Sunday Rise Up
We thought that you were going to watch a video of that group of musicians, but it didn't happen. Sorry about that. Somebody asked me, do you have to be like an official member of rice up Church to do the nominating and answer is no you anybody may nominate right. If if we open the box and Mickey Mouse is one of the nominator Nations we're going to say now make he's probably not a good choice for us and so we we have we're not concerned about who makes the nominations. You're, you're, you're everybody's welcome something else. I was supposed to, I'm looking at my sorry, I'm going to stop looking at my table cuz we could just be troublesome.
Let's do this. music, I like all kinds of music and my theory is if it's good music, then it crosses the style boundaries I'm not a country music listener. That's not like my go-to station on the dial, but I love a really good country music song. I'm not the kind of top 40s, hits person of General, a bit every once while I listen to a brand new song on the radio and I say, wow, that's really good. It seems like what happens is as time passes the not-so-good music sort of Falls away and the stuff that's, that's really good continues, right? So if you're listening to how far back do you want to go this year? Listen to that to the 90s greatest hits, you're listening, really to the best songs of the 90s, so you could keep doing that going back and back and back in time. So let's go back, 300 years to 1741. Here's what happened in, 1741 wealthy creative guy named Charles Jennings, compiled Bible passages you didn't write any of his own text. You just compiled passages from the Bible that the he had available which was the King James version of the Bible. In order to, in a compressed way, tell the story of the Messiah, Jesus, the son of God. And then because he was a wealthy guy, he recruited one of the most talented musicians of the day, a guy named George frideric. Handel, and he persuaded, and then paid for hondal to take this Bible excerpts that, he'd compiled and put them to music. And that's how we came to have this body of music that we know as we used to call it. The Messiah, though, the title of it is in in 1741. It was like the best musician of the day. Writing music. And let me tell you a couple of interesting things about the Messiah. The first one is, it's nothing but Bible. So here's this long Coral work and the lyrics are nothing but quotations from the Bible. So I I mentioned some kind of music that I don't normally listen to button where I find songs I like I love Amos Lee windows are rolled down. It's a really good country song. I said it always listen to the newest pop music. But recently I heard Olivia Rodrigo. Sing a song called driver's license. And it's amazing. It's it's really a fantastic song. So think of your favorite songs that are you do on your favorites list and probably what's true about them as the lyrics are really fascinating. But they're probably not scripture set to music. So that's the remarkable thing about the Messiah, scripture, set to music. That's one. Interesting thing. The interesting thing is, okay, so let's say, you've decided that you're going to pick out a bunch of scripture and you're going to put it to music and you're going to tell the story of Jesus. With excerpts from the Bible. Where would you start?
And I just think it's really fascinating that the Messiah starts with quiet instrumentation. Often times, it's just a harpsichord and then one voice that sings comfort me Comfort. Ye my people says the Lord I've been a pastor for a long time, and that means that I've prepared Christmas preaching, many, many, many, many, many, many times and I don't know why, but it's not until this year that I thought Messiah tells the Christmas story is a Christmas story and I did a little research and I just was absolutely impressed by it. So that's what we're going to do. We are going to live into Christmas this month of December by choosing the Bible passages that this work of Music chose to tell the story of Jesus. So I'm calling it messiah messiah, part 1 and I might as well explain that. The reason I called it part. One is so sorry it wasn't written as a Christmas It was written as an Easter piece. So we're going to do the same thing for a few weeks at Easter, and we'll call that Messiah part 2. I hope this is okay with you, that we would do Christmas this way. It's all Bible and its what's attached to this. Pretty famous piece of music that gets played year after year, after year, even though it's 300 years old. So we start this morning with
Comfort. My people says your God and Isaiah chapter 40.
I'll read it. So no. Would you keep up with me, please? Comfort Comfort. My people says your God speak, tenderly to Jerusalem and Proclaim to her that her hard service has been completed. That her sin has been paid for that she has received from the Lord's hand, double for all her sins. A voice of one calling in the wilderness. Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight in the desert, a highway for our God, every Valley shall be raised up every mountain and Hill made low. The rough ground shall become level the rugged places a plane. And the glory of the Lord will be revealed and all people will see it together. For the mouth of the Lord has spoken.
