With all the holiday traditions, Christmas can bring stress and busyness instead of peace and reflection. But today, that can change! We can choose to keep Christ at the center of Christmas through advent scriptures for reflection.
What Is Advent?
The word “Advent” comes from a Latin word adventus which means “coming.” The early church celebrated the coming (or anticipated birth) of our Savior.
“ All right then, the Lord himself will give you the sign. Look! The virgin will conceive a child! She will give birth to a son and will call him Immanuel (which means ‘God is with us’).” ~ Isaiah 7:14(NLT)
It wasn’t until later on, that the church today not only celebrates the birth of our Savior, but His second coming.
“Look, I am coming soon! Blessed are those who obey the words of prophecy written in this book” ~ Revelation 22:7(NLT)
Advent begins 4 Sundays prior to Christmas. It’s a time for celebration and reflection of the birth of our Savior who gives us; hope, peace, joy and love, while we anticipate His second coming for us.
Christians around the world celebrate advent in different ways each week. For the most part, the common denominator is reflection on scripture, worship, prayer, communion and / or fasting.
There are many aspects of the traditional Advent celebration that represent a wreath, candles and daily scripture reading.
And it’s the daily scripture reading that I want to focus on today.
*There is so much more to the history and how advent is celebrated. If you’re interested, you can read all those details here.
Our Need For Advent Scriptures
A few years ago we released our Christmas Planner – to help you keep Christ and peace in the season. Well, the largest part of keeping Christ in the season, is to reflect on the scriptures.
Traditions are good, and there’s nothing wrong with them. However, God is not looking at how you live out tradition. He is more concerned about your heart.
So whether you participate in “traditional” Advent or not, durning Christmas, we can choose to be in God’s presence. By reading His Word, remembering our need for a Savior, experiencing His joy, His peace and resting our hope in His return for us.
And that is living out scripture.
Advent Is About The Why
If you don’t get anything from this post today, I want you to get this…
Advent is more about the why we celebrate than the how.
Romans 14: 5-6 in the New Living Translation says; “One person considers one day more sacred than another; another considers every day alike. Each of them should be fully convinced in their own mind. 6 Whoever regards one day as special does so to the Lord. Whoever eats meat does so to the Lord, for they give thanks to God; and whoever abstains does so to the Lord and gives thanks to God.”
Reflecting on scripture, and being in the Lord’s presence can be done in numerous ways. You can read your Bible, pray, worship, take communion, fast, attend church services, or even read a devotional.
The important thing is, do whatever the Holy Spirit has led you to do. And for those of you who don’t know where to start, we have a few suggestions to help you.
Advent Devotionals
One of the easiest ways to reflect on the reason for the season is to read an Advent Devotional. There are many to choose from, even for kids! You can place the devotional in a room where the family gathers often to make nightly readings convenient. The Countdown To Christmas is a great option for those with young children.
The 25 Days of Christmas: A Family Devotional to Help You Celebrate Jesus is a great devotion for everybody whether you have children or not. 
The Book of Luke
A few years ago I came accross a suggestion to read a chapter of Luke every day starting December 1st. And since there are 24 chapters, by Christmas Eve you would have read the entire book of Luke knowing who and why we celebrate!
While I love this idea, before diving into it, I did a little research on the Book of Luke. And let’s just say I’m even more excited to do this. This is what I learned.
Luke was not part of the 12 disciples or a theologian. However, he was convicted to write a biography of Jesus Christ and explains this in Luke Chapter 1.
Luke 1:1-4 (NLT); “Many people have set out to write accounts about the events that have been fulfilled among us. 2 They used the eyewitness reports circulating among us from the early disciples. 3 Having carefully investigated everything from the beginning, I also have decided to write an accurate account for you, most honorable Theophilus, 4 so you can be certain of the truth of everything you were taught.”
Luke shows us what human life (man or woman) looks like when we live a life that consistently honors God through Jesus Christ. A man who never sinned, and took dominion over; the earth, the fowls of the air, fish in the sea, storms, and sick bodies.
Instead of forcing people to follow Him, He loved them. As result, they desired to follow Him.
Luke is the only Gospel writer who documented the life of Jesus Christ in chronicle order. Since there are 24 chapters you can read through Jesus’ life in the month of December.
To take your study a step further, use a Bible Color Code along the way and at the end of the month the entire book of Luke would be Bible Color Coded.
If this resonates with your spirit, we created a reflection guide to journal your journey as you read through the Book of Luke. You can download it now from our FREE COMMUNITY LIBRAY.
Download Life of Jesus Reflection Guide from our FREE COMMUNITY LIBRAY
Advent Scriptures For Reflection
For those who prefer a traditional Advent Study, here are some scriptures for reflection during Advent.
Remember these are suggestions – only a guide. You can read one each day, several, or whatever is peaceful for you. These scriptures are also available in a FREE printable that you can download from our FREE COMMUNITY LIBRARY.
Week 1 Advent Scriptures
Our need for a savior: Genesis 3:1-15; Isaiah 40: 1-5; Isaiah 40: 9-11; Dueteromony 18:15-19; Isaiah 52: 7-10; Psalm 89:1-4; Romans 13:11-14
Week 2 Advent Scriptures
Looking forward to the prophecy: Isaiah 11:1-10; Isaiah 7:14; Zachariah 6:12-13; Malachi 3:1-6; Micah 5:2-5; John 1:1-9; John 10:10-18; Mark 1:1-3
Download Advent Scriptures from our FREE COMMUNITY LIBRAY
Week 3 Advent Scriptures
Our Messiah:
Luke 1:1-13; Luke 1:14-17; Luke 1:18-25; Luke 1:39-45; Luke 1:46-56; Luke 1: 57-66; Luke 1:67-80
Week 4 Advent Scriptures
Celebrate our Savior & His Return For Us:
Isaiah 7:10-14; Luke 1:26-35; Isaiah 9:2-7; Matthew 1:18-25; Luke 2:1-20; Matthew 2:1-2; Luke 2: 21-25; Revelation 22:7
In The End
There’s no right or wrong way to reflect on the birth of our Savior and His return for us. The Bible is the living word of God, that comes alive to us in new ways every time we read it.
In order for us to make Jesus the reason for the season, we must purpose to reflect on Him through His Word, worship, prayer, and communion .
We do this, simply because we love Him and anticipate His return for us. So tell me, how will you reflect on Christ this Christmas?
PS…Don’t forget you can download either of the Refection Guides for The Book of Luke, or The Advent Scriptures For Reflection by filling out the form below or accessing our community library.
~ Timberley Gray
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