Embracing the True Gift of Advent: Hope in Christ

**Bible Study Discussion Guide: The Promised Hope of Advent**

**Bible Reading:**
1. Isaiah 7:14 - "Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel."
2. Luke 1:26-38 - The Annunciation to Mary by the angel Gabriel.
3. Romans 5:8-11 - "But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us."

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**Observation Questions:**

1. What is the significance of the name "Immanuel" as mentioned in Isaiah 7:14, and how does it relate to the message of Advent? [47:41]

2. In Luke 1:26-38, how does Mary respond to the angel Gabriel's message, and what does this reveal about her character?

3. According to Romans 5:8-11, what does God's demonstration of love through Christ's sacrifice mean for humanity?

4. How does the sermon describe the importance of focusing on the true meaning of Advent amidst the holiday traditions? [07:00]

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**Interpretation Questions:**

1. How does the prophecy in Isaiah 7:14 serve as a sign of God's faithfulness, and why is this important for believers today? [40:49]

2. What does Mary's response to the angel in Luke 1:38 teach us about obedience and trust in God's plan, even when it seems impossible? [49:33]

3. In what ways does the sermon suggest that the hope found in Jesus transcends life's challenges and circumstances? [01:01:20]

4. How does the concept of reconciliation through Jesus, as discussed in Romans 5:8-11, impact our understanding of God's love and grace? [58:52]

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**Application Questions:**

1. Reflect on the material aspects of Christmas in your life. How can you ensure that they do not overshadow the true meaning of Advent this year? [07:00]

2. Consider a promise from God that you are holding onto. How does the fulfillment of the prophecy in Isaiah 7:14 encourage you to trust in God's faithfulness?

3. Mary showed remarkable faith and obedience in her response to the angel. What is one area in your life where you need to trust God's plan more fully, even if it seems impossible? [49:33]

4. The sermon emphasizes the hope found in Jesus during times of despair. How can you share this hope with someone facing a difficult situation this week? [01:01:20]

5. Reconciliation is a key theme in the sermon. Is there a relationship in your life that needs reconciliation? What steps can you take to initiate this process, following God's example? [58:52]

6. How can you incorporate the message of "God with us" into your daily life, especially during moments of struggle or uncertainty? [47:41]

7. Identify one way you can focus on the eternal gifts of purpose, meaning, and forgiveness that Jesus brings, rather than the temporary material gifts of the holiday season. [07:00]

Day 1: The Eternal Gifts of Advent
The Advent season invites believers to focus on the profound gifts that Jesus Christ brings into our lives. These gifts—purpose, meaning, significance, forgiveness, and wholeness—are eternal and surpass any material possessions exchanged during the holiday season. As we prepare for Christmas, it is crucial to remember that the true essence of this celebration is not found in decorations or traditions but in the birth of Jesus, the Messiah. This season is a time to reflect on the transformative power of Christ's presence in our lives and to embrace the spiritual richness He offers. [12:46]

"For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable." (Romans 11:29, ESV)

Reflection: What is one eternal gift from Jesus that you need to embrace more fully in your life today, and how can you make space to receive it?


Day 2: God's Unwavering Faithfulness
The birth of Jesus, as foretold by the prophet Isaiah, is a testament to God's unwavering faithfulness in keeping His promises. This miraculous event serves as a powerful reminder that God is a promise-keeper, offering hope and assurance to His people. In a world where promises are often broken, God's promises stand firm, providing a foundation of trust and hope. As we reflect on the Advent season, let us be encouraged by the certainty of God's faithfulness and His commitment to fulfilling His word. [40:49]

"Know therefore that the Lord your God is God, the faithful God who keeps covenant and steadfast love with those who love him and keep his commandments, to a thousand generations." (Deuteronomy 7:9, ESV)

Reflection: Consider a promise from God that you are holding onto. How does His faithfulness encourage you to trust Him more deeply in this area?


Day 3: Emmanuel: God With Us
The name Emmanuel, meaning "God with us," signifies that God is not distant but actively involved in our lives. This presence offers comfort and hope, especially in times of struggle and uncertainty. The Advent season is a reminder that God chose to dwell among us through Jesus, offering His presence as a source of strength and peace. In moments of difficulty, we can find solace in knowing that God is with us, walking alongside us and providing the support we need. [47:41]

"The Lord your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing." (Zephaniah 3:17, ESV)

Reflection: In what area of your life do you need to be reminded of God's presence today, and how can you invite Him into that space?


