Sermon Tone Analysis

The decorations have changed.

We put up our Christmas tree this weekend and it is decked out not in nice white lights, but bright red and green, with crazy ornaments all over it.

For me for some reason it does not feel right if my Christmas tree is not just a little bit tacky.

And our decorations on Sunday morning have changed as well.

We don’t see red and green we see purple, purple on the table, in front of me, and on the screen.

Why purple?

Well as my 4 year old son Hollis informed me after Christ Kids a couple weeks ago “Dad did you know that purple is the color of kings.”

As my 4 year old son told me after he came back from Christ kids

The kids learned that during the Advent season, this season of waiting and anticipating our colors change to purple because we are waiting for the coming king.

So as we anticipate, we roll out the purple carpet so to speak getting ready to celebrate that the king has come, and in anticipate when the king will come again.

Our passage this morning from Isaiah is a promise from God to his people that a king will come.

And when he does we will find comfort, literally be able to breath again.

The king has come and the king is coming and we need to be reminded of this because often we are not living in light of the reality of the coming king.

It seems either like an extremely distant past or an extremely distant future.

What bearing does it have now.

What does it look like for our lives to be governed by the king today, to be citizens of a heavenly kingdom.

Others of you are more sceptical, you have seen the news, powerful people that promise this that and the other and it is all just power plays.

And your like yeah, but how is this promised good news not just really fake news, what is the power play, what is really going on here.

Develop the idea that the king is coming

But in our passage this morning we see the promise of the coming king and because of this we will see that we should prepare the way for the king, proclaim the good news of the king, and trust the word of the king.

FCF:

FCF:

Often we are not preparing for the king to come, living the life that that we will live,

We question whether we can really know the future to come

or maybe we believe God’s word, but we try to keep it private or to ourselves.

maybe we don’t want to proclaim we don’t proclaim to one another the good news.

People let us down, our

So first we should

The coming of king Jesus is the anwser to our longing

The spiritual concerns deal with hat is coming for God’s people,

Our passage shows us this morning shows us that the king

Proposition: The King is coming

We need to

and because of this we should

Prepare the way of the King

Look with me at verse 3

So you have this voice crying, like this rider who goes out before the king arrives and says:

Is 40:3

okay we need a straight highway, and every mountain will be removed.

Every valley will be lifted up.

Prepare the way everybody the king is coming.

The way the secret service might come in before the president “okay that street will be blocked off, those cars will be moved, alright everybody get prepared the commander in chief is gonna be here soon.”

rider on a horse before the king arrives, would make an announcement.

and a there is going to be this highway with nothing impeding it, it will be straight, it won’t go up and over mountains or down and through difficult valleys.

And in we see that John the baptist is this herald before the coming king.

And from John the baptist we get a clearer picture that preparing the way, is not so much about bulldozing mountains, as it is about confessing our sins repenting of our sin, and bearing the fruit in keeping with that repentance.

Simply preparing the way for the coming king means to turn from the things that bring death to the one who gives life.

And living as citizens of heaven.

Living today the life that is to come.

Preparing the way for the kingdom that is coming.

Isaiah 40:3-

Illustration:

When I was a teenager and applying for a job for the first time, I was getting dressed and I had on a polo shirt and khaki pants.

Nothing fancy, but when my dad saw he said, “son you have to change, your going to a job interview, you need to wear a cote and tie.”

And I said something like, but dad I am not applying to work at a law firm I am applying to work at the Cajun kitchen.

And he told me something really important, he said, you don’t dress for the job your applying for today, you dress for the job that is to come.

Application: As Christians we participate in preparing the way for the king by living today the life that is to come.

As citizens of heaven.

There is this misconception out there when it comes being a Christian.

That so long as you prayed this prayer one time that you get this get out hell free pass and now your a Christian and that is what Christianity is really about.

But a follower of Jesus is about living that future life today.

We are living today the life that is to come.

Preparing the way of the king.

Application: A future oriented life.

The king is coming so we should prepare the way as well as

Proclaim the good news of the king

Look with me at verse 9

: 9

God’s people hear that the king is coming, so they are told to get up on a high mountain and shout to Jerusalem and cities of Judah, that is God’s people, the good news.

The good news being that God will put an end to evil and will gently care for his people.

Look with me at verse 10 and 11

Two things, first the Lord is not someone to be trifled with, he comes with might.

He will not let evil go un punished.

He does not turn a deaf hear to those who are being harmed and everyone will have to give an account to him, no one gets away with evil.

Second, he is gentle and patient.

The Lord will carry those who are too young to keep up, and the mothers he will gently lead.

This is how we are comforted, that is made to breath again.

Because we know that when the king comes, he will be the one to doll out Justice, it is not in our hands, and we know that when he comes he will rule with gentleness, not as a harsh taskmaster.

But as someone who knows all our needs, and all our frailties.

The Lord will carry those who are too young to keep up, and the mothers he will gently lead.

Application:

We are to proclaim this to one another.

So when one of our sisters in Christ has her church’s building and property taken away in a legal battle, and that property is where she laid to rest her child who died in infancy, we can proclaim to here that God will have the last say.

That that is wrong and those who took that property will have to give an account to the Lord of hosts.

And we can also proclaim the good news that God is with her, and will gently lead her through the pain no faster than she can go, but at just the right pace.

Because the promised king has come and is coming again, and he will be your shepherd even though you walk through the valley of the shadow of death.

The king is coming we should proclaim the good news to one another, as well as

Trust the word of the King

Look with me at verses 6-8

Is 40:

All flesh is like grass and flowers, hear today and gone tomorrow, but God’s word stands forever, it does not wither, or fade.

But is eternally sure.

In scripture we see God’s word as powerful, God spoke creation into being.

God’s words cannot be empty like our words can.

Because when God speaks there is action.

And the in our passage we are reminded how much more powerful and everlasting God’s words of promise, so much more true and sure than human counterpart.

God does thing with his word.

So when God promises something it is not simply

Illustration:

You know in the news right now there is this special investigation being done by the FBI into Russian interference in the election.

And if you are following it, I am sure you know more about it than me, and I will probably miss some details because it is a confusing mess.