The world was in dark despair, the people had no light.
Then, God sent His only Son to show them the Light.
The people had no shepherd and they were straying sheep,
So lost in their darkness—so blind in their sleep.
Then God sent His Shepherd to gather in the sheep,
To lay down His life for them—the Shepherd of the Sheep.
And, He was born in a world filled with hatred;
He came to live in a world filled with sin.
The only Hope, in a world filled with hopelessness—
The only Light in the Darkness was Him.
And He grew to be a man among His people in His Land,
He came to free them from their sins,
And there were those who followed Him.
He showed them miracles and signs,
He healed the lame, He healed the blind.
He healed their hearts—He healed their souls,
With just one touch, He made them whole.
But, there were those so filled with hate,
So filled with jealousy they could not wait,
To kill the Shepherd of the Sheep and steal His Lambs—His little
lambs.
They took the Shepherd of the Sheep and they
Pierced His hands and feet,
And they nailed Him to a tree on a hill called Calvary..
And there He died.
But, He arose from the grave,
And all His little lambs were saved.
And now the world no longer lives in dark despair,
The people have the light.
They have the Good Shepherd to show them the Light.
Wak up all ye Sleepers—get out of your beds.
Com out of your darkness;
ARISE FROM THE DEAD!
CHRISTMAS IS THE
STORY OF GOD’S LOVE FOR US/ MAKE IT PERSONAL. IT’S THE STORY OF HIS
LOVE FOR YOU!
For God so loved the
world, that He gave His only begotten son that whosoever shall
believe
Galatians 4:4-7
4But when the time had fully come, God sent
his Son, born of a woman, born under law, 5to
redeem those under law, that we might receive the full rights of
sons. 6Because you are sons, God sent the
Spirit of his Son into our hearts, the Spirit who calls out, "Abba,[a]
Father." 7So you are no longer a slave, but
a son; and since you are a son, God has made you also an heir..
It was the right time, the TIME
EXPECTED AND PREPARED FOR. The Jewish messianic hope had for
centuries focused on the One who was to come and cleanse the Temple,
to set Israel free, to establish God’s kingdom reign in justice and
peace. Most everyone expected Him—but not the way He came. No one
but a very few expected God-in-the-flesh, although Isaiah’s prophecy
of Emmanuel, God-with-us, (in Isaiah 7:14 and Isaiah 9:6) was to
find a resonance in the hearts and lives of those who had met Christ
and found him to be such.
It was thought of long before it
happened…and prepared for.. Christmas was not an afterthought in the
mind of God. The word "fulness" carries the idea of a ship being
fully outfitted, with all its provisions on board, for a successful
journey.
It happened because of God’s love.
God sent forth His Son, the scripture says, "for God so loved the
world." Christmas, then, is a love story. It is God telling
believers, "I really love you and am doing something about it."
It was a humble event. Here, we see the Son of God, the Creator of all things, being
"made of a woman, made under the law". The Son of God emptied
Himself of His glory and came forth in humiliation.
It brought life to all. The
birth of Jesus Christ is not just another historical event. No,
Christ came to redeem sinners, so that those of us who believe might
become children of God and have eternal life.
Some accepted Him as their
Lord-in-the-flesh and became children of God. Others rejected Him
and unknowingly became instruments of God’s purpose in
establishing His Kingdom and His Church through the Crucified and
Risen Lord.
A WORD FOR US FOR THE SEASON: Let
our attitude be like that of Jesus. Although He was God, He allowed
Himself to be born as a human baby. This was a great gift of
Christmas.
Philippians 2:5-7 5Let
this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus:
6Who, being in the form of God, thought it
not robbery to be equal with God: 7But
made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a
servant, and was made in the likeness of men:
I cannot even imagine
what that was like—for the Father or for the Son—or for the Holy
Spirit Who would be there all through the conception, birth,life,
death, resurrection, and ascenscion of Jesus—and who will be there
when He returns.
