O come, O come, Immanuel,
and ransom captive Israel
that mourns in lonely exile here
until the Son of God appear.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Immanuel
shall come to you, O Israel.
Imagine having a mentor and friend who is determined to keep you on the right path. For years, they spent time with you, listened, nurtured you and gave rock-solid advice. They knew your deepest secrets and still made you feel loved and accepted. They were present in good times and in the bad and provided comfort and peace as only they could. If they knew they wouldn’t be around for any period of time, they sent someone – someone you could also trust – in their absence. You never felt alone or lost. Then, one day, they disappeared. You left voicemails, texted, emailed, and even dropped by their house. All possible ways of reaching them resulted in the same thing – dead silence. You trusted this person so deeply and you were ghosted. You wondered what you did wrong. Maybe you even wondered if they were just pretending to have your best interests at heart.
In ancient times, the Israelites had God’s presence with them for thousands of years, whether His physical manifestation or an anointed prophet. The Israelites had suffered through a division of the nation, multiple invasions from foreign tribes, and were eventually exiled from their home. He promised he would send a Deliverer and, over the centuries, the Israelites were reminded of that hope whenever their focus turned to earthly things or the troubles of the day:
Isaiah 7:13 - Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel.
Micah 5:2 - But as for you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, too little to be among the clans of Judah, from you One will go forth for Me to be ruler in Israel. His goings forth are from long ago, from the days of eternity.
Suddenly, God went silent. Wars and invasions assaulted them from every side, and the silence continued for 400 years. To put this into perspective, the pilgrims celebrated their first harvest festival with the Native Americans 400 years ago in 1621. Consider the number of generations and events that have passed since then. The Israelites had to wait and hope in the silence for deliverance.
As Christians, we are also waiting – waiting and hoping for His promised return and restoration of all that is broken. We have the Holy Spirit to comfort and guide us and, for more than 2000 years, we still wait.
Hebrews 10:23 – Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for He who promised is faithful
1 Peter 1:13 - Therefore, prepare your minds for action, keep sober in spirit, fix your hope completely on the grace to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.
Advent is a season of preparation and focus on the coming of Christ. As we reflect on the birth of Christ and its profound impact on humanity, let’s consider the hope that we have. God sent His promised Deliverer though Israel had to wait a long time and it wasn’t what they expected.
Reflect on the times when God sent you the deliverance or help you needed but it was in a manner or timing you didn’t expect. How does this bring you hope in this Christmas season and for the future?