As we approach Christmas we speak about the advent of Jesus Christ, the coming of the Saviour into the world. It’s a theme that recurs throughout the Scriptures, like when Zechariah proclaims, “See, your king comes to you, righteous and having salvation, gentle and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey” (9:9). There was great expectation among the Jews that their king would come as their Saviour.

That expectation is also found among the believers in the New Testament. Today the church waits in the wonderful hope of the coming of Jesus Christ. Peter speaks about that reality when he encourages the believers to live holy and godly lives as they look forward to the coming (parousia) of the day of God.

The Greek word parousia is a common New Testament word for the return of Jesus Christ. This word describes the arrival of a ruler, such as a king or emperor. When people heard that the king was coming, there would be a flurry of activity as roads were repaired and buildings were given a facelift. Everything had to be made beautiful for the coming king, to make a good impression on the ruler.

Therefore it was a sad day in Israel when their great King finally arrived in Bethlehem and the people were not prepared for his coming. When he arrived, no one in Israel was even aware that a great king had been born. While we might make excuses for the people, there was no excuse for this sad situation, for the prophets long ago had instructed the people that their king and Saviour was coming.

After his birth the Lord even sent John the Baptist as the herald to proclaim the coming of their king. Still Israel did not prepare, so that when Jesus arrived on the scene proclaiming that the Kingdom of God had come, the people mocked and scorned him. The result is that God in his judgment rejected his people and caused his gospel to be proclaimed to the Gentiles. The light of Christmas was taken away from God’s own people and given to the people of the world.

For the New Testament church the first coming of Christ is closely tied to his second. The believers in the early church lived in the expectation that the one who came as the Saviour of the world would come again on the last day in judgment. The first advent of Christ will lead to his second advent, when he will bring his saving work to completion.

In his second letter Peter has to deal with scoffers who are leading the believers astray. The scoffers are false teachers who call into question the second coming of Christ. They come with what they think is a clever argument when they say, “God is slow in keeping his promise. Nothing has changed since God said to our fathers that he will come to live with us.” For that reason they go and follow their own evil desires, for in their heart they believe that they will never need to give an account to God for their wickedness.

In our time people scoff at the biblical teaching of the advent of God. They scoff at the idea that at the last day he will come to judge the living and the dead. By denying his coming, they think they have the freedom to live according to their own immoral ways. In our culture people attempt to turn what God’s Word has clearly said is wicked into something that is good and honourable.

The reason that people scoff at the idea of Christ’s return is that they deny his first coming. But Christmas is really the guarantee that Christ will return to be with his people. And when we live in the expectation of his coming, the result is that we will also prepare our lives for his return. Everyone who truly believes that Christ is coming again will desire to live a holy and godly life.

Your preparation will depend on your expectation. A lack of preparation will indicate that you have not taken seriously the coming of Christ. If you do not take it seriously, then in effect you also deny Christmas. But if you truly believe that Christ’s coming has fulfilled God’s promise to his people in the Old Testament, then you will also believe God’s promise that Christ is coming on the last day. In that great and wonderful expectation you will also prepare yourself for his coming, living a holy and godly life.

Therefore Christmas is not just a cozy time of the year when we reminisce about the story of Jesus coming into the world, but it is a story that must powerfully impact our daily life. This Jesus is the same Saviour that you are now expecting from heaven. On the day of judgment he will punish the scoffers, but will give life and salvation to all who lived by faith in the great expectation of his coming. We long for this day with all our hearts.