12/25/2022 - Celebrating a Child Born, Submitting to a Son Given!

Grace Place Atlanta COGBF 4700 Mitchell Street Forest Park, GA 30297 Website: atlantacogbf.org Email: info@atlantacogbf.org Phone: (404) 241-6781 Wayne D. Mack, Pastor / Pastor Wayne D. Mack Sermon Notes December 25, 2022 Celebrating a Child Born, Submitting to a Son Given! Isaiah 9: 6 & 7 6 For unto us a Child is born, Unto us a Son is given; And the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. 7 Of the increase of His government and peace There will be no end, Upon the throne of David and over His kingdom, To order it and establish it with judgment and justice From that time forward, even forever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this. 1 Corinthians 13:11 New King James Version 1 11 When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child; but when I became a man, I put away childish things. Start Here: Thank God for Christmas! It comes at one of the best times of the year. Imagine celebrating Christmas in the middle of a hot July Summer. December just seems to be the perfect time of year to focus on Christ as He is for the Perfect Reason for the season . . . and every season. For me, I have been celebrating wonderful Christmases for more than a half century. Thanks to my parents who ensured their seven children’s Christmases were very, very bright. I’m especially proud to say that that same joy and cheerful spirit has been caught by me and continues today with my own beautiful family. I hope the same for you! As a boy and a young man, my parents got me off to a good start celebrating Christmas – and with the understanding that Christmas was not about Santa Claus, but about their pocketbooks [hard earned money], their love, and Christ’s enablement of them to give us a good Christmas. Today, as a grown man, and a preacher, teacher, and communicator of the Gospel Message of Jesus Christ – I personally know the full expression of What and WHO Christmas and everyday life is all about – Christ, the Son of the Living God. But would it surprise you to know that millions of people who celebrate Christmas have never embraced the fullness of God’s plan to reach their 2 hearts through a Savior who first came to this earth as a new born baby conceived by the Holy Spirit through a Virgin girl. . . one “Christmas” night? The title of this morning’s message captures and frames God’s intent for mankind through Christmas. Our title is: Celebrating a Child Born, Submitting to a Son Given! Our Scripture Focus is found in . . . Isaiah 9: 6 & 7 6 For unto us a Child is born, Unto us a Son is given; And the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. 7 Of the increase of His government and peace There will be no end, Upon the throne of David and over His kingdom, To order it and establish it with judgment and justice From that time forward, even forever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this. As I foresaid, it would probably surprise you to know that millions of people who celebrate Christmas have never embraced the fullness of God’s plan to reach their hearts through a Savior who first came to this earth as a virgin birthed baby. 3 So, after many years of hearing the stories of Christmas, we have come to add other memorable snapshots of Christ’s birth such as . . . • Mary and Joseph traveling back to their hometown of Bethlehem to be numbered in the census, but more so that the Christ Child would be born where God ordained Him to be born. • Mary bringing forth her firstborn Son, and wrapping Him in swaddling cloths, and laying Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn. • Shepherds living out in the fields keeping watch over their sheep who encountered an angel who said to them, “Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people. 11 For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. • Wise men from the East who saw His star and who came to Jerusalem seeking to worship He who had been born “King of the Jews”. • “Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace, goodwill toward men!” Luke 2:14 • Emanuel – God With Us!!!! There’s so much more to say on this, but time would fail me to tell it all. Nevertheless, I will tell you this . . . There was no Little Drummer Boy at the manger; nor were there Three Ships Come Sailing In on Christmas Day in the Morning, Nor Five Golden Rings or Nine 4 ladies dancing nor Eight maids a-milking. [Nor a partridge in a pear tree]. Perhaps these came later, but not on that Holy Night when Christ was Born!!!! Given all that, I want to challenge every adult hearing this message to assess (and evaluate) where you stand with the Christ of Christmas. The question is: Have you grown with God in Christ with every Christmas? Or, have you remained stagnant and complacently fascinated with the Jingling of Bells and Decked Halls. Here’s the biblical challenge for this Christmas Day. It is found in Isaiah 9: 6a . . . which reads . . . . 6 For unto us a Child is born, Unto us a Son is given; This verse is about self-examination and self-inventory. It’s really a measure of whether you have grown to see Christmas for what it really is. Are you still seeing a Child; or are you now seeing a Son, the Son? This verse begs an answer from you and me as to whether we remain still only celebrating the Child Christ born over 2000 years ago – or have we matured to a point of understanding that the Child has since developed and matured into a Son – a gown man -- who has been given 5 for us; that is, presented to a lost world on the Cross and is ours by submitting and believing!!! So, the question remains, Are you still only celebrating [year after year] the baby Child Jesus, still laying in a manger, wrapped in swaddling cloths, somewhere in Bethlehem, out in the barn stables because there was no room in the Inn? [Where the ox and lamb kept time . . . pa-rump-pa-pum-pum]. To see Christ as only that Child born to a virgin, comes short of God’s hope for us. If we stop there, then the only thing we can do is thank God, tell stories, and sing songs about the Child who was born unto us. That won’t work because it will cause us to come severely short of the salvation He has planned for us in Christ the Son. We must grow in our knowledge the Child who grew into a Son Who ultimately was given to a fallen world to save each one from their sin. So, we celebrate the Child and thank God for Him being born that starry night, but we submit, believe, abide, and accept the Son as the one given for a lost world in need of a Savior. Now that we are adults, we must come to see and know Christ for Who He really is. Not just a baby in a manger for certain season. We can’t stop there. But rather, we must come to the place that the Apostle Paul admitted every man and woman must come to: 1 Corinthians 13:11 NKJV 11 When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child; but when I became a man, I put away childish things. 6 With that said, on this Christmas Day 2022, we celebrate the Christ Child, but we embrace and receive the Son given for us according to: John 3:16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. And . . . 1John 4:9 9 In this the love of God was manifested toward us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him. Let’s celebrate a Child Born, but let us not forget to submit to a Son given. Celebrating a Child Born, Submitting to a Son Given! END . . . 7