1 00:00:00,640 --> 00:00:03,840 Well, good afternoon. It is good to see you all here 2 00:00:03,840 --> 00:00:08,600 on this incredibly beautiful Christmas Eve day here in 3 00:00:08,600 --> 00:00:10,680 Arizona. If I don't know you, my name is 4 00:00:10,680 --> 00:00:12,440 Brandon. I serve as the pastor here at 5 00:00:12,440 --> 00:00:15,040 Saint City. And I am so thankful that you 6 00:00:15,040 --> 00:00:18,280 would choose to come here on your holiday and to hear what 7 00:00:18,280 --> 00:00:22,120 God has to say for your life. And I've been waiting for this 8 00:00:22,120 --> 00:00:24,600 day for a long time as a church planter. 9 00:00:24,600 --> 00:00:27,040 Like the first Christmas Eve service feels like a rite of 10 00:00:27,040 --> 00:00:29,000 passage. You know, I feel like I got like 11 00:00:29,000 --> 00:00:31,680 a, a new belt. I didn't do karate or jiu jitsu 12 00:00:31,680 --> 00:00:33,480 or any of those things, but I feel like I got a new belt, you 13 00:00:33,480 --> 00:00:35,880 know, that like, I graduated a bit as a pastor today. 14 00:00:35,880 --> 00:00:39,000 Having a Christmas Eve service and waiting is a hard thing. 15 00:00:39,240 --> 00:00:41,120 Kids, I need your help with this, kids in the room. 16 00:00:41,120 --> 00:00:43,280 I need you to participate in the serum right now so you're not 17 00:00:43,280 --> 00:00:44,560 interrupting. You're actually helping me out. 18 00:00:44,560 --> 00:00:47,880 Kids, what is your favorite Christmas tradition? 19 00:00:47,880 --> 00:00:52,240 Kids room? Shout it out, kids presents is a 20 00:00:52,240 --> 00:00:53,640 good thing to wait for. I like that. 21 00:00:54,080 --> 00:00:59,200 What'd you say? Favorite Christmas tradition? 22 00:00:59,200 --> 00:01:02,440 Kids is probably like watching movies, baking cookies, going to 23 00:01:02,440 --> 00:01:05,720 grandma's house. We all have favorite traditions. 24 00:01:05,720 --> 00:01:08,400 One of mine growing up going out with my family was going to see 25 00:01:08,560 --> 00:01:11,320 the lights and I think not. One new favorite Christmas 26 00:01:11,320 --> 00:01:14,720 traditions is Papa Preston sitting in a chair right here 27 00:01:15,040 --> 00:01:17,680 reading to us. It is. 28 00:01:17,680 --> 00:01:20,600 It is good to have traditions, but one of my least favorite 29 00:01:20,600 --> 00:01:25,160 traditions growing up was waiting for my turn to open the 30 00:01:25,160 --> 00:01:27,440 presents. Now, I don't know if you had 31 00:01:27,440 --> 00:01:30,360 cousins or if you went to the family party and if you were one 32 00:01:30,360 --> 00:01:33,120 of those chaotic families that ordered opened up all the 33 00:01:33,120 --> 00:01:35,920 presents all at once. That was not my side of the 34 00:01:35,920 --> 00:01:39,240 family. We went from youngest to oldest 35 00:01:40,240 --> 00:01:44,920 and I was the second oldest cousin, which meant I had to 36 00:01:44,920 --> 00:01:48,520 watch my baby brothers open their presents and my cousins 37 00:01:48,520 --> 00:01:52,640 and there was 17 of us. So I would sit there on 38 00:01:52,640 --> 00:01:55,480 Christmas Eve night or Christmas Day depending on the year, 39 00:01:55,480 --> 00:01:58,760 right? I was sitting there agitated on 40 00:01:58,760 --> 00:01:59,840 Christmas. Why? 41 00:01:59,840 --> 00:02:02,360 Because I had to wait to open my presents. 42 00:02:02,920 --> 00:02:05,080 And it was always funny because my grandpa would be sitting next 43 00:02:05,080 --> 00:02:07,800 to me and he would, he'd be the oldest. 44 00:02:07,800 --> 00:02:09,840 So he didn't care though, because it was his house. 