First Sunday of Avent

Hear the words from the prophet Isaiah, chapter 60, verses 1-3.

Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the LORD is risen upon thee.

For behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people: but the LORD shall arise upon thee, and his glory shall be seen upon thee.

And the Gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising.

We light this candle as a symbol of Christ our Hope.

May the light sent from God shine in the darkness to show us the way of salvation.

O Come, O Come, Emmanuel.

We can choose to live in darkness, apart from God.

And this is the condemnation, that the light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. John 3:19

It is hard to fathom but there are those who prefer the darkness over the light. They rebel against God. Some deny His existence. They know that if they accept that there is a God, they also have to accept His judgment. For the wages of sin is death; (John 6;23). It sounds hopeless – but read on to the end of that verse. but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

There is hope!

We can choose to live in the light of His presence. We can share the good news with the world. God made a way for the relationship broken by sin to be restored by the blood of Jesus Christ. Let your light shine this Advent Season.

Christ is our HOPE!