Advent Blessings
The season of Advent is one of the most wonderful and mysterious seasons of the church year. From the preparations that we make for the coming of the Son of Man at the end of the age to the Christ child born in a lowly manger, this season is most holy and magnificent. Traditionally, the weeks leading up to Advent help us to receive the promise of God’s abundant blessings in Jesus. Hope, Peace, Joy and Love: each weekly theme leads our minds and hearts to receive the great blessing of the Incarnate God who reveals himself as a baby boy in Bethlehem.
Hope
First, Jesus is our lasting source of hope. In a world full of wickedness, sin, corruption, evil, and hatred among people, God comes to us during the season of Advent to bring his everlasting hope. Biblical hope is not something for which we are wishful; rather, it is that which we already have received by the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus and that which we grasp onto and take a firm grip through the difficulties of this life.
When we hope in Jesus, we hope for a better day. We hope that the hardships we are currently experiencing in life will not last. We hope that the turmoil in which our world so dreadfully spins will not be the outcome of where we are heading in the days to come. We hope that our children and grandchildren would be protected from the constant threats of gun violence in our schools. We hope that, amid the uncertainty of the political landscape, we would find ourselves uniting together in love for our common brotherhood rather than devouring ourselves from within.
But let us be honest with ourselves today: this world in which we live is not the world that God created it to be. It is fallen. It is sinful. It is broken. And because of this, biblical hope is not acquired by getting caught up in the ever-changing realties of our world, but by fixing our eyes and hearts upon Jesus and that which is eternal.
Saint Paul writes to the church in Corinth: “For this slight momentary affliction is preparing us for an eternal weight of glory beyond all measure, because we look not at what can be seen but at what cannot be seen; for what can be seen is temporary, but what cannot be seen is eternal” (2 Corinthians 4:17-18). As we put our hope in the everlasting promise of God, we see the realties in this world with eyes of faith; and thus, our momentary struggles are just that – momentary. One of the most helpful phrases that I have said to parishioners in pastoral counseling is, “It will not be this way forever.” As those words are spoken, I can see the hopelessness leave their face and a sense of hope fill their eyes. This kind of hope is possible only by receiving it as a gift from God.
Peace
Second, Jesus is our lasting source of peace. Peace is not obtained by our careful observation or illusory thoughts of positivism; rather, peace is found in a life-saving relationship with God in Jesus Christ. It is through this redemptive relationship that eternal peace flows from heaven to us on earth.
The prophet Isaiah spoke with love and grace to the chosen people of God during the time of their captivity, “Those of steadfast mind you keep in peace – in peace because they trust in you” (Isaiah 26:3). The mind, when it is renewed in the presence of Jesus, is filled with heavenly truths that transcend earthly realities. For Israel this meant understanding that, in their captivity, God’s peace was with them as they fixed their minds on God. For us it means honestly assessing our lives in accordance with God’s Word to hear Jesus’ voice say, “Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28). Only when the intentional and deliberate fixing of one’s mind is extricated from the broken realities of this world can one live in the shalom of knowing God.
May the second week of Advent remind you of the peace of Christ that only God can give. As the Apostle Paul exhorts the people of God in Philippi, so I encourage you with this prayer: “And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:7). Amen.
Joy
Third, Jesus is our lasting source of joy. To know Jesus and to walk in a living relationship with him is to know the joy of Christ and the love of his gentle embrace. Having this kind of joy is not circumstantial. That is to say, joy has nothing to do with our circumstances or the unfolding of past events in our lives. One could find themselves in the direst of all circumstances and yet the joy of knowing Christ will not change. Knowing Jesus is knowing God; and knowing God is living a life of joy. During Israel’s time of exile in Persia, Nehemiah turned the people from their changing circumstances to the unchanging love of God by reminding them that “the joy of the Lord is their strength” (Nehemiah 8:10).
There is a difference between being happy and having joy. Happiness consists of finding your emotional wellbeing in your experiences. If this is the case, your emotional intelligence combined with what you experience in life sets the stage for how you feel. A life that is guided by how one feels will be lived in the constant changing landscape of what one experiences. Furthermore, if the experience is good, then they will feel good. If, however, the experience is negative, then the feeling will also be bad.
Lasting joy is not found within ourselves or even determined by what happens around or to us. On the contrary, lasting joy is found only in a God whose eternal love never changes for his people. The writer of Hebrews reminds us of this truth when he said, “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever” (Hebrews 13:8). It is here that you will find lasting joy.
Love
Finally, Jesus is our lasting source of love. Knowing God is walking in his love. Nothing compares to the extended gift of knowing the God and Father of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. This daily gift is exercised in the embracing of every relationship that God has given, as well as maximizing the moment of opportunity to share his love with others.
The Apostle John explains to us that God is our lasting source of love when he said, “God is love, and those who abide in love abide in God, and God abides in them” (1 John 4:16b). Love came down at Christmas to make his presence known among us. Love surrounds us every day of our lives as we live in the baptismal promises of the trinitarian God who manifests the fullness of his love through his divine personhood.
My prayer for you and your family is for God – Father, Son and Holy Spirit – to surround you with his joy and peace in knowing him this Advent and Christmas. May the God of joy and peace fill your minds with heavenly truth in knowing that the God who comes to us as a baby at Christmas will come again in glory.