Jesus, The Reason For The Season

Christmas Eve Service - 2021

Lighting Of Advent Candles

Candle 1 - Preparation We get our hearts ready by thinking about Jesus. We should become “expecters” of His coming. Candle 2 - Love Jesus came to earth to “show and tell” us of God’s love. Candle 3 - Joy When we receive the love of Jesus, then we can know joy Nehemiah 8:10 the joy of the Lord is your strength. Candle 4 - God’s Gift Of all the gifts God has given us, none is greater than the gift of His Son Jesus. In giving us His Son, He gave us himself.

Every year at this time, our lives are full of the hustle and bustle of life. Perhaps we are pushing through the final hours of our work day before a needed couple days off; or, we are busy cleaning our homes in anticipation of the myriad of guests about to descend on us; or we are visiting every store we can think of in search of that all elusive super toy that seems to have been sold out since the day after Thanksgiving.

Whatever the case may be, we are stressed and overwhelmed with our hectic schedules and are looking forward to the time where we can just kick our feet up and relax a little bit.

But, is that all that we can expect for a holiday season that is claimed to be “the happiest season of all”? It sounds more like a time of year to receive an aneurysm than a happy, satisfied, feeling.

The great philosopher, Charlie Brown, once said, “Christmas has gone too commercial” and even asked the question, “Does anyone know what Christmas is all about?” The truth is that all this hustle and bustle really misses the point of what Christmas is all about.

During our time together tonight, we are going to examine what Christmas is all about from the place that it receives its namesake: the account of the birth of Jesus the Christ.

First…

The Reason for the Season

Before we can jump into the water with both feet, we need to let things warm up a bit so that we are not paralyzed with shock. As we look at the Reason for the season, we are told that something great happens followed by a tragic event and the promise to make things right once again.

A Perfect Creation Genesis 1:1, 26-31 In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth… then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” And God said, “Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit. You shall have them for food. And to every beast of the earth and to every bird of the heavens and to everything that creeps on the earth, everything that has the breath of life, I have given every green plant for food.” And it was so. And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day.

Sin, Death, and Suffering Enter the Picture

Genesis 3:1-6, 14-19, 24 Now the serpent was more crafty than any other beast of the field that the LORD God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God actually say, ‘You shall not eat of any tree in the garden’?” And the woman said to the serpent, “We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden, but God said, ‘You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree that is in the midst of the garden, neither shall you touch it, lest you die.’ ” But the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die. For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate. Then the eyes of both were opened, and they knew that they were naked. And they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves loincloths.

…The LORD God said to the serpent, “Because you have done this, cursed are you above all livestock and above all beasts of the field; on your belly you shall go, and dust you shall eat all the days of your life. I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.” To the woman he said, “I will surely multiply your pain in childbearing; in pain you shall bring forth children. Your desire shall be contrary to your husband, but he shall rule over you.” And to Adam he said, “Because you have listened to the voice of your wife and have eaten of the tree of which I commanded you, ‘You shall not eat of it,’ cursed is the ground because of you; in pain you shall eat of it all the days of your life; thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you; and you shall eat the plants of the field. By the sweat of your face you shall eat bread, till you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken; for you are dust, and to dust you shall return”

…He drove out the man, and at the east of the garden of Eden he placed the cherubim and a flaming sword that turned every way to guard the way to the tree of life.

God Promises A Savior

Genesis 3:15 I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.

Though this was a judgment on the serpent (Satan), it was at the same time a promise to man. Genesis 3:15 has traditionally been seen by Jews and Christians, as the first hint of a savior for mankind, and is often called the ‘protevangelion’ the ‘first gospel’.

The Chosen Line

God’s promise of a Deliverer leads to His need to decide where that Deliverer will come from. We find in the scriptures that He chooses a man of great faith to be the one whose line of descendants will include the Deliverer, the one who will bless the nations.

Genesis 22:15-18 And the angel of the LORD called to Abraham a second time from heaven and said, “By myself I have sworn, declares the LORD, because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son, I will surely bless you, and I will surely multiply your offspring as the stars of heaven and as the sand that is on the seashore. And your offspring shall possess the gate of his enemies, and in your offspring shall all the nations of the earth be blessed, because you have obeyed my voice.”

Hymn #245: “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel”

The Chosen Purpose

The Promised One will be a king in the line of David and His reign will never end. His kingdom will be defined by peace and established through justice and righteousness.

Isaiah 9:2, 6-7

The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness, on them has light shone.

…For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and of peace there will be no end, on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish it and to uphold it with justice and with righteousness from this time forth and forevermore. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will do this.

But before this can happen, God sent the Promised One to be a Deliverer from the ill effects of sin…most importantly, to bring about peace between men and women, and God.

Isaiah 53:3-6; Romans 5:8, 12, 18-19

He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief; and as one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not. Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned—every one—to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all.

…but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us…just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned…Therefore, as one trespass led to condemnation for all men, so one act of righteousness leads to justification and life for all men. For as by the one man’s disobedience the many were made sinners, so by the one man’s obedience the many will be made righteous.

Born to Die

The Chosen Vessel

God has given the promise of a Savior; He has chosen the line of descendants that He would come from; and He has established the purpose of His coming. It is also revealed to us the one who would bring that promised one into the world.

Isaiah 7:14; Luke 1:26-38

Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel…

In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. And the virgin’s name was Mary. And he came to her and said, “Greetings, O favored one, the Lord is with you!” But she was greatly troubled at the saying, and tried to discern what sort of greeting this might be. And the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.” And Mary said to the angel, “How will this be, since I am a virgin?” And the angel answered her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy—the Son of God. And behold, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son, and this is the sixth month with her who was called barren. For nothing will be impossible with God.” And Mary said, “Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her.

The Chosen Place

No ordinary woman would do to bear the Promised One. God was very specific that it had to be a virgin. He is also very specific as to where and when He would come.

Galatians 4:4-5; Luke 2:1-7 But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons.

…In those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be registered. This was the first registration when Quirinius was governor of Syria. And all went to be registered, each to his own town. And Joseph also went up from Galilee, from the town of Nazareth, to Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and lineage of David, to be registered with Mary, his betrothed, who was with child. And while they were there, the time came for her to give birth. And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in swaddling cloths and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn.

Hymn #250: “O Little Town of Bethlehem”

The Chosen Witnesses

God has been strategically setting the stage for the Savior to make His grand entrance. While he uses His heavenly host to announce the grand arrival, He entrusted the message to those who are faithful to share it with others.

Luke 2:8-20

And in the same region there were shepherds out in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with great fear. And the angel said to them, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger.” And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!” When the angels went away from them into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let us go over to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has made known to us.” And they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby lying in a manger. And when they saw it, they made known the saying that had been told them concerning this child. And all who heard it wondered at what the shepherds told them. But Mary treasured up all these things, pondering them in her heart. And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them.

Hymn #278: “Angels We Have Heard On High”

The Chosen Light

Jesus, the Promised One, is the Light of the World and as His followers, we are expected to reflect that light to others. We live in a dark world, and our lives are to be beacons beckoning others to come to the Light.

John 8:12; Matthew 5:14-16

Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”

…You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.

Light Middle Candle

Hymn #253: “Silent Night”