I’ve been reading a lot of things about Joseph of Nazareth this year.  I’ve even published two blog post that have included a couple of the devotions I read during my quiet time.  In one of them Joseph’s Prayer I included an excerpt from Max Lucado’s book On This Holy Night Using imaginative contemplation  Max asks Joseph some questions and then attempts to read Joseph’s mind to learn of his thoughts on the night of Jesus’ birth.  ​In the other, Joseph’s Heartbreak  I included an excerpt from Bo Stern’s  book When Holidays Hurt, in which Bo imagines how Joseph may have felt when he learned that the love of his life, his fiance was pregnant by someone other than him.  I even read and posted on social media, The Faith of Joseph of Nazareth,  a blog post that I published three years ago

A couple of days ago I read another devotion that was an excerpt for another of Max Lucado’s books In the Manger, in which Max again wondered if Joseph prayed for more information than that the angel gave him, which didn’t really give him much detail.

Matthew 1:18-25 (NKJV)18  Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: After His mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Spirit.19  Then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not wanting to make her a public example, was minded to put her away secretly.20  But while he thought about these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, "Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take to you Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit.21  And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name JESUS, for He will save His people from their sins."22  So all this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying:23  "Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel," which is translated, "God with us."24  Then Joseph, being aroused from sleep, did as the angel of the Lord commanded him and took to him his wife,25  and did not know her till she had brought forth her firstborn Son. And he called His name JESUS. ​

​Searching the Night for a Light
by Max Lucado, from In the Manger

So all this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying: “Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,” which is translated, “God with us.” -- Matthew 1:22-23
                        
On the night when Jesus was born, I wonder if Joseph ever prayed, “Father, this all seems so… bizarre. The angel you sent? Any chance you could send another? If not an angel, maybe a person? Some company would be nice. Even a shepherd would do.”
                        
Perhaps he did. Perhaps he didn’t. But you probably have.
                        
You’ve stood where Joseph stood. Caught between what God says and what makes sense. You’ve done what He told you to do only to wonder if it was Him speaking in the first place. You’ve stared into a sky blackened with doubt. And you’ve asked what Joseph asked.
                        
You’ve asked if you’re still on the right road. You’ve asked if you were supposed to turn left when you turned right. And you’ve asked if there is a plan behind this scheme.
                        
“Things haven’t turned out as you thought they would.”
                        
Each of us knows what it’s like to search the night for a light. Not outside a stable, but perhaps outside an emergency room or on the manicured grass of a cemetery. We’ve asked our questions. We’ve questioned God’s plan. And we’ve wondered why God does what He does.
                        
The Bethlehem sky was not the first to hear the pleadings of a confused pilgrim.
                        
If you are asking what Joseph asked, let me urge you to do what Joseph did. Obey. That’s what he did. He obeyed when the angel called, when Mary explained, and when God sent.
                        
He was obedient when the sky was bright… and when it was dark.
                        
He didn’t let his confusion disrupt his obedience. He didn’t know everything. But he did what he knew. He shut down his business, packed up his family, and went to another country. Why? Because that’s what God said to do.
                        
What about you? Just like Joseph, you can’t see the whole picture. Just like Joseph, your task is to see that Jesus is brought into your part of the world. And just like Joseph, you have a choice: to obey or disobey. Because Joseph obeyed, God used him to change the world.

Can He do the same with you?
                        
“God still looks for Josephs today. Men and women who believe that God is not through with this world. Common people who serve an uncommon God.”

Will you be that kind of person? Will you serve… even when you don’t understand?
                        
No, the Bethlehem sky was not the last to hear the pleadings of an honest heart. And perhaps God didn’t answer every question for Joseph. But He answered the most important one. “Are you still with me, God?” And through the first cries of the God-child the answer came.
                        
“Yes, Joseph. I’m with you.”
                        
Through the small face of the stable-born Baby, He says yes.
                        
Yes, your sins are forgiven. Yes, your name is written in Heaven. Yes, death has been defeated. And yes, God has entered your world.
Immanuel. God is with us.
                        
~ He Still Moves Stones
                        
Excerpted with permission from In the Manger by Max Lucado, copyright Max Lucado.                     

Three years ago I wrote a blog post about the faith of Joseph of Nazareth and how that faith carried him after finding out his fiance was already pregnant before they were to be married.  After  an angel told him that Mary, his fiance, was pregnant by the Holy Spirit and that the son she was carrying would “save His people from their sin” his faith allowed him to deal with what must have been ridicule from his friends and neighbors.  
​
Just a few days ago I wrote another post that included a excerpt from a book by Max Lucaco where he used imaginative contemplation  to ask Joseph some questions and then attempt to read his mind to learn of his thoughts on the night of Jesus’ birth.  ​in considering prayer that Joseph may have prayed on the night of Jesus’ birth (Joseph’s Prayer).  Today I’m still thinking about Joseph.  We talk a lot about Mary, the Magi, even the shepherds, but we don’t talk much about Joseph.  ​

​Until I read “Joseph's Heartbreak: When God Speaks Into Sorrow “ by Bo Stern, from her book When Holidays Hurt, I never really considered how much it must have hurt Joseph when he learned that Mary was pregnant.  His heart must have broken into pieces.  Even with his broken heart he was obedient because of his faith in God.  

Joseph's Heartbreak: When God Speaks Into Sorrow

But after he had considered these things, an angel of the Lord suddenly appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, don’t be afraid to take Mary as your wife, because what has been conceived in her is by the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son and you are to name Him Jesus, because He will save His people from their sins.” – Matthew 1:20-21
                        
Every time I read this part of the story, my heart aches for Joseph. I wonder what his dreams looked like before his life took such a hairpin turn. Had he dreamt of the love he would share with Mary or about the night he would make her his own? Had he imagined their children, their home, or the secrets they would whisper in the dark? Joseph was a real man with real dreams, and I would imagine that at this moment in his life, those long-held desires lay in ruins around his feet. Nothing was going the way he had imagined it would go. Can you relate?
                        
It’s beautiful to me that God doesn’t speak to awake, alert, and conscious Joseph, He speaks into his dreams. He sends angelic comfort to his broken heart, and we can get a clue as to Joseph’s emotional condition from the very first words the angel speaks: “Don’t be afraid to take Mary as your wife, because what has been conceived in her is by the Holy Spirit.” God steps into Joseph’s story to tell him that the problem they are facing contains divine possibilities. The problem is painful, yes, and there’s no denying it, but it is also filled with purpose.
                        
Perhaps you’re way ahead of me and you know that I’m going to suggest that the Holy Spirit might also want to speak into your broken dreams and broken heart this Christmas. And maybe you’ve already decided why that’s impossible. You’ve looked at the landscape of your sorrow and sifted through the soil of your battlefield, and you are certain there is no possible redemptive purpose lurking there. But… what if?
                        
He is more beautiful to me than He has ever been because I need Him more than I ever have.
                        
What if God has a word to speak into your pain that might give light and courage to the way you face it? I’m not suggesting that His purpose will invalidate your pain, because so many of the things we suffer in this fallen world are not the perfect will of God — our enemy is rotten and relentless in his determination to steal, kill, and destroy. So it’s not that we are asking God to remove the sting of sorrow, but rather to help us see how He can use it to produce eternal beauty in us.
                        
The beauty that has come from my sorrow (so far) includes a whole new level of compassion, a deeper and more unshakable trust in God’s character, a fresh credibility with a dying world, and a fiercely intentional strategy for living life with no regrets.... But I will rejoice in the comfort I have experienced through the turmoil and in the way our Father is being glorified because of it.
                        
Bottom line: I know Him better now than I did before. He is my God. He is my friend. He is more beautiful to me than He has ever been because I need Him more than I ever have.
                        
Today, as we head deeper into the heart of Christmas, consider the ways God is speaking into your broken dreams. Ask Him for truth that will silence lies and for comfort that will surround your sorrow. Let’s join with Joseph, facing the battle with courage and strength, knowing that He makes beautiful things out of messy material.

Finding Hidden Hope
                        
Read Revelation 21:3-5 out loud.

Revelation 21:3-5 (HCSB)3  Then I heard a loud voice from the throne: Look! God’s dwelling is with humanity, and He will live with them. They will be His people, and God Himself will be with them and be their God.4  He will wipe away every tear from their eyes. Death will no longer exist; grief, crying, and pain will exist no longer, because the previous things have passed away.5  Then the One seated on the throne said, “Look! I am making everything new.” He also said, “Write, because these words are faithful and true.”  (Scripture mine)

One of the reasons Jesus came to dwell with us — and is coming again — is to wipe away every tear. Every single tear. Have you put off crying this season? Trying to hold in the tears and keep it together? Maybe now is a good time to let them flow and let Him meet you in your sorrow and dwell with you there for a bit.
                        
God of my deepest, dearest dreams, thank You for letting me be honest with You. It is astounding that our tears are treasured by You, stored up in Your bottle, perhaps for that glorious day in eternity when we’ll have to be reminded that we ever cried at all. In the name of Your Son, who understands our sorrow, amen.
                        
Excerpted with permission from When Holidays Hurt: Finding Hidden Hope Amid Pain And Loss by Bo Stern, published by Thomas Nelson.



​

In my post “The Faith of Joseph of Nazareth”, I explored Joseph’s options on hearing from an angel that is fiance, Mary, was pregnant and not by him.

Matthew 1:18 (HCSB) The birth of Jesus Christ came about this way: After His mother Mary had been engaged to Joseph, it was discovered before they came together that she was pregnant by the Holy Spirit.

According to the law he could have divorced her;

Matthew 1:19 (HCSB)19 So her husband Joseph, being a righteous man, and not wanting to disgrace her publicly, decided to divorce her secretly.

Deuteronomy 22:20-24 (HCSB)20 But if this accusation is true and no evidence of the young woman’s virginity is found,21 they will bring the woman to the door of her father’s house, and the men of her city will stone her to death. For she has committed an outrage in Israel by being promiscuous in her father’s house. You must purge the evil from you.22 “If a man is discovered having sexual relations with ⌊another⌋ man’s wife, both the man who had sex with the woman and the woman must die. You must purge the evil from Israel.23 If there is a young woman who is a virgin engaged to a man, and ⌊another⌋ man encounters her in the city and has sex with her,
24 you must take the two of them out to the gate of that city and stone them to death—the young woman because she did not cry out in the city and the man because he has violated his neighbor’s fiancée. You must purge the evil from you.

But he didn’t;

Matthew 1:20-25 (HCSB)20 But after he had considered these things, an angel of the Lord suddenly appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, don’t be afraid to take Mary as your wife, because what has been conceived in her is by the Holy Spirit.21 She will give birth to a son, and you are to name Him Jesus, because He will save His people from their sins.”22 Now all this took place to fulfill what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet:23 See, the virgin will become pregnant and give birth to a son, and they will name Him Immanuel, which is translated “God is with us.”24 When Joseph got up from sleeping, he did as the Lord’s angel had commanded him. He married her25 but did not know her intimately until she gave birth to a son. And he named Him Jesus.

