WEBVTT 00:00:00.010 --> 00:00:03.310 Merry Christmas, church family. I know it's a 00:00:03.310 --> 00:00:05.290 few days beforehand, but we can still say it. 00:00:05.389 --> 00:00:10.830 It's all good. It is so good to sing those Christmas 00:00:10.830 --> 00:00:13.269 hymns together, right? I said it last week, I'll 00:00:13.269 --> 00:00:15.750 say it again. They are chock full of good biblical 00:00:15.750 --> 00:00:18.570 theology. When you look at them, they are full 00:00:18.570 --> 00:00:21.210 of good theology. We often sing them out of memory 00:00:21.210 --> 00:00:23.870 from childhood or tradition, but it's good to 00:00:23.870 --> 00:00:26.679 really look and to see what we're singing. And 00:00:26.679 --> 00:00:28.899 anytime we come together and sing as a church 00:00:28.899 --> 00:00:31.039 family, sing good theology, not only is it a 00:00:31.039 --> 00:00:33.640 blessing to us, but it's a pleasing sound before 00:00:33.640 --> 00:00:36.439 the Lord. Now that last song that Micah and the 00:00:36.439 --> 00:00:38.859 worship team led us in, O Come All Ye Faithful, 00:00:38.859 --> 00:00:41.100 that is definitely a classic. It was written 00:00:41.100 --> 00:00:45.820 back in the year 1743. And it's wonderful. It 00:00:45.820 --> 00:00:48.759 even makes reference to language in the Nicene 00:00:48.759 --> 00:00:52.439 Creed. Can you believe that? God of God, light 00:00:52.439 --> 00:00:56.469 of light, begotten, not... So honestly, that 00:00:56.469 --> 00:00:58.450 is a song that we could sing any time of the 00:00:58.450 --> 00:01:02.210 year, not just at Christmas. Now, there's another 00:01:02.210 --> 00:01:05.170 song that I'm a huge fan of with a very similar 00:01:05.170 --> 00:01:08.109 title that we also sing here at Oak Hill. It's 00:01:08.109 --> 00:01:13.310 called O Come All You What? Unfaithful. Obviously, 00:01:13.310 --> 00:01:17.329 a take on the classic hymn. And I remember when 00:01:17.329 --> 00:01:20.730 that song first came out back in 2020, I had 00:01:20.730 --> 00:01:23.109 to do a double take on the title because I thought 00:01:23.109 --> 00:01:25.500 it was a typo. I thought somebody made a mistake. 00:01:25.719 --> 00:01:27.920 But then Bob Coughlin explained how the title 00:01:27.920 --> 00:01:30.799 and the lyrics of that song came about. And basically 00:01:30.799 --> 00:01:33.120 what he said was, I was looking for Christmas 00:01:33.120 --> 00:01:36.659 songs that had two things connected to it. First 00:01:36.659 --> 00:01:39.640 of all, carrying the proper spirit of celebration 00:01:39.640 --> 00:01:43.060 that goes with Christmas time, with the birth 00:01:43.060 --> 00:01:45.859 of Christ. But then he said also lyrics that 00:01:45.859 --> 00:01:49.040 would speak to the hearts of those who are struggling 00:01:49.040 --> 00:01:52.280 to enter into the joy of the season because of... 00:01:52.700 --> 00:01:55.379 Things like pain or loss. Or because of simply 00:01:55.379 --> 00:01:58.260 feeling unworthy of God's love. And Coughlin 00:01:58.260 --> 00:02:01.099 said this. He said, I wanted those folks to know 00:02:01.099 --> 00:02:06.299 that Christ was born for them. That Christ was 00:02:06.299 --> 00:02:09.520 born for them. So you hear in his song these 00:02:09.520 --> 00:02:15.120 lyrics. Oh, come all you unfaithful. Come, know 00:02:15.120 --> 00:02:18.439 that you're not alone. See what your God has 00:02:18.439 --> 00:02:23.169 done. What an important statement. Now compare 00:02:23.169 --> 00:02:25.810 those lyrics with the 18th century hymn that 00:02:25.810 --> 00:02:29.289 declares, with great positivity, O come all ye 00:02:29.289 --> 00:02:33.250 faithful, joyful, and triumphant. Great positivity. 00:02:33.310 --> 00:02:36.310 Now, is there a disconnect between those two 00:02:36.310 --> 00:02:40.289 songs? Not at all. Any of us who are found in 00:02:40.289 --> 00:02:43.050 Christ this morning can shout that truth. I am 00:02:43.050 --> 00:02:47.169 joyful. I am triumphant, even in the midst of 00:02:47.169 --> 00:02:50.050 pain and struggle. Why? Because if we're found 00:02:50.050 --> 00:02:52.770 in Christ positionally, That's what we actually 00:02:52.770 --> 00:02:58.770 are because of what God has done for us. So again, 00:02:58.830 --> 00:03:01.150 we can say those things, right? We can talk about 00:03:01.150 --> 00:03:03.650 being joyful and triumphant because positionally 00:03:03.650 --> 00:03:06.360 in Christ, that's actually what we are. but only 00:03:06.360 --> 00:03:08.659 because of what God has done for us in Christ. 00:03:08.900 --> 00:03:10.900 So those two songs fit beautifully together. 00:03:11.139 --> 00:03:13.680 And that is what we want to celebrate this morning 00:03:13.680 --> 00:03:16.520 here in our final service of the Advent season, 00:03:16.599 --> 00:03:19.120 our Christmas service, if you will. We want to 00:03:19.120 --> 00:03:22.539 celebrate what our God has done for us in giving 00:03:22.539 --> 00:03:25.840 us the gift of his son. It is a gift, listen 00:03:25.840 --> 00:03:28.759 now, that none of us deserved, but everyone in 00:03:28.759 --> 00:03:32.039 this room needed. None of us deserve, but we 00:03:32.039 --> 00:03:34.060 all need it. And let's just go ahead and get 00:03:34.060 --> 00:03:36.759 this straight before we go any further. Think 00:03:36.759 --> 00:03:38.860 about this. God the Father did not send us just 00:03:38.860 --> 00:03:43.500 an idea or a concept to be rationalized and understood. 00:03:44.000 --> 00:03:46.460 God the Father didn't send us just a doctrine 00:03:46.460 --> 00:03:49.800 to be believed. He sent His one and only Son 00:03:49.800 --> 00:03:53.860 in person, in the flesh and blood of humanity, 00:03:54.240 --> 00:03:58.280 born into the drama of human history. The Creator... 