Mary Did You Know (Part 3)

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During our Advent series entitled “Mary Did You Know?” we’ve asked the question as to whether or not Mary, the earthly mother of Jesus, had any clue as to her son’s true power and identity there on the night of his birth in Bethlehem.  We’ve acknowledged that she knew something since the angel Gabriel did appear to her and tell her a bit about the child that was to be born to her, but did she have any clue about the magnitude of who this child really was.  We began by looking at Jesus’ miracles, primarily focusing on the fact that the miracles themselves weren’t the important matter, but were instead pointing to what was important, the crucifixion.  Certainly Mary had some grasp of the miracles of Jesus since her conception itself was a miracle.  Last Sunday, we talked about Jesus serving eternally in the office of prophet.  Remember, we said that a prophet is one who speaks for God to His people.  Jesus continues to serve in this office even this very moment as we speak.  He is the Word of God, by which we have the commands of God revealed to us.  Mary more than likely knew that Jesus was coming to proclaim God’s word, but to what extent she didn’t know for certain.

Well, today we’re going to turn Jesus around so-to-speak and examine his role as the eternal priest.  You see, whereas a prophet spoke from God to the people, a priest spoke or acted from the people towards God.  The priest was responsible for making the sacrifices to God that were required for the cleansing and forgiving of sins prior to entering the temple and coming into the presence of a holy God.  When we think about the office of a priest in reference to Scripture, what comes to mind most often is the Aaronic priesthood of Israel (which is also referred to as the Levitical priesthood in some circles).  These were the priests who were in charge of offering proper sacrifices and worship in the tabernacle while Israel wandered in the wilderness, and eventually in the temple after it had been constructed after their entering into the Promised Land.  We don’t have the time to go through and examine all of the things that the priests were required to do because it spans a good deal of the second half of Exodus, Leviticus, and Numbers.  Which, as a side note, if you ever question whether we have it much easier to call ourselves worshippers of God today, just read the Pentateuch and you will see that our system of worship is much more simplistic than that of Old Testament Israel.  And all of that is because of the work of Jesus Christ.  Of course the argument could be made that because of the ease with which we are able to approach God, the awe and reverence that we ought to have for Him is sadly lost upon many Christians today.

Anyways, getting back to the examination of Jesus as our eternal priest, the Aaronic/Levitical priesthood isn’t the only priesthood mentioned in Scripture.  Psalm 110, the Old Testament text that is most frequently quoted in the New Testament, speaks of another priesthood, while also telling of the coming Messiah.  “The LORD says to my Lord:  ‘Sit at my right hand, until I make your enemies your footstool.’  The LORD sends forth from Zion your mighty scepter.  Rule in the midst of your enemies!   Your people will offer themselves freely on the day of your power, in holy garments; from the womb of the morning, the dew of your youth will be yours.  The LORD has sworn and will not change his mind, ‘You are a priest forever after the order of Melchizedek.’ (110:1-4)”  Do you remember the name Melchizedek coming up anywhere else previously in the Old Testament?  That’s right, in Genesis 14 we find this priest named Melchizedek blessing Abraham.  “And Melchizedek king of Salem brought out bread and wine.  (He was priest of God Most High.)  And he blessed him and said, ‘Blessed be Abram by God Most High, Possessor of heaven and earth; and blessed be God Most High, who has delivered your enemies into your hand!’  And Abram gave him a tenth of everything. (14:18-20)” 

So, we see that in Psalm 110, David, inspired by God, speaks of the coming Messiah as coming from the line of Melchizedek.  Well, the first question that we ask is why the Melchizedek priesthood and not the Levitical one established by God within Israel (His chosen people) there in the wilderness?  After all, we think that in this keeping of the biblical line that there would be this easy progression throughout, right?  Well, the simple answer is that the Melchizedek priesthood is greater than the Levitical one.  Let’s follow the flow of things shall we?  In order for Melchizedek to bless Abraham (Abram) as he did in Genesis 14, he would have had to be considered greater than Abraham.  Well, ultimately, Moses and his brother Aaron are descendants of Abraham, as is David.  Now we know that Jesus comes from the line of David, but he is “a priest forever after the order of Melchizedek” as the writer of Hebrews tells us in 7:17.  However, I want to back up a bit to earlier in the chapter when the writer of this epistle “compares” these two priesthoods.  “For this Melchizedek, king of Salem, priest of the Most High God, met Abraham … and blessed him, and to him Abraham apportioned a tenth part of everything.  He is first, by translation of his name, king of righteousness, and then he is also king of Salem, that is, king of peace.  He is without father or mother or genealogy, having neither beginning of days nor end of life, but resembling the Son of God he continues a priest forever.  See how great this man was to whom Abraham the patriarch gave a tenth of the spoils!  And those descendants of Levi who receive the priestly office have a commandment in the law to take tithes from the people, that is, from their brothers, though these also are descended from Abraham.  But this man who does not have his descent from them received tithes from Abraham and blessed him who had the promises.  It is beyond dispute that the inferior is blessed by the superior.  In the one case tithes are received by mortal men, but in the other case, by one of whom it is testified that he lives.  One might even say that Levi himself, who receives tithes, paid tithes through Abraham, for he was still in the loins of his ancestor when Melchizedek met him. (7:1-10)”.  So you see, we’re not breaking any covenantal lines here.  If anything, we are actually seeing the covenantal line strengthened and an even greater foreshadowing of the coming Messiah, Jesus Christ.  We’re seeing an even greater foreshadowing coming even earlier in the unfolding of redemptive history.

The writer of Hebrews then goes on to spend the rest of the seventh chapter of this epistle comparing Jesus to Melchizedek, but he also begins to turn his focus to Jesus’ serving as our eternal priest.  “The former priests were many in number, because they were prevented by death from continuing in office, but he (Jesus) holds his priesthood permanently, because he continues forever.  Consequently, he is able to save to the uttermost those who draw near to God through him, since he always lives to make intercession for them.  For it was indeed fitting that we should have such a high priest, holy, innocent, unstained, separated from sinners, and exalted above the heavens.  He has no need, like those high priests, to offer sacrifices daily, first for his own sins and then for those of the people, since he did this once for all when he offered up himself.  For the law appoints men in their weakness as high priests, but the word of the oath, which came later than the law, appoints a Son who has been made perfect forever. (7:23-28)”.  Do you see the words here from the writer of Hebrews telling us of the greatness of Christ?  We often times in today’s world when hearing people speak about pastors say that “they’re people too.”  Yes, that’s very much the case.  We’re just as prone to disobedience and sin as anyone else…maybe even more so than some.  Well, the priests of the old covenant were people too.  I’m just as in need of the saving blood of Jesus as anyone else today.  They were just as much in need of those sacrifices to cleanse themselves as the people were then. 

However, when it comes to Jesus, there is no need for Jesus to make atonement for his sin because he never sinned.  He is completely, totally, and eternally without sin.  He also offered a sacrifice that was much greater than anything offered by the Levitical priests.  Even though they followed all of those laws about sacrifices that are contained in the Pentateuch to the finest detail, their sacrifices weren’t sufficient.  Hebrews 10:4 says, “For it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sin.”  Well, that’s what the priests were sacrificing; that’s what they were commanded to sacrifice.  However, it wasn’t enough.  But Jesus; Jesus’ sacrifice was different.  His sacrifice was much great than an animal and instead of a sacrifice that needed repeating it was a once for all sacrifice.  Now, don’t mistakenly think that I’m saying that Jesus continuously keeps repeating this sacrifice as a means of satisfying the wrath and justice of God.  Christ continues in this role as priest by his continuous intercession for us as he resides with the Father.  However, his sacrifice was a once for all time event.  The event that we remember in greater earnest through our partaking of the elements on the table that stands before us today; we remember the one-time sacrifice of Jesus Christ.

The eternality of his priesthood isn’t merely his sacrifice lasting for all time, but also in his active role as our advocate with the Father.  We said last Sunday that Jesus still serves in his role as prophet even at this very moment, and that he will continue to serve in that role until such time as the new heaven and new earth are fully established.  Well, the same is true of his role as the eternal priest.  The sacrifice has already been made, but the accounting it to our behalf and bestowing upon us the blessings that come from it are a continuous work.  Jesus Christ is at this very moment making intercession for us wretched sinners before a just God.  Doesn’t that fact just astound and astonish you?

