Hope

Study Notes

Down to Earth:  Hope

Isaiah 11:1-10

     I want to speak today about hope, that biblical word that means something so much different from what we mean when we use the word “hope” in our world.  We often think of hope as being very uncertain. The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines hope this way: “To want something to happen or be true.  To long for something good that may never occur.” 

     As an example, you may ask me, “Pastor, will we meet our budget this December and provide seed money for relief efforts too?”  I can only answer, “I don’t know – but I hope so.”  But, God does know.  Therefore, when God says something will happen, it does happen. So, when we wait for a good promise from God to happen, we call it hope.  Hope placed in a promise from God is not uncertain.  So, this is biblical hope:  Holding on to God’s promises with confidence because we are convinced that someday God will fulfill what he has promised.  And that brings us to the 1^st Advent weekend of 2017.

What Advent Is

    The season of Advent is about living day-by-day in a sometimes-very-difficult world anticipating the fulfillment of God’s promise to come into our world and into our lives to make all things right.  So, at Advent, we remember the first incarnational coming of God into the world through the infant Jesus. That, of course, took place over 2,000 years ago.  He came to begin a work in our world, one that makes forgiveness of sin and eternal life available to all. That’s something you can experience right now by placing faith in Jesus.

     But, God has also promised to make everything right in your life and in the world.  And, that promise has not been fulfilled yet.  So, at Advent we also remember that God will again enter personally into this world.  Jesus will come again to complete the work he has inaugurated. So, we live with that hope -- knowing that God has made that wonderful promise -- but has not fulfilled it yet. 

     In this Advent series called “Down to Earth”, we want to think about how hope comes down to earth as we await the coming of Christ.  And nowhere in the Bible is that point made more clearly than in Isaiah 11.

Setting

     The prophet Isaiah lived over 700 years before Jesus was born.  Most of the prophecies about the coming of the Messiah that we sing about in our Christmas songs come from Isaiah.  At the time that Isaiah lived, the Jewish people were divided into two nations, Israel to the north and Judah to the south.

     The big superpower threatening both Israel and Judah was Assyria, a nation with an egocentric dictator committed to taking over the entire Middle East with a military plan that sent him right through Israel and Judah.  Isaiah was called to be a prophet at a very young age -- just 18 years before the northern nation, Israel, was overrun.  In Isaiah 6, Isaiah prophesied that Judah also would be defeated and left as dead as a stump.  And, it happened -- over a century later -- just as God had promised.  

     But Isaiah consistently lets us know that God had a plan and would someday rescue his people.  In fact, in ch.10, Isaiah foresaw that the oppressive Assyria would also be judged and also left like a forest of stumps.  The stumps in Assyria would never come back to life.  But, for God’s people, something different will happen.  We see it in 11:1: “A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse; from his roots a Branch will bear fruit.”    From there, Isaiah goes on to tell us that the little shoot will grow and ultimately change the entire world. That was the future hope that they were to hold onto while they were carried away from their own country.

     Today, we begin to remember that 2,000 years ago a little boy was born with no big status as the world thinks of status -- into a lineage of a failed ancient dynasty, i.e., the house of the David.  Through what this child does, hope is offered not only to Judah but to the whole world.  Let’s look at what Isaiah the prophet foresaw about this “shoot”, this child.

What This Child Will Be like – When he comes, God comes (11:1-5).  

A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse… The Spirit of the Lord will rest on him (11:1-2).

     Jesse was King David’s Father.  When David was king, God had promised him that the Messiah would come through his family line.  Jesus was born through that family line.  So, throughout the history of the church, all Christians have been convinced that Isaiah’s prophecy of a “shoot” coming up out of the stump of Jesse is pointing to Jesus.

      Is 11 doesn’t tell us everything about Jesus that we might want to know, but what it tells us is significant.  If you want to follow Jesus and represent him well, each characteristic Isaiah mentions is indispensable:

1. What God is, Jesus is -- The Spirit of the Lord rests on him… (11:2). 

     God is characterized by understanding and wisdom as well as might -- and so is Jesus.  That means Jesus has both knowledge (i.e., he knows what to do) and might (he is able to do what he wants to do).  This is what gives us hope.  Jesus has come in keeping with God’s promise with wisdom and strength.  We who follow him are asked to live with the certain hope in this imperfect world that he will accomplish what he was sent to do. 

