Untitled Sermon

Stephen Masters 

Series: Truth 

Canvas Church 

12.13.2020

Experiencing Joy 

Intro: 

Welcome to Canvas! 

We are t-minus 12 days until Christmas! 

Week 2 of our series “Good News, Great Joy” 

We are looking at the Christmas story from the experience of the shepherds in Luke 2

Key Text: Luke 2:10- but the angel reassured them. “Don’t be afraid!” he said. “I bring you good news that will bring great joy to all people. 

Recap Week 1- The shepherds heard the good news of the Savior being born. 

Pray

Continuing on in the story… Shepherds heard the message that the Messiah was born in Bethlehem. 

You'll know it him by the snugly strips of cloth 

Oh and he will be lying in a feeding trough in a cave.. 

Here is what happens next

Luke 2:15-16- 15 When the angels had returned to heaven, the shepherds said to each other, “Let’s go to Bethlehem! Let’s see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.”16 They hurried to the village and found Mary and Joseph. And there was the baby, lying in the manger.

Imagine this moment: Angel appears.. Whoa

You hear that the Savior is here. The one you’ve been waiting for

 There is good news and great joy. 

Whole choir of angels whoa.

You have instructions to go to Bethlehem and see for yourself. 

It was one thing for the shepherds to hear about this joy. It's a completely different thing to experience it. 

Story: Hearing about Safeco field as a kid vs. first time I experienced it in 2001. 

It's one thing to hear about that new coffee drink- It’s another to experience it.

It’s one thing to hear about the new restaurant- It’s another to experience it.

It’s one thing to hear about the beauty of Glacier- It’s another to experience. 

In fact, most marketing today.. It’s all about the experience.

Many people give the gift of experiences for Christmas.. Leaves an impact

Experiences leave imprints in our hearts and minds. Experiences have a way of marking us.

Tension: How many of us have stopped at hearing about Jesus and haven't experienced the joy found in a relationship with Jesus.

How often do we miss out on experiencing joy and seeing God moving in our life because we just stopped at hearing about him.

We know the facts about Jesus… 

Born in Bethlehem

Laid in a manger 

Wise men, shepherds, gifts, joy. 

Grew up.. Carpenter.. Well you know the rest.

We stop at the hearing of who he is, but haven't experienced it for ourselves.

How do we move from hearing about this joy to experiencing and sharing in this joy? 

2 things the shepherds did to experience Joy…

Believe the Good News

I love the shepherd's response to hearing the angel speak.

Luke 2:15b-16- Let’s see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.”16 They hurried to the village and found Mary and Joseph. And there was the baby, lying in the manger.

Let’s go check it out for ourselves..Let's not just take someone else's word for it. They believed it.

They left their sheep 

Abandoned everything right away to go see if what they had heard was true. 

They hurried. They heard. But, they wanted to experience it for themselves.

They took a step. 

They had the faith to go and see it.

1 Peter 1:8-9 8 Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, 9 obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.

The shepherds saw Jesus, but it took FAITH for them to believe a baby, born in a cave was really going to be their savior.

Takes faith for us. Though we do not see him we believe in him and we receive the same joy they experienced in knowing WE have a savior.

Heart Check: How many of us have missed out on the joy in being with Jesus because we haven't taken that step..

I hear God speak to me.. Yet i want to hold on to comfort

I know the truth.. Yet I have hardened my heart to it. 

I want to be at a place in my faith that I hold loosely to the things of this world, so I can be obedient to what he calls me to do.

I don't want to miss out on the joy on the other side of my step of faith.

Because he is with me. They experienced Joy because what they had heard became a reality in their hearts.

Give handlebars here: 

What causes me to stop at hearing

Bad experience at church  

Experience the Great Joy

There is something so powerful about just experiencing the Presence of Jesus. 

Next week we will look at what the shepherds do. 

But, another group of people come to experience this baby. 

Matthew 2:10-11- 10 When they saw the star, they were filled with joy! 11 They entered the house and saw the child with his mother, Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. 

There is so much power experiencing the presence of Jesus.

Story: Maybe share the story of when you gave your life?

Simply the presence of Jesus: Brings joy.

When we experience Him-

The truth of who he is.. Demands a response 

These men traveled from far away and bowed down and worshipped the baby lying in a manger.

Here at Canvas

We exist to create opportunities for people to experience God in a life changing way.. We don't want people just to hear about him.

 We want them to experience the joy.

BEING A PART OF THE EXPERIENCE. Active participation

Experience the love 

The forgiveness 

The hope 

One experience with Jesus and his presence changes everything 

It's not just about hearing the good news, it's about experiencing the new life that Jesus offers us.

What if this Christmas, the experience we have is one with the living Savior.

The very reason this little baby was born was so that you and I could experience this relationship.

There was no need to be afraid- Good news and great joy to be experienced because the Savior is here.

Title: Experiencing Joy

Date: 12.13.2020

Scripture: Luke 2:15-16

I give my life to Jesus 

I’m slow to believe. 

I know the facts, but haven't experienced the joy. 

Experiencing the joy is changing my life.