Christmas Eve 2025

Thank you all for being here this afternoon! I know you have lots of options for where you could go for services this evening – so thank you for choosing River City!

About a month ago, I was heading out on vacation with my wife, Jodi, and on the airplane I pulled out my Bible and my journal and was working through some scripture that had been assigned to me, which happened to be first part of the Christmas story. And I found it interesting how the Christmas story really seems more raw and real when you’re not in the middle of Christmas season, you know? You’re forced to read it without the decorations of stockings and trees and lights and presents and dinners and all of that.

But even then, I don’t know about you, but I find it easy to just sort of breeze through the birth of Jesus. I don’t slow down very often and check out the details. And it’s probably because we feel like we’ve heard the Christmas story so many times that there’s not much more to learn about it. It’s still the same details every year, same Christmas carols every year, still born in a manger, still a star in the sky, and all of that.

And even at a Christmas Eve gathering like this, we may even show up going, well I don’t know what any preacher could say that would make me feel like this story has anything to do with my life today. In our world of AI and cyber warfare and automated everything, most people have never interacted with a manger ever in their lives. We know there are sheep around, but we don’t know any shepherds. Unmarried teenage pregnancies aren’t all that unusual these days. Our three wise men today are Google, ChatGPT, and YouTube, right? And the only people today that bring you Frankincense and Myrrh are people trying to sell you Essential Oils. And with priceline or hotels.com it’s not that difficult to get a room in Bethlehem anymore.

So the elements that make up the Christmas story can feel so far removed from our lives today that it almost seems like a myth. Something that we read to our kids like the hungry, hungry caterpillar, which is interesting - even entertaining - but has no real relevance for our lives today.

But as I read the first part of the birth story there on the airplane, I found some deep questions that forced my hand; that forced me to look at my life and is this true of me? And that’s what we’re looking at this afternoon.

If you’re here tonight and you believe you have figured out how to work your own way onto God’s good side, you’re probably going to be bored with this message. If you feel like life or God owes you something, and you’re bitter with him about it – you’re probably not going to like this.

But If you’re here tonight and you know your life feels empty, like something is missing. If you feel like you’re too lost to be found, that you’re too insignificant to matter to God, if you would admit that you are desperately in need of hope – then I have good news for you tonight. Today we’ll be looking at the story of the angel’s appearing to Mary – specifically what the angel said about Jesus, and then Mary’s response, which I believe holds the deep questions for you and me.

PRAYER

We are in the book of Luke, chapter 1 this afternoon, and I don’t want to assume anything, even though this story we call the birth narrative is very familiar, but here’s the setup from verses 26 and 27

26 …the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth, 27 to a virgin engaged, to a man named Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin’s name was Mary.

Now if you’re new to the Bible, this whole sentence is a pretty big deal. You and I read it today in 2025, and those are all details that don’t mean much to us. But to the people of this time, the people that would have been the first ones to read Luke’s gospel 40-50 years after Jesus’ death and resurrection, this sentence carries a lot of weight.

First of all, an angel showed up. If you read through the Old Testament, from Genesis to Malachi, this isn’t all that unusual. The supernatural world interacted with the natural world all throughout ancient times. It’s only in the last 300 years that we’ve started explaining everything away. Before that, it was expected, even something not all that unusual. The OT is full of the supernatural: angels, visions, even direct conversations with God himself. But then, as the OT comes to a close with the book of Malachi – there are 400 years of none of that. No angels. No miracles. No visions. No conversations with God. And to make it worse, there were no prophets with great revelations about what God was doing while he wasn’t speaking to them, or why he was silent. They referred to those 400 years as the years of silence. Of darkness. That’s how unusual it was to NOT have supernatural activity in the world. But then, one day, out of the blue, there are two angel appearances. These aren’t sightings, like “we saw a blurry movement and thought we heard something that sounded like wings… that might have been an angel!” No this is an appearance. The angel not only wants to be seen, it has something to say. The word angel means “messenger,” so angels often showed up on earth with something to say. There are two angel appearances here in Luke 1: the first was to the High Priest in the Temple, and the second was to a young woman named Mary about 80 miles North.

