THE ADVENT-CHRISTMAS BIBLE STUDY
The coming of God's Son to earth is an event of such
immensity that God willed to prepare for it over the centuries. He makes
everything converge on Christ: all the rituals and sacrifices, figures, and
symbols of the "First Covenant." He announces him through the mouths of the
prophets who succeeded one another in Israel. Moreover, he awakens in the
hearts of the pagans a dim expectation of this coming.
Catechism of the Catholic Church # 522
The word "advent" is from the Latin adventus, meaning "an arrival." For centuries the children of Israel faithfully awaited the advent, the arrival of the promised Redeemer-Messiah. God first made the promise of a future Redeemer when man fell from grace in Eden. Yahweh cursed the serpent and promised that Satan's power over (Rev 12:9) humanity would one day come to an end: "Accursed be you of all animals wild and tame. On your belly, you will go, and on dust, you will feed as long as you live. I shall put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; it will bruise your head, and you will strike its heel" (Genesis 3:14-15). In the winter of 3/2 BC, it was time for the arrival of the Redeemer-Messiah, promised since Adam and Eve's fall from grace, who would come to undo the work of Satan and redeem humanity.
Think back in time about 2,000 years and picture a bewildered and confused man named Joseph of Nazareth who had his entire world turned upside down. This righteous man discovered that his betrothed maiden was with child, and he decided to divorce her quietly not to cause a scandal. Then, in a dream, this simple man living out his ordinary life found himself confronted by a messenger from God. The angel Gabriel revealed to him that the Spirit of God conceived the child in Mary's womb. The angel announced that the child was the long-awaited Redeemer-Messiah, the promised Davidic King sent to save His people from their sins (Is 11:1-4; Jer 23:5-6; 33:15-16; Ez 34:23-24). Mary was the virgin God spoke of through the prophet Isaiah centuries earlier (Is 7:14 quoted in Mt 1:23).
Joseph could not have understood that the hands that stretched the universe and formed the stars and planets had, by the power of the Holy Spirit, formed themselves into the tiny fists of a baby inside the womb of a humble Jewish virgin. Nor could Joseph have foreseen that one day those same fists would curl in agony as the Romans pounded His hands and feet with nails of hate that created wounds of eternal love. He could not have understood that this child would die to bring the gift of eternal life to a lost world. No longer would humans be condemned to die a little each day by living a shadow existence as a child of Adam. Through the self-sacrifice of Mary's precious child and the miracle of the transforming power of water and the Spirit, humankind was no longer merely a child in the family of Adam but had the promise of rebirth as a child in the family of God. God planned for Mary's child to fulfill the destiny for which God created humanity: to live in eternal union with the Most Holy Trinity.
As you go about your hectic schedule this Advent Season, and as you begin to worry about one earthly concern after another, please stop a minute and think about the birth of that little child. In a hundred years, will it matter what cares and concerns the world brings you today? However, in a hundred years, it will make an eternity of a difference if you have accepted that first Christmas gift "the gift of eternal life.
The Advent of the Messiah
Bible study is Agape Bible Study's gift to you so that you might more deeply
appreciate the gift God gave to us all. Here is our Advent and Christmas
Bible Study.
It is our prayer that the blessings of Christ be upon you and your family.
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