Strengthen the feeble hands, steady the knees that give way; say to those with fearful hearts, “Be strong, do not fear; your God will come, he will come with vengeance; with divine retribution he will come to save you.” ~ Isaiah 35:3-4 ~
Dear saints and ambassadors of God’s kingdom,
The season of Advent in 2025 starts on 30 November and leads up to Christmas Day on 25 December. Advent comes from the Latin word adventus which means “coming” or “arrival”. Advent is a season of preparation for the coming of Christ – both looking back and celebrating the first coming of Christ (which we celebrate on Christmas Day) and looking forward to welcoming the second coming of Christ. The seasons of Advent-Christmas is one of the ways that the church bears witness that just as certainly Jesus the Christ came being born into this world in the flesh, has died, and is risen, Christ will certainly come again.
How we long for Christ’s return! At the time of writing this letter, wars and civil wars continue in Ukraine, Myanmar, and other parts of the world. While a ceasefire deal was reached for Gaza, the road to peace and the rebuilding of homes and lives remain tenuous and tentative, and the people in Gaza continue to suffer famine with inadequate aid reaching them. People in low-lying island nations are suffering loss of land, homes and industries due to rising sea levels and floods attributed to climate change. Close to home, the young are surveyed to be anxious about the outlook of their futures; some adults are facing crisis at work; there are families grappling with loss, or a critical or terminal illness, or struggling to make ends meet. Even in Singapore, many live in poverty and loneliness. Infected with sin, the world has gone so far from the good that God had pronounced it to be at the beginning.
It was into such a sin-sick cursed world that God sent his Son as the promised Christ, and he was given “the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.” (Matt 1:21) And Jesus went about proclaiming the good news of the kingdom of God, calling people to repentance with forgiveness, healing every disease and sickness among the people, restoring dignity to the despised, feeding the hungry, stilling the storms, giving hope to the hopeless and help to the helpless. With his death and resurrection, Jesus paid the ransom in full for the salvation of the world and demonstrated God’s power over sin and death to make all things new – to make a new creation. The work of salvation that Jesus came to do in his first coming will see its fulfilment when he comes a second time. On that day, there will be a new heavens and earth where the curse of sin will be no more and the wicked will not enter – there will be no more injustice, violence and wars; there will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain; it will be a world of righteousness, peace and joy, of beauty, safety and prosperity. How we long for Christ’s return!
Until that day, let us be bearers of the gift of the light of Christ to a world in need of salvation. As a people of faith, hope and love, let us remember those who need hope and help and shine on their darkness the light of Christ, giving them hope and help, with prayers, words and deeds. In this Advent-Christmas season, let us make room not only for the joyful, but also for the mournful; and let us make room for Christ. Let us do so together in the Advent-Christmas seasons as a family of God through the opportunities for worship, fellowship, offerings and service that you will find listed in this letter.
Let us together be a people eager and ready for Christ’s coming, helping others to know that just as God has promised, Jesus had come and will come again to save them.
Come, Lord Jesus!
Rev Poh Zhi-Hui,
Pastor-in-Charge
Rev Anthony Phua,
Pastor
