WEBVTT 00:00:03.600 --> 00:00:07.000 So our Advent sermon series is El Peace. That 00:00:07.000 --> 00:00:09.880 is how, probably the better way to say that Greek 00:00:09.880 --> 00:00:13.060 word, El Peace, El Pez, however you want to do 00:00:13.060 --> 00:00:16.140 that. That is a Greek word for hope. That we 00:00:16.140 --> 00:00:18.620 are waiting in hope where we're looking at the 00:00:18.620 --> 00:00:24.019 prophets that spoke of hope of the Messiah. But 00:00:24.019 --> 00:00:26.620 I wanted to kind of bridge where we've been because 00:00:26.620 --> 00:00:29.160 we were in a pretty big sermon series for the 00:00:29.160 --> 00:00:32.460 last three months in the book of Acts. We walked 00:00:32.460 --> 00:00:35.299 deeply in the start of the church, those first 00:00:35.299 --> 00:00:38.859 eight chapters. And many of you wanted to keep 00:00:38.859 --> 00:00:40.859 going. And believe me, there was a part of me 00:00:40.859 --> 00:00:43.479 that wanted to as well. But I think it was a 00:00:43.479 --> 00:00:48.280 good journey of those eight chapters of how really 00:00:48.280 --> 00:00:51.060 the story of us, the church, got started. The 00:00:51.060 --> 00:00:55.320 highs and the lows. God birthed the church. Wind, 00:00:55.320 --> 00:00:59.140 fire, power, and mission with unstoppable gospel 00:00:59.140 --> 00:01:04.260 momentum. In a reflection I have, there are many, 00:01:04.439 --> 00:01:08.439 but one that kind of leads me to Advent is what 00:01:08.439 --> 00:01:13.340 the church didn't need. That as we look over 00:01:13.340 --> 00:01:16.900 kind of the centuries at the church, what was 00:01:16.900 --> 00:01:19.959 this kind of vagabond group of people called 00:01:19.959 --> 00:01:21.819 the way. It wasn't even called Christians at 00:01:21.819 --> 00:01:24.040 that point. It was the people of the way. They 00:01:24.040 --> 00:01:26.920 just kind of went. They didn't plan too much 00:01:26.920 --> 00:01:29.079 for it. We saw when they needed to elect new 00:01:29.079 --> 00:01:31.620 officers for elders, when they created deacons. 00:01:31.719 --> 00:01:35.340 There wasn't a whole lot outside of just relying 00:01:35.340 --> 00:01:38.219 on the Holy Spirit to show up and do the work. 00:01:38.829 --> 00:01:42.049 And a reflection that I've had over the last, 00:01:42.230 --> 00:01:45.469 I don't know, three, four weeks is maybe how 00:01:45.469 --> 00:01:48.629 much we've gotten away from that. That a lot 00:01:48.629 --> 00:01:51.510 of times in the church, we look at statistics. 00:01:51.510 --> 00:01:56.129 We look at a lot of data that we can look at 00:01:56.129 --> 00:01:58.989 as far as making decisions. And I go, wow, we've 00:01:58.989 --> 00:02:01.950 come pretty far, but maybe not always in the 00:02:01.950 --> 00:02:06.010 best things when it comes to just being the church. 00:02:06.810 --> 00:02:08.469 Now don't get me wrong, being the organization, 00:02:09.030 --> 00:02:12.389 being a non -for -profit, a 501c3 organization, 00:02:12.409 --> 00:02:14.030 they didn't worry about any of that then because 00:02:14.030 --> 00:02:16.150 they didn't have that. And so in the culture 00:02:16.150 --> 00:02:18.969 we live in now, that is Christ in culture, the 00:02:18.969 --> 00:02:24.509 church engages. But one of the things that Acts 00:02:24.509 --> 00:02:29.129 taught us that applies to today's church as it 00:02:29.129 --> 00:02:32.629 did in the start of the church, is four things. 