Visiting Advent and Hanukkah along Our Journey of Faith
As the seasons turn and we embrace the spirit of celebration, both Advent and Hanukkah invite us to reflect on the profound journeys of hope and renewal within our faith.
These deeply rooted traditions not only commemorate significant historical events but also illuminate the light of our Savior, Yeshua/Jesus, who brings love and joy into our lives. In a world often filled with uncertainty, the practices of lighting candles and sharing stories remind us to cherish the blessings of family and the enduring promises of God. Together, we embark on a meaningful journey, blending the rich heritages of Christianity and Judaism while discovering the true essence of light that shines brightly in our hearts.
Both Advent and Hanukkah are celebrations that remind us of past events intended to offer hope for the future. As followers of the Lord Jesus Christ, believing Him to be Messiah, our heritage allows us to draw from both Christian and Jewish traditions.
Advent reminds us that God sent His Son on our behalf. Remembering God’s faithfulness to fulfill His word, keeps our hope alive that Christ will one day return. Hanukkah reminds me of God’s promise in Isaiah 42
BEHOLD MY Servant, Whom I uphold, My elect in Whom My soul delights! I have put My Spirit upon Him; He will bring forth justice and right and reveal truth to the nations. He will not cry or shout aloud or cause His voice to be heard in the street. A bruised reed He will not break, and a dimly burning wick He will not quench; He will bring forth justice in truth. He will not fail or become weak or be crushed and discouraged till He has established justice in the earth; and the islands and coastal regions shall wait hopefully for Him and expect His direction and law. Thus says God the Lord—He Who created the heavens and stretched them forth, He Who spread abroad the earth and that which comes out of it, He Who gives breath to the people on it and spirit to those who walk in it: I the Lord have called You [the Messiah] for a righteous purpose and in righteousness; I will take You by the hand and will keep You; I will give You for a covenant to the people [Israel], for a light to the nations [Gentiles], To open the eyes of the blind, to bring out prisoners from the dungeon, and those who sit in darkness from the prison. I am the Lord; that is My name! And My glory I will not give to another, nor My praise to graven images. [Isaiah 42:1-8 AMP]
Advent
We light candles beginning the fourth Sunday before Christmas. Each Sunday another candle is lit. Advent is the season in which we remember the birth of Christ.
I remember as a kid, my mother always bought an advent calendar. My brother, sister and I would take turns open the door to see what goodie was inside.
Until I was about twelve, we attended the Catholic church with my Grandfather. It was a wonderful sight. Stepping inside was an almost transcendent experience. The air was filled with incense, the nave was typically decorated with special lights and garland. On a table near the altar were the purple and pink advent candles. It almost felt magical, you know, the way Christmas does for a child. I loved it. I love symbolism.
These time honored traditions are rich with symbolism. They visually reminder us of the sacredness of the season.
While Santa doesn’t offend me, the holiday season for me is a sacred. I like that Santa stands is a kind of universal symbol for generosity, kindness and that all things are possible. But Jesus is the Savior. This is a holy season. It’s a reminder that ‘God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.’ [John 3:16]
The Advent Wreath
The candlelight of the Advent wreath radiates a joyful symbolism, illuminating the journey leading up to Christmas with warmth and hope! An Advent wreath is typically crafted from evergreen branches and contains four candles, each representing a week of Advent.
The different types of evergreens in the wreath also carry symbolic meanings. Laurel symbolizes victory over suffering and persecution, while pine, holly, and yew signify immortality. Cedar represents strength and healing, and the decorative pine cones symbolize life and resurrection.
The candles adorning the Advent wreath symbolize the light of Christ coming into the world. One candle is lit each Sunday, starting with the fourth Sunday before Christmas.
Each of the four candles on the Advent wreath holds specific names and meanings:
- Hope (Prophet’s Candle) – This candle signifies hope and anticipation for Christ’s arrival.
- Peace (Bethlehem Candle) – Symbolizing peace and preparation, this candle reflects the peace Jesus brings to the world.
- Joy (Shepherd’s Candle) – (this candle is pink) This candle embodies joy and celebration at Jesus’ birth, as well as the joy found in the expectation of His return.
- Love (Angel’s Candle) – This candle represents love, reminding us of God’s love for all humanity.
Some include a fifth candle, typically white, known as the Christ Candle, which is lit on Christmas morning to signify the birth of Jesus and the light of salvation He brings to the world.
Advent reminds us of the birth of our Savior. Hanukkah reminds us of an event that happened two hundred years before Christ and yet gives us hope of God’s continual providence over our lives today.
Hanukkah
Hanukkah commemorates the rededication of the Second Temple in Jerusalem after being desecrated by the Seleucid king of the Hellenistic Syrian kingdom, Antiochus IV Epiphanies. He claimed to be Zeus incarnate.
It can be a challenge to explain Hanukkah without giving at least a small history lesson. The story of Hanukkah is about the rededication of the Second Temple in Jerusalem in the 2nd century BC. The holiday commemorates the Maccabees, a small group of Jewish rebells who raised an army and fought against the Seleucid Greek empire to regain control of the Temple and their religious beliefs.
Antiochus prohibited all practices related to the Jewish religion. He forced the Jews to worship Greek deities, and defiled the Temple by making a pig sacrifice to Zeus on its altar.
