The Stock Household: December 2011

I had an opportunity to preach my first advent/Christmas sermon a couple of weeks ago. Here is the manuscript and have a Merry Christmas!

Introduction
Have you ever had to wait for something? What was it? What was the longest time you had to wait? What was the hardest? And what did it feel like? For me, it has to be the waiting of getting engaged and marriage. Actually, it started with just waiting to find a girl who would say ‘yes’ to a date. One date. And then, when Mandy and I got engaged, the tension of wanting to be married now, and yet knowing that in the future, it will be so right and good. The anticipation. The build up. The hope of it all of coming true.

In our passage, the story of the people of God is that of waiting for centuries upon centuries for God to be with His people. They have waited hearing of promises of Immanuel, God with us. To understand their anticipation and hope of Immanuel, we must go all the way back to the beginning of the story. There we will see what the people of God once had, Immanuel. God with and among them.

In the beginning, God created everything. He lit up the heavens and set the earth spinning. He separated the sky and land and made all the trees and plants grow as edible ornaments across the earth. He filled the sky with glimmering stars, the sea with multi-color fish, and the land with animals of all kinds.

At last, in concert with the Trinity, the crescendo of creation, God made man, male and female. After His image, He made them and gave them dominion over creation. Adam and Eve, as we are, were made to reflect our Maker like a son wants to be like his dad. And even more amazing was their relationship with God. They were created to know and enjoy Him forever. And for a while, this is exactly what they had. In the cool of the day, the first man and the first woman walked with God in the garden as He designed it for them. No shame. No tears. Pure peace and harmony with God and each other. Immanuel. God was with them. He was their God and they were His people. All was very good.

But however long that blissful communion lasted, it didn’t last long. The tempter came in the form of a serpent, and Adam and Eve gave in. God made man upright, but he turn and went his own way. They disobeyed the one command that God told them. They listened to the serpent rather than God and all was lost. In disobeying God, they sought out to be their own god. No longer could God be with them for now they are rebels. The moment they broke the skin of the fruit, all of creation groaned. Lust, shame, fear, guilt,
mistrust, blame-shifting, and loneliness rushed to their hearts. There was no more peace between God and them nor each other. Immanuel was no more. Sin had entered into them. Every part of them was now corrupt and all of creation suffered. They couldn’t mend it back together even though they tried. At the end of the worst day in history, the man and the woman were kick out of the place of Immanuel, the garden, and God shut the door. God was still God, but not their god. They tried to make themselves their own gods.

Right from the beginning, we see man’s deepest longing, that is to be with God. To live for who they were made by. And to live with the one who made them, Immanuel. And we see man’s deepest problem, sin. Call it what you will, rebellion, disobedience, brokenness, sin all against God. It severs Immanuel right in two.

But because of His great love for them, God, who is rich in mercy, didn’t leave them. He is the pursuing God. They were still His people, but now on different terms. Before God removed them from the garden, He speaks with them and the tempter. What He says to the tempter was most important to their ears,
and ours, as God planted a promise seed of redemption. Let us read, Genesis 3:15, “I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.”1 God prophesies here. God comes and says, “Sin has now come into human history. I will send a Savior for sinners. I will restore Immanuel.” What shall we look for? From the woman, from the line of Adam and Eve, from the human race, will ultimately come the seed. And he shall destroy this serpent, this devil, who holds people captive under sin, shame, and guilt. He will crush the serpent’s head. This work will restore Immanuel. But as you see, this is foretold at this point. It will be in the future. How long will the human race have to wait?

The Long-Line of Sin
As we turn to our passage, Matt. 1:18-25, we learn something very quickly from the passage before about the waiting period. The story continues. The road outside the garden was a dark path of war and strife. Generations after generations after generations failed. There is a long-line of sin.