That took a lot of faith because if he confessed he was not the father, Mary would be condemned as an adulteress. If he lied and claimed to be the father, the reputations of all and the qualifications of Jesus as Messiah would be tarnished. Yes he had a lot of faith in large part because of a visit by an angel however Joseph was a mere man a human being and the Bible portrays him as such. He is not portrayed in the Bible as super human or super spiritual as a matter of fact after the details of the announcement, Jesus’ birth, going and returning from Egypt, Joseph is mentioned only one more time in Scripture, and that is in passing when Jesus was twelve and Mary and Joseph, had to go looking for Him on their pilgrimage to Jerusalem for one of the annual feasts.

Luke 2:41-46 (HCSB)41 Every year His parents traveled to Jerusalem for the Passover Festival.42 When He was 12 years old, they went up according to the custom of the festival.43 After those days were over, as they were returning, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem, but His parents did not know it.44 Assuming He was in the traveling party, they went a day’s journey. Then they began looking for Him among their relatives and friends.45 When they did not find Him, they returned to Jerusalem to search for Him.46 After three days, they found Him in the temple complex sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions.

Other than being the husband of the birth mother of Jesus Joseph was pretty unremarkable which means that he was like most of us, and as such would have had lots of questions and thoughts running through his head. The Bible doesn’t record any of these things and we are cautioned from adding or subtracting anything from Scripture.

Deuteronomy 4:1-2 (HCSB)1 “Now, Israel, listen to the statutes and ordinances I am teaching you to follow, so that you may live, enter, and take possession of the land Yahweh, the God of your fathers, is giving you.2 You must not add anything to what I command you or take anything away from it, so that you may keep the commands of the LORD your God I am giving you.

Revelation 22:18-19 (HCSB)18 I testify to everyone who hears the prophetic words of this book: If anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues that are written in this book.19 And if anyone takes away from the words of this prophetic book, God will take away his share of the tree of life and the holy city, written in this book.

But there is no prohibition to our wondering about the things that are not said as long as our thoughts or ideas don’t conflict with Scripture, that’s what we call poetic license. We see it in literature, movies and television series about events recorded in, or people of the Bible.

One of my favorite Christian authors Max Lucado wrote “Joseph’s Prayer” which is included in the book On This Holy Night. Using imaginative contemplation Max asks Joseph some questions and then attempts to read Joseph’s mind to learn of his thoughts on the night of Jesus’ birth. ​

Joseph's Prayer
by Max Lucado, from On This Holy Night

Joseph… did what the Lord’s angel had told him to do. — Matthew 1:24
                      
The white space between Bible verses is fertile soil for questions. One can hardly read Scripture without whispering, “I wonder…”
                       
“I wonder if Eve ever ate any more fruit.”
                       
“I wonder if Noah slept well during storms.”
                       
“I wonder if Jonah liked fish or if Jeremiah had friends.”
                       
“Did Moses avoid bushes? Did Jesus tell jokes? Did Peter ever try water-walking again?”
                       
“Would any woman have married Paul had he asked?”
                       
The Bible is a fence full of knotholes through which we can peek but not see the whole picture. It’s a scrapbook of snapshots capturing people in encounters with God, but not always recording the result.
So we wonder:
                       
When the woman caught in adultery went home, what did she say to her husband?
                       
After the demoniac was delivered, what did he do for a living?
                       
After Jairus’s daughter was raised from the dead, did she ever regret it?
                       
Knotholes and snapshots and “I wonders.” You’ll find them in every chapter about every person. But nothing stirs so many questions as does the birth of Christ. Characters appear and disappear before we can ask them anything. The innkeeper too busy to welcome God — did he ever learn who he turned away? The shepherds — did they ever hum the song the angels sang? The wise men who followed the star — what was it like to worship a toddler? And Joseph, especially Joseph.
                       
I’ve got questions for Joseph.
                       
Did you and Jesus arm wrestle? Did He ever let you win?
                       
Did you ever look up from your prayers and see Jesus listening?
                       
How do you say “Jesus” in Egyptian?
                       
What ever happened to the wise men?
                       
What ever happened to you?
                       
We don’t know what happened to Joseph. His role in Act I is so crucial that we expect to see him the rest of the drama — but with the exception of a short scene with twelve-year-old Jesus in Jerusalem, he never reappears. The rest of his life is left to speculation, and we are left with our questions.
                       
But of all my questions, my first would be about Bethlehem. I’d like to know about the night in the stable. I can picture Joseph there. Moonlit pastures. Stars twinkle above. Bethlehem sparkles in the distance. There he is, pacing outside the stable.
                       
What was he thinking while Jesus was being born? What was on his mind while Mary was giving birth? He’d done all he could do — heated the water, prepared a place for Mary to lie. He’d made Mary as comfortable as she could be in a barn and then he stepped out. She’d asked to be alone, and Joseph had never felt more so.
                       
In that eternity between his wife’s dismissal and Jesus’ arrival, what was he thinking? He walked into the night and looked into the stars. Did he pray?
                       
For some reason, I don’t see him silent; I see Joseph animated, pacing. Head shaking one minute, fist shaking the next. This isn’t what he had in mind. I wonder what he said…
                       
This isn’t the way I planned it, God. Not at all. My child being born in a stable? This isn’t the way I thought it would be. A cave with sheep and donkeys, hay and straw? My wife giving birth with only the stars to hear her pain?
                       
This isn’t at all what I imagined. No, I imagined family. I imagined grandmothers. I imagined neighbors clustered outside the door and friends standing at my side. I imagined the house erupting with the first cry of the infant. Slaps on the back. Loud laughter. Jubilation.
                       
That’s how I thought it would be.
                       
The midwife would hand me my child and all the people would applaud. Mary would rest, and we would celebrate. All of Nazareth would celebrate.
                       
But now. Now look. Nazareth is five days’ journey away. And here we are in a… in a sheep pasture. Who will celebrate with us? The sheep? The shepherds? The stars?
                       
This doesn’t seem right. What kind of husband am I? I provide no midwife to aid my wife. No bed to rest her back. Her pillow is a blanket from my donkey. My house for her is a shed of hay and straw.
                       
The smell is bad; the animals are loud. Why, I even smell like a shepherd myself.
                       
Did I miss something? Did I, God?
                       
When You sent the angel and spoke of the Son being born — this isn’t what I pictured. I envisioned Jerusalem, the temple, the priests, and the people gathered to watch. A pageant perhaps. A parade. A banquet at least. I mean, this is the Messiah!
                       
Or, if not born in Jerusalem, how about Nazareth? Wouldn’t Nazareth have been better? At least there I have my house and my business. Out here, what do I have? A weary mule, a stack of firewood, and a pot of warm water. This is not the way I wanted it to be! This is not the way I wanted my son.
                       
Oh my, I did it again. I did it again, didn’t I, Father? I don’t mean to do that; it’s just that I forget. He’s not my son… He’s Yours.
                       
The child is Yours. The plan is Yours. The idea is Yours. And forgive me for asking but… is this how God enters the world? The coming of the angel, I’ve accepted. The questions people asked about the pregnancy, I can tolerate. The trip to Bethlehem, fine. But why a birth in a stable, God?
                       
Any minute now Mary will give birth. Not to a child, but to the Messiah. Not to an infant, but to God. That’s what the angel said. That’s what Mary believes. And, God, my God, that’s what I want to believe. But surely You can understand; it’s not easy. It seems so… so… so… bizarre.
                       
I’m unaccustomed to such strangeness, God. I’m a carpenter. I make things fit. I square off the edges. I follow the plumb line. I measure twice before I cut once. Surprises are not the friend of a builder. I like to know the plan. I like to see the plan before I begin.
But this time I’m not the builder, am I? This time I’m a tool. A hammer in Your grip. A nail between Your fingers. A chisel in Your hands. This project is Yours, not mine.
                       
I guess it’s foolish of me to question You. Forgive my struggling. Trust doesn’t come easy to me, God. But You never said it would be easy, did You?
                       
One final thing, Father. The angel You sent? Any chance You could send another? If not an angel, maybe a person? I don’t know anyone around here, and some company would be nice. Maybe the innkeeper or a traveler? Even a shepherd would do.
                       
I wonder. Did Joseph ever pray such a prayer? Perhaps he did. Perhaps he didn’t.
                       
But you probably have.
                       
You’ve stood where Joseph stood. Caught between what God says and what makes sense. You’ve done what He told you to do only to wonder if it was Him speaking in the first place. You’ve stared into a sky blackened with doubt. And you’ve asked what Joseph asked.
                       
You’ve asked if you’re still on the right road. You’ve asked if you were supposed to turn left when you turned right. And you’ve asked if there is a plan behind this scheme. Things haven’t turned out like you thought they would.
                       
Each of us knows what it’s like to search the night for light. Not outside a stable, but perhaps outside an emergency room. On the gravel of a roadside. On the manicured grass of a cemetery. We’ve asked our questions. We questioned God’s plan. And we’ve wondered why God does what He does.
The Bethlehem sky is not the first to hear the pleading of a confused pilgrim.
                       
If you are asking what Joseph asked, let me urge you to do what Joseph did. Obey. That’s what he did. He obeyed. He obeyed when the angel called. He obeyed when Mary explained. He obeyed when God sent.
                       
He was obedient to God.

He was obedient when the sky was bright.
                       
He was obedient when the sky was dark.
                       
He didn’t let his confusion disrupt his obedience. He didn’t know everything. But he did what he knew. He shut down his business, packed up his family, and went to another country. Why? Because that’s what God said to do.
                       
What about you? Just like Joseph, you can’t see the whole picture. Just like Joseph, your task is to see that Jesus is brought into your part of your world. And just like Joseph, you have a choice: to obey or disobey. Because Joseph obeyed, God used him to change the world.
                       
Can He do the same with you?
                       
God still looks for Josephs today. Men and women who believe that God is not through with this world. Common people who serve an uncommon God.
                       
Will you be that kind of person? Will you serve… even when you don’t understand?
                       
No, the Bethlehem sky is not the first to hear the pleadings of an honest heart, nor the last. And perhaps God didn’t answer every question for Joseph. But He answered the most important one. “Are you still with me, God?” And through the first cries of the Godchild the answer came.
                   
“Yes. Yes, Joseph. I’m with you.”
                       
There are many questions about the Bible that we won’t be able to answer until we get home. Many knotholes and snapshots. Many times we will muse, “I wonder…”
                       
But in our wonderings, there is one question we never need to ask. Does God care? Do we matter to God? Does He still love His children?
                       
Through the small face of the stable-born baby, He says yes.
                       
Yes, your sins are forgiven.
                       
Yes, your name is written in heaven.
                       
Yes, death has been defeated.
                       
And yes, God has entered your world.
                       
Immanuel. God is with us.
                       