00:02:32.770 --> 00:02:36.900 That God keeps his promises. God pours out his 00:02:36.900 --> 00:02:41.759 spirit on the church. He builds the church. And 00:02:41.759 --> 00:02:44.919 he always finishes what he starts. And I think 00:02:44.919 --> 00:02:47.680 for churches, those are four key things to keep 00:02:47.680 --> 00:02:50.379 kind of right here when it comes to mission and 00:02:50.379 --> 00:02:51.840 vision. And you're going to hear a lot about 00:02:51.840 --> 00:02:54.599 that over the coming three, four months. Vision 00:02:54.599 --> 00:02:56.620 and mission. And what does that look like for 00:02:56.620 --> 00:03:00.580 214 Ridge Road? But the thread of faithfulness 00:03:00.580 --> 00:03:04.659 to God is one that we cannot. gloss over here 00:03:04.659 --> 00:03:07.159 at Munster Church. All you have to do is look 00:03:07.159 --> 00:03:09.060 at the history boards going all the way back 00:03:09.060 --> 00:03:12.599 to Reverend Malama, right, 155 years ago, though 00:03:12.599 --> 00:03:16.240 he wasn't the pastor at that time yet, to be 00:03:16.240 --> 00:03:20.219 able to say that a century and a half of God's 00:03:20.219 --> 00:03:23.180 faithfulness has been upon this church, and not 00:03:23.180 --> 00:03:26.340 because all of us are awesome, but because God 00:03:26.340 --> 00:03:29.939 is, and that God is faithful. And that's really 00:03:29.939 --> 00:03:32.500 the bridge of God's faithfulness from the start 00:03:32.500 --> 00:03:36.439 of the church to Advent. Because hope is really 00:03:36.439 --> 00:03:40.039 the first celebration in Advent. It's not sentimental. 00:03:40.740 --> 00:03:43.300 Even though we can get wrapped up in all the 00:03:43.300 --> 00:03:46.539 ribbons and the bows of the coming weeks. What 00:03:46.539 --> 00:03:50.340 Advent is, is it's historical. It's covenantal. 00:03:50.340 --> 00:03:53.680 It's deeply rooted in the character of God. The 00:03:53.680 --> 00:03:57.280 same God who called, who empowered, and sent 00:03:57.280 --> 00:04:00.360 the early church. Is the God that spoke through 00:04:00.360 --> 00:04:04.039 the prophets. Promising a hope of the Messiah. 00:04:04.039 --> 00:04:07.800 Capital M. And who faithfully fulfilled the promise 00:04:07.800 --> 00:04:13.219 in the person of Jesus. Acts shows us the church 00:04:13.219 --> 00:04:17.439 on mission because Jesus came. The Messiah came. 00:04:17.980 --> 00:04:22.319 Advent shows us the Messiah in promise. In prophecy. 00:04:23.230 --> 00:04:25.089 which is always exciting and a little scary, 00:04:25.230 --> 00:04:27.790 or a lot of scary, and in the incarnation of 00:04:27.790 --> 00:04:32.589 Jesus coming as a baby. So, El Peace, our Advent 00:04:32.589 --> 00:04:36.470 journey, is going to be on hope. And one of the 00:04:36.470 --> 00:04:38.829 things I want you to take time with this week 00:04:38.829 --> 00:04:41.269 is, what are the things you put your hope in? 00:04:41.730 --> 00:04:44.850 What are the things that you hope for in life? 00:04:44.949 --> 00:04:48.089 We all, together, walk through a hope that one 00:04:48.089 --> 00:04:50.420 day... Whether this church or another church, 00:04:50.560 --> 00:04:52.439 Sloan, hopefully this church, that Sloan stands 00:04:52.439 --> 00:04:55.920 on this stage and declares her faith in Jesus 00:04:55.920 --> 00:04:59.399 Christ. That is hope. And that is hope that we 00:04:59.399 --> 00:05:03.519 are excited to have. But if we're being honest, 00:05:03.879 --> 00:05:06.720 sometimes our hope can be a pretty flippant thing 00:05:06.720 --> 00:05:11.019 in our life. Whether it's hope for something 00:05:11.019 --> 00:05:13.939 very small and really doesn't mean much, to hope 00:05:13.939 --> 00:05:16.240 that, oh, when I ask her, she's going to say 00:05:16.240 --> 00:05:18.920 yes. For those that might be looking to get engaged 00:05:18.920 --> 00:05:22.319 this year or just got engaged. There's hope that 00:05:22.319 --> 00:05:25.420 we have for all the things. But what's deeply 00:05:25.420 --> 00:05:28.980 rooted in the character, in the fabric of who 00:05:28.980 --> 00:05:32.500 God is and what Jesus means to us in our life 00:05:32.500 --> 00:05:37.240 as Lord and Savior is hope. But a hope that comes 00:05:37.240 --> 00:05:39.620 with perspective. And that's what we're going 00:05:39.620 --> 00:05:42.379 to journey in this month. So let's look first 00:05:42.379 --> 00:05:45.850 from the hope from the past. So we're looking 00:05:45.850 --> 00:05:49.329 at hope from the past, the faithfulness of God. 00:05:50.050 --> 00:05:51.990 That is going to be kind of our first point. 