Waiting for Christmas
Learning to Wait
Matthew 1:16-23
 
I have been anxious for this Sunday to get here so I could begin a brand new series of messages pointing us toward Christmas.  It hardly seems possible that I should be talking about Christmas, and yet it will soon be upon us.
 
I also want to turn the corner after the election and all of the tension and angst that our country seems to be focusing on because ultimately, the solutions to our problems and in fact, our only hope is found in Jesus Christ.
 
Just to illustrate that, think about this:  On the screen, you see a $1 bill, and of course it has a picture of the father of our country, George Washington.
 
There we see a $5 with Abraham Lincoln.
Then we see a $10 with Alexander Hamilton, and also a $20 with Andrew Jackson.
 
And if we wanted to, we could look at any denomination of bill and see a U.S. president’s picture on the front. 
 
But do you know what all those bills have in common?
 
They all record on the back, “In God We Trust”. 
 
And I think that is a great thought to have in mind as we transition from where we’ve been focusing our attention to what lies immediately before us with Thanksgiving and Christmas.
 
It is comforting to know that we have a God we can trust.  He is faithful; He is sovereign; He is good and He is worthy of our trust and love.
 
But at the same time, there is something within us that wonders from time to time why He doesn’t do something.  Now what I’ve noticed is that generally, more than wanting Him to do something, I want Him to do what I want done.  It’s not that He is inactive or apathetic.  He just doesn’t seem to be following my agenda.
 
And learning to wait is a difficult lesson, whether it is an anticipatory wait or a dreaded wait. There are good things to wait for and there are some not so good things to wait for.  I remember going to the doctor’s office when I was little and waiting to see the doctor. Waiting to get that shot or to be poked on, and have that cold stethoscope put up against me, was not what I would call fun, or something I looked forward to.
 
On the other hand, waiting for Christmas day to arrive was a pretty good thing.  There’d be all the great smells, and the fresh home-baked cookies, and the trimming of the tree and decorating the house, and making the list.  And I’ll date myself a little but one of the most exciting times in my early life was when the Christmas catalogs came through the mail. 
 
Do you remember the Sears and Penney’s and Montgomery Ward Christmas catalogs?
I would go through those things time and time again turning down pages and circling all the choices hoping to see them under the tree on Christmas morning. 
 
Waiting has been and always will be a part of life.
Some things are worth the wait, and others aren’t.
 
So what I want to share with you this morning is what I’d say is perhaps the longest wait known to man for a good thing to come along. It is the story of the wait for the Messiah.  
 
Then over the next four weeks, I want us to look back to the Old Testament for some encouragement on waiting for God drawn from the prophets. If anyone ever knew anything about waiting on God, it was them.  And through their prophecies, specifically about the coming of the Messiah, we learn some valuable lessons. 
 
And then just before Christmas, I want to share with you a message to help us understand that He is worth the Wait.
 
As I considered this thought for today, and transitioning into the Christmas season and learning to wait on the Lord, I found myself looking at this old familiar text of the Christmas story we all know so well found in
 
Matthew 1:18-23
 
That’s a beautiful story isn’t it?  But I am afraid we’ve become so accustomed to hearing it and so familiar with its details that we forget what brought them to that place. 
In fact, God didn’t want us to miss that aspect of the story so he included the preceding verses.  Now we usually skip over these verses because they are associated with that long list of genealogy and names that are hard to say.
 
But as I looked at verses 16-17, God reminded me of something that maybe we’ve forgotten over the years, and that perhaps could help remind us a bit more today of the awesomeness and the uniqueness of the precious gift that God did in fact give us all some 2000 years ago.
 
Matthew 1:16-23
 
The thing that really caught my attention was that 42 generations waited for God’s gift of His Son to be given.
 
Now I don’t know about you, but for me the hardest part of waiting is waiting. Waiting involves time, and we don’t know when our waiting will be over. If we could wait a minute or two it would be one thing, but it often involves a great deal of time.
 
