Monday, December 24, 2007
Christmas Eve
The song we just sang has been a Christmas favorite of many for years. Like many Christmas songs, it has some questionable
facts – the angels are never said in the Bible to have sung, we don’t know if there were oxen or donkeys in the stable where the
manger was – the Bible doesn’t say. The shepherds are never mentioned as guarding the newborn Savior as the song suggests.
But there are some things in that song that we should consider as we celebrate the birth of the Savior of the world tonight and
tomorrow.
What Child is this? This is Christ the King. From the time of Adam and Eve, when sin first entered the existence of mankind and
ruined his relationship with his Creator, God has promised a Savior, a Messiah, a Christ. This Child born in Bethlehem is that
Savior. If we go back to the first mention of the coming Savior in Genesis 3, we can see that His coming was set in place to fix
the disaster of sin in mankind. This Child is the Savior, the Christ.
Mentioning the problem of sin, we are reminded that we DO have a problem. All of mankind is infected with the disease of sin.
And, as we saw in Romans, sin brings with it death which is separation from God and death has spread to all of mankind. We are
all separated from God by the sin we carry in us. We mentioned on a recent Sunday morning that God didn’t send the baby Jesus
to give us a nice Christmas story – a warm, fuzzy, happy little account to make us warm on cold December nights. God sent
Jesus as a human being to resolve the biggest problem we face as human beings – sin. This Child is the same Jesus we see in the
New Testament who died for our sins – paid the penalty for all of us. Each of us individually needs to respond to what Jesus did
for us through His death.
This, this is Christ the King, the song states. The Lord Jesus Christ fulfilled countless prophesies including one made to God’s
servant David that David’s family would reign forever in God’s Kingdom. Jesus was a descendant of David and the only one
who, having risen from the dead, can and does fulfill the promise God made to David. The Lord Jesus Christ is the King – and
someday He will literally come and set up His Kingdom on earth. And in heaven the Lord Jesus will reign forever over the family
of God. This Child, born in Bethlehem in these dirty conditions was truly the King of the Universe. God doesn’t do things the
way you and I would. 1 Corinthians 1 tells us that He uses the weak things of this world to put to shame the things which are
mighty. He uses the foolish things of this world to confound the wise. Why lies He in such mean estate, where ox and ass are
feeding? The King of the Universe came to earth as a baby in a stable – no real fanfare, no displays of power. It does not change
who He is. He is still the King. And that’s another area where you and I need to look at our response.
Is Jesus the King of you life? Do you do the bidding of your King? Are you a servant of the King? It is easy to say “yes” to all
those questions, but the evidence of our lives tells the real story. Where do we spend our time? How do we use the money God
gives us? What do we do with the abilities and energy He supplies to us? Do we use it for His purposes? If we honestly look at
our lives and tell the truth, most of us would have to say that someone else is the king of our lives – most of us would have to say
that WE are the king of our own life.
That is NOT how we were meant to live. We were created to live for the glory and pleasure of God. Jesus Christ came and lived
the human life the way God always wanted it lived and then died and rose from the dead to give us the opportunity to experience
that same kind of life. You and I make very poor kings and queens when it comes to living the way God wants us to live. But
when we give ourselves to Him and let Him live His life in us, we experience the kind of life God has always desired for us. Give
up your life to the real King and let Him do His God stuff in you. We will be amazed at how exciting and meaningful life is when it
is lived the way it was meant to be lived.
Good Christian, fear: for sinners here the silent Word is pleading. This Child came, as Jesus said of Himself, to seek and to save
that which was lost. In John 1 we see that Jesus Christ is the Living Word of God – everything the Bible says is who Jesus is.
And the Living Word, when He was born in Bethlehem, began His mission of offering salvation to the lost world. Sinners, come
be set free from sin. That is the plea. Those of us who are believers need to continue to share that plea with those we know and
care about.
