Advent- Our Hope

Body-

First Advent (Luke 2)

With hope, Christ comes to provide a way for his people.

Simeon and Anna, hoped and waited.

That is what satisfied them. What will satisfy you?

Second Advent (Matthew 25)

With hope, Christ comes to gather his people for eternity.

The Marriage of the Lamb.

Conclusion/ Exhortation-

Intro

Good morning, if you don’t know who I am, my name is Tre’ Johnson, I am the associate pastor here at trinity park. I hope everyone here is gearing up for the Holidays and excited to celebrate Christmas, the celebration of the birth of Jesus.

When I was a young boy, my family did Christmas presents on Christmas morning. And it was always a special time. I remember counting the days down once the month of December came, and It was like I couldn't think of anything else because all that mind was set on was Christmas morning. Day after day, I thought about. I couldn’t wait to wake up open presents and to eat my mothers magical biscuits and gravy. And I tell you, I used to wake up really early in the morning. Honestly I don’t know if I ever would fall asleep but when 5 in the morning would roll around I knew it was time. It was time for everyone to wake up. But I didn’t want to bother anyone by waking them up, so I had a plan that worked for years. We had hard wood floors, so what I did was I would whisper into my parents room to get the dogs up and moving so that their paws and nails would make enough noise on the floor that would wake up my parents. And eventually, we would soon enough be in the living room opening presents with my dad falling over on the couch because he was so tired.

So why do I share with you? I share that because when Christmas would come around, I would begin to have this sense of hope. And it wasn’t hope for anything other than the presents under the tree. And usually it was for that specific gift I was begging for that time of year. I was hoping for it, and because i hoped, it was worth the wait. It was worth the wait. And it wasn’t a waiting where I just causally sat there until it happened. Oh no, I waited. I thought about it everyday. I thought what I was going to do with it, who I would tell, where I would take it, and ultimately how it would make me feel and satisfy me.

And like Andy spoke about just a few Sundays ago- the hoping and the longing for something to satisfy you doesn’t stop when you grow up. They just get more expensive and you soon realize that everything you have hoped for, everything you have waited for with great expectation never really fulfilled you.

Today, I hope that as we open God’s word we as a church, you as a person, recognize by the grace of God, that Jesus Christ is the greatest gift and the only in him and through him may we find satisfaction for our souls. So that we would hope nor wait any longer in anything else other than HIM. Psalm 107:9 says this, For he satisfies the longing soul, and fills the hungry soul with goodness.

Body

We are going to look at 2 main passages this morning. If you have your bibles go ahead and turn them to the Gospel of Luke Chapter 2 because that is where we are going to start. If you have something to take notes with, I encourage you to take that out as we study these passages together.

We are going to start in verse 25 of Luke, but before we read we should know the context in which we are reading. Many know this chapter of Luke as the Christmas story. And the story as you may have heard or read begins with the decree from Caesar Augustus that a census be taken of the entire Roman Empire, prompting Joseph and Mary to travel to Bethlehem. While there, Mary gives birth to Jesus and lays Him in a manger because there was no room for them in the inn.

Shepherds in the fields nearby are visited by an angel who announces the birth of the Savior, Christ the Lord. A heavenly host appears, praising God and proclaiming peace on earth. The shepherds hurry to Bethlehem, find Mary, Joseph, and the baby, and share what they have been told, leaving glorifying God.

After eight days, Jesus is circumcised and named as instructed by the angel before His birth. Later, Mary and Joseph bring Him to the temple in Jerusalem for purification and dedication according to Jewish law. Which is where we find ourselves beginning in verse 25. In this passage we are about to read we introduced to two specific people that I want to talk about, Simeon and Anna. And as we read, I want you to think about 3 specific questions. 1. What is it that they are waiting or hoping for? 2. What did waiting look like for them? 3. What was the result of their waiting?

Luke 2:25–38 ESV

25 Now there was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was Simeon, and this man was righteous and devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him. 26 And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Christ. 27 And he came in the Spirit into the temple, and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for him according to the custom of the Law, 28 he took him up in his arms and blessed God and said, 29 “Lord, now you are letting your servant depart in peace, according to your word; 30 for my eyes have seen your salvation 31 that you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, 32 a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and for glory to your people Israel.” 33 And his father and his mother marveled at what was said about him. 34 And Simeon blessed them and said to Mary his mother, “Behold, this child is appointed for the fall and rising of many in Israel, and for a sign that is opposed 35 (and a sword will pierce through your own soul also), so that thoughts from many hearts may be revealed.” 36 And there was a prophetess, Anna, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was advanced in years, having lived with her husband seven years from when she was a virgin, 37 and then as a widow until she was eighty-four. She did not depart from the temple, worshiping with fasting and prayer night and day. 38 And coming up at that very hour she began to give thanks to God and to speak of him to all who were waiting for the redemption of Jerusalem.

