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Good morning. 
It is great to be able to 

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worship with you this morning. 
There are I look and I I see 

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faces that I have not met. 
And I'm glad that you're here. 

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I don't know if you come here 
regularly, if you're visiting. 

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Whatever it is. 
We are so glad to be able to be 

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together for worship. 
We sung a song just now of going

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to heaven, and that's 
encouraging. 

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That's. 
And it's because of the promise 

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that has been given us by God 
and also the sacrifice that 

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Jesus made for all of us, that 
we're even. 

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We even have that kind of hope. 
And we're going to talk about 

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Jesus this morning, specifically
about his birth, as we dive into

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Luke Chapter 2 around this time.
But there are many who reflect 

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upon the birth of Jesus. 
And for those who believed Jesus

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was real but really don't 
believe in him being the Son of 

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God or him being the Messiah, 
well, it gives us an opportunity

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to share the good news about 
Jesus and try to enlighten 

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others about who he, who he was 
and who he still is. 

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And when we look back to what 
the scriptures say about the 

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birth of Jesus, we're reminded 
of the humble beginnings of the 

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King of Kings and the Lord of 
Lords on this earth. 

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We see the Son of God become 
flesh, and we also see 

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prophecies fulfilled that are 
surrounding his birth. 

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I am not here this morning to 
dispute when Jesus was born. 

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In fact, I don't believe the 
Bible doesn't tell us what day 

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He was born. 
I do not believe he was born on 

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December 25th, and there are 
various reasons for that. 

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But we're not going to get into 
that. 

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We're just going to talk about 
when he was born. 

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According to Luke's account in 
Luke chapter 2 this morning, his

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birth, though, it's important 
enough for us to talk about 

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because it is extremely 
significant and it has an impact

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upon you and it has an impact 
upon me, it has an impact upon 

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the entire world. 
And I want to focus on what Luke

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portrays in chapter two of his 
gospel of the birth of Jesus and

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look at a couple of events that 
surround it. 

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And so basically this is going 
to be an expository study of the

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1st 21 verses of Luke chapter 2.
That's going to be our direction

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this morning and kind of divide 
into two different sections this

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morning. 
So let's begin with the 

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narrative of this as Luke 
portrays this beginning in verse

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#1. 
And it came to pass in those 

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days that a decree went out from
Caesar Augustus that all the 

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world should be registered. 
This census first took place 

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while Kuradius was governing 
Syria, so all went to be 

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registered everyone to his own 
city. 

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Joseph also went up from Galilee
out of the city of Nazareth into

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Judea to the city of David which
is called Bethlehem because he 

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was of the house and lineage of 
David to be registered with 

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Mary, his betrothed wife who was
with child. 

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This is a it's this is quite an 
interesting scenario and an 

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occurrence surrounding the birth
of Jesus and where he would be 

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born. 
And so Luke says that it was 

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during Mary's pregnancy that 
there was a decree about paying 

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taxes. 
And part of that criteria is 

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that you had to go back to the 
place of your family in order to

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register with the census that 
was ordered. 

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Well, specifically we're looking
at Joseph right here because 

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Joseph was from the lineage of 
David. 

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So because of that, he had to go
back to Bethlehem during the 

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census because that's where 
David was from. 

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And so they make this journey 
from their home in Nazareth all 

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the way down there to Bethlehem.
And this journey was about 70 

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miles. 
It was about a three day 

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journey. 
And now, Mary, if you ask me, I 

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don't think Mary had to go, and 
that's my humble opinion. 

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Remember, she was pregnant. 
I don't think she was too close 

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to a full term because of the 
wording from Luke several verses

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down within the context here. 
But I'm sure she felt the 

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effects of her pregnancy, such 
as maybe sickness or maybe 

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fatigue. 
And honestly, I'll be. 

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I mean, I'm at a disadvantage to
understand all the difficulties 

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of some of the inconveniences of
what you mothers have gone 

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through while being pregnant. 
But I think that's a factor 

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about Mary making this journey 
with Joseph all the way down 

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there to Bethlehem while she was
pregnant. 

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So why do you think she made the
trip? 

