Three weeks ago I had the privilege of preaching on the first Sunday of Advent at Clover Baptist Church in Clover, VA. You may find the notes for my sermon below. Merry Christmas!
Are we ready for
Hope? Reasons for Hope in Troubling Times: Jeremiah 33:14-16; Luke 21:25-36
Introduction:
Today marks the first Sunday in the Advent season. For those
churches who celebrate by following a liturgical calendar, the
first Sunday of Advent is a time for lighting the first candle on the Advent
wreath and discussing the idea of Hope. The concept of Advent as a season is
established on the idea of expectation and preparation for the celebration of
Christmas, the birth of Jesus, the Incarnation of God in flesh—that is, the
first coming of Jesus as a baby in Bethlehem. In the West we celebrate this day
as December 25, Christmas day. Our
American culture is skilled at anticipating Christmas. In fact, some may say we
enter into a bit of overkill in that “anticipation”! We so engorge ourselves on
Christmas spirit that we are bloated with the stress of the season, and nearly
sick of Christmas music by the time the twelve days of Christmas actually arrive. Part of that is because this first “coming” of Jesus has
already come, and we have attached a date to it. We know when to expect it, so
we build up anticipation as we count down the days (maybe even the hours) until
the event happens.
It was not always so. The first of our two texts (from
Jeremiah) represents a time prior to this blessed first coming. The prophet
Jeremiah had been imprisoned (33:1). The armies of Babylon,
were advancing on Jerusalem. The streets of Jerusalem would soon be filled with
the corpses of her people (33:4-5). Jeremiah's prophecies of judgment that put
him in prison were coming true. For nearly 400 years, descendants of David had occupied
the throne of Judah. God promised David's house and kingdom would endure before
Him forever (2 Samuel 7:16). But soon the Babylonians would destroy David's city,
burn Solomon's temple, and take David's heirs into exile. It was a time of
trouble and distress, but not one without some hope. In the midst of
catastrophe, Jeremiah spoke words of hope. He spoke of a restoration, which
included the line of David. To a people soon to be devastated by loss,
Jeremiah's prophecy offered promise, an anticipation of the hope of rescue. God
was still faithful. The house of David might be cut down, but God can bring life
out of death. A branch would sprout. God would send the Messiah. (READ Jeremiah 33:14-16)
The time of Jeremiah isn’t really unfamiliar to us. Although we get
ready to celebrate the first coming of Messiah prophesied by Jeremiah, we also
face times of trouble. Our world is not always a safe place. In fact, if you
read the news it seems to get worse every day. In the spirit of those “end”
times or troubled times, our second passage resounds like a thunderclap. In the
middle of bows, ribbons, lights, cheery Christmas music, and the ongoing
reminder that God sent his Son and became one of us, we also find ourselves in
trouble or trials, a little distressed, feeling a bit like things are quickly falling
apart. In Luke's Gospel, we find words from Jesus that we may pair up with the words of Jeremiah. Rather than
speaking of a coming Messiah, a babe in a manger, or a “holy night” in which
angles sing and shepherds and wise men rejoice, Jesus speaks of a time of
shaking and judgment. This is an apocalyptic second coming of Messiah that will resound
with God’s justice and holiness. When Messiah returns a second time, things
will be a bit different. (Read Luke 21:25-36)
Both of these passages are delivered in a context of
troubled times (current for the Jews in Jeremiah’s day and somewhat more
distant for the recipients of Jesus’ words). Yet both passages also remind us
that there is “hope”. That in this season of Advent (first or second), we can
find reason for hope in spite of the trouble. Are we ready for hope?
Our passages today point us to three reasons for hope: 1)
God’s timing is right, 2) God’s Word is reliable, and 3) God will rescue his
people. If you are ready for some hope in troubled times, then let’s take a
closer look at these.
Are we ready for hope? Hope can be found in reliance on
God’s timing.
Point 1—God’s Time is Right: Days are coming (Jer)/there
will be signs (Luke)
"But when the completion of the time came, God sent
His Son, . . ." - Galatians 4:4 (HCSB)
"Jesus’ arrival during the Roman Empire’s Pax Romana
(the peace of Rome) was perfect timing. The known world was united by one
language of commerce. A network of global trade routes provided open access to
the whole world. All of this guaranteed that the gospel could move rapidly in
one tongue. No visas. No impenetrable borders. Only unhindered access to help
spread the news of the Savior whose crucifixion fulfilled the prophecy of the
Lamb who would be slain for our sins. All in God’s perfect timing!" - Joe
Stowell (President of Cornerstone University, Grand Rapids, Michigan)
"All history is in God's hand. He knows the best season
for sending help to His church and new light to the world. Let us not be
anxious about the course of events around us, as if we knew better than the
King of kings what time relief should come." J. C. Ryle
If we think God has forgotten us, we need to think again.
When the time is right, He’ll show up, and when He does, we’ll be amazed at His
timing!
When the Jews faced exile in Babylon, God sent Jeremiah to
prophesy not only doom and gloom, but also to speak of a future and a hope. In
the time of Jesus, God fulfilled the prophecy of Jeremiah to send a branch. In
the future, he will send this Son to establish an eternal kingdom based on the promise to David that seemed to end so long ago. In other words, the times are
in his hands. What are we waiting for to which we think God is late in
responding? Where are we thinking God is “missing the mark” in our lives? If
his timing was right in all these things, why do we think he will be late now?
