WEBVTT 00:00:06.349 --> 00:00:09.890 I believe that we are observing the emergence 00:00:09.890 --> 00:00:17.670 of some truly great heroes as we perceive some 00:00:17.670 --> 00:00:20.370 of the people who have been leaders and who are 00:00:20.370 --> 00:00:27.010 now taking strong stands in that land. Lech Walesa 00:00:27.010 --> 00:00:33.009 must be admired as a man of great courage. And 00:00:33.009 --> 00:00:34.630 from the reports today, apparently he is under 00:00:34.630 --> 00:00:40.759 house arrest. at least. Possibly he has suffered 00:00:40.759 --> 00:00:50.280 a heart attack, they say. I was surprised and 00:00:50.280 --> 00:00:53.219 pleasantly so this afternoon to read, or to hear 00:00:53.219 --> 00:00:56.140 rather, on the television that the Polish ambassador 00:00:56.140 --> 00:00:59.759 to the United States has defected and made a 00:00:59.759 --> 00:01:04.680 statement denouncing his superiors now in Poland. 00:01:05.609 --> 00:01:08.269 made a very emotional appeal to the people of 00:01:08.269 --> 00:01:12.790 the United States to not be silent. And I hope 00:01:12.790 --> 00:01:15.469 that the American people will heed what he says. 00:01:16.870 --> 00:01:21.629 Perhaps one of the greatest frustrations that 00:01:21.629 --> 00:01:23.989 all of us feel during this time is the inability 00:01:23.989 --> 00:01:27.670 to really do much, to bring assistance to those 00:01:27.670 --> 00:01:32.109 brave people in Poland who have tried valiantly 00:01:32.109 --> 00:01:34.230 to raise the torch of liberty in their land. 00:01:36.519 --> 00:01:38.540 I wish there was something more we could do, 00:01:38.620 --> 00:01:41.620 and I would hope that we as a nation would display 00:01:41.620 --> 00:01:44.180 the kind of courage that they have displayed 00:01:44.180 --> 00:01:47.599 if we could do something more to bring aid to 00:01:47.599 --> 00:01:52.840 them. And that has absolutely nothing to do with 00:01:52.840 --> 00:01:55.900 the message tonight, but I wanted to say that. 00:01:57.400 --> 00:02:00.239 There are some dear brothers and sisters in Christ 00:02:00.239 --> 00:02:04.640 in Poland, and I hope that we will be remembering 00:02:04.640 --> 00:02:08.419 them in prayer. in the upcoming days. As that 00:02:08.419 --> 00:02:12.460 situation continues to unfold, there may be some 00:02:12.460 --> 00:02:17.240 very difficult days still ahead because I'm sure 00:02:17.240 --> 00:02:19.340 the Russian bear has not been totally satisfied 00:02:19.340 --> 00:02:25.599 yet. Well, let's get down to business. Enough 00:02:25.599 --> 00:02:30.360 of the commentary for tonight. We're going to 00:02:30.360 --> 00:02:37.439 talk this evening about Christmas names. This 00:02:37.439 --> 00:02:39.840 time of year, it is not uncommon for many of 00:02:39.840 --> 00:02:44.539 us to get out a card file or a list and to review 00:02:44.539 --> 00:02:47.240 the names to whom we wish to send Christmas cards. 00:02:48.240 --> 00:02:50.900 Have you noticed how much shorter that list gets 00:02:50.900 --> 00:02:55.879 every year as time passes and as prices of postage 00:02:55.879 --> 00:03:01.580 go up? As we reflect upon those names, happy 00:03:01.580 --> 00:03:04.000 memories come flooding back into our minds from 00:03:04.000 --> 00:03:08.129 days gone by. joyful hours spent with friends 00:03:08.129 --> 00:03:11.849 or loved ones who perhaps now are far away from 00:03:11.849 --> 00:03:13.650 us and we don't see them as often as we would 00:03:13.650 --> 00:03:16.550 like. We take this opportunity at Christmas to 00:03:16.550 --> 00:03:20.710 drop them a line and wish them well and to say 00:03:20.710 --> 00:03:26.610 hello. Christmas names. There are some names 00:03:26.610 --> 00:03:29.330 of the Lord Jesus Christ that are connected with 00:03:29.330 --> 00:03:32.250 Christmas. Some of them we use frequently. Some 00:03:32.250 --> 00:03:35.289 of them we do not use quite as often. I thought 00:03:35.289 --> 00:03:37.270 it would be interesting tonight as we think about 00:03:37.270 --> 00:03:42.870 Christmas names on a list to look at some of 00:03:42.870 --> 00:03:46.750 the names given to the Lord Jesus Christ in the 00:03:46.750 --> 00:03:51.129 New Testament, Christmas names. And for the purpose 00:03:51.129 --> 00:03:53.430 of our study tonight, we're going to turn to 00:03:53.430 --> 00:03:57.569 Luke, the Gospel of Luke, chapter 1 to begin. 