The world is a place full of struggles and challenges, but it is also a place that is full of hope. In this video, we explore what it means for the world around us when we truly have the hope of Advent. From the smallest acts of kindness to the most ambitious dreams, hope is a powerful force that can help us overcome any obstacle and achieve our goals. Whether you are dealing with personal struggles or working to make the world a better place, this video will remind you that there is always hope, and that together, we can create a brighter future for ourselves and for generations to come.
SERMON NOTES:
Journey’s begin with a choice.
- That’s what this Gospel passage is all about: repentance, change, making a choice.
- “The kingdom of heaven is near.”
- It is so close.
- The journey is almost complete.
- The answer to the question from the back seat “Are we there yet?” is almost “YES!”
Something new is coming.
- Advent is a journey.
- That is what John the Baptizer is saying here: We’re going on a journey. Either change your direction and get up to speed or get off the highway.
- John is looking ahead to the promised one, the Anointed, the Messiah, to Jesus.
- Jesus is looking ahead to God’s peaceable kingdom coming here on earth….but he says the future starts RIGHT NOW!
We HOPE that peace is possible because peace is promised.
- LAST WEEK: “There will come a time…”
- TODAY:
- a shoot will sprout
- a branch will emerge
- the Eternal One will alight and rest
- He will shine
- He will judge fairly
- He will consider more than what meets the eye
- He will end wickedness and abolish oppression
- A DAY WILL COME when the wolf will live peacefully beside the wobbly-kneed lamb.
- The leopard will lie down with the young goat
- He will destroy evil
Hope has a WILL of its own – that will is the WILL of God’s promise.
- This isn’t “maybe.”
- This isn’t “what if.”
- This isn’t “perhaps.”
- This is WILL.
- We hope that peace will come because peace has been promised.
This begs the questions:
- What will really happen if truly believe in the possibility of the reign of God?
- What will happen if we truly hope that God will keep God’s promise of a world of peace?
**THE HOPE**
When we truly hope that God will keep God’s promises, we change.
- When we really believe that grace and faith and peace and joy can happen, we end up living those things right now.
- When we believe in the reality of peace, we live more peacefully.
- When we believe in the reality of grace, we will extend more grace.
- When we believe in love, we will be more loving.
- When we believe in the reality of hope itself, we won’t continue to complain about what was or even what is, but our words, thoughts, and actions will be dripping with anticipation for what is coming.
- We become the evidence that the promise is possible.
- We become the evidence that God is present and active in the world.
- God’s promise flows from God Us The World.
When we truly hope that God keep’s God’s promises, we change.
DO THESE THINGS:
REPENT!
- Change
- Repent from the sin of hopelessness of the world around you.
- Stop buying into the despair and inevitability of the world that says, “It’s all meaningless and terrible.”
- Repent and believe that what God said will happen WILL HAPPEN…if we only truly hope for it, believe in it, and change our actions to align with it.
A world of peace IS coming.
- Repent of your hopelessness and change.
StainedGlassRebel 