We have found the  Messiah!

 

Could you imagine a world so filled with sin and evil, and under the total control of the devil, that there is no hope of salvation EVER! Could you imagine a world totally abandoned by its God, and left to decline into utter depravity, evil and sin? A world where every day and every night is filled with danger, dread, fear, depression and hopelessness? Where one day to the next is just an existence and a pitiful fight for survival, where no goodness exists and only evil reigns? For God's people, this is too ghastly to contemplate! That is why a certain event recorded in God's Holy Word is so vitally important and fills us with an incredible gratitude, thankfulness and hope in God.

Sometimes when we encounter an event that has the potential to change our lives forever, we are unable to find any suitable human words to describe it. Mere human words seem totally inadequate to fully describe something that is absolutely wonderful and life-changing. This is especially true if we encounter something that could change the very face of history itself and the course of mankind's destiny. An event of such monumental importance that it takes your breath away just thinking about it. Something so incredibly significant, so marvellous, so absolutely stupendous, so fundamentally vital to life, so amazing and something so wonderful. Even if you searched through all the known languages of the world, you won't find words that could adequately express the wonderment and amazement of it. Before I tell you what this "something" is, I want to start with this introduction.

It is true many millions of discussions occur between 2 brothers in this world every day. I know this happens with sisters too, even more so given that females can talk the hind leg off a donkey! But I want to focus on discussions between brothers as a basis for this sermon. Since the early church times to now, there must have been trillions and trillions of discussions between brothers, covering every topic under the sun. Even before the invention of the telephone, or even before mobile phones were invented, brothers had discussions between themselves. Here are some examples of discussions between brothers where something very important is discussed.

And so on, and so on. Most of the examples I mentioned here are of really great news, and in some cases "life-changing" news. If you had some really great news, of course you'll want to share it with your brothers, your family members and your friends too. Looking again at discussions between brothers, as I said, there are trillions upon trillions of calls or discussions between brothers throughout every year, telling each other of great news.

 

With this in mind, I want to focus my sermon today on one such discussion between 2 brothers. At the time, telephones or mobile phones were not yet invented, so this brother had to go in person to tell his brother the wonderful news. It is recorded in God's Word.

This is that pivotal, life-changing and mankind-changing conversion:

John 1:40-43 

⁴⁰Andrew, Simon Peter's brother, was one of the two who heard what John had said and who had followed Jesus. ⁴¹The first thing Andrew did was to find his brother Simon and tell him, "We have found the Messiah" (that is, the Christ). ⁴²And he brought him to Jesus. Jesus looked at him and said, "You are Simon son of John. You will be called Cephas" (which, when translated, is Peter).

These words represent the conversion between Andrew and his brother Peter. However, to get the FULL impact of what was said, you need to get "into" God's Word to truly understand how important this message is. Let me focus on this thought for a while then I'll get back to the main topic of the sermon. One of the things many mature Christians develop is the ability to "get into" God's Word. What do I mean by this? You see, dedicated and studious Christians of longstanding and most mature Christians don't just read God's Word. We experience God's Word. What do I mean by this? We don't just look at the words on the page, we also look at the context, we consider the nuances of the message, we understand the background leading up to certain events and we can detect the breathless excitement of some of the statements made in Scripture.

Even though the words were written thousands of years ago, even though these people of God lived so long ago, we can share in the wonder and excitement of those events. We can feel their disappointments when things go wrong, and we can share in their elation when they have victories. Some mature Christians can even relay accurately what certain people were feeling or experiencing when they made certain statements, like palpable fear, or fever-pitched excitement, or profound faith. These are not just dead words on a page. This is the "LIVING" Word of God. So it's important to "get into" the Word to truly understand the importance and relevance of the messages of the time.

If you place yourself "into the moment" on that special occasion, it is hard not to see the excitement of Andrew's actions and in his voice when he declared that wonderful news to Peter his brother. Let me read it again, but this time with the amazing breathless excitement that Andrew must have communicated to his brother Peter.

John 1:40-43 

⁴⁰Andrew, Simon Peter's brother, was one of the two who heard what John had said and who had followed Jesus. ⁴¹The first thing Andrew did was to find his brother Simon and tell him, "We have found the Messiah" (that is, the Christ). ⁴²And he brought him to Jesus. Jesus looked at him and said, "You are Simon son of John. You will be called Cephas" (which, when translated, is Peter).

Notice how important this message was to Andrew. This Scripture records how urgent and important the message was. How do we know that Andrew was excited about it and was urgent about telling his brother Peter about it? Does it say anything in the passage about "Urgently and without haste Andrew went ..."

No, but here is that "getting into" God's Word I was just talking about. What does this Scripture say: "The first thing Andrew did ...". Not later that day, or the next day, or when he next saw Peter again at some social outing. "The first thing Andrew did was to find his brother Simon to tell him ..." "We have found the Messiah!"

