This devotional is based on Revelation 22:12-21, which you can read here.
At the very end of the Bible, starting in chapter 21 of the Revelation to John, we find a picture of what it will be like when Christ comes again—a picture of the new heaven and new earth (see 21:1ff).
Toward the end of that picture, in some of the very last verses in all the Bible, we hear this invitation:
The Spirit and the bride say, “Come.”
And let everyone who hears say, “Come.”
And let everyone who is thirsty come.
Let anyone who wishes take the water of life as a gift.
Revelation 22:17
As we finish up these devotions and finish up our time in Advent, this seems like a fitting conclusion.
It’s an invitation—an invitation from the Spirit and the bride; i.e., from God and his people.
It’s an invitation to come—both to pursue and to receive.
It’s an invitation for everyone—including you.
It’s an invitation for everyone who hears the call—have you heard God calling you this Advent?
It’s an invitation for everyone who is thirsty—has your thirst been growing?
And for me, this is the most powerful word—It’s an invitation for those who wish.
It’s the Greek word thélō, meaning “to desire” or “to wish.” In our present state of waiting, waiting for Christ’s second arrival, what do you desire? What do you wish for?
I hope and pray that you desire for his Kingdom to come and wish for all things to be made new.
I believe that while we wait, we crave and thirst for those things. As we cultivate the desire for those things, we receive the water of life as a gift. Christ’s life surges through our veins, occupies our heart, and shapes our behavior. We then occupy the in-between space—the space in between his first and second arrival—as emissaries of His Kingdom, as people who bear his likeness, as those who desire, wish, and thirst for the most aspirational goods this universe has to offer.
As you celebrate this Christmas, may you hear the Spirit and the bride say “Come!” May you take the water of life as a gift. And may all your God-given wishes come true.
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