Tag: Christmas

A Heavenly Gift Exchange 

When Heaven Met Earth 

Luke 2:1-20 

One of the highlights of the Christmas season is the exchanging of gifts. 

There is so much joy to be found in finding that perfect gift for a loved one. 

There is so much fun to be found in a “white elephant” gift exchange. 

There is so much weight to be gained from all the treats that are swapped around. 

It is fitting that we exchange gifts because we are remembering the greatest gift ever given – when God gave His only begotten Son. 

If you will bear with me this morning, I want to talk about that gift through the words of the angels in Luke 2. 

The subject of angels is fascinating. 

They are created beings with greater power than we possess. 

They exist to serve God. 

That takes many forms, as we find angels engaged in worship, warfare, and delivering messages. 

In fact, the word angel literally means “messenger”. 

There at Bethlehem after Christ was born, a lone angel appeared to the shepherds in the fields. 

God did not want to them to miss this message, so He decided to wake them up. 

Have you ever tried to wake someone up so you just turn the light on so they have to get up? 

That’s what God did here. 

He parted the veil between the earthly and the heavenly and let a little of His glory shine out. 

There was no missing that! 

The shepherds are frozen like the proverbial deer in the headlights. 

The angel calls to them to “FEAR NOT.” 

Let me pause here for a moment. 

The angel had to tell them to not be afraid because they were overcome at the sight of the glory of God. 

Just this sliver of God’s majesty was enough to overwhelm their senses. 

Imagine what it will be like to stand before God and take in the fullness of that glory. 

If just a glimmer of it is overwhelming, what will it be like to be enveloped in it? 

I am convinced it will be just as, if not, more overwhelming but minus the fear. 

Moving on, the angel states his purpose: “behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.” 

He had not come in judgment or to announce a coming apocalypse. 

That angel got to deliver the greatest message ever to be delivered. 

It was a message that God had told us would be coming and the day had finally come. 

I don’t know if angels get nervous or not, but if there ever was a time to feel the weight of a message it was this moment:  

“For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.” 

I get emails and alerts on my phone when a package is delivered. 

This delivery alert from the angel is so much greater than the ones I get from Amazon. 

Right there just a short walk from where they were the baby Jesus had arrived. 

He was born in Bethlehem, the city that David called home. 

He was going to be the one to save mankind from their sins. 

He was the Christ – the promised Messiah. 

He was the Lord – the almighty God. 

Now that is wonderful enough news, but the angel keeps going: 

Luk 2:12  And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.  

Not only had the Messiah come, but he gave the shepherds directions to see Him! 

Such a high honor was bestowed on a very few individuals that we are aware of. 

Mary and Jospeh knew Who and What He was as they saw that baby boy. 

There are the shepherds that saw Him in the manger. 

There are Simeon and Anna that saw Him in the Temple just a few days after this. 

There are the Wise Men that came a little later and saw Him in a house. 

That is a very exclusive list of people! 

But before they could go running into town there was a performance unlike any other. 

Luk 2:13  And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying,  

Luk 2:14  Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.  

I do not know how to begin to imagine that scene. 

I imagine the hillsides  and skies full of that angelic choir. 

Now, I am partial to Handel’s Messiah, and in my mind, it sounds like that, only infinitely more beautiful and moving. 

This brings us to the verse I wanted to focus on this morning – the content of the angel’s song. 

I think as we unpack these words, we will see the angels as if they are delivering gifts. 

I do not think that these gifts are necessarily from the angels themselves – remember they are literally messengers. 

No, they are just delivering a few packages. 

I want to think of the content of these songs as packages or gifts. 

I think it will help make clear the meaning of this verse. 

The First Gift 

Let’s look at the first package that the angels are delivering. 

First, let’s see who it is addressed to. 

We find a single name there – God. 

I think we all know who that is! 

But where shall we take this package to get it to Him? 

There is an address provided – “in the highest” 

It is not the highest of praises being offered, nor is it to the highest of God.  

It is to the God who dwells in the highest. 

One old commentator said: 

[the angels] do not, however, say, in heaven, where even the angels dwell; but, employing a rare expression, in the highest, a place to which the angels do not aspire. 