Andrew did not hang about ... he didn't go shopping first, or stopped for lunch, or lazed by the water-side waiting for night to arrive. "The first thing Andrew did was to find his brother Simon to tell him ..." "We have found the Messiah!"

Let me stop here for a minute. Although this is such a short statement, let me remind you of what the promise of the Messiah meant to the Israelites. Again, as I said about "getting into" God's Word earlier to consider the context, here's some background, contextual information. Over hundreds of years, the prophecy about God sending a Messiah to rid them of their sins was foretold over and over again. The people of Israel looked forward in expectant hope for the coming of the Messiah. The Prophets proclaimed: "The Lord God of Israel is going to send you a Messiah, who will be the Lamb of God who will take away the sins of the world". Prophet after prophet delivered the message of a promised Messiah. Throughout the Old Testament age, from generation to generation, it was repeated so the people of Israel would remember it and not forget the promise.

There was no doubt about the message - there was no confusion. The Messiah was going to come to the house of Israel to pronounce "a time of the Lord's favour". And Jesus himself claimed that He was indeed the promised Messiah when he stood up in a synagogue in Nazareth to read out this passage from the prophet Isaiah.

Luke 4:14-21 

¹⁴Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit, and news about him spread through the whole countryside. ¹⁵He taught in their synagogues, and everyone praised him. ¹⁶He went to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, and on the Sabbath day he went into the synagogue, as was his custom. And he stood up to read. ¹⁷The scroll of the prophet Isaiah was handed to him. Unrolling it, he found the place where it is written:

 
 ¹⁸"The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, ¹⁹to proclaim the year of the Lord's favour." ²⁰Then he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant and sat down. The eyes of everyone in the synagogue were fastened on him, ²¹and he began by saying to them, "Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing."

Can you imagine that ... imagine actually sitting in that synagogue and hearing our Lord pronounce those prophetic words from his mouth ... and then, he makes this statement: "Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing."

My Lord ... what a statement! Jesus told them: "I am the fulfilment of this Scripture!" What can I even compare this to perhaps an event in today's society? How about this! You are going about your everyday life, and suddenly you hear a trumpet call and see the Lord appear in the clouds with all of his angels! The Lord actually appearing as promised IN YOUR LIFETIME! This is about equal to that profound statement on that day!

Jesus said to them: In your hearing, you hear the very voice of the promised Messiah, the Son of God saying to you: "Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing." God among them ... God's Son, born into flesh, a man, ready to do God's bidding. To bring about a promised change, a time of refreshing, a time of hope, an appointed Son of God who now walked among the very men he created. Jesus our Lord made this emphatic statement to his hearers on that day: ^"18"The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, ¹⁹to proclaim the year of the Lord's favour."

"The Lord's Spirit is on me ... he has anointed me ... he has sent me."

The Redeemer of Israel has arrived as promised. All the teachers of the Old Testament Law knew about this prophecy - the Pharisees and Sadducees were familiar with these prophecies and teachings about the Messiah. Those Teachers of the Law who accepted the Prophetic writings repeated it during their teaching and preaching of God's Law, when they carefully considered the words of the Prophets. So the coming of the Messiah was known to the people of Israel, even to the common man or woman in the street. They were living in hope of seeing the Messiah. Many generations were born and died without seeing the promise of God coming to fulfilment. Every Jew lived in hope of seeing the Messiah of Israel revealed, and coming to rescue them from sin.

And here Andrew comes looking for Peter, the first thing he did, out of breath, full of excitement, panting out the words almost in a reverent tone:

"Peter, we have found the Messiah."

On the backdrop of this knowledge, during that time when Christ was going to be revealed to Israel, there were many "false" Messiahs who announced themselves to be the Messiah and misled countless people. So considering all of this, Peter could easily have said:

"Come on brother Andrew, surely if God was going to reveal the Messiah to the nation of Israel, he would have revealed him to the Teachers of the Law, like the Pharisees or Sadducees. Perhaps even to the High Priest. Why would the Messiah reveal himself to you or to me, common people and poor fishermen?"

That would have made more sense, wouldn't it? If the Messiah had to come in a modern day age context, most people would think that the priests in Christian religions would be the first to know. Most people relate priests to having a deeper spiritual knowledge than the rest of mankind, so they should be the first to find out about it. Wrong.

God was going to reveal his Son, the Messiah of the World, to the common people. When he was born, we know that shepherds were first to arrive on the scene. Not the Pharisees or the Sadducees or the High Priest of Israel. Second to find the Messiah were the Magi, travellers from far away, some believe them to be Arab or foreign Kings from the East, come to pay homage to the King of Kings. God did not reveal his Son to the Jewish "priests" or "religious leaders" of the time. Rather, God revealed him to a chosen group of men, soon to be called the Apostles of Christ. Ordinary Jews from different backgrounds, with different careers. Ordinary Jewish men who would become extraordinary men of God, transformed with power by the Holy Spirit after Jesus ascended into Heaven.

