1 00:00:05,120 --> 00:00:08,600 All right. Oh, come, let us adore him. 2 00:00:08,600 --> 00:00:12,960 Man, I love that song. It's a beautiful thing when the 3 00:00:12,960 --> 00:00:16,160 church gathers to sing. So good morning. 4 00:00:16,160 --> 00:00:21,840 My name is Alan. It is always a joy and an honor 5 00:00:22,280 --> 00:00:26,200 each and every week to get to sing with you, to get to hear 6 00:00:26,200 --> 00:00:29,760 you sing. And today it's an honor to get 7 00:00:29,760 --> 00:00:31,480 to bring the word of the Lord to you. 8 00:00:32,159 --> 00:00:37,760 So be encouraged this morning. It's Christmas time and we did a 9 00:00:37,760 --> 00:00:40,360 sermon series. It's been several years ago now 10 00:00:41,800 --> 00:00:43,440 called the loveliest place on earth. 11 00:00:44,280 --> 00:00:47,280 So be encouraged this morning. That's where you're at the House 12 00:00:47,280 --> 00:00:50,280 of the Lord. We are here, the loveliest place 13 00:00:50,280 --> 00:00:54,440 on earth, getting to sing to the king of all kings. 14 00:00:54,440 --> 00:00:57,560 We're going to continue our journey this morning in Matthew. 15 00:00:57,560 --> 00:01:00,840 So if you've got your Bibles, which I hope you do, let's go 16 00:01:00,840 --> 00:01:03,280 ahead and you can turn to Matthew chapter 2. 17 00:01:04,560 --> 00:01:09,960 We're also on the third week of Advent, and so we're going to be 18 00:01:09,960 --> 00:01:12,840 seeing the theme this morning of love. 19 00:01:13,720 --> 00:01:17,200 So we think about Advent or the coming of Christ, you know, the 20 00:01:17,200 --> 00:01:19,920 returning. It can be really easy. 21 00:01:20,520 --> 00:01:22,600 Nick mentioned it earlier with this. 22 00:01:22,600 --> 00:01:26,760 It's such a nice warm experience and we sing these great songs 23 00:01:27,320 --> 00:01:30,720 about the birth of the Lord, which all these things are true. 24 00:01:30,880 --> 00:01:35,440 We get to typically experience this this this nice Christmas 25 00:01:35,440 --> 00:01:37,760 story. Anybody watch that movie like 12 26 00:01:37,760 --> 00:01:41,800 times already yet couple nobody. Well, I haven't either. 27 00:01:41,800 --> 00:01:44,960 Oh, she has. All right, we'd go One of my 28 00:01:44,960 --> 00:01:46,160 favorite movies. I haven't seen it yet. 29 00:01:46,360 --> 00:01:48,480 And all these things are true that they fill us with joy. 30 00:01:48,480 --> 00:01:50,480 They fill us with warmth, they fill us with peace. 31 00:01:51,480 --> 00:01:53,600 And that they're things that we can say to one another. 32 00:01:53,600 --> 00:01:56,400 Hallelujah. If you remember back a year or 33 00:01:56,400 --> 00:01:58,360 so ago, we talked about this word Hallelujah where it's just 34 00:01:58,360 --> 00:02:01,160 like, hey, you join me in praising the Lord together. 35 00:02:01,160 --> 00:02:04,600 Christmas is absolutely a time that we get to do that with one 36 00:02:04,600 --> 00:02:06,040 another. There's no doubt about it. 37 00:02:07,960 --> 00:02:10,720 But it's not just sentimental. And that's not the only thing 38 00:02:10,720 --> 00:02:13,560 about Christmas. And so this morning, as we get 39 00:02:13,560 --> 00:02:17,080 through this story here in Matthew chapter 2, we're going 40 00:02:17,080 --> 00:02:20,400 to see that it's it's not just a story that makes us feel good or 41 00:02:20,400 --> 00:02:23,720 not just a story that makes us have warm and warm in this fuzzy 42 00:02:23,720 --> 00:02:25,920 feeling. This is a story that's really 43 00:02:25,920 --> 00:02:27,560 full of danger from the very beginning. 44 00:02:28,480 --> 00:02:30,280 It's a story that's full of suffering. 45 00:02:30,720 --> 00:02:32,440 It's a story that's full of grief. 46 00:02:32,800 --> 00:02:37,440 And it's a story that at times from our earthly perspective is 47 00:02:38,040 --> 00:02:41,720 has a lot of uncertainty in it, very uncertain story as it 48 00:02:41,720 --> 00:02:44,640 unfolds. And if you've been with us in 49 00:02:44,640 --> 00:02:47,800 Sunday school, we've been talking about the Old Testament 50 00:02:48,280 --> 00:02:54,920 and it shows us this tale, very true tale of how the enemy tries 51 00:02:55,240 --> 00:03:00,520 and has tried and has tried and will keep trying to stop the 52 00:03:00,520 --> 00:03:04,520 lineage of Christ. We see that throughout every 53 00:03:04,520 --> 00:03:10,800 time, but yet over and over and over and over and over again, we 54 00:03:10,800 --> 00:03:14,880 see that Almighty God's plan is not thwarted. 55 00:03:15,600 --> 00:03:17,920 It can't be stopped. It's not going to be trampled 56 00:03:17,920 --> 00:03:20,480 on, and we know that it prevails. 57 00:03:20,960 --> 00:03:25,080 Amen. So Matthew starts what we talked 58 00:03:25,080 --> 00:03:27,280 about a few weeks ago in Matthew chapter 1. 59 00:03:27,560 --> 00:03:32,640 He shows us the he records the genealogy and Kyle expounded 60 00:03:32,640 --> 00:03:35,080 upon it greatly. This is not something that we 61 00:03:35,080 --> 00:03:38,760 just skip over. He read all the names perfectly. 62 00:03:39,120 --> 00:03:42,120 He pronounced them all right. I hope you took notes. 63 00:03:43,000 --> 00:03:45,240 I can't even listen to him say I'm right and repeat them 64 00:03:45,240 --> 00:03:48,640 correctly. But the lineage came to pass for 65 00:03:48,640 --> 00:03:51,160 a very specific reason. Like it's it's in here for a 66 00:03:51,160 --> 00:03:54,920 very specific reason. It's it's got a purpose and it 67 00:03:54,920 --> 00:03:57,320 shows that Christ our Savior was born. 68 00:03:57,320 --> 00:03:59,160 Matthew goes on. So it shows the lineage of how 69 00:03:59,160 --> 00:04:01,160 Christ was coming or who he was coming through. 70 00:04:01,280 --> 00:04:03,560 This is to fulfill what Old Testament has said. 71 00:04:03,800 --> 00:04:09,160 And then in verse 25, we see that Christ is born and we can 72 00:04:09,160 --> 00:04:13,600 say Hallelujah together, but it takes as long as one verse, the 73 00:04:13,600 --> 00:04:17,360 very next verse that we see the next enemy emerge. 74 00:04:17,440 --> 00:04:19,560 This has been happening time and time in the Old Testament. 75 00:04:19,800 --> 00:04:22,640 And now the very next verse after Christ is born, the next 76 00:04:22,640 --> 00:04:24,640 enemy, King Herod, comes on the scene. 77 00:04:25,800 --> 00:04:29,200 And before Christ even speaks a word, the world is already set 78 00:04:29,200 --> 00:04:32,560 to stop him yet again. So today we're going to see that 79 00:04:32,560 --> 00:04:37,000 God and his sovereign love will protect and preserve the 80 00:04:37,000 --> 00:04:39,720 Redeemer Christ, and that nothing's going to stop him from 81 00:04:39,720 --> 00:04:43,120 fulfilling his mission. So if you will please stand with 82 00:04:43,120 --> 00:04:51,640 me, we're going to get into the text We're in Matthew chapter 2 83 00:04:51,640 --> 00:04:58,960 verses 13 through 18 says this. Now when they had departed, 84 00:04:58,960 --> 00:05:02,000 behold, an Angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream 85 00:05:02,000 --> 00:05:05,880 and said, arise, take the child and his mother and flee to Egypt 86 00:05:06,040 --> 00:05:07,840 and remain there until I tell you. 87 00:05:08,080 --> 00:05:11,440 For Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy him. 88 00:05:12,240 --> 00:05:15,120 And he rose and took the child and his mother by night, and 89 00:05:15,120 --> 00:05:18,560 departed to Egypt, and remained there until the death of Herod. 