Ideas, prayers and readings for the Season of Advent
– the four Sundays before Christmas, starting on 1 December 2013.
The
word “Advent” essentially means “coming” and “expecting”.
A.
During the Advent Season we in faith are looking forward to the day when the
kingdom of Jesus will bring all distress to an end. And Jesus who promised to
return to us says: “Yes, I am coming soon." (Rev 22:20). It is a time for hope.
B.
During this season we also remember that Jesus wants to come to our lives, here
and now, through his Spirit’s work in us, and through us come to a lost world
in dire need of him. It is a time for
peace with God and each other.
C. God became a man and was born as a baby on
that first Christmas, to become our Redeemer and King! . It is a time to be filled with joy.
D. . God
so much loved us that he sent his Son, that we may not perish but have eternal
life. This love we share with our fellow
believers and with the whole world. Ultimately
Advent is a Season for love.
We
remember during Advent that Jesus Christ promised to physically come to us
again, to create a new heaven and earth in which we will live for all eternity!
This expectation inspires us that the coming of the Lord brings hope, peace,
joy and love to our lives, our churches and our world!
Central Message:
God gave his Son
During
the Advent Sundays, until Christmas day, we will remember that Christ took on
our weak, human nature and became one of us.
As the Apostle Paul puts it in 2 Cor 5: 21: God made him who had no sin, to be sin for
us so that in him, we might become the righteousness of God.
This
is what Christ did for us during that first Christmas day. In taking on ”weak
human flesh”, he associated himself with our dilemma which is the result of our
mistakes, disobedience and sin. He came to live the life that God requires and
we cannot accomplish, and lived it perfectly, holy and without sin, in our
place! The Son of God became our brother and will never leave nor forsake us.
During the Season of Advent, the four weeks before Christmas, we want to celebrate that when God gave the gift of salvation, he did not send new laws and rules through which to figure out how we can be saved. No, he sent his Son to save us.
The
central Advent message always remains that (John 3:16) God so much loved the
world, that he gave his only Son, that whosoever believes in him shall not
perish, but have eternal life.
Let’s
trust in the Son. Let’s rejoice because he did everything we could not do, to
save us! Let’s pray that he will come again soon to dry all our tears and grant
us peace. Let’s wait with the same
urgent love of the believers in the New Testament Church for the victorious and
conquering return of Christ, our King.
The Advent Candles
The
four Advent candles represent the four weeks of Advent. The progressive
lighting of one more candle every Advent Sunday symbolizes the expectation and
hope surrounding our Lord’s first coming into the world and the anticipation of
his second coming to judge the living and the dead.
The
lighting of candles during this Season signifies Christ, the Light of the
world.
Each
candle represents one of the Advent themes:
The
first Sunday we light the candle of Hope,
Second
Sunday the candle of Peace,
Third
Sunday the candle of Joy
and
the fourth Sunday the candle of Love.
Many
congregations involve children and teens to each Sunday light the next candle,
involving them not only in the exciting countdown to Christmas day, but instill
the expectation of Christ coming into our lives, and Christ returning to us on
the Day of the Lord.
Advent prayers
when we light the Advent candles during the services each Sunday:
First Advent Sunday:
Gracious God, in the living of our
busy daily lives, keep us ever ready, ever faithful and ever hopeful for
the day of Christ’s return. As we worship you, may this hope be born into our
lives.
Second Advent Sunday: Loving God, while we patiently wait for
Christ’s return and for your peace
to ultimately prevail, enable each of us to work for peaceful solutions to the
various conflicts which abound in our lives and our world. As we worship you, may your peace be born
into our lives.
Third Advent Sunday: Merciful God, while we patiently wait for Christ’s coming again, may
each of us rejoice in our salvation; and may that joy permeate all
aspects of our lives and be freely shared with others. As we worship you, grant
us your joy.
Fourth Advent Sunday: Gracious
Creator, while we patiently wait for Christ’s coming again, inspire us when we
celebrate Christmas now soon to come, to marvel on the fact that your love
for each of us knows no bounds. May this love now be mirrored in all aspects of
our lives as we freely share it with others.
Suggested
Readings during Advent:
First
Advent Sunday: Isaiah 2:1-5;
Psalm 122; Romans 13:11-14; Matthew 24:36-44
The liturgical
colour for Advent is purple,
the royal colour, because we expect the coming of our King. In recent years blue became an alternative
colour for Advent in some congregations, because purple also is the liturgical
colour for Lent.
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