WEBVTT 00:00:03.160 --> 00:00:06.879 Hello and welcome to Foley's End podcast. A podcast 00:00:06.879 --> 00:00:09.400 created to plant the word of God into your heart, 00:00:09.640 --> 00:00:11.580 giving you the tools you need to lead a life 00:00:11.580 --> 00:00:14.060 full of the abundance Jesus said he came to give 00:00:14.060 --> 00:00:17.800 us all. That's John 10 verse 10. I'm Gareth Cox. 00:00:18.039 --> 00:00:20.000 And I'm Jessie Cox. And thank you for joining 00:00:20.000 --> 00:00:23.320 us today for our special Christmas message. Jessie, 00:00:23.320 --> 00:00:25.199 I can't believe we're recording our Christmas 00:00:25.199 --> 00:00:28.789 message already. The year has flown by. Christmas 00:00:28.789 --> 00:00:31.170 is a really important time for many reasons. 00:00:31.449 --> 00:00:33.890 It brings families together. We get to show our 00:00:33.890 --> 00:00:36.170 love and kindness to one another. We eat too 00:00:36.170 --> 00:00:39.270 much and we share lots of presents. We also celebrate 00:00:39.270 --> 00:00:41.950 the true meaning of Christmas, the birth of Jesus. 00:00:42.509 --> 00:00:44.390 The presents that we give symbolize the most 00:00:44.390 --> 00:00:48.250 significant gift of all. God gave us Jesus. The 00:00:48.250 --> 00:00:50.329 Nativity story is focused around the birth of 00:00:50.329 --> 00:00:52.789 Jesus. So today we're going to look at what the 00:00:52.789 --> 00:00:56.030 Bible says instead of the fable that we've become 00:00:56.030 --> 00:00:58.799 so familiar with. So Jessie, tell us what it 00:00:58.799 --> 00:01:01.399 really is about. So I think one of the things 00:01:01.399 --> 00:01:03.799 that we need to understand is that the story 00:01:03.799 --> 00:01:07.579 of Christmas is not just a children's tale. It's 00:01:07.579 --> 00:01:10.280 got relevance that we can apply to our lives 00:01:10.280 --> 00:01:14.719 today. You know, over the years, over the decades, 00:01:15.159 --> 00:01:18.620 it's been quietly moved into just a children's 00:01:18.620 --> 00:01:22.000 nativity play that you only hear about at school 00:01:22.000 --> 00:01:25.840 or a Church of England type nativity rendition. 00:01:26.260 --> 00:01:28.760 But that's not what it is. Are you saying that 00:01:28.760 --> 00:01:31.480 we shouldn't have children's nativities? No, 00:01:31.480 --> 00:01:35.620 not at all. I mean, it might be the only version 00:01:35.620 --> 00:01:39.010 of Jesus's birth that people here otherwise they're 00:01:39.010 --> 00:01:42.310 not exposed to it no you know and even our children 00:01:42.310 --> 00:01:46.129 you know it's not very many environments where 00:01:46.129 --> 00:01:48.909 you can talk to them about it. So I'm not saying 00:01:48.909 --> 00:01:51.450 that we shouldn't do it. We absolutely should. 00:01:51.849 --> 00:01:55.870 But for us, it can't be just limited to a story 00:01:55.870 --> 00:01:58.950 that we've heard passed down from other people. 00:01:58.969 --> 00:02:01.129 It needs to be something that we look at ourselves 00:02:01.129 --> 00:02:04.349 because it has got applications for our lives 00:02:04.349 --> 00:02:09.030 today. And a lot of what we know isn't really 00:02:09.030 --> 00:02:12.740 the full story anyway. you know, recently I was 00:02:12.740 --> 00:02:14.340 having a conversation with somebody and they 00:02:14.340 --> 00:02:17.500 were saying, you know, some scripture is meant 00:02:17.500 --> 00:02:20.539 for the time that it was written and not for 00:02:20.539 --> 00:02:23.759 us. And that's just, that's just not true. I 00:02:23.759 --> 00:02:29.520 mean, 2 Timothy 3 verse 16 to 17 says, All scripture 00:02:29.520 --> 00:02:33.139 is given by the inspiration of God and is profitable 00:02:33.139 --> 00:02:37.219 for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for 00:02:37.219 --> 00:02:40.819 instructions in righteousness that the man of 00:02:40.819 --> 00:02:44.099 God may be perfect, thoroughly finished unto 00:02:44.099 --> 00:02:48.039 all good work. And that verse says how much of 00:02:48.039 --> 00:02:53.000 scripture is profitable? All, all