90 00:05:19,200 --> 00:05:22,280 This was to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet 91 00:05:22,600 --> 00:05:24,400 out of Egypt. I called my son. 92 00:05:25,280 --> 00:05:27,880 Then Herod, when he saw that he had been tricked by the wise 93 00:05:27,880 --> 00:05:32,120 men, became furious, and he sent and killed all the male children 94 00:05:32,120 --> 00:05:35,760 in Bethlehem and in all that region who were two years old or 95 00:05:35,760 --> 00:05:38,560 under, according to the time that he had ascertained from the 96 00:05:38,560 --> 00:05:41,560 wise men. Then was fulfilled what was 97 00:05:41,560 --> 00:05:45,600 spoken by the prophet Jeremiah. A voice was heard, and Rama 98 00:05:45,760 --> 00:05:48,200 reaping, weeping and loud lamentation. 99 00:05:48,480 --> 00:05:51,960 Rachel weeping for her children. She refused to be comforted, 100 00:05:52,200 --> 00:05:55,920 because they are no more. This is the word of the Lord, 101 00:05:57,440 --> 00:05:58,120 Amen. Let's pray. 102 00:06:00,640 --> 00:06:04,640 Lord, I ask you this morning to speak through Your word. 103 00:06:05,600 --> 00:06:07,880 Use me to clearly speak Your word. 104 00:06:08,760 --> 00:06:12,600 Allow us to see your love and your never ending mercy towards 105 00:06:12,600 --> 00:06:16,000 us. Help us to trust you in complete 106 00:06:16,000 --> 00:06:20,400 obedience as we see demonstrated here by Joseph and Mary. 107 00:06:21,920 --> 00:06:23,520 God, we submit to your word today. 108 00:06:24,320 --> 00:06:28,800 Again, lead and guide and teach us in the name of Jesus, Amen. 109 00:06:28,800 --> 00:06:30,720 I mean, you may be seated. Thank you. 110 00:06:35,680 --> 00:06:39,600 All right, so again, when we think of Advent, we like to 111 00:06:39,600 --> 00:06:41,080 think of that warm feeling, and that's good. 112 00:06:41,080 --> 00:06:43,920 But today's Scripture is going to remind us that immediately 113 00:06:45,560 --> 00:06:50,760 love comes into a violent world. Jesus doesn't come in to a world 114 00:06:50,760 --> 00:06:54,640 that's simply sitting in a field with this Manger and there's 115 00:06:54,640 --> 00:06:58,520 these nice animals around. It comes into a very dangerous 116 00:06:58,520 --> 00:07:00,600 place that is set to destroy him. 117 00:07:00,600 --> 00:07:05,680 The Scripture says immediately so in an earthly sense this is a 118 00:07:05,680 --> 00:07:08,280 great phrase from Kyle and I stole it. 119 00:07:08,520 --> 00:07:11,960 Thank you and a greatly hit in an earthly sense before Christ 120 00:07:11,960 --> 00:07:13,680 was our Redeemer. He was a refugee. 121 00:07:14,240 --> 00:07:19,400 He's fleeing from his very birth from the first few years of his 122 00:07:19,400 --> 00:07:23,280 birth we see that in the midst of darkness God's light shines 123 00:07:23,280 --> 00:07:26,960 his preserving love and this is the love that's active. 124 00:07:27,280 --> 00:07:29,400 This is a love that's sovereign. This is a love that's 125 00:07:29,400 --> 00:07:33,320 unstoppable and this leads us to the main point of today's 126 00:07:33,320 --> 00:07:34,920 message. So if you've got your little 127 00:07:35,440 --> 00:07:38,680 handouts, bulletins that I just learned about a few months ago, 128 00:07:38,680 --> 00:07:41,480 and I love them, we've been doing them for years and they're 129 00:07:41,480 --> 00:07:43,400 great, Here's the main theme of it. 130 00:07:43,400 --> 00:07:47,160 God's sovereign love preserves the Redeemer through suffering 131 00:07:47,240 --> 00:07:51,120 so that his saving purposes can never be destroyed. 132 00:07:53,040 --> 00:07:56,760 Repeat that God's sovereign love preserves the Redeemer through 133 00:07:56,760 --> 00:08:02,160 suffering so that his saving purposes can never be destroyed. 134 00:08:04,880 --> 00:08:06,840 I got 2 points that we're going to get into. 135 00:08:07,400 --> 00:08:13,440 The first one, God protects his Son in the midst of hostility. 136 00:08:14,280 --> 00:08:17,920 This is verses 13 through 15 that we're going to focus on 137 00:08:17,920 --> 00:08:20,840 that. I'm trying to give some time to 138 00:08:20,840 --> 00:08:22,440 write. I'll, I'll write really slow. 139 00:08:22,440 --> 00:08:26,560 And so I'm like writing it down. All right. 140 00:08:26,560 --> 00:08:29,160 So love is more than just a feeling. 141 00:08:30,080 --> 00:08:31,880 It's more than just a noun. Any kids in here? 142 00:08:31,880 --> 00:08:33,679 Me and my kids were talking about this the other day because 143 00:08:33,679 --> 00:08:35,000 I don't know what a noun and a verb is. 144 00:08:35,000 --> 00:08:36,679 Apparently they're learning it in school. 145 00:08:36,679 --> 00:08:41,200 So kids, what's a noun? Sherry answered. 146 00:08:41,200 --> 00:08:44,680 Thank you, Sherry, person, place or thing. 147 00:08:44,680 --> 00:08:48,360 All right, what's a verb? Ellie goes. 148 00:08:48,360 --> 00:08:50,080 I don't know. That's how I felt when you were 149 00:08:50,080 --> 00:08:51,280 asking me about that the other day. 150 00:08:51,680 --> 00:08:53,680 So verb because have some action, right? 151 00:08:55,560 --> 00:08:59,080 Love is a verb here. So love is not just this thing 152 00:08:59,200 --> 00:09:00,880 that we'd simply just have a feeling. 153 00:09:01,000 --> 00:09:05,840 Love it acts, love protects, love guides. 154 00:09:06,120 --> 00:09:08,600 And we're going to see here that love provides. 155 00:09:09,520 --> 00:09:12,720 So remember last week we saw the wise men and they've traveled a 156 00:09:12,720 --> 00:09:17,000 great distance to see Jesus. And by the time they get there, 157 00:09:17,000 --> 00:09:19,160 I mean, this could have taken them, you know, up to about two 158 00:09:19,160 --> 00:09:21,280 years or so. By the time they get to Jesus, 159 00:09:21,600 --> 00:09:23,320 he's not just in a field anymore. 160 00:09:23,520 --> 00:09:25,680 They're in a house that says that when they enter in the 161 00:09:25,680 --> 00:09:29,000 house, so they enter in a house where Mary, Joseph and Jesus are 162 00:09:29,000 --> 00:09:33,120 staying, they go in and they fall down immediately and they 163 00:09:33,120 --> 00:09:37,760 worship King Jesus. Now, before they leave, there's 164 00:09:37,760 --> 00:09:40,760 kind of a remember context. So Herod had had sent them and 165 00:09:40,760 --> 00:09:43,200 said, go find the child and come back and tell me. 166 00:09:43,560 --> 00:09:46,280 So they find the child, they follow the star. 167 00:09:46,640 --> 00:09:48,960 And when they go into the house, they fall down to worship. 168 00:09:48,960 --> 00:09:52,280 And before they leave in a dream, they're warned about 169 00:09:52,280 --> 00:09:55,960 Herod not to go back. And so they go back to their 170 00:09:55,960 --> 00:09:58,720 country, but they go back a different way, right? 