Bible
Study: Jeremiah 33, 14 to 16. 1ST Thessalonians 3, 12 to 4, 2 and Luke
21, 25 to 36.
Happy New
Year to you all my dear brothers and sisters. At last there comes again that
time of the year when the world as a whole begins the preparation for
Christmas. In this part of the world, the rains are no more and the cold-dry
dusty wind known as harmattan has started blowing across the air and you can
almost feel the scent of that memorable Christmas stew. Indeed, in less than
thirty days from now, the jingle bells would start ringing and we would be once
again exchanging pleasantries as part of events marking the celebration of
Christ’s birthday.
However,
you would agree with me that one thing that is most common with this season is
an increase in the level of vice and a multiplication of evil in our society. When
going out now, you hear people say: “Be careful oh, you know this is Christmas
time.” Meaning, “watch out oh, there are people out there that do not mind
using you as their Christmas chicken.” In fact, this is the time of the year
you see our young men and women dress most provocatively and go about almost
nude all in the name of catching some sugar daddy or sugar mummy or some mugu who
will give them plenty of money for the Christmas in exchange for their bodies
forgetting they are the temples of God.
A few days
ago, there was a terrible robbery incidence in an industrial estate in Lagos
and all that people could say was: “It is Christmas time.” It is so sad that we
now need armed robbers to remind us that Christmas is around the corner. Ironically,
this is also a time when there is an upsurge of the number and presence of our
security agents. Almost every corner you turn, you find men and women on
uniform pretending to be checking vehicle particulars or signs of exhibits, yet
rather than go after criminals, majority of them are after their pockets and
they are not ashamed to say to you, “Happy Christmas oh, anything for the boys?”
In the
world of business, this is a time of the year when people actually throw their conscience
to the wind in the name of “my family must chop this Christmas oh.” All of a
sudden, you notice a terrible hike in the prices of everything and you see
people creating artificial scarcity just so as to give an excuse for their 200
to 300 increase in prices. A few days ago, I was listening to the radio and a
man so perfectly described the issue of fuel scarcity in the country with the
ishan proverb, “oria gbo ria” meaning “a man is killed only by his fellow man.”
Some filling stations after buying the product at a very cheap price would stop
selling to motorists and claim not to have it yet at night, they sell it to
black market operators at a very high price who in turn sell it to these same
motorists who feel they have no choice but to buy since they can’t find it
anywhere else. We kill ourselves through various sharp practices all in the name
of preparing for Christmas.
Dear
friends in Christ, the question we all need to ask ourselves today is: “Am I really
preparing for Christmas or am I like the rest of the world preparing for X-mas?”
You see, there is a whole world of difference between Christmas and X-mas. The alphabet
“X” stands for anything you can think of that is bad, evil, immoral, indecent
and just short of the mark. In those days, when you don’t do well in your homework,
you get a lot of “X”s, isn’t it? In the name of abbreviating words that are not
worth abbreviating, people have removed Christ from Christmas and replaced him
with “X” and that is why this season of the year can best be described as the
season of evil, indecency and immorality, the season where beer parlours are
packed full and night clubs are most functional all in the name of Christmas.
For those of
us who know we are not preparing for X-mas, the words of Jesus in today’s
Gospel passage are very apt and they actually help to put us in the right frame
of mind for a spiritual preparation for Christ’s coming. Jesus says to us: “Beware
that your hearts do not become drowsy from carousing and drunkenness and the
anxieties of daily life, and that day catch you by surprise like a trap.” In another
translation it says, “But take heed to yourselves lest your hearts be weighed
down with dissipation and drunkenness and cares of this life, and that day come
upon you suddenly like a snare; for it will come upon all who dwell upon the
face of the whole earth.” Luke 21, 34 to 35.
To be
honest, this period ought to be the holiest time of our lives, a time of inner
renewal and spiritual cleansing. In the course of this Advent season, we shall
be repeating these words again and again “Come, Lord Jesus , Come Lord Jesus.” And
most of our hymns would carry those words “Come Lord Jesus.” And so, it would be
a contradiction if we are asking Jesus to come again into the world yet by our
actions, we are telling him, “Jesus, please wait there, let me enjoy myself first.”
If we must truly prepare for Christ’s coming, then we must be vigilant and
prayerful as Jesus says: “But watch at all times, praying that you may have
strength to escape all these things that will take place, and to stand before
the Son of man.” Luke 21, 36.
Let us not
be like the world who claim to be celebrating Christmas but do not know Christ.
Let us not join in the bandwagon of those celebrating X-mas. And if actually we
are preparing for Christmas, then Christ should be our focus, our centre of
attraction, our attitude this period should be that of watching and praying,
our conduct should be as St. Paul tells us in the second reading, that of
holiness and love for one another. Advent is a time to “increase and abound in
love to one another and to all men … so that {God} may establish our hearts
unblamable in holiness … at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all his saints.” 1
Thessalonians 3, 12 to 13. Dear friends, it is only by holiness of life that we
can actually claim to be preparing for Christ because at his coming, he would destroy
all those who are living in vice and sinfulness including those who indulge in
sin in the name of celebrating his birth.
Come to
think of it, if somehow breaks into your home, takes away your property and
even kills your children in the process, how would you relate with the person
when after he has been caught and he tells you he did what he had to do because
he wanted to prepare for your birthday. Would you drink wine with the person
and congratulate him saying, “after all it was all for my birthday?” Dear
friends, do you think Christ would be happy when he comes around and discovers
that your heart is full of vice and evil simply because you claim to be preparing
for his birthday?
Above all,
advent is a time of deepening our trust and confidence in God because we are
again reminded that He is a God who fulfils his promises. In the course of this
season of advent, we shall read about so many prophecies that spoke about the
coming of Christ into the world beginning with our very first reading today
from the book of Jeremiah. “Behold, the days are coming, says the LORD, when I
WILL FULFIL THE PROMISE I made to the house of Israel and the house of Judah. In
those days and at that time I will cause a righteous Branch to spring forth for
David; and he shall execute justice and righteousness in the land. In those
days Judah will be saved and Jerusalem will dwell securely.” Jeremiah 33, 14 to
16.
The fact
that we celebrate Christmas is a reminder that God’s words are “yes” and “amen.”
Whatever he has promised, he must surely bring to pass. Christmas is a
celebration of the good news that God did not, will not and has not abandoned
mankind on earth. That he chose to come and take our human flesh and be born
like us shows the depth of his concern for our good. Therefore my dear friends
as we prepare to celebrate the anniversary of that glorious day when God
himself became man, let us increase our trust in God that he sees everything
going on with us, that he know what is best for us, and that he is willing to
go to any extent to ensure that we have the very best.
So
therefore, this is not a time for us to panic like children who have no father,
this is not the time for us to get involved in sharp practices in our
businesses or in our daily life in the name making money to blow at Christmas. God
knows it is his birthday you want to celebrate, he knows you and your family
would love to eat chicken and fried rice to mark that great day, he knows your
children would love to wear new clothes on Christmas day, God knows how much
you desire to have the best of this holiday, trust that he would provide for
you. Show your trust in God by refraining from evil in any form, show your
trust in his providence by doing the right thing and avoid sin at all costs,
allow God to be God and let him who is celebrating spend on you and providing
the best for you. Trust him and do right and he will not let you down.
Let us
Pray:
Lord
Jesus, it is your birthday, come into our hearts and change us that we may not
be carried away by the world in the name of celebrating your birth. Amen.
Good morning.
Be Happy. Live Positive. Have Faith. It is well with you. Happy Sunday.
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