00:03:58.810 --> 00:04:01.990 who spoke galaxies into existence, willingly 00:04:01.990 --> 00:04:05.990 chose to empty himself and to draw near to the 00:04:05.990 --> 00:04:09.330 creatures that he himself made. That's why we 00:04:09.330 --> 00:04:11.210 call it the greatest story ever told. There's 00:04:11.210 --> 00:04:13.710 nothing like it in all of human history. Try 00:04:13.710 --> 00:04:16.930 to grasp the level of humility that that choice 00:04:16.930 --> 00:04:20.029 that God the Son made in order to come to earth. 00:04:20.350 --> 00:04:23.990 Divinity taking on humanity. Do we understand 00:04:23.990 --> 00:04:31.279 what a step down that is? Limiting himself. The 00:04:31.279 --> 00:04:36.519 infinite becoming finite. The unbreakable suddenly 00:04:36.519 --> 00:04:41.660 fragile. The eternal one stepping into time. 00:04:42.959 --> 00:04:46.839 Omnipotence becoming dependent. The almighty 00:04:46.839 --> 00:04:53.720 choosing weakness. The beloved now experiencing 00:04:53.720 --> 00:04:58.980 hate. His glory subjected to shame from a throne 00:04:58.980 --> 00:05:03.779 to a cross. The eternal immortal God experiencing 00:05:03.779 --> 00:05:08.420 earthly suffering and physical death. Honestly, 00:05:08.540 --> 00:05:12.560 it's beyond human comprehension. And yet each 00:05:12.560 --> 00:05:15.339 year, this holiday that we call Christmas demands 00:05:15.339 --> 00:05:17.800 that we do everything we can within our power 00:05:17.800 --> 00:05:20.639 to try to grasp and understand the immensity 00:05:20.639 --> 00:05:23.949 of God's love in this. That should be a regular 00:05:23.949 --> 00:05:26.410 practice of ours. Had the word not become flesh, 00:05:26.629 --> 00:05:29.870 there would be no salvation. Had the word not 00:05:29.870 --> 00:05:31.769 become flesh, you and I would still be in our 00:05:31.769 --> 00:05:34.430 sins. We would have no hope in this life or in 00:05:34.430 --> 00:05:38.329 the next. So what a gift. What a gift we've been 00:05:38.329 --> 00:05:40.290 given. And by the way, this is the entire reason 00:05:40.290 --> 00:05:42.370 why we give gifts to one another at Christmas. 00:05:43.170 --> 00:05:45.209 So parents in particular, if you've forgotten 00:05:45.209 --> 00:05:49.600 that, recapture that. that concept of giving 00:05:49.600 --> 00:05:52.399 gifts because of the great gift that's been given 00:05:52.399 --> 00:05:55.879 to us. Amen? All right. You got John 1 open? 00:05:56.819 --> 00:05:59.600 Oh, look at this. I'm going to keep going. Here 00:05:59.600 --> 00:06:01.560 we go. John 1. Here we go. Now, you've already 00:06:01.560 --> 00:06:04.000 heard this passage read this morning in our call 00:06:04.000 --> 00:06:06.300 to worship. We're going to do it again. Repetition 00:06:06.300 --> 00:06:08.639 is one of the most important parts of Bible study. 00:06:09.120 --> 00:06:11.040 So we're going to read it again. This is a well 00:06:11.040 --> 00:06:13.439 -known passage, and rightfully so, because it 00:06:13.439 --> 00:06:16.779 is so chock -full of theology, essential theology. 00:06:17.120 --> 00:06:20.379 And also, as we go through it, listen to all 00:06:20.379 --> 00:06:22.920 of the little nuggets about the wonder of Christmas 00:06:22.920 --> 00:06:26.759 in this passage. John 1, verse 1. In the beginning 00:06:26.759 --> 00:06:32.639 was the Word, and the Word was with God, and 00:06:32.639 --> 00:06:36.300 the Word was God. He was in the beginning with 00:06:36.300 --> 00:06:41.360 God. All things, how many things? All things 00:06:41.360 --> 00:06:44.680 came into being through him. And in case you 00:06:44.680 --> 00:06:46.399 didn't quite understand what John's saying, he 00:06:46.399 --> 00:06:49.899 goes on. And apart from him, nothing came into 00:06:49.899 --> 00:06:53.180 being that has come into being. Which is a great 00:06:53.180 --> 00:06:57.139 proof that Jesus was not created. He's eternal. 00:06:57.480 --> 00:07:00.079 Because everything that came into being came 00:07:00.079 --> 00:07:03.060 into being through him. Nothing else was possible 00:07:03.060 --> 00:07:07.129 because he himself is the creator. Verse 4, in 00:07:07.129 --> 00:07:09.209 him was life and the life was the light of men. 00:07:09.829 --> 00:07:12.310 The light shines in the darkness and the darkness 00:07:12.310 --> 00:07:16.730 did not comprehend it. There came a man sent 00:07:16.730 --> 00:07:19.649 from God whose name was John. That's John the 00:07:19.649 --> 00:07:22.870 Baptist. He came as a witness to testify about 00:07:22.870 --> 00:07:26.230 the light so that all might believe through him. 00:07:27.149 --> 00:07:29.430 He was not the light, but he came to testify 00:07:29.430 --> 00:07:32.629 about the light. There was the true light which 00:07:32.629 --> 00:07:35.410 coming into the world enlightens every man. He 00:07:35.410 --> 00:07:37.750 was in the world and the world was made through 00:07:37.750 --> 00:07:42.009 him and the world did not know him. He came to 00:07:42.009 --> 00:07:45.689 his own, right? The Jewish people and those who 00:07:45.689 --> 00:07:48.910 were his own did not receive him. But as many 00:07:48.910 --> 00:07:51.610 as received him, praise God for that, right? 00:07:53.149 --> 00:07:55.649 To them he gave the right to become children 00:07:55.649 --> 00:07:58.790 of God, even to those who believe in his name. 00:07:59.600 --> 00:08:01.839 Who were born, not of blood, nor the will of 00:08:01.839 --> 00:08:04.759 the flesh, nor the will of man, but born of God. 00:08:06.379 --> 00:08:08.759 Here's the key section we'll focus on this morning. 