A Thrill of Hope | Sunday, December 6, 2020

Good morning, Cross Connection Church, and welcome to church online and at home. We are so glad that you are joining us this morning.

Before we do anything, I have to take care of a little personal business here for just a moment. Happy birthday to my now nine-year-old daughter, Evangeline! Today is her birthday, so happy birthday, Evangeline!

Now, before we cut over to worship with Pastor Anthony, would you take just a moment to send out a link to a friend or a group of friends to invite them to join us for this message today? I believe that the Lord has an important message for us as we are approaching Christmas. So, send out that link at live.ccchurch.com, put it on social media, and invite other people to join with us as we now go to Pastor Anthony for worship.

Oh, Heavenly Father, we thank You, God, just for another day, Lord, to honor You. That’s what we’re going to do this morning with our whole selves—our mind, our strength, and everything that is within us. We want to worship You because You are worthy of all the praise forever and ever.

We thank You, Lord God, that the battle belongs to You. It’s already been fought, and it’s already been won. We know that we fight from victory, Lord. So, Lord God, would You get all the praise for this time and all the glory? We ask this in Jesus' name. Amen.

When all I see is the battle, You see my victory. When all I see is the mountain, You see the mountain. As I walk through the shadow, Your love surrounds me.

There's nothing to fear now, for I'm safe. As I fight, I'll fight on my knees, my hands lifted high. Oh God, the battle belongs to You. Every fear I lay at Your feet, I'll sing through the night. Oh God, that battle

Every battle, nothing can stand against the power of our God, an almighty fortress. You go before us. Nothing with my heart; I'll sing through the night. Oh God, the battle belongs to You.

Hey, welcome! Thanks for tuning in to Cross Connection Church. We're glad that we get to bring you church at home this morning. I'm Pastor Garrett, and I have my little reindeer helper here, Rose. Here at Cross Connection Church, we're all about living life in connection—that's life in connection with God, one another, and the world through Jesus Christ.

Part of the way that we do that is through prayer. We see that talked about all throughout the Scriptures, and we want to be praying with and for you this week. So go ahead and check out prayer.lifeinconnection.com. We would love to be praying with and for you, whatever prayer needs you have this week. You should know that our pastors and our amazing prayer team love praying for you, and we see God answer so many prayers here at Cross Connection Church.

Aside from that, our own mission this week is to ask you to be praying for our missionaries, Shane and Anna. They are serving and sharing the gospel with people in East Asia. I can't tell you exactly where, but please keep them in your prayers. They definitely need it right now during this wild time, but they are doing such an amazing job for the Lord. This is part of the ministry of Cross Connection Church, and we are blessed to be part of their outreach in East Asia. So, keep Shane and Anna in your prayers this week.

Aside from that, we would love to see you tonight at five o'clock.

We're going to have a message and a short time of worship together outside on the patio at Cross Connection Church. I would love to see you there at five o'clock tonight. It's just going to be a great time of fellowship. We have the fire pits and all the heaters rolling, so it's going to be fun. Bring your lawn chairs if you have those too.

With that, I'm going to pass it back to Pastor Anthony. I have one last announcement. I'm wearing my Christmas stuff because it's December, and you know what that means—it is a season to be jolly! We are also going to be doing a Christmas service at five o'clock on Wednesday, which is going to be Christmas Adam, or Eve Eve, as we like to call it. This service will be outside, similar to our Sunday night services, and weather permitting, we will hold the Christmas Adam service on December 23rd, which is a Wednesday at five o'clock. So just mark your calendars for that.

Now, let's go ahead and go back to Pastor Anthony. He will be leading us in a song, which will be a time where we set aside a song to worship the Lord with our giving. There are a couple of different ways you can do that here at Cross Connection Church. First, on your phones, you can text the number 84321. Second, you can go to give.lifeinconnection.com. Third, you can simply mail in your offering to the church at 1675 Seven Oaks Road in Escondido. You can also bring it on Sunday nights; we have an Agape box right next to the stage.

