Have you ever thought about the purpose of worship? What about when we worship – the day or time of year?
Jesus was Jewish, so it is important to think about our Jewish heritage here. In Judaism, the Sabbath is observed starting at dusk on Friday to dusk on Saturday – the last day of the week. Think about the first story of Creation in Genesis 1. God is said to have labored six days and rested on the Sabbath – the seventh day. Part of the purpose of worshiping on the last day of the week is to look at the week that has just passed and to give thanks to God for the blessings received that week. This is an important aspect of worship that we often overlook with our more future-oriented outlook both within Christianity and as a culture.
Within Christendom, worship is most typically held (obviously not always the case) on Sunday, not Saturday. Why? It is a weekly reminder of Easter SUNDAY. Rightly understood, the Sabbath has not been moved to Sunday; rather, Sunday is a day to worship and be reminded of the gift of Easter. On top of that, though, because worship is held on the first day of the week in this scenario, it is a preparation for living out the life of faith in the week to come. It is an opportunity to become re-focused on the goal of the Christian life.
I think it may be partially because the New Year follows Christmas, that we tend to focus in December (the time of Advent and Christmas) on what has gone on in the previous year. It’s the last month of the year; it’s a time of ending.
The problem is that we are basing this off of the Gregorian calendar not the Christian liturgical calendar. In this calendar, the New Year begins four Sundays prior to Christmas Day – the first Sunday of Advent. It is a time of remembering the birth of Christ, but it is also a preparation for the coming of Christ again.
Often, this second coming is envisioned as vision of rapture – Jesus coming down out of the sky. Let’s consider this another way, though, using these passages of Scripture:
- For where two or more are gathered in my name, I am there among them. – Matthew 18:20
- 37 Then the righteous will answer the Son of Man, “Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry and gave you food, or thirsty and gave you something to drink? 38 And when was it that we saw you a stranger and welcomed you, or naked and gave you clothing? 39 And when was it that we saw you sick or in prison and visited you?” 40 And the king will answer them, “Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me.” – Matthew 25:37-40
- Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it. – 1 Corinthians 12:27
When we really listen to these passages, we see that Jesus returns all the time – when we gather together, when we serve those in need. Advent, then, is the time that we should be preparing ourselves (and allowing God to prepare us) to bring forth Christ into the world through our fellowship and service to others. As a parallel to Mary’s story, Advent is the time of our pregnancy where our calling from God grows in conviction in preparation for being birthed into action after Christmas.
It is important to remember and cherish our past blessings, so it is fitting that Thanksgiving falls the Thursday before the first Sunday of Advent. Let us change direction and focus, though, during this season of Advent, looking for how we will bring Christ into the world.
- How might God be calling you to bring Christ into the world in the coming year through your Christian fellowship and service to those in need?
- Knowing that you are but one member of the body of Christ, who might you invite to share in those actions?
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The above devotional is a response to the great discussion we had at the 1st Session of the 2011 Advent Study, Christmas is Not Your Birthday
Originally posted at http://fumcwf.org/archives/6264 on December 2, 2011.
