Advent and Preparation
Matthew 11:10 ‘Behold, I send My messenger before Your face, Who will prepare Your way before You.’
Introduction
Now remember, last week our Gospel reading reminded us that the God who was faithful to His promise that the Messiah would come is the same God who will be equally faithful to His promise that the Messiah will return. In other words, last week we saw that Advent speaks directly to and about the future.
This morning, as we listen to our Gospel reading and to the liturgy for this week, we are once again reminded that Advent points to the future. How? How does the story of John the Baptist tell us anything about what is to come?
Simply put, the answer is this: just as God sent His Old Testament people to prepare the way for the first coming of the Lord (a mission that reaches its culmination in John the Baptist), so too God has sent each of His people today to prepare the way for Christ’s return.
Therefore, this morning I want to ask one simple question:
· How do we prepare the Lord’s way? That is, what has God given us to do to make the way of His return ready?
A] We prepare the Lord’s way by nurturing our walk with God – That is, one of the primary ways that God has given us to prepare for Christ’s return is by growing in our own faith and walk. [How do we do this? By being involved in and making diligent use of those things God has given His people to grow (things like staying in God’s Word, God’s house, and prayer). Not only that, as we grow, we are to become good/skillful at seeking God’s priorities and God’s Kingdom in every aspect of our life.] Simply put, one of the primary ways that we are to prepare for the Lord’s return is by preparing ourselves to be a people ready both to receive and proclaim our Lord’s return.
Luke 1:17 “And it is he who will go before the Lord in the spirit and power of Elijah, in order to turn the hearts of the fathers back to the children, and the disobedient to the attitude of the righteous; so as to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.”
B] We prepare the Lord’s way by our faithful worship– Notice then, by faithfully gathering for corporate worship on the Lord’s Day, we demonstrate to an on looking world that our allegiance, priorities, and trust are distinct from those of the world around us. Not only that, corporate worship is one of the key ways that God prepares, nurtures, and equips our walk and ministry.
Deuteronomy 5:15 ‘And you shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and the LORD your God brought you out of there by a mighty hand and by an outstretched arm; therefore the LORD your God commanded you to observe the Sabbath day.
However, that’s not all: notice that every aspect of the Lord’s Day (corporate worship on Sunday) points ahead to, enacts, and prepares for the Day of the Lord (and Christ’s return). How? Corporate worship is a living demonstration of and a direct participation in the governing principle/plan that is determinant of all life and history.
Micah 4:1 And it will come about in the last days that the mountain of the house of the LORD will be established as the chief of the mountains. It will be raised above the hills, And the peoples will stream to it.
Revelation 18:4 And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, “Come out of her, my people, that you may not participate in her sins and that you may not receive of her plagues;
C] We prepare the Lord’s way by faithful/distinct living– notice then, as grace begins to change you, your faithful living points to a higher obligation that lays claim to all of life. Not only that, as grace changes you, your life becomes a floor model of that very grace. That is, your life demonstrates and makes tangible the hope, forgiveness, and renewal that God offers to all who turn to Him.
Matthew 5:16 “Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.
D] We prepare the Lord’s way by our love and care for others– Notice then, the love and care that God calls us to show towards unbelievers are intended to be tangible demonstrations of God’s love for them. In other words, our love for the unbeliever is to make God’s love for them believable (If God’s own people love me, then maybe God himself really loves me).
1 John 4:11 Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. 12 No one has beheld God at any time; if we love one another, God abides in us, and His love is perfected (completed/fulfilled /accomplished) through us.
E] We prepare the Lord’s way by our faithful witness– that is one of the chief ways that we prepare for the coming of God’s Kingdom is by making citizens for that Kingdom out of the lost citizens of the world.
1 Peter 3:15 but sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts, always being ready to provide an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that is in you, yet with gentleness and reverence;
~Now given all we have said compare our mission with that of John and God’s Old Testament people
Luke 1:17 “And it is he who will go before the Lord in the spirit and power of Elijah, in order to turn the hearts of the fathers back to the children, and the disobedient to the attitude of the righteous; so as to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.”