wanted to pay the King of the World with humility and the best gifts they could give.

The Shepherds, they didn’t even know they were on a journey. However, all Hebrew people, from the shepherds who sold and traded in the Jerusalem marketplace, to the Chief Priest and Scribes were all waiting on the coming Messiah. However, the shepherds did not have easy access to the scrolls of their faith and culture. Those that had them were your law keepers like the Pharisees and the priests like the Sadducees. However, they had heard about the coming messiah, they knew how to uphold the laws of the Torah, and heard of the history of the prophets and their prophetic words. They were not highly intelligent, and they were not the best of people among the Hebrews. They did not have a place to call home as they traveled a lot and herded sheep for other more wealthy individuals or for trade during the times of holy feast and festivals. So when the Angels appeared in the sky above to proclaim the birth of the Messiah, they were filled with fear, then overjoyed at what this could mean for them. Jesus had come and they were invited to be the one of the first to see Him.

From the richest to the poorest, the intellectual philosopher to the day laborer, they were different but they had some similarities. They both had some hope in what they believed. They had peace that their lives would mean something. They surely found some joy in their everyday life. However, each one may have had a different definition for what those words mean to them. I am sure that the life of a shepherd at this time was hard. There were likely days where they felt there was no peace, or hope, or joy. But life wasn’t always easy for Magi either. Their calculations could easily be off, and depending on who they are reporting to, those mistakes could cost them their livelihood and even their life. It was hard mental work to be a Magi, as it was hard physical work to be a shepherd. Both their destinations ended with finding Jesus.

So if Jesus was revealed to both shepherds and Magi, then Jesus is revealed to all people. There is no designation. Jesus did not come just for the poor, the Jewish, the hard laborer, the intelligent, the successful, the moralistic, or the most broken. Jesus came for us all. Therefore everyone is able to hear that He is coming again. All of creation is able to hear the Good News. In the end it does not matter who you are or what you have done. The only thing that matters is how close you have been to Christ and how you have shared the good news. You will not be commended for your wealth or your title by Christ. You will only be expected to have your spiritual soul cleansed by His blood and be pure white. How do you get your robe that is washed in blood pure white? That is the power of the Holy Spirit. Christmas is for everyone. Jesus was born for everyone.

This is the good news we have to share. There should not be any fear in sharing this good news for no one is below or above hearing this message. No one has to do anything to hear this message, expect have a willing heart to hear the news. Are you willing to hear this good news? Do you know that this message is truly for you? Even if your whole family have already heard this good news, as you believe, share it again. I am grateful that God loves us this much that He would come to us face-to-face to tell us Himself that He wants a relationship with us. What an amazing gift we have been given!

Every year, people will ask my kids,”What did Santa bring you?” Or, “What did you get for Christmas?” Maybe some one asked you if you got anything special for Christmas? How interesting would it be if we all answered that we received the greatest gift every? What a unique way we have right now to share the beautiful truth of the Christmas message. “I have the greatest gift from God which is His Son who loves me enough to come for me, showing me His love and grace. But my family was nice enough to also give me this as well.” Our live now and our eternity is secure. God is good and faithful to come through on all of His promises.

In the name of God the Father, our Savior Jesus, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.