And Enoch also, the seventh from Adam, prophesied of these, saying, Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousands of his saints… Jude 1:14
I never grew up around anyone who really celebrated Advent. I didn’t even know what Advent was. I had to look it up. When I looked it up, I found out that Advent is from a Latin word meaning “coming.” It refers to Christ’s coming. It is so interesting that sometimes we get so caught up in tradition and details that we miss out on the proper perspective of truth. Allow me to explain.During the Advent “season” we (Christians) are looking forward to the coming of Christ. To this end, we sing songs of baby Jesus in a manger, have nativity scenes of Jesus in swaddling clothes and put on productions all about Jesus’ birth. The whole point of Christmas, the climax of Advent, is to celebrate the birth of Jesus. In the movie,Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby there is a scene where a character states that his favorite Jesus is “baby Jesus.”
Here’s what I was thinking about the other day: when I have my birthday every year, if my family and friends all gathered together and sang songs about my birth, talked about me as though I was a baby and even did skits re-enacting my birth, the first time or two would be cute. But after a while, it would get kind of annoying. You know why? I’m not a baby anymore.
I’m a grown man and I’m standing in the room.
The same is true for Jesus. He outgrew His crib long ago. Talk about His birth at Christmas, yes. But don’t hesitate to talk about His life, death and resurrection also.
We even do the same thing at Easter (especially “Good Friday”), except for this time: Jesus died. We put on mournful faces, talk about Jesus’ death, and sing songs about His dying on the cross. We passionately re-enact Jesus’ death so that the world may see. But what are the seeing? A dead man?
He’ s not dead. He is alive and lives forever.
Jesus is the resurrected Lord of glory. Do we talk about that at Easter? Or is the main focus His death? Most people have a hard time sitting through the movie, The Passion of the Christ. So many have cried. I have been in conversations with people talking about the movie and they said that they didn’t want Jesus to be beaten. The first time I saw the movie, I laughed when He was beaten. I laughed when He was nailed on the cross. I was happy that Jesus was beaten. Not because I like seeing that kind of torture done to a man but because I know that each stripe was for me. The nails through His hands were for me. Each time He was whipped, I was thankful that He did it for me. If He hadn’t done it for us, then that would have been you and me getting whipped and nailed to a cross. We would have suffered and died and been eternally separated from God. But because of Jesus’ love and willingness to obey His Father, He took my punishment and my death.
It is all about our focus and perspective.
It isn’t bad to talk about Jesus’ birth or death. Those are important points in the message of the Gospel. Every man is born and every man must die (for now). But are the birth and death of Jesus the central message of the Gospel? Obviously, they must be part of the message but they aren’t the message.
The Gospel is that Jesus became a man; He was born but then He grew up. The Gospel is that Jesus died and then He rose again.
Here’s what I’m getting at: the point of Advent many times is the coming of Jesus as a baby. And that’s good, we need to talk about that. But if that’s all we talk about then we are back at Adam. Adam heard the Gospel that Jesus was coming as a man. The Second Adam has already come. So, are we to always look back at the coming of Christ as a man born in a manger?
Maybe we need to put a little more emphasis on the fact that Jesus already came, He already died and rose again, and that He is coming back again soon. The Second Coming of Christ is an event that is hardly even talked about in the Body of Christ at large. It is an event that we cannot afford to belittle. Advent, for most, is looking into the past and seeing a little baby forgetting to talk about that this baby grew up. In the “season” of Advent, we are looking forward to the coming of Christ not back at a baby swaddled in a crib. This is something of great gravity.
As I read about Advent, I also read that some, instead of focusing so much on a baby, actually practice fasting similar to Lent (another season that I knew nothing about). They use this practice of fasting to prepare themselves and the Body of Christ for the Second Coming of Christ.
Should Jesus’ coming as a conquering King have more weight in our daily lives and message? Where is our focus and perspective–on a baby or a conquering King?
Journey Into God 
I wonder if one should have any more weight than the other. To some the baby is the place to start. To some the 2nd coming is the place to start. Could it be related to where we are in our Christian walk? I appreciate the baby but I now it goes beyond that. I also appreciate the crucifixion but know it goes beyond that. I appreciate the resurrection but know it goes beyond that. I appreciate the ascension but know it goes beyond that. But the 2nd coming would never happen if the others had not taken place first. My focus can be both on the baby and the conquering king. Least that is what my .02 worth says. 🙂 Good thoughts Eric.
