And so, while time continues, history repeating itself with seemingly endless consistency, there will be a last day, and every person will stand in judgment before the Son of God. On that day, the offspring of Satan will be revealed and readied for eternal damnation, the anguish of their suffering even more consistent than their sin upon the earth. But all who look to the promised Son of Hope in faith will be found righteous and right with God. And though our human hearts may cry with little Anne of Green Gables, “I’ll try to do and be anything you want me, if you’ll only keep me,” God’s Word tells us Christ has done it all, redeeming us the image-bearers we were created to be, kept in Christ, for all eternity.
Tag Archives: Advent
Salvation Is He
Although not our text for today, I want us to begin thinking about the seventy-second psalm, which serves as a description of Israel’s ideal king. Likely written by Solomon, upon first reading the psalm sounds self-descriptive. He prays for God-given justice and righteousness and the ability to govern accordingly, all kingly blessings. He prays for prosperity from the land and protection for the people, all national blessings. From its beginning, the psalm sounds like the prayerful petitions of a king known for his wisdom.
Behold Your God!
This light has been shining in the darkness of spiritual depravity and blindness since Christ’s coming, advancing according to Christ’s commission. His unstoppable gospel will advance, disciples will be made, his church will assemble, and he shall be praised to the ends of the earth. And then, the end shall come, and the glory of God will be revealed in the second coming of his Son and the redemption of his people. The kingdom of God will conquer all kingdoms in a Word, and “nations shall come to [the] light, and kings to the brightness of [the] rising” (Isa. 60:3). Unbelievers will be judged and condemned to eternal damnation and believers will be found standing only in the righteousness of Christ. The world will be filled with reverence and awe, as a loud voice is heard saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God” (Rev. 21:3). And darkness will be no more, only the pure light of God’s radiance, and we will hear what our hearts’ desire: “Behold your God!” And so we shall, forever.
Sing for Joy
So, let us sing for joy. For, he has turned his anger away from us for the sake of the cross of Christ, and he comforts us by his Spirit. Let us sing for joy, for he is our salvation and strength. Let us sing for joy, for he is the fountain of living water. Let us sing for joy that the peoples may know of his deeds and join us in worshipful exaltation. Let us sing for joy that the world may know that he who “is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature,” he who “upholds the universe by the word of his power,” he who after “making purification for sins … sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high” (Heb. 1:3) is in our midst, “the Holy One of Israel.”
The First Gospel
Throughout history, man’s bias has been of his own time, a chronological snobbery, as C.S. Lewis called it, affecting how we see both history and the future. Our self-importance seems to breed a deception of self-improvement, a myth of progress leading us to think of the culmination of time as in our purview. Given the variety of modern media, it would be easy to entertain such a view, amusing ourselves with the developing events of the day with titillating speculation. Breaking news seemingly announces more clues of history’s denouement. And yet, today’s newspaper is tomorrow’s fire-starter.
Praying for Peace (amidst Strife)
The life of peace on earth is lived by prayer. When we feel wounded by lies and deceit, prayer directs our focus from ourselves to God, from self-pity to God’s glory. Obsessing over lies and deceit breeds bitterness; prayer fosters forgiveness.
With Shouts of Joy
Joy is not an achievement of the Christian life but a fruit of it. Nor is joy an acquisition but the produce of living by faith and obedience to the Spirit of Christ. Yet, some may feel as if joy is fleeting. If you are a Christian and wonder where your joy has gone, it would be wise to look to the robber baron of sin, your flesh. Like a thief who breaks in on Christmas Eve to steal all the presents under the tree, sin stealthily steals the gift of joy. And when we awake and realize it’s gone, we often look for it in all the wrong places.
For the Love of God
This is of course good news for all who are in Christ and joyfully under his reign. But it is not good news for his enemies, all who reject his gospel freely offered, his righteous rule graciously given. And as Zion is the dwelling place of God, to whom Christ has given “the keys of the kingdom of heaven” and the authority to bind and loose on earth as in heaven (Matt. 16:19), all who reject the gospel of Christ’s church will be clothed with shame. But the love of God shines forth in his dwelling presence, for Christ and his body are one (1 Cor. 12:27). But where there is no love for Christ’s church, there is no love of God (1 Jn. 4:7-12). Therefore, for the love of God, “let us love one another” (1 Jn. 4:7a), enjoying the dwelling place and presence of the Lord forever.
Deep Woes, Enduring Hope
In this, we are reminded of God’s steadfast love for his people. We rejoice that our redemption in Christ is so plentiful that it covers the sins of our past, present, and future. For, we are a people who have received the gift of God’s grace in Christ, who has redeemed us from all our iniquities, and he is the God who hears our cries, answers our prayers, sustains us moment by moment, and gives us hope, even in the depths of woe.
Our Peace Offering
But it is not in our sinful state that God is pleased but in the sinless sacrifice of his Son, whom he has given as the greatest gift of all. As John wrote to the church, “In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins” (1 John 4:10). In Christ, our peace offering, we have been given the gift of peace with God forever. There is no greater Christmas gift than that.
Planter, Pastor, Preacher 