And so we have come to the end of our Advent journey—that time of watching and waiting–waiting for signs of God with us–a time to think about four themes
First: A theme of hope, Israel’s hope for the coming of a Messiah, of Emmanuel and our hope for renewed faith.
Second: A theme of peace, God’s peace, peace within us, a world of peace—being instruments of God’s peace in the world.
Third: A theme of joy, rejoicing in God’s care for us through the Holy Spirit sharing in God’s joy. Being joyful signs of the Kingdom of God.
Finally: The theme of love, that God is love in action, caring, creating, compassionate that our faith should be love in action.
May the light of faith help us to proclaim that God is with us, now and forever.
Hope, Peace, Love, and Joy
Today as we celebrate the birth of Jesus we proclaim that all four things Hope, peace, love and joy are fulfilled. We recall the Angel’s message to the shepherds: Behold I bring you good news of a Great Joy, a saviour, the Messiah is born in the city of Bethlehem, hope is fulfilled.
We proclaim Jesus as the Prince of Peace, the son of righteousness, the hope of all nations. We are to rejoice that the glory of the Lord has been revealed. We are to rejoice in new hope that God is with us. We are to rejoice and announce the good news of this great joy to all people.
It is important for us to recognize the symbol that rings through the whole of the Christmas season is light. A light has come into the world and that light shines in the darkness and the darkness cannot overcome it. In the collect for today we prayed that this day is radiant with the brilliance of God’s one true light that Jesus is that one true light.
Light shone all around the shepherds. The wise men followed a light in the sky—the brightest of all the stars So, may the light of faith illumine our hearts. May the light of faith shine in our words and deeds
May the light of faith help us to proclaim that God is with us, now and forever.
