First Monday of Advent

Preparation

Read Romans 8:19 - 23
The Bible is God’s message of hope.  It is hope for today and for all eternity.  Our hope is firmly rooted in the reality and anticipation of our future redemption.  The Bible speaks to the fact that a person who believes in Jesus Christ has a future that is greater than anything he could possibly fathom or even experience in his lifetime here on earth. 

The New Testament book Romans speaks about all of creation longing for redemption or liberation.  The author speaks about how humanity groans inwardly and outwardly to be redeemed and renewed. 

Author and Pastor of Redeemer Church in New York City, Timothy Keller, writes, “We are told (in Genesis) that we were created to live in the Garden of God.  That was the world we were built for, a place in which there is no parting from love, no decay or disease.  It was all these things because it was life before the face of God, in his presence.  There we were to adore and serve his infinite majesty, and to know, enjoy, and reflect his infinite beauty.  That is our original home, the true country we were made for… (and presently) we have been living in a world that no longer fits our deepest longings.”
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We are like square pegs trying to fit into a round hole.   We were not created for death, decay and destruction, we were created for life, multiplication and fellowship with God. Our hope is in the truth that one day we will be free from this earthly body and redeemed to eternal glory.  Until then, we eagerly wait for that future event.  Our bodies may be getting older and for some of us our parts don’t work as well as they used to; so, we continue to long day after day for the newly restored body and eternal fellowship with God.