This morning we looked at the hope of Christmas. Living on this side of the cross, we have the benefit of the New Testament to give us the details of the hope we have in Christ. But I want to take a step back tonight and see our hope displayed in the prophetic pages of the Old Testament. Before there ever was a Christmas, there was a promise. God first gave that promise all the way back in Genesis 3:15. Immediately after Adam and Eve sinned in the Garden of Eden, God placed a curse on His creation. And in the midst of that curse, He placed a promise. He said to the serpent, “I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.” In other words, God told Satan that he would be allowed to stir up strife for a little while. But God also promised that there would come a day when the Seed of woman would crush his head. Of course, we know that seed was Jesus. Every single person who has ever existed has been conceived with the seed of a man. That is, every person except One. Jesus was conceived of the Holy Spirit in the womb of the Virgin Mary apart from the seed of a man. He was, is, and always will be the only One ever to be born as the seed of a woman. That was a promise of God and was fulfilled on that very first Christmas day. But not only was Jesus’ birth a fulfillment of that prophesy, His death was too. Because God promised that Satan would crush the heel of the Seed. And he did. On the cross of Calvary, Jesus suffered and bled and died one of the cruelest deaths imaginable. But in the infinite nature of the eternal plan of God, it was merely a bruise on His heel. Satan merely bruised the heel of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Because when Jesus arose from that tomb three days later, He arose victorious. He was victorious over death. He was victorious over hell. He was victorious over the grave. And He was victorious over Satan, that serpent of old. When Jesus arose from the tomb on that first Easter morning, He crushed Satan’s head. So, if that’s the case, then why do we still see bad things going on today? Why do we still see the effects of the curse? Why do we still struggle with sin in our lives and evil and wickedness in the world? Because even though that serpent’s head has been crushed, God is allowing him to flop around for a while. And as he flops around, he is trying to destroy everything he can. As part of the curse, God is allowing Satan to exercise a measure of dominion. I’m not saying he is in control of anything, because God is fully and completely in control of everything. But in His sovereignty, God allows Satan a measure of dominion. Paul says as much in the book of Ephesians. After he outlines God’s complete control in chapter 1, Paul calls Satan “the prince of the power of the air” in Ephesians 2:2. So, in Satan’s role as the prince and power of the air… he will continue to lie, and deceive, and exalt himself, and accuse believers, and be our adversary until that final Day of Judgment when he is fully and finally cast into the lake of fire. But until that final Day of Judgment happens, we have to live in the land of our enemy. We have to do as 1 Peter 5:8 says and, “Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour.” We have to battle sin in our lives. We have to live with the consequences of past sin in our life. We have to see the death and destruction and devastation that is the result of sin around us. And as we live out the battle every day, it’s very easy to lose hope. It’s very easy to become discouraged. It’s very easy to become focused on everything going on in our lives and in the world around us. And when that happens, it’s very easy to lose sight of the One who gives us hope. That’s what was going on in Israel when God inspired the psalmist to write this Psalm. Scholars tell us that this Psalm was written in the northern kingdom of Israel. It was written during the last days as Assyria was beginning to invade Samaria and carry the people off into exile. If you think that we’ve got it bad today, try living in Samaria in those days. It was nearly impossible to live a godly life. It was very difficult to worship in the temple as God required, because the temple was in Jerusalem in Judah. And Judah and Israel had been battling back and forth for a while. All the priests, the kings, the religious leaders and most of the prophets were false. The preaching was bad, the worship was wrong and the nation was in a godless state of idolatry and paganism. Imagine trying to live a godly life in a country like that. And then on top of that, they were being attacked by another nation. They were constantly at war and the economy was in a shambles. They were beginning to feel the effects of environmental plagues and economic sanctions. Food was becoming scarce. It is a complete and total understatement to say that times were hard. But it is in the hardest of times when hope shines brightest. And that’s what it did for the Psalmist. I don’t know what your personal situation is as we head into the Christmas season this year. But I do know that many of you are facing difficult circumstances. I stand before you tonight and tell you that on the authority of Scripture, there is hope. You can find your hope tonight in the same three places that the Psalmist did in his troubling circumstances. The first place you can find hope is in the Shepherd. Look at verses 1-6:
PSALM 80:1-6
You can find hope in the Shepherd. What comes to mind when you think of a shepherd? Shepherding isn’t a real popular profession these days in America, so sometimes we lose the picture it paints. The Psalmist calls on God to hear his prayer. And when he does, he addresses the Lord as Israel’s Shepherd. He says that God leads his people like a shepherd leads his flock. Well, how does a shepherd lead his flock? In the words of David in the 23rd Psalm, he leads them to green pastures. In other words, he provides nourishment for them. He gives them everything they need to grow and be healthy. He doesn’t force-feed them. He doesn’t nursemaid them. He doesn’t pick them up and bottle-feed them. But He leads them to a place where they can eat for themselves. He leads them to the nourishing field and allows them to eat. And one thing about hungry sheep. They will eat a field down to the dirt if you let them. So the shepherd has to continually put green pastures before them. Unhealthy sheep don’t eat. And when they don’t eat, they die. But when they do eat, they gain strength and get healthy. The interesting thing in this passage is the green pasture that the Shepherd led Israel to. The pasture was green with tears and strife. But that was where He led them to. He led them there because that was what they needed to eat. It might not have been appetizing or appealing. It might not have been what they wanted to eat. But it was what they needed in order to turn them back to the Lord. It was the nutrition that they needed at the time. If you are going through difficult circumstances here tonight, I will not go so far as to say that God caused them to happen. Just as it’s not completely accurate to say that God caused the tears and strife of Israel. He didn’t cause them to rebel against Him. But He did allow it. Just like He has allowed your difficult circumstances to happen. But do you know the beautiful thing? The beautiful thing is that even though He has allowed those things to happen… He has allowed them to happen so that good can result. He might have led you to a pasture where you’re feeding on tears and strife. But rest assured that He has done it that you might allow His glory and salvation to shine through your life. He’s done it to turn you closer to Him. He’s done it to cause His face to shine through you. He’s done it to bring salvation to many through the circumstances of your life. He’s done it to show that He is your hope and salvation in your present circumstances. In the Good Shepherd passage of John 10, Jesus also described Himself as the door to the sheepfold. In verses 9-10 He said, “I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture. The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.” The hope of the Shepherd is life. The hope of the Shepherd is abundant life. If He has to lead you to a field of tears once in a while, so be it. your hope is still in turning to Him. Your hope is still in allowing His face to shine through you. You hope is still in His salvation. Your hope is still in the Shepherd. But that’s not the only place you can find hope. The second place you can find hope is in the Vinedresser. Look at verses 7-16:
PSALM 80:7-16
You can find hope in the Vinedresser. I’ve never had a grape arbor before, but I know some of you have. Probably the reason that I’ve never had one is because it takes a lot of patience to build one. When they’re done right, grape arbors are beautiful. And not only are they beautiful, they’re productive and make wonderfully sweet fruit. But in order to produce that beautiful, sweet fruit, it takes a lot of planning and preparation. I couldn’t just go out tomorrow and build one. I could, but it would be like everything else that grows on my land. It would just be another weed. First, I would have to carefully choose the right vine. Each vine produces a different kind of fruit, but I would have to choose one that produced the kind of fruit that I wanted. Then after I chose the vine, I would have to choose the soil to plant it in. Different kinds of soil produce different characteristics in the fruit. Some soil will even kill it. Some soil will allow the vine to grow, but will produce stunted fruit or even no fruit at all. But the best soil will cause the vine to grow and allow it to produce big, juicy, delicious fruit. But, even after choosing the vine and choosing the soil, I still wouldn’t be done. Because then I would have to build the support structure. I would have to build the trellis. You see, the vine isn’t strong enough to support itself. If you choose the very best vine and plant it in just the right soil… if you just leave it alone… all it will do is creep along the ground. And when a vine creeps along the ground, it won’t bear fruit. No matter how well-chosen the vine is… no matter how well chosen the soil is. No support structure = no fruit. So, if I was looking to get good fruit out of my vine, I would have to build a support structure. I would have to build a trellis. I would have to plan it such that the sun could get to the leaves. I would have to plan it so that water could get to the roots. I would have to plan it so that air could circulate through the shoots and leaves. And I would have to plan it so that the fruit could naturally hang, suspended