171 00:09:58,720 --> 00:10:04,360 So, so they bypass, they bypass Herod's plot here. 172 00:10:04,360 --> 00:10:06,880 He wanted to find out exactly where, where Jesus is. 173 00:10:07,160 --> 00:10:09,880 So they get back another way. So let's reread verses 13 174 00:10:09,880 --> 00:10:12,560 through 15 together. Says Now when they departed 175 00:10:12,560 --> 00:10:16,960 again, this is the wise men. After the wise men had departed, 176 00:10:17,200 --> 00:10:20,120 behold, an Angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream, 177 00:10:20,120 --> 00:10:23,440 and said, Arise, take the child and his mother, and flee to 178 00:10:23,440 --> 00:10:28,120 Egypt, and there remain until I tell you, for Herod is about to 179 00:10:28,120 --> 00:10:30,320 search for the child to destroy him. 180 00:10:31,440 --> 00:10:34,720 And he rose of Joseph rose, and he took the child and his mother 181 00:10:34,720 --> 00:10:38,040 by night and departed to Egypt and remained there until the 182 00:10:38,040 --> 00:10:40,560 death of Herod. This was to fulfill what the 183 00:10:40,560 --> 00:10:43,600 Lord had spoken by the prophet out of Egypt. 184 00:10:43,640 --> 00:10:48,920 I called my son. So before we get just too far 185 00:10:48,920 --> 00:10:51,240 into this, there's, there's something that I, I, I want to 186 00:10:51,240 --> 00:10:52,960 address because I, I think it's fun. 187 00:10:54,440 --> 00:10:57,080 I've got the ESV here and right above verse 13, it says the 188 00:10:57,080 --> 00:10:59,480 flight to Egypt. So this is often called 189 00:10:59,480 --> 00:11:01,440 something similar. Mary and Joseph when they when 190 00:11:01,440 --> 00:11:02,920 they take Jesus, the flight to Egypt. 191 00:11:03,800 --> 00:11:05,720 So I want to tell you, Matthew's the only place that records 192 00:11:05,720 --> 00:11:07,720 this. Luke doesn't record this. 193 00:11:07,720 --> 00:11:10,960 And if you just get interested in rabbit holes like I do 194 00:11:10,960 --> 00:11:13,920 sometimes and you start searching for it, you might find 195 00:11:13,920 --> 00:11:16,840 all kinds of stories on the flight to Egypt. 196 00:11:16,960 --> 00:11:20,560 There's actually some not really debate, but there's some critics 197 00:11:20,560 --> 00:11:23,000 that would say because Luke doesn't mention this, that that 198 00:11:23,000 --> 00:11:25,680 this didn't even happen. And then you've got the whole 199 00:11:25,680 --> 00:11:29,320 other side of some church tradition that puts so much 200 00:11:29,320 --> 00:11:34,040 weight on this flight to Egypt. There's all kinds of stories out 201 00:11:34,040 --> 00:11:37,000 there. So what we're going to focus on 202 00:11:37,000 --> 00:11:40,080 today is just what the Bible says. 203 00:11:41,360 --> 00:11:42,840 We want to go through what the Bible says. 204 00:11:42,840 --> 00:11:45,800 And, and I mentioned that just because I like to go down some 205 00:11:45,800 --> 00:11:48,840 rabbit holes and I feel like I would be doing an injustice to 206 00:11:48,840 --> 00:11:53,760 not let you be aware of that. There are there. 207 00:11:53,960 --> 00:11:56,320 Well, I want to show a picture, Josh, you have that picture. 208 00:11:56,720 --> 00:11:59,160 So there, there's all kinds of that's kind of dark. 209 00:12:00,200 --> 00:12:03,880 This is from Rembrandt. So in church tradition, the this 210 00:12:03,880 --> 00:12:07,040 this flight to Egypt, What we know about it is really just 211 00:12:07,040 --> 00:12:08,920 from extra biblical books at all. 212 00:12:08,920 --> 00:12:10,520 But I want you to get some emotion of it. 213 00:12:10,520 --> 00:12:17,400 When they flee, Joseph is got a toddler baby and they're told to 214 00:12:17,400 --> 00:12:22,680 leave and travel about 90 miles or so to Egypt and they end up 215 00:12:22,680 --> 00:12:26,000 going even farther than that. And so when you can, I would 216 00:12:26,000 --> 00:12:28,160 pull this picture up just a really pretty it shows kind of 217 00:12:28,160 --> 00:12:30,720 the danger. You can kind of see the very top 218 00:12:30,720 --> 00:12:33,120 of there. It shows a picture of like 219 00:12:33,480 --> 00:12:35,200 Bethlehem with some of the lights on it. 220 00:12:35,360 --> 00:12:37,560 They're down by a river. They've got a fire. 221 00:12:38,560 --> 00:12:41,440 You can see little baby Jesus kind of warming by the fire and, 222 00:12:41,440 --> 00:12:43,560 and Joseph and Mary, you're just sitting there. 223 00:12:44,080 --> 00:12:48,880 But I show that because there's so many renderings of this and I 224 00:12:48,880 --> 00:12:51,040 want you to see kind of the danger that goes in this. 225 00:12:52,200 --> 00:12:58,720 They are fleeing for their lives and the only place that we get 226 00:12:58,720 --> 00:13:01,840 some of these these these traditions, if you will, from a 227 00:13:01,840 --> 00:13:04,000 book called Pseudo Matthew. It's one of the main ones. 228 00:13:04,000 --> 00:13:07,760 Pseudo just means fake or false. It is by no means a biblical 229 00:13:07,760 --> 00:13:10,360 account. We're going to get into a little 230 00:13:10,360 --> 00:13:13,480 bit later with with Herod, how we know some historical things 231 00:13:13,480 --> 00:13:15,400 and some of these historical things are great. 232 00:13:15,680 --> 00:13:18,280 But today we're just going to focus mainly on just what the 233 00:13:18,280 --> 00:13:20,360 Scripture says about it. But I feel like I'll be doing 234 00:13:20,360 --> 00:13:23,360 you injustice not to at least mention that there are lots of 235 00:13:23,360 --> 00:13:27,520 stories out there that are not from our biblical text of what 236 00:13:27,520 --> 00:13:28,600 happened on this flight to Egypt. 237 00:13:28,600 --> 00:13:32,640 We just simply don't know. So I wanted to at least bring 238 00:13:32,640 --> 00:13:35,800 that out. John 2125 says if all of the 239 00:13:35,800 --> 00:13:39,040 things that Jesus done were recorded in detail, I suppose 240 00:13:39,040 --> 00:13:41,600 the world itself could not contain all of the books that 241 00:13:41,600 --> 00:13:44,600 were written. So we don't know all of the 242 00:13:44,600 --> 00:13:49,320 things that Joseph and Mary did when they flee, but we know that 243 00:13:49,320 --> 00:13:52,560 they go at least 90 miles and then they go down into Egypt and 244 00:13:52,560 --> 00:13:55,760 they're there for a few years as refugees. 245 00:13:55,760 --> 00:14:02,480 Essentially, they're fleeing. Joseph is is is waiting on more 246 00:14:02,480 --> 00:14:06,440 instruction from the Lord. That makes sense. 247 00:14:06,480 --> 00:14:08,160 I don't want to confuse everybody with that, but I 248 00:14:08,160 --> 00:14:09,960 wanted to at least bring it up. It's interesting. 249 00:14:10,520 --> 00:14:15,960 It's interesting to me. OK, so again, I say all of that. 250 00:14:15,960 --> 00:14:17,720 We don't believe. We don't believe the Bible 251 00:14:17,720 --> 00:14:19,800 because the world gives us evidence to believe the Bible. 252 00:14:19,800 --> 00:14:21,560 We believe the Bible because it's true. 253 00:14:23,120 --> 00:14:26,240 And so what's cool is that when you look into evidence, so it's 254 00:14:26,240 --> 00:14:29,400 always going to prove that the Bible's true, happens time and 255 00:14:29,400 --> 00:14:32,160 time again. So historical things I just 256 00:14:32,160 --> 00:14:33,960 think are really cool. So we believe the Bible because 257 00:14:33,960 --> 00:14:37,320 it's the Word of God. So what we see in this scripture 258 00:14:38,240 --> 00:14:42,800 is immediate obedience from Joseph after the Lord appears to 259 00:14:42,800 --> 00:14:46,680 him. They just have a really cool 260 00:14:46,680 --> 00:14:51,080 experience with having the birth of Christ, and everything should 261 00:14:51,080 --> 00:14:53,560 be made great. This is the Messiah, and now 262 00:14:53,560 --> 00:14:57,440 they're fleeing for their lives. They've got a toddler, as I 263 00:14:57,440 --> 00:15:00,120 mentioned, they're going about 90 miles, probably much farther. 