Excerpted with permission from On This Holy Night, copyright Thomas Nelson.

In the fourth century, Saint Augustine wrote; “What does love look like? It has the hands to help others. It has the feet to hasten to the poor and needy. It has eyes to see misery and want. It has the ears to hear the sighs and sorrows of men.”

Advent, the four weeks before Christmas is a time of anticipation of the coming of Christ.  Christians anticipate this coming from three different perspectives; in the flesh in Bethlehem, in our hearts everyday, and in glory when Jesus returns.  One of the themes of Advent is love.  

• The love of God in sending His Son Jesus through whom we are able to have eternal life.

John 3:16 (NKJV)  For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.  

• The love that Jesus has for us by offering Himself as the sacrifice for our sins.

Romans 5:8 (NKJV)  But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Because of this love Advent gives us time to step back and love.  When we take the focus off ourselves we are able to see the needs of others.

John 13:34-35 (NKJV)34  A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another.35  By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another."

This commandment was new in that the love was to be exercised toward others not because they were all Jews, white, black, in the same family, lived in the same country, or spoke the same language,  but because they belonged to Christ.  This was the expression of the love of Christ which the disciples had seen in His life and would see also in His death.  

God’s love for us is so great, so powerful; so perfect and unconditional that He sent Jesus to bridge the gap that was caused by sin.  He knew that we were powerless, without hope apart from Him. The Lord knew that there was no way we could ever enter into His presence on our own merit, so He who knew no sin became sin for us.

2 Corinthians 5:21 (NKJV)  For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.

God pursues us with His relentless love. He desires a relationship with us so much that it compelled Him to pay the ultimate price on the cross in order to bring us back to Him.

1 John 3:16 (NKJV) By this we know love, because He laid down His life for us. And we also ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.

Romans 8:38-39 (NKJV)38  For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come,39  nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Jesus Christ laid down His life once, and we ought to lay down our lives repeatedly in self-sacrificing love, as the tenses of the Greek verbs suggest.  We may not have the opportunity to save a brother's life by dying in his place. Nevertheless we can and should do the next best thing, namely, sustaining his life when he has needs. When I give to a brother in need what might keep me alive, I have followed the Lord Jesus' example of self-sacrificing love.  The evidence of genuine love is not verbal professions but vital performances, deeds rather than words (cf. 1 Corinthians 13:1; James 2:15-16). - Expository Notes of Dr. Thomas Constable

For most of us, Christmas is a time of excitement and anticipation. We eagerly wait for the moment we can open all those beautifully wrapped gifts. But the greatest, most precious gift we can ever receive is the reason we celebrate Christmas: God’s gift of eternal life through our Lord Jesus Christ.

We don’t have to wait until Christmas morning to open this gift, because it is available to us freely and brings us new blessings and wonders every single day. This gift has the power to wipe away all sin, comfort every hurt, and give us joy, peace, and purpose. It is a gift that we get to unwrap every day as if it were brand new, and all we have to do to receive this gift is follow Jesus.

“In Christ’s human life, there were always a few who made up for the neglect of the crowd. The shepherds did it; their hurrying to the crib atoned for the people who would flee from Christ. The wise men did it; their journey across the world made up for those who refused to stir one hand’s breadth from the routine of their lives to go to Christ. Even the gifts the wise men brought have in themselves an obscure recompense and atonement for what would follow later in this Child’s life. For they brought gold, the king’s emblem, to make up for the crown of thorns that he would wear; they offered incense, the symbol of praise, to make up for the mockery and the spitting; they gave him myrrh, to heal and soothe, and he was wounded from head to foot and no one bathed his wounds. The women at the foot of the Cross did it too, making up for the crowd who stood by and sneered. “We can do it too, exactly as they did. We are not born too late. We do it by seeing Christ and serving Christ in friends and strangers, in everyone we come in contact with.” —Dorothy Day

This is the love that is described in 1 Corinthians 13

That love is patient and kind, and people with it

• Are not jealous of others.
• Don’t brag about themselves.
• Are not proud thinking of how important the are
• Are not selfish.
• Don’t  become angry easily.
• Don’t keep a record of how people have hurt them.
• Don’t take pleasure in evil things or try to find fault in others
• There love never changes no matter what happens

When we have a complete understanding of love, the perfect love God showed us in giving His Son we are then able to pour  love out on others.  We are able because of the fruit of the Holy Spirit who dwells in us.    

Galatians 5:22-23 (NKJV)22  But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,23  gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law.
We love because He first loved us.  

1 John 4:16-19 (NKJV)16  And we have known and believed the love that God has for us. God is love, and he who abides in love abides in God, and God in him.17  Love has been perfected among us in this: that we may have boldness in the day of judgment; because as He is, so are we in this world.18  There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment. But he who fears has not been made perfect in love.19  We love Him because He first loved us.


​

No Greater Love

The picture of this love is beautifully painted in the words of the song by David L. Allen “No Greater Love”, which is based on John 3:16 and 15:12-13 .

John 3:16 (NKJV)  For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.  

John 15:12-13 (NKJV)12  This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.13  Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one's life for his friends.

No Greater Love
(written by David Allen)
​
Verse
For God so loved the world,
that He gave His only begotten Son.
The Son gave His life for me,
when He died on Calvary.

There is no greater love,
no love nowhere, no greater love;
than a man would lay down His life for a friend,
no love nowhere, I've searched all over.

Chorus 1
There is no greater love,
there is no greater love,
there is no greater love,
no greater love.

Bridge
No greater love,
than a man would lay down His life for a friend.

Chorus 2
No greater love,
no greater love,
no greater love,
no greater love.

No greater love,
no greater love,
no greater love,
no greater love.

Vamp 1
Jesus went to Calvary
to save a wrench,
like you and me;
that's love, that's love.

Vamp 2
They hung Him wide,
they strecthed Him wide.
He hung His head, and then He died;
that's love, that's love.

Vamp 3
That's not how the story ends,
three days later He rose again;
that's love, that's love.

MERRY CHRISTMAS AND A BLESSED AND PROSPEROUS NEW YEAR!

​For people of faith Advent is a time to pause and reflect, a time of deeper devotion and prayer. In many churches and homes, candles are lit on a wreath often representing hope, love, joy, and peace.  Like many Christians, at this time of year, I read and meditate on devotions with an Advent theme. In my quiet time, this morning,  I read a devotion that was excerpted from Christmas Stories by Max Lucado.  It really brought home to me what this time of Advent is all about.  It’s time of anticipation of the coming of Christ from three different perspectives; in the flesh in Bethlehem, in our hearts everyday, and in glory when Jesus returns.  I want to share the entire devotion with you, my blog readers.  I hope that it blesses you as much as it did me.

The North Pole or the Manger?
by Max Lucado, from Christmas Stories

Some call him Sinterklaas. Others Pere Noel or Papa Noel. He’s been known as Hoteiosho, Sonnerklaas, Father Christmas, Jelly Belly, and to most English speakers, Santa Claus.

His original name was Nicholas, which means victorious. He was born in AD 280 in what is now Turkey. He was orphaned at age nine when his parents died of a plague. Though many would think Santa majored in toy making and minored in marketing, actually the original Nicholas studied Greek philosophy and Christian doctrine.

He was honored by the Catholic church by being named Bishop of Myra in the early fourth century. He held the post until his death on December 6, 343.

History recognized him as a saint, but in the third century he was a bit of a troublemaker. He was twice jailed, once by the Emperor Diocletian for religious reasons, the other for slugging a fellow bishop during a fiery debate. (So much for finding out who is naughty and nice.)

Old Nick never married. But that’s not to say he wasn’t a romantic. He was best known for the kindness he showed to a poor neighbor who was unable to support his three daughters or provide the customary dowry so they could attract husbands. Old Saint Nicholas slipped up to the house by night and dropped a handful of gold coins through the window so the eldest daughter could afford to get married. He repeated this act on two other nights for the other two daughters.

This story was the seed that, watered with years, became the Santa legend. It seems that every generation adorned it with another ornament until it sparkled more than a Christmas tree.

The gift grew from a handful of coins to bags of coins.  Instead of dropping them through the window, he dropped them down the chimney. And rather than land on the floor, the bags of coins landed in the girls’ stockings, which were hanging on the hearth to dry. (So that’s where all this stocking stuff started.)

The centuries have been as good to Nicholas’s image as to his deeds. Not only have his acts been embellished, his wardrobe and personality have undergone transformations as well.

As Bishop of Myra, he wore the traditional ecclesiastical robes and a mitered hat. He is known to have been slim, with a dark beard and a serious personality.

By 1300 he was wearing a white beard. By the 1800s he was depicted with a rotund belly and an ever-present basket of food over his arm. Soon came the black boots, a red cape, and a cheery stocking on his head. In the late nineteenth century his basket of food became a sack of toys. In 1866 he was small and gnomish but by 1930 he was a robust six-footer with rosy cheeks and a Coca-Cola.

Santa reflects the desires of people all over the world. With the centuries he has become the composite of what we want:

A friend who cares enough to travel a long way against all odds to bring good gifts to good people.

• A sage who, though aware of each act, has a way of rewarding the good and overlooking the bad.
• ​A friend of children, who never gets sick and never grows old.
• A father who lets you sit on his lap and share your deepest desires.
  Santa.

The culmination of what we need in a hero. The personification of our passions. The expression of our yearnings. The fulfillment of our desires. And... the betrayal of our meager expectations.

What? you say. Let me explain.

You see, Santa can’t provide what we really need. For one thing, he’s only around once a year. When January winds chill our souls, he’s history. When December’s requests become February payments, Santa’s left the mall. When April demands taxes or May brings final exams, Santa is still months from his next visit. And should July find us ill or October find us alone, we can’t go to his chair for comfort — it’s still empty. He only comes once a year.

And when he comes, though he gives much, he doesn’t take away much. He doesn't take away the riddle of the grave, the burden of mistakes, or the anxiety of demands. He’s kind and quick and cute; but when it comes to healing hurts — don’t go to Santa.

Now, I don’t mean to be a Scrooge. I’m not wanting to slam the jolly old fellow. I am just pointing out that we people are timid when it comes to designing legends.

You’d think we could do better. You’d think that over six centuries we’d develop a hero who’d resolve those fears.

But we can’t. We have made many heroes, from King Arthur to Kennedy; Lincoln to Lindbergh; Socrates to Santa to Superman. We give it the best we can, every benefit of every doubt, every supernatural strength, and for a brief shining moment we have the hero we need — the king who can deliver Camelot. But then the truth leaks, and fact surfaces amid the fiction, and the chinks in the armor are seen. And we realize that the heroes, as noble as they may have been, as courageous as they were, were conceived in the same stained society as you and I.

Except One.

There was One who claimed to come from a different place. There was One who, though He had the appearance of a man, claimed to have the origin of God. There was One who, while wearing the face of a Jew, had the image of the Creator.

