WEBVTT 00:00:01.360 --> 00:00:03.799 I think quite like the music of Christmas is 00:00:03.799 --> 00:00:11.400 there. What comes to your mind when you hear 00:00:11.400 --> 00:00:17.359 that word Christmas? The university professor 00:00:17.359 --> 00:00:21.980 in a large university here in the United States 00:00:21.980 --> 00:00:25.760 several years ago asked the 40 students in his 00:00:25.760 --> 00:00:30.500 class to write at the top of their paper Christmas. 00:00:32.329 --> 00:00:36.130 And then he said, now I want you to write after 00:00:36.130 --> 00:00:39.549 that word the very first thing that comes to 00:00:39.549 --> 00:00:44.070 your mind when you hear it. He then collected 00:00:44.070 --> 00:00:46.869 the papers, and there were the typical kinds 00:00:46.869 --> 00:00:50.509 of responses that one might expect. Presence, 00:00:51.390 --> 00:00:59.149 tree, carols, family. Interestingly, not a single 00:00:59.149 --> 00:01:04.120 response came back. the birthday of Jesus Christ. 00:01:05.519 --> 00:01:08.000 Perhaps that illustrates how cluttered the day 00:01:08.000 --> 00:01:12.560 has become with cultural, traditional, and commercial 00:01:12.560 --> 00:01:18.140 junk. Beneath the layers of tradition, some of 00:01:18.140 --> 00:01:20.480 which have pagan roots, frankly, including the 00:01:20.480 --> 00:01:26.620 day we celebrate, and beyond the blast and the 00:01:26.620 --> 00:01:32.239 blair of modern commercialism, is this central 00:01:32.239 --> 00:01:36.459 truth about Christmas, that it is the celebration 00:01:36.459 --> 00:01:41.299 of the birth of the Christ. Actually, when one 00:01:41.299 --> 00:01:45.840 says that English word, Christmas, he is employing 00:01:45.840 --> 00:01:50.579 the name of the one the day commemorates. The 00:01:50.579 --> 00:01:55.239 word Christmas comes from the word Christ, Mass, 00:01:55.640 --> 00:02:00.170 M -A -S -S. And the word mass comes from a Latin 00:02:00.170 --> 00:02:04.290 verb meaning to send. It's a derivation of that. 00:02:04.689 --> 00:02:08.729 Thus, the word Christmas means Christ was sent. 00:02:10.310 --> 00:02:12.750 Now as we consider the meaning of Christmas, 00:02:13.729 --> 00:02:16.229 let's not overlook what Christmas means to the 00:02:16.229 --> 00:02:18.909 one who himself is the reason for the season, 00:02:19.030 --> 00:02:22.409 Jesus Christ. That is our theme for this morning, 00:02:22.509 --> 00:02:27.419 the meaning of Christmas to God the Son. To him, 00:02:27.520 --> 00:02:29.520 the meaning of Christmas might be summarized 00:02:29.520 --> 00:02:31.819 in three words I'd like to put together in this 00:02:31.819 --> 00:02:35.759 package this morning. Those words are commitment, 00:02:37.259 --> 00:02:41.419 self -abasement, and identification. I invite 00:02:41.419 --> 00:02:43.699 you to write those words down and think with 00:02:43.699 --> 00:02:47.240 me as we open this package and consider the meaning 00:02:47.240 --> 00:02:51.159 of Christmas to God the Son. The three words 00:02:51.159 --> 00:02:55.060 again, commitment, self -abasement, and identification. 