Angels and Shepherds

PASSAGE FOR THE DAY:

And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. 9 An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. 10 But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. 11 Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. 12 This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”

13 Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,

14      “Glory to God in the highest heaven,

    and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”

15 When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.”

16 So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger.17 When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, 18 and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. 19 But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. 20 The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told. (Luke 2:8-20, NIV)

…………

1        Who has believed our message

    and to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?

2        He grew up before him like a tender shoot,

    and like a root out of dry ground.

He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him,

    nothing in his appearance that we should desire him.

3        He was despised and rejected by mankind,

    a man of suffering, and familiar with pain.

Like one from whom people hide their faces

    he was despised, and we held him in low esteem. (Isaiah 53:1-3, NIV)

…………

Therefore if you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any common sharing in the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, 2 then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and of one mind. 3 Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, 4 not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.

5 In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus:

6        Who, being in very nature God,

    did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage;

7        rather, he made himself nothing

    by taking the very nature of a servant,

    being made in human likeness.

8        And being found in appearance as a man,

    he humbled himself

    by becoming obedient to death—

        even death on a cross!

9        Therefore God exalted him to the highest place

    and gave him the name that is above every name,

10      that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,

    in heaven and on earth and under the earth,

11      and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord,

    to the glory of God the Father. (Philippians 2:1-12, NIV)

REFLECTIONS:

The nativity story is a familiar one. We have plays and songs and decora­tions that capture the event. We know this story so well, in fact, that we miss just how unexpected and shocking the story really is.

First of all, it begins with an announcement from angels: The High King of Heaven is coming to earth. This is a story from another world, which is now coming to us. Given the realities of the day, we might expect the angels to make this announcement to the Roman authorities or to the re­ligious elite in Jerusalem. Instead, they went to a small town in the middle of nowhere and proclaimed the coming King to a group of shepherds.

Shepherds! Lowly shepherds. They were not the movers and shakers, and certainly not the kind of people through whom you would spread the word, so to speak. From any common sense point of view, this is bizarre.

So why would God do this? Why should Jesus be born in Bethlehem, unknown to most of the world, and be only announced to an inconse­quential few?

God seems to nearly always use the weak, unassuming and humble to bring his kingdom of peace. Abraham was an old man in the land of Ur. David was a young boy in the pasture. Gideon was short-handed against a great army. This is the story of the whole nation of Israel: “The Lord did not set his affection on you and choose you because you were more numerous than other peoples, for you were the fewest of all peoples” (Deuteronomy 7:7).

The fact that the angels announced the peace of the Messiah to the shep­herds instead of kings and priests is incredibly reassuring. God has made, and will make, peace with the humble—those who are not dependent upon themselves for righteousness or moral acceptance. It is those who understand their lowly position before the Wonderful Counselor and Mighty God, the Everlasting Father and Prince of Peace and come to worship him, who will be saved.

Jesus taught this to his disciples (Luke 9:46-48; Luke22:24-30). Paul and the other apostles taught it as well (1 Corinthians1:18-31; Philippians 2:1-11; 1 Peter 3:12-19; James 2:1-13). The connection between humility and peace is at the center of the gospel message.

In response to the criticism that Christianity is just a crutch for the emotionally or psychological needy, John Piper counters that it is not only a crutch—it is an entire ICU. We were once dead in our sins and trespasses (Ephesians 2:1), naturally God’s enemies (Romans 5:10), and in need of a saving God to bring us to life (Ephesians 2:4-10). Those who do not think they are sick will never get well (Matthew 9:12-13).

The season of Advent brings us peace because God has reconciled us to himself through his Son. We experience this peace when we recognize our humble state before the unassuming manger of the saving, loving and good King Jesus. Jesus, “being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death—even death on a cross” (Philippians 2:6-8).

POINT TO PONDER AND PRAYER:

Am I trying to keep up appearances? Am I trying to be good enough for God to love?

God, you are a holy God, righteous and just, beyond com­pare. I confess my pride—thinking I am somehow acceptable on my own merit. I confess my fear—thinking that you would not love a sinner like me. I turn to Jesus, “who was delivered up for our trespasses and raised for our justification.” He came for the sick. He died for the ungodly. May I be counted among those who are lowly enough to see the Lord in the manger.

Shalom

PASSAGE FOR THE DAY:

1        “Here is my servant, whom I uphold,

    my chosen one in whom I delight;

I will put my Spirit on him,

    and he will bring justice to the nations.

2        He will not shout or cry out,

    or raise his voice in the streets.

3        A bruised reed he will not break,

    and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out.

In faithfulness he will bring forth justice;

4           he will not falter or be discouraged

till he establishes justice on earth.

    In his teaching the islands will put their hope.”

5        This is what God the LORD says—

the Creator of the heavens, who stretches them out,

    who spreads out the earth with all that springs from it,

    who gives breath to its people,

    and life to those who walk on it:

6        “I, the LORD , have called you in righteousness;

    I will take hold of your hand.