But God never gave up on His promise to His people along the dark path were flickers of light and lampstands and luminaries in spite of the people’s darkness. He showed Immanuel in the ark of covenant, representing the presence of God. He showed Immanuel in the temple when the glory of the Lord would fall. He showed redemption in the blood of a spotless lamb. He revealed His plan to the prophets:

Ezek. 37:23
They shall not defile themselves anymore with their idols and their detestable things, or with any of their transgressions. But I will save them from all the backslidings in which they have sinned, and will cleanse them; and they shall be my people, and I will be their God.

Jer. 31:33
For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the LORD: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they shall be my people… For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.”

The light in which God continued to shine through the story of the Old Testament was, “I will forgive you and I will be your God and you will be my people.” To restore Immanuel. God with us in peace. Tell us who? And how shall this be? The lights which God gave to His people were through the words of promise. The people of God had heard of this rescue coming through the blood line of Abraham and they had read of Isaiah, “Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son.” The echos of Gen. 3:15 are ringing. So, for them, it was anticipation. This groaning was growing after generation after generation. Knowing their deepest longing was only met by God being with him. Fully. Holy. They yearned for him. They waited for fulfillment, God come down. They waited at the edge of their sit where excitement and containment meet. They waited… like a child waiting for their dad to come home from work… They waited like a groom, eyes fixed on the back of those double doors of the church. And they waited, waited with hope. Hope in the God who rescued them along ago and has spoken to them… spoken of great promises of Immanuel.

And so, when the people of God pick up a copy of the gospel of Matthew and their eyes read across the first line “The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham,” they ears perked up. And when they read, “she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit”, one born from a
woman, yet a virgin. Their heart began to pound harder. They began to dream bigger (cf. Ps. 126). Dream of the great things the Lord had done. Expectations heighten. And then an angel appears to Joseph and pronounces, “Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. 21 She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” And the prophet Isaiah, “Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel”. Born of a woman, a virgin and it will be a son. Oh for joy! And what would they read as we do as well but “all this took place to fulfill”. The angel of the Lord announces the Long-awaited Immanuel. He is here. He’s here.

The Long-Awaited Immanuel
The announcement of the angel brought news, good news, which had long been expecting since our first parents were kick out of the garden because of their sin. All the lights which God had placed along the path were now coming to fulfillment in Jesus, Savior of sinners, Immanuel, God with us.

He was the descendent from Eve sent to crush the serpent’s head. He was the heir of Abraham’s line through whom all the nations would be blessed— born of a miracle and filled with laughter. He was Isaac’s ram caught in the thicket, God’s perfectly timed provision of a substitute. He wrestled with Israel and wouldn’t let go, giving Jacob the gracious gift of a limp to remind him of his weakness. He was the king the Lord promised David, a ruler from his own body whose Kingdom the Lord would establish forever, ancient and strong. He was Immanuel—God with his people. He would turn the hearts of fathers to their children and their children’s heart to their fathers. Where there was despair, he would be hope. Where there was brokenness, he would bring healing. Where there was sadness, he would bring joy. Where there was
bondage, he would set people free. And above all, where there was sin, sin which severed Immanuel for us. Now, Jesus, as the God-man, he came and restored Immanuel by being Immanuel. How will Jesus restore Immanuel? He restored Immanuel for us in two ways: first, by saving us from our sins, and secondly, restoring us back to God.

SIN: CROSS
The angel announced, “He will save his people from their sins.” What always separates us from God ultimately is sin. All of us at one time were or are apart from God. All were without God. All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. All are dead in transgressions and sins. Enemies and haters of God are the line we came from. Fully of pride. Filled with unrighteousness. Our blood-line is filled with rebels, murders, liars, sleazy crooks, idolatries, haters, popish kings, lovers of fleeting pleasures, and immoral in all kinds of way. And don’t we fit right in. You just fit right in? I just fit right in. If it was left to us, even in the sight bit, we would fail as we have so clearly in the past. Our restoration of Immanuel comes alone from God. And
by sweet mercy, He has come.

