WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:03.100 Good morning. 00:00:06.379 --> 00:00:18.839 On April 12th, 1961, Russian cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin became the first human being to enter space and orbit the earth. 00:00:18.839 --> 00:00:23.760 ! This was a momentous event in human history. 00:00:23.760 --> 00:00:33.900 And if you know the history of that time, you know that it also spurred on the competitive space race between Russia and the United States, 00:00:33.900 --> 00:00:41.180 and it led to the massive expansion of NASA and ultimately the U.S. landing a man on the moon. 00:00:41.180 --> 00:00:47.500 But the Russian government used this moment to promote some bigger ideas. 00:00:47.500 --> 00:00:59.600 The Kremlin ended up producing lots of propaganda, including a poster of a picture of a cosmonaut in outer space saying a message, 00:00:59.700 --> 00:01:02.799 and the message said, there is no God. 00:01:03.899 --> 00:01:09.859 As if to say, we went to outer space, we looked around, we didn't find God, 00:01:09.960 --> 00:01:13.280 and so therefore that's clear and convincing proof that God does not exist. 00:01:13.280 --> 00:01:16.640 Were they right? 00:01:17.680 --> 00:01:18.280 Were they right? 00:01:18.340 --> 00:01:19.739 I think that's a totally fair question. 00:01:20.239 --> 00:01:24.879 I think for many people in our modern culture, perhaps even for some of you, 00:01:25.060 --> 00:01:27.079 this is a pretty convincing argument. 00:01:27.079 --> 00:01:32.900 If you broaden it out that we've, through science, we've looked at the world through empirical observation, 00:01:33.280 --> 00:01:37.060 and we have yet to find convincing proof of God. 00:01:37.060 --> 00:01:42.379 But this time of year, it's great to sing Christmas carols and spread holiday cheer, 00:01:42.519 --> 00:01:48.500 but at the end of the day, Christmas isn't a reason to believe in God. 00:01:50.060 --> 00:01:51.939 Now, that's one possible story, 00:01:52.939 --> 00:01:59.260 but we see another possible story in our gospel passage this morning in Matthew chapter 1, 00:01:59.260 --> 00:02:03.260 where we are introduced to somebody named Emmanuel. 00:02:03.640 --> 00:02:08.180 Emmanuel, this name that comes from a prophecy in Isaiah chapter 7, 00:02:08.300 --> 00:02:12.400 a name that means God with us, God with us. 00:02:13.120 --> 00:02:15.219 And this name, Emmanuel, God with us, 00:02:15.280 --> 00:02:18.879 is at the very heart of the Advent and Christmas season, 00:02:18.939 --> 00:02:21.040 and it's at the very heart of the Christian faith. 00:02:22.120 --> 00:02:23.819 And so a question that we have to ask this morning is, 00:02:23.819 --> 00:02:24.879 which story is true? 00:02:24.879 --> 00:02:29.759 Is the story that we've looked for God, 00:02:30.000 --> 00:02:32.659 but yet we haven't found any evidence of him, 00:02:32.759 --> 00:02:33.719 is that story true? 00:02:35.460 --> 00:02:40.259 Or is the story true that God has come to be with us? 00:02:40.979 --> 00:02:42.319 And that's what we're going to look at this morning. 00:02:43.139 --> 00:02:46.519 And also, if that story was true, what difference would it make? 00:02:47.060 --> 00:02:50.039 So we're going to look at this name, Emmanuel, God with us, 00:02:50.300 --> 00:02:53.060 and we're going to look at these two stories together. 00:02:53.060 --> 00:02:56.860 So first of all, Emmanuel means God with us. 00:02:57.259 --> 00:02:59.199 It means God with us. 00:02:59.659 --> 00:03:02.180 In Matthew chapter 1, verses 18 through 21, 00:03:02.979 --> 00:03:06.520 an angel appears to Joseph and tells him not to be afraid 00:03:06.520 --> 00:03:07.699 about Mary's pregnancy. 00:03:07.960 --> 00:03:11.120 Nothing scandalous or immoral has happened, 00:03:11.240 --> 00:03:13.819 but rather this has all happened through the initiative 00:03:13.819 --> 00:03:14.719 of the Holy Spirit. 00:03:15.180 --> 00:03:19.060 In verses 22 and 23, the angel says that this is to fulfill 00:03:19.060 --> 00:03:22.759 the words of the prophet Isaiah in Isaiah chapter 7, 00:03:23.360 --> 00:03:26.000 behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, 00:03:26.479 --> 00:03:29.080 and they shall call his name Emmanuel. 00:03:30.259 --> 00:03:34.659 Now, many people, I think, in our culture find this to be pretty 00:03:34.659 --> 00:03:36.000 irrational and implausible. 00:03:36.759 --> 00:03:38.840 Surely Jesus was a historical figure. 00:03:39.000 --> 00:03:41.500 He was a good spiritual leader and moral teacher, 00:03:41.500 --> 00:03:44.580 but he certainly wasn't conceived supernaturally. 00:03:45.219 --> 00:03:47.039 He certainly wasn't God. 00:03:47.039 --> 00:03:48.259 He certainly wasn't God. 00:03:49.180 --> 00:03:52.659 How could we possibly believe that story? 00:03:53.360 --> 00:03:56.199 But around the time that Yuri Gagarin, 00:03:56.439 --> 00:03:59.780 the Russian cosmonaut, went into space for the first time 00:03:59.780 --> 00:04:03.979 in the early 1960s, there was a professor of ancient literature 00:04:03.979 --> 00:04:07.019 at Cambridge University by the name of C.S. Lewis. 00:04:07.759 --> 00:04:13.679 And in 1963, Lewis published an essay responding to this claim 00:04:13.679 --> 00:04:18.099 that the Russians had been to space and confirmed that there is no God. 00:04:18.180 --> 00:04:19.879 And in this essay, Lewis writes this, 00:04:20.939 --> 00:04:23.939 the Russians, I am told, report that they have not found God 00:04:23.939 --> 00:04:24.759 in outer space. 00:04:25.899 --> 00:04:31.199 But looking for God or heaven by exploring space 00:04:31.199 --> 00:04:36.319 would be like reading or seeing all of Shakespeare's plays 00:04:36.319 --> 00:04:40.339 in the hopes that you find Shakespeare as one of the characters. 00:04:41.279 --> 00:04:44.680 If God does exist, he is related to the universe 00:04:44.680 --> 00:04:47.980 more as an author is related to a play 00:04:47.980 --> 00:04:52.980 than as one object in the universe is related to one another. 00:04:53.500 --> 00:04:58.240 He's saying if you're trying to find God in outer space 00:04:58.240 --> 00:05:02.319 would be like Hamlet trying to find Shakespeare. 00:05:03.360 --> 00:05:06.060 Hamlet could never possibly find Shakespeare 00:05:06.060 --> 00:05:09.060 by exploring and examining his own world. 00:05:09.180 --> 00:05:10.100 He would never find him. 00:05:11.660 --> 00:05:14.079 But that doesn't mean that is not evidence 00:05:14.079 --> 00:05:16.960 that Shakespeare does not exist. 