WEBVTT

00:00:00.010 --> 00:00:05.450
John 18, that's further back in the Gospels than

00:00:05.450 --> 00:00:08.910
normal for a Christmas Eve service. I promise

00:00:08.910 --> 00:00:13.369
you I will explain what that's about. But this

00:00:13.369 --> 00:00:17.050
is a very important text for us to consider tonight.

00:00:18.250 --> 00:00:24.870
And so John 18, 33 through 38, and it reads like

00:00:24.870 --> 00:00:32.399
this. entered his headquarters again and called

00:00:32.399 --> 00:00:36.579
Jesus and said to him, are you the king of the

00:00:36.579 --> 00:00:40.880
Jews? And Jesus answered, do you say this of

00:00:40.880 --> 00:00:44.659
your own accord or did others say it to you about

00:00:44.659 --> 00:00:49.200
me? Pilate answered, am I a Jew? Your own nation

00:00:49.200 --> 00:00:51.659
and the chief priests have delivered you over

00:00:51.659 --> 00:00:55.439
to me. What have you done? Jesus answered, my

00:00:55.439 --> 00:00:59.070
kingdom is not of this world. my kingdom were

00:00:59.070 --> 00:01:01.969
of this world my servants would have been fighting

00:01:01.969 --> 00:01:04.569
that I might not be delivered over to the Jews

00:01:04.569 --> 00:01:09.010
but my kingdom is not from the world then Pilate

00:01:09.010 --> 00:01:13.569
said to him so you are a king and Jesus answered

00:01:13.569 --> 00:01:17.590
you say that I am a king for this purpose I was

00:01:17.590 --> 00:01:21.209
born and for this purpose I have come into the

00:01:21.209 --> 00:01:24.659
world to bear witness to the truth everyone who

00:01:24.659 --> 00:01:28.700
is of the truth listens to my voice. Pilate said

00:01:28.700 --> 00:01:38.319
to him, what is truth? Let us pray. Mighty God,

00:01:38.959 --> 00:01:41.159
the shepherds of old were full of your praise

00:01:41.159 --> 00:01:45.019
saying that all they had heard and seen was mirrored

00:01:45.019 --> 00:01:48.340
by what they had been told. Move among us now

00:01:48.340 --> 00:01:51.620
by your spirit that we too might hear and experience

00:01:51.620 --> 00:01:54.799
the wonder and the joy of the living word as

00:01:54.799 --> 00:01:58.319
we seek to welcome the written word deep down

00:01:58.319 --> 00:02:01.500
into our hearts. This we ask in Christ's name.

00:02:02.099 --> 00:02:09.520
Amen. Having read this text from John 18, you

00:02:09.520 --> 00:02:12.020
might be thinking that perhaps I've lost track

00:02:12.020 --> 00:02:16.300
of time. Perhaps I'm preaching a Good Friday

00:02:16.300 --> 00:02:20.759
sermon, but I can assure you I know the season

00:02:20.759 --> 00:02:25.240
that we are in. The reason for this text is because