of it. So the 00:02:53.000 --> 00:02:56.689 story of Jesus' birth, we need to know about 00:02:56.689 --> 00:02:59.969 it so that it isn't just a fable, it isn't just 00:02:59.969 --> 00:03:02.629 a children's nativity play. It has applications 00:03:02.629 --> 00:03:05.169 for our lives today and like I said before there 00:03:05.169 --> 00:03:08.909 are so many myths surrounding the nativity story 00:03:08.909 --> 00:03:12.270 but there's so many amazing things that we can 00:03:12.270 --> 00:03:15.069 learn from it. I heard you say the word myth 00:03:15.069 --> 00:03:19.110 then. Myths tend to suggest false information 00:03:19.110 --> 00:03:21.629 perhaps. What do you mean by that? So, like, 00:03:21.650 --> 00:03:24.650 for example, there's no mention of Mary riding 00:03:24.650 --> 00:03:27.530 on a donkey at all. Well, but every nativity 00:03:27.530 --> 00:03:30.330 has a donkey. Yeah, I know, but it's not in Scripture. 00:03:30.389 --> 00:03:31.949 And everyone wants to dress up as a donkey. And 00:03:31.949 --> 00:03:34.150 everybody, I mean, especially our two, but there 00:03:34.150 --> 00:03:37.449 is no mention of a donkey at all in any of the 00:03:37.449 --> 00:03:40.530 Scriptures. And it's not a big deal, right, whether 00:03:40.530 --> 00:03:43.419 there's a donkey there or not. But I think it's 00:03:43.419 --> 00:03:45.800 important that we understand, particularly as 00:03:45.800 --> 00:03:48.919 Christians, and as people that want to be mature 00:03:48.919 --> 00:03:52.719 in our understanding and knowledge of God, that 00:03:52.719 --> 00:03:56.419 the nativity story isn't a complete and true 00:03:56.419 --> 00:04:00.439 representation of the birth of Jesus. One of 00:04:00.439 --> 00:04:02.439 the things that I think can really help us in 00:04:02.439 --> 00:04:06.020 our understanding, Gareth, is to know that there 00:04:06.020 --> 00:04:09.620 are four Gospels, as we know, right? Yeah, Matthew, 00:04:09.699 --> 00:04:14.590 Mark, Luke and John. and only Matthew and Luke 00:04:14.590 --> 00:04:18.850 give a recount of the birth of Jesus. And I think 00:04:18.850 --> 00:04:21.009 we don't spend much time on this, but it's helpful 00:04:21.009 --> 00:04:24.209 for us to understand that each one of the gospels 00:04:24.209 --> 00:04:26.709 were written to a particular group of people. 00:04:27.990 --> 00:04:32.060 So Matthew was written to the Jewish culture 00:04:32.060 --> 00:04:35.600 and he was really establishing that Jesus was 00:04:35.600 --> 00:04:39.060 the Messiah that they were waiting for. Mark 00:04:39.060 --> 00:04:43.180 was written to the Romans who occupied most of 00:04:43.180 --> 00:04:46.779 the known world at the time. The Gospel of Luke 00:04:46.779 --> 00:04:51.019 was written to the Greeks who were pursuing to 00:04:51.019 --> 00:04:54.639 bring about the perfect man and the Greeks were 00:04:54.639 --> 00:04:59.509 obsessed with minds and physiques. And Luke represents 00:04:59.509 --> 00:05:02.509 Jesus as the perfect man who grew in wisdom. 00:05:03.290 --> 00:05:05.649 And the Gospel of John, you know, was written 00:05:05.649 --> 00:05:09.529 many years after the other Gospels. And he wrote 00:05:09.529 --> 00:05:12.410 those who had already responded to Jesus, to 00:05:12.410 --> 00:05:15.350 the Church. So it's interesting when we look 00:05:15.350 --> 00:05:17.990 at these, when we look at the story of Jesus, 00:05:18.029 --> 00:05:21.170 it's good for us to know who was writing these 00:05:21.170 --> 00:05:24.480 accounts and what they were written for. I'm 00:05:24.480 --> 00:05:29.259 a big fan of a TV show called Mythbusters. Can 00:05:29.259 --> 00:05:33.040 you bust any more myths for us in this story? 