Hebrews hints at this place that even angels are unworthy to enter: 

Heb 1:1  God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets,  

Heb 1:2  Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds;  

Heb 1:3  Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high;  

Heb 1:4  Being made so much better than the angels, as he hath by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they.  

When we get glimpses of the Heavenly throne room in Isaiah 6 and Revelation 4 and 5, the angelic beings surround the presence of God but they dare not approach it. 

It is an aspect of the Holiness of God. 

He is pure and holy and transcendent and exceedingly majestic that none but Himself may touch His truest essence. 

No saint and no angel is worthy. 

There is a level and a place that belongs solely to God as a right because of His greatness. 

What is in this package that is addressed to the God who dwells in the highest of the highest? 

Glory. 

That is what He deserves for who He is in His greatness and His deity. 

That is what He deserves for what He did for mankind that night in Bethlehem. 

The unapproachable God sent forth His only begotten Son to cross that uncrossable chasm that separates the holiest of the holiest from this broken world of sin. 

He came clothed in the likeness of Human flesh – like us, but without the inherited sin nature that has cursed every descendent of Adam and doomed the to Hell. 

He came to redeem and reconcile sinful man to Himself. 

The glory and honor and praise this package contains we find is a “thank you” for the greatest gift ever given – the offer of salvation through merits of Christ. 

The Second Gift 

I turn your attention now to the second package. 

Who is it addressed to? 

Mankind. 

Christ came as a Jew and went to the Jew first, but this gift is not just for the Jew. 

I believe it is for all mankind. 

Where is this package to be delivered? 

To earth. 

This is a place, but I think it may also be a time. 

It tells us that it is for every man, woman, and child while they walk the dust of this earth. 

What is in the package? 

We find two things: peace and goodwill. 

Let’s examine the goodwill first. 

This is God’s pleasure and favor extended toward man. 

We see this in multiple Scriptures, but I think the best proof texts are in Ephesians 1, which I can only point out quickly as we fly by: 

Eph 1:5  Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will,  

Eph 1:9  Having made known unto us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure which he hath purposed in himself:  

Out of this, God’s loving favor, we the second thing – Peace. 

This is no the peace of a tranquil spring day after a storm. 

It is not the absence of danger or malice or care or concern. 

To those there may come an end, but this peace will never cease. 

This is the ending of hostilities, when after long years of fighting two sides lay down their weapons and embrace as brothers. 

They seal this desire with a treaty declaring they will no more war against one another. 

So it is with us and God. 

The Bible reveals that sinful man is at enmity with God. 

Romans 5:10 says the unsaved are the enemies of God. 

Romans 8:7 says the carnal mind is enmity with God. 

We cannot declare for peace because God’s holiness demands justice for our sins. 

But God looked at Christ on the cross. 

Here is how Paul described it: 

Col 1:19  For it pleased the Father that in him [Christ] should all fulness dwell;  

Col 1:20  And, having made peace through the blood of his cross, by him to reconcile all things unto himself; by him, I say, whether they be things in earth, or things in heaven.   

CONCLUSION 

There is a famous story about a missionary, his name was Don Richardson. 

He wrote a book about his experiences as a missionary in New Guinea, which I hope to getting around to reading one day. 

In that book, he tells of the difficulties of reaching the hearts of the people there. 

They were steeped in paganism and practiced cannibalism. 

There was constant warfare between the tribes. 

Try as he may, he just could not seem to stop any of this or make an impact for Christ. 

That is, until he witnessed something that changed everything for him. 

Two tribes had been at war for months but finally stopped and a peace agreement was made. 

The missionary watched as the two tribes exchanged small children and infants. 

The idea was that they would not attack each other knowing they may kill one of their own. 

They called them a “peace child”, and even a chief give his own son away in the process. 

What Richardson saw that day greatly affected him, but it also opened the door of understanding of the Gospel for the people. 

He told them that the only true God had given His only begotten Son as a “peace child” for us. 

Many of the tribesmen were saved through that powerful picture. 

I wish I could paint such a picture this morning to drive home this truth to you. 

God, through His mercy and grace, offers peace to us. 

All our guilt is erased and we become part of His family. 

That is the true meaning of Christmas. 