00:02:25.240 --> 00:02:30.159
it clearly states why Jesus was born. Tonight

00:02:30.159 --> 00:02:34.340
we celebrate the birth of Jesus, but we also

00:02:34.340 --> 00:02:38.639
celebrate the why. We celebrate why Jesus was

00:02:38.639 --> 00:02:41.300
born. And that's what I want us to understand

00:02:41.300 --> 00:02:46.080
tonight. Jesus was born to bear witness to the

00:02:46.080 --> 00:02:49.259
truth. This is one of the clearest statements

00:02:49.610 --> 00:02:53.729
Spoken by Jesus on his own incarnation you might

00:02:53.729 --> 00:02:56.590
remember some of the other statements that Jesus

00:02:56.590 --> 00:03:01.069
makes about his coming about his birth Purpose

00:03:01.069 --> 00:03:04.550
statements if you will Matthew 517 where Jesus

00:03:04.550 --> 00:03:08.330
says Do not think that I've come to abolish the

00:03:08.330 --> 00:03:11.729
law or the prophets. I've come not to abolish

00:03:11.729 --> 00:03:14.610
But to fulfill them that's a purpose statement

00:03:14.610 --> 00:03:18.800
from Jesus another one John 12 46. He says I

00:03:18.800 --> 00:03:22.240
have come into the world as light so that whoever

00:03:22.240 --> 00:03:26.280
believes in me may not remain in darkness. Another

00:03:26.280 --> 00:03:29.560
purpose statement. But this statement by Jesus

00:03:29.560 --> 00:03:32.520
stands out because it specifically speaks to

00:03:32.520 --> 00:03:36.060
his birth, not so in the others. And so we might

00:03:36.060 --> 00:03:38.759
be wondering, well, why does Jesus mention his

00:03:38.759 --> 00:03:43.639
birth? And what is Jesus really telling Pilate?

00:03:43.900 --> 00:03:46.479
Well, if you've tracked with me in that reading,

00:03:46.680 --> 00:03:50.280
It reads almost like a courtroom drama, right?

00:03:50.560 --> 00:03:52.699
And perhaps it's strange to think of the birth

00:03:52.699 --> 00:03:56.219
of Jesus that we think of him tonight, but we're

00:03:56.219 --> 00:03:58.340
reading a text where he's accused of something.

00:03:58.680 --> 00:04:01.599
But isn't that the way it went with Jesus from

00:04:01.599 --> 00:04:04.759
the moment of his incarnation? He was pursued.

00:04:04.819 --> 00:04:07.759
The world was out to get him. John, chapter one,

00:04:07.759 --> 00:04:11.680
11 says his own people did not receive him. You

00:04:11.680 --> 00:04:15.879
remember the wise men. They get to Jerusalem.

00:04:16.240 --> 00:04:19.360
And they ask Herod, where is he who has been

00:04:19.360 --> 00:04:23.779
born King of the Jews? Herod wants to destroy

00:04:23.779 --> 00:04:26.800
Jesus, going so far as to have all of the male

00:04:26.800 --> 00:04:29.639
children in the area under the age of two to

00:04:29.639 --> 00:04:33.879
be killed. And so before Jesus can even walk,

00:04:34.779 --> 00:04:38.620
he's on the run, metaphorically speaking. Jesus

00:04:38.620 --> 00:04:45.329
was born to die. In the birth of Jesus, The fear

00:04:45.329 --> 00:04:49.910
that Herod has over Jesus, it mirrors this episode

00:04:49.910 --> 00:04:54.029
where Jesus is before Pilate. Because front and

00:04:54.029 --> 00:04:57.290
center in both of those episodes, Pilate and

00:04:57.290 --> 00:05:02.370
Herod, what's at stake is the question, are you

00:05:02.370 --> 00:05:05.470
the king of the Jews? It's such an important

00:05:05.470 --> 00:05:08.269
question that it's actually recorded in all four

00:05:08.269 --> 00:05:12.170
gospels, somebody asking Jesus, are you the king

00:05:12.170 --> 00:05:17.240
of the Jews? And so Pilate asks this here, and

00:05:17.240 --> 00:05:19.439
he really wants to get to the bottom of it. Are

00:05:19.439 --> 00:05:22.079
you the king of the Jews? But Jesus counters,

00:05:22.120 --> 00:05:24.480
as you can see from our text, he counters with

00:05:24.480 --> 00:05:28.540
his own question. He puts Pilate on the defensive.

00:05:30.000 --> 00:05:32.279
Pilate, though, he's very different from Herod,

00:05:33.060 --> 00:05:35.560
because as you can see, Pilate says, hey, I'm

00:05:35.560 --> 00:05:40.319
not a Jew. They're not my people. And so he gets

00:05:40.319 --> 00:05:44.509
to another question, and Pilate asks Jesus, What

00:05:44.509 --> 00:05:47.970
have you done?" He's like, let's get to the bottom

00:05:47.970 --> 00:05:51.370
of this. Pilate, it almost seems like some impatience

00:05:51.370 --> 00:05:54.589
on the part of Pontius Pilate is saying, I've

00:05:54.589 --> 00:05:57.269
got better things to do, Jesus. Let's get on

00:05:57.269 --> 00:06:01.970
with it. I also think that Pilate in this passage,

00:06:01.990 --> 00:06:05.689
he asks Jesus these questions with skepticism.

