1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:02,340 Now the serpent was the most cunning 2 00:00:02,340 --> 00:00:06,440 of all the wild animals that the Lord God had made. 3 00:00:06,440 --> 00:00:09,640 He said to the woman, did God really say 4 00:00:09,640 --> 00:00:12,340 you can't eat from any tree in the garden? 5 00:00:13,280 --> 00:00:15,180 The woman said to the serpent, 6 00:00:15,180 --> 00:00:18,580 we may eat the fruit from the tree in the garden, 7 00:00:18,580 --> 00:00:21,060 but about the fruit of the tree in the middle of the garden, 8 00:00:21,060 --> 00:00:25,320 God said you must not eat it or touch it or you will die. 9 00:00:25,320 --> 00:00:28,760 No, you will certainly not die, 10 00:00:28,760 --> 00:00:31,100 the serpent said to the woman. 11 00:00:31,100 --> 00:00:34,040 In fact, God knows that when you eat it, 12 00:00:34,040 --> 00:00:37,580 your eyes will be open and you will be like God 13 00:00:37,580 --> 00:00:39,940 knowing good and evil. 14 00:00:41,340 --> 00:00:44,020 The woman saw that the tree was good for food 15 00:00:44,020 --> 00:00:45,940 and delightful to look at, 16 00:00:45,940 --> 00:00:49,860 and that it was desirable for obtaining wisdom. 17 00:00:49,860 --> 00:00:52,860 And so she took some of its fruit and ate it. 18 00:00:52,860 --> 00:00:56,220 She also gave some to her husband who was with her 19 00:00:56,220 --> 00:00:57,560 and he ate it. 20 00:00:58,900 --> 00:01:01,260 Then the eyes of both of them were opened 21 00:01:01,260 --> 00:01:02,660 and they knew they were naked, 22 00:01:02,660 --> 00:01:04,900 so they sewed fig leaves together 23 00:01:04,900 --> 00:01:07,300 and made coverings for themselves. 24 00:01:07,300 --> 00:01:09,580 Then the man and his wife heard the sound 25 00:01:09,580 --> 00:01:11,380 of the Lord God walking in the garden 26 00:01:11,380 --> 00:01:14,380 at the time of the evening breeze, 27 00:01:14,380 --> 00:01:16,520 and they hid from the Lord among him, 28 00:01:16,520 --> 00:01:18,180 among the trees of the garden. 29 00:01:19,020 --> 00:01:21,180 So the Lord God called out to the man, 30 00:01:21,180 --> 00:01:23,280 and said to him, where are you? 31 00:01:24,320 --> 00:01:26,620 And he said, I heard you in the garden 32 00:01:26,620 --> 00:01:28,460 and I was afraid because I was naked, 33 00:01:28,460 --> 00:01:30,500 so I hid. 34 00:01:30,500 --> 00:01:34,500 And then he asked, who told you that you were naked? 35 00:01:34,500 --> 00:01:37,060 Did you eat from the tree that I commanded you 36 00:01:37,060 --> 00:01:38,500 not to eat from? 37 00:01:39,500 --> 00:01:42,540 The man replied, the woman you gave to be with me, 38 00:01:42,540 --> 00:01:45,440 she gave me some fruit from the tree and I ate it. 39 00:01:45,440 --> 00:01:48,440 So the Lord God asked the woman, what have you done? 40 00:01:49,980 --> 00:01:53,980 And the woman said, the serpent deceived me and I ate. 41 00:01:54,680 --> 00:01:57,560 So the Lord God said to the serpent, 42 00:01:57,560 --> 00:01:59,760 because you have done this, 43 00:01:59,760 --> 00:02:02,600 you are cursed more than any livestock 44 00:02:02,600 --> 00:02:05,400 and more than any wild animal. 45 00:02:05,400 --> 00:02:08,600 You will move on your belly and eat dust 46 00:02:08,600 --> 00:02:10,640 all the days of your life. 47 00:02:10,640 --> 00:02:13,400 And the serpent said, I will eat it. 48 00:02:13,400 --> 00:02:16,600 I will eat it all the days of your life. 49 00:02:16,600 --> 00:02:20,240 And I will put hostility between you and the woman, 50 00:02:20,240 --> 00:02:23,240 between your offspring and her offspring. 