WEBVTT 00:00:00.839 --> 00:00:03.839 Before we begin this morning, I want to just 00:00:03.839 --> 00:00:06.620 remind us of something and maybe give you insight 00:00:06.620 --> 00:00:13.240 into part of the patterns of our worship. Worship 00:00:13.240 --> 00:00:17.280 should be designed for the bookends of life, 00:00:18.000 --> 00:00:22.839 okay? Your children and the elder. The more things 00:00:22.839 --> 00:00:25.379 that we are able to do in our services every 00:00:25.379 --> 00:00:31.980 week, right? Responsive prayers. saying the glory 00:00:31.980 --> 00:00:35.259 potray, all of these things that we do again 00:00:35.259 --> 00:00:37.320 and again, the confession, all these things that 00:00:37.320 --> 00:00:41.460 we do again and again bless our children. They 00:00:41.460 --> 00:00:44.700 learn, they memorize, they're drawn to God. And 00:00:44.700 --> 00:00:48.000 yes, even too, when you become an older person 00:00:48.000 --> 00:00:52.140 and body and mind begin to fail, those patterns 00:00:52.140 --> 00:00:55.159 are there instilled in your person by the power 00:00:55.159 --> 00:00:58.020 of the Spirit to be a blessing and a comfort. 00:00:58.320 --> 00:01:01.159 So if you ever wonder why we repeat things, repeat 00:01:01.159 --> 00:01:03.880 things, it's for the bookends of our congregation, 00:01:03.979 --> 00:01:06.840 both the children and those who are growing older. 00:01:08.040 --> 00:01:11.239 Let us now turn our hearts and minds towards 00:01:11.239 --> 00:01:13.959 the preaching of God's word. Let us ask him for 00:01:13.959 --> 00:01:17.159 his blessing. Almighty God or Heavenly Father, 00:01:17.540 --> 00:01:20.280 we give thanks unto you once again that you have 00:01:20.280 --> 00:01:23.879 guided us safely, joyfully through all the tribulations 00:01:23.879 --> 00:01:26.659 of this world. We thank you that in all these 00:01:26.659 --> 00:01:29.489 things, You have been at work making all things 00:01:29.489 --> 00:01:32.989 work together for good for us in Christ Jesus. 00:01:33.590 --> 00:01:35.950 Give us therefore as we petition you grateful 00:01:35.950 --> 00:01:39.890 hearts that day by day that we thank you as we 00:01:39.890 --> 00:01:42.469 ought, that we might know that we are surrounded 00:01:42.469 --> 00:01:45.670 not by a world full of evil, but surrounded by 00:01:45.670 --> 00:01:49.030 your grace and your providential care, by your 00:01:49.030 --> 00:01:52.269 mercy and your love. We ask now that you would 00:01:52.269 --> 00:01:54.209 let the words of my mouth and the meditations 00:01:54.209 --> 00:01:57.650 of all our hearts acceptable in your sight oh 00:01:57.650 --> 00:02:01.969 Lord Jesus our incarnate Redeemer full of grace 00:02:01.969 --> 00:02:07.670 and truth amen amen so as we prepare to look 00:02:07.670 --> 00:02:10.789 at our gospel reading today I want to give you 00:02:10.789 --> 00:02:13.110 three things to think about as we go through 00:02:13.110 --> 00:02:16.530 this passage three things to think about as we 00:02:16.530 --> 00:02:19.909 go through this passage first of all Jesus Christ 00:02:19.909 --> 00:02:25.509 is the creator and Redeemer and he came Jesus 00:02:25.509 --> 00:02:32.849 Christ, the Creator and Redeemer, came. Second, 00:02:33.750 --> 00:02:38.409 Jesus loves us so much that He dwelt in flesh 00:02:38.409 --> 00:02:45.030 with us. Jesus loves us so much that He dwelt 00:02:45.030 --> 00:02:51.729 in the flesh with us. And finally, Jesus brought 00:02:51.729 --> 00:02:57.169 us grace and truth. Jesus brought us grace and 00:02:57.169 --> 00:03:01.069 truth Let's hear our gospel reading once more 00:03:01.069 --> 00:03:05.330 John chapter 1 beginning in verse 10 He and of 00:03:05.330 --> 00:03:08.530 course he here is Jesus He was in the world and 00:03:08.530 --> 00:03:11.050 the world was made through him and the world 00:03:11.050 --> 00:03:14.650 did not know him He came to his own and his own 00:03:14.650 --> 00:03:18.189 did not receive him But as many as received him 00:03:18.189 --> 00:03:20.770 to them he gave the right to become the children 00:03:20.770 --> 00:03:24.500 of God to those who believe in his name who were 00:03:24.500 --> 00:03:27.300 born not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, 00:03:27.620 --> 00:03:31.400 nor of the will