Morning Star

Tuesday – December 10

Advent Reading: Genesis 15:1-6

I have had a change of heart recently about mornings. For many years I have been glad to be “early to bed and early to rise.” I have built a very satisfying schedule around that practice and assumed it would not be changing any time soon, but all of a sudden I find myself sleeping in several days a week and wishing I could do it all seven! Gasp! You know what still makes it easier to greet the morn, though? It is when the morning light comes in the window!

I think my spiritual life is mirroring my daily life these days. I have been willing to “sleep in” and I’m beginning to feel the loss of a bright and sunny attitude and outlook. One of our scriptures for today says, in part, “when you consider the wonderful truth of the prophets’ words, the light will dawn in your soul and Christ the morning star will shine in your hearts.” (2 Peter 1:19, TLB). This Advent I have decided to concentrate on how the Old Testament prophets’ words all came true, and what it means to me that Christ’s earthly coming was foretold long before He actually came on the scene. The more I think on these things, the brighter He shines and the more “awake” I become! It may seem like a small start, but Christ is becoming a morning star, shining in my heart and giving me a new way to worship Him. I feel a stronger connection than ever to those who have gone before me – from the patriarchs to the 12 disciples, to my own mentors – Christmas truly connects us to all that matters. So, no matter if I begin to awaken early again, or not, this Advent season, spiritually, the Star will awaken in me the excitement of knowing the Bridge (Christ) and walking with Him on the path to find fulfillment. The future now looks bright because I can see where I’ve been and where I’m heading.

Does this speak to you in 2019, or has a different “face” of God piqued your interest? I’ve been thinking a lot about the different stages of life that we go through – both physically and spiritually. One stage is not necessarily better than another just different. We grow and change in each new stage but the point is to keep on heading toward being like Christ.

So far, this season, I have seen Christ as the one who is and always will be. I have seen Him as my shepherd who leads, guards , and protects and cares for me – and I want to be always in His flock. And I have recognized Him as the one who shines a light on the past to point me toward the things that matter. How has He appeared to you this season of your life? Write it down and begin your own journal of the faces of God that you are seeing in your current life. I promise you, it will change your Christmas!

 

Root of David

Wednesday – December 4

Advent Reading: Psalm 89:1-4

Jesus, Himself, declared here through the Apostle John that He was the Root of David. Actually, both the New King James translation and the King James translation include the words “and the Offspring.” Taken together those words clarify that Jesus was the Messiah who was to come. This Messiah was to be of the lineage of David, the second king of Israel. This is the one of whom God said, “He is a man after my own heart.” Was he perfect? No, but this “Root and Offspring…” was perfect and became the perfect Lamb of God. Beginning in Genesis 3:15 this “seed of the woman” was prophesied to come and He would bruise the head of the serpent (Satan). Periodically throughout the Old Testament we have various prophets mentioning the Anointed One, or Messiah, who was to come. This culminated in Jesus Christ of Nazareth who became God’s Lamb of sacrifice for the sin of the world. Humanly speaking, Mary, the mother of Jesus, was from the lineage of David, second king of Israel. Thus this was another fulfillment of the prophecies concerning the Messiah to come.

It seems that each prophecy concerning the coming of the Messiah further developed the character and face of the One who came and fulfilled those prophecies. That Mary was of the lineage of David was another of those fulfillments. The New Chain Reference Bible by Frank Charles Thompson lists, in chronological order, the prophecies and their fulfillment in/by Jesus concerning the Messiah. It takes up three and a half pages in my KJV copy of this Bible. It is in itself an amazing study to undertake.

The point to be understood here is that Jesus Himself described who He is by this name when he shares with the Apostle John the Revelation about Him.

What this comes down to is that Jesus fulfilled the prophecy that one of David’s descendants would rule as heir to the throne of David. When Jesus told the Apostle John, and it was recorded by him, it was a definite declaration of Who He was/is.  This was an identification of Jesus as the Anointed One who was to come.

What about this “face” of Jesus?  The Advent Reading for today is from Psalm 89:1-4, and was written by Ethan the Ezrahite. Actually the first verse has been used as a chorus for children and adults “I Will Sing of the Mercies of the Lord Forever.” Verses 3 and 4 give the words, “I have made a covenant with My Chosen, I have sworn to My servant David: our seed will I establish forever, and build up your throne to all generations.” The question that lies before us then is this, “How does this help me gain a greater understanding of who Jesus is?” I think that there should be an understanding that this is another one of a long list of prophecies fulfilled by Jesus that marks Him as being the Anointed One, the Messiah, or Christ.