00:05:52.310 --> 00:05:54.769 And we're going to look at Jeremiah 33. We're 00:05:54.769 --> 00:05:58.009 just going to look at two verses today that we're 00:05:58.009 --> 00:06:00.610 going to find ourselves as we start Advent. Behold, 00:06:00.610 --> 00:06:03.009 the days are coming, declares the Lord, when 00:06:03.009 --> 00:06:05.490 I will fulfill the promise I made to the house 00:06:05.490 --> 00:06:08.850 of Israel and the house of Judah. In those days, 00:06:08.889 --> 00:06:11.629 at that time, I will cause a righteous branch 00:06:11.629 --> 00:06:15.220 to spring up for David. And he shall execute 00:06:15.220 --> 00:06:18.540 justice and righteousness in the land. In those 00:06:18.540 --> 00:06:21.259 days Judah will be saved and Jerusalem will dwell 00:06:21.259 --> 00:06:25.199 securely. This is the name by which it will be 00:06:25.199 --> 00:06:31.339 called, the Lord is our righteousness. Jeremiah 00:06:31.339 --> 00:06:36.800 and Isaiah, known as the weeping prophets, had 00:06:36.800 --> 00:06:40.660 a job that none of us would want to do. That 00:06:40.660 --> 00:06:44.860 they had to go and prophesy really hard things 00:06:44.860 --> 00:06:47.420 to the people of Israel. Right? Jeremiah, we 00:06:47.420 --> 00:06:52.019 find, writing this to a broken nation. Jerusalem 00:06:52.019 --> 00:06:54.560 has already been besieged. The king is weak. 00:06:54.639 --> 00:06:58.040 The temple is compromised. Idolatry run rampant. 00:06:58.100 --> 00:07:03.480 The exile is near. Hope almost gone. And then 00:07:03.480 --> 00:07:08.899 God wakes Jeremiah up as a prophet. To go say 00:07:08.899 --> 00:07:14.259 these things to a people, to a nation. But what 00:07:14.259 --> 00:07:16.560 God says and what they may be experiencing are 00:07:16.560 --> 00:07:19.480 not necessarily the same. And in that we find 00:07:19.480 --> 00:07:23.740 hope. God says the days are coming. Not they 00:07:23.740 --> 00:07:26.720 might come. We're going to roll the dice. It 00:07:26.720 --> 00:07:30.639 could happen. Not I'm thinking about doing this, 00:07:30.660 --> 00:07:33.800 but I'm not totally sure. But he says declaratively, 00:07:33.879 --> 00:07:39.170 the days are coming. You see, hope begins not 00:07:39.170 --> 00:07:42.029 with our circumstances, but with the promise 00:07:42.029 --> 00:07:46.329 -keeping character of God. That God keeps his 00:07:46.329 --> 00:07:49.370 promise. How many of you have always kept your 00:07:49.370 --> 00:07:51.529 promises that you've made in your life always 00:07:51.529 --> 00:07:56.910 ever absolute? Bingo. God does. I'll take my 00:07:56.910 --> 00:08:00.769 hand down because I haven't. Hope begins not 00:08:00.769 --> 00:08:04.600 with our circumstances. Because I guarantee if 00:08:04.600 --> 00:08:06.860 you sat down with the people of Israel, all the 00:08:06.860 --> 00:08:09.220 bad things I just listed that were going on for 00:08:09.220 --> 00:08:12.399 them, my guess is the hope of a Messiah like 00:08:12.399 --> 00:08:14.399 Jesus was going to be wasn't going to be their 00:08:14.399 --> 00:08:17.779 first choice. Their hope was going to be in not 00:08:17.779 --> 00:08:21.240 going to exile. Not being beaten down by surrounding 00:08:21.240 --> 00:08:24.639 people groups. That the temple wouldn't be compromised. 00:08:24.800 --> 00:08:28.959 That they would live holy lives. But something 00:08:28.959 --> 00:08:32.340 needed to change. And it's a righteous branch. 