That is the true gift of Christmas. 

The angels sang about it 2,000 years ago, but the offer is still good today. 

Ways to Avoid a Blue Christmas 

Isaiah 61:1-3 

I want to speak much more practically than is my habit at Christmas. 

Last year when I was putting together my book of Christmas sermons, I felt like I kept going back to the prophecies about Christ’s coming. 

Even if I was not intending to preach on them, they just seem to keep coming back up time and time again. 

Well, this morning, I am going to reverse that trend. 

I want to start with a prophecy and then get practical. 

It is difficult to find a balance when celebrating holidays. 

For instance, when Mother’s Day or Father’s Day comes around, there are those who bear the wounds and scars from a rough home life. 

Those days are anything but happy for them. 

Another consideration, especially at Christmas, is that for many these days are filled with memories of those who have gone on to Heaven before us. 

That first Christmas is always hard when there is a fresh hole in your heart. 

There is also just something naturally built into this time of year that depresses some people. 

Psychologists call it Seasonal Affective Disorder, which has one of the greatest acronyms ever – SAD. 

They say the shorter days with less sunlight together with being stuck indoors because of the cold help trigger this. 

There is relief on the way, though. 

Winter Solstice – the shortest day of the year – is next Sunday. 

After the days will start lengthening again though the temperature may not improve for a few months. 

All of these factor and others that we could list – none of these are a surprise to God. 

He knows our frailty of mind and spirit. 

He knows that heartaches of the human condition. 

It may just be that part of timing of our Christmas celebrations is to provide a counter to what is typically a cold, dark, miserable time of year. 

Now we can fill it with joy and thanksgiving as we remember the newborn King in Bethlehem. 

Our text is quoted by Christ Himself in Luke 4. 

In the synagogue of Nazareth that day He read into the middle of verses 2 and stopped. 

He told them, “This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears.” 

The part He quoted is about hope that springs from His first advent. 

He stopped where He did, after “to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord”, because the prophecy continues to describe His second advent. 

When that happens, He will defeat the forces of Satan and the Antichirst. 

He will save the nation of Israel from their doom and become their king. 

He will rule and reign for a thousand years – and oh what a wonderful time that will be! 

I wish we had time to talk about it this morning. 

But here is what I want you to notice this morning – what happens when Christ comes. 

In both cases – His first coming to save us from sin, His second coming to set up His kingdom – He brings joy and comfort to the hopeless and discouraged. 

He preaches gladdest of tidings to the meek, the poor, the downtrodden, giving them hope. 

He cares for the brokenhearted. 

He throws open the gates and frees those who have been enslaved by sin. 

His arrival heralds a new era of hope for mankind. 

To those mourning their sinful state He pours out His grace. 

He empties their hearts of mourning and pours in joy. 

When Christ shows up, something happens. 

People are not the same when they meet Him. 

This world is not the same since He came to Bethlehem 2,000 years ago. 

He makes things better. 

To the lost He gives salvation. 

To the hopeless He gives hope. 

To the anxious He gives peace. 

To the fearful He gives courage. 

To the blind He gives sight. 

To the mournful He gives joy. 

To the distraught He gives rest. 

Christ makes things better! 

If you do not know what to do, I know the one who has the answers you seek. 

Not just at this time of year, but every day of every year. 

He will not turn away any that seek refuge in Him. 

This morning, I want to highlight a few practical things that Christ told us to do. 

These help us to reset and realign our hearts. 

I. Seek Christ First 

I believe this is essential in order for everything else to fall into place. 

Mat_6:33  But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. 

Too often we have something else as our main focus. 

Much of the problem with depression is that it hyper-focuses on the self. 

Yes, I could tell you to get some sleep, lose some weight, and start working out. 

You would ignore me too just like you ignore your doctor and your spouse. 

But if you really want to start seeing improvement in your life, to see true joy return, put God first. 

They asked Christ which was the greatest of the hundreds of Old Testaments commandments. 

His response is essentially the point I am trying to make here: 

Mat 22:37  Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.  

Mat 22:38  This is the first and great commandment.  

Do you want to have joy this Christmas? 

Do you want relief this Christmas? 

The first thing you should do is start focusing on the true reason for the seasons. 

