Advent Devotional Resource - San Francisco Theological Seminary

Monday, December 7Revelations 1: 1-8To say that our culture has forgotten the “reason for the season” of Christmas has become a cliché.When the birth of God in human form is trivialized with glitter and tinsel it is obvious that thesignificance of the event is lost. When the saintly roots of Santa are lost in piles of paper andpackages, the why we celebrate the event is obviously remote. Yet, there is hope. I don’t believe thegreed for stuff, the dullness of too much eggnog, or the time off work is why Christmas remains sopopular.Something deep in our human soul longs for the mystery and miracle behind the shiny decorations,the superficial greetings, and abundance of gifts. We want something more in life and hold on to theholy-day trappings in the hope that their meaning will emerge in spite of our abuses of them. Thislonging is the beginning of a spiritual life. When we honor it, nurture it, and bless it God can be bornin us yet again. This is the miracle of Christmas.When we think of the Book of Revelation, our minds go immediately to visions, beasts, and howmany angels fit on the head of a pin. But the opening words in Revelation 1:1-8 pull us back tothe real purpose of the book. It is the “revelation of Jesus Christ” shared in a vision to John to be ablessing to all who read and keep what is written. Written in a time of great persecution and danger,it is coded and veiled to protect the early Christian community, but its intent is clear—to make andstrengthen disciples of Jesus Christ.This is the purpose of the incarnation, of Jesus’ birth, to reveal the way home for us—the way tolove God with all our heart, mind, soul and strength, because God first loved us. Jesus says, “I amthe Alpha and the Omega,” he is the beginning and the ending of all things, forever the same, theLord, our God. The purpose for the incarnation, the purpose for Jesus’ revelation, the purpose forcelebrating Christmas remains consistently the same—to remember that God is faithful and callsus to discipleship. To all people, young and old, happy and sad, bold and timid, all who wait andwonder, John says, “Now is the time to turn to God in Jesus Christ. Look! He is coming… he IScoming!”Rev. Dr. Steven E. Wirth (D. Min ’94)Pastor, Grace First Presbyterian Church, Long Beach, Calif.SFTS Trustee, Student Recruitment and Development CommitteeCommittee on RepresentationAlumni Representative