00:05:17.980 --> 00:05:20.439 In other words, the claim that there's no empirical proof 00:05:20.439 --> 00:05:24.740 for God in the world is nowhere near a convincing argument 00:05:24.740 --> 00:05:27.100 that God does not exist. 00:05:27.740 --> 00:05:31.199 Why on earth would we assume that if God did exist 00:05:31.199 --> 00:05:32.660 that that is how we would find him? 00:05:33.699 --> 00:05:36.079 Of course we would never find him like that. 00:05:36.199 --> 00:05:39.439 For Hamlet, for Hamlet to know Shakespeare, 00:05:40.680 --> 00:05:44.139 Shakespeare would have to write himself into Hamlet's story. 00:05:45.120 --> 00:05:46.600 For Hamlet to know Shakespeare, 00:05:47.120 --> 00:05:48.879 Shakespeare would have to reveal himself 00:05:48.879 --> 00:05:50.920 to Hamlet in a personal way. 00:05:51.199 --> 00:05:53.780 And this is the claim that Christianity makes on the world. 00:05:53.779 --> 00:05:56.219 It's the claim that Christianity makes on the world 00:05:56.219 --> 00:05:57.899 at Advent and at Christmas 00:05:57.899 --> 00:05:59.599 that in the birth of Jesus Christ, 00:06:00.159 --> 00:06:04.159 God has written himself into our story. 00:06:05.039 --> 00:06:06.299 In the birth of Jesus Christ, 00:06:06.419 --> 00:06:08.679 God has revealed himself. 00:06:10.259 --> 00:06:12.819 You may say, well, I believe that Jesus 00:06:12.819 --> 00:06:13.839 was a historical person. 00:06:13.959 --> 00:06:16.399 I believe that he was a good spiritual and moral teacher. 00:06:16.899 --> 00:06:19.379 But I still can't quite believe in God 00:06:19.379 --> 00:06:21.399 because I don't see the historical evidence. 00:06:21.399 --> 00:06:25.459 And may I suggest that if that's your view 00:06:25.459 --> 00:06:26.659 and if that's where you're coming from, 00:06:27.599 --> 00:06:29.839 perhaps you haven't examined 00:06:29.839 --> 00:06:32.060 the historical evidence closely enough. 00:06:32.399 --> 00:06:33.399 Perhaps you haven't examined 00:06:33.399 --> 00:06:34.939 all of the historical evidence. 00:06:35.399 --> 00:06:36.319 Let's just look at one. 00:06:37.299 --> 00:06:40.459 If we look at the eyewitness accounts of the Gospels, 00:06:41.120 --> 00:06:43.919 which were reliably recorded and reliably transmitted, 00:06:44.500 --> 00:06:48.139 we see in the Gospels that lots of people come to Jesus 00:06:48.139 --> 00:06:50.599 and they don't just receive his teaching, 00:06:50.699 --> 00:06:52.060 but they actually worship him. 00:06:53.180 --> 00:06:55.599 That some people actually fall down on their knees 00:06:55.599 --> 00:06:58.159 and worship him as God. 00:06:58.300 --> 00:06:59.620 And what you need to understand 00:06:59.620 --> 00:07:02.139 is that this was a completely absurd 00:07:02.139 --> 00:07:06.339 and an even immoral thing to do in Jewish culture 00:07:06.339 --> 00:07:07.300 in the first century. 00:07:07.779 --> 00:07:11.139 In Jewish culture, it was completely blasphemous 00:07:11.139 --> 00:07:14.099 to treat another human being as God. 00:07:14.100 --> 00:07:16.000 Only God could be worshiped. 00:07:16.020 --> 00:07:17.980 And there were all kinds of traditions and laws 00:07:17.980 --> 00:07:22.939 that prevented people from treating other people like God. 00:07:23.720 --> 00:07:25.760 And what's amazing is that in the Gospels, 00:07:25.860 --> 00:07:29.420 in no one instance, does Jesus respond and say, 00:07:29.560 --> 00:07:31.820 hey, you've got the wrong person. 00:07:32.620 --> 00:07:34.240 You know, you've got the wrong idea. 00:07:34.340 --> 00:07:35.240 I'm just a rabbi. 00:07:35.300 --> 00:07:36.000 I'm just a teacher. 00:07:36.340 --> 00:07:37.160 I'm not God. 00:07:37.280 --> 00:07:37.980 Don't worship me. 00:07:38.100 --> 00:07:38.860 Worship God alone. 00:07:39.260 --> 00:07:41.320 No, in every instance, he doesn't turn them away, 00:07:41.319 --> 00:07:43.139 but he accepts it and he worships it. 00:07:43.420 --> 00:07:44.240 He welcomes it. 00:07:45.620 --> 00:07:46.920 Which, if you think about it, 00:07:47.000 --> 00:07:49.459 if he wasn't God, if that wasn't true, 00:07:51.079 --> 00:07:54.019 Jesus was either a fraud, a complete fraud, 00:07:54.459 --> 00:07:57.279 or he was a complete narcissist, 00:07:58.079 --> 00:07:59.519 or he was both. 00:08:01.339 --> 00:08:03.620 If you have captured this better than C.S. Lewis 00:08:03.620 --> 00:08:04.379 in mere Christianity, 00:08:05.240 --> 00:08:07.639 by the way, I try to limit my C.S. Lewis references 00:08:07.639 --> 00:08:09.279 to one in most sermons, 00:08:09.560 --> 00:08:11.939 but sometimes just, you gotta have two. 00:08:12.719 --> 00:08:13.800 This is one of those days. 00:08:14.659 --> 00:08:16.079 C.S. Lewis, mere Christianity, 00:08:16.979 --> 00:08:18.719 says, I'm trying here to prevent anyone 00:08:18.719 --> 00:08:20.899 saying the really foolish thing 00:08:20.899 --> 00:08:22.539 that people often say about Jesus. 00:08:23.339 --> 00:08:25.479 I'm ready to accept him as a great moral teacher, 00:08:25.879 --> 00:08:28.000 but I don't accept his claim to be God. 00:08:29.000 --> 00:08:31.360 That is the one thing we must not say. 00:08:32.259 --> 00:08:33.980 A man who is merely a man 00:08:33.980 --> 00:08:35.899 and said the sort of things Jesus said 00:08:35.899 --> 00:08:37.700 would not be a great moral teacher. 00:08:38.539 --> 00:08:40.139 He would either be a lunatic 00:08:40.139 --> 00:08:43.220 on a level with a man who says he is a poached egg, 00:08:43.580 --> 00:08:45.659 or else he would be the devil of hell. 00:08:46.639 --> 00:08:47.860 You must make your choice. 00:08:48.720 --> 00:08:51.000 Either this man was and is the son of God, 00:08:51.039 --> 00:08:52.980 or else a madman and something worse. 00:08:54.139 --> 00:08:55.659 You can shut him up for a fool. 00:08:56.600 --> 00:08:58.560 You can spit at him and kill him as a demon. 00:08:58.560 --> 00:09:01.560 Or you can fall at his feet 00:09:01.559 --> 00:09:02.919 and call him Lord and God. 00:09:04.000 --> 00:09:06.599 But let us not come up with any patronizing nonsense 00:09:06.599 --> 00:09:08.319 about him being a great human teacher. 00:09:09.219 --> 00:09:11.339 He has not left that open to us. 00:09:12.079 --> 00:09:13.659 He did not intend to. 00:09:14.759 --> 00:09:16.059 Lewis says, when it comes to Jesus, 00:09:16.159 --> 00:09:18.799 there's only really three rational responses 00:09:18.799 --> 00:09:20.479 if you consider the historical evidence. 00:09:20.899 --> 00:09:21.899 He's either a liar, 00:09:22.879 --> 00:09:25.139 or he's a lunatic, 00:09:25.979 --> 00:09:26.959 or he's Lord. 00:09:27.319 --> 00:09:28.719 He's either a complete fraud, 00:09:28.819 --> 00:09:30.099 he knew who he truly was 00:09:30.100 --> 00:09:31.899 and completely lied about it to everybody. 