ADVENT GUIDES FOR 2019
The Advent season is from December 1st to December 24th. The Advent Season is a part of the church’s liturgical calendar and has been celebrated in the church several centuries. The word Advent means “coming” and most associate the word with the birth of Jesus and his “coming into the world”. This is true, but it is only a portion of the total Advent message.
Write Justin Holcomb says Advent symbolizes the present situation of the church in these “last days” (Acts 2:17, Hebrews 1:2), as God’s people wait for the return of Christ in glory to consummate his eternal kingdom. The church is in a similar situation to Israel at the end of the Old Testament: in exile, waiting and hoping in prayerful expectation for the coming of the Messiah. Israel looked back to God’s past gracious actions on their behalf in leading them out of Egypt in the Exodus, and on this basis, they called for God once again to act for them. In the same way, the church, during Advent, looks back upon Christ’s coming in celebration while at the same time looking forward in eager anticipation to the coming of Christ’s kingdom when he returns for his people.
This year, spend the days leading up to Christmas Day focusing on Jesus. Below we have listed valuable Advent resources for you and your family to use during the Advent season.
Good News of Great Joy
"Good News of Great Joy: Daily Readings for Advent" by John Piper contains 25 short devotional readings beginning December 1 and going through Christmas Day. This book of Advent meditations aims to put Jesus at the center of your holiday season.
The Jesus Storybook Bible Advent Guide
Inside, you’ll find that the team at Zondervan have created a reading plan and some beautiful printable ornaments, to make your Advent season especially meaningful as a family. For every day of Advent, there is a printable ornament, and on the reverse of each ornament there is the related story to read in THE JESUS STORYBOOK BIBLE, and the scripture passage it comes from.
The Dawning of Indestructible Joy
These 25 brief devotional readings from John Piper begin on December 1 and carry us to Christmas Day. Our hope is that God would use these meditations to deepen and sweeten your adoration of Jesus and help you keep him at the center of your Christmas season.
Read Through the Book of Isaiah
Tony Reinke says, "Isaiah tells the boisterous story of international political upheaval — the stunning prequel to Bethlehem. Nothing will deepen your appreciation for the Incarnation, nothing will better help you enjoy Christ, and all that he is for you, if you understand the global setting that anticipated, and demanded, his birth. It’s been called the Fifth Gospel for good reason because along with Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John it’s a book about the Messiah, not merely in his birth, but in the whole of his world. And it’s majestic. It’s the prequel-gospel, the first gospel, or the gospel before the first gospel, because it serves as a forerunner to the biographies of Christ."
Read more on reading through Isaiah for Christmas at the link below.