Getting back to the discussion between Andrew and Peter. What was Peter's immediate reaction to the news his brother Andrew brought him? Instead of questioning his brother's sanity, Peter goes along to meet the Messiah. Firstly, Peter KNEW about the Messiah. Even as a low-down fisherman, Peter understood what the Messiah was all about. He too, just like most of the Jews, was looking forward to a time when the Promised Messiah would arrive. And here was his brother Andrew excitedly proclaiming "We have found the Messiah." What a revelation! That the promised Messiah arrived on earth in Peter's time. Peter was going to actually see with his own eyes the promise of God coming true. He was going to be an eyewitness of this wonderful event, the coming of the Messiah as promised for hundreds of years by the Prophets. He would be able to see God's Chosen One with his very eyes, and touch him with his hands, and hear him actually speaking with a human voice. Remember I said as the start that sometimes it is impossible to find human words to describe such a monumental event? I have found the words to describe this adequately. I did not spend days scouring the various languages of the world for the right words. I didn't even break a sweat by visiting all of the museums of antiquity to find a hidden or obscure dialect that could accurately describe this remarkable event.

I went to the source ... the only place you will truly find the words that could fully describe the remarkable events of that time. The words came from a man of God, who was waiting patiently for the Messiah to be revealed. God had promised him that before he died, he would set eyes on the promised Messiah. His name was Simeon, and his wonderful words are recorded in the Book of Luke for all of God's people to read and to marvel at.

Luke 2:25-35 

25Now there was a man in Jerusalem called Simeon, who was righteous and devout. He was waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him. 26It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not die before he had seen the Lord's Christ. ²⁷Moved by the Spirit, he went into the temple courts. When the parents brought in the child Jesus to do for him what the custom of the Law required, ²⁸Simeon took him in his arms and praised God, saying:

 ²⁹"Sovereign Lord, as you have promised, you now dismiss your servant in peace.
 ³⁰For my eyes have seen your salvation, ³¹which you have prepared in the sight of all people, ³²a light for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to your people Israel."

³³The child's father and mother marvelled at what was said about him. ³⁴Then Simeon blessed them and said to Mary, his mother: "This child is destined to cause the falling and rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be spoken against, ³⁵so that the thoughts of many hearts will be revealed. And a sword will pierce your own soul too."

These words truly reflect how monumental the coming of Jesus is.

²⁹"Sovereign Lord, as you have promised, you now dismiss your servant in peace.
 ³⁰For my eyes have seen your salvation, ³¹which you have prepared in the sight of all people, ³²a light for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to your people Israel."

Another person also heralded Jesus as the promised Messiah too. She was known as a prophetess, and her name was Anna. In the same chapter of Luke, here words are recorded as well.

Luke 2:36-38

36There was also a prophetess, Anna, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was very old; she had lived with her husband seven years after her marriage, 37and then was a widow until she was eighty-four. She never left the temple but worshiped night and day, fasting and praying. 38Coming up to them at that very moment, she gave thanks to God and spoke about the child to all who were looking forward to the redemption of Jerusalem.

Remarkable words, just like those words uttered by brother Andrew to his brother Peter so long ago now.

"We have found the Messiah."

Could these remarkable words ever be repeated again? Yes, by us! We can tell our brothers and sisters, our fathers and mothers, our grandparents, our children, our cousins, our aunts, our uncles, our friends and even our work colleagues.

"We have found the Messiah."

"Come, let us take you to meet him too."

Then tell them the story of Jesus, bring them to God's Word, so the power and the authority of Jesus' Word can turn their lives around. So that they too can have a personal contact and a deep spiritual relationship with our Lord too. Our Lord's Words still echo through the ages, to the generations of today and tomorrow.

¹⁸"The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, ¹⁹to proclaim the year of the Lord's favour."

We are now living in this wonderful new age, in this age of the Lord's favour. It is only possible because God's promises have come true. Our Lord, our Messiah, our Lamb of God, was born as predicted by the prophets. He lived life without sinning. He died on the cross to take our sins away, and He rose from the dead so we too can have the sure hope of the resurrection from the dead.

So for all the discussions that take place between brothers every day of every year, of all the good, important earthly news about marriages, or births, or University degrees, nothing can compare to the discussion that day between brothers Andrew and Peter. Nothing can even rate or compare to the astounding news that brother Andrew delivered to brother Peter on that day.

"We have found the Messiah."

Now we can go tell others the same thing too.

"We have found the Messiah."

 

 

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