264 00:15:00,280 --> 00:15:02,920 Joseph's not told how long they'll be there. 265 00:15:03,720 --> 00:15:07,960 Joseph's not told exactly from what we see in Scripture, where 266 00:15:07,960 --> 00:15:11,400 to go, exactly how to get there. He's not told what they're going 267 00:15:11,400 --> 00:15:13,800 to be doing while they're there, but he knows that it's not 268 00:15:13,800 --> 00:15:17,160 permanent and he knows that this is not the end because God has 269 00:15:17,160 --> 00:15:19,600 told him, wait until I tell you to come back. 270 00:15:21,240 --> 00:15:24,840 Joseph's going to have to be on guard knowing that whenever the 271 00:15:24,840 --> 00:15:26,880 signals given, they're going to have to make the journey back. 272 00:15:28,080 --> 00:15:30,960 This is life threatening for me. They're they're not just moving. 273 00:15:30,960 --> 00:15:32,560 They're not just going on a different chapter. 274 00:15:32,680 --> 00:15:35,440 They're fleeing from their lives from a king that wants to 275 00:15:35,440 --> 00:15:44,200 destroy Jesus. So Joseph by faith takes Mary 276 00:15:44,200 --> 00:15:49,240 and Jesus and they depart by night headed to Egypt, just like 277 00:15:49,240 --> 00:15:53,800 we've seen with so many other Old Testament patriarchs, by 278 00:15:53,800 --> 00:15:59,000 faith, Joseph hears from the Lord and acts and praise the 279 00:15:59,000 --> 00:16:02,360 Lord for it. So as Christians, at least for 280 00:16:02,360 --> 00:16:05,800 me, that sentence kind of kicked me right in the teeth. 281 00:16:08,640 --> 00:16:09,800 Yeah, right. Right in the teeth. 282 00:16:10,680 --> 00:16:14,320 A lot of times I like to try to figure things out for myself and 283 00:16:14,320 --> 00:16:17,400 I like to try to be logical with things and make them make sense. 284 00:16:19,840 --> 00:16:23,440 But when God speaks, we're to move and Joseph does that. 285 00:16:25,080 --> 00:16:27,600 Few weeks ago, I had the privilege to to preach on Sunday 286 00:16:27,600 --> 00:16:28,800 night. And one of the things that we 287 00:16:28,800 --> 00:16:32,200 discussed was that this simple trusting in the Lord, that 288 00:16:32,240 --> 00:16:34,680 that's not always that simple, but we talked about trusting in 289 00:16:34,680 --> 00:16:37,360 the Lord. And we, we saw that in Matthew 290 00:16:37,360 --> 00:16:43,680 chapter 6, Jesus addresses this and Christ tells us what to seek 291 00:16:44,280 --> 00:16:46,640 and, and it's the Kingdom of God. 292 00:16:47,080 --> 00:16:50,640 He says seek the Kingdom of God. And he's telling us this in a 293 00:16:50,640 --> 00:16:56,320 response to worry and in a response to anxiety and a 294 00:16:56,320 --> 00:17:00,560 response to fear, in a response with our own controlling. 295 00:17:01,720 --> 00:17:05,400 And he tells us that God will provide for us just like he 296 00:17:05,400 --> 00:17:08,480 provides for the birds. He knows we need these things so 297 00:17:08,480 --> 00:17:12,440 to trust him, to seek Him, and we ought to do the same. 298 00:17:13,599 --> 00:17:15,079 This is something that we just should do. 299 00:17:15,079 --> 00:17:17,960 We're actually commanded to do these things as believers. 300 00:17:17,960 --> 00:17:22,319 We're commanded to seek the Kingdom of God in obedience. 301 00:17:24,440 --> 00:17:27,960 So Jasper mentioned a minute ago, we're a church here that we 302 00:17:27,960 --> 00:17:32,160 focus, we firmly believe on focusing on families and living 303 00:17:32,160 --> 00:17:35,240 as God has made the family to live. 304 00:17:36,640 --> 00:17:40,440 And we see that played out here in verse 14, verse 14, it says, 305 00:17:42,320 --> 00:17:45,240 and he rose again. Joseph rose after being being 306 00:17:45,240 --> 00:17:48,280 told this and he took the child and his mother by night and he 307 00:17:48,280 --> 00:17:51,320 departed. He didn't, he didn't argue with 308 00:17:51,320 --> 00:17:52,920 the Lord. He got up and he did it. 309 00:17:53,560 --> 00:17:56,280 And so Joseph leads his family, though he doesn't have the 310 00:17:56,280 --> 00:17:58,200 answers. He rises and he takes them to 311 00:17:58,200 --> 00:18:03,760 safety again by way of danger. He takes them to safety by way 312 00:18:03,760 --> 00:18:09,200 of danger and they go with them. So, so this kick me in the teeth 313 00:18:09,520 --> 00:18:11,720 and and this kind of specifically for men. 314 00:18:11,720 --> 00:18:18,280 Men, we are to lead our families even in the midst of danger. 315 00:18:19,280 --> 00:18:22,560 We are to love our wives. We are to lead them in a way 316 00:18:22,560 --> 00:18:27,920 that honors Christ. So again, specifically for men 317 00:18:27,920 --> 00:18:32,320 here, our wants and our desires come second to that which help 318 00:18:32,320 --> 00:18:34,840 us love her. That's something that our money 319 00:18:34,840 --> 00:18:36,560 can't do. It's something that your home 320 00:18:36,560 --> 00:18:38,120 can't do. It's something that your job 321 00:18:38,120 --> 00:18:42,520 can't do, your stuff can't do. God has designed marriage this 322 00:18:42,520 --> 00:18:44,440 way. He has designed it that husbands 323 00:18:44,440 --> 00:18:48,640 are to love their wives as Christ loved the church and gave 324 00:18:48,640 --> 00:18:51,840 himself up for her. That's Ephesians 525. 325 00:18:52,560 --> 00:18:55,640 Joseph does this. We see a clear picture of this 326 00:18:55,640 --> 00:18:59,720 here in verse 14. But obedience takes practice. 327 00:19:00,160 --> 00:19:01,640 We also talked about that a few weeks ago. 328 00:19:01,640 --> 00:19:04,000 Even peace takes practice. These are things that we have to 329 00:19:04,000 --> 00:19:07,400 practice. We can begin today by doing our 330 00:19:07,400 --> 00:19:09,160 best to obey the Lord and all things. 331 00:19:09,800 --> 00:19:13,520 Real simple thing that we can start obeying Him is simply by 332 00:19:13,520 --> 00:19:19,080 getting in His Word daily, reading His Word, moving on. 333 00:19:20,000 --> 00:19:23,400 We also see the hostility of the world to Christ played out here 334 00:19:23,400 --> 00:19:25,120 in Herod in these first few verses. 335 00:19:26,120 --> 00:19:28,080 Now here's a really bad guy. We're going to get to a little 336 00:19:28,080 --> 00:19:30,280 bit more of the historical context of Herod in a second. 337 00:19:31,400 --> 00:19:34,320 But when he first hears about Christ, what we saw last week, 338 00:19:35,320 --> 00:19:37,960 once he's born, Herod wants him dead immediately. 