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Matthew 1:18-25, 1 Timothy 1:15
Redeemer exists to celebrate and declare the gospel of God as we grow in knowing and following Jesus Christ.
This morning, I have the privilege of introducing our, guest preacher, Alton Hardy. He probably doesn't need an introduction to most of you. He's preached here in the past. He is the pastor of Urban Hope Community Church, which is where I'll be going right after the service to preach this morning. And, there is a lot I could say about Alton and just what he has, done in the city of Birmingham, specifically in the, community of Fairfield.
Joel Brooks:I think the world of you, Elton. I think probably the, what I most want to express is just how much Elton means to me personally. He and his wife, Sandra, are dear friends of Lauren and I. And I mentioned just a couple weeks ago in a sermon how friendship is hard for pastors. A lot of times, just being a pastor, it's harder to make friends.
Joel Brooks:It's harder to have people who really come alongside you or with you, in life and in ministry. And Alton has been one of those people to me. His friendship has meant the world to me over the years. And the Lord has used him. The Lord has used you, Alton, in so many ways to just speak truth and encouragement, into my life.
Joel Brooks:We were in a small group for a number of years and, together and got to meet regularly. And, I've been deeply shaped by his friendship and his prayers. And so, Alton, we look forward to hearing from you this morning.
Alton Hardy:Thank you, Joel, for, those kind words. Same thing for me. Your pastor is is one of those guys here in Birmingham. Before I met him, he said, man, there's this guy over there in Avondale, and that's, preaching the word of God. That's holding to it.
Alton Hardy:You know, I'm I'm new in town, so I don't even really know. And, you know, and so, finally got a chance to meet him. And it's been just a neutral encouragement, for pastors, especially in this hour, to just hold to the word of God. And so, it's been that for me. Well, I truly believe the Lord really when Joel, you know, he's going to go over to my church, but I gotta preach 3 times.
Alton Hardy:And you can see, man, if you're not a preacher, you don't wanna come to redeemer. You kind of love preaching. And so, but anyway, I'm going to read from the Gospel of Matthew, and then 1 Timothy chapter 1. Let's begin reading. From verse 18, It says, now the birth of Jesus Christ took place in this way, When his mother, Mary, had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together, she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit.
Alton Hardy:And her husband Joseph being a just man and unwilling to put her to shame do not fear to take Mary as your wife. For that, which is conceived in her is from the holy spirit. For he will save his people from their sins. Lord has spoken by the Prophet. Behold, the virgin should conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name, Emmanuel Well, which means God with us.
Alton Hardy:And when Joseph woke from the sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him. He took his wife but knew her not until she had given birth to a son. And he called his name Jesus. I want to read first Timothy. First 15.
Alton Hardy:The fan is trustworthy It's So save sinners. I am the foremost. Let's pray. Eternal God, our father, remove any and all impediments, anything that would distract and I pray now that you would just speak through me, that you would holy spirit, and then it's me. And anoint me and hide me behind the cross, empower me, move, I pray in Jesus name, amen.
Alton Hardy:We all know that Advent means arrival. The appearing a promise one that God made first in Genesis 3 15, After the first man, Adam, transgrace, the command of God, we all know from that time, the whole human race have been severely corrupted with a sinful human nature. It gets to be there's something wrong with the human heart. It can explain I would say to us here this morning, redeemer, that the evangelical church here in America is undergoing from my humble, sort of observation and perspective fallen away. I've fallen away from the central essence and message of the Advent story.
Alton Hardy:And when that falling away happens, gospels It'll begin to corrode and eat away at the central message want and we're going to encourage you, and I put here in my notes and quotations, please hear me. Birmingham needs you to stay committed to that central message of Advent, especially now, in these times, more than ever before. We need to stay committed to it. Now, I'm gonna land the plane. I'm gonna land the plane.
Alton Hardy:Plane. I'm going to put the plane on the term. But here from my text this morning, we see there are 3 things that I want to bring to our attention surrounding the birth of Jesus. Three things. 3 observations.
Alton Hardy:The first observation that I see from the text surrounding the birth of Jesus, you know, I'm in a young church, got a lot of people having babies, having all kinds of celebrations. But the first thing I see from the text here surrounding the birth of Jesus, first, I'm surrounding the birth of Jesus' first observation, there will be no need to have No need. No need. Matthew 121 says that she will give birth to a son. The angel is very clear.
Alton Hardy:It will be a boy. There will be no debate. The gender will be a boy. Aboort, they would have no say so, in my notes. Joe Priest last week from Isaiah 7, 14, you know, that it was going to be a monitoring contemporary world.
Alton Hardy:That the fact that you would say it's a boy or a girl, that that would be problematic in some of our churches? Imagine if Mary lived today. There's a boy. No. No.
