We conclude our 2021 Advent Series with a sermon from our own Wayne Denny.

So if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort from love, any participation in the Spirit, any affection and sympathy, complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind.Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. (Philippians 2:1-11)

I. Jesus Came Down

II. Jesus was lifted High

III. How do we live now?

Join with us as we celebrate the advent of our lord and savior Jesus! 

Have you seen His glory?

Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God— children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God.

The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth. (John 1:12-14)

“The Word became flesh...” (John 1:14)

I. When you know Jesus you’ve come in contact glory. 

“…we have seen His glory, glory as of the only Son of God.” (John 1:14)

“These are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.” (John 20:31) 

II. If you know Jesus, you know the glory of His grace. 

"...full of grace...." (John 1:15)

III. If you know Jesus you know the glory of his truth.

"...full of...truth." (John 1:15) 

“’We are fighting a holy war, and this time we are going to win.’ ” - Jerry Falwell

“Let’s broach a sensitive example but one we simply can’t skirt around, as it is the leading moral question of our generation—human sexuality. And remember as you read this, I’m a pastor, not a politician. My goal is to journey with your soul on its way to healing in God, not to legislate anything. I don’t expect secularists to live like Christians. As Paul put it, ‘What business is it of mine to judge those outside the church?’ The move of the Spirit is inward to conviction, not outward to critique. I’m not trying to critique the culture, much less control it; I’m trying to flourish a counterculture.” 

Comer, John Mark. Live No Lies (p. 28). The Crown Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.

And while they were there, the time came for her to give birth. And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in swaddling cloths and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn. (Luke 2:6-7)

Big Idea: The Incarnation of Christ appears so that we might imitate His character. 

1. Be imitators of Christ's Freedom

Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise partook of the same things that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death that is the devil and deliver all those who fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery. (Hebrews 2:14-15)

2. Be imitators of Christ's Love and Compassion

"True mission is incarnational. It necessities entering humbly into other people's worlds, identifying with their social reality their sorrow and suffering and their struggles for justice against oppressive powers."- Lausanne Conference  

3. Imitating the God's Glory

“How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring good news, who proclaim peace, who bring good tidings, who proclaim salvation, who say to Zion, ‘Your God reigns!’” (Isaiah 52:7) 

“Listen! Your watchmen lift up their voices; together they shout for joy. When the LORD returns to Zion, they will see it with their own eyes. Burst into songs of joy together, you ruins of Jerusalem, for the LORD has comforted his people, he has redeemed Jerusalem .”  (Isaiah 52:8-9)

I. The “God with us” is King! 

“I will make you very fruitful; I will make nations of you, and kings will come from you.” (Genesis 17:6)

“I will raise up your offspring to succeed you, your own flesh and blood, and I will establish his kingdom. He is the one who will build a house for my Name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever.”  (II Samuel 7:12-13)

“A queen is somebody in her force, accepting all that she is, embracing her weakness and strengths. Believe in the royal highness within. The sovereign in you will rise above all the struggles and turmoil you come across. Recognize, embrace and celebrate the grace, classy and warrior queen in you.” 

II. Our King’s rule is good news! 

III. King Jesus came in weakness, but will return in power. 

“Enter not into judgment with your servant, for no one living is righteous before you.”  (Psalm 143:2) 

"Love is the greatest force in the universe. It is the heartbeat of the moral cosmos. He who loves is a participant in the being of God." (Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.)