2. As God sees, Jesus sees -- He will not judge by what he sees with his eyes, or decide by what he hears with his ears (11:3).  

     We are, by nature, people who judge others based on external matters – like how people dress, what color their skin is, or how successful the person may appear to be.  One thing you will recognize quickly when you read about the life of Jesus was that he did not judge people on external things.  He entered into anyone’s life who would come to him.  Jesus offered a new way of life, a new community of faith and a new future to all who would follow him. Jesus did not see people as the world generally sees people.  So, let me tell you today that Jesus has the same “eyes” today.  Jesus sees you as valuable, so valuable that he came to give his life for you. He sees you as you can be if you will place your faith in him.  He sees you not only as you are now but as you will be when he’s completed his work in you.

3. As God is always just, Jesus is just -- With justice he gives decisions for the poor of the earth… (11:4)

     In Is. 11, Isaiah prophesies that Jesus will make all things right in this world.  That’s what this word “justice” means, the righting of wrongs.   The main focus of this child’s work, Isaiah prophesies, is that he will give special care to those who are poor and downtrodden. He’ll do this by entering in to situations in which there is great need and distress and will use his awesome authority to change things. 

     It was not until the 1^st Christmas day that we see to what lengths God would go to in order to fulfill this prophecy.  Jesus was born into a poor family and then visited by poor shepherds.  When he was dedicated, his parents could only bring two pigeons as an offering, the gifts of the poorest of poor. (See Luke 2:24.)  When he ministered, he fed the hungry, healed the sick and forgave and transformed the tax collector and prostitute.

     And, the only one who possibly could know how to do all this and has the power to do it has to be God.  Essentially, what I see Isaiah saying in these verses is that when this “shoot comes forth out of the line of Jesse”, it will be God himself.  Therefore, when Jesus came, God came.  So, when Jesus comes into your life, God comes into your life.  When Jesus returns, God will be coming to complete his work – to fulfill his promises.  That is Advent hope.  It’s hope that is not uncertain.

What This Child Will Do – He will bring a divine revolution (11:6-10). 

The wolf will live with the lamb… (1:6).  The lion will eat straw… (1:7). The nations will rally to him… (1:10).

     When I say that Jesus will bring a divine revolution, what I mean is what Tom Wright speaks of in his book, The Day the Revolution Began, i.e., that Jesus did not simply come to save our souls.  He came to revolutionize our lives and remake the world he created. 

     Is 11:6-10 describes what the world will be like when Jesus finishes his work.  The main thing the prophecy says is that the Messiah will bring perfect shalom, the Hebrew word for all things being the way they should be.  These verses are all about everything that is broken being brought back together. Isaiah gives us nine beautiful statements of all things being restored – the wolf living with the lamb, the cow and bear grazing peacefully side-by-side in a field, and even the child playing right by the hole of a cobra. Can you imagine it?  A Mom will place her small child next to a cobra and say, “I’ll be back in a little while.  Have a good time together, you two!”  And it all is summarized in v.9: “They will neither harm nor destroy on all my holy mountain, for the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea.”

     Notice that the language is about animals being reconciled to one another by this child.  V.6 tells us “the wolf will live with the lamb, the leopard will lie down with the goat, the calf and the lion and the yearling together” – all led by this little child who will be born.  And, this surely will happen with animals! 

     However, most rabbis and Christian Bible scholars agree that Isaiah’s prophecy about animals is really pointing to a fact that we all know, i.e., that people need to be made right with one another and with the world. In other words, the Bible isn’t just painting a beautiful word picture of the way things someday will be with all these animals being at peace.  No, it is saying that, when we become those who by faith follow this child (v.6), we too must change.  We need shalom too.  Jesus came to end the brokenness among human beings too,

     I’ve been thinking about how Isaiah might tell us that following Jesus should change what is happening in our world.  Isaiah spoke of animal predators.  Today, Isaiah might say that:

• The predators who have had the power in our society to harass and abuse women – as we are reading about in the daily news – will no longer do so; 
• That someday we will see the baby boomer and the millennial singing both hymns and hip hop – and doing it together; 
• That the young black man who had been warned by his mom about the dangers he should expect to face from law enforcement will be seen dancing with the policeman who has been warned in his training about a very different kind of danger – and the two will be playing soccer together;
• That the immigrant will be dining with the agent for homeland security;
• That the CNN anchor will be having tea with the Fox News anchor;
• That Elizabeth Warren will be writing tax legislation with Ted Cruz!  