The basics
The persecution: The Seleucid king Antiochus IV Epiphanes outlawed Jewish practices, desecrated the Temple, and installed an altar to Zeus Olympios.
The rebellion:The Maccabees, led by Mattathias and his son Judas Maccabeus, fought against Antiochus’ forces for three years. They won and reclaimed the Temple.
The rededication: The Maccabees cleansed and restored the Temple, removing the unholy articles dedicated to Zeus and building a new sacrificial altar. Judas Maccabee (The Hammer) proclaimed that the Temple’s rededication should be celebrated every year for eight days.
The miracle: When the Levitical priests first entered the Temple, they found only enough oil to keep the menorah’s flame burning for one night. However, the flame miraculously burned for eight days and eight nights.
The Menorah
The Menorah (seven-lamped candlestick in the Holy Place) is symbolizes God’s manifest presence, the light of God, the seven-fold Spirit of God- wisdom, revelation, knowledge, might, counsel and the fear of the Lord.
It also represents eternal life. All these symbols point to Yeshua/Jesus. The Temple itself is a symbol of us as believers in Yeshua, since we now house the manifest presence of God.
You Are The Temple
Do you not know that you are a temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? [1 Cor. 3:16]
Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; [1 Cor. 6:19]
What agreement is there between the temple of God and idols? For we are the temple of the living God. As God has said: “I will live with them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they will be my people.” [2 Cor. 6:16]
Rededication
The word Hanukkah is Hebrew for “dedication”. The holiday is observed by the lighting of a nine-branched candelabrum, or hanukkiah. Eight candles represent the days the Menorah burned miraculously. The ninth candle, is called the shamash, or servant candle. It is used for lighting the all others. It represents Jesus/Yeshua as the Light of the world that ignites the fire of Holy Spirit within each one of us.
Celebrating Yeshua/Jesus —
Light of the World
Then Jesus again spoke to them, saying, “I am the Light of the world; the one who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life.” [John 8:12 NASB]
In Him was life, and the life was the Light of mankind
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him not even one thing came into being that has come into being. In Him was life, and the life was the Light of mankind. And the Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not grasp it. [John 1:1–5 NASB]
John the Baptist Testified of the Light
Jesus Is the Light of the World
Luke 2:21–32 (CJB)
On the eighth day, when it was time for his b’rit-milah1, he was given the name Yeshua2, which is what the angel had called him before his conception.
When the time came for their purification according to the Torah of Moshe, they took him up to Yerushalayim3 to present him to Adonai (as it is written in the Torah of Adonai, “Every firstborn male is to be consecrated to Adonai”) and also to offer a sacrifice of a pair of doves or two young pigeons, as required by the Torah of Adonai.
There was in Yerushalayim a man named Shim‘on. This man was a tzaddik4, he was devout, he waited eagerly for God to comfort Isra’el, and the Ruach HaKodesh5 was upon him. It had been revealed to him by the Ruach HaKodesh that he would not die before he had seen the Messiah of Adonai. Prompted by the Spirit, he went into the Temple courts; and when the parents brought in the child Yeshua to do for him what the Torah required, Shim‘on took him in his arms, made a b’rakhah6 to God, and said,
“Now, Adonai, according to your word, your servant is at peace as you let him go; for I have seen with my own eyes your yeshu‘ah7, which you prepared in the presence of all peoples— a light that will bring revelation to the Goyim8 and glory to your people Isra’el.”
John 12:44–50
Now Jesus cried out and said, “The one who believes in Me, does not believe only in Me, but also in Him who sent Me. And the one who sees Me sees Him who sent Me. I have come as Light into the world, so that no one who believes in Me will remain in darkness. If anyone hears My teachings and does not keep them, I do not judge him; for I did not come to judge the world, but to save the world. The one who rejects Me and does not accept My teachings has one who judges him: the word which I spoke. That will judge him on the last day. For I did not speak on My own, but the Father Himself who sent Me has given Me a commandment as to what to say and what to speak. And I know that His commandment is eternal life; therefore the things I speak, I speak just as the Father has told Me.”
You are the Light
“You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden; nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. Your light must shine before people in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven. [Matt. 5:14–16 NASB]
Remembrance
At this is a time of year we are reminded of the birth of our Savior, Yeshua HaMaschiah, Jesus Christ. He came into this world in order to bring us salvation and eternal life. More victorious than the Maccabees who fought against the forces of evil to take back the desecrated Temple, Yeshua triumped over the devil and the grave.
It’s Our Turn
We have now become a living Temple filled with the manifest presence of God.
We are the dwelling place of God Most High.
Let us take during time this week of Hanukkah to come before the Lord in heartfelt prayer as we rededicate our hearts and lives to the Lord Jesus Christ.
Let us celebrate as we testify to the awesomeness and faithfulness of our loving God!
Happy Hanukkah
Blessed are You, Oh, Lord our God, Sovereign of all, who has kept us alive, sustained us, and brought us to this season
- circumcision ↩︎
- Yeshua is Hebrew. Greek version is Jesus ↩︎
- Jerusalem ↩︎
- righteous ↩︎
- Hebrew for Holy Spirit ↩︎
- blessing ↩︎
- Hebrew word for salvation ↩︎
- Gentile nations ↩︎
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