00:03:59.949 --> 00:04:02.870 We will look at four of these names given to 00:04:02.870 --> 00:04:07.159 our Lord. By studying these names, we can come 00:04:07.159 --> 00:04:09.620 to know Him better. After all, that's the reason 00:04:09.620 --> 00:04:12.599 for names, isn't it? So that we can distinguish 00:04:12.599 --> 00:04:16.480 between individuals. That's why when we hear 00:04:16.480 --> 00:04:19.079 the name Dick, we think of one person, or Dave, 00:04:19.139 --> 00:04:22.100 we think of another person, or whatever the name 00:04:22.100 --> 00:04:26.019 may be. The name identifies people to us. And 00:04:26.019 --> 00:04:28.160 as we think of the names of the Lord Jesus Christ, 00:04:28.379 --> 00:04:33.060 He is further identified so that we may understand 00:04:33.060 --> 00:04:37.110 the uniqueness. of His person. The first name 00:04:37.110 --> 00:04:39.370 I'd like for us to look at is found here in chapter 00:04:39.370 --> 00:04:44.050 1 in the words of the angel Gabriel to Mary. 00:04:45.350 --> 00:04:50.089 He appeared to her and announced the birth of 00:04:50.089 --> 00:04:55.230 the Messiah through her. And in his statements 00:04:55.230 --> 00:04:59.750 to her, he says in verse 35, the Holy Spirit 00:04:59.750 --> 00:05:04.000 shall come upon thee and the power of the highest 00:05:04.000 --> 00:05:11.360 shall overshadow thee. Now in those phrases is 00:05:11.360 --> 00:05:17.160 found the method of the virgin birth. It is mysterious 00:05:17.160 --> 00:05:21.060 to us, but in some way the Holy Spirit entered 00:05:21.060 --> 00:05:28.170 into Mary's womb. She conceived. And the Holy 00:05:28.170 --> 00:05:31.230 Spirit prevented the sin nature of Mary from 00:05:31.230 --> 00:05:36.269 being passed on to that embryo within her womb 00:05:36.269 --> 00:05:40.949 so that the Lord Jesus Christ was conceived without 00:05:40.949 --> 00:05:46.350 sin completely. These phrases do not tell us 00:05:46.350 --> 00:05:50.649 much, but they are the words of Dr. Luke, and 00:05:50.649 --> 00:05:55.060 so we take them for what they say. And because 00:05:55.060 --> 00:05:57.939 of this miraculous birth, the angel says, Therefore 00:05:57.939 --> 00:06:01.839 that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall 00:06:01.839 --> 00:06:07.420 be called the Son of God. This is one of the 00:06:07.420 --> 00:06:09.860 Christmas names of the Lord Jesus Christ, the 00:06:09.860 --> 00:06:16.060 Son of God. This concept of the Son of God or 00:06:16.060 --> 00:06:19.500 the Sons of God, plural, is used in different 00:06:19.500 --> 00:06:27.540 ways in the Bible. God's Son. God uses that phrase 00:06:27.540 --> 00:06:32.000 of Israel in Exodus 4 .22, for example, where 00:06:32.000 --> 00:06:37.100 He speaks of Israel, My Son. And once again, 00:06:37.339 --> 00:06:42.160 in fact twice again, in the book of Hosea, the 00:06:42.160 --> 00:06:44.879 Israelites are called the sons of God in one 00:06:44.879 --> 00:06:49.000 place and the nation collectively is called My 00:06:49.000 --> 00:06:52.819 Son. by God in chapter 11 in verse 1 where he 00:06:52.819 --> 00:06:57.480 says, out of Egypt I have called my son. Now 00:06:57.480 --> 00:06:59.740 that particular reference has a double meaning 00:06:59.740 --> 00:07:03.779 of course because it refers to Israel being called 00:07:03.779 --> 00:07:06.680 out of Egypt and delivered at the time of the 00:07:06.680 --> 00:07:10.939 Exodus. But in a secondary reference it refers 00:07:10.939 --> 00:07:13.220 to the Lord Jesus Christ and that's clear because 00:07:13.220 --> 00:07:17.019 the Holy Spirit says in Matthew 2 .15 that His 00:07:17.019 --> 00:07:19.970 coming out of Egypt after being protected for 00:07:19.970 --> 00:07:23.949 those months from Herod was the fulfillment of 00:07:23.949 --> 00:07:26.829 what was spoken back there in Hosea 11, verse 00:07:26.829 --> 00:07:30.649 1. For those first months, the Lord Jesus was 00:07:30.649 --> 00:07:34.129 in Egypt with Joseph and Mary, protected there, 00:07:34.269 --> 00:07:37.350 and then was called back to Nazareth, and then 00:07:37.350 --> 00:07:41.209 went back to Bethlehem, and so on. And so it 00:07:41.209 --> 00:07:44.209 was the fulfillment of the Old Testament when 00:07:44.209 --> 00:07:47.610 that took place. But the reference has to do 00:07:47.610 --> 00:07:51.290 with Israel, the nation. Also, Israel's kings 00:07:51.290 --> 00:07:56.370 were at times called the sons of God. For example, 00:07:56.629 --> 00:08:00.209 God was speaking to David in 2 Samuel chapter 00:08:00.209 --> 00:08:03.050 7 and spoke about Solomon and said he would be 00:08:03.050 --> 00:08:07.470 my son. Isn't that interesting? So Solomon was 00:08:07.470 --> 00:08:11.470 called by God my son in a sense. Furthermore... 00:08:12.029 --> 00:08:14.829 Angels are called the sons of God, spiritual 00:08:14.829 --> 00:08:18.350 beings, heavenly beings. For example, in Job 00:08:18.350 --> 00:08:22.230 1 and verse 6, the name is applied to angels 00:08:22.230 --> 00:08:25.930 who were brought together apparently for a periodic 00:08:25.930 --> 00:08:31.870 and regular report to God. The sons of God were 00:08:31.870 --> 00:08:34.950 gathered before Him and Satan was among them 00:08:34.950 --> 00:08:38.549 and the conversation pursued concerning Job then. 00:08:38.909 --> 00:08:41.110 And the trial came upon Job as a result of the 00:08:41.110 --> 00:08:43.230 gathering of the sons of God before the Lord 00:08:43.230 --> 00:08:46.470 on that occasion. And so the name is used not 00:08:46.470 --> 00:08:49.529 only of Israel collectively, but it's also used 00:08:49.529 --> 00:08:54.250 of angels or heavenly beings. In Matthew 5 .19, 00:08:54.409 --> 00:08:59.870 Jesus uses the term of those who reflect in actions 00:08:59.870 --> 00:09:02.590 the likeness of God. He said, Blessed are the 00:09:02.590 --> 00:09:04.570 peacemakers, for they shall be called the sons 00:09:04.570 --> 00:09:10.210 of God. So it's used in that sense. It is used 00:09:10.210 --> 00:09:12.990 of Adam right here, in fact, in the Gospel of 00:09:12.990 --> 00:09:15.990 Luke, chapter 3, verse 38, where in the genealogy 00:09:15.990 --> 00:09:19.309 of the Lord Jesus Christ, it is traced back to 00:09:19.309 --> 00:09:21.690 Adam and it says, concerning him, the Son of 00:09:21.690 --> 00:09:25.590 God. And it has a particular meaning in that 00:09:25.590 --> 00:09:28.769 context. And then, of course, we're used to the 00:09:28.769 --> 00:09:33.029 term being used of ourselves by our new birth. 