While preparing to celebrate a season of giving thanks in a couple of days, we should also note that this Sunday, November 29th, is the first Sunday of Advent. We call it Christmas season, but for centuries it has been Advent on the church calendar. During Advent we celebrate that God kept His promise to send a Savior. As man measures time, the fulfillment of this promise had been a long time coming. It had been four hundred years since any prophet had come from Yahweh, and yet there were still those faithful saints who were watching and waiting; saints like the elderly Simeon whom after seeing Jesus in the temple eight days after his birth said,
29 “Lord, now you are letting your servant depart in peace, according to your word;
30 for my eyes have seen your salvation
31 that you have prepared in the presence of all peoples,
32 a light for revelation to the Gentiles,
and for glory to your people Israel.”
Simeon had been watching and waiting for the Light of the World to arrive, and after seeing Jesus, he felt he could now “depart in peace”.
Advent is a time of celebrating that the season of God’s people waiting for salvation has come to an end. God had become man and this man had lived a sinless life, and had died in in the place of sinners on Calvary’s Cross. Advent is a season of seeing and savoring the Christ and all that He accomplished for us.
But Advent is also a time of waiting. The very earliest of recorded church history reveals that Advent was not just a time of celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ in Bethlehem, but also a time of “watching and waiting” for His Second Advent; His glorious return.
At NewBranch, we will be celebrating this season each Sunday through the lighting of a traditional Advent wreath along with selected readings and prayers from various families. In addition to our corporate observance and celebration of Advent, we encourage you to set aside time during this season to read Scripture and consider the kindness and mercy of God to send His Son to earth to rescue sinners. To assist you in preparing your family’s observance of the Advent season we’re providing a couple of resources that we hope you’ll find helpful:
Lifeway KIDS Family Advent Guide - The first resource is from Lifeway and is an excellent family devotional especially for those with younger children. This Advent guide includes four weekly devotionals, plus one for Christmas Day. Each devotional also includes a family activity to help bring the content to life for your children. Here’s what our Children’s Ministry Team has to say about this resource:
Hope, love, joy, and peace are a few of the good gifts God has given to us. During Advent, we celebrate Jesus’ coming to earth as a baby, making the way for these gifts to be experienced. Our prayer is that your family can use this guide to remember and celebrate Jesus’ birth and the hope and joy He offers. Our prayer is that NewBranch families use these devotions, activities, and worship songs to find rest in the hope, love, peace, and joy that only Jesus can bring. He is the greatest gift. Let's celebrate!
Good News of Great Joy - This second resource is a devotional from John Piper that I’ve found useful for the past several Advent seasons. This devotional begins on December 1st and includes a reading for each day leading up to the birth of Christ. Piper’s works have been a tremendous blessing to me over the years and I would highly commend this collection of advent reflections to augment your own daily Bible reading and prayer during this Advent season.
Feel free to comment below with other favorite resources or Advent traditions that your family has found helpful to focus our attention on the incarnation of Christ during this season.