Scripture Readings for Advent,1
Twelve Days of Christmas, and Epiphany
The Magi Guided by the Star
When they heard the king, they departed; and behold, the star which they had seen in the
East went before them, till it came and stood over where the young Child was.
—Matthew 2:9
The Meaning of ‘Advent’, ‘Christmas’, and ‘Epiphany’
Christians throughout history have celebrated Advent, Christmas and Epiphany as a six-week celebration. Like the seasons of the year in nature, the season of the church (“ecclesiastical”) calendar and the national calendar come full circle. This is only appropriate since: “For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him. 17And He is before all things, and in Him all things consist. 18And He is the head of the body, the church, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in all things He may have the preeminence” (Col. 1:16-18). These are seasons of annual focus for Christians. Much in our commercialized version of Christmas distracts us from paying attention to Jesus. During the Advent season, Christians are encouraged to center our lives on the true message of Advent, Christmas and Epiphany. These are central events in the life of Christ and human history. God became a man to rescue His people. This is why we celebrate.
Advent is that period of great anticipatory joy—it is a time of preparation for the celebration of Jesus’ arrival in Bethlehem as a helpless infant. In the Western liturgy, Advent begins four Sundays prior to December 25th—the Sunday closest to November 30. The annual commemoration of Jesus’ birth begins the Christmas cycle of the liturgical year—a cycle that runs from Christmas Eve to the Sunday after the feast of the Epiphany.
The four weeks of Advent have come to symbolize aspects or images of Christ's coming. Traditionally, the first week remembers the prophecies of Jeremiah and the other Old Testament prophets concerning the coming Messiah. The second week remembers John the Baptist, the immediate herald of the Messiah. These first two weeks also suggest the coming judgment that God was bringing through the ministry of Christ. Christ, the Messiah and chief of the Prophets, called people to repentance for their sin. Therefore, these weeks are a time of fasting and penitence. The third week focuses on the joy of the season as Advent is half finished and moves closer to Christ's coming. Finally, week four remembers Mary for her humility and willing obedience to the will of God. Because Christmas falls on a different day of the week each year, the fourth week of Advent is never really finished; it is abruptly, joyously, and ended by the annual coming again of Jesus at Christmas.
As we celebrate Christmas, few of us think of Christmas Day as a beginning. For most families Christmas is the end of weeks of planning, shopping, and activity. Many are unaware that Christmas is actually the first day of “twelve-days” of Christmas.
Ever since the Council of Tours met in 567 and proclaimed the twelve days from Christmas to Epiphany as a sacred time, the Church officially observed both an Advent season in preparation for, and a Christmas season for the celebration of our Lord’s nativity. Recognizing how the Church year dramatizes the biblical story of what Christ has done for the salvation of all people, we are trying to recover some of the richness of these celebrations. The church year forms an annual curriculum that tells the story of Christianity; they tell the basic story of the Christian gospel.
The Christian calendar is a great way for families to pay attention to the biggest reality of our lives. Repeated traditions (as the Bible teaches) help us remember who we are and develop our identity as God’s covenant people. And celebrating these themes and the realities of Jesus Christ helps Christian families express their faith.
The twelve days of Christmas traditionally end with the celebration of the eve of Epiphany on Twelfth Night, January fifth. Broadly speaking, the word “epiphany” means a sudden revelation of the meaning of something or a grasp of the reality through a sudden realization. In the context of the Christian Church, Epiphany has a more specific reference: it celebrates the revelation of Jesus’ divine nature to the Gentiles as represented by the Magi. The feast of Epiphany is observed on January sixth, twelve days after Christmas.
December 1 Genesis 3:1-20 Seed of Eve
December 2 Genesis 22:1-18 Only Beloved Son and Sacrifice
December 3 Genesis 48: 15-16; 49:8-10 Lion of Judah
December 4 Numbers 23:18-24; 24:3-9; 15-19 Star of Jacob
December 5 Deuteronomy 18:14-22 Prophet Like Moses
December 6 Samuel 7:1-17 Son of David
December 7 Psalm 2 Messiah: Son of God and King
December 8 Psalm 16; Job 19:23-27 Holy One and Resurrected Redeemer
December 9 Psalm 22 The One Forsaken by God
December 10 Psalm 72 Royal Son, Deliverer of the Afflicted
December 11 Psalm 110 Priest and Lord at God’s Right Hand
December 12 Isaiah 7:14; 9:1-7 Immanuel, Mighty God, Prince Peace
December 13 Isaiah 11:1-10 Branch from Jesse’s Roots
December 14 Isaiah 42:1-10 Covenant and Light to the Nations
December 15 Isaiah 49:1-7; 50:4-11 Servant of Kings, Sustainer of Weary
December 16 Isaiah 52:13-53:11 Suffering Servant, and Lamb of God
December 17 Jeremiah 23:1-6; 33:14-18 The Righteous Branch
December 18 Ezekiel 34:1-31 The Good Shepherd
December 19 Daniel 7:9-14; Micah 5:2-5 Son of Man; Ruler from Bethlehem
December 20 Zechariah 9:9-10; 12:10-13:1 King on a Donkey; Pierced Firstborn
December 21 Malachi 3:1-4; 4:1-6 Covenant Messenger; Righteousness
December 22 Luke 1:5-38 Son of the Most High
December 23 Luke 1:39-80 Tender Mercy of God
December 24 Matthew 1:18-25; John 1:1-14 Savior from Sin; Word made flesh
Lord’s Day Five
12. Since, then, by the righteous judgment of God, we deserve temporal and eternal punishment, how may we escape this punishment and be again received into favor?
God wills that His justice be satisfied; therefore, we must make full satisfaction to that justice, either by ourselves, or by another.
13. Can we ourselves make this satisfaction (or payment)?
Certainly not; on the contrary, we daily increase our guilt.
14. Can any mere creature make satisfaction (or payment) for us?
None; for first, God will not punish any other creature for the sin which man committed; and further, no mere creature can sustain the burden of God’s eternal wrath against sin and redeem others from it.
15. What kind of mediator and redeemer, then, must we seek?
One who is a true and righteous man, and yet more powerful than all creatures, that is, one who is also true God.
Lord’s Day Six
16. Why must He (our redeemer) be a “true and righteous” man?
Because the justice of God requires that the same human nature which has sinned should make satisfaction for sin; but one who is himself a sinner cannot satisfy for others.
17. Why must He (our redeemer) also be true God?
That by the power of His Godhead He might bear in His manhood the burden of God’s wrath, and so obtain for and restore to us righteousness and life.
18. But who is that Mediator, who in one person is true God and also a true and righteous man?
Our Lord Jesus Christ, who is freely given unto us for complete redemption and righteousness.
19. From where do you know this?
From the Holy Gospel, which God Himself first revealed in Paradise, afterward proclaimed by the holy Patriarchs and Prophets, and foreshadowed by the sacrifices and other ceremonies of the law, and finally fulfilled by His well-beloved Son.
