When it all falls apart…

Intro

As we have been walking through the history of the people of Israel, it has been quite the journey.

-Abram being called by God to go to a land He was to show him…with a promise that God was going to make him into a great nation.

-The Patriarchs to follow…continuing to trust God for the eventual fulfillment of all of His promises.

-430 Years of captivity in Egypt

-40 Years wondering through the wilderness

-In that time, receiving the Covenant, the Law, from God

-Finally taking hold of the Promised Land

-Time of the judges…when things seemed to get worse…and worse…and worse…

-Israel’s cry for a “king like the other nations”

-Saul’s failure to be the King Israel needed

-FINALLY: A King after God’s Own Heart - David. Not a perfect king, by any stretch of the imagination, but one who led the people to serve God faithfully.

-Then David’s son…Solomon…and things seem to start off so well with him! God granted to him wisdom unlike any other person alive…he eventually built the Temple of God, the dwelling place of God with His people.

And it would seem at this point that Israel is entering into its Golden Age. A kingdom established, all of its enemies defeated. Peace and Prosperity throughout the land.

But then…everything starts to fall apart. (Have you been there?)

This morning, we’re going to ask the question: When it all falls apart, where is the Messiah?

When a nation crumbles, where do we find hope of this promised Messiah?

Before we jump in, though, let’s pray.

PRAY

A Kingdom Divided

We began looking at this last week in our conversation on Wisdom—as we see this Wise King, Solomon, lose focus…begin pursuing the things of this world. Going after, not only very many wives and concubines from the nations surrounding Israel (700 wives & 300 concubines to be exact), but their gods as well.

After building the Temple of Yahweh, he begins building temples and altars and high places to the gods of these foreign nations.

And…there are consequences…

We read last week in 1 Kings 11

1 Kings 11:11–12 ESV

Therefore the Lord said to Solomon, “Since this has been your practice and you have not kept my covenant and my statutes that I have commanded you, I will surely tear the kingdom from you and will give it to your servant. Yet for the sake of David your father I will not do it in your days, but I will tear it out of the hand of your son.

And that’s exactly what happens.

Solomon dies, and his son Rehoboam takes over. In 1 Kings 12, we read of Rehoboam’s Folly. Basically, the leaders of all of Israel come to Rehoboam and ask for him to lighten their load…his father, King Solomon, had, in their words, “made our yoke heavy” (1 Kings 12:4)

Rehoboam tells them to go away fro 3 days, and then come back. And in that time, he seeks council.

Let’s read together, starting in verse 6 of 1 Kings 12.

READ 1 Kings 12:6-17

Because of this act of Rehoboam, the kingdom is split. The 10 northern Kingdoms separate, led by Jeroboam, who becomes their king.

Judah continues to be ruled by Rehoboam.

Two nations: Judah, and Israel.

A nation torn in two, each with their own king. And to read their history, is to read a tragedy. There are some moments of faithfulness to the Lord…good Kings…but these are far outnumbered by wicked kings.

In total, 18 Kings (from Rehoboam on) reigned over Judah, and 17 reigned over the Northern Kingdom of Israel.

In Israel (the northern Kingdom that separated from Judah), every king was wicked, all of them. In Judah, only 8 walked in obedience to the Lord (and even these 8 didn’t always do it perfectly).

Rehoboam began his reign in 930BC. Almost immediately, the Kingdom was divided. A little over 210 years later (sometime after 722BC), the Northern Kingdom was taken into Exile by the Assyrians. Then, about 135 years after that, Judah was taken into Exile by the Babylonians.

What an absolute mess.

1 & 2 Kings and 1&2 Chronicles tell us of this history (These are really 2 books, not 4, they’ve just been split, because of the nature of how things used to be recorded on scrolls….only so much could fit on one scroll, so each was split into two.) And as I said, it’s a tragedy. Both books, Kings & Chronicles, end with both kingdom in exile. It would seem as though there is very little hope of any sort of future, much less the one promised to David. I want to remind us of that promise, though:

2 Samuel 7:12–16 “When your days are fulfilled and you lie down with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring after you, who shall come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build a house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. I will be to him a father, and he shall be to me a son. When he commits iniquity, I will discipline him with the rod of men, with the stripes of the sons of men, but my steadfast love will not depart from him, as I took it from Saul, whom I put away from before you. And your house and your kingdom shall be made sure forever before me. Your throne shall be established forever.’ ””

Did God lie? Did God have a plan, but the wickedness of Israel’s leaders got in the way?

As we come to this moment in the history of the people of God, when it all falls apart, where is the Messiah? Where is Jesus?

The Lineage of a King

This past week, I spent about 3 1/2 hours studying something that, to be honest, I very often, when reading, skim over. And I’m sure if you’re all honest, you do too! Geneaologies.

So and so, the son of so and so, the son of so and so…and so…and so…and so…and on and on it goes!

These lists of names we find sprinkled through Scripture. These lists that we know, because of what we believe about Scripture (that it’s the inspired Word of God) are there for a reason…but why? What impact do these lists of names actually make?

Well, when everything fell apart…when the Kingdom of David, established by God, split into two, when wars were waged, when wickedness reigned over the people of God…it is the geneaologies that give us hope.

Because here’s what you can do…

You can follow these geneaologies…you can follow each king, each son, that followed from David, and then Solomon…

You can follow as each successor of these men passes along the rule and reign over Judah to their son…

After the nation splits…the northern Kingdom, those tribes that rebelled, they have 9 different dyanasties over their 210 years of existence (that’s 9 different “families” that reigned as King)…Judah, the southern Kingdom…the Kingdom that actually had 8 obedient kings…they had 1 dynasty…the dynasty of David.

