Looking to deepen your understanding of the Christmas narrative and its profound theological implications? Dive into our comprehensive exploration of classic Christmas hymns and the Gospel of Matthew. We unravel the unique features of hymns like “Silent Night” and “Joy to the World,” focusing on their rich theological depth. Discover the world of Mary and Joseph, from betrothal customs to moral dilemmas. Our in-depth study of Matthew Chapter 1 sheds light on key aspects like Jesus‘ Davidic lineage, the role of genealogy, and the virgin birth. Join us to explore how each element of the Christmas story enriches our understanding of Jesus as both divine and human, fulfilling prophecies and serving as the only path to salvation.
SERMON
Silent Night: Christmas (part 1)
Hey there, friends! Today, we’re diving deep into the richness of the Christmas narrative, and I couldn’t be more excited to share this journey with you. Why do hymns like “Silent Night” and “Joy to the World” have such a lasting impact? Well, it’s not just about the beautiful melodies; it’s the powerful theological and historical elements packed into each verse.
We’ll discuss how these classic hymns differ significantly from fun, secular Christmas songs. For instance, while “Rudolph” and “Jingle Bells” keep our spirits high, hymns like “Silent Night” delve into the profound, such as the significance of the Virgin Mary and the virgin birth. Each melody has its unique story, from heavenly proclamations in “Hark, the Herald Angels Sing” to joyous declarations of Christ’s deity in “Joy to the World.”
If you’re curious about the World Mary and Joseph lived in, buckle up! We’ll explore the severe nature of betrothals during their time and discuss how societal norms back then were quite different from today’s standards.
But that’s not all! We’ll go beyond the hymns to dig deep into Matthew Chapter 1. This chapter is a goldmine of information, filled with gems like the significance of Jesus’ Davidic lineage, the role of genealogy, and the absolute necessity of the virgin birth in Christian belief. Have you ever wondered why Joseph is described as a “just man?” We’ll delve into that and more, revealing how each word in this chapter serves a unique purpose.
Speaking of Joseph, let’s not forget his incredibly complex moral dilemma and how an angelic visitation turned his world upside-down—in a good way, of course. We’ll also touch on how the angel’s message to him reaffirms the Davidic lineage and the significance of the names ‘Jesus’ and ‘Emmanuel.’
Gospel of Matthew
To wrap it up, we’ll look at the Gospel of Matthew, highlighting how the themes introduced in the first chapter reverberate throughout the book, ending with Jesus’ promise to always be with us—talk about full circle, right?
So, if you want to deepen your understanding of the Christmas story and the Christian narrative, you’re in the right place. We’ll explore how each hymn, each verse in Matthew, and even the character of Joseph enrich our understanding of who Jesus is: fully human, fully divine, and the only path to salvation.
I can’t wait for you to join me on this enlightening journey! Feel free to share your thoughts and questions; I’d love to explore these topics further. Happy reading!
Silent Night: Christmas (part 1)
Matthew Chapter 1
Locate, please. Matthew, chapter 1. Thank you, Jesus.
Lord, we come to you at this time to praise you. Thank you for the opportunity to look into your word. Your word from Genesis through Revelation shows us your character, your person, and your will. This reveals who you are as you expose yourself to us—peace by peace. You show us more and more of you.
We want to know more of you. We look deeper into your words, and you reveal yourself. Help us be receptive to your terms so we will draw closer to you. Help us, Lord, not get caught up in emotionalism or distracted by looking for miracles, but Lord, we will look into your word to know you more clearly.
Prayer
Help us, Lord, to know you more entirely as your word reveals the truth of your character and will. Help us to be sensitive to your leadership and to follow your comments. To obey your word so that we can be sanctified through your word and be holy even as you are holy. Lord, we ask you this in Jesus’ name.
Amen.
