Passover – Expectation
Date – 7/8/07
Sermon Series: Passover: God’s Perfect Promise
Sermon Title: – Expectation
Text: “See, I am going to send My messenger, and he will clear the way before Me. Then the Lord you seek will suddenly come to His temple, the Messenger of the covenant you desire—see, He is coming,” says the Lord of Hosts.” (Malachi 3:1, HCSB)
“Look, I am going to send you Elijah the prophet before the great and awesome Day of the Lord comes.” (Malachi 4:5, HCSB)
Theme: The Passover is not only about what God has done in the past it also reveals that God’s people are to look forward expectantly toward His further plans. Over time the Passover came to take on and express the Messianic hopes of God’s people. Just like the Jews who looked forward to the time on God’s calendar when He was going to fulfill His promise through the Messiah, the Christian has some things that we need to look forward to.
Introduction: Sometimes I am such a little kid that it is ridiculous. I remember the time that Teresa and I planned our first real family vacation with the kids. It was the night before we were supposed to leave early the next morning. We were going to drive from our home to Las Vegas Nevada the first night, we had reservations for Circus Circus and as if that wasn’t cool enough, our room was on the 16th floor. The day after that we were going to drive to Anaheim California where we had a room at hotel right across the street from Disneyland. We had been talking about it for months we had all of our reservations in hand and the car was packed and we were ready to go. We went to bed that night early in anticipation of getting up early. I went to bed and tried and tried to go to sleep but I was just too darned excited. Finally at two o’clock in the morning I noticed that Teresa was awake too and so we got up, woke the kids and left on our vacation by about three in the morning. We were just too excited to lie in bed and wait anymore.
Transition: That sense of urgency, of joyful anticipation is an incredible feeling and it is a feeling that should be a part of the life of a new covenant believer.
I. Passover Expectations
a. The cup for Elijah/the open door – Malachi 3:1/4:5
i. Last week we participated together in a much abbreviated Seder service. There were several elements of the meal that I either didn’t mention or only briefly touched on.
ii. One of the things that I pointed out was the fact that there was a cup of wine set on the table for the prophet Elijah.
iii. Another tradition of the Passover celebration is that at midnight the front door to the house is swung wide open. This cup is placed on the table and the door is opened in invitation and hope that this year Elijah will come. Malachi, the last prophet recorded in the Old Testament, closes out his future prophesies with the note that Elijah will be sent ahead of the Messiah.
iv. Among the Rabinically observant Jews Passover is a time of what I would call urgent joy. It is a focal point of celebration that focuses on both the past fulfillment of God’s promises to his people, and the expectations for God’s work in the future of His people.
v. Because the past accomplishments of God on behalf of his people are so real and concrete the future promises take on more then a vague “sometime” they are almost present, urgent joy is the result.
b. For the new covenant believer, we understand that most of the promises that the Passover looked forward to have been fulfilled. It no longer appropriate to wait for Elijah to come and announce the Messiah. He’s already come and done that through the person of John the Baptist.
i. Jesus clearly tells us that this prophecy came true in the person of John the Baptist. (Matt. 11:13,14; Mark 9:14) –
c. As the Passover sacrifice, Jesus has fulfilled the promise of redemption that was shadowed by the paschal lamb.
II. Present Expectations - One of the things that should give the Christian a sense of urgent joy is the movement of God in our present circumstances. As Christians we need to be aware of God’s activity in our life. As Christians we can expect God’s working in three different areas.
a. Expectation of suffering.
i. This joy is not dependent on circumstances that give us ease of life. – 1 Peter 4:12-19
1. This passage in Peter views suffering as an opportunity to share with the Messiah.
2. If we are persecuted because we have faith in the Lord, we are blessed.
ii. In fact I am convinced that suffering can itself be confirmation that God is at work in your life and among your will.
1. The author of Hebrews, in chapter 12, confirms to us that just as we get discipline from our fathers to mold our character, God disciplines us as well. This discipline is intended to bring about peace and righteousness.
b. Expectation of blessing
i. James 1:17 the believer is assured that every good and perfect gift that we receive comes from God, our Father.
1. I think that one of the biggest problems with most Christians of our generation is the ignorance we exemplify toward all of the gifts that God has rained down upon us.
2. I am not only talking about the gifts of redemption and justification that are available to us through a relationship with Jesus as Lord and Master, I am talking about the things that we enjoy everyday that we never thank God for.
c. Expectation of kingdom usefulness.
i. The other thing that every Christian believer had better be looking forward to is some form of Kingdom service.
ii. Stephen Hawking is an astrophysicist at Cambridge University and perhaps the most intelligent man on earth. He has advanced the general theory of relativity farther than any person since Albert Einstein. Unfortunately, Hawking is afflicted with ALS Syndrome (Lou Gehrig’s disease). It will eventually take his life. He has been confined to a wheelchair for years, where he can do little more than sit and think. Hawking has lost the ability even to speak, and now he communicates by means of a computer that is operated from the tiniest movement of his fingertips. Quoting from an Omni magazine article: He is too weak to write, feed himself, comb his hair, fix his classes–all this must be done for him. Yet this most dependent of all men has escaped invalid status. His personality shines through the messy details of his existence.
Hawking said that before he became ill, he had very little interest in life. He called it a “pointless existence” resulting from sheer boredom. He drank too much and did very little work. Then he learned he had ALS Syndrome and was not expected to live more than two years. The ultimate effect of that diagnosis, beyond its initial shock, was extremely positive. He claimed to have been happier after he was afflicted than before. How can that be understood? Hawking provided the answer. “When one’s expectations are reduced to zero,” he said, “one really appreciates everything that one does have.” Stated another way: contentment in life is determined in part by what a person anticipates from it. To a man like Hawking who thought he would soon die quickly, everything takes on meaning–a sunrise or a walk in a park or the laughter of children. Suddenly, each small pleasure becomes precious. By contrast, those who believe life owes them a free ride are often discontent with its finest gifts. James Dobson, New Man, October, 1994, p. 36.
iii. The writers of the New Testament expected believers to be involved in some kind of kingdom building activity.
1. Ephesians 4
2. Romans 12
3. 1 Peter 4:10 – “Based on the gift they have received, everyone should use it to serve others, as good managers of the varied grace of God.”
III. Future Expectations
a. Expectation of Judgment
i. The parable of the sheep and the goats. – “All the nations will be gathered before Him and He will separate them one from another, just as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.” – Matthew 25
ii. The biblical record also records for us the idea that it is with great anticipation that we should look forward to the day when God shows up and sets all things right. It is clear that things are not as they should be. The world has been turned a little on its ear and we sense the injustice that lies around us. We need God to come and set it right.
b. Expectation of Resurrection
i. 1 Thess. 4:13-18 – Sometimes I think that we don’t really look forward to a time of resurrection and yet Scripture makes it clear that this is one of the events for which we should have the most anticipation. It as if we have bought into the idea that this is as good as it gets. I remember one of the most intriguing films that I have ever seen is the Robin Williams movie, “What Dreams May Come.” This is a pretty heavy film about a man who after a life full of more then his share of sorrow dies and goes to heaven. The thing is that his heaven was one that he had constructed. It resembled a painting that he was particularly fond of.
ii. I am thankful that, in reality, heaven is designed and built by someone with a lot more imagination then I will ever have.