Nails, spear, shall pierce Him through, the cross be borne for me, for you. This song points to the most important aspects of the
life of this Child. Christmas is a great holiday and one we enjoy celebrating, but the most meaningful holiday is Resurrection
Sunday, when we celebrate the results of the death and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. Even His birth was filled with
pictures of His death and resurrection. Jesus was born in a stable – not in His own home. Jesus was buried in a borrowed tomb.
Jesus the baby was wrapped in swaddling clothes – strips of cloth. The body of Jesus was wrapped in strips of cloth before He
was buried in the borrowed tomb.
The last verse of this song starts out, So bring Him incense, gold and myrrh. When the wise men came a couple of years later,
two of the gifts they brought were frankincense and myrrh – some of the same things that were used on the body of Jesus before
burial. Come peasant, come king, to own Him. The offer of salvation God brings us through Jesus Christ is to all of us, no
matter if we are rich or poor, important or unknown. Anyone who realizes their need of salvation can come and receive it through
the Lord Jesus Christ. The King of kings salvation brings, let loving hearts enthrone Him. May He take up residence in all of us
as we believe in Him.
The Christmas season is a great time to consider where you are with the Lord Jesus Christ. Is He a good luck charm you keep in
your pocket and bring out in special circumstances? Is He an irritant that you put up with and try to ignore? Or is He your Lord
and your God? If you claim that He is your Lord, that implies that your will is subject to His. You do what HE wants. Do you?
I want to give anyone the opportunity tonight to respond to the offer of salvation the Lord Jesus makes to us at Christmas. Our
biggest problem is sin. Sin is what ruins the world, ruins our relationships with one another and, worst of all, has ruined our
relationship with God. Do you know that you are a sinner?
God created mankind and has always desired to have a close relationship with each of us. But with sin in us, we were separated
from Him and could not restore that relationship. So God did the impossible and made restoration a possibility through the life,
death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. We celebrate His first coming tonight and tomorrow. When He came, Jesus grew up and
lived the same kind of life that each of us has to live – but Jesus did it without ever sinning, by the power of God. Then, this
sinless Man took the amazing step of dying for the sins of all of us – taking all of our sins upon Himself and taking the penalty for
them – thereby paying the debt we owed God and the payment God owed us for sin – death. That is great news for any human
being, but we don’t get to enjoy the advantages of that payment unless we believe and respond. When we believe, it says in
Romans 10, we are justified and made righteous by His death – made to be just as if we had never sinned. And, having believed,
we then respond by yielding our lives to Jesus Christ as our Master – our Lord – and it says that we experience salvation – the
rescue of our lives both now and forever. And what is it we are supposed to believe? That God raised Jesus Christ from the
dead. What does that do for us? Our sins are paid for and now, believing that Jesus Christ is alive from the dead, we can take
advantage of what God wants for every person – a life like Jesus lived. You and I can experience the same kind of life that Jesus
lived when we yield our lives to Him and He, alive from the dead, comes in and lives His life in us.
Do you want to believe tonight? Now is the perfect time. Let’s pray.
If you have understood and believed for the first time tonight that you need a Savior and Jesus IS that Savior, please repeat this
prayer to God.
Heavenly Father
I know I am a sinner
I know I cannot save myself
I know Your way is the only way of salvation
I believe that Jesus Christ paid for my sins
I believe that Jesus Christ rose from the dead
I ask You to forgive my sins
I ask You to come into my life
I ask You to live in me
In Jesus’ name
Amen
If you prayed that prayer and want to share your decision with someone, do that before you leave tonight. There is a celebration
in heaven for all those who believe – Jesus Himself is excited that His salvation has come to you.
As we celebrate His birth tonight and tomorrow, we have spent a lot of time already talking about His death. We are going to
remember His death tonight through communion. His birth is great, but it is His death and resurrection that hold the most meaning
for us. So we will remember His body and His blood which He gave for us. If you are a believer, you are welcome to participate
in this remembrance.