00:08:33.210 --> 00:08:35.909 That he says. That he gives that message. God 00:08:35.909 --> 00:08:40.889 promises a branch from David. Right then and 00:08:40.889 --> 00:08:42.889 there. That's going to give people hope. Why? 00:08:42.990 --> 00:08:46.009 Because David was the king that they looked to. 00:08:47.659 --> 00:08:50.720 If you really read the prophets, that this shoot 00:08:50.720 --> 00:08:53.879 from David, this offshoot, this lineage of David 00:08:53.879 --> 00:08:56.019 was going to come a Messiah like they have never 00:08:56.019 --> 00:08:59.120 seen or heard before. A Messiah that would execute 00:08:59.120 --> 00:09:03.039 justice and righteousness. This is covenant language. 00:09:03.320 --> 00:09:06.299 God has been consistent in his covenant throughout 00:09:06.299 --> 00:09:12.980 history. God is reminding his people as they're 00:09:12.980 --> 00:09:15.279 sitting in the muck, in the mire of what is to 00:09:15.279 --> 00:09:18.490 come. The promise holds true. I have not abandoned 00:09:18.490 --> 00:09:23.029 what I promised. My covenant stands. My word 00:09:23.029 --> 00:09:27.990 remains. So now, fast forward that to your 2025. 00:09:28.450 --> 00:09:31.690 In the muck and mire you may find yourself today. 00:09:34.129 --> 00:09:36.730 Does that promise still give you hope? Does that 00:09:36.730 --> 00:09:40.090 promise still give you comfort? I have not abandoned 00:09:40.090 --> 00:09:43.409 what I promised. My covenant stands. My word 00:09:43.409 --> 00:09:47.409 remains. This continuity is called the covenant 00:09:47.409 --> 00:09:51.309 of grace. The way God weaves his story through 00:09:51.309 --> 00:09:54.789 Genesis, all the way through Malachi, into Bethlehem, 00:09:54.789 --> 00:10:00.049 onto Calvary, into the empty tomb. That you are 00:10:00.049 --> 00:10:02.789 a part of God's covenant. That God has called 00:10:02.789 --> 00:10:05.820 you. Not because you're awesome, not because 00:10:05.820 --> 00:10:08.679 I'm awesome, but that is what his covenant calls 00:10:08.679 --> 00:10:12.059 for us to recognize him as Lord and Savior and 00:10:12.059 --> 00:10:16.360 to live a life as holy as we can on this side 00:10:16.360 --> 00:10:20.659 of glory. Understanding that when we are asked 00:10:20.659 --> 00:10:23.559 what I declared in the beginning of Ida's service 00:10:23.559 --> 00:10:26.500 yesterday, the question that comes to us from 00:10:26.500 --> 00:10:29.879 the Heidelberg Catechism, Lord's Day One, what 00:10:29.879 --> 00:10:33.679 is your only comfort in life and in death? The 00:10:33.679 --> 00:10:38.240 covenant answer is not that I am my own and I 00:10:38.240 --> 00:10:43.759 do this all my way. No. It's I am not my own, 00:10:43.820 --> 00:10:47.320 but I belong, body and soul, in life and in death, 00:10:47.460 --> 00:10:50.460 to my faithful Savior, Jesus Christ. And then 00:10:50.460 --> 00:10:54.840 it lists the ways that that happens. Hope from 00:10:54.840 --> 00:10:59.139 the past means the God who promised is the God 00:10:59.139 --> 00:11:02.419 who will always deliver. But here's the thing. 00:11:02.559 --> 00:11:06.480 Some of us, I don't know if we buy it. We think 00:11:06.480 --> 00:11:08.539 that's a little hallmarky. That's a little kitschy. 00:11:08.659 --> 00:11:12.039 I don't know if I like that. The God who promises 00:11:12.039 --> 00:11:15.960 is the God who always delivers. Can we use always 00:11:15.960 --> 00:11:19.000 and never when it comes to God? Friend, hear 00:11:19.000 --> 00:11:23.019 me today. Absolutely we can. Guess what? You 00:11:23.019 --> 00:11:26.120 and I cannot. It's one of the biggest teachings 00:11:26.120 --> 00:11:28.980 I give in premarital counseling before the wedding 00:11:28.980 --> 00:11:30.980 and in marriage counseling afterwards. Because 00:11:30.980 --> 00:11:33.879 it's funny. They're taught not to use it in premarital. 