Last Sunday, I closed by asking you the question of whether or not your life was governed by Christ; whether you followed the commands of God (conveyed through Jesus as the eternal prophet and Word of God) or something of this world?  Well, I want to ask another question about how you live your life.  Do you live your life as if Jesus is the eternal priest; your eternal priest?  Do you live as if the only reason or means that you have any hope of salvation is because Jesus is actively working for it at this very moment?  Or do you live as if your being nice to someone, your giving of your money or time, or your being a decent person are your hopes for salvation.  I’m not diminishing those things.  As we’ve said before, those are good works that ought to flow naturally from our faith.  What I’m asking is if you can honestly look yourself in the mirror and say that you’re nothing without Jesus.  Can you stare at your reflection, thinking about all the things that you’ve done in this life and all the things that you consider yours and acknowledge that you’re nothing without Jesus?  Nothing that we do or have done means a thing without Jesus.  That is his role as the eternal priest.  Through his sacrifice and his atoning work, we are made righteous and forgiven, so that we may come into the presence of our Heavenly Father.

Mary Did You Know (Part 2) - Luke 2:1-20; Deuteronomy 18:15

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                Now, I know that many of us in this room have read and/or heard the different accounts of the events surrounding the birth of Jesus and the state of affairs in that region at that point in history so many times that we feel like we pretty much know all that can realistically be known about that night in Bethlehem.  However, simply because something can’t be known fully doesn’t (nor should it) stop us from asking various questions about it.  One of the questions that commonly gets asked of these events is if they were expected; was the birth of Jesus expected?  Now, this may seem like a bit of an odd question.  After all, we have all of the numerous prophecies of the Old Testament about how the Messiah would come into the world and what he would do once he was here.  We know that Jesus is referred to at various points as the long-awaited Messiah.   So, the short answer to whether or not these events were expected is yes.  Maybe not every detail, but these events were anticipated in a general sense.  Well, do you know where most of these expectations came from?  As I mentioned a moment ago, they came from those prophecies that we find in the Old Testament.  They, of course, all have God as their source of origin, but they were delivered to His people through prophets.  A prophet was someone who spoke for God to His people.  God’s will for His people was revealed through the speaking of a prophet, who himself had received God’s instructions via dreams, direct hearings, or some other theophany.  God would also from time-to-time reveal future events that were to come in the life of His people; these were called prophecies.  Well, God had spoken through various prophets for some time revealing little pieces about who the coming Messiah was to be.  We refer to these specific prophecies as Messianic prophecies.

                One of the earliest revelations about the coming Messiah comes to us from Moses’ words to the nation of Israel just before they were to enter into the Promised Land.  In Deuteronomy 18, Moses tells the Israelites, “The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, from your brothers—it is to him you shall listen.”  Moses then goes on to remind the people of the events that happened previously, during their wanderings in the wilderness, when the people fully acknowledged that they needed someone to stand between themselves and God because of their sinfulness.  They not only acknowledged their need for someone to stand in such a place, but begged God to provide them with that person.  “Don’t just let us pick someone, but you choose who should stand between yourself and us.”  And God tells them that He will do just that in his words to Moses, “I will raise up for them a prophet like you from among their brothers.  And I will put my words in his mouth, and he shall speak to them all that I command him.”  So, the question that we’re going to ask and somewhat answer is whether or not Mary, Jesus’ mother who was looking into his newborn eyes that night, had any idea that her son was the eternal prophet promised by Moses some roughly 1500 years prior to Jesus’ birth.

                Now, as we said last week, it would be pretty unlikely for Mary to have a completely accurate idea of the magnitude of who Jesus really was there in that moment.  The truth of the matter is that she was probably still dealing with a little bit of the euphoria of delivering this child into the world.  The reality that she was now a mother was still setting in.  All of the emotions that come with this life-changing event were more than likely raging inside of her then just as they do within most women who give birth today.  However, because of the visit from the angel Gabriel telling her that she was to give birth to the Son of God and because of Joseph’s being visited by the Lord during a dream, they both knew full-well that there was something different about this child that wasn’t like anyone before.  I mean, it’s not as if there hadn’t been some pretty amazing births already recorded in Scripture.  Think back to the births of Isaac or Moses or Samuel.  In a few of these cases we’re told of either barrenness or age or a combination of the two on the part of their mothers leading to it being highly unlikely that these children would be born.  Yet, they were born in God’s unfolding of His eternal plan.  In the case of Moses, the situation that existed with the slaying of all Hebrew boys was even more bleak-looking than Herod’s vendetta to kill Jesus.  I mean, we need only look at John the Baptist’s birth to see God’s overcoming of Elizabeth’s (a relative of Mary’s) barrenness to bring John into the world.  However, none of these miraculous births and survivals are as amazing or incredible as the virgin birth.  So, Mary (and Joseph as well) had to know that there was something much greater about this particular child, something much greater than the world had ever known.  They know that this child isn’t just some man of God like the world has seen come and go, but something entirely different.

                Now, I don’t want to get off on too much of a tangent here, but there are those who will fully acknowledge that Jesus was a prophet.  However, they won’t acknowledge that he is the eternal prophet who serves this very day as our advocate with the Father.  That’s an important distinction to be aware of.  For example, those in the Muslim tradition will point out that Jesus speaks numerous times about his being sent by the Father and they take these references to mean that he is merely referring to himself as just a prophet.  They point to texts like Matthew 13:57 and Jesus’ words to the people of Nazareth when he told them, “A prophet is not without honor except in his hometown and in his own household” as proof that even Jesus acknowledged himself to be merely a prophet.  Well, there are two things there that need to be cleared up.  First, Jesus’ acknowledgment of himself as a prophet doesn’t mean that he isn’t something else in addition to being a prophet.  I would acknowledge that I’m a pastor, that doesn’t mean that I can’t be a judge or a doctor or some other profession as well.  Now, I’m not, but I know of several ministers who have other professions in addition to the pastorate.  The second thing of note in this misinterpretation of Jesus as merely a prophet is that it is incorrect exegesis of the original Greek.  The word that is translated “prophet” has no other possible meaning.  The word that is translated “angel” can also be translated as “messenger” or “one who is sent out for the purpose of proclamation.”  So, we can’t mistake Jesus’ words about being sent by the Father and make him merely a messenger for God.  After all, part of the job of a prophet was proclamation, so there is going to be some overlap.  To view Jesus as merely a prophet is to incorrectly reduce the significance of who Jesus is and what he came to accomplish.

                If we were to turn our attention to John 4 and read the account of Jesus at the well with the woman of Samaria, we would find that after a moment of conversation that the woman said to Jesus, “Sir, I perceive that you are a prophet.”  However, only a mere 10 verses later, her understanding of Jesus grows and she recognizes him as the Messiah.  “Can this be the Christ?” she says in verse 29.  She sees that Jesus was much more than a mere prophet.  Another example in John’s gospel of Jesus being much more than what we may think at first is found in the very first words of this account.  “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.  He was in the beginning with God” (1:1-2).  You see, Jesus didn’t only proclaim the Word of God; He is the Word of God.  Perhaps the clearest statement on the superiority of Jesus comes to us from the opening words of the epistle to the Hebrews (1:1-2).  “Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world.”  Are you starting to see how all of this adds up?  When we take the prophecies of the Old Testament and the revelations that God gave to Joseph and Mary and we put those with Jesus’ own words about himself (words like “For I have not spoken of my own authority, but the Father who sent me has himself given me a commandment—what to say and what to speak” John 12:49), then the picture of Jesus being the faithful prophet of the New Testament becomes even clearer.  Jesus is the fuller and more perfect prophet than all those who have proceeded him.  All of the prophets that had come before Jesus have one thing in common; their time of God speaking through them came to an end.  However, that isn’t the case with Jesus.  There is an eternality to his serving in the role of prophet.  Also, it isn’t as if his speaking to God’s people about God is something that he knows little about.  In fact, he knows all there is to know because he is God himself.  As R.C. Sproul says, “Jesus is not just the subject of prophecy; He is the chief object of prophecy.  He did not just teach about the future or declare the Word of God; He is the Word of God, and He is the focal point of all the prophetic teaching of the Old Testament.”