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Why did she go with Joseph? 
I could kind of brainstorm some 

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ideas of why she went. 
One thing is that maybe she 

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didn't want to be away from 
Joseph during the pregnancy. 

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Maybe she wanted her. 
Maybe Joseph wanted her to come 

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along just to be with her with 
that kind of companionship. 

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I think there's another 
plausible reason why Mary made 

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the trip knowing she was bearing
God's son. 

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Perhaps she knew of the 
importance of one of the 

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prophecies about the Messiah and
that was written back in Micah. 

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In fact Micah chapter 5 and 
verse two says this about this 

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prophecy of Jesus. 
But you, Bethlehem, Ephrathah, 

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though you are little among the 
thousands of Judah, yet out of 

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you shall come forth to me, the 
one to be ruler in Israel. 

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Who's goings forth are from old,
from everlasting. 

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This prophecy about how the 
Messiah will come, he says it's 

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going to keep the Messiah is 
going to come from Bethlehem. 

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And if Mary knew this, she would
know that she needed to be in 

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Bethlehem for this to happen. 
And so they make their way down 

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to Bethlehem because of the 
census. 

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Now this census, it affected 
many people at that particular 

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time. 
It meant that there was a lot of

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people who had to travel to the 
city of their family during this

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time. 
And that meant that Bethlehem 

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was being filled with visitors 
from all over. 

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And that would have posed a 
challenge to try to find a place

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to stay for some of those people
who were traveling. 

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And perhaps most of the 
visitors, maybe they stayed with

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their relatives who were still 
living there. 

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And so that and so Mary and 
Joseph, what are they to do? 

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Where are they going to stay? 
Well, this brings us to the next

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part here in Luke chapter 2 in 
verses 6 and seven, where it 

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says so. 
It was that while they were 

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there, the days were completed 
for her to be delivered and so 

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and she brought forth her first 
born son and wrapped him in 

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swaddling clothes and laid him 
in a Manger because there was no

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room for them in the end. 
I do want to say something here 

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about what we generally see 
around this time of year and the

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scenes that we that we see about
where Jesus was born. 

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That's not quite what I see from
what Luke shows here in our 

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narrative. 
And let me break it down this 

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way. 
I don't think Jesus was born off

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somewhere in a barn because of 
what Luke says. 

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The word here for in is it's the
Greek word cataluma. 

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And Luke uses this word the same
word later on in the Gospel when

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Jesus referred to a guest room 
and the context of that passage 

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there in Luke 22 and verse 11. 
When Luke uses it there, the 

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context is when Jesus and the 
disciples, they're trying to 

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find a room in order to observe 
the Passover, and so this was 

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the upper room. 
Consider this too though. 

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The Greek word for like a motel 
or hotel or in can be seen again

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in Luke's Gospel, and 
specifically Luke chapter 10, 

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verse #34. 
In that particular context, you 

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have Jesus giving the parable of
the Good Samaritan. 

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And what did the Good Samaritan 
do to that man who needed help 

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who had been beaten on the 
roadside? 

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Well, he took him to an inn, and
the inn is a different Greek 

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word. 
I'm not going to pando Chian. 

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That's my best guess of how to 
pronounce that Greek word. 

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And then he paid the innkeeper 
Pando Chiai to care for that 

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man. 
And since Luke was familiar with

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the proper term for inn, why 
didn't he use it in the account 

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of the birth of Jesus here in 
Luke chapter 2 then? 

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Well, the probable answer is 
that Joseph and Mary did not 

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attempt to stay at an inn or a 
hotel, but the Bible states that

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there was no room for them in 
the cataluma, which would have 

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been better translated as a 
guest room. 

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And so Joseph and Mary probably 
stayed with Joseph's relatives 

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in Bethlehem. 
But because of the large amount 

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of people coming into town, the 
house would have been crowded 

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and the cataluma or the guest 
room was full. 

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And so Joseph and Mary would 
have had to stay in the lower 

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part of the house. 
And historically, the upper 

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level served as a guest chamber,
while the lower level served 

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kind of like the living quarters
or or the dining area as well. 

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It kind of had multiple purposes
there on that lower, lower 

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level. 
In fact, there are often times 

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that the more vulnerable 
animals, they would be brought 

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in at night and placed in that 
room in order to do 2 things. 

