Advent calendar 2020

Advent 1 - Sunday 29 November 2020

Photo by Gareth Harper on Unsplash

Reflection
Some theologians suggest there are more than 300 Old Testament prophecies fulfilled in the life of Jesus Christ. This is an astonishing fact and confirms that in the life and scriptures of ancient Israel, God was laying the foundations for the coming of the messiah.
In the book Science Speaks, Peter Stoner and Robert Newman discuss the statistical improbability of one man, whether accidentally or deliberately, fulfilling just eight of the prophecies Jesus fulfilled. They illustrate the probability of this in the mathematical equation of 10 to the power of 17. For those of is who are not mathematicians, the equation looks something like this:
Suppose that we take 100 quadrillion silver dollars and lay them on the face of Texas. They will cover all the state two feet deep. Now mark one of these silver dollars and stir the whole mass thoroughly, all over the state. Blindfold a man and tell him that he can travel as far as he wishes, but he must pick up one silver dollar and say that this is the right one. What chance would he have of getting the right one? Just the same chance that the prophets would have had of writing these eight prophecies and having them all come true in any one man, from their day to the present time, providing they wrote using their own wisdom.
The mathematical improbability of 300, or 47, or even just eight fulfilled Old Testament prophesies fulfilled in the life of Jesus stands as evidence that he is the Messiah!

Bible Reading

Isaiah 7:14
Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel.

Prayers
Lord Jesus Christ, we await your coming,
We wait filled with hope,
Knowing your light will shine in the darkness.
We wait anticipating your peace,
Believing that one day it will fill our world.
We wait embracing your love,
May we reach out to share it with our neighbours.
We wait with joy,
Bubbling us in expectation of your birth.
Lord we wait,
Come soon and fill us with your life.
The Lord’s Prayer
Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come,
you will be done,
on earth as in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins
as we forgive those who sin against us.
Save us from the time of trial
and deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom, the power
and the glory are yours
now and forever.
Amen

Blessing
God of hope, who brought love into this world,
be the love that dwells between us.
God of hope, who brought peace into this world,
be the peace that dwells between us.
God of hope, who brought joy into this world,
be the joy that dwells between us.
God of hope, the rock we stand upon,
be the centre, the focus of our lives
always, and particularly this Advent time.
Amen.

Other days in the Advent Calendar