45 00:02:09,840 --> 00:02:11,680 So what he would do is he would just open up his presents while 46 00:02:11,680 --> 00:02:13,960 everybody was paying attention to the little kids, you know. 47 00:02:15,000 --> 00:02:18,040 And I just love watching him not wait while he was forcing me to 48 00:02:18,040 --> 00:02:21,200 wait. And I learned something even at 49 00:02:21,200 --> 00:02:25,240 a young age, those days that it's, it's actually hard for 50 00:02:25,240 --> 00:02:29,840 someone to relate to a wait. And what I mean by that is if 51 00:02:29,840 --> 00:02:33,240 you didn't experience the wait for yourself, it's really hard 52 00:02:33,240 --> 00:02:36,760 to imagine just what it felt like to have to wait for that 53 00:02:36,760 --> 00:02:40,960 thing. And there's lighter weights that 54 00:02:40,960 --> 00:02:43,040 we have in our life. Maybe it's waiting for presents. 55 00:02:43,040 --> 00:02:46,480 Maybe it's waiting for our table at the reservation at PF Chang's 56 00:02:46,480 --> 00:02:50,040 after service tonight. Maybe it's waiting for something 57 00:02:50,040 --> 00:02:52,040 like that. But I'm sure there are heavier 58 00:02:52,760 --> 00:02:58,200 waiting rooms here, things for healing, things for like 59 00:02:58,440 --> 00:03:06,280 relationships, things like relief that there's something in 60 00:03:06,280 --> 00:03:09,200 your life that you've been waiting on or waiting for and 61 00:03:09,200 --> 00:03:12,560 you felt the sting of having to wait. 62 00:03:13,760 --> 00:03:16,920 And on Christmas, we are actually celebrating. 63 00:03:16,920 --> 00:03:21,600 We are actually commemorating and reflecting upon waiting for 64 00:03:21,600 --> 00:03:25,640 God to come to earth, that there was a waiting period, a holding 65 00:03:25,640 --> 00:03:29,320 pattern that happened that we on the other side of the cross, on 66 00:03:29,320 --> 00:03:30,880 the other side of Jesus coming to earth. 67 00:03:30,880 --> 00:03:36,600 We don't quite feel. And if you're new to church and, 68 00:03:36,600 --> 00:03:38,520 or if you're even thinking about Christmas, you're, you're 69 00:03:38,760 --> 00:03:42,000 familiar certainly with the themes of family, you're 70 00:03:42,200 --> 00:03:45,200 familiar with the themes of keeping, you know, the spirit of 71 00:03:45,200 --> 00:03:52,360 Christmas or what not. But there's a seriousness to 72 00:03:52,400 --> 00:03:57,640 Christmas that Christians feel that we embrace, that we're 73 00:03:57,800 --> 00:04:00,360 pumped about, that we have joy for. 74 00:04:02,520 --> 00:04:05,440 And if you're asking yourself like, why so serious Heath 75 00:04:05,440 --> 00:04:08,200 Ledger style? Well, it's because of this. 76 00:04:08,880 --> 00:04:10,520 It's because Christmas makes sense. 77 00:04:10,520 --> 00:04:15,440 Once you understand the weight that Jesus stepped into, it 78 00:04:15,440 --> 00:04:18,480 makes sense. Like why do we celebrate a baby? 79 00:04:18,480 --> 00:04:23,000 Why is there a whole holiday? And why do people take it so 80 00:04:23,000 --> 00:04:28,320 spiritually serious? Because God stepped into the 81 00:04:28,320 --> 00:04:32,200 wait on that day. I'm in Luke chapter 1. 82 00:04:32,200 --> 00:04:34,160 I don't just want to share my thoughts with you today. 83 00:04:34,160 --> 00:04:36,240 I want to share with you God's words and God's thoughts. 84 00:04:36,240 --> 00:04:39,800 And here's what happened when Mary found out that the wait was 85 00:04:39,800 --> 00:04:44,200 over, that this is what happened when we found out that Jesus 86 00:04:44,200 --> 00:04:47,640 Christ was going to cross the horizon of this world and encase 87 00:04:47,640 --> 00:04:50,840 himself in human flesh. This is the story of one of 88 00:04:50,840 --> 00:04:55,600 Jesus's friends helping catalog for us just how it went down. 89 00:04:56,560 --> 00:04:59,000 We're Luke chapter one, verse 26. 90 00:04:59,000 --> 00:05:05,040 And it says this in the sixth month of her relative 91 00:05:05,080 --> 00:05:09,360 Elizabeth's pregnancy, the Angel Gabriel was sent from God to a 92 00:05:09,360 --> 00:05:14,800 city of Galilee named Nazareth to a virgin betrothed to a man 93 00:05:14,800 --> 00:05:17,680 whose name was Joseph of the House of David. 