     These kinds of things seem to be impossible.  But, this kind of reconciliation will happen for all who come to Christ – though only for those who come to Christ.  Jesus will tear down the walls that separate us.

     I call this a divine revolution.  So, notice that animals will have their very natures altered. V. 7 says that the lion shall eat straw like the ox.  A carnivore will become a vegetarian!  That means that Jesus will absolutely transform things.   For us, Jesus intends to change us from the inside out.  He will turn sinners into saints.  He comes into our lives to begin to change us until you and I are fully conformed to the image of Jesus Christ.  God promises this will happen.  But, it has not yet happened, has it? 

     So, this is the hope that comes down to earth at Advent.  It’s promised – but it has not yet been fulfilled. We’re now living in an in-between time.  We’re between the 1^st coming of Jesus to begin his work and the 2^nd coming of Jesus to complete his work.  God’s message at Advent is an encouragement to us all to wait with hope in this world until Jesus returns and finishes his work and, as we wait, to allow Jesus to do his life-transforming work in our lives.

     Do any of you remember that I spoke about Isaiah 11 one year ago, during Advent 2016?  When I did, God used his Word in one of our member’s lives.  So, I did an interview with her this week that I want you to see: 

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     I’m now with our Pastor to Young Adults, Annie Neufeld.  I’ve asked her to help us think about how the belief in a future hope might guide and sustain our lives in the present – when we may not be feeling very hope-full.  Annie, I talked about this message of a future hope speaking into people’s lives in a hurting world last Advent season when you and Josh were worshiping in one of our Saturday evening services. Afterward, you let me know that the Lord had spoken to you.  What was the context of that and what do you remember hearing?

Yeah, so at this point in time last year I was 8 weeks pregnant, excited about adding another little human to our family of 3. But then, a year ago this week, I learned that I had miscarried and we had lost the baby. This was right at the beginning of Advent, a season that seems to be all about expecting a baby, hoping for a baby, waiting for a baby. Which was honestly, infuriating to me. I couldn’t get excited about the birth of baby Jesus because I was so deeply mourning the loss of my own baby. I couldn’t dive into the themes of Advent that involve waiting and hoping and living in expectation because I was miscarrying—which is itself a long process of waiting, but the waiting was excruciating, not hopeful. But then one night Josh and I were sitting in the worship service on a Saturday night, and you started talking about how the promises of God were fulfilled in some sense with the birth of Jesus on Christmas, but that they are ultimately fulfilled when Christ comes again in the end to make all things right. What we celebrate at Christmas is just the beginning of God’s victory, which will be fulfilled in the end when Christ comes again in glory. This re-focus gave me a window into Advent and Christmas that was incredibly helpful. It didn’t take away the pain, but it helped me find God in the pain. 

So, a loss like you experienced often leads to a loss of hope.  I’m guessing most of us listening in right now have experienced that.  How does a message like the one we read about in Is 11, written so long ago, introduce hope into those times in our lives when we feel the pain of loss?

You know, I still don’t understand the loss of our babies—we lost another child right after that in March—2 miscarriages in 4 months. It still doesn’t make sense to me, and I’m not sure I always felt hopeful in the midst of it. But I lived in hope. My actions were hopeful and faithful, my actions and my prayers and my decisions were based on hope, even if I wasn’t feeling hopeful every day. Which I imagine was part of how Israel felt when these words were written—that maybe the people of God couldn’t drum up the emotion of hope while they were in exile, but they would take the next faithful step every day. And then the feelings of hope and hopefulness came later. 

You are at a different stage of your life this Advent Season.  What message would you like to pass on to our church family about the meaning of Advent?