That brings us to Important detail #2, which is that Gabriel was sent by God to a specific region (Galilee) to a specific town (Nazareth) to a specific virgin (Mary) engaged to a specific man (Joseph) who belonged to a specific one of the twelve tribes of Israel (Judah), which produced the family line or the house of David. This is incredibly specific. There is nothing random about this. Gabriel didn’t fly over the middle east for three weeks going, oh, lets see, where is a woman that could do this? Hmm. Let’s see if Mary is home. No. There was one person on the planet God was planning to work with to bring about the birth of the Messiah. But this is what’s interesting: Gabriel’s first appearance was to the High Priest, part of an elite group of Priests would were chosen to serve in the most holy place in the Temple, which was in the holy city of Jerusalem. That’s where you would expect an angel to show up, right? To the holiest person in the holiest place in the holiest building in the holiest city. But now he’s here in Nazareth, a small rural farming village off the beaten path, with about 2x the amount of people in the room here this afternoon. There are no prophetic mentions of this town in the Old Testament. Not even the famous historian Josephus mentioned Nazareth. The Jewish writings called the Talmud never mentioned it. There is literally nothing known about it, except that it existed. One author points out that here in verse 26, Luke even has to explain that Nazareth is a town in Galilee, because most people would have never heard of it. I would guess for many of you if you’re on vacation or on an airplane or you meet someone out of state somewhere, you say you’re from Iowa, and they ask what part, you probably don’t say “Riverside Iowa.” Because let’s face it, unless that person geeks out over Star Trek, they’ve probably never heard of Riverside. So instead you say something like, we live near Iowa City. That doesn’t always work either, so we’re south of Cedar Rapids. And if that still doesn’t work – south eastern Iowa will get the job done, and they give up. That’s kind of the way it was with Nazareth. Small town, not really on the main highway, only locals know much about it. In fact, Nazareth was such an ordinary town that the only thing we know about it is when someone was told that Jesus was from there, the person replied, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” But here’s my point: the angel first shows up in the holiest place in the holiest city to the holiest person, and then follows that up with an appearance to the most no name person in the most no name town in the redneck region of the middle east.

So maybe you’re here tonight, and you don’t think your life amounts to much. You don’t give big money to anything. You don’t have a name people recognize. You don’t have a home or car or job people would talk about. You might think, man, I’m small town Iowa – I’ll be lucky to have 50 people care if I live or die. It makes sense that God would be working in those people’s lives – the pastor, the priest, the person who never swears or finds himself closing down the bar for the 3rd time this week.

But I hope that this text already shows you, you’re never so obscure that The Lord doesn’t see you. You’re never so far off the beaten path that the God who made the stars can’t see you or speak to you. You’re never so insignificant in the world’s eyes that you would be insignificant in His. No one else may know your city, your family, or your name. But if you’re breathing, you are seen, you are known, you are loved by the God who made you in his image. Scripture says he knows how many hairs are on your head. He knows when you stand up and when you sit down. He knows what you’ve done and what you haven’t done, and he loves you anyway.

So this messenger from God shows up to Mary in the no name backwater town of Nazareth, and begins a conversation with her. 28 And the angel came to her and said, “Greetings, favored woman! The Lord is with you.”

That word “Favored” means that you have received God’s free gift of grace. “It singles her out as a special instrument whom God chose to use in his gracious plan of salvation” (Butler, 3:11).

29 But she was deeply troubled by this statement, wondering what kind of greeting this could be.

Mary’s response here is very telling. Deeply troubled means she had an “intense curiosity and concern” (Bock, 1:110). This whole experience is very unexpected to her. She is not favored by God because she was somehow more devout, or more righteous, or more spiritually mature than any other Jewish women of the day.

