I saw in the night, and behold, a man riding on a red horse! … and behind him were red, sorrel, and white horses … ‘These are they whom the Lord has sent to patrol the earth’ … ‘Cry out, Thus says the Lord of Hosts: I am exceedingly jealous for Jerusalem and Zion. And I am very angry with the nations that are at ease.’
Zechariah 3:7-17
So when you see the desolating sacrilege spoken of by the prophet Daniel, standing in the holy place – let the reader understand, then let those in Judea flee to the mountains … For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now.
Matthew 24:15-31
Because you have kept my word of patient endurance, I will keep you from the hour of trial which is coming on the whole world, to try those who dwell upon the earth. I am coming soon; hold fast what you have, so that no one may seize your crown.
Revelation 3:7-13
Well, I hope that got you in the Christmas spirit! These passages are actually from the readings prescribed in today’s Daily Office for the third week of Advent. They sound more like the dark moments of The Lord of the Rings than the sentimentality of the Hallmark movies that play this time of year. With the tender and peaceful moment of Jesus’s birth – "Silent Night" – just 11 days away, why would these be deemed appropriate for us to reflect upon?
I believe it is because Christ's birth set in motion a train of events that will culminate in what these passages foretell. God came into the world through Jesus to help set us on the path to salvation. The stakes are immense. It will not be easy. Jesus himself said that his followers would be “hated by all nations for my name’s sake,” and that “many will fall away, and betray one another … But he who endures to the end will be saved.” And he told us what to look for. “For as the lightning comes from the east and shines as far as the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man.”
Beginning with what we now call Christmas, the clock has been ticking. We do not know the day or the hour. But the Son of Man is coming.
In Christ,
Mark
