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Hope Incarnate
Introduction:
With Thanksgiving finished, the Christmas season has officially begun.
Each year there is always the emphasis
We are beginning a series on the Celebration of the Incarnation as we work through the Advent Season and anticipate the birth of our Savior.
The word “Advent” comes from the latin word “Adventus” meaning “coming”
Each week we look at a different theme of the Advent season.
The first theme is Hope.
As we look at the idea of “Hope” this week we will be looking at Psalm 130 as we understand the hope that the people had looking forward to the coming Messiah and the salvation that God provides.
Before we read the Scripture this morning, I want to provide some context for this passage.
First, this passage is prefaced as “A Song of Ascents.”
Psalms 120-134 are labeled as “Songs of Ascents.”
Most likely either referring to being songs sung by those making the journey to the Temple.
A spiritual representation of the soul’s ascent to God.
Possibly an antiphonal psalm, like a call and response where various groups sung responsively by different voices.
So this Psalm should be understood as a reminder and chorus about the hope and salvation found in God.
With that in mind, let us start by reading Psalm 130.
SCRIPTURE
We All Need Hope
Hope is something that is pervasive in culture.
Star Wars: A New Hope — “Help me Obi-Wan Kenobi, you’re my only hope.”
There is this idea that “if this will just happen.”
This is hope.
We watch a sporting event until there is no hope.
“Out of the depths”
We all have times where we feel like we are hopeless.
People are more likely now than ever to experience hopelessness.
Depression and thoughts of suicide increase year over year.
This idea of the “depths” in scripture is used to refer to te darkest of places and the hardest of days.
Psalm 69:1-3 gives this a better picture.
SCRIPTURE
Have you ever felt this way?
Like you are drowning in hopelessness and despair?
We all struggle with hopelessness.
We all need hope.
The reality that we face is that all hopelessness is a result of sin.
The source of Sin.
Genesis 3. Adam and Eve were disobeyed and ate the fruit they were commanded not to eat.
From then on mankind has been broken and has a sinful nature.
This has resulted in all of the hurt and brokenness that exist in the world today.
Hopelessness that results from sin always comes in one of 3 ways.
Hopelessness caused by a fallen world.
The reality of living in a fallen world.
Sometimes the hopelessness we feel is a result of living in a fallen and broken world.
Disease, sickness, natural disasters, and death all exist because of the corruption of sin.
When these things afflict us though they may not be the fault of others or our own fault, we must realize that we still live in an imperfect world that is thoroughly marred because of the effects of sin.
Hopelessness caused by the sin of others.
Sometimes the sin that causes our hopelessness is from the sin of others.
This is the one that most often we like to point to.
We look at what others have done to us, the ways they have afflicted us.
While this can be a way of negating any role that we may play, there are certainly times where the sins of others affect our lives.
When a person steals from us.
When someone we trusted betrays our trust.
When people in power take advantage of those less fortunate, including adults who abuse their power over children.
These situations can vary in severity from minor inconveniences to major trauma.
To be sure, these are situations where hopelessness is the result and the cause is the sin that others committed, directly or indirectly, against you.
TWO BIBLICAL EXAMPLES
David fleeing from Saul.
He had only ever been faithful to King Saul, but in his paranoia and realization that God had rejected Him, Saul sought to have Him killed.
Uriah killed by King David.
In this example, David is on the other end of the equation.
David had committed adultery with Bathsheba, and when Uriah would not go home to his wife, David commanded his fellow soldiers to abandon him so that he would be killed.
Hopelessness caused by our own sin.
Sometimes we only have ourselves to blame for the situations we find ourselves in.
We must be aware in this.
If we find relationships that we are in struggling constantly.
The guilt we feel when we sin.
If bad things happen to us after we do wrong things.
Sometimes these things are not immediate.
Many of you may be able to trace some of your physical ailments to the ways you abused your body in your youth.
We may not feel the effects of sin and poor decisions until years later.
At some point we must look in the mirror and understand that often the hopelessness we feel is caused by our own sinfulness.
TWO BIBLICAL EXAMPLES
Jonah and the Whale.
He was punished because of his own disobedience.
The Prodigal Son.
He found himself eating the pods the pigs ate because of his own sinfulness.
This does not make you any different than others in the world.
All people are hopeless and separated from God because of their sin.
There is a shame that comes from realizing that our state of hopelessness is our own fault.
Our default reaction is to cast blame elsewhere, to blame others, or to justify our own actions.
It is in understanding our own sinfulness, we must come to realize where our hope must be placed.
When we cry for help, where are we turning?
We should take note from the Psalmist, “Out of the depths, I call to you LORD!”
When we are hopeless we must turn to the one who created us and sustains us: Yaweh!
This is the personal name for God that is expressed in the Old Testament.
Usually translated as THE LORD in all capitals.
This name most simply means, “I Am”
When in need of hope, we turn to the great “I Am,” The Lord our God.
BECAUSE...
Our Hope Comes from God
In verses 3 and 4 we become even more keenly aware of our need for hope.
If God kept track of our iniquities or sin, who could stand?
NONE!
David expresses this idea as well in Psalm 143:2
SCRIPTURE
Paul expresses the same idea in Romans 3:20
SCRIPTURE
Scripture is clear, Old Testament and New Testament both that all people are sinful and cannot please God through the works of the flesh.
While Verse 3 makes it clear that none are righteous.
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