You may say, but that doesn’t make my problems go away. 

It may not, but it will give you what you need to put them in their place and deal with them properly. 

Christmas will have a whole new meaning for you when you get into your head and heart that it is not about parties and presents and pageants and such. 

All those distractions fade away when we see His glory and His goodness. 

In Christ, you will find the hope and strength and comfort that you need. 

II. Serve Others Second 

I read before where Christ identified the greatest commandment. 

He did not stop there, but also included one more – the other side of the coin, if you will. 

Mat 22:39  And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.  

Mat 22:40  On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.  

The most important thing we need to do is to put Christ first. 

The second, which will be easier to do once that is taken care of, is to serve others. 

I am going beyond just an emotion of love here. 

I have explained this before, but the Biblical concept of love is more than a feeling, it is also how we act on it. 

I am convinced that our world needs now more than ever is a revival of caring for our fellow man. 

We are so divided that there are people we deem unworthy of love or aid. 

We are so selfish that everything we do for others is just “priming the pump” to get something back from them. 

If you are struggling this Christmastime, and even if you are not, here’s a little advice for you: 

Do something meaningful for someone else with no thought of return. 

Yes, you could write a check to some organization you barely know to help with some problem that is not personal to you. 

I don’t want to downplay that, but if you want to really do something for someone make it meaningful. 

We all know people that are having a hard time. 

We all know people that are lonely. 

Dad and I picked up some stuff for Bro. Griffin this week. 

We went in and sat down with the person that gave it to us. 

When we get back to the truck Dad look at me and said, “they are lonely”. 

Do you know what a visit would do for someone like that? 

You say, well I’m too introverted to do that! 

Well, just bake them some cookies, set them on their front porch, ring the bell, and run away as fast as you can! 

You say, well I can’t cook. 

I’ve got two words for you – WAL and MART. 

Christ is quoted in Acts 20:35 as saying: “It is more blessed to give than to receive.” 

He knows what He is talking about and He set that very example during His time on earth. 

Do something for someone. 

III. Fill your heart with good things. 

What you fill your mind and heart with greatly affects you. 

I do not harp on it much, but this is why it is important to stay away from some music, movies, and such. 

If I feed myself garbage it will affect what I think and I feel and I do. 

Christ spoke along these lines in Luke 6:45 

Luk 6:45  A good man out of the good treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is evil: for of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaketh.  

Garbage in – garbage out. 

Let me give you some advice to fill your heart and mind with good things. 

Read your Bible and meditate on what you read. 

It is not enough to just ingest it, you need to “chew the cud” and digest it. 

Listen to good music – If only I knew of a radio station… 

Music is musing – it affects us more powerfully that most realize. 

Hang around people that make you a better person. 

Unplug. 

Our hyper-connectedness is not good. 

There are times you need turn off the electronics. 

Spend time in nature among God’s Creation. 

Identify things that negatively affect you and avoid them. 

I am not talking about your electric bill here. 

If watching the news you depressed, watching something else. 

Learn to say NO 

It is one of the most powerful things you can do for yourself. 

You do not have to do everything. 

CONLUSION 

My hope and prayer for everyone this holiday season is that we are all happy and healthy. 

We are all in this together and need to watch out for one another. 

You are could be exactly what someone needs this Christmas. 

The greatest source of joy in Christmas is knowing Christ. 

When Was Jesus Born? 

Luke 2:1-7 

I have titled this sermon, “When Was Jesus Born?” 

You will note that it is not, “Was Jesus Born?” 

There is no reason at all to doubt that a baby was born some 2,000 years ago whose life and teachings turned the world upside down. 

It is as close to historical fact as you will find. 

We have so many trustworthy accounts that Christ walked this earth that only those suffering from rabid madness against God will deny the truth. 

There are few births in history that we know so many details about. 

You will find legendary figures that we are not sure existed or at least existed in the way they are known to us – such as King Arthur or Robin Hood, but we know exactly who Jesus is and what He did. 

You will find historical figures that we are not sure who their parents are, yet we know exactly who Mary and Jospeh are. 

You will find historical figures that we know little about their extended family, but Luke tells us Mary had a cousin whose son was John the Baptist. 

