Untitled Sermon (3)

“Jesus And The Expectant”

Luke 2.

Christmas is Only DAYS AWAY NOW.

How many of you have FINISHED your Christmas Shopping? How many have NOT STARTED YET?

· Perhaps you are also Wondering if You are going to GET what you ASKED FOR.

Top Gifts WIVES Give their Husbands- TECH GADGETS.

Also Foot Massagers and Slim Wallets.

Top Gifts HUSBANDS give Wives- JEWELRY.

There are those HUSBANDS that never Get the Hint from their Wives about Gifts.

Like the WIFE on the Day Before Christmas a Woman who Told her Husband-

“I just DREAMED A DREAM that you Gave Me a Beautiful DIAMOND NECKLACE! She Then Asked, “What do you think it Means?(Hint,Hint)

· The Husband Responded, “You’ll know on CHRISTMAS EVE!”

· On Christmas Eve the Husband gave a Small Wrapped Gift to his Wife.

· She Excitedly opened it only to find a BOOK with the Title “THE MEANING OF DREAMS!”

Some of you “CAN’T WAIT” until Christmas Morning when you Open your Presents. You would be the KIDS. Some of you “CAN’T WAIT” for it all TO BE OVER (You would be PARENTS)

Wer’e in “JESUS AND YOU” series and Last Message, “Jesus and The Ones Who Listened”

We Looked at 2 Very Different Groups of people- The SHEPHERDS and the WISEMEN.

Now we are Going to Look at 2 Who were WAITING FOR CHRISTMAS.

What are you WAITING FOR This Christmas?

· Is it the Hope that ALL YOUR FAMILY will Show Up at your House? Or perhaps, the Hope that they WILL NOT All Show up.

· The Problem with Christmas is it CANNOT DELIVER ON IT’S PROMISES.

· It can’t Possibly LIVE UP TO THE HYPE.

Christmas is A PROMISE of Something Greater, or should I say, SOMEONE Greater.

What is Christmas at it's BEST? Gathering with Family and Friends.

Enjoying Meals, ,Laughing together,Worshipping together.

All these things are a GLIMPSE OF THINGS TO COME.

CHRISTMAS IS A PROMISE.

· It is a Promise that has NOT YET BEEN FULLY KEPT.

· Ever since I’ve been a LITTLE BOY,I believed in the Promise of Christmas.

· But I was ALWAYS LET DOWN.

What we are Really Longing for this Time of Year is not CHRISTMAS but CHRIST.

Not “Good Will”,but GOD. Not Presents, but HIS PRESENCE.

There is a LONGING Deep inside of us FOR GOD HIMSELF.

Some of you HAVE NOT BEEN TO CHURCH in a Long Time.

· To You I Say. . . .”WELCOME HOME!”

· Some of you HAVE NEVER BEEN TO A CHURCH.

· To you I Would Say, “COME HOME” and Join God’s Family.

Now, I want to talk about 2 PEOPLE that were WAITING FOR CHRISTMAS in the Bible.

In realty, they were WAITING FOR CHRIST,.. No, it’s not JOSEPH and MARY.

It’s 2 often Overlooked but Significant People in the Christmas Story.

It’s actually FROSTY and RUDOLPH the Red Nose Reindeer.

No, Actually it’s SIMEON and ANNA. · They Don’t Appear in any Nativity Scenes or in Many Christmas Cards,but they Were There. · In fact, they PRECEEDED THE WISEMEN who Came Later to the Home of Jesus. · Let’s get THE TIMELINE and then we will Read about them.

The ANGEL GABRIEL came to the Very Young MARY living in NAZARETH.

· MARY was a NOBODY, living in a NOWHERE TOWN in the Middle of NO WHERE.

· MARYwas a GODLY GIRL Living in a very UNGODLY PLACE.

· It was Revealed to her that she would be THE VERY MOTHER OF THE MESSIAH!

· MARY,only Engaged to Joseph Wondered HOW Such a Thing Could Happen-

She was told that this would be DONE SUPERNATURALLY. (Luke 1:35)

Gabriel Said,"The Holy Spirit will Come Upon You, and the Power of the Most High will Overshadow you. So the Baby to be Born will be Holy, and he will be Called the Son of God.”