00:11:34.000 --> 00:11:37.120 You can't say to your spouse, you always do that 00:11:37.120 --> 00:11:40.940 or you never do that. Right? Never a good idea. 00:11:41.279 --> 00:11:45.899 Okay? Don't do that. Yet as they get into their 00:11:45.899 --> 00:11:48.559 marriage, right, a couple years, a couple months, 00:11:48.659 --> 00:11:51.220 maybe an hour, all of a sudden it starts up again. 00:11:51.799 --> 00:11:56.620 You always do that. You never do that. And that 00:11:56.620 --> 00:11:59.019 doesn't help in conversation, doesn't it? It 00:11:59.019 --> 00:12:02.019 just shuts conversation down. But when it comes 00:12:02.019 --> 00:12:04.940 to God with what he promises, he will always 00:12:04.940 --> 00:12:09.039 deliver. That is the hope that Jeremiah is trying 00:12:09.039 --> 00:12:12.419 to bring to a broken people. You will not remain 00:12:12.419 --> 00:12:18.139 broken. God has not abandoned you. Let me ask 00:12:18.139 --> 00:12:19.779 today, how many of you may need to hear that 00:12:19.779 --> 00:12:22.500 today? Maybe not in the same way the Israelites 00:12:22.500 --> 00:12:26.240 did back in Jeremiah's day. But maybe you're 00:12:26.240 --> 00:12:29.700 at the end of your rope. Maybe you just can't 00:12:29.700 --> 00:12:33.720 seem to figure it out. Maybe sleep has escaped 00:12:33.720 --> 00:12:38.440 you because anxiety has set in. Have you forgotten 00:12:38.440 --> 00:12:41.820 that God will deliver you? But the hard part 00:12:41.820 --> 00:12:43.899 is, it might not be in the way we want it to 00:12:43.899 --> 00:12:46.840 go. That's pretty consistent in the Bible, isn't 00:12:46.840 --> 00:12:49.460 it? That God's going to show up the way God, 00:12:49.639 --> 00:12:53.659 the sovereign God, the creator God, decides to 00:12:53.659 --> 00:12:56.799 show up in your life. And when that differs from 00:12:56.799 --> 00:13:00.899 ours, sometimes it wavers our confidence or our 00:13:00.899 --> 00:13:04.019 assurance of our faith in God. Well, that's hope 00:13:04.019 --> 00:13:07.480 for the present. Right? Hope for the present 00:13:07.480 --> 00:13:12.379 means that we wait in confidence. You see, Jeremiah's 00:13:12.379 --> 00:13:16.500 audience had to wait. Where did we hear that 00:13:16.500 --> 00:13:19.000 about two and a half months ago? Where did we 00:13:19.000 --> 00:13:22.879 hear the waiting? Does anyone remember? Go ahead. 00:13:24.259 --> 00:13:27.259 Yeah, the church. He was calling the church, 00:13:27.440 --> 00:13:30.120 Acts chapter 1, but they were told to wait for 00:13:30.120 --> 00:13:33.519 the Holy Spirit. That part of a Christian's life 00:13:33.519 --> 00:13:37.600 is waiting. In uncertainty, in fear, maybe even 00:13:37.600 --> 00:13:43.480 in longing, we might be called to wait. We wait 00:13:43.480 --> 00:13:46.080 for the news to change. We wait for the marriage 00:13:46.080 --> 00:13:48.980 to heal. We wait for that prodigal to return. 00:13:49.379 --> 00:13:53.299 We wait for clarity about futures. We wait for 00:13:53.299 --> 00:13:56.220 answers to prayer. We wait on direction from 00:13:56.220 --> 00:14:00.779 God. Let's be honest. Our waiting often feels 00:14:00.779 --> 00:14:04.600 like silence, doesn't it? But Advent tells us 00:14:04.600 --> 00:14:09.960 that waiting is not empty. Waiting is, in fact, 00:14:10.259 --> 00:14:15.419 discipleship. Let that wreck your week, month, 00:14:15.519 --> 00:14:20.320 year, whatever. I don't like to wait. Yes, it 00:14:20.320 --> 00:14:22.720 would be better if my relationship with God was 00:14:22.720 --> 00:14:25.519 more like Burger King's motto, right? My way, 00:14:25.519 --> 00:14:28.100 right away, at my relationship with Christ now. 00:14:28.419 --> 00:14:31.740 It's not like that. That we are called to wait. 00:14:32.159 --> 00:14:35.019 And if you struggle with that, come and join 00:14:35.019 --> 00:14:37.919 me. That means the Lord's teaching us patience. 00:14:38.679 --> 00:14:43.330 How many of us are patient? Oh, I thought at 00:14:43.330 --> 00:14:44.669 least a couple of you would raise your hand. 00:14:44.750 --> 00:14:46.350 We have a lot of work to do. We'll get there. 