Those who saw Him — really saw Him — knew there was something different. At His touch blind beggars saw. At His command crippled legs walked. At His embrace empty lives filled with vision.

He fed thousands with one basket. He stilled a storm with one command. He raised the dead with one proclamation. He changed lives with one request. He rerouted the history of the world with one life, lived in one country, was born in one manger, and died on one hill...

After three years of ministry, hundreds of miles, thousands of miracles, innumerable teachings, Jesus asks, “Who?” Jesus bids the people to ponder not what He has done but who He is.

It’s the ultimate question of the Christ: Whose Son is He? Is He the Son of God or the sum of our dreams? Is He the force of creation or a figment of our imagination?

When we ask that question about Santa, the answer is the culmination of our desires. A depiction of our fondest dreams.

Not so when we ask it about Jesus. For no one could ever dream a person as incredible as He is. The idea that a virgin would be selected by God to bear Himself... The notion that God would don a scalp and toes and two eyes... The thought that the King of the universe would sneeze and burp and get bit by mosquitoes... It’s too incredible. Too revolutionary. We would never create such a Savior. We aren’t that daring.

When we create a redeemer, we keep him safely distant in his faraway castle. We allow him only the briefest of encounters with us. We permit him to swoop in and out with his sleigh before we can draw too near. We wouldn’t ask him to take up residence in the midst of a contaminated people. In our wildest imaginings we wouldn’t conjure a king who becomes one of us.

But God did.

God did what we wouldn’t dare dream. He did what we couldn’t imagine. He became a man so we could trust Him. He became a sacrifice so we could know Him. And He defeated death so we could follow Him.

It defies logic. It is a divine insanity. A holy incredibility. Only a God beyond systems and common sense could create a plan as absurd as this. Yet it is the very impossibility of it all that makes it possible. The wildness of the story is its strongest witness.

For only a God could create a plan this mad. Only a Creator beyond the fence of logic could offer such a gift of love.

What man can’t do, God does.

So, when it comes to goodies and candy, cherub cheeks and red noses, go to the North Pole.

But when it comes to eternity, forgiveness, purpose, and truth, go to the manger. Kneel with the shepherds. Worship the God who dared to do what man dared not dream.

Excerpted with permission from Christmas Stories by Max Lucado, copyright Thomas Nelson.

JESUS is indeed the reason for the season!

1 Peter 1:6-9 (KJV)6  Wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season, if need be, ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations:7  That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ:8  Whom having not seen, ye love; in whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory:9  Receiving the end of your faith, even the salvation of your souls.

What did Peter mean when he wrote that we “rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory”?

It’s clear that the joy that Peter was talking about is so great you can’t express it in words, it is so great that is beyond human ability to describe.   That’s a lot of joy.

Joy which is better experienced than expressed because there are no words to describe it.   It is a joy on account of the glory of God, which the believer lives in the hope and faith of; and by it saints may know a little what heaven itself will be.  - Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible

The Greek word that Peter used for “joy” is chara which is defined by the Strong’s Greek and Hebrew Dictionary as from (chairo); cheerfulness, i.e. calm delight :- gladness, × greatly, (× be exceeding) joy (-ful, -fully, -fulness, -ous).

The dictionary defines joy as "the emotion of great delight or happiness caused by something exceptionally good or satisfying; keen pleasure; elation."   

With this definition, we could say that "happiness" and "joy" are interchangeable. But that’s not biblical joy.  

Joy depends on God not circumstances

Happiness depends on circumstances, joy depends on God and we have joy because of our faith in Jesus and His sacrifice for us.

Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, a Jesuit biologist and philosopher, once wrote, “Joy is the infallible sign of the presence of God.”

One reason that we don’t always experience the kind of joy Peter talked about is that we confuse happiness and joy.  We think that both happiness and joy are found in pleasure, security and prosperity.    Joy is not the same as happiness — although they may.  Happiness vanishes when things get tough; joy continues and may even grow when things get tough.  When we focus on the love of Jesus and not the circumstance we realize that the joy of the Lord is our strength.  While we may not be, happy as the world defines happiness, we still have joy.

Nehemiah 8:10 (KJV)10  Then he said unto them, Go your way, eat the fat, and drink the sweet, and send portions unto them for whom nothing is prepared: for this day is holy unto our Lord: neither be ye sorry; for the joy of the LORD is your strength.

The joy of the Lord is more than our ability to describe.  Peter said it’s full of glory too. The Greek word that Peter used for glory is doxazō and means to render (or esteem) glorious (in a wide application) :- (make) glorify (-ious), full of (have) glory, honour, magnify. - Strong's Talking Greek & Hebrew Dictionary.

This joy of the Lord is a joy which words cannot describe, and along with it comes honor.  We are friends of God and with that friendship comes honor.

John 15:9-15 (NKJV)9  "As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you; abide in My love.10  If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father's commandments and abide in His love.11  These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full.12  This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.13  Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one's life for his friends.14  You are My friends if you do whatever I command you.15  No longer do I call you servants, for a servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all things that I heard from My Father I have made known to you. (Bold mine)

Jesus died for us to free us from the penalty of sin which is death, eternal separation from God.  

Romans 6:23 (NKJV)23  For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

That’s a reason for unspeakable joy.  

James tells us that we should even have this joy during the bad times.  

James 1:2-4 (KJV)2  My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations;3  Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience.4  But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing.   (Bold mine)

Our joy should rise above circumstances.   This joy is not produced by something external that makes us feel happy. It is supernatural result of a life filled with the Holy Spirit of the living God.

Galatians 5:22-26 (HCSB)22  But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faith,23  gentleness, self-control. Against such things there is no law.24  Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.25  Since we live by the Spirit, we must also follow the Spirit.26  We must not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another. (Bold mine)

When the angel announced the birth of Jesus to the shepherds he told them that he was bringing them new that would bring great joy.  Not only to them but to all people.  We, if we have accepted Jesus as our Lord and Savior are the recipients of that joy which is beyond words and brings honor..

Luke 2:10 (NKJV)10  Then the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people.

This announcement to those shepherds over 2000 years ago brought joy to a people who had been waiting for their Messiah for hundreds of years.
​

Isaiah 7:14 (NKJV)  Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel.

Isaiah 9:7 (NKJV)  Of the increase of His government and peace There will be no end, Upon the throne of David and over His kingdom, To order it and establish it with judgment and justice From that time forward, even forever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this.  

Isaiah 9:2,6 (NKJV)2  The people who walked in darkness Have seen a great light; Those who dwelt in the land of the shadow of death, Upon them a light has shined.6 For unto us a Child is born, Unto us a Son is given; And the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

The shepherds, after seeing Him, were filled with joy.

Luke 2:17-20 (NKJV)17  Now when they had seen Him, they made widely known the saying which was told them concerning this Child.18  And all those who heard it marveled at those things which were told them by the shepherds.19  But Mary kept all these things and pondered them in her heart.20  Then the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen, as it was told them.

That joy wasn’t just for Israel!

Isaiah 42:6 (NKJV)  "I, the LORD, have called You in righteousness, And will hold Your hand; I will keep You and give You as a covenant to the people, As a light to the Gentiles,

Romans 3:29 (NKJV)  Or is He the God of the Jews only? Is He not also the God of the Gentiles? Yes, of the Gentiles also,

Jesus’ birth was then and still is an occasion for joy, the kind of joy that we do our best to express in the familiar Christmas carol “Joy to the World”, which is based on the second half of Psalm 98.  

Watts wrote the words of "Joy to the World" as a hymn glorifying Christ's triumphant return at the end of the age, rather than a song celebrating his first coming.The nations are called to celebrate because God's faithfulness to the house of Israel has brought salvation to the world. - Wikipedia

Psalm 98:1-9 (NKJV)1  Oh, sing to the LORD a new song! For He has done marvelous things; His right hand and His holy arm have gained Him the victory.2  The LORD has made known His salvation; His righteousness He has revealed in the sight of the nations.3  He has remembered His mercy and His faithfulness to the house of Israel; All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God.4  Shout joyfully to the LORD, all the earth; Break forth in song, rejoice, and sing praises.5  Sing to the LORD with the harp, With the harp and the sound of a Psalm,6  With trumpets and the sound of a horn; Shout joyfully before the LORD, the King.7  Let the sea roar, and all its fullness, The world and those who dwell in it;8  Let the rivers clap their hands; Let the hills be joyful together before the LORD,9  For He is coming to judge the earth. With righteousness He shall judge the world, And the peoples with equity.

That’s what Advent, the four Sundays before Christmas is all about.  Advent is the arrival of a notable person, thing, or event.  For Christians  it is both the first and second comings of Christ. We celebrate the first coming at Christmas and look forward to His second coming.  We anticipate the coming of Christ from three different perspectives. In the flesh in Bethlehem, in our hearts everyday, and in glory when Jesus returns.  

We can choose to live in an attitude of resentment, anger and fear or we can choose to pursue the joy of Christ...joy unspeakable and full of glory.

Joy to the World lyrics by Isaac Watts

Joy to the World , the Lord is come!
Let earth receive her King;
Let every heart prepare Him room,
And Heaven and nature sing,
And Heaven and nature sing,
And Heaven, and Heaven, and nature sing.

Joy to the World, the Savior reigns!
Let men their songs employ;
While fields and floods, rocks, hills and plains
Repeat the sounding joy,
Repeat the sounding joy,
Repeat, repeat, the sounding joy.

No more let sins and sorrows grow,
Nor thorns infest the ground;
He comes to make His blessings flow
Far as the curse is found,
Far as the curse is found,
Far as, far as, the curse is found.

He rules the world with truth and grace,
And makes the nations prove
The glories of His righteousness,
And wonders of His love,
And wonders of His love,
And wonders, wonders, of His love. ​

This is the manuscript of a sermon given at Christ Church, Los Angeles, CA, Sunday December 11, 2016.

We are now in a season, a time of the year, that is very important to Christians.  It’s Advent, a time or season that is celebrated by most of the Christian world as a time of expectation, for the celebration of the birth of Jesus.    

Advent is the arrival of a notable person, thing, or event.  For Christians  it is both the first and second comings of Christ. We celebrate the first coming at Christmas and look forward to His second coming.  

The term Advent, is a version of the Latin word  adventus meaning "coming".  Adventus is the Latin translation of the Greek word parousia (par-oo-see'-ah), which is an ancient Greek word meaning presence, arrival, or official visit.  For Christians, the season of Advent anticipates the coming of Christ from three different perspectives. In the flesh in Bethlehem, in our hearts everyday, and in glory when Jesus returns.  

During Advent we look back and identify with those of Israel that awaited and longed for the arrival of the Messiah that had been foretold to them by the prophets.

Prophecies

Isaiah 7:14 (NKJV)14  Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel.

Isaiah 9:7 (NKJV)7  Of the increase of His government and peace There will be no end, Upon the throne of David and over His kingdom, To order it and establish it with judgment and justice From that time forward, even forever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this.  

