How’d You Do It?

Outline

Advent of Christ

Big Idea: By faith we look up and press on. By grace we become what God intends.

By faith we look up and press on - Hebrews 11.

By grace, we become what God intends - 1 Cor 15:1-11

Introduction

Dramatic Monologue - How’d You Do it?

A little earlier, I shared a monologue, “How’d You Do it?”

A simple, yet profound way for us to stop and consider the coming of Christ as a babe, so many years ago…and all those chosen to witness and behold His coming.

Throughout, the question was asked…

Body

How’d you do it?

How’d they do it?

Making it more personal now…

How do we do it?

How did our brothers and sisters in Christ before us do it?

Two words.

Faith.

Grace.

By faith we look up and press on - Hebrews 11.

Hebrews 11:1 ESV

1 Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.

Faith is a confident assurance that, that which you do not see with physical eyes, yet, will come to pass.

It is the confident expectation that motivates to action

It is the confident expectation that fills with HOPE for the future

It is the confident expectation the enables patience and grace.

It is the confident expectation that provides joy in trial

It is the confident expectation the gives comfort in sorrow.

It is the confident expectation that emboldens courage in the face of adversity.

It is the confident expectation that rips the heart of our temptations to sin and strengthens one to stand fast in the truth even while the flesh presses you towards cheap and harmful shortcuts.

Faith is that absolute assurance that one can rest upon day after day.

This faith, is what enabled all of these unusual suspects at the birth of Christ to be there.

It is what enabled them to risk all they did.

It is what enabled them to stand fast in the face of mounting adversity.

FAITH.

It is how they did it.

It is how all those who have come before us have done it.

Hebrews 11 ESV

1 Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. 2 For by it the people of old received their commendation. 3 By faith we understand that the universe was created by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things that are visible. 4 By faith Abel offered to God a more acceptable sacrifice than Cain, through which he was commended as righteous, God commending him by accepting his gifts. And through his faith, though he died, he still speaks. 5 By faith Enoch was taken up so that he should not see death, and he was not found, because God had taken him. Now before he was taken he was commended as having pleased God. 6 And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him. 7 By faith Noah, being warned by God concerning events as yet unseen, in reverent fear constructed an ark for the saving of his household. By this he condemned the world and became an heir of the righteousness that comes by faith. 8 By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to a place that he was to receive as an inheritance. And he went out, not knowing where he was going. 9 By faith he went to live in the land of promise, as in a foreign land, living in tents with Isaac and Jacob, heirs with him of the same promise. 10 For he was looking forward to the city that has foundations, whose designer and builder is God. 11 By faith Sarah herself received power to conceive, even when she was past the age, since she considered him faithful who had promised. 12 Therefore from one man, and him as good as dead, were born descendants as many as the stars of heaven and as many as the innumerable grains of sand by the seashore. 13 These all died in faith, not having received the things promised, but having seen them and greeted them from afar, and having acknowledged that they were strangers and exiles on the earth. 14 For people who speak thus make it clear that they are seeking a homeland. 15 If they had been thinking of that land from which they had gone out, they would have had opportunity to return. 16 But as it is, they desire a better country, that is, a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared for them a city. 17 By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, and he who had received the promises was in the act of offering up his only son, 18 of whom it was said, “Through Isaac shall your offspring be named.” 19 He considered that God was able even to raise him from the dead, from which, figuratively speaking, he did receive him back. 20 By faith Isaac invoked future blessings on Jacob and Esau. 21 By faith Jacob, when dying, blessed each of the sons of Joseph, bowing in worship over the head of his staff. 22 By faith Joseph, at the end of his life, made mention of the exodus of the Israelites and gave directions concerning his bones. 23 By faith Moses, when he was born, was hidden for three months by his parents, because they saw that the child was beautiful, and they were not afraid of the king’s edict. 24 By faith Moses, when he was grown up, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter, 25 choosing rather to be mistreated with the people of God than to enjoy the fleeting pleasures of sin. 26 He considered the reproach of Christ greater wealth than the treasures of Egypt, for he was looking to the reward. 27 By faith he left Egypt, not being afraid of the anger of the king, for he endured as seeing him who is invisible. 28 By faith he kept the Passover and sprinkled the blood, so that the Destroyer of the firstborn might not touch them. 29 By faith the people crossed the Red Sea as on dry land, but the Egyptians, when they attempted to do the same, were drowned. 30 By faith the walls of Jericho fell down after they had been encircled for seven days. 31 By faith Rahab the prostitute did not perish with those who were disobedient, because she had given a friendly welcome to the spies. 32 And what more shall I say? For time would fail me to tell of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, of David and Samuel and the prophets— 33 who through faith conquered kingdoms, enforced justice, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, 34 quenched the power of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, were made strong out of weakness, became mighty in war, put foreign armies to flight. 35 Women received back their dead by resurrection. Some were tortured, refusing to accept release, so that they might rise again to a better life. 36 Others suffered mocking and flogging, and even chains and imprisonment. 37 They were stoned, they were sawn in two, they were killed with the sword. They went about in skins of sheep and goats, destitute, afflicted, mistreated— 38 of whom the world was not worthy—wandering about in deserts and mountains, and in dens and caves of the earth. 39 And all these, though commended through their faith, did not receive what was promised, 40 since God had provided something better for us, that apart from us they should not be made perfect.