JOSEPH, the “Unsung Hero” of the Christmas Story thought Mary had been Unfaithful. An Angel Came to him and told him this was Done by the Holy Spirit.

· JOSEPH TOO Agreed to be a Part of God’s Great Plan of Redemption.

The Decree was given by CEASAR AGUSTUS for all the World to be Taxed.

Mary and Joseph, both Decedents of KING DAVID HEAD TO BETHLEHEM.

On the First Christmas Eve, there were no Brightly Colored Lights on Anyone’s Homes.

There were No Stockings that had been Hung with Care or any Visions of Sugarplums Dancing in Children’s Heads.

It was just ANOTHER NIGHT IN BETHLEHEM.

· But HISTORY WAS ABOUT TO CHANGE in Bethlehem.

· History Swings on the Hinge on the Door of a STABLE in BETHLEHEM.

· MARY and JOSEPH Arrived in Town,and there was “NO ROOM IN THE INN”

· So, they were Sent to a STABLE or BARN.

There, the Savior of the World, THE CREATOR came to us as a Helpless Infant.

When Parents have a Child, especially the 1st One they CALL LOVED ONES.

You gave them the Weight and Length of the Baby and the Actual Time of Birth.

When GOD ANNOUNCED THE BIRTH OF JESUS, WHOM did He TELL FIRST?

· It Seems Likely that He would have Started with CAESAR AUGUSTUS.

· Historiansbelieve Caesar Augustus was around 5 feet,7 Inches.

· I was telling the Christmas Story once to my Grandkids and Mentioned CAESAR.

· My Granddaughter LUCY said. . . .”LITTLE CAESAR?”

GOD could have Sent the Angel Gabriel to Appear in Caesar’s Court and Announced, “Check this out, Little Buddy. YOU ARE NOT GOD! The Savior of the World has Arrived!”

Or He might have had Gabriel appear to the RELIGIOUS LEADERS and say,

· “WAKE UP!” The Messiah has BEEN BORN!”

· No, God WENT OUT OF HIS WAY to go to the LOWEST of the LOW. . SHEPHERDS

· To these Humble people a PORTAL INTO HEAVEN ITSELF Opened up.

· So, WHAT HAPPENED NEXT? THE WISEMEN Appeared Of Course!

· NO, they did not Come until Some Time later, perhaps A YEAR OR TWO!

The NEXT EVENT is 8 Days after His Birth, Joseph and Mary took Jesus to the Temple. There, He was Circumcised and named JESUS.

Now, we come to our First of Two who was WAITING FOR CHRISTMAS-

#1 His Name is SIMEON.

· He was a GODLY MAN was EAGERLY Waiting for the Messiah.

· BTW, That was NO SMALL FEAT at this time Historically.

· ISRAEL By and Large and TURNED THEIR BACK ON GOD.

In fact, they hadn’t Heard From God for 400 LONG YEARS.

There was NO PROPHET Speaking for God,

Nor were there ANY ANGELS Bringing Messages from God. NO MIRACLES.

Nothing was Happening. There was just Chaos, Violence and Misery.

IT SOUNDS A LOT LIKE TODAY.

· If You were to Read the NEWS on your Paper Carved on a Stone Tablet it would be Bleak. ROMAN DOMINATION, PEOPLE WERE AFRAID, CORRUPTION WAS RAMPANT.

· They were Waiting for SOMETHING TO HAPPEN

And Something DID HAPPEN.. At the Right Moment, God sent His Son.

Gal.4: 4 “But when the RIGHT TIME CAME, God Sent his Son, Born of a woman,

Subject to THE LAW. God sent him to Buy Freedom for us who Were Slaves to the Law, so that he could ADOPT US as his Very Own Children.”

SIMEON WAS WAITING. He was WAITING FOR CHRISTMAS.

· GOD REVEALED TO HIM that HE WOULD NOT DIE Until He SAW THE MESSIAH.

· Sometimes Xmas Gifts Arrive Early with this Note- “DO NOT OPEN UNTIL CHRISTMAS!”

· SIMEON was Told He WOULD NOT “ DIE UNTIL CHRISTMAS.”