Where is our hope?
Are we ready for hope? Hope comes from trusting God’s
timing. God is on time and reliable. Hope also comes from a realization that God’s Word is reliable. He does
what he says he will do! Are we ready for hope?
Point 2—God’s Word is Reliable: Fulfill the good word (Jer)/none
of his words will pass away (Luke)
These verses remind us that God had not forgotten His
promise or His people.
"The Bible is full of God’s promises to provide for us
spiritually and materially, to never forsake us, to give us peace in times of
difficult circumstances, to cause all circumstances to work together for our
good, and finally to bring us safely home to glory. Not one of those promises
is dependent upon our performance. They are all dependent on the grace of God
given to us through Jesus Christ." - Jerry Bridges
Adoniram Judson: "The future is as bright as the
promises of God."
The passages from Jeremiah and Luke represent a promise and
a proclamation of what will last forever: Heaven and earth will pass away, but
God’s words and promises will never pass away. These are the words of Messiah
Jesus, the Incarnate Word of God. Even
though the world may be cast into oblivion, the word of God remains. Jesus not
only says what God wants us to hear, Jesus’ very life is the revelation and
expression of what we need to know about God (John 1:18). Jesus explains God
(and his plan) by both his Words and his life. Where is our hope placed? Do we
rely on what God has said, or are we confused and conflicted by the terrifying
“signs of the times” that take our minds off of jingling bells and Christmas
wreaths and cause us to worry that things are going horribly wrong?
Are we ready for hope? Hope is found in trusting what God
has said, but it also recognizes that God isn’t finished yet. If God’s Word is
reliable, then we can count on the fact that God will rescue those who trust
him. Are we ready for hope?
Point 3—God will Rescue his people: Justice and Righteousness
(Jeremiah)/redemption draws near (Luke)
God will fulfill his Word, he will keep his promise. One
part of that promise is rescue for those who trust in him. God will provide
justice, righteousness, and redemption for all those who welcome the first
coming of Jesus and look forward to his second coming!
What does it mean to
live in hope and expectation? It means we
build ourselves up with hopes of what can be in the redemption promised in
Jesus. It involves making preparations
and plans. It involves living in
particular ways so that we find ourselves prepared for what will happen when
Messiah returns.
Christians should be a people yearning to keep hope alive,
to see beyond what we see, to perceive something higher, and deeper and richer
than what we can merely observe with our eyes. We are called as beloved
children of God to push beyond just what we can see, into the things for which
what we can hope. Paul reminds us, “Now in this hope we were saved, yet hope
that is seen is not hope, because who hopes for what he sees? But if we hope
for what we do not see, we eagerly wait for it with patience.” (Romans 8:24-25)
The hope that we are to have as Christians pushes us into some
apparent yet wonderful absurdities—like the idea that God became one of us, he
became a helpless baby. God became one of us and took on our sin and suffering. God even died for our sins, but then he got up out of the
grave.
Christians who look at Jesus in the manger and say “Yes,
that is what God looks like,” or gaze at Jesus hanging on the cross and declare,
“There is God too,” may seem simply absurd, but at least our faith encompasses
birth and death, life and suffering, and declares that none of it is outside of
God.
Everyone in the human race wants a life that is fulfilling,
a life that is full of purpose and complete. In Jeremiah’s time, the people were using
the promise of the Davidic dynasty as an excuse to pursue what they wanted by
looking everywhere but to God. Today we use technology or prosperity or even
trouble as an excuse to look for fulfillment in things that do not honor our
Creator. But that which we want will never be ours until we recognize that we
need a right relationship with our creator that has been provided
through the sacrifice of the Messiah Jesus. That is our rescue; that is our
hope!
Christian hope is standing right in the middle of life, the
middle of the signs of the end of the times, and raising our heads because even
in the middle of it all we get a sense that our redemption, our rescue is
drawing near. That is a powerful image—in the midst of the chaos, standing on our
tiptoes to catch a glimpse of what is promised beyond what we can see. In the midst of the madness leaning towards redemption,
towards rescue, moving toward hope like the sun flower moves towards the sun as
it travels across the sky. Our hope is in God’s ability to keep his promises in
his time.
Are we ready for hope? Are we recognizing that God’s timing
is right, his Word is reliable, and his rescue is sure? Are we ready for hope?
It is interesting to discover that for the Jews in the
pre-Christian era hope in the coming of the Messiah—the one who was to restore
the fortunes of Israel—was dependent on God, but also place a requirement his people to act, to respond to his promise. God required, even demanded, human action. God's promised people were not to wait passively for God to
bring justice to the widow and the orphan, they were to make sure that the
widow and the orphan were taken care of in real time.
As we prepare our hearts to welcome the incarnate Word, the
new born babe in Bethlehem . . . as we get ready to celebrate the birth of
Salvation and Hope . . . are we also preparing ourselves for his second coming?
Are we anticipating his second advent with the same expectation and hope as we
celebrate the first? Are we ready for hope to appear in the sky? Are we working
with God to act as his agents until he returns?
Conclusion: How should we respond to these things?
Rely on God--trust him for our rescue, for our redemption, for our salvation
Respond with obedience—we should imitate Jesus,
be the hands and feet of God
Find our hope in God’s right timing, God’s reliable
Word, and God’s rescue.
Thanks for reading!
