ADVENT 2 – December 6, 2020 – 2 Pet.3:8-14
“A HUMBLE BEGINNING, A GLORIOUS END”
Introduction: Grace be to you and peace, from God our Father, and from our Savior and Lord, Jesus Christ. Our text is the Epistle Lesson just read, from 2 Pet. 3. We begin with prayer.
Dear fellow disciples of our Savior and Lord, Jesus Christ:
- Jesus once advised His disciples about not taking a place of high honor. You remember that He said: “When you are invited by someone to a wedding feast, do not sit down in a place of honor, lest someone more distinguished than you be invited by him, and he who invited you both will come and say to you, ‘Give your place to this person,’ and then you will begin with shame to take the lowest place. But when you are invited, go and sit in the lowest place, so that when your host comes he may say to you, ‘Friend, move up higher.’ Then you will be honored in the presence of all who sit at table with you. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”
- This, frankly, is a pattern used by God Himself, and certainly by the Lord Jesus Christ. He was incarnate, made man. He was born a tiny baby to a poor family. He suffered all manner of rejection, argument, and ultimately death. But He was raised again in glory and exalted to the highest authority in the universe. And He will come again in great glory on the Last Day to rule over the renewal of all things.
- We also are encouraged to follow the same pattern! There is great benefit to “A HUMBLE BEGINNNING” so long as we are assured of “A GLORIOUS END.” And this is just what God offers to us in His Word!
- Yes, for Jesus it was “A HUMBLE BEGINNING,” for:
I. Jesus Came To Save Us
Gospel: “The beginning of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God . . . a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. . . He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.”
John 1:29 “Behold, the Lamb of God Who takes away the sin of the world.”
Text: “The Lord is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.”
Statement: It is as the Scripture teaches: “Indeed, under the law almost everything is purified with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins. . . . For Christ has entered, not into holy places made with hands, which are copies of the true things, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God on our behalf. Nor was it to offer Himself repeatedly, as the high priest enters the holy places every year with blood not his own, for then He would have had to suffer repeatedly since the foundation of the world. But as it is, He has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself.” [Heb. 9:22,24-26]
Thus the necessity of “A HUMBLE BEGINNING.”
Application: While unbelievers struggle with this, and consider such humility unbecoming to anyone Who wants us to believe that He is God, it was necessitated by human sin and by the love and grace of God Himself. And truly, every human being should be filled with utter gratitude to God that He is Who He is! It is not His fault that a “blood atonement” is required for our sins! Rather it is our fault! Our sin, our rebellion, our stubborn hard-heartedness caused the need for a blood bought redemption! Thanks and praise be to God for His wondrous love which was willing to provide just what we need!
But though our salvation required “A HUMBLE BEGINNNING,” there is much more that Christ came to accomplish for us. For:
II. Christ’s Ultimate Goal Is The Re-Creation And Restoration Of All Things – And It Will Be Glorious
A. He Seeks To Restore Us To Holiness And Godliness
Text: “Since all these things are thus to be dissolved, what sort of people ought you to be in lives of holiness and godliness? . . . Therefore, beloved, since you are waiting for these, be diligent to be found by Him without spot or blemish, and at peace.”
B. He Will Restore All Of Creation – Making It The Home Of Righteousness
Text: “The heavens will pass away with a roar, and the heavenly bodies will be burned up and dissolved, and the earth and the works that are done on it will be exposed. . . . On the day of God . . . the heavens will be set on fire and dissolved, and the heavenly bodies will melt as they burn. But according to His promise we are waiting for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells.”
Statement: From the very beginning, with the fall of Adam and Eve into sin, and the consequent curse upon sin being in the world, God has sought to bring people back to Himself, back into the sphere of His love, back to decency and goodness. This is His first priority – human beings are most precious to Him! This is one of the principle purposes of His church, and of every Christian congregation, including ours – that human beings might be restored to God through His forgiveness and mercy, and that we be restored to reflect God’s image once again.
And His plan for us, for His renewed people, includes a new creation. Just as the original creation was made perfectly for human beings, because of God’s great love for us, so also God will make a new creation that is perfect for His dear children of faith!
Application: When we participate in the life of the church we are participating in the most important agenda and plan of God. As we live in His gracious love, and allow His love to transform us into His image, we are taking part in God’s renewal of all things! Now, and in this life, our renewal is partial and ongoing. We too have “A HUMBLE BEGINNING” as children of God! But our full and complete renewal will be glorious indeed, for God’s promise asserts: “But when He appears we will be like Him, for we will see Him as He is.” [1 Jn. 3:2]
Conclusion: So, let us not be put off with the humble beginning that we experience in our life in this world as Christians, or the humble process that the church is going through as Christ builds His kingdom! There is “A HUMBLE BEGINNING” but there will also be “A GLORIOUS END.”
As Jesus instructs us, let us take the lowest seat – for it is certain that He is coming to exalt us! Our end is connected to Christ’s glory, and we will be like Him!
Thanks and praise be to God, Amen.
Votum: And the peace of God, which surpasses all human understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds in the true faith, which is in Christ Jesus, even unto life everlasting, Amen.