Sobering words from Jesus to start a new liturgical year for us.

"There will be signs in the sun, the moon, and the stars, and on the earth distress among nations confused by the roaring of the sea and the waves. People will faint from fear and foreboding of what is coming upon the world, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken. Then they will se ‘the Son of Man coming in a cloud’ with power and great glory. Now when these things begin to take place, stand up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near."

Like the fig tree pointing to the arrival of summer, so will there be signs pointing to the arrival of the Kingdom of God. With all the changes and chances of this final moment one thing will not change, one thing will not be defeated: the words spoken by Christ.

"Be on guard," he says, "so that your hearts are not weighed down with dissipation and drunkenness and the worries of this life, and that day catch you unexpectedly, like a trap. For it will come upon all who live on the face of the whole earth. Be alert at all times, praying that you may have the strength to escape all these things that will take place, and to stand before the Son of Man."

Live with the end in mind, Redemption, the Kingdom of God, the embrace of the Son of Man, Jesus says. And the rest of this liturgical year will help us experience; the ups and downs, joys and sorrows, struggles and celebrations that ultimately and spectacularly seem to end with death and the triumph of evil, but then even more spectacularly and emphatically finish with Jesus, risen from the dead, alive, triumphant, and ready to share his victory with all who believe.

Those who seek to frighten us by highlighting the dark and the destructive pictures of suffering and calamity and the end of time miss entirely the hope-filled, trustworthy, life-giving words of Jesus spoken at the same time.

Yes, Jesus describes a time of trial and frightening portents. Now, as the, we can look about and find plenty to frighten us, plenty to suggest to us that this is the end time. Long ago believers encountered brutality in war, brutality in the occupation by foreign powers, random acts of violence that maimed or killed, illness, famine, natural disasters killing thousands at a time, and on and on. Today, believers encounter the same. In the midst of this suffering, this uncertainty, this chaos, it is easy to believe that this is it: this is all there is, nothing will change.

As a child, I accepted that the world would be divided between communism and democracy. The Berlin Wall would forever be a symbol of this division and this struggle. Not so many years ago, I believed that the people of South Africa would forever be at war with each other: black against white, violence and apartheid lasting forever in South Africa until there was no one left.

But, always, in words that will never pass away, God was speaking into the hearts of the faithful. Grace was ever at work. Many wondered "why isn’t God doing something about this?" But God was. First one person heard God ask, "What, (and you,) are you doing about this?" Then another heard the question, and another. As they found each other, they heard God’s word spoken in prophecy, spoken to those in exile, in pain, in suffering, in slavery, spoken to those about to sink into despair: "See, I am making all things new."

They began to hear the words of Jesus, "When these things begin to take place, stand up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near." With courage they heard the words of Jesus "I am with you always, to the end of the age." First one, then another, then enough heard and began to believe and began to act with the faith captured in the Psalm today: "To you, O LORD, I lift up my soul; my God, I put my trust in you." They stood up. They acted courageously. They raised their heads. And God did not disappoint. The Berlin Wall came down. Apartheid ended with less violence than could have been imagined. Love, and light, and life found a way because the still small voice of God was heard amidst the noise of the frightening, apocalyptic, events of the day.

Today, it is difficult to see anything but a violent future in the Middle East. Pick a place and it won’t be too hard to find a violent and frightening present. Jew against Muslim, and Arab, Shiite Muslim against Sunni Muslim, the powerful and the powerless each seems to be in endless combat with the other. Global warming, and other environmental degradation, growing disparity between rich and poor, haves and have note, ongoing racial and cultural divisions, famine, illness, even the remaining threat of nuclear holocaust -- this is the news that surround us. It can be frightening. Frightened, we can be paralyzed into inaction. Passively we wait and long for God to come down and make it all better. But that isn’t the message of the Gospel. That isn’t the way of God revealed in scripture from Genesis to Revelation.

You will see the signs, Jesus says. You will find many fainting from fear and foreboding in the light of these signs, Jesus says. But then what does he say?

"When these things begin to take place, stand up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near." Jesus asks us to stay alert. Jesus asks us to pray. Jesus asks us to shed those things which would weigh us down and make our responses more difficult if not impossible.

Stand up, raise your head, he says. Stand up, love one another as I have loved you, he says. Stand up; be the first of all by being the servant of all and Jesus showed us how. Stand up, speak up, the Spirit will give you the words you ought to say, he assures us. Stand up, stand up those who are beaten down, broken down, ill, suffering, homeless, helpless, "your redemption is drawing near," and this is how he lived. Stand up; do not be afraid, he says, "For I am with you always, to the end of the age."

Others have given us courageous words to speak to those who would try to convince us that it is all hopeless, pointless, and doomed. They heard the voice of God within. They spoke from their experience and give voice to our own experiences and faith:

Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death I will fear no evil; for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff, they comfort me

To you, O LORD, I lift up my soul; my God, I put my trust in you…for you are the God of my salvation; in you have I trusted all the day long.

As we begin this new liturgical year, we are reminded that we go to God, that we belong to God who desires our life and salvation. No matter how bad things seem to get, no matter the signs we read in the world around us, we are invited by Jesus to stand up and raise our heads and face him who is both the Son of Man and Savior. Standing, head up, we will then be ready to step forward and accept His embrace, His love, His life, His peace. And that is Good News. Amen.