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Welcome to Common Ground One 
book. 

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We are so glad you've joined us 
for today's message. 

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Whether you're tuning in from 
home or catching up on another 

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go, we pray that this word 
encourages you, strengthens your

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faith, and draws you closer to 
God. 

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If you'd like to learn more 
about our church, connect with 

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us or get involved, you will 
find all the details in the 

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description. 
Now let's dive into today's 

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message. 
Something big is coming, but 

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here is my big question for 
everyone. 

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What are we waiting for? 
For Jesus to come back. 

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OK, any other answers? 
What are we waiting for when 

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we're counting down the day to 
Christmas for the day that Jesus

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was born? 
I can see people have been 

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teaching their children the 
Bible. 

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Anyone else waiting for 
something different? 

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Food Time with family presents? 
Yes. 

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OK, you see, if we are quite 
honest, some of us might be 

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waiting for the Christmas 
presents and some of us might be

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waiting for the food and the 
party and the time with family 

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and friends that we don't see 
all the time. 

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But at the end of the day, the 
whole point of this time leading

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up to Christmas is to remind us 
that we are waiting for a 

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person. 
We are waiting for Jesus because

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that's what Christmas is all 
about. 

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And Advent remembers that when 
Jesus came, he was someone that 

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God's people had been waiting 
for for a very long time. 

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But when Jesus first came into 
the world as a baby, how did 

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they know that he was the one 
they were waiting for? 

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I mean, I'm sure many babies 
were born around that time. 

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And how did they know that he 
was the 1:00? 

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We'd be throwing parties for 
thousands of years in the 

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future. 
Well, the Bible does have some 

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answers for us. 
And I want to look at what it 

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what some of those answers are 
by looking at three things they 

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were waiting for. 
The Bible tells us a lot in the 

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Old Testament about this person 
that was going to come. 

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And I want to look at three of 
those things about that they 

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said about him. 
For one, they were waiting for a

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Messiah. 
Another, they were waiting for a

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Saviour. 
And finally, they were waiting 

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for God. 
So waiting for a Messiah. 

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If you asked a Jew around the 
time that Jesus was born what 

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they were waiting for, the 
likely answer would be we're 

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waiting for the Messiah. 
Messiah right now. 

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That's a funny word, and if you 
don't know what it means, it can

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sound a little strange, a little
confusing. 

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What is a Messiah? 
Well, technically Messiah means 

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Anointed 1, which is referring 
to a practice where when God set

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someone aside for a special job,
he would have a profit go and 

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pour oil on their head as a sign
that he was chosen by God for 

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this job. 
Now one of the common ways 

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anointing was used was to show 
who's going to be the next king.

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And so over time, Messiah began 
to be a word associated with the

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king that Israel was waiting 
for. 

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But Israel had had many kings, 
and if you read your Old 

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Testament, you'll see the 
prophecies begin to build up a 

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picture of a very specific kind 
of king, and often a king that 

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wasn't seen in the kings of the 
past. 

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There were always shortfalls, 
things that didn't measure up. 

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So now I'm going to just read 11
chapter from one passage from 

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Isaiah as an example. 
By the way, I love the book of 

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Isaiah. 
You'll see it come up a lot. 

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I've seen it described as the 
Gospel of the Old Testament 

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because it is just so rich with 
with Jesus in it. 

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So I'm going to read from 
Chapter 11 starting at verse 

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one. 
Out of the stump of David's 

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family will grow a shoot. 
Yes, a new branch bearing fruit 

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from the old root. 
There's clue number one about 

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the identity of this Messiah. 
He has to come from the family 

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line of King David and the stump
is cut off When when Israel was 

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exiled, it looked like the tree 
was gone. 

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But someone was going to come 
from that line. 

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And the Spirit of the Lord will 
rest on him, the spirit of 

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wisdom and understanding, the 
spirit of counsel and might, the

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spirit of knowledge and fear of 
the Lord. 

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He will delight in obeying the 
Lord. 

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He will not judge by appearance 
nor make decisions based on 

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hearsay. 
He will give justice to the poor

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and make fair decisions for the 
exploited. 