I will keep you and will make you

    to be a covenant for the people

    and a light for the Gentiles,

7        to open eyes that are blind,

    to free captives from prison

    and to release from the dungeon those who sit in darkness.

8        “I am the LORD; that is my name!

    I will not yield my glory to another

    or my praise to idols.

9        See, the former things have taken place,

    and new things I declare;

before they spring into being

    I announce them to you.” (Isaiah 42:1-9, NIV)

…………

Therefore, remember that formerly you who are Gentiles by birth and called “uncircumcised” by those who call themselves “the circumcision” (which is done in the body by human hands)—12 remember that at that time you were separate from Christ, excluded from citizenship in Israel and foreigners to the covenants of the promise, without hope and without God in the world. 13 But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near by the blood of Christ.

14 For he himself is our peace, who has made the two groups one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility, 15 by setting aside in his flesh the law with its commands and regulations. His purpose was to create in himself one new humanity out of the two, thus making peace, 16 and in one body to reconcile both of them to God through the cross, by which he put to death their hostility. 17 He came and preached peace to you who were far away and peace to those who were near. 18 For through him we both have access to the Father by one Spirit.

19 Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with God’s people and also members of his household, 20 built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone. 21 In him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord. 22 And in him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit. (Ephesians 2:11-22, NIV)

…………

For Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. 15 And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again.

16 So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view. Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer. 17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here! 18 All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: 19 that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. 20 We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God. 21 God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. (2 Corinthians 5:14-21, NIV)

REFLECTIONS:

In his book, Not the Way It’s Supposed to Be, Cornelius Plantinga writes, “In the Bible, shalom means universal flourishing, wholeness, and delight—a rich state of affairs in which natural needs are satisfied and natural gifts fruitfully employed, a state of affairs that inspires joyful wonder as its Creator and Savior opens doors and welcomes the creatures in whom he delights. Shalom, in other words, is the way things ought to be.” This pic­ture stands in shining contrast to the reductionist cliché of “world peace” often associated with bumper stickers and beauty pageant stereotypes.

Peace is from God. Just as no possession nor approval nor achieve­ment can usher peace into our lives, neither can any political structure or humanitarian effort set the world right. In this world we see internal discord ranging from mild anxiety to severe mental health disorders. We see interpersonal conflict in struggling marriages, broken families, divided communities and war-torn countries.

It is against this backdrop that the depth and richness of biblical peace is ushered in by the perfect life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. “For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross” (Colossians 1:19-20).

Jesus enters into our world as the Prince of Peace, restoring us to the Father by his own blood, welcoming us in as sons and daughters of God. We are no longer children of wrath, at war with God. Our deepest, most urgent need has been met—peace with God—and we are free from enslaving anxiety.

But the peace that Jesus came to bring doesn’t stop there. In Christ we have peace with God, and we become agents of peace in a world of discord. The peace Jesus brings is universal in scope, and thus has far-reaching implications for our relationships, communities and world. This is the work that God has prepared for us.

As Christmas approaches and we anticipate the coming of the Prince of Peace, we consider an important and often neglected aspect of our role as believers in Christ. If God sent Jesus to reconcile us to himself, then as his image-bearers we represent his character to this world when we actively seek to reconcile conflict with the people in our lives and in the world at large. As believers, we are the sons and daughters of God, agents in this world of our Heavenly Father’s peace, bringing his eternal kingdom to earth now. In his second letter to the Corinthians, Paul says, “All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation” (2 Corinthians 5:18).

If we are bored in our Christian life, perhaps it is because we haven’t taken to heart that the kingdom of heaven is at hand, employing us as citizens who expand God’s rule and call upon his will to be done on earth as it is in heaven. We haven’t read the apocalyptic accounts as the birth pangs of a new heaven and a new earth recreated with justice and peace.

He has given us the ministry of reconciliation. How are we doing as his ambassadors? In our personal lives, are we quick (or even willing?) to admit when we are wrong and earnest in asking forgiveness? When offended, do we offer forgiveness with no strings attached, not harboring resentment or keeping a record of wrongs, allowing relationships to heal and rebuild? In the local and global community, are we looking to the ways of social justice, being a voice and an advocate for the marginalized, offering encouragement and physical resources to those who are strug­gling? In the areas we find ourselves most lacking, perhaps it is because we are building our own kingdoms, or have forgotten the magnitude of our own offense against God, which has been forgiven and paid in full.

As we enter into the Advent season and look to the kingdom of God introduced in the person and ministry of Jesus Christ, we reflect on the birth announcement of Christ, and the eternal kingdom of peace he would bring, foretold by the prophet Isaiah:

“For to us a child is born,

    to us a son is given,

    and the government will be on his shoulders.

And he will be called

    Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,

    Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

Of the greatness of his government and peace

    there will be no end.