You will find historical figures that we cannot track their movements or quote their words with any certainty, yet in Christ we have four reliable biographies. 

You fill find historical figure that history reassesses over time, and they become less important and are forgotten, but Christ is more important and more well-known in our day than in any other. 

Yet there still some details about the life of Christ that we wish we knew more about. 

Some people have tried to fill these gaps using their imagination – such as the fanciful stories you will find about Christ as a child. 

Some have tried to ignore the details of the Christ we know to create a Christ to fit their own opinion or agenda. 

One of the most common questions about Christ that is not clearly stated in the Bible is exactly when He was born. 

We have a lot of details about his birth, but the exact date or time is not explicitly given. 

For the last 1,700 years or so, Christians have set aside December 25^th as the day to celebrate the birth of Christ. 

Before I give my opinion on the accuracy of this date, let me explain where it came from. 

There has been a lot of misinformation about the origins of Christmas traditions that has many to falsely claim pagan roots for much the celebration. 

Remember the wise words of Abraham Lincoln – “Don’t believe everything you read on the internet.” 

This goes for more than just the date of Christmas, and includes things like Christmas trees, which are based on the Paradise tree used in Paradise Plays in 16^th century Germany, and even Santa Claus, who is based on a real person named Saint Nicholas who lived in the 3^rd-4^th centuries. 

There are popular claims that the date of Christmas is tied to the Roman celebration of Saturnalia, but it was not on December 25. 

There are other claims Christians hijacked the pagan feast celebrating Sol Invictus on the December 25^th and Christianized it.   

There is actually some evidence that the reverse is true, that the pagans were reacting to a Christian celebration when emperor Aurelian instituted the feast in 274. 

So why did we end up with the date of December 25^th being set aside to honor Christ’s birth? 

It is actually very easy. 

The reason we celebrate Christmas on December 25^th is because it is nine months from March 25^th. 

Can’t argue with that logic, can you? 

So, what is important about March 25 that Christmas is based off of it? 

The nine months time frame may have given it away. 

It is when the Christians at least as early as the 2^nd Century celebrated the Annunciation, which is when Gabriel told Mary she was going to have the Son of God in Luke 1. 

Makes sense, right? 

Gabriel says Mary will have a baby and nine months later she does. 

But how did they decide that Gabriel appeared to Mary on March 25? 

Two reasons. 

First, there was an assumption in those early days saintly individuals died on the same day they were conceived or born. 

They thought this because in the Old Testament ages were given in years without months or days added. 

Second, there was a belief that Christ died on March 25. 

This fits well with the timing of the Jewish Passover in conjunction with the Roman calendar. 

Tertullian, of the most well-known Christian leaders of his day, wrote around the year 200 that Christ was crucified in “the month of March, at the times of the Passover, on the eighth day before the calends of April”, which works out to be March 25. 

So, if you are still following along, because Christ was crucified on March 25, it was believed that was also the day He entered Mary’s womb. 

That is how December 25 became associated with Christ’s birth. 

It is so simple, right? 

Now, if you’ll bear with me a few minutes I will give you some Gageology before making some practical observations. 

The question we face now: Is December 25 the real date that Christ was born? 

I am fairly certain that the year was 4 B.C., which I am not going to get into my reasoning for that. 

Are there any clues in the Bible about when Christ was born? 

Luke actually gives us a few clues. 

He tells about the Birth of John the Baptist, which involves John’s father Zacharias serving in the Temple. 

It says in 1:5 that Zacharias was a priest in the order of Abia. 

This was one of 24 divisions of priests which served 1-week rotations twice a year. 

For Zacharias, his first rotation would have been after Pentecost in early June. 

During this week, Gabriel announced that John the Baptist would be born. 

Assuming this is June, that makes nine months later to be March the following year. 

Now, in 1:26 it says “in the sixth month”, which is referring to the Elisabeth’s pregnancy with John, that Gabriel appeared to Mary to announce she would bear the Christ child. 

So, Christ would be born about born about six months after John, making it roughly September or perhaps October. 

Would there be any significance to Christ being born in September or October? 

There are three major Jewish Feasts that occur during this time. 