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So here we're seeing a picture 
of a king who is a good king. 

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He's a fair king. 
I know every small child knows 

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the meaning of the word fair 
because you'll be so quick to 

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say that's not fair. 
And this king would be a wise 

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king, the kind of king who is 
compassionate to the poor and 

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the weak and those who are 
oppressed by the powerful. 

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The earth will shake at the 
force of his word, and one 

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breath from his mouth will 
destroy the wicked. 

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Now destroy sounds a little bit 
more intense than just punish 

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some of the wicked. 
Make sure a few of them get 

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what's coming to them. 
It almost sounds like the wicked

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are going to be completely dealt
with, like there will be no more

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problem of the wicked. 
He will wear righteousness like 

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a belt, and truth like an 
undergarment. 

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In that day the wolf and the 
lamb will lie down, will live 

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together. 
The leopard will lie down with 

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the baby goat. 
The calf and the yearling will 

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be safe with the lion, and a 
little child will lead them all.

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The cow will graze near the 
bear. 

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The cub and the calf will lie 
down together. 

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The lion will eat hay like a 
cow. 

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The baby will play safely near 
the whole of a cobra. 

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Yes, a little child will put his
hand in the nest of deadly 

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snakes without harm. 
Nothing will hurt or destroy in 

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my holy mountain for us. 
The waters fill the sea, so the 

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earth will be full of the 
knowledge, full with people who 

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know the Lord. 
Now, whether this is simply 

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metaphoric language for the 
peace and safety that people 

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will experience under his reign,
or whether this is something 

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that's still to come, that's a 
pretty impressive picture of 

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peace, isn't it? 
There's no danger to worry about

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when this king is ruling. 
And in that day, the heir to 

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David's throne will be a banner 
of salvation to all the world, 

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and the nations will rally to 
him, and the land where he lives

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will be a glorious place. 
And in that day, the Lord will 

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reach out his hand a second time
to bring back the remnant of his

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people, those who remain in 
Assyria and northern Egypt and 

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southern Egypt, Ethiopia and 
Elam, in Babylonia, Hamas and 

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all the distant coastlines. 
That's just a bunch of places on

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the map. 
You can look them up if you're 

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interested. 
He will raise a flag among the 

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nation, the the nations, and 
assemble all the Exiles of 

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Israel. 
He will gather the scattered 

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people of Judah from the ends of
the earth. 

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So finally, in this passage, we 
see that he will gather up his 

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people, Israel, who was 
scattered, right? 

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They've been sent everywhere 
away from their homeland, and 

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he's going to bring them back to
himself. 

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So you can kind of see why at 
this point in Israel's history, 

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they're living under Roman rule.
They are not free. 

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It's easy to see why the Jews 
would be waiting for a Messiah 

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who would be a leader who would 
free them from their oppressive 

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Roman occupiers and bring the 
Jewish people back to their 

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land. 
The problem is there were many 

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people around that time who 
either claimed to be the Messiah

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or people thought they were the 
Messiah, which is what would 

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help them to rally the people 
around them to try and overthrow

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the Roman rule. 
Now the Bible mentions a few of 

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them. 
In Acts chapter 5 and Acts 

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chapter 21 we hear about these 
other Messiah figures. 

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Thudus managed to rally 400 men 
before he was killed and his 

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people dispersed. 
Then came Judah or Judas the 

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Galilean, who is the one 
credited with starting the 

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Zealots. 
You would have heard of them in 

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the New Testament too. 
And he led a bunch of people in 

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revolt before he was killed and 
his followers were scattered. 

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Judah also got a mention outside
of the Bible. 

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Josephus, a historian of that 
time, also wrote about him and 

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described it as one who 
considered it shameful for the 

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Jews to agree to pay tribute to 
Roman rulers, and shameful for 

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them to tolerate a human master 
when they've got God as their 

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king. 
He also apparently had a prophet

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who would go ahead of him the 
same way that Elijah was meant 

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to prophecy and warned that the 
coming of the Lord, the Messiah,

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was going to come. 
And in Acts 21 we see another 

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example. 
The soldiers were confusing Paul

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with an Egyptian Jew who had 
stirred up a revolt and LED 4000

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terrorists into the wilderness. 
Right. 

