Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we continue to progress through this time and season of Advent, we are called to remember the love of God and His salvation, all of His promises which He has fulfilled to us through the coming of the Messiah, Our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, the Son of God Most High. It is for this reason that we all rejoice and celebrate during this upcoming Christmas season and for which we also prepare ourselves spiritually and wholly during the time and duration of this Advent season. That is why it is important that we continue to keep our focus and attention on the Lord and His love, His care and providence for us lest we may be distracted and confused by the many distractions, temptations and all the pleasures present all around us, especially during this festive time and season.

In our first reading today, taken from the Book of the prophet Isaiah, we heard of the prophet Isaiah proclaiming the coming of the salvation in God through the Descendant of King David, Whom the Lord Himself had revealed through His prophets including Isaiah, that He would bring the salvation of God to all of the whole world. This is an important reminder for all of us that the same Jesus Christ, Whom we have believed in, put our faith and trust in, as the One Who have delivered us from the tyranny and dominion of sin and evil, have truly fulfilled everything that God had promised to all of us from the very beginning of time. However, even more importantly, what the prophet Isaiah had proclaimed and prophesied, was more than merely just a prophecy of the coming of the Lord as it had happened two millennia ago, but in truth, he was also speaking of the Second Coming of Christ, or Parousia, when the Lord will come again as He has promised, to judge the whole entire world.

This is what the prophet Isaiah has spoken about, as he spoke of the moment when the Lord will come again, bringing His eternal peace, harmony and reconciliation to all of us. His first coming has shown us the love and mercy of God, His compassion and kindness manifested to us in the flesh, in His Son, Our Lord and Saviour, and He has revealed to us the truth and the love which He has always have for each and every one of us. Then, through His ministry, works and finally, by His own willing and selfless, perfect love, He has also brought us all out from the darkness of sin, delivering us from the path of evil and harm, as He bore upon Himself the burden of the Cross, by shouldering upon Himself, all the punishments and the sufferings that we should have borne for our many sins. He has opened for us all the gates of Heaven, and reconciled us with God.

Then, as we heard from the prophet Isaiah, what we are all ought to be looking out for, is the coming of the time of grace in the Lord’s Presence, when everything shall be restored to perfection, when the evils of this world will be rooted out, and all of us will one day once again be in the Holy Presence of God, to enjoy forever the fruits of our faith and labours, and for the dedication and commitment, the love and trust that we have always had in Him. This is what our Advent preparation and commemoration should be focused on, as each and every one of us should spend this good time to prepare ourselves in our hearts, minds, bodies and souls, so that all of us may once again be truly reconnected with the Lord, our loving God. All of us have been called to holiness in God, and therefore, we should do our best to live up to this.

In our Gospel passage today, we heard from the words of the Lord Himself, reassuring all of His disciples and followers, that every one of us have truly been blessed because God Himself has come into our midst through His Son, bringing us all closer to Him, revealing to us the fullness of His love, and everything that He has intended to do for us, in gathering us all back to Himself, and in leading us to salvation through Him. Each and every one of us as Christians, who have accepted the Lord as our God and Saviour, all of us have been brought together as one flock of the Lord’s faithful, becoming those whom He has loved and shown affection for, and as long as we remain firm in our faith and commitment to Him, then all that He has promised us will become a reality in the end, and we shall be blessed and be truly joyful forevermore.

Now, brothers and sisters in Christ, all of us, having heard all these words of the Lord in the Scriptures, let us all therefore keep in mind as always, that everything that we do throughout this time and opportunities which we have been given during this period of Advent, we should always do our best so that all of our upcoming celebrations, rejoicing and festivities are centred on the One in Whom we ought to focus our attention in, during this time of rejoicing. Christmas is ultimately about Christ, the Lord, our God and Saviour. Amidst all the distractions and all the excesses of worldly revelries that are present everywhere all around us, during this period of time, all of us should always be the role models and inspirations for one another, in how we all commit ourselves to the Lord and be focused wholly and entirely on the Lord Jesus Christ, our Saviour.

Each and every one of us should always be filled with the true joy in the Lord, and be wholly committed to Him, and not be easily swayed and tempted with the various temptations and distractions. We should always help one another to remember the generous love of God, which He has given us. All of us are reminded that we must never take God’s love for granted, and remember that it is because of His love, and everything that He has done to us through His Son, by His Incarnation and coming into this world, that all of us may have hope once again, and that we have this sure path given and revealed to us. This Advent, let it be a time of renewal and reorientation for us, so that we may focus and centre our whole lives once again in the Lord.

May the Lord, Whose coming we celebrate and prepare for this season of Advent and the upcoming Christmas, be with us always, and may He empower and strengthen us in all things, so that, in everything we say and do, in our every way of life, we may truly be exemplary in all things, and that we may always persevere in faith regardless of all the challenges and trials we may face and encounter in life. May God bless us all and our every good works and endeavours, now and always. Amen.