00:09:34.059 --> 00:09:37.659 When we had trusted Jesus Christ, we were born 00:09:37.659 --> 00:09:42.879 as the children of God. But at the same time 00:09:42.879 --> 00:09:45.740 that we were born into God's family, we were 00:09:45.740 --> 00:09:49.840 adopted as sons into God's family, according 00:09:49.840 --> 00:09:53.779 to Galatians chapter 4 and Romans chapter 8, 00:09:53.919 --> 00:09:58.399 so that we are children by birth and are legal 00:09:58.399 --> 00:10:00.940 standing, which is the real thought of adoption. 00:10:02.159 --> 00:10:06.059 Not the idea that we have today, but when one 00:10:06.059 --> 00:10:08.539 adopted a son in that day, it meant to place 00:10:08.539 --> 00:10:11.340 that individual in the family as a mature son, 00:10:11.539 --> 00:10:15.480 a grown -up son, with the rights and responsibilities 00:10:15.480 --> 00:10:20.860 of an heir. And so not only are we born children, 00:10:21.200 --> 00:10:24.460 but we are adopted into God's family as His sons, 00:10:24.519 --> 00:10:29.440 and therefore we can cry, Abba, Father. We can 00:10:29.440 --> 00:10:32.019 speak to God in those... very intimate and personal 00:10:32.019 --> 00:10:36.159 and wonderful terms. But the name Son of God 00:10:36.159 --> 00:10:41.179 is used in a very unique way when it is used 00:10:41.179 --> 00:10:48.139 of Jesus Christ. Again and again, He is referred 00:10:48.139 --> 00:10:51.100 to as the Son of God. It has an Old Testament 00:10:51.100 --> 00:10:57.340 background. In Psalm 2, David prophesied. And 00:10:57.340 --> 00:11:01.820 God was speaking through him, and he said, Thou 00:11:01.820 --> 00:11:07.059 art my Son, today have I begotten thee. One of 00:11:07.059 --> 00:11:11.440 the messianic prophecies in the book of Psalms. 00:11:11.559 --> 00:11:15.120 And so the concept of the Son of God is not just 00:11:15.120 --> 00:11:18.139 a New Testament concept, but it's primarily found 00:11:18.139 --> 00:11:21.879 in the New Testament. It is not a name that Jesus 00:11:21.879 --> 00:11:27.740 used, for he used primarily Son of Man. A name 00:11:27.740 --> 00:11:30.480 which emphasizes his humanity, yes, but which 00:11:30.480 --> 00:11:34.700 also has the concept of deity with it when it's 00:11:34.700 --> 00:11:36.779 traced into the Old Testament where it's rooted. 00:11:37.299 --> 00:11:39.740 So those who say that Jesus didn't call himself 00:11:39.740 --> 00:11:42.120 the Son of God but the Son of Man and was saying 00:11:42.120 --> 00:11:45.340 that he was only a man are wrong. When he referred 00:11:45.340 --> 00:11:47.360 to himself as the Son of Man, he referred to 00:11:47.360 --> 00:11:49.340 himself as the one who had all the prerogatives 00:11:49.340 --> 00:11:51.500 of the Son of Man as recorded in the Old Testament, 00:11:51.559 --> 00:11:55.440 including the assistance of angels, etc., etc. 00:11:56.879 --> 00:11:59.419 But Jesus, as referred to Himself, did not primarily 00:11:59.419 --> 00:12:03.559 use the term Son of God. When we think of the 00:12:03.559 --> 00:12:06.299 Son of God, often we think of the occidental 00:12:06.299 --> 00:12:12.580 idea of generation. That is, the Son is one that 00:12:12.580 --> 00:12:16.200 I have generated, and He is dependent upon me 00:12:16.200 --> 00:12:20.159 as my Son. And so when we think of the Son of 00:12:20.159 --> 00:12:22.799 God, of Jesus Christ, we think in those terms, 00:12:22.980 --> 00:12:26.379 mistakenly so. that he perhaps was generated 00:12:26.379 --> 00:12:33.840 by God, or that he is dependent upon God and 00:12:33.840 --> 00:12:38.320 inferior to God. Now the Mormons, for example, 00:12:38.320 --> 00:12:41.940 teach that. They say that Jesus Christ is the 00:12:41.940 --> 00:12:45.720 result of a relationship, a sexual relationship 00:12:45.720 --> 00:12:49.960 between God the Father and Mary, and He is the 00:12:49.960 --> 00:12:53.440 Son of God in the sense. that he was generated 00:12:53.440 --> 00:12:57.120 by God. But that is not what the concept means 00:12:57.120 --> 00:13:02.179 to the Semitic mind. To the Oriental, the Semite, 00:13:02.200 --> 00:13:05.379 the idea of the son of something means that it 00:13:05.379 --> 00:13:10.340 is like the thing spoken of. It's the sameness 00:13:10.340 --> 00:13:15.340 as the father in nature. It's equality. When 00:13:15.340 --> 00:13:17.799 an Oriental speaks of the son of God, he does 00:13:17.799 --> 00:13:21.500 not think of someone who is inferior to God. 00:13:21.899 --> 00:13:25.620 but one who is equal with God and who possesses 00:13:25.620 --> 00:13:31.220 the same essence as God and one who has the same 00:13:31.220 --> 00:13:34.700 nature as God. And that, of course, is the way 00:13:34.700 --> 00:13:37.039 that the Bible uses this term, the Son of God. 00:13:37.500 --> 00:13:39.860 When the angel said, that holy thing that shall 00:13:39.860 --> 00:13:42.200 be born of thee shall be called the Son of God, 00:13:42.399 --> 00:13:45.279 Gabriel was not saying from that moment on he 00:13:45.279 --> 00:13:48.759 will be the Son of God, but it's simply an announcement 00:13:48.759 --> 00:13:50.820 that that thing that is born of her was the Son 00:13:50.820 --> 00:13:55.220 of God. That's the meaning of it. It means that 00:13:55.220 --> 00:13:58.440 He possesses the same nature as the Father. He 00:13:58.440 --> 00:14:02.299 is equal with the Father. It is defined in terms 00:14:02.299 --> 00:14:05.799 of oneness with God. And this is very clear from 00:14:05.799 --> 00:14:08.759 a number of examples in Jesus' ministry. John 00:14:08.759 --> 00:14:11.600 5, verse 18 is one example. If you want to turn 00:14:11.600 --> 00:14:14.320 there quickly, I really hadn't planned to do 00:14:14.320 --> 00:14:16.100 this, but we will point out one illustration 00:14:16.100 --> 00:14:23.370 of this. In John 5, Jesus is involved in conflict 00:14:23.370 --> 00:14:26.570 here with the religious leaders of His day. And 00:14:26.570 --> 00:14:29.250 in verse 17, But Jesus answered them, My Father 00:14:29.250 --> 00:14:34.049 worketh hitherto, and I work. Therefore the Jews 00:14:34.049 --> 00:14:36.389 sought the more to kill Him, because He had not 00:14:36.389 --> 00:14:39.590 only broken the Sabbath, but said also that God 00:14:39.590 --> 00:14:43.889 was His Father, making Himself equal with God. 00:14:44.129 --> 00:14:47.529 The way Jesus had phrased that in verse 17, My 00:14:47.529 --> 00:14:51.210 Father worketh. indicated he was claiming a unique 00:14:51.210 --> 00:14:54.710 relationship with God. Now, there are some people 00:14:54.710 --> 00:14:56.850 today who missed that, but the Jews didn't miss 00:14:56.850 --> 00:15:00.169 it in that day. They understood fully what Jesus 00:15:00.169 --> 00:15:04.610 was claiming as He calls God, My Father. He was, 00:15:04.629 --> 00:15:07.450 in fact, claiming equality with God just as they 00:15:07.450 --> 00:15:11.830 claimed here. And John chapter 10, there's another 00:15:11.830 --> 00:15:14.149 example of that beginning in verse 33, but we 00:15:14.149 --> 00:15:16.669 don't have time to look at it. Nonetheless, when 00:15:16.669 --> 00:15:19.009 we speak of Jesus as the Son of God, and when 00:15:19.009 --> 00:15:21.990 He spoke of God as His Father, He was not saying, 00:15:22.090 --> 00:15:26.870 I am not God, but He is saying, I am equal with 00:15:26.870 --> 00:15:31.769 God. It is true, though, that for the purpose 00:15:31.769 --> 00:15:36.190 of redemption, that the Son of God subordinated 00:15:36.190 --> 00:15:40.049 Himself to God the Father, so that it is true, 00:15:40.110 --> 00:15:45.730 as John says, the Father sent the Son. to be 00:15:45.730 --> 00:15:50.370 the Savior of the world. That does not mean that 00:15:50.370 --> 00:15:52.769 the Son is less than the Father. It simply means 00:15:52.769 --> 00:15:56.669 that in order to accomplish redemption, in order 00:15:56.669 --> 00:16:00.990 to save you and me, God the Son subordinated 00:16:00.990 --> 00:16:06.230 Himself to God the Father. God the Father then 00:16:06.230 --> 00:16:10.049 sent the Son into the world that we might be 00:16:10.049 --> 00:16:17.700 saved through Him. There's another name that 00:16:17.700 --> 00:16:20.580 is used of the Lord Jesus here in Luke chapter 00:16:20.580 --> 00:16:24.639 1, and we need to move ahead to that. It's found 00:16:24.639 --> 00:16:31.600 toward the end of this chapter. Here we have 00:16:31.600 --> 00:16:36.659 the Benedictus, as it is called by Latins, and 00:16:36.659 --> 00:16:39.580 I am not a Latin, so I don't call it that, but 00:16:39.580 --> 00:16:47.080 it is a prophecy and a prayer. Now, who was Zacharias? 00:16:49.580 --> 00:16:53.440 He was the father of whom? John the Baptist. 00:16:54.820 --> 00:16:57.539 He prophesied these words in the last part of 00:16:57.539 --> 00:17:01.399 chapter 1, and in the midst of that, we come 00:17:01.399 --> 00:17:09.240 to verse 76, and thou, child, shall be called 00:17:09.240 --> 00:17:13.140 the prophet of the highest. For thou shalt go 00:17:13.140 --> 00:17:16.059 before the face of the Lord to prepare his ways. 00:17:16.519 --> 00:17:18.619 And what was the name again of the prophet who 00:17:18.619 --> 00:17:20.640 said he would be the voice of the one crying 00:17:20.640 --> 00:17:24.680 in the wilderness? Isaiah. His father here is 00:17:24.680 --> 00:17:28.599 referring to Isaiah's prophecy. He says, To give 00:17:28.599 --> 00:17:31.140 knowledge of salvation unto his people by the 00:17:31.140 --> 00:17:33.339 remission of their sins through the tender mercy 00:17:33.339 --> 00:17:37.400 of our God, whereby the day spring from on high 00:17:37.400 --> 00:17:41.440 hath visited us, to give light... to them that 