Advent Day 2: The Hope of Glory

Good morning, friends, on this second day of Advent!

Thank you for taking this journey with me as we prepare our hearts for the celebration of the Nativity, the Incarnation of God on earth.

In God's infinite wisdom, He has placed within each person a natural yearning for something better -- a hope that is vibrant and motivates our seasons of life. The more we read the Bible, the more we learn that this yearning is not merely for something better, but rather for Someone better, the One and only wise God!

In Colossians 1:5, the apostle Paul reminds us that, as we wait for the Lord, God has already stored up for us in heaven the hope that is found in the gospel -- this hope is Jesus, the Light of the World.

"Light of the world,

You stepped down into darkness

Opened my eyes, let me see

Beauty that made this heart adore You

Hope of a life spent with You . . ."

Hope, indeed!

There is so much gracious hope in Advent, a word that simply means "coming" -- the coming of Christ. As believers of the gospel, we understand that at Creation, Christ came and turned darkness into light. Physically speaking, we grasp that Christ also came through His human birth in history. He came not as the political leader and monarch sought after by most Israelites, but as a special King -- the King of kings and the Lord of lords. Old Testament prophecies foretold this fact concerning this King: Jesus, the Word of God, would be made flesh for our hope and our deliverance from the tight grip of our disobedience and rebellion against God.

So, there is hope for us in Advent as we are invited to partake in the expectation, anticipation, and preparation for who Christ is and for what He has done for us. Arriving into the world as fully God and fully man, Jesus came to identify as one of us, as the Son of Man, as a baby born in a manger, and yet also as someone who is altogether different . . .

"Here I am to worship,

Here I am to bow down,

Here I am to say that You're my God.

You're altogether lovely,

Altogether worthy,

Altogether wonderful to me."

Yes. Hope has come for the average Joe or Jill as well as the highest officer in the army. Hope comes to us daily knocking on the door of our hearts to be allowed in to dine and visit and converse and live fully with each and everyone of us.

Hope comes to fill . . .

our grief
our shame
our despair
our sadness
our poverty
our torments
our temptations
our waywardness

                             . . . with the fullness of Christ.

And, glory!

Hope is coming again in great power and presence to bring Christ's Kingdom into completion.

So, friends, Advent gives us cause to rejoice. Christ's coming unearths gratitude and joy from the deepest recesses of our hearts because Jesus is our only hope.

"My hope is built on nothing less

Than Jesus' blood and righteousness

I dare not trust the sweetest frame

But wholly lean on Jesus' name."

May you and I no longer hope in mere pleasantries, paychecks, and pomp and circumstance!

Instead, may we hope in the grace of Jesus, the Hope of glory!