Now listen, Joshua the high priest, you and your friends who are sitting in front of you-indeed they are men who are a symbol, for behold, I am going to bring in My servant the Branch. For behold, the stone that I have set before Joshua; on one stone are seven eyes. Behold, I will engrave an inscription on it,' declares the LORD of hosts, 'and I will remove the iniquity of that land in one day. 'In that day,' declares the LORD of hosts, 'every one of you will invite his neighbor to sit under his vine and under his fig tree.'" Zechariah 3.8-10

The prophet here gives us much in the way of symbolism here in this passage. He speaks of the priesthood being a symbol. He also speaks of a branch and a stone, as well as eyes. Indeed, throughout the Old Testament, there are many things that point to future events that come to fruition only in the era of Jesus' earthly ministry, and that of the church. Symbolism is often used to paint a picture of greater things to come.

Rather than attempt to deep dive into all of this, let's pause for a moment and look at the stone in this passage. In Zechariah's day, the city of Jerusalem had been laid low, many of the people had been taken into captivity, and the temple had been demolished. Zechariah paints this image for us of a temple mount covered in rubble, and yet in the middle of it all lay a stone. The stone has seven eyes upon it, symbolic of God's everlasting watchfulness.

The stone is also described by the prophet Isaiah (28.16) as a stone that had been tried and tested, a precious cornerstone. Such a stone is a sure foundation around which we can wrap our lives. The stone refers of course to Jesus.

For many of us, the season of Advent is a time of business as well as busy-ness. We skim past the churchy type stuff so that we can get to the part that most demands our attention. We get tied up with Christmas parties, family events, and shopping. We make ourselves busy with the wrapping of presents and the putting up of decorations.

The reality of Advent, however, is clear. Advent is not about Santa. Advent is about the Savior. As we look again at the picture that Zechariah has painted for us; a picture of a rubble strewn landscape, let's shift our focus to the rubble strewn mess that we have made in our own lives. For those who have not yet met Jesus, Advent is a chance to build a new life around the Stone, the Rock of our salvation. For those of us who may have drifted away a bit, it's a time to get our foundation fixed. Let us all use this Advent opportunity to do what we should do each day - focus on Jesus, and give Him all the glory.

Weekly Memory Verse: The heavens are telling of the glory of God; and their expanse is declaring the work of His hands. Psalm 19.1