Introduction:

"December 7, 1941; Today is a day that will live in infamy..." That's the quote we've heard on the recording of Franklin Delano Roosevelt so many times. In 1941 he was asking for a declaration of war. Today is the 62^nd anniversary of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. My parents were on the way to visit my mom's folks that day when they heard the news.

It's amazing how anybody over 70 can instantly recall where they were when they heard the news that day. For many of you, that announcement is a moment of time, etched as in granite in your memory.

It's odd how an event can do that to you. Of all the seconds of all the hours of all the days we live, and time just slips by; yet there are certain moments which are indelibly marked.

The world was at the brink during the Cuban Missile crisis in '62. Maybe I remember that, because they taught us a new ringing pattern on the fire alarm bells that Friday. Three rings meant "atomic attack", and we were all supposed to head for the basement gym.

There we were to get on our elbows and knees, with our hands folded over our necks--if The Bomb came.

That made it pretty real. I was a big fourth grader then, and I looked over my shoulder at the other side of the gym. There were kindergartners over there, kneeling down with their little bottoms sticking up. They were scared. I thought how sad it would be for them to undergo a nuclear attack without their mommy & daddy. And we all had to wear name bracelets, in case of war, so they could identify us- or our bodies..

Then they shot Kennedy in '63. Anyone who was alive then can remember the shock that brought. Where were you when you heard the news? And remember the young widow in black, and the little boy saluting.

And there was 9/11.

There have been a handful of times in each of our lives when the future seemed unclear. There have been several times when it seemed like there was a turning point, and the whole world waited, waited for the unknown outcome. Things can happen so fast, and the outcome can be so uncertain. There are times when the world is poised, waiting.

I) Jesus Entered Such a World

Such was the world that Jesus entered the first time. A few verses past today's gospel lesson Luke describes the world and time Jesus entered. Go to Luke 3:15: "The people were filled with expectation, and all were questioning in their hearts concerning John (the Baptist), whether he might be the Messiah,"

The people felt something was coming. They were messiah-hungry. Rumors were everywhere. Yet, when Jesus came so few were ready, so few recognized him.

In Jesus' day there was a group called the Essenes. They were the ultimate holiness sect, living out in the wilderness by the Dead Sea. They were out there, getting ready to make the way straight in the wilderness, to prepare the way for the Messiah.

They hauled water and took endless ritual baths for purification, because they believed that they would be the storm troopers, the shock troops of the Messiah. They were out there to get ready. When the battle came, they'd be the true believers and maybe even the true fighters to stand up against the Romans and everything secular.

But as far as we know, Jesus never came to them. He wasn't after that kind of kingdom.

The Israel that Jesus came to was Messiah-hungry, if not completely ready. They had been thinking intensely messianically for quite a while. The people could feel that something was coming.

II) Our Time is Like That

Here we are, sixty-two years past Pearl Harbor; we have just won another war, and yet there seems to be a great malaise abroad in our country. The excitement of last spring has slipped away to an uncertain time.

And in the midst of all this, Christians seem to be developing a new urgency about expecting their returning Lord. The "Left Behind" series has sold millions of copies. There is a hunger to understand Christ and his return. Christianity has been in the focus as we head toward a re-election campaign and pundits once again take long looks at Evangelicals and their beliefs. The Internet has been full of discussions about the new Mel Gibson movie on the last hours of Jesus' life. It will be in the actual language of the people then, Aramaic and Greek, with English subtitles! There is a growing interest in matters of faith as the huge Baby Boomer generation starts thinking about eternity.

But such is the hunger for knowledge about Jesus' return. There are signs everywhere. Last week we heard Jesus call us to "Look at the "fig tree" and "all the trees". Israel exists again, and is challenged by the very same nations as in all its history. Israel versus the Arabs is Isaac versus Ishmael. Israel versus the Palestinians is Israel versus the Philistines, in the exact same places. Israel faced a threat from Babylon and recently Israel faced a threat from Iraq, Babylon raised up again.

Men say "Peace! Peace!", but there is no peace. 9/11 changed that, and we may not be finished with terrorism at home. On this Pearl Harbor sixty-second anniversary, we are reminded that everything in this world can change very quickly.

III) Being Ready

In the midst of this reminder to watchful readiness, we need to balance our concern with Paul's good reminder: "6 I am confident of this, that He who began a good work in you will bring it to completion by the day of Jesus Christ."

What a wonderful promise! God is not through with you yet, and he's not going to let you go. Never. He's going to bring you to completion. No matter what the future, no matter what the challenge, no matter how the world looks around you.

He'll bring you through. "He who began a good work in you WILL bring it to completion". That's a promise. You can trust him. "Though the mountains quake, though the seas roar & foam, and though the very earth melt" (Psa. 46)-- he'll be there. You can trust him. He's going to care for you. He's going to protect you. He'll never leave you, nor forsake you. He will bring you through. You are nestled in the palm of His hand like a baby bird.

Conclusion & Invitation

And God's Word calls us to be ready. Keep your lamps filled & lit. Watch & wait. The bridegroom is at the door. But be not afraid. He's coming for you.

As you think of his return, are you ready? Invitation.

As you think of his return, are you afraid? Invitation.

As you think of his return, are you concerned for someone you love? Invitation.

Amen.