00:17:41.440 --> 00:17:45.119 sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to 00:17:45.119 --> 00:17:48.759 guide our feet into the way of peace. The name 00:17:48.759 --> 00:17:51.279 I am thinking of is there in verse 78, where 00:17:51.279 --> 00:17:55.339 the name for Jesus is found, the Dayspring. The 00:17:55.339 --> 00:17:57.400 Dayspring. Now this is one of those names we 00:17:57.400 --> 00:18:00.920 don't often hear or think about. Literally, the 00:18:00.920 --> 00:18:05.579 word means the first streak of daylight. It is 00:18:05.579 --> 00:18:10.009 a poetic term that is used for dawn. And so actually 00:18:10.009 --> 00:18:13.750 what Zechariah says here is that he is the dawning 00:18:13.750 --> 00:18:19.450 from on high. He has come to give light to those 00:18:19.450 --> 00:18:21.829 in darkness and who are in the shadow of death 00:18:21.829 --> 00:18:26.410 and so on. The same thought, same word in the 00:18:26.410 --> 00:18:29.589 King James Version is found in Job 38 .12 where 00:18:29.589 --> 00:18:33.470 God says to Job, Hast thou commanded the morning 00:18:33.470 --> 00:18:37.549 since thy days and caused the day spring to know 00:18:37.549 --> 00:18:41.349 its place? Well, in that context, it means the 00:18:41.349 --> 00:18:45.170 same thing, the dawn. And God challenges Job 00:18:45.170 --> 00:18:49.829 and says, can you cause the dawn to come? Well, 00:18:49.869 --> 00:18:52.730 here that thought is used of the Lord Jesus Christ. 00:18:54.390 --> 00:18:59.089 It is this word that is used by Ann Ross' cousin 00:18:59.089 --> 00:19:02.690 in the hymn that she wrote called The Sands of 00:19:02.690 --> 00:19:06.180 Time Are Sinking. And in that particular hymn, 00:19:06.240 --> 00:19:08.940 one verse says, The sands of time are sinking, 00:19:09.119 --> 00:19:13.279 the dawn of heaven breaks. The summer morn I've 00:19:13.279 --> 00:19:18.140 sighed for, the fair sweet morn awakes. Dark, 00:19:18.140 --> 00:19:21.680 dark hath been the midnight, but day spring is 00:19:21.680 --> 00:19:24.880 at hand, and glory, glory dwelleth in Emmanuel's 00:19:24.880 --> 00:19:28.359 land. She picked up on that particular name for 00:19:28.359 --> 00:19:31.490 Jesus and used it in that psalm. It is this name 00:19:31.490 --> 00:19:33.890 that ties together with what Peter says, though 00:19:33.890 --> 00:19:37.089 it's not precisely the same language in the original, 00:19:37.289 --> 00:19:41.289 when in 2 Peter 1, he refers to the Lord Jesus 00:19:41.289 --> 00:19:44.829 Christ as the dawn of prophecy. Notice what he 00:19:44.829 --> 00:19:50.210 says in 2 Peter 1. He says, We have a more sure 00:19:50.210 --> 00:19:54.450 word of prophecy, verse 19, unto which ye do 00:19:54.450 --> 00:19:58.369 well that ye take heed. as unto a light that 00:19:58.369 --> 00:20:03.589 shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn and 00:20:03.589 --> 00:20:08.509 the day star arise in your hearts. What is Peter 00:20:08.509 --> 00:20:10.690 saying in that verse and those verses surrounding? 00:20:11.150 --> 00:20:13.829 Well, he's saying that they had had the experience 00:20:13.829 --> 00:20:17.950 of the transfiguration. They knew who Jesus was 00:20:17.950 --> 00:20:21.109 because, he says, we were with Him in the holy 00:20:21.109 --> 00:20:24.529 mount when He was glorified before our eyes. 00:20:25.279 --> 00:20:28.319 He says we have a more sure word, the word of 00:20:28.319 --> 00:20:31.299 prophecy from the Old Testament. And he refers 00:20:31.299 --> 00:20:33.160 there to the prophets as though they were the 00:20:33.160 --> 00:20:36.839 lamps during the dark night. But he says now 00:20:36.839 --> 00:20:40.799 the day star is dawning in your hearts. And he's 00:20:40.799 --> 00:20:44.640 referring to the Lord Jesus Christ. Has the day 00:20:44.640 --> 00:20:49.720 star arisen in your heart? It was a thrill to 00:20:49.720 --> 00:20:51.640 sit down after church this morning and talk to 00:20:51.640 --> 00:20:53.759 a lady who has been coming here for some time. 00:20:54.380 --> 00:20:57.319 who was just ready and prepared, and she trusted 00:20:57.319 --> 00:21:00.400 the Lord Jesus Christ as her Savior. The day 00:21:00.400 --> 00:21:03.900 star rose in her heart. Have you had that experience 00:21:03.900 --> 00:21:07.180 in your life? I know that many of you have, but 00:21:07.180 --> 00:21:10.920 maybe someone here tonight has not had that illumination 00:21:10.920 --> 00:21:14.460 that comes when Jesus Christ comes into the life. 00:21:14.980 --> 00:21:18.240 Just as Zechariah said to the people of that 00:21:18.240 --> 00:21:20.680 day, to the Israelites, he would say to us, he 00:21:20.680 --> 00:21:24.269 will give you light for your darkness. and for 00:21:24.269 --> 00:21:26.450 you who sit in the shadow of death, and he will 00:21:26.450 --> 00:21:31.009 guide your feet to the way of peace. There will 00:21:31.009 --> 00:21:33.869 be no peace in this world, whether it be in Poland, 00:21:34.029 --> 00:21:37.130 in the Middle East, or in the cities of America, 00:21:37.309 --> 00:21:42.890 until the day star, Jesus Christ, comes to reign 00:21:42.890 --> 