Christmas Hymns
Today, we are begiing a Christmas series. We looked at Christmas hymns. In the Redback Hymnal,
On page 366, we find the song Silent Night. There was a sermon about Silent Night, last year’s Christmas series. The song says, “Silent Night, Holy Night, All is calm, bright, Round yon Virgin, mother, and child—holy infant, so tender and mild. Sleep in heavenly peace, sleep in heavenly peace. Silent night, holy night, shepherds quake at sight, Glorious streams from heaven afar, Heavenly hosts sing Alleluia, Christ the Savior is born, Christ the Savior is born.
Silent night, holy night, Son of God loves pure light, Radiant beams from thy holy face. With the dome of redeeming grace, Jesus, Lord at thy birth, Jesus, Lord at thy birth.”
What makes this song unique? One thing is it mentions Mary, the Virgin Mary. This virgin mother has her child. A lot of Christmas songs don’t accept the virgin birth. Many Christmas songs, like Rudolph and Jingle Bells, are just for fun. But then those that are praise songs talk about Jesus and his lordship. Just as this mentions Jesus, Lord at thy birth, he was and still is Lord.
Let’s look over at Joy to the World on page 408.
“Joy to the world, the Lord has come.” Right there. The song begins with proclaiming the deity of Jesus Christ. This song says that we should have joy. The entire World should be joyful because Jesus has come. The Lord has come as John tells us that God put on flesh, and he came to dwell among us. As Matthew tells us, as we’re going to look here in Matthew, “He is Immanuel, God with us.”
Look down at the next verse, the following song on 408. “Hark, the herald angels sing.” This speaks of the angels that showed up to the shepherds to proclaim that Jesus had been born. “Glory to the newborn king.” So even as a baby, he ought to be praised, according to this song. Even as a baby, the night he is born, only a few moments old, the angels of heaven, the angels of God, show up on the scene to proclaim this baby ought to be praised.
Because He is God incarnate, he is God in the flesh. This is what we celebrate: that our God has come among us. How did He come? According to Silent Night, it’s through a virgin birth. How in the World could that be possible? How could a virgin give birth? Do you know what a virgin is? Yeah. Okay, then, there’s no reason to provide a detailed explanation.
A virgin, for the simple understanding, a virgin is pure. She is unmarried and untouched by a man. People in the Old Testament, people in the New Testament, and people today understand what a virgin is. This is Mary during the time of Mary and Joseph. Joseph is Mary’s husband.
Engagement
During this biblical time, women and men would come together before they had the marriage ceremony. They would become pledged together. We call it engagement. They call it marriage or a pledge. That pledge process would take place with the two family groups coming together. The new husband, wife, and their parents would all come together.
They would have a social gathering among themselves. Draw up a contract, write it down, and sign it. Through that process, there’s money exchanged and so forth. Mary and Joseph were betrothed. They agreed to a legally binding contract where Joseph could not go with other females for one year.
If he got caught dating another female or paying attention to another female, he violated breaking that contract. And he was watched closely. Mary also would have been watched closely. She was not allowed to date any other guys. The entire community would have been watching.
To observe. They had a period of one year to make sure that he remained pure. And the entire community was watching, and then she would remain chaste, and the whole community was watching. These were children. In our society, we would call them junior high kids. They were probably about the same age, according to the culture.
The Bible doesn’t tell us their age, but according to the culture. When they would become betrothed, they would become betrothed somewhere between 10 and 13 years old. So, let’s just picture that they were approximately 12 years old. When a boy and a girl hit puberty, the parents say, Okay, now you’re ready to get married because you can start reproducing.
Because you can now reproduce, then you should get married. So when the girl and boy hit puberty, they come into a betrothal process, and they soon get married. So, the average age of marriage, then, was 12 to 13 years of age. So Joseph wasn’t a grown man with a beard with other kids and an ex-wife.
Joseph was about 13 years old, according to the custom and society’s history. And Mary was about 12 years old. So picture that in your head: a 12-year-old girl and a 13-year-old boy coming together. And Matthew tells us about that. Luke does, as well. We’re going to look at Luke.