Day 4: Reconciliation Through Jesus
Jesus' sacrifice on the cross provides the ultimate hope of reconciliation with God. This offer of reconciliation is available to all, demonstrating God's immense love and desire for a restored relationship with humanity. The Advent season is a time to reflect on the significance of this reconciliation and the new life it brings. Through Jesus, we are invited into a relationship with God that is marked by grace, forgiveness, and love. Let us embrace this gift and seek to live in harmony with God and others. [58:52]

"All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation." (2 Corinthians 5:18, ESV)

Reflection: Is there a relationship in your life that needs reconciliation? How can you take a step towards healing and restoration today?


Day 5: Hope in Times of Despair
The hope found in Jesus is crucial when facing life's challenges, such as illness or loss. This hope is not dependent on circumstances but is rooted in the eternal promise of life with God, offering peace and assurance even in the darkest times. As we celebrate the Advent season, let us hold onto the hope that Jesus provides, allowing it to guide us through difficulties and bring light to our lives. This hope is a reminder that we are never alone and that God's promises extend beyond our present struggles. [01:01:20]

"But this I call to mind, and therefore I have hope: The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness." (Lamentations 3:21-23, ESV)

Reflection: What is one challenge you are currently facing, and how can the hope of Jesus bring you peace and assurance in this situation?

Thank you. Good morning again, everyone. It's so good to see you all here today. Welcome to Smyrna Campus. We love you guys. Glad you are connected here. And everybody joining us online, we're happy to have this time together with you.

This is the first Sunday of what traditionally in the church has been called Advent. It's the celebration leading into the Christmas celebration of the arrival of the Messiah. I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving with family and friends. But I know not all families get to get together for Thanksgiving, and it's hard to get everybody together sometimes. And maybe you didn't get to do that.

It reminded me of what I read about a guy named Art. It said this: Art called his son in New York and he said, "Dean, I've got something to tell you. However, I don't want to discuss it. I'm merely telling you because you're my oldest child and I thought you ought to know. I've made up my mind and I'm divorcing your mother."

The son is shocked and asked his father to tell him what happened. He said, "I don't want to get into it. My mind is made up."

"But Dad, you just can't decide to divorce Mama just like that after 54 years together! What happened?"

He said, "It's too painful to talk about it. I only called you because you're my son and I thought you should know. I really don't want to get into it any more than this. You can call your sister and tell her. It will spare me the pain."

"Well, where's Mama? Can I talk to her?"

He said, "No, I don't want you to say anything to her about it. I haven't even told her yet. Believe me, it hasn't been easy. I've agonized over it for several days and I've finally come to a decision. I have an appointment with a lawyer the day after tomorrow."

"Dad, don't do anything rash! I'm going to take the first flight down. Promise me that you won't do anything until I get there."

"Well, alright, I promise. Next week is Thanksgiving. I'll hold off seeing the lawyer until after Thanksgiving. Call your sister in New Jersey. Break the news to her. I just can't bear to talk about it anymore."

About a half hour later, Art received a phone call from his daughter who says that she and her brother were able to get tickets and they and the children will be arriving in Florida the day after tomorrow. "Dean told me that you don't want to talk about it on the telephone, but promise me that you won't do anything until we both get there."

Art promises. After hanging up from his daughter, Art turned to his wife and said, "Well, it worked this time. But we're going to have to come up with a new idea to get them here for Christmas."

So I know sometimes it's a struggle to get the family together. But I hope you had a good Thanksgiving. My wife and I really enjoyed our Thanksgiving celebration, and we love the fact that we can celebrate all that we have to be thankful for. Now we should do that every day, right? But it's good to have a focused time as a country where people are invited to that giving of thanks for all the blessings that we have.

Traditionally, after Thanksgiving, as we head into December, that's when the church begins to see us as a season of preparation for God's people to fully embrace the coming of Jesus Christ, His birth, and His life. It's one of my favorite times of the year. I just love the decorating, and I love to see the lights. I love when my neighbors decorate and all that. Except sometimes it puts the pressure on me to get my decorations up if they get theirs up ahead of time.

