The Waiting
Eden.
A moment ago: utopia. Now: unraveled. The curse had entered the world. As the crunch of the fruit echoed around him, as the flaming sword moved into position, the words of the Creator prophesied the serpent’s destiny: he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.
…and the waiting began.
Haran.
He was old enough to be a great-grandfather, yet still had no child to call his own. He and his wife had given up on their dream, but he chose to obey in faith even as the promise was spoken: in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.
…and the waiting continued.
Jerusalem.
The solitary voice called out the sin of Israel and pointed them to a better future. The prophet was 1,800 years removed from the promise to his forefather, yet his message shone a light eight centuries into the future: the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.
…and the waiting continued.
Nazareth.
She was a teenager with no status. A woman with no husband. And yet the words of heaven’s messenger were for her alone. It was her story that would be woven into the story. Her womb that would usher in a King. Her words that proclaimed her belief: let it be to me according to your word.
…and the waiting continued.
Adam in Eden. Abram in Haran. Isaiah in Jerusalem. Mary in Nazareth. The wait was thousands of years and it was just a few months. But it was a wait, nonetheless. A looking forward to an unknown future. A dim view through a darkened glass. A glimpse of prophesy in a time of uncertainty. A firm belief in an unshakeable promise.
For millennia, mankind waited. Waited on a deliverer. Waited on a rescuer. Waited on a Savior. And finally, the cry in the stable silenced the hiss in the garden.
This Advent season, we join in the wait. Because of the cross, we can look back with confidence. Because of the resurrection, we can look ahead with hope. We are in the already…and the not yet.
Redemption has come. Redemption will come.
The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness, on them has light shone.