00:09:33.259 --> 00:09:35.540 Or he truly believed that he was God, 00:09:35.600 --> 00:09:36.800 but he in fact wasn't, 00:09:36.879 --> 00:09:38.980 which would make him insane. 00:09:40.019 --> 00:09:43.800 Or he actually is who he says he is. 00:09:45.120 --> 00:09:47.259 If the Christmas story is true, 00:09:47.340 --> 00:09:50.460 it means that Jesus is Emmanuel. 00:09:50.740 --> 00:09:53.519 It means that he's God with us. 00:09:54.000 --> 00:09:55.019 We can't just think of him 00:09:55.019 --> 00:09:57.060 as a good teacher or spiritual leader, 00:09:57.059 --> 00:09:58.959 but as someone who has the right 00:09:58.959 --> 00:10:00.959 to make claims on our lives. 00:10:02.059 --> 00:10:04.299 As somebody who deserves our worship 00:10:04.299 --> 00:10:05.699 and who deserves our obedience 00:10:05.699 --> 00:10:08.839 in every single aspect of our lives. 00:10:09.359 --> 00:10:10.419 And so we have to decide, 00:10:10.619 --> 00:10:11.919 was Jesus a fraud? 00:10:12.739 --> 00:10:14.599 Was he a narcissist or a liar? 00:10:15.599 --> 00:10:16.679 Or was he God? 00:10:16.679 --> 00:10:18.899 So first of all, 00:10:19.379 --> 00:10:21.719 Emmanuel means that Jesus is God. 00:10:21.839 --> 00:10:22.339 Second of all, 00:10:23.079 --> 00:10:25.899 it means that he is God with us. 00:10:26.579 --> 00:10:28.519 He's God with us. 00:10:29.039 --> 00:10:29.839 In the Old Testament, 00:10:30.000 --> 00:10:31.919 it was always a pretty radical thing 00:10:31.919 --> 00:10:34.019 when people got to be with God, 00:10:34.139 --> 00:10:35.139 to be in his presence. 00:10:35.839 --> 00:10:37.699 God appeared to Israel on Mount Sinai 00:10:37.699 --> 00:10:39.179 with a cloud of fire 00:10:39.179 --> 00:10:40.579 and an earthquake 00:10:40.579 --> 00:10:43.039 and the roaring sound of trumpets. 00:10:43.039 --> 00:10:44.079 And of course, 00:10:44.139 --> 00:10:45.139 if you know the Exodus story, 00:10:45.240 --> 00:10:47.439 no one could even go close to the mountain 00:10:47.439 --> 00:10:48.339 except for Moses. 00:10:49.120 --> 00:10:49.980 God told people, 00:10:50.179 --> 00:10:51.579 if you even touch the mountain, 00:10:52.199 --> 00:10:53.120 you're gonna die. 00:10:54.219 --> 00:10:55.500 Encountering the presence of God 00:10:55.500 --> 00:10:56.599 in the Old Testament 00:10:56.599 --> 00:10:59.219 is kind of like dealing with nuclear radiation. 00:11:00.139 --> 00:11:01.659 To deal with nuclear radiation, 00:11:01.799 --> 00:11:02.799 you need a lot of preparation. 00:11:03.319 --> 00:11:06.360 There's a lot of rules that you have to learn, 00:11:06.399 --> 00:11:07.139 a lot of protocols, 00:11:07.299 --> 00:11:08.039 and there's a lot of stuff 00:11:08.039 --> 00:11:08.980 that you have to wear. 00:11:09.459 --> 00:11:11.000 You have to have the right credentials. 00:11:11.000 --> 00:11:12.919 You have to wear a really expensive suit. 00:11:13.599 --> 00:11:14.860 And if you don't do that, 00:11:14.899 --> 00:11:15.939 if you become unprepared, 00:11:16.480 --> 00:11:17.699 it's gonna kill you. 00:11:19.079 --> 00:11:21.240 And that's what kind of the tabernacle 00:11:21.240 --> 00:11:22.199 and the temple 00:11:22.199 --> 00:11:23.699 and the sacrificial system 00:11:23.699 --> 00:11:24.919 were for Israel. 00:11:25.319 --> 00:11:26.740 They were to prepare people, 00:11:27.799 --> 00:11:29.039 an unholy people, 00:11:29.819 --> 00:11:33.059 to encounter a holy, radioactive God. 00:11:34.839 --> 00:11:36.360 There's this line in Lord of the Rings 00:11:36.360 --> 00:11:38.799 where in the fellowship with the ring, 00:11:39.179 --> 00:11:40.559 where they're figuring out 00:11:40.559 --> 00:11:41.319 what to do with the ring 00:11:41.319 --> 00:11:42.459 and Boromir says, 00:11:43.039 --> 00:11:46.679 one does not simply just walk into Mordor. 00:11:48.059 --> 00:11:50.079 But one does not simply just walk 00:11:50.079 --> 00:11:53.240 into the presence of an awesome holy God. 00:11:53.319 --> 00:11:56.599 He is like radioactive nuclear radiation. 00:11:58.159 --> 00:12:00.360 His glory will melt your face off. 00:12:00.360 --> 00:12:03.360 And yet, 00:12:03.680 --> 00:12:05.379 and yet, 00:12:05.480 --> 00:12:08.240 the news of Advent and Christmas 00:12:08.240 --> 00:12:10.759 is that the God who was so radioactive, 00:12:11.120 --> 00:12:12.320 the God who was so glorious, 00:12:12.740 --> 00:12:14.000 the God who was so holy, 00:12:15.180 --> 00:12:16.259 came into the world. 00:12:17.560 --> 00:12:18.720 Came into the world 00:12:18.720 --> 00:12:20.600 as a baby. 00:12:20.600 --> 00:12:23.899 This is something I've been thinking about 00:12:23.899 --> 00:12:24.779 a lot recently 00:12:24.779 --> 00:12:25.259 because, 00:12:26.019 --> 00:12:27.019 as many of you know, 00:12:27.120 --> 00:12:28.240 my wife Molly and I 00:12:28.240 --> 00:12:29.820 are expecting our first child, 00:12:30.279 --> 00:12:31.379 which is really exciting. 00:12:31.580 --> 00:12:32.399 We're thrilled. 00:12:33.259 --> 00:12:35.420 We're very excited to be parents. 00:12:35.560 --> 00:12:37.560 It's a very exciting season in our lives. 00:12:37.559 --> 00:12:38.519 And so, 00:12:38.679 --> 00:12:38.979 Advent, 00:12:39.419 --> 00:12:42.619 as parents who are expecting our first child, 00:12:43.279 --> 00:12:45.899 Advent has made me think in a new way 00:12:45.899 --> 00:12:47.979 about the reality of the incarnation. 00:12:48.719 --> 00:12:49.319 And in particular, 00:12:49.479 --> 00:12:50.879 I've been thinking a lot about this question. 00:12:50.879 --> 00:12:52.220 why, 00:12:53.539 --> 00:12:54.139 for Jesus, 00:12:54.240 --> 00:12:56.220 did he have to come as a baby? 00:12:58.259 --> 00:12:59.879 Why couldn't he have just come 00:12:59.879 --> 00:13:01.240 as a fully formed adult? 00:13:02.220 --> 00:13:04.080 He still could have been 00:13:04.080 --> 00:13:06.279 Trinitarian Orthodox, 00:13:06.539 --> 00:13:07.679 could have still been fully human, 00:13:07.820 --> 00:13:08.419 fully divine. 00:13:08.919 --> 00:13:09.840 He could have just come 00:13:09.840 --> 00:13:11.500 as a 33-year-old adult, 00:13:11.939 --> 00:13:12.799 showed up on the scene, 00:13:13.159 --> 00:13:14.159 and done his ministry, 00:13:14.519 --> 00:13:16.039 and done everything else that he did. 00:13:16.080 --> 00:13:18.480 So why did he have to come as a baby? 00:13:19.220 --> 00:13:19.440 Well, 00:13:19.480 --> 00:13:19.960 there's a lot 00:13:19.960 --> 00:13:21.560 that we could say 00:13:21.560 --> 00:13:24.540 in response to that question. 