Sermon Outline

The Signs of Advent (1)

The Prophesies of God’s Word John 7.37-44

Surely this man is the Prophet. Others said He is the Christ. …Does not the Scriptures say that the Christ will come from David’s seed and from Bethlehem, the town where David lived? John 7.40-42

Advent: Means the Coming or the Arrival. Jesus Christ while remaining fully God, came to the earth as fully man. Colossians 2.9; Philippians 2.6-7

Why Jesus Came

To seek and to save what was lost. Luke 19.10

To give His life as a ransom for many. Matthew 20.28

Genesis 3.15 The Seed of the woman

Genesis 1 – the curtain opens and the stage is set

Genesis 2 – the actors are introduced

Genesis 3 – the tragic fall; man’s sin against God

Genesis 3.15 – God’s prophecy of an advent of salvation

-The seed of the woman. Her seed… Galatians 4.4

-The male seed. He will…

-The victory of the seed and the cost to the man. He

will bruise his head and you will bruise his heel.

Genesis 3.21 – Picture of sacrifice to clothe sinners

–God made garments of skin to clothe them.

Abraham The Seed of Abraham

Genesis 12.3; 22.15-18; Galatians 3.16

–through your seed all the nations on earth will be blessed, because you have obeyed me. [The father of faith]

Israel The Lion of Judah

Genesis 49.10. Revelation 5.5. The scepter will not depart from Judah…

Moses The Prophet

Deuteronomy 18.15. God will raise up for you a prophet like me…

David The Seed of David; The Root of Jesse

1 Chronicles 17.10-14; Isaiah 11.10; Romans 15.12; Revelation 5.5, 22.16. I will establish his throne forever

And…

Isaiah 53, 61 – The anointed one  (Messiah in Hebrew;

Christ in Greek)

Daniel 9.24-26 – Time of Christ’s Advent and death

Micah 5.2 – Born in Bethlehem

Isaiah 7.14 – Born of a virgin

Isaiah 9.6-7 – To us a child is born, a son is given…

Malachi 3.1 – I will send my messenger, who will prepare the way before me. Then suddenly the Lord you are seeking will come to his temple…

Conclusion

Luke 24.25-27, 44-46. Many Old Testament prophecies pointed toward the first Advent of Jesus Christ. Many other OT and NT prophecies point to a second and final Advent of Jesus Christ. Are you ready for the second Advent? Be ready for the second Advent be making Christ’s first Advent a reality in your life. Hebrews 9.28

Sermon Notes

Series: The Signs of Advent (1)

The Prophecies of God’s Word John 7.37-41

-For the next five weeks we will be looking at “The Signs of Advent”.

-Advent means “the coming or the arrival”. What we celebrate as Christians is the coming, the arrival, of Jesus Christ into this world as a man, while continuing to be fully God. Paul expresses the essence of this historic advent in Colossians 2.9 with the words, “In Christ dwells all the fullness of the Godhead in bodily form”. In Philippians 2.6-7, Paul expresses the advent of Christ when he writes, “Christ Jesus, Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made Himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness”.

-There was a specific moment in history when Jesus, while remaining fully God, left the glory and eternity of heaven and stepped into time, and was born into this world. Many signs pointed toward this grace-filled, miraculous and humble advent of God coming to live on earth. This morning we will look at the sign of the prophecies of God’s Word.

-When Jesus spoke of his reason for coming to earth He said, “The Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost” and “The Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many”. (Luke 19.10; Matthew 20.28). Jesus Christ came to earth because His creation was lost and needed to be saved and ransomed back to God. Jesus came to earth to pay the ransom price to save lost sinners from eternal separation from God. Jesus paid the price for sin by living a perfect life on earth in obedience to God the Father, and then dying on the cross as a sacrifice for sin. God the Father showed that He accepted the sacrifice of Jesus for sin by raising Jesus Christ from the dead.