of man, but of God. And the Word 00:03:31.400 --> 00:03:33.740 became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld 00:03:33.740 --> 00:03:37.759 His glory, and the glory as the only begotten 00:03:37.759 --> 00:03:41.240 of the Father, full of grace and truth. John 00:03:41.240 --> 00:03:44.240 bore witness of Him and cried out, saying, This 00:03:44.240 --> 00:03:48.319 is He of whom I said, He who comes after Me is 00:03:48.319 --> 00:03:53.819 preferred before Me, for He was before Me. and 00:03:53.819 --> 00:03:59.039 of His fullness we have all received grace for 00:03:59.039 --> 00:04:02.340 grace. For the law was given through Moses but 00:04:02.340 --> 00:04:06.319 grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. No 00:04:06.319 --> 00:04:09.900 one has seen God at any time. The only begotten 00:04:09.900 --> 00:04:13.659 Son who is in the bosom of the Father, He has 00:04:13.659 --> 00:04:17.120 declared Him. These are the words of Almighty 00:04:17.120 --> 00:04:22.459 God. Receive them in your hearts. Greetings this 00:04:22.459 --> 00:04:27.379 11th day of Christmas. If we look around, people 00:04:27.379 --> 00:04:30.779 have begun taking down their Christmas decorations, 00:04:32.160 --> 00:04:35.660 putting away their lights, discarding their Christmas 00:04:35.660 --> 00:04:38.120 trees, although some of them, and I heard someone's 00:04:38.120 --> 00:04:40.139 planning a big party at their place tonight to 00:04:40.139 --> 00:04:43.360 burn your Christmas tree. All the fireworks that 00:04:43.360 --> 00:04:48.819 brings. And some folks are boxing up their nativities. 00:04:49.790 --> 00:04:53.949 if they've had them at all. The parties are over, 00:04:54.529 --> 00:04:58.970 the wrapping paper is long gone. For many, their 00:04:58.970 --> 00:05:02.269 world has been restored to its previous state. 00:05:03.910 --> 00:05:06.389 If Christmas has any peace for those outside 00:05:06.389 --> 00:05:09.970 of the church, it is found in remembering some 00:05:09.970 --> 00:05:13.189 type of sentimentality of peace from a little 00:05:13.189 --> 00:05:18.569 child born long ago who has no relevance to their 00:05:18.569 --> 00:05:22.699 lives. For the unbeliever in our country, the 00:05:22.699 --> 00:05:26.319 goodness of the birth of Jesus is countered by 00:05:26.319 --> 00:05:29.699 the Herod -like disposition to murder babies 00:05:29.699 --> 00:05:34.579 in abortion, simply for these people to have 00:05:34.579 --> 00:05:39.699 their own self -preservation and pleasures. For 00:05:39.699 --> 00:05:43.959 the Church, however, Jesus Christ and Christmastide 00:05:43.959 --> 00:05:48.660 is a season of 12 days of rejoicing. For us, 00:05:48.980 --> 00:05:51.680 it's 12 days of the coming of our Lord and Savior 00:05:51.680 --> 00:05:55.000 who delivers us from the bondage of sin and death. 00:05:56.420 --> 00:06:02.459 12 days of gift giving, feasting, glorifying, 00:06:02.879 --> 00:06:05.579 and praising God for His appearance in the flesh 00:06:05.579 --> 00:06:09.379 so that our sins may be forgiven. Now for some 00:06:09.379 --> 00:06:12.100 of you, you may be very new to the idea of the 00:06:12.100 --> 00:06:15.120 church calendar. or that there's 12 days of Christmas. 00:06:15.500 --> 00:06:18.620 And my emphasis to you isn't so much how you 00:06:18.620 --> 00:06:22.120 do it, right? But you have to understand that 00:06:22.120 --> 00:06:25.339 the coming of the Lord Jesus is so spectacular 00:06:25.339 --> 00:06:29.639 event, one day will not do. Every day during 00:06:29.639 --> 00:06:32.360 the 12 days, you should do something. Sing carols, 00:06:32.779 --> 00:06:35.300 eat a piece of candy, drink a glass of wine. 00:06:35.560 --> 00:06:38.540 Those things that are set before you as things 00:06:38.540 --> 00:06:43.259 to rejoice. Do those things. Rejoice in the great 00:06:43.259 --> 00:06:45.939 coming of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. It's 00:06:45.939 --> 00:06:49.279 not something to just be put away There is no 00:06:49.279 --> 00:06:52.000 cross without the birth. There is no deliverance 00:06:52.000 --> 00:06:57.360 from sins So don't celebrate it get rid of all 00:06:57.360 --> 00:07:03.079 the signs of it act as if it was nothing Now 00:07:03.079 --> 00:07:06.579 the gospel of