WEBVTT 00:00:06.639 --> 00:00:09.900 There was a girl who was quoting John 3, 16 to 00:00:09.900 --> 00:00:13.240 her mother. She put it this way, For God so loved 00:00:13.240 --> 00:00:17.219 the world that he gave his only forgotten son. 00:00:18.780 --> 00:00:21.620 At this time of year, we wonder, even in the 00:00:21.620 --> 00:00:23.760 midst of the season in which we celebrate his 00:00:23.760 --> 00:00:26.739 birth, he isn't the forgotten one in the midst 00:00:26.739 --> 00:00:31.059 of it all. Who is this Jesus of Christmas? Who 00:00:31.059 --> 00:00:34.740 is the Christ of Christmas? To answer that, of 00:00:34.740 --> 00:00:37.100 course, we have to go back to the original documents 00:00:37.100 --> 00:00:40.820 and there see what they say. Who is this one 00:00:40.820 --> 00:00:45.299 Jesus of Nazareth? The Jesus born in Bethlehem 00:00:45.299 --> 00:00:49.200 means it. The original documents of the Gospels. 00:00:49.899 --> 00:00:52.520 Last Sunday morning we saw that in the Gospel 00:00:52.520 --> 00:00:56.600 of Matthew, this Jesus of Christmas is the Son 00:00:56.600 --> 00:01:01.320 who has come to reign. This afternoon we want 00:01:01.320 --> 00:01:04.629 to look at the Gospel of Luke. And notice that 00:01:04.629 --> 00:01:08.069 he is presented there as the Savior who has come 00:01:08.069 --> 00:01:11.590 to die. And Lord willing, then, next Sunday morning, 00:01:11.609 --> 00:01:14.709 we will talk about Jesus as he is presented in 00:01:14.709 --> 00:01:18.750 the Gospel of John, the Word who has come to 00:01:18.750 --> 00:01:22.310 reveal. This afternoon, let's think about Luke's 00:01:22.310 --> 00:01:26.109 Gospel, primarily in the second chapter, where 00:01:26.109 --> 00:01:30.670 he is presented to us as the Savior who has come 00:01:30.670 --> 00:01:35.519 to die. Luke records for us the details of the 00:01:35.519 --> 00:01:40.219 birth of our Savior. While Matthew simply notes 00:01:40.219 --> 00:01:44.120 the event, it is the physician Luke who goes 00:01:44.120 --> 00:01:46.560 into detail regarding the events surrounding 00:01:46.560 --> 00:01:49.359 it. And we can be grateful for these intriguing 00:01:49.359 --> 00:01:53.599 bits of detail that are recorded. We learn why 00:01:53.599 --> 00:01:58.719 a couple who lived in Nazareth ended up at Bethlehem, 00:01:58.719 --> 00:02:02.609 and why it was there that Jesus was born. It 00:02:02.609 --> 00:02:05.150 is in Luke only that we learn about the appearance 00:02:05.150 --> 00:02:07.790 of the angel and their announcement to the shepherds. 00:02:08.310 --> 00:02:10.710 It is there that we learn of the shepherds going 00:02:10.710 --> 00:02:14.189 through the manger scene and adoring the baby. 00:02:16.169 --> 00:02:21.930 Why did Mary come to Bethlehem? It could be that 00:02:21.930 --> 00:02:24.610 Joseph's desire was for her to come so that he 00:02:24.610 --> 00:02:27.590 would be sure to be with her when the baby was 00:02:27.590 --> 00:02:32.180 born, likely it was sometime during the... third 00:02:32.180 --> 00:02:36.400 trimester that they journeyed on their way from 00:02:36.400 --> 00:02:40.400 Nazareth to Bethlehem. It could be as well that 00:02:40.400 --> 00:02:43.300 she went along with Joseph in order to escape 00:02:43.300 --> 00:02:47.419 the social pressures that must have been mounting 00:02:47.419 --> 00:02:50.419 in Nazareth because of the rumors that were going 00:02:50.419 --> 00:02:53.800 around. And it may well be that they were both 00:02:53.800 --> 00:02:56.939 aware of the Old Testament prophecies, too, regarding 00:02:56.939 --> 00:03:01.189 the birthplace of the Christ. We do not know 00:03:01.189 --> 00:03:04.610 how long they were in Bethlehem before the birth 00:03:04.610 --> 00:03:07.830 of the child. The popular notion is that they 00:03:07.830 --> 00:03:10.370 