339 00:19:39,400 --> 00:19:42,880 Herod is a king, and he's used to getting his way, and he wants 340 00:19:42,880 --> 00:19:45,040 to get his way. And when he thinks there might 341 00:19:45,040 --> 00:19:47,440 be another king that might be greater, that people might like 342 00:19:47,440 --> 00:19:50,200 more, he wants the child destroyed and killed 343 00:19:50,640 --> 00:19:53,800 immediately. So when they don't return, we're 344 00:19:53,800 --> 00:19:56,120 going to see in the next few verses that here it's going to 345 00:19:56,120 --> 00:19:57,720 lose it. He's going to lose it when he 346 00:19:57,720 --> 00:20:00,600 realizes that he's tricked. But verse 15, it kind of jumps 347 00:20:00,600 --> 00:20:03,080 ahead of of the timeline just a little bit. 348 00:20:03,080 --> 00:20:06,600 And it just tells us that that he's dead, that he dies. 349 00:20:07,080 --> 00:20:09,200 And but then the next verse is very important. 350 00:20:09,320 --> 00:20:13,240 We see that as this wickedness unfolds and here it dies, 351 00:20:13,480 --> 00:20:16,640 Matthew continues to show his audience and us the importance 352 00:20:17,120 --> 00:20:18,680 of why these events are happening. 353 00:20:18,760 --> 00:20:20,920 So the events themselves are bad. 354 00:20:21,960 --> 00:20:24,960 But the, the, the behind and the why that they're happening is 355 00:20:24,960 --> 00:20:26,480 what Matthew's really getting to. 356 00:20:26,880 --> 00:20:29,400 So he doesn't record all of the stuff of, of them fleeing to 357 00:20:29,400 --> 00:20:32,960 Egypt and what they're doing. But what he's doing, he tells us 358 00:20:32,960 --> 00:20:35,480 they go and then he tells us why they had to go. 359 00:20:36,320 --> 00:20:39,120 And this is actually to fulfill prophecy. 360 00:20:39,280 --> 00:20:44,240 And he quotes that the last part of Hosea 11 chapter or Hosea 361 00:20:44,240 --> 00:20:48,120 Chapter 11 verse one, the whole verse says when Israel was a 362 00:20:48,120 --> 00:20:51,440 child, I loved him. And then he quotes this part and 363 00:20:51,440 --> 00:20:56,960 out of Egypt I called my son and he had said this was to fulfill 364 00:20:57,040 --> 00:21:00,000 what the Lord has spoken by the prophet. 365 00:21:01,280 --> 00:21:06,520 So Matthew is is he wants you to be persuaded and he wants his 366 00:21:06,520 --> 00:21:10,480 audience to be persuaded that Christ is the one to come. 367 00:21:12,000 --> 00:21:15,040 This baby that was born is the Redeemer. 368 00:21:16,040 --> 00:21:18,800 He is the one that we can rely on. 369 00:21:19,480 --> 00:21:22,320 Amen. Matthew clearly tells us of this 370 00:21:22,320 --> 00:21:24,960 event, fleeing to Egypt and returning home. 371 00:21:25,080 --> 00:21:28,040 It all happens to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the 372 00:21:28,040 --> 00:21:30,040 prophets. So nothing in the Bible is 373 00:21:30,040 --> 00:21:32,880 written in there. Nothing is just kind of written 374 00:21:32,880 --> 00:21:34,960 as filler. There are things that I'll say 375 00:21:34,960 --> 00:21:37,920 that might be filler. There are things that that other 376 00:21:37,920 --> 00:21:40,680 books might have that that the main stories here and then they 377 00:21:40,680 --> 00:21:43,560 just tell you a bunch of fluff so they can get to the the meat 378 00:21:43,560 --> 00:21:45,320 of it. The Bible's not like that. 379 00:21:46,000 --> 00:21:49,080 These are are written so that we may believe. 380 00:21:49,640 --> 00:21:53,440 John tells us that as well. So God's Providence, he keeps 381 00:21:53,440 --> 00:21:57,280 Christ, which is the Redeemer. He keeps him safe even through 382 00:21:57,280 --> 00:21:59,280 these trials. And Matthew's trying to help us 383 00:21:59,280 --> 00:22:02,560 understand that it's not just a little hardship. 384 00:22:02,560 --> 00:22:05,120 This would have been very tough. But I want you to know that 385 00:22:05,120 --> 00:22:08,800 God's Providence will also keep you in Christ. 386 00:22:09,880 --> 00:22:13,080 Maybe through danger, you may not be safe in it, but he will 387 00:22:13,080 --> 00:22:17,080 keep you. He will hold you fast through 388 00:22:17,080 --> 00:22:20,560 these trials of life. There's this idea in some 389 00:22:20,560 --> 00:22:23,680 Christian circles of this prosperity that that we are 390 00:22:23,680 --> 00:22:27,640 called to have health and wealth and favor and all good things 391 00:22:27,960 --> 00:22:30,400 that everything will just work out great for us. 392 00:22:31,760 --> 00:22:34,880 And, and church, I've got to say that's a that's a blatant lie 393 00:22:34,880 --> 00:22:37,520 and an attack on the God of the Bible. 394 00:22:38,400 --> 00:22:42,440 We don't see that. We may want to see that sounds 395 00:22:42,440 --> 00:22:45,040 great, but it's a lie, so don't fall for it. 396 00:22:45,840 --> 00:22:49,480 We see this from Jesus from the very, very moment He is born. 397 00:22:49,880 --> 00:22:55,480 He is in peril. Do not, do not fall for it. 398 00:22:55,480 --> 00:22:56,880 You're not promised those things. 399 00:22:57,080 --> 00:22:59,840 You're promised much greater things than that. 400 00:23:00,480 --> 00:23:02,160 Don't hold of these things that can slip away. 401 00:23:02,920 --> 00:23:05,840 You're not even promised tomorrow, and neither am I. 402 00:23:07,200 --> 00:23:12,040 Again, going back to Matthew chapter 6, Jesus says that we 403 00:23:12,040 --> 00:23:15,840 can't even do the simple task of adding one hour to our lives. 404 00:23:16,640 --> 00:23:19,760 He calls that simple and that is impossible for us. 405 00:23:22,080 --> 00:23:26,360 James chapter 1 tells us to count it all joy when you meet 406 00:23:26,360 --> 00:23:29,320 trials of various kinds. For you know that the testing of 407 00:23:29,320 --> 00:23:31,840 your faith produces steadfastness, and we are to let 408 00:23:31,840 --> 00:23:35,480 steadfastness have its full effect, that we may be perfect 409 00:23:35,480 --> 00:23:37,880 and complete, blacking in nothing. 410 00:23:38,520 --> 00:23:42,080 Trials will come. Christ will hold you fast. 411 00:23:42,880 --> 00:23:46,760 We are to trust the Lord at all times, for we know that he who 412 00:23:46,760 --> 00:23:50,480 began the good work will see it to completion in Christ Jesus. 413 00:23:51,200 --> 00:23:58,080 Blame him .2. God judges his enemies and 414 00:23:58,080 --> 00:24:02,400 comforts his people. This is verses 16 through 18. 415 00:24:03,440 --> 00:24:06,200 Let's read that again together. Then Herod, when he saw that he 416 00:24:06,200 --> 00:24:10,080 had been tricked by the wise men, became furious, and he sent 417 00:24:10,080 --> 00:24:13,320 and killed all the male children in Bethlehem and in all that 418 00:24:13,320 --> 00:24:17,120 region who were two years old or younger or under, according to 419 00:24:17,120 --> 00:24:18,960 the time that he had ascertained from the wise men. 420 00:24:19,520 --> 00:24:22,640 Then was then was fulfilled what was spoken by the prophet 421 00:24:22,640 --> 00:24:26,040 Jeremiah. A voice was heard in Rama, 422 00:24:26,320 --> 00:24:29,960 weeping and loud lamentation. Rachel weeping for her children. 423 00:24:30,160 --> 00:24:33,560 She refused to be comforted because they are no more. 424 00:24:36,280 --> 00:24:38,200 So Herod realizes that he's been tricked. 