Advent: A Time to Wait With Eagerness {Team Journal}
Today's team journal was written by our Conference Coordinator, Melanie Newhouse.
As a little girl, I remember my mama centering the wooden holder on our table, fixing the plastic holly wreath, and securing the candles in their places. During dinner, I watched, transfixed, when she lit the candles. The flames flickered; melting, and dribbling wax danced before my eyes.
Advent traditions have existed for centuries as a way to prepare the believer’s heart to celebrate the coming Savior, God Incarnate. Advent is a word, with Latin roots, meaning ‘arrival’ or ‘coming.’ However, it was translated from its Greek counterpart, parousia, which the Outline of Biblical Usage defines this way:
1. presence, 2. the coming, arrival, advent; and 2a. the future visible return from heaven of Jesus, to raise the dead, hold the last judgment, and set up formally and gloriously the kingdom of God.
This is a season to stop and reflect upon our Holy God sending His only, perfect Son to seek and save the lost, to set captives free, and to be our righteous Redeemer.
This Greek word is seen many places in the scriptures in reference to Christ’s Second Coming (Matthew. 24:3, 1 Thessalonians 3:13; 5:23; James 5:7; 2 Peter 3:4; 1 John 2:28). Early believers used the four weeks before Christmas not only to celebrate Christ’s first coming to mark redemption for mankind, but His Second Coming to restore His Kingdom for eternity. This is a season to stop and reflect upon our Holy God sending His only, perfect Son to seek and save the lost, to set captives free, and to be our righteous Redeemer. Through the years, our family has followed scripture reading plans, read devotionals and storybooks, decorated Jesse Trees, sang Christmas carols, all in efforts to focus on the reason for the season -- the coming Messiah, Jesus, Immanuel, God with us.
Recently, I was reflecting on how He announced His coming. After His glorious baptism and His testing in the wilderness, we hear about the early start of Jesus’ ministry in the synagogues. In Luke 4, we see Jesus, coming to His hometown, using a tradition to announce His good news:
16 And [Jesus] came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up. And as was his custom, he went to the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and he stood up to read. 17 And the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written,
18 “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
because he has anointed me
to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives
and recovering of sight to the blind,
to set at liberty those who are oppressed,
19 to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor.”
20 And he rolled up the scroll and gave it back to the attendant and sat down. And the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him. 21 And he began to say to them, “Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.” 22 And all spoke well of him and marveled at the gracious words that were coming from his mouth…
With the reading of this prophecy, found now in Isaiah 61, Jesus was announcing His arrival. Simply speaking, this word left His audience in awe. Can you imagine sitting in that synagogue, hearing the original Author proclaim the fulfillment of the scriptures -- that the One they were waiting for was standing in the flesh before them? Imagine how your eyes would be transfixed upon Him, marveling at the grace on His lips as He spoke this word with authority and certainty. What an awe-inducing moment it would have been! Unlike the majority of us today, the first century Israelites sitting in the synagogue would have known the rest of this passage from the prophet Isaiah. Jesus was telling them, this is indeed the year of the Lord’s favor. I have come! I have come to give you a “beautiful headdress instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, the garment of praise instead of a faint spirit” (Is 61:3-4). I have come so you “may be called oaks of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that he may be glorified” (Isaiah 61:5). How beautiful is this announcement of His Coming!
When we study the prophets, we often not only see prophecy related to the coming Messiah who will dwell with man on Earth, but we see prophecy related to the future day of the Lord, His Second Coming when He will judge and reign over His Kingdom perfectly. Isaiah 61 is no different. It concludes with the voice of the Messiah proclaiming:
10 I will greatly rejoice in the LORD; my soul shall exult in my God, for he has clothed me with the garments of salvation; he has covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decks himself like a priest with a beautiful headdress, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels. 11 For as the earth brings forth its sprouts, and as a garden causes what is sown in it to sprout up, so the Lord GOD will cause righteousness and praise to sprout up before all the nations.
This talk of the Bride and Bridegroom is a beautiful metaphor, which points to His glorious Second Coming. The apostle John, whose book of Revelation overflows with exquisite imagery, also compares Jesus to a bridegroom and the people of God as His bride. He describes his vision of the second coming of our Savior this way:
1 Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. 2 And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. 3 And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, "Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. 4 He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away."... 9 Then came one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues and spoke to me, saying, "Come, I will show you the Bride, the wife of the Lamb." (Rev 21:1-4, 9)
What a glorious day this will be! Oh, sisters, during this Advent season, let us not only celebrate that Christ came, let us wait with great eagerness for His Second Coming.
Come, thou long expected Jesus, born to set thy people free;
from our fears and sins release us, let us find our rest in thee.
Israel's strength and consolation, hope of all the earth thou art;
dear desire of every nation, joy of every longing heart.
Born thy people to deliver, born a child and yet a King,
born to reign in us forever, now thy gracious kingdom bring.
By thine own eternal spirit rule in all our hearts alone;
by thine all sufficient merit, raise us to thy glorious throne.
-- Charles Wesley, 1744
Melanie Newhouse has called Christ her Redeemer since attending summer camp when she was 17. Shortly after, she began dating the man she calls her husband and best friend. They have had the joy of raising four boys together and, as a family, moved to Ohio from their beloved Michigan six and a half years ago. One of her favorite Scriptures is Psalm 119:169-176:
“Let my cry come before you, O Lord; give me understanding according to your word! Let my plea come before you; deliver me according to your word. My lips will pour forth praise, for you teach me your statutes.
My tongue will sing of your word, for all your commandments are right. Let your hand be ready to help me, for I have chosen your precepts. I long for your salvation, O Lord, and your law is my delight. Let my soul live and praise you, and let your rules help me. I have gone astray like a lost sheep; seek your servant, for I do not forget your commandments.”