Trying to imagine what
it was like for Jesus to leave His throne in glory and allow Himself
to be born as a baby—to spend 9 months in the womb of a mortal
mother and then go through birth—it’s like asking me to imagine
folding myself up and stuffing myself into a thimble---only much
much more drastic.
GOD SENT HIS SON TO
BE A LIGHT TO A WORLD THAT WAS FILLED WITH DARKNESS. He began by speaking to
two families. The first, Zecharias and Elizabeth—old and past
their prime, they had left their dreams behind them
Luke 1:5-7 5THERE
was in the days of Herod, the king of Judaea, a certain priest named
Zacharias, of the course of Abia: and his wife was of the daughters
of Aaron, and her name was Elisabeth. 6And
they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments
and ordinances of the Lord blameless. 7And
they had no child, because that Elisabeth was barren, and they both
were now well stricken in years.
Zacharias and his wife were old
when the angel Gabriel announced that
“thy wife Elisabeth shall bear thee a son, and thou shalt call his
name John” (Luke 1:13).
The announcement came while Zacharias was going about his normal priestly
duties in the temple. Zacharias knew that if he and Elisabeth were
to have a child at their age, it would require a miracle of divine
intervention. Moreover, Zacharias remembered that his wife had been
barren all her life. Consequently, his response to the angel’s
announcement is almost predictable. Upon hearing the angel’s
promise, Zacharias’ response is one of awe, mixed with doubt and
disbelief. His question, though understandable, nonetheless begs for
proof: “Whereby shall I know this? For I am an old man, and my wife
well stricken in years” (v.18).
Zacharias was a good man, but here
he was filled with doubt. Good and faithful people can be filled
with doubt at times but, guess what—IT DIDN’T STOP GOD’S PLAN.
Elizabeth and Zacahrias still had their miracle.
NEVER GIVE UP ON YOUR DREAM. FOR
SOME, THE DREAM WILL BE FULFILLED ONLY WHEN THE WORLD—AND YOU THINK
IT’S TOO LATE. THAT WAY IT WILL BE SHOWN TO BE A MIACLE FROM THE
HAND OF GOD!
The second family, Mary (and
Joseph) were young and full of dreams, their life was ahead of
them—their dreams of a life together.
They had just begun to imagine their lives together and their
dreams did not include getting pregnant with the Messiah, the Son of
God.
LUKE 1:26And
in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God unto a city
of Galilee, named Nazareth, 27To a virgin
espoused to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and
the virgin's name was Mary.
28And
the angel came in unto her, and said, Hail, thou that art highly
favoured, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women. 29And
when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and cast in her
mind what manner of salutation this should be.
30And
the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary: for thou hast found favour
with God. 31And, behold, thou shalt
conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name
JESUS. 32He shall be great, and shall be
called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him
the throne of his father David: 33And he
shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom
there shall be no end.
34Then
said Mary unto the angel, How shall this be, seeing I know not a
man?
35And
the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon
thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore
also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the
Son of God.
36And,
behold, thy cousin Elisabeth, she hath also conceived a son in her
old age: and this is the sixth month with her, who was called
barren. 37For with God nothing shall be
impossible. 38And Mary said, Behold the
handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word. And the
angel departed from her.
Mary, so young and inexperienced,
was a girl of great faith and humility—the chosen one. She asked a
question that seemed similar to Zecharias’s question—but it was
totally different. It was asked in faith. She accepted that it would
happen and did NOT ask how she could know it was true. She, instead
asked how it would HAPPEN. And the angel told her. But, at this
time, he did not tell Joseph and Mary had to just trust God to work
that out. Under Jewish law, she could have been stoned to death.
Both of their lives changed
dramatically by the events about to happen. God was about to send
His son and, first, He would send John, the greatest prophet who had
ever lived and come in the spirit of ELIJAH—TO PREPARE THE WAY.
