Advent 3 December 16, 2018 Luke 7:18–28 (John 10:10b)
I Came That You May Have Life!
PRAYER
I pray that we would all wish for our lives to have meaning! Meaning and therefore purpose! Life without meaning and purpose is boring, lifeless and actually quite deadly. The very opposite of what Jesus came to give us. He came to give us true life!
Though today, on this Dec 16th, 2018, are looking at the Gospel of Luke with John’s disciples asking, on John’s behalf, if Jesus really was the One that they the Jews had been waiting for, the Promised Messiah, we know he is! We know Jesus is the One promised because we live on this side of his resurrection! Without Jesus resurrection Jesus is just another dead prophet! But he’s very much alive and with us to give us life.
But John wasn’t sure and being in prison didn’t help! John wanted to know! Had his life been meaningless and without purpose?! Had he failed? Had he, whose whole life purpose had been so indicated even before birth and at his birth, missed out on living it fully toward that end? To prepare God’s people for the Messiah! Was Jesus the One they’d been waiting for? After all John had encouraged people to follow Jesus, this “Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world”! He wanted to know if in fact Jesus was the One that God had promised and that God’s people had been waiting for all of these years! The One Isaiah said would come, and in his coming would show himself by doing all that was foretold!
Jesus didn’t say, “Ya, I’m the One! Go back and tell John, all is good” Rather our text says: “In that hour he healed many people of diseases and plagues and evil spirits, and on many who were blind he bestowed sight. And he answered them, “Go and tell John what you have seen and heard: the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, the poor have good news preached to them. And blessed is the one who is not offended by me.”
Jesus allowed his OT Word to speak for itself to John who knew it well! In a sense he said, “I came doing all the things that my prophet Isaiah said I would do. I’m the One who came to give life, true life now and forever! What a blessing those words would have been to John!
But how about you and I, we here at Trinity Lutheran Church and you reading this sermon on our website? As we prepare to celebrate Christmas once again, what really are we celebrating? Are we celebrating that Jesus came to give us LIFE! True Life! Life that has real meaning and therefore real purpose?
This past week I was invited to be interviewed by Mr. Russel Thomas on his radio program entitled “Impact”. In our conversation he asked me who I was, where I had come from (to which we discovered that we are both green bleeding Saskatchewan boys who grew up but a 100kms from each other). He asked what I’d done in ministry and why I’d come to Fort McMurray. He then asked me (because we were two weeks to the day from Christmas) “What is Christmas?” Good question! Thank you Mr. Thomas!
To which I answered: (but not here word for word), that Christmas is the little baby Jesus, God’s incarnate Son come to us to rescue us. If you miss the baby, you miss everything, you miss Christmas. Please don’t miss Christmas, don’t miss the baby who has come to give you true life!
This week as I was pondering our Gospel text and our Dec Jumbo Tron picture and prepped to write the sermon, a pastor friend shared on fb a poster that says: “Jesus is not part of the story of Christmas, Christmas is part of the story of Jesus”!
I love that! I only wish I would have had those words to share on the radio. I wrote the following on my fb page after receiving the pic. “…Christmas is all about a baby, thee baby come to save us, God becoming man, the incarnate God with us, to do for us what we could not do for ourselves!
Christmas is a part of Jesus story. There’s the Annunciation, 9 months before his birth, his birth and his circumcision. All of this is part of Jesus story of coming to rescue us! Had Jesus not come we all would simply receive what we deserve. Eternal separation from God!
Thank you Jesus for humiliating yourself to be replicating cells in Mary’s womb, exposed flesh in a stinky barn! Thank you for sharing yourself with despised Jewish shepherds. Thank you for allowing your flesh to be cut on the 8th day so that the law would be fulfilled and the promise made to us that through faith in you we would not be cut off!
Thank you for welcoming the Gentiles wise men who truly knew that a Royal King was now on the scene! Thank you for heading South to Egypt to show that you really were for all peoples and for coming back to grow up in Nazareth in the plain view of all, and not as some false religions teach, heading off to sit atop a mountain somewhere in India in selfish silent meditation.
Thank you for never sinning once! Never once, so that my entire lifetime of sin could be your disgusting clothing upon the cross in my place! Thank you for rising to life again to prove to the world that all that has been written in your Word is true! Thank you for not washing your hands of us but rather having them marked so that we will truly know you for all eternity. Thank you Lord Jesus for daily interceding for your followers to our Father and thank you for the plan to come back to get us, your kids, when time is fully complete! And thank you Father and Son for sending the Holy Spirit to guide us daily until your return Jesus.
