[0:00] to one starting at verse 26. In the sixth month of Elizabeth's pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David.
[0:23] The virgin's name was Mary. The angel went to her and said, "'Greetings, you who are highly favoured. The Lord is with you.'" Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be.
[0:39] But the angel said to her, "'Do not be afraid, Mary. You have found favour with God. You will conceive and give birth to a son and you are to call him Jesus.
[0:53] He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David and he will reign over Jacob's descendants forever.
[1:07] His kingdom will never end.'" "'How will this be?' Mary asked the angel. "'Since I am a virgin.'" The angel answered, "'The Holy Spirit will come on you and the power of the Most High will overshadow you.
[1:28] So the Holy One to be born will be called the Son of God. Even Elizabeth, your relative, is going to have a child in her own age and she who was said to be unable to conceive is in her sixth month.
[1:45] For no word from God will ever fail. "'I am the Lord's servant,' Mary answered. "'May your word to me be fulfilled.'" Then the angel left her.
[2:02] Ralph. Can I pray for you? Sure. Yeah. Just going to pray and pray for Ralph as he speaks this morning.
[2:16] Let's pray. Father, we thank you for your word, for this historical account that has been recorded for us. It's truth.
[2:28] But yet we don't want it just to be history and mere ink on a page. We want it to be words that travel deep to the understanding of our mind and changing our hearts till we grasp afresh the wonder of who you are.
[2:47] And we ask for your help to Ralph. Fill him and us with your spirit's power for we need your help.
[2:57] And we ask that you will help us. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. Thanks, Ralph.
[3:10] Thank you, Johnny. This month we celebrate arguably the most earth-shattering event in all of history.
[3:26] Just over 2,000 years ago, according to the scriptures, Jesus, God the Son, the second person of the Trinity, became a man.
[3:41] God became a man. Let that sink in for one moment. I think it's as if you were out for a midnight walk on one of these dark December nights.
[3:58] And as you're walking, you decide to gaze up up to the night sky, into the darkness. And you start to see these weak little starlights. And suddenly, your eyes are blinded by the sudden appearance of a midday sun in the middle of the night.
[4:16] And you're just overwhelmed. such is the cosmic upheaval of Jesus Christ, God the Son, becoming a man.
[4:31] man. We confess, as Christians, that Jesus is truly God and truly man.
[4:42] we say that Jesus is one person in two natures. Jesus has, always has, and always will have, his divine nature.
[4:58] Infinite across time and space, holding power without limit, knowing all things. But this same Jesus took on a human nature.
[5:14] Jesus took on human flesh, fragile, humble, bound and limited to a body and a human soul.
[5:27] soul. So our Christmas celebrations, if they're to have any meaning beyond shopping and decorations and food and family, must come back to this simple truth.
[5:44] God became man. But how can the infinite exist together in one person with the finite?
[5:57] how can the ruler of the whole universe squeeze into the womb and be born and then placed in a manger among the animals?
[6:13] There's no shame this morning to say that here there is ultimately deep, deep mystery. In preparing for this sermon, I went and sought out some questions from people and read up a little bit on some of the things that confound people about this glorious truth.
[6:36] How can Jesus be nursing as a baby at his mother's breast and also at the same time keep that whole universe going?
[6:46] thing? You can't honestly believe the idea that Jesus was a God living among us at the same time a man and the same time God. That's crazy how those two things go together.
[6:59] A man maybe, but also God at the same time? No way. I don't know if you've ever thought about it, when Jesus was a young boy helping his father Joseph in carpentry, would Jesus have needed to ask what that tool was or what this tool was or how that worked?
[7:20] Or because Jesus was God, would he have known the answer already? How was it that Jesus on the earth could say that there were things like the hour of his return that he did not know?
[7:35] Surely, if he's God, he knows all things. And finally, why is it even important to ask these questions? Why should we care?
[7:47] Is it not enough to just trust that he died for our sins and believe? How is the incarnation, God taking on flesh, relevant to us?
[8:02] Maybe you found something like your question in that list or maybe not. Maybe your head hurts already and you're just waiting for the end of the sermon so you can get back to planning your Christmas. But as we gaze at the manger and we think about the creator and we wonder at his coming, we do so so that we would love him, so that we would worship him, so that we would proclaim him.
[8:38] That's why we are asking these questions this morning. We look in faith to Jesus, the God man. man. And if we love him now by faith, then one day we will enjoy him forever in heaven by sight.
[9:00] This morning I want us to know this Jesus, this Jesus, one person in two natures, fully divine and fully human.
[9:14] I'm going to turn to Luke chapter 1 where we read this morning.
[9:24] Let's turn to the scriptures Luke chapter 1. The angel Gabriel came to announce to the virgin girl Mary that she would give birth to a son.