                So, we may not be able to come to a definitive conclusion on whether or not Mary knew that the baby boy that she was looking at was the eternal prophet, the promised Messiah.  She might have.  At the very least, we could assume that she had a good idea about some aspects of Jesus being the One whom God would speak through to His people.  However, we can come to a conclusion on whether or not we know that Jesus is the once for all prophet of God.  Do you live your life as if Jesus still serves as the eternal prophet?  I know that that sounds like a bit of an odd question at first.  Let me clarify, do you live as if the only rule for your life is that which is given to us through Jesus?  Is your life governed by the Word of God?  Or is your life governed or commanded by something else?  Do you take orders from the things of this world (your desires, earthly governments, society in general)?  If your identity as a Christian, as one who is obedient only to the commands of God, came in direct conflict with your personal security, the security of your family, your financial security, or your health, which one wins out?  I know that’s a tough question to answer.  I also know that many of you are saying to yourselves, “Well, God would never ask me to choose between Him and my family.”  No, God wouldn’t make us choose, we’re the ones who choose without even being asked.  We’re the ones who seek personal desires over the kingdom of God.  We’re the ones who take care of ourselves first and then worry about everyone else. 

                The reality of the matter is that for many, life is lived as if Jesus isn’t the eternal prophet.  For many, we take as much guidance and leadership from our own experiences and understanding as we do from Christ’s commands for us.  “My previous experience in this situation dictates how I’m going to approach this more than my following Christ.”  As we’ve said already, Mary may not have known the full extent of Jesus’ serving as the eternal prophet, but we do…at least to some extent.  Maybe we should take the advice that Mary gave to the servants in the text that we looked at last Sunday at the wedding in Cana, “Do whatever he tells you.”  In other words, live as if Jesus is in charge of your life and not as if you are the one in charge.

Mary Did You Know (Part 1) - Luke 2:1-20; John 2:1-10

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                I realize that it seems a little early in the Advent season to go ahead and read the account of Jesus’ birth.  Well, the truth of the matter is that we are going to read this exact same text each time we gather leading up to the celebration of Christmas and we’re going to ask ourselves the very same question each time:  Mary, did you know?  Yes, the very same question as the title to the very popular Christmas song written by Mary Lowry back in the mid-1980’s and rerecorded many times since then.  Each Sunday, we’re going to ask if Mary had any idea about a particular aspect of what her son Jesus was actually going to do during his earthly ministry (and even beyond to some extent).  We’re going to ask if she had any idea who he really was.  This Sunday we’re going to ask ourselves if Mary had any idea about the signs and miracles that her son would perform and what they meant.

                I’ve often said that having a child becomes real for a mother long before it becomes real for a father.  Whether it’s the moment that the test comes back positive or someone buys that first present, the woman feels like a mother.  Maybe it’s that first battle with heartburn or the first sleepless night or even the joy (that quickly turns to pain) of the baby kicking in her stomach, the woman feels like a mother.  Do you want to know when a man feels like a father?  For some, it’s that moment when they hand your baby to you after delivery.  However, for most men it’s that first moment when all of the hustle and bustle quiets down and we are left holding our precious gift from God in our arms.  Now, I’ve been blessed to experience this three times in my life, but there was something different about when Ashby was born that the boys didn’t have (something more than just the fear of being a parent and realizing that someone else’s life was my responsibility).  I can remember looking into her bluish/grey eyes and wondering who she was going to be.  It was something that I had never known with any person in my life.  The possibilities were (and are) literally endless for who that little girl might become and what she could do with her life.

                Over the last almost seven years, I remember that moment every time I read this passage and the same question roams through my mind each time:  I wonder what Mary was thinking when she looked into Jesus’ eyes.  Obviously, she knew from the fact that the angel Gabriel had revealed to her who Jesus really was that her son was someone unlike any the world had known before.  We know that she understood that Immanuel (the name that the Lord revealed to Joseph in a dream) literally means God with us.  However, I’ve often wondered if even she had any clue who Jesus really was and what he came to do.  Did she fully know and believe that her son was the long awaited Messiah of God’s people?  For example, what did she think each time that her son performed a miracle?  If we look at the second chapter of John’s gospel, we find one of Jesus’ most famous miracles, his turning water into wine at the wedding in Cana.  One thing that is different about this miracle that isn’t necessarily present with all the other miracles is that Jesus’ mother was actually present while this miracle was performed.  Also, keep in mind that this was his first miracle to perform.  So, it’s not like Mary had heard of all of the wondrous things that Jesus had done elsewhere prior to this.  John 2 reads, “On the third day there was a wedding at Cana in Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there.  Jesus also was invited to the wedding with his disciples.  When the wine ran out, the mother of Jesus said to him, ‘They have no wine.’  And Jesus said to her, ‘Woman, what does this have to do with me? My hour has not yet come.’  His mother said to the servants, ‘Do whatever he tells you.’”

                Now, we know that Jesus goes on to turn the water from six large stone purification pots into not just wine, but the best wine of the evening.  We’re not going to dissect this miracle for the specific details that are contained within it.  We did that only a few years ago when we walked through John’s gospel.  However, I will remind you of what a miracle really was; Jesus’ miracles where much more significant than the physical action that is recorded in Scripture.  When Jesus performed a miracle, what he was ultimately doing was pointing to the greatest miracle that was to come, his work upon the cross and his glorious resurrection.  In fact, the Greek word that is translated miracle can also be translated as sign (something pointing to something else).  His reference here to his hour having not yet come is a reference to the hour of his crucifixion not being at hand.  Sure, he turned water into wine, but the ultimate purpose behind this miracle or sign was to point to himself as the promised Messiah.  We can’t make the mistake of separating the miracles that he performed during his earthly ministry from his work upon the cross.  It’s just like how we can’t separate Jesus’ calls for compassion, mercy, and love from his call to leave all the things of this world and follow him.  It’s foolish to appeal to any one aspect of Jesus’ mission and not all of the call to be a follower of Christ, especially when the aspects that we want to appeal to are merely signs that are pointing towards his primary purpose.  I’ve heard folks say recently that certain works of compassion and caring are the most Jesus-like things they’ve ever seen.  My response has continuously been, “No, the most Jesus thing to do is to die upon the cross so that mankind might find forgiveness of sins.”  You see it’s simple:  you can’t have Jesus without the crucifixion and resurrection.  Without these aspects of Christ’s work, we’re simply being moralists and not followers or disciples of Jesus.

                Now, as far as this particular miracle goes and it’s pertaining to our specific look at Mary’s understanding of who her son was, did you notice what she told the servants at the wedding after Jesus reminded her that his time had not yet come?  Mary told the servants to do whatever Jesus told them to do.  I’ve often found it interesting that Mary would even go to her son in the first place when it came to the issue of having no wine at this wedding.  After all, Jesus wasn’t in charge of this event, but an invited guest just like everyone else.  Also, we know that Jesus’ trade was in carpentry and not wine-making.  Why would she go to him with this problem unless she knew that he had the power to do something about it?  John Calvin suggests that Mary had no expectation of Jesus producing more wine but instead was looking to him to give some pious exhortation that would relieve the guests of their uneasiness.  After all, it was seen as an insult to them for there not to be enough wine.  However, because of his having done no prior signs, it’s highly unlikely that Mary expected anything along the lines of the events that took place.

                Regardless of her expectations, she knows that whatever Jesus is about to do is for the good of everyone.  Imagine how much better the world would be if we just took Mary’s words to the servants in a general sense.  “Do whatever [Jesus] tells you.”  Mary realizes that Jesus, even though he is only a guest, is in control of this situation.  We see an understanding on her part that there is no authority other than Jesus.  We’re not told of her going to the host of the party, the father of the bride, or any of the servants.  We’re told of her seeing a need and running directly to Jesus and laying the matter at his feet.  We see from this example that if we desire anything from Christ, we will not obtain our wishes, unless we depend on him alone, look to him alone, and do whatever he commands of us.

                Now, as I’ve said already, this was much more than a mere transformation of one substance to another.  This was much more than a taking of something natural and common and making it into something that was synonymous with joy.  This was something to point the way to Jesus as Messiah and Lord.  If we look at the closing words of this account in John’s gospel, we read, “This, the first of his signs, Jesus did at Cana in Galilee, and manifested his glory. And his disciples believed in him.”  The works of Jesus are great and wonderful.  We love reading about his healing people of their infirmities, his driving out demons, and things like that.  However, we cannot miss the ultimate reality that they are much bigger than the actions themselves.  They are signs that are pointing the way to the cross, to the Messiah, and to God.