John unlike the other Gospels gets 00:07:06.579 --> 00:07:10.319 right down to it about who Jesus is Think about 00:07:10.319 --> 00:07:13.100 this now Matthew begins with the genealogy of 00:07:13.100 --> 00:07:16.819 Jesus showing that he is both the son of Abraham 00:07:16.819 --> 00:07:22.220 and of David in Abraham the son of promise Jesus 00:07:22.220 --> 00:07:24.860 is the son of promise who would bring blessings 00:07:24.860 --> 00:07:28.100 to all the families of the earth we see that 00:07:28.100 --> 00:07:32.860 in Genesis 12 and Jesus as the son of David is 00:07:32.860 --> 00:07:37.300 the king whom David calls Lord right David who 00:07:37.300 --> 00:07:42.029 who so many of Israelite descendants. They think 00:07:42.029 --> 00:07:44.509 David, he was the epitome of everything. He's 00:07:44.509 --> 00:07:48.110 the greatest king we ever had. And David says 00:07:48.110 --> 00:07:54.970 in Psalm 110, he calls Jesus his Lord. The Gospel 00:07:54.970 --> 00:07:58.209 of Mark begins with Jesus as the Son of God, 00:07:58.290 --> 00:08:01.930 the messenger of the covenant in whom the Father 00:08:01.930 --> 00:08:07.350 delights. Look it up. And that is quoting Malachi 00:08:07.350 --> 00:08:12.079 chapter 3. Luke begins his gospel with the emphasis 00:08:12.079 --> 00:08:16.379 of a priest who has a barren wife, who has given 00:08:16.379 --> 00:08:20.079 a child, the forerunner of the Messiah, whose 00:08:20.079 --> 00:08:24.540 name would be John. John's name means Yahweh 00:08:24.540 --> 00:08:28.600 is a gracious giver. He's come to proclaim the 00:08:28.600 --> 00:08:32.679 greatest gift that Yahweh has ever given. Jesus 00:08:32.679 --> 00:08:37.100 Christ. Luke goes on to unfold the wonder and 00:08:37.100 --> 00:08:40.159 majesty of the virgin conception of Jesus in 00:08:40.159 --> 00:08:44.100 Mary by the overshadowing of the Holy Spirit 00:08:44.100 --> 00:08:48.519 as predicted in Isaiah 11. These first three 00:08:48.519 --> 00:08:52.059 gospels point to Jesus' birth as the fulfillment 00:08:52.059 --> 00:08:56.340 of 4 ,000 years of promises of the coming Savior 00:08:56.340 --> 00:09:00.019 who would be wounded by the serpent but would 00:09:00.019 --> 00:09:04.360 crush the serpent's head. Though the wound from 00:09:04.360 --> 00:09:06.960 the great serpent looked like a crushing and 00:09:06.960 --> 00:09:14.320 devastating blow and defeat Jesus delivers the 00:09:14.320 --> 00:09:17.759 head -crushing blow and his atoning death on 00:09:17.759 --> 00:09:24.000 the cross resurrection and ascension Even in 00:09:24.000 --> 00:09:25.879 the midst of darkness and trouble we talked about 00:09:25.879 --> 00:09:29.379 this last week all of the things stacked against 00:09:29.379 --> 00:09:34.029 Mary and Joseph all the plottings by Herod all 00:09:34.029 --> 00:09:36.070 of those things that just looked like it wasn't 00:09:36.070 --> 00:09:41.230 working out and yet God showed us as we looked 00:09:41.230 --> 00:09:45.169 at portions of Matthew last week on the first 00:09:45.169 --> 00:09:47.970 Sunday of Christmas we saw that despite how everything 00:09:47.970 --> 00:09:51.389 didn't look like it was coming together God Himself 00:09:51.389 --> 00:09:53.970 had ordained these and predicted all of these 00:09:53.970 --> 00:09:58.629 things in His Word. In Jesus coming the people 00:09:58.629 --> 00:10:01.960 of Israel And all the families of the earth had 00:10:01.960 --> 00:10:06.139 the fulfillment of all of the promises of God 00:10:06.139 --> 00:10:10.539 to his people. In Jesus is found the fulfillment 00:10:10.539 --> 00:10:14.399 of the great and winding story of Israel. In 00:10:14.399 --> 00:10:18.259 Jesus' coming is found the end of the old creation 00:10:18.259 --> 00:10:21.940 bound in sin and death under the covenant head 00:10:21.940 --> 00:10:26.460 of Adam. In Christ Jesus, the second Adam, the 00:10:26.460 --> 00:10:30.259 firstborn of the new creation, He so was now 00:10:30.259 --> 00:10:32.980 our new covenant head and so the new heavens 00:10:32.980 --> 00:10:38.820 and earth are brought to his people What a time 00:10:38.820 --> 00:10:44.059 of rejoicing and it's rejoicing after a long 00:10:44.059 --> 00:10:48.120 and tumultuous wait I Remember when I was a young 00:10:48.120 --> 00:10:51.700 man How much