“Comfort, comfort my people, says your God.”
Isaiah 40.1

December is a hard month for many. A few years ago, I sat with a widower who hated the holiday season more than any other time of year. “If only I could sleep through December,” he often said. Thanksgiving and Christmas were reminders of his loss, the empty seat around the table. His grief is not unique. The Season of Advent is filled with a variety of struggles. We become increasingly busy and move from party to program without time to reflect. Many of us compare what we give with what we have received or go into debt in order to “have a good Christmas”. We can even be consumed with feelings of loneliness, anxiety, or depression. In the midst of these struggles, we must hold fast to a true Advent. 

Paul David Tripp has called Christmas the mourner’s holiday. What he means is that while Christmas may remind or cause us great struggles, the real meaning of Christmas is God’s love confronting the darkness. The message we so often implicitly and explicitly hear is that we need to “get over the grief”, “work harder”, and “measure up”. However, Christmas tells us that the powerful reign of Christ brings an end to darkness. This past Sunday, Ken Henry read Isaiah 40.1-11 during the worship service. This passage stands out during this time of year as a commonly read piece of Scripture, yet its message is anything but common in a world so filled with heart-ache and grief. In these verses, the promise of God implicitly reveals His character.  

For those who experience the weight of darkness, God gives us light. He reveals to us that He deeply and tenderly desires to save. This gracious salvation far outweighs the depth of our sin; it brings great honor. The passage continues to inform us that the Lord is intentional in this work, preparing and laboring to bring it into the world. This is a grace-filled, lengthy, and costly endeavor from our God. This section concludes with the description of God’s shepherding love. All of these things are true comfort for weary hearts, and yet, what fascinates me this Advent Season are verses 6-8. In the midst of this beautiful section on God’s comfort, the Lord includes a very stark image. People are like grass that withers away. What comfort does such a promise give to us? 

These verses are the ones that Peter uses in 1 Peter 1.24-25. The Apostle Peter explains that God’s abiding Word in His people and the imperishable, enduring work of the gospel that has been proclaimed to us produces something that will remain forever. He grounds our obedience to the truth in God’s eternal Word. In other words, the faithful love that is on display through God’s people - this Advent Season - will last forever. This is something that far outweighs the holiday shopping chaos, the social pressures of our culture, and even Death itself. Be encouraged this Advent Season and long to see the work of Christ in you. In this, we have hope, peace, joy, and love.