During Advent, we join churches around the world and throughout history by lighting the Advent Candles. Each candle reminds us of the Gift of Grace we receive in Christ Jesus. Tonight, we celebrate all of those gifts as we remember

Jesus’ first coming into the world and as we look forward with hope to His promised return.

We begin with the Candle of Hope. Hope is a gift God has always given his people—a gift that reminds us that no matter our present circumstances, our future is secure in him.

To Adam and Eve, God promised that the serpent would be crushed

To Abraham, God promised descendants as numerous as the stars, born from a barren womb.

And through the prophets, God spoke a powerful word of hope—that a Savior King would come to rescue his people from sin and make all things new. Here God’s words from the prophet Micah:

He will stand and shepherd His flock
In the strength and majesty of the Lord,
And they will live securely.
His greatness will fill the earth,
And He will be our peace.”

–Micah 5:2, 4, 5a

Friends, Proverbs 30:5 reminds us that every word of God proves true—and he is a shield to all who take refuge in him.

God’s promises to send a Savior have been fulfilled in Jesus. Like Bartimaeus, crying out in hope by the roadside, we trust that Jesus still hears, still stops, and still brings salvation. Because of him, we have hope—and so we sing.

Now we come to the Candle of Peace. In Scripture, peace—or Shalom—is more than the absence of conflict. It is the presence of wholeness, completeness, and restoration. Nothing is missing. Nothing is broken beyond repair.

Jesus’ arrival marks the beginning of true shalom with God. Through his cross and resurrection, he makes a way for us to be made whole—even as we wait for his kingdom to come in fullness.

And yet, many of us feel the tension of living in between.

Do you come tonight grieving loss? Carrying unanswered prayers? Feeling the weight of unfulfilled dreams or deep weariness?

Imagine Mary—young, vulnerable, and far from home. Forced by a census to travel to Bethlehem. No room to stay. Labor pains beginning on a cold stone floor.

Months earlier she said, “Let it be to me according to Your word.”But I imagine that night she may have prayed, “God, are You sure?”

This is where lament lives—the space between promise and fulfillment. As Pastor Jamaal often reminds us, lament is a prayer we pray in the middle of our pain that leads us back to hope in God.

Like the blind man crying out on the roadside, we lift our voices—not because we see clearly, but because we believe Jesus is near.

This song is our prayer of lament.

Now we come to the Candle of Joy. Though Jesus was born in humble circumstances, heaven and earth could not remain silent. Angels sang. A star appeared. Creation itself rejoiced.

Matthew’s gospel tells us that wise men followed the star to worship the newborn King. When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy.

Like the wise men—and like the blind man whose eyes were opened—joy overflows into worship. Let us pray together.

Jesus, You are the star that guides my way.
Jesus, You are the lamp that lights my path.
Jesus, You are the source of all my joy,
And I worship You with the gift of my whole life.

We now light the Candle of Love. The love of the Father sent Jesus down from heaven to earth.
The love of Jesus carried him to the cross.
The love of the Holy Spirit transforms us into God’s children and forms us into a family for one another.
Let us embody that love now as we pass the peace of Christ.

It’s now time for us to light the last advent candle—and it’s the light of Christ. Today, all over the world, Christians will remember the birth of Jesus, lighting candles to remember that the true Light came into the world at Christmas.
So now as we do this together:
Remember the light that came to the world long ago.
Remember when that light entered into your own life.
Remember that we’re called to announce it to the world,
And remember that he will come again.