“The whole point of the kingdom of God is Jesus has come to bear witness to the true truth, which is nonviolent. When God wants to take charge of the world, he doesn't send in the tanks. He sends in the poor and the meek.” (NT Wright)

Now the birth of Jesus the Messiah took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been engaged to Joseph, but before they lived together, she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit. Her husband Joseph, being a righteous man and unwilling to expose her to public disgrace, planned to dismiss her quietly. But just when he had resolved to do this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, for the child conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will bear a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” All this took place to fulfill what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet:“Look, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall name him "Emmanuel,” which means, “God is with us.” When Joseph awoke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him; he took her as his wife, but had no marital relations with her until she had borne a son; and he named him Jesus. (Matthew 1:18–25 NRSV)

“the child conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will bear a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.”(Matthew 1:20–21 NRSV)

All this took place to fulfill what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet: “Look, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son,and they shall name him Emmanuel,” which means, “God is with us.” (Matthew 1:22–23 NRSV)

Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Look, the young woman is with child and shall bear a son, and shall name him Immanuel. . . before the child knows how to refuse the evil and choose the good, the land before whose two kings you are in dread will be deserted. (Isaiah 7:14–16 NRSV)

You have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself. (Exodus 19:4–6 NRSV)

“I will dwell among the Israelites, and I will be their God. And they shall know that I am the LORD their God, who brought them out of the land of Egypt that I might dwell among them; I am the LORD their God.” (Exodus 29:46, NRSV)

“yet I have been a sanctuary to them for a little while in the countries where they have gone.”(Ezekiel 11:16b NRSV)

“something greater than the Temple is here” (Matthew 12:6)

“to give his life as a ransom for many.” (Matthew 20:28)

What does this mean for us today?

1. Jesus still offers himself as “God with Us” today! Let’s receive him!

2. We need to ask: Have our lives been shattered and re-made by our encounter with “God with Us?”

"But God himself, alive, pulling at the other end of the [rope], perhaps approaching at an infinite speed, the hunter, King, husband-that is quite another matter. There comes a moment when the children who have been playing at burglars hush suddenly: was that a real footstep in the hall? There comes a moment when people who have been dabbling in religion (“Man’s search for God”!) suddenly draw back. Supposing we really found Him? We never meant it to come to that! Worse still, supposing He had found us?” CS Lewis

James 5:13-20 

"If my sadness brought you gladness, I’d be glad to be sad, If my feeling bad made you feel good, I would always feel bad [Chorus] And I wouldn’t think twice about the sacrifice, Anything that I’d have to do, ‘Cause whatever makes you happy makes me happy too." (Miracles, Whatever Makes You Happy)

“If it makes you happy, It can't be that bad, If it makes you happy, Then why the (heck) are you so sad?" (Sheryl Crow, If It Makes You Happy)

“It ain't nobody's business, How you turn it up, If they don't like it, Tell 'em we don't give a what, I ain't nobody's business, Who you wanna love, If they don't like it, You can tell 'em that ya do, Whatever makes you happy, Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, Whatever makes you happy." (The Cast of Empire, Whatever Makes You Happy)

I. Praying for physical healing is fueled by a belief that one’s body belongs to the Lord. 

“Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing praise. Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will save the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up (13-15).” 

“I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live (Jn 11:25).” 

“Instead of throwing themselves into a crazed life of sexual abandon with a string of partners, Dad sneaks a look at porn on his phone in the den, while upstairs his wife loses herself in Fifty Shades of Grey on her Kindle, before they both make it an early night to get the kids to football training in the morning (Sayers, Mark, Disappearing Church).” 

II. Confessing our sin to one another, and bringing fellow sinners back, not canceling them is essential to a flourishing community. 

“Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed (16).” 

“My brothers, if anyone among you wanders from the truth and someone brings him back, let him know that whoever brings back a sinner from his wandering will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins (19-20).” 

1. You bring a sinner back as a sinner. You are not reaching down, but out. Romans 3:23, 

“…for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (Rm 3:23).” 

2. You bring a sinner back acknowledging you are an  undeserved object of God’s love. Grace is getting the opposite of what you deserve.

3. You bring a sinner back patiently, but boldly, willing to risk the relationship.

Big Idea: God has designed you for His purpose by His promises, so we must be rooted in our faith.

