The Joshua Victor Theory

Sermon Outline:  1.       This last week before Christmas, our telling of the Christmas story begins with the visit of Gabriel to Mary. “O favored one, the Lord is with you!” “You have found favor with God.” Mary is troubled. Taking notice of me ? What did it mean for Mary to find favor with God? 2.       For us, in everyday life, “finding favor” can sometimes mean “working hard to impress someone.” A new worker trying to prove his worth to his boss—advancement. College student trying to impress and pass with a tough professor. Politicians rising in the ranks among their fellows. 3.       But this isn’t what “finding favor” in God’s eyes meant for Mary. Indeed she was chosen by God for her purity and virginity, as a fitting vessel for God’s service, and for the fulfillment of the ancient prophecy that the Savior would be born from a virgin. But she’s not credited by the angel for greatness of life. N...

In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, Amen. In the sermon series for Advent, we will look at how the birth and coming of Jesus Christ was foreshadowed and pictured through various examples, peoples, and events, that we call types or shadows. What is a type or shadow? It’s related to prophecy. Prophecies are the God-given messages spoken by His messengers. They explained events both past, present, and future, usually emphasizing the need for repentance and God’s promised actions. Of course Christ, as the coming Savior, is the most frequent subject of prophecy, and Jesus is like the golden thread that runs through all the tapestry of Scripture. A prophecy is spoken or in writing. A type or shadow would be more like an object lesson or even a prototype. It could be a person or event that prophetically alludes to or foreshadows some greater person or event. But this type or prototype is always something inferior to or less than the final reality it points to. T...

In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, Amen. During these three weeks of Advent we’ll be looking at three prophecies from the book of Isaiah that point forward to Jesus the Messiah and King. Today we look at the first, from Isaiah 7, the prophecy of Jesus’ virgin birth. Grace, mercy, and peace to you from God our Father and from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen. This Scripture passage is all about faith. It’s about faith in God’s promise to carry out salvation through His Son, the Virgin-born Messiah. It’s about the having the faith to trust in God and His continuing presence and action in our lives, even when circumstances dictate otherwise. It’s one thing to do whatever is in your ability and trust God to provide a way through challenge and difficulty when the way is uncertain. It’s another thing altogether to disbelieve God and try to engineer your own solution to a problem through dishonorable means. The reading from Isaiah describes just such a s...