Preparations
He will be a man with the spirit and power of Elijah. He will prepare the people for the coming of the Lord. Luke 1:17 (NLT)
Advent, the weeks leading up to Christmas, is a time of preparation. In one sense, there are presents to purchase, homes to decorate, cookies to bake, and meals to prepare. For many people, it is a busy season; for others, it is also very stressful. There are expectations, sometimes beyond reason, that do not always match up with reality.
We do not want to minimize the significance of these preparations, but the most essential things are frequently ignored or minimized. Only a few people were ready and prepared at the time of the first Advent. In our last two articles, we began by considering the Desperation of our condition and situation before Christ came. Last time, we explored Expectations’ role as we look forward to Christ’s coming.
So now that we have realized our need for Christ, and we are excited with hope for his appearing, we need to prepare ourselves and others so that we might be ready. At the same time, God is making preparations for us and preparing us for our destiny with him. As with John the Baptist, we have the privilege of preparing others for the coming of the Lord.
Be Prepared
So prepare your minds for action and exercise self-control. Put all your hope in the gracious salvation that will come to you when Jesus Christ is revealed to the world. 1 Peter 1:13 (NLT)
Waiting for Christ to be revealed to the world is not a passive endeavor. Peter encourages us to prepare our minds for action. The dictionary defines preparation as “the action or process of making something ready for use in our service or of getting ready for some occasion, test, or duty.”[1]
Christ’s first Advent caught many people unprepared, and they missed the most significant event in history to that point. Will his second coming be any different? Paul said For you know quite well that the day of the Lord’s return will come unexpectedly, like a thief in the night. 1 Thessalonians 5:2 (NLT)
We know that sleep is good, even necessary. But there are times to remain vigilant. We are to be children of light. Paul went on to say, For you are all children of the light and of the day; we don’t belong to darkness and night. So be on your guard, not asleep like the others. Stay alert and be clearheaded. 1 Thessalonians 5:5–6 (NLT)
Jesus told the story of the ten virgins. Five were ready, and five were not prepared. Continual readiness requires constant preparation. In the parable, we are told that the bridegroom was delayed, and they all became drowsy and fell asleep. The difference was in the preparation. We do not know how long it will take for our bridegroom to come. Are we prepared to wait?
God’s Preparations
“Don’t let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God, and trust also in me. There is more than enough room in my Father’s home. If this were not so, would I have told you that I am going to prepare a place for you? John 14:1–2 (NLT)
While we are preparing for the Lord’s coming, he is also preparing for us. It is important to remember that God is in the process of making things ready for us. It is not easy to wait. Jesus told us that in this world, we were going to have trouble.
I am reminded of the words of the song I heard growing up. “Sometimes the day seems long, our trials hard to bear. We´re tempted to complain, to murmur and despair.” It seems like there is a lot to complain about in the world these days. This sentiment seems reasonable if we do not have something for which we are looking with hope.
For us to survive with our hope intact, we must have a vision and a longing for things beyond the present. When Moses was undergoing the tests and trials of life, something beyond the present kept his attention. He regarded abuse suffered for Christ to be greater wealth than the treasures of Egypt, for his eyes were fixed on the reward. Hebrews 11:26 (NET)
The chorus of that song puts it all into perspective for us. “It will be worth it all when we see Jesus! Life’s trials will seem so small when we see Christ. One glimpse of his dear face, all sorrow will erase. So, bravely run the race till we see Christ.” God is preparing for us!
Prepare the Way for Others
He said, “Build it up, build it up, prepare the way, remove every obstacle from my people’s way.” Isaiah 57:14 (CSB)
We are focused on our preparations for the coming of the Lord. What can we do to prepare others to be ready? Through Isaiah, God is telling us to prepare the way by removing every obstacle from the pathway. How do we know what is an obstacle?
Candidly, there are obstacles in people’s ways that only God can remove. The best thing we can do is ensure we are not an obstacle. We live in such a way that no one will stumble because of us, and no one will find fault with our ministry. In everything we do, we show that we are true ministers of God. We patiently endure troubles and hardships and calamities of every kind. 2 Corinthians 6:3–4 (NLT)
As we focus on preparing for this Advent season, we have our eyes fixed on Jesus. We are preparing ourselves. God is preparing a place for us, and we are doing what we can to remove every obstacle from the path of those who need to know that there is a God in heaven who loves them and a Savior who died to save them from their sins.
Steve Ekeroth
[1] Inc Merriam-Webster, Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary. (Springfield, MA: Merriam-Webster, Inc., 2003).