This week of Advent devotions will center around the symbols of the Promised Messiah. Our family bakes cookies in the shapes for each day of the week. Bake your cookies all at once and store them in a tin for the week. Here is our recipe and cookie patterns but you can even use pre-made sugar cookie dough in a pinch(or do no cookies at all if it is not possible for you). These ideas and prayers are taken from the book Celebrate While We Wait by Schroeder (OOP).
**********************************************
Sunday, Day Eight- A Crown
Light your Advent candle on your log or wreath.
While the people of Israel waited for a Messiah, they had much time to think about what He would be like. God had given them messages through His prophets as to what the Messiah would be like.
One of the most popular ideas about the coming Messiah was that He would be a great and powerful king. The Israelites thought that He would physically rule over their own country. They wanted to be a great nation who was respected and admired by other countries.
The people of Israel had good kings to rule over them for s while. One of those kings was David. David knew he was not the special king God had promised the Israelites. David wrote in Psalm 24:9-10, "Lift up your heads, O gates! and be lifted up, O ancient doors! that the King of glory may come in. Who is this King of glory? The Lord of hosts, He is the King of glory!"
The prophet Jeremiah wrote, " Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, when I will raise up for David a righteous Branch, and He shall reign as king and deal wisely, and shall execute justice and righteousness in the land. In His days Judah will be saved, and Israel will dwell securely. And this is the name by which He will be called. 'The Lord is Our Righteousness.' " (Jeremiah 23:5-6).
A good symbol or picture to remind us of these kingly ideas about the promised Messiah is a crown. When you eat your crown shaped cookie, or see a crown shaped Christmas ornament, you can think about Jesus who was born to be our King.
Prayer: Come, Lord Jesus, Come. Come and rule our hearts. Come and crown our lives with Your love. Amen.
Scripture Readings: Isaiah 28:1-6; Zechariah 9:9-16
Songs: King of Glory, Lift Up Your Heads, Ye Mighty Gates
Serve each member of the family a crown shaped cookie. Make paper or foil crowns if you'd like.
**************************************************
Monday, Day Nine- A Flower
Light your candle on your log or wreath.
The people of Israel had, at times in their history, their own government. Other times, Abraham's nation did not have a land or government of their own. For 40 years, the people wandered in the desert until God gave them the land of Canaan. Many years later, they were forced to live in exile (which means they had been captured and taken from their land. They had to live among enemies. )
Imagine how God's people felt during that time. They were sad and lonely. They prayed to God to rescue them by sending His promised Messiah. In the song "O come O come Emmanuel", some of the people's feelings and thoughts are brought to light. Even in the desert, in exile, the people of Israel had God's promises and His prophets to comfort them. They had hope. Some of the promises told of new life, growth and blooming for God's people when the Messiah would come.
The prophet Hosea wrote, "I will heal their faithlessness; I will love them freely, for My anger has turned from them. I will be as the dew to Israel;he shall blossom as the lily...they shall flourish as a garden..." (Hosea 14:4-7)
Isaiah wrote, "in days to come Jacob shall take root, Israel shall blossom and put forth shoots, and fill the whole world with fruit" (Isaiah 27:6)
"The desert shall rejoice and blossom;like the crocus it shall blossom abundantly...They shall see the glory of the Lord...He will come and save you" (Isaiah 35:1-4)
For a symbol today, let us use a flower to remind us of God's promises.
Prayer: Come Lord Jesus, Come. Come and rescue us from the desert of our sin. Forgive us. Help us grow and bloom in Your love. Amen.
Songs: O Come O Come Emmanuel, A Christmas carol of your choosing to practice and learn
Scripture Readings: Matthew 1:18-23, Isaiah 11, Isaiah 40:3-8
Serve a flower cookie to each member of your family. Make a flower shaped ornament. Discuss the possibility of having a special floral centerpiece or blooming plant in your home for Christmas.
***********************************
Tuesday, Day Ten- A Scepter
Light your candle on your log or wreath.
