The Gift of Jesus
January 23, 2018
I remember my first Christmas after coming to faith in Jesus. It was amazing. What made it amazing wasn’t the gifts, and it wasn’t getting together with family, and it wasn’t the great feast we all enjoyed. No what made it so amazing was THE JOY. For the first time in my life all the Christmas songs: The First Noel, Joy to the World, O Holy Night – they all made sense to me. These songs were full of meaning, love and Jesus. One of those songs became my favorite: O Holy Night. Listen to the words:
O holy night the stars are brightly shining
It is the night of the dear Savior’s birth
Long lay the world in sin and error pining
Till He appeared and the soul felt its worth
A thrill of hope the weary world rejoices
For yonder breaks a new and glorious morn
Fall on your knees
O hear the angel voices
O night divine… O night when Christ was born
I was that young man, who for 25 years was a slave to sin, pining for something more. But now I could sing of my Savior. I was forgiven. And for the first time my soul felt its worth. And I could not contain my joy. I had heard the good news of great joy and now everyday was a new and glorious morn. So listen again, to the good news of that first Christmas Day: And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, “Fear not, for I bring you good news of great joy which will be for all people. For today in the city of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ, the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger.” Suddenly a heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to those on whom His favor rests.” Luke 2:8-14
That little baby born to us… this Savior who is Christ the Lord, is the good news of great joy. And its my greatest privilege to tell you why – why this baby born to us is the good news of great joy for you – not just for today, but for everyday. Why? Well, first of all:
He was born to you as a Baby! Now that may sound a little redundant. That He was born to you as a baby. After all, that’s how every single human being comes into the world – as a baby. But let me tell you why the gift of Jesus coming to us as a baby is so great. He was born just like us. He was fully human in every way. He messed his pants; stubbed his toes, scraped his knew. He grew up, hit puberty, got sick, puked, woke up disoriented, sneezed, scratched his armpits; worked hard and came home exhausted. As he grew, he got curious about life and spiritual matters and was always asking questions. Even in the midst of his ministry he got hungry and thirsty, sad, angry, frustrated and fearful. He laughed and cried and fought temptation of every kind, and he experienced physical death. In his birth, he was vulnerable. In his boyhood, he was inquisitive. As an adult, he was a full-blooded, calloused-handed man. He was human, just like us.
The apostle John described his birth this way: The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth. John 1:14 What’s amazing about John’s description was that it likely scandalized the first ones who heard it. John made a bold move to make a bold point. He said, “the Word became flesh” The very essence of God, the very expression of who God became a full-on flesh and blood human. And the scandal that was heard came from the Greek word he used for “flesh”, “sarx,” a word closely associated with our human frailty and brokenness that is sometimes translated in the Bible as our “sinful nature.” But John didn’t back away from his word choice and our potential misunderstanding. He thought it was so important to help us understand that God loves us – ALL OF US, in all our human weakness – that he said God became sarx. Because it would be through Jesus, that God would redeem what it means to be human. Through Jesus, God entered our brokenness, our weakness, our confusion and pain. At His birth, you see, Jesus, the Son of God, became one of us.
Now, why is this good news? Jesus knows the human condition. He knows our sin, our weaknesses and what its like to be tempted. He knows what it is like to be alone, misunderstood, unloved and rejected. And he knows what its like to be hated, condemned, abused and tortured and yet, He was willing to become one of us so we could know Him. So we could know what God is like. So we could know His love, His compassion, and most importantly His GRACE TO US.
So fear not! Jesus is the good news. Jesus was born as a baby to experience life just like you so you could one day know Him. Christmas you see, is the gift of Jesus – the gift of hope that there is one who knows the human condition, and is willing to come near to help us. That’s the first reason His birth is good news. But the next reason is even better. For the angel tells us:
He was born to be Our Savior! Jesus was born a baby so He could one day die for us. Listen to how the write of Hebrews tells it: For this reason he had to be made like them, fully human in every way, in order that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in service to God, and that he might make atonement for the sins of the people. Hebrews 2:17-18
Jesus was born like us and experienced life like us so that He could go to the cross as a PERFECT sacrifice for our sin. But what made Him a perfect sacrifice for us, was that He was born as the perfect Lamb of God. For when the angel said to the shepherds: This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger.” They knew instantly that this baby would be the Savior of all mankind. For these were Levitical shepherds who watched over the sheep that would provide lambs for temple sacrifices. Listen to this description of their duties during lambing season:
Bethlehem lambs born for slaughter were special lambs. To prevent harm and self-injury from thrashing about after birth on their spindly legs, new-born lambs were wrapped in swaddling cloths. Then they were placed in a manger or feeding trough, where they could calm down out of harm’s way. After careful inspection by the shepherd, any spot or “blemish,” no matter how slight, meant instant rejection. Therefore, when the shepherds gathered around the Bethlehem stable where the Lamb of God was born, they were not witnessing anything new, except who it was that was in the manger: the most important sacrificial lamb who had ever been born, the Lamb that would close down the slaughterhouse of sacrifice, the perfect lamb of God.
So Jesus was born to us to become our sacrificial lamb without spot or blemish. That meant he could become your substitute. That meant He could take on himself the punishment you and I deserve. And that means that now, when you trust in Jesus, you can be forgiven. For when Jesus hung on that cross and said, “It is finished,” at that very moment the debt of every sinner was paid for in full – once and for all and forever. At that very moment Jesus became the Savior.