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Number one, protect them from 
the cold and #2 protect them 

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from theft as well. 
And so when morning came, the 

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animals would be let out and 
then the lower level would be 

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cleaned. 
And this is where the major 

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comes into play. 
Mary likely gave birth to Jesus 

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in the lower level of a crowded 
house in which some of the 

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animals had been brought in for 
the night, and she then wrapped 

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Jesus in swaddling clothes and 
laid him in a major or feeding 

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through at that time in that 
place. 

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So Luke says Jesus was born the 
Son of God has come from heaven 

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and is now on earth in the form 
of flesh. 

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And Joseph and Mary both knew of
his importance and how happy 

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they must have been seeing that 
newborn baby and seeing the 

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promise being fulfilled in this 
very important child. 

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Perhaps relatives from upstairs 
came down to share the wonderful

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and precious moment of the 
newborn king. 

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But there was gladness. 
There was a joy going on with 

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this family. 
But that's not the only joy that

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was happening during this time. 
Not only were they the family 

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rejoicing, Heaven was well aware
of the birth of Jesus, of the 

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birth of the Son of God. 
In fact, you continue on in 

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Luke's narrative. 
We come to now the second kind 

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of scene within our study, and 
it says here, beginning of verse

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#8. 
Now there were in the same 

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country shepherds living out in 
the fields, keeping watch over 

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their flock by night. 
And behold, an Angel the Lord 

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stood before them, and the glory
of the Lord, and shone around 

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them, and they were greatly 
afraid. 

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Then the Angel said to them, Do 
not be afraid. 

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For behold, I bring you good 
tidings of great joy, which will

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be to all people. 
For there is born to you this 

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day in the city of David, a 
savior who is Christ the Lord, 

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and this would be the sign to 
you. 

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You'll find a babe wrapped in 
swaddling clothes, lying in a 

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Manger. 
Honestly, this is one of my 

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favorite scenes surrounding the 
birth of Jesus. 

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It really is because you've got 
Luke takes us just outside of 

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Bethlehem. 
He takes us to a field, and when

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there and as we see the scene of
this field, we see the sheep. 

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The sheep had laid down to rest 
for the night. 

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We see the shepherds. 
They're there resting, keeping 

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watch over the flock. 
And what was a peaceful night 

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suddenly turned into something 
that absolutely frightened these

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shepherds. 
An Angel appeared and there was 

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a light shining around them. 
And this light was no ordinary 

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light. 
It was the glory of the Lord. 

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And I think if you or I were 
there, I I think we would have 

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been maybe as as afraid as these
shepherds were thinking. 

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What is going on? 
We've never seen anything like 

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this before. 
Notice the Angel told them right

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away. 
Don't be afraid. 

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In fact, I've got some news for 
you. 

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And not just news. 
I've got some great news for 

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you, but not only for you. 
This is good news for everybody.

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In fact, it's good news to you, 
and it's good news to me as 

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well. 
What these angels were about to 

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tell these shepherds out there 
in that field. 

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So you see the significance of 
the birth of Jesus because he 

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was born. 
It's wonderful news to us just 

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as the angels proclaim, because 
the angels declared 3 things 

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about Jesus, the one who was 
just born. 

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They proclaimed 3 things about 
Jesus being Savior, Christ and 

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Lord, and that holds huge 
significance. 

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And I want to break that down 
for just a moment about those 

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three different characteristics 
surrounding Jesus. 

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When we speak of Jesus being our
Savior, it is relating to Jesus 

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being our deliverer or our 
protector. 

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And so the Angel who spoke to 
Joseph said this about Jesus as 

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we rewind the clock a little bit
here in Matthew chapter one. 

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The Angel said here in verse #21
and she will bring forth the Son

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and you should call his name 
Jesus. 

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And here's the reason why, for 
he will save his people from 

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their sins. 
The truth is, you and I, we need

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that deliverance. 
We need to be delivered. 

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But why? 
Why do we need that in our 

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lives? 
From what do we need to be saved

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or delivered from? 
Well, the answer is that all of 

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us need to be saved and 
delivered from the punishment 

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that our own sin deserves. 
That's what we need salvation 

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from. 
And that's why Jesus died on the

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cross. 
He bore the punishment of all of

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our sins and thereby saving us 
from punishment and delivering 

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us from having to bear God's 
justice upon us. 

