WEBVTT 00:00:00.380 --> 00:00:09.700 Well, good morning everybody. It is wonderful to celebrate Christmas with you and we're so glad that you have joined us this morning. 00:00:09.839 --> 00:00:15.700 If you are a regular watermarker, it's wonderful to worship Christ our King together on this Tuesday. 00:00:16.140 --> 00:00:22.280 If you're a guest from out of town, welcome to this wonderful, crazy, busy city of ours. 00:00:22.400 --> 00:00:25.879 We hope you have a wonderful stay here and we're so glad that you've joined us. 00:00:25.879 --> 00:00:29.919 And maybe you're from Hong Kong but you don't normally worship with us. 00:00:30.219 --> 00:00:34.579 It's great to have you with us this morning. Please make yourself feel right at home. 00:00:35.219 --> 00:00:40.200 For those of you that don't know me, my name is Kevin and I'm from South Africa. 00:00:40.659 --> 00:00:42.219 You might be able to tell that. 00:00:43.599 --> 00:00:52.480 One of the things that's very obvious about South Africa is that we, or South Africans, no longer I, they live in the Southern Hemisphere. 00:00:52.479 --> 00:00:53.939 Right? That's pretty obvious. 00:00:54.459 --> 00:01:02.280 But what that means is that I am quite, not very used to the idea of Christmas being in wintertime. 00:01:03.059 --> 00:01:13.239 For me, Christmas is spending time on the beach, T-shirt off, swimming costume on, a cool drink, sunglasses, outside definitely. 00:01:13.400 --> 00:01:16.179 This idea of a cold winter is new to me. 00:01:16.180 --> 00:01:20.560 Now, I was talking to a friend yesterday from Canada and she said, this isn't winter. 00:01:20.740 --> 00:01:24.800 Winter is shoveling snow and trying to see if the car will start, right? 00:01:25.080 --> 00:01:29.520 But this idea of Christmas and winter is new to me. 00:01:29.940 --> 00:01:35.680 But that's unusual because even in South Africa, we have, when you think of Christmas, 00:01:36.180 --> 00:01:43.760 we think of things like snowflakes and reindeer and Father Christmas, Santa Claus and mulled wine and hot turkey, right? 00:01:43.760 --> 00:01:48.340 Which is unusual because no one since South Africa has ever seen snow before. 00:01:48.520 --> 00:01:50.580 Well, not very many of us, anyway. 00:01:50.980 --> 00:01:52.740 And that's one of the things about Christmas. 00:01:52.840 --> 00:01:55.060 We have this idea of what Christmas is about. 00:01:55.200 --> 00:01:57.240 It's about snowflakes and Santa Claus. 00:01:57.359 --> 00:02:00.320 It's about red hats and Christmas sweaters. 00:02:00.439 --> 00:02:03.180 Leo and Amy, I saw your Christmas sweater. 00:02:03.560 --> 00:02:05.700 It's about roast potatoes if you're from England. 00:02:06.120 --> 00:02:07.080 It's about presents. 00:02:07.340 --> 00:02:08.680 It's about Christmas pudding. 00:02:08.680 --> 00:02:17.960 And yet the scriptures tell us that Christmas is far deeper, far richer, far more profound than any of these things. 00:02:18.360 --> 00:02:20.879 Here's another thing about Christmas that I sometimes struggle with. 00:02:20.879 --> 00:02:22.520 You know that song, Jingle Bells? 00:02:22.939 --> 00:02:23.819 Anyone know that song? 00:02:24.500 --> 00:02:26.879 Jingle Bells is kind of like reindeer in Africa. 00:02:27.020 --> 00:02:29.400 It doesn't really sit so well with me, right? 00:02:29.420 --> 00:02:30.580 Remember how Jingle Bells goes. 00:02:30.659 --> 00:02:34.159 It goes, Jingle bells, jingle bells, jingle all the way. 00:02:34.460 --> 00:02:37.760 Oh, what fun it is to ride on a one-horse open sleigh. 00:02:37.759 --> 00:02:38.259 Hey, hey. 00:02:38.639 --> 00:02:39.759 And then there's a line that goes, 00:02:40.120 --> 00:02:43.099 Dashing through the snow on a one-horse open sleigh. 00:02:43.539 --> 00:02:47.959 Through the fields we go, laughing all the way. 00:02:48.039 --> 00:02:48.780 Ha, ha, ha. 00:02:48.919 --> 00:02:49.459 There we go. 00:02:49.560 --> 00:02:50.579 Someone knows it, okay? 00:02:53.780 --> 00:03:03.959 The truth is that while Christmas is full of fun and festivities and laughter and fairy lights and food and family 00:03:03.960 --> 00:03:06.000 and anything else that starts with an F, 00:03:06.219 --> 00:03:16.120 the reality is that Christmas sometimes masks or it's like putting a band-aid over the difficulties and the harshness and the realities of life. 00:03:16.780 --> 00:03:23.060 Just because Christmas is full of fun and festivities doesn't mean that life is always full of laughter and joy, is it? 00:03:23.060 --> 00:03:28.659 It's kind of like, you might know the story of the World War I Christmas truce. 00:03:29.140 --> 00:03:33.280 What happened is World War I, 1914, Europe goes to war. 00:03:33.920 --> 00:03:39.280 And the German forces and the British forces are bunkered down on the western front. 