Feast of Trumpet – New Years – Rosh Hashanah  

Day of Atonement – Yom Kippur 

Feast of Tabernacles – Sukkot 

Would not the birth of Christ, a new beginning, be fitting for a New Years Day? 

Would not the birth of Christ, the lamb of God, be fitting for the Day of Atonement? 

Would not the birth of Christ, God veiled in human flesh, be fitting for the Feast of Tabernacles? 

Personally I think it was around or after the Feast of Tabernacles. 

Now, if you are still awake, I have one more question to ask. 

DOES IT MATTER WHEN CHRIST WAS BORN? 

Doctrinally, I do not think it does. 

If it did, God would have told us plainly. 

Theologically, I do not think it does. 

I am not sure what changes if Christ is born in one month or another, 

When it comes to Apologetics, that is the defense of our faith, I think it does matter. 

I want to be able to prove the accuracy or even the plausibility of the Gospel accounts. 

Even if I am wrong in my personal calculations and assumptions, it is still compatible with the history we know. 

There is no reason to doubt that what the Bible says is true. 

Christ really was born in Bethlehem in the days of Caesar Augustus. 

It is historical fact. 

It is trustworthy. 

More importantly, it is faith worthy. 

Christ was born just as the prophets had foretold. 

He was the descendant of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and King David, just like they said. 

He was born in Bethlehem just like they said. 

He was born of a virgin, just like they said. 

That is of the utmost importance. 

We have talked a lot about history this morning, but we have some critical doctrine to talk about here. 

Babies are born every day, and I do believe each one is a miracle 

But no baby, no birth has ever occurred like it did on the first Christmas. 

Those of us who defend the sanctity of life will often say that life begins at conception. 

Friends, Christ did not begin at conception. 

Lewis Sperry Chafer wrote: 

“On the human side, He had a beginning and was conceived by the Holy Spirit and was born of the Virgin Mary.  On the divine side, he no beginning because He was from all eternity.” 

Isaiah 9:6 says that “unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given” 

The Son was not born, He was given to us. 

Christ, coequal with the Father and the Spirit in the Trinity, had no beginning. 

Joh 1:1  In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.  

Joh 1:2  The same was in the beginning with God.  

He was not created or made – that is a heresy from the earliest days of Christianity called Arianism. 

The great God of the universe that spoke the worlds into existence left the glories of heaven and laid aside the majesty that enveloped Him. 

He took upon Himself the veil of human flesh – Romans 8:3 says the likeness of sinful flesh, that is like us but undefiled by Adam’s fall. 

He entered the womb of a mother as His body developed according to the same processes of every human child. 

Think about it – the limitless God that not even the breadth and scope of the universe can contain, allowed Himself to be the size of pea, then a grape, then an apple, then a grapefruit, then a melon, then a pumpkin. 

All the while He was 100% God and 100% Man. 

The newborn babe that Mary held was Immanuel, God with us. 

He humbled Himself to the human experience of physical growth and development. 

It was thirty years before He would perform a single miracle or preach a single sermon. 

He knew hunger and pain. 

He wept tears of joy and of sorrow. 

Why would the Great God Almighty do such a thing? 

Why would the Father let the Son suffer so? 

Christ came to reveal God to us. 

We see God in every word and every deed. 

Christ came to seek and to save that which was lost. 

It was a rescue mission! 

He came to redeem us and ransom us from our sins. 

He came to die in our stead. 

He came to conquer death, hell, and the grave. 

He came so that all men would know that God loved them even while they were vile sinners and at enmity with God. 

He came to rescue the lost and undone. 

He came to give hope to the hopeless. 

He came to lift up the feeble and encourage the fainthearted. 

He came bring us into the family of God. 

He came to give eternal life to all that receive His free gift of salvation. 

He came so that we need not fear what lies ahead. 

He came so that light would pierce the darkness in this world and in ourselves. 

He came to pay the price of our salvation, the destroy the plans of Satan, and to guarantee that all that come to Him will be received. 

If that is not reason enough to set aside a day to celebrate, I do not know what is. 

If that is not reason enough to trust our souls in His care, I do not know what is. 

If that is not reason enough to live everyday as Christmas, I do not know what is. 

