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ADVENT Download the Advent Devotional Booklet First Week of Advent Read Luke 21:25 – 36 25“There will be signs in the sun, the moon, and the stars, and on the earth distress among nations confused by the roaring of the sea and the waves. 26 People will faint from fear and foreboding of what is coming upon the world, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken. 27 Then
they will see ‘the Son of Man coming in a cloud’ with power and great glory. 28 Now when these things begin to take place, stand up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.” 29 Then he
told them a parable: “Look at the fig tree and all the trees; 30 as soon as they sprout leaves you can see for yourselves and know that summer is ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Something is stirring, something big is going on and we get a whiff of that something in this passage from Luke. What’s going on? We are told that there are signs—markers along the way, things we should be looking out for to get a sense for what is happening. Jesus says, look out for these things: Signs in the sun, the moon and the stars
There will be distress among nations
There will be roaring of the sea and the waves
People will faint from fear and foreboding
The next sign that will be seen will actually be the Son of Man coming in a cloud just like we read about in the Old Testament. In Daniel 7:13 we read about the son of man coming with the clouds of heaven. What can all of these signs possibly mean? What are we TAKE NOTICE!! YIKES!! SOMETHING IS STIRRING!! Okay, okay, you’ve got my attention now what? How and why and when and what is going on? Jesus says it’s like a tree. To try to understand all of this, Jesus breaks it down into a parable: Look at the fig tree and all the trees for that matter . . .
when the fig tree or any tree sprouts its leaves we all know that
is the indicator that summer is already near, and so, by analogy
when you see these signs previously outlined (signs in the sun,
etc., distress, roaring, fainting) then you know the kingdom of The key to all of this is to be on guard—don’t let these things catch you unexpectedly and unawares. What can you do? The best way to prepare, the best way to handle this news, the best way to be in these times when something is stirring is to be alert and pray. Light the first candle of the Advent Wreath. Prayer:
NEXT: Advent Devotional - Week TWO >>> Updated December 2, 2009
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