God's Mercy Means Salvation
Notes
Transcript
Handout
There are some great Christmas songs!
All I want for Christmas is you!
Run. Run. Rudolf!
There are some great Christmas Carols.
Hark! The Herald Angels Sing!
Joy to the World.
One of the great songs of Christmas comes in Lukes gospel, chapter one – the Song of Zechariah. It is known as the Benedictus, because of its first line (blessed be the Lord of God of Israel). It is said each morning, in the church of England morning prayer.
It’s a song that praises the Lord, for what He has done! We saw that in Exodus: an expression of the joy of God’s saved people, is to sing praises to the Lord.
And that what Zechariah does in Luke 1. He’s been unable to speak, and probably unable to hear, for the past 9 months, because of his unbelief (Luke 1:20).
Elizabeth has now had that baby, and it is the time to circumcise the child, on the eight day. It was at this service that they would name this child. The people there assumed the child would take the name of his father, Zechariah. Elizabeth said no. (Luke 1:60) … ‘He is to be called John.’
So, they turn to Zechariah, who then writes the name of the child on a tablet. ‘John is his name’. It is at that point Zechariah is able to speak again. Luke 1:64… ‘Immediately his mouth was opened and his tongue set free, and he began to speak, praising God.’
After 9 months of silence, time to reflect, Zechariah opens his mouth and praises God. Those there saw something amazing that day. They were filled with awe! (Luke 1:65)
And so, we get to Zechariah’s song. His joy overflows. And it’s expressed in this song…
There are four things we see in this song of praise…
1. The Plan of Salvation
1. The Plan of Salvation
Zechariah praises the Lord. But for what?
Luke 1:68… ‘‘Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel, because he has come to his people and redeemed them.
“Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel,
because he has come to his people and redeemed them.
‘He has come’ – In Jesus, God visits His people. He came and tabernacled among us, John 1:14… ‘The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us.
The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.
(We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.)’ Zechariah praises the Lord, because the Lord has come to His people.
He has come to His people and
‘Redeemed them’ – He’s set them free! The Messiah came to His people to pay the price, to redeem His people, from slavery. To free them. Free them from slavery to sin.
It’s not yet happened, yet Zechariah speaks as if it had. John was only 8 days old, and Jesus hadn’t been born yet. Yet Zechariah is so confident, so certain in the promises of God, he speaks as if redemption had already taken place. He knew the birth of his son, John, signalled that God was about to visit His people and to bring salvation. And that is why He begins by praising the Lord for the Messiah.
We know He has in mind the Messiah because of the mention of David. John wasn’t from the line of David. But Jesus was. Mary was in the line of David. Zechariah is praising God for the salvation the Messiah brings; who is the horn of salvation! And that horn of salvation was to come from David’s line.
A strong Saviour, a mighty Salvation, is coming to redeem God’s people. That is Jesus! He is the One the people have been waiting for. … ‘as he said through his holy prophets of long ago’ …Luke 1:70
Jesus wasn’t plan b. It wasn’t as if God saw how the world had messed up and thought ‘What can I do about?’ No, Jesus was God’s plan, right from the very beginning. He was the one who would come to His people and redeem them. Would free them from sin and death! He is the One who would rescue His people.
There is a clip in Superman, where Superman is flying about the city with Lois Lane. Superman says to Lois, ‘You wrote that the world doesn’t need a Saviour. But every day I hear people crying for one.’
The world does need a Saviour. But it isn’t Superman. The Saviour of the world is Jesus! He is the Saviour of the world, because He brings salvation that we all need and only He can bring. What is mankind’s greatest problem? It isn’t lack of education, or lack of wealth, or whatever else. Mankind’s great problem is the problem of sin. Romans 3:23… ‘for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God…’
for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
But the next verse says… ‘and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. (Romans 3:24)’
and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.
Jesus is the One who came to deal with our greatest need. He came to free us from sin and death, by dying on a cross. He pays the price for our freedom, on the cross. He gave His life, so that we might have new life in Him. That is why Christmas is good news. That is why we praise God.
At that first Christmas, the redeemer was born, the Saviour, the One who would go on to bear the cost of our sin, even though He was without sin, in order that those who believe and trust in Him, will find forgives and new life.
“If man had his way, the plan of redemption would be an endless and bloody conflict. In reality, salvation was bought not by Jesus' fist, but by His nail-pierced hands; not by muscle but by love; not by vengeance but by forgiveness; not by force but by sacrifice. Jesus Christ our Lord surrendered in order that He might win; He destroyed His enemies by dying for them and conquered death by allowing death to conquer Him.” ― A.W. Tozer Preparing for Jesus' Return: Daily Live the Blessed Hope
Christmas is good news. Do you know the good news? Are you trusting Jesus, the Saviour? If not, then come to Him today.