SIMEON Held on to the Promise of Scripture given 400 years before the Birth of Christ, By the Prophet MALACHI,whose Prophecy Ends the OT (Mal. 5 4:2) “The SUN OF RIGHTEOUSNESS will Rise with Healing in his Wings”.

Though that Prophecy was 400 years old SIMEON BELIEVED IT and Hung on to it.

Maybe You have NOT HEARD FROM GOD for A while.

HE IS LISTENING and SPEAKING! Have a CONVERSATION WITH GOD!

I read an Article about People COMMUNICATING WITH THIER DOGS

“Dogs TALK with Humans using Soundboardsfor the First Time-

And it’s What they DIDN’T SAY that’s Depressing”

They Developed these Soundboards where Animals can Communicate with Humans.

· If you Press Certain Buttons they can Produce Human Words or Phrases.

· The Most Commonly used Buttons were for “Outside”, “Treat”, “Play” and “Potty”

· Apparently, the Button that says, “I LOVE YOU”

was Pressed far more Frequently by HUMANS then by DOGS!

What the DOGS are Saying is THEY DON’T LOVE YOU AS MUCH AS YOU THOUGHT.

Maybe that’s because we CARRY DOGS around like this- (Dogs in Strollers, Carriers)

They would RATHER do This-(Dog in Toilet)

It’s Fine to want to Communicate with YOUR DOG.

· It’sEver Better to COMMUNICATE WITH GOD!

· LISTEN- God Wants to SPEAK To you Even More then You want to be Spoken to. Jesus Said, “My Sheep Hear My Voice and FOLLOW ME!”

· OLD SIMEON held on to a 400 Year Old Promise.

Never LET GO OF THE PROMISES OF GOD TO YOU. They are TRUE and TRUSTWORTHY.

2 Pet. 1:4” He has Given us GREAT and PRECIOUS PROMISES”

2 Cor.1:20 “For all of God’s Promises have been Fulfilled in Christ with a Resounding “YES!”

Someone said there are 8,810 PROMISES in the Bible to the Believer. That’s a LOT!

· GOD’S PROMISES are a Bit Like THOSE GIFT CARDS we Both Give and Receive.

· I Don’t Use ALL OF THE CARDS I’m Given. (A Lot of In’ N Out, Krispy Kreme, Milk Duds)

· If I Used all of them I would Weigh 400 Pounds!

I read Americans have left $45 BILLION on Unused Gift Cards!

THE PROMISES OF GOD are Like UNUSED GIFT CARDS.

We May Believe them, Love them but we Need to CLAIM THEM.

For Instance- “God Has PROMISED to Never Leave Your Forsake You.” (Heb. 13:5) God Has Promised to “PROVIDE ALL YOUR NEEDS according to His Grace” (Phil. 3 4:19) God has Promised to “Work All Things Together for Good to those who Love Him”

AND HE HAS PROMISED TO HEAR OUR PRAYERS!

Jer. 33:3 “CALL TO ME and I will ANSWER YOUand tell you Great

and Unsearchable Things you Do Not Know.’

SIMEON’S very Name means “GOD HAS HEARD”.

· This Manwas Waiting for Christmas, or more specifically, He was WAITING FOR JESUS.

· That day, the Lord LED HIM TO THE TEMPLE.

· As He Saw Mary and Joseph Enter with Baby Jesus He KNEW THIS WAS MESSIAH.

· HOW DID HE KNOW? Did They Have HALOES and a Nice Glow?

HE KNEW Because He was LOOKING FOR THEM. God Says, “Those That SEEK ME Will FIND ME.”

He took Jesus into His Arms and PRAYED. . . (Luke 2:32)

“He is a LIGHT TO REVEAL GOD to the Nations, and he is the Glory of your People Israel!”

MARY and JOSEPH WERE AMAZED at what was Being Said about him. “

Then Simeon Blessed them, and he said to Mary, the Baby’s Mother,(Luke 2:34-35)

“THIS CHILD is Destined to cause many in ISRAEL TO FALL, and many OTHERS TO RISE.

He has been SENT AS A SIGN FROM GOD, but MANY WILL OPPOSE HIM.

As a Result, the Deepest Thoughts of Many Hearts will be Revealed.