Genealogy of Jesus Christ
Look at Matthew Chapter 1, verse 1.
“The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.” Okay, what is Matthew telling us? This book is about Jesus. Okay, he says, Jesus Christ, the son of David. Why does he make that clear? Because of the lineage. The lineage of David. The heritage of David, yes. He’s of the gift of David.
He is a great, great, great, great, great, however many greats it is, grandson of David. He was saying that this is a descendant of David, a descendant of Abraham. Why is that important? What difference does it make? Because it is prophesied. Prophets after prophets foretold that Jesus, the Messiah, would come as a descendant of David, which means he was worthy and legally eligible to sit on the throne of Israel.
He is a king
He is a king. Coming through the bloodline of David, a pure lineage of David makes him eligible for the throne. That’s what he is telling us. This is about the new king.
That word genealogy, what does it mean? The ancestry or the begiing, the story of the begiing, the story of the bloodline. And then let’s look down at chapter eight, verse 18: “Now,” wait a minute. He says, “Now,” what, did something change? He says, in verse 1, verse 2, verse 3, and following, this person gave birth, and this person gave birth, and this person gave birth, and so on, and so on, and so on, then he tells us that it’s 14 generations from this person to this person, 14 generations from this person to this person.
Then, in verse 18, he says, “Now,” so he’s changing the subject. There’s a subject change here. “Now, the birth of Jesus Christ. Was as follows: after his mother, Mary, was betrothed to Joseph before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Spirit.” Let’s notice that the word “birth” that word birth that shows is the same in Greek as the word genealogy is in in verse one.
This is important because Matthew tells us from verses 1 through 17 that this is Jesus’s human origin. In verses 18 through 25, Matthew tells us this is Jesus’ godly origin. So he’s saying this is the mama side, and this is the daddy side. This is Jesus’s family tree from 1 through 25.
Mary was a virgin
His Father is not Joseph. His Father is God. His mother is Mary. That is extremely important. It is essential because if Mary was not a virgin, Jesus is not a deity. If Mary’s virginity was not real, Then prophecy is wrong because Isaiah says in Isaiah chapter 7 verse 14, God says, “therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the Virgin shall conceive and bear a son and call his name Emmanuel. And that means God with us.”
So, if Mary was not a virgin, then Isaiah is wrong, and if he’s wrong on that point, he may as well be wrong on them all. If Mary was not a virgin, Jesus had an earthly, physical, biological, and human. If he has a human daddy, he is not a deity.
If Jesus is not a deity, we are not saved and greatly deceived. So, we must believe in the virgin birth. We must believe that Mary was a virgin. She was a virgin, as the scripture proclaims. Let’s begin reading again in verse 18. “Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows after his mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph before they came together.”
Comes Together
What does that mean, “before they came together”? The context of the verse is talking about giving birth. So, “before they came together,” she was already pregnant before they did what spouses do. But she was still a virgin. She was still a virgin. “She was found with child of the Holy Spirit.”
That phrase comes together. Do you know what the normal process of husband and wife is? On the honeymoon night? That’s what Matthew said. Before their honeymoon night, right there in the scripture, before their honeymoon night, so before they came together, she was already pregnant by the Holy Spirit. She was a virgin.
Some people believe that Mary is the perpetual Virgin, meaning she is always a virgin. She was a virgin before birth, before Jesus’ birth, and Joseph never touched her, so she still, even today, is a virgin. Those people don’t understand God’s word because right here, it says, before they came together.
Mary is no longer a virgin
Mary is no longer a virgin. Mary was a virgin, but she was no longer a virgin. And we’re going to look at that. Mary had other sons and daughters. So, let’s continue reading. Then Joseph, her husband, was a just man. What does that mean? He’s a reasonable man. He’s a good man. He’s a righteous man. To call Joseph an honest man is to put him in the same category as Isaiah the prophet.