51 00:02:23,240 --> 00:02:28,260 He will strike your head and you will strike his heel. 52 00:02:29,520 --> 00:02:30,660 This is God's word. 53 00:02:35,520 --> 00:02:38,260 Hope delayed makes the heart sick, 54 00:02:38,260 --> 00:02:42,340 but desire fulfilled is a tree of life. 55 00:02:43,740 --> 00:02:45,540 Hope delayed makes the heart sick, 56 00:02:45,540 --> 00:02:50,480 but desire fulfilled is a tree of life. 57 00:02:50,480 --> 00:02:53,420 In the midst of one of the darkest chapters 58 00:02:54,280 --> 00:02:56,780 of modern history, the Holocaust, 59 00:02:57,680 --> 00:03:00,420 a man named Victor Frankel, 60 00:03:00,420 --> 00:03:03,820 a psychiatrist and a prisoner in the concentration camps, 61 00:03:03,820 --> 00:03:06,660 witnessed and later wrote about a profound discovery 62 00:03:06,660 --> 00:03:09,800 that he made while in the concentration camps. 63 00:03:09,800 --> 00:03:12,600 Amidst the unspeakable horrors around him, 64 00:03:13,500 --> 00:03:15,600 he observed something remarkable. 65 00:03:16,600 --> 00:03:17,440 Hope. 66 00:03:19,100 --> 00:03:20,080 Hope. 67 00:03:20,080 --> 00:03:22,040 He discovered that it was hope 68 00:03:22,040 --> 00:03:24,040 and the search for meaning in life, 69 00:03:24,040 --> 00:03:26,720 for meaning to this life and even to suffering, 70 00:03:26,720 --> 00:03:29,320 that often determined who survived 71 00:03:29,320 --> 00:03:31,020 and who did not survive. 72 00:03:32,820 --> 00:03:34,820 Imagine, if you will, the grim reality 73 00:03:34,820 --> 00:03:38,260 of the concentration camps, the despair, the suffering, 74 00:03:38,260 --> 00:03:41,200 and the seemingly endless nights. 75 00:03:41,200 --> 00:03:45,060 Yet in this place where hope seemed lost, 76 00:03:45,060 --> 00:03:47,960 Frankel noticed that those who had found meaning 77 00:03:47,960 --> 00:03:51,780 in their suffering and clung to a vision of the future, 78 00:03:51,780 --> 00:03:54,340 whether it be reuniting with a loved one 79 00:03:54,340 --> 00:03:57,840 that they were parted from or completing some unfinished work 80 00:03:57,840 --> 00:04:00,120 that they had in their life, 81 00:04:00,120 --> 00:04:02,380 those who had this vision for the future 82 00:04:02,380 --> 00:04:04,980 found meaning in the suffering, 83 00:04:04,980 --> 00:04:08,460 managed to survive against all odds. 84 00:04:09,620 --> 00:04:12,220 Frankel himself, clings to the hope 85 00:04:12,220 --> 00:04:15,400 of seeing his wife again and dreaming of lecturing 86 00:04:15,400 --> 00:04:17,740 about the psychological lessons learned 87 00:04:17,740 --> 00:04:19,540 from the camp experience. 88 00:04:20,640 --> 00:04:23,340 And so he found the strength to endure. 89 00:04:24,900 --> 00:04:28,500 The horrors of the concentration camps 90 00:04:28,500 --> 00:04:32,320 are but one example of a long tale of evil's exploits. 91 00:04:32,320 --> 00:04:37,320 And humanity's fall that all began in Genesis chapter three. 92 00:04:40,220 --> 00:04:43,020 But what is equally interesting is that nested right there 93 00:04:43,020 --> 00:04:46,200 in the story of the fall of humankind, 94 00:04:46,200 --> 00:04:50,100 a hope and a promise are placed right there 95 00:04:50,100 --> 00:04:51,100 at the beginning. 96 00:04:53,340 --> 00:04:55,800 This tragedy of cosmic proportions 97 00:04:55,800 --> 00:04:58,380 will not be the final word. 98 00:04:58,380 --> 00:05:01,240 This serpent or dragon or shadowy figure, 99 00:05:01,240 --> 00:05:04,040 however you see him in the garden, 100 00:05:04,040 --> 00:05:06,020 who successfully lured Adam and Eve 101 00:05:06,020 --> 00:05:08,580 to abandon the glory of being in perfect communion 102 00:05:08,580 --> 00:05:12,620 with their creator, he will not ultimately prevail 103 00:05:13,760 --> 00:05:18,760 because God has made a promise and planted a seed of hope. 104 00:05:20,860 --> 00:05:23,360 Sin has spiraled humanity into darkness 105 00:05:23,360 --> 00:05:26,900 and has turned humankind against one another. 106 00:05:26,900 --> 00:05:29,780 Each one is fighting for his own godness. 107 00:05:29,780 --> 00:05:32,980 Battling and destroying and even killing his neighbor 108 00:05:32,980 --> 00:05:35,340 to achieve his pursuits. 