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In fact, there were so many 
potential messiahs that Josephus

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almost describes this period as 
some sort of Messiah fever, 

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right? 
If it was social media, it would

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have been in the headlines all 
the time, right? 

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There's another Messiah. 
In fact, he writes the following

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after Herod's death in book 17, 
chapter 10 of his histories. 

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Now at this time there were 
10,000 other disorders in the in

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Judea which were like tumults 
because of a great number put 

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themselves into warlike posture.
OK, bit of a funny Latin hard 

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language. 
So let me put it into plain 

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language. 
He seems to see it as 10,000. 

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That's not a small #10,000 other
problems happening in this place

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in Judea. 
And they're like uproars or 

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riots. 
They're not small problems. 

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There's not someone in the 
marketplace having a fight, 

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right? 
And the reason is people were 

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setting themselves up as enemies
of Rome. 

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That means people from the 
Jewish people were standing up 

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and trying to fight back. 
And then he goes on to to give 

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examples, many examples of 
Judeans rallying troops, burning

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things, riots and so on. 
And then of course, the Romans 

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come in and the histories that 
he writes, they come in and save

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the day. 
He he paints them as the heroes 

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who are squashing time and 
again, these uprisings of the 

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Jewish people. 
He doesn't explicitly use the 

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word Messiah, but given the 
context, it's very likely that 

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this is what rallied the people 
around those those charismatic 

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leaders that they hoped would 
liberate them from Rome. 

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And when you understand this 
context, it seems a little less 

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outrageous to consider Herod's 
reaction to the news that, Oh 

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no, there's another Messiah 
being spotted in Judea, right? 

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It also helps explain why 30 
years down the line when Jesus 

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is teaching, they were more 
interested. 

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The leaders of the people of 
Israel were more interested in 

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keeping the peace than in going 
deeper into his claims that he 

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was the one God sent, because 
likely they had heard it all 

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many many times before and it 
had got them nothing but 

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trouble. 
So how would they have known 

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that Jesus was the real deal? 
Well, the answer is, as the kids

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had started pointing out, the 
fulfilment of prophecy and there

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were many prophecies about the 
Messiah to to fulfil, ranging 

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from where and how and when he 
would be born and where he would

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live and what he would do. 
That's why the little details 

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mattered, like the fact that 
Jesus was born in a town called 

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Bethlehem. 
That's why it mattered that he 

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was from the town of David, the 
line of David. 

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That's why it mattered that he 
was born of a virgin and that 

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there was going to be a massacre
of the scale of that would leave

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the women and children, the 
women of Israel, weeping for 

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their children. 
It mattered that he spent time 

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in Egypt and that he was 
identified with Galilee where he

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started his ministry, that he 
would live in the time before 

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the temple was destroyed, that 
he would die and rise again, 

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because these things were the 
things that the prophets had 

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said would be true of God's 
special king. 

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And as he fulfilled more and 
more of the things that he 

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prophesied hundreds of years 
before, it became clearer that 

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this man was the one that they 
had been waiting for. 

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He was the one that was promised
by God. 

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But you see, there was something
about this person that God had 

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promised that many in Israel 
missed. 

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They were waiting for a 
conqueror, a warrior who would 

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lead them to freedom from their 
enemies, a king who would 

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establish the Kingdom of Israel 
again. 

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But when God's anointed king 
arrived, he came with a very 

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different mission. 
You see, while the Old Testament

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scriptures do seem to give the 
bulk of the prophecies to the 

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Jewish people in particular, 
there is enough in there to 

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suggest that His plan was always
bigger than Israel alone. 

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And while the oppression of 
Israel under other nations was a

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very real problem that God's 
people were waiting and praying 

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to be delivered from, the story 
of the Bible points to an even 

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bigger problem that God was 
working on solving right in the 

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beginning of the story of 
history. 