God’s word is so good in how He speaks right to us. Question number 1. What was it that they were waiting for? Well, Luke recalls in verse 25 that Simeon was waiting on the consolation or the comfort of Israel. And Anna and the people there at the scene of the birth of Jesus were waiting on the redemption of Jerusalem which is the capital of Israel. This is important, at this point in time, Israel was under the rule of the Roman Empire. And everyone hoped and longed for independence from them. So there was really 2 groups of people, One group that believed the coming Messiah would come primarily to save them from the rule of the romans. That group was primarily concerned with their physical need to be separated from the romans. The second group, believed that the coming messiah would come bring redemption to the lost and broken people of Israel and Jerusalem. And that is the group that Simeon and Anna are in. They truly understood what scripture meant when it spoke of the coming messiah. They understood their own and the worlds brokenness due to sin. They understood all of this because of their close observations and reliance of the scriptures. Isaiah 61:1-2 say this, The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me,

because the Lord has anointed me

to bring good news to the poor;

he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,

to proclaim liberty to the captives,

and the opening of the prison to those who are bound. They understood this not to solely be physical but to the spiritually broken people and nations. So what were they waiting for? They waited for their redemption in Jesus, the Messiah. That was their greatest gift. And like I thought as a child, they knew their great need for a savior to redeem them from their brokenness. They knew this would be the only thing that could satisfy their deepest longing.. To be made whole spiritually. And that is why for them, it was worth the wait. Which brings us to our next question..

What did their hoping and waiting look like? How did they wait? Remember, for me, that gift was all that I could think about and dream about. It affected the things I was focused on in preparation to receive the gift. I waited with faith and I believe Simeon and Anna did the same as they waited. Hebrews 11:1 defines faith, as the “assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.” They lived with faith of the coming messiah. They had assurance of the coming Messiah. And you might ask, how can they be assured with something coming in the future? Because God’s word said so. They read it, time and time again just like we do now. And as we know, God is faithful and when he promises something. It happens. But check this out, when we wait or live with faith in something, it changes the way we live because if we have assurance that we will receive it, then we prepare to receive it. Simeon and Anna give us incredible examples as to what it really looks like to wait with Faith, in Jesus.

Let’s go look back at that passage, how did Simeon wait with faith? In the first verse, verse 25, it says he was a righteous and devout man and that the Holy Spirit was upon him. Simeon living as a righteous and devoted man to God was a result of his assurance that the messiah was coming. Why else would he have been? If he didn't believe it, it wouldn't have changed his life to live in such a way that he devoted himself to the word and the way of God. Think about it in your own life, what is it that you are waiting for? I can bet, that whatever it is, reflects in the way you live your life. Are you waiting for your kids to go to college? I am sure you are pushing them to work hard in school. Are you waiting to receive that promotion at work? I am sure you are grinding as much as you can to prove you are the one that deserves it. Students, are you waiting to win that state championship? If so, I bet you are in the gym, you are working hard. You are listening to your coaches, you are watching film. You see, those things aren't bad to want. But it is an example, of the things that we truly see as a great gift, it is worth waiting for and changing the way we live so that we can be prepared to receive it. I love the portion about Anna, look at how her faith in the coming messiah affects her life. Jump down to verse second half of verse 37, “She did not depart from the temple, worshipping with fasting and prayer night and day.” She didn’t leave. She was so in need and so waiting forward to her redemption that she stayed in the temple all day and all night praying and fasting. She had assurance that the messiah was coming. She had faith. And her faith, led her to give up everything and to simply prepare herself to receive the greatest gift- redemption through Jesus.

So what we they waiting for? Redemption in Jesus

How did they wait? Faith in Jesus

Which leads us to, what was the result of their waiting? They recieved their greatest gift. Jesus Christ. Who has come to redeem their lives from the brokenness of sin. We see Simeon in verse 27, by the leading of the Holy Spirit he comes into the temple where Mary and Joseph brings the baby Jesus, and he took the baby in his arms and gives a beautiful poetic prayer. He says, “Lord, now you are letting your servant depart in peace, according to your word; for my eyes have seen your salvation that you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and for glory to your people Israel” For Simeon, that is all he wanted. He was an older man that has lived a long life, but what was it that satisfied his soul? To see the coming of Jesus. To see the God of the universe, become flesh. To become a baby, to come rescue his people from their sin. That was it. He saw with his very eyes God’s salvation. This baby was the light for people to see God the father we see in verse 32. That is all he wanted to the point that he was ready to die because he was satisfied. And it was the same for Anna. In verse 38, “at the coming up of that very hour she began to give thanks to God and to speak of him to all who were waiting for the redemption of Jersualem.” She couldn't help her self but to shout from the rooftops that the king has come. The greatest gift to all of humanity has arrived. To those who are waiting for something different, stop waiting for it because the one and the only one who can restore and satisfy your soul has come. And he is right here, in the form of a baby. And his name is Jesus. Is Jesus your greatest gift? Do you handle him, do you speak of him in a way that shows he is the greatest gift to you. Was this baby the gift to your greatest need? You may not know it, but your greatest need in all of life, is to be made whole. We are broken by sin and it is only through this baby that lived the life we couldn't- lived without sinning, to at the age of 33 died a death that you and I deserved. But he did it, so that we can be forgiven from our sin if we believe that in our hearts and confess it with our mouth.

