Advent Devotional December 18, 2026

Scripture

John 3:16–21

“For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life.

17 “Indeed, God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world but in order that the world might be saved through him. 18 Those who believe in him are not condemned, but those who do not believe are condemned already because they have not believed in the name of the only Son of God. 19 And this is the judgment, that the light has come into the world, and people loved darkness rather than light because their deeds were evil. 20 For all who do evil hate the light and do not come to the light, so that their deeds may not be exposed. 21 But those who do what is true come to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that their deeds have been done in God.”

Devotion

The Rev. Audra Krise ’10

During Advent, we often concentrate our thoughts on the coming of Baby Jesus, swaddled in cloths and cooing gently to his mother’s murmurs. Advent is also about preparing for the second coming of Christ, when he once again breaks open human consciousness to accept the impossible.

God made flesh. God with us. God loving us unconditionally.

The scripture for today is one of the most famous, and yet it is the verses after the best-known one that hold a profound truth. Light has entered the darkness of the world, and everyone has turned away. Those who commit evil will continue to turn away from Jesus because they fear the judgment of what they’ve done.

But the Light will eradicate the darkness in this world, and as believers, our calling is to keep turning back to Jesus and offering love to everyone. In this time of Advent, of waiting and preparing, let us take a moment to truly reflect on our actions this last year. Where have we allowed the world to dampen our enthusiasm and darken our hearts? What could we have done to prevent it?

God entered the world—not to condemn it, but to save us. This important Scripture provides us with grace and redemption, but it also provides grace to our enemies. Jesus came to save us from our sins, and He came to save our enemies as well.

It’s one of the hardest lessons we must learn as followers of Christ—that the people we disdain are also the beloved children of God. The Light is for everyone who treasures goodness and truth, but the darkness would try to prevent us from offering it to all.

Prayer

Lord of all, during this Advent, help us prepare to accept your Light and offer it to everyone we encounter. In Jesus’s name we pray, amen.

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