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In Genesis 315 we see the first 
of the Messianic prophecies when

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God curses the serpent who 
tempted Eve to disobey him and 

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commit the first sin. 
He says to the serpent, I will 

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cause hostility. 
I will cause fighting between 

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you and the woman and between 
your offspring and her 

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offspring. 
He will strike your head and you

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will strike his heel. 
Now there's a lot more going on 

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here than an origin story for 
the deep distrust and fear that 

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many of us feel towards 
creatures of the snake variety. 

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00:14:23,240 --> 00:14:27,200
This is a promise that the enemy
of God and of mankind will 

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ultimately be crushed by a 
descendant of the woman, but not

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before he is first struck by the
enemy. 

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You see, from the very beginning
of God's story, it's been a 

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story about how our holy God has
been working to restore 

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relationship between Himself and
the people He made who was 

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separated from Him because of 
their sin. 

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00:14:53,200 --> 00:14:57,120
Our biggest problem has never 
been any of the many variations 

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00:14:57,400 --> 00:15:01,400
of damaged relationships between
US and other people that we 

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experience. 
Though that's not to say that 

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the harm we cause each other is 
in any way right or not a 

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problem, but that's not our 
biggest problem. 

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The thing that God has been 
working to fix all along was the

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sin that broke the relationship 
between US and our loving 

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00:15:20,520 --> 00:15:23,440
Creator. 
And this is ultimately what he 

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00:15:23,440 --> 00:15:27,560
came to resolve that one 
Passover when he was hung on the

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cross at Calvary. 
And there the punishment that we

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00:15:31,200 --> 00:15:37,040
deserved for our sins was paid 
in full by the sacrifice of the 

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00:15:37,040 --> 00:15:39,920
one perfect man who had never 
once sinned. 

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00:15:41,840 --> 00:15:43,160
Now let me back up a little bit 
here. 

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If you thinking, hold on, this 
doesn't line up with the picture

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00:15:47,280 --> 00:15:50,520
of the liberating king who will 
bring his people back from 

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00:15:50,520 --> 00:15:52,840
exile, don't worry, you're not 
alone. 

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00:15:54,160 --> 00:15:57,720
Many of God's people were 
confused by that turn of events.

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00:15:58,280 --> 00:16:01,400
If Jesus really was their 
Messiah, who they believed would

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00:16:01,400 --> 00:16:05,720
free them from Roman rule, how 
could he die like that, hanging 

268
00:16:05,720 --> 00:16:10,480
on a cross? 
Many of God's people in Israel 

269
00:16:10,480 --> 00:16:13,480
didn't recognize their Messiah 
because they couldn't understand

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00:16:13,480 --> 00:16:15,680
how those different ideas fit 
together. 

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00:16:16,600 --> 00:16:20,520
But they had forgotten that this
was also part of God's plan from

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00:16:20,520 --> 00:16:24,200
the very beginning and that God 
had left them clues in the 

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00:16:24,200 --> 00:16:28,160
Scriptures. 
When John the Baptist first saw 

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00:16:28,280 --> 00:16:31,200
Jesus coming towards him as he 
was baptizing, he prophetically 

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00:16:31,200 --> 00:16:36,080
announced, Look the Lamb of God 
who takes away the sins of the 

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00:16:36,080 --> 00:16:39,760
world. 
Not only was Jesus death 

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00:16:39,760 --> 00:16:43,080
foreshadowed in the picture God 
had given of the Passover lamb, 

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00:16:44,040 --> 00:16:47,800
but His reason for dying that 
Passover week was also predicted

279
00:16:48,160 --> 00:16:50,200
in another one of Isaiah's 
prophecies. 

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00:16:51,600 --> 00:16:54,560
Let me read from Isaiah 53. 
I'm going to start at verse 3. 

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For the sake of time, I'm 
cutting where I can. 

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00:16:57,720 --> 00:16:59,320
This is describing the servant 
of the Lord. 

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00:16:59,320 --> 00:17:01,920
But if you want the full 
picture, start at chapter 52, 

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00:17:01,920 --> 00:17:04,680
just the last few verses. 
It's really amazing. 

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00:17:06,000 --> 00:17:07,839
Now I'm not going to give 
commentary along the way. 

