This is my 14th year of doing carol services. On average that's about 4 to 5 carol services per Christmas.
And there's always the question of what do you speak on at a Christmas carol service. What do you want from me?
I could try and entertain you for 10 to 15 minutes. Maybe you've been in those carol services with jokes and poignant stories.
You couldn't go down the sentimental route, can you? Where the preacher talks about babies and talks about wonderful acts of service that's been done this year.
In 2016 we could talk about post-truth. It's the word of the year. The Oxford Dictionary's word of the year.
Its definition is relating to circumstances or facts which are influential in shaping public opinion that appeal to emotion and personal belief.
Post-truth, that term has gone up in use by 2,000% in 2016 because of the EU referendum and the presidential election, according to the dictionary.
And you might think, as we read the Christmas story and as we sang it, that's a great example of post-truth.
But I would want to argue otherwise.
And what I want to do in the few brief minutes that I have is to resurrect a great Christian truth.
I've never spoken on it in over 70 carol services in 14 years.
I've never heard anyone speak about this great Christian truth in any carol service that I've been to.
And you might think that it's an old-fashioned truth and it's a relic.
And you might even think it's laughable.
But the great truth that I want to speak to you about this evening in these few minutes, which I think has a great deal of light to shine on your life and my life tonight,
is the truth that Jesus Christ is going to return to this earth.
And I have one small phrase from the New Testament.
Where Jesus Christ says, I will come again.
I will come again.
And it may surprise you that Jesus says that many, many times in the New Testament.
Now, so much is the need of this great truth that there are loads of Christians that have exaggerated it.
The result is that people are put off, aren't they, by Christian oddballs.
And by Christians who exaggerate this.
And by controversy.
You might remember, I don't know whether you're still there, there used to be a man with a megaphone at Oxford Circus that used to tell you,
as you were going down onto the tube on the central line, that the world was going to end.
That it might end tomorrow.
Sometimes you wish it did on the central line.
But you know how it is, isn't it?
When someone foolish Christian has tried to date the return of Jesus in glory.
The end of the world that you can date it.
Someone might come up to you or you see the poster that Christ is going to come again tomorrow.
Now you know and I know perfectly well that that is very unlikely indeed.
So you turn away from maybe your Christian friend by thinking, well he's as gullible as I thought all Christians were.
And I have a surprise for you tonight.
If you are new tonight, and if you're new to the Bible, when you turn to the pages of the New Testament,
and you ask Jesus about his return in glory, he knew very well that there would be people like that.
He talks about them in Mark's Gospel chapter 13.
And he says that people will come up to you and they'll say, here he is or here he comes.
And he's coming again, maybe tomorrow.
And then Jesus says something very surprising.
He says do not believe them.
Do not believe them.
Some people think that the Christian church is always telling us to believe things.
But the Christian church is actually here also to tell you not to believe certain things.
It tells you not to believe that you can achieve paradise on this earth.
Not to believe the lie that you can create for yourself.
The perfect family, the perfect world, the perfect Christmas.
That can isolate you from pain.
And the Bible tells you not to believe people when they say Jesus will come tomorrow.
And yet the Christian church is commissioned to say,
particularly during Advent and during Christmas season,
that as certainly as Jesus came,
in humility and generosity and meekness and helplessness as a baby,
so that same Jesus will return in glory
to judge the living and the dead.
He has come.
You read about it.
You sang about it this evening.
He left heaven.
He was born of the Virgin Mary.
He came to earth.
He lived the life of God on earth.
He performed miracles that backed up his claim.
He was crucified, died and was buried.
You can read about it.
We've got gospels at the back.
Eyewitnesses accounts of the life and death of the Lord Jesus.
We'd love you to take one away and read it.
He came.
But the Bible tells us very clearly,
he is coming again.
And I think that saves us from despair.
We look out, don't we,
at limitless space and wonder what on earth is going to happen.
That we don't have to despair over the situation of our world.
You read the horrific reports of Aleppo this week.
It's been horrific, hasn't it?
And where will it end, we ask?
Well, if we believe that Jesus Christ will return,
we do believe that he has got his hand on the tiller.
That he is in control.
That he saves us.
It saves us.
The truth that he's coming again,
saves us from despair.
But it also saves you from despising Jesus Christ.
Because if he is really going to return on the last day,
it means a great deal.
That he will have the last word.
It means that no one can compare to him.
It's amazing the amount of intelligent people you meet today
who say, I do believe in God, or in a God.
At least I think I do.
But Jesus can't be the only way.
Look at all the other religions of the world.
But if Jesus Christ is going to return,
it means that he is the only Lord.
Everyone else may have something to say.
Something to give us.
Something to commend in their teaching to us.
But Jesus is going to come as judge.
What a dreadful thing it will be.
If when we meet him face to face on that day.
And his name has been on our lips only in blasphemy.
What a dreadful thing.
As he faces us on that last day.
And we've never paid any attention to him
while we have the opportunity.
If he's going to come, it means he is the Lord.