00:05:33.540 --> 00:05:35.860 Yeah, so there's one other that I really would 00:05:35.860 --> 00:05:39.579 like us to talk about today. Obviously everyone 00:05:39.579 --> 00:05:43.860 knows about the three wise men, right? Yeah, 00:05:44.040 --> 00:05:45.339 they're a big part of the story, right? It's 00:05:45.339 --> 00:05:48.680 a big part of the story. But there's no mention 00:05:48.680 --> 00:05:51.319 that there was three. You're kidding? No, I'm 00:05:51.319 --> 00:05:55.579 not. There's no donkey in those three wise men. 00:05:56.199 --> 00:05:59.680 Great. Was Mary and Joseph there? Yes, they were 00:05:59.680 --> 00:06:03.360 there. So, there's no mention of it being three 00:06:03.360 --> 00:06:06.819 at all in scripture. And, you know, we can only 00:06:06.819 --> 00:06:08.620 kind of assume that the reason why people got 00:06:08.620 --> 00:06:11.819 two three was because of the three gifts, which 00:06:11.819 --> 00:06:13.759 were? Gold, frankincense and myrrh. And that 00:06:13.759 --> 00:06:17.100 does make sense, doesn't it? Three kings, three 00:06:17.100 --> 00:06:20.370 gifts. Number three. And, you know, the way that 00:06:20.370 --> 00:06:24.370 we see the nativity story, we see, you know, 00:06:24.470 --> 00:06:26.750 the wise men kind of arriving at the same time. 00:06:26.850 --> 00:06:28.649 You know, it's three wise men because they just 00:06:28.649 --> 00:06:31.110 need three children to turn up at the nativity. 00:06:31.329 --> 00:06:33.029 That's why there's three wise men. Yeah. But 00:06:33.029 --> 00:06:35.870 they turn up at the nativity, right? Yeah. But 00:06:35.870 --> 00:06:39.529 scripture doesn't say that. So scripture says, 00:06:40.149 --> 00:06:45.290 I wish people could see your face. It's possible 00:06:45.290 --> 00:06:49.360 that the wise men... turned up way after Jesus 00:06:49.360 --> 00:06:52.620 was born, because the story in the Bible tells 00:06:52.620 --> 00:06:55.939 us that the wise men arrive, and they've been 00:06:55.939 --> 00:06:59.279 following the star, and they go to Herod's palace, 00:06:59.480 --> 00:07:01.480 because they see the star and they think, oh, 00:07:01.480 --> 00:07:03.439 there's got to be a king born, so where do you 00:07:03.439 --> 00:07:05.759 go to look for a king? The palace? Yeah. And 00:07:05.759 --> 00:07:08.019 it was too much of a coincidence that everybody 00:07:08.019 --> 00:07:10.839 descends exactly at the same moment that Jesus 00:07:10.839 --> 00:07:13.899 was born. Yeah. And the reason, like I say, with 00:07:13.899 --> 00:07:17.339 confidence, it's likely it was later is because, 00:07:17.339 --> 00:07:20.420 you know, when Herod finds this out and he asks 00:07:20.420 --> 00:07:22.540 them, you know, how long have you been following 00:07:22.540 --> 00:07:25.480 the star? He gets mad and he wants to ensure 00:07:25.480 --> 00:07:29.180 that he's the only king and he makes an order 00:07:29.180 --> 00:07:32.420 that all children, all baby boys born in Bethlehem 00:07:32.420 --> 00:07:35.699 to and under are to be killed. Yeah. So, but 00:07:35.699 --> 00:07:37.879 he said to and under. Why has he said two years 00:07:37.879 --> 00:07:40.259 and under? Well, there we go, there's your time 00:07:40.259 --> 00:07:41.800 period. Yeah, because they could have been following 00:07:41.800 --> 00:07:44.439 it for two years or there's a period of time 00:07:44.439 --> 00:07:47.480 between them arriving there and not coming back 00:07:47.480 --> 00:07:50.279 because they get warned in a dream well people 00:07:50.279 --> 00:07:53.259 they talk about hearing the good news right so 00:07:53.259 --> 00:07:56.639 we didn't have newspapers well we scribed things 00:07:56.639 --> 00:07:58.300 on rock and things like that but we didn't have 00:07:58.300 --> 00:08:00.699 newspapers we didn't have internet we couldn't 00:08:00.699 --> 00:08:03.800 fax anyone like it's not possible so you would 00:08:03.800 --> 00:08:05.759 have to hear it on the grapevine so the good 00:08:05.759 --> 00:08:07.579 news would have been spread and that takes a 00:08:07.579 --> 00:08:11.180 long time for it to spread that good news and 00:08:11.180 --> 00:08:15.279 you know The Bible says that they were wise men. 00:08:15.560 --> 00:08:17.420 If you look at your King James, it says wise 00:08:17.420 --> 00:08:20.639 men. But if you look at the original word in 00:08:20.639 --> 00:08:26.199 the Greek, it's a word called magi. And magi 00:08:26.199 --> 00:08:31.639 means magicians or sorcerers or wise men. Whoa. 00:08:34.029 --> 00:08:36.590 So they're often depicted in nativity as, you 00:08:36.590 --> 00:08:38.730 know, men with kind of crowns on their heads, 00:08:38.769 --> 00:08:42.970 but it's much more likely that they were sorcerers. 