By faith, all of these were able to LOOK UP and PRESS ON.

They endured much opposition, suffering, and difficulty. They endured much uncertainty.

BUT, they were able to LOOK UP, by Faith, and press on through it all because of their trust in the one who called them and loved them.

Mary and Joseph could say YES to the impossible, because they trusted the God of impossible.

The Shepherds did not have to question the angels…they could get up and go, because they trusted…they had faith in God…they were waiting for the coming Messiah.

The Wise Men, the Magi could come because they (at the very least) trusted in a prophecy…at best, they had come to trust in Yahweh, and they would not miss him for a moment…

How do you face all the adversity of life?

How do you face all the sorrows, losses, hurts, loneliness, temptations, and weariness?

Faith.

You learn to know and trust God.

You remind yourself OFTEN of WHO God is and WHAT He has done for you.

The traditions and practices we keep, not only at Christmas but throughout the year, ought to be deliberate, intentional, and meaningful. They ought to be regularly remind us of truth.

They ought to challenge our faith and strengthen our resolve.

If your faith in God is not growing…I would challenge you this Christmas to make that your number one priority in this next year to give focused attention to.

If you are not actively trying to challenge yourself to grow in your faith…do so. Faith should be active. Unfortunately, we tend to make it passive.

If you have NO faith in God…if you have never repented of your sin and trusted Christ for your salvation, that is where it begins for you. Nothing else matters until you do that. Until you do that, you have no hope in this life or the next. You face only God’s righteous and just wrath.

We live by FAITH, church.

Without faith, Heb 11:6 reminds us, it is impossible to please Him.

Yes, this is hard at times.

Yes it is scary.

But unless we learn to live by faith, we will never be able to please Christ or be used mightily by Him.

Look up, Church. Walk by Faith…and there will telling to what extent our God can use you.

SO, by faith…look up and press on.

Because, we when live by faith…

By grace, we become what God intends - 1 Cor 15:1-11

1 Corinthians 15:1-11.

1 Corinthians 15:1–9 ESV

1 Now I would remind you, brothers, of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, in which you stand, 2 and by which you are being saved, if you hold fast to the word I preached to you—unless you believed in vain. 3 For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, 4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures, 5 and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. 6 Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have fallen asleep. 7 Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles. 8 Last of all, as to one untimely born, he appeared also to me. 9 For I am the least of the apostles, unworthy to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God.

Listen…THIS IS THE HEART of Christmas.

The birth of Christ is about the death of Christ.

The birth of a King is about the restoration of the peasant.

The birth of the Creator is about the rescuing of the creation.

The birth of the perfect lamb of God was about satisfying the just wrath of God for the sins of the rebellious.

The birth of the Son of God is about making enemies, friends, sons, heirs.

Can you not see why this is of FIRST importance?

Can you not now see why Christ MUST remain the center of Christmas?

Christmas is the FIRST HALF of the gospel.

Easter/Resurrection Sunday finishes what Christmas begins.

The Savior, the perfect lamb of God dies for our sins, so that when we repent of that sin, and believe, we can be forgiven and be given the right to become children of God.

As we make THIS CENTRAL in our lives and learn to walk by faith in it..

1 Corinthians 15:10–11 ESV

10 But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace toward me was not in vain. On the contrary, I worked harder than any of them, though it was not I, but the grace of God that is with me. 11 Whether then it was I or they, so we preach and so you believed.

As we learn to look up…

As we learn to live by faith.

HIS GRACE steps in and does the work we cannot do.

He makes us what He intends for us to be.

All that is required of us is to live by faith, to step out in faith, to obey…and the work is accomplished IN US and THROUGH US by HIM.

How could all of these unusual suspects (gesture at the nativity) do what they did?

None of them were perfect.

They simply believed.

They repented

They trusted

They looked up, pressed on, learning to live by faith..

They walked by faith…and in His grace…they were used to change the world.

Conclusion

Big Idea: By faith we look up and press on. By grace we become what God intends.

By faith we look up and press on - Hebrews 11.

By grace, we become what God intends - 1 Cor 15:1-11

Church, This Christmas…the challenge is simple.

Look UP!

Walk by Faith.

Trust in HIS GRACE to make you what He intends AND to USE You as He will.

These witnesses testify to His power to do just that.

THAT’s how you do it.