You Shall Call His Name Jesus

Matthew 2:18-21

18 Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: when His mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child by the Holy Spirit. 19 And Joseph her husband, being a righteous man and not wanting to disgrace her, planned to send her away secretly. 20 But when he had considered this, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife; for the Child who has been conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. 21 She will bear a Son; and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.”

Intro:

During the Christmas season we recognize and celebrate the significance of Jesus’ coming to earth as a baby. And this morning I want to take just a minute to discuss the direction that was given to Joseph by an angel in His dream. You shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.

Too often at Christmastime we lose focus. Not just on the true meaning of Christmas, but how truly significant that meaning is. Christmas is Jesus Christ, God Himself, coming to earth for the distinct purpose of saving us from our sin. So I thought this morning we could bring our focus onto what exactly it is that Jesus needed to save us from, and more correctly what He DID save us from.

What did he come to save us from?

He shall save His people from…

Sin – born with it

The bondage of self-consciousness– Identity in Christ, oh if I could preach this this morning… you don’t have to worry about who you are in this world, because you can KNOW who you are in Him

The burden of discontent – There is perhaps no greater burden than discontentment. Many people today spend their time trying to find the one thing that’s wrong in every situation, no matter how great God blesses you, you still find something wrong. I had a conversation with someone the other day and we were talking about the stress of busyness. I looked at that brother and said isn’t it a wonderful thing when our greatest complaint is trying to figure out how to manage all of the blessings that God has bestowed upon us. You might argue that certain people are more blessed than you and perhaps that is the case. But each of us have the choice to be more thankful. If you are living and breathing in the United States of America this morning, that fact alone puts you in the top 4% of the world’s population when it comes to being blessed. Not only has He blessed you before, but He’s blessing you right now, and He’s going to bless you again. There has yet to be one day that I have lived that I didn’t make it through, and it’s because God saw fit to do so and continue a work in my life. He came to save us from the heavy burden of discontent. Godliness with contentment is great gain.

The tyranny of temper – What are you upset about? Proverbs says that anger lies in the bosom of fools. Life is too short, and you Christ died so that you might have life and joy and have them more abundantly. I’m going to urge you today that you don’t have to be angry. You can choose to release anger in the name of Jesus Christ, and be free from the bitterness and bondage that an angry life demands.

Doubting the providence (sovereignty) of God– Doubt is the anti-faith. The level of doubt that exist in your life is a clear representation of the amount of faith that you are lacking.

So why Did He come??? and why did it have to be Him?

He came to save the lost (Matthew 18:11) For the Son of Man has come to save that which was lost. He would also say Sick need a physician, not the well. If I called to make an appointment with my doctor every week he would find away to help me find another doctor. He would probably say something like I told you last week you were well, I have to focus on sick patients.

He came to save because no one else can (Acts 4:12) There is no other name under heaven that has been given among men, by which we must be saved. Refer back to name given in Matthew.

Because He was the only way (John 14:6)

Finally, and quite simply, Because He loves us (John 3:16)

During Christmas and new year, closer to God read your Bible and pray every day, lose weight eat less and move more, better marriage, make it about your spouse and see what happens, overnight results not guaranteed, and catch this one let’s spend more time loving people than trying to fix them.

ENJOY the Holiday, Put a smile on your face, count your blessings, and give thanks for Jesus, He has saved us.

PRAY

Merry Christmas, Go and Make Disciples