94 00:05:17,680 --> 00:05:23,120 In the virgin's name was Mary. And the Angel came to her, and 95 00:05:23,120 --> 00:05:26,800 he said, greetings, O favored one, the Lord is with you. 96 00:05:27,640 --> 00:05:30,520 But she was greatly troubled at the saying and tried to discern 97 00:05:30,520 --> 00:05:32,840 what sort of greeting this might be. 98 00:05:32,840 --> 00:05:34,960 I mean, she wasn't having regular occurrences and 99 00:05:34,960 --> 00:05:38,000 interactions with angels. You know, a very common 100 00:05:38,000 --> 00:05:40,560 experience for for Mary. So what happens next? 101 00:05:41,240 --> 00:05:46,480 And the Angel said to her, Do not be afraid Mary, for you have 102 00:05:46,480 --> 00:05:53,280 found favor with God, and behold, you will conceive in 103 00:05:53,280 --> 00:05:58,520 your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. 104 00:05:59,560 --> 00:06:05,120 He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High, 105 00:06:05,400 --> 00:06:09,480 and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father 106 00:06:09,480 --> 00:06:14,080 David, and he will reign over the House of Jacob Forever, and 107 00:06:14,080 --> 00:06:17,240 of his Kingdom there will be no end. 108 00:06:18,640 --> 00:06:25,320 And Mary said to the Angel, How will this be, since I am a 109 00:06:25,320 --> 00:06:28,440 virgin? And the Angel answered her, The 110 00:06:28,440 --> 00:06:32,080 Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High 111 00:06:32,080 --> 00:06:35,760 will over shadow you. Therefore the child to be born 112 00:06:35,760 --> 00:06:41,120 will be called holy, the Son of God. 113 00:06:42,040 --> 00:06:44,280 And behold, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has 114 00:06:44,280 --> 00:06:47,480 also conceived a son, and this is the 6th month with her who 115 00:06:47,480 --> 00:06:51,520 was called barren. For nothing will be impossible 116 00:06:51,680 --> 00:06:55,080 with God. And Mary said, Behold, I am the 117 00:06:55,080 --> 00:06:58,560 servant of the Lord, let it be to me according to your word. 118 00:06:58,920 --> 00:07:01,440 And the Angel Gabriel departed from her. 119 00:07:02,720 --> 00:07:04,800 Now I don't have all night and neither do you. 120 00:07:04,800 --> 00:07:07,000 It's a holiday. But I want to give you 3 quick 121 00:07:07,000 --> 00:07:10,240 things, kind of summarizing what God is doing inside of this 122 00:07:10,240 --> 00:07:12,720 story that I think are helpful for you and understanding 123 00:07:12,720 --> 00:07:16,960 Christmas. It is the weight, the work and 124 00:07:16,960 --> 00:07:19,360 the will. The weight, the work and the 125 00:07:19,360 --> 00:07:21,720 will and God's activity inside of all of them. 126 00:07:21,720 --> 00:07:25,120 First, the weight. You see right there in the sixth 127 00:07:25,120 --> 00:07:28,680 month of Elizabeth's pregnancy, we meet this virgin named Mary. 128 00:07:29,480 --> 00:07:32,560 And what we don't have necessarily is all the context 129 00:07:32,560 --> 00:07:35,600 of this part of your Bible. There's a whole lot of Bible 130 00:07:35,600 --> 00:07:39,280 before Luke chapter one, right? And that's one story, though, 131 00:07:39,280 --> 00:07:45,960 leading to this very moment. Now it is 400 years between the 132 00:07:45,960 --> 00:07:49,960 book of Malachi, which ends the Old Testament, and Matthew which 133 00:07:49,960 --> 00:07:57,760 begins 400 years of silence, of darkness, of the world waiting 134 00:07:57,800 --> 00:08:02,760 for God to speak again. 400 years is a long time. 135 00:08:02,760 --> 00:08:05,880 I did a few math things with ChatGPT for you on this. 136 00:08:05,920 --> 00:08:10,840 You see, 400 years would be 12.6 billion seconds. 