                So, did Mary have any idea about the miracles that her son would perform?  Well, we can assume from the text in John 2 that she didn’t know on that starry night there in the manger in Bethlehem.  However, she did come to see the power of Jesus’ works and the sign in which they were pointing to.  She grew in her understanding of who her son was just as we must grow in our understanding of who he is.  We can’t reduce Jesus down to his miracles or his teaching or his good works, but we must come to know him for the totality of who he is.  He is our One True Hope, the promised Messiah, the Prince of Peace, the eternal prophet, priest, and king.  Jesus Christ is the Son of Man, the Lion of Judah, and the Good Shepherd.  Jesus Christ is everything to us.

Luke 24:1-12 "The Empty Tomb"

                Over the past month, we’ve spent time looking at the scene of the cross.  We’ve specifically been looking at the people gathered around that most polarizing and significant event in all of human history.  We’ve seen Satan at work, we’ve seen prophecies fulfilled, and we’ve seen a hardened criminal repent and called Jesus Messiah.  A few days ago, at our Maundy Thursday service, we walked through the events of Jesus’ final day prior to his crucifixion.  We looked at his foretelling of Judas’ betrayal, his gathering with his disciples in the upper room, his mental torment in the garden, Judas’ actual betrayal of him, and finally his breathing of his last breath and giving up his spirit.  Now, in the immediate aftermath of all this, we find in the various Gospel accounts that several things happened.  First, as Jesus breathed his last breath, the curtain of the temple was torn completely in two from top to bottom.  Secondly, a Roman soldier who was part of the battalion that crucified Jesus, after witnessing all that had happened up close, proclaimed that “Truly this man was the Son of God.”  Third, we find that many of those gathered around Jesus were in stunned silence.  Some could not believe what they had just seen, while others were waiting for something else to happen.  However, that something else never came (or at least it didn’t come when they were expecting it to).  And finally, we find that since the Sabbath is fast approaching, that two men, Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus, asked Pontius Pilate for Jesus’ body so that he could be properly buried.  All of this ultimately ending with Jesus’ lifeless body being placed in a tomb with a large rock rolled in front of the only entrance, and Roman guards are placed in front of that rock.

                Now, it’s been three days and nothing has happened (at least nothing that anyone knows about).  It was no secret where the body of Jesus was laid, and so people were free to come and see the tomb and care for it, just as long as they didn’t try and remove the boulder.  Well, a group of women went on the first day of the week (i.e. Sunday) to place spices around the entrance of the tomb.  This was a common practice similar to our laying of flowers on a gravestone.  The spices served two purposes, they were decorative, and they also helped to mask any odors that might resonate from the tomb.  When the women got to the tomb, they found that that rock had been rolled away.  With their curiosity peaked and fearing that someone had stolen Jesus’ body, they looked into the tomb.  However, they did not find Jesus lying there, but instead found as Luke says “two men dazzling in appearance.”  We know from Matthew and John’s accounts of these events, that these two men were actually angels.  They see the somber faces of the women and they say to them, “Why do you seek the living among the dead?  He is not here, but has risen.  Remember how he told you, while he was still in Galilee, that the Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men and be crucified and on the third day rise.”  We’re told that the women then remember Jesus’ words.  So they rushed off to tell the eleven remaining disciples and word begins to spread from that point.

                How quickly sadness turned to shock.  How quickly shock turned to mourning.  How quickly mourning turn to fear, and fear to confusion and then rejoicing.  While those three days must have felt like an eternity of never-ending sadness, it seemingly was erased in a matter of moments as the angels informed these women what had taken place.  Can you imagine what it must have felt like for these women to have all of that sorrow and all of that guilty seemingly lifted from them in a matter of seconds?  Imagine that feeling you got when the Gospel finally became real to you.  Remember back to that moment when the Holy Spirit finally penetrated all of the callousness and all of the layers and defenses and walls that you had built.  Think back to that point in time when you saw Christ for the first time.  I have to imagine that it felt something like that for these women.  Spending a day watching Jesus be beat and put to death there on the cross; seeing his body taken away and buried in a tomb; sitting around for three days in disbelief that “it” was all over.  Only to have two angels say to you that, “He is not here.  He has risen.”

                Despite how overjoyed these women must have felt upon hearing these words, it can’t even compare to what we should feel today as we read them and hear them proclaimed some 2000+ years later.  This is the resurrection of our Savior.  On this very event the church is built.  Other worldly religions have similar strong ethical systems, concepts of paradise and the afterlife, and writings that are held as sacred.  However, only Christianity has a God who became flesh and died for His people.  Only Christianity has a God who after dying for His people was raised again in power and glory to rule and reign forever and ever over His people.

                It’s estimated that there are 2.18 billion Christians worldwide according to the latest survey.  Each Sunday, many of these folks gather in church buildings not unlike this one to worship.  Sure, some are much larger and some are much smaller.  Some are meeting in school buildings and rec centers, but the focus is still the same.  Some services of worship are very traditional and have remained unchanged for hundreds of years, while others are more modern and at times resemble theatre performances to some.  However, the One who is worship is the same throughout.  You see, the point isn’t how we worship, although that is important biblically speaking.  No, the main point is who and what we worship.  We worship God.  We worship the one who created and sustains each and every one of us.  However, one Sunday per year, Easter Sunday, nearly every Christian worships and proclaims the empty tomb and the resurrection.  Now, setting aside the fact that these things ought to be praised every day and not just one day a year, we have to ask ourselves why this empty tomb and resurrection is so important.

                Obviously, we don’t have time here today to go into every single aspect of why the resurrection is important in full detail, but I want to quickly state for you several of the primary reasons why we ought to cling to and praise the empty tomb each and every day.  The first reason is because it changed the direction of the world.  Instead of heading for destruction, we are head for redemption.  The power of God is working in this world to destroy sin, create newness of life, and prepare the way for Jesus’ second coming.  Secondly, we know that death has been conquered.  We know that we too will be raised from the dead with Christ to live forever.  Thirdly, we, as Christians and the bride of Christ, have been given authority to witness into the world.  We will see the early stages of this unfold as we begin our series on the book of Acts starting next Sunday.  Fourth, the Lord’s Supper, the sacrament that we celebrated both last Sunday and Thursday evening, finds its meaning in the crucifixion and resurrection of Christ.  Fifth, we find comfort in our times of sorrow and tragedy through the empty tomb.  When we suffer the pain of loss, the resurrection lets us know that death is not the end and that there is hope for the future.  Sixthly, we know that because of the empty tomb that Christ is alive at this very moment, sitting at the right hand of God the Father Almighty, ruling and reigning over his kingdom.  And finally, the power of God that raised Jesus from the dead is available to us as we try to live and work our way through this fallen and sinful world as we seek to serve and worship Him.

                Friends, I want to challenge all of us in here to do something this year.  Maybe it’s something that you have always done, or maybe this will be something that is new to you, but I think that it is a right response to the glorious and life-giving news of the empty tomb.  I want to challenge each and every one of us to live every day like today.  I want us all to live each day celebrating that the tomb was and is empty and that our Savior has indeed risen.  You see, it’s not as if the tomb is any more empty today that it was yesterday.  It’s not as if the tomb will be any less empty tomorrow than it is today.  The simple fact of the matter is that the tomb is forever empty; that death is forever conquered.  All of those reasons that we listed a moment ago for the importance of the empty tomb are forever.  There’s no limit to the amount of time that they are true.  They are true yesterday, today, and forever.  In just a few moments, at the end of the pastoral prayer, I want all of us to join together by saying the Lord’s Prayer.  And I want you to pay special attention to the last line in that wonderful prayer, “for thine is the kingdom, and the power, and glory forever and ever.  Amen.”  Friends the tomb is empty, and it will remain empty from this day and forever more.  Glory be to God; in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

Luke 23:39-43 "The Two Criminals"

                Over the past few weeks, we’ve looked at how some of the people surrounding the cross treated our Savior as he was nailed there to that tree.  We’ve look at how the people gathered around him hurled insults at him.  Mind you, these are no doubt some of the same people who lined the streets shouting “Hosanna to the Son of David.  Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord!  Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!”  Some of the same people that cheered as Jesus entered Jerusalem on the day forever celebrated as, just as we do today, Palm Sunday, were the very same ones who hurled insults at him only five days later.  We’ve also spent some time looking at how the officials of Jerusalem, the chief priests, scribes, Pharisees, and Roman soldiers, all joined in with their mockery of Jesus as the promised Messiah and coming King.  We’ve seen how all of these groups verbally and physically abused Jesus during his final moments of life upon this earth.  However, today we’re going to look at a little bit different type of witness to Jesus’ crucifixion.  We’re going to look at the two criminals who were there right alongside Jesus, one on his right and the other on his left, at the time of his crucifixion.  We’re going to see how we find ourselves as examples of each of these men, and we’re going to see how this shapes our interpretation of the cross.