00:13:25.180 --> 00:13:26.259 But I think one of the things 00:13:26.259 --> 00:13:27.480 that we have to say is this. 00:13:28.379 --> 00:13:28.540 You know, 00:13:28.560 --> 00:13:30.840 I think it's a common human experience, 00:13:31.100 --> 00:13:34.100 whether we're Christian or not, 00:13:34.180 --> 00:13:35.800 whether we're religious or not, 00:13:36.160 --> 00:13:36.620 is, 00:13:37.220 --> 00:13:38.580 how can I know 00:13:38.580 --> 00:13:40.540 that I'm not alone? 00:13:42.080 --> 00:13:43.180 How can I know 00:13:43.180 --> 00:13:45.519 that God is with me? 00:13:45.620 --> 00:13:46.340 How can I know 00:13:46.340 --> 00:13:48.759 that God hasn't abandoned me? 00:13:48.759 --> 00:13:50.639 Perhaps that's a question 00:13:50.639 --> 00:13:51.200 that you're wondering 00:13:51.200 --> 00:13:52.059 this morning 00:13:52.059 --> 00:13:53.360 as you're coming into worship. 00:13:53.980 --> 00:13:55.100 Where is God 00:13:55.100 --> 00:13:56.000 in this struggle 00:13:56.000 --> 00:13:57.419 that I'm facing? 00:13:59.639 --> 00:14:00.779 Where is God 00:14:00.779 --> 00:14:03.019 in this diagnosis? 00:14:05.740 --> 00:14:06.840 Where is God 00:14:06.840 --> 00:14:07.939 when it feels like 00:14:07.939 --> 00:14:09.879 my life is falling apart? 00:14:12.700 --> 00:14:13.639 Where is God 00:14:13.639 --> 00:14:14.240 when it feels like 00:14:14.240 --> 00:14:15.580 the world is falling apart? 00:14:15.580 --> 00:14:19.440 Where is God? 00:14:19.560 --> 00:14:20.860 Are we alone 00:14:20.860 --> 00:14:22.000 ultimately? 00:14:23.379 --> 00:14:24.320 And I want us 00:14:24.320 --> 00:14:25.240 to consider the fact 00:14:25.240 --> 00:14:26.639 that God didn't just show up 00:14:26.639 --> 00:14:27.320 on the scene 00:14:27.320 --> 00:14:29.480 as a fully formed human. 00:14:29.800 --> 00:14:31.520 He became a baby. 00:14:33.180 --> 00:14:35.259 There is no one 00:14:35.259 --> 00:14:36.820 so more vulnerable. 00:14:37.300 --> 00:14:38.360 There is no one 00:14:38.360 --> 00:14:39.000 more open. 00:14:39.259 --> 00:14:39.980 There is no one 00:14:39.980 --> 00:14:40.720 more accessible. 00:14:40.720 --> 00:14:42.360 there is no one 00:14:42.360 --> 00:14:43.840 who is more completely 00:14:43.840 --> 00:14:45.060 and totally 00:14:45.060 --> 00:14:46.019 with you 00:14:46.019 --> 00:14:46.920 than a baby. 00:14:48.360 --> 00:14:49.420 For nine months 00:14:49.420 --> 00:14:50.040 during pregnancy 00:14:50.040 --> 00:14:50.980 and then for many months 00:14:50.980 --> 00:14:51.560 after that 00:14:51.560 --> 00:14:53.340 all babies can do 00:14:53.340 --> 00:14:54.060 all they know 00:14:54.060 --> 00:14:54.560 how to do 00:14:54.560 --> 00:14:56.580 is just be there 00:14:56.580 --> 00:14:57.940 with you. 00:14:59.279 --> 00:15:00.160 They're sleeping 00:15:00.160 --> 00:15:00.920 they're eating 00:15:00.920 --> 00:15:01.519 they're crying 00:15:01.519 --> 00:15:02.300 they're making 00:15:02.300 --> 00:15:03.100 dirty diapers 00:15:03.100 --> 00:15:03.820 of course 00:15:03.820 --> 00:15:05.960 but they're just 00:15:05.960 --> 00:15:06.519 there. 00:15:07.100 --> 00:15:07.840 They're there. 00:15:07.840 --> 00:15:07.920 They're there. 00:15:07.919 --> 00:15:13.379 What if God 00:15:13.379 --> 00:15:15.919 came as a baby 00:15:15.919 --> 00:15:18.279 so that you could know 00:15:18.279 --> 00:15:19.839 beyond a shadow 00:15:19.839 --> 00:15:20.399 of a doubt 00:15:20.399 --> 00:15:21.679 that he's like that 00:15:21.679 --> 00:15:22.419 with you? 00:15:23.899 --> 00:15:25.539 He's just there. 00:15:26.399 --> 00:15:27.319 He's with you 00:15:27.319 --> 00:15:29.039 all the time 00:15:29.039 --> 00:15:30.019 24-7 00:15:30.019 --> 00:15:31.279 night and day 00:15:31.279 --> 00:15:32.120 every other 00:15:32.120 --> 00:15:33.079 religion 00:15:33.079 --> 00:15:33.779 and philosophy 00:15:33.779 --> 00:15:34.659 says here's what 00:15:34.659 --> 00:15:35.459 you need to do 00:15:35.459 --> 00:15:36.599 in order to be 00:15:36.599 --> 00:15:37.039 with God. 00:15:37.919 --> 00:15:38.919 Here's what you 00:15:38.919 --> 00:15:39.459 need to do 00:15:39.459 --> 00:15:40.159 in order to be 00:15:40.159 --> 00:15:40.919 with the divine. 00:15:42.639 --> 00:15:43.679 Only Christianity 00:15:43.679 --> 00:15:44.419 says 00:15:44.419 --> 00:15:46.959 look at what God 00:15:46.959 --> 00:15:48.019 did to come 00:15:48.019 --> 00:15:49.139 and be with you. 00:15:50.939 --> 00:15:51.919 Look at what God 00:15:51.919 --> 00:15:52.599 did to come 00:15:52.599 --> 00:15:53.199 and be 00:15:53.199 --> 00:15:54.059 with you. 00:15:54.139 --> 00:15:54.779 Look at what he did 00:15:54.779 --> 00:15:55.360 to make himself 00:15:55.360 --> 00:15:56.360 utterly available 00:15:56.360 --> 00:15:56.839 to you. 00:15:57.899 --> 00:15:58.799 Look at what he did 00:15:58.799 --> 00:15:59.360 to make himself 00:15:59.360 --> 00:16:00.379 utterly open 00:16:00.379 --> 00:16:01.399 to you. 00:16:02.199 --> 00:16:02.899 The God 00:16:02.899 --> 00:16:03.779 who revealed himself 00:16:03.779 --> 00:16:04.919 in radioactive glory 00:16:04.919 --> 00:16:05.679 on Mount Sinai 00:16:05.679 --> 00:16:06.359 the God 00:16:06.359 --> 00:16:06.779 who created 00:16:06.779 --> 00:16:07.359 the world 00:16:07.359 --> 00:16:08.339 and the glory 00:16:08.339 --> 00:16:10.139 of the galaxies 00:16:10.139 --> 00:16:10.919 and the billions 00:16:10.919 --> 00:16:11.439 of stars 00:16:11.439 --> 00:16:12.139 in our universe 00:16:12.139 --> 00:16:14.179 is here. 00:16:15.019 --> 00:16:15.959 He's available. 00:16:17.000 --> 00:16:17.699 You have access 00:16:17.699 --> 00:16:18.239 to him 00:16:18.239 --> 00:16:19.519 by faith. 00:16:19.599 --> 00:16:20.559 What's so amazing 00:16:20.559 --> 00:16:21.339 about the incarnation 00:16:21.339 --> 00:16:22.739 is that we have 00:16:22.739 --> 00:16:24.519 this rock-solid 00:16:24.519 --> 00:16:24.939 assurance 00:16:24.939 --> 00:16:25.639 that God 00:16:25.639 --> 00:16:26.419 is always 00:16:26.419 --> 00:16:27.519 with us, 00:16:28.179 --> 00:16:29.399 that he'll never 00:16:29.399 --> 00:16:29.819 leave us 00:16:29.819 --> 00:16:30.439 and he'll never 00:16:30.439 --> 00:16:31.259 forsake us. 00:16:31.259 --> 00:16:33.519 let's look back 00:16:33.519 --> 00:16:34.799 at those two stories 00:16:34.799 --> 00:16:36.019 that we talked 00:16:36.019 --> 00:16:36.639 about in the beginning. 00:16:36.840 --> 00:16:37.659 Story number one, 00:16:38.419 --> 00:16:39.159 there's no God. 00:16:39.259 --> 00:16:39.720 We call this 00:16:39.720 --> 00:16:40.620 a secular story. 