Yeah, so I am in this strange place now of being pregnant yet again. I am about 6 months along now, and the baby is healthy and growing and all seems to be going well. And in this Advent season I am able to understand the meaning of Advent in new ways. During Advent, we are celebrating this idea that we live in an in between space—that Jesus has come into our world and brought his Kingdom, he has initiated his victory—but the battle isn’t over. We are still plagued by death and our own failures and the messiness of life. But we also see glimpses of God in the midst of it all. Which is very much like pregnancy. This baby is real. I can feel her kicking. She is making herself known to me every day—especially after I eat a spicy meal. We are making plans for when she does get here, changing the way we think about the future and how we live in the present—I eat differently, walk differently, I have pregnancy brain and am very forgetful. We see glimpses of her all the time. But she’s not really here yet. We have to wait for her to fully arrive. Which is what we experience in Advent—During this Advent season, we remember that we are in this in between space. God is making himself known, we get glimpses of him, we feel his presence, we make changes in our lives in light of his Kingdom. But we also have to wait for him to make all things right. That’s the meaning of Advent.

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     All this brings us to communion today.  It’s the time we both remember what this child had to do to save us, and that he will return to complete what he started.  As we read in 1 Cor 11:26, when we participate in communion, “we remember the Lord’s death until he comes.”  So, today, perhaps you are in a situation like Annie and Josh were in, i.e., having something happening in your life that is very hard, so hard that you have little hope.  Will you remember that Jesus is still at work and make a new commitment of faith in him.  I pray you too will find faith in the promise that Jesus will make all things right.

     Also, before coming to the table, take time to confess your sins.  But, maybe, the sins you have to confess are the same ones you had to confess the last time you came to the table.  Come anyway.  Remember that Jesus is not finished with you yet.  If you confess your sins, he will be faithful and just and will forgive you and cleanse you.  This is the message of Advent.  This is our certain hope.

Chinese Study Notes

 降到地上：盼望

                                     以賽亞11：1-10  

我今天想和大家分享有關盼望的話題，聖經語言對盼望的理解和今日世界的理解相差甚遠。通常我們認為盼望有不太確定的意思。韋伯斯特詞典這樣定義盼望這個詞：“想要某件事情發生或成真。期待某件可能永不會發生的好事。”

      舉例來說，你也許會問我說，“牧師，我們12月底之前能達到收支平衡並且還有盈餘做賑災儲備金嗎？”我恐怕只能回答說，“我不知道—但我希望如此。”然而，上帝知道。因此當上帝說某件事會發生，它就會發生。所以，當我們等待從上帝而來的美好應許成就時，那就是盼望。盼望從上帝而來的應許是確定的。因此，合乎聖經的盼望應該是：帶著確信抓住上帝的應許，因為我們確信神的旨意是，他的應許必成就。這信息帶我們進入了2017年的第一個降臨節週末。

降臨節是什麼

      紀念降臨節就是期盼在艱難的世道中，神應許的實現進入我們的世界和我們的生活，它應該是一種持續的生活方式。因此，在降臨節我們要特別紀念上帝2000年前第一次通過他的嬰孩耶穌道成肉身來到世界。他來到世界開始了使罪得赦免，使人人有機會得永生的工作，也是你今天通過信靠耶穌就能經驗到的工作。

      然而上帝也應許使你的生活和世界都更新，他的這個應許似乎尚未應驗。因此，在降臨節我們還紀念上帝自己再臨世界的應許，耶穌會再來完成他已經開始的工作。所以，我們對此滿懷盼望—知道上帝已經有美好應許—只待最終成全。

      這個降臨節的系列講道題為“腳踏實地，”我們要來看一看盼望在我們的期待中是如何逐步實現的。聖經中沒有比以賽亞書11章的信息更清楚地澄清這一點的了。

背景

      先知以賽亞生活在耶穌出生前700年的時代。我們今天常唱的有關彌賽亞降臨的聖誕歌曲內容大多出自以賽亞書的預言。在以賽亞生活的時代，猶太人分裂為兩國，北國以色列和南國猶大。

      敘利亞是當時威脅以色列和猶大的超級大國, 其統治者是一位自以為是的暴君，正野心勃勃地企圖以武力佔領中亞，其間必經以色列和猶大。以賽亞被呼召時正值以色列國被傾覆，當時的他只有18歲。以賽亞書6章預言了猶大也將面臨形如死樹墩的滅頂之災。一個世紀之後，上帝的這個預言果然應驗。