00:08:44.269 --> 00:08:48.070 And again, I wish we could see your face. I love 00:08:48.070 --> 00:08:52.970 that God chose to show himself to people that 00:08:52.970 --> 00:08:56.549 in most churches today would have been deemed 00:08:56.549 --> 00:08:59.830 unqualified or dangerous to know the things of 00:08:59.830 --> 00:09:01.850 God. I bet you've got a verse for that. I have. 00:09:02.190 --> 00:09:30.940 So 1 Corinthians 1 verse 27 says, I love that 00:09:30.940 --> 00:09:33.320 because it says that he takes the things that 00:09:33.320 --> 00:09:38.299 the world thinks are nothing and he uses those 00:09:38.299 --> 00:09:46.379 things. He showed himself to not three wise kings 00:09:46.379 --> 00:09:50.960 but to a group of people that were probably messing 00:09:50.960 --> 00:09:56.500 around in magic and sorcery but were hungry and 00:09:56.500 --> 00:10:00.039 wanted to know more about God. They were looking 00:10:00.039 --> 00:10:04.299 for supernatural things and they knew enough 00:10:04.299 --> 00:10:08.720 to recognize a significant star signified the 00:10:08.720 --> 00:10:12.580 arrival of a king and they went looking where 00:10:12.580 --> 00:10:15.340 kings were born, which is a palace. And that's 00:10:15.340 --> 00:10:17.840 how they got hold of Herod. That's they turn 00:10:17.840 --> 00:10:20.700 up at Herod's and they say we're looking for 00:10:20.700 --> 00:10:25.429 a baby. It's got to be a king and Herod says 00:10:25.429 --> 00:10:27.470 he's not here but when you find him come back 00:10:27.470 --> 00:10:29.809 and tell me because he was going to kill him. 00:10:29.809 --> 00:10:31.889 Yeah, because he wanted to go to the king. And 00:10:31.889 --> 00:10:34.990 they have a dream and in the dream they're warned 00:10:34.990 --> 00:10:37.850 by an angel not to go back to Herod. So after 00:10:37.850 --> 00:10:41.129 they found the baby or the two -year -old they 00:10:41.129 --> 00:10:43.789 go a different way so they don't go past Herod's 00:10:43.789 --> 00:10:47.889 palace again. Fascinating. And this is what I 00:10:47.889 --> 00:10:52.799 love about the nativity story. Because when you 00:10:52.799 --> 00:10:55.200 know that, when you realize it wasn't three kings 00:10:55.200 --> 00:10:59.879 that had all their stuff together, it was people, 00:10:59.899 --> 00:11:01.879 like I said, that probably wouldn't be welcome 00:11:01.879 --> 00:11:07.299 in church that found God. And that's because 00:11:07.299 --> 00:11:11.000 we often disqualify people that God qualifies. 00:11:12.179 --> 00:11:16.830 In Matthew 7 verse 7, it says, ask and it will 00:11:16.830 --> 00:11:20.909 be given to you seek and you will find knock 00:11:20.909 --> 00:11:25.350 and it will be open to you for everyone who asks 00:11:25.350 --> 00:11:30.409 and everyone who seeks finds and to one who knocks 00:11:30.409 --> 00:11:35.309 it will be open They were looking for God and 00:11:35.309 --> 00:11:39.049 He showed Himself to them. And this is the problem 00:11:39.049 --> 00:11:42.929 with religion in general. It's become a man -made 00:11:42.929 --> 00:11:46.889 concept based on fables passed from generations. 00:11:47.450 --> 00:11:51.350 But we have the real thing in book form. The 00:11:51.350 --> 00:11:54.210 Bible is God -breathed and we have a copy of 00:11:54.210 --> 00:11:59.110 it. Yet many ministers of the gospel don't stick 00:11:59.110 --> 00:12:02.789 to the absolute truth of the story. So the essence 00:12:02.789 --> 00:12:06.870 is kept, but the details lost. And in that detail, 00:12:07.029 --> 00:12:09.590 there's applications for our lives today. So 00:12:09.590 --> 00:12:11.450 you're saying it isn't just a Christmas story. 