Pastor’s Corner December 2014

The following was published in our monthly newsletter, the Redeemer Report.

The 2014 Redeemer Advent Season

We come to another season of reflection on God’s many fulfilled promises through Jesus Christ. At Advent we celebrate God with us, Emmanuel. The church calendar places Advent at this time to inaugurate a new year in Christ. Advent is about reflection on God’s work of redemption through Christ, celebration of God’s provision of Christ, and preparation for the year to come in Christ.

At Redeemer we have many special events that accent the Advent season. Most importantly is the role Advent plays in our worship services. We’ll be singing some of the richest hymns in Church History, joining in the lighting of the Advent candles, hearing sermons that study the Bible’s teaching about the coming of Christ, and seeing our children perform a Christmas pageant. A highlight of our year at Redeemer is the annual Christmas Eve service of Lessons and Carols on December 24th (at 6:00pm). Many Home Fellowship Groups will be having special Christmas parties and gift exchanges in December, and the Redeemer youth (RPConneXion) will enjoy some focused time celebrating the coming of Jesus too. Many Redeemer families will host visitors and others will travel to be with family during Christmas.

I will present a short Advent sermon series about the line of Christ presented in Scripture. Jesus is the Savior who was promised throughout history. The guiding passage comes from the book of Acts, and connects beautifully with Pastor Nathan’s preaching in 1 Samuel –

Then they asked for a king, and God gave them Saul the son of Kish, a man of the tribe of Benjamin, for forty years. And when he had removed him, he raised up David to be their king, of whom he testified and said, ‘I have found in David the son of Jesse a man after my heart, who will do all my will.’ Of this man’s offspring God has brought to Israel a Savior, Jesus, as he promised. – Acts 13:21-23

God promised to send a Savior to redeemer sinners. The Seed of the Woman would come to crush the head of the Serpent and set us free from sin. God promised Abraham that all nations would be blessed through his seed, which was ultimately fulfilled in Jesus Christ. King David is raised as a picture of what God would bring in perfection for His people – King Jesus. Jesus’ genealogy is evidence to His fulfillment of God’s promises for centuries. Jesus is the promised Messiah – born to Joseph and Mary, both of the house of David and descendants of Abraham. Jesus is our Savior – who gave His life to redeem us from our sins. We will spend Advent considering five key people in the genealogy of Christ: Adam, Abraham, David, Mary and Joseph. We will see how they played an important role in God’s outworking of redemption in history, and we will also learn about God’s guidance in each of their very different historical epochs and particular situations.

May God bless this Advent season and grow each of you closer to His Son, our Lord, Jesus.

In the Lamb,
Pastor Tony Felich