A Long Time Coming

Daily Devotion for Advent | Wednesday, December 5, 2018

Abraham was the father of Isaac … (Matthew 1:2a)

“Abraham was the father of Isaac …” If there’s one verse in the New Testament Abraham would have loved to read ahead of time, it’s probably this one. God reached out to a childless man in the ancient Middle East and promised, “I will make of you a great nation” (Genesis 12:2-3). God kept that promise when Isaac was born—25 years later.

What a long time to wait in faith! But it was worth it, as Abraham and Sarah knew when they cradled their newborn son in their arms.

But the other part of the promise took even longer. “You will be a blessing,” God said, “and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed” (Genesis 12:3). God was speaking of Jesus, Abraham’s descendant, who would give Himself for the life of the world. God’s people would wait roughly 2,000 years for that promise to be kept. But it was worth it—as every forgiven, beloved child of God knows.

Are you waiting right now? Perhaps it is something where you can reasonably hope to see the outcome in the near future—graduation from school, a wedding, a birth, the start of a new job or retirement. Or it may be something that won’t happen until Jesus returns and raises us all from the dead—like final, complete healing of our bodies; reconciliation with a loved one; or peace on earth. Whatever it is, we can wait in hope, trusting that it will be worth it—that the Lord, who makes so many great promises, will keep every one of them.

THE PRAYER: Lord, as I wait, keep me trusting in You. Amen.

REFLECTION QUESTIONS:

• What are you waiting for right now? Name anything you like.
• What’s the hardest part of waiting for you, and why?
  
• Which of God’s many promises is closest to your heart right now?
  

The coming Savior’s birth was foretold by the prophets of old and later experienced by many who were on hand as He came into this world. Mary and Joseph, Zechariah and Elizabeth, Simeon, shepherds, wise men from the east, a legion of angels, and even King Herod—all play their parts in the Gospel narratives that speak of the Savior’s incarnation. Explore the many ways their lives were touched as God became one of us, for each of us, in The Coming King.