Advent Devotions - Door County 2020

[Read Genesis 1:28 ; 1 Corinthians 15:21-22 ] For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive. The Apostle Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 15:45, “The first man Adam became a living being. The last Adam became a life-giving spirit.” You may have heard of Jesus being called the “Second Adam,” but have you really stopped to think what that means for our justification for our sin? In Romans 5, Paul talks about the work and saving grace of Jesus Christ and the contrast of the representation of Adam’s disobedience and Jesus’ obedience. Adam comes into a sin-free and perfect world and Jesus, who is perfect, comes into a sinful world to rescue us from our sins. It is vital for Christians to remember that God knew the work of a sinful man (beginning with first Adam) could only be redeemed by a perfect man (Jesus, the “Second Adam”). God’s original intention for mankind was to dwell with Him in the garden, but the sin of man destroyed this possibility. God could have just given u...

[Read Romans 8:24-25 ] For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience. Hope can be as simple as a youthful passion that allows us to be optimistic about our future or a more challenging theological virtue through which we anticipate the real experience of the fullness of God. But hope is always accompanied by a measure of uncertainty. Faith allows us to cope with that uncertainty. In Hebrews we are told “Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see” (11:1). Faith inspires us to continue to hope and warrants the patience with which we wait for our hopes to be realized. As a hospital chaplain I regularly get to witness hope as our patients cope with the uncertainty of their situation. Hope sustains them as they wait for test results, or for a surgical procedure, or, these days, as they wait to be reunited with family and friends. Bu...

“Matthew’s Begats” by Andrew Peterson sets the genealogy of Christ to song. You can find that here: https://youtu.be/06XHn4D9Nzw Introduction Advent ( from the Latin adventus , meaning "coming") begins on the 4th Sunday before Christmas Day, and is often considered a season of anticipation and hope. For many Christians it is not just about waiting for a Savior to be born, but also looking to a time when the Christ will come again, in power and with authority. The traditional Scripture readings for this time emphasize both the First and Second Coming of Jesus Christ, and our accountability for faithfulness. The theme for this year is The Genealogy of Christ. Each of the devotions in this booklet features a Bible passage about a person or persons from the Matthew or Luke listings of Jesus’ ancestors. There is also an Advent theme for each Sunday that helps set the tone for each of the four weeks which is not directly tied to individuals. We encourage you to read the genealo...