In fact, her response there in verse 29 shows her humility and honesty before God. She obviously never expected to see an angel or receive special favors from heaven. There was nothing unique about her that this sort of thing should happen. If she had been so much more special than the other Jewish girls, as some theologians claim she was, then she might have said, “Well, it’s about time! I’ve been expecting you!” (Wiersbe, 1:172). But she doesn’t. She is intensely curious and concerned, maybe even a bit fearful.

Because the angel replies – 30 …“Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. God’s not out to get you – he’s got something for you! 31 Now listen: You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you will name him Jesus. 32 He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give him the throne of his father David. 33 He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and his kingdom will have no end.”

Just look for a second at all those promises about what and who Jesus will be. He will be great. Will be the Son of the Most High. He will have the throne of David. He will reign forever. His kingdom will have no end.

If you are new to the Bible, once again those descriptions may not mean much, but to the people of Israel who had been sitting on prophecies about a Deliverer, a Savior, a Rescuer for 100s of years, these words are pure gold. In fact, to them it’s the greatest news they could ever have received! They are prophetic descriptions from the Old Testament; “Messiah words”. Those are words they’ve been waiting to hear for very, very long time.

But Mary’s like, uh, you lost me at “I will conceive.” You said I’m going to conceive and give birth to a son. Question.

34 [She] asked the angel, “How can this be, since I have not had sexual relations with a man?”

Mary apparently doesn’t think the angel means that she should go be with Joseph right now, and that’s how it’ll come about. She also doesn’t assume that this is something that will come about eventually, once they get married. Mary somehow understands that the angel means right now – this is happening. So it’s not that Mary is doubting. It’s not like she doesn’t trust God. It’s a fair question for a teenage girl to ask.

35 The angel replied to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. Therefore, (because the Holy Spirit is bringing this about, and not Joseph) the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God.

And then it’s almost like the angel said, and hey, if you want evidence that something like this can happen: 36 And consider your relative Elizabeth—even she has conceived a son in her old age, and this is the sixth month for her who was called childless. And then here again, Mary, is why you don’t have to worry about all the details: 37 For nothing will be impossible with God.”

Nothing will be impossible with God.

That is an invitation to faith. It’s an invitation to faith.

I’m going to stop right there before we get to Mary’s response, because I think if we’re honest here this afternoon – I think we spend a lot of our lives similar to Mary looking at our immediate situations around us and saying, this feels impossible. How can this be!? How can it be that my family could ever be normal again after the divorce, after the death of a loved on, how could we ever be normal again after that huge knock down drag out argument we had? Or we look at our health diagnosis and say, how are things ever going to work out if they don’t know of a cure? How will our country ever get to where it needs to be if we keep having “those people” who vote this way or that way (whoever you think those people are)? Or we never get reform in this area or that area? Or maybe for you, something like getting out of the financial pit you’re in feels impossible.

Because, just like Mary, we tend to see the world through the lens of what we can understand. We look at the brokenness of our immediate circumstances, and then December rolls around, and we sing the same songs about peace, love, and joy to the world – a Savior – and maybe you have the same concerns, fears, anxieties that Mary might have had – How can this be?

But I’m going to give you the bad news before I give you the good part.

The Bible says it’s even worse than you think.

What’s much worse than your medical diagnosis of cancer or ADHD or infertility or heart disease or divorce or the brokenness of your family or the condition of our country is that the part of you and me that is built for relationship with God – the heart, the soul, the spirit – whatever you want to call it, is born already separated from God with no hope because of sin. And the reason there is so much brokenness in the world is because instead of turning to God for wisdom we have turned to ourselves. “800 years before Jesus was born, the prophet Isaiah defined sin like this: He said ‘all of us have gone astray like sheep, and turned to our own way’” (Tozer, 60).