I had this one neighbor right across the street from us this year that put up his elaborate thing before Thanksgiving, and I thought, "That's just great! It's way too early." But that puts—I started thinking, "Well, I gotta get mine up now," right? It just gets that idea in your head. You don't want to be too late with it.

So I still don't have all mine up. We did get our tree up and get it decorated yesterday, so we're happy to be able to get that part done. But I haven't done anything else yet. But I hope you enjoy it as much as I do. I love the idea of the fun foods that we have during the holidays. I love the idea of finding the right gifts for people that are special to us, that we want to give gifts to, trying to think through what would be the right thing for them.

Now, I have to tell you, my wife does most all of that. I just get to tag along and have fun with it, and she does all the hard parts. I'm so grateful that she does that part.

But here's what I want us to do with this message series, this Advent series that we're starting today. I want us to be sure we don't lose our focus on what it's really all about. Every year it's a real effort. It has to be a real intentional effort on our part to remember what's really being celebrated here.

Because even the best of the advertisements out there, those tear-jerking ads that you see at Christmas to get you to think about family and friends and all of that, all those things are good. And I love the traditions and the decorations and all of that. But friends, if there wasn't a single present under the tree this year, we have something to celebrate.

It cannot become a blessing about all the material stuff. If it does, we've missed completely what we're supposed to be focused on in this Advent season leading up to Christmas. And so many families just feel too much pressure to make it about making sure everybody gets everything they want on their list, when in fact the greatest gifts, the most important gifts, have already arrived.

They've arrived through Jesus. The gifts that last forever—not the electronics, not the toys, not the jewelry—but things like purpose and meaning and significance and forgiveness and wholeness. They're all right there available for every one of us because of the Advent of Jesus, because of His arrival, because of His life and His death and His resurrection.

So as much as it feels good to do those gifts—and it does, I know I have a lot of joy out of that—I don't want more than anything else for people to recognize the greatest gift of all in Jesus Christ.

I appreciate everybody that's been helping out with the outreach we've been doing this Christmas. I know at the Smyrna campus with the Eagle Tree Stocking Drive, and I know here at the Antioch campus with the tree with Youth for Christ. People have been so generous, and it's been so wonderful to see that.

But remember, even while we're doing that and helping make it a little nicer Christmas in that way for a lot of people, the greatest thing you can do for people is help them find their hope in Jesus. It's to help them find their way to know and follow Jesus. That matters more than anything else.

When we place our faith in Jesus Christ, these gifts—the greatest gifts, the most important gifts—are ours through Him, no matter what circumstances we're in, no matter what situation we find ourselves in.

So we begin this series today with a message entitled "The Promised Hope" that we celebrate this Advent season. And there are three sources of hope I want us to focus on today that are just foundational to Scripture.

The first one is that the signs of God give us hope. God gave His people these signs to look forward to, to see, to know that He was fulfilling His promises, that He was keeping His promises to His people.

We live in a world, don't we, where people let us down. They don't fulfill their promises all the time. Sometimes it's through no fault of their own. They really intended to do it, but something happens and they can't do it. But a lot of times, people casually make a promise and don't even think twice about not following through on it.

So when God made His promise to His people that the Messiah, the Anointed One, would come, it filled them with hope of God being a God who would keep that promise through all the circumstances that God's people had lived through, through all the challenges, through all the suffering, through all the good and the bad. They held on to this hope that God had promised them a Messiah.

The word Messiah means Anointed One, set apart, one deliverer of His people. That's what God promised that He would do for His people way back almost 800 years before the time of the birth of Jesus in Isaiah chapter 7 and verse 14. God said to His people, God spoke through the prophet Isaiah, and here's what He said: "Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign."

He said, "The Lord Himself." He's making an emphasis there. This is from God Himself giving you this sign. Now here's the sign: "The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son and will call Him Emmanuel."

Now, if you're thinking about a sign, it needs to be something that people would notice, right? If you don't have a sign that anybody notices, then you've wasted your time with a sign. It has to be something that gets people's attention. That's why they sell advertising space on billboards in these primary locations that they know people will see.

So many cars will drive by and they will see that billboard every single day. So the ones that get the most traffic, they can sell for the highest price that space. And they can sell for the highest price, and they look for ways to do that on social media. How can we put something out there that will get the most clicks, the most attention, the most views, the most responses?