arrived in the city just in time for the birth, 00:03:10.449 --> 00:03:13.530 and yet more likely the text would seem to indicate 00:03:13.530 --> 00:03:16.349 that they were there for a period of time and 00:03:16.349 --> 00:03:20.889 then the birth of the baby took place. The text 00:03:20.889 --> 00:03:24.509 of Luke does not either tell us why it was that 00:03:24.509 --> 00:03:28.560 the babe was born in a stable. There is no cause 00:03:28.560 --> 00:03:30.719 to believe that the innkeeper was a villain, 00:03:30.879 --> 00:03:34.780 as he is often pictured. It simply says there 00:03:34.780 --> 00:03:38.039 was no room for them in the inn. If, in fact, 00:03:38.099 --> 00:03:40.400 they had been in Bethlehem for a few days or 00:03:40.400 --> 00:03:44.699 even weeks prior to the birth of Jesus, it may 00:03:44.699 --> 00:03:47.099 have been that the family that they had stayed 00:03:47.099 --> 00:03:51.699 with, Joseph's family, were simply crowded at 00:03:51.699 --> 00:03:54.550 this time. And for such a thing as the birth 00:03:54.550 --> 00:03:57.229 of a child which needed privacy, there was no 00:03:57.229 --> 00:04:01.030 room there either. Whatever, the Lord God himself 00:04:01.030 --> 00:04:05.150 arranged for the son to come into the world born 00:04:05.150 --> 00:04:09.530 in a manger. The record emphasizes the humble 00:04:09.530 --> 00:04:15.009 and ordinary circumstances of his birth. And 00:04:15.009 --> 00:04:17.829 it also emphasizes the apparent poverty of Joseph 00:04:17.829 --> 00:04:21.360 and Mary. Now, for the heart of our study this 00:04:21.360 --> 00:04:23.920 afternoon, I want us to look at verses 10 and 00:04:23.920 --> 00:04:28.480 11, which recounts for us what the angel said 00:04:28.480 --> 00:04:33.000 to the shepherds. Do not be afraid, for behold, 00:04:33.160 --> 00:04:36.779 I bring you good news of a great joy, which shall 00:04:36.779 --> 00:04:40.019 be for all the people. For today in the city 00:04:40.019 --> 00:04:43.639 of David there has been born for you a Savior, 00:04:43.879 --> 00:04:49.509 who is Christ the Lord. This angel is the first 00:04:49.509 --> 00:04:53.589 to announce the good news that the Savior has 00:04:53.589 --> 00:04:57.550 come. In order for us to expose the text a little 00:04:57.550 --> 00:05:01.110 bit, let's ask some questions. The first question 00:05:01.110 --> 00:05:05.410 let's ask is this. Who is the Savior that the 00:05:05.410 --> 00:05:08.769 angels announce? Well, in the text we learn that 00:05:08.769 --> 00:05:11.990 this Savior is none other than Christ the Lord 00:05:11.990 --> 00:05:16.259 himself. The term Christ is the word that means 00:05:16.259 --> 00:05:20.839 Messiah, the Messiah of Israel, the anointed 00:05:20.839 --> 00:05:24.600 one of God, the one who will fulfill the offices 00:05:24.600 --> 00:05:30.199 of prophet, priest, and king. God's anointed 00:05:30.199 --> 00:05:32.540 one, the one who will fulfill all of the Old 00:05:32.540 --> 00:05:36.519 Testament prophecies. He is Christ the Lord, 00:05:36.779 --> 00:05:41.360 not simply a man, but the Lord himself on his 00:05:41.360 --> 00:05:46.269 life. He is deity. He is the Old Testament Yahweh, 00:05:46.470 --> 00:05:51.930 the Lord, Christ the Lord. We can say safely 00:05:51.930 --> 00:05:55.310 that no other Savior exists than Christ the Lord, 00:05:55.449 --> 00:06:00.410 nor can any other Savior exist but Him, because 00:06:00.410 --> 00:06:04.189 a Savior must be especially qualified to save. 00:06:04.709 --> 00:06:07.829 In the first place, a Savior for mankind must 00:06:07.829 --> 00:06:11.720 be both God and man. so that he is qualified 00:06:11.720 --> 00:06:15.500 as man to identify with him, and he is qualified 00:06:15.500 --> 00:06:19.779 as God to intercede on behalf of man before God. 00:06:21.100 --> 00:06:24.519 And