Look up! A light has dawned, a baby has been born, a child has been given. For God so loved the world he sent his One and Only son into the world that whoever believes in shall not perish but have eternal life!
Look Back! Jesus is the long-awaited Christ-child, the Messiah. He is the Satan-crushing offspring of Eve. He is the promised seed of Abraham through whom all nations will be blessed. He is the priest like Melchizedek. He is the prophet who would be like Moses. He is the promised shoot of Jesse, the Son of David, the King who would come and establish God's throne forever. He is Daniel's Son of Man who would establish an enduring kingdom. He is Isaiah's suffering servant who would empty himself of all glory, humble himself, and become obedient unto death even death on a cross. He is the one the prophets wrote about and urged the world to prepare for.
Look Into! The greatest thing you can do this Christmas is look into (or look unto) the mystery that is Christ for yourself. In Ephesians 3:8-12 the Apostle Paul says, “This grace was given to me—the least of all the saints—to proclaim to the Gentiles the incalculable riches of Christ, 9 and to shed light for all about the administration of the mystery hidden for ages in God who created all things. 10 This is so that God’s multi-faceted wisdom may now be made known through the church to the rulers and authorities in the heavens. 11 This is according to his eternal purpose accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord. 12 In him we have boldness and confident access through faith in him.”
The journey of faith is to let Jesus demystify your life. You no longer have to walk in darkness, speculating about the purpose of your life, the meaning or the value of your life. This past week, the world's most intelligent man commented on what happens after we die. He has one of the highest IQs ever recorded, even greater than that of Einstein. But his speculations about life after death did nothing to demystify the secrets of eternal life. Yet this Christmas, God has opened up a way through Christ for all of us draw near to Him and approach His eternal throne with confidence. Jesus is the way, truth, and the life. He is the resurrection and life. He is the sheep gate, the door. Look deep into his life and see for yourself.
This morning, I want us consider yet another Christmas posture. That posture is for us to “Look Forward!” Of all the people in the world, we ought to be the most joyful and optimistic. No doubt we are surrounded by darkness. But God is causing his Son Jesus to rise in our hearts by faith. He's causing his Son to radiate his glory, and righteousness and justice as brilliantly and brightly as the noon day sun.
In the Christmas story, there are quite a few examples of what it means to “look forward" to life Christ would bring. For starters, I spent a little time reflecting on the reactions of Zechariah to the news of Christ's coming. Zechariah and Elizabeth would give birth to John the Baptist, who would have privilege of announcing Jesus' arrival to all of Israel. Their ministries fit together like hand and glove. Beginning with Jesus, beginning with John, a new era would dawn!
What did the world (starting with Israel) have to look forward to in Christ? How about a sampling? An era when God would bring people to repentance. Not sure how many of you remember, but the original slogan of Apple was an invitation to “think different." The logo also featured an apple, with a bite mark. Whether they intended it or not, Apple’s original branding was a provocative echo of the fall.
Having been instructed by the Lord himself, first Eve, then Adam, turned away from God. They ate the Apple, accepting Satan's invitation to “think different” and live differently than what God commanded. When Eve set her affections on that apple, there was no turning back. When Cain set his anger against Abel, there was no turning back. As the world grew increasingly evil, every inclination and desire of man's heart was only evil all the day, every man living for himself in the Days of Noah, there was no turning back. As we read the story of God and follow it all the way through the Old Testament, no measure of God seems to be enough to turn the heart of man back to righteousness. God unleashed the floodgates of his wrath. God gave prosperity, blessings, and favor. God made promises to Eve, to Abraham, to his descendants, and to all of Israel. God repeatedly rescued and redeemed his people by his mighty hand. God sent forth his law through Moses. He instituted sacrificial system to atone for high cost of man's sin. God raised up judges, great and small kings. God sent forth prophets. God used the nations to discipline and chastise Israel. Throughout all Old Testament Israel maintained her defiance.
Let me ask you, is there anything more stubborn, more rebellious than man? The last book, in the Old Testament cannon closes with a sad picture of God's people forsaking the Temple, forsaking their worship, forsaking meaningful sacrifices, forsaking meaningful lifestyle of righteousness and justice, forsaking not just their covenant with God but their covenant with the wives of their youth. Men were justifying themselves, justifying the evil they were nursing in their hearts.
