Watch for Glorious Prophecies Fulfilled!

1st Sunday in Advent, 11/28/10
Isaiah 2:1-5


Watch for Glorious Prophecies Fulfilled!
I. In the Lord’s holy Church
II. In the Lord’s saving peace


It won’t be long before we begin to read and hear predictions for the coming year. Some of them will revolve around the lives of the rich and famous, but most of them will be predictions about our US economy, interest rates, home sales, new home construction, the unemployment rate, and the like. Those predictions are made by experts in their field and are generally the best guesses that we have about what will happen in 2011. We take that information and process it and then we wait and see. As we make our way through the weeks and months of the new year, we see if what these experts predicted comes true. Sometimes it does; sometimes it doesn’t.

We have a “prediction” of sorts before us this morning. Actually, it’s much more than a prediction. It’s a prophecy. The Lord used his prophet Isaiah to proclaim what will happen in the future. And since this prophecy comes from the Lord whose knowledge of the future is just as perfect as his knowledge of the present and the past, this prophecy will certainly come true. That doesn’t surprise us.

But would it surprise you if I told you that this prophecy is about you and what you’re experiencing today? I imagine it does. Isaiah’s vision from the Lord concerned “the last days.” That’s now. It’s the time between our Lord’s first coming to this earth as the Savior born in Bethlehem and his second coming to this earth as the Judge of all on the Last Day. In this season of Advent we prepare ourselves for his coming. Our focus on this Sunday is to watch for him. And as we watch for him we also watch as Isaiah’s prophecy unfolds before our eyes. We’re living in the last days and we’re seeing the fulfillment of what Isaiah proclaimed.

So let’s take a closer look at Isaiah’s words this morning and watch for glorious prophecies fulfilled. Watch for glorious prophecies fulfilled. Since these prophecies involve us, let’s see what they’re all about.

Part I.

Those of you who lived here in the Miami Valley in the 1970s and 1980s likely never imagined that the day would come when Dayton would no longer manufacture products such as refrigerators and automobiles. It probably seemed as if those companies would always be doing business here. But they’re gone. And other institutions are gone as well. The old Rike’s Department Store downtown went out of business years and years ago. NCR left town last year. It’s made all of us realize that no institution in this world is permanent.

But what about the Lord’s Church on earth? Well, that doesn’t seem to be fairing so well either. The percentage of Americans that claims to be Christian continues its slow decline. Our congregation is certainly not the only one experiencing lower attendance figures. It’s happening all over our country. There are some who even wonder if the Christian church will survive. A rather popular book from more than a decade ago was entitled, Why Christianity Must Change or Die.

But that’s not what Isaiah saw in his vision from the Lord. Listen again to the description. “In the last days the mountain of the LORD’s temple will be established as chief among the mountains; it will be raised above the hills, and all nations will stream to it. Many peoples will come and say, ‘Come, let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob.’” Isaiah refers to the mountain of the Lord’s temple. Some take this as a literal church building. But that’s not what this is. This mountain with the temple on it is a picture of the Church on earth. It’s the gathering of all believers in Christ. In our creeds we call it the holy Christian Church. And notice what Isaiah sees concerning that Church. It’s established as the chief among the mountains. In other words, no man-made institution will be greater or outlast the Church. Some of you may recall the visions that the prophet Daniel saw. In those visions the kingdom of God—the Church—was always greater than every powerful earthly kingdom. You and I are part of that Church right now. We’re seeing the fulfillment of what Isaiah saw.

But we’re not the only ones. Isaiah says, “All nations will stream to it.” In Old Testament times this was hard for God’s people to imagine. That’s because the Church at that time was largely confined to the Jews. But not in New Testament times. Not today. Through your mission offerings you’re bringing the gospel to places such as Pakistan and China. That was unthinkable just a decade or two ago. In fact, there are Christians in every part of the world. Indeed all nations are streaming into the Church.

And that’s no accident. It’s by design. God’s plan for his Church is for his people to invite others into it. Isaiah sees that outreach work going on this way, “Many peoples will come and say, ‘Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord.’” God’s people encourage others to join them in worshipping the Lord. That’s what we do. That’s one of the reasons we’ve formed this congregation. When we invite friends and family members to worship with us, when have our children baptized and teach them God’s saving truths, we’re fulfilling these words of Isaiah.

Watch for glorious prophecies fulfilled—prophecies fulfilled in the Lord’s holy Church.

If you pay any attention to what’s happening in our world today, then you’re more than a little concerned for the future of Christianity. Christians—if they take a stand on God’s word—are bashed as being narrow-minded, intolerant or hateful. It seems as if it’s becoming more and more difficult to raise our children according to God’s truths. We feel as if we’ve lost the battle against evil and indecencies. Church doesn’t seem to be as important to people as it once was. For all these reasons and many others like it, it would easy for us to think that we’re wasting our time and effort as God’s people trying to promote his Church on earth. But Isaiah’s picture of the Church is far different. He reminds us that the Church is eternal and nothing will ever conquer it. That’s because the Church is built on the life and death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. When the Lord gave you and me faith in that Savior, he brought us into his eternal Church. He’s made us part of something that will last forever. Isaiah’s words are being fulfilled right this moment as we have gathered to worship that Savior. Watch for glorious prophecies fulfilled in the Lord’s holy Church.

Part II.

With last Wednesday being the busiest travel day of the year, there were countless news stories about airport security and what are viewed by some people as invasive screening processes. The TSA insists these searches are necessary to maintain security on our nation’s airlines.

And I’m sure there’s some truth to what they say. After all, there are people who want to put Americans to death, as many as possible. There are extremists who are plotting to destroy us and our way of life.

In view of that, what’s this peaceful picture that Isaiah paints? Listen to it once again. “The law will go out from Zion, the word of the LORD from Jerusalem. He will judge between the nations and will settle disputes for many peoples. They will beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation will not take up sword against nation, nor will they train for war anymore.” It would appear that Isaiah’s prophecy hasn’t come true, at least not yet. Plenty of nations are training for war right now. But Isaiah isn’t speaking about earthly peace. Recall that Jesus said that one of the signs of the end times was wars and rumors of wars.

You’ve probably guessed by now that Isaiah is speaking about spiritual peace. That’s the peace the angels sang about on the night of Jesus’ birth. It’s the peace that Jesus won with his life and his death. It’s peace between the sinner and the holy God. That peace comes through the forgiveness of sins. Because of that forgiveness we have a loving relationship with our God.

That forgiveness is found in the Church. Those who have faith in Jesus are members of the invisible holy Christian Church. With faith in Jesus they have the forgiveness of sins. Another way of stating that truth is that Christians live in the forgiveness of sins.

And the peace of forgiveness lights the road to heaven. Isaiah closes our text with this encouragement, “Come, let us walk in the light of the Lord.” Walking in the light of the Lord means walking in the truth of our salvation. That truth is that Jesus is our Savior from sin. We live in that truth. We walk in it today. We pray that God keeps us in that truth until the day he calls us home to heaven or he returns to this earth. With faith in that truth we’re ready for him.

Watch for glorious prophecies fulfilled—fulfilled in the Lord’s saving peace.

Our worship theme this morning encourages us to watch for the Lord’s return. That encouragement doesn’t sit well with some. For one reason or another, they tremble at the thought of Jesus returning. But we don’t have to. We live in his peace. When he returns, he’ll simply proclaim before all people that we belong to him by faith in him. It will be our Lord’s most glorious day and we’ll share that glory with him. Watch for glorious prophecies fulfilled. Amen.