00:16:42.539 --> 00:16:43.600 If the secular 00:16:43.600 --> 00:16:44.639 story is true, 00:16:46.139 --> 00:16:48.039 then in the moments 00:16:48.039 --> 00:16:48.799 where you feel 00:16:48.799 --> 00:16:49.500 most alone, 00:16:51.080 --> 00:16:51.819 in the moments 00:16:51.819 --> 00:16:52.399 where you feel 00:16:52.399 --> 00:16:54.700 like I'm incredibly 00:16:54.700 --> 00:16:55.000 lonely, 00:16:55.120 --> 00:16:55.620 there's no one 00:16:55.620 --> 00:16:56.120 with me, 00:16:58.120 --> 00:16:59.539 if that story 00:16:59.539 --> 00:17:00.120 is true, 00:17:00.679 --> 00:17:01.639 then you're right. 00:17:02.740 --> 00:17:03.740 You are alone. 00:17:04.859 --> 00:17:05.740 There's no one 00:17:05.740 --> 00:17:07.139 ultimately with you. 00:17:08.420 --> 00:17:10.960 Your deepest feelings 00:17:10.960 --> 00:17:11.759 of being abandoned, 00:17:11.960 --> 00:17:12.779 your deepest feelings 00:17:12.779 --> 00:17:13.879 that there's no one 00:17:13.879 --> 00:17:14.379 with you 00:17:14.379 --> 00:17:15.960 are right 00:17:15.960 --> 00:17:16.680 and they're true. 00:17:19.180 --> 00:17:20.039 But if we look 00:17:20.039 --> 00:17:20.899 at the second story, 00:17:21.579 --> 00:17:23.240 if the second story 00:17:23.240 --> 00:17:23.859 is that God 00:17:23.859 --> 00:17:24.420 has come to be 00:17:24.420 --> 00:17:24.899 with us 00:17:24.899 --> 00:17:25.599 in Emmanuel, 00:17:26.220 --> 00:17:27.460 then when we 00:17:27.460 --> 00:17:27.980 experience 00:17:27.980 --> 00:17:28.819 those very same 00:17:28.819 --> 00:17:29.399 feelings, 00:17:29.539 --> 00:17:31.259 when we experience 00:17:31.259 --> 00:17:32.299 those very same 00:17:32.299 --> 00:17:32.759 emotions 00:17:32.759 --> 00:17:34.200 that we're alone, 00:17:34.379 --> 00:17:34.899 there's no one 00:17:34.899 --> 00:17:35.519 with us, 00:17:36.519 --> 00:17:37.940 if that story 00:17:37.940 --> 00:17:38.519 is true, 00:17:39.159 --> 00:17:41.119 then nothing, 00:17:41.559 --> 00:17:42.500 nothing could be 00:17:42.500 --> 00:17:43.319 further from the truth. 00:17:44.399 --> 00:17:46.159 Our deepest sense, 00:17:46.299 --> 00:17:47.319 our deepest feelings 00:17:47.319 --> 00:17:48.779 that we feel alone, 00:17:49.319 --> 00:17:50.099 there's nothing 00:17:50.099 --> 00:17:50.920 that could be further 00:17:50.920 --> 00:17:51.960 than the truth 00:17:51.960 --> 00:17:52.960 because God 00:17:52.960 --> 00:17:53.859 has promised 00:17:53.859 --> 00:17:55.639 to always be with us. 00:17:56.200 --> 00:17:57.220 Whether we feel it 00:17:57.220 --> 00:17:57.579 or not, 00:17:57.659 --> 00:17:58.359 whether we know it 00:17:58.359 --> 00:17:58.719 or not, 00:17:58.879 --> 00:18:00.039 he's there. 00:18:01.019 --> 00:18:02.599 He's with us. 00:18:04.319 --> 00:18:05.059 So Jesus, 00:18:06.619 --> 00:18:07.419 Emmanuel means 00:18:07.419 --> 00:18:08.279 Jesus is God. 00:18:09.339 --> 00:18:10.139 Emmanuel means 00:18:10.139 --> 00:18:11.019 Jesus is God 00:18:11.019 --> 00:18:14.219 with us. 00:18:14.579 --> 00:18:15.439 And third, 00:18:15.579 --> 00:18:16.059 and finally, 00:18:16.479 --> 00:18:17.479 Emmanuel means 00:18:17.479 --> 00:18:18.439 that Jesus 00:18:18.439 --> 00:18:19.240 is God 00:18:19.240 --> 00:18:20.399 with us. 00:18:20.839 --> 00:18:21.439 He's God 00:18:21.439 --> 00:18:22.359 with us. 00:18:24.039 --> 00:18:24.679 Verse 21, 00:18:24.680 --> 00:18:25.920 the angel says to Joseph, 00:18:26.420 --> 00:18:27.160 she will give birth 00:18:27.160 --> 00:18:27.680 to a son 00:18:27.680 --> 00:18:29.560 and you are to give him 00:18:29.560 --> 00:18:30.400 the name Jesus 00:18:30.400 --> 00:18:31.980 because he will save 00:18:31.980 --> 00:18:32.580 his people 00:18:32.580 --> 00:18:34.200 from their sins. 00:18:34.320 --> 00:18:35.620 Many Bibles 00:18:35.620 --> 00:18:36.720 have a footnote, 00:18:36.840 --> 00:18:37.799 probably yours does, 00:18:38.220 --> 00:18:39.180 a footnote on that verse 00:18:39.180 --> 00:18:40.080 that says that Jesus 00:18:40.080 --> 00:18:41.779 is the Greek name 00:18:41.779 --> 00:18:43.039 for the word Joshua, 00:18:43.299 --> 00:18:44.060 the name Joshua, 00:18:44.320 --> 00:18:44.960 which means 00:18:44.960 --> 00:18:46.140 the Lord saves. 00:18:46.140 --> 00:18:46.259 Jesus. 00:18:47.700 --> 00:18:48.940 Why was Jesus 00:18:48.940 --> 00:18:50.220 born into this world? 00:18:51.780 --> 00:18:52.700 He was born 00:18:52.700 --> 00:18:53.500 into the world 00:18:53.500 --> 00:18:54.920 to save us 00:18:54.920 --> 00:18:56.540 from our sins, 00:18:57.140 --> 00:18:57.700 to save us 00:18:57.700 --> 00:18:58.340 from our sins. 00:18:58.740 --> 00:18:58.960 Now, 00:18:59.020 --> 00:18:59.860 I think it's worth noting 00:18:59.860 --> 00:19:00.660 that I think a lot of people 00:19:00.660 --> 00:19:01.100 in our culture, 00:19:01.200 --> 00:19:02.220 a lot of modern people, 00:19:02.920 --> 00:19:03.960 educated, 00:19:04.180 --> 00:19:04.620 sophisticated, 00:19:05.280 --> 00:19:06.040 thoughtful people, 00:19:06.039 --> 00:19:08.399 I think it's fairly 00:19:08.399 --> 00:19:09.759 narrow-minded, 00:19:10.940 --> 00:19:11.879 fairly outdated, 00:19:12.099 --> 00:19:12.819 morally regressive 00:19:12.819 --> 00:19:14.740 to believe in the doctrine 00:19:14.740 --> 00:19:15.659 of original sin. 00:19:16.960 --> 00:19:18.359 But I would actually say 00:19:18.359 --> 00:19:20.180 that sin is the doctrine 00:19:20.180 --> 00:19:21.000 that our culture 00:19:21.000 --> 00:19:22.339 needs the most, 00:19:22.920 --> 00:19:23.980 needs the most. 00:19:24.759 --> 00:19:26.240 Alexander Solzhenitsyn 00:19:26.240 --> 00:19:28.720 was a Russian author 00:19:28.720 --> 00:19:30.839 who was imprisoned 00:19:30.839 --> 00:19:32.119 and sentenced to work 00:19:32.119 --> 00:19:33.059 in the gulag 00:19:33.059 --> 00:19:33.899 in prison camps 00:19:33.899 --> 00:19:34.879 under the Soviet Union 00:19:34.880 --> 00:19:35.720 for speaking out 00:19:35.720 --> 00:19:36.460 against the government. 00:19:36.620 --> 00:19:37.980 And as he's in prison, 00:19:38.160 --> 00:19:39.380 he's thinking and writing, 00:19:39.900 --> 00:19:40.680 and he's writing 00:19:40.680 --> 00:19:41.560 about how the culture 00:19:41.560 --> 00:19:42.500 that he lived in 00:19:42.500 --> 00:19:44.000 believed fundamentally 00:19:44.000 --> 00:19:45.840 that the dividing line 00:19:45.840 --> 00:19:46.900 between good and evil 00:19:46.900 --> 00:19:49.720 ran between groups of people, 00:19:50.380 --> 00:19:51.800 between this group of people 00:19:51.800 --> 00:19:52.900 and that group of people. 