Signs of Hope November 27th, 2022
God of hope and healing, we turn to your Word to hear your will and your wisdom for our times. Open our hearts and minds by the inspiration of your Holy Spirit so that we might hear what you are saying to your church through Christ, your Living Word. Amen
As we enter the season of Advent we are once more reminded that it is a time of hopeful waiting and preparation for both the celebration of the Nativity of Christ at Christmas and the return of Christ at the Second Coming. And it is also a time when we remember God’s promises for us, those of Hope, Peace, Joy, and Love, which will be ours for eternity when Jesus returns to establish his kingdom here on earth.
And that first Advent candle which we see burning this morning is a reminder of the hope we have through our faith that one day we will be reunited with our Lord and Saviour. And there is a direct connection between faith and hope, William Gurnall, who was a Puritan writer, describes this connection, “Faith tells the soul what Christ has done, and hope revives the soul with the news of what he will do.” Our hope rests in the fact that the God who has been there for us is the same God who will continue to be there for us.
In this morning’s scripture readings we find our first signs of hope in our Old Testament lesson from the Book of Isaiah. Isaiah was a prophet who lived over 700 years before the birth of Christ, yet he was one who prophesied the most about the coming of a Messiah for Israel, and this Messiah was Jesus. So important are the words of Isaiah to Christianity that he is quoted more often in the New Testament than any other prophet, over 400 times.
Now during the time of Isaiah, the kingdom of Israel was downtrodden. They were being ruled by a series of kings who for the most part had forsaken God and had gone after worshipping the pagan idols of the neighbouring countries. As well, they were being threatened by the powerful nation of Assyria. It was not an encouraging time for those followers of God.
But they still had hope, hope for brighter future. And Isaiah put this hope into his prediction of better things to come, he writes, “It shall come to pass in the latter days that the mountain of the house of the LORD shall be established as the highest of the mountains and shall be lifted up above the hills; and all the nations shall flow to it,” The mountain which he describes here is Mount Moriah in Jerusalem. On top of it at the time of Isaiah stood the Jewish Temple. Today that area is known as the Temple Mount and is a sacred place, not just for the Jewish people, but also Christians and Muslims.
Thus, it was the prophecy of Isaiah that one day this mountain would be the place where all people would come to worship the one true God. It would be a symbol of the greatness of God and all nations would come to believe in him. In Isaiah’s words, “and many peoples shall come, and say: “Come, let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob, that he may teach us his ways and that we may walk in his paths.”
And once that takes place, Isaiah tells us, “For out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem. He shall judge between the nations and shall decide disputes for many peoples; and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore.” And that was God’s promise made through the prophet Isaiah, one day, through the grace of God, there will be no more fighting between men and peace will rule the land. All the instruments of war will be transformed into tools of peace. That was the hope of those Israelites so long ago and that remains our hope for today. Like them, we yearn for a future free from evil. God gave us that hope by fulfilling his promise in Jesus.
And in this morning’s Responsive Psalm we hear about the hope for peace for all of mankind. It was written by King David, who was God’s anointed one, about 1000 years before the birth of our Lord and Saviour. It is known as a Psalm of Ascents as it was meant to be recited by the pilgrims as they made their way up to the Temple in Jerusalem on those special feast days. The city of Jerusalem was high above the surrounding plains, so this Psalm was intended to encourage the people on that uphill journey.
It opens with these words, “I was glad when they said to me, ‘Let us go to the house of the LORD!’ Our feet have been standing within your gates, O Jerusalem! Jerusalem—built as a city that is bound firmly together, to which the tribes go up, the tribes of the LORD, as was decreed for Israel, to give thanks to the name of the LORD.” Here David speaks of the delight in going up to the Temple to worship the Lord. He gives thanks to the Lord that they are able to make that journey to go and give glory to him.
And in doing so they were to pray for peace for all people, David writes, “Pray for the peace of Jerusalem! “May they be secure who love you! Peace be within your walls and security within your towers!” For my brothers and companions' sake I will say, “Peace be within you!” For the sake of the house of the LORD our God, I will seek your good. And just as David prayed for the centre of worship for those of the Jewish faith, Jerusalem, so should we pray for the welfare and continuity of places that are centres for the worship and work of God in the world today. David had the hope that, just as the prophet Isaiah would write 300 years later, one day peace would come for all the nations of the world.
Only God knows exactly when, but that hope will turn into reality when Jesus Christ, the Prince of Peace, returns to establish his kingdom here on earth. And our New Testament reading from the Gospel of Matthew reminds us that one day Jesus will return. It opens with these words from Jesus, “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on the throne of his glory. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. And he will place the sheep on his right, but the goats on the left. Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry, and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.’
But until that day when the great shepherd returns, it falls on us to tend to his flock. Jesus reminds us of this when he says, “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry and gave you food, or thirsty and gave you something to drink? And when was it that we saw you a stranger and welcomed you, or naked and gave you clothing? And when was it that we saw you sick or in prison and visited you?’ And the king will answer them, ‘Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me.”
So, while our hope lies in the promise of Jesus that he will return one day, we’re also commanded to continue his ministry during his absence. In the letter the Apostle Paul wrote to his trusted companion, Titus, he says this, “Jesus, who gave himself for us that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify for himself a people of his own, a people who are zealous for good deeds.” (Titus 2:14) Jesus wants believers to live in such a way that his work on earth continues through us.
And so, we’re called on to help those in need. We can’t ignore the plight of those less fortunate than us, and we must join with others to find ways to help those who lack the basic necessities of life that we take for granted. In that way we can give them some signs of hope.
Finally, as we gather here on this Sunday morning, let us remember and remind each other that we have both a God who leads and a Saviour who saves. We have a God of justice and hope. A God of love who wants to protect us from harm. And how can we make him known to the world? By being voices of justice, hope and love in the world. By looking out for the vulnerable, protecting and helping them, giving them the hope, they so desperately need.
Let us Pray:
Heavenly Father, every word in scripture points to the gift of hope that we have because of Christ Jesus. The Christmas story wasn’t the beginning of that message of hope because the Old Testament is full of glimpses of your plan to redeem your people and bring them back to you. Through our reading and hearing the words of Scripture, we are able to begin to see and understand just how great your love for us is. Help us to pass on your message of hope to all who need it. Amen