God With Us Pt.2
God With Us • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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Transcript
Introduction
Introduction
Last week I opened up by asking a question and that question was, how many of you are in the spirit of Christmas?
And many of you raised your hands, because you’re the kind of people that get into festivities and the what not. I admitted to you all that I’m not that kind person. I like having a real Christmas tree in the house, and that’s about the extent of my love for anything that isn’t directly related to the birth of Jesus. (I didn have a few people come up to me after last weeks sermon and they said, “I’m kind of like you, I just don’t really get into all the festivities…)
With that said, we’ve been receiving packages over the last week, you know, gifts coming for people from amazon or wherever else so that helps get me a little more in the Christmas spirit.
I also ordered my gift. I honestly don’t know if I’ve been this excited about a Christmas gift since I was a kid. I might be more excited about this gift than anything ever, actually. I’m not going to tell you what it is yet, I’m just going to show you after Christmas. The only thing I don’t like about ordering my own gift is that I know it’s coming, and I know it’s going to be here before Christmas.
Are you in the spirit of Christmas? What does that even mean. What does it mean to be in the spirit of something. Anybody ever said something to you like, I’m sorry I can’t be there, but I’m with you in spirit.
I’m just the kind of person that thinks, is that even possible. As humans I don’t think we have the ability to be somewhere in spirit unless we’re also there physically, I don’t know, maybe I’m overthinking it.
Spirit is kind of this word we throw around when we don’t have something more concrete to do or say. Like when we can’t be somewhere physically, we’re like I’ll be there in spirit. And it means something, right?
Transition
Transition
I kind of want to ask the same question this week, but I want to ask it in a little different manner, or maybe with a little different intent:
Are you in the Spirit of Christmas?
Maybe a better way to say it would be this: Are you in the Spirit this Christmas? Or, probably even better than that, is the Spirit in you this Christmas?
Last week we talked about the legality of Jesus’ birth.
Bottom Line: The birth, life, and death of Jesus secured a binding covenant promise—so everyone who trusts in Him has the right to the inheritance of eternal life.
One of the verses we looked at last week was Galatians 4:6
6 And because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into your hearts, crying out, “Abba, Father!”
And so here’s what I would like for us to explore this morning. What can we learn about the Holy Spirit’s involvement in our lives, based on the Holy Spirit’s involvement in the people’s lives surrounding the birth of Christ?
How aware of and sensitive are you to the Holy Spirit’s guidance in your life?..
Truth
Truth
If you brought your bibles this morning…Luke 1 & 2…
Pray.
5 There was in the days of Herod, the king of Judea, a certain priest named Zacharias, of the division of Abijah. His wife was of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth. 6 And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless. 7 But they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren, and they were both well advanced in years.
Of course to be barren in Zacharias and Elizabeth’s time period was to be viewed as not having God’s favor or blessing upon you. And you might imagine that for a priest and his wife this would maybe be an even bigger deal than normal.
There might be some people outside the temple thinking, too bad Zacharias is in there making the incense offering to the Lord, God’s favor is not him, I wonder God even hears his prayers.
8 So it was, that while he was serving as priest before God in the order of his division, 9 according to the custom of the priesthood, his lot fell to burn incense when he went into the temple of the Lord.
This is a massive deal. This is hugely important. Let me just give it to you by the numbers. We probably think that if you were a priest in the Old Testament, you were a part of a very small, sort of spiritually elite group. Which you kind of were, but perhaps not as much as we might think. (of course Zacharias in the NT, but Jesus hasn’t come yet, which means the New Covenant hasn’t actually come yet, and so we might think of Zacharias being in the Temple at this time more like we would think of priests in the Old Testament.)
Scholars estimate that by the time of Jesus there were anywhere from about 18,000 to 24,000 temple priests. So more than likely this is a once in a lifetime opportunity for Zacharias, perhaps the only time he would ever actually enter the temple.
And understand this, the altar of incense is as close as you can get to the holy of holies (image)
10 And the whole multitude of the people was praying outside at the hour of incense. 11 Then an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing on the right side of the altar of incense. 12 And when Zacharias saw him, he was troubled, and fear fell upon him. 13 But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zacharias, for your prayer is heard; and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John. 14 And you will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth. 15 For he will be great in the sight of the Lord, and shall drink neither wine nor strong drink. He will also be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother’s womb.
