12/3/2006 Advent 2006

Living With Promises

Hope and anticipation - they are powerful parts of our lives, aren’t they?

Hope inspires and sustains us. A dream draws us to achievement, causes us to sacrifice. Then, too, when we dare to hope, we risk disappointment! There is a cynical part of me that endorses the statement - “Blessed are those who expect nothing, for they are seldom disappointed!” But who really wants to live every day without hope, without anticipation, without promises? A person without hope is a dead man walking! How we need hope.

Here at the beginning of the season of Advent, I want to talk about promises and hope - the ‘now and not yet’ aspect of our Christian life.

Christmas time is often characterized by anticipation! Bev remarked to me the other day as I was whistling, “Joy to the World” - “You’re looking forward to kids coming, aren’t you?” She is right. I am anticipating Christmas week! Those few days when our house will be chaotically full of noise and people will be great!

When I was a kid and there was this long run up to Christmas morning that started in late October.

∙ First, there was the annual arrival of the Sears Christmas Catalog. They called the ‘Wish Book,’ didn’t they? Ours was marked up with big circles around our gifts of choice, with page corners turned down to show ‘Santa Claus’ where we had spent our time dreaming.

∙ Then, there were those wrapped gifts that mysteriously appeared in the closet which Mom forbade you to touch and you desperately wanted to obey but... temptation usually overcame you when she was upstairs doing something else.

∙ But it was Christmas Eve that was almost intolerable with excitement!! We were sent off to bed where sleep was impossible. Dad would call up the stairs to us, “Go to sleep,” in his most stern voice, but it was clear he was looking forward to Christmas morning, too. Christmas morning was the moment of the realization of our hopes and dreams.

Christians all over the world are celebrating the season of Advent. It is a time of anticipation! The word - ‘advent’ - is borrowed from Latin and simply means ‘to come.’ What many of us do not consciously remember is that Advent calls to mind two events - not one! It’s not just about Christmas. The first coming of Jesus Christ, which we remember at Christmas, helps us to focus with expectation on the Great Promise - the Second Coming of Christ! Thus, Advent is not just about the past. It is really primarily about the future. A few moments ago I spoke of the importance of hope, of the power of an anticipated outcome.

Believer, we need a firm grasp on the Promise of the Second Coming of our Lord so we have real hope and anticipation of a glorious future drawing us to greater commitment to Christ and the work of His kingdom.

As we deal with disappointment, death, disease, and disaster it is important to be able to pray and accept God’s provisions in the present, and yet – and yet — and yet —

we realize that we live in a time of tension when we deal with Sin and Evil while we are waiting for the final victory of the Lord’s return. Not all of God’s promises are fully realized yet here on this earth. When I read the the magnificent visions of the prophets about universal peace, about the defeat of Satan and sin, about the ‘lion and the lamb lying down together’ as foretold by Isaiah, I am captivated!

And yet, right now- I see that wars rage, I find myself wrestling with temptation and sin, and I see the work of Satan in a broken world all around me. My cry to God becomes - “Lord, how long before my hope is fully realized?” And I am not alone!

The # 1 issue that people - both Believers and those who have not yet come to faith- bring to me is this question of the continuing experience of sin and evil!

- Why did my spouse decide to divorce me?

- Why does my child struggle with autism?

- Why did I get cancer?

- Why is my temper so hard to control?

- Why is hatred so strong and love so fragile?

Advent helps us with the answer -

for we are reminded that we live with a promise, in a time of ‘now and not yet!’

Jesus came once to open up the way to restoration with our Heavenly Creator and Father. The Baby of the Manger in Bethlehem came as the Redeemer, the One who would suffer and die for the sins of the world. And, He will come again - as Christ, the Victor - Conqueror of Sin, Hell, and Death!

The ancient prophets looked through the telescope of time and saw the Messiah’s coming, but from their perspective they could not perceive the gap between the appearance of the Redeemer, the Suffering Savior and the King, the Lord of Glory!

Let’s take a closer look at a couple of their prophecies —

TEXT - Micah 5: 2-5 Pew Bible 1445

Micah saw the spiritual decay in Judah and the inevitable judgment of God that would come. As he prayed for his people to be saved, God showed him that a Shepherd was to come and that He would rule to the ends of the earth. That promise in its fullness remains to be fulfilled!

Jeremiah saw the ruin of Jerusalem, the destruction of the city of God, and his heart broke. What of the promises of God to preserve His people? Then the Spirit of God spoke.

TEXT- Jeremiah 33:1-6, 14-16 Pew Bible 1231

Things were grim in Jerusalem for Jeremiah! But he had a promise to cling to. That promise was not fulfilled in a day or a month or even a year! Nearly 600 years passed before the Messiah walked the streets of Jerusalem, and the revelation of Christ, as King of the earth, is one which we still anticipate!