00:02:55.550 --> 00:02:58.370 Open your Bible, please, to the book of Hebrews, 00:02:59.289 --> 00:03:05.710 to the tenth chapter of the book. Let me say 00:03:05.710 --> 00:03:09.210 first of all that to Jesus Christ, Christmas 00:03:09.210 --> 00:03:13.830 means commitment. Commitment to His Father's 00:03:13.830 --> 00:03:19.930 will, whatever the content. In Hebrews 10, the 00:03:19.930 --> 00:03:24.090 writer quotes from Psalm 40, one of the Messianic 00:03:24.090 --> 00:03:29.810 Psalms. Beginning in verse 5, Therefore when 00:03:29.810 --> 00:03:35.110 he comes into the world, who is he? He is the 00:03:35.110 --> 00:03:38.169 Christ who is mentioned earlier in chapter 9 00:03:38.169 --> 00:03:43.150 and verse 28. When he the Christ comes into the 00:03:43.150 --> 00:03:47.909 world, he says, Sacrifice and offering thou hast 00:03:47.909 --> 00:03:51.990 not desired, but a body thou hast prepared for 00:03:51.990 --> 00:03:56.379 me. In burnt offerings, in whole burnt offerings 00:03:56.379 --> 00:04:00.419 and sacrifices for sin, thou hast taken no pleasure. 00:04:01.240 --> 00:04:06.520 Then I said, Behold, I have come, in the role 00:04:06.520 --> 00:04:10.439 of the book it is written of me, to do thy will, 00:04:10.580 --> 00:04:16.660 O God." In that statement attributed to Messiah, 00:04:17.699 --> 00:04:23.019 we have a pre -incarnate declaration. of his 00:04:23.019 --> 00:04:28.959 intention to do God's will. That was his mindset 00:04:28.959 --> 00:04:33.300 in his coming, and then throughout his entire 00:04:33.300 --> 00:04:38.040 life's ministry. As he came into the world, he 00:04:38.040 --> 00:04:46.980 said, I come to do thy will, O God. And then 00:04:46.980 --> 00:04:49.759 we see that early on in his life, or even as 00:04:49.759 --> 00:04:56.389 a child. in pre -adolescent age, our Savior was 00:04:56.389 --> 00:05:00.189 with the leaders of Judaism in His day at the 00:05:00.189 --> 00:05:04.870 temple. And there He confounded them with the 00:05:04.870 --> 00:05:06.970 discussion that He was able to carry on, the 00:05:06.970 --> 00:05:09.670 depth of His understanding of spiritual things. 00:05:11.250 --> 00:05:13.569 You recall that when Mary and Joseph finally 00:05:13.569 --> 00:05:15.870 found Him, for they thought they had lost Him, 00:05:16.730 --> 00:05:20.740 they asked Him why He had done what He had. And 00:05:20.740 --> 00:05:24.759 he said to them in way of a question containing 00:05:24.759 --> 00:05:29.160 a slight rebuke, don't you know that I must be 00:05:29.160 --> 00:05:33.420 about my father's things, my father's business 00:05:33.420 --> 00:05:37.720 we might say. You see he had an understanding 00:05:37.720 --> 00:05:40.939 even at that early age of his special mission 00:05:40.939 --> 00:05:47.699 and his relationship as the unique son of God 00:05:47.699 --> 00:05:51.980 the Father. And then in his ministry, he said, 00:05:52.060 --> 00:05:56.339 my meat is to do the will of Him that sent me. 00:05:57.300 --> 00:06:00.620 He said, I always do those things that are pleasing 00:06:00.620 --> 00:06:06.519 in His sight and in His suffering for sin. I 00:06:06.519 --> 00:06:09.439 remind you that in the Garden of Gethsemane, 00:06:09.740 --> 00:06:13.500 as our Savior looked into the cup, containing 00:06:13.500 --> 00:06:18.120 the iniquities of the world. He said, nevertheless, 00:06:18.519 --> 00:06:21.959 not what I will, but what thou wilt, giving himself 00:06:21.959 --> 00:06:26.420 over to that death. He found on that occasion 00:06:26.420 --> 00:06:30.319 becoming sin to be a horror to his sinless soul, 00:06:30.360 --> 00:06:34.019 but yet his mindset was the will of the Father, 00:06:34.480 --> 00:06:40.600 whatever the content of it. It seems to me that 00:06:40.600 --> 00:06:42.800 Christmas is a natural time for us who claim 00:06:42.800 --> 00:06:46.850 to be Christians. to examine whose will we are 00:06:46.850 --> 00:06:53.290 following too. Are we following our own wills? 