-The Bible begins with Genesis chapter 1 where God creates the heavens and the earth. Here the curtain opens and the stage upon which history’s tragic drama will unfold is revealed to us. Then in Genesis chapter 2, human beings, the actors in this tragic drama are brought on stage and presented in all their innocence and glory, created in the image of God. Then in Genesis chapter 3, the tragedy of man’s rebellion against God, and man’s fall into sin, and man’s lost condition is described. It is in the midst of this very tragedy that God begins to prophecy an advent that will bring salvation to mankind.

-In Genesis 3.15 God addresses Satan and says, “I will put enmity between you and the woman and between your seed and her seed; He will bruise you on the head, and you will bruise him on the heel”. Notice that this verse speaks of the seed of the woman. This is quite unusual. The seed of procreation is commonly attributed to men, not women in the Bible. Did God know about the virgin birth at the advent of Christ when He made this prophecy about the seed of the woman? Also the sex of the seed is male. He will bruise you on the head. Did God know already that He would send His Son Jesus Christ to earth? Finally the prophecy is that the seed will bruise the serpent’s head. We are clearly told in the NT that at the cross Jesus Christ disarmed all authorities and powers and won mankind back to God. In this verse we have the first prophecy of the advent of Jesus Christ and the promise of the ransom of humanity back to God.

-In this chapter God also gives us the first picture of the sacrifice of Jesus Christ for sin. When God clothed Adam and Eve with skins to replace their fig leaves He had to sacrifice an animal and blood had to be shed. This shedding of blood foreshadows the death of Christ on the cross and the shedding of His blood for the forgiveness of sins to clothe us with the righteousness of Christ before a Holy God. (Genesis 3.21)

-Hundreds of years later God called a man named Abram to follow Him, and promised Abram that “all peoples on the earth will be blessed through you” (Genesis 12.3). God changed Abram’s name to Abraham meaning the father of many nations even though the son God had promised him was not yet born. Finally when Abraham was 100 years old and Sarah was 90 years old, God did the impossible and Isaac was born to them. Some time later God tested Abraham and asked him to sacrifice the son God had given to him as a burnt offering. Abraham obeyed. At the last moment God stopped Abraham and gave him a promise which was also a prophesy of a future Advent. Here is the promise that God made to Abraham, “The angel of the Lord called to Abraham from heaven a second time and said, ‘I swear by myself, declares the Lord, that because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son, I will surely bless you and make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as the sand of the seashore. Your descendants will take possession of the cities of their enemies and through your seed all the nations on earth will be blessed, because you have obeyed me.’” (Genesis 22.15-18) [Father of Faith]

-We are told quite clearly in Galatians that the seed of the woman and the seed of Abraham is Jesus Christ (Galatians 3.16; 4.4).

-Through Abraham, Isaac and Jacob God raised up the nation of Israel. In Genesis chapter 49 we find Jacob on his deathbed, prophesying over his children. To Judah, Jacob says, “The scepter will not depart from Judah, nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet, until he comes to whom it belongs and the obedience of the nations is his.” (Genesis 49.10) Jesus is a descendant of the tribe of Judah and in His advent became the king of the Jews and the King of kings. God continued to prophecy of the advent of His Son. [Lion of Judah].

-In Deuteronomy 18.15, Moses prophesied that God would raise up a prophet like him and that the people of God were to follow him, “the Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among our own brothers. You must listen to him.”

-King David foreshadowed the coming of King Jesus. To David God promised, “I declare to you that the Lord will build a house for you: When your days are over and you go to be with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring to succeed you, one of your own sons, and I will establish his kingdom. He is the one who will build a house for me, and I will establish his throne forever. I will be his father, and he will be my son. I will never take my love away from him, as I took it away from your predecessor. I will set him over my house and my kingdom forever; his throne will be established forever.” (1 Chronicles 17.10-14)

-Isaiah prophesied, “In that day the Root of Jesse will stand as a banner for the people; the nations will rally to him, and his place of rest will be glorious” (Isaiah 11.10). This verse is quoted as fulfilled in Jesus in Romans 15.12. Also Revelation 5.5 and 22.16.

