Slideshow image

Sunday, December 1st marks the first Sunday in December and the first Sunday of Advent. Advent is all about looking back to look forward. It’s finding hope, peace, joy and love in Jesus’ first coming to give us hope, peace, joy and love as we look forward to and await His next.

This first week of advent this year is about hope. In Deuteronomy 18, Moses gives Israel instruction before they enter the Promised Land. His instruction includes a promise of a future Prophet. In verse 15 he says, “The Lord thy God will raise up unto thee a Prophet from the midst of thee, of thy brethren, like unto me; unto him ye shall hearken;”

God was giving them a promise to look forward to, to wait for. It gave them hope, that God would raise up a final Prophet from among them and for them. That promise was prophetically speaking of Jesus and was fulfilled in Jesus.

God wanted them to be preparing their heart to receive Jesus when He was raised up to deliver them.

Today, we await with hope the fulfillment of the promise of Jesus’ return again. Although the waiting can seem forever and time on earth can be difficult, the promise of Jesus’ return gives us hope that this is just a waiting period.

In John 14:1-3 Jesus promised, “Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.”

He will come again to receive us unto Himself. We have this hope because He is faithful to His promises as we see when we look back that God fulfilled His promised in sending Jesus, our trust and hope is built that He’ll be faithful still.

This is a promise to all believers in Jesus. Faith in Jesus is the way to God. Jesus said this a few verses later, John 14:6, “Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.”

The hope that we have is that through faith in Jesus, we are restored to God. And one day, Jesus will fulfill His promise of bringing us to where He is, and where He is, the Father is.

Rest your faith in Jesus and He will give you eternal life and hope of eternity future with Him!