Another View of Advent

I’m probably the last person on earth to get this revelation. This morning while listening to the song, “Follow That Star” by Paul Baloche, I saw an image that made the whole point of Advent vividly clear to me.

Jesus was born in Bethlehem, in a manger, borne by a virgin, whose Father was God. There was a sign given, a star in the east, which drew people to Him. The angels announced His birth to shepherds and others (Anna, Simeon, Elizabeth, Zachariah, Joseph, and of course, Mary) which captured the attention of the magi (could have been many; only three gifts were mentioned). All of this I’ve heard from my childhood.

However, this morning as I was listening to the song several verses began to scroll in my mind. The first was Revelation 22:16:

I, Jesus, have sent my angel to testify to you about these things for the churches. I am the root and the descendant of David, the bright morning star.

Then I recalled John 3:3:

Jesus answered him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.”

Here’s the image which came to mind in all of this. Jesus, who was born under the sign of a star, became The Bright Morning Star which now draws us to our birthplace (born of the Spirit). We now follow Him, the Star, to encounter our Savior who is Christ the King! The Spirit is now actively working to bring us to the stable, the manger, where we experience being born again. This is the story of Advent. It’s not that Jesus came, but that in coming, He made a way for us to come back to the Father.