God Throughout Time

God Throughout Time Why is it getting harder to buy Advent calendars? Their days are numbered! What is the absolute best Christmas present? A broken drum - you can't beat it! 1. You know what else you can't beat, Jesus Christ. He is the best present, and Jesus offers you His free gift of forgiveness and salvation, because He knows that your days are also numbered. 2. And ever since the very beginning, God foretold and has acted so you could choose to accept His love. * When "God created the heavens and the earth," He also created time. Born, Live, Die, in time. * Throughout time, prophecies were told, and fulfilled, about Jesus Christ * That's how the Magi knew Christ had been born 3. Matthew 2:1-2, "After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem and asked, 'Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw His star when it rose and have come to worship Him." * The Magi, "saw His star" * How did they know to look for "His star?" They looked at Scripture 4. Numbers 24:17, "A star will come out of Jacob; a scepter will rise out of Israel" * Scepter is a "rod" or "staff" that indicates authority and sovereignty * Psalm 45:6, "Your throne, O God, will last for ever and ever; a scepter of justice will be the scepter of your kingdom" * Jesus is the scepter whose throne will last forever and who will rule justly * This prophecy goes back further 5. Genesis 49:10, "The scepter will not depart from Judah, nor the ruler's staff from between his feet, until he to whom it belongs shall come and the obedience of the nations shall be his" * Jesus fulfilled these prophecies, and literally hundreds more * Isaiah 7:14, "Therefore the LORD Himself will give you a sing: The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call Him Immanuel." * 700 years before "The First Noel," which is Christ's birth, Scripture foretold what God was going to do 6. Jesus fulfilled these prophecies because He is God who transcends time. * God knows the "end from the beginning" (Isaiah 46:10) * That's why you can have complete trust and confidence in God because He knows everything * One of the reasons Christianity is true and unlike any other religion is because of all the fulfilled prophecies. No other religion can say that! 7. But make no mistake, Christianity is not a religion, it's a RELATIONSHIP * It's a real, intimate relationship with a God who loves you so much, He became a man, while still being God, to redeem you from your sins * Redemption from your sins, you become a child of God. An eternal relationship 8. God came to you so that you could come to God * Come to God tonight. He was born, lived, died, and was raised again, for you. * It may be 2000 years since Christ's birth, but He has not left us. * Just like the Magi, look up to the stars, and see God's handiwork 9. The Bethlehem Star that many have seen this week may or may not have been what the Magi saw. * It doesn't matter, because just like the Magi, look up to God, because He came down for you. 10. On the darkest, longest night of the year, God's star shines for you, let your light shine for Him. 11. Isaiah 9:2-7 - - This has been a dark year. God knows, and He cares. Be joyful!