00:06:54.129 --> 00:06:56.730 Do we live out the song that Frank Sinatra loves 00:06:56.730 --> 00:07:03.069 to sing, I did it my way? That's the whole thrust 00:07:03.069 --> 00:07:07.970 of our culture. I'll live my own life. I would 00:07:07.970 --> 00:07:12.610 rather do it myself. Get all the gusto you can. 00:07:14.680 --> 00:07:18.740 Are we following our own wills? If so, then we 00:07:18.740 --> 00:07:21.800 follow not in the steps of Jesus Christ this 00:07:21.800 --> 00:07:26.139 Christmas. Because He came into the world to 00:07:26.139 --> 00:07:30.579 say, the will of the Father, whatever the content. 00:07:33.160 --> 00:07:35.199 Then we might also be living for the will of 00:07:35.199 --> 00:07:38.839 others. For there are some of us that are absolutely 00:07:38.839 --> 00:07:42.019 enslaved by what others say about us or think 00:07:42.019 --> 00:07:46.730 about us. What they say or think determines what 00:07:46.730 --> 00:07:52.490 we do and how we respond. We are so insecure 00:07:52.490 --> 00:07:55.910 in ourselves that we look for clues and signals 00:07:55.910 --> 00:08:02.269 in their face, the face of others or their words, 00:08:02.750 --> 00:08:04.870 so that we'll know whether we're accepted or 00:08:04.870 --> 00:08:07.310 approved or how to react or what to wear or what 00:08:07.310 --> 00:08:12.129 to say or whether we should go. We wait for the 00:08:12.129 --> 00:08:15.410 approval. of our peers and our co -workers and 00:08:15.410 --> 00:08:20.529 live for the will of others. If we do, we're 00:08:20.529 --> 00:08:23.509 not following in the steps of the Christ of Christmas 00:08:23.509 --> 00:08:27.529 who came saying, Father, I delight to do Your 00:08:27.529 --> 00:08:36.269 will, whatever the content. Our submission to 00:08:36.269 --> 00:08:42.220 God's will is a decision that rightly comes Before 00:08:42.220 --> 00:08:45.000 we know the content of God's will you see that's 00:08:45.000 --> 00:08:48.720 when Jesus said this as he came into the world 00:08:48.720 --> 00:08:52.100 He said before he started his earthly ministry. 00:08:52.399 --> 00:08:56.600 I come to do your will Too often we try to make 00:08:56.600 --> 00:08:59.139 God's will a bargaining chip and we say God I 00:08:59.139 --> 00:09:04.320 will do your will if If you tell me in advance 00:09:04.320 --> 00:09:10.000 what it is Or if you give me this I'll do that 00:09:11.350 --> 00:09:16.450 But God does not bargain with His will. God wants 00:09:16.450 --> 00:09:19.809 us to commit ourselves to His will in advance 00:09:19.809 --> 00:09:24.490 of it. As the Messiah, that must be the predisposition 00:09:24.490 --> 00:09:29.509 of our hearts. Lord, Your will in my life, whatever 00:09:29.509 --> 00:09:33.990 the content may be. I know that there are some 00:09:33.990 --> 00:09:38.169 of you who have done that. But there are some 00:09:38.169 --> 00:09:44.509 of you who have never done that. I want to submit 00:09:44.509 --> 00:09:46.409 to you that you cannot live under the Lordship 00:09:46.409 --> 00:09:49.750 of Jesus Christ and have a question mark on your 00:09:49.750 --> 00:09:53.490 life about whether you will obey what He tells 00:09:53.490 --> 00:09:58.049 you to do. Jesus said, why do you call me Lord, 00:09:58.090 --> 00:10:04.649 Lord, and do not the things that I say? If we 00:10:04.649 --> 00:10:07.250 own Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord today, we 00:10:07.250 --> 00:10:10.570 are saying in essence, Lord, your will, whatever 00:10:10.570 --> 00:10:15.840 the content may be. As you and I come to Christmas 00:10:15.840 --> 00:10:19.559 and we celebrate it with meaning, I hope that 00:10:19.559 --> 00:10:21.379 we'll celebrate it with the same meaning that 00:10:21.379 --> 00:10:25.259 it had to Him. That in our celebration we are 00:10:25.259 --> 00:10:30.360 saying to our Lord, Your will, Jesus. Your will 00:10:30.360 --> 00:10:35.740 in my life, whatever that means. If it means 00:10:35.740 --> 00:10:41.940 going into the ministry. If it means teaching. 