We Need Rescued
Notes
Transcript
Intro
Intro
Welcome back after Thanksgiving
Baptisms after service
What Is The Christmas Story All About?
What Is The Christmas Story All About?
We just watched the OG How The Grinch Stole Christmas
The Grinch stole Christmas by breaking into everyone’s houses and stealing all the things that they used to celebrate.
When the whos in whoville woke up and found that all of their things had been stolen, they found the “true meaning” of Christmas and came together and sang.
It also made the grinch discover the true meaning of Christmas - it wasn’t about presents, it was about spending time together and not losing the Christmas spirit.
Unfortunately, this is the message a lot of us have adopted and that we can find in a lot more pop culture and Hallmark movies…
Christmas isn’t about presents but it also isn’t about spending time with family. Its not about the food, the lights, decorations, coming together around the Christmas tree and eating cookies and milk.
Every Christmas movie has some moment of heartfelt connection and love and people say, “thats what Christmas is all about.”
Then there are people who don’t want to celebrate Christmas at all, but still have holidays. They don’t want to say Merry Christmas as to not offend someone.
Then you get the my name is “Merry Christmas” people at Starbucks and think they’re getting one up on the enemy. Defending Christmas. Rescuing Christmas.
Well Christmas doesn’t need rescued. We do.
My son, Mackenzie hasn’t had many birthday parties… between Covid and other big life events… But did it change the fact that he was born and that it was his birthday?
Christians will say, “we celebrate Christ’s birthday! Its a birthday celebration! and we’re taking Christmas back. Jesus is the reason for the season.”
In heaven, when Christ looks down and hears people saying “Jesus is the reason for the season,” its just as cringe as saying “Christmas is all about giving.” - That has nothing to do with Christ.
Yes, Jesus was born. But He is God and He existed from the beginning. This wasn’t the start of Jesus and He certainly didn’t want our goal at Christmas to be yelling at people who try to take Christ out of Christmas.
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 not even one thing came into being that has come into being. In Him was life, and the life was the Light of mankind. And the Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not grasp it.
Jesus was here since the beginning.
His birth was the birth of God in the flesh. He had shown Himself on earth before, but now in the humblest of ways, He came and He left in the lowliest of ways.
This time, He was here to stay. He was born into flesh and though the Godman is no longer here, He still remains in flesh since He is with us and in us.
He is the head of the church and we are the bride of Christ.
Our job is not to simply make sure that Christ doesn’t get taken out of Christmas….
Maybe if we were so worried about Christ being taken out of things, we should be worried about Him being removed from things the rest of the year… our schools…government.
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.
There will be no end to the increase of His government or of peace
On the throne of David and over his kingdom,
To establish it and to uphold it with justice and righteousness
From then on and forevermore.
The zeal of the Lord of armies will accomplish this.
Plus, Christ was a 30 something year old man when He died thousands of years ago. I stopped getting my birthday celebrations a long time ago and i’m not 30 yet.
If Christmas isn’t a hallmark movie or a birthday party, then what is it?!
ITS A RESCUE PLAN.
She will give birth to a Son; and you shall name Him Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.”
Pause
You see, Christ didn’t want us to throw this yearly birthday party for Him and make sure that everyone is doing it whether they’re Christian or not.
When we read scripture about His birth, its not about “silent night” and snow and warm feelings.
Its about the fact that the world was so dark, so evil - that everyone was doomed to eternal death and on a path to hell - and God had a plan to redeem His people and rescue them from their sin and darkness … that He stepped down from heaven and entered the world through a woman so He could become flesh. A man. God in the flesh.
All to give up that flesh to man because they wouldn’t accept Him as the Savior and Messiah. The very people He came for, killed Him.
Those under God’s law needed rescued because they couldn’t fulfill the law. No one could. Only Jesus.
But when the fullness of the time came, God sent His Son, born of a woman, born under the Law, so that He might redeem those who were under the Law, that we might receive the adoption as sons and daughters.
So we become His sons and daughters when we’re redeemed through Christ.
Next week, we’ll talk about how we need rescued…
Jesus shows up in our lives to do this.
Just like He showed up in a dark world and rescued the world.
He shows up in our dark lives and rescues us.
Closing
Closing
We Need Rescued (maybe next week?)
We Need Rescued (maybe next week?)
Have you ever needed rescued?
Maybe your car broke down
Locked out of your house
Got too far into a project
Fell through a ceiling
Got lost in the woods
Right before I need rescued, I tend to think I don’t need it. Until I do.
Before I am aware, I’m in the dark about the amount of help I need.
There no room in me to ask for help because my pride takes up all the space.
Its like standing in a dark room trying to find your way around and someones knocking at the door and saying, “follow my voice and let me in! I have a light.”
And you’re like “no, I’m good.”
Its one thing to not know that we need rescued - you don’t know what you don’t know.
Its another thing to hear the truth and continue in darkness!
Think about this - darkness is default.
In darkness there is nothing present making it dark. There is just an absence of light.
There are some deep parts of the ocean where fish swim in total darkness.
Communion
Communion
We remember today, that God is an infinite being. He wasn’t created. He always was. The Holy Spirit is an indescribable force that is part of the Godhead. But then Jesus - He became flesh. He was birthed just like you and me. He grew up just like you and me. He felt the same things we feel. But He did it all without sin and took on the punishment for sin.
