2024 Christmas Eve

Romans #15

Northside Church

Jan 5, 2025

Jamey Mills

Merry Christmas Eve,

My name is Jamey Mills, I’m the lead pastor here at Northside… and we are so excited to celebrate Christmas Eve with you all…

Tonight we are blessed to hear the reading of the Christmas Story from the Gospel of Luke from two really awesome young ladies.

Luke 2:1–20 NLT

At that time the Roman emperor, Augustus, decreed that a census should be taken throughout the Roman Empire. (This was the first census taken when Quirinius was governor of Syria.) All returned to their own ancestral towns to register for this census. And because Joseph was a descendant of King David, he had to go to Bethlehem in Judea, David’s ancient home. He traveled there from the village of Nazareth in Galilee. He took with him Mary, to whom he was engaged, who was now expecting a child. And while they were there, the time came for her baby to be born. She gave birth to her firstborn son. She wrapped him snugly in strips of cloth and laid him in a manger, because there was no lodging available for them. That night there were shepherds staying in the fields nearby, guarding their flocks of sheep. Suddenly, an angel of the Lord appeared among them, and the radiance of the Lord’s glory surrounded them. They were terrified, but the angel reassured them. “Don’t be afraid!” he said. “I bring you good news that will bring great joy to all people. The Savior—yes, the Messiah, the Lord—has been born today in Bethlehem, the city of David! And you will recognize him by this sign: You will find a baby wrapped snugly in strips of cloth, lying in a manger.” Suddenly, the angel was joined by a vast host of others—the armies of heaven—praising God and saying, “Glory to God in highest heaven, and peace on earth to those with whom God is pleased.” When the angels had returned to heaven, the shepherds said to each other, “Let’s go to Bethlehem! Let’s see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.” They hurried to the village and found Mary and Joseph. And there was the baby, lying in the manger. After seeing him, the shepherds told everyone what had happened and what the angel had said to them about this child. All who heard the shepherds’ story were astonished, but Mary kept all these things in her heart and thought about them often. The shepherds went back to their flocks, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen. It was just as the angel had told them.