Did you ever watch someone in a hurry in the checkout line trying to get through and leave?  For instance, if the cash register receipt doesn’t print fast enough, they will start making this “hurry up” motion with their hand as if that will help!
 
We shouldn’t laugh because we do the same thing.  We grow impatient waiting for the printer to print, or the coffee to brew or the light to change or the old person in front of us who’s not moving fast enough to suit us. The internet is never fast enough for us. 
We must be constantly upgrading and improving and becoming more efficient and productive. We live in this culture of convenience and instant gratification and we have lost the art of waiting. Along with that we’ve lost our sense of thankfulness. 
 
People in some places around the world will wait in line for hours or even days or weeks for a loaf of bread and many live with no hope of having anything to eat and yet we’re irritated if the line at McDonald’s isn’t moving fast enough.
 
Can you imagine 42 generations? Talk about learning to wait!  But 42 generations of God’s people waited that long for the Gift of God to make His appearance.
Do you realize that this dated back to 1955 B.C.? That’s like 4000 years ago!  That means that for those folks back then when Jesus was born, we’re talking about almost 2,000 years that human beings had to wait for the Lord’s first coming.
 
What do we learn from that?  Let me share with you some lessons learned from waiting on God.
 
First of all,
 
1. Learning to Wait Teaches Us to Trust God
 
Why did 42 generations have to endure waiting for God to send forth His Son?
 
The Bible itself gives us the answer. 
 
Galatians 4:4-5
 
Why the wait?
 
It was because Jesus had to come at just the right time; and that right time was determined by God according to His already laid out plan to redeem man.
 
The Message Bible puts it this way;
 
But, when the time arrived that was set by God the Father, God sent his Son, born among us of a
woman, born under the conditions of the law 5 so that he might redeem those of us who have been kidnapped by the law. Thus we have been set free to experience our rightful heritage Gal 4:4-5 (MSG)
 
God had planned the date and time from the very beginning; He had chosen the PERFECT day, month, year, and moment to send His Son. It was not a time chosen by man; Christ’s birth was not a chance happening; God knew the time from the beginning.
 
And when the time came, Jesus was born at precisely the right time. Any earlier and He would have been premature.  Any longer and He would have been late.  And when the time came, nothing could hold him back.
 
Listen:  We may not know the precise time Jesus was born, but we know it was the proper time! 
 
It was the right time
 
  • prophetically. 
 
That means that all the Old Testament prophecies were due now to be fulfilled.  All these prophecies had been made. 
All through these centuries all these Old Testament prophets had predicted, they had prophesied.  They had promised that Jesus Christ was going to come.
 
Someone has counted them. I haven't counted them, but someone has said that there are over 300 prophecies about the coming of Jesus in the Bible. 
 
When Jesus was born, the time, the fullness of the time, everything they had said about the Lord Jesus Christ, just like pieces in a jigsaw puzzle, had been put together and the time was right for Jesus to be born. The time was right prophetically. 
 
The time was right
 
  • culturally. 
 
Some of you history students have studied the events surrounding the life of Alexander the Great.  When Alexander the Great conquered the known world, it meant that he took Greek culture and made Greek culture the culture of the world in which Jesus was born. For instance, Greek became the language of the culture of that day.  It was the language of common people in most of the parts of the world of that day. 
 
The Old Testament scriptures, which are written in Hebrew, were translated down in Alexandria. It is known as the Septuagint or the LXX so that the scriptures could be read by the common people who prepared the way for the preaching of the Gospel. 
 
The culture was just right for Jesus to be born. 
 
The time was right prophetically.  It was right culturally.
 
The time was right
 
  • politically. 
 
The Roman Empire had achieved world domination at that time.  Because of that there was economic and political stability.  It was known as the Pax Romana, the peace of Rome.  It was an imposed peace on people.  It was peace under the iron heel of Roman authority, but there was a peace. 
 
The Romans developed a system of roads.  In fact, some of those roads are still in use today.  It was by means of this system of roads that there could be communication all over the Roman Empire.
 