so Jesus Christ uniquely fits this qualification 00:06:24.519 --> 00:06:29.660 as the God -man. Furthermore, a Savior must be 00:06:29.660 --> 00:06:33.560 sinless himself in order to save. And no mere 00:06:33.560 --> 00:06:35.839 man who has ever been born into the world can 00:06:35.839 --> 00:06:39.319 claim that, for all have sinned. and come short 00:06:39.319 --> 00:06:43.660 of the glory of God. But Jesus Christ, the Lord, 00:06:43.860 --> 00:06:48.279 came sinless. And thirdly, he must be willing 00:06:48.279 --> 00:06:52.660 to act as the Savior. He must be willing voluntarily 00:06:52.660 --> 00:06:56.759 to give himself in order to save mankind. And 00:06:56.759 --> 00:06:59.579 so no other Savior does exist, nor the Savior 00:06:59.579 --> 00:07:03.199 can exist, than this one who is Christ the Lord. 00:07:04.259 --> 00:07:07.120 Then we ask the second question, when is this 00:07:07.120 --> 00:07:10.490 Savior coming? Well, in the text, the angel says, 00:07:10.610 --> 00:07:14.389 for unto you is born today in the city of David. 00:07:14.529 --> 00:07:19.069 Today. That was a day 2 ,000 years ago. But it 00:07:19.069 --> 00:07:23.209 was the appointed day. It was the prepared time 00:07:23.209 --> 00:07:28.069 when God sent forth his son into the world. As 00:07:28.069 --> 00:07:30.350 J. Robert Chapman wrote it in the hymn that we 00:07:30.350 --> 00:07:34.509 sometimes sing, one day when sin was as black 00:07:34.509 --> 00:07:38.639 as could be, God sent his son. born of a virgin. 00:07:39.800 --> 00:07:45.259 At no time previously had a Savior come. The 00:07:45.259 --> 00:07:47.420 prophets had thundered, Thus saith the Lord, 00:07:47.500 --> 00:07:51.379 for hundreds and hundreds of years. Angels had 00:07:51.379 --> 00:07:55.040 appeared on various occasions. Miracles, indeed, 00:07:55.180 --> 00:07:58.519 had occurred in the history of the world. And 00:07:58.519 --> 00:08:00.920 who could number the multitudes of sacrifices 00:08:00.920 --> 00:08:03.800 that had been offered on the altar of Israel? 00:08:04.329 --> 00:08:07.250 as an atonement for sin that my friend no savior 00:08:07.250 --> 00:08:13.050 had ever come a provision had been made until 00:08:13.050 --> 00:08:19.449 the savior should come on this day and he was 00:08:19.449 --> 00:08:23.610 born today in the city of david that was god's 00:08:23.610 --> 00:08:27.529 time the perfect time for him to come and then 00:08:27.529 --> 00:08:31.230 we asked how did the savior come well the angel 00:08:31.230 --> 00:08:37.440 tell us he was born unto his born this day. He 00:08:37.440 --> 00:08:41.039 did not come with pomp. He did not come with 00:08:41.039 --> 00:08:44.139 a rending of the heavens and enter on a white 00:08:44.139 --> 00:08:47.500 charger. He did not come with trumpets sounding. 00:08:47.659 --> 00:08:50.379 He did not come after a worldwide announcement 00:08:50.379 --> 00:08:54.519 had been made, but he came quietly and humbly. 00:08:55.840 --> 00:09:01.019 He had entered the womb of a virgin and united 00:09:01.019 --> 00:09:05.600 himself with... sinless humanity. He was born 00:09:05.600 --> 00:09:12.019 then, born into the world as a baby. Is there 00:09:12.019 --> 00:09:16.419 anything that is more vulnerable, more helpless, 00:09:16.620 --> 00:09:23.059 and may I say more natural than the birth of 00:09:23.059 --> 00:09:27.879 a baby? The birth of this baby, the Savior came. 00:09:28.809 --> 00:09:30.990 And of course it was essential that he be born 00:09:30.990 --> 00:09:33.429 this way. He simply could not come down out of 00:09:33.429 --> 00:09:37.950 heaven to the earth to die for sin. He had to 00:09:37.950 --> 00:09:40.730 come and fully identify with us in our flesh 00:09:40.730 --> 00:09:45.230 and blood in order to be our substitute, in order 00:09:45.230 --> 00:09:48.610 