00:06:06.370 --> 00:06:09.550
Are you the king of the Jews? There's no way

00:06:09.550 --> 00:06:11.829
you could be king of the Jews. Look at yourself.

00:06:12.120 --> 00:06:14.560
I like how one commentator puts it who says,

00:06:14.959 --> 00:06:18.480
it was no wonder Pilate reacted this way. Jesus

00:06:18.480 --> 00:06:21.540
was in peasant dress, stained with the bloody

00:06:21.540 --> 00:06:24.959
sweat from Gethsemane. His features already swollen,

00:06:25.699 --> 00:06:30.180
but despite appearances, Jesus was still king.

00:06:31.519 --> 00:06:35.579
Jesus is a king. But Pilate feels here as he

00:06:35.579 --> 00:06:38.160
begins to question Jesus, he's starting to feel

00:06:38.160 --> 00:06:40.920
like, you know what? Jesus doesn't pose much

00:06:40.920 --> 00:06:44.120
of a threat to me, and Jesus doesn't pose much

00:06:44.120 --> 00:06:46.699
of a threat to Caesar. In his current state,

00:06:46.920 --> 00:06:49.079
perhaps Pilate's thinking, Jesus doesn't pose

00:06:49.079 --> 00:06:53.959
much of a threat to anybody. But friends, we

00:06:53.959 --> 00:06:58.779
who know Jesus know that Jesus is the King of

00:06:58.779 --> 00:07:03.360
kings, and Jesus is the Lord of lords, and all

00:07:03.360 --> 00:07:07.240
people will bow to the kingship of Jesus. Isaiah.

00:07:07.529 --> 00:07:10.790
predicts this in chapter nine six and seven listen

00:07:10.790 --> 00:07:15.629
to these words for to us a child is born to us

00:07:15.629 --> 00:07:19.089
a son is given and the government shall be upon

00:07:19.089 --> 00:07:22.370
his shoulder and his name shall be called wonderful

00:07:22.370 --> 00:07:27.129
counselor mighty god everlasting father prince

00:07:27.129 --> 00:07:31.050
of peace of the increase of his government and

00:07:31.050 --> 00:07:34.709
of peace there will be no end the throne of David

00:07:34.709 --> 00:07:37.410
and over his kingdom to establish it and to uphold

00:07:37.410 --> 00:07:40.790
it with justice and with righteousness from this

00:07:40.790 --> 00:07:43.850
time forth and forevermore the zeal of the Lord

00:07:43.850 --> 00:07:47.970
of hosts will do this and so Isaiah predicts

00:07:47.970 --> 00:07:52.129
the kingship of Jesus a Reign that will last

00:07:52.129 --> 00:07:56.209
forever indeed Gabriel tells Mary this in Luke

00:07:56.209 --> 00:08:02.680
chapter 1 31 through 33 Gabriel says, and behold

00:08:02.680 --> 00:08:05.180
you will conceive in your womb and bear a son

00:08:05.180 --> 00:08:08.819
and you shall call his name Jesus. He will be

00:08:08.819 --> 00:08:11.019
great and will be called the son of the Most

00:08:11.019 --> 00:08:14.240
High and the Lord God will give to him the throne

00:08:14.240 --> 00:08:17.660
of his father David and he will reign over the

00:08:17.660 --> 00:08:21.379
house of Jacob forever and of his kingdom there

00:08:21.379 --> 00:08:27.740
will be no end. And so Jesus is the true King.

00:08:27.879 --> 00:08:31.180
not just of the Jews, but Jesus is king of the

00:08:31.180 --> 00:08:35.460
whole world. Perhaps you remember the words from

00:08:35.460 --> 00:08:39.820
We Three Kings, verse two says, born a king on

00:08:39.820 --> 00:08:43.539
Bethlehem's plain, gold I bring to crown him

00:08:43.539 --> 00:08:48.960
again, king forever, ceasing never, over us all

00:08:48.960 --> 00:08:52.679
to reign. But Pontius Pilate doesn't know that,

00:08:53.120 --> 00:08:56.019
Carol. Pontius Pilate doesn't know the scriptures.