Luke 2 NLT

At that time the Roman emperor, Augustus, decreed that a census should be taken throughout the Roman Empire. (This was the first census taken when Quirinius was governor of Syria.) All returned to their own ancestral towns to register for this census. And because Joseph was a descendant of King David, he had to go to Bethlehem in Judea, David’s ancient home. He traveled there from the village of Nazareth in Galilee. He took with him Mary, to whom he was engaged, who was now expecting a child. And while they were there, the time came for her baby to be born. She gave birth to her firstborn son. She wrapped him snugly in strips of cloth and laid him in a manger, because there was no lodging available for them. That night there were shepherds staying in the fields nearby, guarding their flocks of sheep. Suddenly, an angel of the Lord appeared among them, and the radiance of the Lord’s glory surrounded them. They were terrified, but the angel reassured them. “Don’t be afraid!” he said. “I bring you good news that will bring great joy to all people. The Savior—yes, the Messiah, the Lord—has been born today in Bethlehem, the city of David! And you will recognize him by this sign: You will find a baby wrapped snugly in strips of cloth, lying in a manger.” Suddenly, the angel was joined by a vast host of others—the armies of heaven—praising God and saying, “Glory to God in highest heaven, and peace on earth to those with whom God is pleased.” When the angels had returned to heaven, the shepherds said to each other, “Let’s go to Bethlehem! Let’s see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.” They hurried to the village and found Mary and Joseph. And there was the baby, lying in the manger. After seeing him, the shepherds told everyone what had happened and what the angel had said to them about this child. All who heard the shepherds’ story were astonished, but Mary kept all these things in her heart and thought about them often. The shepherds went back to their flocks, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen. It was just as the angel had told them. Eight days later, when the baby was circumcised, he was named Jesus, the name given him by the angel even before he was conceived. Then it was time for their purification offering, as required by the law of Moses after the birth of a child; so his parents took him to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord. The law of the Lord says, “If a woman’s first child is a boy, he must be dedicated to the Lord.” So they offered the sacrifice required in the law of the Lord—“either a pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons.” At that time there was a man in Jerusalem named Simeon. He was righteous and devout and was eagerly waiting for the Messiah to come and rescue Israel. The Holy Spirit was upon him and had revealed to him that he would not die until he had seen the Lord’s Messiah. That day the Spirit led him to the Temple. So when Mary and Joseph came to present the baby Jesus to the Lord as the law required, Simeon was there. He took the child in his arms and praised God, saying, “Sovereign Lord, now let your servant die in peace, as you have promised. I have seen your salvation, which you have prepared for all people. He is a light to reveal God to the nations, and he is the glory of your people Israel!” Jesus’ parents were amazed at what was being said about him. Then Simeon blessed them, and he said to Mary, the baby’s mother, “This child is destined to cause many in Israel to fall, and many others to rise. He has been sent as a sign from God, but many will oppose him. As a result, the deepest thoughts of many hearts will be revealed. And a sword will pierce your very soul.” Anna, a prophet, was also there in the Temple. She was the daughter of Phanuel from the tribe of Asher, and she was very old. Her husband died when they had been married only seven years. Then she lived as a widow to the age of eighty-four. She never left the Temple but stayed there day and night, worshiping God with fasting and prayer. She came along just as Simeon was talking with Mary and Joseph, and she began praising God. She talked about the child to everyone who had been waiting expectantly for God to rescue Jerusalem. When Jesus’ parents had fulfilled all the requirements of the law of the Lord, they returned home to Nazareth in Galilee. There the child grew up healthy and strong. He was filled with wisdom, and God’s favor was on him. Every year Jesus’ parents went to Jerusalem for the Passover festival. When Jesus was twelve years old, they attended the festival as usual. After the celebration was over, they started home to Nazareth, but Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem. His parents didn’t miss him at first, because they assumed he was among the other travelers. But when he didn’t show up that evening, they started looking for him among their relatives and friends. When they couldn’t find him, they went back to Jerusalem to search for him there. Three days later they finally discovered him in the Temple, sitting among the religious teachers, listening to them and asking questions. All who heard him were amazed at his understanding and his answers. His parents didn’t know what to think. “Son,” his mother said to him, “why have you done this to us? Your father and I have been frantic, searching for you everywhere.” “But why did you need to search?” he asked. “Didn’t you know that I must be in my Father’s house?” But they didn’t understand what he meant. Then he returned to Nazareth with them and was obedient to them. And his mother stored all these things in her heart. Jesus grew in wisdom and in stature and in favor with God and all the people.

Izzy Sheer (Cher)

And Riley Mannale

Those two young ladies are the real deal. Thank you guys.

What we celebrate at Christmas is so incredibly important.

Over 2000 years ago, something happened that was so significant that it’s rippled all the way through history and finds us here.

Tonight, all around the world, literally millions of people gather to celebrate the very same thing that we gather to celebrate this evening…

This incredible truth of God’s devine intervention that is so BIG, and so POWERFUL and so NEEDED… that it has the power to impact, salvage, and challenge and change… all that is broken in you, in your family, and in your relationships…

And I know it’s true. Not only have I seen in happen over and over in the 30 years I’ve been in ministry, but it is exactly what happened in my own life.

Sometimes it’s hard to let go of my way, my pain, or my failures to grab Hold of Christ… His truth, His way, and His will…

I have seen and experienced the restoration it brings… and I’ve seen the damage that refusing it brings…

Nights like this matter…

What an incredible opportunity to fix our hearts and minds on Him once again.

And we need it.

The world we live in can be so incredibly hard, discouraging and dark…

And I know it’s not just me.

In fact, I was doing some research this week and came across a Gallop Poll that was done about a year ago… that suggests

Americans believe we have a moral issue in our country.

87% of Americans believe something needs to change.