00:10:43.019 --> 00:10:46.379 If that means going overseas as a missionary. 00:10:48.480 --> 00:10:50.899 If it means being married. If it means being 00:10:50.899 --> 00:10:54.259 single. If it means having children. If it means 00:10:54.259 --> 00:10:58.259 having no children. If it means laying down my 00:10:58.259 --> 00:11:02.419 life as a martyr. Jesus, your will, whatever 00:11:02.419 --> 00:11:09.100 the content may be. What is the greatest fear? 00:11:09.529 --> 00:11:12.169 that you have regarding committing yourself to 00:11:12.169 --> 00:11:18.909 the will of God. Whatever that is, understand 00:11:18.909 --> 00:11:21.809 that that fear does not come from him. It comes 00:11:21.809 --> 00:11:25.429 from the enemy who does not want you to experience 00:11:25.429 --> 00:11:28.710 the will of God. He wants to rob you of that 00:11:28.710 --> 00:11:32.990 fulfillment and that sublimest of joy of doing 00:11:32.990 --> 00:11:35.649 the will of God. Don't allow him to do that. 00:11:36.230 --> 00:11:39.029 I urge you today, whatever that greatest fear 00:11:39.029 --> 00:11:41.750 is that you have of God's will, to face that 00:11:41.750 --> 00:11:47.049 head on. Today. So that you can go from this 00:11:47.049 --> 00:11:49.330 day onward into the Christmas season with that 00:11:49.330 --> 00:11:52.870 same spirit that our Savior had. I delight to 00:11:52.870 --> 00:11:55.889 do your will, Father. Whatever the content of 00:11:55.889 --> 00:12:00.289 it may be. Will you respond that way today? To 00:12:00.289 --> 00:12:09.039 the will of God in your life? Secondly, to Jesus 00:12:09.039 --> 00:12:14.320 Christ, Christmas means self -abasement. Self 00:12:14.320 --> 00:12:18.600 -abasement for others welfare, whatever the price. 00:12:21.600 --> 00:12:23.720 Turn back a few pages to the book of Philippians 00:12:23.720 --> 00:12:27.000 in the second chapter, please, for the key passage 00:12:27.000 --> 00:12:32.529 here. As we think about what Christmas means 00:12:32.529 --> 00:12:35.370 to God the Son, we must include this thought 00:12:35.370 --> 00:12:43.370 of self -abasement. Whatever the price, we are 00:12:43.370 --> 00:12:46.750 urged in verse 5 of Philippians 2, have this 00:12:46.750 --> 00:12:50.929 attitude in yourselves, which was also in Christ 00:12:50.929 --> 00:12:55.289 Jesus, who although He existed in the form of 00:12:55.289 --> 00:12:59.049 God, did not regard equality with God a thing 00:12:59.049 --> 00:13:03.870 to be grasped, but emptied himself, taking the 00:13:03.870 --> 00:13:06.409 form of a bond -servant, and being made in the 00:13:06.409 --> 00:13:09.870 likeness of men, and being found in appearance 00:13:09.870 --> 00:13:13.549 as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient 00:13:13.549 --> 00:13:17.070 to the point of death, even death on a cross. 