Dial In with Jonny Ardavanis - The Arrival of the King

Episode Date: December 14, 2022

In this three part Advent series, Jonny Ardavanis will be discussing how all of human history culminates in the arrival of the Messiah, the King of Kings and Savior of the world. Our gratitude this Christmas season will be in direct proportion to our understanding of the need for and anticipation of The Christ of Christmas. Watch VideosVisit the Website Follow on InstagramFollow on Twitter

Hey guys, my name is Johnny Artavanis and this is Dial In. In this episode and in the two upcoming episodes, I want to prepare our hearts and our minds for the Christmas celebration. In this episode, I want to trace a significant Old Testament theme that provides the identity of and the authority of the long-awaited Messiah. Let's Dial In. Every year there's a question, a debate if you will, that involves young and old and turns brother against father and mother against sister. What is that great debate? Well, that debate is when is it appropriate to decorate for and play our favorite songs that celebrate the Christmas season. I have friends, and maybe you do as well,

that eat Thanksgiving dinner at 11 in the morning because they decorate for the Christmas holiday before the Thanksgiving holiday is even over. There is a thrill or an excitement regarding the Christmas season. For this reason, a Charlie Brown Christmas, a Christmas time is here, the song reached instant popularity because people love the Christmas season. To children, each of the days in December seem to take forever. You may be around your own children and they may ask, how many more days till Christmas? There is a great reason C.S. Lewis described the land of Narnia as a land where it was always winter, but never Christmas. Because perpetual winter without winter's pinnacle day would vacuum the profound joy out of the season we love to

celebrate. But what is Christmas and why do we celebrate Christmas Day? The word Christmas is from a compound word, Christ, which means obviously Christos, which means the Messiah or the anointed one in Mas, which is likely taken from the Latin word mater, which means something or someone who has been sent. Perhaps you have grown up celebrating the Advent season. And as with many traditions, they become nothing more than that. Traditions, they lose their meaning and their value over time. And in some ways we forget what the title of this tradition even means. The advent of Jesus Christ simply means his arrival. Adventus from advenir, which means add to and veneer to come.

The advent season is the season in which we celebrate and anticipate the arrival of the Messiah, the anointed one. But you may ask and you may wonder, who exactly is this Anointed One and why is his arrival expected and anticipated? We will discuss his identity in this episode and then his mission in the following episode. In many ways, the Christmas hymns that we recognize from either the church we grew up in or the Hallmark movies that we watch give us cues and indicators as to the identity of the one who is born on Christmas Day. I want to look at a silver

thread in this episode that is prevalent throughout the entirety of the scripture. And this silver thread provides for us an understanding of the royal identity of the baby who was in the manger. Now, the Christmas story is exactly that, a story, a real one, not figment nor fairy tale, not imagination, but a true historically documented and affirmed event. Herein, the Christmas story is a narrative that catches our imagination and captivates our hearts. There are many such stories and conversations in the

Bible, and maybe you have wondered like I, if you ever had the opportunity to be transported back to any event or conversation in scripture, what would you choose? Maybe you think of David's fight with Goliath or the splitting of the Red Sea as the people of God came out of Egypt, but maybe there are others. But of all the events transcribed in God's word, the conversation that would potentially thrill me the most is the one that Jesus has with two men on the road to Emmaus in Luke 24. In Luke 24, we arrive at a scene on the afternoon of Easter.

Jesus had risen from the dead that morning and Friday he had been crucified and this was Sunday afternoon. And as he is walking, he comes along two others who were taking the seven-mile journey from Jerusalem to Emmaus. The demeanor and countenance of these two men had fallen. They were downcast. They were despondent. These two men trudged along the beaten path back to Emmaus and their feet barely lifted off the ground as they shuffled their way back home.

They were weary, not because of their journey, but because something devastating had happened. What happened? Why are they devastated? Well, let's join the story and the conversation in Luke 24 verse 15. While they, the two men were talking and discussing, Jesus himself approached and begin traveling with them, but their eyes were prevented from recognizing him. And he said to them, what are these words that you are exchanging with one another as you are walking? And they stood still, looking sad. One of them, named Cleopas, answered and said, Are you the only one visiting Jerusalem and unaware of the things which has happened here in these days?