On Sunday, we talked about a king and used a crown to remind us of those ideas. Another symbol for a king is a scepter. It is a very special rod often made of precious metal and jewels. A scepter stands for power and authority. Usually the person who holds the scepter is the one who rules the country.
The people of Israel longed for some powerful leader to come and give them victory over their enemies. They needed someone with power to give them victory over death, just as we do.
"The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor the ruler's staff from between his feet, until He comes to whom it belongs, and to Him shall be the obedience of the peoples" (Genesis 49:10). "I see Him, nut not now, I behold Him, but not nigh...A scepter shall rise out of Israel" (Numbers 24:17)
In telling about the Promised One who would come as the scepter holder, Isaiah said: "To us a Child is born, to us a Son is given, and the government will be upon His shoulder, and His name will be called 'Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.' Of the increase of His government and of peace there will be no end, upon the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish it and uphold it with justice and righteousness from this time forth and for evermore" (Isaiah 9:6-7).
Those are powerful names for a tiny baby, aren't they? One of God's big surprises was the sending of a tiny baby named Jesus to be the Messiah, the scepter holder. He turned out to be a king indeed, but a different kind of King than was expected by God's people.
Prayer: Come, Lord Jesus, Come. Rule our hearts and lives with Your love. Give us victory over death. Amen.
Songs: O Come O Come Emmanuel, Lift Up Your Heads, Ye Mighty Gates
Serve a scepter shaped cookie to your family. Make scepter ornaments if you'd like.
*****************************************
Day Eleven, Wednesday- A Rising Sun
Light your candle on your log or wreath.
How do you feel when you are in darkness? How do you feel when you are alone in the dark? Would you want to be driving at night along a country road with no streetlights and have your car's headlights go out? What would you do?
The Bible often uses darkness and night as symbols to help explain how it feels to be lost from God because of our sin. What do you need most if you are lost in the dark? Why, light of course!
As the people of Israel waited for the Messiah, they sometimes thought of Him as a great light, like the sunrise.
"For you who fear My name the sun of righteousness shall rise." (Malachi 4:2)
Isaiah wrote: "Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you. For behold, darkness shall cover the earth and thick darkness the peoples;but the Lord will arise upon you and His glory will be seen upon you. And nations shall come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your rising" (Isaiah 60:1-3).
Jesus said, "I am the Light of the world;he who follows Me will not walk in darkness but will have the light of life" (John 8:12).
A sunrise is another good symbol for the Messiah. It reminds us of God's promises and gives meaning to this prayer and hymn verse:
O come, Thou Day-spring from on high,
and cheer us by Thy drawing nigh;
disperse the gloomy clouds of night
and death's dark shadows put to flight.
Rejoice, Rejoice! Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel.
Prayer: Come, Lord Jesus, come. Brighten our lives with Your love. Lead us through the darkness of death to a new day of life with You. Amen.
Songs: O Come O Come, Emmanuel, Beautiful Savior
Scripture Readings: John 1:1-13, Luke 1:68-79, Luke 2:22-32, Isaiah 60: 19-22
Serve a sunrise shaped cookie to your family members. Review the meaning of the candles on your Advent log or wreath. Comment on the increasing brightness of the candlelight as we approach Christmas. Make sunrise shaped ornaments, if you'd like, to save for your Christmas tree.
*************************************************************
Day Twelve, Thursday- A Key
Light your candle on your log or wreath.
What does it feel like to come home and realize that you don't have a house key and the door is locked? Have you ever been locked out of your car?
A key is a most important tool. With the right key, no one can lock you out of somewhere that you want to be or lock you out of a place where you have the right to be.
A key is a good symbol to help explain the meaning of the promised Messiah.
When Adam and Eve sinned against God, they were locked out of His garden and sent away. Ever since then, we and all people would have been locked out of God's kingdom due to original sin except that God had a special plan.
His plan was to unlock Heaven and bring us home to Him. The key to open heaven for us is the Promised One, Jesus. By dying for our sins, Jesus made sure that the door to God's kingdom can be open for us.
