Advent 1 2025 It’s Time The Rev. Nancy E. Gossling
Almighty God, give us grace to cast away the works of darkness, and put on the armor of light, now in the time of this mortal life in which your Son Jesus Christ came to visit us in great humility; that in the last day, when he shall come again in his glorious majesty to judge both the living and the dead, we may rise to the life immortal; through him who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
Aside from the growing darkness outside our windows at this time of year, there has been plenty of growing darkness around our world, in our country, and even within our own souls. What’s a person to do during this season of Advent, when we’re encouraged by the prophet Isaiah to “put on the armor of light”? And when our collect for the day begins with these words, “Almighty God, give us grace to cast away the works of darkness, and put on the armor of light.”
Our darkness, accentuated by Daylight Savings Time, has arrived. This is also the time, the beginning of a new liturgical year, which we call the season of Advent. And “you know what time it is,” St. Paul told the Romans in his letter. “It is now the moment for you to wake from sleep.” Today, we are invited to get out of bed earlier, to assume postures of readiness, alert to something greater that is about to happen, beyond our horizon and even beyond all our human understanding. It’s time to wake up, people!
I guess our first order of business then is to do some casting out of that darkness. Throw some light into the room and onto our problems. Imagine throwing that darkness into an ocean like a deep-sea fisherman, who is hoping for a catch in the early morning light. Or as if we are floating in a lifeboat in the middle of a storm, and we begin to jettison unnecessary things for our survival. St. Paul names some of them in his letter to the Romans: drunkenness, debauchery, licentiousness, quarreling, and jealousy. Perhaps facing our own death, indeed anything that drags us down into the deep, we decide to cast it all away!
Death threats seem to be common occurrences these days when people don’t like what we’ve said or done, as most politicians, public servants, and public figures can attest. A Manhattan-based psychotherapist claims he has received dozens of hate messages, including death threats, since speaking publicly about seeing patients he describes as experiencing "Trump Derangement Syndrome." Apparently 75% of his clients come to him seeking help for their depression but within 5 minutes of conversation, he said that these clients quickly shifted to confessing their hatred for Donald Trump. (Jonathan Alpert, author of the forthcoming book "Therapy Nation”)
Before you judge me about TDS, hear me out! Such hatred and feelings of powerlessness lead people into very dark places, and so these patients came to him seeking his help. And yet this psychiatrist’s point of view was that any kind of obsession, be it with people, products, or politics, can lead us into very dark places. When we become so hyper-focused on certain people and things beyond our control, like any person who has ever fought the demons of addiction and mental illness, these obsessions can drag us down. Indeed, they can lead to death.
Paul and I recently watched the new movie entitled “Nuremberg” based upon the atrocities of World War 2 and the subsequent Nuremberg trials, when German leaders were sentenced to death for their part in the killing of millions of Jews. It was a hard movie to watch; and yet there were a few poignant takeaways. This is what happens when evil is not confronted. This is what happens when hatred is allowed to grow. This is what happens when people “do nothing” or “say nothing” in the face of evil. And yet no country or human being is devoid of these possibilities, argued the leading psychiatrist in the Nuremberg trials. Remember, when you point your finger at others, three of them are pointed back at you.
Violence isn’t always over there but also close to home. Too often the news from our cities report gun violence, as they did this past week in Washington, D.C. In an article in the Boston Globe on November 15, a young woman was interviewed from her bed in a rehab facility in Charlestown. She and her boyfriend had been walking on the street in Roxbury when a man opened fire on a restaurant, apparently part of a gang war. A stray bullet caught her in the back and as she lay bleeding on the ground Aleyah Fernandez said, “I was just praying to God, please don’t let me die. Things were just going good for me.” (Truman Dickerson Globe Correspondent, Updated November 13, 2025)
What was appalling to me, as I read this story, was that she said that the people who were around her just stood in a circle and stared. Recording the scene on their cell phones, they said nothing and did nothing to help. Suddenly and unexpectedly, a stranger jumped in and applied pressure to her wound, an action that she claims saved her life. He told the boyfriend to call 911 and waited until the ambulance arrived. They have no idea who this savior was.
Today, with her boyfriend still by her side, she says that they both have faith that one day she will walk again. Not filled with bitterness and darkness, she remains grateful for her life, the man who helped her, and the love she shares with her boyfriend. She is grateful for the care that she’s receiving at the rehab facility; and she also remains trusting in the goodness of God. Speaking up as a victim of gang and gun violence, she wants to help change her community for the better by being a witness against the man who was arrested for multiple acts of violence and hate.
As you may know, I love basketball in general and the Celtics team in particular. Over the years I have begun to recognize elite players on other teams. Notably, Damian Lillard is one of the best players on the Portland Trailblazers team, and when he starts “getting in his bag” and the game looks as if they have won, he will point to his watch. It’s “Dame time!” he claims.
Advent is the season that reminds us that our game has already been won. It is time to prepare for a future event, that is the birth of Jesus and the beginning of our salvation story. And today' s gospel passage from Matthew reminds us that we “must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an unexpected hour.” Indeed, Richard A. Kauffman writes that “we are called to be ready, to be alert. Ready for our own death, to be sure, but also ready and alert to God’s kingdom breaking in anywhere, anytime, even in the here and now.” (Xian Century, November 2025 p29)
The euphemism for death is often referred to as “the time” when our “number is called.” Now the bench players on the Celtics team have often been called the “stay ready group” so that when their “number is called” they can play well. Staying ready means that every day they’ve “gone to work” preparing themselves to do whatever is needed for the benefit of the team. Sitting on the bench, or playing in the game, we can be ready for Jesus to call our number or God’s presence to break into our world.
So, Advent is that time when we can point to our watches and say it’s “Jesus time.” It’s time to wake up from our spiritual funk and to shake off the covers of darkness that threaten our well-being. It’s time to cast off those things that drag us down. Advent reminds us to prepare and get ready for the birth of our savior, who is the elite player on our team named Jesus, and the author of our salvation story.
“Although it’s become a cliche, there is truth in the saying: The darkest night is right before dawn. Christian hope is not naive. It is quite aware of the darkness around us. It doesn’t flinch from or try to escape the darkness - it is not wishful thinking or mere optimism. Nor is Christian hope passive. On the contrary, Christian hope is positive. Christian hope is active. Christian hope is also patient and closely linked to peace.” (Xian Century, November 2025, Richard Kauffman, p28)
So let us “put on the armor of light; let us live honorably as in the day,” wrote St. Paul. That armor of light is like our inflatable life jacket, readily available to us either in the air, on land, or at sea, enabling us to live honorably. “Put on the whole armour of God,” wrote St. Paul. “Stand with truth, righteousness, and the gospel of peace. Above all, take the shield of faith, the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.” (Ephesians 6: 10-17)
Like good “fisher of men” we can cast out our prayers, far and wide, praying for our world, our country, our companions, and even for ourselves. So put away your hate speech. Let go of whatever obsessions cause you to take your “eye off the ball.” Prepare each day as if it is your “game day.” Then “beat your swords into ploughshares, and your spears into pruning-hooks” and take on the mantle of peace and love.
This Advent let us walk in the light of the Lord! Let us be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an unexpected hour. And we can be prepared, ready for Christmas joy to dispel our darkness. It’s time.
Isaiah 2:1-5 Romans 13:11-14 Matthew 24:36-44