God was behind that because what God was doing was establishing a road system and a system of stability and relative peace so that the preaching of the Gospel could be extended to the far corners of the Roman Empire.  The time was right prophetically, politically, culturally and
 
  • religiously. 
 
All the religions and all of the philosophies of the ancient world had burned themselves out.  They were like flickering, dying embers.  The hunger in the human heart was so pronounced that the world was ready for the announcement for the Savior to come.  "But, when the fullness of the time was come." 
 
And at just the right time, Jesus showed up.
Now if you don’t get hold of anything else, get this:
 
God is never early.  He is never late.  He is always right on time.  I'm going to make it again because that will mean a lot to you in your life.  God is never early. He is never late.  He is always right on time.  That statement will help you the rest of your life.  He's never early.  He's never late.  He's always right on time.
 
But think about this:  Jesus was right on time, but in the meantime, 42 generations waited in faith.  42 generations waited with anticipation. 42 generations lived, waited, and even died, waiting faithfully, and with a hope.
 
The problem we have is thinking that waiting is doing nothing.  But waiting is the time when God is working behind the scenes. He is busy bringing about his plan for the world and for us. And just like He did with Jesus, when the time was exactly right, He gave birth to that plan. 
 
I suppose that an expectant mother sometimes thinks, “Is this baby ever going to come”, especially if she is past her due date. But the truth of the matter is, all you have to do is look at her and you know that it is impossible for the baby not to come.
 
And while she waits, everything is made ready. 
 
That’s the way it is with God and us.  From His side, everything was coming together in just the right way at just the right time for the entrance of Jesus into the world.
 
 
He made sure His people had prophets to know that Messiah was coming.  He would be born in Bethlehem.  His mother would be a virgin.  He would be of the tribe of Judah.  He would be a descendent of David.  
 
And with all this information, even though the people were waiting, they were waiting in anticipation, living by faith looking for the Hope that was promised. God filled their ears with the information they needed to help them through the wait. 
 
I was reading this week about a young man, back in the day, who applied for a job as a telegraph operator.  Now back then, the telegraph was the fastest means of long-distance communication. 
 
So this young man, answering an ad in the newspaper, went to the address that was listed. When he arrived, he entered a large, noisy office. In the background a telegraph clacked away. A sign on the receptionist’s counter instructed job applicants to fill out a form and wait until they were summoned to enter the inner office.
 
The young man completed his form and sat down with seven other waiting applicants. After a few minutes, the young man stood up, crossed the room to the door of the inner office, and walked right in.
 
Naturally the other applicants perked up, wondering what was going on. Why had this man been so bold? They muttered among themselves that they hadn’t heard any summons yet. They just knew that he would be reprimanded for his presumption and summarily disqualified for the job.
 
But within a few minutes the young man emerged from the inner office escorted by the interviewer, who announced to the other applicants,
‘Gentlemen, thank you very much for coming, but the job has been filled by this young man.’
 
The other applicants began grumbling to each other, and then one spoke up, ‘Wait a minute! I don’t understand. He was the last one to come in, and we never even got a chance to be interviewed. Yet he got the job. That’s not fair.’
 
The employer responded, ‘All the time you’ve been sitting here, the telegraph has been ticking out the following message in Morse code: “If you understand this message, then come right in. The job is yours.” None of you heard it or understood it. This young man did. So the job is his.’”
 
The young man got the job because he was not just waiting — all of the other men were waiting — but he was listening.  He was aware of what was going on around him.
 
The truth of the matter is, as Christians, we are all sitting in the waiting room. But it is how we wait, and what we do with the waiting, that is important.
 
And there we find one of the lessons in learning to wait.  We live in the same type of environment.  God has filled our lives with His promises.  Even as we approach Christmas, we have a reminder that God keeps His Word. Listen to Him! He never makes a promise He doesn’t keep. 
 
 
 
And it’s not just in the big, Bible things.  That helps us every day and in every circumstance when we have to wait on God. So, our Lord’s long-expected birth and the wait of 42 generations remind us that we too, can wait in faith upon the Lord.
 