                When we look at the each of the two criminals individually, we see both differences and similarities within them.  They are both men who have been convicted of a crime (most commonly thought to be theft).  As a result of their convictions, they were both sentenced to be crucified, and their crucifixions were carried out alongside that of Jesus.  Very quickly, it’s of note that Jesus’ crucifixion alongside criminals is yet another fulfillment of Old Testament prophecy that finds its completion here at the cross.  As a matter of fact, Mark 15:28, after stating that Jesus was crucified with criminals, reads, “And the Scripture was fulfilled that says, ‘He was numbered with transgressors.’”  In addition to this Old Testament fulfillment and these already listed similarities, both criminals, at the very moment of this account are experiencing the physical pain of the crucifixion.  It’s not simply that they are both going to be crucified, but that they are both in the midst of the most painful part of being crucified.  We’ll see that this point is significant in just a moment when we explore a little of their mindset during this account.  However, despite the similarities that existed between these two men, there is one glaring difference between the two:  their perception of Jesus and who he really is.

                We see that the first criminal has nothing really positive to say to Jesus.  He says to him, “Are you not the Christ?  Save yourself and us!”  Now this doesn’t necessarily, at least on the surface, seem like anything derogatory towards Jesus.  However, I want to remind you very quickly of the language of the scribes and the people that we looked at a few weeks ago.  In their mocking Jesus, they all said to him, “If you are the Son of God, then...”  We made a connection between this line of questioning and that of Satan in his temptation of Jesus, where he too used this same phrase.  Well, “If you are the Son of God…” isn’t that far off from “Are you not the Christ?”  Both questions, or statements, in essence deny Jesus’ claim to be the promised Messiah.  They both deny Jesus’ authority that he rightfully has as the Son of God.  No doubt Satan was working all the way up to the end of Jesus’ life through the actions of those around him.  He was constantly attacking not only Jesus the person, but everything that he had been teaching and all that he came to do.

No one likes to suffer; that’s not news.  This isn’t even the first time this year that those words have been said from this very pulpit.  However, suffering has a way of showing the true intentions and true nature of a person.  This first criminal, as we said earlier, was suffering.  He was suffering the physical pain of the crucifixion, and he was probably also suffering the emotional pain of knowing that he indeed was about to die.  His priorities were not; however, on what came next for him, but on what he was enduring at that very moment.  He tells Jesus to “save [himself] and [them].”  And don’t think for a second that he’s talking about a spiritual or heavenly salvation; he’s just wanted to be spared the pain of death.  He was thinking about things from an earthly perspective because that’s all he’s concerned with.

Now, I want to press pause on the first criminal for just a moment if I can, and look very quickly at the other criminal there on the opposite side of Jesus.  We’re told in our text that after the first man questioned Jesus that, “the other rebuked him, saying, ‘Do you not fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation?  And we indeed justly, for we are receiving the due reward of our deed; but this man has done nothing wrong.’”  You see, this man, who was enduring the same physical pain as the first, doesn’t see things the same way.  Make no mistake, he knows just as well as the first criminal that his time on earth is coming to an end, but his outlook is radically different.  Last year during our Maundy Thursday service (which is this Thursday just to remind you again), we were all blessed by hearing a phenomenal song about this event.  The song, entitled Thief, was originally written and performed by the Christian band Third Day.  I want to take just a second and read you the lyrics of this song.  It goes:

I am a thief, I am a murderer
Walking up this lonely hill
What have I done? I don't remember
No one knows just how I feel
and I know that my time is coming soon.
It's been so long. Oh, such a long time
Since I've lived with peace and rest
Now I am here, my destination
guess things work for the best
and I know that my time is coming soon
Who is this man? This man beside me
They call the King of the Jews
They don't believe that He's the Messiah
But, somehow I know it's true.
And they laugh at Him in mockery,
and beat Him till he bleeds
They nail Him to the rugged cross,
and raise Him, they raise Him up next to me
My time has come, I'm slowly fading
I deserve what I receive
Jesus when You are in Your kingdom
Could You please remember me
and He looks at me still holding on
the tears fall from His eyes
He says I tell the truth
Today, you will live with Me in paradise
and I know that my time is coming soon
and I know paradise is coming soon.

                You see, I think that this song, written from the viewpoint of the second criminal, so beautifully sums up the meaning of this passage.  The two men who were being put to death were guilty, and they were deserving of their punishment.  However, Jesus wasn’t guilty; he wasn’t deserving of any punishment but only praise.  Sure, he had been found guilty, but as we all well know, this was a false conviction.  This criminal, who is seeing his life come to an end, somehow knows that this man who others are hurling insults at is not a criminal or a heretic, but is indeed who he claimed to be.  He knows that this man is the Messiah.  This criminal lifts his head up and looks at Jesus and says to him, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.”  To which Jesus responds to him by saying, “Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise.”  This man is a criminal; he has already in his words to the first criminal admitted his own guilt.  Yet, when he asks Jesus to forgive him of his sins, Jesus tells him that he will dwell in Paradise; he tells him that his sins are forgiven.  I can’t for the life of me imagine what joy and emotions must have surged through that man’s mind and heart as Jesus spoke these words to him.  Or can I?

                Looking back quickly at the first criminal, we saw hardness of heart.  We saw a sense of self-preservation above all else.  We saw, in essence, a reflection of the world, not to dissimilar from the world that we find ourselves in today.  However, when it comes to the second criminal, we see something totally different.  Now, as we’ve said, their sins were similar, their circumstances the same, and their fates looked like carbon-copies of one another.  The difference between these two men, however, is Jesus.  The difference was the fact that one man looked to himself and the world around him as the ultimate reward, while the other looked to Christ as the ultimate priority in this world.

                So, what does this mean for us?  Well, it means a few things.  The first, as we already said, this is even more Old Testament prophecy fulfilled.  Second, just as Jesus forgave the sins of a criminal being put to death, he has the power to forgive our sins as well.  No matter how great and numerous our sins, there is nothing that the blood of Christ can’t wash away.  And finally, this is the picture of what conversion and a new life in Christ is like.  When we are concerned only with ourselves, when our number one priority is to see to it that we are taken care of, then we are like the first criminal.  However, when we become fundamentally and primarily concerned with Christ, it’s like we are a completely different person.  When we, as Jesus said in Matthew 6:33, “seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.” that’s when Christian conversion takes place.  That’s when the Holy Spirit begins his work of regeneration and growth.  That’s when, as the apostle Paul says, the old self dies and the new self is born.  Romans 6:6 says, “We know that our old self was crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin.”  When our eyes are opened and our minds focused upon the One True God instead of ourselves, then the salvation that was earned there upon that cross becomes our reality.  It becomes ours, and we will all come to know that reality in Paradise.  We will all come to know the joy that the second criminal felt when Jesus told him that he was to dwell with him in Paradise forever.  Glory be to God; in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

Luke 1:26-38 "Jesus Christ: Son of Mary"

                Last Sunday, during our look at Jesus as a son of David, we very briefly looked at part of the text that we just read and in doing so I said that we were going to set aside any information about Mary and just focus on Jesus being of the line of David.  Well, today we come back to this text in its entirety, this time with our focus being upon Jesus as the son of Mary.  Now, our last two Sundays (Jesus as a son of Adam and of David) may have been a bit uncommon in terms of their identity.  By that, I mean that when we think of Jesus being a son, we don’t immediately think of it being of Adam or David.  However, that’s not the case when it comes to Mary.  In fact, many Christians throughout history, largely in an effort to distinguish one Mary in Scripture from others, have called Mary by the fuller title of Mary, mother of Jesus.  Some other titles include Saint Mary, Virgin Mary, and Mary, mother of God.  Now, I want you to file away that she is both mother of Jesus and mother of God for just a second.