109 00:05:36,020 --> 00:05:39,820 But the advent of hope, the advent of hope 110 00:05:39,820 --> 00:05:42,620 is the reality that God was unwilling 111 00:05:42,620 --> 00:05:47,120 to consign his creation over to this condition forever. 112 00:05:48,500 --> 00:05:51,100 Though from the beginning in his perfect wisdom 113 00:05:51,100 --> 00:05:56,100 and knowledge, God had a plan to redeem and save 114 00:05:56,100 --> 00:05:57,900 what is rightfully his. 115 00:05:57,900 --> 00:06:02,900 The basis for any true lasting hope 116 00:06:02,900 --> 00:06:06,380 would have to be in the character of who God is, 117 00:06:06,380 --> 00:06:09,540 not in the character of humanity. 118 00:06:10,420 --> 00:06:13,180 Because the story of the Bible is one of hope 119 00:06:13,180 --> 00:06:16,660 in who God is and what he has promised he will do. 120 00:06:18,160 --> 00:06:21,160 And so we begin our advent journey this year. 121 00:06:21,160 --> 00:06:24,760 We're going to take a few minutes to explore this hope 122 00:06:24,760 --> 00:06:26,160 through this story. 123 00:06:26,160 --> 00:06:28,500 We're going to take a few minutes to explore this hope 124 00:06:28,500 --> 00:06:29,340 through the Bible. 125 00:06:30,740 --> 00:06:32,840 And we'll start there with verse 14 which says, 126 00:06:32,840 --> 00:06:35,240 so the Lord God said to the serpent, 127 00:06:35,240 --> 00:06:37,300 because you have done this, you are cursed 128 00:06:37,300 --> 00:06:40,580 more than any livestock and more than any wild animal. 129 00:06:40,580 --> 00:06:42,540 You will move on your belly and eat dust 130 00:06:42,540 --> 00:06:44,820 all the days of your life. 131 00:06:44,820 --> 00:06:48,580 And I will put hostility between you and the woman 132 00:06:48,580 --> 00:06:51,280 between your offspring and her offspring. 133 00:06:53,260 --> 00:06:55,860 God talking to this serpent who had deceived humanity 134 00:06:55,860 --> 00:06:59,060 says that there will be a hostility or an enmity 135 00:06:59,060 --> 00:07:00,940 between the serpent and the woman, 136 00:07:00,940 --> 00:07:04,260 between her offspring and the serpent's offspring. 137 00:07:04,260 --> 00:07:08,780 So what is this saying right here in Genesis three? 138 00:07:09,640 --> 00:07:12,700 This is saying that from this point forward, 139 00:07:12,700 --> 00:07:17,680 there will be two paths to walk, two paths to walk. 140 00:07:17,680 --> 00:07:19,940 Woman made in the image of God 141 00:07:19,940 --> 00:07:22,820 and made for faithful obedience and communion 142 00:07:22,820 --> 00:07:25,520 represents humanity as it was intended to live 143 00:07:25,520 --> 00:07:28,620 in the wisdom and fear of the Lord. 144 00:07:30,120 --> 00:07:33,560 She failed to do that in being tempted by the serpent. 145 00:07:33,560 --> 00:07:36,060 And the serpent is the epitome of evil 146 00:07:37,260 --> 00:07:39,100 and the rejection of God's wisdom 147 00:07:39,100 --> 00:07:41,640 and this will be the second path. 148 00:07:42,540 --> 00:07:47,540 And from this point forward, humanity will have a choice. 149 00:07:47,540 --> 00:07:50,680 Will they follow the serpent's temptation 150 00:07:50,680 --> 00:07:54,140 to look away from knowledge and fear of God 151 00:07:54,140 --> 00:07:56,180 or will they trust in God 152 00:07:56,180 --> 00:07:59,360 and lean not on their own understanding? 153 00:08:00,720 --> 00:08:03,820 Will they choose to live in a way that honors the creator 154 00:08:03,820 --> 00:08:06,900 or will they exchange their glory 155 00:08:06,900 --> 00:08:09,300 and live for created things? 156 00:08:11,260 --> 00:08:15,500 The rest of the Old Testament will answer these questions 157 00:08:15,500 --> 00:08:19,040 and the answer is some will at times trust and obey God 158 00:08:19,040 --> 00:08:24,040 only to turn away from him and trust in their own ways. 159 00:08:24,680 --> 00:08:28,120 Over and over again, we see this play out. 160 00:08:29,080 --> 00:08:32,560 Over and over again, we see the character of God 161 00:08:33,520 --> 00:08:35,660 in the midst of human failure. 