Advent – Saturday, Day 14

By Elaine Knudtson

“Hallelujah Chorus” as sung by London Philharmonic Chorus

The Fulfillment of the Law and Prophets

Peter, James and John witnessed Jesus speaking with Moses and Elijah on the Mount of Transfiguration.  The voice of God confirmed, “This is my Son. . . Listen to Him”.  Jesus is linked to the root of the Jewish faith through his connection with the law (Moses) and prophets (Elijah).  He does not stand alone, but is God’s fulfillment of the redemption story began at the time of the fall—“He will crush your head, and you will strike his heel” Gen. 3:15

The Invitation

Dear Lord, help us to accept Jesus as the fulfillment of God’s promise of redemption.  Give us a deeper appreciation of our connection to the law and prophets through Jesus.  We do not stand apart from scripture, but are included in God’s plan from the beginning.

Scripture

¹⁷ “See, I will create new heavens and a new earth.  The former things will not be remembered, nor will they come to mind. ¹⁸ But be glad and rejoice forever in what I will create, for I will create Jerusalem to be a delight and its people a joy. ¹⁹ I will rejoice over Jerusalem and take delight in my people; the sound of weeping and of crying will be heard in it no more. ²⁰ “Never again will there be in it an infant who lives but a few days, or an old man who does not live out his years; the one who dies at a hundred will be thought a mere child; the one who fails to reach a hundred will be considered accursed.” Rev.22:14-20

“As the new heavens and the new earth that I make will endure before me,” declares the Lord, “so will your name and descendants endure.  From one New Moon to another and from one Sabbath to another, all mankind will come and bow down before me,” says the Lord.  Is. 66:22-23.

Reflection

“At present we are on the outside of the world, the wrong side of the door. We discern the freshness and purity of morning, but they do not make us fresh and pure. We cannot mingle with the splendours we see. But all the leaves of the New Testament are rustling with the rumour that it will not always be so. Some day, God willing, we shall get in.”
― C.S. Lewis, The Weight of Glory

“Apparently, then, our lifelong nostalgia, our longing to be reunited with something in the universe from which we now feel cut off, to be on the inside of some door which we have always seen from the outside, is no mere neurotic fancy, but the truest index of our real situation. And to be at last summoned inside would be both glory and honour beyond all our merits and also the healing of that old ache.”
― C.S. Lewis, The Weight of Glory

We long for something more.  This is a beautiful world and there are many moments of great joy, but much like a Christmas toy that doesn’t work without the batteries, we know that there is something that is still missing.  We are promised a new heaven and a new earth at the end of time when Jesus returns to gather us as His own.  The final resurrection will make everything right, and “Therefore we do not lose heart.  Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day.  For our slight momentary afflictions are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all.  So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen.  For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.” 2 Cor. 4:16-18.

Points to Ponder

• We are promised a new heaven and a new earth where all the wrongs will be put to right. What needs to be put right in your life.
• Faith is the assurance of things hoped for—we accept these promises by faith because God has proven himself to be faithful in the past. How does this guarantee change the way we look at suffering and death?

Conclusion

O Lord we love this life, and yet we know that we live in a broken world.  We are reminded of that, especially at this time of the year when we are made aware of the needs around us.  We rest on your faithfulness as we hope for a new day when everything will be put right and we will replace our temporary tents with eternal life.