So what is it that they were waiting for? Redemption in Jesus

How did they wait? Faith in Jesus

What was the result of their waiting? The gift in Jesus.

That is why we celebrate this season of Advent. We celebrate the arrival and the coming of the messiah. The greatest gift the we, me and you, broken people could ever receive.

As Christians, as followers of Jesus, we know that the first advent was not the last. It was not the end of the story. What it was, was the beginning of new life. The birth of Jesus was God’s grace to humanity, and it is an invitation to new life. And the key word there is INVITATION. We can reject him. We can mishandle him. We can say he was the greatest gift but do we really mean it. Do we really believe it. And I believe that our response to the second advent proves what we truly think and believe about the first advent, aka the birth of Jesus.

When I was a child, whatever the present was that I was looking forward to receiving on Christmas morning. If it truly changed my life, the way that I thought it would, I would still be using it or playing with it today. If you truly believed that the job promotion you recieved 5-10-15 years ago would satisfy your deepest longing- you would still be at that job. If you truly believed that buying that car years ago would save your life, you would you still be driving it today. You see, we are such desperate people that we latch ourselves onto things thinking it will do what only Jesus can actually do in our lives.

Turn with me Matthew 25:1-13, here Jesus is speaking to his disciples, he is much older than what he was in Luke chapter 2. Jesus is speaking to his disciples in the form of a parable which would essentially be an illustration that would help believers understand deep and difficult truths. Let’s read, Matthew 25:1-13

Matthew 25:1–13 ESV

1 “Then the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom. 2 Five of them were foolish, and five were wise. 3 For when the foolish took their lamps, they took no oil with them, 4 but the wise took flasks of oil with their lamps. 5 As the bridegroom was delayed, they all became drowsy and slept. 6 But at midnight there was a cry, ‘Here is the bridegroom! Come out to meet him.’ 7 Then all those virgins rose and trimmed their lamps. 8 And the foolish said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’ 9 But the wise answered, saying, ‘Since there will not be enough for us and for you, go rather to the dealers and buy for yourselves.’ 10 And while they were going to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the marriage feast, and the door was shut. 11 Afterward the other virgins came also, saying, ‘Lord, lord, open to us.’ 12 But he answered, ‘Truly, I say to you, I do not know you.’ 13 Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour.

This passage here, Jesus is speaking of the second advent. The second coming of himself. We are not just promised the first coming, we are also promised the second. And I can assure you, if God said he would come the first time, and he did. He will surely come the second time when he said he will. He came the first time as a baby to bring a way for humanity to be saved from the penalty of sin. And he is coming a second time to gather his church for eternity. In this passage, Jesus is the bridegroom and his church, the believers, are the virgins. The virgins are invited to a wedding feast so they in their waiting for the bridegroom to come and receive them, 5 of them took their lamps and with them brought flasks of oil. The 5 others, brought their lamps and no oil. This is important. The 5 wise ones who brought their oil, like Simeon and Anna they were devoted and sold out for the bridegroom. The Bridegroom was their greatest gift and they knew they would not let their be as chance they miss his arrival. The others, when the bridegroom arrives, they ask the wise, can we have some of yours, our lamps are going out. But the wise didnt have enough for them. So the foolish had to leave to go get some and while they were gone, the bridegroom came. The wise, were ready and why were they ready? Their love, devotion, and faith like Simeon and Annas led them to be. We don’t know why the foolish virgins didn’t bring their oil. Maybe they didn’t think about it. Maybe they were lazy. Maybe they had other things to worry about and to prioritize. But like we learn in this passage. the second Advent, the second coming of Jesus will come at any time. Like the virgins, you may be sleeping. You may be working. You may be at school or with friends. It wont matter where you are but what will matter is have you been waiting and waiting faithfully for the gift of being with Jesus for eternity? Do you have your oil? Are you ready? Have you been waiting faithfully for him, like someone who waited with being righteous and devout. Is Jesus truly your greatest gift or is it something else?

I pray that through the study of these scriptures, whether or not you've waited and you are ready, that you are compelled to do something with what you have heard.

Let’s Pray.