We learn in the beginning of Ephesians chapter 2 that sin – this thing of turning to our own way – doesn’t make us bad people, it makes us dead. And then John chapter 1 adds that the problem is not only that we are dead in our moral and spiritual ignorance – we enjoy it! We prefer it! We actually love the darkness, and hate it that Jesus has come and turned on the light that exposes our sin.

And this is where so many people show up in church week after week, year after year, and still miss out on everything God has for them. They think sinning just means doing bad things, and that in order to go to heaven they just need to start being less bad and more good. In fact, the reason most people get involved in religion because they think it gives them the answers to how to be a good person. Some of you may even be here this evening, because you think you’re doing a good thing that will make up for some bad things you’ve done this year.

The bad news is that you can never do enough good things to turn the corner on sin. Sin doesn’t make us bad, it makes us dead. We don’t need someone to come and help us be good. We need a spiritual heart transplant. We need someone to come and give us life!

And that’s where the good news is! And John 10:10 says that’s exactly what Jesus has come to do. The devil comes to kill, steal, and destroy – but Jesus has come so that we could have abundant life – EVEN WHEN THE CIRCUMSTANCES OF OUR LIVES AREN’T WHAT WE HOPED THEY WOULD BE!

Speaking of which – Fast forward 33 years from Luke 1, and this same Mary stood watching, weeping in overwhelming sorrow, as this same child that the angel had told her about, was being crucified. Publicly humiliated with a criminal’s death – not because he had committed any crimes against God, against Israel’s laws, or even against the Roman government. He was crucified because he claimed to be the Son of God. He was crucified because he exposed the dark hearts of the religious leaders. And for Mary and the other disciples of Jesus, they must have stood there thinking, how can this be? How can those promises in verses 32 and 33 ever come true if he’s dead? How will he be on the throne? How will he reign forever in a kingdom that never gets overthrown? How will this happen if his life is being taken like this!?

Because with God, nothing will be impossible! It’s an invitation to faith! Acts 4 says that God had the whole story planned out from the beginning! That Jesus came to earth to die for those who loved the darkness and hated the light. He is able to do, by the power of the Holy Spirit, what we are unable to do on our own!

He died to destroy the works of the devil, and give abundant life to anyone who calls on his name. And on the third day, the power of God raised Jesus from the grave to prove that the cross worked! He proved to be the Son of God by defeating death, and hell, and sin, because nothing is impossible for God!

I want to close by looking at verse 38 and close with this, because Mary’s response is pretty incredible here. She said to the angel, 38 “See, I am the Lord’s servant,” said Mary. “May it happen to me as you have said.” Then the angel left her.

I am the Lord’s servant. That is a statement of identity. It’s a statement of a grounded reality that Mary saw herself first and foremost as a servant of the Lord. I am yours. Isn’t this amazing? Mary’s primary concern was not around what people would think if she turned up pregnant before the wedding. Her primary anxiety was not around how she would care for a baby, or what she would tell Joseph. Her first thought was “I don’t see how this will be possible” and when the angel explained, her second thought was “I exist to serve you, not the other way around.”

Let me ask you this question tonight – How many of us have been living with that statement backwards? The Lord is my servant. How many of us treat God like he’s a generous grandpa in the sky that as long as you stay on his good side, he’ll give you what you want – even if it’s not good for you. We open the envelope, don’t even read his words or notice his signature – we just look for cash, and toss the card. Or can we say with Mary, “I am yours”? There’s one way to find out: Listen to how you pray. How do you pray? Are you telling God what to do? Are your prayers full of things you want from him? Or do you pray saying, Lord do whatever you want with my life, I am yours.

What grounds your identity tonight? Most of us find our identity in something temporary. I’m a pastor. A teacher. A farmer. A businessman or businesswoman. I’m a dad. I’m single. I’m married. I’m a wife. I’m a student. Or whatever. But Mary saw herself first and foremost as the servant of the Lord. This is about what he wants, not about what I want. Then here’s part 2 of her response:

May it happen to me as you have said. Mary’s statement of identity is followed by a statement of surrender. May it happen to me as you have said. In other words, go ahead. You are the Lord. Whatever you want.