Isaiah 61:1-2 (NKJV)1  "The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon Me, Because the LORD has anointed Me To preach good tidings to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to the captives, And the opening of the prison to those who are bound;2  To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD, And the day of vengeance of our God; To comfort all who mourn,
    
Fulfillment

Matthew 1:22-23 (NKJV)22  So all this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying:23  "Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel," which is translated, "God with us."

Luke 1:26-33 (NKJV)26  Now in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth,27  to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin's name was Mary.28  And having come in, the angel said to her, "Rejoice, highly favored one, the Lord is with you; blessed are you among women!"29  But when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and considered what manner of greeting this was.30  Then the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. 31  And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name JESUS.32  He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David.33  And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no end."

Luke 4:18-21 (NKJV)18  "The Spirit of the LORD is upon Me, Because He has anointed Me To preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to the captives And recovery of sight to the blind, To set at liberty those who are oppressed;19  To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD."20  Then He closed the book, and gave it back to the attendant and sat down. And the eyes of all who were in the synagogue were fixed on Him.  And He began to say to them, “Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.”

We just looked at three prophecies from the of Isaiah.   The books of the Old Testament contain many more prophecies about the Messiah which Jesus Christ fulfilled.   Some Bible scholars suggest there are more than 300 prophetic Scriptures that were fulfilled in the life of Jesus.

We know that God, in His faithfulness, did send that Messiah in Jesus, just as the Scriptures foretold, so we look ahead, in expectation and longing for the second coming of Christ.  During Advent, we’re reminded of how much we ourselves also need a Savior, and we look forward to our Savior’s second coming.   

Advent Today                                   

The themes most often used for the four weeks of Advent are Hope, Peace, Joy and Love.   All four of these themes are embodied in Christ Himself.  

He is the Hope of the World

Matthew 12:21 (NLT)21  And his name will be the hope of all the world.”

He is the Prince of Peace

Isaiah 9:6 (NLT)6  For a child is born to us, a son is given to us. The government will rest on his shoulders. And he will be called: Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

He is the Fullness of Joy

Psalm 16:11 (ASV)11  Thou wilt show me the path of life: In thy presence is fulness of joy; In thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore.

He Loves Us

Romans 5:8 (NKJV)8  But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
​

Hope of Advent

Hope comes first; hope for the lasting peace, joy, and love we can’t find on our own and never will apart from Christ.

Colossians 1:27 (NKJV)27  To them God willed to make known what are the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles: which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.

If I was to put a title on this sermon it would be ‘The Hope of Advent...Jesus Christ the Hope of Glory.

Hope is defined as a feeling of expectation and desire for a certain thing to happen.

G.K. Chesterton wrote, “Hope is the power of being cheerful in circumstances that we know to be desperate.” It is not a blissful ignorance or wishful thinking but a subversive cheer that refuses to let circumstance triumph over courage, doubt overcome faith, or adversity conquer compassion. This is not easy; it is not our default setting. When we hit brick walls, the first emotion that naturally arises is generally not hope. Hope requires a strength that comes from focusing on a greater vision than what is wrong. We may not have every problem figured out, but we serve a God who loved this world enough to join us in it. We trust that when Jesus said, “Behold, I am making all things new,” he meant it.

H.O.P.E. Hallelujah Overflowing in Praises Eternal

Expectation and Hope    

Advent teaches us to not only to expect hope for eternity, but we can expect hope for today.   Here’s another prophecy from Isaiah.

Prophecy

Isaiah 53:5-6, 10-12 (NKJV)5  But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; The chastisement for our peace was upon Him, And by His stripes we are healed.6  All we like sheep have gone astray; We have turned, every one, to his own way; And the LORD has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.10  Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise Him; He has put Him to grief. When You make His soul an offering for sin, He shall see His seed, He shall prolong His days, And the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in His hand.11  He shall see the labor of His soul, and be satisfied. By His knowledge My righteous Servant shall justify many, For He shall bear their iniquities.12  Therefore I will divide Him a portion with the great, And He shall divide the spoil with the strong, Because He poured out His soul unto death, And He was numbered with the transgressors, And He bore the sin of many, And made intercession for the transgressors.

We know that prophecy was fulfilled when Jesus was tried beaten and the crucified.    

But here's what Paul said about that.

Romans 5:6-8 (NKJV)6  For when we were still without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly.7  For scarcely for a righteous man will one die; yet perhaps for a good man someone would even dare to die.8  But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

So you see that the hope of Israel for its Messiah was fulfilled in Jesus although many if not most, missed it.  But we, Gentiles, can claim Him as our Messiah too.

Isaiah 42:6 (NKJV)6  "I, the LORD, have called You in righteousness, And will hold Your hand; I will keep You and give You as a covenant to the people, As a light to the Gentiles,

He was talking about the Messiah, Jesus.

Romans 3:29 (NKJV)29  Or is He the God of the Jews only? Is He not also the God of the Gentiles? Yes, of the Gentiles also,
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What Is Hope?

It is pretty common to hope, right? We hope we get a job. We hope our kids are well behaved. We hope we make enough money to pay our bills. But our human hope implies a degree of uncertainty, things are not sure, they are possibilities but not certainties.   In Scripture, however, hope is certain, because it rests in the stability of God.  Biblical hope, then, can be defined as, “the confident expectation and desire for something good in the future.”  That’s different from the dictionary definition which is “a feeling of expectation and desire for a certain thing to happen”.

There is close connection between hope and faith.

The definition we Christians use for faith is;

Hebrews 11:1 (NKJV)1  Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.

So hope is an element of faith looking specifically toward the future, while faith encompasses a belief and trust in God for our past, our present, and our future. Hope is essential to our faith.

Hebrews 6:11 (NKJV)11  And we desire that each one of you show the same diligence to the full assurance of hope until the end,

Why Hope?

It doesn’t take long to look around the world, and conclude that we have little reason to hope. We all experience pain and suffering. Peace and safety are hard to come by. Injustice, sorrow, sickness, poverty and violence are all alive and well.

When Jesus came, hope was made possible. The advent of Christ ushers in hope.

John 1:14 (NKJV)14  And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.

Remember I said earlier, hope is faith in the future tense.  It is at the root of our saving knowledge, understanding and belief in Christ.  When we trust the work of Christ on the Cross for salvation, we are saved by faith, as it says;

Ephesians 2:8 (NKJV)8  For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God,

And if we believe that Christ accepted the penalty of our sin on the cross and defeated death in His resurrection, we are born into a living hope, a hope in Jesus’ victory on our behalf, no matter the trials and tribulations of this world.

1 Peter 1:3-5 (NKJV)3  Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His abundant mercy has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,4  to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled and that does not fade away, reserved in heaven for you,5  who are kept by the power of God through faith for salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.

We rejoice in the hope of God’s glory, even in the midst of suffering. In fact, as believers, suffering produces hope, because we know that despite our present troubles, God’s love has been poured out on our behalf in Christ.

Romans 5:1- 5 (NKJV)1  Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,2  through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.3  And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance;4  and perseverance, character; and character, hope.5  Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us.

Life may be difficult at times, but our hope is not at the mercy of our circumstances and our perspective is not limited to what is seen.   What does it say?

Romans 8:31-39 (NKJV)31  What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?32  He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?33  Who shall bring a charge against God's elect? It is God who justifies.34  Who is he who condemns? It is Christ who died, and furthermore is also risen, who is even at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us.35  Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?36  As it is written: "For Your sake we are killed all day long; We are accounted as sheep for the slaughter."37  Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.38  For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come,39  nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.  

We have hope and can hope because it has been given to us in Christ no matter what is going on.  ​
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The Source of Hope

What does it look like to hope, in an earthly sense? When you find yourself hoping for a specific outcome, for a change in circumstances or a favorable result, what emotions are present? Are you fearful? Insecure? Anxious?

Anxiety challenges hope.   We worry things won’t turn out the way we want or even the way we’ve planned.  Our hope is shaky because it’s based in an act of our will so it doesn’t have a stable foundation. Our hope is often in another person or a specific outcome.  But hope centered in God is sure. It is confident and fully assured because it is rooted in the faithfulness of God, who is the source of hope.

The evidence for that hope is God's provision for us in Christ. We look toward the fulfillment of all His promises in Scripture, because we know that God is faithful.   That’s how Jeremiah could say;

Lamentations 3:21-24 (NKJV)21  This I recall to my mind, Therefore I have hope.22  Through the LORD'S mercies we are not consumed, Because His compassions fail not.23  They are new every morning; Great is Your faithfulness.24  "The LORD is my portion," says my soul, "Therefore I hope in Him!"

Jeremiah said this at a time that Jerusalem and Judah were in shambles and most of its people taken into exile in Babylon.   God had promised that after 70 years they would return so Jeremiah’s hope was in that promise.  He knew that God was faithful.  God is our source of hope too because we know that He doesn’t change He’s on our side, and He is working things out for our good.

Romans 8:28 (NKJV)28  And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.

How Do We Live Out Hope?

If we know that hope comes from God, why is it so difficult to live out? Why are so many of us, Christians, hopeless?

As we take a closer look at hope, Scripture not only gives us the source of hope, but also the way we can rejoice in hope. We can rejoice in hope because the Holy Spirit makes it possible.

Romans 15:13 (NKJV)13  Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.

When we put our faith and trust in Christ for salvation, He graciously gives us His Spirit. His Spirit is Christ in us, the hope of glory which goes back to our main text for today.

Colossians 1:27 (NKJV)27  To them God willed to make known what are the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles: which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.

Here’s the way it’s presented the the NLT

Colossians 1:27 (NLT)  For God wanted them to know that the riches and glory of Christ are for you Gentiles, too. And this is the secret: Christ lives in you. This gives you assurance of sharing his glory.

God has given us hope, but we must abide in Him and His Spirit in us, in order for us to experience and live out hope.

The beauty of the hope ushered in through Christ and made alive in us through His Spirit, is that it gives us the ability to have abiding hope, the kind of hope that goes beyond circumstances and uncertainty.  Our hope is not for a certain result or outcome, but in the love of God displayed in Christ on the Cross. This hope is a powerful testimony for those that don’t know Christ.

Our hope sets up apart and we should be ready to give a reason for that hope to point others to Christ.  

1 Peter 3:13-17 (NKJV)13  And who is he who will harm you if you become followers of what is good?14  But even if you should suffer for righteousness' sake, you are blessed. "And do not be afraid of their threats, nor be troubled."15  But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear;16  having a good conscience, that when they defame you as evildoers, those who revile your good conduct in Christ may be ashamed.17  For it is better, if it is the will of God, to suffer for doing good than for doing evil.

So is it ok to hope without proof; for a new job? for a relationship to flourish? for a business deal to succeed? Yes, believers and even nonbelievers do this, however, the believer’s hope is grounded in Christ, no matter and sometimes despite the eventual outcome.