CONCLUSION 

1. Do not let those who do not know Christ or Christianity tell you what to believe. 

1. That includes how and why we celebrate Christmas. 

2. Pity those that do not know the joy we have in our hearts. 

2. Live every day like Christmas. 

1. Live every day celebrating the Savior. 

2. Live every day showing love to fellow man. 

3. Put your faith in the one we celebrate. 

Don’t Wait To Open Your Presents! 

James 1:17 

With the passing of Thanksgiving, we have officially begun the Christmas season. 

I do not know how many of you overachievers have already bought your Christmas presents – I doubt very many. 

Perhaps some of you picked up some of those can’t miss Black Friday deals. 

Some of you, no doubt, will wait until Christmas Eve as stores are beginning to close to rush around and see what you can grab and act like you had it for weeks. 

One of the hardest things about Christmas is the wait to open presents. 

For me, it is not hard because I want to open presents. 

I get excited when I come up with a great gift for someone and I want them to open it NOW! 

You can ask Becky – I am always asking her if she wants her presents early. 

The better I think I did, the sooner I want them to open it! 

Now of course I remember back in “ye olden days” as a child the anticipation was not the giving but the getting. 

Mom would wrap presents and put them under the tree just to torture us. 

When she wasn’t around, me and Kari would shake and feel the presents to figure out what the good ones were. 

Leading up to Christmas we would do our best to convince mom and dad to let us open just one present. 

That is why the scouting was so important – you didn’t want to open up clothes if you got to open anything early. 

Sometimes she would relent, but not enough to suit me. 

Our kids have had the same struggle which I am sure has scarred them for life. 

My wife’s family had a tradition that we carried over. 

The day before Christmas Eve – known to highly cultured folks as “Christmas Adam” – they would be allowed to open one present. 

We have usually done that, then opened presents from each other on Christmas Eve, then Santa – a.k.a. Pawpaw – would have presents for everyone on Christmas morning. 

Those presents usually come from whatever helpful elves have their shops open on Christmas Eve. 

Now, I am all for tradition and that is basically what we have worked out. 

Others are sticklers for not opening a single present until Christmas morning. 

I always think of the classic Mickey Mouse cartoon where he and Pluto accidentally chop down the tree that Chip and Dale lived in. 

After all the mayhem that ensued as Pluto tried to get those chipmunks, they all make up in the spirit of Christmas. 

The final scene has them singing a Christmas carol together. 

Pluto begins to howl along, and Chip and Dale put a sticker over his mouth that says, “Do Not Open Until Christmas”. 

I wish that worked in real life! 

Thinking  about the season, the giving of gifts, and the anticipation of opening presents, I remind you of our text: 

Jas 1:17  Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.  

There is no greater giver of gifts than our God. 

He gives to us out of His great love for us. 

He gives us more than we could ever deserve. 

He gives us what we need and more beyond that. 

Matthew Poole wrote on this passage: 

whereas men sometimes give good gifts in all evil way, and with an evil mind, God’s giving, as well as gift, is always good; and therefore when we receive any thing of him, we should look not only to the thing itself, but to his bounty and goodness in giving it. 

In context, these gifts are received by FAITH: 

Jas 1:6  But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed.  

Jas 1:7  For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord.  

These gifts are contrasted with the sinful struggles that are born from self. 

Jas 1:13  Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man:  

Jas 1:14  But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed.  

These gifts are contrasted with the penalty and consequences of sin: 

Jas 1:15  Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death.  

You see, our great God knows that we are helpless without Him. 

We would have no hope of salvation! 

We would have no hope of living an overcoming, victorious Christian life. 

Can we save ourselves from the penalty, the power, or the penalty of our sin? 

Absolutely not, save the wonderful grace of God. 

He has given us gifts to overcome sin. 

These have nothing to do with our merit and or our goodness, but they are bestowed upon us by God without favor. 

I implore you this morning – do not wait to open these gifts! 

They do not say “Do not open till Christmas” – they say “open immediately” 

God knows we need them and has provided them to us. 

I. Gift of Salvation – Romans 6:23 

Rom 6:23  For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.  

This is the most important gift and must be opened first. 

