WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:07.560 Good morning. Wonderful to be with you. If you are a guest or new, my name is Kevin, and it's wonderful to bring God's Word to you this morning. 00:00:08.279 --> 00:00:16.339 Now, as a church watermark, we are working our way through Matthew's Gospel. We're going to do so from now until about Easter next year. 00:00:16.640 --> 00:00:24.339 But at the moment, we're working specifically through the first two chapters of Matthew's Gospel as we come up towards Christmas Day. 00:00:24.339 --> 00:00:31.000 And over the next few weeks, well, today and next Sunday, as we work through the opening chapters of Matthew's Gospel, 00:00:31.240 --> 00:00:38.420 we are exploring the depth and the complexity and the richness of this good news of great joy that is Christmas. 00:00:39.219 --> 00:00:47.100 Now, if you were here last week, you'll remember we looked at the first 17 verses of Matthew's Gospel, which is the genealogy of Jesus. 00:00:47.280 --> 00:00:50.379 Remember that long list of names that Gary read to us so well. 00:00:50.380 --> 00:00:59.940 And we saw that Matthew writes his Gospel, or he begins in this way to show that Jesus is not just a flash-in-the-pan populist. 00:01:00.060 --> 00:01:02.940 He's not just this charismatic leader that got the crowds going. 00:01:03.480 --> 00:01:12.320 He was sent from God. He is the faithful fulfillment of everything God has said for thousands of years to his people in the Old Testament. 00:01:12.859 --> 00:01:19.700 But to some people in Matthew's audience, or some reading the Word, they might have had the question, and maybe you have the question today, 00:01:19.700 --> 00:01:25.939 Okay, I get that Jesus wasn't just this kind of charismatic guy that got the crowds going. 00:01:26.060 --> 00:01:27.400 I get that he was God-sent. 00:01:27.859 --> 00:01:31.760 But what relevance does that have for my life right here today? 00:01:31.960 --> 00:01:35.579 We live in 21st century Hong Kong, not 1st century Palestine. 00:01:35.980 --> 00:01:38.540 What relevance is that to our lives? 00:01:38.540 --> 00:01:48.300 And so Matthew's going to show us now that while Jesus is on the one hand the continuation of everything that God has spoken about to his people for thousands of generations, 00:01:48.620 --> 00:01:51.620 at the same time, Jesus is utterly unique. 00:01:52.340 --> 00:01:57.440 And it's the uniqueness of his birth that reveals something about the uniqueness of his identity. 00:01:57.439 --> 00:02:07.179 And the uniqueness of his identity reveals why he came to earth and what relevance he has for your life and my life today. 00:02:07.620 --> 00:02:07.739 Okay? 00:02:08.199 --> 00:02:11.240 The uniqueness of his birth reveals the uniqueness of his identity. 00:02:11.680 --> 00:02:17.060 And the uniqueness of his identity reveals why he came and what that means for you and I today. 00:02:17.800 --> 00:02:19.099 Now, let me ask this question. 00:02:19.099 --> 00:02:24.039 How many of us here like to be interrupted, like having your plans interrupted? 00:02:25.039 --> 00:02:26.620 Okay, just one at the back. 00:02:26.719 --> 00:02:27.639 Thank you, Desiree. 00:02:28.439 --> 00:02:33.740 I must confess, as a parent, this is one of the hardest things I find about having young children. 00:02:34.180 --> 00:02:37.719 The incessant, never-ending interruptions. 00:02:38.079 --> 00:02:44.079 It is impossible to find five minutes of peace and quiet, of just trying to read that article, 00:02:44.780 --> 00:02:47.539 of trying to have a brief conversation with my wife, 00:02:47.539 --> 00:02:52.259 of just trying to send that important text message without some kind of interruption. 00:02:52.400 --> 00:02:53.259 Does that sound familiar? 00:02:53.919 --> 00:02:54.659 Okay, great. 00:02:54.919 --> 00:02:56.180 Or maybe you know this feeling. 00:02:56.319 --> 00:02:58.359 You have these wonderful plans. 00:02:58.539 --> 00:03:01.299 This day is going to be your most productive day ever. 00:03:01.459 --> 00:03:03.879 You're going to accomplish a thousand tasks, right? 00:03:04.219 --> 00:03:06.519 Or maybe you've got a big weekend coming up. 00:03:06.759 --> 00:03:10.319 Or a wonderful holiday you've been looking forward to for weeks. 00:03:10.539 --> 00:03:13.539 And you wake up in the morning and your kids are sick. 00:03:14.199 --> 00:03:14.919 That ever happened? 00:03:14.919 --> 00:03:18.059 Or maybe you know this situation. 00:03:18.539 --> 00:03:20.039 You've got this date lined up. 00:03:20.599 --> 00:03:20.719 Okay? 00:03:21.039 --> 00:03:22.399 And you've booked the restaurant. 00:03:22.780 --> 00:03:24.039 You've got that bottle of wine. 00:03:24.519 --> 00:03:27.719 You haven't been wearing your favorite clothes for the last three days, 00:03:27.779 --> 00:03:29.379 because you're storing them up this date. 00:03:29.759 --> 00:03:31.879 And at five o'clock, your boss says to you, 00:03:31.919 --> 00:03:34.339 I hope you don't have any plans tonight, because we're working late. 00:03:34.859 --> 00:03:35.119 Okay? 00:03:36.799 --> 00:03:39.079 Interruptions have a way of driving us mad. 00:03:39.080 --> 00:03:42.780 Well, let's look at how Matthew's, this passage starts off today. 00:03:43.420 --> 00:03:44.960 Matthew writes this in verse 18. 00:03:45.440 --> 00:03:47.640 The birth of Jesus took place in this way. 00:03:48.100 --> 00:03:48.800 In which way? 00:03:49.220 --> 00:03:51.820 Well, with a frustrating interruption. 00:03:52.480 --> 00:03:54.040 Because think about Joseph's life. 00:03:54.260 --> 00:03:56.140 Joseph comes from this town called Nazareth. 00:03:56.280 --> 00:03:57.260 It's a small village. 00:03:57.360 --> 00:03:59.420 There are about 400 people that live there. 00:03:59.879 --> 00:04:02.639 It's a small community, a couple of families. 00:04:03.299 --> 00:04:09.139 And Joseph's parents choose a wonderful young lady to be his wife, Mary. 00:04:09.459 --> 00:04:11.679 They probably knew the family that she came from. 00:04:11.759 --> 00:04:12.719 They'd been watching her. 00:04:12.799 --> 00:04:17.079 And they decided Mary is going to make a fantastic wife for our son, Joseph. 00:04:17.639 --> 00:04:20.000 And so the parents talk, and they make this arrangement. 00:04:20.159 --> 00:04:23.819 And Joseph and Mary are legally engaged to one another. 