Whenever we use a key, or eat an Advent cookie shaped like a key, we can remember the verse in Revelation 3:7-8. "The words of the Holy One, the True One, who has the key of David, who opens and no one shall shut, who shuts and no one opens. I know our works. Behold, I have set before you an open door, which no one is able to shut."
And we think of this verse from O Come O Come Emmanuel:
O Come, Thou Key of David, come
and open wide our heavenly home;
make safe the way that leads on high
and close the path to misery.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel.
Prayer: Come, Lord Jesus, Come. Unlock our ears to hear Your Word. Unlock our hearts to believe and trust Your promises. Open wide our heavenly home and lead us safely there. Amen.
Song: O Come O Come Emmanuel
A Christmas carol of your choosing to practice and learn
Scripture Readings: John 14:1-6, Revelation 4, Hebrews 12:19-23
Serve an key shaped Advent cookie and review its symbolism. Make key shaped ornaments for your Christmas tree.
****************************************
Day Thirteen, Friday-A Star
Light your candle on your log or wreath.
There are many nursery rhymes and songs that have to do with stars. Can you name some? (Star light star bright, Twinkle Twinkle, Catch a Falling Star, etc.) Why do people find stars to be so very interesting that we can sit outside an gaze at them for hours?
Stars may get so much attention because they are so far away and mysterious. In one of the hints God gave the Israelites about the Promised Messiah, He mentioned a star. The prophet Balaam said, "I see Him, but not now; I behold Him, but not nigh; a star shall come forth out of Jacob, and a scepter shall rise out of Israel." Numbers 24:17
While these people waited for the Messiah, He may have seemed somewhat like a star, very far off and mysterious. He was a bright spot in their futures but was very far away.
Jesus said, " I am the root and offspring of David, the bright morning star," Revelation 22:16. He was no longer far away and mysterious. He came and lived among His people. He loved them, taught them and preached to them.
We do not need to say to the Star of Jacob, "How I wonder what You are" because we know.
He is God's only begotten Son.
Prayer: Come Lord Jesus, Come. Come near to us so we can see clearly who You are. Give us the faith to believe in You now and forevermore. Amen.
Scripture Readings: 2 Peter 1:16-19, Psalm 57
Songs: How Lovely Shines the Morning Star and a Christmas carol of your choosing to practice and learn.
Serve each member of the family a star shaped Advent cookie. Make star shaped ornaments for your tree.
*********************************************************
Day Fourteen, Saturday-A Lamb
Light your candle on your log or wreath.
Review the six different symbols of the Messiah from Old Testament prophecy. The most important idea or symbol came from the prophet Isaiah.
Isaiah described a special servant of the Lord who would suffer and die for the sin of the people. "Like a lamb that is led to slaughter," Isaiah said. "It was the will of the Lord to bruise Him; He has put Him to grief; when He makes Himself an offering for sin, He shall...make many to be accounted righteous." (Isaiah 53:7, 10-11)
God had required the Jewish people to make sacrifices as part of their worship-- to show sorrow for their sins, to pray for God's mercy or to celebrate thanksgiving and praise.
But the idea of God providing the sacrifice himself--His Son Jesus--to take away the guilt of our sin was a very new idea. When St. John the Baptist recognized Jesus he said, "Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world" (John 1:29)
Because Jesus offered Himself as the sacrifice for our sin and rose again in victory over sin, we can share the apostle John's vision of the Lamb of God, sitting in bright glory on His throne in heaven.
Prayer: Come, Lamb of God, come. Come and teach us the meaning of Your sacrifice. Help us believe that it was for us that You died. Help us trust Your promise of a new life. Amen.
Songs: Crown Him with Many Crowns, A Christmas carol of your choosing to practice and learn.
Scripture Readings: Isaiah 52:13--53:12, Exodus 12:21-32, Revelation 5:6-14
Serve each member of the family a lamb shaped Advent cookie. Make lamb shaped ornaments to save for your Christmas tree.
