Become a Creator today!Start creating today - Share your story with the world!
Start for free
00:00:00
00:00:01
Christmas Eve Sermon
10 Plays30 days ago
John 3:16
Humanity's Greatest Need
Recommended
Transcript
The Savior's Purpose: Forgiveness Over Material Needs
00:00:01
Speaker
If our greatest need had been that of information, God would have sent us an educator. If god if our greatest need had been that of technology, God would have sent us a scientist. If our greatest need had been money, God would have sent us an economist. If our greatest need had been pleasure, God would have sent us an entertainer. But friends, our greatest need was forgiveness. Therefore, he sent us a savior.
00:00:28
Speaker
The world would have you believe that Christmas is all about many things, but I'm here to tell you tonight that there's just one true meaning of Christmas, and that is that God stepped down out of heaven, stepped down unto earth in the person of Jesus Christ, the anointed one, Emmanuel, God, with us, the promised Messiah from the Old Testament who would come to save his people from the problem of sin,
00:00:56
Speaker
Friends, this season is all about one person and one person only.
The True Essence of Christmas: Celebrating Jesus
00:01:00
Speaker
And that is?
00:01:03
Speaker
and that is
00:01:06
Speaker
He's the reason for the season. It's not the gifts, it's not the tree, it's not the family celebrations. Don't get me wrong, those are all great things. But those are all secondary things. For the primary thing, the main thing, is all about Jesus.
00:01:23
Speaker
He gave up the splendors of heaven to walk into the brokenness of earth. He laid aside his divinity and he placed on humanity. He did it all for one reason and for one reason only, and that is to make a way, a way back home for a broken world and a broken people to be found again once by God.
Finding Community and Returning to God
00:01:45
Speaker
Perhaps you're here tonight and you need a return to God. Perhaps you've been far off We often don't like to use the word lost anymore when it comes to people, but perhaps you've been wandering, maybe even trying to do life on your own with no direction, carelessly making decisions what puts yourself and others in harm. If that's you tonight, maybe maybe this is just that night for you. My prayer is that the Holy Spirit would open your eyes to a new and better life.
00:02:22
Speaker
Christmas is God's way of pointing you back to where you belong. And for many of you, that's with him. For some of you, that's here at this church. um We have some people from different churches here tonight. Welcome. This is the community in which you could be part of as well. And I'm not here to try to take you from an existing church if you're happy there. But let me tell you what, we're really happy here. So if you're looking for a church home, this might very well be the night that you make that decision.
Path to Eternal Life: Faith in Jesus
00:02:54
Speaker
We don't have to live lives that are lost and broken because God's great love has made one way. And I like to tell people that, especially new believers. Friends, there is only one way to make right with God. There's only one way to heaven. There's not many ways to heaven. There's one way, and that person is Jesus. The love of God is spoken of in a passage that is somewhat unconventional during the Christmas season.
00:03:24
Speaker
But I thought as I looked through all the various scriptures that I could present today in a very short and concise fashion, I feel like the Gospel of John provides us a new perspective on what took place at Bethlehem on that very Christmas night. John 3 16 is a very famous passage. Many people who don't even know the Bible know John 3 16. So if you know John 3 16, would you indulge me?
00:03:52
Speaker
And let's let's repeat it on it loud. For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son that whoever believes in him shall not perish, but what? Right, so friends, you have two options in this fabulous passage, and I think that's why I love it so much. In one hand, belief in Jesus says you will not perish. So what that tells me in and not so many terms is there is a real reality that we must celebrate on Christmas, that there is a real destination that is apart from God that you will indeed perish. But if you place your faith in Jesus, you will not perish.
Symbols of Christmas: Hope and Reconnection with God
00:04:40
Speaker
Now on the other hand, not only will you not perish, you will also have eternal life.
00:04:47
Speaker
Because of God's great love for us, He sent His Son Jesus. with the sole mission to seek and to save. You ever thought about that on Christmas? We don't often think about that when we look at the the baby in the manger, do we? We think about the nativity scene out there with the animals. We think about him in the manger, the most unlikeliest of people. The king of kings and the lord of lords is born in a dirty manger. That's what we think about in Christmas. But friends, what Christmas is is a picture of
00:05:21
Speaker
what we said these last couple weeks, hope, peace, joy, and love. God's extension down to us, John says, is this key to finding our very way back home. We must believe, or you must have faith. Some people like to use the word trust. All those mean the exact same thing. You must place your trust, you must believe in, you must have faith in,
00:05:51
Speaker
Jesus. So what does it mean to have faith in Jesus? Well, it's not simply that we believe He existed, right, even though He indeed existed. It's not simply that He was a good prophet or a good teacher, even though He was both of those things. It's not even that we acknowledge that He was the Son of God, even though He is the Son of God.