00:04:23.819 --> 00:04:31.779 Now, in Israel, the legal age for getting engaged was 12 for girls, 13 for boys. 00:04:32.219 --> 00:04:35.860 Mary is probably a mid-teenager around this age, maybe 16 or 17. 00:04:36.120 --> 00:04:37.279 Joseph, a few years older. 00:04:37.860 --> 00:04:42.300 And the way it worked is that if you were legally engaged, it was almost as good as marriage. 00:04:42.740 --> 00:04:47.339 You couldn't just break off that engagement without an official legal divorce. 00:04:47.699 --> 00:04:51.939 And so Joseph and Mary are engaged, and they're still living with their parents. 00:04:51.939 --> 00:04:56.819 But in a year's time, they will go through the official marriage, wedding ceremony, and they will be married. 00:04:57.360 --> 00:05:00.600 Except somewhere along the line, Joseph's plans get interrupted. 00:05:01.160 --> 00:05:04.759 And not just slightly interrupted, properly messed up, right? 00:05:05.160 --> 00:05:10.019 Because he finds out that this lady that he's engaged to is pregnant. 00:05:11.459 --> 00:05:17.159 Now, in our day and age, being unmarried, being a teenager from a small rural village, 00:05:17.699 --> 00:05:21.459 and finding out you're pregnant brings on a lot of shame, right? 00:05:21.459 --> 00:05:27.399 Think of a small rural village in China, maybe 7 million people or something, or maybe the U.S. 00:05:27.539 --> 00:05:29.079 You know what it's like, right? 00:05:29.899 --> 00:05:36.759 Well, in first century Palestine, of a small village of 400 people, everyone is going to know about it. 00:05:37.419 --> 00:05:44.659 And so here are Joseph and Mary facing the shame and the disappointment that they're expecting society to bring upon them. 00:05:44.660 --> 00:05:50.520 Now, Joseph has the legal right to take Mary to the elders at the city gates and say, 00:05:50.740 --> 00:05:57.220 here is a lady that has not only been engaged in premarital sex, because she's obviously pregnant, 00:05:57.440 --> 00:06:01.740 but I know that I haven't been involved with her, and so she's been unfaithful to me. 00:06:02.400 --> 00:06:07.379 And so legally, Mary was allowed to be stoned at the gates, sentenced to death by stoning. 00:06:07.920 --> 00:06:10.000 Except Joseph does something remarkable. 00:06:10.000 --> 00:06:12.240 Well, he decides not to do that. 00:06:13.060 --> 00:06:18.839 And the Bible says that he decides to divorce her quietly, which means two things. 00:06:19.279 --> 00:06:23.399 It means maybe taking her to another village, but one, it means covering her shame. 00:06:23.800 --> 00:06:29.639 He's not going to publicly expose what has happened to her, but secondly, it means he's going to give her a certificate of divorce, 00:06:29.720 --> 00:06:35.319 an official certificate, which would mean that Joseph, everyone would know that he had called off the wedding. 00:06:35.319 --> 00:06:36.379 It was his decision. 00:06:36.779 --> 00:06:40.779 He would bear the shame, but secondly, because she got a certificate of divorce, 00:06:40.879 --> 00:06:43.680 it meant that she could go and be married into the future. 00:06:44.420 --> 00:06:46.259 And so Joseph does this remarkable thing. 00:06:46.379 --> 00:06:51.560 He says, listen, this marriage is over, but I'm going to, as far as possible, preserve your dignity. 00:06:52.300 --> 00:06:55.899 Except Joseph then experiences a second divine interruption. 00:06:56.199 --> 00:07:01.539 Not only are his plans for marriage interrupted, but now his plans for divorce are interrupted as well. 00:07:01.540 --> 00:07:05.240 Because while he's hatching these plans, he has a dream. 00:07:05.780 --> 00:07:07.780 It's an extraordinarily vivid dream. 00:07:08.000 --> 00:07:10.500 And in this dream, an angel comes to him and says this, 00:07:10.840 --> 00:07:14.439 Joseph, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, 00:07:14.820 --> 00:07:20.800 for the child that is growing inside of her is not the result of intimacy or passion or some love affair. 00:07:21.379 --> 00:07:23.759 It is conceived of the Holy Spirit. 00:07:23.759 --> 00:07:31.959 Friends, very often God's plans don't fit very well with our well-orchestrated and structured plans, right? 00:07:33.079 --> 00:07:38.519 Amazingly, God doesn't seem too concerned about the inconvenience that this is going to bring to Joseph or Mary's life. 00:07:39.099 --> 00:07:41.759 We can imagine that an angel coming to Mary and saying, 00:07:41.879 --> 00:07:43.980 Mary, I bring you good news of great joy. 00:07:44.399 --> 00:07:45.579 You're going to have a baby. 00:07:45.740 --> 00:07:47.439 The Messiah is going to be born to you. 00:07:47.500 --> 00:07:49.399 Now, let's just look at your calendar. 00:07:49.560 --> 00:07:51.279 How's 2020 looking for you? 00:07:51.819 --> 00:07:52.539 No holiday? 00:07:52.540 --> 00:07:53.720 2021 maybe? 00:07:54.420 --> 00:07:55.740 But the angel doesn't do that. 00:07:56.180 --> 00:07:58.980 The angel comes and says, you are with child. 00:07:59.300 --> 00:08:01.900 And again, I can imagine Joseph and Mary going saying, 00:08:01.980 --> 00:08:04.240 Mom, Dad, wonderful news. 00:08:04.360 --> 00:08:05.060 Mary's pregnant. 00:08:05.740 --> 00:08:07.220 But it wasn't our doing. 00:08:07.300 --> 00:08:08.840 It's the Holy Spirit, right? 00:08:09.160 --> 00:08:11.800 And you can imagine how well that was believed. 00:08:13.000 --> 00:08:18.259 Friends, very often God's plans don't fit in well with our well-orchestrated, neatly arranged schedules. 00:08:18.259 --> 00:08:20.360 But that doesn't mean that His plans aren't good. 00:08:20.360 --> 00:08:22.639 And that we shouldn't trust Him. 00:08:23.520 --> 00:08:24.540 His plans are good. 00:08:25.100 --> 00:08:26.420 Now, you may think, come on. 00:08:26.720 --> 00:08:27.819 Virgins don't have babies. 00:08:27.939 --> 00:08:29.100 We know how this thing works. 00:08:29.180 --> 00:08:32.759 In the first century, they didn't have ultrasounds and technology. 00:08:32.960 --> 00:08:35.000 But these days, we know these things. 00:08:35.120 --> 00:08:36.480 This didn't work, right? 00:08:37.159 --> 00:08:43.639 But in fact, the truth is that first century people knew just as well as we do how babies are made. 00:08:44.080 --> 00:08:44.279 Right? 