And he said to them, What things? Then they said to him, The things about Jesus the Nazarene, who was a prophet, mighty indeed in word, in the sight of God and all the people. And now the chief priests and our rulers delivered him to the things about Jesus, the Nazarene, who was a prophet, mighty indeed in word and the sight of God and all the people. And now the chief priests and our rulers delivered him to the sentence of death and crucified him. But we were hoping that it was he who was going to redeem Israel. Indeed, besides all this, it is the third day since these things happened. But also some women among us amazed us when they were at the tomb early in the morning and did not find his

body. They came saying that they had also seen a vision of angels who said that he was alive. Some of those who were with us went to the tomb and found that just exactly as the women also had said, but him, they did not see. Cleopas and his companion were despairing. Their hopes had been swept away by a great tidal wave and then had been dashed upon the rocks the one they thought had come to deliver them from the tyranny and oppression of a foreign power had died they had longed for someone to come and break them from the roman yoke of bondage and lead them into the glory days promised to them by the prophets but that man jesus had been put to death Then above his cross hung the sign,

the King of the Jews, a mocking description of the man who was rejected by his very own people. These men had heard that potentially Jesus had been raised from the dead, or at least his tomb was empty. But this was likely the hysterical account of two delusional women, not anything to be trusted. These men did not understand that the people's greatest need then as well as now were not and are not sociopolitical, but spiritual and moral. So when Jesus died, their hopes did with him. But how does Jesus respond to these two melancholy men? What hope does he provide to buoy their downcast hearts? He responds in Luke 24, 25 and says to them, oh, foolish men and slow of heart to believe in all that the prophets have

spoken. Was it not necessary for the Christ to suffer these things and to enter into his glory? Then beginning with Moses and with all the prophets, he explained to them the things concerning himself in all of the scriptures. Jesus explains that the entirety of scripture points to him. Now, they still didn't know that it was Jesus who was talking to them. Their understanding is veiled at this point in the conversation. All they know is that they are conversing with someone who clearly understands the scripture. I always wonder what passage Jesus would have gone to in order to show them that the entirety of the Old Testament pointed to him.

Jesus says, Moses and the prophets, they all talk about me. There are, of course, certain passages that may come to mind immediately. But do you wonder where Jesus would have taken them initially? What passage did he take them at the very beginning of this wonderful conversation in order to demonstrate that all of the scripture points towards the arrival, suffering, and glory of the Messiah? Well, I believe the first passage Jesus would have taken them to is the first page of your Bible. And he would have explained to them that God had made everything in the world and everything he made was good. He had given Adam and Eve simple instructions. Eat from every tree in the garden, save one. Do not eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Everything else is for your enjoyment. God told them, be fruitful and multiply. Our ancient ancestors had been given dominion over the entire earth and had been given the

responsibility to cultivate the ground. But God promised them in the moment you eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil to the ground, you will return for you shall surely die. Death is the destiny of the disobedient. But in Genesis three, we find the familiar passage of the serpent, the devil working in the way he most commonly does casting doubt and suspicion upon what God had clearly said. He comes to Eve and asks, did God really say you could not eat of the trees of the garden? Satan's strategy then is Satan's strategy now. What is that strategy? Well, to put into question that which God had explicitly said. He does not deny the word of God. He distorts and confuses the word of God. And he says to Eve, eat of it.

It'll be good for you. You'll become like God. And then it says in Genesis 3, 6, that when a woman saw that eating of the tree would be good for food, a delight to the eyes and desire to make one wise, she participated in it. And the results were immediate. Adam and Eve both recognized their nakedness. They ran to hide themselves from the presence of the one who had given them life.

They found plants and leaves to cover their bodies, but they could not cover their guilt. They tried to suppress their shame, but the more you suppress shame, the louder its voice in your own conscience becomes. The more they ran from the eyes of God, the more they knew they were directly under his gaze. Immediately what also came was judgment. God pursues them with questioning. Where are you? He asks. He isn't unaware of their location,

but he uses probing questions to press their conscience. Where are you? What have you done? God asks. God then pronounces a curse on the serpent and says in Genesis 3, 14 and 15, because you have done this, he's talking to the serpent, cursed are you more than all cattle and more than every beast of the field on your belly. You will go and dust. You will eat all the days of your life. And I will put enmity between you and the woman and between your seed and her seed. He shall bruise you on the head and you shall bruise him on the heel. Embedded within these ominous ancient words of

doom is mankind's only hope. The seed of the woman, the deliverer, the savior, the Mashiach. The word seed used here in Genesis three or offspring is both a collective or has both a collective and individual meaning. Now watch this because I hope you love the Bible because this is fascinating. This passage indicates that a male member of the human race will deliver a fatal and final blow to the serpent. And in the process of crushing the serpent's head, he will be bruised. What basic truths can be derived about the advent of the Messiah from page three of your Bibles?

