Professor Dan Sharp has prepared a new devotional guide for the coming season of Advent, suitable for use by individuals or families. You can subscribe by visiting this explanatory webpage.
The theology of Advent is tremendously rich, working from the reigning King of kings toward the humble birth of the Incarnate Christ. Advent focuses on the three comings of Christ: his birth as a baby, his coming into the hearts of all who put their trust in him, and his final coming to judge the world and establish his eternal kingdom. The preparatory season of Advent helps put the nativity of Jesus into the context of his death, resurrection, and ascension.
Dr. Sharp’s Advent Devotional, entitled Before the After, runs approximately forty days from Advent through Epiphany. Each day includes an Old Testament prophecy and a New Testament fulfillment of that prophecy, with a brief discussion of the relationship between the two and its implication for our daily living. The devotion is being made available by the First Presbyterian Church of Orlando for free to help people establish a habit of reading and encountering the Lord of Scripture each day. There are also musical links, artwork, and historic prayers for each day; and it simply shows up in your email when you subscribe. By working in both Testaments, the guide attempts to help all of us understand the presence of Christ throughout all of Scripture.