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And you could be forgiven, but 
justice will still be satisfied 

240
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in what you need. 
And what all of us need is to be

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saved from justice. 
And we need someone to deliver 

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us from the punishment that we 
deserve. 

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And Jesus does that for every 
single one of us. 

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And isn't that good news? 
That's wonderful news. 

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That's news we need to hear. 
That's news the shepherds needed

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00:17:50,800 --> 00:17:53,840
to hear, and that's news the 
shepherds needed to spread 

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abroad after they had heard 
that. 

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And in addition to that, the 
Angel declared Jesus not just 

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being the Savior, but also being
the Christ. 

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Christ is not Jesus's last name.
It is a title. 

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It's a title for what he stands 
for. 

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It's a quality of him, and it's 
impactful for all of us. 

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You see the Greek word for 
Christ as Christos, which 

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literally means anointed. 1 And 
Christos is the Greek word for 

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Messiah in Hebrew. 
And so when the angels announced

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00:18:33,520 --> 00:18:38,920
Jesus birth and that he is the 
Christ, what they're literally 

257
00:18:38,920 --> 00:18:44,040
saying is that God's anointed 
one, he's just been born. 

258
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And So what does that mean? 
What does it mean that a person 

259
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has been anointed? 
Well, in the Old Testament, 

260
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there were people who were 
anointed. 

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There were people who were set 
apart for various roles, and 

262
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they were important roles. 
That's why they were set apart 

263
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for various things. 
You got, for example, you had 

264
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prophets, you had priests, you 
had kings. 

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They were all anointed to do 
some special purpose. 

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Under the Old Law, they were set
aside for a particular role. 

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But when you look at Jesus, 
Jesus was anointed as well. 

268
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He was set apart to be the 
savior of all but with him the 

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title of Christ or or the 
anointed one is more than just a

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title or a role. 
In fact, Jesus was devoted to 

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the service of God by performing
the will of his father. 

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He has been separated from all 
other humans for this very 

273
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purpose. 
In fact, Paul writes about it 

274
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here in Philippians chapter 2. 
The first part of this begins 

275
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with verse #5. 
It says let this mind be in you,

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which was also in Christ, who 
being in the form of God, did 

277
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not consider robbery to be equal
with God, but made himself of no

278
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reputation. 
Taking the form of a bondservant

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and coming in the likeness of 
men, and being found in 

280
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appearance as a man, he humbled 
himself. 

281
00:20:16,640 --> 00:20:20,560
And became obedient to the point
of death, even the death of the 

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cross. 
Therefore God has highly exalted

283
00:20:25,440 --> 00:20:30,920
him and given him the name which
is above every name, that at the

284
00:20:30,920 --> 00:20:37,040
name of Jesus every knee should 
bow of those in heaven and of 

285
00:20:37,040 --> 00:20:40,720
those on earth and of those 
under the earth, and that every 

286
00:20:40,720 --> 00:20:45,600
tongue should confess that Jesus
Christ is Lord to the glory of 

287
00:20:45,600 --> 00:20:51,640
God the Father. 
As Paul points out here, Jesus 

288
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was faithful to his purpose, 
being obedient to the Father, 

289
00:20:59,200 --> 00:21:03,680
And Paul points out here 
specifically obeying to the 

290
00:21:03,680 --> 00:21:09,280
Father, obeying the Father to 
the point that he willingly was 

291
00:21:09,280 --> 00:21:15,920
sacrificed on the cross and he 
was sacrificed because of you 

292
00:21:15,920 --> 00:21:20,960
and for me. 
He was anointed for that purpose

293
00:21:22,640 --> 00:21:27,560
and that's why he's the Christ 
and that's why they announced 

294
00:21:27,560 --> 00:21:32,000
He's anointed for a purpose 
there to those shepherds in that

295
00:21:32,000 --> 00:21:36,520
field. 
He used the answer for sins of 

296
00:21:36,520 --> 00:21:40,680
all people. 
And the third thing we see the 

297
00:21:40,680 --> 00:21:45,560
angels announce about Jesus, 
they announce that he is the 

298
00:21:45,560 --> 00:21:48,720
Lord. 
And the Greek word for Lord is 

299
00:21:48,720 --> 00:21:54,040
curious, which can mean Sir, It 
can mean master, or it's a title

300
00:21:54,040 --> 00:21:57,240
or respect. 
But in reference to God, it's a 

301
00:21:57,240 --> 00:22:01,600
title that refers to one who who
is in supreme authority. 