00:08:44.279 --> 00:08:47.399 They knew about the birds and the bees and they understood all these things. 00:08:47.980 --> 00:08:50.939 And Joseph, when he hears that Mary's pregnant, he has this crisis. 00:08:51.139 --> 00:08:52.059 He has this difficulty. 00:08:52.240 --> 00:08:55.120 Not because he didn't know how things work, but because he does. 00:08:56.100 --> 00:08:59.759 Now, the angel comes and says, Joseph, don't be afraid to take Mary. 00:09:00.240 --> 00:09:03.199 For the baby that is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. 00:09:03.980 --> 00:09:05.240 Now, what does this actually mean? 00:09:05.679 --> 00:09:08.480 What does it mean that this baby is from the Holy Spirit? 00:09:08.579 --> 00:09:09.939 Well, it means a whole bunch of things. 00:09:09.940 --> 00:09:12.900 It means that Mary is definitely a virgin, right? 00:09:13.340 --> 00:09:15.960 She's not pregnant because of some passionate love affair. 00:09:16.320 --> 00:09:20.040 And we know this because in Luke's gospel, the angel comes to Mary and says, 00:09:20.140 --> 00:09:22.380 Mary, I bring you good news of great joy. 00:09:22.820 --> 00:09:24.820 You are going to have a baby. 00:09:25.540 --> 00:09:28.620 And Mary's response is, how can this be? 00:09:28.940 --> 00:09:29.760 This is impossible. 00:09:30.240 --> 00:09:31.600 I am a virgin, right? 00:09:31.960 --> 00:09:34.140 So first, he tells us that Mary is a virgin. 00:09:34.460 --> 00:09:36.040 But what does that actually mean? 00:09:36.440 --> 00:09:38.040 What is the significance of this? 00:09:38.600 --> 00:09:39.660 It means a bunch of things. 00:09:39.659 --> 00:09:41.179 But maybe just three of them briefly. 00:09:41.779 --> 00:09:47.199 It means that everything about Jesus' life is supernatural from beginning to end. 00:09:47.839 --> 00:09:49.620 David Mathis said this, 00:09:49.699 --> 00:09:53.399 On the one end of Jesus' life is his supernatural conception and birth. 00:09:53.719 --> 00:09:58.519 On the other end, his supernatural resurrection and his ascension to the right hand of God. 00:09:58.939 --> 00:10:00.579 And this is what Matthew's telling us. 00:10:00.919 --> 00:10:06.120 He's telling us that Jesus wasn't just a good man with good morals and good teachings 00:10:06.120 --> 00:10:07.899 who came to tell us how to live. 00:10:07.899 --> 00:10:12.419 Jesus was the ultimate divine son of God himself. 00:10:12.579 --> 00:10:16.480 And from beginning to end, everything about his life is orchestrated by God. 00:10:16.939 --> 00:10:23.159 His birth and his death are both the result, not of carefully orchestrated planning by human beings, 00:10:23.500 --> 00:10:28.959 but planned before the creation of the world and brought about by the sovereign will of the majestic God. 00:10:28.960 --> 00:10:33.340 Even before he's born, God has planned and orchestrated these things. 00:10:33.340 --> 00:10:39.540 And Matthew's telling us from the beginning, from before his birth, his very conception is nothing less than supernatural. 00:10:40.060 --> 00:10:45.139 And everything about him, from his life, his message, his teachings, and ultimately his death on the cross, 00:10:45.340 --> 00:10:47.399 is nothing less than supernatural. 00:10:47.399 --> 00:10:52.379 It's the uniqueness of his birth that speaks to the uniqueness of his identity, 00:10:52.379 --> 00:10:57.279 which tells us who he is and why he came and what that means for you and I. 00:10:57.799 --> 00:11:00.100 There's a second thing this virgin conception means for us. 00:11:00.179 --> 00:11:03.120 It means that Jesus is nothing less than the God-man. 00:11:03.659 --> 00:11:05.639 He's fully God, fully man. 00:11:05.639 --> 00:11:10.039 Now, if you're new to church this morning or you're kind of new to the Bible, 00:11:10.179 --> 00:11:13.919 I know that might sound strange and it takes a while to get our heads around it. 00:11:14.000 --> 00:11:18.080 But this is actually quite central to Matthew's teaching and central to the gospel. 00:11:19.240 --> 00:11:23.500 The virgin conception speaks not only to his supernatural life and origins, 00:11:24.059 --> 00:11:30.939 but the fact that Mary's pregnancy is conceived of the Holy Spirit says more than that Jesus was just supernatural. 00:11:31.319 --> 00:11:34.759 It speaks to the fact that he's divine, that he's fully God, 00:11:34.759 --> 00:11:37.759 that he's not just here to show us the way to God. 00:11:38.240 --> 00:11:41.360 Jesus is not just a guru that is going to teach us about spirituality. 00:11:41.679 --> 00:11:42.939 He is God himself. 00:11:43.679 --> 00:11:47.939 And because Jesus is fully human, he understands our weakness. 00:11:48.080 --> 00:11:49.399 He understands our temptations. 00:11:49.539 --> 00:11:50.659 He understands our suffering. 00:11:50.799 --> 00:11:52.000 He understands our difficulties. 00:11:52.519 --> 00:11:53.639 He understands our pain. 00:11:54.480 --> 00:11:59.059 Friends, there's no area on the spectrum of human emotion and difficulty 00:11:59.059 --> 00:12:03.799 with which Jesus Christ is not familiar and knows what it feels like and experiences. 00:12:03.799 --> 00:12:06.939 And yet because he's fully God, he's perfect. 00:12:07.139 --> 00:12:07.859 He's just. 00:12:07.979 --> 00:12:08.839 He's without fault. 00:12:08.959 --> 00:12:09.859 He's without error. 00:12:10.379 --> 00:12:14.099 His judgments are perfect because he's God. 00:12:14.620 --> 00:12:16.559 And therefore, he's trustworthy. 00:12:17.419 --> 00:12:18.079 He's trustworthy. 00:12:19.079 --> 00:12:21.579 But the virgin conception actually means something else. 00:12:21.639 --> 00:12:23.000 And this is the heart of this passage. 00:12:23.120 --> 00:12:24.159 So I want to listen up. 00:12:24.339 --> 00:12:24.399 Okay. 00:12:24.959 --> 00:12:28.479 It means that humanity, we cannot save ourselves. 00:12:28.480 --> 00:12:33.420 The virgin conception tells us that you and I, we needed a savior. 00:12:33.580 --> 00:12:34.779 We needed a rescuer. 00:12:35.019 --> 00:12:39.840 We needed someone to come from outside of ourselves and to rescue us because none of us are sufficient 00:12:39.840 --> 00:12:40.840 to save ourselves. 00:12:42.039 --> 00:12:47.560 Remember a few months ago, there was that story that captured the world's attention of the Thai 00:12:47.560 --> 00:12:49.580 soccer team in Thailand. 