Hope is at the Heart of Christmas
Notes
Transcript
Today we begin a new series called The Heart of Christmas. Over the next few weeks and concluding on Christmas Eve, we want to look at what is exactly at the heart of Christmas.
Today, I want you to know that hope is at the heart of Christmas. Let me take a moment and show you what I mean.
I remember when I was a child, I loved it when we would get the Sears and Roebuck catalog and the JC Penney catalog. We would take the catalog to our rooms and we would hope and dream about what Santa might bring us for Christmas. My sister and I would circle and put our initials by each of the items that we wanted for Christmas. I seem to remember that there wasn’t much that wasn’t circled. We wanted it all. But there was an anticipation for Christmas after that. There was a hope that we would get something that we asked for. It was one of the highlights of our child hood. Some of you probably did the same thing.
The true reason there is hope at the heart of Christmas is not because of gifts but because of the birth of Jesus Christ. When Jesus came to earth it was a fulfillment of prophecy that was spoken about hundreds of years before He arrived. It is one of the most well known prophecies in scripture that is shared at this time of year.
If you have your bibles and you want to follow along go to the book of Isaiah. I will be reading from chapter 9. Let me set this up for you.
The backdrop to Isaiah’s writings, some time around 740 BC, was a time of very poor leadership in Israel. The people of Israel had been suffering through the reigns of four ungodly kings: Uzziah, Jotham, and Ahaz. If you want to read about these guys read 2 Chronicles 26, 27, 28. There stories are found in those chapters. They were corrupt and had led the people far from God. It was a very dark time in history. Isaiah wrote these words knowing God would have to intervene to bring Israel back to himself. The kingdom was crumbling, and the people needed hope.
Look at what Isaiah wrote in chapter 9.
2 The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of deep darkness a light has dawned.
3 You have enlarged the nation and increased their joy; they rejoice before you as people rejoice at the harvest, as warriors rejoice when dividing the plunder.
4 For as in the day of Midian’s defeat, you have shattered the yoke that burdens them, the bar across their shoulders, the rod of their oppressor.
5 Every warrior’s boot used in battle and every garment rolled in blood will be destined for burning, will be fuel for the fire.
6 For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
7 Of the greatness of his government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on David’s throne and over his kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and forever. The zeal of the Lord Almighty will accomplish this.
When you read this passage, notice that it makes two major statements. The first statement is an acknowledgement of the brokenness and darkness that surrounded Israel due to sin and corruption. The second is the hope of a dawning light through the birth of a child who would one day make all things right. The Jewish people in the Old Testament needed these words to remind them that God had not forgotten about them.
The book of Matthew also reminds us of Isaiah’s writings. The gospel writer was making the connection between what Isaiah had prophetically written and what had taken place in a manger in Bethlehem. Look at chapter one verse 22.
22 All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet:
23 “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel” (which means “God with us”).
A young Jewish man named Joseph was presented with a very difficult decision to make. He was engaged to be married to a woman named Mary, but she was already pregnant. Joseph planned to call the wedding off because it appeared his bride-to-be had been unfaithful. But an angel of the Lord spoke to Joseph in a dream and told him to go forward with the marriage because the child in her womb was from the Holy Spirit. All of these events took place to fulfill the prophecy from the Old Testament, which claimed there would be a child born as a light in the darkness and a hope for all people.
The child would be named Immanuel, which means God with us… Even in the midst of darkness.
The center of the Christmas story is focused squarely on the birth of Jesus. He is the fulfillment of the Israelite’s hope that God would push back the darkness and shine a bright light in the world.
That is also why Christmas resonates in our hearts. We live in a dark world, just like Israel did. Our world is dark and corrupt and full of sin. There is war, disease, conflict, and oppression all around us. We need the Christ child as well to usher in a light and push back the darkness.
4 In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind.
5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.
Christmas is a reminder that whatever it is we hope for in our lives. Whether it be healing, restoration, forgiveness, or maybe you just want a fresh start, each of those things is available through Immanuel, God with us. Hope is not a result of the absence of conflict, difficulty, struggle or trial. Hope is a result of the presence of God.
But sometimes it’s hard. The hard part about hope is that it often takes longer than we would like to be fulfilled. Like the Jewish people experienced, hope requires patience.
There is a common plant that grows in the southwest desert of the United States called the Agave Americana. It is also known as a century plant. This plant thrives in a rocky, dry, and mountainous desert location. It grows splayed leaves that grow to be a foot wide.
