Engaging Culture

Transcription

[Daniel Gluck]

Welcome to Bridgeway Christian Church's Daily Advent Prayer. My name is Daniel Gluck, and I've been a part of the Bridgeway community for about 18 years now. Today is Wednesday, December 24th.

Each Wednesday of Advent, we pray through a short scripture and take a few minutes to listen quietly for what God may want to say to us personally. We'll read the same passage three times and pause after each reading. First, simply listen.

Second, to notice a word or phrase God highlights. And third, to pray the scripture into our lives. On this Christmas Eve, as we prepare to celebrate the birth of Christ, we will consider the wonder of Jesus humbling himself to step into our world as we reflect on Paul's words from Philippians 2, 3-11.

As I read the passage for the first time, simply listen to the story. Notice any words or phrases that stand out to you. Philippians 2, verses 3-11.

Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men, and being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. I'm drawn to the phrase, though he was in the form of God.

Jesus did not first come into existence at Christmas. He has ruled and reigned in heaven with the Father since before the world began. Hebrews 1 tells us that Jesus is the exact imprint of God's nature.

And yet he humbled himself and came to earth. He took on the limitations of human flesh. He entered our chaos and pain.

And he did it all because he loves us. Lord, your humble love is truly staggering. Thank you that the miracle of Christmas reminds us that you have come near to us.

You know what it's like to be us, and you humbled yourself to save us. I'm going to read this scripture again, and after this second reading, I'll pause to give you space to talk with the Lord about any word or idea he highlights for you. This is verses 3 through 11.

By taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men, and being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Therefore, God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. During this final week of Advent where the theme is love, this passage reminds us of the radical, self-giving love of God.

It also serves as a reminder of God's beautiful invitation to us to become people of self-giving love. After I read this passage a final time, I'll give space for you to consider what it looks like for you to respond to that invitation in your life. Listen again, Philippians 2, 3 to 11.

Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men, and being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Jesus, as we prepare to celebrate your birth, we thank you for your humble love. You deserve the greatest throne rooms this world has ever seen, and yet you were born in a manger. What a wonder that you would become one of us.

We thank you for your unending sacrificial love, and we pray that you would form us into people who can share that love with the world. Amen.

Transcription

[Christie Kiley]

Welcome to Bridgeway Christian Church's Daily Advent Prayer. Today is Tuesday, December 23rd. My name is Christie Kiley and I've been a part of the Bridgeway community for 13 years.

Today and every Tuesday during Advent, we will reflect on the symbols of this season and let them guide our prayers. Today we will consider the Christ candle, which is traditionally lit on Christmas Eve. The candle sits in the center of the Advent wreath, reminding us of the truth of Colossians 117.

In him, all things hold together. It is surrounded by the other four candles, which remind us that God's hope, peace, joy, and love are only possible because of the centrality of Christ in our lives. Unlike the outer four candles, which are either purple, to symbolize repentance, or pink, to symbolize joy, the Christ candle is white.

This represents the purity and sinlessness of Christ, the spotless Lamb of God who came to take away the sins of the world. It also symbolizes a shift from the somber season of Advent into the joy of celebrating Christ's arrival. If Advent is a season of waiting and anticipation, the lighting of the Christ candle is about celebration, as we rejoice in the truth that our waiting is over and our King has come.

The flickering light of the candle reminds us of the words of Isaiah 9 too. The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light. Those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness, on them light has shone.

It also reflects the truth of John 1. In him was life, and the life was the light of all people. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it.

Let's pray. Heavenly Father, we thank you for the arrival of your Son, Jesus. We thank you that he truly is the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.

Today we celebrate the truth that his light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it. We thank you that Christmas is a tangible reminder to us that you did not leave us in darkness, but you brought your light into the world. As we reflect on the Christ candle today, we thank you for the purity of Jesus, who lived a perfect life in our place, and died on the cross for our sins.

We remember the words of 2nd Corinthians 521. For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. Show us what it means today to live knowing that our sins have been forgiven, and that through our faith in Christ we have become the righteousness of God.

