Reflections...

A sermon preached at Kowloon Union Church on Sunday 29 November 2009, First Sunday in Advent, by the Rev. Phyllis Wong. The scripture readings that day were Jeremiah 33:14-16, Psalm 25:1-10, 1 Thessalonians 3:9-13 and Luke 21:25-36.


Dear triune God,

May your Words guide us to understand your mystery of salvation and your promise of hope through the power of the Holy Spirit. In Christ’s name we pray amen.

Today is the first Sunday of Advent. Advent derives from the Latin word adventus, meaning "coming" or “arrival”. This is traditionally a season of quiet and joyful expectation for the coming of Christ. Advent has marked the beginning of the Church liturgical year.

The Latin word adventus is the translation of the Greek word parousia, commonly used in reference to the Second Comming. Therefore the season of Advent serves a dual reminder of the original waiting of the Hebrews for the birth of Jesus Christ their Messiah as well as the waiting that Christians today endure for the second coming of Christ.

Advent signifies a time of waiting for the coming of our Lord to save his creation from sins and to restore life of all creatures.

Advent begins with a promise, a promise of God to save his people who have a covenant relationship with Him. As the Psalmist has reiterated this kind of relationship, ‘you are my God who save me’ (Ps. 25:5)

I read for you the Psalm 25:1-10

Psalm 25:1-10 “To you, O Lord, I offer my prayer; in you my God, I trust. Save me from the shame of defeat; don’t let my enemies gloat over me! Defeat does not come to those who trust in you, but to those who are quick to rebel against you. Teach me your ways, O lord; make them known to me. Teach me to live according to your truth, for you are my God, who saves me. I always trust in you. Remember, O Lord, your kindness and constant love which you have shown from long ago. Forgive the sins and errors of my youth. In your constant love and goodness, remember me, Lord! Because the Lord is righteousness and good, he teaches sinners the path they should follow. He leads the humble in the right way and teaches them his will. With faithfulness and love he leads all who keep his covenant and obey his commands.”

Promise of God in the time of waiting for God’s coming, for God’s salvation is important. Why? And what does the promise of God constitute?

God has promised to save and promised to call people of righteousness to rule and bring forth justice and peace to his people. Prophet Jeremiah in the Old Testament has clearly proclaimed it. (Jeremiah 33:14-16, “The Lord said, ‘the time is coming when I will fulfill the promise that I made to the people of Israel and Judah. At that time I will choose as king a righteous descendant of David. The King will do what is right and just throughout the land. The people of Judah and of Jerusalem will be rescued and will live in safety. The city will be called, ‘the Lord our Salvation’)

The City that is saved would be called ‘The Lord Our Salvation’. If City is symbolically representing the world, the world under the care and rule of God, we can then call the world --- ‘The Lord Our Salvation’ too.

Promise is important because it gives people hope and courage to go on in times of difficulty and danger.

Trust is important for the fulfillment of promise

Promise can give a sense of hope and encouragement when people have trust in the promise. Promise works only with a condition of trusting the faithfulness of God.

What is the ground of trusting God? We believe in a God who is the origin of the world, the creator of the heaven and earth. We believe in a God who has been involved in the history of humanity. We believe in God because of our personal encounters with God in our lives.

In the path of waiting for God’s salvation, we have to trust in God’s promise. We trust that our Lord, who is the God of the Israelite, God of all humanity, and God of the whole world, Our Lord is God of justice and righteousness.

Promise of God gives hope because promise of a bright future provides a direction for people to move on.

If a person loses direction and objective in life, he would suffer a lot for life becomes meaningless. Sisters and brothers, if you are now in a stage of lost and confusion in life, come to the Lord of salvation for help and alternatives. In the season of Advent, it is a time for us to come to God and quietly wait for his revelation, to understand God’s will, our life in God and areas that we may need to change and transform.

Life situation on earth is never easy. The reality of the world is scary and upsetting. Personally we may face a lot of troubles in life that are yet to be resolved. In the world around us, wars and violence, many people suffer from economic hardship and millions die of hunger and lack of basic medical support, people lose their freedom and even their lives under the rule of dictatorship, global warming that make our earth sick.… endless list of human suffering, we may be very disappointed. But when we trust the promise of God and truly believe that God will fulfill his promise and take responsibility we will then be encouraged and be filled with hope. God is our savior who will transform and bring new lives.

In view of God’s promise to fulfill his plan of salvation to people from an individual and communal level, the path of waiting is not passive as most people may think.

Waiting is not a kind of passive action. On the contrary waiting can be taken as active participation of here and now which have implication for future.

