Artwork:
The Nativity by William Blake, (1800), is a tempera on copper painting. Housed at the Philadelphia Museum of Art, Blake emphasizes the miraculous nature of the birth of Jesus Christ our Savior – the Light that shines in the darkness bringing comfort and joy to all mankind.

Advent Devotional

Since the day Adam and Eve revolted against God and plunged His good world into rebellion, human beings have been living in a spiritual and moral wilderness dominated by evil. Herod’s cruel slaughter of the boys in Bethlehem is an all-too-common example of life in such a world. Even today, the lives of vast multitudes are still, “solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short” (Thomas Hobbes, Levithan). Darkness and death pervade the world. The Apostle John attributes this to the fact that, “the whole world lies in the power of the evil one” (1 John 5:19). Contemplating this grim assessment has led some to hopelessness and despair.

But John’s central message points in the opposite direction. It is a message of great hope, comfort, and joy, for all people and all ages. God’s Son, Jesus, full of grace and truth, has come from heaven to earth to show us
the life and love of God in human form and to bring us eternal life. With unstoppable power and brightness God shines into the world’s darkness through Jesus to bring His life and love into the hearts of all who receive Him. Twenty centuries later, the light of Jesus is still shining and darkness has not been able to overcome it. Thus, we sing,

God rest ye merry gentlemen
Let nothing you dismay
Remember Christ our Savior
Was born on Christmas Day
To save us all from Satan’s pow’r
When we were gone astray
O tidings of comfort and joy
Comfort and joy
O tidings of comfort and joy.

Advent reminds us that Jesus came and will return. It invites us to joyfully turn to Him and prepare to meet Him face to face.

Prayer

Lord, our world can seem dominated by darkness.
I think of the hard
places in my own life, the suffering or
sorrow of family or friends, and
the news headlines that can lead to despair.
But You, O God, have
overcome darkness and death.
Your power and light are unstoppable. May I
rejoice in Your coming and bring
glad Tidings to others in Your name.