                Mary is an interesting Biblical figure when it comes to our understanding of her.  The range of opinions and importance that is attached to her varies from group-to-group and person-to-person, even amongst the Christian faith.  There are those who view her simply as a vessel that God used for bringing Jesus into the world, folks who view her as simply playing a part like any of the rest of us plays our part in the unfolding of God’s plan.  Then, there are those that have elevated her to the level of sainthood and even offer up prayers in her name.  Now, I would caution against the later for but one reason.  If we remember back in John’s gospel, Jesus himself stated that he was the only way to the Father (John 14:6, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life.  No one comes to the Father except through me.).  Praying in Mary’s name gives the impression that Mary might be another avenue that we can take in order to come to God.  Viewing her as another means of reaching God is to contradict and go against Scripture and the very words of Jesus himself.  My observation, however, is that most Christians fall somewhere in between these two extremes.  Most Christians view Mary as important, but not quite to the level of being elevated above all others, and especially not elevated to the level of Jesus or anywhere close.  Whatever the level of importance that is attached to Mary, it is undeniable that she indeed is the virgin who gave birth to Jesus and cared for him during his youth.

                Our text tells us that Mary found herself face-to-face with the angel Gabriel, an angel who had appeared not only to Zechariah prior to this, but also to the prophet Daniel some 500 years prior to both of these occurrences.  Now, at first, Mary is worried.  She is afraid that God’s messenger has come to her because of something that she has either done that she should not have or because she has not done something that she should have.  Gabriel calms her by saying, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God.”  Gabriel goes on to tell her that she will conceive a child and that that child will be called Jesus.  He will be the Son of the Most High.  He will be the Son of God.  He will sit on the throne of his father David.  He’ll reign over the house of Jacob and that reign will be everlasting.  I mean, these words from the angel Gabriel are so chopped full of Old Testament prophecy about the Messiah, where do we begin?  There’s the words of 2 Samuel 7 that we looked at last Sunday about David’s descendent being on the throne forever.  There’s the promise made to Abraham in Genesis 17.  There’s the words of the prophets Isaiah and Jeremiah, all of which are coming true in the person of Jesus.  And Mary is being informed by the angel Gabriel that all of this is going to come about as a result of the child that she will conceive.

                Now, given all of this prophecy that was coming true, it’s no wonder that Mary was a bit taken aback by the news that she had just received from the angel Gabriel.  “How will this be, since I am a virgin?”  Notice, she doesn’t ask, “How will this be, I’m a simple, average person?”  No, her hesitation doesn’t come from her abilities, but from the simple biological fact that it is impossible for a virgin to bear a child (that is at least without divine intervention).  This is not a matter of disbelief, but a simple matter of confusion.  She doesn’t try and lower the power the God; she just utters the most basic of problems that she perceives with the news of the angel Gabriel.  However, that question is quickly answered.  “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you, therefore the child who will be born will be called holy—the Son of God.”  The Holy Spirit will descend upon Mary and she will have the power of God work to her and through her and upon her and she will conceive of this child, the one who is the long-awaited and promised Messiah.

                I want us to pay close attention to the response of Mary after Gabriel has finished all of his words to her.  Mary said, “Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.”  I want all of us to see the complete and total submission that Mary has here as it pertains to God.  There are no excuses.  There are no reasons given as to why she isn’t the best choice for this task.  Mary could have pointed to the fact that she wasn’t married to Joseph yet and that conceiving of a child without being married was opening her up to being left by Joseph or could cause her to face some sort of public shame and humiliation.  She could have given all sorts of reasons why she didn’t need to be the one who gave birth to Jesus.  However, we find none of that.  We find complete and total willingness to do the will of God, no matter what that means for Mary.  When you are faced with God’s calling you to do something, do you respond like Mary or do you make excuses?  Do you tell yourself, “Well, I really should do that, but I just don’t have the time?”  Or do you say, “I know that you want me to do this God, but I don’t want people to think poorly of me or I don’t want to lose what I have.”  Mary is just a person like you and me when we get down to it.  Even though she is the earthly mother of Jesus, she is still a person.  She is a person, however, who was willing to be used by God in any way that He wanted, regardless of what those around her might have thought or said.

                Getting back to the title of this sermon “Jesus Christ:  Son of Mary”, I think that some connections need to be made.  We saw why it was important for Jesus to be the even greater and more complete mediator and king that Adam and David respectively.  The question that we must ask ourselves now is:  why is Jesus being the son of Mary significant?  Well, the answer is found in the very fact that we just stated:  Mary was a woman, a regular woman.  She gave birth to a little baby boy who was fully human, just like she was.  This little boy, Jesus, while he was fully human was also fully God.  No, that doesn’t make sense to us, but we’re finite beings.  There is a level of understanding that we have that cannot be crossed; we are limited in our ability to comprehend.  However, just because it doesn’t make complete logical sense to us doesn’t make it any less true.  Isn’t it completely logical for God (as an infinite being) to be capable of something that is beyond our understanding since we are finite, we have limits.  Not only is it possible, but it is exactly what happened in the case of Jesus being both completely man and completely God.  Because God humbled himself, taking the form of man (in the person of Jesus) he was able to pay the price for our sins through his obedient life.  Also, he provided a means by which we may know God and have a relationship with him.  For us to fully understand God in terms of our knowing that we have a relationship with him, we must come to grips with the undeniable fact that Mary is the mother of Jesus.  This isn’t a text about the greatness of Mary, although it does speak to her willingness to be used by God as an instrument for the unfolding of his plan, it speaks to her faith.  This text is about Jesus.  It’s about the fact that the Messiah was coming.  It’s about the fact that God was humbling himself to the point of taking the form of a servant in order to come and pay the price that was owed for our sins.  Friends, this text is about the fact that our God loves us so much, that he gave his one and only begotten for our salvation.  Glory be to God; in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

Luke 1:67-79 "Jesus Christ: Son of David"

                Aside from Jesus himself, there is quite possibly no more intriguing and interesting figure in all of Scripture (at least to me) than that of King David.  Whether it’s the tale of how he slayed the mighty Philistine Goliath when he was just a mere boy, the stories of his military conquests, or even the passion and emotion he displayed when showing repentance or sorrow; David just fascinates me.  David was a man who was born into a very average lifestyle in terms of his status and wealth, but was later called and blessed by God to do some extraordinary things.  I love reading about the love that he had for his dear friend Jonathan.  I laugh (a little) when I read about the craziness and turmoil that existed within his own family.  While I can’t relate to my family trying to literally kill me, I can relate to loving my friends like they’re family while thinking that my actual family is a little bit crazy.  I recently finished my own quick study of 1 & 2 Samuel, and at the end I was even more fascinated with David than I was before beginning that study.  Like I said, I can relate to David.  No, not in the sense of being a king, but in the sense that David was a man filled with flaws, yet still considered to be a man of God.  There was hardly anything around David that went smoothly or exactly according to plan.  In addition to all of David’s family issues, he also struggled greatly to keep himself in line as it pertained to God.  We all know the story of David and Bathsheba, but that’s not the only struggle with sin that existed in David’s life.  I think the reason why I, like so many other Christians, find David so fascinating is because he was a man of God who for the most part lived in accordance with God’s will, yet did have his moments of sin and weakness.  

                Back in 2 Samuel 7, after Saul had died and David had been anointed Israel’s king, God promised David that his kingdom would last forever.  2 Samuel 7:16 says, “And your house and your kingdom shall be made sure forever before me.”  Obviously, this didn’t mean that David would live and reign forever (God even told him as much in the verses preceding the one that we just read), but that someone from his line would reign for all eternity.  Now the particulars of how that came to pass, however, are probably not in line with what David had envisioned at the time of God’s promising the eternality of his kingdom.  Immediately after David, his son Solomon was anointed king.  After Solomon, there was strife and division and David’s kingdom was divided in half (into Judah and Israel).  Each of these two kingdoms was ruled by a different person.  During the tenure of most of these kings, the conditions (especially spiritual) of what used to be David’s kingdom could be called nothing short of disturbing, chaotic, or even a complete failure.  However, the words of 2 Samuel 7 don’t pertain specifically to an earthly kingdom or dynastic succession.  If that were the case, then the promise of God to David could be perceived as a failure and a broken promise.  There is nothing in the promise of God made to David that his kingdom will always resemble the political hierarchy that came to mind when thinking of David’s kingdom.  In fact, the kingdom that God ultimately has in mind and is speaking of here is something so much greater than David himself could have ever imagined.

                Our text for today are the words of Zechariah, the father of John the Baptist, after being filled with the Holy Spirit.  Mind you, this is the breaking of the silence that Zechariah has experienced since first being told that he was to have a child several months beforehand.  After John is born, Zechariah begins to speak of two things:  his son’s ministry, and the one whom his son will prepare the way for (with much more attention being given to the later).  Now, the reason why I have spent so much time talking about King David this Sunday is because of the words of verses 68 and 69, “Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, for he has visited and redeemed his people and has raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David.”  The first thing that we ask ourselves in light of these words is, “What does the ministry of John the Baptist, and more importantly, the impending birth of Jesus have to do with David’s kingdom?”