Well, the following, he will have a supernatural birth. He will be of the seed of the woman, not of man. Page three of your Bible rightly predicts a virgin birth. Secondly, he will be a supernatural being in order to defeat Satan, the serpent, a supernatural being in of himself. He must be God-like. So it is a supernatural being that is promised. But third, he also will be human. He is supernatural yet man. The one who is to come is the seed of a woman. Now at the end of Genesis three, that is all we know that one day there is someone who is coming, who will crush the serpent and in the process be bruised. So in one sense, the rest of your old Testament is the anticipation of the arrival of the one who would come and crush Satan and restore Eden.

Eden, which was emblematic of God's presence and rule, had been lost. And all of us now live east of Eden. In the words of John Milton's epic poem, Paradise had been lost. Now, potentially Eve thought that one of the sons which she bore would be the solution. But the only thing her son Cain would crush was her other son's Abel's skull. So the longing, the anticipation for restoration continued. In Genesis 6, we read of the great flood over the entire earth because of the rampant wickedness on earth. Noah and his sons bored the ark they had made. And by Genesis 9 of your Bibles, there are only four remaining males on planet earth. Noah and his sons board the ark they had made. And by Genesis nine of your Bibles, there are only four remaining males on planet earth. Those four men on the ark and their wives.

Now the question is from which of these sons would come the seed of the woman? Well, in Genesis nine, we see that the seed will come from the line of Shem. Noah's son Ham uncovered Noah's nakedness and Noah pronounces a curse on Ham and a blessing on Shem. The line in which the seed will come is narrowed. Now to understand the anticipation of the Messiah in the Old Testament, you have to look at this prophecy like a funnel, if you will, or like a upside down triangle, wide at the top and then progressively narrow towards the bottom. That is the way the prophecy regarding the Messiah works. At the beginning of Genesis, all we know is that someone is coming, but then over time, that prophecy becomes more

and more narrow until you reach the person of Jesus Christ, the only one who could fulfill all of the prophecies regarding the Messiah. In Genesis 12, God promises Abraham that he will bless the entire earth through his descendants. Abraham's descendants then would be the recipients of the blessing that Adam had forfeited because of his sin. And then in Genesis 15, God tells Abraham, watch this, kings will come from you. Rightly understood from the beginning of scripture, there is a prophecy of a coming king, a king who would bring blessing and peace to the entire earth. Abraham has a son named Isaac and God reaffirms and reminds Isaac of the promise that he had made to his father in Genesis 26,

three. Isaac has two sons and you may know this Esau and Jacob, and you would assume that the line of kings would come from the elder brother Esau. But no, God promises and blesses Jacob and then tells Jacob in Genesis 35, 11, kings will come from you. Are you tracking? Where is this king coming from? Who is this king? Well, God is showing us in his scripture like a silver thread. Now, if I were going to ask you which of Jacob's sons was the most popular, you would likely say Joseph. Am I wrong? His story takes up the greatest portion of the book of Genesis. And if you are following the biblical thread, you would assume that this coming king would come through his line. But in Genesis 49, Jacob promises not Joseph, the most popular, nor Reuben, the oldest, but Judah, that the scepter, a symbol of royal power, will not

depart from his house until Shiloh comes. The funnel is being narrowed. A king is coming first from the seed of the woman, then from Shem, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and now through Judah. And the scepter will not depart from Judah, Jacob says, until Shiloh, a personal name for the Messiah, comes. Scripture is like a grand symphony where certain themes and notes reappear so you never miss what the story is all about. The Bible is 66 books written over nearly 2000 years on three continents and in three languages, but it is one story. And one of the great themes throughout the Old Testament

and the entirety of scripture is that there is a king who is coming. Now, the greatest descendant of Judah was King David. The prophecy of a king from the line of Judah was in part fulfilled by David, but David would not only sin greatly, but like everyone else would die. So who is this greater king? Well, God will reaffirm the covenant he made with Abraham to David in second Samuel chapter seven and promises David that from his line will come a king who will reign forever.

A king who will come from his line and not reign for 40 years, but for all of eternity. David's son Solomon will build the temple to be the central place of God's presence on earth. But David's greater son will come and fully embody the presence of God with us. The Old Testament then is not just the provision of commandments by God, but the storyline that traces and anticipates the arrival of the seed of the woman, the king who would come conquer and reign forever. At times, the people of God may have lost hope that this would never even have been fulfilled.

