Women of Advent

The church worldwide is now in the season of Advent—a time of waiting for Jesus’s arrival. Since the broader culture of North America began “celebrating” (read:“purchasing”) Christmas before Halloween, the ancient Christian tradition of delaying celebration and somberly reflecting seems backwards. And yet, from a theological perspective, it is hard to understand and appreciate the celebration of Jesus’s birth without first understanding and appreciating all the years and lives that led up to and contributed to the live and ministry of Jesus the Messiah.

One of the things I’ve been contemplating about Advent is how the women that came beforeJesus shaped him. We often focus exclusively on Jesus’s identity as the “son of God.” Yet, Jesus was just as much Mary’s son as he was God’s. What about Mary shows up in Jesus’s character and ministry?

Of the four gospel narratives in the New Testament, only two have an Advent and birth story: Matthew and Luke. Notice what Luke writes about Jesus as he grew up: “Then Jesus went down with his parents and came to Nazareth and was obedient to them. His mother treasured all these things in her heart. And Jesus increased in wisdom and in years, and in divine and human favor” (Luke 2:51-52).

Jesus learned…from his parents! When we read Luke’s entire Advent story, we see elements of Mary’s story that came first and seem to be passed down to her son. Mary sings a prophetic song of praise in Luke 1 that we call the Magnificat. The language describes huge shifts in human life and society: the hungry are filled, the lowly raised up, and the poor honored. In Luke 4, Jesus preaches a sermon at the synagogue in Nazareth. The themes? The reversal of the lives and status of the lowly!

What’s also interesting is that Mary’s song riffs on Hannah’s song in 1 Samuel 2, so the echoes of Scripture reverberate through Mary’s proclamation.This thread shows up during Jesus’s sermon in Luke 4 mostly just quotes Isaiah 61! Jesus certainly takes after his mother!

When we look at Matthew’s and Luke’s stories about the time leading up toJesus’s birth, we see lots of other women too. In Matthew’s genealogy, the writer takes pains to insert Tamar, Rahab, Ruth, and Bathsheba in Jesus’s lineage. Too many Bible scholars and preachers have insisted that these women show up because they demonstrate that God can use “anybody”—even sinful women(shorthand for women with sexual irregularities) or who are foreigners.

But none of the Old Testament stories ever mention any hint of sinfulness on the part of these women. Rather, in both testaments, these women are hailed as paragons of virtue and faithfulness. When you read their stories—and I strongly encourage you too!—you will notice character traits and behaviors that later show up in Jesus’s own life and story.

In Luke’s gospel, Elizabeth and Anna are both described in prophetic terms. They demonstrate righteous devotion, and both proclaim the identity ofJesus as the Messiah. All these women came before Jesus and demonstrated the qualities that God values: obedience, righteousness, prayerfulness, and strength. As opposed to “God can use anybody,” Jesus inherited quite a pedigree from these women!

If you are interested in learning more about these women, The CandlerFoundry is pleased to offer a new on-demand course: The Women of Advent. This six-week study looks closely at these stories along with the themes of Advent: hope, peace, joy, and love. Use it as an Advent devotional for yourself or as the curriculum for a group study or Sunday school.

https://candlerfoundry.emory.edu/on-demand/womenofadvent

May you be blessed this Advent season!

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