00:08:56.429 --> 00:08:59.750
All Pontius Pilate hears is, oh, you are not

00:08:59.750 --> 00:09:02.330
a threat to me and you are not a threat to Caesar.

00:09:02.750 --> 00:09:07.429
And he wipes his brow. You can see if you kept

00:09:07.429 --> 00:09:10.269
reading from our text in verse 38, he says, I

00:09:10.269 --> 00:09:13.909
find no guilt in him. Pilate's not threatened

00:09:13.909 --> 00:09:18.809
by Jesus whatsoever, but Pilate's not truly considering

00:09:18.809 --> 00:09:22.950
the words of Jesus. And I don't think he really

00:09:22.950 --> 00:09:26.330
pays attention to this purpose statement in verse

00:09:26.379 --> 00:09:34.399
Look there. For this purpose, I was born. And

00:09:34.399 --> 00:09:37.360
for this purpose, I have come into the world

00:09:37.360 --> 00:09:43.139
to bear witness to the truth. Jesus here is saying,

00:09:43.659 --> 00:09:47.159
you don't get the truth by just being really

00:09:47.159 --> 00:09:50.779
smart, by your intelligence. And you don't get

00:09:50.779 --> 00:09:54.360
the truth by the position that you were appointed

00:09:54.360 --> 00:09:58.600
to be in. like Pilate. No, you get the truth

00:09:58.600 --> 00:10:02.299
from a person. You get the truth from divine

00:10:02.299 --> 00:10:05.820
special revelation. And the revelation is this.

00:10:05.960 --> 00:10:09.580
The truth of scripture is this, that this is

00:10:09.580 --> 00:10:14.620
all about Jesus. From Genesis to Revelation,

00:10:15.019 --> 00:10:17.659
all of it's about Jesus. Because you might remember

00:10:17.659 --> 00:10:21.379
Jesus on the road to Emmaus. Jesus is walking

00:10:21.379 --> 00:10:25.440
with two disciples after his resurrection. They

00:10:25.440 --> 00:10:28.840
can't see him. They don't know it's Jesus. And

00:10:28.840 --> 00:10:32.399
Luke 24 says this, beginning with Moses and all

00:10:32.399 --> 00:10:36.320
the prophets, he interpreted to them in all the

00:10:36.320 --> 00:10:40.600
scriptures the things concerning himself. This

00:10:40.600 --> 00:10:44.200
is why Jesus says, everyone who is of the truth

00:10:44.200 --> 00:10:48.960
listens to my voice. Believers, we belong to

00:10:48.960 --> 00:10:51.799
the truth. And when we give attention to the

00:10:51.799 --> 00:10:55.700
Bible, we listen to the very voice of God. The

00:10:55.700 --> 00:10:59.240
truth is here and the truth is Christ. For you

00:10:59.240 --> 00:11:01.919
remember in the book of John, Jesus is called

00:11:01.919 --> 00:11:06.740
the word and Jesus calls himself the truth. The

00:11:06.740 --> 00:11:11.360
truth of the matter is Jesus. And I believe that

00:11:11.360 --> 00:11:14.139
there's a connection between how Jesus handles

00:11:14.139 --> 00:11:17.419
these questions from Pilate and how Jesus is

00:11:17.419 --> 00:11:20.340
a king. Think about it. Pilot asked Jesus about

00:11:20.340 --> 00:11:23.840
being king and Jesus responds about bearing witness

00:11:23.840 --> 00:11:27.200
to the truth You wonder if pilot was frustrated

00:11:27.200 --> 00:11:31.179
like speak clearly with me But Jesus is Jesus

00:11:31.179 --> 00:11:35.659
is saying he was born to establish a new kind

00:11:35.659 --> 00:11:38.580
of kingdom Because Jesus isn't just the king

00:11:38.580 --> 00:11:42.259
of the Jews Jesus is the king of kings and lord

00:11:42.259 --> 00:11:45.639
of lords and he bears witness to the truth because

00:11:45.639 --> 00:11:49.659
he is the truth Pontius Pilate doesn't realize

00:11:49.659 --> 00:11:53.019
this, but he is staring truth right in the face.