162 00:08:37,000 --> 00:08:40,460 He will be faithful to his promise 163 00:08:40,460 --> 00:08:43,200 no matter humanity's failures. 164 00:08:43,200 --> 00:08:47,040 He will remain faithful to who he is 165 00:08:47,040 --> 00:08:51,340 and not dependent on how humans respond. 166 00:08:53,080 --> 00:08:54,640 A quick survey of the Old Testament 167 00:08:54,640 --> 00:08:57,420 shows this narrative working itself out. 168 00:08:58,320 --> 00:08:59,520 Will evil win? 169 00:08:59,520 --> 00:09:01,720 Will God's promises fail? 170 00:09:01,720 --> 00:09:03,960 Will God remain faithful? 171 00:09:03,960 --> 00:09:07,060 Well, what happens right after Adam and Eve? 172 00:09:08,160 --> 00:09:10,400 What's our first glimpse to see? 173 00:09:10,400 --> 00:09:13,160 Will humanity walk in obedience to God 174 00:09:13,160 --> 00:09:16,300 or will humanity follow the path 175 00:09:16,300 --> 00:09:20,140 or become like the offspring of the serpent? 176 00:09:21,580 --> 00:09:25,380 Cain and Abel, Genesis chapter four. 177 00:09:26,280 --> 00:09:28,820 Almost immediately after the fall, 178 00:09:28,820 --> 00:09:32,520 we see Cain, son of Adam and Eve, 179 00:09:32,520 --> 00:09:36,520 aligning himself with the serpent's offspring, 180 00:09:37,620 --> 00:09:40,700 taking on the characteristics of the serpent 181 00:09:40,700 --> 00:09:42,560 and killing his brother Abel 182 00:09:42,560 --> 00:09:45,220 because Abel did what was right before the Lord 183 00:09:45,220 --> 00:09:46,520 and Cain did not. 184 00:09:47,560 --> 00:09:49,760 And so right away, we're immediately faced with the question, 185 00:09:49,760 --> 00:09:51,860 is evil actually prevailing? 186 00:09:53,300 --> 00:09:55,900 Yet God's plan continues and we see 187 00:09:55,900 --> 00:09:59,400 even in the midst of that situation, Seth is born. 188 00:10:00,600 --> 00:10:04,140 The son Seth and through Seth's line, 189 00:10:04,140 --> 00:10:07,140 the godly lineage will persevere. 190 00:10:07,140 --> 00:10:10,640 Noah in the flood, Genesis six through nine, 191 00:10:10,640 --> 00:10:15,660 humanity's wickedness has grown to epic proportions. 192 00:10:16,660 --> 00:10:19,660 Humanity has followed the way of the serpent. 193 00:10:21,620 --> 00:10:26,620 But Noah's faith marks the preservation of God's plan, 194 00:10:21,920 --> 00:10:25,360 a new beginning for humanity. 195 00:10:25,360 --> 00:10:28,440 God faithful to move the plan forward 196 00:10:26,860 --> 00:10:28,740 even in the midst of that wickedness 197 00:10:28,440 --> 00:10:30,640 even in the midst of human wickedness 198 00:10:28,740 --> 00:10:31,100 and it culminates in a flood that represents 199 00:10:30,640 --> 00:10:32,840 and while we see a glimpse of faith in Noah, 200 00:10:32,840 --> 00:10:34,940 what happens right afterward? 201 00:10:35,940 --> 00:10:37,840 Noah, he's born. 202 00:10:37,840 --> 00:10:40,340 He's born in the midst of the wickedness 203 00:10:40,340 --> 00:10:43,280 and he's born in the midst of the wickedness. 204 00:10:43,280 --> 00:10:45,860 And so God's plan continues and we see 205 00:10:45,860 --> 00:10:47,680 God's plan continues and we see 206 00:10:47,680 --> 00:10:49,580 God's plan continues and we see 207 00:10:49,580 --> 00:10:54,580 Noah, Noah is confront, we're confronted with the reality 208 00:10:55,900 --> 00:10:58,820 that Noah too is tempted to choose the way 209 00:10:58,820 --> 00:11:01,640 of the serpent and to fail. 210 00:11:02,780 --> 00:11:05,980 And this continues, Abraham, his call to follow God 211 00:11:05,980 --> 00:11:07,820 and he follows God into this land 212 00:11:07,820 --> 00:11:10,940 but almost immediately a famine hits and what does he do? 213 00:11:10,940 --> 00:11:14,640 He goes to Egypt and Egypt becomes this name, 214 00:11:14,640 --> 00:11:19,640 this nation synonymous with the serpent and evil. 215 00:11:19,780 --> 00:11:21,860 And even in the midst of Abraham's response 216 00:11:21,860 --> 00:11:24,180 to all of that as he goes down to Egypt 217 00:11:24,180 --> 00:11:28,860 and truthfully he pawns off his wife 218 00:11:28,860 --> 00:11:30,500 to the Pharaoh. 