[9:37] We see that in verse 31. Gabriel speaking, you will conceive and give birth to a son and you are to call him Jesus.
[9:50] Notice the details. Mary will conceive, that is she will become pregnant and give birth to a son.
[10:01] The son will come from Mary. This baby will be conceived in her body and born of her.
[10:13] He will be her son and she is to give him the name Jesus, which means he saves or God saves.
[10:25] Verse 32, like each of us, Jesus has a family history. He will be great and will be called the son of the most high. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father or his ancestor David.
[10:41] In this case, Jesus' family history goes back to King David. Later, we're going to come to some of the unusual aspects of Jesus' conception, especially Mary's virginity.
[10:57] But for now, I want us to notice this, that Jesus truly comes from Mary. He is truly descended from King David.
[11:09] Mary becomes pregnant, carries a growing baby within her, and as we know, gives birth to a son to whom she gives the name Jesus.
[11:22] If we look on to the next page in chapter 2, and again, familiar verses, the story of the birth of Jesus, chapter 2, and let's read verse 6.
[11:34] While they were there, that's Joseph and Mary in Bethlehem, the time came for the baby to be born, and she gave birth to her firstborn son.
[11:48] She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no guest room available for them. You see, these verses recorded by Luke are telling us, in many ways, of a normal birth, a normal birth of a baby.
[12:07] Luke, the careful historian, even notes that Jesus was Mary's firstborn son. You know that Mary would go on to have other children.
[12:19] Jesus grew up with brothers and sisters in his family. He would have played with them. He would have learned from them. As the oldest brother, he would have cared for them.
[12:35] Verse 21, chapter 2. On the eighth day, when it was time to circumcise the child, he was named Jesus, the name the angel had given him before he was conceived.
[12:53] On the eighth day, Jesus is taken to be circumcised. Christ. We cannot miss the fact that Jesus is truly human.
[13:06] A man born in the flesh. He is fully human. But I think it's a good point here to maybe pause for a second and ask, what does it mean when we say that Jesus is fully human?
[13:28] Fully human? Truly human? Well, and people throughout the church history have tried to figure this out in different ways and some have said that, well, maybe Jesus only has a human body like ours.
[13:46] But would we say that to be truly human is just to have a physical body, to have skin and bones and sinew and guts? Well, of course not.
[13:58] When we say someone is truly human, it means more than just a physical body. Humans, we have a body and a soul.
[14:12] It's not just dead flesh that makes us human. So whatever is true to say of me as a human must also be true of Jesus as a human.
[14:25] Otherwise, Jesus would be less than human. You see, Jesus did not simply appear to be a man, a divine being that kind of comes into a shell of a human body.
[14:39] Jesus isn't acting like a puppeteer that pulls the strings on a wooden doll. No, Jesus has a full humanity like ours, yet without sin.
[14:55] The book of Hebrews is so helpful in helping us to think about Jesus. Let's turn to the book of Hebrews.
[15:07] We could read the whole book to understand who Jesus is, but just some verses particularly helpful. Hebrews chapter 2 and verse 17.
[15:19] Hebrews chapter 2 and verse 17 and 18. Page 1202. Hebrews 2 17.
[15:30] For this reason, he, and that is Jesus, had to be made like them, that's us, 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, because he himself suffered when he was tempted.
[15:58] He is able to help those who are being tempted. And just over the page, chapter 4 and verse 15.
[16:09] Chapter 4 and verse 15. for we do not have a high priest who is unable to feel sympathy for our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are, yet he did not sin.
[16:30] Jesus is fully human, like us in every way, yet without sin.
[16:44] Jesus had to grow. Jesus had to grow. Just like us, physically, mentally, spiritually, Jesus grew.
[16:56] Jesus had to learn things in his human nature and in his mental capacities. Just like any child grows and learns things.
[17:09] And we turn back to Luke, back to chapter 2 of Luke. That's page 1027.
[17:21] Sorry, this is verse 40, next page, 1028, if you're using the church Bible. Luke chapter 2 and verse 40. And the child, that is Jesus, grew and became strong.
[17:39] He was filled with wisdom and the grace of God was on him. And then to the end of the chapter in verse 51 and 52. Then Jesus, he went down to Nazareth with them, that's his parents, and was obedient to them.
[17:59] But his mother treasured all these things in her heart. And Jesus grew in wisdom and stature and in favor with God and man.
[18:15] Do you see how Jesus is described in those verses? Jesus, he physically and mentally and spiritually in his relationship with God, grew and became strong.
[18:29] He grew in wisdom and stature and favor with God and man. So even though this is one person, this is Jesus Christ who is also God, when he acts through his human nature, he doesn't violate what it means to be human.
[18:59] You see, his human nature isn't mixed in some way with the divine nature to create some sort of special superman. man. That's not what we're talking about.