00:12:49.720 --> 00:12:50.560 They got stuck in the caves. 00:12:50.620 --> 00:12:51.180 Remember that? 00:12:51.720 --> 00:12:53.460 These boys, they go for a soccer practice. 00:12:53.460 --> 00:12:56.320 And afterwards, they go for a walk in the caves. 00:12:56.740 --> 00:12:58.440 And they go a little bit further. 00:12:58.660 --> 00:12:59.780 And then it starts to rain. 00:13:00.200 --> 00:13:02.400 And so they climb up a bit to get away from the rain. 00:13:02.680 --> 00:13:05.000 And they go further and further and further into the caves. 00:13:05.160 --> 00:13:08.480 And before they know it, they're hopelessly lost. 00:13:09.620 --> 00:13:11.180 They are completely lost. 00:13:11.960 --> 00:13:13.340 And so they decide to wait it out. 00:13:13.400 --> 00:13:15.820 They think the rains will end and the waters will subside. 00:13:15.920 --> 00:13:17.780 And things just go from bad to worse. 00:13:17.779 --> 00:13:21.879 And soon they realize they're not just in a difficult situation. 00:13:22.419 --> 00:13:24.439 Their situation is utterly hopeless. 00:13:25.059 --> 00:13:25.959 The waters have risen. 00:13:26.480 --> 00:13:27.819 The oxygen is dropping. 00:13:28.399 --> 00:13:29.419 Their food is running out. 00:13:29.539 --> 00:13:31.039 And they are completely lost. 00:13:31.919 --> 00:13:35.839 Now imagine one of them had said, guys, I've had a good life. 00:13:36.799 --> 00:13:38.519 I will take the fall for you. 00:13:38.799 --> 00:13:39.959 I will stop eating. 00:13:40.240 --> 00:13:41.240 I will stop breathing. 00:13:41.699 --> 00:13:43.759 Consuming more oxygen so that you can live. 00:13:43.839 --> 00:13:45.659 I will lay down my life for you. 00:13:45.659 --> 00:13:48.199 Well, he would have been a hero. 00:13:48.659 --> 00:13:50.240 He would have had a good heart. 00:13:50.399 --> 00:13:53.379 And we would have thought of him as very selfless. 00:13:53.620 --> 00:13:55.000 But he wouldn't have saved them. 00:13:55.759 --> 00:14:01.620 What they needed wasn't just one of them to rise up and say, I will take the fall for you. 00:14:01.679 --> 00:14:07.059 What they needed was somebody to come from outside and rescue them and get them out of the situation. 00:14:07.879 --> 00:14:11.039 Friends, that's exactly what the Bible says our situation is. 00:14:11.399 --> 00:14:14.459 We don't just need one of us to say, let me show you the way. 00:14:14.460 --> 00:14:18.519 We don't just need a great human being to come and say, I will lay down my life for you. 00:14:18.560 --> 00:14:24.139 What we needed was someone to come from outside of ourselves to us to rescue us from our situation. 00:14:24.540 --> 00:14:26.180 The Bible says we are trapped. 00:14:26.340 --> 00:14:28.460 We are slaves to sin and to selfishness. 00:14:28.879 --> 00:14:30.379 You may say, I don't feel very trapped. 00:14:30.780 --> 00:14:31.680 I feel quite free. 00:14:32.259 --> 00:14:35.420 Friends, don't you realize that we cannot help but live for ourselves? 00:14:35.860 --> 00:14:37.759 We are slaves to our self-centeredness. 00:14:38.240 --> 00:14:39.700 And Colin Smith said it like this. 00:14:39.700 --> 00:14:48.379 From the very first human being onwards, human race has never produced a single human being who is sufficient to save us from our selfishness. 00:14:48.720 --> 00:14:53.820 We produce great athletes, Michael Jordan and Lionel Messi. 00:14:54.140 --> 00:14:57.860 We produce great business leaders, Jack Maher, Stephen Jobs. 00:14:58.120 --> 00:15:01.600 We produce extraordinary minds, Pythagoras, Newton, Einstein. 00:15:01.600 --> 00:15:07.480 But the human race has never produced a single person who is sufficient to save us from our sins. 00:15:08.180 --> 00:15:11.600 Christ came to do on our behalf what we could not do for ourselves. 00:15:12.100 --> 00:15:14.220 This is the great meaning of the virgin birth. 00:15:14.639 --> 00:15:16.580 He did not come from the human race. 00:15:16.960 --> 00:15:21.700 He came to the human race because he's a gift from God for us. 00:15:22.159 --> 00:15:23.620 And this is what Matthew is showing us. 00:15:23.620 --> 00:15:29.060 The significance of Mary's miraculous conception is that Jesus is not just one of us. 00:15:29.399 --> 00:15:33.139 He's not just the strongest or the most enlightened or the most spiritual. 00:15:33.480 --> 00:15:36.139 He hasn't just come to show us the way to God. 00:15:36.500 --> 00:15:37.440 He is God. 00:15:37.659 --> 00:15:43.639 And he came to us to rescue us and to redeem us and to bring us back to himself. 00:15:44.860 --> 00:15:50.639 Friends, this morning we had the privilege of watching a multitude of children getting dedicated. 00:15:50.980 --> 00:15:51.180 Right? 00:15:51.360 --> 00:15:52.220 Wasn't it a joy? 00:15:52.220 --> 00:15:56.040 And standing up here with the six families and seeing their children. 00:15:56.360 --> 00:16:06.779 The reason why we do this is because these wonderful gurgling, smiling, laughing, burping, sometimes vomiting bundles of joy. 00:16:07.379 --> 00:16:12.320 What these bundles of joy most need in life is not just a wonderful education. 00:16:13.120 --> 00:16:15.580 It's not just extracurricular activities. 00:16:16.139 --> 00:16:19.879 It's not just a trust fund set up so that they are financially secure in life. 00:16:19.879 --> 00:16:25.080 What these ten children most need in life is a revelation of how lost they are. 00:16:25.439 --> 00:16:29.519 That apart from Christ they are completely and utterly helpless. 00:16:30.080 --> 00:16:39.220 But because of the amazing love of Christ that God has come into the world to rescue them and save them and to fetch them and to bring them to themselves. 00:16:39.740 --> 00:16:41.899 Because of God's love for them. 00:16:42.320 --> 00:16:47.519 They need a revelation and a realization that their hearts are self-orientated, bent on themselves. 00:16:47.519 --> 00:16:49.500 But that God has not abandoned them. 00:16:50.139 --> 00:16:59.899 Friends, if you're here this morning and you're not a Christian, you may think that Christmas is about pursuing joy and peace and love and kindness and forgiveness. 00:17:00.159 --> 00:17:01.779 And it is about those things in some ways. 00:17:01.840 --> 00:17:11.259 Or maybe you think being a Christian is about being religious, doing the right things, obeying the rules, or being very dutiful and devoted. 