I look forward to getting married 00:10:51.700 --> 00:10:56.120 At first it was just this vague idea this hope 00:10:56.120 --> 00:11:01.840 that I would find a good woman Then I met Rachel 00:11:01.840 --> 00:11:07.639 and then my hope had substance But the reality 00:11:07.639 --> 00:11:11.059 of marriage was prolonged by a lengthy 18 month 00:11:11.059 --> 00:11:16.559 engagement filled with distance trials and hardships 00:11:16.559 --> 00:11:20.720 Even when we were able to be reunited and live 00:11:20.720 --> 00:11:24.039 in the same city. We didn't get married for another 00:11:24.039 --> 00:11:28.700 nine months Sometimes it felt as if the wedding 00:11:28.700 --> 00:11:34.460 day would never come. Life was a blur during 00:11:34.460 --> 00:11:37.220 the last six weeks before the wedding. Rachel 00:11:37.220 --> 00:11:40.500 returned back to her parents three hours away. 00:11:41.799 --> 00:11:44.320 So what I did is I took my days off and I packed 00:11:44.320 --> 00:11:47.120 them together. And so I was working shift work 00:11:47.120 --> 00:11:48.940 at McDonald's. I'd get off at two o 'clock in 00:11:48.940 --> 00:11:52.919 the morning, drop all my employees off, and then 00:11:52.919 --> 00:11:55.639 hightail it driving three hours. And of course, 00:11:55.899 --> 00:11:59.950 the hardest part of that trip every week Was 00:11:59.950 --> 00:12:04.409 connected with the last 15 minutes Before the 00:12:04.409 --> 00:12:07.409 Sun comes up. I've been working all day. I'm 00:12:07.409 --> 00:12:10.470 tired Right up. It's now halfway through the 00:12:10.470 --> 00:12:14.009 night and that 445 to about five o 'clock. It 00:12:14.009 --> 00:12:17.570 was a drag I'd be turn the music up chewing gum 00:12:17.570 --> 00:12:21.169 singing as loud as I could to stay awake All 00:12:21.169 --> 00:12:24.909 that so I could see my beloved for a couple of 00:12:24.909 --> 00:12:28.889 days Then on Friday morning at 11 .30 a .m. I 00:12:28.889 --> 00:12:31.090 jump in the car and drive straight three hours 00:12:31.090 --> 00:12:35.429 back to work. By the time we got to the week 00:12:35.429 --> 00:12:41.269 of the wedding, I was exhausted. I was drained. 00:12:42.690 --> 00:12:47.169 When I came back to town to get married, I showed 00:12:47.169 --> 00:12:50.330 up where I was told, I wore what I was told, 00:12:50.669 --> 00:12:56.879 and I was so drained. that I even took a nap 00:12:56.879 --> 00:13:02.820 right before my rehearsal dinner. Well, the day 00:13:02.820 --> 00:13:06.919 finally did come. And when my bride came down 00:13:06.919 --> 00:13:11.840 the aisle, I was absolutely overwhelmed. The 00:13:11.840 --> 00:13:14.899 reality of the wedding ceremony brought the feasting 00:13:14.899 --> 00:13:17.340 and rejoicing not only to me, but to the whole 00:13:17.340 --> 00:13:20.019 community. I never experienced a wedding quite 00:13:20.019 --> 00:13:22.940 like this, because when we were all done, The 00:13:22.940 --> 00:13:25.600 wedding we're having the reception and this is 00:13:25.600 --> 00:13:29.700 tells you no older community In a farming area 00:13:29.700 --> 00:13:32.919 all the women especially the older women came 00:13:32.919 --> 00:13:35.100 around and we opened up every single gift so 00:13:35.100 --> 00:13:39.379 they could all see what we got They were they 00:13:39.379 --> 00:13:42.039 were so excited to see the gifts we were getting 00:13:42.039 --> 00:13:48.720 a great rejoicing For Israel the coming of Christ 00:13:48.720 --> 00:13:52.820 should have been this way Instead they say busy 00:13:52.820 --> 00:13:56.919 in their darkened minds living under the rule 00:13:56.919 --> 00:14:00.320 of the serpent. Jesus is going to find as he 00:14:00.320 --> 00:14:03.299 goes out in his ministry that the synagogues, 00:14:03.460 --> 00:14:06.019 the places of prayer and instruction in God's 00:14:06.019 --> 00:14:08.539 Word are full of demons. There's little serpents 00:14:08.539 --> 00:14:15.779 everywhere. So here in our text today we see 00:14:15.779 --> 00:14:20.509 this difference. We see that God John's gospel 00:14:20.509 --> 00:14:22.870 does away with the subtle tactics used in the 00:14:22.870 --> 00:14:24.690 other three gospels You know the other three 00:14:24.690 --> 00:14:26.750 gospels you get in pieces And it's