So, there are a couple of different ways you can worship the Lord with your giving if you call Cross Connection Church your home church. With that, let's go ahead and worship the Lord together. God bless you guys, and Merry Christmas early!

I'll sing the splendor, this plan of the King, clothed in majesty. Let all the earth rejoice! All the earth rejoice! He wraps Himself in light. Darkness tries to hide and trembles at His voice.

Trembles at His voice. How great is our God! You saw God. Oh, we'll see how great, how great is our God. He is worthy of all praise.

How great is our God! Sing with me, how great is our God! Oh, see how great, how great is our God. Father, great are You, wondrous in all Your works. We thank You for Your goodness to us. Continue to bless our time together. We keep our eyes fixed on You, the author and the finisher of our faith. We love You. In Your precious name we pray, Amen.

It is likely that you have a single favorite memory of Christmas from when you were a child. You probably don't even have to think about it for very long for that memory to come to the surface. Memories are an amazing thing; they can be tied to a song, connected to an object, or attached to a place or a person. Interestingly enough, one of the biggest triggers for memories is smells. It's amazing how a triggering moment can almost overwhelm us with a memory flashback.

For me, something like that happened 16 years ago this last week. I was working at a small international Bible college in northwest Germany at the time, in a city called Zigan. During the fall and winter of 2004, I had planned a short trip while I was in Zigan to fly from Cologne, Germany.

I traveled from Stansted, London, to visit some friends who lived in East London, or in a town east of London, I guess I should say. When I was nine years old, my family moved to London because my dad was working there. We lived there for a little less than a year, but that period of time left a pretty big mark on my mind and my heart.

In 2004, I hadn't been back to London in about 15 years, but we still had connections in the town where I had lived, a town called Epping. As I mentioned, in November of 2004, I flew to London. On the first Monday that I was in Epping, I got up early and walked from where I was staying with some family friends up to what's called the High Street, the main street of the town. I walked from there down to Station Road, the road where we had lived when I was nine years old.

I walked down Station Road to house number 36, the house we lived in. From there, at about eight in the morning, I walked the same path that I had walked nearly every day while we lived there to the school I attended in third grade. The school was called Ivy Chimney School. It was on that morning walk in November of 2004 that the triggered memory happened. It was a smell, actually, connected with that place that triggered a wave of emotion as I remembered what I think may have been my favorite Christmas memory from when I was a kid.

I don't know about you, but I grew up in one of those families with a mom—some of you know my mom—who loved to entertain guests. She still loves to entertain guests. Rarely was our house not the grand central station through which many people were stopping by. My mom still has a sign that says, "Sit long and talk much." Holidays were especially busy. It was not abnormal for my mom to entertain 40 or 50 people or more at her house for Thanksgiving, Christmas, Easter, and pretty much any other time that she could. For me, that became pretty normal after a while. You kind of get used to all the chaos as we're learning.

This year, you not only get used to it, but you begin to expect it and enjoy it. One of my favorite childhood Christmas memories, or I would say probably my favorite childhood Christmas memory, was the Christmas that we were 5,500 miles from San Diego in London with just my parents, my sister, my brothers, and me. On that November morning in 2004, that memory came flashing back, triggered by the smell of diesel exhaust on a cold morning walk as I was walking on Center Drive in Epping, England.

What's your memory? Why is that memory from your childhood so important? What is it that makes it special to you? For me, it was special because there weren't any distractions. There wasn't any of the chaos; it was a quiet family Christmas. I don't remember the presents that year, although I'm sure Micro Machines were probably involved. I don't remember the decorations, and I don't remember what we ate for dinner. In fact, there's a lot more that I don't remember than what I do remember. But it is a happy memory, one that still triggers emotion 31 years later.

I know that 2020 is not the year that you probably expected it would be when the clock struck midnight last year on New Year's Eve. I know that this is not the year that you probably expected it to be because this isn't the year that I expected it would be. I also know that many of you are frustrated with much of what has happened this year, especially the response to the things that have happened this year by many of our authorities and leaders, locally, at the state level, and nationally too.