[19:13] Jesus had to grow in his human nature, in his relationship with the Father. He isn't reliant in his human nature and acting through his human nature with his eternal relationship with the Father as God the Son.
[19:31] Jesus, the man, had to grow in favor with God. And Jesus had limits in his knowledge, in his human nature.
[19:45] He had a human mind, not knowing what carpentry tool did what, and he had to learn that. Jesus had to memorize scripture.
[19:56] He had to learn his memory verses, if you like. In his human mind, he did not know the time of his return to the earth.
[20:08] his human mind doesn't have exhaustive knowledge. Only the divine mind knows all things.
[20:20] So Jesus, the one person, through his human nature and through his will, his human will, had to learn obedience to his heavenly Father's will.
[20:33] will. So Jesus, acting through his human nature, can truly say, yet not my will be done, but your will be done.
[20:46] The human will of the Son is truly obedient to the divine will of God. It is true obedience.
[20:57] Jesus, Jesus, the man. There is much to rejoice and find comfort in all of this truth.
[21:09] Rejoice because in Jesus we see that sin is not needed to be human. In Jesus we see what it is to live free from sin and perfect obedience as a human in relation to God.
[21:23] Adam, the first man, was created without sin. Now Jesus is born as the new Adam, again without sin, but where Adam failed, Jesus succeeds.
[21:38] And as a result we can truly say there is no one more human than Jesus Christ. He is free from the shackles of sin and he was the most truly human person that ever lived and ever flourished.
[21:54] Therefore, brothers, and sisters, you and I have hope. You and I have hope. Jesus came down and lived as a man so that we can reach up and live with God.
[22:12] All that we truly are in our body and our soul and our will and our mind, Jesus has taken on to himself and redeemed for us.
[22:24] Hallelujah. When we read the scriptures and meditate on the life of Jesus, we know that his actions on earth were truly done as a man.
[22:36] It wasn't some fakery or illusion or mask wearing. Jesus truly took to himself at the incarnation both a body and a soul like ours.
[22:50] He lived a truly human life for us and in our place. And again, there are many applications of these truths. Here's one. How do you feel when you wake up in the morning about your body?
[23:05] For many of us at a certain point in our lives, it's a battle. It's a battle. The aches and the pains and the stiffness, the limitations of not being able to get out this morning, to be with our friends.
[23:19] we'd love to babysit for someone, but we just don't have the energy. It may even be that our minds feel weak and frail and plagued by doubts and darkness at times.
[23:36] Well, the incarnation brings us hope and the incarnation seeds our patience for each and every day that is a struggle. Because Jesus lives forever in a human body, and with a human mind just like ours, forever united to a full humanity.
[23:55] He suffered common infirmities like us. He got tired. Jesus got weary. He knew true sorrow.
[24:05] He cried out in pain and anguish. When you read the Psalms, they are the words of Jesus. He knows you and he knows your pain.
[24:19] more than that, he has gone through pain and he has gone through death for you so that you may finally enjoy a body and a soul that is free from sin and free from all of life's infirmities.
[24:39] He suffered in the body for us that we may know ultimate relief and freedom in his sight forever.
[24:53] Jesus, however, was not just a man. The scriptures reveal time and again that the man, Jesus Christ, is also God himself.
[25:05] Come in the flesh. man. Jesus, Jesus, is the God man. His humanity was in closest possible relationship to his divine nature as is possible without mixing the two together.
[25:25] Luke chapter 1 again and the announcement to Mary verse 34. How will this be? Mary asked the angel, since I am a virgin.
[25:38] How can I conceive a baby? The angel answered, The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you, so the Holy One to be born will be called the Son of God.
[25:53] Jesus had a normal human birth, but his conception was anything but normal. we speak of the virgin birth, but really we should talk about the virginal conception.
[26:05] That would be more accurate. We see that the Holy One, the Son of God that was to be born, was conceived from the power of the Father and by the work of the Holy Spirit.
[26:19] And you see the triune God always works as one, Father, Son, and Spirit, and it's one action of all three persons of God in the virginal conception finds its ending on Jesus.
[26:34] And he is the one then that takes on a humanity to himself and is conceived within the womb of Mary by the power of God because nothing is impossible with God.
[26:47] And Luke paints an intimate portrait of this once-in-time conception as God works silently yet powerfully in the womb of Mary to bring about the miracle of God the Son in the flesh.
[27:02] And there's another portrait that I want to turn to and that's from the Gospel of John and we're moving around a little bit this morning in our Bibles but this is such a big theme it covers all of scriptures really.
[27:18] Christ coming to us. John chapter 1 and verse 14 and 18 because John in his Gospel he paints for us the same scene but from a different angle.
