On Sunday, December 3, the season of Advent begins. This tradition is one of anticipation, but only partially has anything to do with Christmas. The focus is on a big occurrence, but the anticipated event is not actually fully realized on Christmas. During Advent, we are looking forward to something that began on Christmas (when Jesus was born) but isn’t fully realized. (His second coming.)
The word “Advent” literally means “coming”. Since we know and believe that the first coming of Jesus has already taken place, our observance of the Advent season is both reflective on His incarnation and anticipatory of His second coming.
During the four weeks of Advent, four candles are lit to mark the passage of time and the increasing light. Each candle is also given special meaning or theme for reflection during the week. There are a number of traditions surrounding the meaning and even the color of the candles, but for our purposes this year we will assign these themes to them:
- Hope
- Faith
- Joy
- Peace
Let’s take a look at the hope candle.
- It is sometimes called the “Prophet’s Candle.” The prophets of the Old Testament, especially Isaiah, waited in hope for the Messiah’s arrival. The purple color symbolizes royalty, repentance, and fasting.
This hope was actually more than just wishful thinking. The hope of the prophets in the Messiah was a solid belief that He would come into the world. In the same way, our hope in His second coming should produce an eagerness to be ready because He is faithful to keep His promises. This faithfulness and dependability of God is the source of our faith and trust in Him. He has proven Himself faithful over and over and we can rest assured that when we hope in Him, he is able and willing to bless His children.
As we serve the homeless, the hopelessness of this world invades our shelters. Many have given up on life or the idea of having a purpose to live for. We are thankful that in Christ, we can find the faith that is sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. We celebrate with hope, the incarnate Savior of the world and we anticipate in hope His triumphant second coming.