00:03:39.659 --> 00:03:41.140 They've both dug their trenches. 00:03:41.680 --> 00:03:45.000 There's about 200 yards of no man's land between them. 00:03:45.000 --> 00:03:46.860 There's wire in between. 00:03:47.419 --> 00:03:50.599 And they're both in the trenches with their guns pointing at one another, 00:03:51.199 --> 00:03:54.879 taking aim at anybody that moves across the no man's land. 00:03:55.539 --> 00:04:00.219 And then on the 24th of December, 1914, these soldiers, it's winter. 00:04:00.439 --> 00:04:02.340 They bunker down in their trenches. 00:04:03.039 --> 00:04:09.439 And one of the British soldiers hears a German soldier on the other side singing Silent Night. 00:04:10.659 --> 00:04:12.259 It's all dead quiet. 00:04:12.259 --> 00:04:14.639 And just this lone voice, Silent Night, appears. 00:04:15.520 --> 00:04:17.100 And so he starts to join in. 00:04:17.879 --> 00:04:23.420 And these two enemy sides start to sing Silent Night, Holy Night together on Christmas Eve. 00:04:24.379 --> 00:04:26.860 And then the next day, Christmas Day, they wake up. 00:04:27.339 --> 00:04:30.879 And one brave soldier decides he's going to risk it. 00:04:31.500 --> 00:04:36.100 And so he climbs out of the trench, not knowing whether he's going to take a bullet. 00:04:36.720 --> 00:04:40.180 And he walks across no man's land to the other side. 00:04:40.639 --> 00:04:44.800 And one of the other soldiers sees this and he gets out of his trench and walks towards him. 00:04:45.959 --> 00:04:48.180 And now everyone's watching to see what's going to happen. 00:04:48.759 --> 00:04:54.000 And eventually from both sides, these soldiers climb out of the trenches and they meet each other in no man's land. 00:04:54.379 --> 00:04:56.100 And they shake hands with one another. 00:04:56.660 --> 00:04:57.560 They exchange gifts. 00:04:57.680 --> 00:04:58.639 They exchange souvenirs. 00:04:58.779 --> 00:04:59.800 They exchange snacks. 00:04:59.800 --> 00:05:03.900 And in some places, they even played a game of football together on Christmas Day. 00:05:04.680 --> 00:05:13.620 But Christmas Day ended and they go back to the trenches and the war continues for another four years of these sides trying to take one another out. 00:05:14.680 --> 00:05:16.580 Friends, sometimes Christmas can feel like that. 00:05:17.100 --> 00:05:18.100 A short truce. 00:05:18.500 --> 00:05:19.620 A short respite. 00:05:19.980 --> 00:05:22.699 This superficial joy and frivolity. 00:05:22.699 --> 00:05:26.779 But actually the reality of life was full of difficulties and harshness. 00:05:27.279 --> 00:05:29.659 And the realities of life soon come flooding back. 00:05:29.819 --> 00:05:31.579 And the question is, is there any point? 00:05:32.219 --> 00:05:35.879 What's the point of all this joy and laughter and dashing through the snow? 00:05:35.980 --> 00:05:36.860 Ha, ha, ha, ha. 00:05:36.920 --> 00:05:39.879 When life can sometimes not be that easy. 00:05:40.719 --> 00:05:45.099 In our passage of scripture we read this morning, we see such a case of life's difficulties. 00:05:45.100 --> 00:05:51.460 In Isaiah chapter 9, it starts off and it talks about this nation that has experienced gloom and anguish. 00:05:52.200 --> 00:05:53.580 And it says in verse 1, it says, 00:05:54.040 --> 00:06:00.320 In the former time, he, that's God, has brought into contempt the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali. 00:06:00.820 --> 00:06:07.040 And so what's going on here is that Zebulun and Naphtali are two provinces in the north of Judah, the north of Israel. 00:06:07.780 --> 00:06:14.560 And what's happened is that these two provinces are sandwiched between the Sea of Galilee and the Mediterranean Sea. 00:06:15.100 --> 00:06:19.680 And around this time, Assyria is exerting its influence, its power. 00:06:20.020 --> 00:06:22.300 There's a new king on the throne, Tiglath-Pileser. 00:06:22.560 --> 00:06:27.240 He wants to extend the Assyrian Empire from Nineveh all the way down to Egypt. 00:06:27.240 --> 00:06:32.820 And so his army is rolling through the Middle East, conquering nation after nation after nation. 00:06:33.340 --> 00:06:41.620 And they come to Israel and the first place that they attack and conquer are these two provinces of Zebulun and Naphtali. 00:06:41.620 --> 00:06:50.540 And so these two provinces are soon going to become under the control of this ruthless foreign army, the Assyrian army. 00:06:51.379 --> 00:06:56.860 Now I'm not sure how many of us have been conquered by invading armies or been taken captive by enemy forces. 