The Place... Among Us!
Notes
Transcript
You and I are INVITED… as we look at this divine invitation, we started by looking at
THE TIME… realizing Christ came at the right time!
A MERRY CHRISTMAS was defined: It is a pleasure to declare the Messiah has been sent!
Which indicates the next part of the invitation to consider…
THE PLACE… Among Us!
How simple that is for us to come if He came to us!!!
Wait a minute… didn’t it say in Micah that it was Bethlehem? Wasn’t the place a manger?
Yes and for those around at that time they could have come joining shepherds for the birth party
The prophet Isaiah 7:14 stated some 700 years prior that…
“Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, a virgin will be with child and bear a son, and she will call His name Immanuel.
Matthew 1:21-23 records the angel’s instructions to Joseph…
“She will bear a Son; and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.” Now all this took place to fulfill what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet: “Behold, the virgin shall be with child and shall bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,” which translated means, “God with us.”
The location and place is AMONG US! Consider with me as we look at this through John’s narrative of the “First Noel”… and yes I got a little geeky on words again and looked at NOEL:
NOËL
1: a Christmas carol
2 capitalized: CHRISTMAS
English speakers borrowed the word noel from French. It can be traced further back to the Latin word natalis, which can mean "birth-day" or "relating to birth"… “to be born”.
Noels were being sung in Latin or French for centuries before English-speakers started using the word to refer to Christmas carols in the 18th century. Today it refers both to Christmas and to Christmas carols. Songs of Joy declaring the Christmas Birth!
When one considers that God came AMONG US through the birth narrative in scripture it truly brings JOY and puts a song in the hearts of mankind. Read with me this narrative from John’s perspective… John 1:1-14
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being. In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men. The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it. There came a man sent from God, whose name was John. He came as a witness, to testify about the Light, so that all might believe through him. He was not the Light, but he came to testify about the Light. There was the true Light which, coming into the world, enlightens every man. He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him. He came to His own, and those who were His own did not receive Him. But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God. And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.
Coming Communicator
Coming Communicator
Word becomes flesh.. dwelt “among Us”
WORD… Logos
The whole content of God’s revelation and as
A verbal echo of Genesis 1 and in many utterances of the prophets—‘Word, the Message in Flesh
Follow John’s logic here John 1:1-2
The Word is eternal (Before Time!)
The Word is in relationship with God (With God)
The Word is God (He is NOT “a” god)
The Word is Creator… and His creation has been declaring Him ever since…
Jesus Christ… He is GOD!
Consider all Jesus says and does with the reality He is God…
He did not come into existence in Bethlehem, or when the angel visited Mary. NO!
Jesus has been from eternity past God! And He became Immanuel “God with Us”
Verse 14 states the Word became flesh… He added humanity to His deity, yet Christ Himself did not change.
“Dwelt among us” … made His abode, lived with for a while, made His tabernacle (a temporary tent) with us
Consider the Humility of our God to do this… Philippians speaks of God humbling Himself to coming as man and going to His death even death on a cross! (FOR YOU & I)
Emptied of Himself
Emptied of Himself
Theologians use the term INCARNATION… God becoming man!
This God , Sustainer, Creator… came to His creation as The Creator
Emptied= He did not cease to be God, nor at any time was He less God. He willingly was eliminating all privileges or prerogatives associated with such status or rank!
The one who created the law of gravity now puts Himself under it.
The One who gave limitations of hunger, fatigue, and understanding, now allows Himself to be limited.
The One outside of time, creator of time is now constrained by it!
Frederick Buechner describes the Incarnation as “a kind of vast joke whereby the creator of the ends of the earth comes among us in diapers.” He concludes, “Until we too have taken the idea of the God-man seriously enough to be scandalized by it, we have not taken it as seriously as it demands to be taken.”
Consider what the prophet Isaiah 9:6 says about this baby in a manger
For a child will be born to us, a son will be given to us; And the government will rest on His shoulders; And His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace.
NOTICE: He is NOT “a” mighty god… He IS Mighty God!!!
Dietrich Bonhoeffer Where is the divinity, where is the might of the child? In the divine love in which he became like us. His poverty in the manger is his might. In the might of love he overcomes the chasm between God and humankind, he overcomes sin and death, he forgives sin and awakens from the dead. Kneel down before this miserable manger, before this child of poor people, and repeat in faith the stammering words of the prophet: “Mighty God!”...
God becoming man (100% man YET REMAINED 100% God) Creator stepping into His creation
The Gospel of John was written for a purpose John 20:30-31
Therefore many other signs Jesus also performed in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; but these have been written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you may have life in His name.
This baby we celebrate is the Son of God and He is the one who brings… (TO US)… life!!!
Why Among Us...
Why Among Us...
Would the Word Come???
The WORD: God has been communicating with us from the very beginning
He communicated His promise
He communicated His Law through Moses
Through the prophets He communicated His will and warnings
Through the scriptures He communicated His heart...
BUT… through His Son He communicated His love, a free gift to ALL mankind
John 1:14 declares some amazing truth...
DWELT: He lived as we do
SAW: He lived an example we could watch, see, observe
FROM: God the Father showed us Himself in such a powerful way when that baby came lying in the manger
AMONG US… FULL of GRACE & TRUTH: John 3:16-17 answers the why this way in the Words of Jesus Himself:
“For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. “For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him.
John wrote these things “so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you may have life in His name.”
What an amazing powerful and passionate plan God had when He sent us His Son… a baby lying in a manger. That “FIRST NOEL” bringing the opportunity for relationship that allows us to declare Merry Christmas… It is a pleasure to declare the Messiah has been sent!