Be Ready

© Jane Hulme 2017 Short Talk (SHT074) Be Ready! SHORT TALK: “BE READY!” To challenge people to be spiritually ready for when Jesus returns. This is a short All Age talk picking out one issue from the Lectionary Gospel reading of the Sunday main service. The talk stands alone and assumes that the Gospel Bible reading may not yet have been read to the congregation. It could be used for example, for the whole congregation before the children go out to their age specific groups, leaving the adults with a full sermon later. Main themes: Biblical references: Lectionary: Props: ............................................................................................................... Today is Advent Sunday......  and the word “Advent” means the arrival of something or someone.  So if we were using the word Advent in a sentence we might say something like: “We are looking forward to the advent or arrival of the school holidays.” This Advent Sunday let’s think about what or who is arriving.  Let me give you some clues.  The first clue is a gift (Show a box gift wrapped in Christmas paper) The second clue is a decoration (Pull out the Christmas decoration)  and the third clue is some hay (Show a handful of hay)  Can anyone guess what or who is arriving? (Receive responses) That’s right, on Advent Sunday we begin thinking about Jesus, God’s Son, arriving as a little baby in Bethlehem over 2000 years ago,  born on the 1st Christmas and  given as a wonderful gift to us from God the Father. When we know that somebody is arriving, we do all sorts of things to get ready don’t we?  Advent is the time when we get ready to celebrate Jesus’ arrival to earth all those years ago,  so I wonder how you will get ready to celebrate? Firstly how about asking yourself the question: “Have I met Jesus yet?”  “Do I know the One whose birth I am celebrating?” If your answer to that is “yes,” how about a second question: “Is Jesus Lord over every part of my life? Aim of Short talk: Use of Short talk: © Jane Hulme 2017 Advent, second coming of Jesus Mark 13:24-37 Year B – The 1st Sunday of Advent A box that is gift wrapped in Christmas paper, ribbons, bows etc, a Christmas decoration and a handful of hay. 2 Is He Lord over my time, my money, my relationships, my thought life, my TV watching and so on.  You see Jesus is God and He wants us to obey Him. And a third way to get ready for Jesus’ arrival is to deepen your relationship with Him.  You may want to ask yourself the question: “What I am feeding on that will build up my relationship with Jesus?”  Am I feeding on Jesus’ words that will never pass away and that will strengthen me, or am I feeding my spirit and mind with all sorts of other things that don’t help me? If we make time to be with Jesus over the coming days, in prayer and Bible reading, we will then be ready to celebrate on Christmas day Jesus’ arrival all those years ago. But you know Advent is not simply about getting ready to celebrate Jesus’ first arrival,  it is also a time for us to prepare for the day when Jesus will come back to earth a second time. This time Jesus won’t return as a baby, but as the King of Kings and each one of us will stand before Him;  meeting Him face to face.  so how will we get ready for that day? Well actually we get ready to meet Jesus face to face in the same ways as we get ready to celebrate his first arrival.  We take the opportunity to meet and get to know Jesus now.  We allow Him to be Lord over our lives  We feed on His words so that we can keep going in our following of Him. Unlike Christmas day that is always on December 25th, Jesus tells us that no-one apart from our Heavenly Father knows the day when He will arrive again on earth......  He could arrive any day.... Jesus tells us to “Watch” (Mark 13:27)....  and to be ready..... © Jane Hulme 2017 3