Many of us are afraid to hope much for the coming year. 2016 was a hard year for several of us, but we still hope. We find ourselves in a similar position as one located in this text and see an event that has implications for all of our staring into the coming year. This text points clearly to Christ in his coming. Jesus’ coming changes everything, and who he is has a direct correlation to who we are. Who Christ is helps to shape how we see the New Year. Specifically, we see Christ in 4 ways, each one helping to shape us and our view of the coming days.