Bethlehem Lutheran Church
The Heart of Bay Ridge
Sunday Service 10:30am
4th & Ovington Avenues
Brooklyn NY 11209
718.748.9502
Dear Members and Friends,
We have begun the season of Advent, a time of expectation, preparation and readiness. Our scripture passages for last Sunday set the stage. Both Jesus and the apostle Paul spoke about the urgency surrounding the coming of the Lord. Paul wrote, “it is already the moment for you to wake from sleep. For salvation is nearer to us now than when we became believers; the night is far gone; the day is near.” And, Jesus said, “Keep awake, therefore, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming…Therefore you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.”
So, are you ready? On Sunday, we looked around the church. Wonderful Terri Chen transformed our sanctuary from Fall & Thanksgiving to Advent & Christmas. Today, Heil put up all the Christmas wreaths on the fence. The school creche and the church creche are assembled. It looks like we are getting ready. How about you? Is your house or apartment decorated? Is the tree up with the lights and ornaments on? Is the gift list created and the presents ordered? Have the baking ingredients been bought for cookie and dessert making? Are you ready?
The “readiness” referenced in the scripture passages above have absolutely no connection to the items I just mentioned in the last paragraph. The readiness that Paul and Jesus speak about has nothing to do with physical things. Nothing to do with decorations, Christmas preparation, gifts or food. We are ready, not when all our holiday tasks are done. We are ready, when our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ is guiding our thoughts, words and actions. Readiness is a spiritual condition involving our heart and soul, our faith, our beliefs, and our connection to Jesus.
I have the utmost confidence that all of you will be ready for Christmas. Everything will be checked off your list by December 25th. But, a much more important and profound question is, are you spiritually ready? Is the Good News of Jesus Christ a reality in your life every day? The world wants to suck you in with its distractions and self-indulgent temptations. The apostle Paul tells us to “put on the armor of light” and “put on the Lord Jesus Christ.” People of Bethlehem, this is what it truly means to be ready.
In the Lord’s Service,
Rev. Paul H. Knudsen
Pastor Paul's December Message
Bethlehem Lutheran Church ® | 4th & Ovington Avenues, Brooklyn NY 11209 | 718.748.9502
A member of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA)
Come home to Bethlehem