00:11:56.500 --> 00:11:58.820
And when I think about it, I think that Pilate

00:11:58.820 --> 00:12:04.720
represents a very Western modern mindset. Pilate

00:12:04.720 --> 00:12:07.379
seems to write Jesus off as being a religious

00:12:07.379 --> 00:12:11.019
fanatic. Pilate doesn't consider the truth because

00:12:11.019 --> 00:12:14.100
it doesn't affect him a whole lot. People act

00:12:14.100 --> 00:12:17.669
like that today, don't they? Is there something

00:12:17.669 --> 00:12:20.169
concerning me right now? No? Okay, good. Let's

00:12:20.169 --> 00:12:24.009
move on with our lives. Jesus was born 2 ,000

00:12:24.009 --> 00:12:27.149
years ago. What does that have to do with me?

00:12:28.129 --> 00:12:30.909
My eternity, it rests in the balance. Well, that's

00:12:30.909 --> 00:12:36.230
great, but what's for lunch? Human beings by

00:12:36.230 --> 00:12:40.889
nature are self -centered and apathetic to what

00:12:40.889 --> 00:12:44.210
really matters. But friends, what really matters

00:12:44.210 --> 00:12:47.330
is Jesus. I know that's the Sunday School answer,

00:12:47.350 --> 00:12:51.769
but it's completely true. How can we be apathetic

00:12:51.769 --> 00:12:56.490
to the virgin birth of the Messiah, of God in

00:12:56.490 --> 00:12:59.409
the flesh? Do you realize how astounding this

00:12:59.409 --> 00:13:03.110
is that Jesus came, took on flesh, and dwelt

00:13:03.110 --> 00:13:07.429
among us, that God walked on the earth? This

00:13:07.429 --> 00:13:12.070
is the most astounding news of all time, and

00:13:12.070 --> 00:13:14.820
so we must receive it as such. We need to set

00:13:14.820 --> 00:13:17.840
our minds on Christ. Let me read you a couple

00:13:17.840 --> 00:13:20.779
of scriptures that can help us center our minds

00:13:20.779 --> 00:13:28.240
on Christ. 1 John chapter 2, 15 through 17. It

00:13:28.240 --> 00:13:33.659
says, Do not love the world or the things in

00:13:33.659 --> 00:13:36.860
the world. If anyone loves the world, the love

00:13:36.860 --> 00:13:40.450
of the Father is not in him. For all that is

00:13:40.450 --> 00:13:42.970
in the world, the desires of the flesh and the

00:13:42.970 --> 00:13:45.990
desires of the eyes and the pride of life is

00:13:45.990 --> 00:13:49.049
not from the Father, but it's from the world.

00:13:49.389 --> 00:13:52.509
And the world is passing away along with its

00:13:52.509 --> 00:13:56.269
desires. But whoever does the will of God abides

00:13:56.269 --> 00:13:59.669
forever. Or how about this one from Colossians

00:13:59.669 --> 00:14:04.429
chapter three, one through three. If then you

00:14:04.429 --> 00:14:07.669
have been raised with Christ, seek the things

00:14:07.669 --> 00:14:11.539
that are above. where Christ is seated at the

00:14:11.539 --> 00:14:14.940
right hand of God. Set your mind on things that

00:14:14.940 --> 00:14:18.279
are above, not on things that are on earth, for

00:14:18.279 --> 00:14:21.620
you have died and your life is hidden with Christ

00:14:21.620 --> 00:14:27.679
in God. Friends, the Christmas season tonight

00:14:27.679 --> 00:14:32.700
is an opportunity to see Christ afresh, to understand

00:14:32.700 --> 00:14:35.500
what Christ really did for us. It's an opportunity

00:14:35.500 --> 00:14:38.340
to look to Christ, who though he was a king,

00:14:38.669 --> 00:14:41.669
He was born into the miseries of this life. He

00:14:41.669 --> 00:14:44.649
suffered all the way to the cross to rescue us

00:14:44.649 --> 00:14:48.769
from what we deserve. Jesus's incarnation and

00:14:48.769 --> 00:14:51.610
his death are radically opposite from what we

00:14:51.610 --> 00:14:54.289
would expect from a king, because Jesus gives

00:14:54.289 --> 00:14:57.009
us radically the opposite of what we deserve.

