A Thrill of Hope, Part 1

Reader 1: In the beginning, the world was perfect. We were perfect.  There was no need for hope, because there was nothing to hope FOR.  Life was full.  Completely, perfectly full. Mankind walked with God in the cool of the day.

But sin - sin was an option, man and woman made their choice, and that which was perfect became broken.  Now there was a need, and God graciously promised to send One in which humanity could hope. One who would redeem, renew, revive that which was broken.  To the serpent He said:

Reader 2: 

“I will put enmity
    between you and the woman,
    and between your offspring and hers;
he will crush your head,
    and you will strike his heel.”

Reader 1: God promised: He is coming.

Reader 1: Generations passed.  Adam lived, and he died.  Abel lived, and he died. Seth lived, and he died. Enoch, Methuseleh, Noah…they all lived. And they all died.  Fathers lived and fathers died.  No man was the One that God had promised. 

O Come, O Come, Emmanuel (violin)

Then God chose a man named Abram.  A man who was not a father.  A man who was beyond the age of child-bearing.  And again He promised.  He told Abram that through him He would keep the promise He made in the beginning - One who would redeem, renew, and revive that which was broken. To Abram He said:

Reader 2: 

…all peoples on earth
    will be blessed through you.

Reader 1: God promised: He is coming.

Reader 1: Abraham. Isaac. Jacob.  They all received the promise.  

Reader 2: He is coming. 

Reader 1: They told their children- 

Reader 2: He is coming.

Reader 1: Their grandchildren believed-

Reader 2: He is coming.

Reader 1: Moses, Joshua...

Reader 2: Decades came and went. 

Reader 1: Deborah, Gideon, Samuel...

Reader 2: Centuries passed. Thousands of years…

Reader 1: Years of thriving, worship, and rejoicing!

Reader 2: But he did not come. 

Reader 1: Years of famine, suffering, and oppression…

Reader 2: Still, he did not come.

Reader 1: But they heard, they believed, and they waited for what God promised. 

Readers 1 & 2: He is coming.

O Come, O Come, Emmanuel (violin)

Reader 1: David - a man after God's own heart - became king, and to him God extended His promise.   To David He said:

Reader 2: Your house and your kingdom will endure forever before me; your throne will be established forever.

Reader 1: David, the youngest son of Jesse, would have a kingdom and throne that would last forever.    And from his tiny, insignificant town would come the eternal King.

Reader 2: 

“But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah,
    though you are small among the clans of Judah,
out of you will come for me
    one who will be ruler over Israel,
whose origins are from of old,
    from ancient times.”

Reader 1: From the little town of Bethlehem God would send the One who would redeem, renew, and revive that which was broken.  

But David died.  Solomon died. And the nation of Israel was divided in two.  Idolatry, murder, wickedness and war defined the nations of Israel and Judah.   But still, God promised: He is coming.  To Isaiah He said:

Reader 2: The Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel.

Reader 1: Emmanuel: God with us. Born of a virgin. Sent by God.  Again, to Isaiah He promised:

Reader 2: For to us a child is born,
    to us a son is given,
    and the government will be on his shoulders.
And he will be called
    Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
    Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

Of the greatness of his government and peace
    there will be no end.
He will reign on David’s throne
    and over his kingdom,
establishing and upholding it
    with justice and righteousness
    from that time on and forever.
The zeal of the Lord Almighty
    will accomplish this.

Reader 1: A child. A counselor. God, Father, Prince, and King. A man of strength and peace. Just and righteous forevermore. God promised:

Readers 1 & 2: He is coming.

O Come, O Come, Emmanuel (violin)

[10-15 second pause]

Reader 1: Then God was quiet.  No more visions.  No more prophecies.  Silence.  For 400 years God remained quiet.  

One to crush the serpent's head? 

Reader 2: He is coming.

Reader 1: One to bless the nations? 

Reader 2: He is coming.

Reader 1: Born of a virgin? Bringing peace? God…with us? 

Reader 2: He is coming.

Reader 1: Bethlehem is small and weak. 

Reader 2: He is coming.

Reader 1: They heard. They believed. They waited.  

Readers 1 & 2: He is coming.

Reader 1: Then God broke his silence.  Zechariah had a vision, and his barren wife felt a life inside her.

Reader 2: He is coming?  

Reader 1: He is coming. 

Reader 1: An angel visited a young girl - a virgin - and told her she had been chosen.  She would carry Emmanuel.

Reader 2: He is coming? 

Reader 1: He is coming.

Reader 2: But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary; you have found favor with God. You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; his kingdom will never end.” 

“How will this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?” 

The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God."

O Come, O Come, Emmanuel (violin)

Reader 1: She believed God.  Her betrothed believed God.  The child that was promised grew inside her. They heard. They believed. And they waited. A census took them to Bethlehem - the town of David. And there, God would come to be with us.

Reader 2:

 While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no guest room available for them.

Reader 1: The One that was promised from the very beginning - the One who would redeem, renew, revive that which was broken - the One who was the son of Adam, the son of Abraham, the son of David - the promised Christ, the Messiah, God with us…

Reader 2: Our Hope...

Readers 1 & 2: He has come.