Today is the first Sunday of advent. There are so many themes to this season that have found me and hit me differently every year. Waiting, anticipating, wonder, light, expectancy. These are words that capture the essence of what advent is. It welcomes us to look at the first coming of Christ as many of the Old Testament prophets did, knowing and clinging to the promises from God that He would send a Messiah to save us from our sins, while not fully knowing the timeline of when the promised Messiah would come. The promises actually began all the way back in Genesis 3:15, when God told the serpent that He would “put enmity between [him] and the woman.” Recall His warning to Satan that day: “He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.” For thousands of years people waited for that devil-crusher to reveal Himself. The nation of Israel, God’s chosen people, saw many “types” or “shadows” of this Messiah throughout wanderings and sojourns and exiles that pointed them forward to who Jesus would be. God gave them prophets, priests, and kings that were merely forerunners to Jesus because Jesus would be greater and truer than any of them.
One of those prophets was a man by the name of Isaiah. I can think of no better way to kick off the advent season than with Isaiah's words in in Isaiah 9:1-7. I especially love the way Eugene Peterson conveys the heart of this passage in the Message version. As we read, we will uncover three invitations that the season of advent extends to us.
Invited To Bask In The Light
Isaiah 9:1 says,
“But there’ll be no darkness for those who were in trouble. Earlier he did bring the lands of Zebulun and Naphtali into disrepute, but the time is coming when he’ll make that whole area glorious—the road along the Sea, the country past the Jordan, international Galilee."
Much of Isaiah’s words throughout his writing are dedicated to the impending judgment on the sin and apostasy of the nation. This judgment will be carried out in exile by the Assyrian armies, and as verse one rightly points out, the tribes of Zebulun and Naphtali were the first to be carried away by their destruction. But, there’s a new time coming. The nation that has been the object of judgment and scorn and exile and disrepute, will be made glorious. Verse 2 continues:
"The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light.For those who lived in a land of deep shadows— light! sunbursts of light!"
Up to this point, it’s as though a shadow has hung over this nation and its people. They have been stripped repeatedly of everything that they thought gave them status and strength as an independent entity. I think it’s easy to grasp the significance of Isaiah’s words here. Anyone who has spent any amount of time in a dark room knows that when you are exposed to the light, it is shocking. It’s even overwhelming at first. It's no secret that light is one of the easiest themes to grasp during advent. After all, the Christmas lights and the cozy candles are often the first things to go up during the holidays. During this season, not only can we spot lights all around us, we can feel that light in our spirits. This leads to the first invitation of advent: bask in the light.
I think the difficult thing about advent and Christmas in general is that we never know where it will find us. We go through our own seasons of life where it’s easier to bask in the light of Jesus, and other seasons where it is extremely difficult. There are times where our lives are marked more by shadows than sunbursts. I can look around a room and see the faces of people who are celebrating answered prayers and rejoicing in upcoming trips and plans and family gatherings. I also see faces of those burdened by current trials, unanswered prayers, family conflicts, and winter blues. The invitation stands despite the context it arrives in: you, right where you are, are invited to bask in the light Jesus gives. He is, after all, the Light of the World. And He wants to shine the warmth of His presence upon you this season.
This is why we light candles during advent. As we take time by ourselves, with our spouses, or with our families to light the lights, we are setting aside intentional time to remind ourselves that Jesus is the light the puts the shadows to flight, as the Christmas carol says.
Invited To Celebrate In Wonder
Let’s continue reading.
"You repopulated the nation, you expanded its joy. Oh, they’re so glad in your presence! Festival joy!The joy of a great celebration, sharing rich gifts and warm greetings."
As the once-exiled nation has been repopulated, so has their joy. Picture it—a nation of people that was scattered through judgment has now been regathered together, the remnant expanded to become a great big family once again. The gathering unfolds in a great celebration, where gifts are exchanged, and everyone is warm with each other. We understand this around Christmastime. This is language we can grasp when we think about waking up early on Christmas morning to the sounds of eager footsteps pounding down the stairs, of the tearing open of beautifully-wrapped and carefully chosen gifts, of having to squeeze extra chairs around the table so the whole family can partake in the feasts.
These verses reveal the second invitation of advent: celebrate in wonder. This verse highlights the true joy that comes from being able to come together and share with one another. We must not confuse happiness with joy here. Happiness is circumstantial; Biblical joy is constant. When our joy is founded in Jesus, Who He is, and what He has done, we can find joy even in unhappy circumstances. This means the invitation to feast and celebrate is open to all.
This is why we give gifts throughout advent and into Christmas. Traditionally, advent calendars contained a small piece of candy or a small gift that a child could open every day leading up to the big day, December 25th. While this practice can certainly be abused to promote materialistic gain, it can also be used as a tool to showcase the beauty of our generous God Who created us to be like Him in our giving and our sharing. I love these words from James when he writes: “Do not be deceived, my beloved brothers. Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.” The God of light, Who causes shadows to flee, is a God Who loves how to give good gifts to His children. We reflect this facet of God when we share with one another in celebration, when we take time not just to bask in the light, but to be the light in how we give to one another and how we celebrate together.