00:21:46.470 in this world with truth and justice. There is 00:21:46.470 --> 00:21:50.019 no peace apart from the Prince of Peace. And 00:21:50.019 --> 00:21:52.099 although we cannot know that peace in the world 00:21:52.099 --> 00:21:55.000 right now, we can know it in our hearts. And 00:21:55.000 --> 00:21:56.859 I hope that you have experienced that. If you 00:21:56.859 --> 00:21:59.740 haven't, you surely may tonight by trusting Him. 00:22:00.619 --> 00:22:04.819 Now turn to chapter 2 of Luke, and we see another 00:22:04.819 --> 00:22:07.799 of the names given to Jesus at Christmastime, 00:22:07.839 --> 00:22:17.059 verse 11 of Luke chapter 2. We read this this 00:22:17.059 --> 00:22:21.289 morning. And we again here are quoting an angel 00:22:21.289 --> 00:22:25.029 who says to the shepherds, verse 10, Fear not, 00:22:25.109 --> 00:22:28.349 for behold, I bring you good tidings of great 00:22:28.349 --> 00:22:31.289 joy, which shall be to all people, for unto you 00:22:31.289 --> 00:22:35.650 is born this day in the city of David a Savior. 00:22:37.890 --> 00:22:40.390 There are a few names given to the Lord Jesus 00:22:40.390 --> 00:22:44.029 Christ that prick the emotions of the believer 00:22:44.029 --> 00:22:48.660 like this particular name, the Savior. It is 00:22:48.660 --> 00:22:50.740 a name which in the Old Testament is applied 00:22:50.740 --> 00:22:55.359 to Jehovah in a number of places. For example, 00:22:55.359 --> 00:22:59.980 in Psalm 106, verse 21, the writer says, they, 00:22:59.980 --> 00:23:05.119 the Israelites, forgot God their Savior. In Isaiah 00:23:05.119 --> 00:23:10.339 43, in verse 11, he says, I even I am the Lord, 00:23:10.500 --> 00:23:19.230 and beside me there is no Savior. is not applied 00:23:19.230 --> 00:23:23.250 to the Messiah in the Old Testament, and yet 00:23:23.250 --> 00:23:26.730 the Messiah is said to bring salvation there, 00:23:26.910 --> 00:23:29.910 and it is a name that is surely given to the 00:23:29.910 --> 00:23:33.109 Messiah in the New Testament. In fact, the very 00:23:33.109 --> 00:23:36.529 name Jesus brings with it this concept of Savior, 00:23:36.650 --> 00:23:40.190 doesn't it? For His name means Jehovah is salvation. 00:23:41.190 --> 00:23:43.890 In Matthew, it says, Thou shalt call His name 00:23:43.890 --> 00:23:46.789 Jesus, for He shall save His people from their 00:23:46.789 --> 00:23:51.519 sins. This particular word, unlike Son of God, 00:23:51.759 --> 00:23:56.480 is never applied to a mere man. It is used some 00:23:56.480 --> 00:24:00.380 24 times in the New Testament, the majority of 00:24:00.380 --> 00:24:02.880 those times in the last part of the New Testament, 00:24:02.920 --> 00:24:06.380 not in the Gospels, but it is occasionally, as 00:24:06.380 --> 00:24:08.759 in this verse, used in the Gospels referring 00:24:08.759 --> 00:24:12.789 to the Lord Jesus Christ. Now, why is that? Well, 00:24:12.890 --> 00:24:15.950 the Gospels record Jesus being primarily with 00:24:15.950 --> 00:24:18.609 the Jews, the people he came to and who rejected 00:24:18.609 --> 00:24:24.109 him. And their concept of him was that of Christ 00:24:24.109 --> 00:24:26.549 or Messiah, which we'll talk about in a moment. 00:24:26.930 --> 00:24:30.890 But as the Gospel went into the Gentile world 00:24:30.890 --> 00:24:36.009 primarily, they needed another name besides Messiah 00:24:36.009 --> 00:24:38.250 because Messiah to them meant nothing. And so 00:24:38.250 --> 00:24:41.400 they adopted this name. and emphasized this name, 00:24:41.500 --> 00:24:45.559 Savior. They used this name, Soter, in their 00:24:45.559 --> 00:24:49.779 language, of their own gods. But they used this 00:24:49.779 --> 00:24:52.380 name, they elevated this name in a particular 00:24:52.380 --> 00:24:55.660 sense once they came to trust Christ and called 00:24:55.660 --> 00:25:01.000 Him the Savior. And of course, if Jesus Christ 00:25:01.000 --> 00:25:03.400 is the Savior, it implies that there's a need 00:25:03.400 --> 00:25:08.180 for one. There's a need for one. And each of 00:25:08.180 --> 00:25:13.079 us needs. the Savior ourselves. Now in this verse 00:25:13.079 --> 00:25:15.359 that we're looking at, Luke 2, verse 11, there 00:25:15.359 --> 00:25:17.339 is the fourth and the final name that we'll look 00:25:17.339 --> 00:25:22.640 at tonight, and that is the name Christ. Undo 00:25:22.640 --> 00:25:25.259 you is born this day in the city of David a Savior 00:25:25.259 --> 00:25:32.119 who is Christ the Lord. The name Christ is the 00:25:32.119 --> 00:25:37.599 official name given to the Lord Jesus. It is 00:25:37.599 --> 00:25:41.009 the most popular of the designations given to 00:25:41.009 --> 00:25:46.009 him. The name Christ is the Greek name for the 00:25:46.009 --> 00:25:49.170 Hebrew word Messiah. They both mean the same 00:25:49.170 --> 00:25:53.849 thing, the anointed one, the one who is anointed. 