And A SWORD WILL PIERCE YOUR VERY SOUL.”

Can You IMAGINE this Moment?

· Simeonhad just Looked in Mary’s Eyes and Made this Statement.

· And that SWORD DID Piece Mary’s Soul, Didn’t it? She Made SO MANY SACRIFICESin her Life to be the MOTHER OF THE MESSIAH.

She Went Through Life with the Reputation of being an IMMORAL WOMAN. She was in Fact the VERY OPPOSITE OF THAT.

When Jesus Told Her and Joseph He Needed “To be About His Fathers’ Business”.

At the WEDDING FEAST when She Told Him to Do Something and He said,

· “WOMAN, what is that to you and to Me?” “My hour has not yet come.”

· When Someone wanted to Single Her out, “YOUR MOTHER IS HERE!”

· And Jesus Said, “Who is MY MOTHER”

Who are My Brothers, It’s Those that Hear the Word of God and Keep it”

But That Sword Pierced Her Soul Most Deeply when She SAW HIM ON THAT CROSS.

Her Beloved Son Beaten Beyond Human Recognition. Perhaps MARY realized HE WAS NOT HER CHILD but SHE WAS HIS.

· MARY Would Not Want us Praying TO HER or THROUGH HER.

· As She Said at Wedding Feast, “WHATEVERVER HE SAYS, DO IT!”

As Mary Was Digesting this along Comes an Grandmotherly Woman STEPS FORWARD-

Luke 2:36-37 “ANNA, A Prophetess ,was also there in the Temple, , and She Was VERY OLD.

Then she Lived AS A WIDOW to the Age of 84. She NEVER LEFT THE TEMPLE

but STAYED THERE DAY AND NIGHT, Worshiping God with Fasting and Prayer.”

This Woman, ANNA in our Story was “Looking Forward” to Arrival of Messiah as well.

· She was also Waiting in the Temple.

· According to the Scripture, “SHE WAS VERY OLD”

· She Never Left the Temple and Just Prayed She would Know when The MESSIAH CAME.

· She Saw SIMION Talking to Mary and Joseph and Realized it was MESSIAH!

ANNA Became an ELDERLY EVANGELIST!

People Look forward to RETIREMENT in Our Culture.

· Listen! There is No Retirement from Following Jesus and Serving His Purpose.

· We Want to Make Every Day of our Life Count.

· Scripturereminds us that OUR PURPOSE doesn’t END WITH A CAREER.

· In Psalm 92:14,“They will Still Bear Fruit in OLD AGE, they will Stay Fresh and Green.”

You’re Never Too Old TO DREAM A NEW DREAM.

Studies Show A LIFE OVERLY FOCUSED ON LEISURE without MEANINGFUL GOALS

Can lead to Boredom, Depression, and even Physical Health Decline. Studies indicate that individuals with a STRONG SENSE OF PURPOSE LIVE LONGER then Those Without One.

Rest and Relaxation have their Place, they are to REFRESH us for Greater Service.

· The Word, “RECREATION” says it All. I take the Time off to “RECREATE”

· To Create Again and REFRESH and RESTORE.

· One was never Met to Live Exclusively to for Recreation or Mere Leisure.

· It is to REVIVE us for What Really Matters in Life.

You may not have the ENERGY You once Had as a Younger Person,.

But You have EXPERINCE and Wisdom in your Older years. MOSES did not Get Rolling Until the age of 80!

SIMEON Was EAGERLY WAITING FOR JESUS To COME THE FIRST TIME.

Luke 2:25 “He was Righteous and Devout and EAGERLY WAITING

for the Messiah to Come and Rescue Israel. The Holy Spirit was Upon him.”

We LIKE SIMION Should be EAGERLY AWAITING Jesus too.

· Heb.9:28 “He will COME AGAIN to all Who EAGERLY AWAIT HIM”

· If you are RIGHT WITH GOD you will LONG FOR THE RETURN OF CHRIST.

· If you are NOT Right with Godor Not living as you Should you will DREAD his Return,

· (Story of CRYSTAL Working for PLANNED PARENTHOOD.)

