Teaching Summary: Wholehearted: Preparing for Advent

Hebrews 9:27–28, Matthew 24:42, Philippians 3:20, 1 Thessalonians 5:23–24, Psalm 32:3–5, Psalm 46:10, Proverbs 3:5–6

The Christian faith is an Advent faith. Advent means “arrival” or “appearing,” and the entire Christian story is built on this truth: God has arrived in Jesus, and God will arrive again. Next Sunday begins Advent—the start of the Christian year—a season between promise and fulfillment.

Last night my father texted me: “I’m mailing you something. I think you’ll like it. It will be a surprise.” And ever since, I’ve been enjoying it even though I haven’t received anything yet. That’s what Advent is like. Something good is on the way, and the promise alone creates anticipation and joy.

Advent prepares our hearts in three directions. First, by looking back—remembering Jesus’ first appearing, His humility, His birth, God entering our world in flesh and blood. Second, by looking around—welcoming Jesus as He appears to us now through Scripture, the Spirit, worship, and community. And third, by looking ahead—anticipating His second coming, when He will renew all things.

Looking ahead, though, is the part most people struggle with. We love looking back at Christmas. We want Jesus to meet us now. But looking forward to His return makes many of us uneasy. Scripture is clear that Jesus will return—Hebrews says He “will appear a second time.” Jesus Himself says, “Keep watch, because you do not know the day your Lord will come.” Paul adds that “we eagerly await a Savior from heaven.”

So let me ask you honestly: Do you eagerly await the return of Jesus? Or does it make you feel unsure, unprepared, even afraid?

Most of us long for His coming, but quietly wonder: Will I be ready when He comes?

For years I had a recurring dream. It’s the last day of school and there’s a massive exam that determines everything. In the dream, I suddenly realize I haven’t been to class all year. I don’t know the material. I can’t even find the classroom. And the overwhelming feeling is always the same: I’m behind. I’m unprepared. Everyone else knows what they’re doing… and I don’t.

That dream captures how many of us feel spiritually. You look at your life and think, “I should be further along by now. Why am I still anxious? Still impatient? Still wrestling with the same old stuff?” You don’t say it out loud, but you feel behind—behind in faith, maturity, emotional growth, healing, obedience.

And underneath it all is a fear that when Jesus appears, He’ll be disappointed. That you won’t be ready.

But listen to Paul’s words in 1 Thessalonians 5:

“May God Himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul, and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. The One who calls you is faithful, and He will do it.”

You might hear that and think, “That sounds beautiful, but that’s not me. I don’t feel sanctified. I don’t feel blameless. I still feel unfinished. If God is doing the work, why do I still struggle so much?”

That’s the real objection many Christians have. Not that the promise isn’t true—just that it doesn’t look true in our lives. We hear Paul’s prayer and think, “I believe God can do this. I’m just not sure He’s doing it in me.”

Paul would say, “Of course you don’t see it yet. Sanctification is God’s work, on His timeline, in His way.” You are not behind. You’re not forgotten. You’re not the exception to His faithfulness.

But if God is the One who sanctifies, keeps, and prepares us—what’s our part? How do we open ourselves to what God is doing? How do we cooperate with the God who is making us ready?

The answer is surprisingly simple.

First, we open ourselves through honesty rather than hiding. God does His deepest work in the parts of our lives we’re willing to bring into the light. Scripture says, “When I kept silent, my bones wasted away… Then I acknowledged my sin, and you forgave me.” Honesty opens the door to healing. When we pretend we’ve grown more than we have, we close off the very places God wants to touch.

Second, we open ourselves by paying attention rather than distracting ourselves. God shows up more than we realize; we’re just moving too fast to see it. Psalm 46 says, “Be still, and know that I am God.” Advent invites us to slow down, notice, listen, and be present. When we pay attention, we discover God has already been working in the places we thought were dormant.

Third, we open ourselves through trust rather than control. Proverbs says, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart… and He will make your paths straight.” So much of our anxiety about being “ready” comes from trying to manage our own transformation. But sanctification doesn’t happen because we cling tightly to God. It happens because God holds tightly to us. You grow most in the places where you trust God’s faithfulness more than your own progress.

So no—you don’t sanctify yourself. You don’t make yourself blameless. You don’t make yourself ready for Jesus. You simply present yourself. You open yourself. You make yourself available.

God does the rest.

This is why Paul says, “The One who calls you is faithful.” Your hope doesn’t rest on your faithfulness—which rises and falls—but on His, which never does. The God who came once as a baby will come again in glory. And in the in-between, He is preparing you.

As we enter Advent, hear this: the pressure to make yourself ready is not on you. God Himself is preparing you. God Himself is shaping you. God Himself is making you whole.

So wherever you feel unfinished or behind, offer that part of your life to Jesus this week. Pay attention. Trust Him.

And rest in this promise:

He who calls you is faithful, and He will do it.