He will reign on David’s throne

    and over his kingdom,

establishing and upholding it

    with justice and righteousness

    from that time on and forever.

The zeal of the Lord Almighty

    will accomplish this.” (Isaiah 9:6-7a)

PRAYER:
Father, we repent of trying to build our own kingdoms instead of experiencing yours. We repent of the relationships where we are keeping a record of wrongs or harboring unforgiveness. We ask you to show us practical ways to be ambassadors of Christ’s ministry of reconciliation to the marginal­ized in our community and globally. Father, we thank you for the gift of your reconciliation through Christ’s death on our behalf. Give us the faith to know that you have provided all of the resources necessary to see your will be done, resting us from our striving effort apart from Christ. Lord, may your kingdom come in my heart, in my life and in my community.

Peace: Laying the Foundation

PASSAGE FOR THE DAY:

“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? 26 Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? 27 Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?

28 “And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. 29 Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. 30 If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? 31 So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. 34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.” (Matthew 6:25-34, NIV)

…………

Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! 5 Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. 6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

8 Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. 9 Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you. (Philippians 4:4-9, NIV)

REFLECTIONS:

On these last few days of Advent, we’ll focus our attention on the gift of peace that comes to us when we embrace the coming of Christ.

Holman’s Bible Dictionary defines peace as a “sense of well-being and fulfillment that comes from God and is dependent on His presence.”

A sense of well-being and fulfillment from God means, at least in part, that we embrace all the elements of our existence as God-ordained. That is, we are at rest in God’s sovereign rule and assured of his faithful care.

This peace, which we embrace by faith, was absolute reality for Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. Before eating of the fruit, they didn’t have to worry about what was good or evil—they trusted God exclu­sively for what was good and best for them.

Similarly, infants trust their parents implicitly. When they get hungry or need a diaper changed, they cry, signaling to their parents that they need them. When their parents pick them up, they don’t worry about whether or not they will be dropped. As children grow, though, they begin to exert their independence and rebel against their parents. Even a toddler can regard parental instruction as mere suggestion. She can weigh the options and do the opposite of what her parent wants, even though the parent knows what is best for her.

We have never fully experienced the complete trust in God that Adam and Eve had. Consequently, we have never had the accompanying peace. Our broken and decaying world is only part of our reality. Dallas Willard comments, “the entire posture of our embodied self and its surroundings is habitually inclined toward physical or earthly reality as the only reality there is,” which is why we are inclined to trust and hope in what is seen.

Jesus warns us along these lines: “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes?” (Matthew 6:25). If we seek fulfillment in temporal things like security, appearance and money, then our fate is fixed. We will be anxious. This is why Paul said that the peace of God transcends all understanding. It simply isn’t how the world thinks, precisely because the world can’t see it.

The Advent season summons us to hope in what is unseen, the unlikely birth of a Savior and the return of our King. When our trust is in the God-reality that is beyond any risk of threat, anxiety is pointless. “It oc­curs,” Willard says, “only as a hangover of bad habits established when we were trusting things—like human approval and material possessions—that were certain to let us down. Now our strategy should be one of resolute rejection of worry, while we concentrate on the future in hope and with prayer and on the past with thanksgiving.”

Peace is dependent on God’s presence as a good and caring Father because there simply isn’t any other source of peace. The Law and the Prophets bear witness to this truth, which is why they looked to God to set things right in our world, to restore the peace of Eden. The ultimate prayer for peace is, “Come, Lord Jesus, Come.”

POINT TO PONDER AND PRAYER:

What are my anxious thoughts? What temporal things am I trusting in that underlie these thoughts? Will I trust God as my Father in these areas?

Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us today what we need for today, and we will trust that tomorrow will be the same.

Second Coming

PASSAGE FOR THE DAY:

Now Mary stood outside the tomb crying. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb 12 and saw two angels in white, seated where Jesus’ body had been, one at the head and the other at the foot.

13 They asked her, “Woman, why are you crying?”

“They have taken my Lord away,” she said, “and I don’t know where they have put him.” 14 At this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not realize that it was Jesus.

15 He asked her, “Woman, why are you crying? Who is it you are looking for?”

Thinking he was the gardener, she said, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will get him.”

16 Jesus said to her, “Mary.”

She turned toward him and cried out in Aramaic, “Rabboni!”(which means “Teacher”).

17 Jesus said, “Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father. Go instead to my brothers and tell them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’”

18 Mary Magdalene went to the disciples with the news: “I have seen the Lord!” And she told them that he had said these things to her. (John 20:11-18, NIV)

…………

The angel said to me, “These words are trustworthy and true. The Lord, the God who inspires the prophets, sent his angel to show his servants the things that must soon take place.”

7 “Look, I am coming soon! Blessed is the one who keeps the words of the prophecy written in this scroll.”

8 I, John, am the one who heard and saw these things. And when I had heard and seen them, I fell down to worship at the feet of the angel who had been showing them to me. 9 But he said to me, “Don’t do that! I am a fellow servant with you and with your fellow prophets and with all who keep the words of this scroll. Worship God!”