It stats that

50% say that the moral values in America are poor

37% rate them as fair

12% say good

Only 1% would “excellent”

What I see in that is

87% of Americans believe something needs to change

At times we are so concerned about the darkness that exists out there not being nearly as concerned with the darkness that exists here…

And in doing so… we may be committing the same sin so many of us do…

Which having the audacity to think that darkness… is everyone else's problem… without realizing there is no way that darkness could be that prevalent in the world without it being an issue in me…

Seeing that majority, we realize that it’s not just an admission about our culture, its admission about the lives of the 87%

That same poll shows a consistent decline in morality over the last 20 years… That poll has been happening for 20 years.

They study and if we are honest, what we see is… things aren’t getting any better. Every study I say this week suggested that despite living in the most

Informed: (online - lost of journalistic integrity - truth, accuracy, objectivit- truth is as muddy as its ever been)

Connected: Superficial connections

The darkness and isolation are actually growing.

It reminds me of something Eugene O’Neal wrote in his play “Long Day’s Journey Into Night”...

“We are, born into the brightest light we will ever know. And from that point on, the shadows begin to gather. The shadows deepen as we move further and further into life until finally, we come to total darkness and into that total darkness we helplessly slip.” - Eugene O’Neill

How depressing! This hopeless, isolating, suffocating, demoralizing darkness…

But it is so easy to fall into…

By just being unintentional in our life

When life hurts

When people hurt us

When we struggle to forgive

When we make mistakes (over and over)

When our health or the health of someone we love turns

When we find ourselves isolated…

Or become driven and captive to pain and fear…

But on this most holy of nights, we stand in the very midst of the darkness and dare to ask the question that is on everyone’s hearts: “Will this darkness have the last word?

That used to be true… outside of Jesus, it still is.

It is the very issue that Jesus came to address… this overwhelming darkness… sin, hate, unforgiveness, self-absorption… that can and will swallow you whole.

Darkness… Einstein is often credited with this idea…

There is no such thing as darkness, but only the absence of light.

A truth that one theologian stated this way…

In the Bible,

Darkness is a metaphor for...

- anything we trust that isn’t God.

- Things that are absent of God.

And it begs the question…

When we look at the present darkness in the world… in our country… in our community… in our schools, in our churches, in our marriages, in our families… in our own lives…

What is the real issue?

Biblically... The Absence of God.

The absence of God.

AW Tozer said… “Faith is the intent gaze of a soul upon a sovereign God”

And the opposite is also true. A lack of faith is the gaze of a soul on anything that is not God.

Gazing at what is not God… fixing our eyes/attention/worth on all the wrong things… is a powerful statement in light of this dark world.

Several authors suggest…

The #1 issue plaguing humanity is (darkness) the absence of light.

Because of sin and darkness… We often feel stuck in the face of

Wounds that we cannot heal

Shame we cannot repair

Hurt that we cannot forgive

Disappointment we cannot manage

Guilt that we cannot let go of

And problems we cannot solve

But there is a truth that you need to know… that has been in motion from before creation…

God used a man Named Isaiah… a prophet… to write the book of Isaiah no less than 700 Years before Jesus was even born. And it speaks to this very thing. Listen to what He says in

Isaiah 9:1–7 (NLT)

Isaiah 9:1–7 NLT

Nevertheless, that time of darkness and despair will not go on forever. The land of Zebulun and Naphtali will be humbled, but there will be a time in the future when Galilee of the Gentiles, which lies along the road that runs between the Jordan and the sea, will be filled with glory. The people who walk in darkness will see a great light. For those who live in a land of deep darkness, a light will shine. You will enlarge the nation of Israel, and its people will rejoice. They will rejoice before you as people rejoice at the harvest and like warriors dividing the plunder. For you will break the yoke of their slavery and lift the heavy burden from their shoulders. You will break the oppressor’s rod, just as you did when you destroyed the army of Midian. The boots of the warrior and the uniforms bloodstained by war will all be burned. They will be fuel for the fire. For a child is born to us, a son is given to us. The government will rest on his shoulders. And he will be called: Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. His government and its peace will never end. He will rule with fairness and justice from the throne of his ancestor David for all eternity. The passionate commitment of the Lord of Heaven’s Armies will make this happen!

