Advent Week 3 2018

The weather last week surprised me, the weather said we would get rain, but instead I awoke to a couple inches of sleet.

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This meant the Rasmussen family played outside in the snow, going out freezing and then coming back in getting warm and going back out again. We made a snow man, or an ice man and we also stayed inside and read books.

And I read a book called the twits by Roald Dahl to my oldest Hollis. And it is about this terrible couple Mr. and Mrs. Twit, who are cruel to one another as well as to everyone and everything else in their lives.

Mrs. Twit was described as being once beautiful, but because of her horrible thoughts over the years she became uglier and uglier.

The story is about their disintegration. From former beauty to ugliness.

The Twits had trained monkeys that they tortured.

Eventually the trained monkeys managed to escape. And the monkeys played a trick on the twits.

They went into their house and glued all their furniture to the ceiling so that when the twits walked in to their house they thought they were upside down, so they stood on their heads to be right side up.

But what they didn’t know was that before they went into their house glue was placed on their heads so when they stood on their heads they got stuck upside down.

They began berated one another and being nasty to one another as they had the whole story and eventually began to shrink and shrink their head into disintegrated into the floor and their neck and then legs and then feet until they were completely disintegrated.

and as they berated one another they eventually began to shrink and shrink until they were completely disintegrated.

Needless to say, this was not one of those children books where the antagonist was just misunderstood and everyone became friends in the end.

No it was as if the life the twits, their cruel and nasty lives slowly ate them alive until they were no more.

What the twits needed was to repent, they need to turn from their way living that led to disintegration, and turn to life.

In our passage we read this morning, John is calling people to repentance. Out of a way of life that leads to a disintegrated self, and society, and to the one who is life, who brings life.

FCF: We don’t like the idea of repentance, it has a striking negative connotation, who one has the right to demand change,

FCF: But when we hear the word repentance, we usually don’t think positive thoughts, we might have more negative connotations with it. Or maybe we think it is somewhat irrelevant or antiquated, or something that street preachers yell at the intersection.

Repentance that sings:

We don’t like the idea of repentance, it has a striking negative connotation, who one has the right to demand change,

There is not a lot of room in our society for repentance: As one supreme court justice said “At the heart of liberty is the right to define one’s own concept of existence, of meaning, of the universe, and of the mystery of human life.”

If individual humans get to define what is true and real, what room does that leave for repentance?

Well not much, but if Jesus is the son of God, if he is the truth, if he created reality, if he created life, then there is room for a call to repentance, a call out of a disintegrated life and back to life, to life in the full.

Well

So if Jesus is the life it means we should repent and turn to his life.

Because Jesus brings life we should

and turn to him.

What we must do:

Look with me at verse 7 and 8.

Luke 3:7–8 ESV

He said therefore to the crowds that came out to be baptized by him, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Bear fruits in keeping with repentance. And do not begin to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children for Abraham.

John the baptizer comes preaching repentance. And yes, with some intensity, and urgency. And he tells them to bear fruit in keeping with repentance.

Let’s unpack this phrase a little, because it is important to get this. Bear fruit in keeping with repentance. These are separate things, but linked together.

Repentance and bearing fruit.

Bearing fruit in Scripture is the expression of a changed life; virtuous behavior and attitudes. The legs of repentance.

Bearing fruit in Scripture is associated with the outward conduct of an individual. So

Repentance is not a change in behavior, it is an internal change.

That is the fruit that is in keeping with repentance.

Repentance literally means change of mind, but it is more than just a simple decision, like oh I was going to wear brown shoes today, but I changed my mind so I am going to wear black shoes.

It is It is a change of ones inner disposition, or orientation.

Bear fruit in keeping with repentance

It is a change in your perceived source of life. Or another way of thinking about it would be repentance is as a paradigm shift.

A fundamental change of your assumptions about life, about what is the good life, about who is the source of your life and meaning.

Illustration:

The movie the Truman show is about a show and a city that is built around the man Truman Burbank, except Truman does know know he is in a show, for him it is just the way things are. It is just life for him.

But then there are these things that happen to him things that just don’t fit.

There is this once scene where Truman is driving his car and the radio malfunctions and he starts to hear chatter that is all about him. He is truing on to Elm right now, and que the pedestrian. He is pulling up to the office now.

