Advent 2025 - Love: Incarnational Solidarity in the Face of Fear
Sunday, December 21 is the fourth and final Sunday of Advent, and this week's theme is LOVE.
Every Advent, the final candle burns for love. Yet like hope, peace, and joy before it, this word too has been tamed. In much of modern Christianity, love has become a sentimental feeling of warmth toward family, affection toward God, or admiration toward others. But biblical love (agapē) is not an emotion; it is a revolution of relationship. It names God’s self-giving solidarity with a wounded world. It is the choice to draw near when fear pushes us toward distance.
Love, in Scripture, is always costly. “Perfect love casts out fear” (1 John 4:18) not because it removes danger, but because it refuses to be ruled by it. It is what moves the Son of God to leave behind the glories of heaven and take on flesh, to eat with outcasts, to touch the unclean, and to die without retaliation at the hands of his enemies (Rom. 5:10). Advent’s final candle burns with this fierce light—the light of love that crosses every line fear draws.
When we light the candle of love, we proclaim the heart of Advent: that Love has taken on flesh, walking among us. Love breaks fear’s spell by joining our weakness, binding our wounds, and calling us friends.
Such love is still the world’s greatest disruption. It overturns hierarchies, dismantles false peace, and invites us into a new humanity shaped by mercy.
Advent love is not the end of the story—it is the beginning of God’s new world.
It is the light that refuses to go out.
SUGGESTED PRACTICE: MAKE ROOM FOR LOVE
Each day this week, look for a simple way to make room for love:
Invite someone in. Ask a new friend to join your game, meal, or activity.
Be kind first. Say something encouraging or forgiving before someone else does.
Stand up gently. If you see someone being teased or ignored, speak kindly and help include them.
Share something you enjoy. A snack, a toy, or a laugh—love grows when we share joy.
At dinner or bedtime, talk about how your family saw love in action that day.
“God of love, thank you for coming close to us. Help us to show your love with our hands, our words, and our lives. Amen.”
Want more?
Our full Advent devotional is available on our website, so you can access it anytime. Get the full devotional here, and feel free to share it.
