It Starts Small

Do you know what the definition of “Advent” is? It was a curious question I asked myself. I was thinking about advent calendars and realized I had no idea what advent meant.

Advent is defined by dictionary.com as, “the arrival of a notable person, thing, or event.” Miriam Webster defines advent as, “The period begins four Sundays before Christmas. Some Christians observe it as a season of prayer and fasting.” The word “Advent” comes from the Latin word adventus, meaning “coming” or “arrival.” This term translates to the Greek word parousia.

Isaiah gives us a sobering account of Israel’s sin and rebellion against the Lord. It gives a strong bold warning to the people of a coming judgment, but along with that warning is HOPE!

At this point, Israel was split into two kingdoms. After the death of Solomon, it split over the heavy taxes imposed by Solomon, tribal jealousy between Judah and Ephraim, military policies that favored Judah and alienated Ephraim, and Solomon’s personal life. Judah had their capitol in Jerusalem. They made up the tribe of Judah and half the Benjamin tribe. They were known as the southern kingdom. The northern kingdom set its capitol in Shechem and comprised the other ten tribes and the rest of the Benjamin tribe. Israel would remain separated for more than 200 years (1 Kings 11:11-13, 29-39)

They regularly fought against each other and in the process, they were not prepared for coming defeat to both kingdoms. While they bickered among themselves, they were defeated by the Assyrians and the Babylonians. The Assyrians capture the north and the Babylonians capture the south. The Babylonians only held the southern kingdom for 70 years. The north was never really let go and remained in captivity.

Isaiah was a prophet who receives a vision from the Lord to warn the people of impending doom. It was a very dark time in Israel. God’s people had turned unfaithful for generations and judgment was coming.

Alongside this judgment, Isaiah had the privilege to speak words of hope. Words of a future hope and a coming Messiah. But there would be a time of waiting. Advent. A time of waiting and hoping between his words and the fulfillment.

That is what makes the book of Isaiah perfect for Advent.

God’s people in Isaiah’s time looked forward to the relief a Messiah would bring.

We look backward and see hope and possibility the Messiah’s coming did bring.

Through Isaiah’s eyes we see:

• We see God mourning that He had to judge
• We see God promise a future for them
• We see God’s compassion
• We see how we live in the NOW and NOT YET

© Kimberlee Smith 2025 http://www.itstartssmall.com All rights reserved.