Come, thou long expected Jesus…

Have you ever wondered what God was doing all those years before the incarnation? Or why he chose to wait as long as he did before the incarnation became a reality?

I have.

But God’s plan of salvation through the birth and death of Jesus was not something he thought of in a moment of boredom. It was a plan that was determined before the foundation of the world.

A plan that was, and continues to be, extremely intricate.

Bit by bit God revealed the Savior, who would come to save his people from their sins. This Advent started back in Genesis and continued throughout the entire Old Testament. As the Children’s Story Book Bible states, “Every story whispers his name.” The time of the Old Testament was a season of preparing and waiting.

Do you know this hymn?

come-thou-long-expected-jesus

This Christmas hymn beautifully expresses the longing that the Old Testament people must have felt. But now we can rejoice because the long awaited Savior has been born! This is good news of great joy because it means salvation has come and sin has been defeated.

In the Old Testament, the people of God looked forward in anticipation for the coming of the Messiah. This Advent required lots of waiting, trusting and patience.

Even now we are in a season of Advent, aren’t we? We are waiting expectantly for our Savior to return. To rescue us, once and for all, from the presence of sin and fear, to make all things right and beautiful, and for us to dwell in his kingdom and walk forever by his side. The Advent we are in also requires waiting, trusting, and patience.

The hope that Israel had is the same hope that we have today as well. They had full confidence in the promises of God and in a Messiah who would come to rescue his people.

In our 2016 Advent study, we look at some of the Old Testament promises of the Savior and the humility that would characterize him. We will study why He came and the response of various people in the Christmas story, including how we should respond to Jesus as well.

We are so looking forward to beginning our God With Us study with you tomorrow!

 

“The Christmas message is that there is hope for a ruined humanity- hope of pardon, hope of peace with God, hope of glory- because at the Father’s will Jesus became poor, and was born in a stable so that thirty years later he might hang on a cross.”- J.I. Packer

 

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Friends, we are so excited to begin God With Us TOMORROW!

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Angela Perritt

Angela Perritt

Angela Perritt is the founder and director of LoveGodGreatly.com, a nonprofit online Bible study ministry reaching thousands of women in over two hundred countries around the world with God’s Word through their translated Bible studies. She and her husband live in Dallas, Texas with their three daughters. Angela is passionate about God’s Word and believes one woman in God’s Word can change a family, community and ultimately a nation. Her greatest joy is to encourage her children and others to love God greatly with their lives one day at a time. You can connect with her on Instagram.

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