219 00:11:32,060 --> 00:11:34,620 Even in the midst of that, God's faithful 220 00:11:34,620 --> 00:11:36,980 to his promise to prosper Abraham 221 00:11:36,980 --> 00:11:39,780 and Abraham actually comes away from that circumstance 222 00:11:39,780 --> 00:11:42,100 with all sorts of treasures, 223 00:11:42,100 --> 00:11:45,220 silver and gold and livestock 224 00:11:45,220 --> 00:11:48,320 and it leaves you scratching your head. 225 00:11:49,840 --> 00:11:54,020 Clearly this is not contingent upon the character 226 00:11:54,020 --> 00:11:56,980 of humanity but the character of God 227 00:11:56,980 --> 00:11:58,400 to move his plan forward. 228 00:12:01,040 --> 00:12:04,240 The barrenness of Sarah, Abraham's wife. 229 00:12:05,380 --> 00:12:09,060 Abraham is that lineage of godly man 230 00:12:09,060 --> 00:12:12,300 who by faith is walking with God and yet 231 00:12:12,300 --> 00:12:14,820 there's going to be an end to his line, 232 00:12:14,820 --> 00:12:17,740 Sarah's barren, God makes a way. 233 00:12:19,660 --> 00:12:23,760 But then Isaac is to be sacrificed, God makes a way. 234 00:12:24,900 --> 00:12:28,740 God continues to show himself faithful 235 00:12:28,740 --> 00:12:31,780 to his covenant and to his promise. 236 00:12:31,780 --> 00:12:34,740 And so time passes, much time passes 237 00:12:34,740 --> 00:12:36,860 and we find the Israelites, 238 00:12:36,860 --> 00:12:40,860 the offspring of Abraham, the Israelites 239 00:12:40,860 --> 00:12:44,700 are now suffering under slavery in Egypt 240 00:12:45,980 --> 00:12:47,660 and they're suffering under a Pharaoh 241 00:12:47,660 --> 00:12:51,740 who by all accounts represents the way of the serpent. 242 00:12:53,540 --> 00:12:58,220 And yet through Exodus, God dramatically delivers his people 243 00:12:58,220 --> 00:13:01,660 leading them out of slavery, not for their namesake 244 00:13:01,660 --> 00:13:04,740 but for his namesake, for who he is 245 00:13:04,740 --> 00:13:08,060 according to his power and his faithfulness, 246 00:13:08,060 --> 00:13:11,120 God delivers the people. 247 00:13:12,220 --> 00:13:13,100 And what are the people? 248 00:13:13,100 --> 00:13:16,300 Are the people full of faith and worship? 249 00:13:16,300 --> 00:13:21,300 At times, they're a mixed bag of faith and failure. 250 00:13:25,220 --> 00:13:27,060 We catch a glimpse of something great 251 00:13:27,060 --> 00:13:30,440 in the story in 1 Samuel 17 when David 252 00:13:30,440 --> 00:13:32,900 confronts a giant named Goliath. 253 00:13:32,900 --> 00:13:36,740 And David who, full of faith, runs out to the battlefield 254 00:13:36,740 --> 00:13:39,340 and despises anyone who would stand 255 00:13:39,340 --> 00:13:41,620 against the Lord and his armies 256 00:13:41,620 --> 00:13:44,380 and by great faith runs out to the battlefield 257 00:13:44,380 --> 00:13:48,340 and slays the giant and we think maybe this guy 258 00:13:48,340 --> 00:13:51,220 has got it together, a guy who will walk in faith, 259 00:13:51,220 --> 00:13:55,020 walk in obedience, walk according to the ways of the Lord. 260 00:13:55,020 --> 00:13:58,780 Here is our salvation and true, he did deliver 261 00:13:58,780 --> 00:14:01,740 for the people against their enemies 262 00:14:01,740 --> 00:14:03,700 so that the people might have freedom. 263 00:14:04,860 --> 00:14:06,700 But what happened to David? 264 00:14:06,700 --> 00:14:10,460 Failure, he chose the way of the serpent 265 00:14:10,460 --> 00:14:15,460 with Bathsheba counting of the troops 266 00:14:17,660 --> 00:14:22,660 and over again he fails to meet his covenant with God 267 00:14:23,020 --> 00:14:26,020 to remain faithful to God and instead walks 268 00:14:26,020 --> 00:14:28,740 in the ways of the serpent. 