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This morning, we begin a new series that will lead us through the end of the year.
This series is simply called, The Heart of Christmas.
Thanksgiving is now behind us and Christmas is just a few weeks ahead!
And these few weeks, are going to go fast… too fast… and that is primarily the result of our fast pace of life.
With full schedules and overloaded calendars, we tend to miss out on some of the most incredible blessings this season has to offer.
This series is designed to remind us of the many blessings that come with Christmas… and no… these are not blessings that are wrapped up and laid under the tree.
The number one blessing we have received is the gift of Jesus Christ - there is no greater gift that this world could ever receive!
Along with His arrival, we have four amazing blessings we will be talking about.
When Christ came to this earth, He brought the blessings of:
Hope
Peace
Joy
Love
Thes four words… these four topics we will cover beginning today are POWERFUL words.
We might be tempted to gloss over them in our busyness and efforts to be productive and efficient… but I would suggest that if we had more hope… more peace… more joy… and more love… this world would be a different place!
And ALL of these things are blessings that come with Jesus… Jesus IS our hope… Jesus IS our peace… Jesus IS our joy… and Jesus IS our love!
While I truly enjoy all that comes with Christmas every year, I pray that we do not miss the heart of this special season.
Christmas is NOT just another annual holiday surrounded by cultural tradition.
Christmas celebrates the day that God’s light broke through in this dark world.
Can you remember… can you recall the day that Jesus Christ became real to you? Can you remember the moment that His light began to shine in your life?
Can you remember when you called on His name and He became your Lord and Savior?
For me… everything changed!
Just like how everything changed the moment Jesus came to this world and was laid in a manager.
Something new had come… and with Him came the topics we will be talking about the next few weeks.
Today, we center in on the word, Hope.
The message title today is Hope is at the Heart of Christmas.
And this hope… is unlike anything that can be found in this world.
I want us to consider something this morning… what is it, that makes hope so… powerful?
First off, what is hope?
Webster would define Hope as a feeling of expectation and desire for a certain thing to happen.
In this sense… hope is a wish… a desire… a dream for something to happen.
Typically, the thing or event hoped for is something we cannot obtain on our own… or the likelihood of it happening is slim to none.
I’m sure everyone of us have experienced this kind of hope before!
But this morning, I want us to understand that this kind of hope… is NOT the kind of hope Jesus brought to the table when He was born in Bethlehem.
To understand the kind of hope Jesus brings, we need to look back at something that took place long before He was born.
God’s people… were living in darkness… in HEAVY darkness.
They were suffering, they were desperate… and they were looking for hope.
They didn’t need some form of wishful desire or dream… as I can only imagine they all dreamed of something better.
What they needed… was a promise… a guarantee… something they could hold on to as they navigated the season they were in.
Their condition… in a nutshell… was the result of bad leadership.
The people of Israel had been suffering through the reigns of four ungodly kings: Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah.
They were corrupt and had led the people far from God.
It was a very dark time in history.
But then we come upon these words in the book of Isaiah… words that would give the people the hope they were looking for.
This passage makes two major statements.
This first is an acknowledgement of the brokenness and darkness that surrounded Israel due to sin and corruption.
The second is the hope of a dawning light through the birth of a child who would one day make all things right.
The Jewish people in the Old Testament needed these words to remind them that God had not forgotten about them.
And perhaps… it is in that statement right there that you will find much needed hope toady.
Hear me clearly, church… GOD HAS NOT FORGOTTEN ABOUT YOU.
Maybe you feel like the people of God… maybe the circumstances of your world have overwhelmed you.
Whatever the cause might be, maybe you find yourself lacking in hope instead of overflowing in it.
God wants to change that in you today.
God has not forgotten about you!
Not only has God not forgotten about you… God sent the answer for you… God has a plan for you… God has given us a great light, who is Jesus, to break through your darkness!
Perhaps your hope was lost to a lack of faith.
Perhaps your hope was lost to a series of difficult situations.
Perhaps your hope was lost through uncontrollable events.
Perhaps your hope was lost… through choosing sin.
Perhaps your hope was lost… because you lost sight of the Savior.
No matter the cause… THE LIGHT OF CHRIST HAS THE POWER TO SHINE THROUGH THAT DARK SITUATION.
Jesus is the hope you are looking for!
Christ came to this earth that we might have hope!
Because the reality was… we could not break through the current darkness on our own.
Here’s the deal… the enemy wants to try to keep a lid on your hope today.
He doesn’t want you to know the hope that can be found in Jesus.
Satan will do everything he can to keep you where you might be today.
I charge you this morning - do not merely go through the motions this Christmas season and miss out on the true hope that is Jesus.
Jesus truly is the reason for the season!
And when we look beyond the decorations, the parties, the presents, the trees, the lights, the gatherings, the food, and so on… I hope we will see… the greatest gift we could have ever asked for!
This world… is living in a deep darkness.
And if a person is not careful, that darkness can begin to creep in and overwhelm our souls.
This morning, I want us to see just how God’s light breaks through the darkness and brings us hope.
God SEES you.
God knows where you are and most importantly… HE KNOWS WHAT YOU NEED.
So let’s look at three reminders regarding hope that will help us keep focused on the true heart of Christmas.
The Presence of Darkness Threatens our Hope
Whoa now preacher!
This doesn’t sound like a very hopeful point!
Why would we start off with this one?
The answer is simple… we need to realize today that there is an active attack taking place against our hope.
And the only way to overcome these attacks is by remaining faithful to the giver of all hope.
I want us to look at something that took place in the Christmas story… a situation where the darkness of this world tried to infiltrate the hope that was coming.
The man’s name… was Joseph.
And He was engaged to a young lady named Marry.
We know the story well.
Mary is visited by an angel and she is told of the things that were to come.
She would have a child who would be the Son of God.
This child… was in fact the child that Isaiah had spoken of so many, many years before.
The hope… the light was on the way!
This was incredible news for sure!
Mary faithfully responds and the Son of God was on the way!
But for Joseph… the news was catastrophic.
Everything according to the world was telling him to break it off with Mary.
Joseph had lost hope in this future relationship.
And to be truthful… I can’t say that I blame him.
I can’t imagine what it must have felt like to hear Mary say, “Honey, I’m pregnant… but don’t worry, I didn’t cheat on you… this is God’s Son… I’ve been nothing but faithful.”
Uh huh… sure it is.
That’s not how this works!
Joseph wasn’t buying it!
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