137 00:08:12,080 --> 00:08:15,400 OK, it would you'd have to listen to Mariah Carey's All I 138 00:08:15,400 --> 00:08:20,080 Want for Christmas Is You 52.4 million times. 139 00:08:20,080 --> 00:08:24,040 Press play 52.4 million times in a torture chamber. 140 00:08:24,120 --> 00:08:30,880 You would arrive at 400 years. Historically, you would have to 141 00:08:30,880 --> 00:08:33,480 go back in American history to Jamestown. 142 00:08:34,440 --> 00:08:39,320 So if you're at Jamestown when America is found and started 143 00:08:39,320 --> 00:08:47,160 counting one year after after another after another, that 144 00:08:47,160 --> 00:08:55,200 would be 400 years. And that's where Mary's coming 145 00:08:55,200 --> 00:09:04,200 into the story is There was 400 years of darkness. 146 00:09:05,120 --> 00:09:09,320 That Isaiah 92 actually helps us see this prophetically, that the 147 00:09:09,320 --> 00:09:21,270 world was trapped in deep darkness, waiting, waiting, 148 00:09:23,910 --> 00:09:31,190 anticipating the most pregnant of pauses from God. 149 00:09:35,600 --> 00:09:38,240 And in the midst of that silence, there was people 150 00:09:38,880 --> 00:09:46,400 waiting for God to work, waiting for the God of Abraham and Isaac 151 00:09:46,600 --> 00:09:50,560 and Jacob to deliver on his promises to fulfill the 152 00:09:50,560 --> 00:09:54,760 prophecies. The wait was happening. 153 00:09:57,440 --> 00:10:03,720 And now we meet this teenager, Mary, who now has to wait for 154 00:10:03,720 --> 00:10:08,400 the arrival of a baby. Now, it's significant that Jesus 155 00:10:08,400 --> 00:10:14,160 is born of a woman because we needed Jesus to be a human being 156 00:10:14,160 --> 00:10:18,120 to save us. Now you might be wondering 157 00:10:18,120 --> 00:10:19,760 yourself, like, OK, we need him to be human. 158 00:10:19,760 --> 00:10:21,360 Why did he have to come as a baby? 159 00:10:21,720 --> 00:10:24,400 Like, did he, like, know Ricky Bobby was going to be a thing in 160 00:10:24,400 --> 00:10:26,000 love? Sweet baby Jesus? 161 00:10:26,000 --> 00:10:27,920 Like, is that why Jesus came as a baby? 162 00:10:28,080 --> 00:10:31,280 No, no, no, that's not why Jesus came as a baby. 163 00:10:31,280 --> 00:10:37,480 Jesus came as a baby. For this reason, Jesus cannot 164 00:10:37,480 --> 00:10:44,120 save what he does not assume. That God had to be born of a 165 00:10:44,120 --> 00:10:47,600 woman. He had to be a human like us in 166 00:10:47,600 --> 00:10:54,520 every way, but without sin. That for God to be just, for him 167 00:10:54,520 --> 00:11:00,440 to be the loving God that He is, that God the Son had to be a 168 00:11:00,440 --> 00:11:04,960 human being to represent us in judgment before God the Father. 169 00:11:07,400 --> 00:11:10,480 He cannot save what He has not assumed. 170 00:11:10,480 --> 00:11:17,280 It's like a currency, that there is a real and royal and eternal 171 00:11:17,280 --> 00:11:21,960 currency with God, and He only takes payment one way. 172 00:11:22,720 --> 00:11:25,600 That if a human being sends in a human being has to be perfect in 173 00:11:25,600 --> 00:11:30,320 a human being's place, that my dollar bill wouldn't work the 174 00:11:30,320 --> 00:11:33,600 same way overseas in the same way. 175 00:11:34,640 --> 00:11:37,320 We needed a human being to represent us before God. 176 00:11:37,320 --> 00:11:41,840 And so Jesus is born of this Virgin Mary, and he is a human 177 00:11:41,840 --> 00:11:45,040 being. He has feelings, He cries, He is 178 00:11:45,040 --> 00:11:50,920 a human being, He needs sleep. He is a human being in every 179 00:11:50,920 --> 00:11:57,360 way, yet without sin. And Mary in this story has begun 180 00:11:57,360 --> 00:11:59,960 her wait for this baby to arrive. 