269 00:14:28,740 --> 00:14:31,980 The two ways, will you walk in obedience, 270 00:14:31,980 --> 00:14:36,500 faithfulness to God or will you walk in opposition to God? 271 00:14:36,500 --> 00:14:38,820 Will you walk as the serpent enticed? 272 00:14:38,820 --> 00:14:40,940 Will you live as if you are your own God 273 00:14:40,940 --> 00:14:42,940 and you answer only to yourself? 274 00:14:42,940 --> 00:14:47,940 And the Bible over and over and over again says 275 00:14:48,020 --> 00:14:53,020 that humanity has failed but God continues to be faithful. 276 00:14:54,620 --> 00:14:57,060 And then we see in the prophets, Isaiah, Jeremiah, 277 00:14:57,060 --> 00:14:58,900 that the prophets speak of times 278 00:14:58,900 --> 00:15:02,540 that the Israel has gone astray and they're oppressed 279 00:15:02,540 --> 00:15:04,660 but it seems like the upper hand is given 280 00:15:04,660 --> 00:15:07,180 to the serpent's offspring and evil 281 00:15:07,180 --> 00:15:10,180 and yet the prophecies always come back to reaffirm 282 00:15:10,180 --> 00:15:12,860 that God has a plan and he's making a way 283 00:15:12,860 --> 00:15:15,740 and he's preparing to do something. 284 00:15:15,740 --> 00:15:18,540 He's going to do something in history. 285 00:15:18,540 --> 00:15:23,540 He's going to do something and therefore people hold hope. 286 00:15:23,540 --> 00:15:28,540 Hold hope all the way to the Babylonian captivity 287 00:15:31,540 --> 00:15:35,540 and you see the people of Israel taken into captivity. 288 00:15:37,940 --> 00:15:40,380 And the question is, did evil win? 289 00:15:40,380 --> 00:15:41,740 Did evil prevail? 290 00:15:44,780 --> 00:15:47,180 It is God's word that faithful men and women 291 00:15:47,180 --> 00:15:48,940 throughout the Old Testament put their hope in. 292 00:15:48,940 --> 00:15:51,740 Over and over again, God reaffirming his promises 293 00:15:51,740 --> 00:15:54,140 and reaffirming his commitment. 294 00:15:54,140 --> 00:15:56,940 They trusted God and they took him at his word 295 00:15:56,940 --> 00:16:00,740 even though at times it seemed evil had prevailed. 296 00:16:00,740 --> 00:16:03,340 Evil had won the day but the Old Testament, 297 00:16:03,340 --> 00:16:06,340 the Old Testament ends without an answer. 298 00:16:06,340 --> 00:16:07,740 Y'all have gotten there, right? 299 00:16:07,740 --> 00:16:09,740 Flippin', where's the answer? 300 00:16:09,740 --> 00:16:11,140 Where's the fulfillment? 301 00:16:11,140 --> 00:16:12,140 Nothing. 302 00:16:12,140 --> 00:16:17,140 The end of the Old Testament, we have all the promises 303 00:16:17,140 --> 00:16:19,340 but we don't have the fulfillment yet. 304 00:16:19,340 --> 00:16:21,940 We don't have the fulfillment yet. 305 00:16:21,940 --> 00:16:26,940 400 years between the final words of the Old Testament 306 00:16:26,940 --> 00:16:29,140 and the first events of the New Testament, 307 00:16:29,140 --> 00:16:33,540 400 years was all hope lost. 308 00:16:35,940 --> 00:16:38,740 What was the first thing that God said to the serpent 309 00:16:38,740 --> 00:16:41,940 or the final thing that God said to the serpent 310 00:16:41,940 --> 00:16:45,340 in Genesis chapter three, verse 15? 311 00:16:45,340 --> 00:16:47,740 Speaking of the offspring of the woman, 312 00:16:47,740 --> 00:16:52,740 he said, and he will strike your head 313 00:16:52,740 --> 00:16:55,340 and you will strike his heel. 314 00:16:56,340 --> 00:17:01,340 He will strike your head and you will strike his heel. 315 00:17:03,140 --> 00:17:06,940 Most theologians call this the proto-gospel. 316 00:17:08,140 --> 00:17:12,540 This is in your Bible, Genesis chapter three, verse 15, 317 00:17:12,540 --> 00:17:15,940 the first good news after the fall. 318 00:17:15,940 --> 00:17:18,740 The first gospel glimpse. 