to be our savior. And so he came in the only 00:09:48.610 --> 00:09:51.730 way that he could come and be the savior to die. 00:09:51.970 --> 00:09:57.080 He was born. And then a fourth question. What 00:09:57.080 --> 00:10:00.200 is the result of the Savior's coming? Well, I 00:10:00.200 --> 00:10:02.460 would suggest even in our text there's a threefold 00:10:02.460 --> 00:10:06.059 result. The first is suggested by the angels 00:10:06.059 --> 00:10:11.440 when they say, great joy. Great joy. That is 00:10:11.440 --> 00:10:14.600 the first result. They announced it with joy. 00:10:14.919 --> 00:10:17.679 And they say to them, we bring you good news 00:10:17.679 --> 00:10:22.659 of great joy. And so the Savior's coming has 00:10:22.659 --> 00:10:25.620 resulted in joy in the world. I tell you, apart 00:10:25.620 --> 00:10:27.580 from that, there would be no joy. There would 00:10:27.580 --> 00:10:30.879 be no smiles. There would be no friendly greetings, 00:10:30.980 --> 00:10:35.620 no cars for laughter and merriment. His coming 00:10:35.620 --> 00:10:41.159 results in joy being present in the world. In 00:10:41.159 --> 00:10:45.539 Luke, joy is always associated with salvation. 00:10:46.379 --> 00:10:49.159 An example of that would be in the 15th chapter. 00:10:49.879 --> 00:10:53.019 when he talks about the three parables, the things 00:10:53.019 --> 00:10:57.279 that were lost and then found, a sheep, a coin, 00:10:57.379 --> 00:11:00.740 and a son. And in each case, when that which 00:11:00.740 --> 00:11:04.440 was lost was found, there was great joy that 00:11:04.440 --> 00:11:07.940 resulted, a picture of a sinner repenting and 00:11:07.940 --> 00:11:11.340 coming to the Lord. Joy is always associated 00:11:11.340 --> 00:11:15.419 with salvation in Luke's writing. Luke talks 00:11:15.419 --> 00:11:18.980 more about joy than Matthew and Mark put together. 00:11:19.629 --> 00:11:23.710 Joy is one of its themes. What is the result 00:11:23.710 --> 00:11:25.669 of the Savior's coming? Well, again, the angels 00:11:25.669 --> 00:11:29.629 tell us it is glory to God. After the one angel 00:11:29.629 --> 00:11:31.590 had announced the birth of the babe, there was 00:11:31.590 --> 00:11:34.809 a multitude of these angels who appeared. And 00:11:34.809 --> 00:11:37.769 they said, it's interesting they didn't sing 00:11:37.769 --> 00:11:41.509 it, as far as the text says at least, but what 00:11:41.509 --> 00:11:45.309 they said together in a chorus of spoken word 00:11:45.309 --> 00:11:52.220 was glory to God in the highest. The coming of 00:11:52.220 --> 00:11:54.620 the Savior has resulted in the glory of God because, 00:11:54.720 --> 00:11:56.720 you see, in his coming, God has been pleased 00:11:56.720 --> 00:12:01.340 to expose himself in his love and mercy for us. 00:12:03.600 --> 00:12:05.919 If the Savior had not come, we would never have 00:12:05.919 --> 00:12:09.120 known that apart from the word of God. And now 00:12:09.120 --> 00:12:12.179 we have more than just God's word. We have God's 00:12:12.179 --> 00:12:16.379 living proof of his grace, his love, and his 00:12:16.379 --> 00:12:21.320 mercy. It is the coming of the Savior. And so 00:12:21.320 --> 00:12:23.580 his coming has resulted in the glory of God. 00:12:23.620 --> 00:12:26.899 God has glorified himself through the coming 00:12:26.899 --> 00:12:30.779 of his Son to save mankind. And then finally, 00:12:30.860 --> 00:12:33.860 the coming of the Savior results in peace among 00:12:33.860 --> 00:12:38.059 men, with whom he is well pleased, as the text 00:12:38.059 --> 00:12:42.059 says. There is no peace in the world when the 00:12:42.059 --> 00:12:45.539 Savior does not reign. Our world today scrambles 00:12:45.539 --> 00:12:48.899 desperately to find peace. Not only in various 00:12:48.899 --> 00:12:51.379 quarters of the world, but worldwide, there is 00:12:51.379 --> 00:12:56.299 a search for peace and a peace giver. The Prince 00:12:56.299 --> 00:12:59.620 of Peace has come. And if only the world would 00:12:59.620 --> 00:13:03.399 receive him, there could be peace. There is peace, 00:13:03.559 --> 00:13:06.279 however, among those with whom God is well pleased. 