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00:17:08,599 --> 00:17:11,160
Let it soak in and let God 
remind you what this is saying. 

287
00:17:12,400 --> 00:17:18,280
He was despised and rejected, a 
man of sorrows acquainted with 

288
00:17:18,280 --> 00:17:22,079
deepest grief. 
We turned our backs on Him and 

289
00:17:22,079 --> 00:17:25,640
looked the other way. 
He was despised, and we did not 

290
00:17:25,640 --> 00:17:29,160
care. 
Yet it was our weaknesses that 

291
00:17:29,160 --> 00:17:33,040
He carried. 
It was our sorrows that weighed 

292
00:17:33,040 --> 00:17:36,240
Him down, and we thought his 
troubles were a punishment from 

293
00:17:36,240 --> 00:17:38,560
God, a punishment for His own 
sins. 

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00:17:39,920 --> 00:17:46,000
But He was pierced for our 
rebellion, crushed for our sins.

295
00:17:47,000 --> 00:17:50,200
He was beaten so that we could 
be whole. 

296
00:17:51,160 --> 00:17:55,000
He was whipped so that we could 
be free, be healed. 

297
00:17:56,000 --> 00:17:58,120
And all of us, like sheep, have 
strayed away. 

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00:17:58,120 --> 00:18:00,640
We have left God's paths to 
follow our own. 

299
00:18:01,720 --> 00:18:06,040
Yet the Lord laid on him the 
sins of us all. 

300
00:18:07,440 --> 00:18:10,320
He was oppressed and treated 
harshly, yet He never said a 

301
00:18:10,320 --> 00:18:13,360
word. 
He was like a lamb led to the 

302
00:18:13,360 --> 00:18:16,280
slaughter, and as a sheep is 
silent before her shearers. 

303
00:18:16,680 --> 00:18:21,160
He did not open his mouth. 
Unjustly condemned, he was led 

304
00:18:21,160 --> 00:18:23,120
away. 
No one cared that he died 

305
00:18:23,120 --> 00:18:26,920
without descendants, that his 
life was cut short in midstream,

306
00:18:28,480 --> 00:18:31,640
but he was struck down for the 
rebellion of my people. 

307
00:18:32,560 --> 00:18:37,400
He had done no wrong and had 
never deceived anyone, but he 

308
00:18:37,400 --> 00:18:40,960
was buried like a criminal. 
He was put in a rich man's 

309
00:18:40,960 --> 00:18:45,200
grave, but it was the Lord's 
good plan to crush him and cause

310
00:18:45,200 --> 00:18:47,320
him grief. 
And if you haven't caught it 

311
00:18:47,360 --> 00:18:50,400
yet, here has where you need to 
pay attention yet. 

312
00:18:50,400 --> 00:18:55,640
When his life is made an 
offering for sin, there's the 

313
00:18:55,640 --> 00:18:59,440
reason he came. 
He will have many descendants. 

314
00:19:00,000 --> 00:19:03,800
He will enjoy a long life, and 
the Lord's good plan will 

315
00:19:03,800 --> 00:19:06,960
prosper in His hands. 
When he sees all that is 

316
00:19:06,960 --> 00:19:09,280
accomplished by his anguish, 
he'll be satisfied. 

317
00:19:09,920 --> 00:19:12,520
And because of his experience, 
my righteous servant will make 

318
00:19:12,520 --> 00:19:16,960
it possible for many to be 
counted righteous, for he will 

319
00:19:16,960 --> 00:19:21,920
bear their sins. 
I will give him the honors of a 

320
00:19:21,920 --> 00:19:24,920
victorious soldier. 
Because he exposed himself to 

321
00:19:24,920 --> 00:19:29,920
death, He was counted among 
rebels, and he bore the sins of 

322
00:19:29,920 --> 00:19:32,720
many and interceded for the 
rebels. 

323
00:19:36,280 --> 00:19:39,760
The Messiah that Israel had been
waiting for was more than just a

324
00:19:39,760 --> 00:19:42,840
king who would liberate his 
people from one oppressive ruler

325
00:19:42,840 --> 00:19:46,160
in one lifetime, because there's
always the next. 

