Pensamientos para hoy (afterthought for today)
Advent
This Sunday, December 3rd (2006) we will begin the first week of Advent. Advent is a time when Christian churches around the world celebrate the first coming of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. It is a time to prepare ourselves to celebrate Jesus' birth and his work of redemption. Advent is also a time when God's people look forward to that day when Jesus will come again. The celebration of Advent can be traced back to the fourth century. The way that we celebrate Advent, however, has changed through the centuries.Advent begins four weeks before Christmas. Each week of Advent, during the Sunday morning service, a different family in the church will present a special Scripture reading, meditation, and lighting of one of the four Advent candles. In addition to the candle lighting ceremony I am planning to give a sermon to go along with that week's Advent message.
Each candle has a special meaning. The first candle of Advent is the candle of Prophecy. The candle of Prophecy reminds us that God promised to send a Savior to his people. The promised Savior is Jesus--God's Messiah who came to save us from our sins. This week's sermon for Sunday, December 3rd will be: God Speaks Through Dreams and Visions.
The second candle of Advent is the candle of Hope. The candle of Hope reminds us that God will always be victorious over darkness. Jesus who is the light of the world can shine his glory into our lives so that no matter how dark the world may seem, we can always have hope with God. The second week's sermon on Sunday, December 10th will be: God Speaks Through Angels.
The third candle of Advent is the candle of Joy. The candle of Joy reminds us that God fills us with unspeakable joy. God wants us to give him all our cares and all our worries and lift up our hearts and hands with joy. The sermon for Sunday, December 17th, the third week of Advent will be: God Speaks Through Prophets.
The fourth candle of Advent is the candle of Peace. The candle of Peace reminds us that God's kingdom is a kingdom of peace, and Jesus is the prince of peace. Jesus is coming again. The first time he came was to bring salvation, but when he comes again he will come to judge the nations and to establish his kingdom of peace and righteousness. The sermon for Sunday, December 24th, the fourth week of Advent will be: God Speaks Through His Son.
Advent is a tradition of the church and is not a practice that finds basis in the Word of God, but I believe that it is a good tradition. But since it is a tradition, we must be careful that we do not infuse the ceremony with more importance than it should have. When we substitute observance of a ritual or tradition for the reality of a simple faith we are in danger of falling into idolatry. Jesus said to those who had substituted tradition for real faith:Rightly did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as it is written: 'This people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far away from me. But in vain do they worship me, teaching as doctrines the precepts of men.' Neglecting the commandment of God, you hold to the tradition of men.He was also saying to them, "You are experts at setting aside the commandment of God in order to keep your tradition (Mark 7:6-9)."1
May God help us to celebrate the first coming of Jesus Christ with hearts that are focused not on the symbols of tradition but on the reality of a living God.
Footnotes
1Mark 7:6-9, NASB (New American Standard Bible). Unless otherwise noted all Scripture quotations taken from the NASB.
(more afterthoughts)
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