from the scripture reading from 1 Chronicles, and I don't propose to read them again, so hopefully you caught it the first time around. So after the proclamation of the gospel, let's sing together from hymn 15, the stanzas one, two, and three. Well, beloved, I mentioned earlier this is the fourth Sunday of Advent. And I guess we probably might be thinking to ourselves, well, after we've listened to 1 Chronicles, parts of 1 to 4, this is about the strangest Advent text that we've ever heard. Because all we have here are name after name. In fact, these first number of nine chapters of Chronicles are chock full of all kinds of names. Some of them we know, a lot of them we don't know. They just keep on rolling out, as it were, endlessly by the tens, hundreds, perhaps, who knows, maybe a thousand. I haven't counted them. Perhaps that's something you might be entertained to do. So the question is, well, what in the world is the sense of all of this? Why is this in the Bible? Isn't this a proverbial waste of pen, paper, and papyrus? Well, a lot of scholars, you know, tend to agree. They really think that, you know, the Bible shouldn't bother with all of these names that we have here, as well as in other places in Holy Writ. Besides, they would say, it's all a bunch of dead people. And what in the world can dead people teach us today? So why are in the Bible? And you know, for a while, I kind of thought so too. I thought, what's the sense of all of these names? But then as you start to reflect upon it, you ask yourself, well, you know, this is no ordinary book. This is the Bible. This is the Word of God. This is the Holy Spirit writing, initially. And does the Spirit impart useless stuff? Does the Spirit give us portions of Scripture that have no rhyme, no reason, no sense, no profit? Is that the way the Spirit of God operates? Well, beloved, that's not my understanding of who the Holy Spirit is and how the Holy Spirit works. Well, we have to ask ourselves another question. Well, if that's not how the Holy Spirit works, well then, well then there has to be some kind of meaning to all of these obscure parts of Scripture. Also these genealogies, also these names. There has to be some kind of message in them for us today and throughout the ages. Well, what's that message? Well, I guess you could say that's for the spirit to know and for us to figure out. And that's true. Sometimes the spirit serves you stuff on a platter. It's easy to see, to understand, to digest, and sometimes The Spirit makes you work for a living, a spiritual living. And so with that in mind, I'd like to preach to you on the following theme, looking at Advent through the lens of a whole lot of dead people. And we're going to see, first of all, there are selected people. Secondly, there are special people. Thirdly, there are singing people. And finally, they are a sacrificial people as well. Well, beloved, it's obvious we don't have time to deal with all these names in all of these nine chapters of 1 Chronicles. We have to make a choice. We have to do some picking and some choosing as well. We have to do a bit of pointing. And in that connection, I would point you first of all to chapter 1. What do we find there besides names? Well, you say, we find there are a number of names, any number that we recognize. Names like Adam, Seth, Methuselah, Noah, Abraham, Isaac, even Esau. But you know there's more here than just a bunch of names. There's also a certain structure or pattern here. In verse one of chapter one, we're presented with the names of all of the main personalities, you might say, in the book of Genesis. But then in verse 4, notice the spotlight shifts to Noah and his sons. And thereafter, the sons of Noah and their sons are mentioned in the order of Japheth, Ham, and finally Shem. And next, in verse 27, we meet Abraham, and then his sons are listed. Keturah's sons come first, by the way, but then Isaac is mentioned as well as his two sons, Esau and Israel. And after listing all of Esau's sons and descendants, the names continue with Israel or Jacob's families. So we ask ourselves the question, what is the Chronicler doing here? Or better yet, even you might say to yourself, what is the Holy Spirit doing? Well, you might say he's introducing us to the history of God's people. He's showing you that God, throughout the ages, has been carefully selecting, forming, and separating for himself a people ever since the dawn of human history. Beginning with Adam, continuing with Seth, and Noah, and Shem, and Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, In Israel, God has been building. He's been gathering. But notice, in addition to gathering, He's also been discarding. He goes only so far with Japheth, Ham, the sons of Gethurah and Esau, and then He stops. There's only one thread that keeps on going. There's only one line to which he repeatedly returns. There's only one people who receive his constant attention. Oh, and as he's doing this, keep in mind that these books of the chroniclers were written probably as the very last books of the Old Testament. So it is as if the writer is looking back Way, way back to the very beginnings of