1 Nevertheless, that time of darkness and despair will not go on forever.

That word… Nevertheless… means… regardless of… or right in the face of your current darkness… God has brought intervention.

2 The people who walk in darkness will see a great light. For those who live in a land of deep darkness, a light will shine.

4 For you will break the yoke of their slavery (power of sin)and lift the heavy burden from their shoulders. (shame, guilt, condemnation)

You will break the oppressor’s rod (sin’s wage of brokenness and death), just as you did when you destroyed the army of Midian.

6 For a child is born to us, a son is given to us. The government will rest on his shoulders. And he will be called: Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

7 His government and its peace will never end. He will rule with fairness and justice from the throne of his ancestor David for all eternity. The passionate commitment of the LORD of Heaven’s Armies will make this happen! (This is the most powerful sense of… absolute certainty; Account on it, the God of all creation decrees it).

The hurt and the brokenness and the darkness of this world require a solution that is not…

A light… a Child… Jesus… is born and it all rests on his Shoulders. He will be called… Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Faith, Prince of Peace, King of Kings, Lord of Lords… the Alpha and the Omega… the Beginning, and the End.

One author made this connection… That Jesus is the manifestation of the light that God had introduced at creation, all the way back in Genesis when the world was formless, empty, absent of life, and covered in darkness…

The very first thing that God spoke into existence was light…

Light is - A source of life - A source of truth - A source of joy - A source of peace

When we are alone in the dark, there is peace that comes with light.

The same chaos and darkness, and confusion that God overcame in creation with His divine pronouncement, “Let there be light,”...

The very first thing that God did at creation… reveals His purpose and priority… to deal with the chaos and darkness… to pull you out of it and place you in His wonderful light.

The coming of a king means the coming of a Kingdom that is filled with

light,

life,

truth,

joy,

and peace…

In Luke 23:44 we see Jesus on the cross… despised, rejected, and beaten by the very ones he came to save…

It was about noon… and for three hours darkness covered the earth. It was when Jesus, the light of the world… entered the darkness defeating sin and death so that we might walk in the reality of His light.

This is Christmas… Nothing more and nothing less… God Himself, stepped out of eternity and into humanity (darkness and depravity) taking upon himself our sin and shame… and bringing the light that leads to life.

It's a truth that has rocked millions of souls including my own.

Jesus is the light of the world… that came to deal with the darkness… and to set you free.

And so we ask…

Will you trust your words or God's Word? What you can do, or what God can do? Will you trust in your hands, or that it’s all in God’s hands?

Jesus is the light of the world… that truth is huge, powerful, and real… but it's only half of what you need to know here.

📷

Jesus is the light of the world… but is

He the light of your world.

Is He the light of your marriage?

Is He the light in your parenting?

In what you hold to be good, right, and true?

In your coming and going?

There is a light that shines into the darkness… His name is Jesus.

And that… That is why we celebrate the birth of Jesus.

In the midst of all the noise… and the chaos… and darkness that seeks to devour you… JESUS brings to light that silences them all.

He is Immanuel, which literally means… God… Jesus… the light of the world is WITH us.

It is the #1 repeated promise in the entire Bible. Christmas is not about presents… but His presence.

In the face of your present darkness… John 1:5 says Jesus is the light that shines that darkness could never overcome.

1 Peter 2:9 reminds us that it is the very call of God… He, even now is calling you out of the darkness and into His marvelous, remarkable, wonderful light.

Are you tired? Of running in the dark? Of being help captive by hurt, sin, shame, unforgivenss? Is it time? It’s what God is calling you to do. To step out of the darkness and into His wonderful light.

The people who lived in darkness has seen a great light.

Unto them a child has been born… Immanuel… GOD… is with you.

He is the light of the world

Is He the light of yours?