WEBVTT 00:00:00.400 --> 00:00:05.259 Well, good evening again, if you weren't here at the beginning. My name's Archie, pastor in training here. 00:00:05.980 --> 00:00:10.820 It is Christmas that's just around the corner, not Easter. Sorry about that. That is months away. 00:00:10.880 --> 00:00:14.880 You don't need to worry about that at all. But Christmas is less than 10 days away now. 00:00:14.919 --> 00:00:20.519 So I hope that you have bought all your Christmas presents. I love Christmas. Don't you love Christmas? 00:00:20.859 --> 00:00:26.620 I know that it can be a difficult time, but there are lots of things to look forward to, aren't there, about Christmas Day. 00:00:26.620 --> 00:00:32.140 What is it that you look forward to most? Maybe it's time with family, too much food. 00:00:33.120 --> 00:00:41.420 Maybe you have a favorite Christmas film. Maybe your family have a really specific tradition that's really strange, but you just love. 00:00:42.439 --> 00:00:48.840 In so many ways, I think Christmas can be a wonderful day. And let's be honest, this is true of me. 00:00:49.219 --> 00:00:53.439 One of the things that we love about Christmas is all the gifts that we get, isn't it? 00:00:53.439 --> 00:00:58.780 If we're really honest about it, I wonder what the best Christmas gift that you've ever received is. 00:00:58.859 --> 00:01:02.699 Maybe you can picture it. Think about the best gift you've ever received. 00:01:03.599 --> 00:01:09.719 As you do that, partly just to make that gift seem much better, I'm going to tell you about the worst Christmas present that I ever received. 00:01:09.799 --> 00:01:15.200 I was about 14 years old. Big extended family Christmas. All the cousins were there. 00:01:15.280 --> 00:01:19.000 It's time to open the presents. We're sent to the tree. 00:01:19.099 --> 00:01:21.900 All the kids are sent to the tree to get one present at a time. 00:01:21.900 --> 00:01:28.180 And naturally, the first thing I do is find the biggest one that I can with Archie written in capital letters across the top. 00:01:28.359 --> 00:01:31.420 I'm really excited. I rip it open. 00:01:31.940 --> 00:01:34.120 And, well, it was a toy drum. 00:01:34.719 --> 00:01:39.500 You know, this sort of thing looks like a kind of old military band drum made of cheap plastic. 00:01:39.500 --> 00:01:41.360 It was rubbish. I was 14 years old. 00:01:41.600 --> 00:01:44.600 Like, I actually played the drums. I had a proper drum kit. 00:01:44.599 --> 00:01:46.879 Was this some kind of joke? 00:01:47.179 --> 00:01:51.140 And, of course, polite boy that I was, I waltzed up to the aunt who had given it to me. 00:01:51.439 --> 00:01:55.239 I did my absolute best to seem as grateful as I possibly could. 00:01:55.419 --> 00:01:57.859 And she literally burst out laughing in my face. 00:01:58.599 --> 00:02:00.819 That's not for you. It's for your cousin. 00:02:01.679 --> 00:02:04.840 See, I have a cousin, 10 years younger than me, also called Archie. 00:02:04.840 --> 00:02:08.020 He was four years old. A great gift for him. 00:02:08.659 --> 00:02:11.099 Ridiculously embarrassing. A rubbish gift for me. 00:02:11.159 --> 00:02:13.280 And that ruined one of my favorite things about Christmas. 00:02:13.460 --> 00:02:17.400 Because, at its best, receiving gifts is great, isn't it? It's wonderful. 00:02:18.560 --> 00:02:25.340 One of the reasons that getting gifts is so good, it's not just about getting stuff that we want. 00:02:25.759 --> 00:02:29.780 It's because it's one of the ways that we know that somebody really cares about us. 00:02:30.580 --> 00:02:34.500 And it's one of the ways that we show that we love other people, too. 00:02:35.539 --> 00:02:39.680 And in some ways, I guess, the greater the gift, the greater the love. 00:02:40.580 --> 00:02:43.980 Generally speaking, that's true in terms of how valuable something is. 00:02:44.900 --> 00:02:48.980 I expect my parents, despite everything that I've put them through, they do love me very much. 00:02:49.699 --> 00:02:53.240 I expect they'll get me a really very good gift for Christmas this year. 00:02:53.879 --> 00:02:57.719 My sister-in-law, on the other hand, well, I'm hoping she'll get me something. 