The word Advent comes from the Latin Adventus and it means the coming of or arrival of a powerful person. In the Christian faith Advent is the time when we celebrate the coming of Jesus the Christ through the womb of a virgin peasant girl by the name of Mary.
It encompasses the holiday of Christmas, and the word Christmas is a compound word that brings together “Christ” and “Mass.” We know that the word “Christ” means messiah, but the word “Mass” means “A sacred celebration or gathering.”
Therefore, during the Advent season, Christians gather in homes, churches, and other places to celebrate the coming of the one who not only brings “good news” but is the good news.
In Isaiah 9:6 it says, “For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”
The child born, as the text says, “will have the government on his shoulders…” In other words, that Christ child will hold the government accountable for either meeting the needs of the people or not meeting those needs of the people it is supposed to serve The people of faith in God are in hands of God.
The reason is that people don’t place precious things on their shoulders because they will eventually fall off; instead, they hold cherished things in their hands to protect, provide for, and progress the people.
The God child would hold the people in his hands to care for them.
That should be a warning to those who mistranslate the text to say that God upholds governments but does not hold them accountable.
God holds governments accountable for how that government meets the needs of the people with equity and not just equality.
Equality means everybody gets the same thing regardless of their station in life, but equity means that everybody will receive exactly what they need regardless of their station in life. God does not treat us equally, but God treats us fairly. I know that many of you have heard in church parlance the phrase, “Favor ain’t Fair.” That is a disrespect to God. It implies from the human perspective that God is not fair with us. Who would serve a God who acts like people do by having favorites instead of fairness? God is fair because everybody will not need the same things, but everybody can have what they need.
The Messiah that Isaiah wrote about and that we celebrate during Advent has other titles, according to Isaiah.
That child is a “wonderful Counselor” to comfort people who experience trials and tribulations in this life. He is called “A Mighty God,” who has all power to protect the voiceless from wickedness of people who occupy high places. That child will be the “Everlasting Father,” and like any good parent, always seeks the best for their children. Unlike Governments that come and go, unlike Dictators that come and go and unlike Presidents who come and go that “Everlasting Father,” will be forever. That messiah would also be called “The Prince of Peace.” Peace is not the absence of problems, but peace is an inward expression of contentment, strength, joy, and hope in the midst of chaos and crisis.
The prince of peace therefore comes to be a “peace maker” and not a peace keeper.
This is what Advent is supposed to be about. How sad it is that corporate America has shifted the focus from reflecting and meditating together on the glory of a heavenly ally who comes “that we might have life and have that life more abundantly.”
What an embarrassment to God that during this season, many people have been seduced by mechanisms of the market force in focusing on trying to buy things they don’t need to impress people they really don’t like all to enrich those whose true religion is the acquiring of more money.
Finally, Advent is not just a sacred celebration of the coming of Jesus in the past but an anticipation of his second coming in the future. That second coming is where he arrives to take note of those who strive to emulate his prior arrival when he clothes the naked, feeds the hungry, visits the sick, checked on those in prison, advocates for the oppressed, and does something to eradicate the injustices that people in positions of power created to profit off the poor.
Advent is a time when we anticipate that when we are faithful in the work and ministry of that child named Jesus of Nazareth, we become true worshipers that God can ultimately declare to them, “Well done, my good and faithful servant.”
Be well, Be Authentic, and Stay Woke! Uhuru Sassa!
Rev. Dr. John E. Jackson, Sr. is the Senior Pastor of Trinity United Church of Christ-Gary, 1276 W. 20th Ave. in Gary. “We are not just another church but we are a culturally conscious, Christ-centered church, committed to the community; we are unashamedly Black and unapologetically Christian.” Contact the church by email at [email protected] or by phone at 219-944-0500.
Rev. John E. Jackson
Rev. Dr. John E. Jackson, Sr. is the Senior Pastor of Trinity United Church of Christ-Gary, 1276 W. 20th Ave. in Gary. “We are not just another church but we are a culturally conscious, Christ-centered church, committed to the community; we are unashamedly Black and unapologetically Christian.”