00:14:46.970 --> 00:14:49.970 But Advent tells us waiting is not empty. Waiting 00:14:49.970 --> 00:14:53.549 is discipleship. That's why Advent, the waiting 00:14:53.549 --> 00:14:56.649 we do in Advent, is not a passive waiting. It's 00:14:56.649 --> 00:15:00.490 active. That when we wait on the Lord, it's actually 00:15:00.490 --> 00:15:04.389 an active thing. That means we're seeking. That 00:15:04.389 --> 00:15:06.769 means we're studying. That means we're praying. 00:15:07.370 --> 00:15:09.649 When we're in that season of waiting, it's a 00:15:09.649 --> 00:15:11.929 lot easier for us to just kind of turn all that 00:15:11.929 --> 00:15:15.309 off. When God says, no, lock it in. Let's dig 00:15:15.309 --> 00:15:19.149 down, dig deep. Scripture never calls us to passively 00:15:19.149 --> 00:15:21.690 wait. Never to sit in the corner and just hope 00:15:21.690 --> 00:15:24.809 that things will magically get better. Advent 00:15:24.809 --> 00:15:28.690 waiting is active. And here's a list of those 00:15:28.690 --> 00:15:33.009 activities. We wait with obedience. We wait with 00:15:33.009 --> 00:15:36.960 prayer. We wait with repentance. We wait with 00:15:36.960 --> 00:15:41.399 expectation. We wait trusting the promises of 00:15:41.399 --> 00:15:43.940 God. Because here is something that I was told 00:15:43.940 --> 00:15:46.860 years ago in the beginning of my ministry. That 00:15:46.860 --> 00:15:51.159 God will not bless until he knows we're ready 00:15:51.159 --> 00:15:55.059 for the blessing. Now, I could probably fight 00:15:55.059 --> 00:15:57.860 that theologically. I may be able to argue that 00:15:57.860 --> 00:16:00.299 from a scripture point of view. But I'm probably 00:16:00.299 --> 00:16:04.230 wrong. That if God is ready to bless you. the 00:16:04.230 --> 00:16:06.169 first thing you have to understand is that blessing 00:16:06.169 --> 00:16:10.529 might not be what you want it to be. And we need 00:16:10.529 --> 00:16:13.070 to be able to discern that. We need to be able 00:16:13.070 --> 00:16:16.789 to have that perspective. That is why the L piece, 00:16:17.049 --> 00:16:19.210 that hope that we're going to talk about for 00:16:19.210 --> 00:16:23.070 the next four weeks, rests not in things, not 00:16:23.070 --> 00:16:26.870 in an idea, but in a person. Because through 00:16:26.870 --> 00:16:30.169 the person of Christ, our hope and our waiting 00:16:30.169 --> 00:16:34.529 is fulfilled. Paul says in Romans 5, we rejoice 00:16:34.529 --> 00:16:38.570 in hope of the glory of God because God's love 00:16:38.570 --> 00:16:41.509 has been poured into our hearts through the work 00:16:41.509 --> 00:16:45.309 of the Holy Spirit. Advent hope is a present 00:16:45.309 --> 00:16:49.610 tense strength. We have the hope now to wait. 00:16:49.950 --> 00:16:53.110 We look at that as passive or a negative. It's 00:16:53.110 --> 00:16:56.730 not. It's positive. Be waiting in that hope. 00:16:56.850 --> 00:17:02.700 Be waiting to see God work. Because when Jeremiah 00:17:02.700 --> 00:17:06.039 promises a righteous branch who will bring justice 00:17:06.039 --> 00:17:09.960 and righteousness, he is pointing to that only 00:17:09.960 --> 00:17:15.180 high priest. That Messiah's prophetic and priestly 00:17:15.180 --> 00:17:19.359 work is going to begin. But guess what? The Sermon 00:17:19.359 --> 00:17:21.619 on the Mount doesn't happen the day after Jesus 00:17:21.619 --> 00:17:25.660 is born. But in the most lowly of places, in 00:17:25.660 --> 00:17:30.259 a feeding trough in a barn, the Son of God is 00:17:30.259 --> 00:17:35.339 born. I wish we had more kind of insights of 00:17:35.339 --> 00:17:37.759 Jesus' childhood. We have a little, not a lot. 00:17:39.420 --> 00:17:41.759 But then we see him come on the scene in his 00:17:41.759 --> 00:17:45.059 