319 00:17:18,740 --> 00:17:23,340 You get right there in Genesis chapter three, verse 15. 320 00:17:23,340 --> 00:17:24,140 What does it say? 321 00:17:24,140 --> 00:17:27,740 It says, evil will certainly get a strike in 322 00:17:27,740 --> 00:17:30,740 on the heel of the offspring of the woman 323 00:17:30,740 --> 00:17:33,740 but in the end he will strike or crush 324 00:17:33,740 --> 00:17:36,340 the head of the serpent. 325 00:17:36,340 --> 00:17:38,940 Evil will not ultimately win. 326 00:17:39,740 --> 00:17:43,540 It says that God, through the offspring of the woman, 327 00:17:43,540 --> 00:17:45,340 will crush the head of the serpent 328 00:17:45,340 --> 00:17:46,540 or the dragon. 329 00:17:48,140 --> 00:17:50,540 But our survey, our quick survey we did 330 00:17:50,540 --> 00:17:53,140 of the Old Testament revealed that no offspring 331 00:17:53,140 --> 00:17:56,340 of the woman had completely and totally, 332 00:17:56,340 --> 00:17:59,340 without fail, chosen to obey faithfully 333 00:17:59,340 --> 00:18:02,340 and honor God come what may. 334 00:18:02,340 --> 00:18:04,740 There was no human to choose from 335 00:18:05,740 --> 00:18:07,340 who would accomplish this. 336 00:18:07,340 --> 00:18:11,340 Every single one of them had given into selfishness, 337 00:18:11,340 --> 00:18:14,340 had given into greed, had given into fear, 338 00:18:14,340 --> 00:18:15,740 had given into temptation. 339 00:18:15,740 --> 00:18:18,540 Every single one had taken what seemed pleasing 340 00:18:18,540 --> 00:18:21,540 and right in their own eyes at some point. 341 00:18:21,540 --> 00:18:24,340 Every single one had chosen at one point or another 342 00:18:24,340 --> 00:18:26,740 to walk the path of evil. 343 00:18:26,740 --> 00:18:29,940 They were not serpent head crushers. 344 00:18:30,940 --> 00:18:31,940 They were divided. 345 00:18:33,540 --> 00:18:35,340 Every single one of them. 346 00:18:36,540 --> 00:18:40,940 And so what we have is we're left with a hope 347 00:18:40,940 --> 00:18:44,740 and we're left with a promise unfulfilled. 348 00:18:47,540 --> 00:18:51,740 We have clear evidence that it will remain unfulfilled 349 00:18:53,340 --> 00:18:56,540 if humankind alone is responsible for bringing it about. 350 00:18:57,640 --> 00:18:59,140 We can't do it. 351 00:18:59,140 --> 00:19:00,840 We couldn't do it. 352 00:19:00,840 --> 00:19:03,040 Failure after failure. 353 00:19:03,040 --> 00:19:05,940 Even our superheroes failed. 354 00:19:05,940 --> 00:19:08,640 But hope remains. 355 00:19:09,640 --> 00:19:10,640 And here's why. 356 00:19:11,640 --> 00:19:17,640 Because the form, the shape, 357 00:19:18,640 --> 00:19:22,640 the outline of a deliverer 358 00:19:22,640 --> 00:19:27,640 had steadily, one line upon the next 359 00:19:27,640 --> 00:19:30,640 been drawn on the pages of the Old Testament. 360 00:19:31,640 --> 00:19:34,640 One who would deliver God's people 361 00:19:34,640 --> 00:19:39,640 from evil by first resisting the forces of evil. 362 00:19:39,640 --> 00:19:43,440 One who would be a substitute bearing the sins of mankind. 363 00:19:43,440 --> 00:19:46,840 One who would appear in Bethlehem, a man, 364 00:19:46,840 --> 00:19:49,240 but also God with us. 365 00:19:49,240 --> 00:19:52,440 He would do the will of God faithfully. 366 00:19:52,440 --> 00:19:56,240 He would faithfully obey, even setting aside himself 367 00:19:56,240 --> 00:20:00,040 and enduring great suffering and death. 368 00:20:00,040 --> 00:20:04,040 He would be the fulfillment of all of our sins. 369 00:20:04,040 --> 00:20:09,040 He would be the fulfillment of all of God's promises. 370 00:20:09,040 --> 00:20:13,040 He would be the ultimate serpent head crusher. 371 00:20:15,040 --> 00:20:20,040 He was the offspring that God promised in Genesis chapter 15 372 00:20:20,040 --> 00:20:24,440 but he is painted on all the pages of the Old Testament. 