425 00:24:38,680 --> 00:24:41,440 He's not happy about it. We already know that. 426 00:24:41,720 --> 00:24:46,080 But now we're going to get to see just a horrific evil take 427 00:24:46,080 --> 00:24:49,840 place. Remember I mentioned earlier, 428 00:24:50,600 --> 00:24:52,920 part of the reason I mentioned some of these extra biblical 429 00:24:52,920 --> 00:24:56,760 accounts in these historical accounts is because we know not 430 00:24:56,760 --> 00:25:01,520 just from this, we know from history, Herod was a bad guy. 431 00:25:03,240 --> 00:25:06,320 And that kind of helps us put into place, it helps me. 432 00:25:06,320 --> 00:25:10,280 And so I hope it helps you. If I can visualize and see where 433 00:25:10,280 --> 00:25:12,760 these things are happening at in the Bible so that they, they, 434 00:25:12,800 --> 00:25:16,400 they become real to me. If I can visualize and if I can 435 00:25:16,400 --> 00:25:18,080 see it, it helps me understand it. 436 00:25:19,080 --> 00:25:25,440 So King Herod is a real guy. And he's also known in history 437 00:25:25,440 --> 00:25:28,680 as Herod the Great. He actually done some really 438 00:25:28,680 --> 00:25:31,480 great things. He's a master builder and he 439 00:25:31,480 --> 00:25:35,040 helped start the restoration project on the Temple Mount for 440 00:25:35,040 --> 00:25:36,960 Jerusalem, for the the temple in Jerusalem. 441 00:25:37,280 --> 00:25:40,360 He he's also a stone cold murderer. 442 00:25:41,680 --> 00:25:46,000 So he's helped restore temple things in Jerusalem. 443 00:25:46,000 --> 00:25:48,840 He's rebuilt cities or started to like Jericho. 444 00:25:48,840 --> 00:25:52,000 Remember, Jericho is much different city by this time, but 445 00:25:52,000 --> 00:25:56,080 same place from Old Testament Antiochnicopoulos, Athens. 446 00:25:56,880 --> 00:25:59,640 Think of what you might think of when you hear of old school 447 00:25:59,640 --> 00:26:02,360 Athens. He would have been a part of 448 00:26:02,720 --> 00:26:06,760 helping to build all of that. Caesar and some kids you might 449 00:26:06,760 --> 00:26:09,720 have learned in history, Caesar and the sky, Mark Antony, all 450 00:26:09,720 --> 00:26:13,280 that. So Herod is involved with them 451 00:26:13,320 --> 00:26:15,080 like that. These are all real things that 452 00:26:15,080 --> 00:26:18,160 happen if that helps put a place mark in your brain for it. 453 00:26:19,120 --> 00:26:22,560 He also murdered his wife and several of his children and his 454 00:26:22,560 --> 00:26:25,600 relatives and done this time and time again when he didn't get 455 00:26:25,600 --> 00:26:31,480 his way. He was known for issuing mass 456 00:26:31,480 --> 00:26:36,360 murders when he didn't get his way just to make a point. 457 00:26:37,160 --> 00:26:40,480 This is a bad guy. And so when his rage and 458 00:26:40,480 --> 00:26:46,960 jealousy of there being another king starts taking over, we see 459 00:26:46,960 --> 00:26:50,000 just kind of the unfathomable, the unthinkable. 460 00:26:51,000 --> 00:26:55,760 He knows that based on that, the time frame that the wise men 461 00:26:55,760 --> 00:26:58,160 came around the age that he thinks Jesus is. 462 00:26:58,160 --> 00:27:03,920 So he sends an order to kill all male children under the age of 2 463 00:27:03,920 --> 00:27:06,680 in Bethlehem and in all the surrounding regions. 464 00:27:07,600 --> 00:27:11,480 He figured, you know, not sure exactly where they were. 465 00:27:11,480 --> 00:27:13,640 They tricked me. So I'm just going to do it for 466 00:27:13,640 --> 00:27:17,920 everybody. That'll that'll do it, which is 467 00:27:17,920 --> 00:27:21,200 awful. He does this to ensure his 468 00:27:21,200 --> 00:27:22,400 victory, that that's what he's thinking. 469 00:27:22,400 --> 00:27:25,040 I'm going to ensure. I'm going to make sure that the 470 00:27:25,040 --> 00:27:28,400 king, that the seed, he doesn't know that part, but that the 471 00:27:28,400 --> 00:27:30,760 seed is destroyed. That's what I'm going to do. 472 00:27:31,400 --> 00:27:33,560 God has this plan, but I'm going to take it out. 473 00:27:35,120 --> 00:27:37,480 Doesn't work. Most scholars would agree, 474 00:27:37,480 --> 00:27:40,320 though, that Bethlehem is, it was a pretty small place at that 475 00:27:40,320 --> 00:27:42,160 time. So I don't know how many, what 476 00:27:42,160 --> 00:27:44,640 number of kids you've got in your brain, but it was probably 477 00:27:44,640 --> 00:27:47,880 not in the thousands. Probably more like 30. 478 00:27:47,880 --> 00:27:50,600 Could be more. As a small village. 479 00:27:50,600 --> 00:27:53,080 Oh, little town of Bethlehem, you know, we sing that song. 480 00:27:53,280 --> 00:27:57,080 This is a small town. But nonetheless, one death is 481 00:27:57,080 --> 00:27:59,960 too many, right? This is an evil. 482 00:28:00,160 --> 00:28:04,760 This is an evil, evil man. He planned on stopping nothing, 483 00:28:04,760 --> 00:28:09,520 nothing until Jesus was dead. But even evil, even the worst of 484 00:28:09,520 --> 00:28:12,480 all evil, cannot derail God's plan of redemption. 485 00:28:13,800 --> 00:28:17,640 Can't do it and it won't do it. In this tragedy, we see God's 486 00:28:17,920 --> 00:28:20,200 hand at work. Verse 17 reads. 487 00:28:20,360 --> 00:28:24,320 This was fulfilled what was spoken by the prophet Jeremiah. 488 00:28:25,080 --> 00:28:27,800 So it's important to know as we read things like this, God is 489 00:28:27,800 --> 00:28:32,400 not just reacting to King Herod. God's not sitting there going, 490 00:28:32,400 --> 00:28:34,520 Oh no, what are we going to do now? 491 00:28:35,080 --> 00:28:36,840 King Herod's trying to take him out. 492 00:28:37,280 --> 00:28:41,640 What's an escape plan? God has known this. 493 00:28:42,680 --> 00:28:45,120 God knows this full well. What's happening? 494 00:28:45,440 --> 00:28:49,520 Again, his plan will not be changed. 495 00:28:50,760 --> 00:28:53,120 This is actually being done for a purpose. 496 00:28:53,120 --> 00:28:57,200 It was actually foretold about 600 years prior to that. 497 00:28:57,840 --> 00:29:01,200 And so Matthew, again, he wants you to believe these things. 498 00:29:01,640 --> 00:29:04,920 He's saying that this happened so that the Scripture could be 499 00:29:04,920 --> 00:29:08,840 fulfilled, so that what Jeremiah prophesied is actually coming 500 00:29:08,840 --> 00:29:13,840 true. Jeremiah 3115 is almost word for 501 00:29:13,840 --> 00:29:17,480 word what we see there in Matthew chapter 218. 502 00:29:18,240 --> 00:29:22,720 Jeremiah, this is being used as a way to show great grief from 503 00:29:22,720 --> 00:29:23,800 the exile. Yes. 504 00:29:24,640 --> 00:29:26,680 And if you've been in Sunday school, remember the exile. 505 00:29:26,680 --> 00:29:30,640 So Israel, the Israelites are God's chosen people. 506 00:29:31,760 --> 00:29:36,120 God has brought them up and he has called them a holy people, a 507 00:29:36,120 --> 00:29:39,440 set apart people, people that are to live differently. 508 00:29:40,400 --> 00:29:44,840 And then when the exile happens, essentially the nation of 509 00:29:44,840 --> 00:29:47,080 Israel, the northern and southern kingdoms are now 510 00:29:47,080 --> 00:29:48,840 disbanded. They've been taken over. 511 00:29:49,000 --> 00:29:53,840 And it looks like all is lost, like it looks, it looks hopeless 512 00:29:53,880 --> 00:29:56,920 from just an earthly standpoint, right? 