181 00:12:02,400 --> 00:12:05,880 What she doesn't know is 9 months from now that he won't be 182 00:12:05,880 --> 00:12:09,720 delivered in a royal hall. But this king of kings, this 183 00:12:09,720 --> 00:12:14,400 king of David, he's going to be born in the most humblest of 184 00:12:14,400 --> 00:12:23,040 ways in a Manger that the second person of the triune God, Jesus 185 00:12:23,040 --> 00:12:28,960 Christ, the Son of God, was going to take a demotion from 186 00:12:28,960 --> 00:12:32,880 heaven's throne to a cradle and a dirt. 187 00:12:35,360 --> 00:12:40,040 And Mary was waiting for God to work. 188 00:12:42,240 --> 00:12:44,200 I imagine some of you are in that very spot right now, 189 00:12:44,880 --> 00:12:49,760 waiting for the work that kind of summarizes the whole 190 00:12:49,760 --> 00:12:53,440 Christian life. We wait, God works. 191 00:12:54,520 --> 00:12:58,800 We keep waiting actively in faith, going about the mission, 192 00:12:59,440 --> 00:13:02,960 worshipping him, and he continues to work. 193 00:13:02,960 --> 00:13:08,000 He does what only God can do. Verse 35 And the Angel answered 194 00:13:08,000 --> 00:13:11,840 her, The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the 195 00:13:11,840 --> 00:13:16,080 Most High will over shadow you. Therefore the child to be born 196 00:13:16,240 --> 00:13:19,800 will be called holy, the Son of God. 197 00:13:21,480 --> 00:13:25,240 It is not enough for God the Son to encase himself a few human 198 00:13:25,240 --> 00:13:28,440 flesh. To Incarnate himself is a fancy 199 00:13:28,440 --> 00:13:30,840 theological word for it that He took on flesh. 200 00:13:31,760 --> 00:13:37,400 But God the Son had to still be God for the power of His 201 00:13:37,400 --> 00:13:39,840 salvation to take any hold on human beings. 202 00:13:40,200 --> 00:13:43,720 That God the Son had to be conceived by the Spirit because 203 00:13:43,720 --> 00:13:47,320 he was conceived by a man. He would have inherited a sin 204 00:13:47,320 --> 00:13:54,840 nature like you and I did that God the Son had to be conceived 205 00:13:54,840 --> 00:14:00,080 by the Spirit. Now this fulfills a prophecy of 206 00:14:00,080 --> 00:14:03,840 Jesus. Isaiah Chapter 7 verse 14 says 207 00:14:03,840 --> 00:14:06,560 that Jesus will be born in this way. 208 00:14:07,920 --> 00:14:11,560 Now Jesus fulfills depending on the count, around 40 prophecies. 209 00:14:12,000 --> 00:14:14,000 You know, three to four dozen depending on how you count them 210 00:14:14,000 --> 00:14:16,680 or if you double. But I just want to give you a 211 00:14:16,680 --> 00:14:22,120 little math equation for you that Jesus even fulfilling one 212 00:14:22,120 --> 00:14:23,720 of those prophecies would be like this. 213 00:14:23,720 --> 00:14:29,160 Imagine if I were to cover the entire state of Texas with 214 00:14:29,160 --> 00:14:35,880 pennies 2 feet deep and I were to paint one red, cover the 215 00:14:35,880 --> 00:14:39,280 entire square mileage of the state, and I were to paint one 216 00:14:39,280 --> 00:14:41,720 red and leave it in the dirt somewhere in Texas. 217 00:14:41,920 --> 00:14:44,520 I was going to blindfold you. I was going to drop you in the 218 00:14:44,520 --> 00:14:45,960 state of Texas. I was going to say, hey, guess 219 00:14:45,960 --> 00:14:48,600 what? You need to go find the red 220 00:14:48,600 --> 00:14:56,200 penny. The odds of that happening would 221 00:14:56,200 --> 00:14:59,040 be miraculous. You stand no chance. 222 00:15:00,120 --> 00:15:07,160 Only God could do that. Now in every world view there's 223 00:15:07,160 --> 00:15:10,960 some form of a miracle that has to take place, either the virgin 224 00:15:10,960 --> 00:15:16,400 birth of the earth or the virgin birth of the Christ. 