                You see, prior to our text for today, in verses 32 and 33 of Luke’s opening chapter to his gospel account, we find the angel Gabriel speaking with Mary about the impending birth of Mary’s child.  As Gabriel is informing Mary that she is with child (which remind you she is completely confused seeing as how she is still a virgin), Gabriel tells Mary that the child she is carrying “will be great and be called the Son of the Most High.  And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end!”  Now, we’re going to set aside all of the details of this account as they pertain to Mary.  We will pick back up on that notion next Sunday, but for today I want us to focus on the part there pertaining to David; “And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David…”  You see, using Luke 3 as our guide, we can trace the genealogy of Jesus back to King David.  Jesus is a descendant of David, born of the house and lineage of David through the line of David’s son Nathan, the third of four sons born to David and Bathsheba.  Now it’s quite possible, and probable, as we mentioned earlier, that David might have thought that the promise from God that his kingdom would last forever was referring to his kingdom in an earthly sense.  However, it’s not unheard of for man to interpret something from God and be thinking on a much smaller scale than God is working on.  The kingdom that God is speaking of is not one of ethnicity, nationality, or a kingdom of finite boundaries.  The kingdom that God is speaking of is the kingdom of heaven, the kingdom of Christ.

                David is largely considered to be the greatest and most Godly king in all of Scripture, and quite possibly all of history.  We could sit and list all of the ways in which he and his kingship were blessed by God.  However, much like last Sunday, when we said that Jesus was the more perfect Adam, the fulfillment of even the areas where Adam failed, the same is true when it comes to David.  Jesus is the even better, more perfect, and more complete David.  Jesus is the more perfect mediator than Adam, and he is the more perfect king than David.  Jesus being born of David’s line is a fulfillment of God’s promise in a manner that is so far beyond anything David could have ever imagined.  Zechariah is prophesying here and praising God because the Old Testament prophecies were coming true.  The promised Messiah, which we said last Sunday first began in Genesis 3:15, was going to happen in Zechariah’s lifetime.  What a wonderful celebration.  First, Zechariah is overjoyed that his own son was born, and now he sees that his son’s purpose in life is to prepare the way for the coming Savior.  His son is preparing the way for the one who came to earth and laid down his life for all of us.

                We know that the promises of the Old Testament found their fulfillment in the person of Jesus.  We know, even greater than Zechariah, what Jesus accomplished.  We know the salvation that is made possible to all of us by the death and resurrection of this coming Messiah.  As we continue to prepare our hearts for this coming Christmas day, let every day be a day in which we celebrate the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.  Let every day be a day in which we possess the enthusiasm that Zechariah displayed here and proclaim that Jesus Christ has come, and that salvation is now possible through him and him alone.  Glory be to God; in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

                

Luke 2:8-20 "The Angel's Message"

As we continue our Advent series in preparation for celebrating Christmas in just a couple of days, I want to remind you quickly about where we were last week. If you recall, we looked at the same passage of Scripture, except our focus was on the shepherds who received this message instead of the angels who delivered the message. We ended by asking the question of why God would send His messenger to speak to shepherds instead of someone else. We noted that there wasn’t anything inherently wrong with the shepherds, but they were really of no status. Their work kept them fairly isolated from much of the population of many cities and so they were somewhat unknowns in their various communities. They also weren’t the most religious of people for a couple of reasons; the first being that their work prevented them from being able to leave their flock in order to attend worship services. The second reason why they weren’t seen as being very religious is because the fact that their jobs required them to handle animals all day long. You have to remember, that in the Jewish culture, this would have been seen as a very unclean job, and so their attendance at worship services would have offended some of the Jews. However, like I said last Sunday and a moment ago, there isn’t really anything wrong with shepherds in terms of their morals, but they probably aren’t the best candidates for taking a message from God to the people. If you will recall, we said that this was actually a very good thing from our perspective. We noted that it showed us that the Gospel is not just for those in ivory towers with royal blood or advanced education. The Gospel isn’t just for those who have been theologically trained or who have been born into wealthy families. No, the Gospel of Jesus Christ is for everyone; for all of mankind.

The thing that we took from our look at the shepherds was that God loves sinners. It’s the old adage of “love the sinner, hate the sin.” We live in an area where when asked about a particular person our answer is usually the same, “Oh, they’re good people.” I’ve often wondered what someone must do to not be considered good people, but that’s not the point. The point is that although they may be good, there is still some aspect of their life that needs improving, and that goes for all of us. Yes, it even goes for preachers. There are many times when I feel like it is more true of preachers than of other folks. However, we don’t have to be blameless in order to receive God, His Son, and His Gospel. We don’t have to live a life to perfection in order to receive our heavenly gifts of grace and mercy and salvation. And the reason that I can make that statement this day is because of the message that the angles had for those very shepherds that we spoke about last Sunday. Perhaps it would be more exact if I said that it was because of the one who the message was about instead.

So, let’s look for just a moment at the angels and the message that they had for the shepherds. We see in verse 9 that at first appearance there is only one angel that comes before the shepherds. However, the presence of this one angel is enough to illumine the entire night sky and also to fill the shepherds with fear. And this isn’t an uncommon reaction. You see, many times, particularly in the Old Testament, when God (through various forms such as smoke, fire, or angels to name a few) comes near His people and reveals Himself to them, fear is the reaction, and it’s no different today. All of us have had moments when we felt God speaking directly to us. Maybe it was telling us to make that commitment, to opt out of that choice, or to make a difficult decision based on the needs of others instead of ourselves. I know that my reaction has often been one of fear. I can tell you that a little over a year ago that God very clearly through a series of events was telling me that I was to go to Houma, LA and shepherd the flock of this church. All that I could think of was fear; fear of the unknown. I was scared to death because God had given me, and specifically me, a direct calling with my life.

You see, in addition to that fear that I felt, there was also a sense of ease because I knew that if this was what God was specifically calling me to do, then He would be with me each and every step of the way. That’s what we see here with the shepherds. If you will recall, even though they have such fear in their hearts at this moment, once the words of the angel end, their immediate reaction is to go to Bethlehem to find and see and worship and adore this child. The angel tells them, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger.” So the angel tells them not to fear and that the message that they are receiving is a good thing. The angel is telling them that the Messiah, the long-awaited, God-appointed ruler of His people has been born and that they can find this child in the town of Bethlehem. After giving the shepherds these words, there isn’t just one angel before them anymore. No, instead there is now, “a multitude of heavenly host praising God.”

So the scene has gone from one angel giving this good news to a group of shepherds to a sky full of angels signing and proclaiming the words “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased,” or as some of us may have learned it, “peace and good will toward men.” The difference here is really a matter of interpretation. What I want all of us to focus on for just a second is not just the message that the now army of angels is proclaiming, but that they are so boldly and lovingly proclaiming. You see, the amount of angels in the sky at this point is thought to be equivalent to the stars. This is an army of angels that in mere moments could wipe out every human on the face of the earth; these angels are heavenly beings. The good news that they are bringing to the shepherds isn’t something that will save them. Yes, we may say that it is their job to proclaim God’s word and to sing praises to Him, but it’s more than that. It doesn’t take us very long to look at a person’s body language and how they carry themselves for us to know whether or not what they are doing is something that they love. My wife is a teacher at Oaklawn Jr. High in East Houma. The kids that are in her school can tell which teachers care about them and are excited to be there and which ones have a countdown in their heads that ends with the releasing of students. You see, just because it is the job of the angels to proclaim this news, doesn’t mean that they have to give it all they have, but they do. The entire army of angels shouts with as much might as they have the good news of the birth of Christ.