I know that many of you are frustrated because I'm frustrated as well. For most of this year, we've been asked and encouraged to socially and physically distance, and that's been very difficult. Aside from the fact that our vision and mission at Cross Connection Church is built entirely around connecting with God and connecting with one another corporately, it is human nature to be in community with one another, as we say it here at Cross Connection.

Church, God created us for connection. That's really the reason why you don't like social distancing or physical distancing; it is against our very nature as God made us. I'll be the first to say I haven't been entirely obedient to the regulations, and I think that there are many of you who haven't been as well. I, for one, enjoyed Thanksgiving with friends and family, and I'm not going to apologize for doing so. I plan to enjoy Christmas as well.

However, I do want to encourage you to take this opportunity. The restrictions and recommendations given by our government, in some respects, present us with an opportunity. I want to encourage you to create new and different memories at this most wonderful time of the year. What do I mean? Well, what was it that made Christmas so meaningful to me when I was nine years old living in England? There may be many things, but two things come to mind as I was thinking about it this last week.

First, it was different from all of the other Christmases. Christmas 2020 is going to be different from all of our normal Christmas holidays. We can be really upset and angry about the difference, or we can make the most of every opportunity, as we're exhorted to do in the book of Ephesians.

I think one of the second reasons that Christmas was so meaningful when I was nine was that it was significantly different from the other Christmases because it was Christmas at a distance. My family was, in many respects, physically distanced from all of our extended family and our sphere of friends, so it was just us. That was meaningful and special.

You may or may not be planning to get together with a group this Christmas, but whatever you plan to do, it will be different from the previous Christmases. Normally, just before Christmas Day, my wife's extended family comes here to our house for a huge Christmas celebration, and we love it. We had 60 people at our house for the celebration last year.

This year, that's not happening, and we're bummed about that. So, Christmas will be different, but it doesn't have to be dreary and terrible. I come back to that question: What is your single most favorite memory of Christmas? What comes to mind when you think of the most meaningful Christmas you experienced when you were growing up?

Think about it. Can you hold that thought or that memory in your mind for a moment? You may be asking yourself now, what does all this have to do with the Bible? Give me just a second; humor me. Christmas is about memories, really it is. Christmas is a memorial.

What exactly is a memorial? It is something, especially a structure, an event, or an institution that has been established to remind us of a person or an event. Reason this out: Christmases come and Christmases go. They happen every year, like clockwork, as if it were on the calendar. Most of them come and go, and we kind of just go with it, with very little thought about it. It's almost as if it just happens to us or around us.

Some of the cultural trappings of Christmas we like, and a lot of them we complain about. However, the gifts of Christmas, the holiday itself, and all the things that it has come to hold should be reminders for us. They should remind us of the gift that has been given to us, which Christmas represents. All of the sights, the sounds, the smells, the tastes, and the experiences of this holiday ought to be triggers for us.

Just like when I was walking on that road in England 14 or 15 years ago, the smell of diesel fuel—even if I smell it here—triggered something. Hopefully, all the different things that happen, the cultural trappings of Christmas for us, are triggers to remember the gift that has been given.

To us, when we celebrate Christmas, what gift are we celebrating? I read it last week, and it was central to my message last Sunday from Isaiah chapter nine, verses six and seven. There we read, "For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given; and the government will be upon his shoulder. His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and peace, there will be no end, upon the throne of David and over his kingdom, to order and establish it with judgment and justice from that time forward, even forever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this."

What is it that makes a memory stand out in our minds? Most of the time, memories that stick are those that are outside of the ordinary; they are extraordinary. That's why the Christmas from when I was nine sticks out. It was different, and this Christmas is going to stick out because 2020 is different. We need to make the most of the opportunity that this different season is providing us with so that we can remember and remind others about what this season really is all about.

The people that you interact with on a regular basis—be they neighbors, co-workers, family members, or friends—many of them are no longer churchgoers. They have a corporate memory of Christmas, probably a joyful memory that they can call to mind pretty quickly. That memory triggers emotion, and we need to seize the opportunity at this most wonderful time of the year to use that memory to remind them about what is so meaningful and important about Christmas.