00:08:08.819 --> 00:08:13.139 Verse 14. And the word became, sarx in the Greek, 00:08:13.199 --> 00:08:17.579 became flesh. And dwelt among us. And we saw 00:08:17.579 --> 00:08:21.420 his glory. Glory as of the only begotten from 00:08:21.420 --> 00:08:26.459 the Father, full of both grace and truth. John 00:08:26.459 --> 00:08:29.250 testified about him and cried out. saying, this 00:08:29.250 --> 00:08:32.230 was he of whom I said, he who comes after me 00:08:32.230 --> 00:08:35.169 has a higher rank than I, for he existed before 00:08:35.169 --> 00:08:39.549 me. For of his fullness we have all received, 00:08:39.590 --> 00:08:43.490 and grace upon grace. For the law was given through 00:08:43.490 --> 00:08:46.610 Moses, grace and truth were realized through 00:08:46.610 --> 00:08:50.370 Jesus Christ. No one has seen God at any time, 00:08:50.389 --> 00:08:53.470 the only begotten God, let me say that again, 00:08:53.610 --> 00:08:57.789 the only begotten God. who is in the bosom of 00:08:57.789 --> 00:09:02.750 the Father, he has explained him. Now, more than 00:09:02.750 --> 00:09:04.629 anything else in that last section, I want you 00:09:04.629 --> 00:09:09.009 to look at verse 18. Jesus Christ, the word, 00:09:09.149 --> 00:09:15.230 has explained God to us. Some translations say 00:09:15.230 --> 00:09:19.529 he has revealed God to us or he has made God 00:09:19.529 --> 00:09:23.289 known to us. Do we realize the importance of 00:09:23.289 --> 00:09:27.500 that statement? Do we realize it? Think about 00:09:27.500 --> 00:09:30.360 this. How can a finite creature like you or me 00:09:30.360 --> 00:09:35.840 understand an infinite being like God? How is 00:09:35.840 --> 00:09:38.259 that even possible? How can we know anything 00:09:38.259 --> 00:09:41.500 about such a glorious being who is outside of 00:09:41.500 --> 00:09:44.340 our world, outside of time and space, beyond 00:09:44.340 --> 00:09:46.620 it, transcend it? How could we know anything? 00:09:46.700 --> 00:09:49.299 And the answer is God would have to make himself 00:09:49.299 --> 00:09:52.889 known. That's it. That's the only way. He would 00:09:52.889 --> 00:09:55.590 have to take the initiative to make himself known 00:09:55.590 --> 00:09:59.909 to us. And by stepping into time, by taking on 00:09:59.909 --> 00:10:04.129 flesh, by dwelling among us, Jesus has both revealed 00:10:04.129 --> 00:10:07.889 God to us and explained him to us in the most 00:10:07.889 --> 00:10:11.929 personal way possible. So there'd be no confusion. 00:10:12.490 --> 00:10:17.029 This is who God is. Now, in celebration of Christmas, 00:10:17.129 --> 00:10:19.769 I want to... take some time today to note something 00:10:19.769 --> 00:10:22.929 very powerful about these last five verses, verses 00:10:22.929 --> 00:10:26.429 14 to 18. After years of studying this chapter, 00:10:26.610 --> 00:10:29.250 and it is one of the key chapters in all of Scripture, 00:10:29.529 --> 00:10:33.129 I am convinced that John is subtly but intentionally 00:10:33.129 --> 00:10:35.990 making a connection between what he says here 00:10:35.990 --> 00:10:38.649 and some of the most important chapters in the 00:10:38.649 --> 00:10:42.250 entire Hebrew Old Testament. And friends, listen, 00:10:42.350 --> 00:10:45.070 this is one of the great proofs of the inspiration 00:10:45.070 --> 00:10:49.470 of Scripture that Two writings thousands of years 00:10:49.470 --> 00:10:52.789 apart can see these themes run through them from 00:10:52.789 --> 00:10:55.269 Old to New Testament to see all these connections 00:10:55.269 --> 00:10:57.629 being made. This is one of the great proofs of 00:10:57.629 --> 00:11:00.429 the inspiration of Scripture. These verses in 00:11:00.429 --> 00:11:04.789 chapter 1 of John's Gospel make a series of allusions 00:11:04.789 --> 00:11:07.389 to one of the most important sections of the 00:11:07.389 --> 00:11:12.230 Torah. In Exodus 32, 33, and 34. Now, I'm going 00:11:12.230 --> 00:11:14.649 to summarize this story for you. Many of you 00:11:14.649 --> 00:11:17.149 know it. You're familiar with it. But I'll summarize 00:11:17.149 --> 00:11:19.009 what's going on, and then we'll come back to 00:11:19.009 --> 00:11:21.730 John 1 and make some observations. In Exodus 00:11:21.730 --> 00:11:25.049 32, remember, Moses has gone up on Mount Sinai 00:11:25.049 --> 00:11:30.029 to receive the law and to meet with Yahweh. And 00:11:30.029 --> 00:11:33.669 while he's gone, the people down below at the 00:11:33.669 --> 00:11:37.070 base of the mountain, they grow impatient, don't 00:11:37.070 --> 00:11:40.049 they? They're not even sure Moses is ever coming 00:11:40.049 --> 00:11:42.769 back. What if he just dies up there? What are 00:11:42.769 --> 00:11:46.169 we going to do? So the restless mob at the base 00:11:46.169 --> 00:11:48.570 of the mountain begins to talk about going down 00:11:48.570 --> 00:11:51.129 a different path of worship. Maybe we need to 00:11:51.129 --> 00:11:55.110 find a new God, they think to themselves. And 00:11:55.110 --> 00:11:57.429 as we read the story, to our absolute shock and 00:11:57.429 --> 00:12:00.210 surprise, they recruit Aaron, of all people, 00:12:00.429 --> 00:12:04.460 to help them in their rebellion. And being weak 00:12:04.460 --> 00:12:06.460 and unable to stand up to the people, or maybe 00:12:06.460 --> 00:12:09.120 he's just afraid of the demands that the mob 00:12:09.120 --> 00:12:12.440 is making, Aaron suggests that everybody throw 00:12:12.440 --> 00:12:16.539 in their gold bits all into one pot, and they'll 00:12:16.539 --> 00:12:19.360 fashion a golden image that can be worshipped. 00:12:19.799 --> 00:12:21.860 And they throw all their gold into the fire, 00:12:21.940 --> 00:12:24.419 and from that fire, they come out with this golden 00:12:24.419 --> 00:12:28.360 calf to worship, insisting now, well, this calf 00:12:28.360 --> 00:12:31.059 now represents the true gods who have brought 00:12:31.059 --> 00:12:35.799 us out of Egypt. Can you imagine that? Of course, 00:12:35.820 --> 00:12:38.279 Moses does finally come down from the mountain, 00:12:38.340 --> 00:12:40.980 right? As he's descending, he hears the sound 00:12:40.980 --> 00:12:45.299 of what? Singing and dancing in the camp. And 00:12:45.299 --> 00:12:48.419 then he sees this horrific golden idol. Now remember, 00:12:48.559 --> 00:12:51.340 he's just been in the presence of Yahweh. And 00:12:51.340 --> 00:12:54.659 now he sees this false image. And you can imagine 00:12:54.659 --> 00:12:58.440 how enraged he would be by this absolute blasphemy. 