Advent is our season of waiting and expectation for the coming of Jesus. We anticipate again the birth of the Christ-child at the same time as we look for his return in glory. The readings for the first Sunday of Advent, which we read last week, most explicitly call to mind Jesus coming into the world again. Reading several verses from late in the Gospel of Luke, we heard Jesus’ vision of the future, a future when the Human One would come in power and splendor.
This week, we turn primarily to the early chapters of Luke as we consider the initial coming of Jesus and all that would mean for the world. Even so, you may have noticed that Jesus doesn’t even get an explicit mention this week. As we consider the theme of peace, our focus is actually on Jesus’ cousin, John (see Malachi 3:1-4; Luke 1:68-79; Luke 3:1-6).