2nd December 2023
Coming of the King – Advent hope
This is the first in a series of studies on Advent.
At that time there was a man in Jerusalem named Simeon. He was righteous and devout and was eagerly waiting for the Messiah to come and rescue Israel…
Luke 2:25 (NLT)
From the moment Adam and Eve sinned in the garden of Eden, God promised that their descendent would crush the head of Satan (Genesis 3:15). This was the first of many prophecies about the coming of the Messiah, who would save his people: a rescuer from the line of Abraham and David who would be born of a virgin. He would be called Immanuel, ‘God with us’ (Isaiah 7:14); he would be born in Bethlehem (Micah 5:2); he would be the ‘Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace’, whose kingdom would never end (Isaiah 9:6-7).
The hope of God’s people in the Messiah’s coming was not meant to be mere wishful thinking, as we might hope for nice weather on a day out. It was to be a hope that was sure and certain, based on their relationship with God, and their experience of his faithfulness.
Israel’s wait for the coming Messiah was not an easy one. They spent hundreds of years in Egyptian slavery, wandered for a generation in the desert, and frequently lost hope and turned to other gods. They suffered war, were led by unfaithful kings, and experienced tough punishing exiles.
In the years before Christ’s birth, the people of Israel found themselves under Roman occupation. It had been 400 years since they had heard from God’s prophets, and in this period of seeming silence, their hope in the coming of the promised Messiah would have been severely tested.
When Jesus was born as a helpless baby few recognised that he was the Messiah, yet those who did rejoiced in a hope fulfilled. When Jesus was presented at the temple Simeon praised God saying, “I have seen your salvation, which you have prepared for all people. He is a light to reveal God to the nations, and he is the glory of your people Israel!” (Luke 2:30-32). Israel’s hope had been fulfilled in Jesus.
Today, our hope derives from the fact that ‘…Christ was offered once for all time as a sacrifice to take away the sins of many people. He will come again, not to deal with our sins, but to bring salvation to all who are eagerly waiting for him.’ (Hebrews 9:28).
In our ‘we want it now’ generation it seems we can’t wait for a few days, never mind hundreds of years. But as we begin Advent, anticipating the birth of the Messiah and hoping for his return, our waiting is not just sitting back and doing nothing. Simeon was eagerly waiting (Luke 2:25), as the writer of Hebrews implores us to do, and Anna had been waiting expectantly (Luke 2:38).
Advent hope is active: it is always eager, always expectant. As we wait for Jesus let’s do so in active hope, as we spend time with God in his word and in prayer, and with his people in worship, and in our communities sharing our Advent hope.
Prayer
God of hope, be with us in our Advent journey. May the hope of Christ’s coming bring light to our darkness and renew our spirits. In Jesus’s name, we pray. Amen.
Study by Barry Robinson
About the writer:
Barry Robinson is a minister in Grace Communion International and Regional Pastor for Southern England, the Midlands, and Wales
Local congregation:
Grace Communion West Hampstead
Sidings Community Centre
150 Brassey Road
West Hampstead
London
NW6 2BA
Meeting time:
Sunday 12.30 pm
Local congregational contact:
Gordon Brown
gordon.brown@gracecom.church
Word of Life contact:
wordoflife@gracecom.church