He seems to live in the northern section of Palestine, where he is constantly taunted by enemies who do not share his longings for God.  Although he attempts to pray and recall how measureless is God's loving-kindness, he still feels forsaken. Mixed with his longing for the Temple is his remembrance of the constant barbs of his enemies..

Psalm 42:1-11 (NLT)1 As the deer longs for streams of water, so I long for you, O God.
2  I thirst for God, the living God. When can I go and stand before him?3  Day and night I have only tears for food, while my enemies continually taunt me, saying, “Where is this God of yours?” 4  My heart is breaking as I remember how it used to be: I walked among the crowds of worshipers, leading a great procession to the house of God, singing for joy and giving thanks amid the sound of a great celebration!5  Why am I discouraged? Why is my heart so sad? I will put my hope in God! I will praise him again— my Savior and6  my God! Now I am deeply discouraged, but I will remember you— even from distant Mount Hermon, the source of the Jordan, from the land of Mount Mizar.7  I hear the tumult of the raging seas as your waves and surging tides sweep over me.8  But each day the LORD pours his unfailing love upon me, and through each night I sing his songs, praying to God who gives me life.9  “O God my rock,” I cry, “Why have you forgotten me? Why must I wander around in grief, oppressed by my enemies?”10  Their taunts break my bones. They scoff, “Where is this God of yours?”11  Why am I discouraged? Why is my heart so sad? I will put my hope in God! I will praise him again— my Savior and my God!

The psalmist is despondent because he cannot make his usual pilgrimages to the Temple.  He gains renewed strength by repeating his formula for inner peace or hope - The Wycliffe Bible Commentary
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Doubt: A Hindrance to Hope

If faith, which encompasses hope, is "the assurance of things hoped for and the evidence of things not seen as we read in Hebrews 11:1, the opposite would be that doubt is a feeling of uncertainty or lack of conviction.

When Paul wrote in Romans at 4:18 when talking about Abraham;

Romans 4:18 (NKJV)18  who, contrary to hope, in hope believed, so that he became the father of many nations, according to what was spoken, "So shall your descendants be."  
He said that Abraham believed against hope, from a human perspective, and believed in hope resting on the character of God. Abraham’s circumstances seemed humanly impossible. The promise of an heir was hopeless in the face of both his and Sarah’s old age and the fact that Sarah had been barren. But when hope rests on God, He does the impossible

Genesis 21:1-3 (NKJV)1  And the LORD visited Sarah as He had said, and the LORD did for Sarah as He had spoken.2  For Sarah conceived and bore Abraham a son in his old age, at the set time of which God had spoken to him.3  And Abraham called the name of his son who was born to him--whom Sarah bore to him--Isaac.  

Matthew 19:23-26 (NKJV)23  Then Jesus said to His disciples, "Assuredly, I say to you that it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven.24  And again I say to you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God."25  When His disciples heard it, they were greatly astonished, saying, "Who then can be saved?" 26  But Jesus looked at them and said to them, "With men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible."

Our hope is in His ability, His goodness and His faithfulness toward us, His children. We have “full assurance of hope.”

Too often we are afraid to hope for things because we doubt they are possible or we doubt that God will do it for us.  Maybe we’ve been let down before by people, we have past wounds and grave disappointments that cloud our ability to hope. Our past experience or present circumstances create looming doubt and disbelief . It is in these times we have to shift our focus from the circumstance which is temporary to the eternal and to the truth of the Gospel. We must draw on truth from God’s Word, truth that affirms His unchanging character and His great love for us displayed in Christ.

Romans 8:18-26,30 (NKJV)18  For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.19  For the earnest expectation of the creation eagerly waits for the revealing of the sons of God.20  For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it in hope;21  because the creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God.22  For we know that the whole creation groans and labors with birth pangs together until now.23  Not only that, but we also who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, eagerly waiting for the adoption, the redemption of our body.24  For we were saved in this hope, but hope that is seen is not hope; for why does one still hope for what he sees?25  But if we hope for what we do not see, we eagerly wait for it with perseverance.26  Likewise the Spirit also helps in our weaknesses. For we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. 30  Moreover whom He predestined, these He also called; whom He called, these He also justified; and whom He justified, these He also glorified.

So what is the hope of glory that we have because Christ is in us?  It is the hope of displaying the nature and character of God.  Our hope then is not in ourselves, but in Christ. In ourselves and our own strength we will continue to fall short of God’s glory. But through dependence upon Christ, because He dwells in us, we can now break free from the bondage to sin and failure. Face each new challenge thanking Him that He has given you His Spirit and that He is adequate!

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 (NKJV)16  Rejoice always,17  pray without ceasing,18  in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.

If you’re going through something now or whenever you go through something in the future, there’s HOPE because Jesus came to the earth to dwell among us!

Can anything ever separate us from Christ’s love? Does it mean he no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity, or are persecuted, or hungry, or destitute, or in danger, or threatened with death?   The answer to that is in;

Romans 8:35-39 (NKJV)35  Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?36  As it is written: "For Your sake we are killed all day long; We are accounted as sheep for the slaughter."37  Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.38  For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, 39  nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.  

The key to this hope is Christ in us.  How can we be certain that Christ is in us because if he’s not we may have hope but we don’t have the hope of glory?  

Romans 8:9-11 (NKJV)9  But you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. Now if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not His.10  And if Christ is in you, the body is dead because of sin, but the Spirit is life because of righteousness.11  But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you.

John 1:12 (NKJV)12  But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name:

John 3:14-16 (NKJV)14  And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up,15  that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life.16  For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.

Here’s how that happens;

Romans 10:8-11 (NKJV)8  But what does it say? "The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart" (that is, the word of faith which we preach):9  that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.10  For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.11  For the Scripture says, "Whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame."

This is how we can know that Christ is in us.  

Is there anyone here today that wants that hope of glory that you can only have if Christ is in you.  If you are here today now is the time to come and to let Him fill you with the kind of hope that I have been talking about...H.O.P.E. Hallelujah Overflowing in Praises Eternal.

Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that ye may abound in hope, through the power of the Holy Ghost.  Romans 15:13


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In my last post in this series Faith at Christmas, I introduced you to Simeon, the old man that was promised by God that he wouldn’t die before he saw the Messiah.  When Mary and Joseph came to the temple to dedicate Jesus to God Simeon knew right away that this baby was the Messiah (Faith of Simeon).  There was someone else there that day. There was a lady there, a prophetess by the name of Anna. Like Simeon she was well up in age. We don't know much about her but like Simeon she recognized the Messiah and her faith, much like that of the shepherds (Faith of the Shepherds), compelled her to tell others.
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The people of Israel, especially those who worshiped Yahweh, were anxiously awaiting their Messiah to deliver them from the oppression of Rome.  When He arrived very few recognized Him.  They were looking for a military and political leader who would become a conquering king much like David.  They probably expected Him to arrive with much pomp and circumstance.  But as we now know He was born almost in secret a stable, to a poor peasant family.   

The only Israelites who knew or understood that Jesus was the Messiah, when He was born, were Mary, Joseph, the shepherds, Simeon and Anna.   The Magi knew that He was the Messiah but they weren’t Israelites, they were Gentiles (Faith of the Magi).   All of these people were basically nobodies.  They knew that Mary’s baby, Jesus, was the Messiah because they were told by angels or, as in the case of Simeon and Anna, through some other special revelation.  The common thread through them all was that they all had faith.  The kind of faith that resulted in action.

I’ve written about the faith of Mary, Joseph,  the Magi, the shepherds, and even evil Herod the Great.  In the last post in this series for 2015 let’s look at the faith of this old lady, Anna.  

Who Was Anna?

Luke 2:36-37 (HCSB)36  There was also a prophetess, Anna, a daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was well along in years, having lived with her husband seven years after her marriage,37  and was a widow for 84 years. She did not leave the temple complex, serving God night and day with fasting and prayers.

Everything that we know about Anna is here in these two verses, but there’s enough here to show that she was an extraordinary woman.  

The name Anna means “favor” or “grace.” She is one of only a few women, in the bible identified with the title prophetess.  The others are;  

Miriam, the sister of Moses

Exodus 15:20 (HCSB)20  Then Miriam the prophetess, Aaron’s sister, took a tambourine in her hand, and all the women followed her with ⌊their⌋ tambourines and danced.

Deborah, the judge

Judges 4:4 (HCSB)4  Deborah, a woman who was a prophetess and the wife of Lappidoth, was judging Israel at that time.

Huldah, the wife of Shallum

2 Chronicles 34:22 (HCSB)22  So Hilkiah and those the king had designated went to the prophetess Huldah, the wife of Shallum son of Tokhath, son of Hasrah, keeper of the wardrobe. She lived in Jerusalem in the Second District. They spoke with her about this.

Isaiah’s wife

Isaiah 8:3 (HCSB)3  I was then intimate with the prophetess, and she conceived and gave birth to a son. The LORD said to me, “Name him Maher-shalal-hash-baz,

We know that Anna was at least 84 years or, depending on how you translate the verse, could have been much older.  For example it is also possible to translate the text to mean Anna had lived eighty-four years after her husband died. That would mean Anna was at least 104 years old—if she had married at the age of thirteen. Her exact age doesn't’ really matter.   The point made by Luke is that she was an old lady and that most of her life she was a widow.  We  know that she spent most of her time serving God in the temple complex. Women could not serve in the temple itself but could assist on the temple grounds.   Either way, she had spent most of her life without a husband and after his death she had spent most of her time ministering before the Lord in the temple.

Anna was the kind of widow Paul talked about when he wrote to Timothy about how the church should care for widows who had no children or other relatives to care for them.  

1 Timothy 5:9-10 (HCSB)9  No widow should be placed on the official support list unless she is at least 60 years old, has been the wife of one husband,10  and is well known for good works—that is, if she has brought up children, shown hospitality, washed the saints’ feet, helped the afflicted, and devoted herself to every good work. ​

Let’s set the stage for Anna Meeting the Messiah

Luke 2:21-24 (HCSB)21  When the eight days were completed for His circumcision, He was named Jesus—the name given by the angel before He was conceived.22  And when the days of their purification according to the law of Moses were finished, they brought Him up to Jerusalem to present Him to the Lord23  (just as it is written in the law of the Lord: Every firstborn male will be dedicated to the Lord)24  and to offer a sacrifice (according to what is stated in the law of the Lord: a pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons).  

As I wrote in my last post there was nothing unusual about Mary and Joseph’s dedication of Jesus because the law required that Jewish parents bring their new babies to the temple, to offer a sacrifice and dedicate their child to God.    

