The Advent of Hope | The Savior Comes
There were roughly 400 years between the Old Testament and the New Testament in our bibles. While God did not outright abandon the people of God, they did not find new revelation as they had in the past with the prophets, judges, and kings. Things felt still as, everyday, for roughly 400 years, the people of God awaiting the coming Messiah and Their hope was challenged every day while they waited. Thus, the Old Testament ends with the following words from the book of Malachi.
For behold, the day is coming, burning like an oven, when all the arrogant and all evildoers will be stubble. The day that is coming shall set them ablaze, says the Lord of hosts, so that it will leave them neither root nor branch. But for you who fear my name, the sun of righteousness shall rise with healing in its wings. You shall go out leaping like calves from the stall. And you shall tread down the wicked, for they will be ashes under the soles of your feet, on the day when I act, says the Lord of hosts. Remember the law of my servant Moses, the statutes and rules that I commanded him at Horeb for all Israel. “Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the great and awesome day of the Lord comes. And he will turn the hearts of fathers to their children and the hearts of children to their fathers, lest I come and strike the land with a decree of utter destruction.
Malachi 4:1-6, ESV
The world held it’s breathe in eager expectation, knowing that the Messiah would be coming soon. Yet, the leaders of the day held their expectations and understanding of the Messiah in a limited way. While they proclaimed hope, they only proclaimed hope for the small nation of Israel. Furthermore, their understanding limited the work of the Messiah to come, over throw, and destroy the imperial reign of those who sought to conquer Israel. As days passed on, their hope, undoubtedly, began to wane, wondering if the Messiah would ever come and doing their best to be faithful and remember the laws of Moses.
The goal of Advent is not merely to look at the historical story of Jesus’ Christ coming and all the implications that would come from God made flesh (although these things are certainly worth a fair amount of attention). Advent uses the lens of Christ’s first-coming to direct us to look at His second coming. As we eagerly await the return of Christ, we look towards hope. God, coming incarnate in the flesh, provides hope for people that the sin in our lives will not be our end. Jesus is the hope that the evildoers will be dealt with on the cross and one day and sin and death will be defeated.
Joining Us So We Can Join Him
The coming of God in the form of Jesus Christ represents a coming of hope for all mankind. Throughout the history of Israel and all mankind, we have struggled to approach God. The distance between God and only seemed to widen with every day, with the people of God becoming more and more aware of their inability to keep the law and their lack of ability to produce holiest within themselves. We all find ourselves lawbreakers, unholy, and unworthy to stand before God who reigns on the throne. Whether we want to believe or accept it, everyone has sinned against the Lord by rebelling against His perfect word. We dissent from the rule and reign of the King of the Universe every day, thinking we know or deserve better. For all our efforts though, we stand condemned by our own actions, deserving of death and unable to stand before God.
On our own, we would be incapable of approaching and abiding with the God of the Universe. Therefore, God, out of HIs great mercy and grace, came to live with us. The coming of the Messiah shows us that God desires to be with His people and rescue us from our sins. Jesus Christ joins us so that we might have the hope of eternity and join Him forever. The coming of Jesus Christ represents a hope that we might one day live with God forever. We no longer need to fear isolation from God but should run to Him with utter abandonment. God comes to us so that we might approach Him. He gives us hope for a better future beyond the future our works have earned and God provides us with a hope beyond our understanding.
God Defines Our Hope
Nothing about Jesus’ coming made sense to the traditional religious rules of the day. They sought a king to come from the line of David from the kingly family of Judah, to come in royal fashion. Instead, the Messiah came without much fanfare of man, born in a manger, in a stable amongst the animals. Furthermore, the life of Jesus did not come to overthrow the ruling Roman government and establish the nation of Israel to its once glorious state. Instead, Jesus came to overthrow the rule of sin in the lives of mankind and rescue them to His glory. The hope for all humanity would be decided by the One who rules and reigns over all creation. God, becoming flesh in the person of Jesus Christ, becomes the incarnate hope for all mankind and He will define the hope for mankind.
Hope comes from God alone and for His glory alone. We only receive the The world needed and still needs a Messiah. Furthermore, in truth, our hearts and minds have been so corrupted by the effects of sins that we cannot do anything to save ourselves. Left to our own, even our preconceived ideas of what we need from a Savior would fall short compared to the glory God reveals in Himself. With the coming of Jesus Christ, joining us so that we might join Him in eternity, we receive hope. This hope exceeds our abilities and expectations as God establishes His Kingdom into all eternity. God defines the means of our hope and He will not disappoint. His hope will far exceed any idea or scope to save our souls for all eternity.