God's people. Yes, and as he gazes back, he sees ever so clearly that God's covenant people are no accident. They didn't just happen. They didn't just fall out of the sky. They are the product not of luck or fate or fortune. Now these are the people of God's very own choosing. He elected them. He calls them. He gathers them. He preserves them. In Deuteronomy 7, Moses says to the Israelites, for you are a people holy to the Lord your God. The Lord your God has chosen you. out of all the peoples on the face of the earth to be his people, his treasured possession. You see, the Israelites are not just any people. They are God's people. All through the Old Testament, God introduces us to them, and as he does so, he keeps on moving forward. And if you ask forward to what? Well, forward to that day of the first Advent. For notice, the angel comes to Joseph. And when he comes to Joseph and speaks about Jesus, he says, he will save his people. It doesn't say people. It doesn't say all people. It says his people. This savior is going to have his very own chosen people. God will present a people to him. They'll be handed to him, as it were, on a platter. He will be given to them, and he will become very special to them. And why? Because he will save them, liberate them, redeem them. And so when Jesus Christ is born, beloved, he immediately comes into possession of a great inheritance, namely his people. that elect, selected, chosen, appointed by God. All of those believing saints that have died in the Old Testament really and truly belong to Him. And you know, by the same token, all those saints since His birth belong to Him as well. Well, you know, God doesn't stop selecting and electing a people to himself once Jesus is born. No, the process continues, and it continues even today. God is still, through his Spirit and by the power of the Spirit, gathering his children together. Only today he's no longer gathering from just one people, one tribe, one nation, but he's gathering them from all tribes and nations and peoples of the earth. Oh, and what a comfort it is to know that. It shows that we who are believers are special, because we're the object of God's eternal love, his eternal mercy, His eternal goodness. We are the objects of His special affection. And if we are that, then we can be certain that He'll never abandon us. He doesn't just give up on His people. He doesn't do that in the Old Testament. He doesn't do that in the New Testament. Because, you know, He's invested so much time, so much effort, so many tears So much love and mercy into you that he will not let you go. Remember that as a believer, you are part and parcel of the divine special people of God. But you know, that's not all we learned from the Chronicler. He also wants us to show us something else. And what? Well, you begin, for example, the second chapter, verse 3, where we meet the sons of Judah. It continues in chapter 3, where we meet David and his sons. It goes on to chapter, the next chapter, where we meet the kings of Judah. And then you notice in the last part of chapter 3, we even get to hear about the descendants of Jehoiakim, The last real king of Judah and his sons. So what is Chronicler doing now? What is the meaning of these names and the particular process of their selection as well as rejection? Well, you need to understand what he's doing now is he's showing you the royal line within that wider framework of his electing work. You see, again, the chronicler is tracing. He's tracing out just how God kept the line of David alive through all those years of faithfulness and faithlessness, of peace and war, of sojourn in the promised land, and even of exile. You see, the Lord is not about to forget the promises he made to David in 2 Samuel chapter 7, that he would have an eternal son on an eternal throne for an eternal kingdom. This will all come to pass. And indeed it does come to pass. Because the New Testament opens, and what do we hear first? We hear these words, a record of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham. Matthew 1, verse 1. Did you catch that? Right away, Matthew introduces us to Jesus as the son of David. And you children may have noticed the order's wrong here, right? Because it should be Jesus, the son of Abraham, the son of David, and so forth. Chronological. Abraham should go before David, but it's not so. Because this is the chronicler's way of reminding us that he's sketching the process of the royal line. And the fact that David's great son is now about to make an appearance in Israel. He's going to sit on the throne of his father, David, forever. Yes, unless we forget he's still, by the way, sitting there. You know, after Jesus died, rose again, and ascended into heaven, what did he do? Well, Scripture says he sat down. He sat down on his heavenly throne at the right hand of the heavenly father, he is still sitting there today even now at this very moment still ruling and reigning still sovereign and in control of all things indeed he will reign there Paul says until he has put all his enemies all of his enemies under his feet And then the end will come when he hands over the kingdom to