00:06:57.280 --> 00:07:03.220 But all of us here have felt the harshness and the reality of the darkness of life crouching in on us. 00:07:03.220 --> 00:07:11.140 All of us know what it likes to feel pain, to feel anxiety coming our way, to suffer with illness and sickness. 00:07:12.180 --> 00:07:16.520 A friend of mine, Bernard here, recently highlighted this song to me. 00:07:16.580 --> 00:07:21.560 Lady Gaga in her movie A Star is Born, she sings this song called Shallows. 00:07:21.660 --> 00:07:22.900 And she says this, 00:07:22.899 --> 00:07:28.279 Tell me something boy, aren't you tired of trying to fill that void? 00:07:29.099 --> 00:07:30.439 Do you need something more? 00:07:31.079 --> 00:07:33.179 Isn't it hard trying to keep it so hardcore? 00:07:33.379 --> 00:07:38.779 Isn't it hard trying to keep up the pretense that you've got life together, when in reality you're falling apart? 00:07:39.399 --> 00:07:39.759 She says, 00:07:39.759 --> 00:07:43.839 And in all the good times I find myself longing for change. 00:07:44.399 --> 00:07:46.739 And in the bad times I fear myself. 00:07:47.560 --> 00:07:53.280 What about another Hollywood actor, Ryan Reynolds, a famous actor who's got millions of followers, 00:07:53.400 --> 00:07:55.740 especially amongst the female variety. 00:07:56.780 --> 00:07:58.579 And one journalist wrote this. 00:07:59.079 --> 00:08:02.660 He said, behind those charming, effortlessly laid-back vibes, 00:08:03.300 --> 00:08:08.519 Reynolds is battling the same type of darkness as 40 million adults in the United States. 00:08:08.720 --> 00:08:12.879 He says, I've always had anxiety, both the light-hearted kind, 00:08:12.879 --> 00:08:18.000 but I've also been to the depth of the darker end of the spectrum, which is not fun at all. 00:08:18.279 --> 00:08:19.439 How's his coping mechanism? 00:08:20.040 --> 00:08:20.959 He says, I was partying. 00:08:21.379 --> 00:08:23.860 I tried just to make myself vanish in some kind of way, 00:08:24.360 --> 00:08:29.719 frequently waking up in the middle of the night feeling paralyzed with anxiety about the future. 00:08:30.620 --> 00:08:32.019 Friends, we've all been there, haven't we? 00:08:32.860 --> 00:08:36.000 We've all tasted and felt the overwhelming, encroaching darkness. 00:08:36.240 --> 00:08:40.059 Maybe for some of us it's unrealized dreams and expectations we had of ourselves. 00:08:40.059 --> 00:08:43.699 We hope to make some kind of status, some accolade, some achievement. 00:08:44.500 --> 00:08:50.179 And as the years roll on, it seems like that desire, that achievement is further and further away. 00:08:50.899 --> 00:08:53.799 For some of us, maybe it's the expectations that others put on us, 00:08:53.879 --> 00:08:57.779 our parents or our boss or maybe a child, friends or family, 00:08:58.139 --> 00:09:01.839 hoping we'll be somebody and we feel like we can never live up to the expectations. 00:09:02.519 --> 00:09:06.259 For some of us it's crying out to be loved, crying out to be accepted, 00:09:07.019 --> 00:09:09.159 maybe to love and accept yourself. 00:09:09.159 --> 00:09:12.120 For some of us, maybe we live with a hidden secret, 00:09:12.299 --> 00:09:15.139 something that's happened in the past, something that's happened to you, 00:09:15.600 --> 00:09:16.539 something that you've done. 00:09:17.019 --> 00:09:20.579 And every time you feel like you're moving on and you're getting on with life, 00:09:20.639 --> 00:09:23.419 it rears its head and it reinserts itself into your life 00:09:23.419 --> 00:09:26.799 and you feel like, where is this thing ever going to end? 00:09:27.519 --> 00:09:28.699 Friends, maybe it's religion. 00:09:29.379 --> 00:09:31.039 Maybe the church itself has hurt you. 00:09:31.579 --> 00:09:35.480 Maybe people have let you down, hurt you, disappointed you. 00:09:35.480 --> 00:09:37.600 And this was the case for Israel. 00:09:37.759 --> 00:09:40.920 Assyria is at the gates, war is imminent, dangers all around, 00:09:41.060 --> 00:09:44.000 hopelessness abounds and the future looks bleak. 00:09:44.600 --> 00:09:46.960 Now when we go back and read Isaiah chapter 8, 00:09:47.080 --> 00:09:49.720 what we realize is that the Assyrian army, 00:09:50.159 --> 00:09:51.720 the darkness that they encountered, 00:09:52.159 --> 00:09:55.960 was actually just the consequence of a far deeper darkness that was in their hearts. 00:09:56.580 --> 00:09:57.600 There was something going wrong. 00:09:57.600 --> 00:10:02.460 Israel had been invited to trust God and they said no thanks. 00:10:03.000 --> 00:10:05.460 They'd been invited to put their hope in the sovereign Lord 00:10:05.460 --> 00:10:07.759 and they decided not to, to trust themselves. 