As we celebrate your birth, may we also remember the purpose for which you came. You came to die so that we might be saved and set free. Help us to live today with the joy of our salvation at the top of our mind.

Today we also remember the words of Jesus, your son, from John 8 12. I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.

We confess that it is easy to get discouraged by the darkness of our world, and the darkness in our own hearts, but we thank you for the truth that you truly are the light of the world that makes the darkness flee. Save us today from fixating on darkness, and instead lift up our heads that we may walk in your light. As we go about our day today, help us to see specific opportunities to shine your light and love in the places you take us.

Finally, as we remember the Christ candle at the center of the Advent wreath, we reaffirm today that you are the center of our lives. We consider the words of St. Augustine, who famously said, you have made us for yourself, and our hearts are restless until they find rest in you. We confess that we have wandering hearts that seek to find our identity and purpose in so many other things in this world, and yet deep down we know that you have made us to make you our center.

So today we give you your rightful place on the throne of our hearts. Help us to find rest in you today, the one who came to give us abundant life, and who promised to never leave us nor forsake us. We give you our lives and our love, and we pray all of this in Jesus' name.

Amen.

 

Transcription

 

[Levi Markus]

Welcome to Bridgeway Christian Church's Daily Advent Prayer. My name is Levi Markus and I have been a part of the Bridgeway community for 10 years. Today is Monday, December 22nd and today and every Monday during Advent we reflect on the anticipation of the Messiah in the Old Testament.

Today we meditate on the Prophet Zephaniah's vision of a God who not only restores his people from judgment but rejoices over them in love. A divine King who is present in their midst, quieting fear with his saving strength and singing delight. Let's listen to Zephaniah 3, 14-17 together.

Sing aloud, O daughter of Zion. Shout, O Israel. Rejoice and exult with all your heart, O daughter of Jerusalem.

The Lord has taken away the judgments against you. He has cleared away your enemies. The King of Israel, the Lord, is in your midst.

You shall never again fear evil. On that day it shall be said to Jerusalem, Fear not, O Zion. Let not your hands grow weak.

The Lord your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save. He will rejoice over you with gladness. He will quiet you by his love.

He will exult over you with loud singing. Zephaniah paints one of scripture's most tender pictures of God's heart. A God who does not simply tolerate his people but delights in them.

The love of this King is not distant or cold. It is near, active, and full of song. In that love, fear gives way to rest and judgment gives way to joy.

Let's celebrate with Zephaniah in prayer to our great God. Lord our God, you are mighty to save, yet tender in love. You stand in our midst even now, not far away but near, not condemning but rejoicing.

You quiet our fears with your steadfast love. You sing over your people with joy. Your love does not ignore our weakness.

It meets us in it. When we doubt our worth, remind us that you take delight in us because of Christ. When our hearts grow restless or afraid, still us with the sound of your song.

When we are tempted to despair, lift our heads with the promise that you rejoice to call us your own. Teach us to love as you love, patiently, courageously, without reservation. Let your love overflow through us so that the world may hear your melody of grace and find rest in your presence.

We pray this in the name of Jesus, our Savior, and our song. Amen.

Transcription

 

[Pastor Heather Johnson]

Welcome to Bridgeway Christian Church's Daily Advent Prayer. My name is Heather Johnson and I have been a part of the Bridgeway community for 11 years. Today is Sunday, December 21st, and on Sundays during Advent we pray through the weekly theme.

This week our theme is love. When we think about love at Christmas we often picture warm feelings, family gatherings, meaningful gifts, and traditions with friends. But scripture invites us into something far deeper.

Love is not just a feeling that we experience, it is a person that we receive. The Bible says it plainly in 1st John 4, 8 and 9. Anyone who does not love does not know God because God is love.

In this the love of God was made manifest among us that God sent his only Son into the world so that we might live through him. This is the heart of Christmas, the love of God revealed to us through Jesus. Not simply that we feel loved, but that God himself came near so that we might truly live through him.

At Christmas we celebrate that that love came to us in the form of a baby. Before we ever responded to God, he initiated. Before we ever loved him back, he loved us first.