00:13:06.820 --> 00:13:10.659 That is, those who respond to him in faith, those 00:13:10.659 --> 00:13:13.220 who are his own through faith in Jesus Christ. 00:13:13.500 --> 00:13:16.460 There is peace among those with whom God is well 00:13:16.460 --> 00:13:20.009 pleased. There is peace with God through our 00:13:20.009 --> 00:13:23.110 Lord Jesus Christ. And there is the peace of 00:13:23.110 --> 00:13:25.690 God that we may know consistently day by day 00:13:25.690 --> 00:13:29.330 as we commit our cares and anxieties to him. 00:13:30.149 --> 00:13:33.730 This is a peace the world can never know. There's 00:13:33.730 --> 00:13:37.029 a world that results in the coming, that comes 00:13:37.029 --> 00:13:40.049 from the coming of the Savior. There's a result 00:13:40.049 --> 00:13:42.490 of that. There's a peace that I hope you know 00:13:42.490 --> 00:13:47.519 today personally within your heart. Then finally 00:13:47.519 --> 00:13:50.740 I would ask this, what is the scope of the Savior's 00:13:50.740 --> 00:13:54.399 coming? Again, we see in the words of the angels 00:13:54.399 --> 00:13:57.519 when they say that he was born for all people. 00:14:00.919 --> 00:14:03.679 I bring you good news of a great joy which shall 00:14:03.679 --> 00:14:08.460 be for all the people. For today in the city 00:14:08.460 --> 00:14:13.059 of David has been born for you a Savior. You 00:14:13.059 --> 00:14:15.620 see, the scope of his coming, first of all, embraces 00:14:15.620 --> 00:14:19.259 all the people. Now, in the context of Luke, 00:14:19.320 --> 00:14:22.039 likely it refers primarily to the Jewish people, 00:14:22.139 --> 00:14:26.320 for all these people. And yet we can say that 00:14:26.320 --> 00:14:28.259 there's certainly the hint that not only for 00:14:28.259 --> 00:14:30.620 the Jews, but for all the people of the world 00:14:30.620 --> 00:14:34.580 he has come. There is no race, there is no family, 00:14:34.679 --> 00:14:37.340 there is no tribe, there is no nationality, there 00:14:37.340 --> 00:14:39.720 is no language group in all of the world that 00:14:39.720 --> 00:14:44.379 is left out. He has come for all the people of 00:14:44.379 --> 00:14:48.659 the world. That is why we are so impelled as 00:14:48.659 --> 00:14:52.139 a church to have a mission, a mission to reach 00:14:52.139 --> 00:14:55.080 out to our communities and to reach out to the 00:14:55.080 --> 00:14:57.519 world around us in lands that most of us have 00:14:57.519 --> 00:15:01.000 never been to so that all the people might hear 00:15:01.000 --> 00:15:05.259 that he has come. There's a more personal aspect 00:15:05.259 --> 00:15:09.529 to it that the angel said, for unto you. He was 00:15:09.529 --> 00:15:12.309 born this day a Savior. You see, it's not just 00:15:12.309 --> 00:15:14.549 for all the world, but it is for you. There's 00:15:14.549 --> 00:15:17.990 a personal aspect here. For you, for me, that 00:15:17.990 --> 00:15:21.850 he came. For the mass, yes. But for us personally 00:15:21.850 --> 00:15:25.490 as well, he came. And that's a wonderful truth. 00:15:27.090 --> 00:15:29.350 At an evangelistic meeting a number of years 00:15:29.350 --> 00:15:31.429 ago, a man was asked to share his testimony. 