So God Himself is going to give His people a sign that He's a God who keeps His promises, and He's going to keep this promise of sending a Messiah, a Savior, a Deliverer for those who are lost in sin, which includes all of us as well. It was meant to give them something to hope for as they waited for the fulfillment, something to look forward to, something to be watching for as they lived their lives going through the struggles that they had to go through.

Remember, you can't live long on this earth with the curse of sin on this planet without going through some challenges and some struggles. What's going to give you the hope as you go through those things? What's going to keep you holding on and moving forward and using your life for all the good purposes God designed it to be used for?

There has to be something that gives you that hope to get through those things and still have joy and peace through those challenges that you're going to face. Some of you are going through some really tough ones right now. Some of you have gone through some really hard things in the past.

But God's sign that a virgin would conceive and give birth to a son, that he would be Emmanuel, is a place of hope for you, no matter what circumstances you're in. It's the thing that can give you that hope that you really need.

So hundreds of years before Mary and Joseph ever came to Bethlehem, hundreds of years before there was ever a crowded inn and a dusty old stable, God had spoken hope through the prophets into the lives of His people. He's coming—a deliverer, a savior. He's on the way. It's in the plan. I've made a promise. I'm God. I told you I'm going to do this, and I'm going to keep my promise.

Look at the sign: A virgin will conceive and give birth. Do you think that might be a sign that stands out a little bit? Do you think that might get attention? Do you think that might cause people to realize, "You know what? Only God could do something like this."

You see, if it was a sign that could be explained any other way, it wouldn't have served the purpose God wanted it to serve, right? God wanted it to serve. It had to be something that when the people saw this and heard this and people talked about this, they had to think, "That's impossible."

That's exactly the point. That's exactly why God was doing it this way. If it hadn't been impossible, they would have written it off as coincidence or something else, but they would not have believed it was from God. It had to be something impossible.

I love the critics who say, "Oh, that's impossible. A virgin could not conceive and give birth to a child. That's an impossibility." And I always say, "You got it! That's great! I'm so glad you realize that." Because the fact is, it is impossible, except that with God, nothing is impossible.

The only explanation is it had to be God. There is no other explanation for this. It had to be God doing this. And so this sign is something that—it had to be something that doesn't happen every day or has never happened before or since. It had to be a miracle, and this miracle would indicate that it was of God and not of man.

So this woman would give birth to a son and give him the name Emmanuel. Well, I love when we see God keeping His promises. Hundreds of years later, over in the Gospel of Luke, look at Luke chapter 1, beginning in verse 26. You're familiar, I'm sure, with this Christmas narrative here from Luke.

In the sixth month of Elizabeth's pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin's name was Mary. The angel went to her and said, "Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you."

Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. Now, you know, you've heard me talk about this before if you've been coming to Lakeshore for a long time. But when an angel appeared, it was not always something that immediately they would recognize as a welcome sight.

We picture the angels as these sweet cherubs with their white robes and the wings and all that. Read the descriptions of the angels in Scripture. It's not like that. Angels were warrior creatures, mighty creatures, and they would just suddenly appear. Many times in Scripture, we have that record of them suddenly appearing. It would be a frightening thing to have that happen to you all of a sudden.

And then he says, "She's highly favored and that the Lord is with her." She's got to be—her mind is spinning, her mind is racing. "What is he—this angel here to tell me? What is going on here?"

So it says, "The angel said to her, 'Do not be afraid, Mary.'" I love that. Look at the accounts when the angels appear. Almost always, almost always when it's for a good reason, one of the first things they tell the people is, "Don't be afraid."

Now, why would they have to say that? Because they were what? They were afraid. I love it when people say, "I would just love to see the angels." Be careful what you wish for, right? It might be a scary thing.

Now, this time he's here for a good thing, but it is still a scary thing. It's both of those things at the same time. "Do not be afraid, Mary. You found favor with God." Well, I'm glad he started led with that, right? You found favor with God.

This is not judgment. This is not some kind of punishment. This is not retribution of any kind. You have actually found favor with God. Think about this: What's the greatest compliment that you could have? That you find favor with God. What's more important than that in how you're living your life?

What you're doing with your time, your resources, your energy, your gifts, your abilities? Have you found favor with God with how you're doing that, with what you're doing with your life? There's no greater thing than that—to find favor with God.