00:17:11.259 --> 00:17:16.879 But Christmas actually tells us that at the heart of the Christian message, it starts off with bad news. 00:17:18.119 --> 00:17:24.519 And the bad news is that we are more lost and more hopeless and more destitute than we like to think. 00:17:25.079 --> 00:17:27.019 It tells us that our situation is hopeless. 00:17:27.200 --> 00:17:29.900 It tells us that we're in a worse situation than we think we are. 00:17:30.379 --> 00:17:34.720 Because the natural default setting of our hearts is to live for ourselves in our own glory. 00:17:35.400 --> 00:17:38.619 Friends, I do it and you do it and we all do it. 00:17:38.619 --> 00:17:46.719 Friends, I was just thinking on the bus on the way here this morning, how self-centered I am, that even my preaching is marked by self-centeredness. 00:17:47.299 --> 00:17:50.939 Friends, you don't know this, but I go home every Sunday and I wonder how good was I? 00:17:51.439 --> 00:17:52.539 What did people think? 00:17:53.099 --> 00:17:54.259 Were people impressed? 00:17:54.779 --> 00:17:58.619 Even this act of trying to be spiritual is marked by self-centeredness. 00:17:58.699 --> 00:18:01.479 Friends, that's why I get so frustrated when people interrupt me. 00:18:01.979 --> 00:18:04.379 That's why it drives me mad when my plan's interrupted. 00:18:04.459 --> 00:18:06.219 Because I want to be king of my life. 00:18:06.220 --> 00:18:08.120 I want to live my own glory. 00:18:08.519 --> 00:18:13.259 And I want my plans to work my way so that I can get the glory when things go well. 00:18:13.680 --> 00:18:17.720 I want to be my own God because I'm a sinner. 00:18:19.000 --> 00:18:21.120 Friends, I'm not the only one. 00:18:21.960 --> 00:18:22.860 We all like that. 00:18:23.600 --> 00:18:28.279 But the good news of Christmas is that though we are lost and hopeless and without hope in the world, 00:18:28.279 --> 00:18:35.559 because of God's profound love for us, because God's extravagant love for you and for me, 00:18:35.740 --> 00:18:37.839 God did for us what we could not do for ourselves. 00:18:38.279 --> 00:18:39.539 He came and rescued us. 00:18:39.899 --> 00:18:41.519 He saved us and He redeemed us. 00:18:41.579 --> 00:18:45.660 Not because He had to, but because He chose to and because He wants to. 00:18:46.160 --> 00:18:47.960 And we see this in what the angel says. 00:18:48.059 --> 00:18:51.220 The angel comes to David and the angel doesn't say, 00:18:51.220 --> 00:18:56.980 David, don't divorce Mary because what's conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit and she's feeling sick. 00:18:57.279 --> 00:18:59.220 And so just be gracious and kind to her. 00:18:59.680 --> 00:19:00.680 That's not the motivation. 00:19:00.880 --> 00:19:01.960 The angel comes and says, 00:19:02.180 --> 00:19:05.200 David, don't be afraid to take Mary as your wife. 00:19:05.980 --> 00:19:08.380 For that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. 00:19:09.079 --> 00:19:12.039 She will bear a son and you must call His name Jesus. 00:19:12.279 --> 00:19:15.779 And the name Jesus means the Lord saves. 00:19:15.779 --> 00:19:19.879 Jesus, Yeshua, Joshua, salvation is from the Lord. 00:19:20.399 --> 00:19:24.160 For He will save His people from their sins. 00:19:24.379 --> 00:19:25.720 John Frame said it like this, 00:19:26.440 --> 00:19:30.480 The birth of Christ in which the initiative and the power are all from God 00:19:30.480 --> 00:19:33.339 is an appropriate picture of God's saving grace. 00:19:33.799 --> 00:19:38.200 It teaches us that salvation is God's act, not our human effort. 00:19:38.859 --> 00:19:41.099 And so this is why Jesus is given the name Jesus. 00:19:41.099 --> 00:19:47.159 Not just because it's got a nice ring to it or, you know, it rhymes with something else that rhymes with Jesus. 00:19:47.439 --> 00:19:49.799 But because it means the Lord saves. 00:19:50.359 --> 00:19:51.719 God has come to save. 00:19:52.480 --> 00:19:55.519 Now, last question I want to ask this morning is, 00:19:55.959 --> 00:19:57.179 What does this actually mean? 00:19:57.879 --> 00:19:59.359 What does this feel like? 00:19:59.799 --> 00:20:02.240 What does it look like that God saves? 00:20:03.139 --> 00:20:04.319 Well, good question. 00:20:04.419 --> 00:20:05.159 I'm glad you asked. 00:20:05.480 --> 00:20:06.279 Now the question is, 00:20:06.559 --> 00:20:07.639 Who does God save? 00:20:08.159 --> 00:20:09.439 Does He save the devoted? 00:20:09.440 --> 00:20:11.480 Does He save the religious? 00:20:12.000 --> 00:20:13.380 Does He save the wealthy? 00:20:13.759 --> 00:20:14.840 Does He save the poor? 00:20:15.620 --> 00:20:18.840 Is He like Father Christmas that saves those that have been good all year 00:20:18.840 --> 00:20:21.380 and have not disobeyed their parents? 00:20:21.680 --> 00:20:24.100 Well, let's read on and see what happens. 00:20:25.000 --> 00:20:25.900 Verse 22. 00:20:26.799 --> 00:20:27.799 So the angel comes and says, 00:20:27.900 --> 00:20:28.620 You're going to have a son. 00:20:28.860 --> 00:20:31.200 Name Him Jesus, which means the Lord saves. 00:20:31.299 --> 00:20:31.880 Verse 22. 00:20:32.360 --> 00:20:36.320 All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet Isaiah. 00:20:36.319 --> 00:20:39.579 Behold, the virgin will conceive and will bear a son, 00:20:40.059 --> 00:20:42.299 and they will call His name Emmanuel, 00:20:42.579 --> 00:20:44.579 which means God is with us. 00:20:45.059 --> 00:20:48.039 Now, last point here is, 00:20:49.159 --> 00:20:52.639 when Matthew, the New Testament is forever quoting the Old Testament, 00:20:52.799 --> 00:20:55.419 and when it does so, it often just quotes one sentence. 00:20:56.179 --> 00:20:59.960 But it's kind of like a footnote or a hyperlink to the Old Testament, 00:21:00.059 --> 00:21:03.079 because the readers would have understood the background to that Scripture. 00:21:03.079 --> 00:21:05.720 They would have known what that one sentence refers to. 00:21:06.159 --> 00:21:07.019 Now, in our day and age, 00:21:07.059 --> 00:21:10.019 we don't often understand the full context behind the story, 00:21:10.099 --> 00:21:12.079 and so we may need to just explore it a little bit. 00:21:12.399 --> 00:21:16.159 But Matthew's audience would have understood exactly what this quote refers to. 00:21:16.740 --> 00:21:18.960 The quote refers to Isaiah chapter 7. 