Joseph is a righteous man
To say Joseph is a righteous man is to put him in the same category as Elijah. We know what Elijah did. We call him a just man, but Matthew calls him a just man, putting Joseph in the same category as Zachariah. Like any other Old Testament prophet, Amos is also putting him in the same category as Moses.
He is a just man. He is a man of righteousness. He is a man who pleased God. He is a man whom God found, that God looked to. He is a man that God could trust. Joseph is a man that God could trust. Wow. Could you imagine that? That God would have confidence in you? This God of the universe would have faith.
That’s what it means. He is a just man. And not wanting to make her a public example, I was minded to put her away secretly. But, while he thought about these things, What was he thinking about? Well, he knows, he knows, that he hasn’t been with her. He’s thinking she’s supposed to be a virgin. We’ve been betrothed.
I love this girl. I want to marry her. I’m going to spend the rest of my life with her. But I want to raise somebody else’s kid. While he’s thinking about this. Maybe he cried himself to sleep. Perhaps he was pondering How could this happen? What’s the guy’s name? Maybe he was enraged with jealousy. We don’t know.
Stones to kill
But we do know that he was thinking about this. And what is he thinking about specifically? We know for sure he is thinking about putting her away privately. That means he wants to divorce her. He is thinking about divorcing her. We look back at the law in the Old Testament. Deuteronomy chapter 24 tells us that “when a woman is called in adultery… Then, she is put to death with stones.”
They use stones to kill her when she’s found in adultery. The way of putting her away privately (which, by the way) stoning her would be a public event in front of the whole community. Everybody’s involved. At least the men are involved.
To put her away privately was not God’s law, but it was the law that the Jews came up with. It was a permissive way that they were allowing people to do, so it was done privately. So Joseph, being a righteous man, cared for Mary so much that he was considering stepping away from God’s law and doing man’s law so that he could honor Mary.
This is what he’s struggling with. This is what Mary and Joseph are thinking. So Joseph, being a righteous man, was considering, How can I honor God and honor Mary? He wants to protect her. He doesn’t want to make a public mockery of her. He doesn’t want everybody to think wrong of her. He doesn’t want her to die.
To put her away privately is just to send her away and let her live. He doesn’t want her to die. So Joseph, being a righteous man, was trying to figure out how to do the right thing. But while he thought about these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream. So, he fell asleep while thinking.
Joseph, son of David. Wow. Joseph is the son of David. Now, the son of David that means that he is eligible for the throne. He, being the son of David, means he’s in the king’s bloodline. Do not be afraid. Now, he’s only a human. So it’s natural then, right, for an angel to say, wait, don’t be frightened. If Joseph were a deity, if Joseph were something more than human, he would have no reason to be afraid, right?
Him being human, he’s afraid of an angel. So David says, wait, calm down, calm down—no reason to be frightened. I’m not going to hurt you.
Don’t be afraid to take you, Mary, your wife. So there’s no reason for you to be scared, afraid to take Mary. It’s okay for that which is conceived. In her is of the Holy Spirit. So this is what God did to her. Joseph, it’s okay. God did it. This is the plan of God. And she, now, this is what the angel continues telling him.
This is the plan of God. She will bring forth a son. And you shall call his name Jesus. By the way, the word, the name Jesus, the definition of Jesus means God saves, God saves. So his name is God saves, for he will save his people from their sin. So all this was done that it might be fulfilled, which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet saying, this is quoting from Isaiah, behold, the Virgin shall be with child and bear a son, and they shall call his name, Emmanuel, which is translated God with us.
Emmanuel, God with us
Oh, hallelujah, Emmanuel, God with us. This is an interesting side note here, Matthew. When you read throughout Matthew, this is a theme through Matthew. Here, Matthew opens in chapter 1, saying that Jesus is God with us. Look over at the end of Matthew, Matthew chapter 28,
Matthew chapter 28, verse 20, the very last verse in the book, Jesus gives the Great Commission. And as he’s telling them to go out and share the gospel, Jesus says, “teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you, and lo, I am with you always.” So Matthew opens by saying that Jesus is God with us.