It says in verse 31, "You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus because he will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High." The word Jesus means one who saves or delivers. Jesus means, "Wow!"

So we know that the angel is telling her that something really important is going to happen, and God's going to use her as the means through which this is going to happen. "He will be great and be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David. He will reign over Jacob's descendants forever. His kingdom will never end."

This is not a normal earthly kingdom. You know what? Before that, not a single kingdom on earth had lasted forever. They were man-made earthly kingdoms. Those kingdoms always end. They always fail. They always crumble in the end.

We tend to—every generation, I think, tends to think if things are going well where we live and the government that we have and all that, it's doing pretty good. We tend to think that's going to be that way forever. But no kingdom, no societal structure has lasted forever for eternity. Not one has lasted the whole time.

But this kingdom that this child is going to rule over will be an eternal kingdom. Now, they're going to have a hard time grasping that, right? Because you don't have anything to compare that to. There's nothing like it. There never has been anything like that. There never will be anything else like that.

So there's nothing that we can point to and say, "Oh, it's going to be like that." There is nothing like that. So they were going to struggle even for the rest of the time, even after Jesus came, to understand the nature of the kingdom that he came to bring—that it was going to be this earthly kingdom but was more than an earthly kingdom.

It was going to be a kingdom that was beyond this temporary earth and our existence here. It was going to be an eternal kingdom. It says, "Verse 34, Mary asked him, 'How can this be since I am a virgin?'"

Mary understands how things work. She understands that what the angel is describing here is what? It's impossible. That can't happen. That's not the way life works. That's not the way life is conceived. That's not the way life is brought into the world. It doesn't work like that.

And so she's trying to figure out how this could possibly be, and she's trying to figure out that what the angel is saying is actually going to happen. Verse 35, "The angel answered, 'The Holy Spirit will come on you. The power of the Most High will overshadow you.'"

So far, she still doesn't understand how this is going to work because when the angel says these words, nothing like that has ever happened either. So she doesn't know exactly what it is the angel is describing or how it's going to work the way the angel is telling it to her.

She again has no point of reference because this has not happened before or since. And so she's still, I'm sure her mind is racing. The angel says, "The power of the Most High will overshadow you, so the Holy One to be born will be called the Son of God."

Who's going to be the father of this child? God. "Even Elizabeth, your relative, is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be unable to conceive is in her sixth month."

She has a relative that was said to be barren. She's beyond childbearing years, who now miraculously is expecting a baby in her sixth month of pregnancy. When Mary gets this announcement, that's how most people—scholars believe that John, who would be Elizabeth's child, John the Baptist, we later know him as, was six months older than Jesus because when the angel appeared, Elizabeth was already six months along in her pregnancy.

So John was a little bit six months ahead of the birth of Jesus. Now, it could have been a little bit—not exactly six months, but around that range according to what the Scripture says here. But then look at verse 37. The angel adds this: "For no word from God will ever what?"

Does that give you hope? No word from God will ever what? Fail. Any of it? Any part of it? No. No word from God will ever fail. When God said almost 800 years before this that a virgin was going to conceive and give birth to a son, no word from God will ever fail.

It may not be in the time of God. I mean, we think it may not be in the circumstances we think. It may not look like we think it's going to look. But no word from God will ever what? Fail. Not one word of God will ever fail.

Even when it seems impossible, even when it would take a miracle, no word from God will ever what? Fail. What a reminder! The angel is reassuring Mary that because God has said this and determined this and planned this, it will not fail. It will happen just like God says it's going to happen.

And I love Mary's response. It's one that is so powerful and it reveals so much of her character, of who she was at this time. Now remember, Mary is a very young teenager at this time. All the scholars agree she had to be an extremely young teenager at this point in her life, just recently engaged to Joseph.

And most young ladies in that time were engaged as a young teenager. So most likely, she's a very young teenage girl. And already she's at a place where this is her response to an impossibility that God says is going to happen: "I am the Lord's servant," Mary answered. "May your word to me be fulfilled."

Then the angel left her. And the actual phrase "May your word to me be fulfilled" is said in the original Greek language here that means it's a done deal, and I'm accepting it that this is what's going to happen.

"I am going to be obedient, God, to the way you want to use me in this redemption story for the world." I love how submissive she immediately is to what God's plan is for her life.