      但以賽亞同時不斷地告知人們，上帝計畫有一天要拯救他的百姓。事實上，在第十章，以賽亞還預見了敵國敘利亞也終將被審判，結局也猶如死樹墩一片，並且，死樹墩般的敘利亞將永不會再生。我們讀到11章1節說：“從 耶 西 的 本 （ 原 文 是 墩 ） 必 發 一 條 ； 從 他 根 生 的 枝 子 必 結 果 實 。”  此後，以賽亞一直告誡人們這一弱枝必將長大，最終將會改變全世界。這就是在他們被趕至外邦時懷揣的對未來的盼望。

      今天，我們在這裡紀念的是兩千年前出生的一個在世界看來無名又無份的小男孩—他的祖先是沒落的王朝大衛家。通過這個孩子的所作所為，盼望將臨到以色列，也會臨到全世界。讓我們一起來看看先知以賽亞關於這條弱枝，這個孩子都預見些什麼。

這個孩子將成為什麼—當他降臨時，即是上帝蒞臨人間（11：1-5）

從 耶 西 的 本 （ 原 文 是 墩 ） 必 發 一 條。。。 耶 和 華 的 靈 必 住 在 他 身 上（11：1-2）。

耶西是大衛的父親。大衛作王時，神應許他彌賽亞將出自他的家系。耶穌正是出生在這個家系中。因此，教會歷史一直以來都一致認為以賽亞關於從耶西的本發出的“一條“是指耶穌而言。

      以賽亞11章並沒有告訴我們所有我們想瞭解的有關耶穌的事，但它告訴了我們最重要的部分。如果你想跟從耶穌並見證他，認識以賽亞提到的這些特徵是不可或缺的：

1. 上帝怎樣，耶穌也怎樣 –耶和華的靈必住在他身上（11：2）。

上帝擁有知識，智慧，大能—耶穌亦然。也就是說耶穌既有知識（如：知道做什麼）又有能力（他能做他想做的）。這一點帶給我們盼望。耶穌帶著上帝應許給他的智慧與能力來到我們中間。我們這些跟從他的人要在這個不完美的世界中帶著篤定的盼望而活，這盼望就是他必將會完成他被召去完成的事。

2. 上帝看到什麼，耶穌也看到什麼--他 行 審 判 不 憑 眼 見 ， 斷 是 非 也 不 憑 耳 聞（11：3）。

我們生來就只會憑外表判斷人—如從人們的衣著，膚色或是成功與否等外在因素評判人。在耶穌身上你很快就會發現一件事，那就是他從不會從外表判斷人。他會進入每位來到他面前的人的內心深處。 耶穌為願意跟從他的人們帶來全新的生活方式，全新的信仰群體和全新的未來。耶穌看人不像世界看人。所以我今天要告訴你，耶穌擁有這樣“一雙眼睛：耶穌看你是寶貴，你在他眼中是如此寶貴以至於他願意將他的生命給你。你若肯信靠他，他看你如同未來的你。他看到的不只是現在的你，也是他在你身上大功告成時的你。

3. 上帝是公義的，耶穌也是公義的--卻 要 以 公 義 審 判 貧 窮 人 。。（11：4）

以賽亞書11章中，以賽亞預言說耶穌將會使世界更新。這正是“公義“這個詞的意思 ，將錯誤修正。以賽亞預言這個孩子的主要工作就是為貧窮人和失意者帶去特別的關懷。他將進入極度的缺乏與痛苦中並使用他偉大的權柄將其更新。

第一個耶誕節讓我們看到上帝為了實現這約走了多遠的路。耶穌出生於窮苦之家，接受貧窮牧羊人的拜訪。當他行割禮的時候，他的父母只付得起兩隻鴿子作為祭禮，這在當時是赤貧之人的禮物（路加福音2：24）。當他開始事奉時，他喂飽饑餓的人，醫治有病的人，赦免更新稅吏和妓女。

知道如何做並且有能力這樣做的唯一一位就只有上帝自己了。根本上說，我從以賽亞書這幾節看到的就是“從耶西的根發出的一條“就是上帝自己。因此，耶穌的到來，就是上帝蒞臨人間。所以，當耶穌來到你的生命中，就是上帝進入你的生命。當耶穌回到天庭，上帝將繼續完成他的工作—成全他的應許。這就是降臨節的盼望，並非不確定的盼望。

這孩子要做什麼 – 他要帶來神聖的革命(11:6-10). 

