December 21 | Isaiah 56:1-8

Advent Candles Devotionals

ENGAGING IN THE ADVENT SEASON: WEEK 4

Welcome to the final week of the Advent season. In these final days of anticipation of the birth of Jesus, consider spending time together as a family connecting with God in this way: 

1)    Light a candle and together say “We begin this time in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Amen.” If you have an advent wreath, you’ll light an additional candle with each new week leading up to Christmas. A new week begins each Sunday. Lighting the Christ Candle in the center on Christmas morning is always a special moment. 

2)    Read the assigned Scripture for the day and share any thoughts you have. Because Advent is a time of preparation to celebrate Christ’s birth, reflect on the daily passages with a focus on this special time.  

3)    Have someone close in a simple prayer.

4)    Conclude together by saying “We go now in peace, ending this time in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Amen.” Blow out the candle.  

Advent wreaths are historically made of evergreen in the shape of a circle, symbolizing everlasting life and the eternal nature of God. As we look forward to celebrating the moment of Jesus’ birth, we also look with anticipation to life in the everlasting kingdom of God. 

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BIBLE READING

Isaiah 56:1-8

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Welcome Home

By Steve Turnbull

The countdown is on! If you aren’t busy making final preparations to host people at your home this week, you might be firming up your travel plans for the holiday. One way or another, many of us have set aside intentional time to spend the holidays with those closest to us.

On some of the most important days of the year, we instinctively spend time with “our people”. Our hearts long to find belonging and connection within a community—a place to call “home” where we can find deep love and rest. That’s true for us, and it’s true for others too, even when home is harder to come by.

The Israelites were familiar with this desire. They had been exiled from their physical home for generations and had begun to lose hope of ever returning to the place they belonged. God, in his faithfulness, gave his word that they would be returning to their land. And in his faithfulness, he provided more than a physical home – and more than they could have imagined.

God’s salvation and righteousness through Jesus have provided us—both Jew and Gentile—a spiritual home. In Christ, we are not only saved from death, we are saved into life with God and his people. We have a place of belonging, a community, and an identity as children of God. Even those who may at one time have felt excluded—represented by the foreigner and the eunuch in Isaiah 56—are invited into life with God’s family. That’s the work that the Holy Spirit continues to do for all of us, welcoming us home and working through us to make a home for others.

As you turn to prayer today, allow Isaiah 56 to guide you in two ways. First, give thanks to God for his gracious welcome to you. You might even confess the ways you still doubt that welcome, and let God’s Spirit speak peace and welcome to your heart. Second, ask the Holy Spirit to bring to mind opportunities to extend God’s welcome. Who do you know who might feel like they’re on the outside looking in? Is God prompting you to any act of love, welcome, and friendship by means of this passage? Let’s take it to the Lord in prayer.

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PRAYER

Father, we give you thanks and praise that you have called us your own and gathered us to be your family through Jesus Christ. Thank you for giving us a place of belonging and a home in you. Holy Spirit, continue to shape our hearts in love toward our brothers and sisters, and help us welcome others into your family as we look forward to our eternal home. Amen.

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THE AUTHOR

Steve Turnbull

Senior Pastor