00:21:19.539 --> 00:21:26.299 And Isaiah chapter 7 gives us a far richer, deeper, more complex understanding of this passage. 00:21:26.419 --> 00:21:27.839 You see, the situation is like this. 00:21:28.159 --> 00:21:29.299 Now, you're going to need to concentrate, 00:21:29.500 --> 00:21:31.000 because there's some strange names, okay? 00:21:31.000 --> 00:21:32.859 I think we've got a map up here. 00:21:33.660 --> 00:21:35.460 Hopefully, I don't know if you can see that. 00:21:36.000 --> 00:21:37.119 So the situation is this. 00:21:37.420 --> 00:21:40.720 The nation of Israel split into two kingdoms. 00:21:41.200 --> 00:21:44.700 The southern kingdom, which is the more faithful of the two, is called Judah. 00:21:45.220 --> 00:21:48.660 And the king of Judah at this stage is called Ahaz, A-H-A-Z. 00:21:49.099 --> 00:21:52.859 The northern kingdom is called Ephraim, or sometimes Israel. 00:21:53.180 --> 00:21:56.579 And the king of Ephraim is called Pekah at this stage, okay? 00:21:56.579 --> 00:22:02.419 So you've got these two kingdoms, Ephraim and Judah, Pekah and Ahaz. 00:22:03.220 --> 00:22:07.279 And the king Ahaz in the south is in a difficult situation, 00:22:07.500 --> 00:22:10.960 because the world's superpower at the time is Assyria. 00:22:11.419 --> 00:22:13.519 And the king of Assyria is called Tiglath-Pilesa. 00:22:13.939 --> 00:22:18.419 And so Tiglath-Pilesa has ascended the throne, and he's flexing his muscles, 00:22:18.420 --> 00:22:23.420 and he wants to expand the Assyrian Empire, not just from Nineveh and Assyria, 00:22:23.840 --> 00:22:27.080 but to the whole known world all the way down to Egypt, okay? 00:22:27.539 --> 00:22:32.259 And so he's starting to flex his muscles, and he's sending his army to conquer nation after nation 00:22:32.259 --> 00:22:33.940 all the way on the way down to Egypt. 00:22:34.500 --> 00:22:41.000 And so Ahaz, the king of Judah in the south, knows that this army is coming to invade them and conquer them. 00:22:41.000 --> 00:22:45.900 But at the same time, the kingdom above him, the northern kingdom of Ephraim, 00:22:46.279 --> 00:22:48.740 and the nation just above them called Syria, 00:22:49.339 --> 00:22:55.440 these two nations decide, let's see if we can fight off Assyria at Tiglath-Pilesa. 00:22:55.500 --> 00:22:57.440 Let's see if we can stop his advances. 00:22:58.039 --> 00:23:00.380 And so they form this unholy alliance. 00:23:00.720 --> 00:23:03.460 But they say, we need Judah in the south to help us, 00:23:03.559 --> 00:23:07.319 because otherwise Assyria can just go around us, come to the south, and attack us from the bottom. 00:23:07.319 --> 00:23:12.759 So in order to stop Assyria demolishing us, we need to get Judah on our side. 00:23:13.399 --> 00:23:14.960 But Judah doesn't want to go on their side. 00:23:15.519 --> 00:23:21.319 And so these two kings, Pekah and Rezin, they decide, let's invade Judah. 00:23:21.639 --> 00:23:23.819 We'll overthrow Ahaz, we'll kick him out. 00:23:24.139 --> 00:23:26.700 We'll install our own puppet king on the throne. 00:23:26.819 --> 00:23:27.619 His name is Tabeel. 00:23:28.119 --> 00:23:30.139 And Tabeel will give us the armies, 00:23:30.319 --> 00:23:34.099 and then the three of us can stand against the advancing army of Assyria. 00:23:34.200 --> 00:23:35.059 Does that make sense? 00:23:35.359 --> 00:23:37.059 You sort of get what's going on? 00:23:37.759 --> 00:23:39.679 So Ahaz is in a difficult situation. 00:23:40.259 --> 00:23:43.259 Because on the one hand, Assyria is coming from the north. 00:23:43.460 --> 00:23:46.859 This mighty, ruthless army is coming to destroy them. 00:23:47.279 --> 00:23:51.839 But at the same time, his two neighbors are also trying to attack him at the same time. 00:23:52.159 --> 00:23:56.679 So he's got these two kings, Pekah and Rezin, that are trying to overthrow him. 00:23:57.000 --> 00:24:00.579 And on the other side, he's got Tiglath-Pilesa that's trying to overthrow him. 00:24:00.579 --> 00:24:01.939 And he's stuck in the middle. 00:24:02.419 --> 00:24:03.799 And so what is he going to do? 00:24:04.159 --> 00:24:05.119 How does he respond? 00:24:05.119 --> 00:24:09.559 On the one hand, he's terrified of these two kings that are right at his doorstep. 00:24:09.719 --> 00:24:14.379 But he's even more terrified of joining them against the mighty, ruthless Assyrians. 00:24:14.739 --> 00:24:18.759 And so he's sandwiched in the middle, and he doesn't know what to do. 00:24:18.759 --> 00:24:20.539 What would you do? 00:24:21.920 --> 00:24:28.259 Well, Ahaz decides he's going to try and stave off the attack of these two little kings north of him. 00:24:28.400 --> 00:24:30.379 And he's going to hold out for the king of Assyria. 00:24:30.480 --> 00:24:32.960 And he's going to try and beg him to be lenient. 00:24:33.119 --> 00:24:34.879 And he's going to join Assyria's side. 00:24:34.880 --> 00:24:37.740 So he's going to hold out against Ephraim and Assyria. 00:24:37.920 --> 00:24:41.380 And he's going to join the king of Assyria and try and join his team. 00:24:42.180 --> 00:24:45.280 Well, God sends Isaiah to go and speak to him. 00:24:45.740 --> 00:24:49.540 But Isaiah gives him a radically different message than what he's expecting. 00:24:50.160 --> 00:24:53.660 Because Isaiah goes to this king, Ahaz, and says, 00:24:53.660 --> 00:24:55.980 Ahaz, this is what I want you to do. 00:24:56.600 --> 00:24:57.940 Do nothing. 00:24:59.120 --> 00:25:02.060 Don't support Ephraim and Assyria. 00:25:02.660 --> 00:25:05.160 Don't support Assyria. 00:25:05.480 --> 00:25:06.640 Just do nothing. 00:25:07.240 --> 00:25:08.000 Stand fast. 00:25:08.300 --> 00:25:09.840 Don't throw your weight behind those kings. 00:25:10.040 --> 00:25:11.660 Don't throw your weight behind those kings. 00:25:11.800 --> 00:25:13.500 Because God will look after you. 00:25:13.900 --> 00:25:14.040 Okay? 00:25:15.620 --> 00:25:18.620 And so the challenge is clear cut. 00:25:18.840 --> 00:25:23.519 Ahaz, will Ahaz seek salvation by scheming and politics and planning and alliances? 00:25:24.140 --> 00:25:27.480 Or will he simply trust God's promised goodness? 