6 & 7 Dec 2025 (Pastoral Page) ADVENT - A GRACIOUS SUMMONS

by Dr Daniel Chan

One of the highlights for me this year was the opportunity we had to study together Matthew’s Gospel. Through the sermons, personal readings and discussions at CG, we learnt that Jesus had come as the long-awaited Messiah and King in fulfilment of Old Testament prophecies. The gospel announces that through Jesus, God's kingdom is breaking into the world. He calls us to live according to its principles. For Jesus’ followers, this kingdom is both a present reality experienced by his followers and our future hope that will be fully established at his return.

In this season of Advent, many of the themes in Matthew’s Gospel come to mind. Advent reminds us that we live between two comings: Christ has come in the humility of Bethlehem, and Christ will come again one day in glory. Our calling now is to live in the in-between time with hearts awake, with lamps lit and lives ready for the return of the King.

In Matthew, John the Baptist calls us to ‘prepare the way for the Lord’[1] and to produce fruits of repentance. We also hear Jesus’s warning to be ready for his return, to keep watch, because we do not know on what day He will come.[2] His return is certain, but the timing is hidden. It is not our task to speculate about the hour; it is our task to cultivate readiness. Being watchful is not being anxious about the future but being attentive in the present. It is a posture of the heart — to be awake to God, responsive to His voice, and faithful disciples in the ordinary duties of life.

To highlight this, Jesus tells the parable of the ten virgins[3]. They were part of a bridal party waiting for the bridegroom. All had lamps and all became sleepy as the night wore on. But only five were wise, keeping their lamps supplied with oil so they were ready when the call suddenly rang out: “The bridegroom has arrived! Come out to meet him!” The foolish ones had neglected the quiet work of preparation. They wanted the appearance of readiness without the substance of readiness. And when the door to the wedding feast opened, only the prepared ones entered.

This parable makes an important point that spiritual readiness is not something we can borrow or produce at the last moment. It is the fruit of an inner life continually nourished by the presence of God. The “oil” in our lamps is not talent, achievement, or religious activity; it is the life of the Spirit within us — a heart kept tender, a prayer life burning steadily, an obedient faith that perseveres even in long stretches of silence.

Advent, then, is a gracious summons from Jesus: “Wake up! Keep your lamp burning. Do not let the fire of love go out.” Are our lives filled with distraction, hurry and spiritual fatigue? We may not know the hour of His coming, but we know what He asks of us today — to live with watchful faithfulness.

Watchfulness begins in the heart. It is possible to be outwardly busy with Christian activity yet inwardly asleep. It is possible to go through the motions of worship while being inattentive to the voice of God. Jesus warns that the days before His return will be much like the days of Noah: people living normally, absorbed in their daily routine, unaware of the approaching moment of divine visitation[4]. Perhaps, the danger for us is not outright rebellion; but a quiet sliding into a state of spiritual slumber.

This Advent, let us renew this vision, to return to the essentials — to the lamp, the oil, the readiness of heart. It reminds us that Christ’s coming is not only an event in history or in the future; it is a present encounter. Every day He comes to us in His Word, by His Spirit, through His people, and in the quiet stirrings of grace. To watch is to welcome Him, again and again.

As we light the Advent candles this season, may they be a picture of our own hearts — burning quietly with expectation, fed daily by the oil of the Spirit, shining light into the world’s darkness.

[1] Matthew 3:3

[2] Matthew 24:42

[3] Matthew 25:1–13

[4] Matthew 24:37–39