326
00:19:48,000 --> 00:19:50,720
The promised chosen king that 
God sent that first Christmas 

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00:19:50,720 --> 00:19:56,400
was the sinless one who would 
suffer and die for our sins so 

328
00:19:56,400 --> 00:19:59,360
that we could be made right with
God. 

329
00:20:00,360 --> 00:20:03,680
And as this prophecy also 
foreshadows, he would not stay 

330
00:20:03,680 --> 00:20:06,520
dead otherwise. 
It's contradicting, 

331
00:20:06,880 --> 00:20:08,880
contradicting itself. 
He would have no descendants, 

332
00:20:08,880 --> 00:20:13,080
but he'll have many descendants.
He will die, He will come back, 

333
00:20:13,080 --> 00:20:14,640
and then he will have many 
children. 

334
00:20:15,960 --> 00:20:19,120
He would be raised from the dead
and live forever ruling over 

335
00:20:19,120 --> 00:20:22,920
God's people. 
So they were waiting for a 

336
00:20:22,920 --> 00:20:25,760
Messiah. 
They were waiting for a Saviour.

337
00:20:27,560 --> 00:20:30,280
Well, if the Israelites had 
missed something so big about 

338
00:20:30,280 --> 00:20:33,160
this person they were waiting 
for, is it possible there is 

339
00:20:33,160 --> 00:20:34,480
something else they might have 
missed? 

340
00:20:35,720 --> 00:20:40,040
Well yes, it was something else 
that took even Jesus closest 

341
00:20:40,040 --> 00:20:44,840
disciples a while to figure out.
See, the promised king and 

342
00:20:44,840 --> 00:20:47,040
promised Saviour was more than 
just a man. 

343
00:20:47,800 --> 00:20:54,440
He was also God in the flesh. 
We see this hinted already in 

344
00:20:54,440 --> 00:20:57,200
Chapter 9 of Isaiah. 
For the sake of time, I'm just 

345
00:20:57,200 --> 00:21:00,240
going to read a few verses. 
Verses 2 and three and then six 

346
00:21:00,240 --> 00:21:03,600
and seven. 
The people who walk in darkness 

347
00:21:03,600 --> 00:21:06,840
will see a great light. 
For those who live in the land 

348
00:21:06,840 --> 00:21:10,840
of deep darkness, a light will 
shine, you will enlarge the 

349
00:21:10,840 --> 00:21:13,680
nation of Israel and it's people
will rejoice. 

350
00:21:14,040 --> 00:21:17,160
They will rejoice before you as 
people rejoice at harvest and 

351
00:21:17,160 --> 00:21:24,600
like warriors dividing plunder. 
For to us a child is born, a son

352
00:21:24,600 --> 00:21:27,920
is given to us. 
The government will rest on his 

353
00:21:27,920 --> 00:21:32,560
shoulders and he will be called 
wonderful Counsellor, mighty 

354
00:21:32,560 --> 00:21:36,920
God, everlasting Father, and 
Prince of Peace. 

355
00:21:38,080 --> 00:21:41,080
His government and its peace 
will never end. 

356
00:21:41,800 --> 00:21:44,840
He will rule with fairness and 
justice from the throne of his 

357
00:21:44,840 --> 00:21:49,280
ancestor David for all eternity.
The passionate commitment of the

358
00:21:49,280 --> 00:21:52,480
Lord of Heaven's armies will 
make this happen. 

359
00:21:53,440 --> 00:21:56,720
That was all 700 years before 
Jesus. 

360
00:21:58,560 --> 00:22:01,960
Now the disciple John recognized
this truth about Jesus when he 

361
00:22:01,960 --> 00:22:04,480
introduced his Gospel in this 
way. 

362
00:22:05,400 --> 00:22:09,200
In John one we read in the 
beginning, the Word already 

363
00:22:09,200 --> 00:22:12,560
existed. 
The Word was with God, and the 

364
00:22:12,560 --> 00:22:17,200
Word was God. 
He existed in the beginning with

365
00:22:17,200 --> 00:22:19,800
God, and God created everything 
through him. 