00:10:08.420 --> 00:10:11.700 Israel had been invited to love God and to serve Him. 00:10:12.200 --> 00:10:15.120 And their hearts had been captured by another love. 00:10:16.340 --> 00:10:19.159 And so even though they were very religious and they did all the right things, 00:10:19.220 --> 00:10:20.840 they participated in the right actions, 00:10:20.960 --> 00:10:22.680 they went to church and they went to the temple, 00:10:22.679 --> 00:10:28.319 in their heart of hearts, they were actually loving, serving and trusting themselves. 00:10:29.639 --> 00:10:33.159 Friends, this is not just the story of ancient Israel 3,000 years ago. 00:10:33.279 --> 00:10:34.759 This is the story of humanity. 00:10:35.419 --> 00:10:36.779 This is the story of the world. 00:10:37.359 --> 00:10:40.439 This is the story of all of us, from Hong Kong to Vancouver, 00:10:41.019 --> 00:10:42.839 from South Africa to Mongolia, 00:10:43.359 --> 00:10:46.500 from Fiji Islands to the center of downtown London. 00:10:46.879 --> 00:10:49.799 The story of the human race, of you and of me, 00:10:49.859 --> 00:10:51.039 is that we've gone our own way. 00:10:51.039 --> 00:10:53.240 We've decided to trust ourselves. 00:10:53.699 --> 00:10:55.039 We've loved ourselves. 00:10:55.500 --> 00:10:59.059 We've served ourselves, rather than our God and our Maker. 00:11:00.259 --> 00:11:02.059 And the result is always anguish. 00:11:02.839 --> 00:11:04.379 It's crying out in confusion. 00:11:04.559 --> 00:11:05.379 Where is God? 00:11:05.719 --> 00:11:06.740 Where is some light? 00:11:07.219 --> 00:11:08.099 Where is the hope? 00:11:08.259 --> 00:11:09.099 Where is the peace? 00:11:09.639 --> 00:11:10.719 Where is the joy? 00:11:11.139 --> 00:11:13.059 And it's into this context, 00:11:13.459 --> 00:11:17.019 that Isaiah gives this staggeringly wonderful good news. 00:11:17.079 --> 00:11:18.259 Because look at what he says. 00:11:18.259 --> 00:11:19.779 He says in verse 1, 00:11:19.779 --> 00:11:49.779 00:11:49.779 --> 00:11:51.299 A story of joy. 00:11:51.720 --> 00:11:54.579 A story of light that comes into the midst of the darkness. 00:11:54.839 --> 00:11:56.019 And so let's see what happens. 00:11:56.419 --> 00:11:57.439 Verse 2 says this, 00:11:57.939 --> 00:12:01.860 The people that were once in darkness have seen a great light. 00:12:02.459 --> 00:12:04.620 Those who dwelt in the land of deep darkness, 00:12:05.019 --> 00:12:06.319 on them a light has shone. 00:12:06.779 --> 00:12:09.899 Here is a nation that the enemy is at the gates, 00:12:10.179 --> 00:12:11.480 and things are not going well, 00:12:11.620 --> 00:12:15.240 and their hearts are consumed with things not going the way they want. 00:12:15.240 --> 00:12:18.960 And yet it's like the clouds of darkness are starting to part away. 00:12:19.220 --> 00:12:21.220 It's like they've been walking through the night, 00:12:21.480 --> 00:12:22.919 and they see on the horizon, 00:12:23.080 --> 00:12:25.120 the sun is just starting to rise. 00:12:25.200 --> 00:12:26.460 The sun is starting to dawn. 00:12:27.100 --> 00:12:27.799 But notice, 00:12:28.320 --> 00:12:30.279 it's not a light that is found within them. 00:12:30.820 --> 00:12:32.279 They didn't look inside of themselves. 00:12:33.000 --> 00:12:34.480 They didn't manufacture it. 00:12:34.940 --> 00:12:36.000 They didn't earn it. 00:12:36.419 --> 00:12:38.100 It's a light that has come to them. 00:12:38.659 --> 00:12:40.860 But Isaiah continues to describe this feeling, 00:12:40.860 --> 00:12:43.180 that those who once knew darkness are now experiencing. 00:12:43.600 --> 00:12:44.820 He goes on in verse 3, 00:12:44.919 --> 00:12:46.139 he says that this, 00:12:46.379 --> 00:12:47.379 something is happening, 00:12:47.539 --> 00:12:47.840 sorry, 00:12:48.320 --> 00:12:49.940 something is happening to these people. 00:12:50.379 --> 00:12:52.100 And it's like a light has come to darkness, 00:12:52.240 --> 00:12:53.120 but more than that, 00:12:53.399 --> 00:12:54.879 it's like a harvest, 00:12:55.139 --> 00:12:58.139 it's like a nation that experiences a bumper harvest. 00:12:58.639 --> 00:13:00.779 And it's like a nation that experiences 00:13:00.779 --> 00:13:02.800 an enemy attacking them, 00:13:03.039 --> 00:13:04.139 and they defeat the enemy, 00:13:04.259 --> 00:13:05.340 the enemy runs away, 00:13:05.560 --> 00:13:07.720 and they are rich with the spoils of war. 00:13:07.779 --> 00:13:08.980 Look at what verse 3 says. 00:13:08.980 --> 00:13:09.700 It says, 00:13:09.700 --> 00:13:11.480 You have increased our joy. 00:13:12.100 --> 00:13:13.360 They rejoice before you, 00:13:13.480 --> 00:13:15.200 as with the joy at harvest, 00:13:15.580 --> 00:13:18.180 as they are glad when they divide the spoils. 00:13:18.480 --> 00:13:21.520 Here is a nation that has become rich and abundant. 