513 00:29:56,920 --> 00:30:00,840 We're kind of tracking. So with Jesus being born too, 514 00:30:00,840 --> 00:30:03,560 and now he's immediately having to be exiled, He's having to 515 00:30:03,560 --> 00:30:05,200 leave, He's fleeing for their life. 516 00:30:05,360 --> 00:30:08,640 It can be easy for us to see that it is hopeless, but this is 517 00:30:08,640 --> 00:30:10,400 not hopeless. There's good news. 518 00:30:10,400 --> 00:30:14,440 And Matthew is, is, is showing us this fulfills Scripture and 519 00:30:14,440 --> 00:30:16,080 he's showing us how these things relate. 520 00:30:17,360 --> 00:30:19,920 And Rachel, he mentions Rachel here, Rachel weeping for her 521 00:30:19,920 --> 00:30:21,400 children. If you remember, she was the 522 00:30:21,400 --> 00:30:23,560 mother of Joseph. So we're going way back in the 523 00:30:23,560 --> 00:30:26,800 Old Testament here that Joseph played a huge role in leading 524 00:30:26,800 --> 00:30:31,480 the people out of Egypt. Her weeping is is a picture 525 00:30:31,760 --> 00:30:34,360 again that that looks like all hope is lost. 526 00:30:35,280 --> 00:30:38,000 God's chosen people, the ones that were called to be to be 527 00:30:38,000 --> 00:30:41,600 different. It seems as if God's promise has 528 00:30:41,600 --> 00:30:43,640 failed if you take it just there. 529 00:30:45,000 --> 00:30:47,280 But praise the Lord, the Scripture doesn't stop in those 530 00:30:47,280 --> 00:30:49,800 things. They show us how God's plan 531 00:30:49,800 --> 00:30:53,400 continues to move. Matthew helps us see that this 532 00:30:53,400 --> 00:30:56,560 is fulfilled in Christ. Even though there is deep grief, 533 00:30:58,120 --> 00:31:02,000 there is hope. Jeremiah 3117, just a few verses 534 00:31:02,000 --> 00:31:04,880 after that actually state this. It says there is hope for your 535 00:31:04,880 --> 00:31:09,320 future, declares the Lord, and your children shall come back to 536 00:31:09,320 --> 00:31:14,480 their own country. This is all fulfilled in Christ. 537 00:31:15,160 --> 00:31:17,800 God's word and promises have not failed. 538 00:31:19,680 --> 00:31:22,200 Paul addresses this in Romans. He's like, does this mean that 539 00:31:22,200 --> 00:31:24,920 that the the word of God has failed because these things 540 00:31:24,920 --> 00:31:28,000 happen to the Israelites? He says by no means, by no 541 00:31:28,000 --> 00:31:31,320 means. Matthew goes to great lengths 542 00:31:32,080 --> 00:31:35,640 and I, and I hope I'm trying to do that as well to show you that 543 00:31:35,640 --> 00:31:38,280 these things are true and that you can believe and trust in 544 00:31:38,280 --> 00:31:40,920 them. Prophecies fulfilled. 545 00:31:42,200 --> 00:31:45,520 The scriptures are being fulfilled in Christ Jesus. 546 00:31:45,680 --> 00:31:49,360 Not only do they not fail, but they prevail every single time. 547 00:31:50,840 --> 00:31:54,920 God is active and his people, us can rest assured and be 548 00:31:54,920 --> 00:31:59,080 comforted in them. His enemies can rest assured 549 00:31:59,080 --> 00:32:00,960 that they will experience His wrath. 550 00:32:02,160 --> 00:32:08,600 These are two truths. So I've got some things maybe to 551 00:32:08,600 --> 00:32:16,600 ask yourself. Ask yourself, do I trust God? 552 00:32:19,920 --> 00:32:22,400 As I read through these things like like Joseph just getting up 553 00:32:22,400 --> 00:32:24,680 and fling again, it kind of kicks me in the teeth. 554 00:32:28,440 --> 00:32:33,280 So I pray that you believe these things, but also pray that you 555 00:32:33,280 --> 00:32:38,560 trust in the Lord in these things, that they're true and 556 00:32:38,560 --> 00:32:40,960 that you can trust and obey them. 557 00:32:41,640 --> 00:32:45,280 Obey the things that God has spoken to us to do as 558 00:32:45,280 --> 00:32:46,880 Christians. We're not just to simply read 559 00:32:46,880 --> 00:32:48,280 this and go. I think that's true. 560 00:32:48,520 --> 00:32:53,440 We're to live it out as the church. 561 00:32:53,440 --> 00:32:57,280 We are to look different and be set apart from the world. 562 00:32:58,560 --> 00:33:03,960 We are to be different. Read a book with Colin Jasper 563 00:33:03,960 --> 00:33:06,840 and Steven James I think years ago and it just talked about 564 00:33:06,840 --> 00:33:10,400 moving to the right, which is weird because I'm going to the 565 00:33:10,400 --> 00:33:12,200 left for me, but I think this is to the right for y'all. 566 00:33:12,720 --> 00:33:16,520 Moving to the right, it really just meaning as as believers, 567 00:33:16,760 --> 00:33:22,120 our lives should look different and and the world should see us 568 00:33:22,120 --> 00:33:24,080 growing closer to Christ as we move along. 569 00:33:24,080 --> 00:33:27,720 There may be valleys, but we are to seek him. 570 00:33:27,720 --> 00:33:29,840 We are to seek his Kingdom above all things. 571 00:33:30,160 --> 00:33:33,800 Our lives should look like this. If they don't, that's the 572 00:33:33,800 --> 00:33:38,440 question, do I trust God? Do you obey God? 573 00:33:41,240 --> 00:33:44,880 We're in the Christmas season. There's a lot of naughty or 574 00:33:44,880 --> 00:33:48,480 nice, right? We hear these things obeying God 575 00:33:48,480 --> 00:33:51,400 is not just about being good. That's that's the wrong that's 576 00:33:51,400 --> 00:33:54,160 the wrong part of the question. It's not about going well and 577 00:33:54,160 --> 00:33:57,160 have I been have I been good enough this year? 578 00:33:57,160 --> 00:33:58,960 Have I have I not been good enough this year? 579 00:33:58,960 --> 00:34:01,480 Maybe I just need to do better next year. 580 00:34:03,360 --> 00:34:05,800 Obedience is seeking his Kingdom first. 581 00:34:06,840 --> 00:34:11,120 So we're to seek the Kingdom of God practical ways for that. 582 00:34:11,560 --> 00:34:16,679 Our prayer every day, pray to the Lord to ask for help. 583 00:34:17,520 --> 00:34:21,679 Ask him to help your unbelief. The scriptures say that getting 584 00:34:21,679 --> 00:34:25,960 in your word daily, reading his word, remembering him. 585 00:34:25,960 --> 00:34:31,159 We, we, we, we take the Lord's Supper each and every week and 586 00:34:31,159 --> 00:34:32,920 we remember what the Lord has done. 587 00:34:32,920 --> 00:34:38,199 We remember who he says he is. We do that with the Saints, with 588 00:34:38,199 --> 00:34:40,719 you all consistently. These are these are practical 589 00:34:40,719 --> 00:34:44,199 ways for you to seek the Kingdom of God in your life. 590 00:34:47,080 --> 00:34:50,560 We can believe that only he will keep and preserve you. 591 00:34:50,840 --> 00:34:56,800 There is none else. So believers, I ask you to take 592 00:34:56,800 --> 00:35:01,280 hold of that truth. If you've been expecting things 593 00:35:01,280 --> 00:35:03,520 maybe to turn around, maybe it's been a tough time in your life. 594 00:35:03,520 --> 00:35:05,800 We all go through things. Things are tough. 595 00:35:05,800 --> 00:35:08,640 If you've been expecting things to turn around just so life can 596 00:35:08,640 --> 00:35:12,840 get better, a challenge that you're missing the point of it. 597 00:35:15,160 --> 00:35:19,080 Your life is not your own, and if you're a believer, we are to 598 00:35:19,080 --> 00:35:21,040 recognize that there is no better. 599 00:35:21,120 --> 00:35:23,040 There's no better life apart from Christ. 