Application:

Disoriented he gets out of the car and walks into his office, but then quickly leaves and instead of going to his job, he goes into another office building one that he never goes in and he heads to the elevator and behind the elevator doors he doe sent see an elevator, but people sitting in a dressing room, he is then grabbed by some security guards and shuffled out of the door. He takes his briefcase and hits someone and they don’t respond.

Life around him seems fake, and eventually he finds out the truth.

And his paradigm for truth and life are completely altered.

And toward the end before he leaves, he is given the option to stay in this manufactured un-real life, or he can leave.

Truman had a shift in his thinking, about what was real and true, he repented of the false world that was the Truman show.

and in keeping with that repentance, bears fruit,

he leaves the Truman show, and taking a bow saying his famous line, in case I don’t see you, good afternoon, good evening, and good night.

Application:

God calls us to repentance, and to bear fruit in keeping with repentance.

Repentance is an internal paradigm shift in our perceived source of life. Repentance means we see sin and death for what it is an Jesus for who he is.

To repent, is not to beat yourself up, but to see sin as it truly is disintegrating and a journey toward death.

Repentance sees the life of pornography, that it brings relational death, and is an attempt to kill real intimacy.

It means that

Repentance sees the escape that substance abuse brings as it really is an escape into the grave.

Repentance sees that pornography is a lie, alcohol abuse is an escape into the grave, and that your bank account will never be big enough to give you security you desire.

Repentance is about seeing reality as it is, like the Truman show, it looked great in so many ways, but it was not real life.

alcohol abuse is an escape into the grave, and that your bank account will never be big enough to give you security you desire.

Where

Repentance leads us to come alive so that we can give to others and give glory to God.

Repentance is a bold move that leads us to come alive not only for the sake of others, but also for the glory of God. Where that phrase Glory of God is not just a word, but you actually care about his name, his reputation and honor in this world, you feel his weight in this world.

So often sin, may look enticing, but it only brings death.

Repentance is a refusal to live a disintegrating life, and is a turn toward the only true source of life.

is a refusal of all that brings death, and an acceptance and dependence on the life of Jesus.

But if this is repentance is turning from death to life,

why don’t we repent?

What prevents us from repenting?

We need someone outside ourselves to call it out to us.

Look with me at verse 8

Look with me at verse 8

Luke 3:8 ESV

Bear fruits in keeping with repentance. And do not begin to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children for Abraham.

What keeps us from repentance is dishonesty. The difficulty with repentance is that it requires honesty.

In our passage John anticipates their response, and cuts them off at the pass. They would have called their heritage to their defence, so that they would not need to repent.

We don’t need to repent, because we are in the same family as Abraham.

Maybe those others out there need to repent, but not us.

Instead of being honest with their own sin and shortcomings they tried to cover themselves with their heritage.

They would have used their heritage as a way of warding off the need to be honest with their own shortcomings, their own failure to live the way God created them to live.

Application:

We are pretty good at deceiving ourselves today too, we create defence mechanisms to not have to be honest with our own short comings.

It might be the same as the crowd in this passage. Why surely I would not need to repent because my family has been Christian for generations, and my great grandfather was a preacher.

There are many reasons we can come up with to try and cover our own sin and shortcomings.

We rationalize our own sinfulness as a way of not being honest,

Or we compare ourselves to others, I’m not as as materialistic as so and so.

I mean yeah I have a temper, but at least I’m not physically violent.

have rested their life in the hands of Abraham. Their heritage was most dear to them. They were their heritage.

Or maybe somewhere we feel bad about ourselves, but instead of being

Or we compare ourselves to others, I’m not as as materialistic as so and so.

Or we ward off our need to be honest with our sin by turning our vices into virtues.

We often cannot repent, because something other than Jesus is where we find our ultimate meaning. It may be your heritage, but it could be anything.

There is a death involved in repentance.

Where do you find your ultimate source of purpose, is it

is that it requires a shift away from what gives you your ultimate meaning, identity, or significance. For these people it was their heritage. They depended on their heritage for their life, for their sense of meaning.

We have Abraham as our father. We don’t think we need to because either we think I was born a Christian why should I have too

I am not domineering and heavy handed, I am assertive and a strong leader.

I am not greedy, i’m thrifty.

I

I am not slothful, I am just not caught up in the hurried busyness of our culture.