Secondly, we see…
The Purpose of Salvation
The Purpose of Salvation
This song links brilliantly with our studies in Exodus. The Israelites were rescued from slavery for what? They were rescued for worship. Exodus 7:16… ‘The Lord, the God of the Hebrews, has sent me to say to you: Let my people go, so that they may worship me in the wilderness…’
Then say to him, ‘The Lord, the God of the Hebrews, has sent me to say to you: Let my people go, so that they may worship me in the wilderness. But until now you have not listened.
That is the same for us. We too were rescued from slavery to sin, to worship the Lord. God saves us, in Jesus, so that we might worship.
Luke 1:74… ‘to rescue us from the hand of our enemies, and to enable us to serve him (to worship Him) without fear 75 in holiness and righteousness before him all our days.’
to rescue us from the hand of our enemies,
and to enable us to serve him without fear
That is what we are saved for. We looked at that a few weeks ago! We’re saved to worship. To worship Him in holiness. We are set apart for God. We are His and He is ours. He is the treasure of our hearts. And we are to worship Him in righteousness. Worship Him in how we live. Being obedient to His Word, in the Scriptures. Doing all things for His glory.
Do our lives honour the One who saves us? Are we striving to live our lives in worship to Him; seeking to bring Him glory, in our lives, in our speech, in our actions?
We are saved to worship.
Thirdly we see…
The Prophet of Salvation
The Prophet of Salvation
Zechariah now praises the Lord for his son John. He knew John wasn’t the Saviour. But He also knew that John would go before the Lord, to prepare His way, verses 76-77. John is the one who would prepare the way for the Saviour, by teaching the people how to be saved. Verse 77… ‘to give his people the knowledge of salvation through the forgiveness of their sins…’
John is the one who would point people to Jesus. He’s like that hand, with the pointing finger on Saturday Night Takeaway, with Ant and Dec, that points at the one chosen to win the ads. John is the one who point people to the way of Salvation – to Jesus.
And He did that. In John 3:30… ‘He must become greater; I must become less.’
He must become greater; I must become less.”
John was the one who pointed to the Saviour. John would be great. But not from serving himself, but from serving the Lord. We too must decrease, so that the Saviour is glorified.
Finally…
The Peace of Salvation
The Peace of Salvation
Luke 1:78… ‘because of the tender mercy of our God…’ The only reason anyone is saved is because of God’s mercy. And that brings peace. We cannot earn salvation. We cannot earn favour with God. If we could, there would be no peace. We would always be wondering if we had done enough. Forgiveness, salvation, redemption, comes only by the mercy of God. And that is what the Messiah brings.
It is not thy hold on Christ that saves thee; it is Christ. It is not thy joy in Christ that saves thee; it is Christ. It is not even thy faith in Christ, though that be the instrument; it is Christ's blood and merit. - Charles Spurgeon
Salvation, forgiveness, is unearned and undeserved. It is only by the mercy of God that we are saved, and that brings peace. Peace everlasting. A peace unchanged by circumstances.
And the Saviour that is to come, who brings mercy, who brings peace, brings light to darkness. Luke 1:78-79… ‘because of the tender mercy of our God, by which the rising sun will come to us from heaven (that is Jesus) 79 to shine on those living in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the path of peace.’
because of the tender mercy of our God,
by which the rising sun will come to us from heaven
to shine on those living in darkness
and in the shadow of death,
to guide our feet into the path of peace.”
Jesus comes as the light of the world, to shine in darkness. John 1:1-5… ‘In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was with God in the beginning. 3 Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. 4 In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.’
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.
Jesus come to shine light in the darkness of sin and death. He comes to dispel the shadow of death, as He defeats it. And Jesus, the light, shines, as our guide on the path of peace. Psalm 119:105… ‘Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path.’
Your word is a lamp for my feet,
a light on my path.
Jesus, the Messiah brings peace. Isn’t the world crying out for peace! Peace from conflict, peace from disease, peace from debt, peace from crime etc. The Angels in Luke 2 sing, ‘“Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favour rests.”’ Jesus is good news for the whole world because He brings peace. He brings forgiveness. He restores our relationship with God, with one another, and with ourselves.
Be certain, just as Zechariah was, of the salvation we have in Jesus. And praise the Lord. What a wonderful Christmas song this is.
Let’s pray….