What’s the big deal about Advent? If you shot up your hand with the Sunday School answer you would be right on. It’s Jesus!! The two biggest days in the church calendar are Christmas and Easter. And to give you an idea of their importance, we take 5 weeks to prepare for Christmas. That’s Advent. We take 8 weeks to prepare for Easter. That’s Lent.
The Incarnation. That’s the big about Advent/Christmas. I’m not talking about ugly flowers or powdered milk. I’m talking about one of the most important aspects of the Christian faith. Incarnation or in the flesh, refers to God coming to earth as a human being. “The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.” John 1.14 Think on that for a minute. God became one of us. God is not far away. God is near. That’s the big deal about Advent. Tomorrow we will stick with John 1 and talk about the significance of the word Word (yo?). John 1.1-18 [NIV] 1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was with God in the beginning. 3 Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. 4 In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome[a] it. 6 There was a man sent from God whose name was John. 7 He came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that through him all might believe. 8 He himself was not the light; he came only as a witness to the light. 9 The true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world. 10 He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him. 11 He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. 12 Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God— 13 children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God. 14 The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth. 15 (John testified concerning him. He cried out, saying, “This is the one I spoke about when I said, ‘He who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me.’”) 16 Out of his fullness we have all received grace in place of grace already given. 17 For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. 18 No one has ever seen God, but the one and only Son, who is himself God and is in closest relationship with the Father, has made him known.
1 Comment
Linda Beck
11/29/2016 12:25:35 pm
We never want to forget that God is with us and the power He has to speak things into existance is available to us today if we just believe.
Reply
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorThe Pastors of Cornerstone Wesleyan Church Archives
July 2017
Categories |