Alton Hardy:No. No. We wanted to be a day. I had the opportunity a few weeks ago to speak to some Miles College kids on gender. And we're up at Miles College doing ministry, And it's becoming a huge issue.
Alton Hardy:And so my college team, you know, is a pastor. We got to preach on gender. I said, who's gonna teach on it? I was like, well, not us. So they came to me.
Alton Hardy:And probably one of the most, you know, I've talked a lot, but I must admit to you, it was probably one of the most intimidating talks I've ever given. About 30 kids, because I knew, however way I talked about gender, that I would could stand to offend someone. And it was very, very, intimidating. I really didn't wanna do it. And I'll be honest with you, up until then, I had never really broached the sub subject matter.
Alton Hardy:Just observing just own that alone. But because it's coming about to our ministry and what we're doing in Fairfield, we can no longer avoid it. 2nd observation from the story here, Jesus birth. Now, why is that important that Mary and Joseph don't get to go down history lane and, well, let's just pick a name. But the name of the board has already been decided in eternity past.
Alton Hardy:Why? Because God is a God who is always committed to the essence and central message of the Advent story. So you will call his name Jesus. And Hebrew, yes, sure, sure, which means God saves. And you say you will call him Jesus.
Alton Hardy:He will save his people, word The word of God says, from their sins. What? From their sins. Redeemer the people of God then and the people of God now are really the same when it comes to falling away from the essence and central message of the Advent story. The human is not that different.
Alton Hardy:We're all the same. We're not that different. And let me explain. This message that Jesus would save his people from their sins was to the 1st century Jew. It was somewhat contrary.
Alton Hardy:It's not what they were looking for. And you if you read the bible very careful, you can see it. And you if you read the bible very careful, you can see it. We know that the Jews had been in 3 bondages, Egypt, the Babylonian, and now the Romans. And they had envisioned a messiah that would deliver them just like we do.
Alton Hardy:Man, I've seen it this last 2 years. They envisioned a messiah that would deliver them from their political and economic enemies, not to to rescue them from the bondage of the Romans. This thing about saving us from our sins. Hold on. Now, get the Romans.
Alton Hardy:It's the Romans that's the problem. But the angel says, he's come into the world And If you look around, you see even right now, this playing out in our country, even among our churches, This is why I am admonishing you to stay committed to the central message of the event story. Story. Because the tendency is to always think that our greatest issues are always out there. Boy, do I not see this in Fairfield.
Alton Hardy:It's over there. I mean, it's over the mountains of why we're on what we are here in Fairfield. I mean, I hear that all the time. Some of the time in the meetings where me and Joe would be in, that would be part of the conversation. It's it's always them.
Alton Hardy:It's over the mountain. It's that community. The issues are always about what's wrong with our political enemies, our ethnic enemies, and our social justice and systemic enemies. It's not about that he will save us from our sins. It's not the left nor the right.
Alton Hardy:He came to save us from our sins. But just like the jewels then, we want deliverance from the Romans because we failed to understand ever since the fall. That God has been not the one thing, and that is the human heart that has been severely corrupted. And gods. That it was never out there.
Alton Hardy:That was always in here. The Advent central message first seeks to liberate his people from their own evils and sins. That's what we're seeking. That's what the angel is telling Joseph, that he will save his people from their sins. Then the angel could have said, you know what, Joseph?
Alton Hardy:God has come to get those Romans off of you guys' backs. Them Herods and them Caesar Augustus, they got them systems up there in the Roman empire, and they're oppressing you guys. And so let me the angel said, well, Joseph, I wanna tell you that he will he gonna deal with the Romans. He gonna address the Romans and and how they're oppressing you guys. Is that what the angel said?
Alton Hardy:The angel is very clear. The angel says, no. He gonna say you from your sins. This text from Matthew says he will save his people. And I was preparing for this and I kept asking he would save his people.
Alton Hardy:And I said, who are the people that he will save from their sins. If you read Matthew very careful, it says in Matthew 16, Jesus talking to his disciples and says upon this rock upon this revelation, Peter, I will build my church. We know that's the people of God that have been called out of the world by the grace of God, through the preaching of God for saving salvation. You are the son of God. Jesus says, flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, Peter, but my father which is in heaven.
Alton Hardy:And then Jesus says, I must now go to Jerusalem. Suffer. Be killed. And be raised on the 3rd day. And Peter and all of the disciples did what?
Alton Hardy:They tried to stop him because they didn't see that he was dying was for their sins. They thought it was about the Romans. No. May it never be. May you never die.