Throughout the roughly 424 years from David’s rule through to the Exile of Judah, God ensured there was a King from the line of David on the throne…

*Show “Lineage of a King” Table*

As I said, I spent about 3 1/2 hours going through these kings, because I wanted to see it for myself and not just trust someone else!

But as you follow these Kings, through both the books of Kings & the books of Chronicles, you see this continuity…

And then greater than that…we come to the Gospel of Matthew…and the geneaology of Jesus Christ.

The Lineage of a King

Now, there are two geneaologies of Jesus given in Scripture, one in Matthew, and one in Luke. And if you’re an astute observer, you will notice, they are different. And the big question is: Why? How can they both be true?

Well, here’s what we find as we look at the lineage found in Matthew (specifically the section where we see the differences): From David and on in this lineage…we see that Matthew isn’t tracing biology (though a lot of it lines up that way)…he’s tracking something else…he’s following something else…

Matthew is traceing out the lineage of a King.

Here’s what we see in this lineage, compared to what we find as we look through 1/2 Kings & 1/2 Chronicles…they match up!!! (Who would have thought?)

Matthew leaves some out (that was common practice…you hit the high points!). But they line up!

Even when EVERYTHING seemed to be falling apart with the Nation of Israel, when they walked away, when they were divided, when wicked king after wicked king ruled…as the nation fell over and over and over into idolotry…God’s Word remained true. He remained faithful to His promise!

He protected the lineage of the king to whom He had promised: “Your throne shall be established forever.”

Jesus is the King from the line of David who fulfilled that promise! And it didn’t matter how messy it got, how horribly rebellious the people of Israel became…God remained faithful and His Promise remained true!

And this Messiah, this King of the line of David, this fulfillment of the Promise given all those years ago…Is still King today. And the promise He has given is that He’s coming back. He’s comining back to fully restore and establish His Kingdom on earth.

But when? We look around at all that’s happened in the last, almost, 2,000 years since His death and resurrection…and things are a mess! It all seems to be falling apart. Generation after generation…there have been wars, famines, disasters…the Church continues to face persecution around the world…We don’t have to look beyond our country to see a society that seems to be racing as far away from the teachings of Christ as it can get. And then our own lives…

The reality we looked at last week is all too real…we read, we trust the wisdom of God…yet as it’s translated into a fallen and a broken world, it doesn’t seem to make sense at all!

So when? When is He coming back? And what are our lives to be all about in the meantime?

I invite you to turn with me to 2 Peter 3.

God’s Patience

When it all seemed to be falling apart for the nation of Israel, God’s faithfulness and His Promise did not waiver.

And as we look around us, and it seems like all is falling apart, God’s faithfulness and His Promise do not waiver.

Look with me: 2 Peter 3:1-15

3 Main Points I want us to take away this morning:

Scoffers will come. Vs. 3-7 Scoffers will scoff. Points back to Noah and the flood. People absolutelys coffed at Noah, as day in and day out, for years, he built the ark…but then…the flood came and they all perished. So too, the judgement of this world is coming. And the scoffers…those who reject Christ, will be caught up in that judgement.

God’s “Slowness” is actually His Gracious Patience. Why not now? Why not in the year 35 when Stephen was martyred? Why not in the year 42 when the Apostle James was beheaded? Why not in the year 64 when Nero began systematically persecuting and slaughtering Christians? Why not in the year 65 when both Peter and Paul were executed? Why not when Simeon, Ignatius, Polycarp, Justin, Perpetua were all martyred in the 100s? Why not in 303 when the Great Persecution began, when the Emperor called for church buildings to be destroyed, sacred writings burned, Christians to lose civil rights, clergy to be imprisoned and forced to sacrifice on pain of death? And we could go on and on and on throughout histroy. Why not then? Why not now? “The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.” The time of judgement is coming. One day…and it is God’s gracious patience towards those He created in His image, those who He paid the ultimate sacrifice to redeem, that is keeping it until the day appointed for it.

What sort of people we should be as we wait. So, as we wait, what sort of people ought we to be? Lives of holiness and godliness. Waiting, yes, waiting! It is coming, and we long for that day when He will return! Don’t forget, don’t lose sight of that promise! “THEREFORE, beloved, since you are waiting for these, be diligent to be found by him without spot or blemish, and at peace. And count the patience of our Lord as salvation…”

Conclusion

When it all seems to be falling apart…where is the Messiah? He’s in the waiting.

He is faithfully working all things to completion, fulfilling every promise He has ever made, patiently and graciously calling sinners to repent.

2 Challenges for us this morning:

Are you waiting? Is your life now being shaped by the reality of Christ’s promised return? Do you read and hear the promise that He’s coming back to restore all things, to bring judgement upon this world and all that is wicked and sinful within it…and does that reality shape the choices you make today?

As you live in this life, surrounded by so many who scoff and ridicule…is your life one of holiness and godliness, pointing them to the reality of who Christ is?

As I have said in recent weeks…most non-Christians will never open a Bible. They will never open up the pages of Scripture to read what Christ has done for them…but they’ll watch you. They will read the pages your life lived out for them to see. And they will make a judgement…do you live as though these things are true? Are you building an ark (not physically)? Are you living a life of holiness and godliness and peace? Are you preaching, through your words and you actions, the amazing Gospel of Salvation to all who would call upon the name of Jesus?

Christ is present, here in the waiting, when all around us seems to be falling apart. He is faithfully at work, restoring and redeeming all things. Let’s live lives reflecting the truth of this reality.