"For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given." The Gospel of Luke, when it foretells of His coming, tells us that He will be great and will be called the Son of the Highest. The Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David, and He will reign over the house of Jacob forever and ever. Of His kingdom, there will be no end.

Behold, a child is born unto us; a son is given. This one is the Son of the Highest, the one who reigns forever and ever upon the throne of David. His name is Jesus, and He came to save His people from their sins.

There are a lot of things in 2020 that have stirred up my flesh—things that have made me want to complain, murmur, and have a general bad attitude. I have to confess that there have been times throughout these challenging weeks and months when I have given in to murmuring and complaining. God bless my wife, especially, and my kids for putting up with it when my flesh kind of boils over. I'm sure that you can relate to that.

I've shared with you on these broadcasts many times before that we really get to see our true sinful nature when we are sick, tired, hungry, and stressed. Those things come out; our true default sinful nature emerges when we are in those states. Now, I think we can add to that when we are under lockdown. Lockdown makes our sin nature boil to the surface in a big way.

God always knew that those impurities of our frustrations, anger, murmuring, and complaining were already in our hearts. They were deep down inside, but the trial, which is meant to try and purify us, brings those things to the surface. Why does God allow the fiery trial to try us and bring those things to the surface? So that we can see those things, acknowledge them, confess them, and have Jesus take them away.

I believe that God wants to use the challenging things we go through—what we refer to as trials—to be a purifying instrument in our lives because He is refining us. He is the Refiner. So, don't miss this opportunity. If Jesus doesn't come back immediately, then twenty years from now, you will remember Christmas 2020. Your kids will remember it, and if you have grandkids, they will remember it too. We all will still be talking about Christmas 2020 decades from now.

My hope is that you, me, and our family members will look back on this Christmas and say, "That was such a meaningful Christmas." It really can be that way, even though there's all the craziness and chaos going on in the world. It can be a meaningful Christmas if we take the time to remember what it is all about and share that with other people.

Maybe this will be the Christmas when you're able to share the good news of Christmas—Jesus—with someone special. It will become all the more meaningful to you and your life. Or perhaps this Christmas will be a little quieter than others in the past, a little more focused, and a little more meaningful. Hopefully, that's my prayer.

As we prepare to celebrate this special holiday, we need to recognize that everything that happens in the lead-up to and the celebration of Christmas is meant to be a memorial—an event established to remind us of Jesus. It reminds us that Jesus, the reason for the season, came to give us what we deeply need and desperately desire. Christmas is about God becoming a man to dwell among us, to bring us grace, truth, forgiveness, and salvation. He makes peace possible—peace with God and peace with one another. He brings hope and joy in abundance.

May it be that this Christmas, being different from many of the others you've experienced, stands out in your memory and perhaps becomes more meaningful than the others as well. I pray that 20 years from now, you will look back on this Christmas as one of the most meaningful because of the good things that God did in and through your life during this season.

If you tuned in last week to my message, I shared that the advent of Jesus, or the coming of Jesus to this world 2,000 years ago, is the advent of joy. We sing at this time of the year, "Joy to the world, the Lord is come." The coming of Jesus means for us the coming of joy, or the opportunity for joy to be fully realized in our lives. That's what I talked about last week, and the joy that Jesus makes possible is increasing.

Unto abundance for eternity. This morning, I want to point out that the advent of Jesus is not only the advent of joy that is increasing unto abundance for eternity, but that the coming of Jesus is also the coming of a sure and steadfast hope. The advent of Jesus is the advent of a steadfast and sure hope.

I've talked about this many times before, and I even spoke about it recently on episode 57 of Coffee Time. I speak about it somewhat frequently because I think it's really important. The concept of hope becomes all the more consequential for us when we are going through challenging times. Let's face it: a lot of people are going through challenging times right now.

Not only are many people facing difficulties, but the news we are being given—whether from sources on the right, the left, or those that claim to be right down the center—is not very hope-producing. If anything, the news from corporate media and the flood of information from social media is more hope-deflating than hope-producing.