Then He would send His
Messiah—Saviour, Son---and He would send Him through Mary and give
charge of both of them to his servant Joseph.
This had always been their
destiny, but they did not know it.
For Elizabeth and Zecharias it meant great JOY. For, joseph and
Mary, it also meant joy, but their lives would be thrown into
confusion and misunderstanding for a time. Only a very few would
understand what God was doing. But that was part of God’s plan.
The angel told Mary that the Holy
Spirit would overshadow her and that the Holy thing cconceived in
her womb would be the Son of God.
Mary had great faith and courage
and she was submissive to God’s will. WITH HONOR COMES
RESPONSIBILITY AND OFTEN MISUNDERSTANDING AND TRIALS.
Many times, we see things as
hindrances that really are part of God’s plan. Sometimes the
circumstances we are rebuking are actually God’s will for us.
Mary, a virgin of Israel, was
with child by the Holy Spirit.
That didn’t go over so well in her family and her neighborhood.
Imagine your daughter telling you she was pregnant by the Holy
Spirit. And, in those days, a girl could get stoned (with real
stones—not drugs) for that. For Joseph, this was a tragedy and a
dilemma. He loved Mary, but he was required by law to do something.
He didn’t want to publicly humiliate her, so he was about to put her
away privately. But God spoke to Him in a dream and told him what
was going on. When we are doing what God wants, He will defend us—to
those who need to know but not necessarily to everyone.
GOD STILL SPEAKS IN DREAMS. MAYBE
HE HAS SPOKEN TO YOU THIS WAY.
Matthew 1:18-25
This is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about: His mother Mary
was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together,
she was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit. 19 Because
Joseph her husband was a righteous man and did not want to expose
her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly.
20 But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared
to him in a dream and said, "Joseph son of David, do not be afraid
to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is
from the Holy Spirit. 21 She will give birth to a son, and you are
to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from
their sins."22 All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said
through the prophet: 23 "The virgin will be with child and will give
birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel"—which means, "God
with us."24 When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord
had commanded him and took Mary home as his wife. 25 But he had no
union with her until she gave birth to a son. And he gave him the
name Jesus.
AT THE TIME WHEN MARY’S BABY WAS
DUE, THE PEOPLE OF ISRAEL WERE REQUIRED BY HEROD TO BE COUNTED IN A
CENSUS. EACH HAD TO TRAVEL TO THE CITY OF HIS TRIBE. JOSEPH WAS OF
THE SEED OF DAVID AND HAD TO TRAVEL TO BETHLEHEM. MARY WENT WITH
HIM.
MARY AND JOSEPH WERE ON THE WAY
TO BETHLEHEM. Here she was, nine months pregnant and a trip by donkey was not what
either of them would have desired, but again, it was part of God’s
will.
HER TIME CAME AND THERE WAS
NOWHERE FOR THEM TO GO—EXCEPT FOR A STABLE.
Not the usual place for a King to be born, but God’s perfect place
nonetheless.
GOD WAYS ARE NOT OUR WAYS. HIS
PLANS ARE HIGHER THAN OUR OWN. HIS PLANS ARE ALWAYS RIGHT. OUR PLANS
USUALLY AREN’T. SO, trust in the Lord and lean not on your own
understanding.
When the fullness of
time came, Jesus the Saviour, the Messiah, the Son of God, was born
to Mary—in a stable and with a manger (an animal’s feeding trough)
for a cradle. He didn’t come in with fanfare and majesty in the
earthly sense---Israel’s King—the Saviour of the World, came in
silently.
Unaware, the world
slept on, but God had His way of presenting His Son to the people
with open hearts. The best way to tell the story is in song. And so
I’ve prepared a Christmas concert for you. The music is by different
artists and I hope it will be a blessing to you.
I split it into two
parts, so that you can take a break in the middle OR wait till
tomorrow morning. I want to wish all of you a very blessed Christmas
Eve and Christmas.