Be patient, therefore, brothers, until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, being patient about it, until it receives the early and the late rains. You also, be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand. Do not grumble against one another, brothers, so that you may not be judged; behold, the Judge is standing at the door. As an example of suffering and patience, brothers, take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord. Behold, we consider those blessed who remained steadfast. You have heard of the steadfastness of Job, and you have seen the purpose of the Lord, how the Lord is compassionate and merciful. But above all, my brothers, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or by any other oath, but let your “yes” be yes and your “no” be no, so that you may not fall under condemnation. (James 5:7-12)

1. Our faith must be rooted in the sufficiency of God's Word.

The end of all things is at hand; therefore be self-controlled and sober-minded for the sake of your prayers. (1 Peter 4:7)

1a. God's purpose for our patience ought to be rooted in the promised word of the Lord. 

Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us. (Romans 5:3-5)

I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. (John 15:5)

Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds (James 1:2)

2. Our faith must be rooted in the hope to come. 

You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against the sons of your own people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the Lord. (Leviticus 19:18)

[1] Come now, you rich, weep and howl for the miseries that are coming upon you. [2] Your riches have rotted and your garments are moth-eaten. [3] Your gold and silver have corroded, and their corrosion will be evidence against you and will eat your flesh like fire. You have laid up treasure in the last days. [4] Behold, the wages of the laborers who mowed your fields, which you kept back by fraud, are crying out against you, and the cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord of hosts. [5] You have lived on the earth in luxury and in self-indulgence. You have fattened your hearts in a day of slaughter. [6] You have condemned and murdered the righteous person. He does not resist you. (James 5:1-6)

Main idea: God gives us wealth to Worship Him and love others, so we must guard against the idol of wealth.

#1 The idol of wealth gives us a false sense of well being vv.1-3,5

[1] Come now, you rich, weep and howl for the miseries that are coming upon you. [2] Your riches have rotted and your garments are moth-eaten. [3] Your gold and silver have corroded, and their corrosion will be evidence against you and will eat your flesh like fire. You have laid up treasure in the last days. (James 5:1-3)

[19] “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, [20] but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. [21] For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. (Matthew 6:19-20)

The Rich Young Ruler 

[17] And as he was setting out on his journey, a man ran up and knelt before him and asked him, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” [18] And Jesus said to him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone. [19] You know the commandments: ‘Do not murder, Do not commit adultery, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Do not defraud, Honor your father and mother.’” [20] And he said to him, “Teacher, all these I have kept from my youth.” [21] And Jesus, looking at him, loved him, and said to him, “You lack one thing: go, sell all that you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.” [22] Disheartened by the saying, he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions. (Mark 10:17-23)

[23] And Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, “How difficult it will be for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God!”

#2 The idol of wealth hinders us from loving our neighbor vv. 4,6

[4] Behold, the wages of the laborers who mowed your fields, which you kept back by fraud, are crying out against you, and the cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord of hosts…. [6] You have condemned and murdered the righteous person. He does not resist you. (James 5:4,6)

Praise God from whom all blessings flow

Praise Him all creatures here below

Praise Him above ye heavenly host

Praise Father, Son and Holy Ghost

Amen

Main Idea: Because life is so fragile and short we must live every moment under the Lordship of God. 

Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit”— yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. Instead you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.” As it is, you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil.  So whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin (James 4:13-17)

1. Your Life is... a life surrendered to the Lordship of God.

2. Your Life is... like a mist, short and fragile 

“Our days on earth are like a shadow” (1 Chronicles 29:15)

“Remember, O God, that my life is but a breath” (Job 7:7)

“You have made my days a mere handbreadth, the span of my years is as nothing before you. Everyone is but a breath, even those who seem secure” (Psalm 39:5)

As for man, his days are like grass— he blooms like a flower of the field; when the wind passes over, it vanishes, and its place remembers it no more. (Psalm 103:15-16)

3. Your life is... in the hands of the Most Loving & Faithful God.