Advent
December 19, 2014

Scripture Reading: Romans 16:25-27

Now to God who is able to strengthen you according to my gospel and the proclamation of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery that was kept secret for long ages but is now disclosed, and through the prophetic writings is made known to all the Gentiles, according to the command of the eternal God, to bring about the obedience of faith— to the only wise God, through Jesus Christ, to whom be the glory forever! Amen. —Romans 16:25-27

What must it have been like on that road to Damascus when the light suddenly dawned on Saul that all people were the one true God’s children? He said it himself that he had been as good a Jew as anyone could have been. He followed all the rules, did all the right things unlike those heretics who were followers of the now dead man called Jesus. They were even saying this prophet was the long awaited anointed one, the Messiah. Could such a one come out of Nazareth? The impact of this Damascus road experience was so dramatic that Saul even changed to using his Roman name, Paul. He had become a new creation and led the way to spreading the good news of Jesus Christ to the Gentiles.

It is ironic today that we, who call ourselves Christians, are being challenged to welcome this same truth that all people are the one true God’s children and we are to love them. Those of us who find ourselves living in what can only be considered privilege by much of the rest of the world’s standards are so used to that status that we take it for granted and, perhaps, even innately believe that for some reason we are more deserving than these others.

Yesterday I accompanied another member of my Sunday school class in delivering Christmas presents to a young single mother with two children, one of whom is tutored by a member of our class. The mother was, I think, a little overwhelmed, but very gracious. After we left I could not help but long for a world where she had the resources to provide for her own family. Where she could earn a living wage, her children could excel at school, and our knowing one another would be based on mutual friendship as children of the one true God. I have no problem with meeting immediate and remedial needs of people, but we are called to take the next step and assure that those needs are not the result of economic injustice. Is that not the light this baby Jesus brings to us today?

Prayer: God of all, shine your light on us. Open our eyes to see the world as you would have it be and show us the ways we can work to make that reality. Amen.

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of American. Used by permission. All rights reserved.