sort of like 00:14:26.750 --> 00:14:29.610 you have to build on it to totally get the picture 00:14:29.610 --> 00:14:33.830 of who Jesus is and what's happening John does 00:14:33.830 --> 00:14:37.289 away with the subtle tactics It reminds me of 00:14:37.289 --> 00:14:39.309 Mike Tyson many of you might not know who he 00:14:39.309 --> 00:14:42.909 was but he was quite the boxer in the day And 00:14:42.909 --> 00:14:46.409 after a few of his fights went public The question 00:14:46.409 --> 00:14:51.070 of fighting of his bouts was this. How many seconds 00:14:51.070 --> 00:14:54.289 in the first round before Mike Tyson knocked 00:14:54.289 --> 00:14:58.509 the guy out? Right? His punch was, if he got 00:14:58.509 --> 00:15:01.590 you with that left hook, boy, you're out. I don't 00:15:01.590 --> 00:15:03.889 care how tough you were. That's what John's gospel 00:15:03.889 --> 00:15:07.590 is right here. He comes out and he just, pow, 00:15:07.649 --> 00:15:11.970 here it is. John 1 -1. In the beginning was the 00:15:11.970 --> 00:15:17.700 Word. The Word. was with God. The Word was God. 00:15:18.840 --> 00:15:23.360 He was in the beginning with God. If there was 00:15:23.360 --> 00:15:27.000 any doubt in a person hearing and understanding 00:15:27.000 --> 00:15:29.860 who Jesus is in the first three Gospels, John 00:15:29.860 --> 00:15:34.000 clears up who Jesus is. He's the Son of God. 00:15:34.480 --> 00:15:37.100 He was with God. He is God. He's the creator 00:15:37.100 --> 00:15:43.580 of all things. That is the beauty, the majesty. 00:15:43.799 --> 00:15:48.259 the greatest thing in the incarnation that He 00:15:48.259 --> 00:15:53.720 came for us. Verse 10 declares of John 1 that 00:15:53.720 --> 00:15:56.740 Jesus was in the world and that the world was 00:15:56.740 --> 00:16:00.480 made through Him. The Creator came into the world 00:16:00.480 --> 00:16:04.299 and in their sinfulness the world did not know 00:16:04.299 --> 00:16:08.860 Him. The scripture tells us that the heart is 00:16:08.860 --> 00:16:12.419 deceitful above all things. The sinful heart 00:16:12.419 --> 00:16:18.539 loves the darkness. We like Adam don't want to 00:16:18.539 --> 00:16:21.960 present ourselves before God with our sinfulness 00:16:21.960 --> 00:16:25.580 exposed. Yes, Adam and Eve had no clothes, but 00:16:25.580 --> 00:16:28.120 more than that, nakedness means in the Bible 00:16:28.120 --> 00:16:32.139 exposure. When God called them, they didn't want 00:16:32.139 --> 00:16:34.480 to present themselves because their sinfulness 00:16:34.480 --> 00:16:40.509 was exposed. All of their excuses. all of their 00:16:40.509 --> 00:16:45.409 rebellion, all of the abdication, all of the 00:16:45.409 --> 00:16:48.850 ways in which their hearts wanted to do evil. 00:16:49.009 --> 00:16:52.009 I mean, we think about this for a second, right? 00:16:53.149 --> 00:16:59.149 We find ourselves drawn to do wrong, and our 00:16:59.149 --> 00:17:04.069 sinfulness is exposed. Jesus, it says in John 00:17:04.069 --> 00:17:08.269 1, came to his own. Those who had over and over 00:17:08.269 --> 00:17:11.890 again for generations heard and experienced and 00:17:11.890 --> 00:17:15.910 seen the mercy of God and his faithfulness and 00:17:15.910 --> 00:17:20.269 then his mercy and grace time and time again 00:17:20.269 --> 00:17:25.369 not receive him in spite of God's Word given 00:17:25.369 --> 00:17:30.390 his care his mercies and all the times that God 00:17:30.390 --> 00:17:35.069 delivered his people Israel did not receive their 00:17:35.069 --> 00:17:41.309 creator Redeemer if there's any warning for us 00:17:41.309 --> 00:17:47.349 Sitting here today the church It should be this 00:17:47.349 --> 00:17:50.930 You can have the right theology you can be part 00:17:50.930 --> 00:17:53.809 of The best group of people you can be part of 00:17:53.809 --> 00:17:57.769 the best church in town You can know everything 00:17:57.769 --> 00:18:00.910 you can have the best library and have read them 00:18:00.910 --> 00:18:09.400 all If you don't trust in Jesus, if your trust 00:18:09.400 --> 00:18:12.640 is in your church, in your theology, in your 00:18:12.640 --> 00:18:16.119 school of thought, in anything other than Jesus 00:18:16.119 --> 00:18:23.380 Christ, you're lost. As a matter of fact, Isaiah, 