Eerste Sondag van Advent ~ 28 November 2010: Verder Geluister: Mat 24:36-44
Dis so asof God wag en sien wat ons saai …, voor Hy kom maai!
One must always live a life that is worthy of the gospel and not worry about the time of Christ’s return (Jirair Tashjian).
- Dis eers met Christus se wederkoms dat God se koninkryk van welwese en heel-wees volkome bereik word; nou leef ons in ‘n “gedeeltelike gerealiseerde koninkryk” (Goppelt) – God se onvolledige nuwe wêreld. Tans leef ons as tussen-tyd mense – ‘n lewe wat waarde tot skepsel en skepping toevoeg; ons is gebonde aan God en mekaar en gestuur om die evangelie van hoop te leef. Die droom van die profete (sien o.a. Miga 5) om heel te wees, het met Advent pos gevat, in Kersfees sigbaar geword en word deur die Heilige Gees in ons voortgesit – so stuk-stuk sigbaar – ‘n onvoltooide realiteit. Dít word met die wederkoms voltooi. Die ellende, lyding, armoede, hulpeloosheid wat so volop is, die Vigspandemie wat soveel mense raak, kan anders lyk, omdat God sigbaar deur ons lewens, veral in dié omstandighede, word. Dit gaan nou voor die wederkoms oor die “hiernoumaals” en nie oor die “hiernamaals” nie.
- Dis nou die tyd waar mense, veral seerkrymense, noodlydendes, armes, verontregtes, MIV lyers God in hul omstandighede soek en ons teen alle ellende en onreg waak, deernis aan almal toon en betroubaar in alles is. Dis veral dié dinge wat vir God belangrik is (Mat 23:23). Paulus roep ons om die tyd uit te koop – “benut elke geleentheid, want ons leef in slegte tye. Moenie ondeurdag optree nie, maar probeer uitvind wat God se wil is “ (NLV – Ef. 4:16-17).
- Dis so asof God die wederkoms van Christus uitstel om aan ons die geleentheid te gee om sorgsaam en oplettend te wees. God gee mense tyd om hulle te bekeer (Adrio König). God wag en sien of ons liefde ons na ons naaste, veral die minstes dryf (Mat. 25). Matthew and Luke, who used Mark to write their gospels, stress even more strongly than Mark that Christ’s coming has been delayed. Matthew attaches several parables to the eschatological discourse of Mark that he incorporated into his gospel. At the end of chapter 24 we find the parable of the good and wicked slave. The wicked slave says to himself, “My master is delayed.” Instead of fulfilling his responsibilities like the good slave, “he begins to beat his fellow slaves, and eats and drinks with drunkards.” The master of that slave will return “on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour that he does not know.” The outcome will be that the master “will cut him in pieces and put him with the hypocrites, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth” (Matt 24:46-51).
- In the following chapter Matthew attaches three more parables, all of which spell out how we are to act while we are waiting for Christ whose coming has been delayed. In the parable of the Ten Virgins (Matt 25:1-13) we learn that “the bridegroom was delayed.” The wise virgins had brought extra oil whereas the foolish ones ran out of oil as they waited for the bridegroom. While they went to buy more oil the bridegroom came and the door was shut. Matthew is admonishing his Christian group to count on some delay in the return of Christ and remain vigilant in their Christian life.
- But how does one wait for the coming of Christ? The next two parables in Matthew 25 spell out the answer. The parable of the Talents urges Christians to invest what has been entrusted to them and not let it sit idle. The final parable, the Sheep and Goats, which is a parable of the final judgment, makes it even clearer what that investment is all about. It means to feed the hungry, give a drink to the thirsty, welcome the stranger, clothe the naked, take care of the sick and visit the imprisoned. Jesus the judge will say to those who have done these acts of compassion, “Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me.” The delay in Christ’s coming must be taken as a God-given opportunity to minister to needy people in Christ’s name (my klem). The Second Coming deur Jirair Tashjian (mlhttp://www.crivoice.org/secondcoming.html).
- Dis belangrik om die eskatologiese diskoers en profesie van die fokusteks nie letterlik te interpreteer nie, God se “oestyd” mag skrikwekkend klink. Dis nie maklik voorstelbaar nie “profesieë word normaalweg anders en veral baie ryker vervul as wat ‘n mens uit ’n letterlike interpretasie kan aflei” (Adrio König).
- Dis so asof die wederkoms (veral t.o.v. die tyd wanneer dit gaan plaasvind) -beheptes hul selfbeheptheid verraai. Wanneer iemand se persoonlike vroomheid tussen hom en sy medemens gaan staan, wanneer sy godsdienstige toewyding hom vir sy naaste toesluit, wanneer die werkinge van die Heilige Gees tot die terrein van die persoonlike etiek beperk word, wanneer Christenskap slegs in terme van heilige handelinge op gesette tye gedefinieer word, wanneer Bybeluitsprake wat met mense se konkrete node te doen het, vergeestelik word, wanneer verlossing tot die mens se persoonlike verhouding tot God beperk word, wanneer ‘n persoon minus al sy verhoudinge gered word, wanneer strukturele en geïnstitusionaliseerde sonde nie aan die kaak gestel word nie, het ons met ‘n onbybelse eensydigheid en ‘n onegte Christendom te doen” (David Bosch).
Wees taai, moenie jou rug teen onreg draai!
- Dis tans die internasionale veldtog teen geweld teen vroue en kinders. As tussen-tyd mense is meeste gemeentes en gelowiges wonderlik geplaas om aan die veldtog deel te neem. Jy kan van die inligting op jou gemeenteskerm of gemeenteprogram plaas:
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