00:13:21.920 --> 00:13:23.200 The harvest is plentiful, 00:13:23.500 --> 00:13:24.920 the business deals have come in, 00:13:25.140 --> 00:13:26.460 they've exceeded their targets, 00:13:26.600 --> 00:13:27.600 and they are celebrating 00:13:27.600 --> 00:13:29.800 because their Christmas bonus is huge. 00:13:30.240 --> 00:13:32.600 Here is a nation that is full of joy. 00:13:33.320 --> 00:13:34.259 But not only that, 00:13:34.540 --> 00:13:36.620 it's a joy which the nation is experiencing, 00:13:36.940 --> 00:13:38.820 like what happens when a country 00:13:38.820 --> 00:13:40.980 has been oppressed by war, 00:13:40.980 --> 00:13:42.980 and suddenly the enemy flees, 00:13:43.280 --> 00:13:44.200 and they are liberated, 00:13:44.540 --> 00:13:45.220 and they are free. 00:13:45.300 --> 00:13:46.520 Look at what verse 4 says. 00:13:47.240 --> 00:13:47.600 It says, 00:13:48.100 --> 00:13:49.379 For the yoke of his burden, 00:13:49.800 --> 00:13:51.280 the rod of his oppressor, 00:13:51.440 --> 00:13:52.340 has been broken. 00:13:52.740 --> 00:13:53.360 Verse 5, 00:13:53.740 --> 00:13:55.760 Every boot of the trampling warrior, 00:13:55.900 --> 00:13:57.580 every garment rolled in blood, 00:13:57.860 --> 00:14:00.140 will be burnt as fuel for the fire. 00:14:00.620 --> 00:14:01.540 What's going on here? 00:14:01.539 --> 00:14:03.959 When I finished high school, 00:14:04.199 --> 00:14:04.659 let me say this, 00:14:05.139 --> 00:14:06.480 as a high schooler, 00:14:06.539 --> 00:14:07.939 I was a terrible student. 00:14:08.699 --> 00:14:10.639 Very good thing I didn't grow up in Hong Kong, 00:14:10.719 --> 00:14:12.480 I would have brought a lot of shame to my family. 00:14:12.919 --> 00:14:14.719 I was a very, very bad student. 00:14:15.240 --> 00:14:16.919 And so the day I finished high school, 00:14:17.699 --> 00:14:19.779 we had a plot of land in South Africa, 00:14:20.199 --> 00:14:21.620 I built a big bonfire, 00:14:22.279 --> 00:14:23.819 and I threw all my textbooks, 00:14:24.299 --> 00:14:25.379 all my notebooks, 00:14:25.819 --> 00:14:26.819 no more calculus, 00:14:27.219 --> 00:14:28.240 no more anything, 00:14:28.240 --> 00:14:29.799 I want nothing to do with school. 00:14:29.899 --> 00:14:31.039 I've made a mess of fire, 00:14:31.139 --> 00:14:32.360 and I've burnt all my school books. 00:14:32.639 --> 00:14:33.440 That's the end. 00:14:33.500 --> 00:14:34.879 I'm done with that. 00:14:35.560 --> 00:14:37.240 Look what's happening here in verse 5. 00:14:37.940 --> 00:14:39.659 These people have built a big bonfire, 00:14:40.100 --> 00:14:41.340 but they're not burning textbooks. 00:14:41.919 --> 00:14:43.560 They're burning their army boots. 00:14:43.919 --> 00:14:45.560 They're burning their military uniform. 00:14:46.100 --> 00:14:48.960 They're taking off anything that sounds like war, 00:14:49.039 --> 00:14:50.159 and they're throwing in the fire. 00:14:50.259 --> 00:14:51.740 We are done with war. 00:14:52.060 --> 00:14:54.519 Here is a nation which has no more need of them. 00:14:54.580 --> 00:14:55.480 The war is over. 00:14:55.580 --> 00:14:57.000 The army is disbanded. 00:14:57.000 --> 00:14:58.879 The soldiers have become civilians. 00:14:59.279 --> 00:15:00.759 The darkness has turned to light. 00:15:01.039 --> 00:15:02.639 Peace has come into their hearts, 00:15:03.059 --> 00:15:04.940 those who were once at war. 00:15:06.659 --> 00:15:08.059 But we still don't know why. 00:15:09.019 --> 00:15:09.440 Why? 00:15:09.539 --> 00:15:10.799 What's brought about this light? 00:15:11.299 --> 00:15:12.759 What's brought about this peace? 00:15:13.200 --> 00:15:14.779 What's brought about this jubilation, 00:15:14.960 --> 00:15:15.639 and this joy, 00:15:15.720 --> 00:15:16.679 and this celebration? 00:15:17.580 --> 00:15:19.179 Well, verse 6 tells us. 00:15:19.840 --> 00:15:22.039 And the answer is because there's a new king in town. 00:15:22.940 --> 00:15:24.740 There's a new king that's arrived on the scene, 00:15:24.740 --> 00:15:27.659 a king so majestic and so authoritative. 00:15:28.220 --> 00:15:31.680 Not only has he won the war, 00:15:31.759 --> 00:15:33.580 he's ended all conflict as well. 00:15:33.980 --> 00:15:37.320 Because this new king has arrived who brings light and life. 00:15:37.759 --> 00:15:39.820 But there's something very unusual about this king. 00:15:40.279 --> 00:15:41.759 There's something unexpected. 00:15:42.460 --> 00:15:42.820 In fact, 00:15:43.180 --> 00:15:43.720 at first, 00:15:43.799 --> 00:15:46.539 it doesn't seem like this king possesses much authority. 00:15:47.120 --> 00:15:48.440 He seems too gentle. 00:15:48.879 --> 00:15:50.060 He seems too mild. 00:15:50.059 --> 00:15:55.519 He seems too tame to be a king that establishes authority and defeats the enemy. 