Sermon Tone Analysis

Psalm of the Day: Psalm 145:14-21

Advent Reading 4

On the fourth week of Advent, we light the final purple candle to mark the final week of prayer as we wait for the birth of our Savior.

This final candle, the “Angel’s Candle,” symbolizes peace.

It reminds us of the message of the angels: “Peace on Earth, Good Will Toward Men.”

I can’t help it, but every time I hear “Peace on Earth'', I think of the movie Miss Congeniality.

The joke is that the answer to all the questions in the Miss USA Pageant should be “world peace”.

But when we talk about the peace candle, and specifically when we talk about the peace that Advent brings, we are talking about a peace that is better, more complete and more desperately needed than just some temporary fleeting world peace.

In Ephesians Chapter Two, Paul gets to the real heart and the real point of what we needed.

He writes to a group of people who were (verse 11) once “gentiles in the flesh”.

But when we hear Gentile we immediately think of the Gentile Jewish distinction and think of the hostility that they each had one for another, but for Paul, while that is the problem that he will get to, that is not THE Problem.

The real issue is that they had (verse 12) “no hope, and were without God in the world”.

That is the huge problem, the issue is that we are without hope because our lack of peace is NOT here on a surface level, instead we are, because of Sin, at war with God.

So why is it so important that this fourth candle is the candle of peace, it is because as Paul writes in verses 13 and 14: “But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.

For he himself is our peace, who has made us both one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility”.

So fittingly, the candle of peace becomes the fulfillment and the reason for our ability to enjoy the light of the other candles.

The first candle was hope, and without Christ tearing down the wall of hostility, we have no hope.

The second candle was Faith, and here is the object and source and power of our faith, it's the work of Christ.

Last week was the candle of Joy, and our Joy comes in knowing our savior and knowing that he has come to bring us peace.

But I do want to note that there is a horizontal aspect to this peace, and we see that in two particular and important ways.

The first is where Paul takes the Thoughts to the Ephesian church.

Because of the work of Christ there is no longer, for those in Christ, the same Jew Gentile distinction and hostility, there is no longer the We have the Law and y’all stink, or the you guys are legalistic and we have freedom divide, in the body of Christ we are all united in one Body, namely the Body of Christ, he is the head of his church.

Ephesians 2:19-22: “So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord.

In him you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit.”

And finally we believe and do proclaim that one day there will be true earthly peace on this earth.

He is coming Back.

One of the reasons that the advent season is so important is that while we look back and remember the first advent we remember and look forward to the second one as well.

One day he will return and rule with a rod of Iron.

All nations will bow and serve him.

He is our King and the prince of peace.

May the peace of God dwell in your hearts as we bask in the light of this, the fourth advent candle!

Sermon

Good morning Church!

I was glad when they said to meet let us go and worship in the house of the Lord!

Well here we are in the last Sunday of advent, and so therefore our last advent sermon.

And if I were to be honest, this one is the one that I have been looking forward too.

It is the only one so far in the series that haven't started my sermon prep and thought: oh man, what have I gotten myself into.

Today we will be looking at Jesus Christ, the son of Go.

This is taken form many places in Scripture.

It is probably for many of us the most common name or title we could think of for Jesus.

Eve In Peter’s answer to The question that Jesus asked as the inspiration to this whole series, Matthew 16:15 “He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?”” and Petre responds verse 16 Matthew 16:16 “Simon Peter replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”” .

At the end of Matthew we see this too.

It turns out if you were to look at Matthew as one book, well you should look at it as one book, because it is… but if you were to look at the book as whole, it centers around this question of what is the nature of Jesus.

WE opened with his genealogy, to let us know where he is from, but is he really?

then Powerfully at his baptism in Matthew 3:17 “and behold, a voice from heaven said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.””

SO the testimony of the father is that Jesus is the Son.

Then slowly the book builds and we see his teaching and his authority and his goodness and just who Jesus is unfold and then Peter proclaims: You are the son of God, this man is God.

