Advent 2 Sermon

 ⁸But do not ignore this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like one day.  ⁹The Lord is not slow about his promise, as some think of slowness, but is patient with you, not wanting any to perish, but all to come to repentance. ¹⁰But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, and then the heavens will pass away with a loud noise, and the elements will be dissolved with fire, and the earth and everything that is done on it will be disclosed.  ¹¹Since all these things are to be dissolved in this way, what sort of persons ought you to be in leading lives of holiness and godliness, ¹²waiting for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be set ablaze and dissolved, and the elements will melt with fire? ¹³But, in accordance with his promise, we wait for new heavens and a new earth, where righteousness is at home. ¹⁴Therefore, beloved, while you are waiting for these things, strive to be found by him at peace, without spot or blemish; ¹⁵and regard the patience of our Lord as salvation.

2 Peter 3:8-15 

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Visits with Aunt Chickie were always fun. She was my grandfather’s sister and our visits always found her home filled with large numbers of my extended family. I have only one aunt and one uncle on my father’s side, giving me a total of four first cousins. Add in my siblings and we’d make a group of eight children. We are all pretty close in age and were playmates during our childhood. We always had fun together, but when we gathered with our extended family our group of playmates—and level of fun—increased dramatically!

Aunt Chickie had a huge yard which, at the family gatherings, always held a volleyball net, wiffle ball diamond, horseshoe pit, and a variety of other game choices. She also had a lake with a dock that was great for jumping in to swim, and a hill that made for fun sledding in the winter. Thanks to their other siblings (I don’t even know how many Papa had), I have dozens of second and third cousins; these family gatherings often included more than forty children. Although we were surrounded by adults, we children enjoyed a lot of freedom at Aunt Chickie’s house.

We were allowed to run and play with few restrictions placed upon us. We didn’t know one another well, but we frolicked together for hours on end, dividing ourselves into teams with little difficulty. We teased and laughed, almost always with good-natured intent. And whether we succeeded or failed, we cheered for one another as we tried new activities. Even today, more than three decades later, I vividly recall my cousins’ applause the first time I got the courage to jump off the dock for a swim in the lake! Obviously, I have fond and joyful memories of time spent at Aunt Chickie’s home.

My parents, I am certain, do not have such fond and joyful memories of our drives to get there!

You see, Aunt Chickie lived “out in the country,” over an hour away from our urban Troy, New York home. You can imagine how frequently my sister, brother and I would ask, “How much longer?” as we traveled!

Today, as we mark the Second Sunday in Advent, it strikes me that “How much longer?” is a question that might season our Christian journeys as well. Three weeks from today, we will commemorate the Incarnation of our Lord—the birth of Jesus. The gift of God with us is worthy of our joyful celebrations! Advent is, as you know, a time of preparing for them. But that is not all that the season of Advent is about. You may remember last week’s sermon, when I reminded you of the penitential aspect of this season, as it is also a time to prepare ourselves for our Savior’s return.

“How much longer?” we may ask as we ponder anew the time that has passed since Jesus promised that he would come back for his followers. “How much longer?” we ask with despair, as we acknowledge the fact that it was human sin that brought God into the world—and that Jesus’ saving act did nothing to reduce the level of sin that exists in humanity. “How much longer?” we ask with hope for the event to come quickly, as we realize that Jesus’ eventual return will bring an eternal end to all human pain and sin.

This is what the author of Second Peter is addressing in this morning’s lesson from that epistle. He writes, of course, several years after Jesus’ resurrection, to a community of Christians who are eagerly awaiting the Savior’s return, but who are beginning to become impatient. He tells them, “Do not ignore this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like one day. The Lord is not slow about his promise, as some think of slowness, but is patient with you, not wanting any to perish, but all to come to repentance.”

Here we are, getting closer and closer to two thousand years after our Lord’s crucifixion and resurrection—the events that are central to our faith—and we are still waiting!

It could be said that we have even more reason for impatience than the original recipients of this letter. We have, after all, been waiting even longe than they had. How much longer will we wait?

No one has the answer to that question. And that’s part of the point that the author of this epistle is making as he goes on to remind the recipients of Jesus’ own words, “The day of the Lord will come like a thief.”

More important to this author, though—and, really, to us—is this: “The Lord is not slow about his promise, as some think of slowness, but is patient with you, not wanting any to perish, but all to come to repentance.”

This is Good News for Advent! It is also the answer to the question, “How much longer?” And it is a call to mission and ministry! The Lord is waiting for all to come to repentance. Repentance is not confessing one’s sin and asking—or hoping—for forgiveness. Repentance is not a feeling of guilt or remorse. Nor, obviously, is repentance sinless perfection. It may include confession and remorse, but repentance not defined by those things. Repentance is the change in attitude and behavior that comes from living in the light and love of our Lord and his grace.

God is not waiting for the world to become perfect. That, Jesus tells us, is something that will happen only when he has returned, perfected the world and fulfilled all of God’s eternal promises. God, the author of this epistle is saying, wishes for all that he created to know the story of salvation—the story of Jesus—because it is only after people come to know the story of God’s love for humanity that repentance comes to us.

The repentant Christian will live in such a way that the world can see our faith. We can do it in quiet ways, as well as obvious ones. Perhaps we do more than simply toss coins (or slide dollar bills) into the Salvation Army’s bucket as we walk past the bell ringer on our way into the mall, we stop, make eye contact, and greet them as well. Or maybe, rather than shooting impatient daggers at her with our eyes, we smile and allow the harried mother into the checkout line ahead of us. Christmas caroling; helping a neighbor shop, decorate, or wrap gifts; and providing meals (or treats) for those who may be unable to manage it for themselves are other faithful tasks.

None of these will, of course, hasten the return of our Lord. Our faithfulness in reaching out to those who do not share our faith—or who struggle with the faith that is within them—may help them to experience the love of our Savior and bring to them the same change that we have experienced—the kind of change that can be labeled repentance and can come only from God. How much longer? No one knows. The author of Second Peter, though, tells us that our waiting is filled with hope, because it is a sign of God’s grace and goodwill—and God’s patience—with humanity. And this is Good News! Amen.