373 00:20:24,440 --> 00:20:27,440 Everywhere you look you can find a sketch, 374 00:20:27,440 --> 00:20:31,040 one line of who he was until the full vision of 375 00:20:31,040 --> 00:20:34,040 the deliverer, who is this Messiah. 376 00:20:38,040 --> 00:20:43,040 And so, when a baby, Jesus, is presented in the temple 377 00:20:45,040 --> 00:20:50,040 shortly after his birth, in Luke chapter two, 378 00:20:50,040 --> 00:20:53,040 there's a man there and he's waiting. 379 00:20:54,040 --> 00:20:56,040 And he's been waiting. 380 00:20:56,040 --> 00:20:59,040 He's been waiting for the one. 381 00:20:59,040 --> 00:21:03,040 The one that he saw sketched out on the pages 382 00:21:03,040 --> 00:21:05,040 of the Old Testament. 383 00:21:05,040 --> 00:21:07,040 The one that he saw over and over again 384 00:21:07,040 --> 00:21:10,040 as there was hope and there was a potential promise. 385 00:21:10,040 --> 00:21:13,040 Maybe someone who was rising up, a human who was coming 386 00:21:13,040 --> 00:21:16,040 to be, maybe a hero and they failed. 387 00:21:16,040 --> 00:21:20,040 He could see, no, behind all of that there is one. 388 00:21:20,040 --> 00:21:23,040 If it hasn't been fulfilled yet, if it hasn't been 389 00:21:23,040 --> 00:21:26,040 completed yet, then he must still be coming. 390 00:21:26,040 --> 00:21:29,040 And this man is waiting in the temple courts, 391 00:21:29,040 --> 00:21:33,040 waiting for the fulfillment of God's promises. 392 00:21:33,040 --> 00:21:38,040 400 years of silence could not silence this man's hope. 393 00:21:39,040 --> 00:21:44,040 Luke chapter two, verse 25 through 32 says, 394 00:21:44,040 --> 00:21:48,040 there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon. 395 00:21:50,040 --> 00:21:54,040 This man was righteous and devout and he looked forward 396 00:21:54,040 --> 00:21:59,040 to Israel's consolation and the Holy Spirit was on him. 397 00:22:00,040 --> 00:22:03,040 It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit 398 00:22:03,040 --> 00:22:08,040 that he would not see death before he saw 399 00:22:08,040 --> 00:22:11,040 the Lord's Messiah. 400 00:22:12,040 --> 00:22:16,040 Guided by the Spirit, he entered the temple. 401 00:22:17,040 --> 00:22:20,040 When the parents brought in the child Jesus to perform 402 00:22:20,040 --> 00:22:23,040 for him what was customary under the law, 403 00:22:23,040 --> 00:22:27,040 Simeon took him up in his arms, praised God, 404 00:22:27,040 --> 00:22:31,040 and said, now, master, you can dismiss your servant 405 00:22:31,040 --> 00:22:36,040 in peace as you promised, for my eyes have seen 406 00:22:36,040 --> 00:22:38,040 your salvation. 407 00:22:38,040 --> 00:22:41,040 You have prepared it in the presence of all people, 408 00:22:41,040 --> 00:22:45,040 a light for revelation to the Gentiles and glory 409 00:22:45,040 --> 00:22:48,040 to your people, Israel. 410 00:22:48,040 --> 00:22:53,040 Everywhere mankind failed, Jesus prevailed. 411 00:22:55,040 --> 00:22:58,040 Jesus is hope fulfilled. 412 00:22:59,040 --> 00:23:02,040 Jesus is the hope of everyone who has wondered 413 00:23:02,040 --> 00:23:05,040 if there is more to life. 414 00:23:05,040 --> 00:23:08,040 Jesus is the hope of everyone who has prayed 415 00:23:08,040 --> 00:23:11,040 for the end of evil. 416 00:23:11,040 --> 00:23:14,040 Jesus is the hope of everyone who has cried themselves 417 00:23:14,040 --> 00:23:16,040 to sleep, broke their hearts, 418 00:23:16,040 --> 00:23:19,040 who has cried themselves to sleep, broken and humiliated 419 00:23:19,040 --> 00:23:23,040 and humbled by their own sin and their own failures. 420 00:23:23,040 --> 00:23:26,040 Jesus is the hope of anyone who has suffered disease 421 00:23:26,040 --> 00:23:30,040 and sickness and hoped for deliverance. 422 00:23:31,040 --> 00:23:34,040 Jesus is the hope of everyone who has reached out 423 00:23:34,040 --> 00:23:37,040 for God, for in Christ, God came to us, 424 00:23:37,040 --> 00:23:47,040 hand reaching out for us.