Then we have Jesus proclaiming at the end, I am with you. So Matthew begins with Jesus being God with us, the Emmanuel and Jesus claiming, I am God with you. I am Emmanuel. The entire book of Matthew, chapter after chapter, repeatedly. Matthew is presenting the fact that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.
He is the everlasting one. He is the eternal life-giver. He is the only way by which we can be saved. Jesus and Jesus alone is the only mediator between us and God. It’s Jesus! It’s Jesus! It’s all about Jesus! Oh, hallelujah! Because Jesus is the Son of God. Jesus is the son of God who has come to be with us.
He’s with us. He’s not distant. He’s not way out there somewhere. He’s not unapproachable, but God has come to be with us so that we can access the Father. Hallelujah. That’s what the entire book of Matthew is about. Let’s continue reading verse 24; then Joseph, aroused from sleep, did as the angel of the Lord commanded.
What do we learn about Joseph right there? We know he’s a righteous man. We see here he’s a man of faith, and he’s a man of action, and he is a man of obedience. He did as the angel of the Lord commanded him and took his life. Matthew is evident and careful to ensure we notice this and do not know her.
What does it mean when the Bible uses the word no in that way? He did not have husband-wife intimacy with her. He did not know her. So there is no husband and wife intimacy, physical intimacy with Mary. Notice that next word. Your Bible might say that he did not know her till she had brought forth her firstborn son, and he called his name Jesus.
Again, Matthew tells us that Mary was a virgin, but she’s not always a virgin. Mary was a virgin, but she is not a continual virgin. The Bible tells us right there twice in one chapter. That Mary, what did not remain A virgin Mary has other children. The Bible tells us who these children are. We see that Jesus has brothers who come with Mary.
When Jesus is preaching, we see in three of the Gospels that while Jesus is preaching, Mary and his brother, Jesus’s brothers, come while he’s preaching. They stand outside, and they call for him. They wanted to stop preaching and come out there and pay them attention because they think he’s lost his mind.
They don’t understand what he’s doing. We see the Pharisees question, well, who is this guy? Isn’t he the carpenter, and isn’t his brothers? And they named his brothers, his four brothers, and aren’t his sisters with us? Isn’t he the son of the carpenter? Isn’t he the one who’s James and Joseph and Joseph and Simon?
Isn’t that, isn’t he the brother of them? Isn’t his sister with us? So they recognize that he’s just a human. They don’t see the deity of Jesus. Matthew is combating that philosophy, and that idea of the Pharisees, and the Pharisees proclaim He is just one of us. He’s just one of us. Matthew says, yes, he is one of us.
Both God and Human
He is complete human. But it’s God who is one of us. He is both God and human. It is God who is among us. He is Emmanuel. He is God among us. He is God with us. He is God who has come and put on flesh. But that flesh is flesh without soul. He is a man of righteousness. He is a man without sin. He is the one who lives in total obedience to God the Father.
He is the one and only one who can hang on the cross as the Son of God, the Lamb of God, and the forgiver of sin. He is the only one and the only way to receive salvation. Oh, hallelujah. Our God came to be with us. Yes. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. Let’s look over at Luke for a moment.
Luke 3.23
“Now Jesus began his ministry at about 30 years of age, begiing as was supposed, the son of Joseph.” In my Bible, that’s in parentheses:” as was supposed the son of Joseph.” Isn’t he Joseph’s son? Well, why does why does he say as supposed? People assume he is the son of Joseph. People believe that Jesus is Joseph’s son because Joseph took him to raise.
Because Joseph acts like his Father, Joseph is a righteous man accepting this child who is not his. Joseph is righteously raising this child. Joseph is doing the right thing. So, people believe Joseph is Jesus’ son. But Luke is careful. Look down at verse 31. Luke gives the genealogy. Look down at verse 31.