God the Father after he has destroyed all dominion, authority, and power. In other words, once he's finished with all of his enemies and all of his opponents, he will hand everything back to the Father. But in the meantime, he is reigning and ruling still. And of course, that doesn't necessarily solve all of our problems today. It doesn't get rid of our weaknesses and our illnesses. It doesn't do away with all of our worries and fears and concerns about what's going on today with COVID and with cancer and with the climate and you name it. But in the midst of all of that uncertainty, surely it gives us hope. Even though we're living in a democracy, we need to remind ourselves that actually we're part of a monarchy. And it's not just the British monarchy I'm referring to. I'm referring to the fact that the son of King David sits on the throne today. and that he is in control and he's moving towards victory, a cosmic victory, a perfect victory, a victory of renewal and restoration. But, as you know, we're not there yet. So what are we going to do between now and then? Well, we turn to the next chapters in 1 Chronicles, And if you look at that next part, you'll see we're not just dealing here with a selected people and a royal or a special people. We're also dealing with, if you read it carefully, a symphony orchestra. You have here a whole bunch of musicians. And if you want, you can find them listed in chapter 6, verse 3 and following. There are a lot of them. They're all from the tribe of Levi, the Kohathites. We have Heman and his sons from the Gershonites. We have Asaph and his sons from the Mararites. We have Ethan and his sons. And together we're told they play, sorry not pianos or organs, but they play harps and lyres and cymbals. And we read as well, they do a lot of singing. In total, and that's really interesting, there are 288 musicians. And all of them, it says in 1 Chronicles 25.7, are trained and skilled in music for the Lord. So, you ask yourself, well why does the Chronicler then include these people? Why does he mention this orchestra, all these musicians? What's so special about them? Well, surely it's a reminder to them as well as to us that throughout the ages, God's people have shown themselves to be more than just a selected and a royal people. They've also shown themselves to be a worshiping and a praising people. You know, wherever God is, there is music, there are songs to be sung, there are praises to utter. Music and worship are an integral part of the people of God. It's in their fiber, in their bones, their hearts, and on their lips. And that, beloved, is particularly true when special things happen. You know, after the Israelites had escaped from the Egyptians by going through the Red Sea, what's the first thing they did? They sang. Led by Mary, they sang a new song. And when the tabernacle is finally completed, what happens but the Levitical orchestra begins to play? And when the kings of Israel are crowned, what happens? But people begin to sing and to dance before the Lord. And when the temple is finally finished, then Israel erupts in a huge musical tribute to the God of all creation. You see, all the major events and every Sabbath day, God's people show themselves to be a worshiping, praising God kind of people. And so it's no wonder, it's no wonder that when Christ is born the same thing happens. Why else are those first chapters of Luke so filled with music and song. There's the song of Mary, there's the song of Zechariah, who's kind of old and probably lost his voice, but he's still singing. We have the heavenly choir of angels. What would Christmas be without music? God's people are a singing people, and we are a singing musical people because we are a worshiping people. That's what we've always been. And you know, that's what we'll always be. Look at the book of Revelation. How many songs don't you find in the book of Revelation? How often are God's people and the angels not singing? And that's what we should still be doing even today. Unfortunately, it's not always the in thing to sing or for people to sing together. Remember a few years ago when Langley sponsored the Vancouver Symphony Brass, and at a certain point in the concert, the musicians, they asked the congregation to sing. And the congregation sang. and the musicians were blown away. We've never heard, they said, this kind of congregational singing. The only thing we hear is kind of people muttering, not really opening their mouths or using their lips or their vocal cords. That's kind of common today, isn't it? Most people would rather be spectators. They'd rather be the audience. They don't want to really, truly sing. Of course, I realize that singing isn't everybody's in thing. But you know, no matter what, if you're a believer, then singing is part of your DNA. Even if you sing off tune. For all of God's people, all of us, we have something, someone glorious to sing about. Jesus Christ, our Savior, who is Christ the Lord. So, beloved, you can see the Chronicler has shown us, first of all, we're a special or elected people, we're a special royal people, we're a singing, worshiping people. One more insight