This is the same attitude Jesus had right before he was betrayed, when he said “Not my will but yours be done.” It’s the natural follow up to the first statement. I am yours, do whatever you want with my life.

I wonder how many of us can say that tonight. Lord, do whatever you want with my life. We might say, hey if you want to make me rich or famous or do miracles through me or use me to start some major revival, go for it. But Mary knew saying yes to this would make her get side-eyed everywhere she went because of the unmarried pregnancy. She knew this would likely isolate her from her family and Joseph’s family. Who would believe her saying the Holy Spirit was the one responsible for this? And yet, she still says, “I am yours. Do whatever you want with my life.”

The world and the devil whisper in our ears all the time – “No, you are your own self. YOU do whatever YOU want with YOUR life. God can’t be trusted. He doesn’t always come through.”

And yet, at both ends of Jesus’ life, God came through by doing the impossible.

A virgin conceived and gave birth, only by the power of God. And at the other end, a dead man walked out of the grave, by the same power of God. And ever since that moment, God continues to do what is impossible by bringing spiritually dead people to life, as they believe in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus!

That’s where you and I have a choice to make before we leave here tonight. You have the choice to say, I’m going to keep listening to the voice of the world that says my highest authority is me. My self. I do what I want, when I want, and how I want. I don’t answer to anyone but my true self.

OR

You can put your faith in the God of the impossible. You can say, Lord, I am yours. Do whatever you want to do with my life. I trust that you are able to do more than I could ever ask or imagine. I believe that your power is still at work, not just in the high and mighty, but in the lowly. The insignificant. The poor. The weak. Those who don’t have their act together.

I’m going to give you an opportunity to respond to this tonight. (pastors and wives)

SOURCES

Michael Wilcock, The Savior of the World: The Message of Luke’s Gospel, The Bible Speaks Today, (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1979)

Darrell L. Bock, Luke: 1:1–9:50, Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament, (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 1994)

AW Tozer, Three Spiritual Classics in One Volume (Chicago, IL: Moody Publishers, 2018)

Warren W. Wiersbe, The Bible Exposition Commentary, (Wheaton, IL: Victor Books, 1996)

Trent C. Butler, Luke, Holman New Testament Commentary, (Nashville, TN: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 2000)

Public Speaking Outline: "Nothing Will Be Impossible with God"(Based on Luke 1:26-38 – Christmas Eve Message)I. Introduction

Greeting and Thanks Thank everyone for choosing to attend River City on Christmas Eve despite many options. Transition: Share a personal story to draw the audience in...

Personal Hook Recount reading the Christmas story on an airplane during vacation – away from seasonal decorations, it felt more raw and real. Admit it's easy to breeze through the familiar details (manger, star, shepherds, wise men).

Modern Disconnect Humorously contrast ancient elements with today: no one uses mangers, shepherds are rare, teenage pregnancies common, wise men replaced by Google/ChatGPT/YouTube, frankincense/myrrh = essential oils, easy hotel bookings. The story can feel like a myth – entertaining but irrelevant in our AI/cyber world.

Tease the Depth While reading on the plane, deep questions emerged that challenge our lives today. Transition: This message isn't for those who think they've earned God's favor or feel bitter toward Him...

Audience Filter and Invitation If you feel self-sufficient or owed something by God – this may not resonate. But if your life feels empty, lost, insignificant, or in desperate need of hope – there's good news tonight! We'll examine the angel's visit to Mary, what he said about Jesus, and Mary's response.

Prayer (Pause for prayer here.)

Transition: Let's dive into Luke 1:26-27 for the setup...II. The Setup: God's Specific Choice (Luke 1:26-27)

Scripture Reading Read/introduce verses 26-27: Angel Gabriel sent to Nazareth, to virgin Mary engaged to Joseph (house of David).