302
00:22:02,280 --> 00:22:06,520
And so the Angel said that 
Jesus, this tiny baby that was 

303
00:22:06,520 --> 00:22:10,320
born in Bethlehem, was the Lord.
He was the one in supreme 

304
00:22:10,320 --> 00:22:13,520
authority. 
Now that could have been 

305
00:22:13,520 --> 00:22:17,360
shocking to some people. 
How how in the world can can a 

306
00:22:17,360 --> 00:22:19,960
baby have this type of 
authority? 

307
00:22:21,280 --> 00:22:28,520
Well, Jesus is just not someone 
who comes along and just is with

308
00:22:28,520 --> 00:22:32,920
us or or offers us suggestions. 
No, He's He's not just someone 

309
00:22:32,920 --> 00:22:35,520
who gives advice. 
He's not someone who just comes 

310
00:22:35,520 --> 00:22:40,240
along and encourages his Father,
his followers, and he He does 

311
00:22:40,240 --> 00:22:42,640
these things. 
We know when we read about his 

312
00:22:42,640 --> 00:22:45,960
examples and we read about his 
teachings in the scriptures of 

313
00:22:45,960 --> 00:22:50,680
how He is with us, how He is our
perfect example. 

314
00:22:51,680 --> 00:22:55,440
But really that is only the 
beginning of His power and His 

315
00:22:55,440 --> 00:22:57,480
authority. 
In fact the Bible tells us of 

316
00:22:57,600 --> 00:23:02,200
Jesus as being the supreme 
authority or or supreme 

317
00:23:02,200 --> 00:23:06,200
sovereign of the universe, whom 
as we just read every knee will 

318
00:23:06,200 --> 00:23:11,480
bow because He is Lord and that 
His name is above every other 

319
00:23:11,480 --> 00:23:17,680
name as we just read. 
That's the one who was born in 

320
00:23:17,680 --> 00:23:22,760
Bethlehem so long ago. 
That's why this good news is 

321
00:23:22,760 --> 00:23:26,000
being proclaimed to the 
shepherds in the field. 

322
00:23:27,040 --> 00:23:31,120
You look here in Colossians 
chapter one and verses 15 

323
00:23:31,120 --> 00:23:36,880
through 18 says he is the image 
of the invisible God, the first 

324
00:23:36,880 --> 00:23:42,320
born over all creation. 
For by him all things were 

325
00:23:42,320 --> 00:23:47,240
created that are in heaven and 
that are on earth, visible and 

326
00:23:47,240 --> 00:23:50,920
invisible with the Thrones or 
dominions or principalities or 

327
00:23:50,920 --> 00:23:53,720
powers. 
Paul says All things were 

328
00:23:53,720 --> 00:23:59,320
created through him, and for him
he is before all things, and in 

329
00:23:59,320 --> 00:24:02,840
him all things consist. 
And he is the head of the body, 

330
00:24:03,040 --> 00:24:06,520
the church, who is the 
beginning, the first born from 

331
00:24:06,520 --> 00:24:11,440
the dead, That in all things he 
may have the preeminence. 

332
00:24:12,920 --> 00:24:15,400
And so we see these great things
about Jesus. 

333
00:24:15,400 --> 00:24:21,800
We see His supreme authority and
what wonderful truths they are. 

334
00:24:22,320 --> 00:24:26,920
And that's who was born. 
That's who was born. 

335
00:24:27,480 --> 00:24:31,760
Yes, the angels had great news 
for the shepherds and for all 

336
00:24:31,760 --> 00:24:35,720
the world that Jesus, the Son of
God, is here. 

