12.14.09
Advent Reflection - Week Three
At this time of year when many people are consumed with the hustle and bustle of our culture, it’s so refreshing to take the time each day to read the Scriptures and reflect on the goodness of the Lord. As we search God’s Word and meditate on His attributes, we come to see His magnificent love and wondrous plans for our lives. We become more in tune with the Lord’s greatest desire for humanity, for us to become worshippers of Him for who He is. This week our readings from both the Old and New Testaments show us this.
The first OT reading comes from the minor prophet Zephaniah. He’s only called minor because of the short length of his book, but he has a mighty message like all prophets of the Lord. In Zephaniah 3:14-18 we read that we are to sing, shout, be glad, and rejoice in the Lord! Verse 17 says three very important things for us: 1) God will rejoice over you with gladness. 2) He will quiet (tranquil) you with His love. 3) He will rejoice over you with singing! Isn’t this absolutely amazing? The God of all creation is rejoicing over us, what an awesome promise to claim this day!
Our next reading is in Isaiah. Isaiah was a major prophet with a book of 66 chapters, considered by many theologians to be a type of mini Bible as the entire Bible also has 66 books – 39 books in the OT and 27 in the NT. Isaiah’s message was of great prophetic importance as he is considered the Messianic prophet with many references to Christ’s coming hundreds of years before the birth of Jesus. In our reading Isaiah 12:2-6, we read of the greatness of the Lord. It says that Yah, the Lord, is our strength and our song! We are to praise the Lord, call upon His name; declare His deeds, and exalt His name. Isaiah goes on to say that the Lord has done great things and this is known in all the earth. God is our salvation by what Jesus Christ has done for us all on the cross. We only need to have faith, to simply believe that God sent His only Son Jesus Christ to die for our sins that our payment would be covered in full! Faith, that’s it, wow! Not works, reputation, skills, abilities, or position in this world. We only need to have faith in Christ’s death and resurrection! This calls for great reason to celebrate with joy this Christmas Season!
The last two readings come from Paul’s letter to the Philippians, whom he writes to from prison in Rome, and Luke’s gospel. In one of the more quoted and popular passages of Scripture, Philippians 4:4-7, we read about the great joy Paul has in Jesus Christ. Paul says, “Rejoice in the Lord always, again I say rejoice!” He goes on to say, “Let your gentleness be made known to all men.” Verses 5 and 6 encourage us to prayerfully with thanks give the Lord our deepest pains and greatest desires, while also allowing God’s peace to guard our heart and minds in Christ Jesus.
Luke 3:10-18 records Jesus’ public ministry beginning at about age 30 with His water baptism done by His cousin John. John was the one who prepared the way for Jesus, as all previous prophets had done in the OT before him. John the Baptist said, “I indeed baptize you with water; but One mightier than I is coming, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to loose. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.” We see here that John was prophesying that Jesus would come as God in the flesh that all may have the opportunity to receive Him into their hearts by faith. Christ came that all people may have the freedom to choose Him as their King by faith and receive the power of the Holy Spirit to live a life fully surrendered to the Lord. We are called by God to be holy people, meaning to be set apart for His purpose but not perfect because Christ fulfilled that part for us. This cannot be done by our own merit, strength, good works or anything in and of ourselves. Rather, it must be done by the power of Christ living within us by His grace, mercy, love and power! What an awesome thought! We are free to live for Christ and He gives us His Holy Spirit to glorify Him!
Ephesians 2:8 says, “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.” God has given us each the choice for salvation by the shedding of Jesus’ sinless blood on the cross for our sins. This is the Gospel. This is the Good News! We are sinners, condemned to death, but have the option for eternal life by God’s great love for us – simply by faith! What a wonderful fact to think upon this Christmas Season as we celebrate the birth of our Lord and Savior. Truly our salvation is the greatest gift God could give us; much beyond our understanding is His perfect love, wisdom and provision for all humans. As the Lord spoke through the prophet Isaiah in Is. 55:8-9, “For My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways.” “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts.”
As I reflect on my time as an AV in San Diego during the 2000-01 years, I think of how great the Lord has been to me between then and now. His grace and mercy have allowed me to see how much He cares for every one of us. In that time as an AV I began to develop a great spiritual hunger and thirst to know and understand God more. I desired to know Him personally as a real Person, not an invisible and obscure figure off far away in the unknown universe somewhere. I began to search the Bible and read His Holy Word to get to know God through His Son Jesus Christ. This decision to dive into the Scriptures on my own with the power of the Holy Spirit as my teacher has forever changed my life in ways that I cannot possibly express in my own words. It has led me to develop a daily walk with God in a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. My life verse written by David in Psalm 16:11 sums up how this decision has affected me. King David says, “You will show me the path of life; in Your presence is fullness of joy; at Your right hand are pleasures forevermore.”
God has an abundant life awaiting each of us. It’s amazing, this life is given not to be filled with the pleasures of this world which are temporary and fading away. We can be blessed with the riches of eternal life with forgiveness, peace, joy, love, mercy, wisdom, and on and on and on. Only God through His Son Jesus Christ can fulfill the spiritual hunger and desire we have deep within our soul. What a joy this life is with Him!
James 4:8 says, “Draw near to God and He will draw near to you.” God loves you so much, this Christmas, the ones of the past and ahead. The Lord has great plans for your life. Let me encourage you to seek His will for your life and search His Word to gain understanding of His unfailing love and the promises He has made for you. He will give you fullness of joy that we know this world will never provide. Psalm 32:8 says, “I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will guide you with My eye.” May the Lord grant you peace and joy this day, season and New Year as we reflect on His goodness that came through the birth of Jesus Christ.
Joe Maloney
San Diego, ‘00-01
Joe recently moved to Bonners Ferry, Idaho with his wife and son. The moved their to help plant a Christian church serving nearby populations in both Idaho and Montana. Their goal is to plant a number of churches in the area to continue to spread God’s word. Please keep them in your prayers as they minister to the people. During his Volunteer year, Joe served as a teacher’s aid to the Kindergarten class at St. Patrick School.