That's how the Messiah starts when it wants to tell the story of Jesus. And so let's just study it this morning and just take it as it comes. So it starts with Comfort my people Comfort. My people says your God, Distance from the book of Isaiah. So it was written by a prophet named Isaiah, he wrote it to the people of his day. This is about six hundred years before Christ. And the location of the people is in the land of Israel. These are the people of Israel and Isaiah is a prophet sent by God to them and what they needed comfort for was the fact that their society was deteriorating. And I'll tell you about it. But I have a hunch that you might say. This feels a little familiar to be, so they watched their society around them deteriorating. And so, God starts with the word of comfort to them, but here's what was happening. They had a king. Who was making some bad decisions and and they were all watching it happen. You can read about it. In the just preceding verse Isaiah 39. His name was Hezekiah and there were, there was an Envoy from a Faraway country named Babylon who came to visit him and he was so intent intent on impressing them that he showed them everything, he showed them all of the Kingdom gold that he had amassed. He showed them all of the silver that they had collected as the people of Israel, he showed them all of the Exotic spices that they had stored up and their Storehouse of fine olive oil. If if Israel had it, he showed it to these envoys cuz you really wanted them to be impressed and then the envoys went on their way. God sent the prophet Isaiah to ask him this question. What did you show those guys? And King Hezekiah said, I showed him everything.
There's nothing that we have that. I didn't show them the backstory here is Hezekiah has kind of stopped relying on God to take care of his people and he's looking for a strategic allies who will take care of him. So he's just foolish lie showed all of the riches of the land of Israel to people who probably would like to conquer the land of Israel. And so, Isaiah, the prophet says to him, this is what God says, the Babylonians are going to take it all. And your Offspring, like, your sons and daughters. Some of them are going to be taken to the land of Babylon, where they will serve in the Palace of the Babylonian King as eunuchs in that King's household. And here's how messed up the Israelites ruler. Was he said to Isaiah, what you say is good because he was this is what he was thinking, I just heard Isaiah said, my kids are going to get taken to Babylon as prisoners but he didn't say meet. So this is going to happen after my lifetime so I'm good with it.
Have you ever seen a politician who made short-term decisions? To make him or herself more electable today, but maybe who doesn't really care about what the ramifications are long-term. Or let me ask a different way. If you are one of my kids young enough to be one of my kids, you might look at my generation and say you know my dad's generation spent money on stuff that now, my generations going to have to pay for write, this is this is the reality of the world, in which we live, we have, we have short-term thinking Because people want something now, and we're not thinking very clearly about the long-term implications. This was what was happening to the people of Israel. But then there were other problems that they had to. They had the problem of moral decline. The people of Israel supposed to be God's people who would witness to the one true God in front of the world, but the people of Israel were watching How the Other Nations around them had other gods and they were kind of interested in those guts. And so there was this wandering away from God, including by the king but by the people, as well as well. And in addition to that, there was unfair application of Justice. If you had money or if you had connections things would go well with you, if you got in trouble. But if you were one of the vulnerable people You had a hard time getting Justice? And then there were things happening that they couldn't control, that weren't their fault, and that just happen all the time, but I'm sure we're just going to there were issues of help for them. Things happened to us that we don't want to have happen to us, and that make an impact on their life. They were experiencing those kinds of things. They were experiencing issues of Life, weather, and economy that they couldn't control, but that sometimes can go against you. So there were people in Isaiah's day who just felt like our society is falling apart in front of our eyes.
And to them, God says. Comfort. My people. Comfort. My people says your God. so, what is it that he's got to say that would be comforting He says, tell her this. Her hard service has been completed. Her sin has been paid for. She has received from the Lord's hand, double for all her sins. So they were aware that the reason their society was having trouble was partly their fault about how they as a people were kind of interested in the other gods and and wandering away from God. They they would have seen all of that. And they were also aware that in the Bible, there's this kind of principle of double payment.
