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Listen "The King is Coming - Matthew 8 & Isaiah 53 - Chris - December 1, 2024"
Episode Synopsis
This powerful Advent sermon titled "The King is Coming" explores how Jesus addresses human suffering through three key actions: incarnation, substitution, and restoration. Drawing from Matthew 8 and Isaiah 53, the message examines Jesus's interactions with various suffering people - a leper, a Roman centurion, Peter's mother-in-law, and those afflicted by demons and sickness.
First, through incarnation, Jesus writes himself into human history by being physically present with those who suffer. Rather than keeping distance, He touches the untouchable, honors the despised, and welcomes the outcast. The sermon highlights how Jesus reverses the normal pattern of contamination - instead of becoming unclean by touching the sick, He makes the unclean clean through His touch.
Second, through substitution, Jesus addresses the root cause of suffering - sin. Using Isaiah 53, the message explains how Jesus didn't just offer temporary healing but took our punishment upon Himself. Like Sydney Carton in A Tale of Two Cities who took another's place at the guillotine, Jesus substitutes Himself for us.
Finally, through restoration, Jesus promises to make all things new (Revelation 21:5). Unlike abandoned renovation projects, Jesus's restoration work in our lives and in His church will be completed. The sermon concludes by challenging listeners to examine their expectations of Christ's restoring power and the church's role as God's healing presence in the world.
The message ultimately points to Advent's hope: in the midst of our suffering, the King is coming to make all things right through His incarnation, substitution, and restoration.
First, through incarnation, Jesus writes himself into human history by being physically present with those who suffer. Rather than keeping distance, He touches the untouchable, honors the despised, and welcomes the outcast. The sermon highlights how Jesus reverses the normal pattern of contamination - instead of becoming unclean by touching the sick, He makes the unclean clean through His touch.
Second, through substitution, Jesus addresses the root cause of suffering - sin. Using Isaiah 53, the message explains how Jesus didn't just offer temporary healing but took our punishment upon Himself. Like Sydney Carton in A Tale of Two Cities who took another's place at the guillotine, Jesus substitutes Himself for us.
Finally, through restoration, Jesus promises to make all things new (Revelation 21:5). Unlike abandoned renovation projects, Jesus's restoration work in our lives and in His church will be completed. The sermon concludes by challenging listeners to examine their expectations of Christ's restoring power and the church's role as God's healing presence in the world.
The message ultimately points to Advent's hope: in the midst of our suffering, the King is coming to make all things right through His incarnation, substitution, and restoration.
In God we trust