豺狼與羊羔同居… (1:6). 獅子吃草… (1:7). 萬國都要尋求他… (1:10).

        我說耶穌要帶來神聖革命的意思與湯姆萊特在他《革命開始之日》所寫的異曲同工，就是耶穌不只是要來拯救我們的靈魂，他還要變革我們的生命，再造他所創造的世界。

     11：6-10描述了耶穌工作完成後世界的樣子。預言中主要是說，彌賽亞將帶來完美的和平，希伯來文的意思是讓一切歸於本相。這裡所描繪的猶如破鏡重圓，以賽亞描述了萬物複歸的9個方面---豺狼與羊羔同居，牛與熊同食，一片和平景象，甚至兒童可以在虺蛇洞口玩耍，你能想像嗎？媽媽在蛇洞口對孩子與蛇說：“我去去就來，你們倆好好玩！”第9節總結道：“在 我 聖 山 的 遍 處 ， 這 一 切 都 不 傷 人 ， 不 害 物 ； 因 為 認 識 耶 和 華 的 知 識 要 充 滿 遍 地 ， 好 像 水 充 滿 洋 海 一 般”。

        我們注意到動物界的和好是這個孩子帶來的。第6節告訴我們：“豺 狼 必 與 綿 羊 羔 同 居 ， 豹 子 與 山 羊 羔 同 臥 ； 少 壯 獅 子 與 牛 犢 並 肥 畜 同 群 ； 小 孩 子 要 牽 引 他 們”都因為這個即將誕生的嬰兒，必要帶來動物界的變革。

     不過，大多數拉比和聖經學者認為，關於動物的這預言是指著人所共知的事：人類要彼此做正確的事，並也如此對待世界。換句話說，聖經不僅描述了一副動物和好的圖畫，更是說，當我們憑信跟隨這小孩子時，我們也要改變，我們也需要和平。耶穌也要來結束人類之間破裂的關係。

        我一直想，以賽亞會怎樣告訴我們跟隨耶穌將改變世界。他談到了掠食者，我想在今天，以賽亞可能這樣說:

• 我們社會的掠食者用暴力虐待婦女，就像我們每天從新聞看到的，但新世界再也沒有這種事了。
• 有一天我們會看到不同時代的人一起，或唱聖詩或跳街舞讚美神。
• 從小被媽媽警告要當心員警的黑人男子可以與員警共舞；而被教導要擔心黑人青年的員警可以與他們踢足球。
• 移民會與邊檢一起吃飯。
• CNN主持可以與Fox News 主持飲茶。
• 政見不同的Elizabeth Warren 與 Ted Cruz共譜新法!  

     這都是看起來不可能的，但當且僅當人歸向耶穌時，這樣的和好就會發生。耶穌拆毀了我們之間隔斷的牆。

        我稱之為神聖和好。要注意動物其實改回它們的本性，就像獅子吃草如牛。肉食動物變成草食動物！意味著耶穌必帶來絕對的改變。耶穌也要從內到外改變我們，要讓罪人成為聖人。他要進到我們生命中改變我們直到我們與主相似。神應許我們這一定要成就，雖然現在還沒有實現。

     這就是在聖誕降臨到地上的盼望。儘管還沒有完全實現，但神已經應許了。我們如今在兩個時空之間，即耶穌第一次來開始他的工作和第二次來完成他的工作。上帝的聖誕信息就是鼓勵我們在世上持守盼望直到主再來完成他的工作；並讓耶穌在我們身上行他的轉變之工。

      你們有人記得一年前2016年聖誕季我也講了以賽亞11章麼？上次神用他的話改變了一個會友的生命。這周我訪談了她，以下是我們的對話：_________________________________________________________________________

