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Green Blades Preaching Roundtable

1st Sunday of Advent

Year C
December 1, 2024
Pastor Paul Brown

Jeremiah 33:14-16
Psalm 25:1-10
1 Thessalonians 3:9-13
Luke 21:25-36

I’m not sure why it is that I should be surprised every year when the First Sunday of Advent rolls around when I come across the gospel readings in the Revised Common Lectionary (A, B, C). They all have to do with apocalypse and Jesus’ second coming. Perhaps it is because my mind has already jumped ahead to the Annunciation, the Magnificat, or the Nativity itself.  In our year of Luke, much like in Mark, we hear about signs in the sun, the moon, and the stars, distress among the nations, the roaring of the sea and the waves, and people fainting from fear and foreboding of the things that are coming.

 

We are then given a parable told by Jesus, who says, “Look at the fig tree and all the trees; as soon as they sprout leaves you can see for yourselves and know that summer is already near.”  It doesn’t seem like much of a parable as we would normally think of Jesus’ parables about things that are lost or about tiny seeds of faith. Seemingly, it’s more like an observation that Jesus is making, about that which we should come to expect.

 

It's as though Jesus is stating the obvious. Of course, when we see trees’ leafing out, it’s a sign that summer is coming. It just seems like yesterday, however, when I was raking up the dead leaves from our lawn. And now, in anticipation of snow flying, we’re supposed to be thinking about the budding of leaves on trees foreshadowing the coming of summer. Really?!?

 

There are signs, like the budding of leaves, in which we anticipate new life. As we enter into the long season of snow, however, we must put on hold such images of new life. As we anticipate this, there comes the demand that we remain patient. But God knows that this isn’t always easy for us.

 

In his commentary on this passage in WorkingPreacher.com, Karl Jacobson refers to Charles Dickens who has said, “Train up a fig tree in the way we should go, and when you are old sit under the shade of it.” Jacobson goes on to comment, “This phrase has been adopted by green houses, landscapers, and environmental movements; it has been employed as an exhortation to patience, to prudence and planning, and even used as motivation for job interviews. I cannot say just what Dickens had in mind, but for the biblically literate it may be clear that Dickens is borrowing from (and riffing on) the book of Proverbs: ‘Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old, he will not depart from it’ (Proverbs 22:6).

 

What, then, is the commonality (if there is any) between the raising of children and fig trees? Answers may abound, I have never planted a fig tree and am still trying to figure out children. But one thing, at least, seems certain: training a child or a fig tree will be a labor of love, with the emphasis falling equally (one hopes!) on ‘labor’ and ‘love.’” [Working Preacher: First Sunday of Advent (Year C); Commentary on Luke 21:25-36. Karl Jacobson]

 

The Greek philosopher Epictetus (55-135 CE) had patience in mind when he turned to the fig tree and the fig tree as an illustration, saying, “No great thing is created suddenly, any more than a bunch of grapes or a fig. If you tell me that you desire a fig, I answer you that there must be time. Let it first blossom, then bear fruit, then ripen.”

 

We live in the in-between time of Christ’s first coming and his second coming. We can sit idly by with fear and foreboding.  As we observe and experience first-hand the devastating effects of climate change, we can quickly fall into a paralyzed state of fear. The alternative is for us to be active participants in tending God’s Garden, the earth. Although there is a call for patience in our stewardship of Creation, there is at the same time great urgency. The repercussions of greenhouse gases, take shape the form of rising waters, ever melting glaciers, and multiple hurricanes and tornadoes which all point toward an urgent response.

 

The passage from Romans chapter 8 comes to mind: “We know that the whole creation has been groaning in labor pains until now; and not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the first fruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly while we wait for adoption, the redemption of our bodies” (Romans 8:22-23). The whole of Creation, including we, ourselves, groan inwardly as we await the coming of Christ the Redeemer. In the meantime, as we actively wait for his coming again, we participate on behalf of the whole of creation to be the good stewards of all that God has made. To do otherwise, we would fall prey to our fears which paralyze us toward complacency and defeatism.

 

As people of faith who live in the in-between-time, we wait in hope for Christ’s coming again. We also live actively with purpose as caretakers of God’s good gift of Creation. Amen.

 

Hymn: Cold December Flies Away – 299 ELW

Pastor Paul Brown
Pastor Paul Brown
Immanuel Lutheran Church
Princeton, Minnesota

Paul Brown is an ELCA pastor, having served for 38 years in churches in Iowa, Minnesota, and North Dakota. He is currently pastor at Immanuel Lutheran Church, Princeton, MN. Paul lives with his wife, Brenda, in St. Francis, Minnesota. They have three adult children and one grandson. Immanuel Lutheran, currently an EcoFaith partner, was awarded the 2023 EcoFaith microgrant which went toward creating a pollinator and community garden.

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