10 Then he told me, “Do not seal up the words of the prophecy of this scroll, because the time is near. 11 Let the one who does wrong continue to do wrong; let the vile person continue to be vile; let the one who does right continue to do right; and let the holy person continue to be holy.”

12 “Look, I am coming soon! My reward is with me, and I will give to each person according to what they have done. 13 I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End.

14 “Blessed are those who wash their robes, that they may have the right to the tree of life and may go through the gates into the city. 15 Outside are the dogs, those who practice magic arts, the sexually immoral, the murderers, the idolaters and everyone who loves and practices falsehood.

16 “I, Jesus, have sent my angel to give you this testimony for the churches. I am the Root and the Offspring of David, and the bright Morning Star.”

17 The Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” And let the one who hears say, “Come!” Let the one who is thirsty come; and let the one who wishes take the free gift of the water of life.

18 I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this scroll: If anyone adds anything to them, God will add to that person the plagues described in this scroll. 19 And if anyone takes words away from this scroll of prophecy, God will take away from that person any share in the tree of life and in the Holy City, which are described in this scroll.

20 He who testifies to these things says, “Yes, I am coming soon.”

Amen. Come, Lord Jesus. (Revelation 22:6-20, NIV)

REFLECTIONS:

Everything about joy that we have talked about this week is seen here in Mary Magdalene: victory in the midst of suffering, joy in experiencing a person, heightened joy because of waiting.

I can only imagine what Mary must have been thinking that Sunday morning. Maybe he wasn’t who he said he was. I thought he was going to really deliver us. Or maybe, I still believe in him, but I just don’t understand.

Confusion. Disappointment. Hopelessness. Even after seeing the angels at the tomb, she’s still weeping when Jesus approaches her. She was look­ing right at him, but she did not recognize Jesus until he said her name, “Mary.” This is one of the most moving pictures in the four gospels. Jesus, the risen and glorified Lord, gently says her name and she sees. The encounter with Jesus opens the floodgates of joy.

Our story is no less miraculous. God has opened our eyes to see and our hearts to believe. He has put within us a longing to see Jesus face-to-face. John tells us, “Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is.” (1 John 3:2)

The time of disappointment, confusion, pain, jealousy, anger and grief will be no more. On that day, all our longings for hope, peace, love and joy will find complete satisfaction as Jesus looks at us and calls us by name.

Christmas shows God beginning to reveal his beautiful plan of redemp­tion, Easter shows his power to accomplish his plan, and the Second Coming will show the consummation of the plan.

Maranatha. Come Lord Jesus!

PRAYER:

Father, even though you have redeemed us and given us eyes to see, we long for the day of Jesus’ return, when we will see him as he is and be made like him. We long for the day to find our ultimate and undistracted joy, delight, and satisfaction in you just as Jesus does. Make us content where we are now, but not satisfied. Increase our compassion for the world around us as you increase our desire for your return. Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.

Waiting

PASSAGE FOR THE DAY:

At that time Mary got ready and hurried to a town in the hill country of Judea, 40 where she entered Zechariah’s home and greeted Elizabeth. 41 When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the baby leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. 42 In a loud voice she exclaimed: “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the child you will bear! 43 But why am I so favored, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? 44 As soon as the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy. 45 Blessed is she who has believed that the Lord would fulfill his promises to her!”

46 And Mary said:

 “My soul glorifies the Lord

47          and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,

48      for he has been mindful

    of the humble state of his servant.

From now on all generations will call me blessed,

49          for the Mighty One has done great things for me—

    holy is his name.

50      His mercy extends to those who fear him,

    from generation to generation.

51      He has performed mighty deeds with his arm;

    he has scattered those who are proud in their inmost thoughts.

52      He has brought down rulers from their thrones

    but has lifted up the humble.

53      He has filled the hungry with good things

    but has sent the rich away empty.

54      He has helped his servant Israel,

    remembering to be merciful

55      to Abraham and his descendants forever,

    just as he promised our ancestors.”

56 Mary stayed with Elizabeth for about three months and then returned home.

57 When it was time for Elizabeth to have her baby, she gave birth to a son. 58 Her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had shown her great mercy, and they shared her joy.

59 On the eighth day they came to circumcise the child, and they were going to name him after his father Zechariah, 60 but his mother spoke up and said, “No! He is to be called John.”

61 They said to her, “There is no one among your relatives who has that name.”

62 Then they made signs to his father, to find out what he would like to name the child. 63 He asked for a writing tablet, and to everyone’s astonishment he wrote, “His name is John.” 64 Immediately his mouth was opened and his tongue set free, and he began to speak, praising God. 65 All the neighbors were filled with awe, and throughout the hill country of Judea people were talking about all these things. 66 Everyone who heard this wondered about it, asking, “What then is this child going to be?” For the Lord’s hand was with him.