00:03:00.120 --> 00:03:04.000 It's true in terms of monetary value, but it's also true in terms of sentiment. 00:03:04.000 --> 00:03:08.400 It might be that someone you love just doesn't have the cash to get you something valuable in that way. 00:03:08.939 --> 00:03:13.919 But I suspect some of the gifts that you've thought about, they might not have been valuable in terms of money, 00:03:13.979 --> 00:03:16.500 but they're nonetheless valuable because they were really thought through. 00:03:17.219 --> 00:03:19.500 Maybe they were even homemade or something like that. 00:03:20.659 --> 00:03:27.060 Whatever it is, and for whatever reason, in many ways, the greater the value of the gift, the greater the love. 00:03:27.060 --> 00:03:32.539 Well, the gift that we're here to talk about this evening, it is infinitely valuable. 00:03:33.500 --> 00:03:35.719 I'm not even exaggerating when I say that. 00:03:35.780 --> 00:03:37.120 I'm not being hyperbolic. 00:03:37.240 --> 00:03:40.159 It is literally the most valuable thing in the universe. 00:03:41.520 --> 00:03:47.159 This gift that we read about in the Bible, here's what the Bible says. 00:03:47.159 --> 00:04:03.719 This is that gift, the most valuable thing in the universe, eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. 00:04:03.759 --> 00:04:07.699 And we're just going to spend the next 10, 15 minutes or so thinking about that statement. 00:04:07.699 --> 00:04:10.579 And as we do that, I guess we've got to begin at the start. 00:04:11.439 --> 00:04:15.439 Before we understand this gift, we've got to ask, well, what is sin? 00:04:16.319 --> 00:04:19.300 And why are the wages of sin death? 00:04:20.560 --> 00:04:22.579 What do you think sin is then? 00:04:22.839 --> 00:04:26.800 This thing that the Bible says is so bad that it leads to death. 00:04:28.279 --> 00:04:31.319 Well, I think the way that the Bible talks about sin might actually surprise you. 00:04:31.319 --> 00:04:36.759 See, what the word sin does, it cuts right to the heart of what we're all like as humans. 00:04:37.659 --> 00:04:42.579 It's not simply a way to describe like a ledger book of all the things that we've done wrong. 00:04:43.579 --> 00:04:51.099 Instead, it's a deep diagnosis of the condition of the human heart, of my heart, of your heart. 00:04:52.439 --> 00:04:55.959 Corrie just read this evening in Genesis chapter 3 for us. 00:04:56.339 --> 00:05:01.879 And in many ways, that passage, it gets right to the heart of the center of this problem. 00:05:02.839 --> 00:05:05.539 Adam and Eve, they're given free reign over the garden. 00:05:05.540 --> 00:05:09.580 They can eat anything they like, they're told, except this one thing. 00:05:10.300 --> 00:05:14.379 They can eat any fruit they like in this garden, except the fruit from this one tree. 00:05:15.300 --> 00:05:17.260 But then comes the temptation. 00:05:18.220 --> 00:05:19.760 Did you see it as Corrie read? 00:05:19.759 --> 00:05:23.339 The temptation at the heart of it all is this. 00:05:23.480 --> 00:05:25.719 Did God really say? 00:05:26.980 --> 00:05:31.420 And this is what the human heart is like, just always asking that question. 00:05:31.519 --> 00:05:32.560 Did God really say? 00:05:33.740 --> 00:05:36.139 I think two ways, really, that we all ask that question. 00:05:36.339 --> 00:05:39.300 Maybe you're here this evening and you do believe in God. 00:05:39.759 --> 00:05:41.459 Maybe you even call yourself a Christian. 