00:15:55.939 --> 00:15:57.039 But it's just an illusion. 00:15:57.159 --> 00:15:59.500 Because here is a king who is unlike any other. 00:15:59.919 --> 00:16:02.979 Both in his greatness and in his gentleness. 00:16:03.500 --> 00:16:04.539 Look at verse 6. 00:16:05.679 --> 00:16:06.379 For to us, 00:16:06.979 --> 00:16:08.119 a child has been born. 00:16:09.079 --> 00:16:09.839 To us, 00:16:10.439 --> 00:16:11.500 a son has been given. 00:16:12.459 --> 00:16:14.679 And the government will be upon his shoulders. 00:16:14.679 --> 00:16:18.500 And his name will be called Wonderful Counselor. 00:16:18.939 --> 00:16:20.000 The Mighty God. 00:16:20.579 --> 00:16:21.739 The Everlasting Father. 00:16:21.879 --> 00:16:22.799 The Prince of Peace. 00:16:23.379 --> 00:16:26.979 And of the increase of his government and his rule and his reign, 00:16:27.259 --> 00:16:29.199 there will be no end. 00:16:29.779 --> 00:16:31.399 Ray Orton says it like this. 00:16:31.979 --> 00:16:36.479 God's answer to everything that has ever terrorized us is a child. 00:16:36.480 --> 00:16:41.980 The power of God is so far superior to Assyria's and all the big shots of this world, 00:16:42.139 --> 00:16:45.159 that he can defeat them by coming as a mere child. 00:16:45.800 --> 00:16:50.700 His answer to the bullies swaggering through history is not to become even a bigger bully. 00:16:51.560 --> 00:16:53.740 His answer is Jesus. 00:16:54.860 --> 00:16:55.120 You see, 00:16:55.200 --> 00:16:55.379 friends, 00:16:55.440 --> 00:16:56.500 in Matthew chapter 4, 00:16:57.240 --> 00:17:01.480 when Jesus comes and launches his ministry and his teaching properly, 00:17:01.519 --> 00:17:04.980 he comes to tell the world that I am the light that's come into the darkness. 00:17:05.120 --> 00:17:05.799 Where does he go? 00:17:06.480 --> 00:17:07.500 Where does the Messiah, 00:17:07.640 --> 00:17:08.079 the Savior, 00:17:08.220 --> 00:17:10.039 that's come to bring healing and liberation go? 00:17:10.640 --> 00:17:11.480 Does he go to Rome, 00:17:11.759 --> 00:17:13.099 the center of the world's power? 00:17:13.700 --> 00:17:14.620 Does he go to Athens, 00:17:14.740 --> 00:17:18.279 the center of philosophy and thinking and scholarly debate? 00:17:18.980 --> 00:17:20.339 Maybe he goes to Jerusalem, 00:17:20.440 --> 00:17:21.279 the center of Israel. 00:17:21.440 --> 00:17:21.660 No. 00:17:22.360 --> 00:17:24.620 Jesus goes to a town called Capernaum, 00:17:25.140 --> 00:17:27.059 a town in the province of Naphtali. 00:17:27.759 --> 00:17:29.500 Jesus goes to Nazareth, 00:17:29.500 --> 00:17:32.680 a town in the province of Zebulun. 00:17:33.319 --> 00:17:36.380 And to the very places that experience the trauma and the turmoil, 00:17:36.480 --> 00:17:42.000 to the very two provinces that were first attacked by the enemy and felt encroaching darkness, 00:17:42.599 --> 00:17:43.779 Jesus comes and says, 00:17:44.220 --> 00:17:45.620 those who have walked in darkness, 00:17:46.079 --> 00:17:47.700 a great light has shone upon them. 00:17:47.940 --> 00:17:50.240 Because Christ the King is here. 00:17:50.839 --> 00:17:51.140 Friends, 00:17:51.240 --> 00:17:52.680 this is what Christmas is about. 00:17:53.240 --> 00:17:55.319 This is the grand announcement of Christmas, 00:17:55.319 --> 00:17:56.579 that in Jesus Christ, 00:17:56.640 --> 00:17:57.920 the baby from Bethlehem, 00:17:58.059 --> 00:18:00.220 came our liberator and our King. 00:18:00.539 --> 00:18:02.440 Came a light into a lost world, 00:18:02.579 --> 00:18:05.640 to bring freedom and hope to those who are in anguish. 00:18:05.640 --> 00:18:07.500 And though he was just a child, 00:18:08.020 --> 00:18:09.940 though he came in the most unexpected way, 00:18:10.540 --> 00:18:11.780 though he came as a baby, 00:18:11.920 --> 00:18:15.680 born to an unwed teenage mom in the backwaters of Palestine, 00:18:16.380 --> 00:18:19.620 with sheep and oxen and shepherds as his very first followers, 00:18:20.340 --> 00:18:24.420 though his coming confused the elites and confounded the intellectuals, 00:18:24.940 --> 00:18:29.400 here was a King who came to push back darkness and to bring light and hope. 00:18:30.160 --> 00:18:30.860 And so you may ask, 00:18:30.940 --> 00:18:32.480 what's so special about this child? 00:18:33.180 --> 00:18:33.519 Well, 00:18:34.019 --> 00:18:35.980 his name is Wonderful Counselor. 00:18:36.500 --> 00:18:39.500 Where all the sophistication and the brilliance and the academics 00:18:39.500 --> 00:18:41.980 and the intellectual advances of the world 00:18:41.980 --> 00:18:46.960 have left us more busy and more confused and more hurting than ever before, 00:18:47.440 --> 00:18:49.200 here is a Wonderful Counselor, 00:18:49.500 --> 00:18:51.060 whose wisdom is counterintuitive. 