O that birth forever blessed,
when a virgin, full of grace,
by the Holy Ghost conceiving,
bore the Savior of our race;
and the Babe, the world’s Redeemer,
first revealed His sacred face,
evermore and evermore!
This is He whom heav'n-taught singers
sang of old with one accord,
whom the Scriptures of the prophets
promised in their faithful word;
now He shines, the long-expected;
let creation praise its Lord,
evermore and evermore!
Corde Natus Ex Parentis (Divinum Mysterium)
The word Advent comes from the Latin, adventus, which means "coming." While most of the time we think of the Incarnation, or the coming of God in flesh (Emmanuel), Advent also centers around the returning of Jesus in Glory. There are two signs of Immanuel: the virgin who conceived by the Spirit and gave birth in a Bethlehem barn and the soon and coming King who will restore justice for the world (Isaiah 7, 9 and Psalm 110; Zechariah 10, 12; Daniel 7) . Both "comings" of Messiah are prophesied throughout the Bible, in both the Old and New Testaments. But why are there two?
For this answer, it's important to go back to Genesis chapters 1-3. In chapter 1, God creates everything, including humans. "God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them" (Genesis 1:27). Genesis 2 offers deeper insight into the creation of two particular humans, Adam and Eve. Interestingly, God spoke everything into existence except Adam and Eve. God made Adam from dust and then "breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living creature" (Genesis 2:7). God made Eve from one of Adam's ribs in the first known surgery. Eve was the perfect complement to Adam and they lived peacefully with God in the Garden.
Genesis 3 is when things start to fall apart. There's a line that often gets overlooked in the chaos of the serpent and the finger-pointing: "They heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden…(Genesis 3:8). We don't know how long Adam and Eve worked the garden before the serpent introduced chaos, but if God was walking around the garden, it's reasonable to deduce that God spent time personally with Adam and Eve. When the foolish couple chose to taste the fruit, they willingly and willfully placed their own desires above their relationship with the Creator. And to this day, every human ever born has preferred self over God.
The Creator, by giving people the capacity to choose rebellion over obedience, has to remain separate. His holiness is too great to be in the presence of sin. Intercessors are necessary and under the Old Covenant, priests filled that role. But the sacrifices and offerings brought by the priests were insufficient because the offering could not change the heart and nature of humanity, which always defaults to self. A greater priest and a perfect sacrifice were required to bridge the gap between man and God for good. The Incarnation, or God-with-Us (Emmanuel/Yeshua) introduces that greater priest and perfect sacrifice. Without Jesus as the Great High Priest, we remain lost in sin, unable to do enough to earn salvation.
When Jesus told Nicodemus that "God so loved the world," Nicodemus was rightly confused (John 3). His whole worldview demanded a sacrifice for sin, and judgment for the wicked. For Nicodemus, without the rites of the temple, humanity was condemned to death. Jesus, the Great High Priest, gently taught Nicodemus what the scriptures really required: a perfect sacrifice, once and for all. Later, the author of the letter to the Hebrews explained the Incarnation and its purpose:
Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world. He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, having become as much superior to angels as the name he has inherited is more excellent than theirs (Hebrews 1:1-4).
Jesus is the Great High Priest, a role that only a human being could hold. His compassion is grounded in human experience and his love is made manifest by his suffering for our salvation.
In the days of his flesh, Jesus[a] offered up prayers and supplications, with loud cries and tears, to him who was able to save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverence. Although he was a son, he learned obedience through what he suffered. And being made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation to all who obey him (Hebrews 5).
He came once as priest, reconciling us to the Creator and making intercession on our behalf, not just for a few short years on earth, but eternally (Hebrews 7:18-28). Next he will come as King, a warrior who will right all wrongs, administer true justice, and rule forever. Malachi said that "the day is coming, burning like an oven, when all the arrogant and evildoers will be stubble" (Malachi 4:1). Zechariah prophesied that the Lord will stand on the Mount of Olives as it splits in two (Zechariah 14:4). Daniel saw a vision of "One like the Son of Man, coming with clouds of heaven" (Daniel 7:13) and Enoch saw him with "Ten thousands of His saints to execute judgment on all" (Jude 1:14).
We understand the idea of a priest. Many religious traditions have an office of priest that offers mediation through teaching of the Word and the Sacraments. The Bible speaks of a "priesthood of believers (1 Peter 2:9) that allow any Christian to proclaim the name of Jesus to anyone who will hear. We see Jesus reflected in these priestly people. What we don't see is the eternal glory made manifest. That visage comes with the second Coming of Jesus on the Day of the Lord. Jesus himself told the disciples what to expect on that day, but they did not understand (Matthew 24). How could they? Their understanding was from their knowledge of the Hebrew scriptures, and the idea that Jesus was more and better than anything they knew was just beginning to dawn on them. They didn't full understand until after Pentecost that Jesus was fully human and fully God, the Son of Man and the One coming in glory and majesty. Jesus's return will be a dazzling display of light, power, and justice.
The second Advent will be terrifying and wonderful all at once. Jesus as King will be introduced by a loud voice saying, "Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God" (Revelation 21). The skies will burst open with majesty, not destruction as with the Flood. He will have complete dominion and glory and kingdom and every living person will serve him, not from compulsion, but by choice (Daniel 7, Philippians 2). There will be peace at last. As in the garden of Eden, God will literally walk with us and interact with us. Jesus, the High Priest and High King is also brother and friend.
Two signs, the virgin who conceived the Baby and the transcendence sign in the sky as the King, together they speak of waiting and fulfillment of the promises of the Creator and Redeemer. God's love manifested in Jesus, who died for us, so that we can again walk with the Creator. The next Advent lies ahead, and oh, what a day that will be!
Resources
The Incarnation of the Son of God | Bible.org
Why call Anglican pastors, priests?