And the love he brings is not vague or sentimental. Scripture gives us a clear picture of the character of his love in 1st Corinthians 13. Not as a wedding reading or even a behavioral ideal, but as a portrait of God's heart towards us.

God's love is patient with us. God's love is kind towards us. His love does not keep a record of our wrongs and his love bears with us, believes in us, hopes for us, and never gives up on us.

This is the love that Advent invites us to receive. Pray with me. Lord, help me to understand your patience so I know that you're not disappointed with me when I mess up.

Thank you for your kindness towards me, even when I am short-tempered or rude. Thank you that you forgive me again and again and again, even when I promise myself this time's going to be different. Thank you for believing in me, for holding out hope for my growth, and for always taking the first step toward me, even when I'm actively avoiding you and your ways.

I pray now for my friends and neighbors who carry a distorted picture of you only as a judge, an accuser, or a tyrant. Replace those false images with the true love revealed at Christmas, vulnerable, sacrificial, merciful, and near. Correct our wrong theology and increase our awareness of your inexplicable joy-producing love.

Teach us not to talk about love this season, but to receive it deeply, be transformed by it, and share it freely. Amen.

Transcription

[Rayon Graham]

Welcome to Bridgeway Christian Church's Daily Advent Prayer. My name is Rayon, and I've been a part of the Bridgeway community for five years. Today is Saturday, December 20th, and on Saturdays during Advent, we will reflect on...

Today is Saturday, December 20th, and on Saturdays during Advent, we will reflect on Scripture passages about Jesus' second coming. Today, we will meditate on John's word from Revelation 21, where he describes what will take place when Jesus returns. Let's listen to Revelation 21.

And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, And the one who was seated on the throne said, Also he said, Let's pray. Dear Jesus, we thank you for this incredible vision of our promised future. As we continue to walk through this season of Advent, we look forward to the day when our faith will be made sight, and we will live with you forever.

In this Advent week of joy, we rejoice in the amazing truth that you love us so much that you are preparing a place for us to spend eternity with you. We thank you for the promise that a day is coming when you will wipe away every tear from our eyes. As we navigate a world that is so often filled with pain, heartbreak, tragedy, and tears, we look forward to the day when we see these things will be no more.

We pray you would give us the strength to continue to trust you as we walk through the challenges of this life as we await the fulfillment of these promises. We thank you that while the trials of this world are temporary, your victory over them is sure. We remember today that you are the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end.

There is no one like you and no one who is greater than you. You are the same yesterday, today, and forever, and you dwell in unapproachable light. And yet you have made yourself known for us.

You have come near to us. You have promised that we will be with you forever. You have chosen to make your dwelling place with us.

You are not a distant ruler. You are a loving father. We pray these truths would fill us with hope, peace, joy, and love today and every day.

In this season where we join with believers from all over the world in looking forward to your return, we close our prayer today by praying the words found at the very end of the book of Revelation. Amen. Come Lord Jesus.

We pray that you would return soon to rescue us and set us free. We pray you would return to make all things new and wipe away every tear. We pray that you would return to make your home with us.

And we look forward to that day as we pray all of this in Jesus' name. Amen.

Transcription

[Pastor Brian Kiley]

Welcome to Bridgeway Christian Church's Daily Advent Prayer. My name is Brian Kiley and I have been part of the Bridgeway community for 13 years. Today is Friday, December 19th, and on Fridays during Advent we will be praying selections from the Book of Common Prayer, which includes both scripture passages and pre-written prayers.

I invite you to pray along with me as I pray out loud. If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. Mark 8 34.

Let us humbly confess our sins unto Almighty God. Almighty and most merciful Father, we have erred and strayed from your ways like lost sheep. We have followed too much the devices and desires of our own hearts.

We have offended against your holy laws. We have left undone those things which we ought to have done, and we have done those things which we ought not have done. And apart from your grace, there is no health in us.

O Lord, have mercy on us. Spare all those who confess their faults. Restore all those who are penitent according to your promises declared to all people in Christ Jesus our Lord.

