Isaiah 40:5-11
Verse 5 “And the glory of the Lord will be revealed, and all people will see it together. For the mouth of the Lord has spoken.”
Today we begin Advent, a time of anticipation for the celebration of Christ’s birth. A time to reflect on what His coming meant and what it should mean to us now.
The promise of the Messiah was something that carried the people of God through many years of trials and hardships. First promised to Eve in the Garden of Eden after the first sin, the idea of a Savior was something to hold on to when things seemed rocky. This promise was personal to Adam and Eve and yet God didn’t mean it just for them. They knew after their sin their relationship with God, whom they had been in close relationship with, was different and it could never be the same. They viewed Him differently because they could see the truth of themselves.
Throughout history God’s people have needed rescuing and He always stepped in to help them but they were only temporal rescues as they were always getting into another jam. They began to look forward to this Promised One as someone to rescue them from what they thought their biggest problem was, things like oppression and political enemies. Their viewpoint changed from what Eve and Adam knew – they needed God because of who they were.
The people started looking for the One who would rise up and win the battles of this world. They started anticipating what it would be like to have freedom from those that were over-taxing them. Instead of looking to the Giver of the promise they started focusing on the promise. This had been the problem in the first place hadn’t it? Eve had been admiring the fruit she wasn’t supposed to eat when the serpent led her to doubt what God had really said. She had taken her eyes off of the Giver and was looking to the fruit for satisfaction. This was the very reason the promise was given. When we keep our eyes on God we can see the truth of ourselves more than if we focus on ourselves.
The seeing the truth of ourselves is what Advent is about. If we didn’t see our need of a Savior, we would have no reason to look forward to His coming.
Making It Personal
Are you looking for the Savior? What is the truth about your need of a Savior? Why do you need a Savior?
Making It Personal Kids
What are you needing to be saved from? What is sin? Do you sin?
Closing Prayer
Father, please build in us an anticipation of the coming of Your Son. Show us the sins in our lives that we struggle with so we know the truth about ourselves and know our need for a Savior. In Jesus’ name, amen.
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