Advent Promises Kept

4th Sunday in Advent, 12/18/22 Romans 1:1-7 Advent Promises Kept I. Through Immanuel II. Resulting in grace and peace As you contemplate your celebration of Christmas this year which will occur exactly a week from today, what thoughts or phrases come to mind that describe what you’re feeling right now? On the negative side of the thoughts and emotions spectrum, maybe you’re feeling a little stressed out. You have so many things to do before Christmas arrives and only seven days to get them completed. Perhaps you’re feeling a little anxiety. Will everything go as you hope, as you plan? If you’ll be doing any traveling, especially if it’s some distance, you know how uncertain travel plans can be. But you try to dwell on the positive, don’t you? After all it’s Christmas. Like the song declares, “It’s the most wonderful time of the year.” It’s a time of enjoyable family gatherings. It’s a time of gift-giving and gift-receiving. It’s a time to enjoy delicious food and dazzling Christmas displays. But for us as Christians, we know there’s more, so much more. The thoughts and phrases in our minds and hearts express profound peace and joy over the truth that Christmas is the celebration of the birth of Christ. This morning we prepare our hearts once more for the coming of our Savior, Jesus Christ. The Apostle Paul helps us focus our attention exactly on our Savior in these words before us, the opening words of his Letter to the Romans. And the point Paul drives home for us is this: The good news of our salvation isn’t something new; it’s as old as God’s promises in the Old Testament and fulfilled in the New Testament in Jesus Christ. What God promised in the Old Testament he delivered in the New Testament in the person and work of Jesus. So, this morning we focus our attention on this great truth: Advent promises kept. Let’s prepare to celebrate Christmas by reminding ourselves exactly what those Advent promises are. Part I. Babies. They’re born every day. I read that there are 385,000 babies born around the world every day. But as common as births are, every one of them is special. I’ve never heard anyone exclaim, “Babies! If you’ve seen one, you’ve seen them all.” That simply isn’t true. Each child born into the world is unique. And almost every parent considers his or her child to be the most precious baby every born. But as far as babies go, none of them that have been born or will be born compare to the birth we’ll celebrate this Christmas. And one of the ways to prepare our hearts for his birth is to appreciate the truth about who Jesus is. Paul states that truth well. Listen to it once again, “Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle and set apart for the gospel of God—the gospel he promised beforehand through his prophets in the Holy Scriptures regarding his Son, who as to his earthly life was a descendant of David, and who through the Spirit of holiness was appointed the Son of God in power by his resurrection from the dead: Jesus Christ our Lord.” Paul mentions himself by name, includes the fact that he is an apostle, an apostle sent to proclaim the gospel, a gospel which God shared in the Old Testament through his prophets, a gospel which centers on the Son of God. And once Paul mentions the Son of God, he breaks into a concise statement regarding the miracle of Christ, that Jesus is Immanuel—God with us. Sadly, far too many people will celebrate Christmas next week without recognizing that there’s anything different about the baby Jesus from every other baby. But Paul doesn’t let us forget the truth that God foretold that the promised Savior would be none other than God himself. We heard his promise through Isaiah earlier. “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel.” Immanuel means “God with us.” Isaiah would also proclaim that the promised Savior would “be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace” (Is. 9:6). On the basis of those and other promises of the Savior, every Jewish person should have been looking for the Savior to be the eternal God. As you prepare your hearts to celebrate his birth, recognize and appreciate that truth. Advent promises kept. But Paul also states that Jesus is the son of David. He does so in order to emphasize the Savior’s humanity. The celebration of Christmas is the celebration of the incarnation: God coming in human flesh and blood. What would cause God to do such a thing? To empty himself of the unlimited use of his divine power and glory and become a human being? What would cause the God who fills all the universe to confine himself to the womb of the Virgin Mary? Only one reason: his unfathomable love for the world full of humanity, for you. God had promised David that the Savior would be his descendant and that’s exactly who Jesus was and is. Advent promises kept. As both God and man, Jesus is just who we need him to be in order to be our Savior. If he is only a man, then his death means nothing for me. If he is only God, then he isn’t my substitute and yours. But as God and man, he can offer his life and death for the sins of all people. Paul reminds us that he died and then rose again just as he promised, thereby guaranteeing that he is true man and true God and the world’s Savior from sin. Jesus is Immanuel: God with us. Advent promises kept. About ten days from now, you might spend some time reviewing how this Christmas was for you. And one of the things you might ponder is this: As far as Christmas gifts go, did you receive what you wanted and were hoping for? The older we get, the more we realize that there is very little in life that we really need that can be purchased and neatly wrapped as a gift under the tree. But don’t allow that kind of thinking to dampen your appreciation for God’s Christmas gift to you—Immanuel, God with us. If you don’t have Immanuel in your heart by faith in him, you’re a lost and condemned creature. If you don’t have Immanuel in your heart by faith in him, you don’t have the life that really matters—life with God now and life with him forever. If you don’t have Immanuel in your heart by faith in him, this life on earth is only a cruel prelude to a life of eternal punishment. So, before Christmas arrives, use these final days of Advent wisely. Ponder your God’s amazing promises to send you a Savior who is God and man, and to deliver on that promise in the person of Jesus, whose birth we’re about to celebrate. Advent promises kept! Part II. Promises kept often mean blessings come into our lives. I promise to be home for Christmas…and that’s what happens. I promise we’ll spend time at our favorite place…and that’s what happens. I promise to take of that for you tomorrow...and that’s what happens. When God keeps his promise to us, it means we receive astounding blessings that bless us not only now but forever. Listen to Paul describe the blessings we receive through Jesus, “Through him we received grace and apostleship to call all the Gentiles to the obedience that comes from faith for his name’s sake. And you also are among those Gentiles who are called to belong to Jesus Christ… Grace and peace to you from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ.” Paul mentions two blessings. The first is God’s grace. Grace is something our world simply doesn’t understand. It operates on the merit system. You get what you earn. You get what you deserve. Grace is the exact opposite. It’s undeserved. God gives you what you don’t deserve: his love, forgiveness, eternal life, adoption into his family. Those gifts of God’s grace produce peace. I don’t have to wonder about how God feels about me. I don’t have to wonder if I’m doing enough good things for him to be pleased with me so that he will bless me. He blesses me because of who he is and not because of who I am. I don’t have to earn my way into his family; Jesus has already done that for me. He has removed my sins and guilt for me. By faith in Jesus, I am righteous or holy before God. God has nothing against me. What peace! Paul shares one final word of Advent comfort. “And you also are among those called to belong to Jesus Christ.” Life around us seems to change at the speed of light. What we counted on yesterday isn’t available today. We live in a sea of insecurity. But not when it comes to our life with Jesus. We have been called to belong to him, the one who loves us with an astounding, eternal love. In a world full of change and chaos, there’s our security. Advent promises kept, kept through Immanuel, resulting in grace and peace. What is Christmas grace and peace? You’re bound to hear more than a few definitions in the days ahead. For some, it’s a warm, fuzzy feeling attached to family and friends, that evaporates soon after Christmas Day is over. For others, it’s the increased effort people make to be kind and generous, but that effort tends to fade rather quickly. But as one called to belong to Jesus by the grace and peace of God, you know better. Christmas peace is the peace that only God can give. It’s the peace that dwells in our hearts in spite of outward dire circumstances. It’s the peace we do nothing to generate; we simply bask in it and enjoy it. It’s the peace of knowing and believing that Christmas is all about Immanuel, God’s precious gift to us, to the world. Advent promises kept. Ponder that truth as you continue to prepare your hearts and lives for the birth of your Savior, Jesus Christ! Amen.