If the word “advent” means “arrival” whose arrival are we then waiting for? The arrival of the Christmas presents or the arrival or the Christmas baby? Why do we at all spend loads of money for buying all kinds of presents? What's the meaning of all that?

In reality Christmas means something totally different. We are celebrating the birth of the baby in the cradle. Most people enjoy celebrating birthdays, their owns as well as those of others.

A bit more than 2000 years ago in far away Bethlehem a baby had been born, and His birthday we are now celebrating. This is the real reason why Christmas exists.

Who has been this child? Why do we celebrate his birthday still today?

Already hundreds of years before that event the Jewish prophet Isaiah had already announced this event. Among others he wrote this:

So justice is far from us, and righteousness does not reach us. We look for light, but all is darkness; for brightness, but we walk in deep shadows. (Isaiah 59, 9 NIV)

Very often Jesus is being compared with light. What is meant with this is the fact that Jesus is the incarnation of light, justice, truth, honesty, love.

When it is dark we cannot see anything. That is the world of evil, injustice, lies and betrayal.

Where are you situated? Do you remember the story with the camel and the first congregation? There we read that people were saved or should be saved. They were rescued from the world of darkness and evil and were taken into the world of light and truth. What does that mean?