00:18:51.540 --> 00:18:53.880 He says you've got to lay down your life to find life. 00:18:54.340 --> 00:18:56.960 He says you have to die to yourself in order to find life. 00:18:56.960 --> 00:19:00.620 You have to surrender and admit that you've broken in order to be healed. 00:19:01.180 --> 00:19:02.720 But here is a Wonderful Counselor, 00:19:02.759 --> 00:19:03.799 the Ancient of Days, 00:19:03.920 --> 00:19:06.440 the one whose counsel has stood the test of time. 00:19:06.900 --> 00:19:08.680 His name is that he's Mighty God. 00:19:09.059 --> 00:19:11.539 He's not just a King who's one of many gods. 00:19:11.980 --> 00:19:13.460 He's not just one of many options. 00:19:13.960 --> 00:19:16.880 Here is the one true God who comes full of grace, 00:19:17.819 --> 00:19:19.980 and yet one day he's coming to vanquish his enemies. 00:19:20.759 --> 00:19:22.500 His name is the Everlasting Father. 00:19:23.160 --> 00:19:25.240 He's come to show us his fatherly love. 00:19:25.240 --> 00:19:27.500 He's come to love us endlessly, 00:19:27.700 --> 00:19:29.200 from everlasting to everlasting. 00:19:29.940 --> 00:19:32.500 Friends, so great is his fatherly love for us, 00:19:32.799 --> 00:19:34.779 that while we were lost in our sin, 00:19:35.059 --> 00:19:38.740 God sent his Son to come and die on the cross for us. 00:19:40.059 --> 00:19:41.900 Friends, his name is Prince of Peace. 00:19:42.480 --> 00:19:44.440 Here is a King who brings lasting peace, 00:19:44.519 --> 00:19:45.420 not just on the earth, 00:19:45.539 --> 00:19:46.480 but in our hearts, 00:19:46.880 --> 00:19:47.700 in all the world. 00:19:48.279 --> 00:19:49.819 Later on, Isaiah would say this, 00:19:49.819 --> 00:19:51.439 that when the Prince of Peace comes, 00:19:51.939 --> 00:19:55.079 the lion will lie down with the lamb. 00:19:55.480 --> 00:19:58.659 The wolf will become friends with the young goat. 00:19:59.200 --> 00:20:00.099 When the Prince comes, 00:20:00.179 --> 00:20:02.859 those that have been enemies since the beginning of time, 00:20:02.939 --> 00:20:05.000 those that have been at each other's necks and throats, 00:20:05.079 --> 00:20:05.899 and hated each other, 00:20:05.960 --> 00:20:07.019 and wanted to kill each other, 00:20:07.339 --> 00:20:09.720 these two will become friends and partners, 00:20:09.960 --> 00:20:12.319 because the Prince of Peace has come. 00:20:12.319 --> 00:20:14.200 His name is Emmanuel, 00:20:14.919 --> 00:20:16.000 God with us. 00:20:16.559 --> 00:20:17.779 His name is Jesus, 00:20:18.460 --> 00:20:20.019 the Savior of the world. 00:20:20.679 --> 00:20:22.359 Friends, the good news of great joy, 00:20:23.119 --> 00:20:25.379 is that while we had hardened our hearts towards God, 00:20:25.879 --> 00:20:27.379 while we, like Israel, 00:20:27.559 --> 00:20:28.500 had gone our own way, 00:20:28.559 --> 00:20:30.279 in His great mercy and His great love, 00:20:30.399 --> 00:20:33.339 God had not hardened Himself towards us, 00:20:33.559 --> 00:20:34.740 but He loved us. 00:20:35.259 --> 00:20:38.819 He loved us enough to move heaven and earth to come to us. 00:20:38.819 --> 00:20:42.480 He loved us enough to rescue us from our sin and our situation. 00:20:43.259 --> 00:20:46.119 He loved us enough to move towards us and push back darkness. 00:20:46.980 --> 00:20:48.859 He loved us enough to melt our hearts, 00:20:49.480 --> 00:20:51.500 to overcome our rebellion with His kindness, 00:20:52.039 --> 00:20:53.700 in order that we may come to Him, 00:20:54.240 --> 00:20:55.039 and know Him, 00:20:55.599 --> 00:20:56.639 and be loved by Him, 00:20:57.119 --> 00:20:58.439 and experience His grace, 00:20:59.299 --> 00:21:00.359 and experience His joy. 00:21:01.139 --> 00:21:03.639 He came in order to invite us into His family, 00:21:04.220 --> 00:21:06.379 that we might be called children of God. 00:21:06.380 --> 00:21:08.880 Friends, how does He do this? 00:21:09.500 --> 00:21:11.880 Well, He does it by showing us what God is like. 00:21:12.500 --> 00:21:14.520 He does it by showing us what kindness, 00:21:14.900 --> 00:21:15.400 and mercy, 00:21:15.940 --> 00:21:16.620 and justice, 00:21:17.180 --> 00:21:17.880 and grace, 00:21:18.380 --> 00:21:19.180 and tenderness, 00:21:19.460 --> 00:21:20.220 and holiness, 00:21:20.600 --> 00:21:21.760 and beauty look like. 00:21:22.260 --> 00:21:24.880 Jesus came to a world that was starved of grace, 00:21:25.300 --> 00:21:27.040 and He brought life-giving grace. 00:21:27.560 --> 00:21:31.440 Jesus came to a world full of confusion and half-truths, 00:21:31.440 --> 00:21:33.180 and He brought truth that sets us free. 00:21:33.740 --> 00:21:36.220 Jesus came to show us what God is really like. 00:21:36.760 --> 00:21:39.180 He came by taking our darkness and shame, 00:21:39.500 --> 00:21:40.720 and nailing it to the cross. 