-Over and over again God brought before Israel new pictures of the coming advent. God declared new prophesies of the advent to come and confirmed the prophesies He had already given. God told of a Suffering Servant in Isaiah 53 and of His anointed one (which is what Messiah means) in Isaiah 61.

-In Daniel we are told of the time of Christ’s coming and of his death (Daniel 9.24-26). We are told that He would be born in Bethlehem in Micah 5.2. We are told of His virgin birth in Isaiah 7.14. And we are told of His great authority and majesty in Isaiah 9.6-7, “To us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on David’s throne and over his kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and forever. The zeal of the Lord Almighty will accomplish this.”

-The Old Testament is full of prophesies of the Advent of a Savior as the seed of the woman; the seed and Son of Abraham; the prophet like Moses; the ruler, root and Son of David; the Anointed One (Messiah in Hebrew and Christ in Greek). Throughout the history of Israel God was prophesying, illustrating, and pointing to the Advent of His Son. Those who worshipped God and knew the Scriptures expected an advent and looked for it and prepared themselves for it. Then one day God the Son stepped out of heaven and onto the stage of this earth in order to bring salvation to mankind.

-In the last chapter of the OT, God spoke one last time of the coming advent through the prophet Malachi. He prophesied, “‘See, I will send my messenger, who will prepare the way before me. Then suddenly the Lord you are seeking will come to his temple; the messenger of the covenant whom you desire, will come,’ says the Lord Almighty.” After this God stopped speaking to Israel for 400 years. Then came John the Baptist to prepare the way for Jesus. When Jesus began His ministry one of his first acts was to clear the temple in Jerusalem of those who were turning it into a market place, fulfilling this prophesy from Malachi. (Malachi 3.1)

-The Jewish people knew the prophecies of the coming Messiah. In John 7.40-41 we read “On hearing Jesus’ words some of the people said, ‘Surely this man is the Prophet.’ Others said, ‘He is the Christ.’ Still others asked, ‘How can the Christ come from Galilee? Does not the Scripture say that the Christ will come from David’s family and from Bethlehem, the town where David lived?’”

-The prophecies and pictures in God’s Word were signs pointing to the Advent of Jesus Christ. In Luke 24 we see the resurrected Jesus walking along the road to Emmaus with two discouraged disciples who had believed that Jesus was going to bring salvation to Israel but could no longer do it because he was dead. Jesus said to them, “‘How foolish you are, and how slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken! Did not the Christ (Messiah) have to suffer these things and then enter his glory?’ And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself.’” Later that day Jesus was talking with the disciples and said to them, “This is what I told you while I was still with you: Everything must be fulfilled that is written about me in the Law of Moses, the Prophets and the Psalms.” (Luke 24.25-27; 44) The prophecies of the advent of Jesus Christ and of His suffering and death were all fulfilled in detail as God had prophesied.

-In the Old and New Testament we find prophecies of another advent that has not yet come. God has promised that Jesus Christ is going to come again to this world, not as a baby, not as a sacrifice for sin, but as the King of kings and Ruler of all. Jesus Christ is prophesied to return as the final Savior of His people and as the Judge over all people. I rejoice in what Hebrews 9.28 says, “Jesus will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him.”

–Are you ready for the second and final advent of Jesus Christ? Are you waiting for Him to come? As sure as I am standing before you today, Jesus will return to earth. As sure as God is true to His word everyone will stand before God to give an account of their life. Only those who have Jesus as their Savior will be allowed into heaven.

-In this season we are celebrating the first advent while we anticipate the second advent. As the Word of God prophesied the first advent so it now prophesies and warns us about the second advent. The Word of God tells us to make sure that we are ready to stand face to face with God by putting our trust in Jesus Christ Who once came to seek and to save what was lost and Who is coming again to take those He has saved to be with Him forever. I pray that if you are not anxiously awaiting the return of Jesus that by the end of this Advent season you will be, rejoicing that Jesus Christ came to earth to save a sinner like you.