baptism, his temptation in the wilderness, his 00:17:45.059 --> 00:17:48.539 healings, his miracles, his sermons. You see, 00:17:48.559 --> 00:17:51.700 the Heidelberg Catechism 31 reminds us that this 00:17:51.700 --> 00:17:54.640 Jesus that we're waiting for, that we find our 00:17:54.640 --> 00:17:58.700 hope in, is prophet, priest, and king. He is 00:17:58.700 --> 00:18:03.119 prophet. He reveals who God is. He reveals who 00:18:03.119 --> 00:18:07.420 God is to us. He is our priest, meaning he intercedes 00:18:07.420 --> 00:18:13.119 and sacrifices for us. The cross. And he is the 00:18:13.119 --> 00:18:18.809 king who rules and protects us. So what aspect 00:18:18.809 --> 00:18:22.009 of Jesus do you need today? As you look back 00:18:22.009 --> 00:18:24.390 on a month that was, you look to a very busy 00:18:24.390 --> 00:18:29.089 month to come. Does Christ need to reveal to 00:18:29.089 --> 00:18:32.009 you more of who God is in your life? The biggest 00:18:32.009 --> 00:18:34.450 revelation, if we're calling a spade a spade, 00:18:34.470 --> 00:18:37.869 is that God is God and we are not. God is big 00:18:37.869 --> 00:18:41.349 and we are little. That's how it should be. Maybe 00:18:41.349 --> 00:18:44.660 you need that priest. Maybe you just need that 00:18:44.660 --> 00:18:47.559 intercession, those sins, that crying out that 00:18:47.559 --> 00:18:49.819 you're doing, trying to make sense of it yourself. 00:18:50.019 --> 00:18:52.779 You need to throw on the two -by -fours of the 00:18:52.779 --> 00:18:55.960 cross and recognize that Christ already died 00:18:55.960 --> 00:19:00.500 for that. He died for you. Or do you need the 00:19:00.500 --> 00:19:03.559 king? Do you need to understand that you are 00:19:03.559 --> 00:19:07.180 not the ruler of your life? That you aren't the 00:19:07.180 --> 00:19:10.519 center of that. That God hems you in front and 00:19:10.519 --> 00:19:15.720 back and side to side and he protects you. Because 00:19:15.720 --> 00:19:19.519 that is our peace. That is our hope. Because 00:19:19.519 --> 00:19:23.059 Jesus is all three for us. Hope for the present 00:19:23.059 --> 00:19:29.539 is grounded in Christ's ongoing work. Just because 00:19:29.539 --> 00:19:31.640 he has ascended into glory doesn't mean he's 00:19:31.640 --> 00:19:35.029 not at work anymore. But it's something that 00:19:35.029 --> 00:19:38.910 we look forward to in the future. Our peace is 00:19:38.910 --> 00:19:42.269 hope for the future. The Lord is our righteousness. 00:19:42.450 --> 00:19:46.230 Jeremiah ends with a phrase that echoes the whole 00:19:46.230 --> 00:19:50.049 history of redemption. And this is the name by 00:19:50.049 --> 00:19:54.630 which he will be called. The Lord is our righteousness. 00:19:54.950 --> 00:19:58.970 Why is that important? Why is righteousness so 00:19:58.970 --> 00:20:02.799 important? Because that is what... What God sees 00:20:02.799 --> 00:20:07.200 over you. Instead of seeing all your dirty laundry, 00:20:07.539 --> 00:20:10.859 all your muck and your mire, all of my muck and 00:20:10.859 --> 00:20:14.480 mire, Christ imputes his righteousness onto us. 00:20:14.720 --> 00:20:18.539 So when God looks at us, he sees Christ's righteousness. 00:20:18.740 --> 00:20:21.400 So let me ask, how are you walking that out? 00:20:21.940 --> 00:20:27.339 Ouch. That is very convicting for me. How am 00:20:27.339 --> 00:20:31.079 I walking out Christ's righteousness? There are 00:20:31.079 --> 00:20:33.940 days I don't do a good job of that, and I'm sure 00:20:33.940 --> 00:20:38.140 you're walking that with me. This is not poetic 00:20:38.140 --> 00:20:42.099 fluff, my friends. This is the gospel. This is 00:20:42.099 --> 00:20:45.900 hope facing forward because Christ is our righteousness. 