Think about this, John wasn’t going to have to earn the filling of the Holy Spirit, he wasn’t going to have to work for it, God was simply unconditionally going to favor John and bless him with the Holy Spirit.
As it pertains to the story and the people surrounding the birth of Jesus, I believe this is the first time we see the Holy Spirit mentioned.
And of course the Holy Spirit is going to empower and lead John the Baptist to accomplish some things!
Which the angel proceeds to reveal to Zacharias.
Because he’s filled with the Holy Spirit…
16 And he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God. 17 He will also go before Him in the spirit and power of Elijah, ‘to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children,’ and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.”
God never drafts someone into His service and then leaves them to fend for themselves. John didn’t rise to greatness because he was naturally impressive — he was empowered by the Holy Spirit to accomplish God’s will and purpose for his life.
Which brings us to this point: If God has called you (which He has…), God will empower you.
Don’t measure your calling by your natural ability, but by God’s supernatural enabling. It doesn’t matter how much education we get, it doesn’t matter how much we slave over doing the work that God has called us to, if we go about trying to carry out the will of God devoid of the power of the Holy Spirit.
Now, I need to point this out. Zacharias doesn’t really believe this message from the angel Gabriel, so Zacharias is made mute until the day John is born.
We’re going to skip down to verses 26-38.
26 Now in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, 27 to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. 28 And having come in, the angel said to her, “Rejoice, highly favored one, the Lord is with you; blessed are you among women!” 29 But when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and considered what manner of greeting this was. 30 Then the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. 31 And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name Jesus. 32 He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David. 33 And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no end.” 34 Then Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I do not know a man?” 35 And the angel answered and said to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Highest will overshadow you; therefore, also, that Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God.
Can you imagine being Mary? In about 4 or 5, maybe 6 months if you’re lucky, it’s probably going to become very obvious to everyone around you that you are carrying a child.
And obviously the problem is, you’re not married yet. And this isn’t 2025, or 2005, or 1995. It’s like somewhere between 7 and 4BC, according to scholars. And not in some pagan cultures that worship false gods, such as Aphrodite or Eros (eh-rows, arrowss). This is Jewish culture, and according to the Old Testament law there were pretty severe consequences for getting pregnant outside of marriage. And depending on the circumstances and the mindset of either the fiance or the father, the penalty could be death.
And at some point someone’s going to ask, right? Mary, how is it that you are pregnant? And what’s Mary supposed to say? “You’ll never believe this, this angel appeared to me.” Can you imagine people’s reactions if she had to tell this story. It’s like, hang on, it’s get better. “This angel proceeded to tell me that the Holy Spirit was going to come upon me, and that the power of the Highest was going to overshadow me, and he told me that this baby is the Holy One, the Son of God.”
Here’s the good news for you and me this morning, we’re never going to have to tell that story! 1. Half of you are men, and that just isn’t even a possibility. 2. For the rest of you ladies, it already happened to Mary, so it’s just not going to happen to you.
However, the Holy Spirit might just come upon you, and so provoke you to do or say some other things, that to you, or perhaps to someone else might seem just about as crazy.
I’ll never forget the day the Spirit prompted me to give a homeless guy a ride. (And I tell this story, not because there aren’t others, but because it stands out as kind of bizzare)….(story).
The Holy Spirit might prompt you to say something to someone. The Holy Spirit might prompt you to help someone in someway that is out of the ordinary. The Holy Spirit might urge you to give to someone or towards something important. The Holy Spirit might prompt you to pray for someone or about something in an instant in time.
Now, here’s the thing, unlike you and I, I don’t know how much of a choice Mary had in this matter. I don’t know if Mary could’ve been like, “Nah, I don’t think I want that for my life.”
Now regardless of whether or not Mary had much say in the matter, here’s what we do know: We do know that Mary had a proper posture in her relationship with the Lord.
In verses 36-38 Gabriel finishes delivering his message to Mary.