337
00:24:38,120 --> 00:24:40,280
He said, This is whom you've 
read about regarding the 

338
00:24:40,280 --> 00:24:42,760
prophets of the prophecies of 
Messiah. 

339
00:24:43,680 --> 00:24:47,920
And they say now he's come and 
he was going to bring salvation 

340
00:24:48,280 --> 00:24:54,120
to all. 
Jesus is our answer and Jesus is

341
00:24:54,120 --> 00:24:59,200
our hope. 
And don't don't ever take away 

342
00:24:59,200 --> 00:25:04,280
the significance of his life and
his birth and his death and his 

343
00:25:04,280 --> 00:25:07,120
resurrection. 
And right on the heels of this 

344
00:25:07,120 --> 00:25:11,400
announcement, other angels 
joined in to shout these 

345
00:25:11,400 --> 00:25:13,920
praises. 
I love, I love this scene. 

346
00:25:14,240 --> 00:25:20,480
And suddenly there was with the 
Angel a multitude of the 

347
00:25:20,480 --> 00:25:25,600
heavenly host praising God and 
saying, glory to God in the 

348
00:25:25,600 --> 00:25:31,880
highest and on earth, peace, 
goodwill toward men. 

349
00:25:33,800 --> 00:25:39,360
This Angel that that, I mean 
just just seeing. 

350
00:25:39,520 --> 00:25:42,480
First of all, being afraid of 
just seeing this one Angel. 

351
00:25:42,840 --> 00:25:49,080
But now all these other angels 
just join right in and this 

352
00:25:49,080 --> 00:25:54,400
great song of praise because of 
Jesus coming into the world. 

353
00:25:55,880 --> 00:26:02,240
Oh what a scene they break out 
in this wonderfully heavenly 

354
00:26:02,240 --> 00:26:04,920
choir. 
They express several things 

355
00:26:04,920 --> 00:26:08,920
here, They said First of all, 
God is to be glorified for the 

356
00:26:08,920 --> 00:26:12,800
gift of his Son. 
That's one thing they said, and 

357
00:26:12,800 --> 00:26:17,200
this was an act of love from God
to us. 

358
00:26:18,200 --> 00:26:23,040
Don't forget that God's love for
you and I, that this happened. 

359
00:26:23,760 --> 00:26:27,520
In fact, John wrote about God's 
love here in John chapter 3. 

360
00:26:28,120 --> 00:26:34,000
For God so loved the world. 
Well, how did he show that to 

361
00:26:34,000 --> 00:26:39,040
you and I? 
Well, he gave his only begotten 

362
00:26:39,040 --> 00:26:43,080
Son. 
But whoever believes in him 

363
00:26:44,160 --> 00:26:48,160
should not perish but have 
everlasting life. 

364
00:26:49,400 --> 00:26:52,680
For God did not send his Son 
into the world to condemn the 

365
00:26:52,680 --> 00:26:56,680
world, but that the world 
through him might be saved. 

366
00:26:56,680 --> 00:27:02,800
And so we see God's desire for 
us all. 

367
00:27:04,360 --> 00:27:10,080
He doesn't want us to perish. 
He wants us to live, He wants us

368
00:27:10,080 --> 00:27:12,240
to be saved. 
And that's why the announcement 

369
00:27:12,240 --> 00:27:15,000
of Jesus from the angels of sort
of so important. 

370
00:27:15,360 --> 00:27:19,160
But the second thing we see is 
that peace as they proclaimed 

371
00:27:19,160 --> 00:27:22,880
will now come as a result of the
purpose and mission of Jesus. 

372
00:27:23,440 --> 00:27:26,640
Because where sin creates 
separation, horrible things. 

373
00:27:27,000 --> 00:27:31,840
We who believe in Jesus and obey
the gospel of Christ, oh we 

374
00:27:31,840 --> 00:27:36,560
could be reunited with God and 
have peace with God and all. 

375
00:27:36,560 --> 00:27:40,840
We desperately seek that with 
him, because without Jesus to 

376
00:27:40,840 --> 00:27:46,480
intercede for us, that would not
be possible to have this type of

377
00:27:46,480 --> 00:27:50,360
peace with God. 
And so, after hearing the 

378
00:27:50,360 --> 00:27:53,400
praises from the multitude of 
angels, the shepherds, they're 

379
00:27:53,400 --> 00:27:56,000
no longer afraid. 
They know this was big. 