Wow! Thank you for Christmas dear Lord and Saviour!
Truly “You came that we might have life!” Life forever with you in your heaven and life now! Life with meaning and purpose in a world that is a drift! A drift and in need of you Jesus as it’s anchor! People live their lives for themselves, for what they can rake in on the job, which is just never enough in order to have all that this world so craftily entices us to think we need! Why do people live for themselves? Because they have no true and lasting purpose! The joyous meaning and purpose you came to give to all!
A life of seeing your outlandish love for humanity who turned our backs on you at the beginning of time and the true life you created us with. A life of seeing that you could not stand to see us simply die floundering on our own now meaningless and purposeless! A life of seeing and being yours again and forever through your work to rescue us by coming to be conceived, born, to live perfectly and then die horridly in our place so that we might be with you again now and for eternity!
You came to give us Life! You came to give us life individually and also corporately as a congregation! Life! Life in Jesus our present and eternal King! Lead us daily oh Holy Spirit, individually and corporately to see the meaning and purpose you have given us to joyfully live no matter what comes our way! Whether physical, emotional, social or spiritual persecution, Oh Spirit, help us to live differently than the world. Help us to live differently in our homes, our schools, our work places and our community. You took us from the world, changed us and sent us back into the world to share a Life of meaning and purpose. To share you, the One who came to give us Life! Thank you for coming to give us life Lord Jesus! Thank you for Christmas! Amen!
John 10:10b – “I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.”
Luke 7:18–28
18 The disciples of John reported all these things to him. And John, 19 calling two of his disciples to him, sent them to the Lord, saying, “Are you the one who is to come, or shall we look for another?” 20 And when the men had come to him, they said, “John the Baptist has sent us to you, saying, ‘Are you the one who is to come, or shall we look for another?’” 21 In that hour he healed many people of diseases and plagues and evil spirits, and on many who were blind he bestowed sight. 22 And he answered them, “Go and tell John what you have seen and heard: the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, the poor have good news preached to them. 23 And blessed is the one who is not offended by me.” 24 When John’s messengers had gone, Jesus began to speak to the crowds concerning John: “What did you go out into the wilderness to see? A reed shaken by the wind? 25 What then did you go out to see? A man dressed in soft clothing? Behold, those who are dressed in splendid clothing and live in luxury are in kings’ courts. 26 What then did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet. 27 This is he of whom it is written, “‘Behold, I send my messenger before your face, who will prepare your way before you.’ 28 I tell you, among those born of women none is greater than John. Yet the one who is least in the kingdom of God is greater than he.”
Philippians 4:4–7
4 Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. 5 Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; 6 do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. 7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Zephaniah 3:14–20
14 Sing aloud, O daughter of Zion; shout, O Israel! Rejoice and exult with all your heart, O daughter of Jerusalem!
15 The LORD has taken away the judgments against you; he has cleared away your enemies. The King of Israel, the LORD, is in your midst; you shall never again fear evil.
16 On that day it shall be said to Jerusalem: “Fear not, O Zion; let not your hands grow weak.
17 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.
18 I will gather those of you who mourn for the festival, so that you will no longer suffer reproach.
19 Behold, at that time I will deal with all your oppressors. And I will save the lame and gather the outcast, and I will change their shame into praise and renown in all the earth.
20 At that time I will bring you in, at the time when I gather you together; for I will make you renowned and praised among all the peoples of the earth, when I restore your fortunes before your eyes,” says the LORD.
Psalm 85
1 LORD, you were favorable to your land; you restored the fortunes of Jacob.
2 You forgave the iniquity of your people; you covered all their sin. Selah
3 You withdrew all your wrath; you turned from your hot anger.
4 Restore us again, O God of our salvation, and put away your indignation toward us!
5 Will you be angry with us forever? Will you prolong your anger to all generations?
6 Will you not revive us again, that your people may rejoice in you?
7 Show us your steadfast love, O LORD, and grant us your salvation.
8 Let me hear what God the LORD will speak, for he will speak peace to his people, to his saints; but let them not turn back to folly.
9 Surely his salvation is near to those who fear him, that glory may dwell in our land.
10 Steadfast love and faithfulness meet; righteousness and peace kiss each other.
11 Faithfulness springs up from the ground, and righteousness looks down from the sky.
12 Yes, the LORD will give what is good, and our land will yield its increase.
13 Righteousness will go before him and make his footsteps a way.