ADVENT READINGS ADVENT #1 I light the prophecy candle. Over 600 years before the birth of Jesus, God spoke a promise through the prophet Isaiah, The Lord Himself will give you a sign: The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a Son, and will call Him Immanuel. 600 years later only a handful of people were ready to receive Him. Most were looking for a king or a conqueror, not a Savior. The prophet Isaiah goes on to write, He was pierced for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon Him, and by His wounds we are healed. The baby in a manger grew up to die a cruel death on a cross and through His sacrifice, as the Lamb of God, we are saved. But just wait! The next prophecy He fulfills will be this They will make war against the Lamb, but the Lamb will overcome them because He is Lord of lords and King of kings and with Him will be His called, chosen and faithful followers. Isaac Watts, who was known by his 18 th century contemporaries for his radical new style of songs, penned these words, Joy to the world! The Lord is come! Let earth receive her King; Let every heart prepare Him room, and heaven and nature sing. Pray: O Lord, may our hearts be ready, not only to celebrate this season of Advent, but also to welcome Your second coming. 1
ADVENT #2 I light the Bethlehem candle. So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem From Nazareth to Bethlehem -- a seventy mile trip. No rapid transit, not even a paved road. Mary, pregnant in her third trimester, traveled with Joseph on foot, or by mule. When they arrived in Bethlehem all the inns were full. Could this really be the right place and time for the birth of God s Son? Bernie May tells of a time when as a missionary pilot he was stuck in a steaming jungle of Peru on Christmas Eve. After delivering medical supplies to a remote village, a storm hit making take-off on the river impossible. As he sat under the wing of his plane his thoughts turned to his family his parents in Pennsylvania enjoying a white Christmas, his wife and sons six hours away at the missionary center. Oh God, I m in the wrong place, he moaned. God responded to his cry: My son, this is what Christmas is all about. Jesus left heaven and on Christmas morning He woke up in the wrong place a stable in Bethlehem. Christmas means leaving home, not going home. My only begotten Son did not come home for Christmas He left His home to be with you. Just like Mary and Joseph felt uncomfortable with their surroundings, many of us feel displaced by our circumstances an illness, the death of a loved one, unemployment, strained relationships. Could this really be where God wants us? God does not guarantee that following Christ will lead to a comfortable life. What we can be sure of is that even our discomfort has purpose and meaning in God s plan. In 1865, Pastor Phillips Brooks spent a Christmas Eve in Bethlehem. Three years later he was inspired to write these words for the children of his church to sing in their Sunday school Christmas program, O little town of Bethlehem, how still we see thee lie! Above thy deep and dreamless sleep the silent starts go by; Yet in thy dark streets shineth the everlasting Light the hopes and fears of all the years are met in thee tonight. Pray: O Lord, You left Your home in glory to be with us. As we celebrate Your coming may we turn to You with all our hopes and fears You are the everlasting Light. 2
ADVENT #3 I light the Shepherd s candle. And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them Why them? Could it be that these shepherds were of God s choosing because they were undistracted by the complexities of life? Or because they didn t need to check their calendars to see if they could fit in an unscheduled trip to Bethlehem? Perhaps it was because in their simplicity they could believe that a newborn baby lying in a feeding trough was really the promised Messiah. These Jewish shepherds practiced the scripture, Be still and know that I am God. They had spent many nights under the skies that proclaim the work of His hands and display the knowledge of God. But on this night, the message of the sky was astronomical and the shining glory of the Almighty struck fear into their very souls. An angel of the Lord proclaimed the good news of the birth of the Savior, Christ the Lord. Multitudes of angels joined in praise and song. Without hesitation the shepherds hurried to Bethlehem and found the baby, just as the angel had said. What happened next was not an order from the angel, but a natural response to a supernatural encounter with God. When they had seen Him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child and they returned, glorifying and praising God. An old Spiritual exhorts us to do the same: Go tell it on the mountain, over the hills and everywhere- Go tell it on the mountain, that Jesus Christ is born! Pray: O Lord, help us this week to be still before You; to be willing to flex our schedules when there s something You tell us to do. And may we, as the shepherds of long ago, break out in praise and tell others about Jesus, the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. 3
ADVENT #4 I light the Angel candle. When we think of angels the conventional image of white-robed figures with wings and halos may come to mind, but the term angel, as used in scripture, has more to do with vocation than appearance. The New Testament word angelos simply means messenger. And so today our focus is more on the significance of the message than that of the carrier. To Mary the angel said, Don t be frightened for God has decided to bless you. To Joseph, the angel s message was, Don t be afraid to go ahead with your marriage to Mary. For the child within her has been conceived by the Holy Spirit. To the shepherds outside of Bethlehem the angel announced, Don t be afraid! I bring you good news of great joy for everyone! The Savior yes, the Messiah, the Lord has been born tonight But what about today in a world terrorized by evil, uncertainty and pain? If the angels were to visit here today, what would their message to us be? For those who have not yet received Jesus as your Savior and Lord, the message would clearly be, Don t be afraid Today is the day of salvation. Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved. And for those who call Him Lord, we have a message of promise as recorded by John in the book of Revelation, And the angel showed me a pure river with the water of life, clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb No longer will anything be cursed And there will be no night there no need for lamps or sun for the Lord God will shine on them. And they will reign forever and ever. A familiar carol from the mid 1800s speaks of the promise that began its fulfillment with the coming of Jesus, For lo, the days are hastening on, by prophets seen of old, When with the ever circling years, shall come the time foretold, When peace shall over all the earth its ancient splendors fling, And all the world give back the song which now the angels sing. Pray: O Lord, thank you that we don t need to be afraid. You are the hope of our salvation. In You we put our trust. 4
Advent #5 I light the Christ candle. All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call Him Immanuel which means, God with us. How can we begin to wrap our minds around the idea of God in a manger? Max Lucado writes from the perspective of the angels who witnessed the transformation of Christ moving from the glories of heaven to a stable in Bethlehem. Do you know who you hold, Mary? You secure the Author of grace. He who is ageless is now moments old. He who strides upon the stars, now has legs too weak to walk; the hands which held the oceans are now an infant s fist. To Him who has never asked a question, you will teach the name of the wind. The Source of language will learn words from you. He who has never stumbled, you will carry. He who has never hungered, you will feed. The King of creation is in your arms. Paul describes the incarnation of Jesus this way, Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to death even death on a cross! Perhaps this side of eternity, we cannot fully comprehend God in a bod. But we can join the vast host of heaven who at His coming sang His praises, and we can follow the example of the shepherds who eagerly shared the good news. Charles Wesley, who seldom let a day go by without putting into writing the songs of his heart, left these words for us more than 200 years ago, Veiled in flesh the Godhead see, Hail the incarnate Deity! Pleased as man with men to dwell, Jesus, our Emmanuel. Hark! The herald angels sing, Glory to the newborn King! Pray: O Lord, as You have brought us joy today by Your coming, may we bring You joy in our celebration of this amazing event. And as You have been made in human likeness, may we continue in our striving to become like You. 5