00:25:54.450 --> 00:25:58.529 That concept of anointing is strange to us today 00:25:58.529 --> 00:26:02.930 because we do not use that particular method 00:26:02.930 --> 00:26:06.329 to inaugurate people into office. When the president, 00:26:06.390 --> 00:26:09.190 for example, is put into office, a Bible normally 00:26:09.190 --> 00:26:11.869 is put out there and he puts his hand on it and 00:26:11.869 --> 00:26:14.410 he swears allegiance to the Constitution and 00:26:14.410 --> 00:26:16.950 promises to defend it and to protect the American 00:26:16.950 --> 00:26:19.809 people and so on. And that's the way we put him 00:26:19.809 --> 00:26:23.769 into office. In the ancient days of Israel, they 00:26:23.769 --> 00:26:26.329 did not use that particular method. They anointed 00:26:26.329 --> 00:26:30.170 their leaders, which usually involved the pouring 00:26:30.170 --> 00:26:34.130 of oil over their head. Sometimes this was done 00:26:34.130 --> 00:26:39.099 in private. as was the case when David was anointed 00:26:39.099 --> 00:26:42.599 by Samuel. At other times it was done in public 00:26:42.599 --> 00:26:46.980 with a great deal of fanfare and flair. There 00:26:46.980 --> 00:26:49.579 are three offices in the Old Testament that are 00:26:49.579 --> 00:26:52.920 associated with the concept of anointing, which 00:26:52.920 --> 00:26:56.579 was the official inauguration into the office. 00:26:56.819 --> 00:27:01.099 And those three offices are the prophet, the 00:27:01.099 --> 00:27:07.039 priest, and the king. Those three offices were 00:27:07.039 --> 00:27:11.299 entered into on many occasions with the anointing. 00:27:12.019 --> 00:27:16.880 For example, the prophet Elijah was told to go 00:27:16.880 --> 00:27:20.259 back on his journey from Mount Horeb, where he 00:27:20.259 --> 00:27:26.299 had run from Jezebel, and to anoint Elisha to 00:27:26.299 --> 00:27:29.359 be prophet in his stead. And there was another 00:27:29.359 --> 00:27:35.299 part of his command there, his commission. another 00:27:35.299 --> 00:27:38.779 prophet who would follow him. Elisha then followed 00:27:38.779 --> 00:27:42.700 Elijah officially in that office. In Leviticus 00:27:42.700 --> 00:27:45.720 chapter 4, verse 3, and in numerous other occasions, 00:27:45.759 --> 00:27:48.940 there were priests who were anointed into their 00:27:48.940 --> 00:27:52.599 offices. And then we have mentioned David as 00:27:52.599 --> 00:27:56.019 an example of a king who was anointed. Jesus 00:27:56.019 --> 00:28:00.380 Christ is the anointed one of God. He is anointed 00:28:00.380 --> 00:28:04.759 by God to fulfill all three offices. that we 00:28:04.759 --> 00:28:07.880 have just spoken about. He is the Messiah, the 00:28:07.880 --> 00:28:11.480 anointed one to be the prophet who reveals God. 00:28:12.079 --> 00:28:14.819 He is the one who is anointed to be the priest. 00:28:15.740 --> 00:28:18.599 Forever he is a high priest after the order of 00:28:18.599 --> 00:28:21.559 Melchizedek. He is anointed by God to be the 00:28:21.559 --> 00:28:24.759 king and will rule and reign over an everlasting 00:28:24.759 --> 00:28:28.559 kingdom. As Dr. Merrill Unger has put it, in 00:28:28.559 --> 00:28:32.430 a preeminent and altogether unique sense, He 00:28:32.430 --> 00:28:37.569 is the anointed of God. He fulfills all three 00:28:37.569 --> 00:28:42.670 offices in Himself. When the Jewish Messiah came 00:28:42.670 --> 00:28:48.130 to His people, they missed Him. Why did they 00:28:48.130 --> 00:28:52.250 miss Him? Well, they misunderstood the real nature 00:28:52.250 --> 00:28:56.599 of His coming, it can be said. It can also be 00:28:56.599 --> 00:28:59.299 said that they were spiritually blind because 00:28:59.299 --> 00:29:02.579 of disobedience. That was the root of it. But 00:29:02.579 --> 00:29:05.200 part of it was, too, that they were emphasizing 00:29:05.200 --> 00:29:09.019 the kingship of the Messiah and overlooked the 00:29:09.019 --> 00:29:13.779 other two aspects of prophet and priest. And 00:29:13.779 --> 00:29:16.460 when Jesus did not fulfill what they expected 00:29:16.460 --> 00:29:20.240 him to be as the kingly Messiah, they turned 00:29:20.240 --> 00:29:25.309 on him and rejected him. We understand Jesus 00:29:25.309 --> 00:29:28.970 Christ today to be all three offices. He is the 00:29:28.970 --> 00:29:31.809 prophet in the sense that in the past, God has 00:29:31.809 --> 00:29:35.269 spoken to us by the prophets. In these last days, 00:29:35.369 --> 00:29:38.789 He has spoken unto us by His Son. He has fulfilled 00:29:38.789 --> 00:29:43.069 the revelation of Himself in the Son, the anointed 00:29:43.069 --> 00:29:48.690 prophet. He is the priest. And the amazing thing 00:29:48.690 --> 00:29:51.069 about Him is that He is not only the high priest, 00:29:51.210 --> 00:29:54.230 but He was also the sacrifice. that was offered. 