00:12:59.659 --> 00:13:02.360 But Moses' rage is nothing compared to God's 00:13:02.360 --> 00:13:05.779 righteous anger. The Lord says to Moses, basically, 00:13:05.799 --> 00:13:08.200 he says, Moses, get out of the way. I'm going 00:13:08.200 --> 00:13:12.240 to destroy this people completely. But Moses, 00:13:12.460 --> 00:13:16.220 and I would highly recommend you read this, beautifully 00:13:16.220 --> 00:13:19.700 intercedes for his people before the throne of 00:13:19.700 --> 00:13:22.379 grace. And God in his sovereignty relents. He 00:13:22.379 --> 00:13:24.779 decides not to destroy them entirely, although 00:13:24.779 --> 00:13:28.600 he does pour out his wrath, doesn't he? 3 ,000 00:13:28.600 --> 00:13:31.000 Israelites are executed by the sword that day. 00:13:31.159 --> 00:13:33.419 The rest of the guilty are struck by a plague. 00:13:34.440 --> 00:13:37.220 In the following chapter, then chapter 33, Moses 00:13:37.220 --> 00:13:40.240 meets with God face -to -face outside of the 00:13:40.240 --> 00:13:43.159 camp in a place that the Bible calls the tent 00:13:43.159 --> 00:13:46.379 of meeting. It's the precursor to the tabernacle, 00:13:46.480 --> 00:13:49.799 which will soon be built. And in this tent of 00:13:49.799 --> 00:13:53.100 meeting, we actually get to hear Moses' petition 00:13:53.100 --> 00:13:56.779 before God. In effect, here's what he asks. He 00:13:56.779 --> 00:14:01.000 says, Lord, these are your people. These are 00:14:01.000 --> 00:14:04.220 your people. You chose them. You brought them 00:14:04.220 --> 00:14:07.320 out of Egypt. You called me to lead them, and 00:14:07.320 --> 00:14:11.080 yet you haven't told me yet whom you will send 00:14:11.080 --> 00:14:15.299 with me to lead and deliver them. And I think 00:14:15.299 --> 00:14:17.059 what's going on here is pretty simple. Remember, 00:14:17.299 --> 00:14:21.259 Aaron had once gone with Moses, been his mouthpiece 00:14:21.259 --> 00:14:24.220 when they went to confront Pharaoh, right? But 00:14:24.220 --> 00:14:26.700 guess what? Aaron is completely compromised now. 00:14:26.990 --> 00:14:29.769 by this grave sin. And so Moses is before the 00:14:29.769 --> 00:14:32.649 Lord now feeling very alone in his leadership 00:14:32.649 --> 00:14:36.370 of this rebellious people. So he continues in 00:14:36.370 --> 00:14:38.610 prayer, Lord, if you're pleased with me, show 00:14:38.610 --> 00:14:42.350 me your ways so that I will know how I can continue 00:14:42.350 --> 00:14:46.149 to find favor with you. In other words, make 00:14:46.149 --> 00:14:48.690 it clear to me what your plan is, God, so that 00:14:48.690 --> 00:14:50.909 I can lead these people. I can walk in your paths 00:14:50.909 --> 00:14:56.149 and make you love this people more. And Yahweh 00:14:56.149 --> 00:14:59.149 graciously responds to Moses' request. I love 00:14:59.149 --> 00:15:02.669 this. God could easily have judged Moses, oh, 00:15:02.789 --> 00:15:05.730 you of little faith, right? But he's gracious 00:15:05.730 --> 00:15:08.830 to Moses, and he says, my presence will go with 00:15:08.830 --> 00:15:13.799 you, Moses, and I will give you rest. And that's 00:15:13.799 --> 00:15:16.259 great, but then Moses asks for even more assurance. 00:15:16.519 --> 00:15:19.419 He very bluntly says to Yahweh, look, if your 00:15:19.419 --> 00:15:21.980 presence doesn't go with us, please don't take 00:15:21.980 --> 00:15:25.539 us up from here. Don't take us anywhere away 00:15:25.539 --> 00:15:27.399 from this mountain. If you won't go with me, 00:15:27.500 --> 00:15:32.059 I don't want to go. And again, God could be very 00:15:32.059 --> 00:15:34.259 harsh on Moses and say, did you not hear what 00:15:34.259 --> 00:15:37.179 I just said? But he responds graciously again. 00:15:37.220 --> 00:15:39.080 He says, I will do the very thing that you've 00:15:39.080 --> 00:15:42.210 asked, Moses. Because I am pleased with you and 00:15:42.210 --> 00:15:47.049 I do know you by name. Now, had I been Moses 00:15:47.049 --> 00:15:49.769 in that moment, I would have said amen and amen 00:15:49.769 --> 00:15:52.470 and I would have moved forward. That's enough 00:15:52.470 --> 00:15:55.490 for me, Lord. But Moses has one more request. 00:15:56.669 --> 00:15:59.450 And I guess because he just heard the God of 00:15:59.450 --> 00:16:01.029 the universe say, I know you by name and I'm 00:16:01.029 --> 00:16:02.610 pleased with you, he's going to push the envelope. 00:16:03.370 --> 00:16:07.289 What does he say? He says, please show me your 00:16:07.289 --> 00:16:13.159 glory. Wow, what a request. And I think that 00:16:13.159 --> 00:16:17.659 is so instructive for us. In that moment, Moses 00:16:17.659 --> 00:16:22.840 doesn't ask for some self -serving miracle, right? 00:16:22.899 --> 00:16:26.580 He doesn't ask for more comfort or for more material 00:16:26.580 --> 00:16:29.460 things like, hey, we could use some more food 00:16:29.460 --> 00:16:34.080 or easier access to water. None of those things. 00:16:34.159 --> 00:16:38.200 What he asks for is a greater manifestation of 00:16:38.200 --> 00:16:41.230 God. a greater understanding of him, to somehow 00:16:41.230 --> 00:16:45.090 see and know the Lord to a greater degree than 00:16:45.090 --> 00:16:48.710 he already has. And you get a sense that Moses 00:16:48.710 --> 00:16:50.929 knows that if I'm going to lead this rebellious 00:16:50.929 --> 00:16:53.230 people, that's the thing I need more than anything 00:16:53.230 --> 00:16:59.889 else is to see your glory. So a third time, Yahweh 00:16:59.889 --> 00:17:03.070 is gracious to this man. He says, I will make 00:17:03.070 --> 00:17:08.559 all of my goodness pass before you. He says, 00:17:08.619 --> 00:17:11.200 okay, you want to see my glory? I will make all 00:17:11.200 --> 00:17:14.079 of my goodness pass before you. Now, to me, that's 00:17:14.079 --> 00:17:17.660 wild. When God thinks of his own glory in relation 00:17:17.660 --> 00:17:23.380 to us, he thinks of his goodness. That's why 00:17:23.380 --> 00:17:26.920 we talk about it a lot at Oak Hill. And then 00:17:26.920 --> 00:17:30.900 God adds this, and I will proclaim before you 00:17:30.900 --> 00:17:36.349 my name. Yahweh, I am. And so Moses, I will do 00:17:36.349 --> 00:17:38.869 those two things. I will make my goodness pass 00:17:38.869 --> 00:17:41.309 before you. I will proclaim my name before you. 00:17:41.450 --> 00:17:44.710 And in doing so, you will gain a sense of my 00:17:44.710 --> 00:17:49.309 infinite, eternal nature and glory. And then 00:17:49.309 --> 00:17:51.930 the famous scene that we probably all know, it 00:17:51.930 --> 00:17:54.970 comes to pass. Moses goes up on the mountain 00:17:54.970 --> 00:17:57.849 and he hides in the cleft of a rock formation. 