00:20:46.240 --> 00:20:49.720 This is justification. His righteousness is counted 00:20:49.720 --> 00:20:55.140 as ours. Our sins are counted unto him. I'm not 00:20:55.140 --> 00:20:56.960 going to lie. That's not a fair trade, is it? 00:20:57.579 --> 00:21:01.480 We offer Christ nothing, yet he gives us everything 00:21:01.480 --> 00:21:06.440 in his life, death, and resurrection. Our hope 00:21:06.440 --> 00:21:09.579 is that Christ is coming again. We are in a post 00:21:09.579 --> 00:21:12.839 -ascension society. That's where we are in history. 00:21:13.119 --> 00:21:16.299 Advent is not only about Bethlehem, it looks 00:21:16.299 --> 00:21:19.779 forward as well as backward. We don't just remember 00:21:19.779 --> 00:21:23.420 his first coming, we prepare for his second coming. 00:21:24.000 --> 00:21:26.079 And here's the thing, none of us know when that's 00:21:26.079 --> 00:21:32.049 going to be. But if it were to be tomorrow, are 00:21:32.049 --> 00:21:36.049 you right with the Lord? Because Christ will 00:21:36.049 --> 00:21:38.549 put all things right. That's the third point 00:21:38.549 --> 00:21:40.970 of his righteousness. The righteous branch will 00:21:40.970 --> 00:21:44.210 bring a righteous judgment, a righteous restoration, 00:21:44.569 --> 00:21:50.309 and a righteous peace to all of his people. That's 00:21:50.309 --> 00:21:53.230 why Paul calls Jesus our blessed hope in Titus 00:21:53.230 --> 00:21:57.079 chapter 2. In a broken world, in a violent world, 00:21:57.240 --> 00:22:00.359 in an anxious world, in a world that feels like 00:22:00.359 --> 00:22:03.359 exile, if we're honest, the future of God's people 00:22:03.359 --> 00:22:09.839 is not fear, but peace, but hope. Not darkness, 00:22:09.859 --> 00:22:17.259 but light. Not defeat, but victory. So as we 00:22:17.259 --> 00:22:20.400 land the plane today, I want us to think about 00:22:20.400 --> 00:22:25.039 Advent as a cross -shaped... That understanding 00:22:25.039 --> 00:22:29.160 that he was born to die. As we begin Advent 2025, 00:22:29.619 --> 00:22:32.519 let's root ourselves not just in the manger, 00:22:32.720 --> 00:22:36.299 but in the mission that Christ has for all of 00:22:36.299 --> 00:22:39.859 us. You were born to die so one day I could pray 00:22:39.859 --> 00:22:44.539 to you to save my life. Let that wreck your day 00:22:44.539 --> 00:22:47.859 today. Let that kind of take in your thoughts 00:22:47.859 --> 00:22:50.359 of what you thought the week was going to be. 00:22:50.990 --> 00:22:53.829 The manger and the cross are made of the same 00:22:53.829 --> 00:22:57.930 wood. Bethlehem is already pointing to Calvary. 00:22:58.450 --> 00:23:01.549 Hope comes wrapped in flesh and laid in a feeding 00:23:01.549 --> 00:23:05.410 trough because our Savior was born to die, rise, 00:23:05.609 --> 00:23:10.069 reign, and return. That is the mission of Advent. 00:23:11.630 --> 00:23:17.170 So let's wait. Let's wait together. How should 00:23:17.170 --> 00:23:20.970 we do that? Well, Let's spend some time this 00:23:20.970 --> 00:23:24.970 month to look back. God has always been faithful. 00:23:25.769 --> 00:23:29.430 He fulfills his promises in the person of Jesus. 00:23:30.730 --> 00:23:34.869 Let us stand in the present. Christ is our prophet, 00:23:34.990 --> 00:23:39.210 our priest, and our king right now, in this moment. 00:23:40.130 --> 00:23:43.750 And we trust him for our waiting. And then together, 00:23:43.869 --> 00:23:47.359 let's look forward. He will come again. He will 00:23:47.359 --> 00:23:50.380 make all things new. Hope has a name, and his 00:23:50.380 --> 00:23:56.119 name is Jesus. So this week, Munster Church, 00:23:56.299 --> 00:24:02.039 as we enter Advent, not with frantic busyness, 00:24:02.059 --> 00:24:07.279 wishness, or seasonal stress, but let's sit in 00:24:07.279 --> 00:24:12.140 holy anticipation. The Lord is our righteousness. 00:24:12.480 --> 00:24:17.400 He keeps his promises. He will forever be our 00:24:17.400 --> 00:24:20.140 hope. Let's pray.