600 00:35:23,360 --> 00:35:25,600 Doesn't matter if things started to turn around or not. 601 00:35:27,640 --> 00:35:32,880 We serve Christ. So all of us are to lead in the 602 00:35:32,880 --> 00:35:34,800 ways of Christ. We're to stand firm on His 603 00:35:34,800 --> 00:35:36,880 promises that He will see us through. 604 00:35:37,040 --> 00:35:41,440 We're also to stand firm on His promises that what He sees you 605 00:35:41,440 --> 00:35:46,040 through will probably not. Be easy ground, most likely, but 606 00:35:46,040 --> 00:35:50,080 he will see you through that there's an enemy waiting to 607 00:35:50,080 --> 00:35:53,360 attack. But we serve the God of Angel 608 00:35:53,360 --> 00:35:56,240 armies in whom there is no injustice to be found. 609 00:35:57,160 --> 00:36:00,240 And so rest assured in that this morning, take hold of it. 610 00:36:00,840 --> 00:36:03,520 Take it to your workplace. Take it to your family 611 00:36:03,520 --> 00:36:06,280 gatherings, take it to your neighbors. 612 00:36:06,400 --> 00:36:09,440 Remember that this is an action verb, this love. 613 00:36:09,440 --> 00:36:14,600 This is something that that we can see if no one knows who you 614 00:36:14,600 --> 00:36:18,400 serve, it begs you to ask the question to yourself, who do I 615 00:36:18,400 --> 00:36:21,840 serve? Because it's it should be 616 00:36:21,840 --> 00:36:26,920 obvious when it's Christ to serve Christ, he's trustworthy. 617 00:36:28,560 --> 00:36:30,880 Although sorrow is real, it's not final. 618 00:36:30,880 --> 00:36:35,160 And we can stand firm on that. And then finally this morning, 619 00:36:35,160 --> 00:36:37,960 if you're an unbeliever here, or maybe, maybe maybe you're 620 00:36:37,960 --> 00:36:40,040 someone that does believe these things and you say, you know 621 00:36:40,040 --> 00:36:43,080 what? I believe this is real, but 622 00:36:43,080 --> 00:36:45,200 you've yet to put your complete faith in it. 623 00:36:45,720 --> 00:36:47,680 Maybe you're pondering, maybe you've got questions. 624 00:36:47,680 --> 00:36:50,960 That's that's OK. We want to help you through 625 00:36:50,960 --> 00:36:54,360 these questions. So I implore you to trust and 626 00:36:54,360 --> 00:36:58,520 follow Jesus. I implore you to ask some of 627 00:36:58,520 --> 00:36:59,840 these questions. Continue to read. 628 00:36:59,840 --> 00:37:04,600 Matthew is a great book that shows us how the Lord fulfills 629 00:37:04,600 --> 00:37:07,920 his word. He shows us this is what the Old 630 00:37:07,920 --> 00:37:10,400 Testament said. Here is what Christ does. 631 00:37:10,520 --> 00:37:12,840 This fulfills that. Therefore, trust Christ. 632 00:37:14,360 --> 00:37:18,440 So read it and be persuaded, be persuaded that Jesus is the 633 00:37:18,440 --> 00:37:20,280 Messiah. He is who he said he is. 634 00:37:20,400 --> 00:37:23,080 He is the Redeemer. He's the one that we celebrate 635 00:37:23,080 --> 00:37:26,880 the birth of this time of year because we believe these things 636 00:37:26,880 --> 00:37:30,440 wholeheartedly. He is the Holy One of God, and 637 00:37:30,440 --> 00:37:32,720 through Him and Him alone can your sins be forgiven. 638 00:37:32,840 --> 00:37:35,400 We'll later see in the book of His death, burial, and 639 00:37:35,400 --> 00:37:39,000 resurrection, and that only through Him can we have eternal 640 00:37:39,000 --> 00:37:42,440 life to spend with God. So Christmas time isn't just 641 00:37:42,440 --> 00:37:44,080 about spending time with our loved ones. 642 00:37:44,280 --> 00:37:48,000 It's about the story of the preserved Redeemer guarded by 643 00:37:48,000 --> 00:37:52,240 God's sovereign love so that He would one day give His life for 644 00:37:52,240 --> 00:37:54,600 you. So if you're pondering on those 645 00:37:54,600 --> 00:37:59,120 things, know that you're even worse than you think you are and 646 00:37:59,120 --> 00:38:03,240 you need a Savior. You don't need to do better. 647 00:38:03,240 --> 00:38:05,160 You don't need to make the nice list. 648 00:38:05,760 --> 00:38:10,560 You need to be made new. Your heart is stone and you need 649 00:38:10,560 --> 00:38:13,240 a new heart. And that is only offered in 650 00:38:13,240 --> 00:38:15,960 Christ. Nothing stops him in the Old 651 00:38:15,960 --> 00:38:17,960 Testament. Nothing thwart Scott's plan. 652 00:38:18,000 --> 00:38:21,320 Herod doesn't do it here. It won't happen in the future. 653 00:38:21,440 --> 00:38:26,960 Christ will prevail, so rest in his care that God's sovereign 654 00:38:26,960 --> 00:38:29,640 love preserves the Redeemer through suffering so that his 655 00:38:29,640 --> 00:38:32,200 saving purposes can never be destroyed. 656 00:38:32,880 --> 00:38:36,760 It will preserve you. If you've got questions, I ask 657 00:38:36,760 --> 00:38:40,880 that you ask me, you can ask Kyle, James, Steve, Jasper, turn 658 00:38:40,880 --> 00:38:46,120 to anybody that's a member here. We want you to believe these 659 00:38:46,120 --> 00:38:49,680 things because we think they matter greatly. 660 00:38:50,160 --> 00:38:56,080 Most important thing, let's pray and then we'll take a moment to 661 00:38:56,080 --> 00:39:06,460 reflect. God, I pray for your love to 662 00:39:06,460 --> 00:39:12,580 abound. I thank you for your word. 663 00:39:16,540 --> 00:39:20,180 And I pray that you help us see all of your promises that have 664 00:39:20,180 --> 00:39:26,180 been fulfilled, that help us see hold your, your truth and your 665 00:39:26,180 --> 00:39:31,560 mercy. We need you, Lord, we need a 666 00:39:31,560 --> 00:39:37,080 Redeemer, and I'm grateful that you have given us your word to 667 00:39:37,080 --> 00:39:40,720 show us that. Help us to stand firm and 668 00:39:40,720 --> 00:39:45,640 believe that you will preserve us in your love until the end. 669 00:39:46,000 --> 00:39:51,880 I continue to remind us in daily of your goodness. 670 00:39:51,880 --> 00:39:59,800 So we're going to take just a moment and just reflect. 671 00:40:00,720 --> 00:40:41,890 To the Lord. Father, we are grateful this 672 00:40:41,890 --> 00:40:47,850 morning, grateful for your word. I'm grateful, as Alan has shown 673 00:40:47,850 --> 00:40:52,810 us, that you provide and your provision and you preserve us. 674 00:40:53,370 --> 00:40:56,570 You lead us. And God, we're so grateful for 675 00:40:57,210 --> 00:41:01,410 again, this the story of Jesus, his birth and his life. 676 00:41:01,410 --> 00:41:03,370 And we see you at work through it all. 677 00:41:04,600 --> 00:41:07,480 We got to pray that you help us to take what we've heard this 678 00:41:07,480 --> 00:41:10,800 morning and to meditate on it and apply it to our lives. 679 00:41:11,600 --> 00:41:17,040 To be obedient as Joseph was, to trust in you and have faith in 680 00:41:17,040 --> 00:41:20,520 the midst of trials, in the midst of dangers, that we put 681 00:41:20,520 --> 00:41:26,360 our trust and hope in you alone. When we celebrate the life of 682 00:41:26,440 --> 00:41:30,040 Jesus, the birth, and of course, the mission that he came to 683 00:41:30,040 --> 00:41:33,840 accomplish, we're so thankful. Or that you saw fit to send him 684 00:41:34,480 --> 00:41:38,320 to say this. And so it's with full faith and 685 00:41:38,320 --> 00:41:41,240 trust in Christ alone we worship you today. 686 00:41:42,920 --> 00:41:45,520 We ask all this in Jesus name, Amen.