Advent Hope: Come Thou Long Expected Jesus

Come Thou long expected Jesus, born to set Thy people free;

From our fears and sins release us, let us find our rest in Thee.

Israel’s strength and consolation, hope of all the earth Thou art;

Dear desire of every nation, joy of every longing heart.

Today, on the first Sunday of Advent, we stop to be reminded of what this season represents.

It can and should be a time of joy and celebration, certainly. But as followers of Christ, joining with God’s people from centuries past, we are also invited to embrace longing.

Between the recorded Old and New Testaments, the people of Israel waited 400 years to hear the voice of God – to see the fruit of His promise. They ached for the resolution of their suffering. They longed for the One who would rescue them from condemnation. They looked ahead, with faith-filled hope, to that which was not yet seen but was sure to come.

And it did – He did. The promise was fulfilled when Christ arrived and began the life that would lead to death – a death that would ultimately purchase life eternal.

He did come. But He did not come quickly – that is, not in human terms. God’s people had yearned for Jesus for centuries! They clung to this one hope for all that time, and it did come…but it had not yet come in full.

We, the modern-day people of God, are still in waiting. We have received the gift of the Christ-child and the freedom He purchased for us on Calvary, but we have not yet reached the day of His final arrival – that which will end all suffering for all God’s children for all time. The advent of Christ has come once, but it has yet to come again.

And so, as Christmas begins to come into view, we settle into a time of anticipation – of Advent Hope. We acknowledge that those who came before us pined for the hope of the Messiah. They believed against all oppression and silence that their Savior would come as God had promised.

And we who wait for the return of Christ cling to the very same hope. We who belong to Jesus trust that our ultimate freedom will be accomplished, our ultimate rest will come upon us, and our ultimate desire will be fulfilled. This hope – though on some days filled with difficulty – is a sturdy and trustworthy one upon which we can surely rely.

So, for today, we sing with patient, yearning, hope: Come Thou long expected Jesus.

Consider these questions today:

1. What has been the longest or most difficult season of waiting in your life thus far?
2. In the midst of that waiting, how did you experience hope?
3. What would it look like to embrace both longing and hope this December as you look to the birth of Christ and His ultimate return?