00:12:11.590 --> 00:12:15.059 This is a lifetime story. Yeah. And you know, 00:12:15.399 --> 00:12:18.340 everything about the Bible, it indicates God's 00:12:18.340 --> 00:12:21.940 nature and who He is and what He thinks about 00:12:21.940 --> 00:12:25.879 us. And when we reduce it to something that we 00:12:25.879 --> 00:12:29.059 say over and over and over again, you know, we 00:12:29.059 --> 00:12:34.179 lose the aliveness of it. We lose that bit that 00:12:34.179 --> 00:12:36.860 is powerful and sharper than a two -edged sword 00:12:36.860 --> 00:12:40.679 because it just becomes like repetition. And 00:12:40.679 --> 00:12:43.360 even in the Lord's Prayer, before Jesus teaches 00:12:43.360 --> 00:12:47.220 the Lord's Prayer, he says, don't use vain repetitions. 00:12:48.159 --> 00:12:50.820 Don't do it. Because when we just repeat something 00:12:50.820 --> 00:12:53.600 again and again and again, it does lose its power. 00:12:54.360 --> 00:12:57.480 And I think, for me, this is something that's... 00:12:57.399 --> 00:13:01.200 so important because as someone who knows that 00:13:01.200 --> 00:13:04.220 God's asked me to teach the Word of God, it's 00:13:04.220 --> 00:13:07.120 very important to me that I don't take anything 00:13:07.120 --> 00:13:10.279 away or add to the Bible stories, but that I 00:13:10.279 --> 00:13:13.600 present it as it is. And if you want a biblical 00:13:13.600 --> 00:13:16.379 scripture to back that statement up, have a look 00:13:16.379 --> 00:13:20.580 at Revelation 22 verse 18, because it warns us 00:13:20.580 --> 00:13:23.580 not to add or take anything away from the Bible. 00:13:24.159 --> 00:13:27.679 I think that's so important. And just like Easter, 00:13:28.019 --> 00:13:30.120 which has become all about the yeast of honey 00:13:30.120 --> 00:13:33.259 and chocolate, Christmas has become about a story 00:13:33.259 --> 00:13:36.840 and it's been a watered -down nativity about 00:13:36.840 --> 00:13:41.149 presents and the pressure to be perfect. You 00:13:41.149 --> 00:13:43.769 know, God's message is a message of love and 00:13:43.769 --> 00:13:47.009 that's what the Bible is. It's not based on our 00:13:47.009 --> 00:13:51.029 perfection and how well we do, but in the perfection 00:13:51.029 --> 00:13:54.730 of Jesus. And this is why I love that, the revelation 00:13:54.730 --> 00:13:57.830 of the Magi, not the three wise men, because 00:13:57.830 --> 00:14:00.590 they were not perfect. They didn't have it all 00:14:00.590 --> 00:14:04.809 together, but God revealed Himself to them because 00:14:04.809 --> 00:14:08.370 they sought, they hunted, they were hungry, they 00:14:08.370 --> 00:14:12.649 were looking. We don't have to be perfect because 00:14:12.649 --> 00:14:17.710 we put our faith in a perfect Jesus who fulfilled 00:14:17.710 --> 00:14:21.690 every law and now we as believers are not able 00:14:21.690 --> 00:14:27.110 to rest in who Jesus was. That's huge and that 00:14:27.110 --> 00:14:30.669 really is the true message of Jesus' birth. It's 00:14:30.669 --> 00:14:34.809 not just salvation or forgiveness of sins but 00:14:34.809 --> 00:14:39.269 it is utter relief from performance, strife. 00:14:40.269 --> 00:14:43.110 perfectionism and self -reliance, because we 00:14:43.110 --> 00:14:46.110 can put our faith in Jesus. We've heard a lot 00:14:46.110 --> 00:14:48.730 just then. The most important thing, I guess, 00:14:48.809 --> 00:14:50.549 is we should back that up with some scripture, 00:14:51.029 --> 00:14:52.929 just to make sure we're on the right page. Yeah, 00:14:52.929 --> 00:14:54.750 absolutely. Like I said, we've got to stick to 00:14:54.750 --> 00:14:58.509 what the scripture says. So, you know, I said 00:14:58.509 --> 00:15:02.429 that Jesus was perfect who fulfilled every law, 00:15:02.590 --> 00:15:04.990 right? So let's just back that up, make sure 00:15:04.990 --> 00:15:07.470 that this isn't just Jesse's talking, this is 00:15:07.470 --> 00:15:11.779 the truth. So Matthew 5 verse 17, Jesus is talking 00:15:11.779 --> 00:15:26.440 here and he says, And Galatians 3 verse 13 says, 00:15:32.539 --> 00:15:35.399 For it is written, cursed is everyone that hangs 00:15:35.399 --> 00:15:39.019 on a tree. So that in