1. We are living in
Isaiah 9:2 (NIV)
The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of deep darkness a light has dawned.
“What oxygen is for the lungs, such is hope for the meaning of human life. Take oxygen away and death occurs through suffocation; take hope away and humanity is constricted through lack of breath; despair supervenes, spelling the paralysis of intellectual and spiritual powers by a feeling of senselessness and purposelessness of existence. As the fate of the human organism is dependent on the supply of oxygen, so the fate of humanity is dependent on its supply of hope.” - Emil Brunner
“Hope means hoping when things are hopeless, or it is no virtue at all…As long as matters are really hopeful, hope is mere flattery or platitude; it is only when everything is hopeless that hope begins to be a strength.” - G.K. Chesterton
2. We
Isaiah 8:12-13, 19-22 (NIV)
“Do not call conspiracy everything this people calls a conspiracy; do not fear what they fear, and do not dread it. 13 The Lord Almighty is the one you are to regard as holy, he is the one you are to fear, he is the one you are to dread….
…19 When someone tells you to consult mediums and spiritists, who whisper and mutter, should not a people inquire of their God? Why consult the dead on behalf of the living? 20 Consult God’s instruction and the testimony of warning. If anyone does not speak according to this word, they have no light of dawn. 21 Distressed and hungry, they will roam through the land; when they are famished, they will become enraged and, looking upward, will curse their king and their God. 22 Then they will look toward the earth and see only distress and darkness and fearful gloom, and they will be thrust into utter darkness.
3. We need to grow in self-awareness and recognize our
• Comfort: a longing for pleasure
• Power: a longing for influence or recognition
• Approval: a longing to be accepted or desired
• Control: a longing to have everything go according to my plan
4. Jesus is the
Isaiah 9:6-7 (NIV)
For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. 7 Of the greatness of his government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on David’s throne and over his kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and forever. The zeal of the Lord Almighty will accomplish this.
“The best way to overcome the world is not with morality or self-discipline. Christians overcome the world by seeing the beauty and excellence of Christ. They overcome the world by seeing something more attractive than the world: Christ.” - Thomas Chalmers
• Wonderful Counselor: Christ over Comfort
• Mighty God: Christ over Power
• Everlasting Father: Christ over Approval
• Prince of Peace: Christ over Control
5. We are called to wait confidently
“The good news of Advent is not that we are faithful in our waiting (we often aren’t) but that God is faithful in his coming.” - Rich Villodas
Hebrews 10:22-23 (NIV)
… let us draw near to God with a sincere heart and with the full assurance that faith brings, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water. 23 Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful.
Group Discussion Questions
1. Have you celebrated the Advent season and why do you think it is a good practice to prepare ourselves to Celebrate Christmas?
2. Close your eyes and think about how dark things are when you close your eyes. Have someone read Isaiah 9:2. What do you see?
3. In what ways have you experienced trying to get out the darkness on your own?
Did you identify a counterfeit source of false hope within your soul?
4. Read Isaiah 9:6-7. Which of the names of Jesus are you most drawn to today?
Why do you think you are drawn to that name in this season?
5. Read Hebrews 10:22-23. How is the Holy Spirit leading you to experience your hope in Jesus grow today?