225 00:15:18,600 --> 00:15:23,000 That something came from nothing, that it took a miracle 226 00:15:23,000 --> 00:15:27,240 for it to happen. And God the Son takes on human 227 00:15:27,240 --> 00:15:28,800 flesh. He becomes a baby. 228 00:15:28,880 --> 00:15:32,480 He doesn't become less than God in any way, but instead he shows 229 00:15:32,480 --> 00:15:39,440 us the face of God because he loves us, because he wants to be 230 00:15:39,440 --> 00:15:41,600 there for us, because he wants to save us from the Father 231 00:15:41,720 --> 00:15:47,320 through the Son by the Spirit. Jesus Christ, Son of God, became 232 00:15:47,320 --> 00:15:54,600 a baby conceived by the Spirit. And if Jesus is not a man, he 233 00:15:54,600 --> 00:15:58,760 can't represent us. But if Jesus is not God, he 234 00:15:58,760 --> 00:16:02,840 can't save you from your sin. That the deep darkness, you're 235 00:16:02,840 --> 00:16:06,000 still waiting. You're still waiting for a 236 00:16:06,000 --> 00:16:09,560 Savior to save you from the exile from God. 237 00:16:10,840 --> 00:16:14,000 Who is going to get you back in relationship with God if not God 238 00:16:14,000 --> 00:16:17,520 himself? You are without hope, waiting in 239 00:16:17,520 --> 00:16:23,160 darkness still if not for Jesus entrance into the world that if 240 00:16:23,160 --> 00:16:26,800 he doesn't come this way there is no savior to believe in. 241 00:16:27,520 --> 00:16:29,720 There is no hope for eternal life. 242 00:16:30,560 --> 00:16:35,400 This had to be this way, and it is only grace and the love of 243 00:16:35,400 --> 00:16:40,200 God that prompted God the Son to step into a Manger and go to a 244 00:16:40,200 --> 00:16:45,840 cross for us. This is the story of Christmas, 245 00:16:46,520 --> 00:16:52,080 that God the Son became a baby and needed a mom to wipe his 246 00:16:52,080 --> 00:16:58,040 tears and his behind. Like God the Son did that. 247 00:16:59,600 --> 00:17:08,119 How humiliating, how humble. That's how God works. 248 00:17:11,040 --> 00:17:17,400 That he didn't come to earth to be served, but rather to serve 249 00:17:18,000 --> 00:17:21,240 and to give his life as a ransom payment for many. 250 00:17:23,640 --> 00:17:26,160 That he didn't count equality with God, a thing that he had to 251 00:17:26,160 --> 00:17:29,440 hold on to, but he emptied himself by taking the form of a 252 00:17:29,440 --> 00:17:32,160 servant. And now at the name of Jesus, 253 00:17:32,200 --> 00:17:35,080 every knee will bow, every tongue will confess that he is 254 00:17:35,080 --> 00:17:37,080 Lord to the glory of God the Father. 255 00:17:37,080 --> 00:17:40,360 Because there is no other name by which we can be saved. 256 00:17:40,680 --> 00:17:44,480 That He works for you and I on our behalf by going to a Roman 257 00:17:44,480 --> 00:17:48,120 cross, dying the death we should have died, paying for the sin 258 00:17:48,160 --> 00:17:51,480 that we have committed, having no sin of His own to pay for. 259 00:17:51,600 --> 00:17:55,440 He does it so that you and I can have the hope and the love of 260 00:17:55,440 --> 00:18:02,680 God in our lives. It's the wait, it's the work. 261 00:18:03,120 --> 00:18:05,720 And I want you to see the will of the Father. 262 00:18:05,840 --> 00:18:10,480 Look back at the text with me, verse 30 through 33. 263 00:18:10,720 --> 00:18:13,160 And the Angel said to her, Don't be afraid, Mary, for you have 264 00:18:13,160 --> 00:18:18,680 found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in 265 00:18:18,680 --> 00:18:22,160 your womb and bear a son. You shall call his name Jesus. 266 00:18:22,480 --> 00:18:27,080 He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. 267 00:18:27,280 --> 00:18:29,960 And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father 268 00:18:29,960 --> 00:18:33,040 David, and he will reign over the House of Jacob Forever. 269 00:18:33,400 --> 00:18:36,960 And of his Kingdom there will be no end. 270 00:18:38,400 --> 00:18:40,600 And then Mary in verse 34 asks a question. 