“The son of Mila, the son of Minan, the son of Matthiah, the son of Nathan, the son of David.” So he says this is the son of David, the lineage of David that has been prophesied of. “The son of Jesse. The son of Obed, the son of Boaz, the son of Solomon, the son of Nashon.” Now look down at verse 38.
Luke tells us he’s “the son of Enosh, the son of Seth, the son of Adam, the son of God.” So Luke tells us why he says it is supposed that he is the son of Joseph. He is the son of God. Oh, he is the son of David. He is the one that is prophesied. He is the one who will take the throne and of his kingdom.
There will be no end because he is the son of God, this child that was born this baby, this little infant, this little vulnerable person came into the World as the son of God came in humility so that we can see him. Can have righteousness in him. He came presenting himself in the most vulnerable state to an unlikely candidate so that we can have our everlasting Father and hope in him so that when that chilling hand of death comes, we know we have eternity with him.
Notice The Christmas songs. Notice what the Bible says in every prophecy about the birth of Jesus, everything told throughout the New Testament about Jesus, and revelation that looks back, revelation that looks forward. All of it talks about Jesus. The entire Bible points to Jesus. Mary.
Mary is a human
Yes, she is to be honored. She is a righteous woman, but she is a woman. She is only a woman. Turn your page back to Luke Chapter 1.
Mary is a human. Some people misunderstand that they ought to pray to Mary. If you pray to Mary, you’re wasting time. You may as well pray to this envelope. If you pray to Mary, pray to a pair of socks. This is not a slander against Mary. This is saying that Jesus is the deity, not Mary.
Just as much as Joseph was human, Mary was human. The word of God says very clearly that Mary was human. Let’s look at Luke and see this.
Luke says in chapter one, verse one, “Since many have taken in hand to set in order a narrative of those things in which have been fulfilled among us, just as those whom from the begiing were eyewitnesses and ministers of the word delivering them to us, it seemed good to me also having perfected understanding of all things.”
So he has the perfect understanding of all things. “From the first to write an orderly account, most excellent Theophilus.” So he tells us that he has, he’s going to do what other people have tried to do, but because he has perfect understanding, he’s going to explain it to us more clearly. Let’s look at verse 26.
He tells us about the birth of John the Baptist and the conception of John the Baptist. In verse 26, “now in the sixth month, “that’s the sixth month of Elizabeth, John the Baptist’s mother, the sixth month of her pregnancy. “Now, in the sixth month, the angel Gabriel was sent by God.” Who sent that angel? God” to a city of Galilee named Nazareth to a virgin, betrothed to a man.”
I wonder who that would be. What other Virgin in scripture has ever lifted? What other Virgin is expressly pointed out as “a virgin betrothed, to a man whose name was Joseph of the house of David. The Virgin’s name was Mary. And having come in, the angel said to her, rejoice. Highly favored one, the Lord is with you. Blessed are you among women.”
Notice here,” having come in, the angel said to her, Rejoice, highly favored one, highly favored.” He didn’t say rejoice. You are a deity. He says you are selected. He doesn’t tell her you are a deity. He doesn’t say you are more than human. He doesn’t say you should rejoice because you ought to be worshiped. He doesn’t say rejoice because you’ll hear people’s prayers one day, and you can answer prayers.
That’s not what the angel says. The angel tells her to rejoice because God has favored her. The Lord is with you. Blessed are you among women. But what is a woman? Does he say blessed are you among the heavenly host? Or blessed, blessed are you among demons? Blessed are you among spiritual beings? Blessed are you among what?
What kind of species is a woman? Human! She’s a natural human being. She’s just as much a woman as you are. She’s just as much a woman. She’s just as much human as you are. You are every bit as human as Mary. She’s nothing more. She is a righteous woman. And a woman that ought to be honored, yes. But she’s human.