We have Never BEEN CLOSER to the RETURN OF CHRIST then we are this Xmas of 2024

But This Time, He won't be Coming TO A MANGER;

He will be Coming BACK IN GLORY.

In His First Coming, He was Wrapped in SWADDLING CLOTHES.

· In His Second Coming, He will be Clothed Royally in a Robe Dipped in Blood.

· In His FIRST COMING, He was Surrounded by ANIMALS and SHEPHERDS

· In His Second Coming, He will be Accompanied by Saints and Angels.

In His First Coming, there was NO ROOM FOR HIM IN THE INN.

· In His Second Coming, the DOOR OF THE HEAVENS will be OPENED TO HIM.

· In His First Coming, He was the LAMB OF GOD who would Die for the Sins of the World.

· Second Coming, He will be the Ferocious Lion of the Tribe of Judah, Bringing Judgment.

Are you EAGERLY WAITING FOR JESUS?

This does Not Mean we Stand around like idiots on Street Corners and Stare at the Sun.

Nor does it mean we Quit our Jobs and Sit on Rooftops WAITING FOR THE RAPTURE.

What it Does Mean is that we Live in EAGER ANTICIPATION?

· When Jesus says, “Behold, I am Coming Soon”

· EVERY BELIEVER should Say like John. . .”Even so, COME Lord Jesus!”

· SIMEON and ANNA Patiently Waited and Waited and then They DIED WITH HOPE. In fact, They died HOLDING HOPE. HOPE has a Name. . . . It’s JESUS!

This Might Surprise you, but DEATH and CHRISTMAS are Inseparably Connected.

It’s Hard for us to think about those Soft BABY HANDS OF JESUS

would Grow into the Hands of a Strong Man with SPIKES Driven Through them.

It’s hard to Think of the Little Feet of the Baby would One Day be Nailed to a Cross of Wood.

That TINY FOREHEAD, Kissed by His Loving Mother would be Crowned with Thornsl Fact is, The SHADOW OF THE CROSSwas Over the Manger of the Baby Jesus.

But Know This: HE CAME WITH A PURPOSE..

· He didn’t Come to this Earthsimply to Show us how to LIVE A GOOD LIFE

and Give us the GREATEST TEACHINGS that Humanity has Ever Heard.

· Nor did He come Merely to PERFORM MIRACLES and show us the Truth about life.

Jesus Christ did that and More.

Yet He was Born in Bethlehem with the Express Purpose of going to a Cross and Dying.

Jesus Was Born To Die That We Might Live.

But WHY did Jesus Come?

· So we could SHOP and OPEN PRESENTS and even Have Christmas Services?

· NO, HE CAME TO DIE for the SINS of the WORLD. He Came to DIE FOR YOUR SIN!

· Jesus said, “ I CAME to GIVE MY LIFE as a Ransom for Many” (Mark 10:45)

· It was in the Angelic Announcement to JOSEPH. . .”He will Save His People from their Sins”

It’s Hard for us to ADMIT OUR NEED and ADMIT WE NEED TO BE SAVED.

We Need to “Jump into the Waiting Arms of Jesus”.

I was In the House Watching TV and Heard the Voice of Cathe- “GREG!” I Looked around, and She was No where to be Found.

· I Heard her say my Name again, “GREG!”

· I Went From Room to Room but she wasn’t There.

· I thought maybe I IMAGINED IT and Went back to Watching TV.

Then I Heard it Again and it was LOUDER. . . .”GREG!”

Then I found Her in the BACKYARD UP IN A TREE. (Outside of our House by Trash)

I told her to JUMP into My Arms.

She Said, “No Way, YOU WILL DROP ME! Get A LADDER!”

Very Different from My GRANDKIDS when They were Little. They would Jump into My Arms without Hesitation. (Sometimes Not Warning me!)

· JESUS SAYS, “JUMP!”

· He will Catch you.

· God Will Forgive YOU of all of your SINS RIGHT NOW.

NONE OF US have the Promise we will BE HERE NEXT CHRISTMAS. But we ARE HERE this one.

And GOD HAS A GIFT FOR YOU THIS CHRISTMAS. Better then ANY GIFT Waiting For you Under Your Tree or Hidden Somewhere.