271 00:18:40,600 --> 00:18:48,200 Then how will this be? Because I'm legally bound to 272 00:18:48,200 --> 00:18:50,840 Joseph. And we have honored the reality 273 00:18:50,840 --> 00:18:53,800 that we have not slept together. I am still a virgin. 274 00:18:53,800 --> 00:18:55,040 So how are we going to do this, God? 275 00:18:55,040 --> 00:18:56,680 Because I've never seen this done before. 276 00:18:56,680 --> 00:18:59,280 You're going to have to tell me some of the logistics of this. 277 00:18:59,280 --> 00:19:02,240 This doesn't make much sense. Listen to what he says. 278 00:19:02,240 --> 00:19:05,200 The Angel answered. The Holy Spirit will come upon 279 00:19:05,200 --> 00:19:09,080 you. That word will is there 11 times 280 00:19:09,080 --> 00:19:10,960 in just this little section of Scripture. 281 00:19:10,960 --> 00:19:13,440 And here's what I want you to see. 282 00:19:14,200 --> 00:19:18,080 When Mary asks how will this be? You need to know something about 283 00:19:18,080 --> 00:19:22,960 God that when God says He will, there is nothing that says He 284 00:19:22,960 --> 00:19:26,760 won't. When God says He will do 285 00:19:26,760 --> 00:19:33,520 something, it's as good as done. When God speaks it's done. 286 00:19:34,280 --> 00:19:37,840 In Genesis 1 he said let there be light, there was light. 287 00:19:38,000 --> 00:19:41,560 When he says here in Luke chapter 1 he will be great, 288 00:19:41,680 --> 00:19:47,640 guess what done? How will this be? 289 00:19:48,080 --> 00:19:51,920 Because God said it will be that simple. 290 00:19:54,840 --> 00:19:56,880 The question is, is what will you do? 291 00:19:57,520 --> 00:20:01,640 What will you do with what God has done? 292 00:20:03,240 --> 00:20:05,040 That's the question of Christmas. 293 00:20:05,840 --> 00:20:09,160 This isn't an argument of whether or not you understand 294 00:20:09,160 --> 00:20:14,360 everything about the Bible. It's will you believe that Jesus 295 00:20:14,360 --> 00:20:17,520 is the Christ, the Son of God, the one that you need? 296 00:20:18,600 --> 00:20:23,080 Will you believe it? Will you take God at his word? 297 00:20:24,080 --> 00:20:26,400 That is the question of Christmas. 298 00:20:26,880 --> 00:20:34,480 Will you believe Mary season verse 37 this, that for nothing 299 00:20:34,640 --> 00:20:39,880 will be impossible with God? Some of you are here today as an 300 00:20:39,880 --> 00:20:43,960 invitation from a friend. You are here and you are hearing 301 00:20:43,960 --> 00:20:46,760 for the first time that there is more depth to this, more 302 00:20:46,760 --> 00:20:49,680 reality, to Jesus Christ. And you could have ever dared 303 00:20:49,680 --> 00:20:53,640 believe never, and never even understood just how grave it is, 304 00:20:53,760 --> 00:20:56,240 how much darkness is in your life, and that there is no 305 00:20:56,240 --> 00:20:58,840 antidote, no solution apart from Christ. 306 00:20:59,360 --> 00:21:02,760 But I have good news for you today, that the love of God, it 307 00:21:02,760 --> 00:21:05,080 was demonstrated for you, and that while you were at your 308 00:21:05,080 --> 00:21:07,920 worst, at your darkest waiting, guess what? 309 00:21:08,120 --> 00:21:11,400 God came for you to die. The death you should have died 310 00:21:11,760 --> 00:21:14,840 paying for, the darkness in your life, the sin you committed. 311 00:21:15,000 --> 00:21:16,600 And he had none of his own to pay for. 312 00:21:16,600 --> 00:21:20,080 He did it so you and him could be in relationship once again 313 00:21:21,520 --> 00:21:27,160 that God in his perfection and holiness, He saw your sin and he 314 00:21:27,160 --> 00:21:29,360 said I will be the substitute for it. 315 00:21:30,600 --> 00:21:33,840 And if you would just believe in me, that you would believe in 316 00:21:33,840 --> 00:21:37,280 why I came at Christmas. It wasn't just for your family. 