German theologian martyred under Hitler)
One day, at the Last Judgment, Jesus will separate the sheep and the goats and will say to those on his right: “Come, you blessed, … I was hungry and you fed me …” (Matt. 25:34). To the astonished question of when and where, he answered: “What you did for the least of these, you did for me …” (Matt. 23:40). With that we are faced with the shocking reality: Jesus stands at the door and knocks, in complete reality. He asks you for help in the form of a beggar, in the form of a ruined human being in torn clothing. He confronts you in every person that you meet. Christ walks on the earth as your neighbor as long as there are people. He walks on the earth as the one through whom God calls you, speaks to you, and makes his demands. That is the greatest seriousness and the greatest blessing of the Advent message. Christ stands at the door. He lives in the form of the person in our midst. Will you keep the door locked or open it to him?
Christ is still knocking. It is not yet Christmas. But it is also not the great final Advent, the final coming of Christ. Through all of the Advents of our life that we celebrate goes the longing for the final Advent, where it says: “Behold, I make all things new” (Rev. 21:5). Advent is a time of waiting. Our whole life, however, is Advent – that is, a time of waiting for the ultimate, for the time when there will be a new heaven and a new earth, when all people are brothers and sisters and one rejoices in the words of the angels: “Peace on earth to those on whom God’s favor rests.” Learn to wait because he has promised to come. “I stand at the door …” We however call to him “Yes, come soon, Lord Jesus!” Amen.
Source: Found in: Wait for the Light: Readings for Advent and Christmas, pp. 206-207.
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