in full view without restriction. That would be a perfect support structure. A well-chosen vine, perfect soil and a perfectly designed and constructed support structure. I’m done, right? Not quite. Because those are all one-time investments. If I let it go at that, I would end up with a wild-growing mess on my trellis, wouldn’t I? So, I would have to prune it, and weed it, and fertilize it, and water it. I would have to tend it, and care for it, and keep destructive pests away from it. Then and only then would I be able to grow the kind of fruit that I was looking for. Do you see all the planning that takes? Do you see all the care that’s involved? Do you see all of the preparation that takes place before one grape is produced? The vinedresser has to have a plan. What an illustration the psalmist uses here. He lets us know that God knows what He’s doing. He has had a plan from eternity past. His plan involved calling a vine up out of nothing. He called His vine up out of Ur of the Chaldees, sent it to Egypt as a sprout to grow it into a vine worthy of planting. Then He chose good soil in the Promised Land of Israel to plant it. And then He laid out the structure of the history of Israel… He laid out the structure of the birth of Jesus, the life, death, burial and resurrection of Jesus… He laid out the structure of the sending of the Holy Spirit and the establishment of the church… He laid out the structure of the Rapture and the Great Tribulation… He laid out the structure of the Second Coming and the Millennial Kingdom… God laid out all of that structure from before the beginning of time. He has a plan. From the first choosing of His vine, to the nourishing and sustaining of it, to its final pruning… God has a plan and will fulfill His plan. All for the purpose of growing a people as His sweet fruit. Whatever is going on in your life, you can rest assured that it is all part of God’s eternal plan. He has a plan and a purpose for you. Nothing is an accident in God’s economy. He chose you from before the foundation of the world. He chose the place to plant you from before the foundation of the world. He has given you a structure to turn you to Him. He’s given you His Word. He’s given you His church. He’s given you His Spirit to turn you to Him. He’s caused His face to shine on you in order that you might be the fruit that He’s called you to be. In John 15:1, Jesus said, “I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman.” Then He went on in verse 5 to say, “I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.” The hope of the Vinedresser is in turning to God’s purpose of salvation that was provided for you by His Son. Your hope is in causing His face to shine by fulfilling His plan for your life. Your hope is in His salvation. Your hope is in the Shepherd. Your hope is in the Vinedresser. Finally, your hope is in the Savior. Look at verses 17-18:
PSALM 80:17-19
You can find hope in the Savior. If you have noticed, this whole Psalm revolves around one phrase. That one phrase is stated three times. Verse 3, verse 7 and verse 19 all say the same thing. “Turn us again O Lord God of hosts, cause Thy face to shine and we shall be saved.” Remember that the book of Psalms is a collection of songs. Basically, it’s Israel’s hymnbook. So, when you see this Psalm as a song, you see those three verses as the chorus. Have you ever noticed that when a song pops in your head, it’s usually the chorus? We usually remember the chorus of a song, because that’s the part we repeat. It’s the part the song’s author wants us to remember the most. It’s the focus of the whole song. And it’s no different with this song. The earnest plea of this song is to remember the hope of salvation. The hope of salvation that is only possible because of a Savior. It was a Savior that was only hoped for in the Old Testament. It was the hope of a Savior that was only pointed to in the temple. It was the hope of a Savior that was only pointed to with the sacrificial blood of bulls and lambs and goats. It was the hope of a Savior that was only pointed to in prophetic passages such as this one. It was the hope of a Savior that a remnant longed to see. A Savior that came as God in the flesh. A Savior that was conceived of the Holy Spirit. A Savior that was born of a virgin. A Savior that grew in wisdom and stature and in favor with God and man. A Savior who experienced every feeling and temptation that you and I experience and more. A Savior who passed those tests and lived a perfect sinless life. A Savior who willingly went to the cross. Who suffered shame. Who bore our sins. And who paid our price. A Savior who rose again on the third day, victorious over sin, death, hell and the grave. And a Savior that today sits at the right hand of the Father continually making intercession for His children. That is the hope that was fulfilled when Jesus came. That is the hope you have because He came. That is the hope that comes from being quickened in Him. That is the hope that comes from calling on His name. Have you called on His name? Has your hope been fulfilled in Him? Have you placed your hope in Jesus your Shepherd tonight? Have you placed your hope in Jesus your Vinedresser tonight? Have you placed your hope in Jesus your Savior tonight? There is hope in no other. Find your hope in Him tonight.
