The 2019 advent season is quickly coming to a close. The term “advent” is often equated with Christmastime or the Christmas season. But these don’t quite mean the same thing.
Advent is “the arrival of a notable person or thing.” (1)
Advent is a season of waiting. During your celebration of advent, you may have waited to light a new purple candle every week. You may have waited to snag some cookies out of the jar after dinner. You may be waiting to open the shiny presents under the tree. You may have waited for a loved one to visit. You may have waited to decorate your house for the holiday (or not… I know some of you had your Christmas trees up on November 1!).
But all these types of waiting are not what advent is all about. Advent is ultimately a season of waiting for Jesus, our Savior. It’s a season of remembering how people waited thousands of years for the Messiah to come, and it’s a season of looking forward to Christ’s second coming.
Since the beginning of this world, all of creation has waited for a Savior. Adam and Eve were deceived by a serpent and ate the fruit of the only forbidden tree in the whole Garden of Eden. They were instantly ashamed and afraid. They had introduced sin into the earth. From that moment on, every single human being who ever lived had a sin nature. Every single human being was bent towards sin. Every single human being was unrighteous and unclean, so opposite of their holy, pure, and righteous Creator.
But even in the beginning, there was hope. God did not just punish Adam and Eve and send them away to live the rest of their lives in deep guilt and shame. No, He also gave them a promise. A promise of One who was to come. The Messiah. The Savior who would one day destroy sin once and for all.
He said to the serpent:
“I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.” Genesis 3:15, ESV
For thousands of years after this, the people of God waited and waited for this Messiah to come. Prophets wrote about Him. Psalmists sang about Him. But He wasn’t coming. He didn’t come during the time of Abraham. He didn’t come during the Egyptian oppression. He didn’t come when Israel wandered in the wilderness. He didn’t come when Israel entered the Promised Land. He didn’t come during the Judges period. He didn’t come when the kingdom of Israel was established. He didn’t come when all of Israel went into exile. And the people likely wondered if this Savior would ever come.
“But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons.” Galatians 4:4-5
Our God is faithful, and He never breaks His promises. The promised Messiah did come! Jesus Christ, the Son of God, humbled Himself to be born as a baby in Israel. He came to save and redeem us from our many sins so that we could become children of the One True God. Our Savior took our place on the cross and transferred His righteousness and purity to us. Jesus died for us, but He resurrected to defeat sin and death. He is alive! He ascended to heaven, but He is coming back soon to gather His people to Himself and destroy sin and death for good. And again, we are waiting for our Savior.
What are we to do in this time of waiting, in this time of advent? We shouldn’t just sit around and do nothing. Jesus has given us a mission.
“Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you…” Matthew 28:19-20a
As we are waiting for Jesus to return, we must spread the good news of the gospel. We must baptize new believers. We must disciple others and teach them the truths of God’s Word.
A lot of bad things are going to happen in our world while we wait, and we may wonder, “Is Jesus ever going to return?” But remember – God is faithful. He never breaks His promises. Our promised Savior is coming!
“He who testifies to these things says, ‘Surely I am coming soon.’ Amen. Come, Lord Jesus!” Revelation 22:20
- “Advent,” Lexico Dictionary, accessed December 5, 2019, https://www.lexico.com/en/definition/advent.