Now, let’s use our “sanctified imagination”

Luke 2:25-35 (HCSB)25  There was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon. This man was righteous and devout, looking forward to Israel’s consolation, and the Holy Spirit was on him.26  It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he saw the Lord’s Messiah.27  Guided by the Spirit, he entered the temple complex. When the parents brought in the child Jesus to perform for Him what was customary under the law,28  Simeon took Him up in his arms, praised God, and said:29  Now, Master, You can dismiss Your slave in peace, as You promised.30  For my eyes have seen Your salvation.31  You have prepared ⌊it⌋ in the presence of all peoples--32  a light for revelation to the Gentiles and glory to Your people Israel.33  His father and mother were amazed at what was being said about Him.34  Then Simeon blessed them and told His mother Mary: “Indeed, this child is destined to cause the fall and rise of many in Israel and to be a sign that will be opposed--35  and a sword will pierce your own soul—that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed.”  

Simeon had just picked up the infant Jesus and pronounced a prophetic blessing on Him.  Luke says at that very moment, meaning instantly, Anna who may have been standing nearby heard him.  Maybe she knew Simeon because they were both constantly around the temple so she knew him to be, as Luke described him, righteous and devout” and that he to was looking for the Messiah.  I imagine that he told people that God had promised that he would see Him.  On hearing Simeon’s prophecy Anna would have surely taken notice.  

Luke 2:36-38 (HCSB)36  There was also a prophetess, Anna, a daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was well along in years, having lived with her husband seven years after her marriage,37  and was a widow for 84 years. She did not leave the temple complex, serving God night and day with fasting and prayers.38  At that very moment, she came up and began to thank God and to speak about Him to all who were looking forward to the redemption of Jerusalem.  

Anna would have known of the prophecies of the coming Messiah and that the promises of Israel’s deliverance and future blessing depended on His coming.  She, like Simeon, and certainly countless others were longing to see Him.  

Isaiah 7:14 (HCSB)  Therefore, the Lord Himself will give you a sign: The virgin will conceive, have a son, and name him Immanuel.

Isaiah 9:1-7 (HCSB)1  Nevertheless, the gloom of the distressed land will not be like that of the former times when He humbled the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali. But in the future He will bring honor to the Way of the Sea, to the land east of the Jordan, and to Galilee of the nations.2  The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; a light has dawned on those living in the land of darkness.3  You have enlarged the nation and increased its joy. ⌊The people⌋ have rejoiced before You as they rejoice at harvest time and as they rejoice when dividing spoils.4  For You have shattered their oppressive yoke and the rod on their shoulders, the staff of their oppressor, just as ⌊You did⌋ on the day of Midian.5  For the trampling boot of battle and the bloodied garments of war will be burned as fuel for the fire.6  For a child will be born for us, a son will be given to us, and the government will be on His shoulders. He will be named Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace.7  The dominion will be vast, and its prosperity will never end. He will reign on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish and sustain it with justice and righteousness from now on and forever. The zeal of the LORD of Hosts will accomplish this.

Then all of a sudden here He is!  

Think about it.  This old lady who had been hanging around the temple for more than 80 years  was blessed to be one of only a handful of people, at that time, to know and understand the significance of Jesus’ birth.  
Anna may just have been another old woman hanging around the temple but she was obviously special to God.  She believed and loved God so much that she spent most of her life around the temple.   She held on to God’s promise of a Messiah. Very few people had the opportunity to see, and know they had seen, the promised Messiah even before He started His ministry, even before he started talking and walking.  Because of her faith Anna was one of those people.  ​

You can be an Anna

Anna can be an example to you, especially if you’re a woman in ministry.  People may not think you’re important, that all you can do is cook the meal for fellowship after service;  be a member of the Pastor’s Aid Committee; serve in the Nursery, or be the church Secretary.  That may be what people thought about Anna as she was ministering at the temple.   She helps the priests and the other Levites, staying in the place that the religious establishment had assigned to her.  Yet God used Anna because of her faithfulness to be one of the first and most enduring witnesses to Christ.  

Luke 2:38 (HCSB)  At that very moment, she came up and began to thank God and to speak about Him to all who were looking forward to the redemption of Jerusalem. (Bold mine)

Luke says that Anna was a prophetess and that’s what a prophetess does she delivers the Word of God about redemption.  She, like the shepherds and the disciples, who will follow her, was driven to bear witness to what she has seen. Anna was one of the first to understand and proclaim the good news (gospel).

Like Anna, you don’t have to do anything spectacular, or be anybody special to be used by God.   You just have to be available.  That starts with a longing to know God and to love Him.  To know and love Him you must know and love His Son, Jesus, The Messiah.  

John 3:16 (HCSB)16  “For God loved the world in this way: He gave His One and Only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life.

John 14:6 (HCSB)6  Jesus told him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.

John 17:3 (HCSB)3  This is eternal life: that they may know You, the only true God, and the One You have sent—Jesus Christ.

Anna’s faithfulness to the first Advent should encourage us to look for the Second Advent.  Anna and all of Israel were expecting their Messiah.  They were waiting for deliverance from Rome.  Anna knew that his child was the promised One.  We see the mess that this world is in today; those of us who love God and His Son Jesus are looking for and expecting the Second Advent.  

The Second Advent will be much different from the First.  This time the Messiah won’t come in secret in a stable in a little dreary town in Israel, with the only people aware of His arrival being His mother and father, a few wise guys, a handful of shepherds, and two old people.  Here is the way He will be announced the next time.

Revelation 1:7 (HCSB) Look! He is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see Him, including those who pierced Him. And all the families of the earth will mourn over Him. This is certain. Amen.

1 Thessalonians 4:16-18 (HCSB)16  For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the archangel’s voice, and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.17  Then we who are still alive will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air and so we will always be with the Lord.18  Therefore encourage one another with these words.

Are you ready for Christ’s Second Advent?

Will you be one of the dead in Christ or one of those still alive and caught up with them?  If you have accepted Jesus as your Lord and Savior you will be.  If not you won’t be caught up with Jesus and you will await judgement.  Even if you die before He returns you too will be resurrected but you will like the others not caught up to be with the Lord, and await judgement.  That judgement will be for sin and the penalty for sin is death.  

Romans 6:23 (HCSB)  For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Here is a description of that judgement and it’s penalty;

Matthew 25:41 (HCSB)41  Then He will also say to those on the left, ‘Depart from Me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the Devil and his angels!

Revelation 20:13-15 (HCSB)13  Then the sea gave up its dead, and Death and Hades gave up their dead; all were judged according to their works.14  Death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire.15  And anyone not found written in the book of life was thrown into the lake of fire.
God doesn’t want this for you.  In fact He’s waiting for you to make that decision that will result in eternal life.  

2 Peter 3:9 (HCSB) The Lord does not delay His promise, as some understand delay, but is patient with you, not wanting any to perish but all to come to repentance.
He sent His Son Jesus, the child Anna prophesied about,  to  take the punishment due you for your sin.  All you have to do is admit that you are a sinner and acknowledge that you need a savior.  Here’s how you do that;

Romans 10:9 (HCSB)9  If you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.

Pray this prayer in all sincerity. Don’t just say it if you don’t really mean it, because if you do you will just be speaking words. But if you are tired of trying to change things in your own power,  and are ready to turn your life over to the One who can change things pray;

“God, I know that I am a sinner. I know that I deserve the consequences of my sin. However, I am trusting in Jesus Christ as my Savior. I believe that His death and resurrection provided for my forgiveness. I trust in Jesus and Jesus alone as my personal Lord and Savior. Thank you Lord, for saving me and forgiving me! Amen!”

​If you prayed this simple prayer, even though Christmas has past this year, you have just received the greatest gift possible, your salvation.  Now like Anna thank “thank God and to speak about Him” and say like Simeon  “For my eyes have seen Your salvation”.

​#6 in the Faith at Christmas series

Imagine for just a minute that you’re fifteen years old.  I know that’s a real stretch for some of us to think back that far, but try. You have just been told that when you reach your 30th birthday you will receive an inheritance.  If you are like most people, with very high expectations, from the time you’re given this news you will be anxiously waiting with very high expectations for that day.  When it arrives you’ll celebrate with a big party, a big spending spree, an extravagant vacation, or all these things plus some that I haven’t thought of.  

​Now consider the case of a guy named Simeon, a man who was born years before the birth of Jesus.  Simeon had been told by the Holy Spirit that he would see Israel’s Messiah before he died.  

Luke 2:25-26 (HCSB)25  There was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon. This man was righteous and devout, looking forward to Israel’s consolation, and the Holy Spirit was on him.26  It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he saw the Lord’s Messiah.

He wasn’t told when, just that he would see Him.  Can you imagine the how excited this must have made Simeon?  We don’t know much about Simeon.  He may or may not have been a priest.  We know he was righteous and devout,  a sincere worshiper of God, who almost certainly followed the Law.    

Then one day when he was at the temple something amazing happened.  He saw a young couple who had come to dedicate their baby. Baby dedications weren’t unusual because parents came to dedicate their children everyday.  The Law required that Jewish parents bring their new babies to the temple, to offer a sacrifice and dedicate their child to God.  

Leviticus 12:6-7 (HCSB)6  “When her days of purification are complete, whether for a son or daughter, she is to bring to the priest at the entrance to the tent of meeting a year-old male lamb for a burnt offering, and a young pigeon or a turtledove for a sin offering.7  He will present them before the LORD and make atonement on her behalf; she will be clean from her discharge of blood. This is the law for a woman giving birth, whether to a male or female.  

The young couple that Simeon saw that day was Mary and Joseph, who were rejoicing in the birth of their Son, Jesus.  It’s pretty clear that the Holy Spirit told Simeon that this was the Messiah, the one he had been waiting with such great expectation all these years.  

Luke 2:27-32 (HCSB)27  Guided by the Spirit, he entered the temple complex. When the parents brought in the child Jesus to perform for Him what was customary under the law,28  Simeon took Him up in his arms, praised God, and said:29  Now, Master, You can dismiss Your slave in peace, as You promised.30  For my eyes have seen Your salvation.31  You have prepared ⌊it⌋ in the presence of all peoples--32  a light for revelation to the Gentiles and glory to Your people Israel.

His expectations were based on God’s word as recorded by the prophet Isaiah.

Isaiah 7:14 (HCSB)14  Therefore, the Lord Himself will give you a sign: The virgin will conceive, have a son, and name him Immanuel.

Isaiah 9:1-7 (HCSB)1  Nevertheless, the gloom of the distressed land will not be like that of the former times when He humbled the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali. But in the future He will bring honor to the Way of the Sea, to the land east of the Jordan, and to Galilee of the nations.2  The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; a light has dawned on those living in the land of darkness.3  You have enlarged the nation and increased its joy. ⌊The people⌋ have rejoiced before You as they rejoice at harvest time and as they rejoice when dividing spoils.4  For You have shattered their oppressive yoke and the rod on their shoulders, the staff of their oppressor, just as ⌊You did⌋ on the day of Midian.5  For the trampling boot of battle and the bloodied garments of war will be burned as fuel for the fire.6  For a child will be born for us, a son will be given to us, and the government will be on His shoulders. He will be named Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace.7  The dominion will be vast, and its prosperity will never end. He will reign on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish and sustain it with justice and righteousness from now on and forever. The zeal of the LORD of Hosts will accomplish this.

