Advent 2 - Prepare the Royal Highway

2 God’s people, see Him coming: Your own eternal king! Palm branches strew before Him! Spread garments! Shout and sing! God’s promise will not fail you! No more shall doubt assail you! Hosanna to the Lord, For He fulfills God’s Word!

In the last devotion we saw John the Baptist command anyone who would listen to prepare the royal highway for the coming Savior. We also saw that John wasn’t being literal, they didn’t get to work on straightening out curved paths and lowering and raising dips and hills. Instead, they worked on getting the path to their hearts open so that the Holy Spirit could come in. But John the Baptist wasn’t too far off the mark because some time later their king did come and was given a king’s welcome. Matthew tells us in chapter 21:

“₁As they approached Jerusalem and came to Bethphage on the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two disciples, ₂saying to them, "Go to the village ahead of you, and at once you will find a donkey tied there, with her colt by her. Untie them and bring them to me. ₃If anyone says anything to you, tell him that the Lord needs them, and he will send them right away." ₄This took place to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet: ₅"Say to the Daughter of Zion, 'See, your king comes to you, gentle and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.'" ₆The disciples went and did as Jesus had instructed them. ₇They brought the donkey and the colt, placed their cloaks on them, and Jesus sat on them. ₈A very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road, while others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. ₉The crowds that went ahead of him and those that followed shouted, "Hosanna to the Son of David!" "Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!" "Hosanna in the highest!"”

Well of course Jesus would get a king’s entrance, you think to yourself, people pay thousands of dollars on eBay for a chip that has His likeness. Look at the fanfare for the Pope even. Despite those facts and the fact that Jesus would become the capstone the builders rejected there is a very important takeaway here. Verse 4, “This took place to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet:” The hymn we’re using as a study for this Advent season makes the same point, “God’s promise will not fail you! No more shall doubt assail you! Hosanna to the Lord, For He fulfills God’s Word!”

Why is it that we Christians celebrate Christmas? Jesus doesn’t really do anything that important on that night in the manger. In fact Jesus was already in the flesh for about nine months. We celebrate it because Christmas is the fulfillment of God’s promise to every Old Testament believer. Jesus descended from Adam and Eve, Abraham and David. The world was in sin and nothing could be done. They needed animal sacrifices to help pay for the blood that was required of them, but even still, that wasn’t enough. They still needed a Savior, an unblemished lamb that could pay for all of their sin with His innocent blood.

Jesus was that Savior and Him entering Jerusalem on a donkey was just another checkmark on the list of God’s unbreakable promises to His people. I will send my Son. He will come from David’s line. He will come riding on a donkey. You will prepare that royal highway for the King of Kings and He will be your perfect sacrifice and He was. That’s what He did less than a week a later. And on that week anniversary He raised Himself from the dead to show He had defeated death, not just physical death but spiritual death meaning eternal separation from Him.

Christmas is the fulfillment of God’s promise to us as well. Jesus said I will be an intermediate to My Father. Whoever sees Me sees the Father. Jesus said that through Him our sins are forgiven and that we can put our burdens on Him and He will take our sorrow and suffering. Jesus told us He will command His angels to protect us. That He will be our perfect judge and also the one to pay for our punishment. Jesus promises us a place at His Father’s house and we will be with Him in Heaven when we die and that on the last day we will be with Him, in the flesh on a new planet without harsh winters or wildfires, with no more sin, no more pain, exhaustion, hunger or wants. We will be there with Him eternally.

We know through Christmas that God fulfills His Word. We know His promises are infallible which is why we look back to Christmas. When we see Christ coming in the flesh and from that moment on fulfilling every prophecy, we know we can look to His promises of taking our burdens and be comforted. We know He is waiting for us at the end of every earthly struggle. We can look at His earthly ministry and prophecy fulfillment and know He will come again and that we will be eternally perfect. We can find that same comfort for Christians that have been called home before us. We know that through that Christmas promise that when we’re baptized we’re washed free of sin and reborn through the Holy Spirit. We know that through Christmas that when we partake in the Lord’s Supper that He is there in body and blood. Christmas is the season of promises answered. Take comfort and praise the Lord!