Let me give an example to illustrate. Having a new born baby is a gift and a promise of God to give life. The fulfillment of a new life is the birth of a baby. But before the baby is born and is still nurtured inside the mother’s womb, there are different people contributing to the well being of this baby. How? First of all, the diet, the life styles and the emotions of the pregnant woman are the primary factors affecting the health and growth of the baby. Then it comes to all the people who may interact with this mother. You may then think of the father of the baby. He is of course a significant person to influence the baby’s well being. His love and care to the mother will create positive feeling that in return contribute to the growth of the baby inside the womb. At the community level, families and neighbors of the pregnant woman, as well as the medical service provision and related profession, they all take part and contribute to bringing a healthy baby in future. The fulfillment of promise in future, and the coming of God’s salvation is very much to do with the present.

Promise is about future. That is absolutely true. However, promise is also about here and now. Our attitude and way of doing and preparation at present will greatly affect how God’s promise is fulfilled in future. The waiting for God’s salvation in his promise is open ended. The active waiting for God’s promise is the gift from God that allows God’s people as creature to participate in God’s salvation.


Every year before the 1st Advent Sunday, KUC will arrange the Clean Up Day on Friday and Saturday. I find the tradition of this ‘Clean Up Day’ is theologically meaningful.


Clean up day is an event open to the whole congregation, young and old, of different occupations and level of education gathered to work together for cleaning the church and prepare for the advent.

People coming for the Clean Up have to let go of who they are. They forget about their social status and positioning. Whether they are lawyers, accountant, teachers, domestic helpers, students, asylum seekers, they all come for the same purpose. They come to dedicate themselves to clean and decorate the church to prepare for the new church year. During the time of waiting for God’s salvation, God’s people do not care who we are as the world/the society defines us. What we do is to have to learn to focus ourselves to God and for God.

In the Clean Up Day, people come to do labor work, they all come to participate. People who come to clean up indicate that they may have left all their other worries and demands from work and from home aside at this moment in time. They come to serve God with heart and clear purpose. People come to clean the dirt and bring shining light to the fans, to the lights, to the windows and to the communion table and so all. People (children especially) come to put up Christmas decorations that bring color, beauty and joy to the congregation coming to the church to meet the Holy One. By doing all these, we are able to bring glory to our God of love and justice. The preparation for Advent prepares for the coming of Christ that is open for all people. This is a reflection of God’s Salvation and his promise of hope that they are given to all people.

The clean up day is also significant in terms of building up a loving and mutual support community in Christ. In the 1 Thessalonians 3:11, St. Paul prayed for the church to love one another and for all people, and teach them to grow in maturity in love while they were waiting for the day Jesus Christ comes again to be with all who belong to him. Clean Up Day right before the beginning of Advent signifies a community of faith committing themselves to cleanse our sins and repent through a collective effort. People coming to the Clean Up do not necessarily know each other in person (we have residents from the Bethune House, over 10 people coming; Rose’s students who have been coming year after year even after their graduation from the secondary school where Rose was a teacher). But we are connected in the loving service of Christ. During the work we are supporting each other and working with each other. (Paul climbed up the ladder to clean the fan at the ceiling, Hing cleaned the cloth; Paul Wong held the ladder to ensure the safety of Amour when he was climbing up to clean the top of the panels.) It is through this collective effort that demonstrates people’s caring cooperation and solidarity in Christ. Through this connection and unity in Christ, God’s people are given more power and strength to prepare ourselves for the coming of God’s salvation and Kingdom. If you did not come for the Clean up Day in the last two days, don’t worry. Think of any way that you may appreciate those who have come to work. In addition, if you spot anything in church that requires cleaning and fixing please tell us, or offer your hand would be even better. Love one another through service in Church is a long term practice that require commitment and persistence.

In a chaotic world where despair and disappointment are part of life to many people, the community of faith serves as a significant body to uphold each other and keep our trust and hope in God. When Christians are able to love one another and affirm each other to grow in maturity in time of darkness, it conveys a strong sense of hope. In a community of love, our Lord will strengthen us in the presence of God.

The promise of God relies on a faithful community in which believers are able to practice a life of loving one another.

Advent begins a promise of good future. The Lord has promised to choose people of righteousness to fulfill his plan of salvation. God has come for the first time through the incarnation of Jesus Christ. For the second coming of Christ, God has chosen Church to be agent of salvation to bring forth love and justice to the world.

To Christians, fulfillment of God’s salvation through his promise has reminded us that we have to be alert, alert of God’s salvation and that God’s Kingdom is near.

Season of Advent is a time for Christians to reflect on our lives and how our lives engage in God’s justice and serve our Lord in God’s will and walk in God’s truth for hope, love, joy and peace. As a faith community of Christ, we have to learn and grow in loving one another and for all while we are retelling the story of savior Jesus Christ and waiting for the second coming of Christ in the years ahead.