Hope

Advent means ‘coming towards.’

God is on his way. We must be ready:

Grant your faithful almighty God, the resolve to run forth to meet your Christ (Collect).

We have a common theme as Advent begins:

Hope in the midst of disaster.

Israel is about to be deported to Babylon, yet Jeremiah is full of hope and promise:

See, the days are coming – it is the Lord who speaks – when I am going to fulfill the promise I made to the House of Israel (Jeremiah 33).

The destruction of Jerusalem is accompanied by the glorious coming of Christ:

They will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory (Luke 21).

Deportation and disaster are met head-on with the great promise of God. The classic definition of faith is found in Hebrews:

Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the conviction of things unseen (Hebrews 11).

Notice what is going on here. There is an intimate relationship between three supernatural realities:

Faith, hope, promise.

Faith is a light, and when we place our faith in the promises of God, it becomes hope. Well may we ask:

What are we waiting for?

Amen.