• Advent Devotions

    Day 4 – Son of David

    Scriptures: Jeremiah 30:4-11, Acts 2:25-35, Luke 24:44, Psalm 16:10, 34:19, 41:9, Matthew 1. God promised King David that he would always have a descendent upon the throne over God’s covenant people. Matthew 1 gives us the genealogy of Jesus, confirming he’s a descendant of King David. We established in a previous lesson that this forever king comes from the stump of Jesse, King David’s father, implying that the Anointed One (Messiah) would be not only a descendant of David but a new David. God spoke through the prophet Jeremiah of the final restoration of Israel at the end of the age, saying, “They will serve the Lord their God and David their king,…

  • Advent Devotions

    Day 3 – The Anointed One

    Scriptures: Isaiah 11, 61, Zechariah 4, Acts 10:38, 2 Corinthians 5:20 Christ is not the last name of Jesus Christ, it is the Greek word for “Anointed One,” which in Hebrew is Messiah. So when we say Jesus Christ, we’re talking about Jesus, the Anointed One, the Messiah of the Jews. To be anointed is to have olive oil poured out or smeared on your head. In the Old Testament, the priests and temple objects were anointed with oil, as were kings. Being anointed with oil symbolized being chosen by God and set apart for a specific assignment. Oil is symbolic of the Holy Spirit who is needed to accomplish…

  • Advent Devotions

    Day 2 – The Branch

    Scriptures: Isaiah 11:1, Jeremiah 33:14-18, Zechariah 3:8-9, 6:9-13, Hebrews 7 Isaiah 11 describes the righteous ruler who will be anointed with the Holy Spirit to rule Israel and bring peace to the earth as the Branch. “A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse; from his roots a Branch will bear fruit” (Isaiah 11:1). The Branch comes from the stump of Jesse, King David’s father. Not only is Jesus descended from King David, as we see in Matthew 1, but he is an entirely new branch that precedes David because he comes from the stump of David’s father, Jesse. What does that mean? In scripture, cutting down a tree is a…

  • Advent Devotions

    Day 1 – The Living Word

    Scriptures: John 1:1-18, John 5:19-40, John 17:1-8, 20-26 This is the first in a series of devotions designed to draw you closer to Jesus as the fulfillment of Old Testament prophecy during the season of Advent, but can be used anytime as an “Emmaus Encounter with Jesus.” It was on the road to Emmaus that Jesus revealed how he fulfilled the law, writings of the prophets, and the psalms. I encourage you to read the scriptures passages before each post so you can make the connections yourself by simply clicking on each reference which will take you to that passage. Each devotional ends with a worship response because the goal…