Thanks Bill. I really appreciate you taking the time to comment. Your insights are always welcome. I know I should have been more clear in that I wasn’t belittling the birth of Christ in any fashion. That is a necessary part of our faith. Without the first coming of Christ, we cannot have the second coming of Christ, as you pointed out.
My point was that growing up, I was never around those who celebrated Advent or Lent. I just never hung in those circles. I didn’t even know what Advent was. Before I wrote the post, I was curious what it was and so I looked it up. Although I wasn’t around “Advent” we still basically did the same thing– after Thanksgiving, we talked about the birth of Christ. That’s almost all we talked about. Year after year after year, for a whole month of the year, we talked about the birth of Christ, the virgin birth, how Mary felt, what about Joseph, the shepherds, the Magi, etc. That’s all important.
I was surprised to learn in researching Advent that it simply meant “coming” (that Christ is coming) and not only refers to His coming as a human, as a baby, but also His second coming as well. To my brothers and sisters in Christ, not only must we focus on His birth at this time of year, but I believe of equal importance is His coming again soon. If we fail to talk about His second coming, we fail to prepare the Bride of Christ for her King.
Eric,
I have been gone too long from your blog, and I apologize! I will be stopping back later to properly throw my two cents in as well. Until then–
Blessings!
Eric,
You said:
“Should Jesus’ coming as a conquering King have more weight in our daily lives and message? Where is our focus and perspective–on a baby or a conquering King?”
I know almost nothing about Lent or Advent. I had seen “Advent Services” being advertised at a local Methodist church, but my knowledge of Advent is poor at best. My wife bought an Advent calendar for the fridge and he opens the “doors” with our oldest daughter. It’s a Mom/Daughter thing.
So I am not an expert on Advent or what it means or why it’s deemed important or what have you.
I quoted your last two lines in your article because I can work with them. I agree partly with Bill in that you cannot have one without the other Baby Jesus- Conquering King Jesus. I have long mused that He came as a Conquering King and His battle cry was the first scream He made once He was brought into the world as a newborn. But I see what you are saying about there being a difference between the two aspects of Christ.
I place importance on Christmas merely because it is fulfilled prophecy. Since I do not know the factual ins-and-outs of the actual birth of Jesus, ie, ‘what day was it, was it night, was it cold, what did the inn actually look like, etc, etc…’, I content myself with the knowledge that His birth was prophesied and was indeed fulfilled. True, this outlook makes for a boring Christmas celebration, LOL, but I am good with it. (Jokes, just jokes..)
So other than looking at Christmas, and how we acknowledge it and celebrate it as The Invisible Church, as merely fulfilled prophecy, I know it is the first time Jesus “stepped” into humanity as all-man and all-God. I know He will again return, (since He departed to return to His Father), and when He does it isn’t going to be all rainbows and puppies.
Should our focus be on Baby Jesus in a manger, or Second Coming Jesus with sword in hand? Hmm.
I would have to say that in The Big Picture, for this moment in history, the reality that He is returning should be the focus. This is not disparaging Christmas or the Birth of our King, no, but I believe it makes much more “sense” to focus on what is to come and not so much what has already transpired.
So I’m “siding” with you on this one, Eric. I think His eventual return matters more for today’s lost world.
My two cents.
Donald Borsch Jr.
Bethel, CT
Donald, thanks for your comments. I appreciate them. Here’s a thought to consider and one that I should have emphasized more in this post for this should be the foundation of the modern-day Church:
We are in a post-redemption age. In other words, Jesus already came, died and rose again. This is the central message of the Gospel of the Kingdom. Therefore, since we are post-redemption, the body of Christ should then be looking through the lens of redemption– of what Jesus already did. He already took care of our sin, depression, isolation, sickness, pain, poverty, etc. And since Jesus already took care of these plaguing issues all linked to sin, then we must turn our focus off of ourselves and to the world around us. They are lost because of sin. The Good News must be shared and spread of our awful fate without Christ and what He did to reconcile us to God. And included in that message must be– “you don’t have forever to make this decision.” Jesus is coming soon and when the body dies or Jesus comes back, either signifies the end for each individual. There is no turning back from it. Eternity starts that moment and eternity is a long time. We cannot afford to mess up this one decision. All of eternity rests on this one decision. What will we do in response to what Jesus already did?