Sermon Tone Analysis
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Since the 2008 Batman movie, The Dark Knight, a new quote has surfaced and made its way across the internet.
Referring to a character in the movie, the quote says, “He’s not the hero we deserved, but he is the hero we needed.”
It’s a simple idea.
Someone steps onto the seen and solves a crisis, that’s why he was needed.
But the people he helped didn’t really deserve the service.
The saying has gained all kinds of popularity
You can find on pictures of anyone’s favorite political figure.
Bernie Sanders, “He’s not the hero we deserved, but he’s the hero we needed.”
Or Donald Trump, “He’s not the hero we deserved, be he’s the hero we needed.”
Not the hero we deserve, but the hero we need
Political Figures,
You might find some pictures on Facebook.
Maybe a picture of someones pet Cat, wearing a blanket as a cape, “He’s not the hero we deserved, but he’s the hero we needed.”
Silly right?
It also gets shared with videos and pictures of good samaritans.
I saw a video of a guy saving a girl from oncoming traffic, and “He’s not the hero we deserved, be he’s the hero we needed.”
With the super bowl tonight, you might find a few articles, Tom Brady, “He’s not the hero we deserved, be he’s the hero we needed.”
It’s kind of a silly thing to do.
For the most part, it has just contributed to the mass of useless things to get posted on the internet.
It’s something to laugh at.
Transition
But I want to pose this morning, that there is something redeemable about the quote.
Something worth taking to heart.
Could it not be said, and be true, Jesus of Nazareth, “He’s not the hero we deserved, be he’s the hero we needed.”
You see as we move through these beginning chapters of Luke’s gospel, in a way, that’s been his burden.
For us to know that we need Jesus.
That he is our Savior.
And that we didn’t deserve him.
As James preached a few weeks ago, salvation is given “because of the tender mercy of our God, whereby the sunrise shall visit us from on high.”
Jesus visitation is God’s mercy to those who believe.
Our text today will continue this message, but give it more shape.
Luke wants us to see that God’s salvation has been revealed through Jesus and that Jesus as he lived, seeing the cross in his future, was steadfast to God’s redemptive plan, and he invites us to respond to it.
And how you respond to it makes all the difference in the world.
So I invite you to listen in today.
Hear these words.
Listen to the scriptures and consider your response to God’s Salvation.
Let’s Pray
I.
The Recognition of God’s Salvation in Jesus through Faithful Jews (2:21-38)
Abstract: Luke is revealing God’s salvation to the world through Jesus, the Messiah.
It is the faithful Jews that obey the law and anticipate Israel’s redemption who will take note of and rejoice at Jesus arrival.
There will be those who oppose Jesus, hypocrites who will have their secret deeds uncovered.
If you’ll take a look with me for a moment at your outlines you’ll notice that we have two major divisions in our text.
Really we are looking at two different time periods in the life of Christ.
Our first section, running from verses 21-38, is an account of Jesus as an infant, and a trip his family made to Jerusalem in order to obey God’s law that had been handed down to them.
???First, an account of the context for their trip, really why they were going.
And second, an encounter they had while their with two prophets.
But as we walk through this text, I just want to say up front, our focal point is not really what Jesus’ parents do (that they make this trip, or that they offer sacrifices), but it’s why they do it.
Their responses to God’s law, and even the prophets response to seeing Jesus, is based on the hope of a salvation that comes from God, an anticipation of Israel’s redemption.
This text focuses on God’s plan of Salvation and how it’s realized through, or we might say, brought to fruition through Jesus.
So let’s open up our Bibles’s and read at .
A. The Faith of Jesus’ Parents: (21-24, 39)
Two Fulfillments of the Angelic Announcement
Now there is a lot here.
A lot that is related to the context Luke and a lot that has to do with being a Jew.
But what we can see right on the surface is that this is a faithful, Jewish family.
They’re doing things by the book.
That is, they are doing all the things that the Law of the Lord would have required of them after giving birth to a firstborn son.
But Luke’s burden here is not merely to paint Jesus’ parents as good people.
Though the scriptures do paint them as good people.
Luke’s burden here is to highlight Jesus as God’s Salvation.
And the way that he highlights Jesus as God’s Salvation is by fulfilling things about Jesus spoken to Mary by Gabriel in Luke chapter 1. Things that affirm Jesus to be Savior.
Just listen as I read two verses from chapter 1, or look over if you’ve got your bibles open.
So three things, you shall call his name Jesus, he will be called holy, and the Son of God.
So as the law required, after 8 days, they circumcise the baby, and behold, they name him Jesus, which appropriately carries a meaning like Yahweh saves, or the LORD saves.
And the first of the angels announcements are fulfilled.
So verse 21, you
But again, following the law as faithful Jews, our text continues and we find Jesus’ family making a trek to Jerusalem.
We know from the scriptures this would have been sometime around 40 days after the birth.
But they make the trip to Jerusalem, really, in order that they might satisfy two things.
And the first is that they might present the baby Jesus to the Lord.
The scriptures teach us from that firstborn children were to be consecrated to the Lord as a reminder to the people that God was faithful to bring them out of captivity in Egypt.
But when we say consecrated we are talking about setting something apart as holy, and Luke explains that to us...
And with that we see a second fulfillment of Gabriel’s angelic announcement.
You shall call his name Jesus, and he will be called holy.
And though this is really just background information and setting the stage for Luke’s overall message about Jesus, this is
1.
His name shall be Jesus (21)
And we find here in this first section of text the fulfillment of these first two announcements.
So as the law required, after 8 days, they circumcise the baby, and behold, they name him Jesus, which appropriately carries a meaning like Yahweh saves, or the LORD saves.
And the first of the angels announcements are fulfilled.
2.
He will be called holy (22-24)
But again, following the law as faithful Jews, our text continues and we find Jesus’ family making a trek to Jerusalem.
We know from the scriptures this would have been sometime around 40 days after the birth.
But they make the trip to Jerusalem, really, in order that they might satisfy two things.
And the first is that they might present the baby Jesus to the Lord.
The scriptures teach us from that firstborn children were to be consecrated, or set apart as holy, to the Lord as a reminder to the people that God was faithful to bring them out of captivity in Egypt.
Its a reminder of the 10th plague that God used to free the Israelites from slavery in Egypt.
As Gabriel announced in chapter 1, You shall call his name Jesus, and he will be called holy.
And though this is really just background information and setting the stage for Luke’s overall message about Jesus, this is wildly exciting.... (explain) Usual story, but extraoridnary happenings.
???
They also made this trip to Jerusalem because Mary herself, after having a son would have been declared unclean for a time and would need to offer a sacrifice for her purification.
tells us that this sacrifice would have been a lamb and either a turtledove or a pigeon, but it made an exception for the poor who didn’t have a lamb.
They could bring either 2 turtledoves or 2 pigeons.
And so we see Mary bring these, to also make offering for herself.
Perhaps Luke here is revealing to us that Jesus’ family would have been on the poor side, which might further serve to present them as faithful and humble.
B. The Faith of Simeon and Anna: (25-38)
Two Testimonies of God’s Salvation in Jesus
Shoudl I transition>?
B. The Faith of Simeon and Anna: (25-38)
Two Testimonies of God’s Salvation in Jesus
So its in that context that they make their way to Jerusalem and as we’ll read they go the temple and while at the temple they meet two people.
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