Christ Jesus, the blessing 00:15:39.019 --> 00:15:42.799 of Abraham might come to the Gentiles so that 00:15:42.799 --> 00:15:45.879 we might receive the promised spirit through 00:15:45.879 --> 00:15:50.440 faith. You know, Jesus fulfilled the law and 00:15:50.440 --> 00:15:54.820 he redeemed us from it. And that's huge because 00:15:54.820 --> 00:15:58.600 so much of what is taught in church is that, 00:15:58.860 --> 00:16:01.639 okay, you've got saved just by God's goodness, 00:16:02.039 --> 00:16:05.000 but now, now the hard work really starts, now 00:16:05.000 --> 00:16:07.460 you've got to be perfect. Now you've got to follow 00:16:07.460 --> 00:16:09.519 the letter of the law and you can't make a mistake 00:16:09.519 --> 00:16:12.159 and God's not going to be happy with you if you 00:16:12.159 --> 00:16:16.779 don't do that. That's not right. That's not what 00:16:16.779 --> 00:16:21.080 the Bible says at all. And I said that Jesus 00:16:21.080 --> 00:16:24.799 is perfect. Well, let's back that up. Hebrews 00:16:24.799 --> 00:16:29.159 4 verse 15 says, for we do not have a high priest, 00:16:29.159 --> 00:16:32.340 talking of Jesus, who is unable to sympathize 00:16:32.340 --> 00:16:35.659 with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect 00:16:35.659 --> 00:16:40.080 has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. 00:16:41.220 --> 00:16:45.159 He was perfect. He fulfilled it. He did what 00:16:45.159 --> 00:16:49.230 we could not do. And then I said that it's our 00:16:49.230 --> 00:16:53.190 job now to rest in what Jesus did for us and 00:16:53.190 --> 00:16:57.029 not to strive to be perfect. And this is the 00:16:57.029 --> 00:17:01.070 opposite of what religion tells us. In John 10 00:17:01.070 --> 00:17:04.450 verse 10, Jesus says this, and I really want 00:17:04.450 --> 00:17:06.529 you to listen to this because we say it every 00:17:06.529 --> 00:17:09.390 single podcast, but like I said, if you keep 00:17:09.390 --> 00:17:12.049 repeating it and you're not engaging your heart, 00:17:12.069 --> 00:17:14.990 your mind, it's easy to skip over these truths. 00:17:15.519 --> 00:17:18.599 But John 10 verse 10 says, this is Jesus, he's 00:17:18.599 --> 00:17:22.180 talking now. He says, the thief comes only to 00:17:22.180 --> 00:17:25.539 steal, to kill and to destroy, but I came that 00:17:25.539 --> 00:17:29.480 they might have life and they might have it abundantly. 00:17:30.220 --> 00:17:33.700 And Jesus didn't say, the thief comes only to 00:17:33.700 --> 00:17:36.299 steal, to kill and to destroy, but I've came 00:17:36.299 --> 00:17:38.079 that they might have forgiveness of sin and go 00:17:38.079 --> 00:17:41.079 to heaven. He didn't say that, but that is what 00:17:41.079 --> 00:17:44.619 most churches are preaching today. They say, 00:17:44.859 --> 00:17:47.059 turn to Jesus and you'll get forgiven and you'll 00:17:47.059 --> 00:17:50.160 go to heaven. But that's not what he said. And 00:17:50.160 --> 00:17:52.599 let's just remind ourselves. He said, I came 00:17:52.599 --> 00:17:56.140 that they might have life and they might have 00:17:56.140 --> 00:18:00.500 it abundantly. Believing in Jesus doesn't just 00:18:00.500 --> 00:18:03.859 give you forgiveness of sins. It gives you life 00:18:03.859 --> 00:18:08.000 in abundance. And that word abundance means above 00:18:08.000 --> 00:18:12.640 measure. Yet most of the church is saved and 00:18:12.640 --> 00:18:16.339 stuck. They're going to heaven, but we're clinging 00:18:16.339 --> 00:18:19.799 on by our fingertips. We're not experiencing 00:18:19.799 --> 00:18:23.740 life in abundance more than we can expect, more 00:18:23.740 --> 00:18:26.660 than we can imagine. And it's because we don't 00:18:26.660 --> 00:18:29.079 understand who God is and what he's done for 00:18:29.079 --> 00:18:32.819 us. And we can, in a sense, be forgiven for not 00:18:32.819 --> 00:18:35.759 knowing that, because a lot of our leaders who 00:18:35.759 --> 00:18:38.799 teach us, they don't know. And we're suffering 00:18:38.799 --> 00:18:42.460 for a lack of knowledge. You know, Hosea 4 verse 00:18:42.460 --> 00:18:46.180 6 says, my people perish for a lack of knowledge. 