67 His father Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied:

68      “Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel,

    because he has come to his people and redeemed them.

69      He has raised up a horn of salvation for us

    in the house of his servant David

70      (as he said through his holy prophets of long ago),

71      salvation from our enemies

    and from the hand of all who hate us—

72      to show mercy to our ancestors

    and to remember his holy covenant,

73          the oath he swore to our father Abraham:

74      to rescue us from the hand of our enemies,

    and to enable us to serve him without fear

75          in holiness and righteousness before him all our days.

76      And you, my child, will be called a prophet of the Most High;

    for you will go on before the Lord to prepare the way for him,

77      to give his people the knowledge of salvation

    through the forgiveness of their sins,

78      because of the tender mercy of our God,

    by which the rising sun will come to us from heaven

79      to shine on those living in darkness

    and in the shadow of death,

to guide our feet into the path of peace.”

80 And the child grew and became strong in spirit; and he lived in the wilderness until he appeared publicly to Israel. (Luke 1:39-80, NIV)

REFLECTIONS:

What is the joy of waiting? We have all experienced how waiting and anticipation heightens the joy of consummation. The first example that comes to mind is the birth of a child. If babies came right after concep­tion, the new life might bring more shock and fear than joy in the mo­ment. Perhaps God’s gift to us is time—time to tell everyone our good news, time to paint a room and buy things, time to prepare ourselves for this new life. Instantaneous birth would rob us of the joy of waiting, but with nine months to prepare and imagine, the birthday comes as a glori­ous celebration!

An example of this from Scripture is Adam’s first reaction to Eve. Adam lived alone for some amount of time; he worked naming the animals and stewarding the garden. Yet, we read he had no suitable helper, and it was “not good.” Day-after-day Adam was faced with the reality that he was alone. Not without company, but without companionship. Thus, when Adam first laid eyes on Eve, he broke out into song: “This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called ‘woman,’ for she was taken out of man.” (Genesis 2:23)

Adam, I’m sure, would have been glad to have Eve from day one. But the waiting, the unnamed longing for someone with flesh and bone like his, brought about a joy he could not have otherwise known.

There is in all of us a deep sense of longing that has to do with incom­pleteness—embryonic aspirations, parts of us that remain unknown, an ever-increasing awareness of our broken world. We may be redeemed and joyful in Christ, but we know there is more—that we were made for another world. Lingering in our souls is the eerie memory of Eden and the mystery of kingdom come.

Pregnancy strikes me as one of the few things that we are required to wait for anymore. In fact, almost every occasion of waiting is now largely seen as an imposition. It’s not that life stops during pregnancy. We still have all the usual things to do. But the growing belly is a constant reminder of what is to come. There is nothing we can do to hasten it or prolong it. We can only prepare and wait. This is the kind of longing Paul speaks of:

“We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption to sonship, the redemption of our bodies. For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what they already have? But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently.” (Romans 8:22-25)

Advent makes us wait and take note that this is how God chose to come into our world. Not in a flash from the sky, but as a seed in the womb of a woman. After thousands of years, the Messiah finally comes, and then there is waiting. For Mary and Joseph, Elizabeth and Zechariah, it was a blessed time… time to take it all in, time to prepare and dream wild dreams, time to break out in song!

Joy is experienced so much more deeply when we are made to wait for the thing we long for. The anticipation of Advent makes the Joy of Christmas morning even more palpable.

PRAYER:

Come, Lord Jesus Come.

Come when you will.

We await your return.

Come when time is full,

Our pregnant hope due.

New life in our old world,

New bodies in full view.

Come in the morning,

Our long-awaited light.

The day breaks death,

The darkness now in flight.

Come with trumpet sound,

Our consummate song.

Resounding joy for all

Who have waited so long.

Mary and Martha

PASSAGE FOR THE DAY:

As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him.39 She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet listening to what he said. 40 But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to him and asked, “Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!”

41 “Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered, “you are worried and upset about many things, 42 but few things are needed—or indeed only one. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.” (Luke 10:38-42, NIV)


REFLECTIONS:

Because joy is something we experience rather than acquire, Advent is a special time when we slow down and delight in the person and work of Jesus Christ. He came as the joy of our salvation, and he will come again so that our joy will be made complete. But what about the in-between? How do we experience this deep joy here and now? Luke show us how in the story of Mary and Martha.

“As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet listening to what he said. But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made.”

Martha is busy serving: cleaning, cooking, serving and entertaining, mak­ing sure everything is just right. Mary is the complete opposite. She likes to sit at the feet of Jesus and listen, contemplate and soak in the moment. Whether grieving or serving or worshipping, Mary always seems to make her way to the feet of Jesus.

“Martha came to him and asked, ‘Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!’”

As in, “Look, I am doing all the work, which seems to be going unnoticed by the way, and my sister isn’t doing anything! I am doing all this for you, but she is getting all the attention.”