This announcement from the angel, at the beginning of His birth, tells the world, “Behold, Jesus, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” Taking away sin is His mission. The whole world, every nation and tribe, listen up. This is good news to all peoples: God has come in Jesus Christ and He is gathering a people from all peoples. Put down your weapons of enmity against God, your idols of this world, confess your rebellion and in mercy, trust in Christ. He has brought forgiveness to you if you would believe. And
it is through the cross. The passion of Jesus Christ was how this would be accomplished. He shed His blood to bind a new covenant, a covenant of grace, which offers total forgiveness. He said, “for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.” On the cross, Jesus took your sin. All the punishment, all the pollution are now on Him. It is to His account. The sin which kept you from God can now be forgiven and life, abundantly life, Immanuel, can be found. As 1 Peter 3:18 clearly proclaims, “For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God”.

Immanuel:
The ultimate goal of salvation by Jesus is that he might bring us back to God. Forgiveness is not the end goal is nor redemption but God is. And God came down as God in human flesh. He didn’t come as a politician though His is a great king. He didn’t come as a therapist though he understands and cares for your deepest needs. He didn’t come as a businessman though he leads us with a servant heart. He didn’t come as a military leader though he fights against his, and our, arch enemy. No, He came as God.

“Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel, which means ‘God with us’”. The gospel of God is the good news that at the cost of His life, Jesus did everything necessary to secure for us that God will always be there with us and He will to us our everlasting satisfaction of our deepest longing. To be with God, in his presence, know His love, enjoy His array of beauty, delight in Him forever. He will be with us now, as Matthew 28:20, sets its promise forward, “And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” And in the new age to come, Rev. 21:3, “And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God.” This is what we Christian long for, isn’t it? We
know in part, we see in part, but on that day, we will know fully, even as we have been fully known by Him.

And so, brothers and sisters in the Lord, celebrate His coming for our salvation and trust in Him! And, what is the hardest thing for us to wait for? His return… to see Him face to face. I long for that day. May we wait with hope. May we wait in anticipation with eagerness and expectation! Continue to press on and finish the race well. It will be well worth it!

And to those who do not hope in Christ, may I ask… what do you hope for? Can I say that at the end it is fleeting? At the end, you will hope for something that doesn’t fulfill your deepest desires, what you were made for? You were made for God and He, as we have seen in His word, has provided away back to God. Jesus came down, took your sins, and will bring you to God… if you repent and believe? Believe on Him today.

By:Mandy

Every so often it hits me. What are we doing?! Moving overseas means leaving behind Chick-Fil-A, baby changing tables, my Honda Civic...not to mention clean drinking water. In these moments of panic, I doubt. I worry about this whole missions thing working out. I do not like threats to my comfort, my convenience, my STUFF!

If you've never been a missionary before, let me tell you, lots of it is great. I mean, random people will say "Good for you!" and "Wow, you must be brave." (much like Tony, the Firestone guy, told me yesterday) and honestly, sometimes I believe them. And when doubt and fear come, I convince myself I'm better than that, braver than that...good for me.

I recently listened to the Desiring God missions conference as we drove up to Virginia for Thanksgiving. One speaker talked about the Great Commission. You know, Matthew 28:18-20. Missionaries LOVE these verses, most times because we think we get it. We get this commission thing, we are going! Good for us.

But one small point really hit me hard. He read the verse before. "And when they saw him they worshiped him, but some doubted." Isn't it amazing that Jesus gave the Great Commission to even doubters?! Now, I have no idea what they doubted...his deity, his authority, his actual rising from the dead? Or is it more like my doubt...his being better than anything? His promise to sanctify me and shed, tear, rip off, and break through this materialism that captivates me?

Jesus is with me in my going. By grace, he woos me back and shows me my comfortable American life is not bad until it (or my clinging to it) stalls my worship. And He will renew me in gift-giving and receiving, shopping at consumer-driven malls, and soon as we leave so much oceans away...until we leave this place and go Home.