Issue link: http://denverseminary.uberflip.com/i/1056515
16 22 Living Between the Advents Briana Bailey, MDiv Alumna A s modern-day Christians, we live in between the times. In Christian lingo, this is often described as the "already-and-not-yet kingdom of God." In less- common terms, we are living "in between the Advents." We know that Christ has come (in the first Advent), Christ has died, Christ is risen, and Christ will come again (in the second Advent). Let us not forget the gravity of what it means to live as new-covenant believers in between the Advents. is is a unique privilege and a distinct challenge. We have the privilege of approaching Christ's throne of grace with confidence because of the certainty that His character and His sacrifice gave to the world. What a unique privilege we have! Let us celebrate our confidence in Christ, which allows us to bypass all other mediators and go directly into the presence of the Son of God, who willingly incarnated Himself on our behalf. e challenge we face living between the Advents is to not allow our privilege to leave us comfortable or complacent in the present, to not let our comfortable lifestyles manifest spiritual complacency. Rather, the certainty we have in Christ should cultivate a posture of persistent, redemptive expectancy. According to Hebrews, this posture must be faith-rooted (Heb. 2:14), hope-anchored (6:19), love-driven (10:24–25), and joy-filled (12:1–2). Can you imagine how our wanting world might receive the good news of Christ if each of us, as part of His body, would embody faith, hope, love, and joy? Can you imagine how the kingdom might come to fuller fruition if we lived in between the Advents with a posture of redemptive expectancy? Let us collectively and individually cultivate this posture "all the more as you see the Day approaching" (Heb. 10:23). " THEREFORE, SINCE WE HAVE A GREAT HIGH PRIEST WHO HAS ASCENDED INTO HEAVEN, JESUS THE SON OF GOD, LET US HOLD FIRMLY TO THE FAITH WE PROFESS. FOR WE DO NOT HAVE A HIGH PRIEST WHO IS UNABLE TO EMPATHIZE WITH OUR WEAKNESSES, BUT WE HAVE ONE WHO HAS BEEN TEMPTED IN EVERY WAY, JUST AS WE ARE—YET HE DID NOT SIN. LET US THEN APPROACH GOD'S THRONE OF GRACE WITH CONFIDENCE, SO THAT WE MAY RECEIVE MERCY AND FIND GRACE TO HELP US IN OUR TIME OF NEED." - HEBREWS 4:14-16 11 December