Simeon's expectant hope in the Messiah caused him to live a life of waiting to see Immanuel.  Can you imagine how it must of felt for Simeon to daily go to the temple and come home without seeing the Messiah? He went day after day and nothing, but he didn’t give up.  God had made him a promise and no matter how long it took he continued to look for the Messiah.  He remained faithful to God’s promise.  He didn’t give up just because the fulfilment of the promise was a long time coming.  He believed God.  

Habakkuk 2:3 (HCSB)  For the vision is yet for the appointed time; it testifies about the end and will not lie. Though it delays, wait for it, since it will certainly come and not be late.
Simeon’s faith can encourage you to never forget the promises that the Holy Spirit has spoken into your life.   Simeon went to the temple every day looking for the Messiah and every day went home not having seen Him.  But he remained faithful to God’s promise to him, that he wouldn’t die until he had seen Him, so he continued to go expecting to see the Messiah any day.  That’s the way our faith should operate.  We should expect the answer to our prayers, and the fulfillment of God’s promises to happen any day.​

God has made you promises too!

2 Peter 1:3-4 (HCSB) His divine power has given us everything required for life and godliness through the knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and goodness.4  By these He has given us very great and precious promises, so that through them you may share in the divine nature, escaping the corruption that is in the world because of evil desires.  

He’s promised you eternal life.

John 3:16 (HCSB)16  “For God loved the world in this way: He gave His One and Only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life.

He’s promised never leave or forsake you.

Deuteronomy 31:3 (HCSB)3  The LORD your God is the One who will cross ahead of you. He will destroy these nations before you, and you will drive them out. Joshua is the one who will cross ahead of you, as the LORD has said.

He’s promised to meet all of your needs.

Philippians 4:19 (HCSB)  And my God will supply all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus.

He’s promised you eternal security.

John 10:27-30 (HCSB)27  My sheep hear My voice, I know them, and they follow Me.28  I give them eternal life, and they will never perish—ever! No one will snatch them out of My hand.29  My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all. No one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand.30  The Father and I are one.”

Are These Promises for You?

These promises are only for those who believe that Jesus was born of a virgin and who believe that He died for their sins, that He was buried and three days later rose from the dead.

If you didn’t believe that then the promises are not for you.  But rejoice, God wants them to apply to you; and He has already put the process in place for that to happen.  He sent His Son Jesus, the child that Simeon held, to the earth  to  take the punishment due you for your sin.  All you have to do is admit that you are a sinner and acknowledge that you need a savior.  Here’s how you do that;

Romans 10:9 (NKJV)   that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.

Pray this prayer in all sincerity. Don’t just say it if you don’t really mean it, because if you do you will just be speaking words. But if you are tired of trying to change things in your own power,  and are ready to turn your life over to the One who can change things pray;

“God, I know that I am a sinner. I know that I deserve the consequences of my sin. However, I am trusting in Jesus Christ as my Savior. I believe that His death and resurrection provided for my forgiveness. I trust in Jesus and Jesus alone as my personal Lord and Savior. Thank you Lord, for saving me and forgiving me! Amen!”

This Christmas, remember when you first met Jesus. What was going on in your life? How did you feel after accepting His offer of forgiveness? How has your life changed since that day? Now imagine what it will be like when you finally see Him face to face in heaven.  

What are you looking for this Christmas? If you are looking for the Lord you will not be disappointed.  Like Simeon you can say “For my eyes have seen Your salvation”.  One look into the face of Jesus, and Simeon knew the hope of his life had been fulfilled. One look into the face of our Savior, and we will know the same.  The way he waited for the first coming is a model for how we should wait for the Second Coming.

1 Thessalonians 4:16-17 (NKJV) 16  For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first.17  Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord. 

Revelation 1:7 (NKJV) 7  Behold, He is coming with clouds, and every eye will see Him, even they who pierced Him. And all the tribes of the earth will mourn because of Him. Even so, Amen. 


# 5 in the Faith at Christmas series​

Luke 2:8-20 (HCSB)8  In the same region, shepherds were staying out in the fields and keeping watch at night over their flock.9  Then an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified.10  But the angel said to them, “Don’t be afraid, for look, I proclaim to you good news of great joy that will be for all the people:11  Today a Savior, who is Messiah the Lord, was born for you in the city of David.12  This will be the sign for you: You will find a baby wrapped snugly in cloth and lying in a feeding trough.”13  Suddenly there was a multitude of the heavenly host with the angel, praising God and saying:14  Glory to God in the highest heaven, and peace on earth to people He favors!15  When the angels had left them and returned to heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go straight to Bethlehem and see what has happened, which the Lord has made known to us.”16  They hurried off and found both Mary and Joseph, and the baby who was lying in the feeding trough.17  After seeing ⌊them⌋, they reported the message they were told about this child,18  and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them.19  But Mary was treasuring up all these things in her heart and meditating on them.20  The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had seen and heard, just as they had been told.  

We have heard a lot of sermons about who were the first to learn of the birth of Jesus.  Most of those sermons marvel that the announcement of  the birth of the King of Kings was made to those at the bottom of society's ladder.  

We don’t know much about these shepherds.  We don’t know their names, or how many of them there were.  What we do know was that in those days, shepherds had no authority, influence, or power. After this mention in Luke we never hear of them again.  But the truth is that the shepherds play a major role in the Christmas story.   Their actions upon hearing the announcement of Jesus can be an example for us as we celebrate the birth of Christ.  This Christmas, the Word of God encourages us to celebrate with a shepherd’s faith.​

What Happened that Night?  

God has a purpose for everything so we can be sure that He had a  reason for having this announcement made to these specific shepherds.  

In Jewish tradition as revealed in writings called the Mishnah (the first major written redaction of the Jewish oral traditions known as the "Oral Torah". It is also the first major work of Rabbinic literature. - Wikipedia)  there was the belief that the Messiah would be revealed from the Migdal Eder ("the tower of the flock"). This tower stood close to Bethlehem on the road to Jerusalem, and the sheep that pastured there were not the type used for ordinary purposes. The shepherds working there, in fact, took care of the temple-flocks, the sheep meant for sacrifice.

The sheep these shepherds watched would have probably been used as sacrifice animals at the temple in Jerusalem, which was not far from Bethlehem.   These men who watched the sheep meant for sacrifice got the news about the Lamb who would take away the sins of the world through His death and resurrection.  Think about that.

These shepherds were quietly doing their jobs  when suddenly an angel appeared to them. I'm not surprised they were afraid!  In most of the instances in the bible when angels appeared to men, live and not in a dream, it was by surprise and resulted in fear or panic.  

Daniel 10:4-9, 10-12 (HCSB)4  On the twenty-fourth day of the first month, as I was standing on the bank of the great river, the Tigris,5  I looked up, and there was a man dressed in linen, with a belt of gold from Uphaz around his waist.6  His body was like topaz, his face like the brilliance of lightning, his eyes like flaming torches, his arms and feet like the gleam of polished bronze, and the sound of his words like the sound of a multitude.7  Only I, Daniel, saw the vision. The men who were with me did not see it, but a great terror fell on them, and they ran and hid.8  I was left alone, looking at this great vision. No strength was left in me; my face grew deathly pale, and I was powerless.9  I heard the words he said, and when I heard them I fell into a deep sleep, with my face to the ground.10  Suddenly, a hand touched me and raised me to my hands and knees.11  He said to me, “Daniel, you are a man treasured ⌊by God⌋. Understand the words that I’m saying to you. Stand on your feet, for I have now been sent to you.” After he said this to me, I stood trembling.12  “Don’t be afraid, Daniel,” he said to me, “for from the first day that you purposed to understand and to humble yourself before your God, your prayers were heard. I have come because of your prayers.  

Luke 1:11-13 (HCSB)11  An angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing to the right of the altar of incense.12  When Zechariah saw him, he was startled and overcome with fear.13  But the angel said to him: Do not be afraid, Zechariah, because your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you will name him John.

But as in those instances the angel talking to the shepherds calmed them by telling them to not be afraid because he had “good news”.  He told them that this “good news” will be for “all people.”, even those at the bottom of society’s ladder.

Here’s where their faith takes over.  They didn’t sit around trying to figure out what all this meant and why they, lowly shepherds, got this news.   They didn’t debate the meaning of what the angels said.  They didn’t discuss whether it was true or not.  They didn’t think about the meaning of the words that were spoken.  They didn’t seek out officials to justify their faith in what they had heard.  They heard the Word of God by faith and any thought of who they were in the hierarchy of society was left behind, and they went immediately to Bethlehem. The scripture says they left right away.  They heard God’s Word and they acted.  That’s faith.  

But let’s not stop there, unlike the Magi they didn't have a star to guide them.  All they knew was “a baby wrapped snugly in cloth and lying in a feeding trough”.  So they probably had to go throughout  Bethlehem looking for a baby in a feeding trough.  Can you guess what people must have thought about some dirty shepherds going through town looking in people’s stables for a baby?  It didn’t matte;r they keep looking until they found Him.  

Luke 2:16 (HCSB)16  They hurried off and found both Mary and Joseph, and the baby who was lying in the feeding trough.

They didn’t keep the fact that they had found and seen the “Savior, who is Messiah the Lord” a secret.  They told everybody that they saw.

Luke 2:20 (HCSB)20  The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had seen and heard, just as they had been told.

Luke 2:17-18 (HCSB)17  After seeing ⌊them⌋, they reported the message they were told about this child,18  and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. ​

Do you have shepherd’s faith?

The shepherds’ response to the birth announcement and to the newborn Savior revealed hearts of faith that trusted in the words and promises of God.
The message that the angels told the shepherds is the Lord’s message for you.  The baby that the shepherds found in a feeding trough in Bethlehem would one day, years later,  be nailed to a cross where he would pay for your sins and washed away your guilt in his blood. There was another announcement made, by an angel, over 30 years later.

Matthew 28:5-6 (HCSB)5  But the angel told the women, “Don’t be afraid, because I know you are looking for Jesus who was crucified.6  He is not here! For He has been resurrected, just as He said. Come and see the place where He lay.

Do you have this kind of shepherd’s faith; the kind of faith that believes in God’s personal love for you even if you are at the bottom of society’s ladder; even if you’ve done despicable things from which you don’t think you can ever be forgiven? Do you accept God’s love?  If you do pray this simple prayer;

“Dear God, I am a sinner and need forgiveness. I believe that Jesus Christ shed His precious blood and died for my sin. I am willing to turn from sin. I now invite Christ to come into my heart and life as my personal Savior.”

If you have just prayed this prayer, in all sincerity, call, text, email, Tweet, change your Facebook status and tell somebody, leave me a comment here or send me an email with this Link.  Then find a bible believing church and start to fellowship with other believers.  Welcome to the family of God.

* #4 in the "Faith at Christmas Series