00:17:58.470 --> 00:18:01.009 And try to imagine in your mind's eye what this 00:18:01.009 --> 00:18:03.529 must have been like. Appearing as what we call 00:18:03.529 --> 00:18:06.720 a theophany, In some kind of visible form, God 00:18:06.720 --> 00:18:09.940 descends in the cloud and he says he stands on 00:18:09.940 --> 00:18:14.519 the mountain. And he somehow covers Moses' eyes 00:18:14.519 --> 00:18:18.140 as he passes by. And as he passes by, he then 00:18:18.140 --> 00:18:21.579 removes his hands so that Moses can just see 00:18:21.579 --> 00:18:24.880 the trailing edge of the afterglow of his glory. 00:18:25.059 --> 00:18:29.099 What a sight. Man, I hope somehow in heaven we 00:18:29.099 --> 00:18:33.799 get to see this, right? That same image. And 00:18:33.799 --> 00:18:35.640 what are the words that God then speaks as he 00:18:35.640 --> 00:18:39.019 passes by? He describes himself. He says, Yahweh, 00:18:39.099 --> 00:18:42.440 Yahweh, the compassionate and gracious God, slow 00:18:42.440 --> 00:18:46.500 to anger and abounding in steadfast love and 00:18:46.500 --> 00:18:52.539 faithfulness. What a scene. What a scene. Now, 00:18:52.599 --> 00:18:56.559 come back to John's gospel. What if I told you 00:18:56.559 --> 00:18:59.480 that the Christmas story has elements in it that 00:18:59.480 --> 00:19:01.720 are parallel to the story we just walked through? 00:19:02.920 --> 00:19:05.559 And that John intentionally, subtly for sure, 00:19:05.660 --> 00:19:08.140 but intentionally is pointing us back to those 00:19:08.140 --> 00:19:10.440 things and making this connection between Old 00:19:10.440 --> 00:19:12.839 and New Testament. I'm going to give you four 00:19:12.839 --> 00:19:14.680 ways that I think that that is true. Look at 00:19:14.680 --> 00:19:18.640 verse 14 again. John 1, 14. The word became flesh 00:19:18.640 --> 00:19:22.819 and dwelt among us. Now, the word there, and 00:19:22.819 --> 00:19:25.160 you may know this if you've studied this particular 00:19:25.160 --> 00:19:28.279 verse, really doesn't speak of a dwelling. That's 00:19:28.279 --> 00:19:31.559 not the best word. It actually speaks of a tabernacle. 00:19:32.839 --> 00:19:35.700 The Greek verb there, skenao, literally means 00:19:35.700 --> 00:19:39.819 to set a tabernacle. And what's interesting about 00:19:39.819 --> 00:19:42.019 this word is it's only found five times in the 00:19:42.019 --> 00:19:44.859 New Testament, here in John, and then four times 00:19:44.859 --> 00:19:49.779 in the book of Revelation. And in those four 00:19:49.779 --> 00:19:52.859 times, it is always referring to the place of 00:19:52.859 --> 00:19:55.579 God's glorious presence in the heavenly realms. 00:19:56.700 --> 00:20:00.519 Think about that. It's always describing... God's 00:20:00.519 --> 00:20:02.819 glorious throne in the heavenly realms, but here 00:20:02.819 --> 00:20:06.819 it talks about the tabernacle of Jesus on earth. 00:20:07.579 --> 00:20:10.599 So catch what John is saying. At the birth of 00:20:10.599 --> 00:20:14.539 Christ, a concentrated manifestation of the very 00:20:14.539 --> 00:20:18.119 tabernacle of almighty God came down from heaven 00:20:18.119 --> 00:20:23.819 to earth. That's wild. That is absolutely wild. 00:20:25.200 --> 00:20:28.180 A divine place was established on earth where 00:20:28.180 --> 00:20:32.220 mankind could meet with God face to face, just 00:20:32.220 --> 00:20:36.000 as Moses met face to face with Yahweh in the 00:20:36.000 --> 00:20:41.160 temple of unattentive meeting. Wow. Now, the 00:20:41.160 --> 00:20:42.960 form of it was quite different between Old and 00:20:42.960 --> 00:20:44.839 New Testament, right? In the Old Testament, God 00:20:44.839 --> 00:20:47.720 appeared as this massively intimidating pillar 00:20:47.720 --> 00:20:53.839 of cloud. Here in the gospel accounts, Jesus 00:20:53.839 --> 00:20:59.339 appears. wait for it, as an infant. That's wild. 00:21:00.019 --> 00:21:03.619 You couldn't make this story up, right? And then, 00:21:03.660 --> 00:21:06.079 of course, later as a very real adult human being. 00:21:07.019 --> 00:21:10.119 And yet, in that adult human being, we know that 00:21:10.119 --> 00:21:12.539 even in that familiar form, that was God the 00:21:12.539 --> 00:21:18.900 Son tabernacling with us on the earth. Do you 00:21:18.900 --> 00:21:20.740 remember what Jesus said to the Jews in the temple 00:21:20.740 --> 00:21:23.609 courts in John 2 when he's... turns over the 00:21:23.609 --> 00:21:26.829 tables. He says, destroy this temple and in three 00:21:26.829 --> 00:21:29.170 days I will raise it again. And everybody laughed. 00:21:30.049 --> 00:21:32.069 Do you not know how long it took to build this 00:21:32.069 --> 00:21:35.089 thing? Obviously he wasn't talking about the 00:21:35.089 --> 00:21:37.029 physical structure he was standing in. He was 00:21:37.029 --> 00:21:40.750 referring to his own body. So where is the meeting 00:21:40.750 --> 00:21:44.630 place that we have with God today? It's at the 00:21:44.630 --> 00:21:48.509 throne of grace mediated by Christ. Where's the 00:21:48.509 --> 00:21:52.080 place of sacrifice and reconciliation? Today, 00:21:52.080 --> 00:21:56.059 it's found in Christ alone and finished in his 00:21:56.059 --> 00:21:58.519 once -for -all sacrifice. Where is the locus 00:21:58.519 --> 00:22:01.240 of God's people today? In his body, the church. 