What prevents us from repenting is dishonesty

because you can’t repent from something if you aren't aware of it or if you don’t think it is sinful.

We need someone outside ourselves to work in us (Baptism)

Or we think we are all God’s children, why do I have too,

Dishonesty about our own shortcomings is like sweeping the dirt under the rug.

us because it offers us a kind of covering. It is like living in denial. Denial is often an effective coping skill.

We can avoid the pain of

If we are

If you aren’t convinced that your sin is disintegrating you, if you are convinced that your sin carries a death with it, or as the Bible says “the wages of sin is death” why would you repent of it.

Just because we may not see it does not mean it isn't there.

Repentance requires radical honesty.

So what does it take to be honest with our own sin, the shortcomings that seem to never go away, no matter what we do. How can we live in the truth?

And if we are to repent of sin it requires radical honesty.

honest with ourselves.

Biological but not relational.

We can not imagine how we would live with out our life

How can we live in the truth?

So what motivation do we have to be honest with our own sin, the sin that seems so part of who we are, the shortcomings that seem to never go away, no matter what we do. How can we be honestly admit that it is a flaw?

we have no motivation to be honest with ourselves

The only way we can face the exposure that comes with naked honesty, is if we know that in our nakedness we will be covered.

honest with our own shortcomings, to risk being honest and die to the false self.

We our our souls authority.

That is unless you know that if you are honest with

And there

And this is exactly what Jesus came to do

Ever since sin entered the world we cannot bear to be exposed in truth to God, to experience the life of God we need to be clothed.

Ever since sin entered the world we cannot bear to be exposed in truth to God, to experience the life of God we need to be clothed.

Ever since sin entered the world we cannot bear to be exposed in truth to God, to experience the life of God we need to be clothed.

To experience the life of God we need to be clothed.

After Adam and Eve sinned they experienced nakedness, they tried to sweep their nakedness under the rug so that it would not be seen with fig leaves, but they were still naked, then we see

After Adam and Eve sinned they experienced nakedness, they tried to sweep their nakedness under the rug so that it would not be seen with fig leaves, but they were still naked, then we see

Because of sin we cannot bear to be exposed in truth to God, unless we are covered or clothed. Adam and Even in the Garden in their sin they were naked and exposed to God, and he clothed them.

Genesis 3:21 ESV

And the Lord God made for Adam and for his wife garments of skins and clothed them.

Genesis 3:21 ESV

And the Lord God made for Adam and for his wife garments of skins and clothed them.

Genesis 3:24 ESV

He drove out the man, and at the east of the garden of Eden he placed the cherubim and a flaming sword that turned every way to guard the way to the tree of life.

Genesis 3:22–24 ESV

Then the Lord God said, “Behold, the man has become like one of us in knowing good and evil. Now, lest he reach out his hand and take also of the tree of life and eat, and live forever—” therefore the Lord God sent him out from the garden of Eden to work the ground from which he was taken. He drove out the man, and at the east of the garden of Eden he placed the cherubim and a flaming sword that turned every way to guard the way to the tree of life.

Genesis 3:22 ESV

Then the Lord God said, “Behold, the man has become like one of us in knowing good and evil. Now, lest he reach out his hand and take also of the tree of life and eat, and live forever—”

Being clothed cost life, blood had to be shed. Adam and Eve’s clothing was a shadow of the clothing that our souls find in Jesus.

Being clothed cost life, blood had to be shed. Adam and Eve’s clothing was a shadow of the clothing that our souls find in Jesus.

And in Jesus

Luke 3:16 ESV

John answered them all, saying, “I baptize you with water, but he who is mightier than I is coming, the strap of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.

Gen 3:22

In Revelation we see the saints clothed in robes washed white in the blood of Jesus.

Being clothed cost life, blood had to be shed. That is the beginning of History, now lets look at the end of history.

In Revelation we see the saints clothed in robes washed white in the blood of Jesus.

Revelation 7:14 ESV

I said to him, “Sir, you know.” And he said to me, “These are the ones coming out of the great tribulation. They have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.

Isaiah 61:10 ESV

I will greatly rejoice in the Lord; my soul shall exult in my God, for he has clothed me with the garments of salvation; he has covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decks himself like a priest with a beautiful headdress, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.

