Sermon Tone Analysis
Overall tone of the sermon
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The Christmas Story USUALLY starts here:
And don’t get me wrong - this is CENTRAL to the christmas story - but the Christmas story sits on top of a long set of prophecies set up through the bible.
Even down to the beginning of humanity - Adam and eve deceived, God curses the serpent, and says, ‘there’s a seed, a person coming who will crush your head’.
There’s a really important prophecy that I wanted to highlight about Christ today.
Really important to the nature of the Christmas story.
When we think of Christmas, what do we think of?
Presents, a tree, giving gifts.
Maybe, a nativity scene, a quiet baby in a manger?
But what about this portrait?
A person, destined to be familiar with pain, despised by the world, a man of suffering?
A sacrifice born into the world, to pay for our sins and to set us free?
This sounds like a terrible story!
But
Christmas isn’t really about Jesus’ low circumstances - it’s about ours
See, in the manger, all we see is the humble circumstances, the stable and no space at the inn. the broken Israel.
But when God called the shepherds - there were choirs of angels CELEBRATING.
When jesus faced the cross, we see the stress, and the pain, and the horror of it.
Jesus - he saw it as bringing glory to His father.
He saw it as God’s master plan throughout the thousands of years being finished.
In the natural world, it seems like things weren’t going well.
Persecution, hatred, rejection.
But in the spiritual world - it was totally different.
In the spiritual world, God sent His son in power, and might, to break the hold that death had on us.
in the cross, Jesus didn’t just win - he made a public spectacle of the powers and authorities.
See, Jesus was completely moral and right - and people treated him like he was demon possessed.
He was perfectly just - and people treated him like he was rejected by God.
He was the glory and wonder of God in human form, and people cast him out like he was worthless.
But Jesus wasn’t living what HE deserved -
Jesus carried what WE deserved
Jesus was a man of sorrows - but they were our sorrows.
Jesus was pierced - because we did wrong.
He was crushed because we were immoral.
The story of the troubles of Jesus is our story.
They’re our troubles.
He was punished - and we were given peace.
He was wounded - and we were healed.
In every harsh word, every thrown stone and driven nail - we were brought closer and closer to God.
And when Jesus was crucified - we were forgiven completely.
When he was given new life 3 days later - so were we.
Christmas is about our pain bore by someone else
See, this is the very reason that Jesus was born.
And he knew it:
That’s what I love so much about the Christmas season.
It’s a constant reminder that, 2000 years ago, God’s son was born.
And because of that - i can be free.
I can be free from the problems that would crush me.
From the pain that would destroy me.
Because of the birth and death of Jesus - I don’t have to carry the pain, and the problems.
I don’t have to carry death in my life - i can be free.
I can be a new creation with God.
We are free from the judgment we earned for ourselves, we are free from death itself.
Christmas reminds us that in Jesus, we were lost - but now we are free
I really love the end of the Isaiah 53 prophecy:
Life can often be very overwhelming and confusing.
Sometimes, we just don’t know what’s going on, or why something happened.
And sometimes the problems can get so big and so crushing that we don’t see a way out.
But to God, he doesn’t see us as his enemies.
He sees us as sheep, gone astray, wandering lost because of our sins.
And God took all of those sins, all of those ways that we have wandered from Him - and he put them on his son.
And
when Jesus died - we were set free
And that is amazing news.
When we celebrate Christmas, we can remember that Jesus was born to set us free.
And when He set us free - we were made completely free.
If we choose to follow him, if we choose to live our life WITH God instead of against him or without him - we can be free.
Whatever is holding you down or holding you back today - you can be free.
Whatever ways your problems or your circumstances affect you - you can be free.
INVITE TO PRAY.
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