00:22:03.539 --> 00:22:05.880 Just as the tabernacle was the place where God 00:22:05.880 --> 00:22:08.640 dwelt among his people, where he manifested his 00:22:08.640 --> 00:22:11.740 glory, so now we have Jesus who is Emmanuel, 00:22:12.279 --> 00:22:18.440 God with us. God with us. And just as the tabernacle 00:22:18.440 --> 00:22:20.660 was at the center of Israel's camp, so Christ 00:22:20.660 --> 00:22:23.640 is at the center of the church today. And just 00:22:23.640 --> 00:22:26.160 as the sacrifices and worship were offered at 00:22:26.160 --> 00:22:28.859 the tabernacle, so Jesus is our complete and 00:22:28.859 --> 00:22:31.779 final sacrifice and we worship God through him. 00:22:33.200 --> 00:22:37.460 It all comes back to Christ, doesn't it? Spurgeon 00:22:37.460 --> 00:22:39.700 once said this, he said, if God has come to dwell 00:22:39.700 --> 00:22:43.470 among men by the word made flesh, Well, then 00:22:43.470 --> 00:22:46.269 let's pitch our tents around this central tabernacle. 00:22:46.369 --> 00:22:49.309 Do not let us live as if God were a long way 00:22:49.309 --> 00:22:55.289 off because he isn't. When I step back and I 00:22:55.289 --> 00:22:57.970 look at the incarnation, to me, one of the things 00:22:57.970 --> 00:23:00.289 that amazes me the most is that almighty God 00:23:00.289 --> 00:23:04.950 desires to come close to his people. He wants 00:23:04.950 --> 00:23:08.170 to be close to his people. He didn't say, hey, 00:23:08.269 --> 00:23:10.390 I'm up here and you got to search for me. He 00:23:10.390 --> 00:23:15.140 came to us. He took the initiative. That's a 00:23:15.140 --> 00:23:19.019 mind -blowing concept. John Piper once wrote 00:23:19.019 --> 00:23:22.559 this. He said, if you come into a community and 00:23:22.559 --> 00:23:24.980 you build a huge palace with a wall around it, 00:23:25.039 --> 00:23:28.059 that says something about your desire to be with 00:23:28.059 --> 00:23:32.119 the people. But if you pitch a tent in my backyard, 00:23:32.559 --> 00:23:37.460 you will probably use my bathroom and eat at 00:23:37.460 --> 00:23:41.660 my table. He says, this is why God became human. 00:23:41.759 --> 00:23:44.799 He came to pitch a tent in our human backyard 00:23:44.799 --> 00:23:48.259 so that we would have a lot of dealings with 00:23:48.259 --> 00:23:54.279 him. There's a lot of truth in that. Second thing 00:23:54.279 --> 00:23:56.299 to see here between Exodus and John's gospel. 00:23:56.559 --> 00:23:59.819 Again, recall Moses' grandiose request of God. 00:23:59.960 --> 00:24:04.519 Show me your glory, Lord. And he did. But we 00:24:04.519 --> 00:24:06.799 think that's a one -time event, right? That could 00:24:06.799 --> 00:24:09.900 never happen again. That's too big. God wouldn't 00:24:09.900 --> 00:24:12.940 give anybody but Moses the opportunity to see 00:24:12.940 --> 00:24:17.940 his glory, right? But he actually did. He actually 00:24:17.940 --> 00:24:20.720 did. John declares it right there in verse 14. 00:24:20.759 --> 00:24:25.920 He says, we saw his glory. We had the same opportunity 00:24:25.920 --> 00:24:29.940 as Moses. Now he's speaking on behalf of himself 00:24:29.940 --> 00:24:32.279 and the apostles, those who walk with Jesus on 00:24:32.279 --> 00:24:37.829 the earth. He says, we have seen his glory. We 00:24:37.829 --> 00:24:41.769 beheld him, says the old King James. We carefully 00:24:41.769 --> 00:24:44.049 observed everything that he said, everything 00:24:44.049 --> 00:24:47.309 that he did, and the story of Jesus' earthly 00:24:47.309 --> 00:24:50.670 ministry is glory. Glory in his life, glory in 00:24:50.670 --> 00:24:53.650 his words, glory in his teaching, glory in his 00:24:53.650 --> 00:24:59.029 miracles, and yes, glory in the cross. Glory 00:24:59.029 --> 00:25:01.549 in the cross. In spite of the misery and the 00:25:01.549 --> 00:25:03.910 shame and the violence of his suffering and execution. 00:25:05.150 --> 00:25:12.609 Listen. Oh, man. Get emotional about this. More 00:25:12.609 --> 00:25:16.230 than any other place, it's on the cross where 00:25:16.230 --> 00:25:19.549 God the Son says to us, watch, I will let my 00:25:19.549 --> 00:25:24.609 goodness pass before you. He did that on the 00:25:24.609 --> 00:25:29.109 cross. Look to the cross. My goodness will pass 00:25:29.109 --> 00:25:32.069 before you in the midst of that awful scene that 00:25:32.069 --> 00:25:35.289 we hate to picture in our minds. That is the 00:25:35.289 --> 00:25:38.769 goodness of God. Have you taken note of that 00:25:38.769 --> 00:25:42.650 goodness? Have you heard his voice in the gospels? 00:25:42.809 --> 00:25:46.130 Jesus, Jesus, the compassionate and gracious 00:25:46.130 --> 00:25:52.049 God. Jesus, slow to anger. Jesus, abounding in 00:25:52.049 --> 00:25:57.470 steadfast love and faithfulness. Just like the 00:25:57.470 --> 00:26:01.930 Exodus account. Third thing, look at verse 16. 00:26:03.150 --> 00:26:07.059 From his fullness we have all received. Grace 00:26:07.059 --> 00:26:10.259 upon grace. Now, if you've ever done a word study 00:26:10.259 --> 00:26:14.059 on that phrase, you'll understand it's not actually 00:26:14.059 --> 00:26:17.500 the most, it's not the best translation. The 00:26:17.500 --> 00:26:19.460 Greek word in the middle of the two graces there 00:26:19.460 --> 00:26:22.519 is enti. It's a preposition that's used to describe 00:26:22.519 --> 00:26:26.339 a contrast. It's usually translated as instead 00:26:26.339 --> 00:26:29.670 of or in place of. And this is really what I 00:26:29.670 --> 00:26:32.589 believe John's getting at in verse 16. In Christ, 00:26:32.630 --> 00:26:35.569 he says, we have all received grace in place 00:26:35.569 --> 00:26:39.509 of grace. Grace in place of grace. Now, what 00:26:39.509 --> 00:26:41.569 could he mean by that? Well, the next verse tells 00:26:41.569 --> 00:26:44.470 us, verse 17. For the law was given through Moses. 