English Standard Version Chapter 7

They have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.

Revelation

English Standard Version Chapter 7

They have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.

And in those robes washed clean we are brought back to where Adam and Eve left off, the tree of life.

Revelation 22:14 ESV

Blessed are those who wash their robes, so that they may have the right to the tree of life and that they may enter the city by the gates.

Is 61:

Revelation 22:14

And in those robes washed clean we are brought back to where Adam and Eve left off, the tree of life.

And in Jesus

The only way we can be honest with our own shortcomings is if we know we are clothed in the love of God in Jesus. There is an assurance, a safety, that at your very worst no matter what it is, you are loved, clothed, cared for.

Revelation 22:14 ESV

Blessed are those who wash their robes, so that they may have the right to the tree of life and that they may enter the city by the gates.

Jesus came to

The only way we can be honest with our own shortcomings is if we know we are clothed in the love of God in Jesus.

There is an assurance, a safety, that at your very worst no matter what it is, you are loved, clothed, cared for.

We can know that no matter what our sin, that Jesus became that sin, he hung naked on the cross, so that you might be clothed in his righteousness.

So that he might baptize you in his Holy Spirit.

Knowing this allows us to risk honesty. Knowing that you are clothed in the love of God means that you can be honest.

Because there is nothing that you can think, do, or say that will cause God to love you any more or any less than he does now.

It is the kindness of God that leads to repentance.

And when he covers us he gives us his life.

Application:

Repentance is a turn toward our true source of life in God. And if you don’t know the love God has for you in Christ you will never turn to him.

Two things are needed honesty with you own sin, and assurance of God’s love.

If you want to truly repent you must know that God loved you so much that he gave son for you.

Many times repentance is thought of a penance, something you do to appease God. Or make up for your sin. Something you do to amend your relationship with God.

I last night so you try and make it up to God.

Nothing could be further from the truth.

Repentance is turning to receive the life that is freely offered to you based solely on what Jesus has done for you.

It is an act of humility and of need. It is a dissatisfaction with sin and its disintegrating effects, and bold turn to the life and love of God.

So what does it look like to bear fruit in keeping with repentance today?

The only way we can be honest with our own shortcomings is if we know we are clothed in the love of God in Jesus. There is an assurance, a safety, that at your very worst no matter what it is, you are loved, clothed, cared for.

We can know that no matter what our sin, that Jesus became that sin, he hung naked on the cross, so that you might be clothed in his righteousness.

we need to be clothed in the righteousness of Jesus. The only way we can bear to be honest with our own sin is if we know when we are exposed we will be clothed.

Illustration: Story about how do I know you are not just going to use this against me

When you repent and turn to God in faith, you don’t try and make it up to him by seeking to do good works, you do good works, that is a life of love to others and God, because of gratitude for what he has done.

And as we turn from death to life we are refined as by fire. And And we become bearers of life in the world.

Luke 3:16 ESV

John answered them all, saying, “I baptize you with water, but he who is mightier than I is coming, the strap of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.

Jesus became sin, he hung naked on the cross, so that you might be clothed in his righteousness.

Well as we turn from death to life we become bearers of life in the world. In our passage John gives some examples of what it looks like when you truly repent.

Luke 3:11 ESV

And he answered them, “Whoever has two tunics is to share with him who has none, and whoever has food is to do likewise.”

Tax collectors,

Luke 3:13 ESV

And he said to them, “Collect no more than you are authorized to do.”

Luke 3:14 ESV

Soldiers also asked him, “And we, what shall we do?” And he said to them, “Do not extort money from anyone by threats or by false accusation, and be content with your wages.”

Soldiers

The fruit of repentance brings life to those around you. Feeding the hungry, clothing the naked.

And also, repentance is person specific.

Luke 3:don’t abuse your power and extort money.

John was specific with the tax collectors and soldiers, and Jesus was specific with the rich young ruler, when he said go and sell all that you have and give it to the poor.

This means that the fruit of repentance will not look the same for everyone.

If you struggle with self-doubt and self-pity the fruit of repentance for you might look like not backing down when challenged, but confidently sticking your neck out for others for the flourishing of their life.

If you struggle with being domineering and impatient with others repentance might look like not forcing your way,

but joyfully differing to the desires of another, so that others lives might flourish.