380
00:27:56,680 --> 00:28:00,440
They knew this was important. 
They knew of the significance of

381
00:28:00,440 --> 00:28:03,640
this baby that had been born in 
Bethlehem. 

382
00:28:04,440 --> 00:28:11,040
And so they take action. 
And they say it says here and 

383
00:28:11,040 --> 00:28:14,560
verse #15, as we continue on 
with Luke's narrative here in 

384
00:28:14,560 --> 00:28:18,320
chapter 2, so it was when the 
angels had gone away from them 

385
00:28:18,480 --> 00:28:22,000
into heaven that the shepherd 
said to one another, Let us now 

386
00:28:22,000 --> 00:28:24,960
go to Bethlehem and see this 
thing that has come to pass, 

387
00:28:25,160 --> 00:28:28,520
which the Lord had made known to
us. 

388
00:28:28,840 --> 00:28:36,000
And then continuing on, and they
came with haste, found Mary and 

389
00:28:36,000 --> 00:28:39,760
Joseph and the Babe lying in a 
Manger. 

390
00:28:41,240 --> 00:28:45,600
Now when they had seen him, they
made widely known the saying, 

391
00:28:45,600 --> 00:28:48,760
which was told them concerning 
this child. 

392
00:28:51,720 --> 00:28:53,600
Good news spreads fast, doesn't 
it? 

393
00:28:56,480 --> 00:29:00,440
That's exactly what happens. 
This is the best news that they 

394
00:29:00,440 --> 00:29:02,400
ever heard or will ever hear in 
their lives. 

395
00:29:02,400 --> 00:29:07,960
And they had been eyewitnesses 
to God this, or actually the Son

396
00:29:07,960 --> 00:29:13,320
of God being born and how he 
would be the answer to their 

397
00:29:13,320 --> 00:29:15,320
sins. 
No wonder they spread this news 

398
00:29:15,320 --> 00:29:17,040
as far as why they as they 
could. 

399
00:29:17,360 --> 00:29:21,720
People needed to hear the 
Messiah is here, This is whom we

400
00:29:21,720 --> 00:29:25,000
were looking for. 
He's here. 

401
00:29:26,600 --> 00:29:31,000
And then continuing on in the 
narrative here in verse #18. 

402
00:29:32,160 --> 00:29:35,920
And all those who heard it 
marveled at those things which 

403
00:29:35,920 --> 00:29:41,320
were told them by the shepherds.
But Mary kept all these things 

404
00:29:41,320 --> 00:29:47,040
and pondered them in her heart. 
And then moving on in verse #20,

405
00:29:47,040 --> 00:29:51,680
then the shepherds returned, 
glorifying and praising God for 

406
00:29:51,680 --> 00:29:54,960
all the things that they had 
heard and seen as it was told 

407
00:29:54,960 --> 00:29:57,680
them. 
And when 8 days were completed 

408
00:29:57,680 --> 00:30:00,800
for the circumcision of the 
child, his name was called 

409
00:30:00,800 --> 00:30:07,120
Jesus, the name given by the 
Angel before he was conceived in

410
00:30:07,120 --> 00:30:14,160
the womb. 
Thinking about the reaction that

411
00:30:14,160 --> 00:30:20,160
they all had and the joy that 
came from seeing this child, 

412
00:30:20,200 --> 00:30:25,800
understanding the significance, 
I think we would all do the same

413
00:30:25,800 --> 00:30:31,200
thing of how they reacted. 
Spreading this news, glorifying,

414
00:30:31,440 --> 00:30:35,640
praising God for all the things 
that they had heard and seen. 

415
00:30:37,280 --> 00:30:43,720
We would do that. 
We do that this morning, 

416
00:30:46,800 --> 00:30:51,880
understanding God loves us and 
God sent His Son. 

417
00:30:54,600 --> 00:30:58,120
We follow that same pattern, 
glorifying and praising God. 

418
00:30:58,720 --> 00:31:02,560
Because God sent His Son to die 
for you and me. 