00:26:44.829 --> 00:26:47.490 Grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. Do 00:26:47.490 --> 00:26:50.329 you see this? John is connecting the incarnation 00:26:50.329 --> 00:26:54.509 with the giving of the law on Mount Sinai. Now, 00:26:54.549 --> 00:26:56.829 he's not saying there was no grace under Moses 00:26:56.829 --> 00:26:59.890 and it's all grace under Jesus. In fact, what 00:26:59.890 --> 00:27:02.170 he's trying to communicate is this. The law was 00:27:02.170 --> 00:27:05.789 a gracious gift to the Israelites. The law was 00:27:05.789 --> 00:27:08.150 a gracious gift. Paul confirms that in Romans 00:27:08.150 --> 00:27:10.869 7. He says the law is holy, righteous, and good. 00:27:12.289 --> 00:27:15.779 But always remember the purpose of the law. It 00:27:15.779 --> 00:27:18.819 was given as a tutor, as a teacher, to lead us 00:27:18.819 --> 00:27:21.819 to Christ, to lead us to justification by faith 00:27:21.819 --> 00:27:25.079 alone. So that was a gracious act on behalf of 00:27:25.079 --> 00:27:27.980 Yahweh to reveal his law to his people through 00:27:27.980 --> 00:27:32.079 Moses. And now, as the new covenant people of 00:27:32.079 --> 00:27:35.839 God, you ready? We've received grace in place 00:27:35.839 --> 00:27:40.980 of that grace. In fact, even greater grace in 00:27:40.980 --> 00:27:43.000 the place of the grace of God's law given to 00:27:43.000 --> 00:27:46.940 Moses. John's making that connection there for 00:27:46.940 --> 00:27:50.319 us. It's always been grace. But in Christ, we 00:27:50.319 --> 00:27:53.519 have even greater grace. Isn't that awesome? 00:27:55.039 --> 00:27:57.180 Finally, the fourth observation. We're told in 00:27:57.180 --> 00:28:00.140 Exodus 33 that nobody can see the face of God 00:28:00.140 --> 00:28:03.259 and live. Very clearly. That's why Moses had 00:28:03.259 --> 00:28:05.359 to be hidden in the cleft of the rock. That's 00:28:05.359 --> 00:28:08.619 why his eyes had to be covered. But now look 00:28:08.619 --> 00:28:11.579 at John 1, verse 18. Again, no one has seen God 00:28:11.579 --> 00:28:16.049 at any time, John says. But the only begotten 00:28:16.049 --> 00:28:19.910 God, some translations say, God the only son, 00:28:20.109 --> 00:28:23.190 who's in the bosom of the father, who's at the 00:28:23.190 --> 00:28:27.549 father's side, he has explained him. He has made 00:28:27.549 --> 00:28:33.190 him known. Hallelujah, right? That's what humanity 00:28:33.190 --> 00:28:36.490 needed above all else, to have God made known 00:28:36.490 --> 00:28:39.690 to us. And because the son is the eternal word, 00:28:40.750 --> 00:28:43.490 the eternal word, who was with God in the beginning 00:28:43.490 --> 00:28:46.750 and who is God himself, who better to explain 00:28:46.750 --> 00:28:52.529 God? He can explain God perfectly because he 00:28:52.529 --> 00:28:57.210 himself is God. As we're told in Colossians 1 00:28:57.210 --> 00:29:00.369 and Hebrews 1, the son is the image of the invisible 00:29:00.369 --> 00:29:03.930 God, his absolute icon. He's the radiance of 00:29:03.930 --> 00:29:06.809 God's glory, the exact representation of his 00:29:06.809 --> 00:29:09.779 being in nature. There's no question about what 00:29:09.779 --> 00:29:12.279 the New Testament says about the attributes of 00:29:12.279 --> 00:29:17.960 the son. And just as a word explains an unseen 00:29:17.960 --> 00:29:20.819 thought, so Jesus the word explains the nature 00:29:20.819 --> 00:29:24.240 of the unseen God to us so that we no longer 00:29:24.240 --> 00:29:28.539 have to wonder what God is like. The only way 00:29:28.539 --> 00:29:31.539 you can see the face of God and live is by looking 00:29:31.539 --> 00:29:36.000 at his son and God has made that possible through 00:29:36.000 --> 00:29:39.710 the gift of Christmas. You see the immensity 00:29:39.710 --> 00:29:43.349 of this truth? What Christmas really is, I know 00:29:43.349 --> 00:29:47.130 the stockings and the lights and I get it. As 00:29:47.130 --> 00:29:49.309 Grant said earlier, those are graces that we 00:29:49.309 --> 00:29:53.549 can enjoy. Guys, this story is so big and so 00:29:53.549 --> 00:29:57.529 awesome. And so as we wrap up the Christmas season, 00:29:57.650 --> 00:30:00.589 let me remind you, let me remind you of the why. 00:30:01.690 --> 00:30:05.609 The why behind Christmas. What was God's motive 00:30:05.609 --> 00:30:08.859 in all this? You really want to be grateful this 00:30:08.859 --> 00:30:12.680 Christmas? Ask the question. What was the motive? 00:30:13.460 --> 00:30:16.339 And the why behind the incarnation is very simple. 00:30:16.400 --> 00:30:21.420 It's love. And not the love that we produce, 00:30:21.539 --> 00:30:23.960 the fallible love that we think of when we think 00:30:23.960 --> 00:30:27.680 of love. This is a different love. This is divine 00:30:27.680 --> 00:30:30.380 love. Something that this side of heaven we can't 00:30:30.380 --> 00:30:34.460 really process, but we should try. This is perfect 00:30:34.460 --> 00:30:39.700 love. This is merciful love. This is saving love. 00:30:39.779 --> 00:30:43.059 This is redeeming love. This is reconciling love. 00:30:43.299 --> 00:30:48.220 It's adopting love. And we need every bit of 00:30:48.220 --> 00:30:51.380 it because without God's love in Christ, every 00:30:51.380 --> 00:30:53.819 one of us would be overwhelmed by slavery to 00:30:53.819 --> 00:30:56.960 sin and we'd all be destined to eternal condemnation. 00:30:56.960 --> 00:30:59.779 We'd be moving each and every day, not towards 00:30:59.779 --> 00:31:02.359 God, but away from him towards decay and death. 00:31:03.759 --> 00:31:07.200 That is the stark contrast of Christmas or no 00:31:07.200 --> 00:31:11.380 Christmas. But here's the good news. This is 00:31:11.380 --> 00:31:13.440 the gospel. We just read about it in John 1. 