00:15:32.610 --> 00:15:34.850 It was announced that he would. He was known 00:15:34.850 --> 00:15:37.409 in that city for his wicked crimes and heinous 00:15:37.409 --> 00:15:41.059 sins. The night of the meeting came and he sat 00:15:41.059 --> 00:15:45.559 down near the front. For the time seemed close 00:15:45.559 --> 00:15:48.539 for him to give a testimony. A note was passed 00:15:48.539 --> 00:15:51.740 up from somewhere in the back to him. It had 00:15:51.740 --> 00:15:55.940 his name on it. He opened the note and it said 00:15:55.940 --> 00:16:01.519 to him, How can you testify at a meeting like 00:16:01.519 --> 00:16:05.080 this with all the crimes that you have committed? 00:16:05.399 --> 00:16:12.269 How dare you to show up? At first the man thought 00:16:12.269 --> 00:16:15.549 that perhaps he should leave, because he knew 00:16:15.549 --> 00:16:17.789 what he had done, and everybody there knew what 00:16:17.789 --> 00:16:20.909 he had done. But then it was announced that he 00:16:20.909 --> 00:16:22.870 should come and give his witness, and so he stood, 00:16:23.169 --> 00:16:27.730 and he read the list. Then he said to the people, 00:16:27.809 --> 00:16:31.370 you know, all of this is true. I have done every 00:16:31.370 --> 00:16:35.210 one of these things. He says, the good news that 00:16:35.210 --> 00:16:38.240 I want to share with you tonight is this. Christ 00:16:38.240 --> 00:16:41.759 Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of 00:16:41.759 --> 00:16:46.500 whom I am chief. And he went on to say, and he 00:16:46.500 --> 00:16:50.440 is the propitiation for our sins, and not for 00:16:50.440 --> 00:16:52.700 ours only, but for the sins of the whole world. 00:16:54.860 --> 00:16:58.440 Jesus Christ came personally for you, for me. 00:16:59.639 --> 00:17:02.820 And he offered a price which has become the propitiation 00:17:02.820 --> 00:17:07.480 or the sacrifice that has satisfied God. wrath, 00:17:07.579 --> 00:17:14.619 and God's holiness. The Savior has come. Did 00:17:14.619 --> 00:17:18.759 you know that neither Matthew nor Mark knew that 00:17:18.759 --> 00:17:23.140 title for Jesus even once? I think it's found 00:17:23.140 --> 00:17:27.660 in the Gospel of John, but once. Luke uses it 00:17:27.660 --> 00:17:35.240 at least twice. He calls Jesus the Savior. When 00:17:35.240 --> 00:17:37.500 one is called a savior, it implies that there's 00:17:37.500 --> 00:17:41.400 a danger, there's a threat, there's a ruin, there's 00:17:41.400 --> 00:17:44.720 a destruction that needs to be avoided and from 00:17:44.720 --> 00:17:47.980 which one needs to be rescued. And you see, that 00:17:47.980 --> 00:17:51.339 is exactly why he's called the savior. For he 00:17:51.339 --> 00:17:55.160 came into the world to rescue, to deliver you 00:17:55.160 --> 00:17:59.559 and me from the ruin of our sins and from the 00:17:59.559 --> 00:18:02.779 condemnation of hell that we eternally deserve. 00:18:04.200 --> 00:18:06.299 Have you ever considered what it would be in 00:18:06.299 --> 00:18:11.380 your life if Jesus had not come? If there were 00:18:11.380 --> 00:18:15.759 no Christmas? If there were no cross? If there 00:18:15.759 --> 00:18:18.819 had been no blood shed for you? Have you ever 00:18:18.819 --> 00:18:21.720 considered what it would be for you if none of 00:18:21.720 --> 00:18:25.920 this had occurred? Or where would you be today 00:18:25.920 --> 00:18:35.099 if Jesus hadn't come? Even more provoking, where 00:18:35.099 --> 00:18:39.019 would you be a hundred years from now if Jesus 00:18:39.019 --> 00:18:43.779 hadn't come? But thank God the Savior has come. 00:18:44.799 --> 00:18:49.700 He is the Savior who came to die. In the Old 00:18:49.700 --> 00:18:52.720 West, there was a constant threat in the prairies 00:18:52.720 --> 00:18:57.759 of fire. The prairie fires were terribly fierce. 