from 1 Chronicles, and that comes from chapter 6, verses 48 to 52, and you can also gather that from the rest of chapter 6, but it are those verses 48 to 52 that bring it out best. And what do these verses of chapter 6 bring out? Well, they draw our attention to the matter of sacrifice. Read verse 49. But Aaron and his descendants were the ones who presented offerings on the altar of burnt offering and on the altar of incense in connection with all that was done in the most holy place making atonement for Israel. You'll notice here our attention is drawn to the altar to the most holy place and to the matter of atonement. And it's all a reminder that here we've come to the heart and the focal point of Israel's worship. You know, look at how the Israelites set up camp in the desert. You may remember that. Three tribes on the north, three tribes on the south, three tribes on the west, three tribes on the east. And what's in the center? it's the tabernacle and if you look closely in the tabernacle it's the altar because you see at bottom these people whom God brings together are a sacrificing people and you ask why why is that necessary because by nature we are also a sinful people, a wayward people, a doomed-to-die people. And God knows this. And that's why God, in his mercy, provides a way of escape. And how does he provide that way of escape? By means of the sacrificial system, by means of the death of another, by means of atonement. Do we understand that? You understand this is at the heart of your faith? Do we applaud God for finding a way out for us when it comes to our sins and guilt? Do we rejoice in the gift of his Son? The Son who took our sins and guilt away, who nailed it to his cross. Is there any other way? to deal with sin and guilt than this? You know, I guess over the time in history a lot of different things have been tried. For example, sometimes in history people thought that, well, we could deal with our sins and misery by depriving ourselves. You know you. You take off your clothes, you throw out the comforts of home, you turn down the heat, you let in the cold, you stop eating, you fast, you pray, you concentrate really hard on your sins. Others took it a bit further. They added self-flagellation to the list. You know what that is? You take a whip and you use it to whip yourself. as an expression of your remorse over your sins. And if you really want to be extreme, you tie pieces of sharp metal at the end of these whips, and then you whip yourself until your skin is torn open and the blood begins to flow. And then perhaps you think you've atoned. Of course, you might think the Japanese way is preferable. You know what the Japanese do to atone for their sins? They commit hari kari. They fall on their swords. Well, they take a sword and they put it on their abdomen and they press until the sword goes up and in until it finally hits your heart and you die. Is that the way to atone for sin? Well, scripture says no. There's a better way. There's a God-ordained way. It's by God himself stepping into the breach and becoming our substitute. That's why in the Old Testament, for example, worship is all about these animal substitutes, right? These substitutes for sin and iniquity that point forward to the greatest substitute of all, namely Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ finally comes and he gives the one great final great sacrifice you know what else does the angel say to Joseph when he announces the birth of Jesus he says his name will be Jesus he will come and he will save his people from their sins that's it The angel doesn't say Jesus is going to come, Joseph, and he's going to make you happy or he's going to make you wealthy or healthy or whatever. Just one thing. He will save his people from their sins. And how will he accomplish that? By becoming their substitute. Their sacrifice. their offering, their altar. Hebrews 13 reminds us that we have an altar from which those who minister at the tabernacle have no right to eat. And we have a high priest, it says, who suffered outside the city gates to make the people holy through his own, own blood. Jesus is our substitute, and we need no other. So does that mean we're no longer a sacrificing people? Hardly. You know, in light of what Christ has done for us, the writer of the letter to the Hebrews says, let us, therefore, as a result of all of this, continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise. which sublips that confess his name. And do not forget to do good, and to share with others, or with such sacrifices God is pleased. In other words, God is saying, you know, you leave the sacrifice for sin to me, and you make sure that your life is lived every day as a sacrifice of praise to me. Or as Paul writes, offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and acceptable to God, this is your spiritual act of worship. And so we are still to be a sacrificial people, giving a sacrifice of praise to God every day also in this time in which we're living. Christmas really is about the Lamb of God who has come and who atones for the sins of his selected, special, worshiping, and sacrificing people. Amen.