Yesterday was the first day of Advent. The Latin meaning for the word Advent is "coming" or "arrival". Over the next 4 Monday's I would like to look at the daily reading for the day with Advent in mind. To look at it in ways that reveal aspects of Christ's arrival that we will (or should) celebrate on Christmas Day. My hope is for it to help keep our focus on the true celebration that is Christmas.
"What Child Is This? What Gift Does He Bring?" (1 John 3:1 & 5)
"But you know that he (Christ) appeared so that he might take away our sins. And in him is no sin." 1 John 3:5
December is a busy time of year. The weeks leading up to Christmas are full of preparations such as gift buying, cooking making, tree decorating, parties, Christmas cards and more. 1 John 3:5 is a great reminder for us to not loose sight, to not loose anticipation of what Christmas is truly about, what Christmas offers.
Christ's anticipated arrival was meant to usher in a promise made by God from the beginning; from that first sin committed by Adam and Eve. He would come, take the penalty of our sin on our behalf, and free us from it all; sin and spiritual death. It was a gift of love given to us which was long prepared and awaited. It was the ultimate gift given, wrapped in swaddling clothes and laying in a manger. It was a gift that would grow without sin with one purpose which was to die in our place. There is no gift that will be found under the tree this year that will be greater than that first gift of love given to us at Christ's birth and that was completed upon his death. John 15:13 tell us this, "Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one's life for one's friends." Christ was born to lay down his life for us, there is nothing greater.
We are far more than just friends of God. In today's reading in John 3:1 it tells us that we are his children. So let us enter into this Advent season with childlike excitement for Christmas knowing that what comes is the celebration of the best gift ever given to us.
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