Two of my favorite seasons in the church calendar are not Easter and Christmas. Rather, I get excited over Advent and Lent. What a lot of people don't consider is that Advent is supposed to be a radical experience. We are literally preparing our hearts for the coming of Christ. We light candles in church that have a great variation of themes, though I lean towards the Catholic Rite of what the candles mean.
Advent, the Latin word for “arrival,” reminds us that God stepped into human flesh. Emmanuel. God is with us and for us.
Advent reassures us that God hasn’t abandoned us or our fallen, broken world.
The prophet Isaiah expressed hope for God to deliver his people during a period of turbulent divisions. And in the midst of these divisions, God promised them a Savior: “Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel.” (Isaiah 7:14)
Advent reminds us of the extravagant lengths God has gone to rescue us and restore our world.
“The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of deep darkness a light has dawned.” (Isaiah 9:1) Every where we look, the world is dark and people are walking around in the dark. God during Advent is calling us out of the darkness in our life, so that He can search us and create in us a new being. (1 Peter 5:7) God searches our depths, turning our faces toward eternal light.
Advent guarantees that God has the upper hand even when the opposite seems true.
Scripture assures our residency in heaven though our fallen, broken lives contribute to our fallen, broken world (Philippians 3:20-21). And our enemy (the devil) prowls the earth, seeking to kill and destroy (Peter 5:8-9). When God sent His son Jesus Christ to live among humanity, He did so in order to reconcile us to Himself. This year has been hard on my family. Since the pandemic started we have lost 9 family members, 7 of which I was close to and it's been tough. Yet knowing that God is right here in the midst of my suffering has made it tolerable.
Advent calls us to respond in radical love for God and our neighbors.
Emmanuel calls us to love God and our neighbors to our greatest capacity. Living by faith means stepping out in courageous acts of compassion.
Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength. The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no commandment greater than these. (Mark 12:30-31)
Early last year, my neighbors started a prayer vigil for our community. It has been an honor to have neighbors that I know I can count on.
The baby born to a virgin in a manger, over 2,000 years ago, guarantees that God is for us, not against us. God sees. God cares. Emmanuel has come to redeem us and our fallen, broken world. And we can be assured that He is in control of everything present and all to come.
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