00:19:53.560 --> 00:19:54.300 And he says, 00:19:54.440 --> 00:19:55.280 he's reflecting on this, 00:19:55.340 --> 00:19:55.580 he says, 00:19:55.640 --> 00:19:55.780 you know, 00:19:55.800 --> 00:19:56.620 if that were actually true, 00:19:56.660 --> 00:19:57.440 we would have solved 00:19:57.440 --> 00:19:58.880 humanity's problems 00:19:58.880 --> 00:19:59.600 a long time ago. 00:20:00.100 --> 00:20:01.700 If humanity was divided up 00:20:01.700 --> 00:20:02.500 between good people 00:20:02.500 --> 00:20:03.240 and bad people, 00:20:03.700 --> 00:20:04.860 all we would have to do 00:20:04.859 --> 00:20:05.699 is just separate 00:20:05.699 --> 00:20:06.240 the good people 00:20:06.240 --> 00:20:07.059 from the bad people 00:20:07.059 --> 00:20:08.299 and then society 00:20:08.299 --> 00:20:08.859 would flourish. 00:20:10.419 --> 00:20:11.879 And many systems 00:20:11.879 --> 00:20:12.299 and governments 00:20:12.299 --> 00:20:13.039 have tried to do that 00:20:13.039 --> 00:20:13.719 over the years 00:20:13.719 --> 00:20:15.959 and it has ended horrifically. 00:20:17.759 --> 00:20:18.479 Solzhenitsyn says, 00:20:18.559 --> 00:20:19.459 the reason why we haven't 00:20:19.459 --> 00:20:20.240 been able to solve 00:20:20.240 --> 00:20:21.719 humanity's basic problems 00:20:21.719 --> 00:20:23.000 is because the dividing line 00:20:23.000 --> 00:20:23.779 between good and evil 00:20:23.779 --> 00:20:24.699 does not run 00:20:24.699 --> 00:20:25.740 between groups of people. 00:20:27.519 --> 00:20:28.819 He says that it cuts 00:20:28.819 --> 00:20:29.439 through the heart 00:20:29.439 --> 00:20:30.819 of every single person. 00:20:30.819 --> 00:20:33.039 The dividing line 00:20:33.039 --> 00:20:33.659 of good and evil 00:20:33.659 --> 00:20:35.059 cuts through the heart 00:20:35.059 --> 00:20:36.379 of your heart 00:20:36.379 --> 00:20:37.299 and my heart. 00:20:39.099 --> 00:20:40.299 If the dividing line 00:20:40.299 --> 00:20:41.200 between good and evil, 00:20:42.259 --> 00:20:43.539 if we believe fundamentally 00:20:43.539 --> 00:20:44.759 that the dividing line 00:20:44.759 --> 00:20:45.879 runs through groups of people, 00:20:46.519 --> 00:20:47.139 the oppression 00:20:47.139 --> 00:20:48.339 and violence 00:20:48.339 --> 00:20:48.859 and injustice 00:20:48.859 --> 00:20:49.339 in the world 00:20:49.339 --> 00:20:50.240 will never stop. 00:20:50.939 --> 00:20:52.259 We'll always have an enemy, 00:20:52.399 --> 00:20:53.299 it will always be us 00:20:53.299 --> 00:20:53.879 versus them, 00:20:53.980 --> 00:20:54.679 but if, 00:20:55.679 --> 00:20:56.759 if the dividing line 00:20:56.759 --> 00:20:57.480 between good and evil 00:20:57.480 --> 00:20:58.439 cuts through the heart 00:20:58.440 --> 00:20:59.039 of every person. 00:21:00.259 --> 00:21:01.759 That is our only hope 00:21:01.759 --> 00:21:03.559 of seeing society healed 00:21:03.559 --> 00:21:04.880 because it's the most 00:21:04.880 --> 00:21:05.600 fundamental basis 00:21:05.600 --> 00:21:05.960 to say, 00:21:06.100 --> 00:21:06.900 I'm no better than you. 00:21:07.460 --> 00:21:08.480 I'm not more righteous 00:21:08.480 --> 00:21:08.960 than you 00:21:08.960 --> 00:21:10.480 because the evil 00:21:10.480 --> 00:21:11.480 that exists in the world 00:21:11.480 --> 00:21:12.519 isn't just out there, 00:21:12.600 --> 00:21:13.100 it's in here. 00:21:13.700 --> 00:21:14.539 It's in here. 00:21:15.799 --> 00:21:16.980 And this is what it means 00:21:16.980 --> 00:21:17.940 when the Bible 00:21:17.940 --> 00:21:18.920 talks about sin 00:21:18.920 --> 00:21:21.200 and it's why Jesus was born. 00:21:21.900 --> 00:21:23.259 We all need to be rescued 00:21:23.259 --> 00:21:24.160 from the same problem 00:21:24.160 --> 00:21:24.860 and it doesn't matter 00:21:24.860 --> 00:21:26.500 our race, class, 00:21:26.660 --> 00:21:27.019 ethnicity, 00:21:27.240 --> 00:21:28.019 social status, 00:21:28.440 --> 00:21:29.140 rich, poor, 00:21:29.259 --> 00:21:30.160 Democrat, Republican. 00:21:30.559 --> 00:21:31.360 The Bible teaches 00:21:31.360 --> 00:21:32.680 that we all fall short 00:21:32.680 --> 00:21:33.759 of God's holy standard 00:21:33.759 --> 00:21:34.940 of our lives 00:21:34.940 --> 00:21:35.980 and we've all committed 00:21:35.980 --> 00:21:37.120 treason against 00:21:37.120 --> 00:21:38.039 the king of the universe. 00:21:38.240 --> 00:21:38.680 We've all, 00:21:38.840 --> 00:21:41.080 we all owe God a debt 00:21:41.080 --> 00:21:42.059 that we cannot repay. 00:21:42.960 --> 00:21:44.259 We are hopelessly 00:21:44.259 --> 00:21:45.440 and irrevocably 00:21:45.440 --> 00:21:46.680 lost in our sin. 00:21:47.580 --> 00:21:48.660 That's the human condition. 00:21:49.740 --> 00:21:50.500 But the good news 00:21:50.500 --> 00:21:50.940 of Christmas 00:21:50.940 --> 00:21:52.940 is not just that God, 00:21:53.279 --> 00:21:54.240 that Jesus is God. 00:21:54.240 --> 00:21:54.319 God. 00:21:56.960 --> 00:21:57.920 It's that he's God 00:21:57.920 --> 00:21:58.519 with us. 00:21:59.740 --> 00:22:00.900 He's God with us. 00:22:00.980 --> 00:22:01.620 On the cross, 00:22:02.019 --> 00:22:03.359 Jesus took the evil 00:22:03.359 --> 00:22:04.140 that's inside 00:22:04.140 --> 00:22:05.180 each and every one of us 00:22:05.180 --> 00:22:05.920 and he placed it 00:22:05.920 --> 00:22:06.539 on himself 00:22:06.539 --> 00:22:07.880 so that we can be 00:22:07.880 --> 00:22:09.440 forgiven and reconciled 00:22:09.440 --> 00:22:10.339 to God. 00:22:10.640 --> 00:22:11.460 And this is not just 00:22:11.460 --> 00:22:11.960 good news 00:22:11.960 --> 00:22:13.539 for us as individuals, 00:22:13.700 --> 00:22:14.279 it's good news 00:22:14.279 --> 00:22:14.920 for the whole world. 00:22:15.620 --> 00:22:16.720 Because if we admit 00:22:16.720 --> 00:22:17.700 that Jesus was born 00:22:17.700 --> 00:22:18.579 to save us 00:22:18.579 --> 00:22:19.279 from what's inside 00:22:19.279 --> 00:22:19.839 our hearts, 00:22:20.140 --> 00:22:21.200 then we can't look 00:22:21.200 --> 00:22:21.600 at someone 00:22:21.600 --> 00:22:22.039 who's different 00:22:22.039 --> 00:22:22.519 from us 00:22:22.519 --> 00:22:23.460 and hate them. 00:22:24.519 --> 00:22:25.900 We can never truly 00:22:25.900 --> 00:22:26.860 hate other people. 00:22:28.059 --> 00:22:28.240 You know, 00:22:28.620 --> 00:22:29.500 in the Sermon on the Mount, 00:22:29.600 --> 00:22:30.080 Jesus says, 00:22:30.400 --> 00:22:30.860 love your enemies. 00:22:32.480 --> 00:22:33.559 And this isn't 00:22:33.559 --> 00:22:36.380 a cute phrase 00:22:36.380 --> 00:22:37.220 on a coffee mug. 00:22:37.600 --> 00:22:38.400 It's not also 00:22:38.400 --> 00:22:39.279 an unattainable 00:22:39.279 --> 00:22:40.059 ethical ideal. 