36 Now indeed, Elizabeth your relative has also conceived a son in her old age; and this is now the sixth month for her who was called barren. 37 For with God nothing will be impossible.”
Then look at Mary’s response to all of this:
38 Then Mary said, “Behold the maidservant of the Lord! Let it be to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her.
Here’s the thing, I imagine that you and I probably have a little bit more of a choice when the Holy Spirit urges, provokes, or prompts us to do, say, or pray something.
But here’s what I am fully convinced of: Our posture in our relationship with God should mimmic Mary’s.
Our response to the guiding, leading, helping, reminding, and moving of the Holy Spirit should be this: Behold the servant of the Lord! Let it be to me according to your word.
39 Now Mary arose in those days and went into the hill country with haste, to a city of Judah, 40 and entered the house of Zacharias and greeted Elizabeth. 41 And it happened, when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, that the babe leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit.
And let’s see what happens when Elizabeth is filled with the Holy Spirit…
42 Then she spoke out with a loud voice and said, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb!
Useless fact of the day: Fruit of the Loom (underwear company), name is associated with this phrase in the bible.
43 But why is this granted to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?
Imagine the faith required to believe that the Savior of the world, the Messiah, is in the womb of your young cousin.
44 For indeed, as soon as the voice of your greeting sounded in my ears, the babe leaped in my womb for joy. 45 Blessed is she who believed, for there will be a fulfillment of those things which were told her from the Lord.”
And let’s read how Mary responds to Elizabeth, keeping in mind that the Holy Spirit has already come upon Mary.
46 And Mary said: “My soul magnifies the Lord, 47 And my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior. 48 For He has regarded the lowly state of His maidservant; For behold, henceforth all generations will call me blessed. 49 For He who is mighty has done great things for me, And holy is His name. 50 And His mercy is on those who fear Him From generation to generation. 51 He has shown strength with His arm; He has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts. 52 He has put down the mighty from their thrones, And exalted the lowly. 53 He has filled the hungry with good things, And the rich He has sent away empty. 54 He has helped His servant Israel, In remembrance of His mercy, 55 As He spoke to our fathers, To Abraham and to his seed forever.”
For the sake of time I’m going to skip verses 56-66, and I know this is a lot of reading, but I promise you it’s important for where we’re going to end up.
So Elizabeth’s time came to give birth to John the Baptist. There was sort of dispute over what his name would be, because no one in Zacharias or Elizabeth’s family was named John, and so Zacharias writes on a tablet, because remember he was made mute for not believing Gabriel’s message. So he writes, “his name is John,” on a tablet and when he does he’s given his ability to speak back.
So we’re jumping back into the story in verse 67.
67 Now his father Zacharias was filled with the Holy Spirit, and prophesied, saying: 68 “Blessed is the Lord God of Israel, For He has visited and redeemed His people, 69 And has raised up a horn of salvation for us In the house of His servant David, 70 As He spoke by the mouth of His holy prophets, Who have been since the world began, 71 That we should be saved from our enemies And from the hand of all who hate us, 72 To perform the mercy promised to our fathers And to remember His holy covenant, 73 The oath which He swore to our father Abraham: 74 To grant us that we, Being delivered from the hand of our enemies, Might serve Him without fear, 75 In holiness and righteousness before Him all the days of our life. 76 “And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Highest; For you will go before the face of the Lord to prepare His ways, 77 To give knowledge of salvation to His people By the remission of their sins, 78 Through the tender mercy of our God, With which the Dayspring from on high has visited us; 79 To give light to those who sit in darkness and the shadow of death, To guide our feet into the way of peace.”
Alright, we’ve got one more place to look at.
Now this is after the birth of Jesus, we actually looked at some of these verses last week. In accordance with the Old Testament Law Mary and Joseph bring baby Jesus to the temple to be presented to the Lord.