And we really need someone else to help us see what our blind spots are, we need someone else to help us see what to do to bear fruit in keeping with repentance.

So as these people asked John, What then shall we do? You can ask your close friends: what shall I do.” You can ask your spouse what then shall I do.

Because the fruit of repentance is not simply saying I’m sorry, it is movement toward life.

So if you ask your spouse or close friend what do you think I should do,

and they say to you, you need to get counseling,

bearing fruit in keeping with repentance would probably look like going to counseling.

Repentance is not simply saying you are sorry, but it is a bold move toward the life of God, and toward bringing life to friends and neighbors.

Sin

Our passage points us to Jesus who baptizes with the Holy Spirit and fire. It was the Holy Spirit that hovered over the face of the water at Creation, bring life from non-life. Since humanity rebellion spiritual death has reigned.

First,

But Jesus came, and through his death sin died, and in his resurrection the power death was destroyed. And his life he now gives to his people when he gives the Holy Spirit. He pours his life into his people with the Holy Spirit.

The life

and he now baptizes his people in his Holy Spirit so that he might lead them out of death and the disintegrating effects of sin, into the newness of his life.

the Holy Spirit leads his people out of death and the disintegrating effects of sin, into the newness of his life.

Illustration:

Jesus gives his life to his people with his Holy Spirit.

We can know that as painful as being honest about our sin may be, like being refined in fire, life is on the other side. The more more we repent from sin the more alive we become.

Christmas is right around the corner.

Jesus says he baptizes with fire as well. And this is the refining fire of the Spirit. The soul purifying work of the Spirit is like fire, that burns away the impurities, but what comes out on the other side is pure.

The time when we remember when the one who was mightier than John came.

Jesus came to give his life for the life of the world for the re-creation of the world, to renew creation.

Sin is like de-creation, or un-creation, it is disintegration, like the Twits who slowly disintegrated into themselves.

Sin it is a tear in the fabric of the way life was meant to be, sin is death.

And when repent we turn from all that brings death, to the source of all life.

And as we repent of

Illustration:

And we through the power of the Holy Spirit participate with Jesus as he breathes new life into this world.

The disintegrated are integrated, the de-creation is recreated, and life flourishes. For the life of the world has come.

Illustration:

Knowing that honesty

There is a pain that is involved

Jesus is our life, to be baptized in him is to be baptized into his death and life

Knowing this allows us to risk honesty. Knowing that you are clothed in the love of God means that you can be honest. Because there is nothing that you can think, do, or say that will cause God to love you any more or any less than he does now.

Jesus is our life, to be baptized in him is to be baptized into his death and life

Illustration:

Illustration:

The way that an athlete or a musician sheds bad habits the more able they are to freely play.

Right when they were brought up out of the water each person was clothed in a white robe. It was symbolic of God’s view of each one of them. They were clothed in the love of God. When God looks at them, he sees the righteousness of Jesus.

Application:

repentance is relational, it

Application:

It is ou

Knowing the love of God

So what do you do? Or as the crowds asked what then shall we do?

Or another way we might say it, be baptised by the Holy Spirit. John, says in verse 16

Luke 3:16 ESV

John answered them all, saying, “I baptize you with water, but he who is mightier than I is coming, the strap of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.

So that you, as John says in our passage, might be baptised by the Holy Spirit

To be baptized in the Holy Spirit is to bear the seal, the mark, of Jesus, to wear his cloths.

That is why when we had baptisms a while back, once they were brought up out of the water, they were then clothed with a white robe.

Application:

So what must we do?

We will be able to refuse to be dead and numb, and will turn to the one who brings life, receive his life and then bring life to all those around us.

It means that with the c

To the degree that we see how much God loves us and has clothed us in righteousness will be the degree of how honest we are with our own sin and shortcomings.

and we will turn to the one who brings life, receive his life and then bring life to all those around us.

And as we turn from death to life we are refined as by fire. And And we become bearers of life in the world.

Repentance is about life. When we live a life of repentance, we

When the crowed asked what they should do, John tells them feed the hungry, clothe the naked. Our of repentance the seeds of life grow.

Your life is not your own. Justice toward others, giving life to others

MP 1: Because Jesus is coming we should inwardly turn

MP 2: Because Jesus is coming we should outwardly bear fruit

MP 3: Because Jesus is coming we should