00:25:28.380 --> 00:25:30.980 And then Isaiah says to him, ask for a sign. 00:25:31.580 --> 00:25:32.580 Ask for any sign. 00:25:32.640 --> 00:25:34.620 As high as the heavens or as low as the grave. 00:25:34.980 --> 00:25:36.019 Ask for any sign. 00:25:36.160 --> 00:25:38.100 God will give you a sign to prove that he's faithful. 00:25:39.360 --> 00:25:44.420 But Ahaz refuses Isaiah's advice and his offer for a sign. 00:25:45.160 --> 00:25:46.100 Ahaz says, no, no, no. 00:25:46.100 --> 00:25:46.480 It's fine. 00:25:46.540 --> 00:25:46.940 Thank you. 00:25:47.320 --> 00:25:48.740 I won't ask for a sign. 00:25:48.740 --> 00:25:50.080 I could never do that to God. 00:25:50.779 --> 00:25:52.620 Why does Ahaz not want a sign? 00:25:53.219 --> 00:25:56.819 Why does he refuse the offer and refuse for God to confirm his provinces? 00:25:57.679 --> 00:26:00.799 Friends, he refuses it for the same reasons that you and I refuse God. 00:26:01.319 --> 00:26:02.219 And the reason is this. 00:26:02.299 --> 00:26:03.979 Because he doesn't want to believe God. 00:26:04.539 --> 00:26:09.919 Because if he trusts, because if God proves himself faithful to his word, you'll have to let God in. 00:26:10.399 --> 00:26:12.359 You'll have to hand over the reins of his life to God. 00:26:12.359 --> 00:26:16.459 And so he almost doesn't want to give God a chance to prove that he's faithful. 00:26:17.240 --> 00:26:24.139 And so shrouded in pious words and diplomatic hypocrisy, he says, oh, I would never do such a thing as put God to the test. 00:26:24.240 --> 00:26:25.099 I won't do that. 00:26:25.859 --> 00:26:28.159 But actually, he's trusting Assyria. 00:26:29.099 --> 00:26:31.439 He's going to throw his weight behind Tiglath-Pilesa. 00:26:31.559 --> 00:26:34.879 And so Isaiah warns him of the gravity and the hopelessness of the situation. 00:26:34.880 --> 00:26:36.100 So Isaiah says to him this. 00:26:36.200 --> 00:26:36.400 He says, 00:26:36.400 --> 00:26:51.580 And this is the sign. 00:26:51.579 --> 00:27:07.480 And before that son is even a few years old, before he can tell the difference between what's right and what's wrong, 00:27:08.059 --> 00:27:12.939 Assyria will attack these two kings, will destroy Ephraim, will destroy Assyria. 00:27:13.500 --> 00:27:19.059 But before you think that you're safe, next he's going to turn his eye to you and he's going to come and destroy you. 00:27:19.839 --> 00:27:22.359 God will be with his people, but he won't be with you. 00:27:23.399 --> 00:27:28.480 And straight off this in Isaiah chapter 8, Isaiah's wife conceives and gives birth to a son. 00:27:29.179 --> 00:27:36.419 And before this son is even a few years old, before he can even say mother or father, Assyria has come down and destroyed Israel. 00:27:37.240 --> 00:27:38.480 And Pech is out the picture. 00:27:38.879 --> 00:27:42.000 He's destroyed the other nation, Syria, and Rezin is out the picture. 00:27:42.000 --> 00:27:51.079 And just as Ahaz thinks, I'm safe, Assyria turns its attention and comes and overthrows Ahaz off the throne himself. 00:27:51.920 --> 00:27:54.799 But God in his kindness has not forgotten his promises to Abraham. 00:27:54.940 --> 00:27:56.519 He's not forgotten his promises to David. 00:27:57.039 --> 00:27:58.819 Because Assyria doesn't destroy Judah. 00:27:58.940 --> 00:28:00.339 He just overthrows Ahaz. 00:28:01.000 --> 00:28:03.579 And God keeps the nation of Judah alive. 00:28:03.740 --> 00:28:04.920 And he keeps them safe. 00:28:04.920 --> 00:28:07.900 And there's a small number of faithful men and women who are unharmed. 00:28:08.100 --> 00:28:09.960 Those who trusted God all along. 00:28:10.539 --> 00:28:15.279 And God comes to rescue them and he saves them from both the enemy out there, but also the enemy within. 00:28:16.000 --> 00:28:20.460 And from the small remnant, from the small group of men and women that trusted God, 00:28:20.560 --> 00:28:25.779 the bloodline of the Messiah continues right down through the ages until many years later, 00:28:26.039 --> 00:28:27.779 a true virgin does have a son. 00:28:28.360 --> 00:28:30.039 In a small town called Bethlehem. 00:28:30.039 --> 00:28:33.180 And that son is given the name Jesus. 00:28:34.279 --> 00:28:35.579 God saves us. 00:28:35.700 --> 00:28:36.559 Or Emmanuel. 00:28:36.879 --> 00:28:37.659 God's with us. 00:28:38.180 --> 00:28:40.220 God has come to save us. 00:28:40.680 --> 00:28:43.680 Friends, it turns out that Assyria's word was not just a word for Ahaz. 00:28:44.319 --> 00:28:46.700 It's a word for all of us throughout the ages. 00:28:46.819 --> 00:28:49.240 Because Matthew picks up on this a few hundred years later. 00:28:49.299 --> 00:28:49.539 He says, 00:28:49.659 --> 00:28:53.659 Remember how Assyria said that a young woman would give birth to a son, a virgin, 00:28:53.799 --> 00:28:57.539 and that he would be God's sign that those who trust in him will be saved, 00:28:57.539 --> 00:28:59.440 or those who refuse him will be brought down? 00:29:00.039 --> 00:29:03.259 Well, don't you realize that that sign was just a black and white picture? 00:29:03.720 --> 00:29:05.019 It was just a foretaste. 00:29:05.480 --> 00:29:08.220 It was a foretaste of the situation that all of us are in. 00:29:08.619 --> 00:29:10.200 It's a situation that you and I are in. 00:29:10.220 --> 00:29:12.940 Because friends, we don't have Assyria knocking at our door, 00:29:13.139 --> 00:29:16.200 and we don't have Rezin and Pekka about to overthrow us. 00:29:16.379 --> 00:29:18.859 But we've all got an enemy that's knocking at the door of our hearts. 00:29:19.240 --> 00:29:20.920 We've got the enemy of self-centeredness. 00:29:21.539 --> 00:29:23.019 We've got the enemy of self-sufficiency. 00:29:23.659 --> 00:29:28.159 We've got the sin of self-reliance and self-sufficiency in our hearts. 00:29:28.160 --> 00:29:30.500 It's the sin of not wanting to trust God. 00:29:30.900 --> 00:29:34.600 Because when he proves true, it'll mean we have to hand our lives over to him. 00:29:35.200 --> 00:29:38.060 But friends, the good news of Christmas is that God has not abandoned us. 00:29:38.259 --> 00:29:41.360 Because he's given us not just a sign, he's given us himself. 