Alton Hardy:May you never go to Jerusalem. And Jesus says, things that you're thinking, Peter, the thoughts that your guys are given or Because we think it's out there, Advent story is about God coming into the world to save sinners. I quoted first Timothy Paul SaaS. This saying is trustworthy. Full acceptance.
Alton Hardy:I would say Paul's a pretty holy guy. When you guys say Paul, who wrote most of the new testament, he 3rd heaven, seeing God and says things that he can't even explain. He suffered a lot. Got beat up a lot. Paul was a pretty significant dude in the bible, in the New Testament.
Alton Hardy:We would all agree with that. Right? We agree that Paul probably wasn't, like struggling I mean, he he struggled to see. But he wasn't going around, you know, like some of the modern day preachers today. He was he was living the he was living the faith.
Alton Hardy:He wasn't getting brought up on scandals, all in the CNN news in the Roman Empire. Paul creeping around with somebody. You didn't hear any of that. So he's a pretty living the life. The reason why I quoted this this last part, first Timothy 1, but you do not realize, Paul, who's pretty holy, a guy who lives for God.
Alton Hardy:I was, you know, I may, you know, Joe sent me a thing about Georgia and Alabama football. To be honest with you, I have worked my way out of the football idolatry here by mail. I know now I recognize that Alabama won, but I didn't watch the game. Because what was happening to me, I was watching those games where Alabama would lose. I didn't want to preach.
Alton Hardy:So I realized I had started so I told my church, I am done with the football. So Paul was about the work of So he was pretty he's a holy living for God. Before this Timothy verse in first Corinthians 159, this holy apostle, he says, for I am the least this word least in Greek is significant, trivial, small of the apostles, unworthy to be called an apostle, Paul says. Because I persecuted the church of God. I'm least and then he says in Ephesians 3 verse 8, to me, though, I am the very least trivial, insignificant, small Of all the saints, of all the Christians, I am the least.
Alton Hardy:And then he gets to first Timothy. He says, this sin is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance that Christ Jesus came into the world. The Advent story to save sinners. And Paul says, for I am of whom I am the foremost. I am the chief of sinners.
Alton Hardy:Let me ask you a question. How many spiritual leaders are you seeing in this hour that are exemplifying and confessing that sense of brokenness, that we are sinful. And that it is not out there. Paul didn't say that I am he said I am the chief. He didn't say the Roman sieges are the chief sinners.
Alton Hardy:Paul says, I am foremost chief of sinners. We just particularized in the PCA world. You're not a church until you particularize what deacons and elders or elders and deacons. We did that a few weeks ago. So I've been telling the PCS, I guess, 2021 has been a very fruitful year.
Alton Hardy:Before this Sunday particularization service. And and he just God just began to bring back up to me. I don't know what I had done with it, but I had suppressed a lot of the stuff that I had did in my BC sinful days or whatever. I don't know what it was. I had just suppressed it.
Alton Hardy:And the holy spirit's okay. There's a lot of stuff happening. You build a new building. You bought the particular ones. This is a good time to show you who you are without my grace.
Alton Hardy:Brothers and sisters in that truck, God brought stuff back to me that I had totally forgot. By the time I got to church on Sunday, I didn't wanna be there. You know what the Lord was doing? He was saying, you will never say, you had done this. This is all of my grace.
Alton Hardy:And this is what Paul is trying to say. I am chief among sinners. Do you understand? That's who we are. And Gaia wanted me to know so that wouldn't be puffed up in pride, that I wouldn't go around saying I know how to do the church planning.
Alton Hardy:God was letting me know that you this is not the work of Alton, but this is the work of my grace. And I would have joined with Paul brothers that I am chief among. That's the advent. If we ever lose that, which we tend to do and part of what's been happening in this modern Christianity is a lot of blame shifting on other people's sins. I spent a lot of time, and this is not because I'm here in your church, not defending my white brothers and sisters.
Alton Hardy:You are no more sinful than anyone else. We are all guilty under the holiness and the righteousness of God. But right now, there are all kinds of messages out there. There are some people that because of the color of their skin tone, they are more sinful, more evil, more diabolical. Where is that coming from?
Alton Hardy:Because what's happening the message of the advent is being lost. The angel says, he will say there's people, It's a slippery slope. Let's pray. Father in heaven, we thank you that you that you came to save centers. As our brother Paul says, he was chief foremost among all centers.
Alton Hardy:How could a holy apostles utter such profession? He recognized that what he was, who he was was nothing more all granted to him because of his your grace. Jesus, don't let us forget the real meaning of Advent. The real meaning of Advent. He will save his people.
Alton Hardy:So so, rescue, deliver, not from our political, physical enemies, with the greatest enemy of mankind, which is our spiritual sinful condition that we cannot heal on our own. He will save our people, his people from their sins. Save us, lord. Thank you.