We enter into the season of Advent (a time of four weeks before Christmas) in expectation of the coming of God incarnate as the King of Kings – the King of Kings, who gave Himself so that we may be reconciled to God and whom we celebrated last Sunday as the last Sunday of the Church year. The righteous King crucified on the cross for the unrighteous proclaims to you and me in Mark 1:14-15“The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near, repent, and believe in the good news.”

The kingdom of God is where all our hopes reside. The kingdom of God is where we will find a home as all our pain and suffering is relieved. The kingdom of God is where we will find Isaiah 9:6-7 fulfilled: “For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the greatness of his government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on David’s throne and over his kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and forever. The zeal of the LORD Almighty will accomplish this.”

We begin a new year with our eyes on the horizon and our ears perked up, looking and listening for hope to come to us in the incarnation of God. It is with this expectation of hope that we hear our reading from the gospel of Mark chapter two verses eighteen through twenty-three. In our gospel for the first Sunday of Advent we hear that everything changed when Jesus, the incarnated God arrived.

Read Mark 2:18-23 reflecting upon the following:

In our Advent journey to the cradle of the newborn King what do you hope to find in the child?

For your personal life? For life here at Hollywood Pres? For the life of the world?