Listen to what God says in Malachi 4:4-6. Malachi looked all around him, and didn't see much hope in man himself. That is where the Old Testament leaves us. Hope doesn't arise from within man. Malachi leaves us looking forward to hope! Through Malachi God announces, “Remember the instruction of Moses my servant, the statutes and ordinances I commanded him at Horeb for all Israel. 5 Look, I am going to send you the prophet Elijah before the great and terrible day of the Lord comes. 6 And he will turn the hearts of fathers to their children and the hearts of children to their fathers. Otherwise, I will come and strike the land with a curse.”
Listen, I'm going to send forth a prophet like Elijah… but on his heels, is coming the great and terrible day of the Lord. The coming of Jesus is great if your heart is right with God but it’s terrifying if you’re thinking and living in rebellion. But an era is coming when the hearts of men are going to be turned, and it’s going to be the work of God Spirit, and it’s going to be amazing. And if God cannot turn the heart of men, there is nothing left for man but for God to come and strike the land with a curse.
In Luke 1, The Angel tells Zechariah that the day or era of the Lord which Malachi longed for and looked forward to was now upon us! For starting with John the Baptist, what would God do? God would. . . “… turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God.” (Luke 1:16) “… turn the hearts of fathers to their children” (Luke 1:17) “turn. . . the disobedient to the understanding of the righteous” (Luke 1:17) “make ready for the Lord (i.e. the Day of the Lord) a prepared people.” (Luke 1:17). How can you identify the work of God in this modern world? Through our faith, the Spirit is giving us a new heart and new mind. He is giving us a new desire, to love God and love people, to turn to God, to turn toward covenant, toward love, toward wives, families, children… to raise up new generation of godly offspring pleasing to God, eager to serve God. God is changing the tide of humanity toward redemption. This Christmas, I'm looking forward to God changing even more hearts, minds, and lives.
To Mary, in Luke 1:31-33… the angel announces an era when God would uniquely reign over his people, through Jesus. In Luke 1:31-33, the angel tells Mary, “You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you will name him Jesus. 32 He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give him the throne of his father David. 33 He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and his kingdom will have no end.”
Why, this is the same thing God showed Isaiah, in Isaiah 9:6-7, “For a child will be born for us, a son will be given to us, and the government will be on his shoulders. He will be named Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace. 7 The dominion will be vast, and its prosperity will never end. He will reign on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish and sustain it with justice and righteousness from now on and forever. The zeal of the Lord of Armies will accomplish this.”
The coming of Jesus Christ, God's King, won't just have an individual effect. It will have a collective, international, global, and cosmic effect. Listen to how Paul frames both the mystery and our great hope in Christ: Philippians 2:5-13:
“Adopt the same attitude as that of Christ Jesus, 6 who, existing in the form of God, did not consider equality with God as something to be exploited. 7 Instead he emptied himself by assuming the form of a servant, taking on the likeness of humanity. And when he had come as a man, 8 he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death—even to death on a cross. 9 For this reason God highly exalted him and gave him the name that is above every name, 10 so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow—in heaven and on earth and under the earth—11 and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. 12 Therefore, my dear friends, just as you have always obeyed, so now, not only in my presence but even more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. 13 For it is God who is working in you both to will and to work according to his good purpose.”
The hope that emerges from the foot of the tree, from the foot of the cross is a whole new world, an everlasting Kingdom, ordered by the reign of Christ, ordered by righteousness and justice of Christ, every heart turning, every knee bowing, every tongue confessing, every soul trembling… God working in us and through us to bring about his good purpose in Christ Jesus.
When Daniel prophetically looks forward and sees God's Kingdom… he envisions a holy mountain that grows and keeps growing until its insurmountable greatness eclipses everything else. It’s not unlike Jesus’ parable of the mustard seed—how the kingdom in the beginning seems small, insignificant, inconsequential… but that when it’s received in our hearts, it grows and expands and fills all of heaven and earth, and indeed fills the universe.
Let’s come alongside Mary as she looks forward in praise of Jesus, welcoming His kingdom and reign. Luke 1:46-55, please hear it anew: “And Mary said: “My soul magnifies the Lord, 47 and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, 48 because he has looked with favor on the humble condition of his servant. Surely, from now on all generations will call me blessed, 49 because the Mighty One has done great things for me, and his name is holy. 50 His mercy is from generation to generation on those who fear him. 51 He has done a mighty deed with his arm; he has scattered the proud because of the thoughts of their hearts; 52 he has toppled the mighty from their thrones and exalted the lowly. 53 He has satisfied the hungry with good things and sent the rich away empty. 54 He has helped his servant Israel, remembering his mercy 55 to Abraham and his descendants[g] forever, just as he spoke to our ancestors.”