00:05:41.459 --> 00:05:47.239 But you're not so sure about all the things that the Bible says is bad. 00:05:47.959 --> 00:05:51.239 Come to think of it, you're not sure about all the things the Bible says is good. 00:05:53.419 --> 00:05:55.939 You're asking that question, did God really say? 00:05:57.120 --> 00:05:59.659 And if you're here this evening and you don't believe in God at all, 00:05:59.779 --> 00:06:01.459 certainly not the God of the Bible anyway, 00:06:02.159 --> 00:06:05.539 you're not convinced that there will be any eternal justice. 00:06:05.540 --> 00:06:07.660 And so really you're asking the same thing. 00:06:08.500 --> 00:06:09.620 Did God really say? 00:06:10.960 --> 00:06:14.060 For if God does not exist, if this God doesn't exist, 00:06:14.540 --> 00:06:15.900 then of course he didn't really say. 00:06:16.900 --> 00:06:20.360 This is the question at the heart of what the Bible calls sin. 00:06:20.439 --> 00:06:23.100 It's the default question of the human heart. 00:06:24.140 --> 00:06:25.439 You might think of it like this. 00:06:26.160 --> 00:06:29.500 Do you remember Augustus Gloop in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory? 00:06:29.660 --> 00:06:32.800 Augustus, he's one of the kids who wins a golden ticket, 00:06:32.800 --> 00:06:36.199 the opportunity to visit Willy Wonka's amazing chocolate factory. 00:06:36.960 --> 00:06:39.220 And there's that scene in the, it's in both films. 00:06:39.300 --> 00:06:40.819 It's my favorite scene in both the films. 00:06:40.920 --> 00:06:41.939 It's an incredible scene. 00:06:42.340 --> 00:06:43.800 Right at the heart of the factory, 00:06:43.800 --> 00:06:46.920 there's this ridiculous room where everything is edible. 00:06:47.680 --> 00:06:49.840 And Willy Wonka, he takes all the kids into this room 00:06:49.840 --> 00:06:52.100 and he says, you can eat anything in this room you like. 00:06:52.280 --> 00:06:53.759 The grass is made of candy. 00:06:54.420 --> 00:06:56.180 The trees are made of chocolate. 00:06:56.300 --> 00:06:58.240 You can literally eat anything you like. 00:06:59.139 --> 00:07:02.400 But you see the chocolate river that runs through the center of this room. 00:07:02.800 --> 00:07:05.160 Do not drink from the chocolate river, he says. 00:07:05.900 --> 00:07:07.240 And what does Augustus Gloop do? 00:07:08.460 --> 00:07:13.040 He runs straight to the river and just begins to feast. 00:07:14.199 --> 00:07:17.680 And in a way, this is kind of what sin does. 00:07:17.819 --> 00:07:22.120 That heart problem that we have as we question the goodness of what God has said, 00:07:22.860 --> 00:07:24.819 as we question his existence even. 00:07:24.960 --> 00:07:26.379 Did God really say? 00:07:27.280 --> 00:07:28.220 It's a bit like this. 00:07:28.220 --> 00:07:30.600 If I tell you right now, don't touch your nose. 00:07:32.280 --> 00:07:33.020 Don't do it. 00:07:33.740 --> 00:07:34.920 Do not touch your nose. 00:07:34.980 --> 00:07:35.980 What do you all want to do? 00:07:36.920 --> 00:07:37.760 Yeah, right? 00:07:38.760 --> 00:07:40.500 And in a way, that's what sin does. 00:07:40.580 --> 00:07:44.880 Our hearts and desires, they're always questioning God and his goodness. 00:07:44.879 --> 00:07:50.740 And so just like Augustus Gloop, it ends up consuming us and we fall into it. 00:07:50.800 --> 00:07:52.100 See what happens to Augustus? 00:07:52.180 --> 00:07:55.860 He questions the command and he drinks and he drinks and he drinks. 00:07:55.920 --> 00:07:56.620 And then what happens? 00:07:56.719 --> 00:07:58.699 He falls into the chocolate river. 00:08:00.120 --> 00:08:01.620 Consumed by his temptation. 00:08:01.920 --> 00:08:03.379 Carried away by his rebellion. 00:08:03.379 --> 00:08:10.159 As we think about the suffering and the hardships of life this evening, 00:08:10.839 --> 00:08:14.240 really this is what's at the heart of all of that. 00:08:15.680 --> 00:08:17.300 And see, here's the truth of it. 00:08:18.300 --> 00:08:21.379 Our hearts are just constantly falling for that temptation. 