Come and See - Pt 2

In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. And the virgin's name was Mary. And he came to her and said, “Greetings, O favored one, the Lord is with you!” But she was greatly troubled at the saying, and tried to discern what sort of greeting this might be. And the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.” (Luke 1:26-33 ESV).

I hope you enjoyed yesterday’s short devotional inspired by my granddaughter’s birthday. Today we return to the season of Advent leading us to our celebration of Christmas (If you missed the first in this series, it was posted on December 2nd.) The Advent wreath’s first candle symbolizes hope and is called the "Prophet’s Candle." There are many prophecies in the Old Testament that call our attention to the coming of Jesus, the Messiah. You may want to do a little extra reading in the prophesy of Isaiah (cf. Isaiah 7:10-16; 9:1-7). The impact of this symbolism is in our anticipation of the coming of the Messiah. Jesus is the Anointed One. He is the only one who can restore hope in our lives. I am aware of the political and athletic references made to individuals concerning the title of “Anointed One”; however, there is only One who can rightly claim that title. He is the only One spoken of in the prophets and revealed in the person of Jesus. His coming is woven like a golden thread all the way through Old Testament history. God’s people were abused by power hungry kings, led astray by self centered prophets and half hearted religious leaders which resulted in some longing for God to raise up a new king who would teach them to be God’s people and lead them in righteousness and truth. They yearned for a return of God’s dynamic presence in their midst. While the people expected a new earthly king, their expectations fell far short of God’s revelation of Himself in Christ. And yet, the world is not yet fully redeemed. So, we again with expectation, with hope, await God’s new work in history, the Second Advent. This is not a hope that “wishes something will happen” but a hope that knows it will happen. Because God was right about the First Advent which came 735 years after the prophets said it would, our hope is based on knowing God will do what He said He would do and so we wait expectantly knowing that Jesus is coming back. Perhaps the question for each of us today is: Are we ready for the Second Coming? What should we do to help others get ready for His coming? There is no better time than this season to invite others to your church activities. There the Holy Spirit may be able to touch them with the Gospel in a life-changing way!