This Year there have Been a LOT OF PACKAGES Stolen From Porches. They Call these People “PORCH PIRATES”

· Porch Pirates Nationwide Stole at least 48 MILLION PACKAGES

· Valued at $12 BILLION in the Past Year.

· One LadyGot back at them by Putting Trash and KITTY LITTER in a Box.

Listen. . .GOD’S GIFT TO YOU CANNOT BE STOLEN.

But You Must OPEN IT! Like those UNCLAIMED GIFT CARDS.

The Bible says, “As Many as RECEIVED HIM, He Gave the Power

The GIFT OF ETERNAL LIFE Grows More VALUBLE as you GET OLDER.

· There are Gifts we Receive we are Excited about but Soon Forget.

· That New COMBO Phone/Drone/Vacuum you got this Year.

· But then there are those GIFTS THAT GROW MORE VALUBLE.

· THAT CARDor Drawing from your Child or Grandchild.

Or the MONEY Your GRANDPARENTS put into an Account Every Christmas,

GOD’S GIFT OF EVERLASTING LIFE IS HERE FOR YOU RIGHT NOW.

· We Like SIMION and ANNA Are Waiting For Christ to RETURN.

· We All Have 3 Things We Can DO AS WE WAIT FOR HIS RETURN.

· We Can GIVE TO GOD Our TREASURE, Our TALENT and OUR TIME.

#1 Our TREASURE.

That is why Every Believer should Give Faithfully and Generously to the Lord.

When we Put our Money into something we develop a Vested Interest in it.

Jesus Said, “Where YOUR TREASURE IS There will Your HEART WILL BE ALSO”.

Where we PUT OUR TREASURE, OUR HEARTS WILL FOLLOW..

#2 Our TALENT.

· God has Gifted Each Believer in Different ways.

· Everyone has SOMETHING to Offer for the Work of the Kingdom.

· The Bible says, “We Being Many Are One Body, HAVING THEN GIFTS DIFFERING. . “

#3 Our TIME.

God Gives to EACH OF US 1,440 Minutes or 24 Hours to INVEST EACH DAY.

There is No such thing as a 27 hour Day.

That is why Scripture tells us to “REDEEM THE TIME, because the Days Are Evil” REDEEM. . . .“Make Sacred and Wise Use of Every Opportunity”

In CLOSING, ANNA was a MODEL For US as An Older Person Living their Lives Well.

1) She Did the 4 We Always Counsel NEW BELIEVERS TO DO.

2) We Tell New Believers to Study Scripture Everyday,

3) PRAY, Be a Part of the Church

4) And Finally Share their Faith.

Let me say a Few things about WHY Church Matters So Much.

· Studies have show, that When you Go to Church Regularly,

Your MORTALITY RATE goes Down 20-30%. You lead a Healthier Life.

· If Regularly Attend Church Services, you’re Also More OPTIMISTIC

And you have Lower Rates of DEPRESSION, You re Far Less Likly to DIVORCE

You have Better SELF-CONTROL and you have Greater PURPOSE IN LIFE.

So, ANNA Studied Scripture, She Prayed and was In THE TEMPLE DAY AND NIGHT.

I love How She TALKED TO EVERYONE ABOUT JESUS.

Luke 1 2:38 “She TALKED ABOUT THE CHILD to Everyone

Who had been Waiting Expectantly for God to Rescue Jerusalem.” THAT IS WHAT WE SHOULD BE DOING DURING CHRISTMAS AND ALL THE TIME.

· I Mentioned in the Beginning that As a CHILD, I Believed in the Promise of Christmas.

· It Never Measured Up.

· One year, as a Little Boy, I Woke up in the AM to a Depressing Scene.

I thought, “It has TO GET BETTER THEN THIS!” And It did. When Jesus Christ Came into my life when I was 17.

Then I Met CATHE at 18 and later Married and Started a NEW FAMILY.

So, WHY DID JESUS COME THIS LITTLE PLANET OF OURS? WHY Was He Born in the Manger of Bethlehem? He Was BORN SO we Could be BORN AGAIN.

· He Left His Home so We could Have a HEAVENLY HOME.

· He Left His Home in Heaven to make a HOME IN OUR HEARTS.