00:08:22.259 --> 00:08:23.439 Did God really say? 00:08:24.339 --> 00:08:28.240 And then we're captured and consumed by our desire, just like Augustus Gloop. 00:08:29.120 --> 00:08:30.219 That's what sin is. 00:08:30.259 --> 00:08:32.639 It's a deep diagnosis of the human heart. 00:08:33.379 --> 00:08:35.960 My heart, your heart. 00:08:37.340 --> 00:08:40.259 And there is a sense in which we have to pay for that. 00:08:41.039 --> 00:08:43.340 Here's the metaphor that the Bible uses. 00:08:43.580 --> 00:08:45.220 It's paying the wages of that. 00:08:45.340 --> 00:08:47.340 It's the thing it deserves, if you like. 00:08:47.500 --> 00:08:51.059 I guess we all understand how this works, even just in the last few weeks. 00:08:51.100 --> 00:08:52.320 This is what wages are. 00:08:52.360 --> 00:08:58.340 As we've seen strikes on the news in healthcare and the postal service and the railways and in schools. 00:08:58.440 --> 00:09:00.279 Maybe that's even you, if you're striking. 00:09:00.379 --> 00:09:00.919 What are you doing? 00:09:00.919 --> 00:09:04.459 It's people fighting to get the wages that they deserve. 00:09:06.299 --> 00:09:08.059 Well, what does our sin deserve? 00:09:08.159 --> 00:09:08.919 What do we deserve? 00:09:09.819 --> 00:09:11.919 I don't mean how much do we deserve to get paid. 00:09:11.919 --> 00:09:21.299 But in the great eternal scheme of things, does our sin, our heart problem, turned away from the God who has created us? 00:09:22.019 --> 00:09:23.839 Or doesn't it require justice? 00:09:25.839 --> 00:09:30.139 Most religions have something to say about that question, and they tend to say something similar. 00:09:30.139 --> 00:09:32.779 They appeal to that, to our sense of justice. 00:09:32.980 --> 00:09:34.659 They say what goes around comes around. 00:09:35.460 --> 00:09:38.899 If you tip the scales on the side of good enough, then you'll be all right. 00:09:40.080 --> 00:09:42.039 And in some ways, Christianity is no different. 00:09:42.159 --> 00:09:42.919 See what it says? 00:09:44.100 --> 00:09:46.220 The Bible says the wages of sin is death. 00:09:46.279 --> 00:09:49.199 That those who sin deserve death. 00:09:49.200 --> 00:09:55.320 That if you tip the scales on the side of good enough, or if you don't rather, then you won't be all right. 00:09:55.400 --> 00:09:56.960 That's justice, isn't it? 00:09:56.960 --> 00:10:08.940 And see, if God is the loving creator of this universe, and our hearts are just naturally bent away from him, towards ourselves and our own desires, constantly questioning what he has said is good. 00:10:09.300 --> 00:10:11.960 Then in a world of justice, what goes around comes around. 00:10:12.019 --> 00:10:12.660 What do we deserve? 00:10:14.720 --> 00:10:18.560 Augustus Gloop, he disappears up the pipe, presumably never to be seen again. 00:10:18.660 --> 00:10:21.860 And in this verse, well, the wages of sin is death. 00:10:23.080 --> 00:10:25.040 Now, of course, we will all die one day. 00:10:25.039 --> 00:10:27.419 I hope that's not news to you, but you are going to die one day. 00:10:29.019 --> 00:10:32.599 But death here, do you see it's contrasted with eternal life? 00:10:33.360 --> 00:10:35.819 And so it's an eternal payment for our sin. 00:10:35.919 --> 00:10:38.819 That's what the wages of sin being death is. 00:10:40.439 --> 00:10:44.299 Now, I don't know about you, but I guess you're feeling pretty uncomfortable at this. 00:10:45.439 --> 00:10:50.879 Certainly, I'm uncomfortable saying it in many ways, because if this is the condition of the human heart, then we're in trouble, aren't we? 00:10:52.699 --> 00:10:54.779 But the story doesn't end there. 00:10:55.699 --> 00:10:57.860 See, this is how Christianity is unique. 