00:31:13.640 --> 00:31:16.759 God loved humanity too much to just let us go 00:31:16.759 --> 00:31:22.420 down that path. The great church father, Athanasius, 00:31:22.579 --> 00:31:25.660 used this analogy in his brilliant work. If you 00:31:25.660 --> 00:31:27.259 don't know, Athanasius wrote a book called On 00:31:27.259 --> 00:31:29.859 the Incarnation. Highly recommend it. Fourth 00:31:29.859 --> 00:31:33.750 century, amazing theology. And he says, imagine 00:31:33.750 --> 00:31:36.869 this. Imagine a city has been captured by bandits. 00:31:37.869 --> 00:31:40.589 Would not any king go and liberate that city? 00:31:41.910 --> 00:31:44.490 Driving the bandits out? Would not any king do 00:31:44.490 --> 00:31:47.990 that? Of course, you would think. But in this 00:31:47.990 --> 00:31:51.349 case, he says, there is no human king with an 00:31:51.349 --> 00:31:54.130 army that has enough firepower to drive away 00:31:54.130 --> 00:31:59.130 the bandits of sin. Its hold on the city is too 00:31:59.130 --> 00:32:01.829 strong. Therefore, God couldn't just give the 00:32:01.829 --> 00:32:05.869 mission to a human king. God himself had to liberate 00:32:05.869 --> 00:32:10.910 that city. God had to do it himself. That is 00:32:10.910 --> 00:32:15.170 true. No other king could free you. No other 00:32:15.170 --> 00:32:18.730 king but Jesus could free you. No other being 00:32:18.730 --> 00:32:22.259 but God himself could be your substitute. able 00:32:22.259 --> 00:32:25.480 to pay the eternal debt for your sin. No other 00:32:25.480 --> 00:32:27.619 being but a perfect man could be your substitute 00:32:27.619 --> 00:32:31.480 to represent your imperfect humanity on the cross. 00:32:32.740 --> 00:32:35.400 Only the divine word can do all that. True God 00:32:35.400 --> 00:32:38.180 and true man, the one through whom all things 00:32:38.180 --> 00:32:41.940 were made, he alone can repair and recreate what 00:32:41.940 --> 00:32:45.319 has fallen into corruption. Because he's the 00:32:45.319 --> 00:32:51.650 creator, he can recreate. If you're here this 00:32:51.650 --> 00:32:57.369 morning and you don't know him, you haven't submitted 00:32:57.369 --> 00:33:00.170 your life to him, can I just say that the remedy 00:33:00.170 --> 00:33:05.230 for that is stunningly simple and yet eternally 00:33:05.230 --> 00:33:11.269 profound. Repent of your past sins. Repent of 00:33:11.269 --> 00:33:13.990 your past sins. All of those idols that you've 00:33:13.990 --> 00:33:17.690 been chasing in vain to fulfill your wants and 00:33:17.690 --> 00:33:20.890 desires, but they never actually get you anywhere. 00:33:21.029 --> 00:33:23.029 They never fulfill those wants and desires. All 00:33:23.029 --> 00:33:25.710 of those things that you've been chasing to make 00:33:25.710 --> 00:33:29.529 yourself happy, repent. Turn away from them and 00:33:29.529 --> 00:33:32.490 then turn to Christ alone. Put your life in his 00:33:32.490 --> 00:33:37.450 hands. Let his goodness pass before you and then 00:33:37.450 --> 00:33:41.690 follow after him. It's that simple and yet so 00:33:41.690 --> 00:33:45.369 profound, so life -changing for all eternity. 00:33:47.400 --> 00:33:49.900 This is what the angels marvel at, you guys. 00:33:50.339 --> 00:33:53.920 This is what they long to look into, the incarnation 00:33:53.920 --> 00:33:58.140 and the cross and the empty tomb. They are amazed 00:33:58.140 --> 00:34:01.220 at the gift of salvation that Christ has given 00:34:01.220 --> 00:34:04.920 to us. And that's the message of Advent 2025, 00:34:05.579 --> 00:34:10.000 the gift. Focus on the gift, Jesus Christ, a 00:34:10.000 --> 00:34:14.420 savior for the nations, Jews, Samaritans, Gentiles, 00:34:14.519 --> 00:34:18.489 all who would believe in his name. Wherever you 00:34:18.489 --> 00:34:21.949 find yourself at the end of 2025, and I know 00:34:21.949 --> 00:34:24.869 for some of us it's been so challenging, wherever 00:34:24.869 --> 00:34:28.329 you find yourself today, remember that a Savior 00:34:28.329 --> 00:34:34.170 has been born for you. Come and see what your 00:34:34.170 --> 00:34:49.650 God has done. Amen? Let's pray together. God, 00:34:49.690 --> 00:34:59.789 we stand in awe of you this morning. We stand 00:34:59.789 --> 00:35:03.750 in awe, Lord, at the gift that you've given us, 00:35:03.849 --> 00:35:13.269 so undeserved and so needed. And we stand here 00:35:13.269 --> 00:35:18.809 this morning as a people who are so grateful, 00:35:18.909 --> 00:35:23.449 striving to fully understand what it means to 00:35:23.449 --> 00:35:28.369 receive this gift of salvation. And maybe, Lord, 00:35:28.429 --> 00:35:30.309 for some of us here who haven't yet bowed their 00:35:30.309 --> 00:35:32.949 knee, God, would you change that this morning 00:35:32.949 --> 00:35:36.329 by your power? You're the only one that can do 00:35:36.329 --> 00:35:40.550 it, God. Jesus, you created all things. You can 00:35:40.550 --> 00:35:44.949 recreate. You can bring us to life. You can cause 00:35:44.949 --> 00:35:48.320 us to be born again. And so I pray according 00:35:48.320 --> 00:35:51.420 to your perfect will, Lord, that you might save 00:35:51.420 --> 00:35:54.820 anyone here this morning who doesn't know you. 00:35:55.539 --> 00:36:01.539 That's my plea, God. Father, thank you for working 00:36:01.539 --> 00:36:03.800 in and through this church. Thank you for the 00:36:03.800 --> 00:36:05.960 opportunity, the privilege we have to gather 00:36:05.960 --> 00:36:09.059 to talk about this amazing story, the greatest 00:36:09.059 --> 00:36:11.840 story ever told. And Lord, to sing praises to 00:36:11.840 --> 00:36:14.579 your name. Help us to do that well now as we 00:36:14.579 --> 00:36:17.309 close out our service. Talking about the light 00:36:17.309 --> 00:36:20.250 of the world and lighting candles to your glory. 00:36:20.329 --> 00:36:22.969 Help us to do that well now, Lord. Thank you 00:36:22.969 --> 00:36:26.449 for all of this in the name of our Savior, Jesus 00:36:26.449 --> 00:36:27.489 Christ, the Lord.