[27:33] It's like if Luke was an intimate portrait John is like the wide landscape. In John chapter 1 verse 14 the word that is Jesus eternally 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 and down to verse 18 no one has ever seen God but the one and only son who is himself God and in the closest relationship with the father has made him known cosmic scene spanning eternity the eternal word and John sees the eternal word in all his grand scope Jesus becoming flesh and dwelling amongst all of us the one and only son who is both
[28:36] God and at the same time in closest relationship with God the father comes as the light of the world like that blazing noonday sun at midnight he appears to make God known to a fallen humanity that is in darkness here then is true truth when we look at the man Jesus we are looking at God himself when we read of Mary becoming pregnant with a baby we can just a few verses later read of her cousin Elizabeth exclaiming to Mary that Mary is the mother of her Lord she recognizes and senses the divine baby in the womb this is no ordinary baby Jesus is God from God light from light true God from true God begotten not made one being with the father in the face of Jesus we see our creator in the flesh this divine person who has always been
[29:45] God this son in closest relationship to the father and spirit takes to himself the human nature body and soul but Jesus does not give up his divinity in any way Jesus is still living and acting through his divine nature one person he can act through his human nature he can act through his divine nature so Jesus through the divine nature is still upholding the universe Jesus is still ruling still sustaining life Jesus is one person and he's holding the life of Mary in his divine hands as she carries him in her womb and nurses him at her breast Jesus is nursed and feels and experiences life as dependent infant through his human nature and as he holds the universe together he knows all things and he sees all things and simultaneously
[30:53] Jesus is creating the breast milk that's sustaining his human life always remember it's one person acting through two natures man but why does it matter that Jesus is God the son we talked about it mattering that Jesus is like us that he's fully human but why does it matter that he is divine and surely like most people say we can look to Jesus and just get inspiration as a good man even a sinless man does he need to be this one person who is both God and man yes Jesus does for when Jesus came to the paralyzed man and he says to that paralyzed man these words your sins are forgiven those words are coming from the person of Jesus God the son incarnate this is the eternal word
[31:57] John says in the flesh and because he is Jesus God the son incarnate he has authority to forgive sins because he is God when he calms the storm it is Jesus that is acting through his human voice he commands be still but it is with God's authority and divine nature that he can make the wind and the waves obey that human voice the disciples are right to be afraid who is this man who is this man he is one Jesus two natures working together in perfect harmony and when Jesus goes to the cross and suffers and dies it's not just the righteous death of a sinful man sinless man it is
[33:00] Jesus God the son who suffers and dies in our place his infinite worth as the eternal and only son of the father purchases for us our salvation and not only our salvation but salvation for the whole world all who would come to him in repentance can be forgiven for their sins because Jesus is God the son eternally he can pay for your sins by his death on the cross and so this is good news good news for all of us believer unbeliever skeptic good news if you know Jesus you know God Jesus can say I am the way the truth and the life no one comes to the father except through me
[34:06] Jesus in the flesh can say before Abraham was I am you see he's not just a man doing his best in the world he is Jesus Christ God the son incarnate we see in his miracles we see in his forgiveness of sins we see his acceptance of worship we see in his use of God's names and titles he is truly God this is good news our bodies and minds will suffer and deteriorate throughout life but we know because Jesus came in the flesh they will be restored but because Jesus who came is also God almighty our greatest threat the ravages of death the ravages of guilt and the punishment for our sin are also taken care of you know we think our greatest struggle is to get by in this life but actually our greatest struggle is to overcome death our deep questions about who we are and where we came from and where we are going are all answered in
[35:27] Jesus he because he is God is inexhaustible he knows all things he sees all things has power over all things what worries you this week what ails you this week come to Jesus and lay it at his feet await his justice he is the universe upholding God we come to the incarnation to know Jesus to love Jesus to worship Jesus and proclaim Jesus do you know that he is both God and man rejoice the eternal salvation of your body soul and mind are really secured because of his coming in the flesh do you love Jesus do you love
[36:29] Jesus as you meditate on the mystery of the God man do you see his beauty his humility his servant heart for you and do you respond in love and obedience to him if you see him as he truly is you will love him do you worship Jesus only God deserves our worship and Jesus is God the son praise him set your heart on him desire him in all of your life do you proclaim Jesus do you speak to others of his unique life
[37:34] Christ alone Christ alone is able to save there is no other God there is no other religion there is no other path that can help you there is no one like Jesus the God man he is unique he alone is able to save share him and proclaim him confidently this Christmas with friends and family and neighbors we have a great message to proclaim to people a final quote as we finish from a theologian called B.B.
[38:31] Warfield as he contemplated Jesus the God man we must not we must know him not as a humanized God or a deified man but a true God man one who is all that God is and at the same time all that man is on whose mighty arm we can rest and to whose human sympathy we can appeal we cannot afford to either lose the God in the man or the man in the God our hearts cry out for the complete God man whom the scriptures offer us amen let's pray to to the