00:18:58.940 --> 00:19:03.430 The grass was often very high. In the summertime, 00:19:03.829 --> 00:19:10.549 the grasses grew dry and brittle and hot. When 00:19:10.549 --> 00:19:13.029 the fire started, because of whiting or some 00:19:13.029 --> 00:19:17.049 other source, fires roared across the plains, 00:19:17.230 --> 00:19:21.369 sometimes miles in width, the flames leaping 00:19:21.369 --> 00:19:25.190 10, even 20 feet into the air. The smoke could 00:19:25.190 --> 00:19:30.170 be seen for miles and miles. Dangerous was the 00:19:30.170 --> 00:19:34.410 position. of a traveler in those days when a 00:19:34.410 --> 00:19:36.970 prairie fire was moving toward him with the speed 00:19:36.970 --> 00:19:41.569 of the wind. The only escape that a traveler 00:19:41.569 --> 00:19:46.690 could have, he could not outrun it, was to stop 00:19:46.690 --> 00:19:52.950 his wagon and to light a fire himself and allow 00:19:52.950 --> 00:19:57.789 another fire to rage. And once that fire had 00:19:57.789 --> 00:20:01.200 raged, before his... wagon into the midst of 00:20:01.200 --> 00:20:04.680 that earth that had already been scorched. Once 00:20:04.680 --> 00:20:08.980 he was there, he was safe. For as that fire roared 00:20:08.980 --> 00:20:13.299 toward him, it could not burn a second time that 00:20:13.299 --> 00:20:18.019 which had already been burned. As we come to 00:20:18.019 --> 00:20:21.400 this table of the Lord tonight, let us remember 00:20:21.400 --> 00:20:25.819 that we stand on scorched earth. That we stand 00:20:25.819 --> 00:20:28.519 here remembering the cross where the Savior died. 00:20:29.440 --> 00:20:32.359 The wrath of God has been once and for all poured 00:20:32.359 --> 00:20:36.200 out upon the Savior, the wrath that you and I 00:20:36.200 --> 00:20:41.640 deserve. So we stand rescued. We stand delivered. 00:20:41.759 --> 00:20:45.900 We stand safe tonight on the ground of the cross, 00:20:46.259 --> 00:20:49.299 the ground that has been sanctified by the very 00:20:49.299 --> 00:20:54.019 precious blood of our Savior. And so as we come 00:20:54.019 --> 00:20:57.480 to the Lord's table, let's rejoice that the Savior 00:20:57.480 --> 00:21:00.759 has come. Let us rejoice in what he has done 00:21:00.759 --> 00:21:05.779 for each one of us. Let's do that by bowing together 00:21:05.779 --> 00:21:09.700 in prayer right now and acknowledging him, thanking 00:21:09.700 --> 00:21:14.059 him, and confessing any sins in our lives so 00:21:14.059 --> 00:21:17.819 we would not dare come to this table with unconfessed 00:21:17.819 --> 00:21:22.279 sins, knowingly in our lives. For to do that 00:21:22.279 --> 00:21:26.339 is to come and partake of judgment. It is to 00:21:26.339 --> 00:21:29.500 partake of the Lord's table. in an unworthy manner. 00:21:30.420 --> 00:21:33.440 So let us bow together in prayer and prepare 00:21:33.440 --> 00:21:36.519 our hearts. And as we do so, I'm going to ask 00:21:36.519 --> 00:22:17.740 our service to come to the cross. With our heads 00:22:17.740 --> 00:22:21.720 bowed still, let us recall that our Savior told 00:22:21.720 --> 00:22:24.920 us to remember him in this ordinance until he 00:22:24.920 --> 00:22:31.079 comes. On that night in which he was betrayed, 00:22:31.259 --> 00:22:33.640 the Lord Jesus met with his disciples and with 00:22:33.640 --> 00:22:38.099 them he took bread and gave thanks and then broke 00:22:38.099 --> 00:22:42.720 it and shared with them. Let's give our prayers 00:22:42.720 --> 00:22:45.839 thanks in a little different way tonight. I'm 00:22:45.839 --> 00:22:50.740 going to ask you to pray out loud after me. Pray 00:22:50.740 --> 00:22:54.279 out loud at this congregation. Dear Lord Jesus, 00:22:54.660 --> 00:23:02.819 we thank you for your body offered up for our 00:23:02.819 --> 00:23:12.019 sins. We give ourselves afresh to you and present 00:23:12.019 --> 00:23:18.890 our bodies as a living sacrifice. We remember 00:23:18.890 --> 00:23:25.109 you in this ordinance and give thanks for your 00:23:25.109 --> 00:23:26.029 work of salvation.