317 00:21:37,360 --> 00:21:39,200 It wasn't so you would have purpose. 318 00:21:39,320 --> 00:21:42,840 The primary reason Jesus came was that you could be forgiven 319 00:21:42,960 --> 00:21:46,120 of your sins. It was the only hope you had. 320 00:21:47,040 --> 00:21:50,080 And if you would trust in him, if you'd repent of your sins and 321 00:21:50,080 --> 00:21:55,200 believe in Jesus Christ by faith and take God at his word, you 322 00:21:55,200 --> 00:21:59,440 would have life and life eternal starting right now. 323 00:22:01,360 --> 00:22:05,520 That's the hope and the message of Christmas, that God would 324 00:22:05,520 --> 00:22:10,600 call you not to a cradle like His Son, but to an altar. 325 00:22:11,920 --> 00:22:16,200 Mary's very last words were this, Let it be done to me. 326 00:22:17,480 --> 00:22:20,280 As you have said, I am your servant. 327 00:22:22,080 --> 00:22:25,280 I'm your servant. That's what it means to be a 328 00:22:25,280 --> 00:22:28,160 Christian. It's not just going to church on 329 00:22:28,160 --> 00:22:30,480 Christmas and Easter. It's not just having an 330 00:22:30,480 --> 00:22:32,480 understanding that Jesus Christ was a real person. 331 00:22:32,960 --> 00:22:36,440 It's believing and putting your faith in full trust in a 332 00:22:36,440 --> 00:22:39,440 reality, the reality that you are a Sinner in need of his 333 00:22:39,440 --> 00:22:43,800 grace and his power that you, like Mary, this mother of Jesus, 334 00:22:44,240 --> 00:22:49,640 needed God's grace. You needed him to look at you, 335 00:22:50,320 --> 00:22:54,800 to see you for all that you are, see the doubts and the struggles 336 00:22:54,800 --> 00:22:57,640 and the hurt, and say I love you. 337 00:22:58,920 --> 00:23:05,880 I loved you in this way that I gave my only Son, that you would 338 00:23:05,880 --> 00:23:09,080 not perish but have eternal life. 339 00:23:10,080 --> 00:23:16,120 It's good news of great joy. And that is the hope and the 340 00:23:16,120 --> 00:23:19,280 message of Christmas. Now, here's what I want to do. 341 00:23:19,280 --> 00:23:20,800 I'm going to invite the worship team out and we're going to 342 00:23:20,800 --> 00:23:22,720 respond to worship in just a moment before we close our 343 00:23:22,720 --> 00:23:26,640 service. But here's what I want to do. 344 00:23:28,120 --> 00:23:34,920 If you are here today and you are seeing, you are seeing 345 00:23:34,920 --> 00:23:41,120 Christ for all that he is for the first time or for real, I 346 00:23:41,120 --> 00:23:43,440 want to give you the opportunity to respond physically to what's 347 00:23:43,440 --> 00:23:47,640 happening in you, to give you the opportunity to respond 348 00:23:47,640 --> 00:23:49,280 spiritually what's happening to you. 349 00:23:53,920 --> 00:23:59,880 Which means this, the faith in Jesus is what saves, not the 350 00:23:59,880 --> 00:24:02,640 prayer that you're going to pray, but if you would look to 351 00:24:02,640 --> 00:24:07,440 Christ and he would run to him and say, save me from my sin, he 352 00:24:07,440 --> 00:24:10,360 will do it. And so the team is going to sing 353 00:24:10,360 --> 00:24:15,160 a song over you, and I want you to reflect on the words and the 354 00:24:15,160 --> 00:24:17,880 reality of your life with Jesus and your relationship with him. 355 00:24:18,320 --> 00:24:21,680 And if he's somebody you want, if his grace is what you know 356 00:24:21,680 --> 00:24:24,280 that you need, would you cry out to him to save you? 357 00:24:24,280 --> 00:24:27,640 And I'm going to lead you and response to that in just a 358 00:24:27,640 --> 00:24:29,720 moment. So for now, the team will sing, 359 00:24:30,520 --> 00:24:33,080 they will worship, and I'll be back up to respond in just a 360 00:24:33,080 --> 00:24:33,400 moment.