00:18:46.880 --> 00:18:49.519 We don't understand that God has given us rest 00:18:49.519 --> 00:18:53.660 because we don't have to be perfect. We can put 00:18:53.660 --> 00:18:58.380 our trust in God and we can rest in that. Do 00:18:58.380 --> 00:19:00.039 you want to read the next scripture, Gareth? 00:19:00.759 --> 00:19:03.279 We're going to read from Hebrews 4 verse 11 now. 00:19:03.799 --> 00:19:06.680 Let us labor therefore to enter into that rest. 00:19:07.279 --> 00:19:11.059 lest any man fall after the same example of unbelief. 00:19:11.539 --> 00:19:13.640 So this is a really interesting concept. I don't 00:19:13.640 --> 00:19:15.079 know if it's something you've heard before, Gareth, 00:19:15.140 --> 00:19:17.599 but basically what it's saying in Hebrew is that 00:19:17.599 --> 00:19:22.380 there is a rest in God, but we have to labor. 00:19:22.700 --> 00:19:26.019 What does labor mean? To work. Yeah, so we have 00:19:26.019 --> 00:19:28.660 to labor. Work for the rest. Yeah. We have to 00:19:28.660 --> 00:19:32.640 labor to get ourselves into a place of rest. 00:19:33.500 --> 00:19:37.779 to trust God that He is perfect and we do not 00:19:37.779 --> 00:19:42.119 have to be, because society, religion, the world 00:19:42.119 --> 00:19:46.079 tells us that it's all down on us. But this is 00:19:46.079 --> 00:19:49.839 the amazing story of what Jesus did for us. And 00:19:49.839 --> 00:19:52.740 when you look at it like that, you think, wow, 00:19:52.819 --> 00:19:54.799 that is incredible, I don't have to do anything. 00:19:54.960 --> 00:19:58.180 No, all you have to do is believe. You just believe 00:19:58.180 --> 00:20:02.210 that Jesus was enough. and you now have to work 00:20:02.210 --> 00:20:04.809 to get yourself into that place of rest where 00:20:04.809 --> 00:20:08.950 you can trust Jesus. You know, we've got a supernatural 00:20:08.950 --> 00:20:12.289 rest that Jesus himself has given us, and we 00:20:12.289 --> 00:20:15.630 don't have to be like everybody else. And when 00:20:15.630 --> 00:20:18.609 we celebrate Christmas, we're celebrating more 00:20:18.609 --> 00:20:22.410 than just Jesus' birth. We're celebrating his 00:20:22.410 --> 00:20:26.630 birth, his life, his death, and his resurrection. 00:20:26.940 --> 00:20:30.380 He said it is finished when he hung on that cross. 00:20:31.240 --> 00:20:34.940 And now we are heavenly beings walking on the 00:20:34.940 --> 00:20:37.660 earth because we have Jesus on the inside of 00:20:37.660 --> 00:20:42.119 us. We are seated in heavenly places. That's 00:20:42.119 --> 00:20:46.579 Ephesians 2 verse 6. We are one with the Father, 00:20:46.859 --> 00:20:53.319 John 17 verse 22 to 23. As Jesus is, so are we 00:20:53.319 --> 00:20:59.420 in this world. 1 John 4 17. We are the righteousness 00:20:59.420 --> 00:21:05.819 in Christ Jesus, 2 Corinthians 5 verse 21. We 00:21:05.819 --> 00:21:11.099 are a royal priesthood, 1 Peter 2 verse 9. You 00:21:11.099 --> 00:21:12.759 know, I've just run through all those scriptures 00:21:12.759 --> 00:21:16.359 really quickly, but you know, so many times we 00:21:16.359 --> 00:21:20.759 don't know who we are because of Jesus. So we 00:21:20.759 --> 00:21:24.039 can go through this season, this Christmas season, 00:21:24.589 --> 00:21:28.549 feeling very stressed and overwhelmed. But that's 00:21:28.549 --> 00:21:31.130 not what the story of Christmas is about. The 00:21:31.130 --> 00:21:34.210 story of Christmas is that one of them is that 00:21:34.210 --> 00:21:38.650 Jesus came so that we could have life in abundance 00:21:38.650 --> 00:21:43.769 and He took things like sorcerers and revealed 00:21:43.769 --> 00:21:47.450 Himself to them because it's not about our goodness 00:21:47.450 --> 00:21:52.009 or how well we've performed, but it's about God's 00:21:52.009 --> 00:21:56.740 goodness. and how much He saved us. And this 00:21:56.740 --> 00:21:59.339 is why, I think, when the angels visited the 00:21:59.339 --> 00:22:01.740 shepherds in the field, around about the time 00:22:01.740 --> 00:22:07.000 that Jesus was born, in Luke 2 verse 14. Gareth, 00:22:07.039 --> 00:22:08.599 you can read that, because it's one of your favorites. 