In Isaiah 9, Israel embodies the season of Advent in their hopeful anticipation of the Messiah. This helps us to set the stage for our own expectations for Christmas, as we look forward to marking the birth of Christ on December 25 and hope-filled watching for His second coming.
There are three things in Revelation 12 that can shape us as authentic followers of Christ and that can influence our Christmas celebrations, transforming the fading veneer of sentimental ideals and old expectations into something valuable. These three things can renew a right relationship with Christmas regardless of our circumstances or context. They are our worship, our preaching, and our living.
Worship rightly focused:
Christ was made flesh, willing to be born into our broken world for the ultimate purpose of dying in our place to bring victory and salvation to His beloved children.
Understanding the fullness of Christ and His action among us, both in the physical and in the spiritual realms, enables us to embrace Him as our living hope.
Preaching/sharing our testimony is one of the tools for overcoming the enemy:
When you share what Jesus has done and is doing in your life, you are preaching truth.
When you share the Word of God with others, you are giving testimony to who Christ is.
Our celebrations of the birth of Christ must be shaped by holy living:
"Holy living is the action by which we express in our behaviour and speech the love and presence of our Christ...[It is] the conviction that everything we do, no matter what we do, however common and little noticed our lives, is connected with the action of God.." Eugene Petersen
Living with a mindset that says, "for Christ, my life is worth risking," and "my comfort is worth risking," and "my traditions are worth risking," is holy living.
Discussion/Reflection Questions
- How are we expressing the hope and love of God to one another and to our neighbour, understanding the reality that God sent His Son on a rescue operation for His children where His very birth initiated a war?
- Are our expectations based in the reality of a challenging, fallen world, just like we read in Isaiah 9, or are we trying to sweep our sorrows and grief under the rug, attempting to make our lives look tidy and wrapped up with a bow?
- What would it look like, to hold in tension, the invitation to experience great joy at the Saviour's birth, while at the same time understanding the need to engage in worship, in preaching, and in holy living as a means of war?
- What is the Holy Spirit's invitation to you in renewing or transforming Christmas traditions that embody and reflect our living Hope?