The Journey to Christmas: God Restores His People
One of my fiancée’s favorite movies is “How to Lose a Guy in Ten Days”. Anytime it’s on TV and I’m with her, just guess what we watch. If you haven’t seen the movie, I’ll give you a quick synopsis.
Girl and guy meet.
Girl and guy con each other.
Girl and guy unexpectantly fall in love.
They find out they conned each other.
They are stupid and fall for each other anyway.
They live happily ever after.
The interesting part to me is the end of it all. They live happily ever after? Let’s face it. The two just placed bets on how miserable they could make each other. That’s one sick start to a romantic relationship. Have you ever wondered what had to happen with the characters after the plot ends? They often end up together but does that mean they never fight, get married, have kids, and die a pleasant old death? Even though it seems the immediate problem has been solved, it doesn’t mean that life is just perfect thereafter.
As we continue on the road to Christmas, Israel has just been established as God’s chosen people in the Promised Land. Under Joshua’s generation, the nation manages to hold things together by obeying God’s laws and taking care of those who don’t. However, the generations that follow do not. The victory and joy of the previous episodes do not continue. Instead of trusting God to fight for them, they look for a human king to fight their battles for them. Despite the rejection of God that this demand carries, God appoints men who will lead them. The first is Saul, an attractive and physically dominating man. But his love for God does not match his physical stature. After Saul’s failure comes David who serves God honorably but still leads Israel down wrong paths in the end. The kings that follow lead Israel into generations characterized by sexual immorality, idol worship, corruption, and spiritual failure.
Despite warnings from the prophets, the Israelites fail to turn away from their sin and by 586 BC, they are completely conquered. Just as Adam and Eve were banished from the Garden, now Israel has been removed from Canaan. Once again, mankind has failed to keep God’s standards, resulting in oppression. Where God has established freedom for his people, they have forfeited their blessings for sin.
When Adam and Eve fell in the Garden, God provided for them and promised a deliverer. When Israel found themselves under Egyptian slavery, they were miraculously liberated and delivered to a new home. Now that they have failed, God will liberate his people yet again.
After generations of oppression and exile in Babylon, the empire would fall to Persia where King Cyrus would sign an edict, allowing the exiles to return. Upon arriving back in Jerusalem, the Israelites find the city in ruins just as they left it. God rises up two leaders, Ezra and Nehemiah who will restore the nation. Ezra reinstates Israel’s spiritual identity while Nehemiah focuses on Jerusalem’s infrastructure.
As Nehemiah gathers the people to rebuild, local governors object to the restoration of Jerusalem’s walls. While growing closer to rebuilding the walls and their national identity, the people of Israel find themselves facing enemy threats to destroy them. Nehemiah energizes the people with this simple command...
"The work is extensive and spread out, and we are widely separated from each other along the wall. Wherever you hear the sound of the trumpet, join us there. Our God will fight for us! (Neh. 4:19-20)"
This phrase is strikingly familiar to the lesson that earlier generations learned through God’s faithfulness to them. Even in spite of our sin, Israel’s history teaches us that God is still at work to liberate his people. No matter how unfaithful mankind may be at any given moment, we can rest assured that God is faithful.
Respond to one or more of the following questions. Also, feel free to add your own insights into the text. The more interaction, the better!
Read Romans 5:8. How does this passage explain God’s devotion to delivering us?
How does this relate to the Christmas story?
www.gravityministries.org
Girl and guy meet.
Girl and guy con each other.
Girl and guy unexpectantly fall in love.
They find out they conned each other.
They are stupid and fall for each other anyway.
They live happily ever after.
The interesting part to me is the end of it all. They live happily ever after? Let’s face it. The two just placed bets on how miserable they could make each other. That’s one sick start to a romantic relationship. Have you ever wondered what had to happen with the characters after the plot ends? They often end up together but does that mean they never fight, get married, have kids, and die a pleasant old death? Even though it seems the immediate problem has been solved, it doesn’t mean that life is just perfect thereafter.
As we continue on the road to Christmas, Israel has just been established as God’s chosen people in the Promised Land. Under Joshua’s generation, the nation manages to hold things together by obeying God’s laws and taking care of those who don’t. However, the generations that follow do not. The victory and joy of the previous episodes do not continue. Instead of trusting God to fight for them, they look for a human king to fight their battles for them. Despite the rejection of God that this demand carries, God appoints men who will lead them. The first is Saul, an attractive and physically dominating man. But his love for God does not match his physical stature. After Saul’s failure comes David who serves God honorably but still leads Israel down wrong paths in the end. The kings that follow lead Israel into generations characterized by sexual immorality, idol worship, corruption, and spiritual failure.
Despite warnings from the prophets, the Israelites fail to turn away from their sin and by 586 BC, they are completely conquered. Just as Adam and Eve were banished from the Garden, now Israel has been removed from Canaan. Once again, mankind has failed to keep God’s standards, resulting in oppression. Where God has established freedom for his people, they have forfeited their blessings for sin.
When Adam and Eve fell in the Garden, God provided for them and promised a deliverer. When Israel found themselves under Egyptian slavery, they were miraculously liberated and delivered to a new home. Now that they have failed, God will liberate his people yet again.
After generations of oppression and exile in Babylon, the empire would fall to Persia where King Cyrus would sign an edict, allowing the exiles to return. Upon arriving back in Jerusalem, the Israelites find the city in ruins just as they left it. God rises up two leaders, Ezra and Nehemiah who will restore the nation. Ezra reinstates Israel’s spiritual identity while Nehemiah focuses on Jerusalem’s infrastructure.
As Nehemiah gathers the people to rebuild, local governors object to the restoration of Jerusalem’s walls. While growing closer to rebuilding the walls and their national identity, the people of Israel find themselves facing enemy threats to destroy them. Nehemiah energizes the people with this simple command...
"The work is extensive and spread out, and we are widely separated from each other along the wall. Wherever you hear the sound of the trumpet, join us there. Our God will fight for us! (Neh. 4:19-20)"
This phrase is strikingly familiar to the lesson that earlier generations learned through God’s faithfulness to them. Even in spite of our sin, Israel’s history teaches us that God is still at work to liberate his people. No matter how unfaithful mankind may be at any given moment, we can rest assured that God is faithful.
Respond to one or more of the following questions. Also, feel free to add your own insights into the text. The more interaction, the better!
Read Romans 5:8. How does this passage explain God’s devotion to delivering us?
How does this relate to the Christmas story?
www.gravityministries.org
posted by Matt Morrison | 7:52 PM
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