The Saviour Witnessed
Christmas 2024 • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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Luke 2:9–19 (KJV 1900)
9 And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid.
10 And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.
11 For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.
12 And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.
13 And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying,
14 Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace, Good will toward men.
15 And it came to pass, as the angels were gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds said one to another, Let us now go even unto Beth-lehem, and see this thing which is come to pass, which the Lord hath made known unto us.
16 And they came with haste, and found Mary, and Joseph, and the babe lying in a manger.
17 And when they had seen it, they made known abroad the saying which was told them concerning this child.
18 And all they that heard it wondered at those things which were told them by the shepherds.
19 But Mary kept all these things, and pondered them in her heart.
1. THE WONDER IN THE SHEPHERD’S TESTIMONY
A season of giving and receiving
16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
He saves from sin
The Birthday of the King of Kings
A GIFT TO THE SHEPHERDS
1. They heard the words of comfort
“And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round
about them: and they were sore afraid. And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for,
behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.”
2. They heard the words of direction
And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.
“Go tell it on the mountain”
3. They saw the Lord Jesus Christ
God sent His heavenly messengers
The Shepherds heard from angels
Words of comfort “Fear Not”
THEY WERE RESPONSIVE
TODAY HE REVEALS HIMSELF THROUGH HIS WORD
A. They Sought the Lord in Bethlehem
Isa 55:6 Seek ye the LORD while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near:
B. They Saw the Lord in Bethlehem
Lowly place of a stable
THE MESSAGE CAME TO - Working men
Salvation for all People
They saw a baby
“And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and
truth.” (John 1:14)
Beheld the eternal word in flesh
Preexistent son of God
the “I am”
He was Human yes
But more than just human
“For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily.”
(Colossians 2:9)
The very son of God, Conceived of the Holy Ghost
Not of the Adamic line but conceived with purity and sinlessness with blood that is efficacious to wash away sin.
Everyone loves Jesus until you start defining who He is
Mormons and muslims alike believe that Jesus was a good person
Hindus and Buddhists accept him as a wonderful teacher
But when you define as who He is
The most important question of this life is who is Jesus?
And the most consequential answer you could ever give is the answer to that question, Who is Jesus?
If He is just a man Christmas doesn't make sense
C. They Spoke of the Lord to all
“And when they had seen it, they made known abroad the saying which was told them concerning
this child.”
This was not an oral tradition
This was Devine Revelation
The Christ
The Messiah
God’s revealed word
There are many messages
There are many voices
There is only one Gospel and it is the privilege yeah the duty of every Christian to share that message with every individual
Jesus is the Son of God
He is the Saviour
This is a Supernatural Word
We do not proclaim just a Baptist doctrine
We are not preaching our own message
17 And when they had seen it, they made known abroad the saying which was told them concerning this child.
18 And all they that heard it wondered at those things which were told them by the shepherds.
1. They Shared the Supernatural Message
2. They Shared Their Personal Testimony
a. What effected them directly
This was not a subjective experience, this message affected them in real time and personally
This is the greatest thing you could do is share your personal testimony Christian
The joy of sharing their personal testimony of worship
“We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye
take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn,
and the day star arise in your hearts:” (1 Peter 4:19)
“And he saith unto them, Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.”
(Matthew 4:19)
How can we not tell someone how much the Lord has done for us.
Tell everyone
“And all they that heard it wondered at those things which were told them
by the shepherds.”
Sometimes we feel self conscious or fearful about sharing the Gospel as Christians
It may be that someone you know is curious as to why you don’t talk about Jesus more
Not everyone will accept but there are those in Kent county that
The death, the burial, the resurrection
18 For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God.
21 For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe.
20 And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen, as it was told unto them.
“They that sow in tears shall reap in joy.” (Psalm 126:5)
SHARING THE GOSPEL:
I care about you
God Loves you
We are sinners
He sent His Son
He
The shepherds witnessed
Then they shared
I challenge you to make a commitment to share what you have witnessed
2. THE WORSHIP IN SIMEON ‘S TESTIMONY
22 And when the days of her purification according to the law of Moses were accomplished, they brought him to Jerusalem, to present him to the Lord;
25 And, behold, there was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was Simeon; and the same man was just and devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel: and the Holy Ghost was upon him.
26 And it was revealed unto him by the Holy Ghost, that he should not see death, before he had seen the Lord’s Christ.
27 And he came by the Spirit into the temple: and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for him after the custom of the law,
8 days after he was born he would be circumcised and would receive His name
40 days after Luke 2:22 would happen
Come near to the holy men and women of the past and you will soon feel
the heat of their desire after God. They mourned for Him, they prayed and
wrestled and sought for Him day and night, in season and out, and when
they had found Him, the finding was all the sweeter for the long seeking…
Complacency is a deadly foe of all spiritual growth.” – A. W. Tozer
Simeon was promised by God He would see the Messiah
A. A patient Saint
A Godly Spiritual man.
sanctified, set apart
25 And, behold, there was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was Simeon; and the same man was just and devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel: and the Holy Ghost was upon him.