00:18:24.079 --> 00:18:26.700 right in chapter 1, beginning of verse 3, he 00:18:26.700 --> 00:18:30.960 says this of the people of Israel. Right so right 00:18:30.960 --> 00:18:33.059 in the beginning all these promises that are 00:18:33.059 --> 00:18:35.200 fulfilled in Christ Jesus that you see in the 00:18:35.200 --> 00:18:37.779 book of Isaiah Right there in verse 3 at the 00:18:37.779 --> 00:18:41.619 very beginning Says the ox knows its owner and 00:18:41.619 --> 00:18:45.220 the donkey his master's crib in other words the 00:18:45.220 --> 00:18:49.980 place where he eats But Israel does not know 00:18:49.980 --> 00:18:54.839 My people do not consider later on in chapter 00:18:54.839 --> 00:19:01.960 1 God Calls Israel a sinful nation totally turned 00:19:01.960 --> 00:19:07.779 backward They're facing away from all of God's 00:19:07.779 --> 00:19:10.019 promises God comes and what do they do they turn 00:19:10.019 --> 00:19:14.960 their back One of my brother Stephen he was deaf 00:19:14.960 --> 00:19:19.160 and When he got to be a teenager one of the things 00:19:19.160 --> 00:19:21.980 that he would do if he was being corrected by 00:19:21.980 --> 00:19:26.180 my mom She'd be talking to him And if he didn't 00:19:26.180 --> 00:19:30.799 want to hear it, he'd just do this. He'd close 00:19:30.799 --> 00:19:33.519 his eyes. And I'd be in the corner kind of laughing. 00:19:35.259 --> 00:19:38.859 But I'm like, well, he can shut her out. You 00:19:38.859 --> 00:19:43.619 know, that's what Israel was doing. The Son of 00:19:43.619 --> 00:19:47.660 Promise, God Himself, the Redeemer of the world, 00:19:47.799 --> 00:19:51.920 He comes. And He brings all this grace, all this 00:19:51.920 --> 00:19:55.660 truth, all this blessing, all this mercy. This 00:19:55.660 --> 00:20:00.200 is what they do I'm turning away. I want to do 00:20:00.200 --> 00:20:08.000 my own thing John declares that the word the 00:20:08.000 --> 00:20:10.420 second person of the Trinity who was with God 00:20:10.420 --> 00:20:15.119 from the beginning and is God became flesh and 00:20:15.119 --> 00:20:20.059 dwelt among us God so loved the world that is 00:20:20.059 --> 00:20:23.180 planned for deliverance and reconciliation was 00:20:23.180 --> 00:20:28.079 having Jesus reveal God by being here on earth. 00:20:29.240 --> 00:20:35.680 By Jesus speaking, touching, and mourning, and 00:20:35.680 --> 00:20:42.759 laughing, and living, and dying, and yes, being 00:20:42.759 --> 00:20:47.359 raised from the dead. Jesus in His coming in 00:20:47.359 --> 00:20:50.680 the flesh revealed the glory of God. Jesus was 00:20:50.680 --> 00:20:55.700 full of grace and truth. 1st Colossians 1 reminds 00:20:55.700 --> 00:21:00.859 us that as Christians we know the grace of God 00:21:00.859 --> 00:21:05.660 in truth Now here's here's the thing truth is 00:21:05.660 --> 00:21:09.980 a wonderful thing but truth alone Leaves us in 00:21:09.980 --> 00:21:15.240 the despair of our regrets and guilt and sin 00:21:15.240 --> 00:21:21.200 After all if all you have is truth, you know 00:21:21.200 --> 00:21:26.049 who God is And you know he's holy and you know 00:21:26.049 --> 00:21:34.069 you're not There's no hope Jesus though he brings 00:21:34.069 --> 00:21:39.109 forth hope and assurance in the fullness of grace 00:21:39.109 --> 00:21:45.430 that makes truth a way to life and not a lock 00:21:45.430 --> 00:21:51.470 on the coffin we hear in the middle of John's 00:21:51.470 --> 00:21:57.410 proclamation of who Jesus is, a reminder of the 00:21:57.410 --> 00:22:00.809 witness of John the baptizer, the greatest and 00:22:00.809 --> 00:22:04.309 last prophet who cried out that Jesus was greater 00:22:04.309 --> 00:22:08.130 than he because Jesus existed before him. If 00:22:08.130 --> 00:22:11.630 you look at the story, you see that Elizabeth 00:22:11.630 --> 00:22:14.450 was pregnant with John before Jesus. That's not 00:22:14.450 --> 00:22:17.190 his point. His point is he recognized that Jesus 00:22:17.190 --> 00:22:21.839 had always been. but now he had come in the flesh 00:22:21.839 --> 00:22:26.339 dearly beloved in Christ's divinity and humanity 00:22:26.339 --> 00:22:30.039 dwelling here on earth in real time in history 00:22:30.039 --> 00:22:33.640 Jesus has brought us out of the fullness brought 