The Second Coming of Christ is a doctrine much abused, misused, and misunderstood. Down through church history many different scenarios have been proposed about the time of His return, the events surrounding His return, and even the signs of His imminent return. The 20^th century was a time of great deal of speculation about the return of Christ Jesus.

The horrors of the World Wars, the emergence of technology to create one world government, and other factors combined to create prophetic fervor that gripped American Christians particularly. Since so much of the prophecy found in the Scripture involves the Jewish people, and since the Bible is clear that God will bless the children of Abraham in a special way as the time of the Second Coming of Jesus Christ nears, many Christians were excited by the establishment of the state of Israel in May of 1948. They believed sincerely, that this event heralded the beginning of the final generation before the Lord’s return! Generally, in the Bible, a generation is 40 years, so many sincere Christians expected that Christ’s 2^nd Coming was sure to happen by 1988! It didn’t. We’re still here and sin with still with us!

But then came the turn of the 21^st century and the dawn of a new millennium, and prophetic fervor died down somewhat. Some of us who had been raised in the heyday of the Hal Lindsey books, the movies that scared the wits out of us with portrayals of Jesus’ return that led to chaotic times on earth, who watched preachers profit by preaching sensational but doctrinally questionable message, were relieved to see the subject fade from such prominence.

Because of all the hype and sensationalism, some of us are tempted to relegate the doctrine to the dusty corners at the edge of our mind. But, we must be careful not to lose sight of an incredibly important doctrine of the Bible, a key to our faithfulness, the assurance that we have given ourselves to a God who is able to save us and to keep His promises. Thus, we must hold onto the promise that Jesus made to the first disciples- “I will come back!”

When He was taken up into Heaven, the book of Acts tells us that the angels repeated the promise - They said, “Men of Galilee, why are you standing here staring at the sky? Jesus has been taken away from you into heaven. And someday, just as you saw him go, he will return!” (Acts 1:11, NLT)

In the difficult times of persecution which that first generation of Believers endured, the great hope that kept them faithful was not that they would come into wealth or power here on earth! Unlike many Christians today who see their faith as means of a creating a life of comfort here on earth, they saw their faith as a means of staying hopeful in the difficulties of life while they anticipated the return of their Lord!

Paul’s words make this clear. Take a look.

TEXT – 2 Thess. 1: 3-10

The raw information we process forms our expectations. However, if we have incomplete information or if our interpretation is wrong, or if we jump to wrong conclusions, we will form bad expectations, which will to our disappointment.

ill. - If you have a little girl who desperately wants a pony for Christmas, she will be looking for signs that indicate you’re going to give her what she wants, right? If a pony is out of the question and you are a wise parent you will help her to adjust her assumptions so she is not disappointed!

A Christian who has formed a faulty set of expectations that because he is a Christian, he will always have great health, wealth, and comfort in this world is bound to become disappointed, perhaps even bitter, or worse - to lose faith when the inevitable suffering of life comes his way. We all - Christian and unbeliever alike - suffer, in one way or another!

To be sure, there are blessings in knowing Christ and living a life that conforms to God’s plans and purposes produces many benefits.

∙ We have the privilege of prayer.

∙ We know peace with God.

∙ We enjoy the support and love of God’s family.

But we always realize that we’re not home yet! Regardless of faith, Christians live in a broken world where evil is menacingly and where bad things enter our lives.

However, the Christian who has a firm grip on the Promise of the Second Coming of Christ understands that only then will all those things that cause us so much trouble now be completely taken from our lives by the revelation of the King. That Christian will stand faithful, enduring the sufferings of life, with patient joy as the Scripture teaches.

Even the scourge of death, that great enemy of humanity, which brings us so much sorrow gives hope and comfort to the Believer who knows that the end of the story is not written at a grave! The Bible says,

"... you must not carry on over them like people who have nothing to look forward to, as if the grave were the last word. Since Jesus died and broke loose from the grave, God will most certainly bring back to life those who died in Jesus.

And then this: We can tell you with complete confidence—we have the Master’s word on it—that when the Master comes again to get us, those of us who are still alive will not get a jump on the dead and leave them behind. In actual fact, they’ll be ahead of us.

The Master himself will give the command. Archangel thunder! God’s trumpet blast! He’ll come down from heaven and the dead in Christ will rise—they’ll go first. Then the rest of us who are still alive at the time will be caught up with them into the clouds to meet the Master. Oh, we’ll be walking on air! And then there will be one huge family reunion with the Master. So reassure one another with these words." (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18, The Message)

As we celebrate this Advent, let me encourage you to not only focus on the Nativity, but even more importantly on the Promise of the Return of Christ, as King. This same Jesus, who came to save us from our sins, will - in God’s own time - come to be our King.

"So stay awake, alert. You have no idea what day your Master will show up. But you do know this: You know that if the homeowner had known what time of night the burglar would arrive, he would have been there with his dogs to prevent the break-in. Be vigilant just like that. You have no idea when the Son of Man is going to show up." (Matthew 24:42-44, The Message)

Amen.