If you have ever been the one doing all the work while others stand by, then you can understand Martha’s frustration. The only thing worse than doing more than your fair share is not being noticed for it.

“But the Lord answered her, ‘Martha, Martha, you are worried and upset about many things,  but few things are needed—or indeed only one. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.’”

In other words, “Martha, you are confused. Joy cannot be acquired; it can only be experienced. Quit trying to acquire my approval. Quit looking for joy in your busyness. Don’t you understand? Joy comes from being in my presence. Joy comes from experiencing the power of the kingdom of God that I have come to restore. You cannot acquire it for yourself. You can only experience it as you experience me.”

In what ways are you trying to acquire or manufacture joy for yourself? Do you work hard at your job for approval from others? Or do you work hard to make sure you have enough money to buy the things that you think will really make you happy? Do you try to acquire joy from the suc­cesses of your kids or the quality of your parenting? All of these can only bring joy when they are soaked in the waters that flow from the Well­spring of Joy himself. When our ultimate delight and treasure is Jesus, then our spouse, our kids, our job can bring actual joy because they are not being worshiped.

Let the Advent season usher you to the feet of Jesus.

PRAYER:

Lord, we repent of trying to first delight in things other than you and then try­ing to fit you into what little time and energy we have left. In this Advent season, allow us to slow our lives and our desires to find rest and ultimate joy in you and you alone. Satisfy our deepest longings for approval and significance that we so easily look to find in other things or people. Make our joy full.

God’s Promises

PASSAGE FOR THE DAY:

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, 2 fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. 3 Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart. (Hebrews 12:1-3, NIV)

…………

1        I will exalt you, LORD,

    for you lifted me out of the depths

    and did not let my enemies gloat over me.

2        LORD my God, I called to you for help,

    and you healed me.

3        You, LORD, brought me up from the realm of the dead;

    you spared me from going down to the pit.

4        Sing the praises of the LORD, you his faithful people;

    praise his holy name.

5        For his anger lasts only a moment,

    but his favor lasts a lifetime;

weeping may stay for the night,

    but rejoicing comes in the morning.

6        When I felt secure, I said,

    “I will never be shaken.”

7        LORD, when you favored me,

    you made my royal mountain stand firm;

but when you hid your face,

    I was dismayed.

8        To you, LORD, I called;

    to the LORD I cried for mercy:

9        “What is gained if I am silenced,

    if I go down to the pit?

Will the dust praise you?

    Will it proclaim your faithfulness?

10      Hear, LORD, and be merciful to me;

    LORD, be my help.”

11      You turned my wailing into dancing;

    you removed my sackcloth and clothed me with joy,

12      that my heart may sing your praises and not be silent.

    LORD my God, I will praise you forever. (Psalm 30, NIV)

REFLECTIONS:

Joseph and Mary were forced into a manger where the Son of God was born, because “there was no room in the inn.” I wonder if this statement is truer for us today—not enough room for Jesus in our lives.

On the night that Jesus was born, Luke describes an angel of the Lord ap­pearing to some shepherds who were watching their flocks and told them that he brought good news of great joy (Luke 2:8-20). The coming of Jesus was good news of great joy.

Is the coming of Christmas day good news of great joy to you? Or is your holiday season filled with frenetic activity: making plans, dealing with dif­ficult family members, worrying about your house or kids or gifts?

For some, Christmas is a reminder of loved ones lost, unmet expectations, an absent father. This seems like a far cry from good news of great joy. And though well-meant, a bumper sticker reminder of “Jesus is the reason for the season” doesn’t make us feel much better.

So what are we to do if Christmas is an occasion for stress or sorrow? It is tempting to put on a smile and push through the festivities without bringing other people down. However, a serious consideration of Advent causes us to long for more than mustering a smile or faking it.

We long for authentic joy, but how do we get it?

As opposed to any false sense of joy that we try and acquire for ourselves, it is important to establish a fundamental principle about joy: that is, joy is not acquired, but experienced. Meaning, much like grace, joy is a gift we receive. Joy is a response to God’s free grace. We can’t control it, manufac­ture it, or tell it what to do. It can’t be bought at any price.

Happiness is not the same as joy. It often accompanies joy, but it is more circumstantial. It ebbs and flows depending on the occasion. Joy, on the other hand, is an abiding delight in someone or something you love.

Advent is a journey to joy, but it is not we who are traveling. Joy is coming to us. Commenting on Hebrews 12:2, which says, “for the joy set before him Jesus endured the cross,” John Piper says “the joy set before him” is us—those whom he came to redeem. The joy that drove Jesus to earth, to be born in a manger, to be persecuted and to be killed on the cross is the redemption of his Church. Advent beckons us to slow down and to look to Jesus, who delights in us to the point of his own death, so that our joy may be complete in him. Anticipation gives way to arrival. Longing gives way to experience.