419
00:31:04,440 --> 00:31:08,560
Aren't you thankful? 
And isn't that wonderful? 

420
00:31:10,560 --> 00:31:15,560
That's why we gathered gather to
worship Him and praise Him and 

421
00:31:15,560 --> 00:31:20,840
magnify His name. 
Because of such a loving Father,

422
00:31:20,840 --> 00:31:25,000
a wonderful Father, and a 
wonderful Savior that we have in

423
00:31:25,000 --> 00:31:33,430
Jesus Christ that ends our 
study. 

424
00:31:33,430 --> 00:31:37,830
But I want to offer what the 
Lord's invitation is to you, 

425
00:31:39,110 --> 00:31:47,390
understanding what He's done for
you and the significance of 

426
00:31:47,430 --> 00:31:55,230
Jesus Christ. 
Have you accepted Jesus into 

427
00:31:55,230 --> 00:32:00,800
your life? 
Is he your Savior today? 

428
00:32:03,280 --> 00:32:08,440
If he's not, he needs to be, 
because he is the only answer 

429
00:32:08,440 --> 00:32:16,200
for your sin, the only answer. 
And you could come, as the Lord 

430
00:32:16,200 --> 00:32:22,520
invites you to come, to believe 
in his Son as the Son of God, 

431
00:32:23,280 --> 00:32:26,440
believe that he did die upon the
cross for your sins he was 

432
00:32:26,440 --> 00:32:30,480
buried, and believe that he was 
resurrected on the third day. 

433
00:32:32,640 --> 00:32:35,440
And then repent of your life, 
that is, make a change in your 

434
00:32:35,440 --> 00:32:39,320
life, that you're going to live 
a life devoted to God, and also 

435
00:32:39,320 --> 00:32:44,360
confess that Jesus Christ is the
Son of God, and then also be 

436
00:32:44,360 --> 00:32:47,800
baptized for the forgiveness of 
your sins. 

437
00:32:48,680 --> 00:32:50,880
Those people did that in Acts 
chapter 2. 

438
00:32:52,120 --> 00:32:55,200
You know what happened to those 
people who followed those things

439
00:32:55,200 --> 00:32:58,440
and obeyed? 
There in Acts chapter 2, the 

440
00:32:58,440 --> 00:33:02,520
Scripture said that the Lord 
added them to his church, and 

441
00:33:02,520 --> 00:33:07,920
the Lord will add you to the 
church when you obey the gospel 

442
00:33:07,920 --> 00:33:12,800
of Jesus Christ. 
What a wonderful thing God did 

443
00:33:12,800 --> 00:33:15,640
for you and a wonderful thing 
Jesus did for you. 

444
00:33:16,080 --> 00:33:20,920
If you haven't taken advantage 
of that, do it and do it today. 

445
00:33:22,720 --> 00:33:25,320
Be saved. 
Maybe. 

446
00:33:25,320 --> 00:33:29,680
If you have taken advantage of 
that, but maybe, maybe you made 

447
00:33:29,680 --> 00:33:33,840
mistakes, maybe you feel like 
you need to rededicate your life

448
00:33:33,840 --> 00:33:36,760
to Christ. 
And if that's the case, 

449
00:33:36,760 --> 00:33:38,880
understand God is so loving. 
He is. 

450
00:33:39,320 --> 00:33:42,960
He always gives second chances. 
He's always going to forgive. 

451
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And consider that so we offer 
you this chance to make things 

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right, or to become a Christian.
Consider your life as we stand 

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and as we sing the song of 
imitation. 

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We thank you for listening to 
our podcast put on by the Church

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00:34:03,920 --> 00:34:08,400
of Christ at 2215 Plans Rd. in 
Bakersfield. 

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00:34:09,120 --> 00:34:12,560
If you would like any additional
information or you would like to

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receive a free Bible 
correspondence course by mail, 

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00:34:16,320 --> 00:34:21,600
please e-mail us at 
info@churchofchristbakersfield.com.

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00:34:22,360 --> 00:34:27,560
Our service times are Sundays at
10:30 AM and 5:00 PM and 

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Wednesdays at 7:30 PM. 
Please make plans to join us. 

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We would love for you to be our 
honored guest.