But God is never late in keeping his promises. He is always right on time. 500 years after David lived and died, another prophet would come along named Zechariah and announce, rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion. Shout in triumph, O daughter of Jerusalem. Behold, your king is coming to you. He is just and endowed with salvation, humble and mounted on a donkey, even on a colt, the foal of a donkey. And where is this great king to be born? Micah 5.2 tells us hundreds of years before Christ that he would show up on the scene in Bethlehem. Micah 5 says, but you, Bethlehem,

Epaphthah, through you or though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be the ruler over Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times. Our great king would come and be born in a seemingly insignificant village in Bethlehem. Micah 4.8 prophesies that his arrival would come to the tower of the flock. Now watch closely here. What does that mean, the tower of the flock? The tower of the flock was a select flock of sheep

that was shepherded on the hills of Bethlehem. These sheep were raised with special care because they had a special purpose. What purpose, you may ask? Well, these lambs were specifically raised for the purpose of the Passover. The shepherds who would gather around the manger that first Christmas were the shepherds who were entrusted with guarding, feeding, and protecting the Passover lambs who would be slaughtered each and every year as a reminder of not only God's holiness and justice, but also his love in providing a substitute. Little did these shepherds know that the baby they beheld in a manger was not just the lion of Judah,

but God's own sacrificial lamb that would come and once and for all pay the penalty for sin. The Bible is full of prophecies that anticipate the advent of the long-awaited king. And then often in the familiarity of the lyrics we sing, we lose sight of the fact that the baby in the manger is the king of the universe. We sing joy to the world, let earth receive her king. We sing hark the herald, the angels sing glory to the newborn king. We sing joy to the world. Let earth receive her king. We sing hark the herald. Angels sing glory to the newborn king. We sing, oh, come all ye faithful. Come let us adore him. Born the king of angels.

This is the Christmas story, the arrival of the king. Now you may be wondering, could anyone else fulfill all these prophecies in the Old Testament pertaining to a coming king? Could any other Jewish figure possess these same credentials and be Israel's Messiah? Well, if you go to Israel today, they still anticipate the Messiah's arrival. I'll never forget being in the old city of Jerusalem and hearing a man shouting on a megaphone as he rode through the city on a Jeep asking, where is the Messiah? Where is the Messiah? They believe he is still to come. So back to our question, could another Jewish figure possess these same credentials

and be Israel's Messiah? The answer is no, no, there could not be another Messiah. Why? Well, because all of the records that would validate such a claim were destroyed when the temple was destroyed by the Romans in 70 AD. The temple was not only a place of worship, but also the center for all the genealogical archives. And since the temple was destroyed, no Jewish person has been able to prove with clarity or authority their ancient genealogy. The Bible is the most sold book in human history.

And what's interesting is you would think that the opening words of its New Testament would be words that would captivate and grab your attention. But how does Matthew's gospel begin? Well, it begins with a genealogy. A genealogy that starts with Abraham and then goes 14 generations to David, 14 generations to the Babylonian exile, and then 14 generations later to the Messiah, Jesus Christ. Matthew's gospel begins with the unmistakable credentials as to the Messiah's identity. The magnitude of his words and the legitimacy of his authority is supported by the

undeniable reality. This is the long awaited king. Matthew starts at the beginning of God's promise to Abraham and then moves forward through history so that we can know from the very beginning, God knew exactly what he was doing and where he was going. All of history is moving towards and culminates with the arrival of Jesus Christ. Jesus is the Lion of Judah. There is no other king and there is no other savior. If we return to our conversation with Jesus and the two men on the road to Emmaus, it says that they encouraged him or urged him to come and stay with them for the evening and to have dinner with them and so it says in verse 30 that when he had reclined at the table with them he took the bread and blessed it and breaking it he began giving it to them then it says their eyes

were opened and they recognized him and he vanished from their sight they said to one another were not our hearts burning within us while he was speaking to us on the road while he was They said to one another, dent of where a thorn would have been in his brow, and they recognize that it's the Messiah, and then he vanishes from them. But the coolest part about that passage is the conclusion, saying, were our hearts not burning? Not when we recognize that it was Jesus, but were our hearts not burning when he explained the scripture to us? What causes our hearts to burn and what causes us to have great joy this Christmas is understanding the scripture that all of history points towards one person and it is the arrival of the king, the king of glory. Stay dialed in.