00:21:41.320 --> 00:21:43.980 Only if Jesus can it be said He was born to die. 00:21:44.380 --> 00:21:45.960 From the wooden feeding trough, 00:21:46.060 --> 00:21:47.660 to a wooden executioner's cross, 00:21:47.760 --> 00:21:52.000 every bit of Jesus' life spoke about His end point being Calvary. 00:21:52.600 --> 00:21:54.660 Jesus came to take our sin upon Himself, 00:21:55.120 --> 00:21:56.940 so that no longer would sin be our master, 00:21:57.400 --> 00:21:59.820 no longer would darkness be our accuser. 00:21:59.880 --> 00:22:02.740 It is His way of destroying the sin that dwelt in our hearts, 00:22:02.760 --> 00:22:03.820 without destroying us. 00:22:03.819 --> 00:22:05.339 And so as the song says, 00:22:05.500 --> 00:22:07.339 Mild He lays His glory by. 00:22:07.919 --> 00:22:10.460 Born that man no more may die. 00:22:11.079 --> 00:22:12.720 Born to raise the sons of earth. 00:22:13.379 --> 00:22:15.980 Born to give us a second birth. 00:22:16.700 --> 00:22:19.359 Friends, He comes by promising to come again. 00:22:19.359 --> 00:22:22.039 You may be here this morning and say, 00:22:22.579 --> 00:22:24.659 Kevin, all this talk of joy and light, 00:22:24.819 --> 00:22:26.259 it doesn't make sense to me. 00:22:26.299 --> 00:22:27.099 I've been a Christian, 00:22:27.199 --> 00:22:28.859 and my life has been marked by darkness, 00:22:29.219 --> 00:22:31.119 and I don't get all this stuff. 00:22:32.219 --> 00:22:33.459 Alec Mottier said it like this, 00:22:33.460 --> 00:22:34.539 The darkness is true. 00:22:35.900 --> 00:22:37.980 But it's not the whole truth. 00:22:38.500 --> 00:22:40.519 And it's certainly not the most fundamental truth. 00:22:41.000 --> 00:22:43.460 The fundamental truth is that Jesus is coming again. 00:22:44.039 --> 00:22:47.019 And because of His promise that this Christmas He's coming again, 00:22:47.380 --> 00:22:49.559 He will come not merely to tweak history, 00:22:49.720 --> 00:22:51.240 or to make minor improvements. 00:22:51.579 --> 00:22:54.400 He won't come to slightly make that problem a little bit better, 00:22:54.500 --> 00:22:56.039 or to tweak that adjustment. 00:22:56.380 --> 00:23:00.120 He will come to finally and fully derive out darkness, 00:23:00.119 --> 00:23:01.639 and bring His peace forever. 00:23:01.879 --> 00:23:04.899 His rule and His reign and His peace will last forever. 00:23:05.039 --> 00:23:06.479 Of the increase of His government, 00:23:06.659 --> 00:23:08.519 there will be no end. 00:23:09.159 --> 00:23:11.439 Friends, all this is because Christ the King came. 00:23:11.899 --> 00:23:13.039 He came to bring us light. 00:23:13.879 --> 00:23:14.919 He came to bring us life. 00:23:15.659 --> 00:23:16.699 He came to bring us hope, 00:23:16.759 --> 00:23:17.739 and He came to bring us healing. 00:23:18.239 --> 00:23:20.679 And this is what Christmas is all about. 00:23:21.199 --> 00:23:23.799 Friends, Christmas is far more than just jingle bells, 00:23:24.000 --> 00:23:26.219 and reindeer, and turkey, and mulled wine. 00:23:26.699 --> 00:23:28.299 Christmas is the story of rich hope. 00:23:28.299 --> 00:23:30.839 It's the story of deep, sustaining peace. 00:23:31.119 --> 00:23:32.980 It's the story of profound joy, 00:23:33.180 --> 00:23:35.680 because it's the story of the child that was born, 00:23:35.779 --> 00:23:37.200 that came to bring us peace. 00:23:37.700 --> 00:23:40.440 Christmas is the story of Jesus. 00:23:41.240 --> 00:23:42.220 Let's pray together. 00:23:47.039 --> 00:23:48.720 O Christ, our Savior, 00:23:49.839 --> 00:23:53.359 God, this morning as we remember Your birth, 00:23:53.899 --> 00:23:57.200 we celebrate the light that has come. 00:23:57.200 --> 00:24:00.720 Jesus, we acknowledge that our world is full of darkness. 00:24:01.019 --> 00:24:02.220 We acknowledge that there's pain. 00:24:02.960 --> 00:24:04.740 We acknowledge even our own hearts, Lord God, 00:24:04.779 --> 00:24:06.539 as sometimes we go our own way. 00:24:07.580 --> 00:24:11.059 O Christ, won't You come not just into our world, 00:24:11.160 --> 00:24:12.180 won't You come into our hearts? 00:24:12.799 --> 00:24:14.340 Won't You come, Savior, our King, 00:24:14.400 --> 00:24:16.180 and have Your rule and reign in our hearts? 00:24:16.759 --> 00:24:18.120 Jesus, come and have Your way. 00:24:18.980 --> 00:24:21.019 Lord, don't just come and bring peace to this world. 00:24:21.200 --> 00:24:23.340 Bring peace to our hearts, Lord God, we pray. 00:24:23.940 --> 00:24:25.200 Come and be our Lord and Savior. 00:24:25.200 --> 00:24:27.059 In Your name we pray. 00:24:28.340 --> 00:24:28.779 Amen. 00:24:30.059 --> 00:24:30.500 Amen.