25 And behold, there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon, and this man was just and devout, waiting for the Consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him. 26 And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Christ. 27 So he came by the Spirit into the temple. And when the parents brought in the Child Jesus, to do for Him according to the custom of the law, 28 he took Him up in his arms and blessed God and said: 29 “Lord, now You are letting Your servant depart in peace, According to Your word; 30 For my eyes have seen Your salvation 31 Which You have prepared before the face of all peoples, 32 A light to bring revelation to the Gentiles, And the glory of Your people Israel.” 33 And Joseph and His mother marveled at those things which were spoken of Him. 34 Then Simeon blessed them, and said to Mary His mother, “Behold, this Child is destined for the fall and rising of many in Israel, and for a sign which will be spoken against 35 (yes, a sword will pierce through your own soul also), that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed.”
Application
Application
Now, here’s the question that we have to ask: What does the Holy Spirit’s involvement in the story of the birth of Christ have to do with us today?
The Holy Spirit prepares people for the work of God.
And this is sort of a two sided coin.
The first side: The Holy Spirit prepares people to receive the work of God. What would any of these people been able to believe apart from the presence of the Holy Spirit?
The other side: The Holy Spirit prepares people to do the work of God. What would any of these people been able to do apart from the power of the Holy Spirit?
Step on toes statement: When you attempt to do or say on God’s behalf are you dependent on yourself or the Holy Spirit?
The Holy Spirit produces worship and witness of Who God is either through word or deed.
Think back to everything that everyone who the Holy Spirit filled said. They all poured forth exalting speech. They spoke, or sang blessings. They prophesied, wether they were foretelling future blessings for forthtelling current truth.
And they all spoke with clarity and courage.
And everything they did and spoke was God-centered and Christ exalting: they never exalted themselves, it was never about who they were or what they were capable of, it was all about Who God was, what He was doing, and what He was capable of.
Step on toes: Whatever it is that your full of, is what will spill out of you. Are you more full of the Spirit, or things and stuff other than the Spirit of God?
The Holy Spirit reveals Jesus and leads people to Him.
I think that is more than evident in a very literal sense in the entire story of the 1st coming of Jesus Christ.
Let’s just acknowledge this truth: None of the people who were intricately involved in the birth of Jesus were left to figure out the Christmas story on their own.
Who Jesus was, was a mystery to all of these people. But they had the help of the Holy Spirit to lead them into all truth, I would say to lead them to Truth (capital T) Himself.
Step on toes: Are you so in sync with the Holy Spirit that Jesus is being revealed through your life?
I’m going to make one more point and then we’ll close.
Between the exaltations and prophesies of Elizabeth, Mary, Zacharias, and Simeon, there’s 51 direct or indirect O.T. references. I didn’t want to point them all out as we read through the story because they were so frequent it would have gotten annoying.
But here’s the point I want to make based on the truth that these people spoke forth the word of God.
4. The Holy Spirit works in conjunction with the word of God to accomplish the work of God.
17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God;
Every so often I will hear someone say, I don’t really read the bible…and I’m generally pretty good at not making faces…like not reacting to things people do or say…on the inside I’m like…eehhhhhhh.
26 But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you.
How do you and I know what Jesus said? He didn’t say what He said to us! We have to read what Jesus said.
12 For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.
14 And the Word became 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.
“The Word became flesh and dwelt among us”, Christmas in 8 words.
And then the Word, Jesus, said this: John 14:16-17
16 And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever—17 the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you.
And then then The Word left, because He had to go sit on His throne at the right hand of God, and then His promise came true.
1 When the Day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. 2 And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. 3 Then there appeared to them divided tongues, as of fire, and one sat upon each of them. 4 And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.
And just in case you aren’t convinced that the Holy Spirit dwells in every believer:
19 Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? 20 For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s.
Closing
Closing
Here’s where I’m going to land: the ultimate step on your toes statement at Christmas time.
How sad would it be, how shameful would it be, to go through the Christmas season, doing all the things that we do, putting up all the decorations, getting the right tree (or trees), decorating the trees in just the right way, going to all the parties, cooking all the food, eating all the food, listening to and singing all the songs…
How much of an insult would it be to Jesus, to celebrate His birth in all the ways that we do, but be devoid of the Holy Spirit, the very Spirit of Jesus Christ, as we do all of those things?
Invitation: Have you trusted in Jesus Christ?
Next Sunday: One service…Children’s play…Christmas lunch following second service.
