HOPE

ADVENT 2017 – HOPE

CONNECT VIDEO “I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day”

TENSION What gave Longfellow the resolve to pen these remarkable words?

SOLUTION HOPE, hope in the God of hope. Hope in a God who is greater than any struggle; hope in a God that will never disappoint; hope in a God who will never leave you or forsake you.

He is the God who is transcendent, yet is also imminent. He is infinite, yet is personal…. He is the God who is there… As Francis Schaefer put it, “He is there and He is not silent!”

John 1:14 (MSG) The Word became flesh and blood, and moved into the neighborhood…

This is the mystery and miracle of Christmas. This thing we call “The Incarnation”, this veiling of flesh by Jesus. 

Philippians 2:6–11 (NLT) Though he was God, he did not think of equality with God as something to cling to. ⁷Instead, he gave up his divine privileges; he took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being. When he appeared in human form, ⁸he humbled himself in obedience to God and died a criminal’s death on a cross. ⁹Therefore, God elevated him to the place of highest honor and gave him the name above all other names, ¹⁰that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, ¹¹and every tongue declare that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

The immortal one put on mortality so that we mortals could put on immortality! Jesus is the One who is beyond time and space, yet invaded time and space to reveal Himself and redeem His own creation. The transcendent Creator became one with His creation.

We sing about it every Christmas... Frederick Mendelssohn wrote this beautiful hymn, but we do not often sing the second verse...

Christ, by highest heaven adored:
Christ, the everlasting Lord;
Late in time behold him come,
Offspring of a virgin's womb.
Veiled in flesh, the Godhead see;
Hail, the incarnate Deity:
Pleased, as man, with men to dwell,
Jesus, our Emmanuel!
Hark! the herald angels sing,
"Glory to the newborn King!"

Dr. Jeff Myers of Summit Ministries says it this way…

“This is hope—that God is alive and awake; that he stepped into his own creation, entering the world stage as a helpless baby; that Immanuel, God with us, lived among us and willingly gave himself over to death on the cross, paying the penalty for our sin; that he was resurrected, overcoming death; and that he promises life of the ages to all with ears to hear.”

INSTRUCTION

1.     We have hope today because God is with us!

Matthew 1:23 (NLT) Look! The virgin will conceive a child! She will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel, which means ‘God is with us.

With us in a general sense and a personal sense…

Isaiah 41:10 (NLT) Don’t be afraid, for I am with you. Don’t be discouraged, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will hold you up with my victorious right hand.

Isaiah 43:1-2 (NLT) But now, O Jacob, listen to the Lord who created you. O Israel, the one who formed you says, “Do not be afraid, for I have ransomed you. I have called you by name; you are mine. When you go through deep waters, I will be with you. When you go through rivers of difficulty, you will not drown. When you walk through the fire of oppression, you will not be burned up; the flames will not consume you."

2.     We have hope today because God is in us!

Colossians 1:27b (NLT) And this is the secret: Christ lives in you. This gives you assurance (hope) of sharing his glory.

Jesus said this about the Holy Spirit to His disciples by the Sea of Galilee...

3.     We have hope today because God is for us!

Romans 8:31-32 NLT What shall we say about such wonderful things as these? If God is for us, who can ever be against us? Since he did not spare even his own Son but gave him up for us all, won’t he also give us everything else?

Do we dare believe this? Yes!

Mark 9:23 (NLT) “What do you mean, ‘If I can’?” Jesus asked. “Anything is possible if a person believes.”

Mary’s statement to Gabriel…

The Magnificant of Mary…

INSPIRATION

Richard John Neuhaus eloquently said: “We have not the right to despair, for despair is a sin. And finally we have not the reason to despair, quite simply because Christ has risen.”

2 Corinthians 4:8-9 NLT We are pressed on every side by troubles, but we are not crushed. We are perplexed, but not driven to despair. We are hunted down, but never abandoned by God. We get knocked down, but we are not destroyed.

APPLICATION

At this Christmas season, are you facing a hopeless situation? Do you feel like you have no hope in your life? Bring that situation or feeling to mind and focus on these three truths:

1.     God is with you.

2.     God is in you.

3.     God is for you.

Now meditate on these passages…

Romans 8:24 (NLT) We were given this hope when we were saved.

Romans 15:4 (NLT) Such things were written in the Scriptures long ago to teach us. And the Scriptures give us hope and encouragement as we wait patiently for God’s promises to be fulfilled.

Romans 15:13 (NLT) I pray that God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust in him. Then you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit.

Remember: Hope that is seen is not hope; it is a time of waiting...

INVITATION AND BENEDICTION