Invited To Look To Jesus
Isaiah continues:
"The abuse of oppressors and cruelty of tyrants— all their whips and clubs and curses—Is gone, done away with, a deliverance as surprising and sudden as Gideon’s old victory over Midian.The boots of all those invading troops, along with their shirts soaked with innocent blood, will be piled in a heap and burned, a fire that will burn for days!"
These verses highlight that because this coming Messiah will usher in an era of peace, the combat boots and the blood-stained battle uniforms can be set aside. There is no more need for war or conflict. God’s people don’t need to fear that other nations will come and invade them again and take them hostage. They are free, and because they are free, they can celebrate and feast together without fear.
This is where Isaiah gives the real reason behind why this nation can bask in the light and can breathe easy at last. He says:
"For a child has been born—for us! the gift of a son—for us!He’ll take over the running of the world. His names will be: Amazing Counselor, Strong God,Eternal Father, Prince of Wholeness."
Isaiah places all the weight of these incredible realities—a light to overcome the shadows, an end to the hostility and war that results in peace and celebration—all on the shoulders of a small baby. But this not just any baby. This child has some pretty incredible names. Wonderful counselor. Mighty God. Everlasting Father. Prince of Peace, or “wholeness”, as Eugene Peterson calls Him here. This is the third invitation of advent: to look to Jesus. You know, all of these names for Jesus answer the longings of the opening verses of this chapter. For those lost in shadows, Jesus is the wonderful counselor, Who condescends from His heavenly habitation to meet us right where we are and shine His light upon us. Jesus left everything, His glory with the Father, His home in heaven, to be born as a baby and offer us divine counsel. He is our Mighty God, who overthrows the power of the enemy and leads us out of exile and into fellowship. He is our Everlasting Father, Who expanded His family to include not just Jews, but Gentiles from every nation under heaven, Who made more room at the celebration table so all could share in the feasting. And, He is our Prince of Peace, Who won the war so we could hang our combat boots out to dry for good. He is the One Who makes us whole, finding our meaning, our life, our light, out freedom, in Who He is.
It would be a great tragedy to go through this Christmas season without taking time to look at Jesus. He is the whole point. Advent is one great big look at the baby born to save us from our sins, to make us complete and whole in His work. This is why we spend time talking about Jesus with our spouses and our kids and our families during advent. When Jesus’ name comes to our minds and our lips, when we are able to recall and proclaim the truths about Who He is, it transforms the way we and those around us see this season. Things like liturgies and corporate prayers help us to rehearse aloud what we know of Jesus.
Invited To Wait Expectantly
Isaiah concludes:
"His ruling authority will grow, and there’ll be no limits to the wholeness he brings.He’ll rule from the historic David throne over that promised kingdom.He’ll put that kingdom on a firm footing and keep it goingWith fair dealing and right living, beginning now and lasting always.The zeal of God-of-the-Angel-Armies will do all this.”
Isaiah points to another aspect of Jesus’ identity: His kingly authority. Jesus derives His kingly rank from His biological ancestor, King David. But Jesus is also our spiritual king, One Who will institute a new world order marked by peace, righteousness, and holiness. Jesus was not the King people expected, and in His arrival to this earth, He went seemingly unnoticed. Jesus slipped into our world in a normal way, born to a normal girl and placed in a common manger. And yet, it was the zeal of God that led Jesus to leave His home and come to our world. God’s passion for His people, His desire to see them saved, to see the serpent crushed and sin defeated once for all, cause Him to ask the unthinkable of Jesus—to be born as a baby, live as a man, die as a criminal, rise as a king. How did God sanction this arrival? By sending an army of angels to light up Bethlehem’s sky. I think we have a much more cutesy image on our minds of this angel choir than is realistic. These were warrior angels, armed and dressed for battle. They came to proclaim God’s glory to a group of unsuspecting and lowly shepherds, who got up and bounded to Bethlehem to see this baby for themselves, this baby born for battle, this baby born to claim our peace forever.
So, here is the fourth invitation of advent: to wait expectantly for Him. The whole Old Testament was a waiting game. Israel knew their promised Messiah would come, but they had no idea when, and honestly, they missed Him when He finally arrived because they were looking for someone who looked more like the earthly King they were expecting who would overthrow Rome and make their lives prosperous.
Now, we are waiting again. We are waiting for Jesus to come as our King once and for all and establish His rule on this earth, a rule that will never cease and can never be overthrown. We are waiting, and we want to be expectant while we wait, because so often the ways we are waiting for God to show up in our lives will cause us to miss Him entirely. God doesn’t operate on our timetable, according to our agenda, and in our desired means. God is always speaking. Are we listening? God is always working. Are we watching? Jesus is coming. Are we looking for Him?
Open The Gift
Advent is an invitation. It is a present, and you need simply to open it. God has something for you this month to be reminded of or to learn about Who He is. My prayer is that you will pull back the ribbon, open the gift, and look expectantly to what God will show you.
I’m also praying that as you implement well-loved resources and traditions with your family, that the names of Jesus will come to your lips, that as you take time together to revel in the true story of Christmas, the light, the wonder, and the expectancy will result in “the joy of a great celebration as your share rich gifts and warm greetings.”
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