And it means that you and I
are going to have to give an account
of the way we've used the world.
And used our own lives.
Now I just want to ask and answer the question
before I sit down this evening.
How does Jesus Christ prepare us
for that great day
which is beyond my imagination
and yours
when he will return?
And I think the Lord Jesus
prepares us for his coming
by coming to you today.
Jesus, you see,
if you look carefully at the New Testament,
not only says, I have come
and I will come again
at the last day
but he keeps saying
in the Gospels
and the Apostles say
in their epistles
he will come here and now.
Let me try and explain to you what I mean.
In John's Gospel
written by the Apostle John
Jesus explains to his disciples
that one day
he will come again
to take them to the place
where he's prepared for them.
And he then says to them
the Holy Spirit
is going to come
in the meantime
and take my place
with you.
And when he comes
John 14 verse 18
I will come to you.
So he prepared them
for that great day
what the Christian church
calls that Pentecost
when the Holy Spirit
came to the church
and entered
into the hearts
of the believers.
And when the Holy Spirit
entered into the hearts
of believers
lo and behold
they suddenly found
that they knew
Jesus Christ again.
No longer did they have
to depend on him
being with them
in a certain place
and at a certain time
in a certain space.
He was with them
wherever they went
by his Holy Spirit.
He's come again.
And that great joy
has been with the
Christian church
ever since.
The gift of the Holy Spirit
in your heart
wherever you are.
You cannot have
anything more practical
than that.
I spoke to someone
this week
after another carol service
and we got talking
and I said to them
do you believe
in Jesus Christ?
The man said
he's such a wonderful example
but it's just not practical.
He had to go
back to his office.
But I was dying
to speak to him
about the gift
of the Holy Spirit
of God
come down to earth
by his Spirit
into our lives
to enable us
by his power
to follow Jesus.
There's a verse
which is very precious
for many of us
who are Christians
and I want to leave you
with this this evening.
It's in the last
book of the Bible
where Jesus
is writing
to the church
of his own day.
And it's fascinating
Jesus has got
some pretty rude things
to say to the church
of his day
and I'm sure
he has got some
pretty straight things
to say to us
as the church
in our day.
And at the end
of the letter
there's a strange
twist to it.
He finishes his letter
by saying this
and I want you
to listen very carefully.
He says
look, behold
I stand at the door
and I knock.
What's that?
The Lord Jesus Christ
outside the doors
of the church
unable to get in.
And I'm afraid
that's very much
like the church
in our country
and the west.
Behold
I stand at the door
and knock.
And if any man
if any woman
if any boy
if any girl
hear my voice
and open the door
I will
come.
There's our phrase
I will come to him
and I will eat with him.
Do you see
Jesus Christ
says to the church
of his own day
I'm outside
but if there's
anyone there
who will open
the door of their hearts
I will come.
I will come here
and now.
You tonight
have not got to wait
until tomorrow.
You've not got to wait
until ten years.
You've not got to wait
until your older children.
You've not got to wait
for that final day
when all the accounts
will be settled up
on that day of reckoning.
I will come to you today
Jesus says.
I know that
for some of you
this is the only opportunity
I shall ever have
to speak to you.
But I want to commend
Jesus Christ
as someone who is able
to come into your life
today
and change it.
Transform it.
For me it was in 1993
I was 17 years old
on a camp
in North Wales.
And so Christ
opened the door
of my heart
and I'm thankful
that he did.
I didn't make much progress
for many years
but he did come
into my heart
and love.
And I have met
so many people
ever since
who've taken
that great step.
And they've responded
to Christ's promise
that he will come.
And I have never
met anyone
who's asked
Christ
to come into
their lives
and then gone
on to serve him
and obey him
who has regretted
that step.
It is the greatest
step that you
can ever take.
I want you
to read with me
the third verse
of our little town
of Bethlehem.
I don't know
whether you can
just flip back
and just look
at this verse
with me.
I'm not going
to ask you
to read it
out loud.
It's okay.
But the third
verse of our
little town
of Bethlehem
as you change
it.
Preaches my
sermon far
better than
I ever can.
It says this.
Can you see it?
How silently
how silently
the wondrous
gift is given.
So God
imparts
to human hearts
the blessing
of his heaven.
No ear
may hear
his coming
but in this
world of sin
where meek
souls will
receive him
still
the dear
Christ
enters in.
Yes
to be Lord
as you
leave
this evening
as you walk
out of those
doors behind
you.
Why not say
Lord Jesus
Christ
you've never
been in my
Christmas
or in my
life really.
Come into my
heart today.
Pick up a
gospel.
Read an
eyewitness
account of the
Lord Jesus
Christ and be
convinced by the
evidence.
Speak to a
friend.
Grab me.
Let's meet up
and talk about
it.
Jesus Christ
because the
Lord Jesus
Christ has
come in
history
and he
will come
in the
future.
But
wonderfully he
can come to
you today.
Let's bow our
heads in prayer.
Let's pray.