December 1st Advent Devotional

December 1 John 1:1-5

Before anything else existed, there was Christ, with God. He has always been alive and is himself God.  He created everything there is: nothing exists that he didn’t make.  Eternal life is in him, and this life gives light to all.  His life is the light that shines through the darkness—and the darkness can never extinguish it. 

-John 1:1-5 _{The Living Bible}

We are reminded that, at Advent, Christ brings a new beginning—a life from God, a light in the dark. Advent is a new beginning for each of us, too—a chance to reflect on the astonishing gift of Jesus. This passage speaks of God’s light as something that has the power to overcome darkness, and the source of that power is revealed to us during Advent. 

Have you ever found yourself in a completely dark room? A place so eerily silent that your heart beats loudly against the stillness? In those moments, a small flicker, a tiny beam of light, has the profound ability to change everything. Light, quite simply, is the absence of darkness.

John 1:5 powerfully illustrates that the light from Christ shines even in the darkest of times. I can certainly remember exceedingly dark times in my own life when that light was presented to me through this body of believers or in small ways I never imagined. Darkness doesn't have the last word. We who trust in Him know that He is the Light and has overcome the darkness. We have a true and living hope.

The gloom of our world is overcome by the presence of Christ in Advent. Darkness breeds fear, confusion, and despair, while light provides comfort, clarity, and hope. Our appropriate response is one of joy this Christmas as we remember what God does for us in Christ. Even as we go into the season of Advent, may we be awestruck at what God does for us through the Word who is from the beginning, with God, is God, the life, and the light. He calls us that we might not remain in darkness but have life and light through him.

Friends, the ultimate question for us all is, How do we respond to this God inspired light in our lives? 

Rosemary Cope