Advent Candles
For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. Jeremiah 29:11
It is no mere coincidence that we use candles to remind us of the coming of Jesus. Traditionally, they represent the coming of the Light into darkness with each candle representing a different characteristic of the promised Light.
The first candle represents Prophecy. The prophets, speaking of Jesus’ coming, gave hope to those who sat in darkness. The prophets themselves were not the Light to shine in the darkness, but rather pointed to the Light who was coming to shine forth in the darkness. “Therefore I will look to the Lord; I will wait for the God of my salvation; My God will hear me.” (Micah 7:7)
Jesus fulfilled over three hundred prophecies about the coming of the Messiah. Jesus brought Light to the darkness of the world. When Jesus came, the hopes of the prophets and the people who put their faith in the promises of God were realized, sin was paid for, and death was vanquished.
When we light the Prophecy candle, we remember the hope that the prophets had in the promises God made that were fulfilled in Jesus. This candle reminds us that we too have hope in the promise from God, a promise that will be fully realized when He calls us home to be with Him.
How should I not have known Isaiah would be there,
His prophecies fulfilled? With pounding heart I stare:
A child, a son, the Prince of Peace for me.
A child, a son, the Prince of Peace for me.
Worship Supplement 715