00:29:54.609 --> 00:29:58.809 No priest could be both. But he, because he died 00:29:58.809 --> 00:30:02.289 as the sacrifice and was raised again, can now 00:30:02.289 --> 00:30:06.609 serve also as the great high priest. And then 00:30:06.609 --> 00:30:09.089 he is the king who will come someday to reign 00:30:09.089 --> 00:30:12.650 and rule on the earth, but who now we trust reigns 00:30:12.650 --> 00:30:15.250 and rules in the hearts of each of us who claims 00:30:15.250 --> 00:30:19.910 to be his. We are saved today through the Messiah 00:30:19.910 --> 00:30:23.420 of Israel. Unless we should overlook the Jews 00:30:23.420 --> 00:30:26.680 and discount them because of their blindness 00:30:26.680 --> 00:30:30.420 and turning against their Messiah, let us remember 00:30:30.420 --> 00:30:33.799 what Paul says in Romans, that we should be compassionate 00:30:33.799 --> 00:30:36.619 toward them because it is through their being 00:30:36.619 --> 00:30:40.119 set aside that we have been grafted in. Those 00:30:40.119 --> 00:30:43.519 of us who are a wild tree, we have been grafted 00:30:43.519 --> 00:30:46.819 into that olive tree. We are a part of God's 00:30:46.819 --> 00:30:51.599 elect, God's family. And someday... Israel, too, 00:30:51.759 --> 00:30:53.579 will be brought back and put into that tree. 00:30:54.240 --> 00:30:56.980 And what a great day that will be for them. It 00:30:56.980 --> 00:31:00.539 will be the consummation of God's purposes. Those 00:31:00.539 --> 00:31:02.539 are some of the names of the Lord Jesus Christ. 00:31:02.759 --> 00:31:04.920 And I hope as we think about them that we come 00:31:04.920 --> 00:31:09.599 to a more full appreciation of who He is. His 00:31:09.599 --> 00:31:15.119 names reveal Him to us. They enable us to worship 00:31:15.119 --> 00:31:18.500 Him more intelligently in each of His roles. 00:31:19.500 --> 00:31:24.299 He's the Savior. He's the Christ. He's the Dayspring. 00:31:24.299 --> 00:31:27.599 He is the only begotten, the one of a kind, the 00:31:27.599 --> 00:31:30.859 unique Son of God. Let's worship Him in each 00:31:30.859 --> 00:31:34.299 of those offices. Now let's pray. Father in Heaven, 00:31:34.460 --> 00:31:39.079 in this brief Bible study tonight, we have learned 00:31:39.079 --> 00:31:42.259 some things about Jesus, and they cause our hearts 00:31:42.259 --> 00:31:47.380 to respond with thanks and with fresh adoration, 00:31:47.380 --> 00:31:51.079 I trust. for all that you've accomplished in 00:31:51.079 --> 00:31:56.740 the Son of God. We worship you, our Lord. We 00:31:56.740 --> 00:31:59.119 worship you in each of the offices that you fulfill, 00:31:59.460 --> 00:32:04.579 and we love you. In your name we pray, amen. 00:32:05.660 --> 00:32:10.759 I'd like for us to close by singing a song that 00:32:10.759 --> 00:32:12.880 is in our hymnal. It's not in those hymnals. 00:32:13.019 --> 00:32:17.059 It's number 201. I don't suppose this is really 00:32:17.059 --> 00:32:21.269 a Christmas song. But it's one that expresses 00:32:21.269 --> 00:32:24.049 the thought of Christmas down from His glory. 00:32:24.990 --> 00:32:29.490 Ever -living story, my God and Savior came, and 00:32:29.490 --> 00:32:32.950 Jesus was His name. Let's sing together a verse 00:32:32.950 --> 00:32:37.130 or two of number 201 and rejoice in the truth 00:32:37.130 --> 00:32:39.869 that we are privileged to sing in this song. 00:32:39.990 --> 00:32:42.970 And if tonight there is some spiritual decision 00:32:42.970 --> 00:32:45.509 in your life that weighs heavy upon your heart, 00:32:45.920 --> 00:32:48.000 May we encourage you to come as we sing. Come 00:32:48.000 --> 00:32:49.799 here to the front. I'll be standing down here. 00:32:50.180 --> 00:32:53.539 I would love to shake your hand and to pray with 00:32:53.539 --> 00:32:56.779 you, to help you. Let's stand as we sing together. 00:34:36.750 --> 00:34:38.690 Notice the words there in the third verse. Without 00:34:38.690 --> 00:34:43.309 reluctance, flesh and blood his substance. He 00:34:43.309 --> 00:34:46.949 took the form of man, revealed the hidden plan. 00:34:48.030 --> 00:34:53.349 Oh, glorious mystery. Sacrifice of Calvary. And 00:34:53.349 --> 00:34:57.190 now I know he is the great I Am. Let's sing, 00:34:57.190 --> 00:34:59.409 though, the second verse as we close our service 00:34:59.409 --> 00:36:33.860 tonight. Amen. Well, thank you for being here 00:36:33.860 --> 00:36:36.219 tonight. I hope that you'll drive carefully going 00:36:36.219 --> 00:36:40.019 home. God bless you. If we don't see you before 00:36:40.019 --> 00:36:42.280 Christmas, I hope that you will have a joyous 00:36:42.280 --> 00:36:44.340 and blessed celebration of our Lord's coming 00:36:44.340 --> 00:36:47.440 with your loved ones. Now let's bow together 00:36:47.440 --> 00:36:56.119 in prayer. Father, we do love you tonight. Some 00:36:56.119 --> 00:36:59.300 of the phrases of this song speak to us and move 00:36:59.300 --> 00:37:08.119 us. We lift those phrases to you as worship and 00:37:08.119 --> 00:37:12.840 adoration. And now as we depart from here, we 00:37:12.840 --> 00:37:15.659 ask your blessing upon our journeys to our homes. 00:37:15.980 --> 00:37:19.699 We pray for safety. But may the warmth of this 00:37:19.699 --> 00:37:21.960 Lord's Day, the fellowship that we've enjoyed 00:37:21.960 --> 00:37:26.280 with one another, linger with us. And may our 00:37:26.280 --> 00:37:30.260 hearts be truly in awe this Christmas season 00:37:30.260 --> 00:37:34.400 as we consider all that's involved. in this celebration 00:37:34.400 --> 00:37:38.639 of the Savior's coming. And it's in His name 00:37:38.639 --> 00:37:42.440 that we pray and commit ourselves to you. Amen.