PRAYER:

Father, during this Advent season may we experience you in ways that produce a deep and abiding delight in you. You sent your Son to come to us to purchase us, to redeem us, to save us at great cost to yourself. May our delight in you be found in these truths rather than fleeting feelings of sentimentality and happiness. Like Jesus whose delight in you was so deep that he was obedi­ent to the point of death, might our joy be made full in you even in times of waiting or suffering. We cannot manufacture joy, Father. Give us joy and make us joyful because of who you are and what you have done.

Joy: Laying the Foundation

PASSAGE FOR THE DAY:

In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, 27 to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. 28 The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.”

29 Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. 30 But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary; you have found favor with God. 31 You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus. 32 He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, 33 and he will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; his kingdom will never end.”

34 “How will this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?”

35 The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God. 36 Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be unable to conceive is in her sixth month. 37 For no word from God will ever fail.”

38 “I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May your word to me be fulfilled.” Then the angel left her.

39 At that time Mary got ready and hurried to a town in the hill country of Judea, 40 where she entered Zechariah’s home and greeted Elizabeth. 41 When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the baby leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. 42 In a loud voice she exclaimed: “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the child you will bear! 43 But why am I so favored, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? 44 As soon as the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy. 45 Blessed is she who has believed that the Lord would fulfill his promises to her!” (Luke 1:26-45, NIV)

REFLECTIONS:

Advent is a season of hope, remembering the longing of God’s people for the Messiah and rekindling our own desire for Christ’s return. It is a time of reflection and preparation, both of which require us to enter into the season, forsaking the usual hustle and bustle.

The last two weeks have invited our reflection, considering the question: “What do I long for now?” Our weak desires have been exposed by the powerful images and stories of God’s mighty deeds throughout history. We have been confronted with our day-to-day cravings, which often have little to do with the redemptive work of Christ or his coming reign of love and justice. Our only recourse in these times of searching for hope has been to plead the cry of Advent: “Come, Lord Jesus, come.” Come and revive our spirit, lift our eyes to the God of hope and to Christ, our hope of glory.

As we move toward the last week of Advent we begin shifting our focus from reflection to preparation, from longing to anticipation. The clouds are breaking, morning is coming. The Kingdom of Heaven has begun its invasion of earth. Christmas Day is to the Christian what D-Day was to the beleaguered French. In the first week of the invasion they celebrated with great joy as they saw the Allies march through their destroyed towns. Amidst their broken lives, they had great joy because of the hope brought by the invasion.

We are entering into the long-awaited joy of annunciation: “The angel said to Mary, ‘The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God.’”

The stories of Jesus’ birth are filled with hints of what his life will mean for us. Faith and generosity overcome impossibility. Poverty and persecution reveal glory. Joy emerges from hope.

The seemingly impossible is already unfolding even before the birth of Je­sus: his birth foretold by the prophets and the angel Gabriel, his conception in the virgin Mary, John the Baptist leaping in his mother’s womb. These were the signs of what Gabriel said to Mary: “For no word from God will ever fail.” Or, as another translation puts it: “Nothing will be impossible with God.”

This promise to Mary brings us great joy. When we think about our hope in meaningless things, the lack of peace in our lives and how we fail to love God and our neighbor, we can be discouraged to not trust in God’s promise to make us like Jesus. But—this is so important for us to “get”—the impossible is made possible through Christ. Conforming sinners like us into the holiness of Jesus truly requires a miraculous work. But God has promised to complete that which he has started. So we, like Mary, say, “I am the Lord’s servant. May your word to me be fulfilled.”

PRAYER:

Our Father, continue revealing yourself to the world, making your name known and glorified. May the Kingdom of Christ, which you inaugurated in a stable, expand throughout the nations and in our lives. Move in our relationships, jobs and families in any way which you see fit and will bring the greatest glory to you. May our world worship and delight in you as those in the heavens.

Compassion

PASSAGE FOR THE DAY:

“Very truly I tell you Pharisees, anyone who does not enter the sheep pen by the gate, but climbs in by some other way, is a thief and a robber. 2 The one who enters by the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. 3 The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep listen to his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. 4 When he has brought out all his own, he goes on ahead of them, and his sheep follow him because they know his voice. 5 But they will never follow a stranger; in fact, they will run away from him because they do not recognize a stranger’s voice.” 6 Jesus used this figure of speech, but the Pharisees did not understand what he was telling them.

7 Therefore Jesus said again, “Very truly I tell you, I am the gate for the sheep. 8 All who have come before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep have not listened to them. 9 I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved. They will come in and go out, and find pasture. 10 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.

11 “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. 12 The hired hand is not the shepherd and does not own the sheep. So when he sees the wolf coming, he abandons the sheep and runs away. Then the wolf attacks the flock and scatters it. 13 The man runs away because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep.