00:22:33.640 --> 00:22:36.599 us out of sin by the fullness of His grace and 00:22:36.599 --> 00:22:42.519 we have received grace for grace now when we 00:22:42.519 --> 00:22:44.839 read that in English translation we're like what 00:22:44.839 --> 00:22:47.549 in the world is this? Some kind of weird thing 00:22:47.549 --> 00:22:49.730 going on here, but must be extra good because 00:22:49.730 --> 00:22:54.710 it's twice right well Augustine had his view 00:22:54.710 --> 00:22:56.950 on it, which was a good one Calvin said that's 00:22:56.950 --> 00:23:00.809 good, but I think it's more All right here it 00:23:00.809 --> 00:23:08.069 is In Christ Jesus incarnation we receive out 00:23:08.069 --> 00:23:12.369 of the overflowing abundance of his grace the 00:23:12.369 --> 00:23:17.470 goodwill loving kindness and the favor of our 00:23:17.470 --> 00:23:19.809 God. I want to say that for you one more time. 00:23:20.609 --> 00:23:25.569 In Christ Jesus incarnation we receive the overflowing 00:23:25.569 --> 00:23:30.529 abundance of His grace. That is His goodwill, 00:23:31.089 --> 00:23:35.369 His loving kindness, and the favor of our God. 00:23:36.730 --> 00:23:40.630 Now we receive both grace in the once and for 00:23:40.630 --> 00:23:43.960 all atoning work Christ Jesus on the cross for 00:23:43.960 --> 00:23:46.839 the remission of our sins. That's the first grace 00:23:46.839 --> 00:23:51.980 and praise God for that He doesn't leave it there 00:23:51.980 --> 00:23:56.559 We also continue in the overflowing abundance 00:23:56.559 --> 00:24:01.640 of his grace as he sanctifies us by conforming 00:24:01.640 --> 00:24:06.619 us to himself Increasingly more and more every 00:24:06.619 --> 00:24:10.119 day. So we have the first grace The atoning work 00:24:10.119 --> 00:24:13.640 of Jesus on the cross, we're justified. But His 00:24:13.640 --> 00:24:16.299 grace doesn't end there. He doesn't leave us 00:24:16.299 --> 00:24:19.980 to just be barely getting by, but rather He gives 00:24:19.980 --> 00:24:23.519 us more grace. That's still abundant grace, overflowing 00:24:23.519 --> 00:24:29.259 grace, as He sanctifies us, as He blesses us, 00:24:29.539 --> 00:24:36.339 as He draws us in. In verse 17 of John 1, it 00:24:36.339 --> 00:24:39.410 says this. For the law was given through Moses, 00:24:40.029 --> 00:24:42.890 but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. 00:24:44.009 --> 00:24:46.690 You see, law or truth alone does not deliver 00:24:46.690 --> 00:24:51.509 us. Right? So Moses coming, bringing the word, 00:24:51.630 --> 00:24:56.049 bringing the law, it's not enough. All it does 00:24:56.049 --> 00:24:59.849 is show us our shortcomings. Right? Romans 7 00:24:59.849 --> 00:25:02.779 reminds us. that we would not have known sin 00:25:02.779 --> 00:25:05.299 except for the law. So when God gives us the 00:25:05.299 --> 00:25:07.779 law, it's to help us understand what's in our 00:25:07.779 --> 00:25:10.559 hearts. That's actually what God says to the 00:25:10.559 --> 00:25:13.359 people of Israel. He says, I put you in the wilderness. 00:25:13.779 --> 00:25:16.680 Would I do that for? To show you what was in 00:25:16.680 --> 00:25:22.279 your hearts. And Romans 7 continues and says, 00:25:22.720 --> 00:25:25.380 but sin taking the opportunity by the commandment 00:25:25.380 --> 00:25:30.519 produced in me all manner of evil desires. Now, 00:25:30.519 --> 00:25:33.980 here's the thing. Once we know what we're supposed 00:25:33.980 --> 00:25:37.500 to do, the temptation grows immensely to do that 00:25:37.500 --> 00:25:41.359 thing we're prohibited from. I love little children, 00:25:41.500 --> 00:25:43.160 because little children just show us who we are. 00:25:43.579 --> 00:25:45.960 If parents, if you want to know what your greatest 00:25:45.960 --> 00:25:48.319 weaknesses are, look to your children, and it 00:25:48.319 --> 00:25:54.359 is your sin magnified. So if you take a small 00:25:54.359 --> 00:25:56.900 child, and they're walking over there, and you 00:25:56.900 --> 00:25:59.750 see the socket in the wall, And they pause and 00:25:59.750 --> 00:26:01.809 they look at it. You say, no, no, don't touch 00:26:01.809 --> 00:26:07.569 that. What do they want to do above all else? 00:26:08.930 --> 00:26:11.410 They want to touch that socket. They don't know 00:26:11.410 --> 00:26:15.230 what it does. You can tell them it'll hurt you. 00:26:15.789 --> 00:26:19.789 They're like, yeah, but what level hurt? It'll 00:26:19.789 --> 00:26:22.150 kill you. I don't even know what that means. 