00:10:58.500 --> 00:11:05.699 This is how it's different to all those other religions, because at its heart is this wonderful hope, this wonderful gift. 00:11:06.439 --> 00:11:12.759 We heard about it in Isaiah chapter 9 from David just now, that the hope, a child that is to be born, 00:11:12.879 --> 00:11:17.519 who will reign in justice and in righteousness forever and ever. 00:11:17.519 --> 00:11:21.419 And his coming is exactly what we celebrate at Christmastime. 00:11:21.419 --> 00:11:24.120 Why is that good news? 00:11:24.639 --> 00:11:26.659 Well, see what it says here in Romans chapter 6. 00:11:26.799 --> 00:11:29.639 The gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus. 00:11:31.000 --> 00:11:34.039 Think about that best Christmas gift that you've ever received. 00:11:34.199 --> 00:11:35.159 Picture it in your mind. 00:11:36.379 --> 00:11:38.759 Picture the love of the person who gave it to you. 00:11:38.759 --> 00:11:43.460 I'm certain that none of them compare to this gift. 00:11:44.220 --> 00:11:49.659 The gift at the heart of Christmas is the gift of eternal life in him. 00:11:49.659 --> 00:11:51.240 It's incredible. 00:11:51.240 --> 00:11:59.500 And what it reflects, really, if it's true that the greater the gift, the greater the love, well, what it reflects is God's love for you. 00:11:59.500 --> 00:12:02.899 See here, I have a 10-pound note. 00:12:03.779 --> 00:12:05.480 How much is this worth? 00:12:07.000 --> 00:12:08.399 The answer is obvious, isn't it? 00:12:08.419 --> 00:12:09.500 It's worth 10 pounds. 00:12:09.940 --> 00:12:14.240 If I go like this with it and I scrunch it up, how much is it worth? 00:12:15.440 --> 00:12:17.059 It's still worth 10 pounds, isn't it? 00:12:17.539 --> 00:12:23.279 If I threw it in a muddy puddle on the floor, if I stood on it, how much would it be worth? 00:12:24.100 --> 00:12:26.019 It's still worth 10 pounds, isn't it? 00:12:27.080 --> 00:12:28.500 Why is it worth 10 pounds? 00:12:29.500 --> 00:12:38.700 Well, it's worth 10 pounds because a higher authority, in the case of money in this country, a higher authority, the Bank of England, says so. 00:12:39.840 --> 00:12:41.759 And it's a bit like that with God. 00:12:43.159 --> 00:12:44.820 See, he values you. 00:12:45.860 --> 00:12:47.299 He cares about you. 00:12:47.379 --> 00:12:52.580 He loves you so much that despite all the wrinkles and the crinkles, 00:12:52.580 --> 00:13:03.460 despite all the sadness and the suffering and the mess and the mourning and the dirt and the disasters and the pain and the pride, 00:13:03.580 --> 00:13:08.960 despite our sinful hearts naturally turned away from him, always asking, did God really say? 00:13:09.620 --> 00:13:19.020 Despite all of that, he loves you so much that he offers this, the free gift of eternal life in Jesus. 00:13:19.019 --> 00:13:23.279 And this just makes all the difference in the world. 00:13:23.360 --> 00:13:29.639 Even today, I mean, if you just look around you, I mean, no offense, but you're a pretty random group of people in the room, right? 00:13:29.639 --> 00:13:36.139 There are doctors and teachers and HR people and administrators and marketing wizards. 00:13:36.199 --> 00:13:37.639 And we're all in this room together. 00:13:37.799 --> 00:13:39.860 We're going to share food together at the end of our service. 00:13:39.960 --> 00:13:42.199 And we meet like this every week here. 00:13:42.279 --> 00:13:49.379 And let's be honest, there is nowhere else in our modern world where such a random group of people get together in this way. 00:13:49.439 --> 00:13:50.100 It's weird. 00:13:50.100 --> 00:13:53.019 Why do we do it? 00:13:53.600 --> 00:13:54.820 What do we have in common? 