     我現在和牧師一起訪談安妮。我請她幫我們想想對未來的盼望如何在日常生活中引導和幫助我們的信仰生活，特別是當我們感到希望不大時。安妮，去年你和先生喬什在去年聖誕季一個週六晚聚會中聽到我講論未來的盼望進入破碎世界的人生。你那時來聽的時候是怎樣的情形，你還記得嗎？

當然，去年這時我懷孕8周，正熱切盼望一個孩子加入我們三口之家。但就在一年前的本周，我流產失去了孩子。那正好是聖誕季的開始，一個期待嬰兒的季節，在盼望一個嬰兒、等待一個嬰兒！但我卻陷入絕望，我對嬰兒耶穌的降臨一點高興不起來，因為我正陷在對失去孩子的深深悲痛中。我無法融入聖誕主題，去等待、盼望、活出一個期待，因為我流產了---那是多麼漫長的等待，但結果確實苦難和絕望。一個晚上，喬什和我參加了週六聚會，你談到神的應許是如何在耶誕節透過耶穌降生實現的，但終極實現要等到耶穌的再來，最終讓萬物歸正。我們慶祝的耶誕節是神勝利的開始，要到耶穌在榮耀中再來時有完全得勝。這對我重新聚焦到耶誕節是極大幫助。雖然沒有拿去我的痛苦，但幫助我看見神在我的痛苦中。

      像你所經歷的失去常常使我們失去盼望。我想許多正在聽的人都有這樣的經歷。我們所講的以賽亞書11章寫於很久之前，是怎樣在我們經歷失去的痛苦上進入我們今天的生命中的？

      事實上，我仍然不知道為什麼我要失去嬰兒---今年三月我們又失去一個四個月大的嬰兒，我真不理解，很難在這樣時候保持盼望。但儘管我感不到盼望，我甚至是活在盼望中的，我的行動是誠實有盼望的，我的禱告和決定也基於盼望。這可能就是當時以色列人看到這經文時的感受----在被擄時，神的百姓無法歡欣鼓舞，但他們可以腳踏實地為下一步走好今天的路，而感到盼望和充滿盼望是接下來的事。

你在這個耶誕節有了不同的生活，你要對我們的會眾就聖誕的意義說些什麼呢？

      是啊，我現在又懷孕了，已經6個月，胎兒長得很好很健康。這個耶誕節，我對聖誕的意義有了新的瞭解----在聖誕季，我們是在兩個時空中慶祝。第一個耶誕節，耶穌進入我們的世界，將天國帶來並初步勝利；但戰爭沒有結束，我們仍然被死亡、失敗和生命中的混亂纏繞，但我們可以看見神就在我們生命中。這非常像懷孕，那腹中的嬰兒是真實的，我可以感到她在踢，她每天都讓我知道她的存在，特別是我吃辣的食物時。我們正為她的到來做計畫，改變我們今天的生活方式和對未來的計畫----我現在吃法不同，走路也不同，我有懷孕的頭腦即非常易忘----我們隨時都感得到她，但她還沒有來到我們現實中。我們不得不等她完全地來到。這就是我們在耶誕節所經歷的---在聖誕季，我們要記得我們在兩個時空中。神正向我們顯現，讓我們看見他，感到他的同在，使我們在神的國度裡生命得到改變。但我們需要等到他讓萬物都歸正，這就是耶誕節的意義。

___________________________________________________________________

      現在我們來到今天的主餐。我們既要紀念這個嬰兒為救贖我們所做的，也要紀念他要回來完成他所開始的工作。像我們在哥林多前書11：26節讀到的，我們參與主餐是“紀念主的死，直到他再來。”今天，你可能有像安妮和喬什當年的處境，比如你生命中遇到艱難之事，以致你陷入絕望。你要記得耶穌仍然工作，設立了在他裡面信心的新約。我禱告你們也在這應許中發現信仰，就是耶穌要讓萬物歸正。

      在來到聖餐桌前，先花時間承認自己的罪，也許是上次你領受聖餐時認過的同樣罪。請來！記住耶穌在你身上的工作還沒有完成。若你認你的罪，他是信實的、公義的，必赦免你的罪，洗淨你一切的不義。這就是聖誕信息，是我們確實的盼望。