And grant, O most merciful Father, for his sake that we may now live a godly, righteous, and sober life to the glory of your holy name. Grant to your faithful people, merciful Lord, pardon and peace, that we may be cleansed from all our sins and serve you with a quiet mind through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Our King and Savior now draws near. O come, let us adore him. O come, let us sing unto the Lord.

Let us heartily rejoice in the strength of our salvation. Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving and show ourselves glad in him with psalms. For the Lord is a great God and a great King above all gods.

In his hands are all the depths of the earth, and the heights of the hills are his also. The sea is his, for he made it, and his hands prepared the dry land. O come, let us worship and fall down, and kneel before the Lord our maker.

For he is our God, and we are the people of his pasture and the sheep of his hand. Psalm 119 verses 89 through 104. Forever, O Lord, your word is firmly fixed in the heavens.

Your faithfulness endures to all generations. You have established the earth, and it stands fast. By your appointment they stand this day, for all things are your servants.

If your law had not been my delight, I would have perished in my affliction. I will never forget your precepts, for by them you have given me life. I am yours, save me, for I have sought your precepts.

The wicked lie in wait to destroy me, but I consider your testimonies. I have seen a limit to all perfection, but your commandment is exceedingly broad. O how I love your law.

It is my meditation all the day. Your commandment makes me wiser than my enemies, for it is ever with me. I have more understanding than all my teachers, for your testimonies are my meditation.

I understand more than the aged, for I keep your precepts. I hold back my feet from every evil way in order to keep your word. I do not turn aside from your rules, for you have taught me.

How sweet are your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth. Through your precepts I get understanding, therefore I hate every false way. Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end.

Amen. We praise you, O God. We acclaim you as Lord.

All creation worships you, the Father Everlasting. To you all angels, all the powers of heaven, the cherubim, and seraphim, sing in endless praise. Holy, holy, holy, Lord God of power and might, heaven and earth are full of your glory.

Through the world the Holy Church acclaims you, Father of majesty unbounded, your true and only Son worthy of all praise, and the Holy Spirit advocate and guide. You, Christ, are the King of glory, the eternal Son of the Father. When you took our flesh to set us free, you humbly chose the virgin's womb.

You overcame the sting of death and opened to the kingdom of heaven to all believers. You are seated at God's right hand in glory. We believe that you will come to be our judge.

Come then, Lord, and help your people, bought with the price of your own blood, and bring us with your saints to glory everlasting. Luke 1, 68-79. Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, for he has visited and redeemed his people, and has raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David, as he spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets from of old, that we should be saved from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us, to show the mercy promised to our fathers, and to remember his holy covenant, the oath that he swore to our father Abraham, to grant us that we, being delivered from the hand of our enemies, might serve him without fear, in holiness and righteousness before him all our days. And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High, for you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways, to give knowledge of salvation to his people in the forgiveness of their sins, because of the tender mercy of our God, whereby the sunrise shall visit us from on high, to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace. Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end.

Amen. Lord, have mercy on us. Christ, have mercy on us.

Lord, have mercy on us. Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.

Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever and ever.

Amen. Almighty God, whose most dear Son went not up to joy, but first he suffered pain, and entered not into glory before he was crucified, mercifully grant that we, walking in the way of the cross, may find it none other than the way of life and peace, through Jesus Christ, your Son, our Lord. Amen.

Almighty God, Father of all mercies, we, your unworthy servants, give you humble thanks for all your goodness and loving-kindness to us, and to all whom you have made. We bless you for our creation, preservation, and all the blessings of this life, but above all, for your immeasurable love in the redemption of the world by our Lord Jesus Christ, for the means of grace, and for the hope of glory. And we pray, give us such an awareness of your mercies, that with truly thankful hearts, we may show forth your praise, not only with our lips, but in our lives, by giving up ourselves to your service, and by walking before you in holiness and righteousness all our days.

Through Jesus Christ, our Lord, to whom with you and the Holy Spirit be honor and glory throughout all ages. Amen. Let us bless the Lord.

Thanks be to God. Glory to God, whose power, working in us, can do infinitely more than we can ask or imagine. Glory to him from generation to generation, in the Church and in Christ Jesus, forever and ever.

Amen.