The wise King Solomon, three thousand years ago, observed that hope deferred makes the heart sick. Interestingly, the Old Testament is almost one story after another of hope deferred. From Genesis chapter 3, where we read about the fall of humanity into sin, right on through the end of Malachi, the last book of the Old Testament, you basically have thousands of years of hope deferral and heart sickness for the people of Israel, who are at the center of that story.

The people of Israel were waiting in hope for the coming of the one who would bring hope: the Messiah. By the time you reach the gospel period, the time that Jesus came, there was a lot of heart sickness among the people of God, the children of Israel. However, the coming of the Messiah, Jesus, is the coming of hope—not a wishy-washy, wishful thinking hope, nor a blindly optimistic hope, but a sure and steadfast hope.

Sang about the advent of Jesus says, "Long lay the world in sin and error pining till He appeared, and the soul felt its worth." A thrill of hope, the weary world rejoices, for yonder breaks a new and glorious morn. The coming of Jesus is the breaking forth of a new and glorious day that brings rejoicing to a weary world and a sure and steadfast hope that comes with Him.

In all of the chaos and heart sickness of 2020, the world needs the hope that only Jesus brings. The coming of Jesus is the coming of hope, and the hope that Jesus brings causes His people to stand with rejoicing, as the hope that He gives does not disappoint. Writing about the kind of hope that Jesus brings, the author of the Book of Hebrews writes, "This hope we have as an anchor of our soul, both sure and steadfast." The souls of many, their hearts and their minds, have been shaken and tossed in 2020, but Jesus gives a hope that is an anchor for our hearts and minds, for our souls. This anchoring hope is sure and steadfast; that is what Jesus brings.

The advent of Jesus is the advent of joy, a joy that is increasing unto abundance for eternity. The advent of Jesus, the coming of Jesus, is the advent of hope that is a sure and steadfast anchor for our souls. This is the joy and hope that can be yours as you put your trust and your faith in Jesus, which I hope that you will do this season as you come to discover who Jesus is and what He really brings.

Father God, I thank You so much for the work that You are doing, even when we are physically distanced from one another as Your people, the Church. Even though we're not gathering together in our building, we are still gathering as one in Christ, bound together by Your Spirit. I pray, God, that You would work in and through my brothers and sisters, that You'd work through Your Church to be a light shining during this time.

Lord, there are a lot of people in our near proximity who live next door to us, work in the same office building, or go to the same school. These are people we interact with on a regular basis—many of whom are depressed and in darkness, under the bondage of sin. They are afraid because their hope is not sure and steadfast; their hope is temporal, only in the things of this world. Their joy is connected only to good things happening, making it hard for them to find joy or happiness in the midst of challenging circumstances. They have lost hope, and their hearts are sick.

God, I pray that you would give your church such a bright and shining joy and hope that it would be magnetic. Lord, draw people to us so that we can share the good news of your gospel with them. Jesus, your coming to this world, your Advent, is the coming of joy that increases unto abundance for eternity. The hope that you give is a sure and steadfast anchor for our hearts, minds, and souls. So, God, cause that to overflow from your church, we pray. We ask this in Jesus' name. Amen.

Walking around these walls, I thought by now they'd fall, but you have never failed me yet. Waiting for change to come, you promised.

Your promise still stands. Great is Your faithfulness. Faithfulness is still in Your hands. This is my confidence. I know the night won't last; Your word will come to pass.

My heart will sing Your praise again. Jesus, Jesus, You're still enough. Keep me within Your love. My heart will sing Your praise again.

The promise still stands. Great is Your faithfulness.

There was no doubt about it. God, we thank You so much for the work that You are doing in and through Your church, even in challenging times. I pray, God, that You would cause light to shine from us. Pour out Your Spirit upon Your church and help us to shine brightly so that we would be able to share the good news of Your grace and Your truth with other people, giving them the most important Christmas gift this season. We pray in Jesus' name. Amen.

And now, may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. I hope to see you tonight at 5 PM as we gather for a service on the patio at Cross Connection Church. God bless you, and see you next week.