You see it in the Old Testament, in a few places, it seems to work like this. If a person commits a crime like stealing and it's a crime, that's not only that you took the thing. But the thing that you took causes a hardship in the life of the people besides just missing the thing. There's hardship that came to their life because you had stolen their property in. Those kinds of cases, the requirement for justice is that you pay back double what you took and you see that in a few places still, the original. Here's would have listened to God saying, tell them that they've paid double for all their sins and they would have gotten that. That what that really means is you have attic you fully fulfilled your debt to society. When you've paid back double what you did in the New Testament in Revelation chapter 18, God says about Babylon that they will have to pay by receiving a double portion of the pain and misery that they have dished out onto others. So here's the wonderment of what's on the screen for claim to her that that her hard service has been completed are that her or bills are paid or that, you know. There's yeah she's good with God. Proclaim that to her. The wonderment would be
Well, what did we do to deserve that? How could how could it be? That God would say to us in this mess that we were in that. You've paid double for all your sins. What where did we possibly do? This thing that God is telling his profit to report to us. And I think we're expected to understand that the answer to that wonderment is in the next part. There's a l, a king who's coming. And we're being called to get ready for that King to come a voice of one in the wilderness, calling prepare the way of the Lord.
Make straight in the desert. A highway for our God, every Valley shall be raised up every mountain and Hill made low. The rough ground shall become level the rugged places a plane. When a king in the ancient world would come to visit your city. The way for the king would be spruced up. It's so it's really the same today, but let's kind of try to imagine an ancient picture. You've got this dirt road that is that comes into your town like Main Street. You, you get out there and you make sure that that road is flat and level and maybe do some construction work in order to make it flat and level in a way that it's never been before and you get everything looking good. So that when the king comes riding in the king comes down this way, make make a way for the king is coming. We do this. If the president of the United States, came to Grand Rapids, that's happened. A few times. What happens? He flies into the Grand Rapids airport and everything gets shut down. The airspace is shut down. If the president United States wanted to come to Cedar Springs. Michigan to visit mayor, Pam Connelly. The mayor of Cedar Springs, the president would fly into the airport, they would shut down everything, they probably shut down, 96 to 1:31 and then 131 North there would be nobody at least on 96th Northbound and 131 Northbound, except for the president, and his motorcade and they would have a highway all to themselves all the way. And you can bet. If it had some prior warning, that Cedar Springs would pull out all the stops and maybe fix him those potholes.
You know that bridge on Main Street that took like 6 months to complete. I don't know what that was about. You know, they might do something like that but in like 2 weeks instead of 6 months
To make way for the king. So that's what this is about. Tell them a king is coming and we're going to make way another. Example is Qatar and the World Cup. Qatar is this little hot desert country that doesn't have a soccer history. But 12 years ago they got the rights to hold the 2022 World Cup so they have created out in the desert, a soccer City where you can hold the World Cup, all kinds of stadiums, all kinds of roads, all kinds of hotels, all of the infrastructure that you need. They just spent billions of of their numerous dollars to create out of nothing, a place where you could hold the World Cup. So what God is saying is Comfort. My people. Tell them their bills are paid. Because there's a king coming and you need to get ready for him. Make you know, if you got potholes, get rid of the potholes. If the roads curvy get rid of the curves and make it straight, see that Valley. Feel that thing into that mountain, just let down. We want that we want the king to be able to just ride right in What's going to happen when they came rides in? I think that's the next part. What's going to happen is that the glory of the Lord, It's in all capitals because that's the English translation of the name of God in the Old Testament. Usually pronounce Yahweh. An older way would be Jehovah. The name God gives himself. The glory of Yahweh will be revealed and all people will see it. How is it going to be of God revealed? Where do you see the glory of God? And what does it look like? It looks like Jesus. Jesus. The son of God is God In the Flesh. If you want to know what the glory of God looks like the answer, is it? Looks like Jesus. What does Jesus look like? Jesus is described as having the spirit of wisdom, the spirit of understanding the spirit of, Might the spirit of knowledge, the spirit of the fear of the Lord, and his Delight is in the fear of the Lord. One evidence of the glory of God, is in the Zeal. Jesus has for his father.