Just
Devout
He was walking in the Holy Ghost
Every man should desire to be like Simeon
Simeon is the type of man that a Godly father would point to and and direct his son to look up to and learn from.
It’s recorded in John that our Lord said:
“Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all
truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that
shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.He shall glorify me:
for he shall receive of mine, and shall shew it unto you.” (John 16:13–14)
The Holy Spirit leads us to exalt the Lord
Simeon received revelation about the Messiah
Luke 2:26 (KJV 1900)
26 And it was revealed unto him by the Holy Ghost, that he should not see death, before he had seen the Lord’s Christ.
We need guidance by the Spirit
He was grounded by faith and led by the Spirit
24 And they that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts.
25 If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.
He made decisions in the spirit
Led by the Lord
Emotional decisions hurt children
Destroy finances
Fracture relationships
Your flesh hurts peoples feelings
B. A proclaimed Saviour
27 And he came by the Spirit into the temple: and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for him after the custom of the law,
28 Then took he him up in his arms, and blessed God, and said,
29 Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart In peace, according to thy word:
30 For mine eyes have seen thy salvation,
31 Which thou hast prepared before the face of all people;
32 A light to lighten the Gentiles, and the glory of thy people Israel.
33 And Joseph and his mother marvelled at those things which were spoken of him.
You are not ready for death and eternity without knowing the Savior
JESUS IS THE SAVIOR FROM ETERNITY PAST
“For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the
ungodly. But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were
yet sinners, Christ died for us.” (Romans 5:6, 8)
JESUS provides a personal salvation to all who believe
“For therefore we both labour and suffer reproach, because we trust in the
living God, who is the Saviour of all men, specially of those that believe.”
(1 Timothy 4:10)
Has there ever been a time in your life
Everyone must make a choice to believe
We cant’t cover our sin, Jesus’ sacrifice for our atonement is the only thing that can wash away sin
C. A prophesied sorrow
34 And Simeon blessed them, and said unto Mary his mother, Behold, this child is set for the fall and rising again of many in Israel; and for a sign which shall be spoken against;
Simeon prophesied the death of the Lord
He is destined to die Simeon
“This is the stone which was set at nought of you builders, which is become
the head of the corner” (Acts 4:11)
Some would fall in their rejection of Jesus
Some would be blessed in their belief
35 (Yea, a sword shall pierce through thy own soul also,) that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed.
There will be a piercing of your heart Mary
Children getting lost
breaking bones
Some do not accept Messiah
3. THE WITNESSING & WATCHING IN ANNA’S TESTIMONY
Luke 2:36–40 (KJV 1900)
36 And there was one Anna, a prophetess, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Aser: she was of a great age, and had lived with an husband seven years from her virginity;
37 And she was a widow of about fourscore and four years, which departed not from the temple, but served God with fastings and prayers night and day.
38 And she coming in that instant gave thanks likewise unto the Lord, and spake of him to all them that looked for redemption in Jerusalem.
ANNA was a watchful servant
A. A watchful servant
Anna was a servant
There are some that like to serve in music
teaching
She was steadfastly serving God by praying and fasting
She loved the Lord with all her heart
She has given her life to serving God
Ladies - how many times do you think Anna could’ve been offended
Some estimate that Anna could’ve been
All that will matter at the end of our life, Christian, will be did we love the Lord; did we serve the Lord.
Simeon and Anna understood it was about the gift of Jesus
“See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise, Redeeming
the time, because the days are evil. Wherefore be ye not unwise but
understanding what the will of the Lord is” (Ephesians 5:15–17)
Anna understood that living for God was what was important
B. A witnessing servant
38 And she coming in that instant gave thanks likewise unto the Lord, and spake of him to all them that looked for redemption in Jerusalem.
Anna was elderly and she wasn’t looking for excuses she was looking for ways to tell others about Jesus.
“Then said Jesus to them again, Peace be unto you: as my Father hath sent
me, even so send I you.” (John 20:21)
THE WONDER IN THE SHEPHERD’S TESTIMONY
THE WORSHIP IN SIMEON’S TESTIMONY
THE WITNESS IN ANNA’S TESTIMONY
DO YOU KNOW THE LORD JESUS
God always keeps His promises
He promised He would send Emanuel
The deliverer
He sent that deliverer
Give the message of the Gospel
The Shepherds shared the wonder
Simeon worshipped
Anna witnessed
For God so loved THAT HE GAVE
The Wages of sin is death
The gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord
The Saviour is the Gift
Have you recieved Jesus as your saviour
It’s not about joining a church
It’s not about giving money
It’s not about being of a certain ethnicity
It’s about accepting God’s gift of His son