14 “I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me— 15 just as the Father knows me and I know the Father—and I lay down my life for the sheep. 16 I have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen. I must bring them also. They too will listen to my voice, and there shall be one flock and one shepherd. 17 The reason my Father loves me is that I lay down my life—only to take it up again. 18 No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up again. This command I received from my Father.” (John 10:1-18, NIV)

…………

Jesus, once more deeply moved, came to the tomb. It was a cave with a stone laid across the entrance. 39 “Take away the stone,” he said.

“But, Lord,” said Martha, the sister of the dead man, “by this time there is a bad odor, for he has been there four days.”

40 Then Jesus said, “Did I not tell you that if you believe, you will see the glory of God?”

41 So they took away the stone. Then Jesus looked up and said, “Father, I thank you that you have heard me. 42 I knew that you always hear me, but I said this for the benefit of the people standing here, that they may believe that you sent me.”

43 When he had said this, Jesus called in a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out!” 44 The dead man came out, his hands and feet wrapped with strips of linen, and a cloth around his face.

Jesus said to them, “Take off the grave clothes and let him go.”

45 Therefore many of the Jews who had come to visit Mary, and had seen what Jesus did, believed in him. 46 But some of them went to the Pharisees and told them what Jesus had done. 47 Then the chief priests and the Pharisees called a meeting of the Sanhedrin.

“What are we accomplishing?” they asked. “Here is this man performing many signs. 48 If we let him go on like this, everyone will believe in him, and then the Romans will come and take away both our temple and our nation.”

49 Then one of them, named Caiaphas, who was high priest that year, spoke up, “You know nothing at all! 50 You do not realize that it is better for you that one man die for the people than that the whole nation perish.”

51 He did not say this on his own, but as high priest that year he prophesied that Jesus would die for the Jewish nation, 52 and not only for that nation but also for the scattered children of God, to bring them together and make them one. 53 So from that day on they plotted to take his life. (John 11:38-53, NIV)

REFLECTIONS:

“Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness. When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.” (Matthew 9:35-36)

We can begin to understand the immeasurable depths of God’s love for us because of the healing ministry of Jesus and the compassion he showed to the marginalized and the afflicted.

The prophet Isaiah realized that this world, in its current state, is not the way that it was created to be. The existence of blindness, deafness and lameness only reminds us of this. The perfection and shalom (peace) of Genesis 1-2 is brought to complete and utter ruin by man’s rebellion against God. In the aftermath, we see in the person of Jesus just how much compassion God has toward his people. Isaiah announces that centuries prior to the manger in Bethlehem, “For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace” (Isaiah 9:6).

Jesus was genuinely and emotionally moved by our suffering. When two blind men asked Jesus to have mercy on them and restore their eyesight, Matthew tells us that “in pity” Jesus touched their eyes and healed them (Matthew 20:29-34).

Perhaps the greatest example of Christ’s compassion is at the death of his friend Lazarus. John tells us that when Jesus arrived at Lazarus’ house, “Jesus wept.” His response is most surprising because Jesus told his disciples even before they arrived that he knew Lazarus had already died. In fact, he says he was glad that he wasn’t there to heal him, so that he could bring him back to life so that others might believe in him. So Jesus, glad for the opportunity to show his miraculous power, when he arrives is so distraught by the situation that he weeps. He weeps not at the loss of a friend who is moments away from life, but grieves how the world cur­rently is.

He is distressed by the reality of death and pain, mourning and suffering. This is not the world that Jesus and his Father had created, and it grieves him.

But this is the very reason that Jesus had come, to begin the work of mak­ing all things new. The work of restoration applies to all of Creation, but we see it most personally and poignantly in the way Jesus restores sinners to right relationship with God because of his great love and compassion toward us. And just like Lazarus, God has called us out of death and restored us to new life because of his great love for us.

“But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved. And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus” (Ephesians 2:4-7).

This kind of compassion and love toward us should move us to respond in greater love for God and others. The gospel is never about works, but it is about transformation. Many of us around Christmas time sense some sort of obligation to serve those in need, and I think that could be a God-given and good desire stirred in us when we think about how God has moved toward us in his Son. The gospel, however, demands our love and compassion year-round instead of a once-annual obligation. Our action should flow out a deep love for Christ and his work on our behalf.

J. D. Greear recommends that we pray to God in this way: “In Christ, there is nothing I could do that would make you love me more, and nothing I have done that makes you love me less. Your presence and approval are all I need today for everlasting joy. As you have been to me, so I will be to others. As I pray, I’ll measure your compassion by the cross and your power by the resurrection.”

This is the kind of prayer that comes from one whose identity if firmly rooted in the love demonstrated in the gospel and will produce real life change.

PRAYER:

Spend a few minutes contemplating the following prayer. Ask God to make such a prayer to arise spontaneously out of your heart.

“In Christ, there is nothing I could do that would make you love me more, and nothing I have done that makes you love me less. Your presence and approval are all I need today for everlasting joy. As you have been to me, so I will be to others. As I pray, I’ll measure your compassion by the cross and your power by the resurrection.”