The First Sunday of Advent 2023

 

Jesus Is

Advent Devotional Guide
December 3-24, 2023
by Patience Fort

First Sunday of Advent: Jesus is HOPE

Sunday, December 3, 2023

Today we light the first candle of the Advent season which is the Prophecy Candle. In short, this candle reminds us that Jesus is the fulfillment of the prophecies of the Old Testament and that He is the Hope of the whole world.

Ever since the fall of man recorded in the first book of the Bible, humanity has been spiraling out of control. For centuries, people have wondered if situations could possibly get any more dire or hopeless. When left to make our own decisions, we are, indeed, hopeless.   

Isaiah 2:14 is a familiar verse at Christmastime. “Therefore the Lord, himself, will give you a sign: The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel.” God inspired this passage many, many years before the birth of Jesus. He would be the Messiah. He would save the people. They looked forward with hope to the fulfillment of this promise.

Revelation 3:20 is another familiar verse. “Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone opens the door I will come into him and dine with him and he with me.” Jesus promised in this passage that He would come inside us and dwell there if we would invite Him in. He fulfilled that promise countless times in those who are Christians. He is our only Hope.

John 14:3 says, “And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am.” Jesus has promised that he will return to take us home with him. This Second Coming might be through the action of our death or by his global return foretold in The Revelation. Regardless, we have every reason to believe that because he promised it, He will return.

Jeremiah 20:11: “For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, to give you hope and a future.” Jesus is the fulfillment of this declaration. He is the Hope of the world.  

Lord, Thank you for the prophecies about Jesus – those that have come to fruition and those for which we wait. We thank you for the hope we have in Him. Help us to pass this Hope to those around us, that they may experience the coming of Jesus in their lives this Christmas season.

"Jesus Is" -- My Introduction to the Advent Devotional Guide for 2023

 

Jesus Is

Advent Devotional Guide
December 3-24, 2023
by Patience Fort

Introduction

Saturday, December 2, 2023

According to the dictionary, “advent” is the arrival of a notable person or event. We might say, “our lives have changed since the advent of electricity,” for instance. In the Christian church, the beginning or “advent” of the liturgical calendar is four Sundays before Christmas, or Advent.

In this devotional guide, I will touch on the Advent of Jesus – His beginning, His coming to earth in the form of a baby, His coming to us individually, and His second coming. Mine is not an in-depth, critical study but rather an effort to show Jesus’ deity and his humanity from my own perspective as a believer.

I ask that you, my reader, commit to doing several things throughout this study. 

(1)Begin each reading with prayer, seeking God’s direction in your life.

(2) Read each day’s entry with an open heart. Please don’t focus on how I present the material as much as on how God can use it in your life. 

(3) If you feel lead to do so, share the post on Social Media in an effort to get the Good News about Jesus to more people.

Here is what you can expect.

(1) Every day’s devotional will automatically appear on my blog, “Magnolia Blossoms,” in the wee hours of the morning. If you are an early riser, you won’t have to wait for me to post it on FaceBook. Just go directly to that site: https://magnolia-blossoms.blogspot.com 

(2) As soon as I can each morning, I will post the Magnolia Blossoms link on my FaceBook page and will tag my husband, Bill, in the process. Hopefully you will be able to find it in your FaceBook feed if you are “friends” with either one of us.

As we study the Scripture together during this Advent season, my prayer is that we will come to a renewed understanding of who Jesus Is. Will we ever truly comprehend the complexity of the Trinity or of Jesus as both God and Man? Probably not on this side of heaven. But hopefully this guide will bring to light the beauty and majesty of our Lord as creator, savior, and comforter as we study His “advent” – His beginning and His coming. 

I want to close this introduction with some Scripture about Jesus.  

(1)John reveals that Jesus “was with God in the beginning. Through Him all things were made; without Him nothing was made that has been made.” John 1:2-3 And in John 10:30 Jesus declares that “I and the Father are One.”

Jesus is Creator.

(2) According to Galatians 4:4-5, “But when the fullness of the time came, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the Law, so that He might redeem those who were under the Law, that we might receive the adoption as sons.”

Jesus is Savior.

(3) Judges 6:24 uses the Hebrew word which translated is, Jehovah Shalom or Adonai Shalom – The Lord Is Peace.

Jesus is Comforter.

(4)Throughout the New Testament, Jesus starts several narratives by using the words, “I am.” For instance, “I am the Gate for the sheep.” John 10:1-10  Or “I am the Way.” John 14:1 Or “I am the Bread.” John 6:35

(5) In Exodus 3:7-8 God presents Himself to Moses as “I Am” meaning that he has no beginning and no end. 

God (Creator, Savior and Comforter) is.

Tomorrow we dive head-first into Advent. And we will see that “Jesus Is.”

Lord, Thank you for the opportunity to look closely at the Advent of Jesus. Teach us. Direct us. May your Name be glorified. Amen.