366
00:22:20,400 --> 00:22:22,400
Nothing was created except 
through Him. 

367
00:22:23,080 --> 00:22:25,960
The Word gave life to everything
that was created, and His life 

368
00:22:25,960 --> 00:22:29,040
brought light to everyone. 
The light shines in the 

369
00:22:29,040 --> 00:22:31,360
darkness, and the darkness can 
never extinguish it. 

370
00:22:32,480 --> 00:22:35,600
God sent a man, John the 
Baptist, to tell about the light

371
00:22:35,600 --> 00:22:37,680
so that everyone might believe 
his testimony. 

372
00:22:38,520 --> 00:22:42,600
John himself was not the light. 
He was simply a witness to tell 

373
00:22:42,600 --> 00:22:46,120
about the light. 
The one who is the true light, 

374
00:22:46,120 --> 00:22:49,400
who gives light to everyone, was
coming into the world. 

375
00:22:50,440 --> 00:22:53,080
He came into the world he 
created, but the world didn't 

376
00:22:53,080 --> 00:22:56,680
recognize him. 
He came to his own people and 

377
00:22:56,680 --> 00:23:01,320
even they rejected him. 
But to all who believed Him and 

378
00:23:01,480 --> 00:23:06,320
accepted him, He gave the right 
to become children of God, 

379
00:23:07,080 --> 00:23:10,080
reborn, not with a physical 
birth resulting from human 

380
00:23:10,080 --> 00:23:13,240
passion or plan, but a birth 
that comes from God. 

381
00:23:14,440 --> 00:23:17,960
So the Word became human and 
made His home among us. 

382
00:23:18,600 --> 00:23:22,080
He was full of unfailing love 
and faithfulness, and we've seen

383
00:23:22,080 --> 00:23:25,680
His glory, the glory of the 
Father's one and only Son. 

384
00:23:27,360 --> 00:23:29,960
Now it's clear, the way John 
writes in his chapter and the 

385
00:23:29,960 --> 00:23:35,600
rest of his gospel, that Jesus 
is more than just a man sent by 

386
00:23:35,600 --> 00:23:39,320
God. 
Jesus is God taking on flesh in 

387
00:23:39,320 --> 00:23:42,920
order to bring his own rescue 
plan to fulfilment. 

388
00:23:44,000 --> 00:23:46,640
And John isn't the only New 
Testament writer to recognize 

389
00:23:46,640 --> 00:23:49,320
who Jesus is, though maybe he's 
the most obvious of them. 

390
00:23:50,120 --> 00:23:53,080
Other writers, like Paul and 
Peter and the author of Hebrews 

391
00:23:53,120 --> 00:23:57,120
all come to the same conclusion.
The letter to the Hebrews goes 

392
00:23:57,120 --> 00:24:01,720
so far as describing Jesus as 
the exact representation of 

393
00:24:01,720 --> 00:24:05,960
God's being. 
In other words, if you've seen 

394
00:24:05,960 --> 00:24:13,640
Jesus, you have seen God. 
The message of Christmas is not 

395
00:24:13,640 --> 00:24:16,400
just one of God sending a 
special prophet to do his 

396
00:24:16,400 --> 00:24:20,120
bidding. 
It is a story of God himself 

397
00:24:20,280 --> 00:24:27,520
coming down and walking among 
us, living among us, God himself

398
00:24:27,800 --> 00:24:33,120
coming to rescue his people, to 
restore the relationship between

399
00:24:33,120 --> 00:24:38,760
him and himself and us. 
This is why Jesus is also called

400
00:24:39,040 --> 00:24:43,840
Emmanuel, which means God with 
us. 