He was crucified dead and buried. This is an unexpected picture of the glory of God that he would be willing to give himself for us to crucify dead and buried. What else did God look like? On the third day, he rose again from the dead. And he ascended into heaven and he sits at the right hand of the father, that's where Jesus is right now. What else he's going to come again from there to judge the living and the dead?
That's the you want to know what the glory of God looks like. That's what the glory of God looks like and everybody will see it. Nobody will miss it. Everyone will see this. I've been thinking about what does it mean to witness to Jesus in this world of ours? And I don't think that it means you having a conversation with somebody that they don't really want to have. I don't think it means you forcing people to do. You know, let's talk about religion, the Bible calls The followers of Jesus Witnesses. So what do Witnesses do Witnesses? Describe what they saw or what they see. So I think we witness to Jesus simply by believing Jesus is present and pointing to him. when it seems like the right thing to do, Yesterday, Rob, Gerwig, who sitting at the soundboard and Justin Fisher, who's sitting in the back where the kids stuff is set up. Set up a sound system at the Cedar Springs Christmas tree, and there was the parade, and it was my job to emcee. The little ceremony of the lighting of the Cedar Springs Christmas tree. So the mayor was there. The Red Flannel Festival, Queen and her Court were there. The fire department was, there are local Sergeant Probst. Whose are the sergeant of our police officers? Who, who care for our city? Was their own private? Forgetting, somebody do well in Santa Claus was there. And so we recognize them all and and we we lit the tree and then we sang some, we let the tree and then we had somebody read Luke 2 verses 8 through 14, the Jesus story. This is after all a Christmas tree and and then we sang some songs. So we sang Here, Comes Santa Claus and everybody's hanging out and then we sang One verse of o'holy night and my favorite moment was Santa Clause, 3 standing to my left belting out. Oh, Holy Night. Like it's his favorite song in the world. I think it is Santa Claus's favorite song in the world.
I think that's Witness. Jesus is yes. We're here letting your Christmas tree in our town, but let's acknowledge Jesus. Whose birth were celebrating his present at this moment and present. In this town. I think that's what witnessing is about. The glory of the Lord will be revealed and all people will see it. And we have a role to play in helping people to see it. We have a role to play in helping ourselves to see it. For the mouth of the Lord has spoken. How do you know if something is true? You.
You make a faith judgment. That the evidence you have is reliable. That's the only way any of us come to the conclusion. That anything's, true. I just want to encourage you to never let somebody make you feel like you saying. I think this is true because God said it that that that somehow an illegitimate answer God said it. That's a that's a pretty fine reason to expect something is true. God said it so yeah I can't prove that it's true because God said it's true but if you if you Been seeking to follow God and looking for his presence and Power in the world, and come to some sense that if God says it is true, then then those words that are on the screen are pretty powerful for the mouth of the Lord has spoken. And what is he saying? Comfort. My people. Tell them. Their sin debts are all paid off. Because a king has come and is coming. And this king is going to reveal to the world, the glory of God and everybody's going to see it. The mouth of the Lord has spoken.
That's how. Charles Jennings and Georg Friedrich Handel thought they should start to tell the story of the birth of Jesus. And I think it's quite amazing How we doing for time? It's a good time to end. Let's go.
Yeah, this is far ahead and soak this in for a minute. What's your head bad at? My question for you is what in this little Bible passage? That we looked at jumped out at you. And is there something that God is? Putting on your heart to do because of this.
when I thought about it, the answer I came to was believe.
This is that. This is God. Encouraging me to believe.
So, if you want to, you don't have to, but if you want to put your hands out in front of yourself, just as a kind of a posture of making yourself available to God. and,
Let's say.
These words together, Lord, I believe and I receive you. If you feel comfortable doing that, and if that's a reasonable way for you to respond, then do it with me. Your hands are out in front of you, and we're going to stay together. Lord, I believe and receive you. I'm at One More Time. Lord, I believe and receive you.
Thank you. Lord Jesus. Amen.
So are amazing worship team and our worship team leader have picked out a song that brings it all together, really beautifully. So let's stand up. And let's and with this song,
From God.
Let's receive a blessing.
May the Lord bless you and keep you. May the Lord make his face shine upon you and be gracious to. You may the Lord turn his face toward you and give you peace. And everybody said, amen.