00:13:54.920 --> 00:14:01.460 Well, it's this gift that we've accepted eternal life in Christ Jesus, that he is our Lord. 00:14:01.960 --> 00:14:04.759 It's an incredible life-changing gift. 00:14:06.100 --> 00:14:10.560 And so just before we finish, here's how that gift was made possible. 00:14:11.639 --> 00:14:15.960 In a few moments time, we're going to hear another reading from Philippians chapter 2. 00:14:15.960 --> 00:14:25.360 And really, it tells the story of Christmas, of a loving God who lowered himself from his heavenly throne to a lowly manger as a child. 00:14:26.600 --> 00:14:33.759 Joining us in all those ups and downs of life and who through life continued that downward journey of suffering, 00:14:34.000 --> 00:14:41.360 serving those around him in perfect obedience to his heavenly father, living the perfect life that we haven't lived. 00:14:41.360 --> 00:14:50.840 Obedient to God, even to the point of death, dying the death that we deserve to die, paying the wages of sin that you and I deserve to pay. 00:14:51.940 --> 00:14:54.139 But of course, and this is Easter, we'll get there. 00:14:54.259 --> 00:14:55.600 He did not stay dead. 00:14:56.440 --> 00:14:57.539 He rose again. 00:14:58.519 --> 00:15:03.379 And so he can promise that we too shall rise with him to eternal life. 00:15:04.240 --> 00:15:06.960 This is the wonderful gift that we celebrate this Christmas. 00:15:06.960 --> 00:15:12.400 Imagine how different Christmas could be for you this year if this was the gift that you received. 00:15:13.460 --> 00:15:14.940 We do not deserve it. 00:15:15.460 --> 00:15:17.460 There is nothing we can do to earn it. 00:15:17.519 --> 00:15:19.160 It is a free gift. 00:15:19.320 --> 00:15:24.980 It is the most outrageously generous gift you could wish for from the most outrageously loving God you could imagine. 00:15:26.660 --> 00:15:28.200 Will you accept it this Christmas? 00:15:30.019 --> 00:15:33.580 Maybe if it's a gift that you haven't accepted before, will you accept it tonight? 00:15:33.580 --> 00:15:38.460 Maybe you've decided recently that you would like to accept that gift. 00:15:39.280 --> 00:15:40.680 Maybe you've thought so for a while. 00:15:40.780 --> 00:15:45.160 Maybe you've decided even just as I've been speaking, if that's you, please don't do nothing about that. 00:15:45.840 --> 00:15:48.920 If that's you, tell a Christian friend or a family member. 00:15:49.020 --> 00:15:50.460 If you don't have one of those, that's fine. 00:15:50.540 --> 00:15:51.680 Just grab me or Graham. 00:15:51.759 --> 00:15:53.480 We'd love to point you in the right direction. 00:15:53.480 --> 00:15:59.460 And equally, if you're still unsure about this gift, but you do think that you'd like to hear more, 00:15:59.560 --> 00:16:01.920 please don't be afraid to ask your questions. 00:16:02.360 --> 00:16:06.420 Again, your friends, your family, or we'd love to chat these things through with you. 00:16:07.360 --> 00:16:10.060 And wherever you're at, whatever you think of this gift, 00:16:10.120 --> 00:16:14.039 as we sing and enjoyments, pies together and time together, 00:16:14.180 --> 00:16:18.060 do use this time this evening to dwell on this God who created you. 00:16:18.059 --> 00:16:20.819 This God who loves you. 00:16:21.359 --> 00:16:26.459 And this God who offers you a free gift of eternal life with him this Christmas. 00:16:28.139 --> 00:16:29.000 Let me pray. 00:16:30.399 --> 00:16:31.000 Let me pray. 00:16:36.199 --> 00:16:39.559 Heavenly Father, we thank you so much for Christmas. 00:16:39.559 --> 00:17:07.759 Lord, we thank you for how you have loved us. 00:17:09.559 --> 00:17:12.919 So much that you give us this gift of eternal life. 00:17:14.919 --> 00:17:19.059 Lord, I pray that you would help us to freely accept that gift. 00:17:20.679 --> 00:17:25.079 And that you would help us to live as those who have received it. 00:17:26.859 --> 00:17:28.419 For we pray in Jesus' name. 00:17:29.500 --> 00:17:29.899 Amen.