I recall one Christmas at my grandparents house that I opened a present that had bbs and pellets in it for a bb gun – which I did not have. 

I was genuinely puzzled until they told me to open another present, which was a Daisy bb gun, then it all made sense. 

Friends – God sent His only begotten Son to reveal His great love for us. 

We could not bridge that chasm that separates sinful man from the Holy God, but God could. 

Christ came to be the sacrifice for our sins – was crucified, buried, rose again, and ascended back into heaven. 

He purchased the gift of salvation – it is not a reward for our good actions. 

There is nothing we could do to merit this favor from God. 

Christ paid it all and offers it to all. 

If you have not received this gift by faith this morning, Christ is offering it to you and calling you to come and receive the greatest gift. 

II. Gift of Spirit – Acts 2:38 

Act 2:38  Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.  

This is the gift of God for every believer today. 

The Old Testament saints did not have this like we do. 

It was only made possible because of Christ’s victory over sin and death. 

There is a lot of confusion today about what this gift of the Spirit looks like. 

The loudest voices today about the work of the Spirit are the Pentecostals and Charismatics, who believe the Spirit empowers the Christian into a superhuman like state. 

They claim it will make you talk in unknown tongues – which is strange because every case of people speaking in tongues in the New Testament has someone speaking a known language that was unknown to the speaker.   

They claim it will make you prophesy or reveal hitherto unknown truths – which is stranger because the New Testament appeals to SCRIPTURE for truth. 

They claim it will make you lose control of yourself and make you gyrate around like one of those inflatable men at a car dealership – which is strange because the New Testament teaches the Spirit works to bring order and one of its fruits in Galatians 5:23 is temperance or self-control. 

The gift of the Spirit is the counter we have to the power of sin. 

The Spirit guides, directs, and convicts. 

The Spirit empowers the believer to overcome. 

The Spirit magnifies and exalts the work of Christ. 

Joh 16:13  …for he shall not speak of himself… 

Joh 16:14  He shall glorify me… 

Too many Christians today are miserable and defeated because they do not make use of the gift of the Spirit. 

Go read John 15 and 16 – let those lessons from Christ soak into your mind and heart. 

Strive to be filled and controlled by the Spirit. 

III. Gift of Supplication – Philippians 4:6 

Php 4:6  Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.  

Billy Graham said: “Prayer is a gift from God’s hand and He’s given us the privilege of prayer because He loves us and wants our fellowship.” 

God does not just save us from sin and He does not simply leave us alone to find our way in the Christian life. 

He has given us Scripture to guide us – that is a tremendous gift that I will only mention in passing. 

But think about this – The Scripture is God’s will and mind revealed to us. 

While it is wonderful that He has tells us about Himself, PRAYER allows us to reveal our heart and mind to Him! 

Some will say, “Well, if God knows everything why do we have to tell Him and ask Him anything?” 

Simple – it is because prayer is an extension of the relationship between God and man. 

It is the difference between listening to a radio and talking on a telephone.\ 

How sublime is this gift that we have access to God, to bring our cares and burdens, our needs and our desires, and lay them humbly at His feet! 

Joseph Scriven described it as well as anyone when he wrote: 

What a friend we have in Jesus, 
All our sins and griefs to bear! 
What a privilege to carry 
Everything to God in prayer! 
Oh, what peace we often forfeit, 
Oh, what needless pain we bear, 
All because we do not carry 
Everything to God in prayer! 

Friends, do not neglect the gift of prayer! 

Open it up today and put it to use! 

Conclusion 

• God never promised us a peaceful life. 

• Trials and heartaches will come. 

• But He has gifted to us the means whereby we can have peace in the storms of life. 

• If you are struggling this morning, take stock of what you have. 

• It is my experience and I believe the testimony of Scripture that God often has already provided the solutions to our problems. 

• Perhaps you need to root yourself deeper in the Word, perhaps you need to get active in service, perhaps you need to give some burden over to the Lord in prayer – whatever the case may be, I think you will find God’s provision is ready for your need. 

• Do not neglect the gift of salvation. 

• All other gifts make this life harder to bear. 

• The gift of salvation is the only one that grants eternal life. 

Christmas Eve message

John 1:1-18

Isaiah 61