00:26:25.019 --> 00:26:27.339 That's what they want to do. That's what the 00:26:27.339 --> 00:26:30.259 law does to us. If all you have is the law, if 00:26:30.259 --> 00:26:33.720 all you have is the truth, all you do is desire 00:26:33.720 --> 00:26:39.680 to do that. If we know the law, but do not know 00:26:39.680 --> 00:26:45.140 Jesus, we cannot know grace and truth. That's 00:26:45.140 --> 00:26:50.079 the order of things, grace and truth. You see, 00:26:50.299 --> 00:26:52.539 we have to have God's grace at work on our heart 00:26:52.539 --> 00:26:57.160 for truth to be a way of life. By God's providence, 00:26:57.759 --> 00:27:03.099 God in Christ Jesus chose His elect. God's gracious 00:27:03.099 --> 00:27:08.319 will in Christ Jesus delivers us from all sin 00:27:08.319 --> 00:27:12.759 and guilt. Now John finishes this passage out 00:27:12.759 --> 00:27:15.720 by making it clear that no one has seen God. 00:27:16.180 --> 00:27:19.420 But the only begotten Son, Jesus, who came in 00:27:19.420 --> 00:27:23.059 the flesh as a man, has declared God to us. That's 00:27:23.059 --> 00:27:28.279 really important. You want to know God? Read 00:27:28.279 --> 00:27:31.779 what Jesus said. Wait a minute. More than that, 00:27:32.019 --> 00:27:35.720 read the whole Bible. For the whole Bible is 00:27:35.720 --> 00:27:39.319 the Word. Jesus is the Word. So every word of 00:27:39.319 --> 00:27:42.539 the Bible, from Genesis to Revelation, Old Testament, 00:27:42.660 --> 00:27:47.559 New Testament, is all Jesus declaring God the 00:27:47.559 --> 00:27:54.720 Father to us. The only way to be reconciled and 00:27:54.720 --> 00:28:00.420 to know God is in Jesus. During these final days 00:28:00.420 --> 00:28:09.660 of Christmastide rejoicing, rejoice. Jesus, the 00:28:09.660 --> 00:28:13.460 eternal Son of God, came to bring grace and truth 00:28:13.460 --> 00:28:19.529 to us, His people. We are His people. That abundant 00:28:19.529 --> 00:28:22.269 loving kindness of our God Jesus came to bring 00:28:22.269 --> 00:28:27.369 us this He is the creator the lifegiver the Prince 00:28:27.369 --> 00:28:31.210 of Peace the only begotten Son of God and he 00:28:31.210 --> 00:28:38.809 came and Marvelously dwelt here on earth He was 00:28:38.809 --> 00:28:42.170 resurrected and is ascended to the right hand 00:28:42.170 --> 00:28:51.180 of the Father until what? So as the feasting 00:28:51.180 --> 00:28:54.559 comes to an end, as you put your final decorations 00:28:54.559 --> 00:28:57.859 away, as you put the last pieces of your nativity 00:28:57.859 --> 00:29:04.140 set in the box, you may have fears, you may have 00:29:04.140 --> 00:29:08.660 worries, and you may have uncertainties in what 00:29:08.660 --> 00:29:14.839 the future brings. Every one of us, or as we 00:29:14.839 --> 00:29:19.039 like to say here, all y 'all, We would be well 00:29:19.039 --> 00:29:22.740 advised to remember that Jesus Christ the creator 00:29:22.740 --> 00:29:26.720 and Redeemer came and That he loved us so much 00:29:26.720 --> 00:29:31.140 that he dwelt with us in the flesh So here it 00:29:31.140 --> 00:29:36.480 is So rest in Christ You finished work of Christ 00:29:36.480 --> 00:29:39.279 Jesus on the cross and because you're resting 00:29:39.279 --> 00:29:45.240 in him Share the hope the peace the joy and the 00:29:45.240 --> 00:29:49.809 love that is only found in the incarnation of 00:29:49.809 --> 00:29:56.930 Jesus. Let us pray. Our Father, how great and 00:29:56.930 --> 00:30:00.650 marvelous is Your work, Your word and Your grace 00:30:00.650 --> 00:30:04.829 and mercy to us in Christ Jesus. Make us strong 00:30:04.829 --> 00:30:08.190 in Him that we might be communicators of the 00:30:08.190 --> 00:30:11.369 word of life, even as the world, having separated 00:30:11.369 --> 00:30:14.869 itself from the Lord of glory, goes dumb in its 00:30:14.869 --> 00:30:18.079 speechlessness. and in its isolation from the 00:30:18.079 --> 00:30:21.720 Lord. Bless us in your service. In Christ's name 00:30:21.720 --> 00:30:23.380 we pray, amen.