Why is this good news? Well when Jesus said, “It is finished” he made it possible for you to be saved. For the Bible says: If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are made right with God, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved.” Romans 10:9-10
So fear not! Jesus is the good news of great joy. If you put your trust in Him your sins will be forgiven; the penalty for sin will be no more; the power of sin will be broken. You will be free, for there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. That’s the gift of Jesus. Christmas is the joy of forgiveness – a Savior born for you. That’s the second reason why Jesus’ birth is such good news, now the third:
He was born to be Our King When the angel announced that this child born to us is the Christ, it became as much a message of good news for us today as it was for Israel 2000 years ago. For when Jesus was born as King, it meant that the days were numbered for the kingdoms of this world. For with the coming of Jesus meant that God’s sovereign rule had invaded the realm of men. No longer will position and power rule the day. There’s a new sheriff in town and He’s come to wreak havoc among the status quo. Listen to this prophecy from the book of Daniel about the coming of God’s kingdom:
“In the time of those kings, the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that will never be destroyed, nor will it be left to another people. It will crush all those kingdoms and bring them to an end, but it will itself endure forever.” Daniel 2:44
This began the day Jesus was born. On that silent night, God’s kingdom broke into our world. That is why Jesus was born in humble manger and not in the courts of a King. For with His coming came a new kind of realm: a realm of light, where truth transforms; a realm of righteousness where peace and joy rule; an unshakable realm, that the powers of this world will try to tear it down, but will fail; and most importantly: a realm with Jesus at its center, who gives us His vision for a life of love. This is why His kingdom will CRUSH all other kingdoms. And this is why Jesus tells us that his kingdom will be filled with the humble, the meek and merciful, those who mourn, those who seek peace and with those who hunger and thirst after righteousness. For this is the realm of the redeemed, who call heaven their home, and Jesus their King.
Why is this good news? Jesus being born as the King means there is still hope for this world. Hatred doesn’t always have to win. Injustice doesn’t have to have its way. And power doesn’t always have to prosper. For with Jesus as King, relationships can be restored, compassion can set things right and love can overcome all.
So fear not. With Jesus, we no longer need bow to the ways of this world. For with Him comes a power that is greater than any force in the world – the power of love. Love was born at Christmas. And with His love Jesus drives away every fear. And that’s good news. Jesus was born to be like us. Jesus was born to die for us. Jesus was born to overcome the world through us – if we learn to follow Him. And that truth now leads us to the final reason why the birth of Jesus is good news of great joy for all the people:
He was born to be Our Lord! Now at the time of his birth, everyone knew that Caesar called himself Lord so that others would view him as god. And most people also understood the title, Lord, meant “master.” It had a ring of authority to it. So everyone knew that to call someone Lord meant to submit to his authority. But there was one other use of the term Lord that every Jewish person understood perfectly: “Lord” was a substitute for Yahweh. Since most Jews would not pronounce the name, Yahweh, the God of grace, mercy and love who was committed to their well-being … Well, to hear “Jesus is Lord” at His birth meant only one thing: that the God of infinite power and love was now with them. And this was good news indeed.
Why is this good news? Why is having Jesus born to us as Lord good news? His coming as Lord signals that He is for you. That means there is nothing in this world that can separate you from His love. That means no power in this world is greater than Him. He has come to protect you, provide for you, and be with you no matter what the world throws at you. And now because he lived, died, and rose from the grave that means He is there for you to know His love and submit to His leadership in every area of your life.
Now, for most of us, knowing God’s love for us is great. Knowing that God is always for us, always wants what is best for us, is good news. But hearing that Jesus came to be our Lord, to call the shots in our life, that doesn’t always sit well with us. After all, we like the idea of being our own lords. We don’t necessarily like someone else having authority over us. But it is human nature for us to be influenced as much as we influence, to submit as much as we lead. We all have to serve somebody, as Bob Dylan once wrote. We are not infinitely wise, so we need input from outside ourselves if we want to thrive. Learning from others is how we grow in any task, or talent, or character quality.
So we all attach ourselves to teachers, authors, leaders or friends throughout life. We learn from them how to live and sometimes how not to live. And sometimes when we’ve been led astray or been hurt or wronged, we detach ourselves – we go it alone. But we weren’t created to go it alone! We were made for attachment to the One who loves us most and truly knows what is best for us.
This is why Jesus is God’s greatest gift to us. For knows what life is like for us. He was tempted in every way as us, but never sinned. He demonstrated His love for us, by laying down His life to rescue us from the darkness and despair of sin and so we might walk in freedom, forgiveness and love.
And now His birth tells us the he wasn’t born to die simply to get you a ticket to heaven. He was Lord at His birth, so that you could have the most powerful and loving friend to guide you and show you how to live and love just like Him.
So fear not! For this vulnerable baby born in Bethlehem is the Lord God Almighty, who is both all-powerful and infinitely good. For He has come to be with you and show you how to truly live. As the third stanza of O Holy Night tells us
Truly He taught us to love one another
His law is love and His gospel is peace
Chains shall He break for the slave is our brother
And in His name all oppression shall cease
Sweet hymns of joy in grateful chorus raise we
Let all within us praise His holy name
This is why the birth of Jesus is good news of great joy for all people. This is the gift of Jesus. This is why we celebrate Christmas!
May you Fall on your knees, give Him Praise and attach your self to Him with everything you’ve got. For on this day is born to us a Savior, who is Christ, the Lord. Let’s pray.
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