The Advent of Hope | Defeating The Empire
The hope of Jesus Christ defeats the empire that rules over people so that we might return to God.
As the Messiah was born, the people of Israel understood the coming Messiah to free the people of God from the rule and reign of their Roman oppressors. For years, the people of Israel struggled to maintain their autonomy and citizenship under the Roman Empire, being overly taxed and controlled by foreign powers. This, after all, was supposed to be the chosen land for God’s chosen people. Instead, Rome occupied the land and towered over those whom God had set apart for His purposes. The coming of the Messiah represented the coming hope of the defeat of the empire which reigned in the rightful place of God for His people. For all their study and good intentions though, Rome was not the empire that stole hope from the people but the empire of sin.
The First Coming of Jesus Christ
The one awaited and highly prophesied Messiah would be the one to free God’s people from oppression. For the people, they understood this to be Rome and other detractors from the nation state of Israel. Yet, the people grossly misunderstood the purpose of the coming of the Messiah and the empire that reigned in God’s chosen place. The culprit in the death of humanity came from sin not from Rome. Furthermore, sin reigned as an empire in the hearts of man, leading those it plagued with the eternal consequence of death and separation from Jesus Christ. No physical or personal empire reigned as much death and destruction as the empire of sin did on this world. Furthermore, sins reign in the world would need to be dealt with by the Messiah, the only one innocent of any indictment of sin.
Hence, the coming of the Messiah represented hope in a future for the people of God. Even though the people of God did not understand their true enemy, the coming of the Messiah brought hope that their oppression would one day end. “Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful.” (Hebrews 10:23) We can hold fast to the hope from Jesus Christ because he faithfully keeps his promises and provides a way for His people. The first coming of Christ represented the end of the oppression of the people and a coming of a new era founded on the Savior. As we celebrating the coming of Christ, we celebrate the coming of hope for a people tired and in desperate need of a Savior. The Father sent the Son in the flesh to be with us so that we could be with Him. Where sin once separated us, the coming of Jesus Christ drew us back to Him.
The Final Hope in A Second Coming
With Jesus Christ having done everything necessary to defeat the grasp of death over the sin empire that build in our lives, why do we still continue to wrestle with sin? Every believer, to some extent, wrestles with this question and seeks to understand why sins from so long ago seem to rear their ugly head at every opportunity they can. The answer comes in understanding our future hope in the second coming of Jesus Christ “Love never ends. As for prophecies, they will pass away; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will pass away. For we know in part and we prophesy in part, but when the perfect comes, the partial will pass away. When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I gave up childish ways. For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known.” (1 Corinthians 13:8-12, ESV) With the defeat of sin and death, we taste eternity on the tip of our tongues, experiencing just a sample. Yet, we continue to wrestle with our faith and obedience to the Lord until that final day. Every day is the decision to die to our flesh and our selfish desires and live out our faith in the sphere of every single day.
Every part of this world will one day fade from existence. We will be in the Kingdom of God forever, abiding in His presence. This day comes when Christ returns during the second advent. When that happens, we will be glorified by the mighty hand of God and perfected by His strength. No longer will we wrestle with our sinful desire but will be free from it, having died and risen with Jesus Christ. While sin does carry consequences, there is hope for those in Jesus Christ that we will one day be free from the sin we wrestle with. Sin, no longer holds a grasp on our lives or condemns us. The second coming of Jesus Christ will finalize the death of the sin empire that once insurmountably towered over people. Through His death, burial, and resurrection on the cross, sin and death are defeated and we have hope that we will rise with Jesus Christ. Our future hope in Christ’s second coming means we will one day be perfected in Him, forever.