So in the middle now of the book the disciples seem to get it.

So the testimony of the father is that this is the son of God the testimony of Peter as representative of his people say he is the son of God but then at the end of the book the most full pay off.

Matthew 27:54 “When the centurion and those who were with him, keeping watch over Jesus, saw the earthquake and what took place, [we will get to this part of Mathew in a while, but for now heres the point…] they were filled with awe and said, “Truly this was the Son of God!””

So for today, as we ask the question: who do we say that Jesus is the answer is: He is truly the Son of God!.

This then becomes for us the source of all of our hope.

It is what we have faith in. it is why we have joy and peace.

Truly all that we celebrate in advent hinges on this thought: That Jesus is the son of God.

So that will be our topic for today, that will be where we spend our time this morning, but before we div into what God’s word says on this topic lets open with a word of prayer.

PRAY

Dear Lord we do thank you for all of the perfect gifts that you give us.

We thank you that you would send your son to us, a wayward lost, rebellious people.

To save us to redeem us to call us, to be with us.

Thank you for the call that you place on our lives thank you fr the spirit given to us.

Drawing us to repentance.

WE thank you that you work in our heart and lives conforming us into the image of your son.

Be with us this morning, speak to our hearts.

May we be a people who are changed by the truth.

WE pray this in the name our our lord and savior, Jesus Christ.

Amen

It is very interesting to me that the two names that we end with in this series are the two I would say biggest names for Jesus.

Well, that's not what is interesting, i planned it that way, what is interesting to me is that these two biggest names feel rather opposite.

Last week we looked at Jesus favorite name for himself, that he is THE SON OF MAN.

we looked at what that meant theologically and in the scope of what Daniel was saying and what Jesus would mean when he said that why would he choose that name above all others.

but here in THE SON OF GOD I would say in our experience that this is the name that we choose and we prefer to call him.

And As i pondered that this week i came across two questions to ponder that I think drive the point home as to why it might be the case that we are drawn to this name, why this name is important and what good is the name.

And so the first question is a big one, but WHAT DOES THIS MEAN THEOLOGICALLY?

WHAT DOES THIS MEAN THEOLOGICALLY?

When we say that Jesus is the son of God what are we saying about the nature of Jesus and really the nature of God.

And in this I think there are really two points that are inter-related that I would like us to spend out time looking at this morning.

I think for many of us is the natural way to describe Christ’s divinity.

For he is truly as the centurion proclaimed the son of God.

Historically speaking in the Jewish community there would be a thought that we are all sons of God.

For we are all made in the image of God.

WE all carry that, so in some way we are all his children, and sure, there is kinda a way that we could say that that he made us all so we are all his children.

But when we say that Jesus is THE son of God we mean something deeper.

WE are saying that he is by his very nature the same as God.

As the only begotten son of God he has something unique to him that makes him divine.

To say that he is the Son of God is to say that he has authority and power and certain parts of who he is by the nature of who his father is, he has position and an identity that is far above all of ours.

So we may be, in some shadowy and philosophical way sons of God (truly in Christ we are his children, more on that later, we are talking about fundamental natures here…) he is the one who truly is God.

SO he is the very son of God.

And as we celebrate advent as we reflect on the Christmas season this is what we proclaim and what we cherish.

That some 2000 years ago God sent forth his son.

He came down to earth.

“For God so loved the world that he sent his only begotten Son.

These become the thoughts that motivate us, and they draw us to see what is different and unique about our savior.

They draw us to come and see that here is one worthy of all worship honor and praise.

When we looked at Jesus as the Lion of the tribe of Judah we noted that in the throne room of heaven he recieved all worship honor dominion and power.

These things offered unto him rightly and ONLY because he is the Son of God.

So when we say he is the Son of God we mean all this.

He is the lamb, he is the lion he is God’s Son and he is God.

But this leads us to our second thought that would like to cover.

ad While I usually try and avoid all the technical phrases and thoughts This one is important enough that would like to cover it today.

I will start with a question: what s the nature of Jesus’ sonship?