When I think about myself, when I think about so many others that I work with and serve with as a pastor, I know the battles that we go through sometimes fighting against God's will for our lives, how we resist it so many times, how we still somehow think doing it a different way will be better.

But what's Mary's first response? "I'm yours, God. Whatever you want to do with my life, that's what I want too." Even when it seems impossible, if God says, "I want you to do it this way," the response He's looking for is having a heart like Mary's heart when the angel came to her that day.

Even when it seems like, "I don't understand why that needs to happen that way. Why, God, that's your will? Why you would teach that that's the way it has to be done?" It's just to say, "May your will be done, Father, in my life. Let's do it your way, God. That's going to be best."

That's when miracles happen. That's when miracles begin to take place. It's when we trust that no word from God ever what? Fails. Not a single one.

When you trust that, it gives you hope for your life, no matter what you're facing. It gives you hope, which leads to the second source of hope, and that is the idea of God with us gives us hope.

Let's go back to the prophet Isaiah almost 800 years before Jesus comes. In Isaiah 7:14, "Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a what?" A sign. What's the sign? "The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son."

So there's your sign. And he says, "And we'll call him." What's the name? Emmanuel. It's a Hebrew word name that means God with us. It doesn't mean God out there somewhere observing us. It means what? God with us.

So many people think of God as a God far off, a God far removed, a God way out there somewhere looking down at us. But God said, "This child that's coming, that's coming to us, going to come in this miraculous way, is actually God Himself coming to us in this way through this child."

The amazing thing is that God is going to be with us. And here's the thing: When creation cried out for help, God did not tell us, "Well, you just need to get your act together and do better." That's not what God did.

When we sin, when we fail, when we rebelled against Him, God didn't just leave us on our own to work it out. You know why? Because we could never work it out. We could never undo our sin and make things right again.

So instead of leaving us in that state, God saw that all that He had made and all that He had made needed to be rescued, and He made the first move toward us. Isn't that amazing? He didn't wait for us to come to Him. He didn't wait for us to get our act together and say, "Oh God, we're sorry. Please help us. Please forgive us."

He took the initiative. Now here's the thing: When Adam and Eve rebelled in the garden, God already had the plan to come to us. It happened before that. The Scripture tells us in Revelation that Jesus is the Lamb that was slain before God, the foundation of the world.

Before He even created anything that we know and experience today, God had already decided to come for us, to redeem us, to buy us back from our sin. And the amazing thing about the love of God and the grace of God is this: Knowing that He made us anyway. Can you imagine that?

Knowing it would cost Him to make us again—the sacrifice of His Son—knowing that He would have to pay that price for us to be able to be with Him, He still created us. Knowing that, He still formed you and me in our mother's womb, knowing that it would take the blood of Jesus to redeem us and let us have a relationship with Him.

He still formed us, made us the people that we are, knit us together to be the people we are now, even knowing how we would sin and rebel. It's an amazing story of love and the pursuit of God out of His love for us that He would come and pursue us to bring us back to Him.

Even when we've rebelled, even when we've walked away, even when we have oftentimes not respected Him or His name the way we should, He came chasing after us to bring us back to Him. To bring us back to Him.

While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Paul tells us about that in the book of Romans in chapter 5, beginning with verse 8. I love how Paul describes this act of love. He says, "But God demonstrates His own love for us in this."

Alright, so Paul is saying if you want to know the depth, the breadth, the height of the love of God for you, here's what you need to know about it: "While we were still sinners, Christ died for us."

"Since we've been justified by His blood, how much more shall we be saved from God's wrath through Him? For while we were God's enemies—that's where we were when He came after us—we were His enemies. If for while we were God's enemies, we were reconciled to Him through the death of His Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through His life?"

"Not only is this so, but we also boast in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation."

You know what one of the greatest barriers to reconciliation is in any relationship where there's been division? Is somebody willing to make the first move. Is somebody willing to say, "I want us to reconcile. I want to do what it takes to put this back together."

Now, that doesn't in a human relationship always mean the other person is going to respond and be willing to reconcile. But here's what you can know for sure: Until somebody takes that step, it's impossible for things to be reconciled. It will never happen without that step in any relationship.

And here's the amazing thing about the love of God: Even while we were His enemies, we were His enemies. How many of you have enemies that you don't even want to think about reconciling with them?