00:22:40.319 --> 00:22:41.259 It's a declaration 00:22:41.259 --> 00:22:42.519 about the only 00:22:42.519 --> 00:22:43.920 rational response 00:22:43.920 --> 00:22:45.840 to the grace 00:22:45.840 --> 00:22:46.500 that we've been given 00:22:46.500 --> 00:22:47.340 in Christ. 00:22:48.519 --> 00:22:49.259 Do you see? 00:22:49.259 --> 00:22:51.559 Do you see this morning 00:22:51.559 --> 00:22:52.519 that the dividing line 00:22:52.519 --> 00:22:53.460 between good and evil 00:22:53.460 --> 00:22:55.240 cuts through your own heart? 00:22:57.379 --> 00:22:58.779 And have you trusted 00:22:58.779 --> 00:22:59.500 in Emmanuel 00:22:59.500 --> 00:23:00.500 to save you 00:23:00.500 --> 00:23:01.200 from this condition 00:23:01.200 --> 00:23:02.539 as your only hope 00:23:02.539 --> 00:23:04.599 for the forgiveness 00:23:04.599 --> 00:23:05.160 of sins 00:23:05.160 --> 00:23:06.099 and for eternal life? 00:23:07.200 --> 00:23:08.319 Verse 21 tells us 00:23:08.319 --> 00:23:09.879 that Jesus was born 00:23:09.879 --> 00:23:11.299 to save us 00:23:11.299 --> 00:23:13.059 from our sin. 00:23:14.079 --> 00:23:15.059 To take down 00:23:15.059 --> 00:23:15.920 the dividing line 00:23:15.920 --> 00:23:17.019 of good and evil 00:23:17.019 --> 00:23:17.700 in your heart 00:23:17.700 --> 00:23:18.279 and my heart 00:23:18.279 --> 00:23:19.319 so that you and I 00:23:19.319 --> 00:23:20.099 might cross 00:23:20.099 --> 00:23:22.440 lines of 00:23:22.440 --> 00:23:24.480 class 00:23:24.480 --> 00:23:25.259 and race 00:23:25.259 --> 00:23:25.899 and ethnicity 00:23:25.899 --> 00:23:26.720 and politics 00:23:26.720 --> 00:23:28.559 and to cross them 00:23:28.559 --> 00:23:29.059 with love. 00:23:30.039 --> 00:23:30.940 To cross them 00:23:30.940 --> 00:23:31.359 with love 00:23:31.359 --> 00:23:32.240 and to bring healing 00:23:32.240 --> 00:23:34.039 into the world. 00:23:34.359 --> 00:23:34.720 And to do 00:23:34.720 --> 00:23:36.339 any different than that 00:23:36.339 --> 00:23:37.160 is to completely 00:23:37.160 --> 00:23:38.700 miss what Advent 00:23:38.700 --> 00:23:39.160 and Christmas 00:23:39.160 --> 00:23:39.740 are all about. 00:23:41.339 --> 00:23:42.200 Because this 00:23:42.200 --> 00:23:43.240 is what God 00:23:43.240 --> 00:23:44.440 has done for us 00:23:44.440 --> 00:23:45.839 in Jesus Christ, 00:23:46.019 --> 00:23:46.960 in our incarnation. 00:23:46.960 --> 00:23:48.700 Jesus is Emmanuel. 00:23:48.940 --> 00:23:49.539 He's God. 00:23:50.819 --> 00:23:51.579 You can't just 00:23:51.579 --> 00:23:52.279 treat him as a good 00:23:52.279 --> 00:23:52.819 moral teacher, 00:23:52.940 --> 00:23:53.819 a good spiritual teacher. 00:23:54.600 --> 00:23:55.660 He demands our worship 00:23:55.660 --> 00:23:56.160 and our obedience. 00:23:56.319 --> 00:23:57.360 He demands our whole lives. 00:23:59.120 --> 00:23:59.960 He's God 00:23:59.960 --> 00:24:00.980 with us. 00:24:01.079 --> 00:24:02.440 He's made himself 00:24:02.440 --> 00:24:03.440 completely open 00:24:03.440 --> 00:24:04.380 and accessible 00:24:04.380 --> 00:24:05.079 and available 00:24:05.079 --> 00:24:05.680 to you 00:24:05.680 --> 00:24:07.420 so that you can know 00:24:07.420 --> 00:24:08.420 even in your darkest 00:24:08.420 --> 00:24:09.279 moments of doubting 00:24:09.279 --> 00:24:10.079 if you're actually alone 00:24:10.079 --> 00:24:10.660 so that you can know 00:24:10.660 --> 00:24:11.559 beyond shadow of a doubt 00:24:11.559 --> 00:24:13.240 that you're never 00:24:13.240 --> 00:24:13.940 actually alone, 00:24:14.019 --> 00:24:14.700 that he's with you, 00:24:14.700 --> 00:24:15.840 that he'll never 00:24:15.840 --> 00:24:16.759 leave you or forsake you. 00:24:18.160 --> 00:24:19.299 And he's God 00:24:19.299 --> 00:24:20.519 with us. 00:24:21.039 --> 00:24:21.620 With us. 00:24:22.580 --> 00:24:23.059 Sinners 00:24:23.059 --> 00:24:24.559 in need of a savior. 00:24:26.400 --> 00:24:27.160 Dorothy Sayers 00:24:27.160 --> 00:24:28.420 was a 20th century 00:24:28.420 --> 00:24:29.600 British author 00:24:29.600 --> 00:24:30.319 and novelist. 00:24:31.200 --> 00:24:31.759 She was known 00:24:31.759 --> 00:24:32.720 for a series 00:24:32.720 --> 00:24:34.039 of detective crime novels 00:24:34.039 --> 00:24:35.340 and her main character 00:24:35.340 --> 00:24:36.200 is a detective 00:24:36.200 --> 00:24:37.640 named Lord Peter Whimsey. 00:24:38.440 --> 00:24:39.140 And midway through 00:24:39.140 --> 00:24:41.299 this detective novel series, 00:24:42.240 --> 00:24:43.580 Sayers introduces 00:24:43.579 --> 00:24:44.659 another character 00:24:44.659 --> 00:24:45.919 in addition to 00:24:45.919 --> 00:24:46.659 her main character 00:24:46.659 --> 00:24:48.220 named Harriet Vane 00:24:48.220 --> 00:24:50.699 who joins up 00:24:50.699 --> 00:24:51.579 with Lord Peter Whimsey 00:24:51.579 --> 00:24:52.059 and helps him 00:24:52.059 --> 00:24:52.839 to solve crimes. 00:24:53.399 --> 00:24:54.639 And as they solve crimes 00:24:54.639 --> 00:24:55.079 together, 00:24:56.379 --> 00:24:57.740 these two eventually 00:24:57.740 --> 00:24:58.619 fall in love. 00:24:58.839 --> 00:24:59.819 And a lot of the 00:24:59.819 --> 00:25:00.679 literary critics 00:25:00.679 --> 00:25:01.379 over the years 00:25:01.379 --> 00:25:02.079 who have looked 00:25:02.079 --> 00:25:02.779 at these stories 00:25:02.779 --> 00:25:04.579 have noticed 00:25:04.579 --> 00:25:05.119 a pattern 00:25:05.119 --> 00:25:06.159 that there's 00:25:06.159 --> 00:25:07.500 a lot of similarities 00:25:07.500 --> 00:25:09.579 between Harriet Vane 00:25:09.579 --> 00:25:10.639 and Dorothy Sayers. 00:25:11.240 --> 00:25:11.799 Harriet Vane 00:25:11.799 --> 00:25:12.759 was educated 00:25:12.759 --> 00:25:13.339 at Oxford, 00:25:13.839 --> 00:25:15.119 so was Dorothy Sayers. 00:25:15.720 --> 00:25:16.359 Harriet Vane 00:25:16.359 --> 00:25:16.960 was tall 00:25:16.960 --> 00:25:17.740 and had dark hair, 00:25:18.180 --> 00:25:19.500 so did Dorothy Sayers. 00:25:20.019 --> 00:25:20.779 Harriet Vane 00:25:20.779 --> 00:25:21.839 wrote detective novels, 00:25:22.659 --> 00:25:23.759 so did Dorothy Sayers. 00:25:24.319 --> 00:25:25.559 And the literary critics 00:25:25.559 --> 00:25:25.819 have said 00:25:25.819 --> 00:25:26.659 it's quite obvious 00:25:26.659 --> 00:25:28.099 what she was doing, 00:25:28.839 --> 00:25:31.139 that she was writing 00:25:31.139 --> 00:25:32.619 herself into the story. 