Here’s the second lesson:
 
2. Learning to Wait Teaches Us that Something   
   Better is on the Way
 
verse 21
 
I know that all of us like to give gifts to those we love. We save up just a little bit extra to buy that special gift that that special loved one wants.
We want to give something just a little bit better; so we go just a bit further.
 
But, let’s not allow ourselves to forget the real meaning of Christmas, because Christmas isn’t just a time of exchanging gifts among ourselves; it is a time to thanks to the Giver of the most precious gift ever given to humankind; the gift of Christ who would save His people from their sins.
 
Think with me about the gift that Christ has given to us.
 
Let’s look back into the Old Testament at one of the prophecies given to God’s people. 
 
Isaiah 61:1-3
 
Now think about this. At the time Isaiah wrote those words, it was about 700 years before Jesus would appear. 
But they were anticipating that someday, one day, Messiah would come.  And when God’s gift of His Son, Jesus Christ, showed up, He would bring good news to the poor.  He would bring healing to the brokenhearted.  When God’s gift of Jesus Christ comes, He will proclaim liberty to the captives and freedom to the prisoner and the year of the Lord’s favor.
 
That meant there was a better day coming.  They wouldn’t always be in bondage.  They wouldn’t always be broken hearted.  They wouldn’t always be scattered. And when Messiah shows up, things will be better.   
 
Do you need good news today?  Because of Christmas, you have it. 
 
Do you need to have a broken heart healed? Jesus stands ready to do just that, and He can and will.  That’s why He came. 
 
Do you need to be set free from some addiction? The Child Whose birth we celebrate at Christmas has the power to do that. 
 
 
Do you need comfort in your life?
Do you need joy that never fades?
       
Jesus can and will give that to you.
 
Money can’t buy any of that at all. But God gave all that and more to us through His Son, Jesus Christ.  There is no more precious gift ever given or that will ever be given.
 
When we learn to wait, we can understand that it won’t always be like this!  It won’t always be a struggle!  We live in the hope and anticipation of a better day!
Here’s the third thing: 
 
3. Learning to Wait Doesn’t Mean God isn’t with Us Right Now
 
Verse 23
 
God is with us. Let that thought sink in for a moment.  God is with us.  God is with me.  God is with you. 
 
I would suggest there can be no better confidence in life than knowing there is never a millisecond in your life when you are outside the care and protection and guidance of God. 
 
No telling how many millions of dollars will be spent this year on gifts that will, in time, wear out or break, or will be thrown in the closet and left there because they’ve gone out of style, or because we don’t have the right batteries or the new is gone and we’ve moved on to something else. 
 
But the on-going gift of Jesus Christ is a gift that will never break; it won’t run out of batteries; we can’t outgrow it; and we can’t lose it and there will never be a time when you don’t need it.
 
I may be waiting on the Lord, but in reality, He’s already here!  He’s with me right now. 
 
 
 
That’s why Isaiah wrote, in 7:14,
 
“Therefore, the Lord Himself will give you a sign: The virgin will conceive, have a son, and name him Immanuel.  Later in chapter 8, he would provide the meaning of that name:  ‘For God is with us.’”
 
What a privilege to be a New Testament believer!  They were looking forward to that time, waiting for the time when Immanuel would come.  They wouldn’t have to go to the temple and let a priest go before God on their behalf.  There would be no need for a sacrifice with blood to approach God.  All of that ritual, all that sacrificial system would be done away with and God would be with them.
 
And you and I have the blessed privilege to live in that relationship everyday of our life.  That’s why it doesn’t matter what I’m facing or going through.  It makes no difference who the president of the United States is or how dire the circumstances.  Sickness may come and will come.  Family may die and will die.  Finances may change and will change.  But as the Psalmist said,
 
1 God is our refuge and strength,
A very present help in trouble.
2 Therefore we will not fear,
Even though the earth be removed,
And though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea;
3 Though its waters roar and be troubled,
Though the mountains shake with its swelling.
4 There is a river whose streams shall make glad the
city of God, The holy place of the tabernacle of the Most High.
 