Historical Context: The 400 Years of Silence Old Testament full of supernatural (angels, visions, God speaking). Then 400 years of silence after Malachi – no angels, miracles, prophets. Felt like darkness.

Sudden Breakthrough Two angel appearances break the silence: First to High Priest in Temple (expected), second to Mary in obscure Nazareth. Angels = messengers with something important to say.

The Insignificance of Nazareth Tiny rural village (~population of this room x2), off the beaten path, no OT/prophetic mention, not in Josephus or Talmud. Luke explains "a town in Galilee" because most hadn't heard of it. Analogy: Like saying "Riverside, Iowa" – people need bigger reference points. Famous dismissal: "Can anything good come out of Nazareth?"nazarethvillage.com

Transition: So why here? This shows God's heart for the obscure...

Application: God Sees the Insignificant Contrast: Angel first to holiest person/place, then to "no-name" Mary in "redneck" region. Encouragement: You're never too obscure, small-town, or unnoticed for God to see, know, and love you (hairs on head, every move – Ps. 139).

Transition: With that in mind, let's hear what the angel actually said to Mary...III. The Angel's Message to Mary (Luke 1:28-37)

Greeting and Mary's Reaction (vv. 28-29) "Greetings, favored woman! The Lord is with you." (Favor = unearned grace.) Mary deeply troubled – humble, honest, unexpected (not "about time!").istockphoto.comistockphoto.comjohntsquires.com

Reassurance and Announcement (vv. 30-33) "Do not be afraid... you have found favor." You will conceive Jesus: Great, Son of the Most High, throne of David, eternal reign/kingdom. These are long-awaited "Messiah words" – pure gold to Israel!

Mary's Question (v. 34) "How can this be, since I am a virgin?" (Fair, practical – understands "now.")

Angel's Explanation (vv. 35-37) Holy Spirit will overshadow; child = Son of God. Proof: Elderly Elizabeth pregnant (6 months). Climax: "Nothing will be impossible with God." – Invitation to faith.

Transition: This hits home, because we all face "impossible" situations...

Personal Application: Our "How Can This Be?" Moments Examples: Broken families, health crises, finances, national division. We view through limited human lens – story promises peace/joy, but circumstances scream impossible.

IV. The Bad News and the Good News

The Bad News Worse than any circumstance: We're born spiritually dead/separated by sin (turned to our own way – Isa.; dead in sin – Eph. 2; love darkness – John 1/3). Religion often misses this – tries to "be good" instead of needing new life.

The Good News Jesus came for abundant life (John 10:10) despite circumstances. Fast-forward: Mary watches crucifixion – seems impossible for promises to hold. But God planned it: Jesus dies for sinners, rises to prove power over sin/death.amazon.comdioceseoflansing.orgthegospelcoalition.orgamazon.com

Transition: God's power bookends Jesus' life – virgin birth and resurrection – and still works today...V. Mary's Response and Our Choice (Luke 1:38)

Mary's Words "I am the Lord's servant. May it happen to me as you have said." Statement of identity (I am Yours) + surrender (Do whatever You want). Contrast Jesus' prayer: "Not my will..."

Challenge Many reverse it: "The Lord is my servant" (treat God like cosmic grandpa). Check prayers: Demanding or surrendering? Identity often temporary (job, role) – Mary's grounded in serving God. She knew costs (shame, isolation) but trusted anyway.

The Ongoing Impossible God still brings dead to life through faith in Jesus.

Transition: Tonight, you have a choice...

Invitation to Respond Keep self as authority? Or say: "Lord, I am Yours – do whatever You want." Trust God's power in the lowly/insignificant. Opportunity to respond (call pastors/wives forward for prayer).

This outline preserves the speaker's warm, relatable style while structuring for clear flow, smooth transitions, and visual engagement.