Don’t Pray to Mary
So don’t pray to Mary. She caot hear your prayers. She is a dead woman. Yes, she’s alive in eternity, just as the Apostle Paul, but she can’t hear your prayers. We pray to Jesus. He is the only mediator. Acts tells us there is one God and one mediator, this man, Jesus Christ. He is the only way. He is the only access we have to the Father.
It is only through Jesus. In the Old Testament we would, people would have to go to the temple. To have access to God, they would go physically to the temple, and in the temple, they would pray to have access to the Father, as the temple’s purpose is to provide access to the Father. But Jesus does away with the temple, saying that one day this temple will be overthrown and that all the stones on it will be broken down.
But no stone will be left on. It is not unturned. But Jesus is going to make a way by building up This new system in him and by his blood, this new covenant Jesus makes, and in him and only through him do we have access to the Father. We don’t have access to him through Mary. Jesus is not some pathetic little person who has to wait for his mommy to tell him what to do.
Jesus responds by the will of the Father. He does not respond to the choice of his mommy. Jesus responds by the will of his Father. Father. Jesus does what his Father wants him to do time and time again. We see throughout the Gospels that Jesus does what his Father wants him to do. The meat of Jesus is to do the will of the Father.
Jesus comes to reveal the Father and to provide access to the Father. Mary is only a human. It’s not Mary. It’s not Paul. It’s not Peter. It’s not any other people who are righteous in the word. The only way they are honest is by the righteousness of God. The only way they are just is by the justness of God.
The only way they can have their sins cleansed is by God. Mary is not only human, but she is also in need of a savior. Look at verse 46. Elizabeth said to Mary, “It is wonderful. The child in my womb has leaked because he recognizes that the Lord is inside of you.” So Elizabeth proclaims that the baby in Mary is her Lord, saying that I am submissive to that baby.
I am a human. That baby is the deity. That’s what Elizabeth is saying. Then Mary says, and Mary said, my soul magnifies the Lord. And my spirit has rejoiced in my, in God, my savior, Mary, the mother of Jesus, does not say to Elizabeth, Oh, wait a minute, you need to worship me because I am the deity. No, Mary agrees with Elizabeth: I am in just as much need of a savior as you are.
Mary, out of her mouth, proclaims that she needs a savior. She requires a savior; therefore, she caot save us. Only Jesus is the Savior. Now, why is this important? It’s important because it’s incredibly urgent for us to turn to Jesus, to look to Jesus. It is only through Jesus that we can have our sins removed.
Only through Jesus can we have a relationship with the Father. It is for this reason that we celebrate Christmas. Why did he come? He came not so that we could sing jingle bells, not so that we could have sleigh rides, not so that we would have beautiful Christmas trees and give out presents, not so that we’d make fun of some fat man in a red suit saying “ho ho ho.”
No, he is not coming so we can have Christmas, and the stores and people work here during the holidays. Jesus came for one reason and one reason only: to do the will of the Father and make a bridge between humanity and God. Oh, hallelujah. Whoa. Oh, that’s exciting. We have access to the Father, the creator of all things because he is God with us.
God is with us. Oh, hallelujah. God is with us. Oh, hallelujah. He is Emmanuel. So, throughout this Christmas season, let’s remember it’s not about any of the Old Testament prophets. It’s not about Rudolph. It’s not about Frosty. It’s not about the little drummer boy or other characters during Christmas.
It’s not about Mary. It’s about Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son of God. So let’s celebrate Him.
Praise
Will you join me in praise? Praise you, Jesus. Praise you. Jesus. Praise you. Jesus. Praise you. Thank you. Heavenly Father, we thank you. We praise you, God because you are great. You are worthy to be praised. Thank you, Lord. Thank you for being with us today. Thank you for the power of your word. Thank you for being God. Amen. Help us as we go forward. We can celebrate you being God with us. Thank you, Lord. Thank you, Lord.
Thank you. Amen.
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