This plant can reach twelve feet in diameter and grow to be six feet tall. Perhaps its most unusual trait is its long reproduction cycle. For 20 to 30 years, this plant remains the same height and puts out no flowers. But suddenly and without warning, a new bud will sprout. Resembling a tree-trunk-sized asparagus spear, it will rise into the sky at a rate of seven inches per day until it reaches a height of 20 to 40 feet. Then it culminates with a crown of several clumps of yellow blossoms that last for three weeks. Similar to the century plant, some of the greatest answers to hoping and longing take time and patience in order to see the beauty unfold.
Isaiah saw that one day in the future. God would bring a great light and salvation through the birth of a child. It was not until hundreds of years later that Matthew recorded Jesus’s birth in Bethlehem. Jesus is the very presence of God on earth. He offers forgiveness of sin, destruction of evil, and the promise of eternal life.
So, why do we read Isaiah’s prophecy each year during Christmas?
Here is why. When we see God’s faithfulness in the past that gives us deep and abiding hope in the present and unwavering trust for the future.
Paul makes an appeal for hope to those who trust in Christ. Look at his letter to the Romans in chapter 15.
4 For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through the endurance taught in the Scriptures and the encouragement they provide we might have hope.
Paul said everything that had been written in the past, all the prophecy and the fulfillment, is meant to teach us how to hold onto faith in God to answer our prayers.
What has been written gives us endurance and encouragement that we might have hope. It is important that we revisit the prophetic words of the Old Testament and the fulfillment that comes through the birth of Jesus because it reminds us that God can be trusted to come through and meet us in our greatest time of need.
Think about this time of year. There are so many distractions and there are so many things that are grabbing for our attention. But this message is a reminder that hope is offered to us through Jesus’ arrival in the manger.
Dr. James Dobson tells a story of an elderly woman named Stella Thornhope who was struggling with her first Christmas alone. Her husband had died just a few months prior through a slow-developing cancer. Several days before Christmas, she was almost snowed in by a brutal weather system. She felt terribly alone—so much so that she decided she was not going to decorate for Christmas.
Late that afternoon the doorbell rang, and there was a delivery boy with a box. He said, “Mrs. Thornhope? Would you sign here?” She invited him to step inside and closed the door to get away from the cold. She signed the paper and said, “What’s in the box?” The young man laughed and opened up the flap, and inside was little golden Labrador Retriever. The delivery boy picked up the squirming pup and explained, “This is for you, ma’am. he’s six weeks old and completely housebroken.” The young puppy began to wiggle in happiness at being released from captivity.
“Who sent this?” Mrs. Thornhope asked. The young man set the animal down and handed her an envelope and said, “It’s all explained here in this envelope, ma’am. The dog was bought last July while its mother was still pregnant. It was meant to be a Christmas gift to you.” The young man then handed her a book: How to Care for Your Labrador Retriever.
In desperation she again asked, “Who sent me this puppy?” As the young man turned to leave he said, “Your husband, ma’am. Merry Christmas.” She opened the letter from her husband. He had written it three weeks before he died and left it with the kennel owners to be delivered with the puppy as his last Christmas gift to her. The letter was full of love and encouragement and admonishments to be strong. he vowed that he was waiting for the day when she would join him in heaven. He had sent her this young animal to keep her company until then. She wiped away the tears, put the letter down, and then remembered the puppy at her feet. She picked up the golden furry ball and held it to her neck. Then she looked out the window at the lights that outlined the neighbor’s house, and she heard from the radio in the kitchen the strains of “Joy to the World, the Lord has come.” Suddenly, Stella felt the most amazing sensation of hope washing over her. Her heart felt a joy and a wonder greater than the grief and loneliness.
“Little fella,” she said to the dog. “It’s just you and me, but you know what? There’s a box down in the basement I bet you’d like. It’s got a little Christmas tree in it and some decorations and lights that are going to impress you. And there’s a manger scene down there. Let’s go get it.”
Our God is always right on time. He knows exactly what we need, and he can be trusted to reveal the light of Christ in order to push the darkness in our lives. In a land full of deep darkness, a light has indeed dawned.
I want you to watch this video and think about Jesus coming to bring hope to a lost world. The videos is scenes from the movie The Nativity with the music from The Piano Guys. Watch this.
Video - O Come O Come Emmanuel by GoldM90
6 For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
Jesus is our hope. He is the heart of Christmas. Hope is a the heart of Christmas.
Let’s Pray.