Christus Advenivit et Adveniet Iterum! Christ Has Come and Will Come Again!

Join us this Advent season with our midweek meal and church service starting this Wednesday, December 3 at Hope Lutheran Church, with the meal beginning at 5:45pm and service at 6:30pm. Our sister church, at Shepherd of the Hills, in Horseshoe Bend will have a service at 4pm.

We live in a time of now and not yet. We observe the season of Advent as a preparatory season to Christmas. Similar to Lent before Easter, it is a penitential season in which we remember why Jesus had to come. Jesus becomes incarnate, he takes on flesh to become like us, yet without sin, to save us from our sins. He is born of a virgin so that he would not have the taint of original sin and would thus be born with original righteousness, fully God and fully man, the perfect sacrifice to save you. Yet Advent also drives us to ponder upon the fact that he is coming again on the last day.

It is thus proper in this season to focus on why he comes. The season of Advent is not a pre-Christmas season. It is a season of repentance. While there is a heightened sense of expectation as we wait to celebrate Jesus birth, we are still led to have sorrow for our sins but live in the sure faith that Jesus is born to die for our sins.

For our three midweek services we will focus around the theme “The Advent of a New Creation”. Advent is a perfect word for it means to come. So you will hear how Jesus comes to make you a new creation. This will take us into our Christmas season with Christmas Eve candle light service at 4pm at Shepherd of the Hills in Horseshoe Bend and 6:30pm at Hope. And Christmas Day Divine Service only at Hope Lutheran Church at 10:45am.

Join us every Sunday at 10:45am at Hope Lutheran Church in Batesville, and 8:00am at Shepherd of the Hills Lutheran Church in Horseshoe Bend. The Gospel texts for this four week Advent season begins with Jesus’ Palm Sunday entrance into the Jerusalem in Matthew 21, followed by his reminding the people that he will come again in Luke 21. Then we will recall that the fiery John the Baptizer came to prepare the way for Jesus to come to save our sins. Finally, we will join with Mary as we magnify the Lord for just as she was blessed to have been the bearer of God, so also God has come and claimed us as his children.

Therefore in penitential hope, let us rejoice and sing, “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel!” Jesus is coming and because we know him we will rejoice in him!