00:14:58.049 --> 00:14:59.710
You might remember the words of Mark chapter

00:14:59.710 --> 00:15:03.490
10, 45, where we read that Jesus gave his life

00:15:03.490 --> 00:15:07.289
as a ransom for many. Jesus was born to give

00:15:07.289 --> 00:15:13.889
up his life for you God gives us eternal life

00:15:13.889 --> 00:15:18.149
in Christ instead of eternal death But it's all

00:15:18.149 --> 00:15:21.330
contingent upon faith. You might remember these

00:15:21.330 --> 00:15:26.590
words from John 5 truly truly I say to you Whoever

00:15:26.590 --> 00:15:30.570
hears my words and believes him who sent me has

00:15:30.570 --> 00:15:34.210
eternal life He does not come at a judgment,

00:15:34.210 --> 00:15:43.220
but is passed from death to life Friends, Pilate

00:15:43.220 --> 00:15:46.000
asked this question at the end of our text. He

00:15:46.000 --> 00:15:50.720
asks, what is truth? But he doesn't stick around

00:15:50.720 --> 00:15:54.480
for the answer, does he? Tonight, do you know

00:15:54.480 --> 00:15:58.419
the truth? Do you know the truth that Jesus came

00:15:58.419 --> 00:16:03.559
to save you from your sins? I would ask, I would

00:16:03.559 --> 00:16:08.330
urge you to consider Christ tonight. But... Let's

00:16:08.330 --> 00:16:10.090
say you're a believer and you've believed for

00:16:10.090 --> 00:16:12.169
a long time. Maybe you're even a member of this

00:16:12.169 --> 00:16:15.649
church. How does this apply to you? What's the

00:16:15.649 --> 00:16:19.950
application? How do I live this out? Consider

00:16:19.950 --> 00:16:22.309
some of the characters of the Christmas story.

00:16:22.710 --> 00:16:26.169
Consider the shepherds. Luke chapter 2 tells

00:16:26.169 --> 00:16:29.789
us that the shepherds told everybody about what

00:16:29.789 --> 00:16:33.409
they had seen and they praised God that night.

00:16:34.389 --> 00:16:37.629
Consider the wise men. Why did the wise men travel

00:16:37.629 --> 00:16:42.309
from so far away? They traveled for the purpose

00:16:42.309 --> 00:16:46.230
of worship. What about Mary and Joseph? We read

00:16:46.230 --> 00:16:48.610
in the scriptures that Mary treasured up all

00:16:48.610 --> 00:16:52.669
of these things in her heart. And so tonight,

00:16:54.230 --> 00:16:58.970
treasure these things, share these things, and

00:16:58.970 --> 00:17:02.340
worship God. Now you might say, well, it was

00:17:02.340 --> 00:17:05.920
easier for the shepherds, and it was easier for

00:17:05.920 --> 00:17:08.420
the wise men, and it was easier for Mary and

00:17:08.420 --> 00:17:12.279
Joseph. They had the revelation of the angels,

00:17:12.660 --> 00:17:15.980
and they had the star guiding them. So you say,

00:17:16.460 --> 00:17:19.779
God was giving them instruction. Well, friends,

00:17:19.819 --> 00:17:23.299
you have the same instruction, and you have the

00:17:23.299 --> 00:17:28.400
special revelation, because it's contained in

00:17:28.400 --> 00:17:33.539
here. This bears witness to the truth and John

00:17:33.539 --> 00:17:38.880
chapter 1 says Jesus is this Jesus is the word

00:17:38.880 --> 00:17:44.720
and so tonight Let us be people of truth Let

00:17:44.720 --> 00:17:47.720
us worship God for the truth of Jesus Christ

00:17:47.720 --> 00:17:52.859
and let us be as those shepherds Telling everybody

00:17:52.859 --> 00:17:55.480
about the truth Let's pray