Like many of you, I watched the LSU/Alabama game this past year that took place at Tiger Stadium. Watching it on television I got the feeling that it was so loud that it was almost an act of God keeping so much crazy and chaos confined to one location. One announcer said, “If Tiger Stadium was a dome, it would have lost its roof tonight.” Yet, somehow, I don’t think that this scene in Baton Rouge, one of the loudest and craziest, that I can ever remember, holds a candle compared to the scene that night outside of Bethlehem. It’s at this point where I want to ask you one simple question. I don’t want you to respond aloud or anything like that, but just think to yourself. If the angels, who were already heavenly beings and weren’t worried for themselves about the salvation that was to come with this Promised Messiah, were as loud and a joyful in their rejoicing as they were, what do you think our response ought to be? The angels didn’t and do not need forgiveness; they’re already without sin. They didn’t need for Jesus to die. They had never rebelled against God, but you and I have. All of us, we are the ones who are in need of Jesus. We are the ones who are in need of forgiveness. We are the ones who are covered in sin. Yet, I would be willing to bet that very none of us in this room have witnessed an event where people worshiped in a greater or louder way than the angels that we are told about in our text. I doubt that any of us have ever seen anything close to such a sight. Just as I said a moment ago, I know that myself and many of you have seen passion that rivals that of the scene that we have here, but I doubt it was a worship service. It may have been a sporting event, graduation, some type of reunion, birth of a child, or even the moments after avoiding a disaster, but it probably wasn’t a worship service. That’s not to say that they don’t happen, but they don’t happen as frequently as these other events.

You see, if the angels are excited about the Gospel, shouldn’t we be even more excited? After all, we’re the ones who are the beneficiaries of all that is to come. As we all prepare our homes, our families, our schedules, and whatever else there is to celebrate Christmas; as we leave this place and for most of you hopefully rejoin us tomorrow evening; let us prepare our hearts. We need to take account and be reminded of the message that was received that day, but we also need to be reminded of the joy, the excitement, and the passion that filled the worship and praising of the angels. If the birth of Christ means so much to a group that really gains nothing from his presence on earth, shouldn’t that very same birth mean so much more to a group that quite honestly gains everything from what is about to come? Glory be to God; in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Luke 2:8-20 "Why Shepherds?"

Each worship service during our season of Advent has begun and does begin with something a little different. Where we would normally have a Call to Worship (a text of Scripture designed to prepare our hearts for the worship that is to come), we have recited a litany of purpose that corresponds with the lighting of a candle on the Advent wreath. This is not a new tradition for this church or a tradition that is by any means exclusive to this particular congregation. Why, I would be willing to bet that most, if not all, Christian churches have some sort of Advent wreath lighting tradition within their congregation. However, there is a difference that exists amongst many Christians congregations as to what they call the candles and the different Sunday’s during Advent. Some churches just refer to them as the first, second, third, and fourth Sunday’s in Advent followed by the Christmas Eve service. Some have different names for each and every service which all have to do with the birth of Jesus Christ. Now, none of these titles or names are any more or less correct than any other method, they are just differences in worship. It’s the same as there not being a correct form of music (traditional, contemporary, or blended), but there are preferences. You may have noticed that we have referred to the three candles thus far as the Prophecy Candle, the Bethlehem Candle, and the Shepherd’s Candle. The final two are the Angel’s Candle and the Christ Candle. Each of these names celebrates a particular aspect of Christ’s birth as it is recorded for us in God’s word.

The first candle that we lit, the Prophecy Candle, also called the Hope Candle, celebrates the fulfillment of the words of the prophet Isaiah. Our text for that Sunday even looked at those very words of the prophet Isaiah that foretold of Christ’s being born of a virgin. We have a great sense of hope because of this fulfilling of prophecy because it lets us know that God is faithful and will keep the promises that He has made to us. The second candle, the Bethlehem Candle, also called the Candle of Preparation, is a celebration of God’s keeping of His promise that He made through the prophet Malachi when He told His people that the Savior would be born in Bethlehem. The people of Bethlehem are to prepare and to get ready because they are to welcome God Himself in the person of the Messiah. We looked last week at the events of the magi going to Herod and Herod sending them to Bethlehem to find the child. We saw that once the magi arrived that they presented the newborn baby Jesus with gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. We saw that their reaction to coming into the presence of Christ was not one of doubt, but one of worship and adoration. They fell down and worshipped him. You see, we too are to get ready and prepare to welcome and to receive God. We don’t receive Him the exact same way as the people of Bethlehem did, but it isn’t as if God is any more or less active in our world today as He was back then.

This brings us to our third candle, the Shepherd’s Candle, or the Candle of Joy. The first thing that people always want to ask about this candle is, “Why is that candle pink when the other candles lit prior to Christmas Eve are all purple?” Well, you’re in luck today if that is your question because I’m in somewhat of a trivia mood; what all of y’all down here call lagniappe. You see, it was once a tradition for the pope to give someone a rose on the fourth Sunday of Lent before Easter to “liven up” the somber tone of the season. Prior to the commercialization of Christmas as we know it today, Advent was also a solemn time, as people fasted to prepare for the holiday. The rose custom became part of the third Sunday of Advent, and eventually the third candle turned pink as well. We call this the Candle of Joy as well because of the joyful message that the angels have for the shepherds. Now, some have argued that perhaps we should have this be the Angel’s Candle, but I want us to look at our text for today and see why it is a celebration of the shepherd’s, as receivers of the good news, just as much or more so than the angels as givers of the good news.

Let’s look at our text for today and see the joy that we have because of the good news received by the shepherds. Our text begins by telling us that somewhere near the area where Jesus had been born, there are these shepherds out in the field keeping watch over their flock during the night. An angel appears to them and tells them of the good news of the birth of the long-awaited Messiah. Now, we won’t look at the words that the angel spoke to the shepherds today. We will do that next Sunday when we look at this same text once again from the perspective of the angel and the multitude of heavenly hosts. What I want to do today is to look at the reaction of the shepherds after hearing from the angel beginning in verse 15.

We see that the immediate reaction of the shepherds is to want to go to Bethlehem. It seems like this group of shepherds simultaneously have the same thought, and that is to go to Bethlehem. I equate this to whenever Amy and I are sitting at home during the afternoon trying to figure out what to eat for dinner and then all of a sudden a commercial comes on with a great looking pizza in it. Two people who think so very differently are for a brief moment completely linked and are on the same page. We don’t even really have to tell the other one what we are thinking to get the message across. I imagine that this is similar to how the shepherds felt after hearing about Jesus from the angel. So, they go to Bethlehem to find Jesus. Much like the magi last week, they arrive and find Jesus, his father Joseph, and his mother Mary all there in the manger. They take one look at the child and they know that every word that the angel has said to them is true. Of course, you would think that they would have known that already since it came from an angel of the Lord, but that’s another matter entirely. They tell Mary and Joseph all that the angel told them. They leave out no detail and all those who are present to hear this are awestruck at the words of the shepherds.

Verse 19 tells us that Mary “treasured up all these things, pondering them in her heart.” My first thought is wondering what this might mean, but think about it. This is really the first account of someone other than her family openly admitting, at least publicly, that this is indeed a virgin birth. I’m sure that even though Joseph knew that she was carrying the son of God, there had to be many in the land who thought that she was crazy. At best, they probably considered her to be a liar. They said that there was no way that this woman could have conceived a child without having ever knowing her husband or any other man. How Mary’s heart must have raced and fluttered as each and every word escaped the mouths of the shepherds. It’s not as if she needed that vindication, but I’m sure it was not unwelcome when it finally came.

After spending time in Bethlehem at the manger where Christ was born, “the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told to them.” Very similar to the magi last week, the shepherds are completely overwhelmed by what they have just seen. They know without a doubt that this child is the fulfillment of all the prophecies of God that have been given about the Savior that was to come. There is one question, however, that I want to explore before leaving this text today. That question is, “why shepherds?” Why were these shepherds among the first to hear about this child? Why were these shepherds among the first to see this child? You see, the shepherd was thought of as being an average person. There was nothing really special about the vocation of shepherd. He was an average, every day, blue-collar worker. And I think that that is the very reason why these shepherds were given the privilege of being among the first to experience Jesus Christ. The announcement of this child to these men shows that God is committed to all of humanity and not just a select or chosen few. Those “on whom God’s favor rests” include those whose claim-to-fame may be nothing more than that they wake up each day and pursue a living in service to God.

Friends, the good news of the Gospel of Jesus Christ is for all mankind. It isn’t for those of us in nice, clean church buildings. It isn’t just for people who are generally good-at-heart or who usually do the right thing. No, the Gospel isn’t just for one class, one ethnicity, one status, or one type of people. The Gospel is for all who have ears to hear and eyes to see. We celebrate this day a Savior who is for everyone. We celebrate that we have a God who cares for all of us no matter who we are or what we have done. Shouldn’t our response to this wonderful news be the same as the shepherds? Shouldn’t we go about our day “glorifying and praising God for all” that we have heard and seen and are experiencing this day? Glory be to God; in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.