00:29:41.840 --> 00:29:43.820 He came to help us trust him. 00:29:44.180 --> 00:29:45.500 Though it requires an act of faith, 00:29:46.040 --> 00:29:47.380 though we cannot see him, 00:29:47.380 --> 00:29:52.140 those who forsake salvation by scheming and planning and alliances and politics 00:29:52.140 --> 00:29:54.160 will find that God is good on his word, 00:29:54.360 --> 00:29:58.000 that God stands by his promises made all those years ago. 00:29:58.680 --> 00:30:00.040 And friends, the question was this. 00:30:00.300 --> 00:30:02.240 Joseph, will you trust him? 00:30:03.240 --> 00:30:05.240 Will you trust the word of God from the angel? 00:30:05.920 --> 00:30:07.540 Will you take Mary to be your wife? 00:30:08.220 --> 00:30:09.960 Will you trust that God is good on his word? 00:30:10.020 --> 00:30:11.840 And so in verse 24, we read this. 00:30:11.839 --> 00:30:20.399 Friends, what about us today? 00:30:20.859 --> 00:30:22.019 What about you and I? 00:30:22.679 --> 00:30:23.919 Will we take God at his word? 00:30:24.939 --> 00:30:25.799 Will we trust him? 00:30:26.399 --> 00:30:28.059 Will we cast ourselves upon him? 00:30:28.099 --> 00:30:29.859 Or will we resort to self-reliance? 00:30:30.559 --> 00:30:33.859 Will we trust in our own schemes and our planning and our self-sufficiency? 00:30:34.819 --> 00:30:36.059 Will we try and save ourselves? 00:30:36.059 --> 00:30:39.059 Or will we trust in the one whose name is the Lord saves? 00:30:39.839 --> 00:30:43.440 Will we trust in Emmanuel, the God who's with those who trust him? 00:30:44.099 --> 00:30:45.159 Friends, what about this week? 00:30:45.220 --> 00:30:46.319 Will you trust him this week? 00:30:47.240 --> 00:30:49.359 Will you trust him when temptation comes your way? 00:30:50.440 --> 00:30:54.359 Will you trust him when you sense God is asking you to make a big sacrifice, 00:30:54.359 --> 00:30:56.159 to do what's right and it's so hard? 00:30:57.139 --> 00:30:58.539 Will you trust him with your finances? 00:30:58.759 --> 00:31:01.279 Or will you store up bolts of self-sufficiency? 00:31:01.960 --> 00:31:04.859 Will you trust him with your life and your future and your identity, 00:31:05.159 --> 00:31:07.859 with your forgiveness, with bitterness, with anger, 00:31:07.859 --> 00:31:09.139 with your hurt? 00:31:09.879 --> 00:31:11.719 Will you trust the baby in Bethlehem, 00:31:12.000 --> 00:31:15.399 who one day ended up on a cross to take our sins upon himself? 00:31:15.979 --> 00:31:17.439 Will you trust him to save you? 00:31:18.159 --> 00:31:21.639 Friends, what the angel of the Lord spoke to Joseph those many, many years ago 00:31:21.639 --> 00:31:23.799 on that fateful day, he speaks to each one of us today. 00:31:23.879 --> 00:31:24.159 He says, 00:31:24.160 --> 00:31:39.580 Let's pray together. 00:31:43.180 --> 00:31:48.800 Father, thank you for the complexity and the depth and the richness of Christmas. 00:31:48.799 --> 00:31:55.419 Thank you, God, that Christmas is so much more than just jingle bells and carols and presents 00:31:55.419 --> 00:31:58.339 and tinsel and good food. 00:31:58.879 --> 00:32:01.799 Christmas is the wonderful story that our God saves, 00:32:02.220 --> 00:32:04.159 that our God has come to be with us, 00:32:04.500 --> 00:32:07.000 that though, God, we were lost and utterly hopeless, 00:32:07.119 --> 00:32:08.919 that you, God, because of your love for us, 00:32:09.000 --> 00:32:11.359 came to rescue us and to fetch us, 00:32:11.399 --> 00:32:12.599 to bring us back to yourself. 00:32:13.379 --> 00:32:15.259 Father, I pray for the watermark. 00:32:15.259 --> 00:32:16.059 I pray for us. 00:32:16.640 --> 00:32:18.019 I pray, God, give us faith. 00:32:18.680 --> 00:32:20.400 Lord, I pray that we won't be like Ahaz, 00:32:20.579 --> 00:32:22.819 trusting our own schemes and our own self-reliance, 00:32:23.299 --> 00:32:26.099 but that we, God, will surrender to the babe of Bethlehem, 00:32:26.619 --> 00:32:27.960 to the man upon the cross, 00:32:28.559 --> 00:32:31.119 that we will trust you and cast ourselves upon you. 00:32:32.059 --> 00:32:34.619 God, I pray for those of us that don't know you. 00:32:35.480 --> 00:32:38.980 I pray for those of us, God, that are still in our sin. 00:32:39.819 --> 00:32:42.079 God, won't you give us faith to reach out to you? 00:32:42.759 --> 00:32:46.579 God, won't you both humble us and open our eyes to see you, 00:32:46.659 --> 00:32:48.579 that you, God, are the one who saves. 00:32:49.279 --> 00:32:51.220 That, God, all the money in the world can't save us, 00:32:51.240 --> 00:32:53.439 all the reputation in the world can't save us. 00:32:53.539 --> 00:32:55.500 God, all the business connections 00:32:55.500 --> 00:32:59.659 and the things that our hearts long for will never save us. 00:32:59.759 --> 00:33:01.099 They won't save us in this lifetime 00:33:01.099 --> 00:33:02.500 and they won't save us in the next. 00:33:03.359 --> 00:33:05.059 God, help us to trust you, I pray. 00:33:05.819 --> 00:33:07.119 Cause us to be born again. 00:33:07.319 --> 00:33:08.659 Cause us to be saved, God. 00:33:08.660 --> 00:33:13.060 Cause us to experience the light on the life of Jesus. 00:33:14.000 --> 00:33:15.120 Friends, if you're here this morning, 00:33:15.200 --> 00:33:17.880 you're not a Christian, it's free. 00:33:19.380 --> 00:33:20.420 It's free. 00:33:20.700 --> 00:33:23.300 You don't need to pay a single cent to become a Christian. 00:33:24.160 --> 00:33:25.600 In one sense, it'll cost you everything 00:33:25.600 --> 00:33:27.640 because you'll have to hand over your life to King Jesus. 00:33:29.180 --> 00:33:30.440 But in the other sense, it's free. 00:33:32.019 --> 00:33:33.580 Friends, if you're not a Christian this morning, 00:33:33.759 --> 00:33:35.040 I want to ask you to, 00:33:35.960 --> 00:33:37.180 why don't you become a Christian today? 00:33:37.180 --> 00:33:38.740 Why don't you put your hope in King Jesus? 00:33:39.680 --> 00:33:41.500 Why don't you come to him and confess your sin? 00:33:42.519 --> 00:33:45.140 Acknowledge that your situation is utterly hopeless 00:33:45.140 --> 00:33:46.360 apart from his salvation. 00:33:47.120 --> 00:33:48.380 You cannot save yourself. 00:33:48.500 --> 00:33:49.840 You cannot forgive your own sins. 00:33:50.759 --> 00:33:52.740 There's nothing that you can do to atone 00:33:52.740 --> 00:33:55.980 for your self-centeredness and your selfishness. 00:33:56.880 --> 00:33:58.340 But Jesus' blood is sufficient. 00:33:59.620 --> 00:34:00.799 Why don't you do that now?