00:25:33.419 --> 00:25:34.139 She had created 00:25:34.139 --> 00:25:34.960 this character, 00:25:35.279 --> 00:25:36.000 Lord Peter Whimsey, 00:25:36.619 --> 00:25:37.339 and the more 00:25:37.339 --> 00:25:37.980 that she developed 00:25:37.980 --> 00:25:38.460 his character, 00:25:38.559 --> 00:25:39.220 the more that she 00:25:39.220 --> 00:25:40.059 wrote about him, 00:25:40.059 --> 00:25:41.279 the more that she 00:25:41.279 --> 00:25:41.980 wrote his story, 00:25:42.159 --> 00:25:42.899 the more that she 00:25:42.899 --> 00:25:43.619 fell in love with him. 00:25:44.899 --> 00:25:46.039 He was a great detective, 00:25:46.299 --> 00:25:46.740 he was committed 00:25:46.740 --> 00:25:47.240 to justice, 00:25:47.399 --> 00:25:48.019 he was intelligent, 00:25:48.299 --> 00:25:49.179 and he was rich, 00:25:49.519 --> 00:25:51.740 but he had flaws. 00:25:52.960 --> 00:25:54.319 He had a personal crisis, 00:25:54.980 --> 00:25:55.779 he was lonely. 00:25:57.799 --> 00:25:59.759 And so Dorothy Sayers 00:25:59.759 --> 00:26:01.700 wrote herself 00:26:01.700 --> 00:26:02.220 into the story 00:26:02.220 --> 00:26:03.539 to rescue her main character 00:26:03.539 --> 00:26:04.759 and to fall in love 00:26:04.759 --> 00:26:05.099 with him. 00:26:05.099 --> 00:26:08.959 And friends, 00:26:09.019 --> 00:26:09.819 that is what it means 00:26:09.819 --> 00:26:10.559 for Jesus Christ 00:26:10.559 --> 00:26:11.119 to be Emmanuel. 00:26:13.179 --> 00:26:14.339 It means that 00:26:14.339 --> 00:26:15.599 God has written 00:26:15.599 --> 00:26:16.179 himself 00:26:16.179 --> 00:26:18.000 into our story 00:26:18.000 --> 00:26:19.679 to rescue us 00:26:19.679 --> 00:26:20.679 in love. 00:26:22.619 --> 00:26:24.879 In March 1791, 00:26:25.879 --> 00:26:26.480 John Wesley, 00:26:26.839 --> 00:26:28.079 the great pastor 00:26:28.079 --> 00:26:28.919 and theologian 00:26:28.919 --> 00:26:29.619 and founder 00:26:29.619 --> 00:26:31.459 of the Methodist movement, 00:26:32.199 --> 00:26:33.480 was nearing the end 00:26:33.480 --> 00:26:34.599 of a long 00:26:34.599 --> 00:26:35.400 and faithful life 00:26:35.400 --> 00:26:35.920 of ministry. 00:26:37.200 --> 00:26:38.099 If you're not familiar 00:26:38.099 --> 00:26:38.819 with Wesley, 00:26:39.000 --> 00:26:39.839 one historian 00:26:39.839 --> 00:26:41.460 wrote about the impact 00:26:41.460 --> 00:26:42.259 of Wesley's life 00:26:42.259 --> 00:26:42.799 and said that 00:26:42.799 --> 00:26:43.740 in the course 00:26:43.740 --> 00:26:44.220 of his life, 00:26:44.279 --> 00:26:45.160 he rode over 00:26:45.160 --> 00:26:47.039 250,000 miles 00:26:47.039 --> 00:26:48.279 on horseback. 00:26:49.400 --> 00:26:50.640 He gave away 00:26:50.640 --> 00:26:52.180 over 30,000 pounds, 00:26:52.360 --> 00:26:52.980 which was a lot 00:26:52.980 --> 00:26:53.539 at the time, 00:26:54.039 --> 00:26:55.259 and he preached 00:26:55.259 --> 00:26:55.900 more than 00:26:55.900 --> 00:26:57.539 40,000 sermons. 00:26:57.539 --> 00:27:00.559 He formed societies, 00:27:00.759 --> 00:27:01.599 opened chapels, 00:27:02.319 --> 00:27:03.259 trained preachers, 00:27:03.480 --> 00:27:04.639 administered aid charities, 00:27:04.799 --> 00:27:05.460 helped the sick, 00:27:06.059 --> 00:27:07.159 and oversaw many 00:27:07.159 --> 00:27:08.279 orphanages and schools. 00:27:08.879 --> 00:27:09.759 This was a man 00:27:09.759 --> 00:27:10.799 who knew a lot 00:27:10.799 --> 00:27:11.539 about God 00:27:11.539 --> 00:27:12.420 and who did a lot 00:27:12.420 --> 00:27:13.440 for God. 00:27:14.940 --> 00:27:16.940 But in March 1791, 00:27:17.139 --> 00:27:19.200 as he was nearing 00:27:19.200 --> 00:27:20.779 his final days, 00:27:20.879 --> 00:27:22.279 as he lay on his deathbed 00:27:22.279 --> 00:27:23.579 at his home 00:27:23.579 --> 00:27:24.059 in London, 00:27:25.480 --> 00:27:26.899 his friends came 00:27:26.899 --> 00:27:28.500 and gathered around him. 00:27:30.039 --> 00:27:31.480 And as his friends 00:27:31.480 --> 00:27:33.000 are gathered around him, 00:27:33.039 --> 00:27:33.519 as he's laying 00:27:33.519 --> 00:27:34.139 on his bed, 00:27:35.259 --> 00:27:36.199 he grasped 00:27:36.199 --> 00:27:37.259 each of their hands 00:27:37.259 --> 00:27:38.099 one by one 00:27:38.099 --> 00:27:39.980 and looked each of them 00:27:39.980 --> 00:27:40.460 in the eye 00:27:40.460 --> 00:27:41.159 and told them, 00:27:41.839 --> 00:27:42.059 farewell, 00:27:43.159 --> 00:27:43.539 farewell. 00:27:45.119 --> 00:27:46.179 But in the moments 00:27:46.179 --> 00:27:47.319 before he breathed 00:27:47.319 --> 00:27:48.179 his final breath, 00:27:48.740 --> 00:27:49.740 John Wesley called 00:27:49.740 --> 00:27:50.279 his friends 00:27:50.279 --> 00:27:51.599 to gather around him. 00:27:53.579 --> 00:27:54.819 And he told 00:27:54.819 --> 00:27:55.779 each of his friends, 00:27:57.359 --> 00:27:58.699 the best of all, 00:27:59.079 --> 00:28:01.019 the best of all 00:28:01.019 --> 00:28:02.500 is God with us. 00:28:04.539 --> 00:28:06.240 And as his voice 00:28:06.240 --> 00:28:07.619 grew more feeble, 00:28:08.559 --> 00:28:10.379 he lifted up his arms 00:28:10.379 --> 00:28:12.259 and he spoke 00:28:12.259 --> 00:28:13.399 in a feeble voice, 00:28:13.980 --> 00:28:14.899 lifting up his arms 00:28:14.899 --> 00:28:15.559 as if giving 00:28:15.559 --> 00:28:17.500 one last pastoral benediction. 00:28:18.240 --> 00:28:19.579 And he repeated it, 00:28:19.579 --> 00:28:21.759 the best of all 00:28:21.759 --> 00:28:24.019 is God with us. 00:28:25.359 --> 00:28:25.980 Let's pray. 00:28:27.960 --> 00:28:28.980 Our Father in heaven, 00:28:29.319 --> 00:28:30.179 we thank you 00:28:30.179 --> 00:28:32.599 that you have 00:28:32.599 --> 00:28:33.559 come into the world, 00:28:34.839 --> 00:28:35.339 that you have 00:28:35.339 --> 00:28:37.039 written yourself 00:28:37.039 --> 00:28:37.819 into our story, 00:28:39.139 --> 00:28:40.639 that you are Emmanuel. 00:28:43.079 --> 00:28:43.939 Lord, I pray 00:28:43.939 --> 00:28:44.919 in the places 00:28:44.919 --> 00:28:45.539 in our hearts 00:28:45.539 --> 00:28:46.099 where we feel 00:28:46.099 --> 00:28:46.740 most alone, 00:28:46.740 --> 00:28:50.140 would you show us 00:28:50.140 --> 00:28:50.859 and reveal yourself 00:28:50.859 --> 00:28:51.279 to us 00:28:51.279 --> 00:28:52.200 in a way 00:28:52.200 --> 00:28:52.779 that we can know 00:28:52.779 --> 00:28:53.380 beyond the shadow 00:28:53.380 --> 00:28:53.799 of doubt 00:28:53.799 --> 00:28:55.380 that you're always 00:28:55.380 --> 00:28:55.920 with us. 00:28:59.660 --> 00:29:00.440 We pray all this 00:29:00.440 --> 00:29:00.620 in the name 00:29:00.620 --> 00:29:01.039 of the Father 00:29:01.039 --> 00:29:01.559 and the Son 00:29:01.559 --> 00:29:02.240 and the Holy Spirit. 00:29:02.920 --> 00:29:03.079 Amen.