5 God is in the midst of her, she shall not be moved;
God shall help her, just at the break of dawn.
6 The nations raged, the kingdoms were moved;
He uttered His voice, the earth melted.
7 The Lord of hosts is with us;
The God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah
8 Come, behold the works of the Lord,
Who has made desolations in the earth.
9 He makes wars cease to the end of the earth;
He breaks the bow and cuts the spear in two;
He burns the chariot in the fire.
10 Be still, and know that I am God;
I will be exalted among the nations,
I will be exalted in the earth!
11 The Lord of hosts is with us;
The God of Jacob is our refuge.
 
Gifts we give will come and go.  They’ll tarnish and wear out or get lost, but God’s gift to you, our Lord, Jesus Christ, is with us all throughout the year, 7 days a week, 24 hours a day. 
 
He’s with us in the rain. He’s with us in the sunshine.  He’s with us when we’re going through hard time; He’s with us when everything seems to be going perfectly.  He’s with us when we’re sick, and He’s with us when we’re healthy.  And no matter what you’re waiting on or for, you’ll never wait alone because His name is Immanuel, “God with us”.
 
Dr. James Dobson relates a story of an elderly woman named Stella Thornhope who was struggling with her first Christmas alone. Her husband had died just a few months prior through a slow developing cancer. Now, several days before Christmas, she was almost snowed in by a brutal weather system.
 
She felt terribly alone; so much so she decided she was not going to decorate for Christmas.  Late that afternoon the doorbell rang, and there was a delivery boy with a box. He said, “Mrs. Thornhope?” She nodded. He said, “Would you sign here?” She invited him to step inside and closed the door to get away from the cold.
 
She signed the paper and said, “What’s in the box?” The young man laughed and opened up the flap, and inside was a little puppy, a golden Labrador Retriever. The delivery boy picked up the squirming pup and explained, “This is for you, Ma’am. He’s six weeks old, completely housebroken.” The young puppy began to wiggle in happiness at being released from captivity.
 
“Who sent this?” Mrs. Thornhope asked.
 
The young man set the animal down and handed her an envelope and said, “It’s all explained here in this envelope, Ma’am. The dog was bought last July while its mother was still pregnant. It was meant to be a Christmas gift to you.” The young man then handed her a book, How to Care for Your Labrador Retriever.
 
In desperation she again asked, “Who sent me this puppy?”  As the young man turned to leave, he said, “Your husband, Ma’am. Merry Christmas.”
 
She opened up the letter from her husband. He had written it three weeks before he died and left it with the kennel owners to be delivered with the puppy as his last Christmas gift to her. The letter was full of love and encouragement and admonishments to be strong. He vowed that he was waiting for the day when she would join him.
He had sent her this young animal to keep her company until then.
 
She wiped away the tears, put the letter down, and then remembering the puppy at her feet, she picked up that golden furry ball and held it to her neck. Then she looked out the window at the lights that outlined the neighbor’s house, and she heard from the radio in the kitchen the strains of “Joy to the World, the Lord has Come.” Suddenly Stella felt the most amazing sensation of peace washing over her. Her heart felt a joy and a wonder greater than the grief and loneliness.
 
“Little fella,” she said to the dog, “It’s just you and me. But you know what? There’s a box down in the basement I’ll bet you’d like. It’s got a little Christmas tree in it and some decorations and some lights that are going to impress you. And there’s a manger scene down there. Let’s go get it.”
 
Listen, God has a way of sending a signal of light to remind us that no matter how long the wait, He is with us through the gift of His Son Jesus Christ. 
 
Would you like to have the perfect gift this year?  You don’t have to wait!  You can have Him today by trusting Jesus to be your Savior and Lord.  Ask Him to forgive your sins right now. Ask Him to come into your life today and the wait will be over. 
 
Let’s pray