While we were still God's enemies, Christ came to bring us this offer of reconciliation. God said to us, "I love you so much. Even in your sin and your rebellion, even though you've treated me like I'm your enemy, I love you so much. I want to be reconciled to you."

Now, the amazing thing about God is this too, and it's hard for us to grasp because our minds don't work this way. But with God's foreknowledge, He also knew that when He made that offer, not everyone would respond well. Not everyone would accept it.

Even when this offer meant that Jesus was going to have to die for us on the cross, there would still be many people of His creation who would reject the offer. Just like in a human relationship, if you offer reconciliation, it doesn't mean the other person is always going to respond well to that.

But it can't happen without the offer, right? And God knows that the reconciliation can't happen without a legitimate offer being made that will allow for us to be reconciled to Him. Even an offer that cost Him His Son—that's what it was going to take.

And God knows that the offer can't happen to give us the ability to be reconciled to Him, and still people will look at that offer and say no. But God, in His love for us, makes the offer anyway. He puts it out there for anyone and everyone.

The Bible says that God's not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance. He makes this offer to every single person in the world, knowing full well that many will still say no to the offer.

But for those who would say yes, the offer is real. God has kept His promise. He's given us the hope that even in our failures and our sins, we could still be reconciled to God again through Jesus. That's the greatest hope of all, friends. It's that hope of reconciliation with the God that we love, that we've sinned against.

That leads to the third source of our hope, which is Jesus' sacrifice. Jesus' sacrifice gives us the hope that we need. The story of Jesus and His earthly life is bookended by two major events. The first is His birth that we read about in Isaiah 7 that was coming.

The second event is what confirms our hope and tells us that it's in the right place. We find it prophetically spoken about just a few chapters in the Bible years later in chapter 53 of Isaiah. You see, in Isaiah 53, he went on to talk about what would happen with this child that was coming, that was going to be born of this virgin.

He says in verse 5 and 6, speaking prophetically, "But he was pierced for our transgressions. He was crushed for our iniquities. The punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed."

All we know is that we are healed. "We, like sheep, have gone astray. Each of us has turned to our own way, and the Lord has laid on him this child that was coming the iniquity of us all."

All the weight of our sin, all the guilt of our sin, all the wrath of God in response to our sin was laid on this child that was going to be coming through this virgin that was going to conceive and give birth to this son hundreds of years before Jesus grows up to be in the flesh with us to carry out His ministry and then to go to that cross.

All these years leading up to that, that baby being born in that stable and placed in that manger, that baby was going to have the iniquity of us all laid on him at the cross. It's been said over and over again that the shadow of the cross was on the manger in Bethlehem. It truly was.

It was God's plan all along to bring this baby to grow up and live that sinless life, to be the one who would be our hope of healing and freedom and wholeness in eternal life. It's all made possible because of Jesus.

I heard someone say it this way: If Christmas is the promise, then Easter is the proof of the promise, isn't it? It's one thing to make a promise; it's another thing to keep the promise. And we have the proof. Not only did the virgin conceive and give birth to the child, but that child went to the grave and rose again after paying the price for our sins.

That's the proof of the God who keeps His promises. We celebrate Christmas because we know who this child is. That's the only reason to celebrate Christmas.

I hear people say all the time, "Christmas is about children. It's about the children," or "Christmas is about family." Well, children and families get the benefit of what Christmas is really about. It's not really just about the children being happy with their gifts.

It's not just about the families getting together. As fun as those things are—and I'm not saying they're not good things—they are. Christmas is about the promise of God and the hope that we have and God keeping His promise by sending Jesus here for His people, for those who would accept His offer.

And friends, the hope that we find there is far superior to anything else people are trying to find hope in in our world today.

On Thanksgiving morning, I got up and drove to the hospital, and I went to the bedside where Steve and his wife Pam was the one in the hospital. Pam's been going through some really hard health things, gone through all kinds of tests, had surgeries, had transfusions—nothing worked.

Pam, lying in the hospital bed with pneumonia, looked up at me and said, "They've told me for sure it's ALS." If you don't know what ALS is, it's a disease. She said, "It's very aggressive. There is no treatment or cure for ALS. There's absolutely nothing they can do except try to keep me comfortable."