401
00:24:45,600 --> 00:24:50,240
So to wrap this up, when Jesus 
came into the world born as a 

402
00:24:50,240 --> 00:24:55,800
helpless baby to live a perfect 
and sinless life, he came as the

403
00:24:55,800 --> 00:25:01,760
King that was promised long ago.
He came also as a Saviour who 

404
00:25:01,760 --> 00:25:06,480
would deal with our biggest 
problem, our sin that separates 

405
00:25:06,480 --> 00:25:12,480
us from knowing God. 
And he came as God walking among

406
00:25:12,480 --> 00:25:18,480
us, making himself known to us 
so that we could understand just

407
00:25:18,480 --> 00:25:23,480
how much he loves us. 
But many of God's people still 

408
00:25:23,480 --> 00:25:27,000
missed Him when he came. 
They didn't recognize Him, even 

409
00:25:27,000 --> 00:25:31,720
though had they had waited for 
such a very, very long time for 

410
00:25:31,720 --> 00:25:35,400
his coming. 
Many didn't recognize Him even 

411
00:25:35,400 --> 00:25:38,720
as he walked around among them 
and taught them about why he 

412
00:25:38,720 --> 00:25:42,520
came. 
So I want to turn to us today 

413
00:25:43,720 --> 00:25:45,960
with all the evidence that the 
Bible presents. 

414
00:25:46,240 --> 00:25:52,200
And I want to ask you, what will
you do with the Messiah that 

415
00:25:52,200 --> 00:25:55,120
God's people had waited so long 
for? 

416
00:25:57,160 --> 00:26:03,880
Will you recognize him and learn
from him and trust him and 

417
00:26:03,880 --> 00:26:09,160
follow him as King and Saviour 
and God? 

418
00:26:10,920 --> 00:26:16,520
Or will you, like so many others
in Jesus day, who saw God 

419
00:26:16,520 --> 00:26:23,280
Himself, miss the one that 
history itself was waiting for, 

420
00:26:24,000 --> 00:26:25,840
that was promised from the very 
beginning? 

421
00:26:27,640 --> 00:26:33,920
I want to urge you not to be 
like those who reject Him, but 

422
00:26:33,920 --> 00:26:40,920
instead choose to trust Him and 
to celebrate Him who invites us 

423
00:26:40,920 --> 00:26:46,600
to become children of God. 
Even for those of us who already

424
00:26:46,840 --> 00:26:52,280
follow Him, let's not miss Him 
in our Christmas celebrations. 

425
00:26:53,080 --> 00:26:56,360
Let's not let it be all about 
the presence and the party and 

426
00:26:56,360 --> 00:27:00,200
the food. 
This is a time for remembering 

427
00:27:00,440 --> 00:27:06,800
and great rejoicing that He came
and waiting for Him to come 

428
00:27:06,960 --> 00:27:09,320
again. 
Let us pray. 

429
00:27:12,040 --> 00:27:18,560
Father God, thank you for your 
wonderful plan to save us and to

430
00:27:18,560 --> 00:27:21,560
restore our relationship with 
you through sending Jesus 

431
00:27:21,560 --> 00:27:27,120
Christ. 
Thank you that at Christmas we 

432
00:27:27,120 --> 00:27:32,000
get to remember how wonderful 
your plans are and how faithful 

433
00:27:32,000 --> 00:27:34,640
you are in fulfilling all that 
You promised. 

434
00:27:36,240 --> 00:27:41,240
Help us to keep keep trusting 
You as we continue to wait for 

435
00:27:41,240 --> 00:27:46,320
Jesus to come back again and to 
keep praising You as we 

436
00:27:46,320 --> 00:27:51,040
celebrate another beautiful 
Christmas in Jesus name, Amen. 

437
00:27:54,640 --> 00:27:56,800
Thank you for listening to 
today's message. 

438
00:27:56,800 --> 00:27:59,560
We hope you are encouraged and 
challenged in your faith. 

439
00:27:59,640 --> 00:28:02,200
If you're in the southern 
suburbs, we'd love to welcome 

440
00:28:02,200 --> 00:28:04,320
you in person at one of our 
serves. 

441
00:28:04,320 --> 00:28:07,480
Don't forget to subscribe, share
this message with a friend, and 

442
00:28:07,480 --> 00:28:10,720
stay connected with us on social
media for more inspiration 

443
00:28:10,720 --> 00:28:13,360
throughout the week. 
Until next time, stay clear and 

444
00:28:13,680 --> 00:28:14,840
keep shining your light.