Understanding Faith and Jesus' Sacrifice
00:06:16
Speaker
When you place your faith in Jesus, what you're saying is you're placing your faith, your trust, your belief in the saving work that Jesus did at the cross. Because see, friends, what helps us get back home where we belong is this saving faith. It is the faith that said Jesus took our place on that cross. That he he bore the penalty of sin for you and for me.
00:06:47
Speaker
And I think oftentimes we miss that at Christmas. We get so wrapped up in the gifts and the trees and the tinsel and the family coming into town and the houses that need to be decorated, just so right. um Our youngest daughter and her boyfriend just came into town and we we did exactly what I tell you not to do. We were scrambling and cleaning so that when she came over, she thought, wow, Dad and Kim live in an immaculate house.
00:07:18
Speaker
Why do we do that? Why do we do that? The real reason, and I'm so happy they were able to come to church on Sunday and that we're able to preach a message of God's saving grace to them, to my own youngest daughter who does not know Him. And I will tell you that today from the pulpit. Because many of you think, oh, the pastor's kids, they have it all together. No, your kids are just as screwed up as mine.
00:07:48
Speaker
I say that in a joking manner, friends, but the truth is we all need Jesus. And what a better time than tonight than to sit here and to reflect. What does it mean to place our faith in Jesus?
Role of the Holy Spirit in Conviction
00:08:02
Speaker
It's more than just this intellectual exercise. It's this conviction of the heart. It's that we're persuaded and confident in what he did at the cross is true. That it truly paid the debt. And that when we place our trust in him, we we are not only not going to perish, but we're going to have eternal life.
00:08:24
Speaker
This is the work of the Holy Spirit of God, something that you and I cannot do on our own. So while I get up Sunday after Sunday and Christmas Eve after Christmas Eve and I earnestly pray for you to understand who Jesus is, purely me saying it isn't going to convict. It is the power of the Holy Spirit to convict. My job is simply to tell you the truth of the gospel message. And that truth is Jesus came in a person on this earth and lived a sinless life And his own people didn't know him. And yet he was taken to the cross. And in a horrific, horrific display of inhumanity, he bore the sin for you and for me on that cross. He paid that penalty that we could not pay. He was buried in three days, he rose again. The good news, friends, is not that Jesus died on the cross, but that he rose again.
00:09:25
Speaker
It's a hope, it's a promise that you and I will one day also be raised again.
Christmas as an Invitation to a Meaningful Life
00:09:33
Speaker
Friends, at the very heart of Christmas is Jesus' invitation to join him and to experience a full and abundant life that is only available through him.
00:09:44
Speaker
So I don't know if you're here tonight and you're trying to earn your way, you're trying to get that next big purchase, you're trying to fill that void with any number of different ways that the world tells you to do it. Today very well may be that time where the Holy Spirit opens your eyes and says, aren't you tired of doing it your way? Why don't you try doing it my way?
00:10:10
Speaker
Will you join the Son of God, Emmanuel, who stepped down out of heaven onto earth in this fantastic rescue mission to restore lives. Will you join him? Will you trust him with your life?
Spreading Faith and Building Community
00:10:32
Speaker
An unapologetically belief in him, which means you go about telling others about him, not just here on Sunday,
00:10:43
Speaker
not just here on Christmas Eve, but you go out with joy in your life and profess who Jesus is in your life and the change that he has made in your life. I simply put, if you haven't already done so, would you consider doing that tonight? Before you leave tonight, if you don't know the Lord, find me. If you can't find me, find somebody else that's here in the church. They all know Jesus. That's the benefit of being here at First Baptist Church.
00:11:13
Speaker
Friends, we build a life right on this. So while I may make a few jokes here from the pulpit, my friends, this is what we steer very clear. We steer real close to God's word. And I preach right from it so that you can go home and hopefully you can follow along. It keeps you safe, it keeps me safe.
00:11:34
Speaker
But what it happens is it builds a community who really knows the word of God and really knows Jesus. So if that's not you tonight, but but you want it to be, and I'm not saying you have to come join First Baptist Church. If you just want to know who Jesus is, will you come find me after? I would love to sit and have a conversation. God so loved the word world that he sent his son in a form of a baby.
00:12:01
Speaker
What became in a cradle eventually led to the cross. But what led to the cross eventually ended victoriously in an empty tomb. May we be reminded of the true reason for the season. It's not about the trees. It's not about the presence. It's not about your company. It's all about
00:12:22
Speaker
it's all about