The Advent Season

Why do Lutheran celebrate and observe Advent?

In the Lutheran Church, we celebrate Advent and view it as a season of anticipation and preparation. To ask a very Lutheran question, "What does this mean?" And to tag on to that, "Why observe and celebrate Advent?"

Observing and celebrating Advent means that we watch for and anticipate the advent (arrival) of the Christ-child, the new-born King, who is the Word of God made flesh, named Jesus of Nazareth. This is known in the ancient Church as the Feast of the Nativity, otherwise known as Christmas Eve. We watch and observe through preparation. We prepare our homes by decorating inside and outside; we prepare our tables with festive foods, cookies and treats we know we should not eat but still do; we prepare gifts for one another to share our joy; and we prepare our souls through hymns, readings, and worship. All this preparation points us in the direction of preparing our hearts to receive Christ our Savior at his birth. And in all this anticipation and preparation, you may notice that in the readings and hymns at church, there is also the call to prepare for Jesus’ Second Coming (advent) when he returns for his Church as he promised.

While the world chooses to focus on Christmas Day and the commercialization of shopping in preparation of our gift-giving, the Church chooses to focus on the Nativity; the humble birth, and the meaning of Emmanuel, which means "God with us." Emmanuel's advent was the first step in God providing the way through himself to pay the full penalty for our sins. This is why Mary had to be a virgin. Jesus was a new creation (like Adam) in her womb, whereby God dwelt with us in the flesh. God was born in human flesh so that he could share our life fully, including all the weariness, frustration, suffering, and even death.

Philippians 2:6 reads, that Jesus, our Emmanuel, “who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death – even death on a cross! Therefore, God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”

In a nutshell, this is what Christmas is all about. This is why we come to worship the new-born King. The fact that Jesus, being God, born a man (Emmanuel), was crucified on a cross to pay the full penalty for our sin, and was raised from the dead, makes him our Messiah, our Lord and Savior.

Why did he do it? That should tell you how special you are to God. He did it because he loves us that much, and he opened the way, by dying on the cross, for you and me to have a personal and intimate relationship with him. This was God’s plan all along. Jesus made it clear through his teachings that this was the reason for which he was born. John 3:16 says, “For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”

The birth of Jesus is the true heart of our celebration at Christmas because we know who he really is. We know what his birth means. And we know what he has come to do in the world. That’s what makes it so special, and we praise God and worship him for it. All the angels appeared that night Jesus was born, praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace good will toward men!” (Luke 2:14).

Lutherans observe and celebrate Advent for all these reasons. We see value in preparing our hearts and minds to celebrate the advent of Christ Jesus. We hope you do as well.

God Bless you!

Pastor Rob Taylor