You do not seek him, but he seeks you

This is what is meant by "Thy king cometh." You do not seek him, but he seeks you. You do not find him, he finds you. For preachers come from him, not from you; their sermons come from him, not from you; your faith comes from him, not from you; and where he does not come, you remain outside; and where there is no Gospel there is no God, but only sin and damnation, free will may do, suffer, work, and live as it may and can. Therefore you should not ask, where to begin to be godly; there is no beginning, except where the king enters and is proclaimed.

Sernons of  Martin  Luther,  volume 1, edited by  John Nicholas Lenker
(Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1983) 27. Cited in Pless, "Learning to Preach in Advent and
Christmas from Luther", CTQ 62:4.