00:22:09.079 --> 00:22:11.839 Well, it's a song, isn't it, that we sing at 00:22:11.839 --> 00:22:14.359 Christmas? So, glory to God in the highest, and 00:22:14.359 --> 00:22:18.160 on earth peace, good will to all men. And this 00:22:18.160 --> 00:22:22.180 is because when Jesus arrived, there is now peace. 00:22:22.589 --> 00:22:27.309 good will to all men. There's peace with God 00:22:27.309 --> 00:22:32.029 the Father. He's not looking for you to be perfect. 00:22:32.490 --> 00:22:35.930 He's not looking for you to have it all together. 00:22:36.369 --> 00:22:40.210 He just wants you and he just wants to be with 00:22:40.210 --> 00:22:44.809 you and that's why he sent Jesus. Should we do 00:22:44.809 --> 00:22:48.609 a little prayer? Good idea. Well if you're listening 00:22:48.609 --> 00:22:53.319 to this and you're thinking you know, I do kind 00:22:53.319 --> 00:22:57.440 of believe in God or, you know, I think it's 00:22:57.440 --> 00:22:59.900 real but I've got some questions. You know, I 00:22:59.900 --> 00:23:03.140 want to encourage you that if you seek, you will 00:23:03.140 --> 00:23:07.019 find. If you look, you will find God because 00:23:07.019 --> 00:23:10.799 He wants to reveal Himself to you. He wants to 00:23:10.799 --> 00:23:15.710 show you who He is. So I'm going to pray and 00:23:15.710 --> 00:23:18.569 you just say the words in whichever way you want 00:23:18.569 --> 00:23:22.190 to and ask God to show you who He is. And if 00:23:22.190 --> 00:23:23.829 you're listening to this and you are a Christian, 00:23:23.910 --> 00:23:26.490 you've been a Christian for a while, but you 00:23:26.490 --> 00:23:28.769 want to know more about Him, you can pray this 00:23:28.769 --> 00:23:32.630 prayer too. Just ask God to show you who He is. 00:23:33.349 --> 00:23:35.549 Father God, we want to just thank you for every 00:23:35.549 --> 00:23:38.410 person that's listening to this right now. Father, 00:23:38.450 --> 00:23:40.930 you know their circumstances and you know exactly 00:23:40.930 --> 00:23:44.000 where they are. And Lord, we want to ask that 00:23:44.000 --> 00:23:48.099 you would reveal yourself to each and every person 00:23:48.099 --> 00:23:52.500 listening to this, that you would show them who 00:23:52.500 --> 00:23:56.359 you are, that you would give them a real understanding 00:23:56.359 --> 00:24:00.039 and a desire for your word for the Bible, for 00:24:00.039 --> 00:24:03.000 that they would come to know you in a deeper 00:24:03.000 --> 00:24:07.299 way. Father, thank you so much for this time 00:24:07.299 --> 00:24:10.349 of Christmas. where we can remember what you've 00:24:10.349 --> 00:24:13.349 done for us, not because we're good, but because 00:24:13.349 --> 00:24:16.670 you're good. And God, for everybody here that's 00:24:16.670 --> 00:24:19.230 listening, we just ask that you would help us 00:24:19.230 --> 00:24:22.349 to remember that we can rest at this time of 00:24:22.349 --> 00:24:25.390 year, that it doesn't have to be all stress and 00:24:25.390 --> 00:24:28.369 strife and difficulty, that we can put our trust 00:24:28.369 --> 00:24:32.390 in you and that you will show us your way. In 00:24:32.390 --> 00:24:37.930 Jesus' name, amen. Amen. From everyone at Folly's 00:24:37.930 --> 00:24:41.190 End, we wish you a very Merry Christmas. Our 00:24:41.190 --> 00:24:44.029 prayer for you in 2026 is that you have a real 00:24:44.029 --> 00:24:46.789 experience of God and you will know who Jesus 00:24:46.789 --> 00:24:50.710 is and what He has done for you. So until we 00:24:50.710 --> 00:24:53.890 speak again, be kind to yourself and each other. 00:24:58.130 --> 00:25:00.490 You have been listening to the Folly's End podcast. 00:25:00.910 --> 00:25:02.869 If you'd like to know more information, get in 00:25:02.869 --> 00:25:06.700 touch via follysentrust .co .uk. Thanks for listening. 00:25:07.160 --> 00:25:07.779 See you next time.