Advent 2019: Love vs. Absence of Love
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Good Old Days of Advent 300AD
Good Old Days of Advent 300AD
First and Foremost - Preparing for the Coming Christ
“Behold, I am coming soon, bringing my recompense with me, to repay each one for what he has done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end.”
“Behold, I am coming soon, bringing my recompense with me, to repay each one for what he has done.
Rev 22:12
Rev
3 times in one the final chapter of the Bible I am coming soon
He will repay by what they have done
The early church had that in the front of their mind better than the church over all today.
The Early Church vs Today’s Church
The Early Church vs Today’s Church
We have exchanged the truth that the final days is a judgment where the way is NARROW and there are few that find it., and the path that leads to destruction is wide. and exchanged it with the idea that one prayer said is sufficient to cover every thing that I ever do or will do.
Don’t get me wrong, Mercy triumphs over judgment but we still have to work out our salvation with fear and trembling.
Don’t get me wrong, Mercy triumphs over judgment but we still have to work out our salvation with fear and trembling.
So the original intent of this season was to spend some time praying to our Holy God and repenting of things and thought processes that do not glorify the King of kings and committing to things that do glorify our Lord and God.
So the original intent of this season was to spend some time praying to our Holy God and repenting of things and thought processes that do not glorify the King of kings and committing to things that do glorify our Lord and God.
Why do I Say All This.
Why do I Say All This.
We are in the season of advent in 2019 Aren’t we supposed to be celebrating the Hope, Peace, Joy, and Love that Christ brings?
This is hard… The answer is a big fat NO. What we celebrate is the fact that Christ came to rescue us out of a darkness that we could not have saved ourselves from.
Isn’t that splitting hairs Pastor Rich. I don’t think so. Watch this:
Hope is not the thing we celebrate. We celebrate the fact that we were destitute and bound for an eternity in Hell but Christ came and provided a way to have eternity with Him. Hope is the benefit not the thing we worship.
Peace is not the thing we celebrate. We celebrate a King of King and a Lord of lords that came to live in our hearts so that we are more than conquerors. There is no enemy that is big enough to defeat us so that in the middle of our darkest times we have a candle that brings us peace.
Joy is not the thing we celebrate. We celebrate the Son htat promises that in the end is nothing but peace on joy. He promises that there is no more sadness, no more garbage. and because of that, when our focus is on him we have a joy unspeakable.. because we see the depths that we have come from and are going through and compare it to the glory yet to come and it makes us smile.
Today We Highlight Love.
Today We Highlight Love.
We Cannot Experience What His True Love Accomplished Without a Picture of What His Love Rescued Us From.
We Cannot Experience What His True Love Accomplished Without a Picture of What His Love Rescued Us From.
“Do not say in your heart, after the Lord your God has thrust them out before you, ‘It is because of my righteousness that the Lord has brought me in to possess this land,’ whereas it is because of the wickedness of these nations that the Lord is driving them out before you. Not because of your righteousness or the uprightness of your heart are you going in to possess their land, but because of the wickedness of these nations the Lord your God is driving them out from before you, and that he may confirm the word that the Lord swore to your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob.
Dt 9:
I thought I’d dive us a break from there is no one righteous.
In the first five books we have a picture of Israelites wondering around in the desert waiting for a time to enter a promised land that they are not going into because of their sin.
It is a picture of our journey… we wander around in the desert of our life trying to behave ourselves and always falling short, knowing that one day God will make a way
The picture isn’t perfect because obviously there aren’t any enemies in heaven that we have to overthrow.
But in our journey, we should not even consider that we made it because we deserved it. Our enemies are not overthrown because they were so bad....
It is all grace and mercy. We do not receive the promise because we deserve it. We receive it because He loves us so much that He will always provide a path to enter in.
Without His grace and Mercy, we are doomed to darkness.
Why does he give us grace and mercy? Because his love is great. Just like when Jesus saw the leper— His compassion compels Him to heal us am make us whole.
And That is What He Did
And That is What He Did
Ro 5:6-8
For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will scarcely die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die— but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
Every great story has a desperate challenge that is facing a sure defeat and at the last second the victory comes.
Im not much of a sports fanatic, but when I was a kid I went to Sackets Harbor Central School and we were in the championship game. You already know where I’m going with this. We were losing the game by two points and the other team had the ball with seconds to go. They went out of bounds and we had one shot with on second. The ball was passed in, and from the other end of the court the ball is thrown high into the air. You know how it goes.. time stops. You can’t breathe. Part of you wonders why it’s taking so long for the ball to get to the other side… and .... swish. I cheered so hard that I suprised my self.
AT THE RIGHT TIME.... Oh it was too late. There was no hope at all. There wasn’t even one second left on the clock. The game was already over. The enemy had won all the shots and we were utterly and completely defeated.... but suddenly .... for no reason that we can comprehend… swish.
See if I was righteous.... rarely someone might die to save me.
If I was good… maybe, perhaps, another might dare to die.
Here’s what I know.... I’m not righteous enough. I’m not good enough. And yet...... Swish.... Christ does it all.
BUT GOD DEMONSTRATES HIS OWN LOVE FOR US IN THAT WHILE WE WERE STILL SINNERS, CHRIST DIED FOR US.
A Couple Verses in Closing
A Couple Verses in Closing
...
He has demonstrated and makes available to us - infinite patience and kindness.
Our love can be tainted by envy, boasting, and pride — all of this is impossible with Him.
He does not seek to give you shame.
His desire is only good towards you.
He is not easily angered by your wrong doings and He doesn’t even keep a record of it.
His life is the light of truth that blasts out the darkness of evil.
He will always protect.. always trust.. always hope
He will always persevere with you and never give up.
HIS LOVE NEVER FAILS.
No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.