The Siege of Aleppo

aleppo-then-and-nowAdvent
November 27, 2016

Scripture Reading: Matthew 24:36-44

Then two will be in the field; one will be taken and one will be left. Two women will be grinding meal together; one will be taken and one will be left. Keep awake therefore, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming. But understand this: if the owner of the house had known in what part of the night the thief was coming, he would have stayed awake and would not have let his house be broken into. Therefore you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an unexpected hour. –Matthew 24:36-44

It is well beyond my imagination what the people of Aleppo, Syria are experiencing right now. They do not know who will be next to die or survive. I am sure some wonder if survival is worth it. One small child is pulled from the rubble alive, and the whole world celebrates. We forget that an estimated 450,000 people have died there, 50,000 were children while we helplessly sit and watch. How off guard were the people of Syria when the various rebels happened, the Assad Regime happened, ISIS happened? Are they any guiltier than we for just wanted to live their lives, love their families, and attend their houses of worship?

Christ was in the beginning, has come, and will come again and abides with us now in spirit and truth. Christ demonstrated the way of life where Aleppo’s under siege do not exist. Where lambs lie down with lions with children safely playing nearby as he studied in the prophets. Jesus’ call to stay awake is not just sentencing us to sleepless nights shivering from fear in our locked and gated homes. His call is a call to action. He wants us to love evil to death and to do that we must be alert and engaged.

Prayer: Lord, let your love fill all the gaps in our love so that your will becomes a reality in our world. 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.