And the reason she wanted me to come was really two things: she asked me to do her funeral service, but the other thing was this: she wanted to be reassured that she had a reason to still have hope lying there in that hospital bed.

I don't think she'll mind me sharing it with you because she wants God to use even the hard, painful things here. She said, "I know I've sinned, and I'm scared." Friends, I don't care who you are. When it really gets down to that, sometimes it's scary.

That's not a lack of faith; that's reality in the flesh. And she just wanted to hear one more time from her pastor, "It's okay to be afraid, but you don't have to be because there's hope, and this hope is secure in Christ."

You see, here we are celebrating Thanksgiving. Here we are looking forward to Christmas, and we're trying to say it's all about the children, it's all about family, it's all about Jesus, friends, and the hope that He brings.

Because that's the hope we all are going to need. That's the hope we all have to have to hold on to and grasp when we face things like she's facing right now. Last Sunday, another one of our members, Brenda, came up and said, "The cancer's back."

I just heard this morning she's back in the hospital again. That's when you need to know the hope that only Jesus can bring. There is no other place to go to. There is nothing else that can do this. When the doctors say, "We've done all we can do. There's nothing else," I don't care how much money you have. I don't care how nice a house you have, how big the gifts are, how nice they are for Christmas.

Nothing can give you hope but Jesus. It's time we realize we can have fun with all that other stuff, but there's nothing more important than knowing and following Jesus in your life and the hope that He brings to everyone who would put their trust in Him.

Let's pray together. Father, I thank You that as a pastor I could share with Pam and with Brenda and every one of us facing those things that we have to face in this sin-fallen world. Even when we're afraid, even when we ask, "Why me?" in the middle of all of that, we can reach out and find You right there for us.

We can find You as the God who not only makes promises but keeps Your promises. You've given us a sign. You came and You took the initiative to come to us. And in Christ's sacrifice, You've provided the greatest thing of all—the hope of eternal life.

That this is not all there is. That not even death itself wins the victory if we're in Christ. That even then, we have a hope that is secure, that is eternal because of what Jesus has done for us.

I pray, Father, if there's someone here today looking for hope in their lives, they would know they've come to the right place. They've heard the right message. They need to believe in the right Savior, in Jesus. He's the only one.

He's the only one who has proven that He can offer reconciliation through His death, burial, and resurrection. May we place our hope in Him. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.

If you're here today and you're ready to make a decision to come to know and follow Jesus, as we stand and sing, we invite you to come right up front. Maybe you need a church home to be connected to. We invite you to make this your church family.

Let's stand and sing together.

Everybody, your name again. I know a lot of people know you, but maybe not everybody here today.

Ada.

Ada comes today. Let me see if this is on. It's on. There we go. Thank you. Ada comes asking for prayer. You found out that—who is it in your family now?

My uncle.

And they found out that he has a short time to live, according to the doctor's diagnosis. Didn't even know he was sick, and then got that news that he's facing just a short period of time left on this earth.

And I know what I was just talking about today, right? We need to know there's a hope, even in a time like that. We pray for that family.

Come on up. If you would, tell everybody your name again, too.

Sarah comes today. Sarah is fighting a battle with depression. And we've talked about this before. It's a real thing, and it's a real battle. And Satan wants to use it against us. And God wants to give us victory through it and over it.

And so we want to lift her up, Sarah, up through this time of this battle that she's going through as well.

Let's pray together. Father, we lift up these needs. I know there are many other needs within the church family. We pray for Pam and Steve and their family. We pray for Brenda and the hospital and her family. I know there's so many others, Father.

But the amazing thing is we've been reminded today—we need to remember it every day. In Jesus, there's hope, no matter what the circumstances, no matter what we face. And You know what we need. And You have promised to always be there.

We know You're a God who keeps Your promises. Help us to trust You fully and completely. We lift up these individuals, these families, that they might find their hope in You. It's in His name that we pray. Amen.

God bless you. Thank you.

This time, Paul is going to come and lead us in a time around the Lord's table, if you'll get your communion kits out.

Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen.

And in the bathroom part. So, yeah. I want to invite you to stop by. If you want a good spot to take some pictures of the Christmas tree or the fireplace or whatever, that's a great place. You can stop by and do pictures in there if you'd like. Anytime. We love to invite you to do that.

It's time. Jeremy is going to...