Advent- Week 1 Isaiah 7:14 “Behold!”

INTRO> This begins Advent for us here at West Side. Advent is Latin for “arrival, or coming” Advent does 3 main things for us:

• • • • We look back to see what God has done.
      • We look around to see what God is doing.
      • We look ahead to see what God will do.

APP> This year we are going to do something different that we have never done before as a church. We have always done Advent here at West Side, but in all reality, Advent is apart of something much bigger. Advent is only one chapter in an entire story, what is that story? The story is the life of Jesus Christ. The life of Jesus has snapped everything about the church, from the beginning. So much so that is shaped the way they worshipped through the year. This is called the church calendar. *Historical – the early church saw under Constantine people getting baptized but nothing else really changing in a persons life. How can we make disciples that are shipped by the story that God is writing in Jesus Christ? The whole church year orbits around the life of Jesus Christ:

• • • • Advent/Christmas- The arrival of Jesus. (Dec)
      • Epiphany- the manifestation of Jesus. (Jan-Feb)
      • Lent- the temptation and death of Jesus. (March)
      • Easter- the resurrection of Jesus. (April)
      • Pentecost– the Spirit of Jesus. (May)

*ILL> The OKC bombing memorial. April 19th, 1995, bomb killing 168 people Second floor, the day starts at 6am. You do an entire walk through. All the way to Timothy Mckveys trial and execution. *The reflecting pool. ““We come here to remember Those who were killed, those who survived and those changed forever. May all who leave here know the impact of violence. May this memorial offer comfort, strength, peace, hope and serenity.”  9:01am-9:03am, you live in 9:02am. Hebrews 13:5

CONTEXT> So this year for Advent, for the arrival of Jesus we are looking at a single word that is found in scripture to guide us over these coming weeks, bet you can’t guess what it is?! BEHOLD! It is used 1,069x in the ESV Bible. It means to look into, to gave at. You can literally use this word to tell the story of the bible:

• • • “And God said, “Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit. You shall have them for food.” – Genesis 1:29
    • “Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the great and awesome day of the Lord comes.” Malachi 4:5
    • “But as he considered these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.” – Matthew 1:20
    • “And behold, I am coming soon. Blessed is the one who keeps the words of the prophecy of this book.” – Revelation 22:7

APP> What does all of this mean? Every time this word is used  it is almost always in reference to what God has done or something that God is going to do and for us to trust in it!

Problem: I don’t think we read the Bible this way, or see God as telling us “Behold”. Most of us, what we think God is saying is

• • • • • God, “Behave!”– Behavior is important, and there is a lot in the Bible about it, but that’s not the main problem.. or the main message as we have seen. But even during this holiday season, Santa is all about behavior. Behavior= what you do!
        • We don’t need advice. Sin doesn’t need advice. We need an announcement!

Big Idea > The announcement of advent is “Behold!” not “Behave!”

CONTEXT> So over the month, we are looking at bible passages where God is telling us to Behold, to pay attention to what he is doing! In Isaiah 7-9 it’s one sermon that the prophet Isaiah says to King Ahaz, king of Judah, the nation is split in two, North and South and Syria is coming to destroy them. In v3 “Go out and meet Ahaz by the pool…” Ahaz is with all of his military guys getting ready to gear up, Ahaz is focusing on Syria God tells him to Focus on his word.

1. What we behold we become.

• • • • “Ask a sign of the Lord…” do you see that it says, “Again the Lord spoke to Ahaz… he keeps running and God keeps chasing. Ahaz is trying to hear everybody and seek consul from everywhere but God.
      • Turn over one page Isaiah 8:18-20 “Behold, I and the children whom the Lord has given me are signs and portents in Israel from the Lord of hosts, who dwells on Mount Zion. And when they say to you, “Inquire of the mediums and the necromancers who chirp and mutter,” should not a people inquire of their God? Should they inquire of the dead on behalf of the living? 20 To the teaching and to the testimony! If they will not speak according to this word, it is because they have no dawn.” Isaiah 8:18-20
      • “Their idols are silver and gold, the work of human hands. They have mouths, but do not speak; eyes, but do not see. They have ears, but do not hear; noses, but do not smell. They have hands, but do not feel; feet, but do not walk; and they do not make a sound in their throat. Those who make them become like them; so do all who trust in them.” Psalm 115:4-8
      • “So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate. 7 Then the eyes of both were opened, and they knew that they were naked. And they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves loincloths.” Genesis 3:6-7 *ILL> Indiana Jones, ark scene, “Don’t look!”

APP> What the eyes look at the heart loves.

APP> So what is the answer to this problem as old as time. Well God is telling us… “Look at me!…”

• • • • “ And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.”- Luke 1:31
      • “And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.” 2 Corinthians 3:18

APP> You become more like Jesus the more you behold Jesus.

Big Idea > The announcement of advent is “Behold!” not “Behave!”

Close>

• If God’s message is “Behold!” not “Behave!” How does this change your image of God?
• Archbishop William temple said, “Religion is what you do with your solitude.” Translation, What do you daydream about? That’s what you are beholding.  *LITURGY