00:13:18.070 --> 00:13:22.500 Therefore also God highly exalted him. and bestowed 00:13:22.500 --> 00:13:25.539 upon him the name which is above every name, 00:13:25.919 --> 00:13:29.080 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow 00:13:29.080 --> 00:13:33.720 of those who are in heaven and on earth and under 00:13:33.720 --> 00:13:36.340 the earth, and that every tongue should confess 00:13:36.340 --> 00:13:39.720 that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God 00:13:39.720 --> 00:13:43.980 the Father." Before his exaltation there was 00:13:43.980 --> 00:13:49.639 humiliation. There was his willing self -abasement. 00:13:50.220 --> 00:13:52.740 We learn in the first place here that Christ 00:13:52.740 --> 00:14:00.240 existed in the form of God. Verse 6. That is, 00:14:00.500 --> 00:14:03.519 He existed with the essential nature of deity 00:14:03.519 --> 00:14:11.240 itself. Here we have a statement that affirms 00:14:11.240 --> 00:14:15.279 what we call His pre -existence. That is, He 00:14:15.279 --> 00:14:18.320 did not begin at Bethlehem, but He existed before 00:14:18.320 --> 00:14:22.820 that. eternally before that, and he existed as 00:14:22.820 --> 00:14:30.379 God of very God. However, his attitude was one 00:14:30.379 --> 00:14:33.100 of willing sacrifice for the sake of others, 00:14:34.440 --> 00:14:38.000 for the sake of you and me. If you have a Ryrie 00:14:38.000 --> 00:14:41.259 Study Bible, you might be interested in the note 00:14:41.259 --> 00:14:43.899 that goes with verse 6 at the bottom of the page, 00:14:44.360 --> 00:14:49.799 where it describes this phrase, to be grasped 00:14:49.799 --> 00:14:53.240 from verse 6, which says he did not regard equality 00:14:53.240 --> 00:14:57.299 with God a thing to be grasped. Ryrie says this 00:14:57.299 --> 00:15:02.539 verse may be paraphrased and say it this way, 00:15:03.019 --> 00:15:06.600 who though of the same nature as God did not 00:15:06.600 --> 00:15:10.000 think this something to be exploited to his own 00:15:10.000 --> 00:15:16.149 advantage. You see, there's the point. As God, 00:15:16.269 --> 00:15:20.389 he did not consider that position something to 00:15:20.389 --> 00:15:25.850 exploit for his own advantage. In his self -abasement 00:15:25.850 --> 00:15:30.450 or his self -humbling, he renounced all of his 00:15:30.450 --> 00:15:36.669 self -interest. He laid aside his rights as deity. 00:15:38.509 --> 00:15:40.950 And the Apostle Paul goes on in these verses 00:15:40.950 --> 00:15:47.320 to describe to us three steps downward from his 00:15:47.320 --> 00:15:52.139 exalted position as the majesty on high. These 00:15:52.139 --> 00:15:54.980 steps, I think, challenge our human understanding. 00:15:56.379 --> 00:16:01.679 We grasp these statements, trying to understand 00:16:01.679 --> 00:16:04.759 them, but they're hard. But the first step downward 00:16:04.759 --> 00:16:07.320 is found in what it says in verse 7. He emptied 00:16:07.320 --> 00:16:10.519 himself. That's the real key thought here in 00:16:10.519 --> 00:16:14.440 this whole text. He emptied himself. That does 00:16:14.440 --> 00:16:17.220 not mean that he in any way diminished his deity. 00:16:17.279 --> 00:16:20.679 He did not become less God than he was before. 00:16:22.120 --> 00:16:26.200 But he made a choice on that day that he came 00:16:26.200 --> 00:16:31.440 to Bethlehem. A choice to limit the prerogatives 00:16:31.440 --> 00:16:37.240 that he enjoyed as God. He chose to set aside 00:16:37.240 --> 00:16:42.600 his visible glories. and to allow that to become 00:16:42.600 --> 00:16:49.000 veiled in human flesh. In so doing, he took upon 00:16:49.000 --> 00:16:53.320 himself the essential nature of a slave, it says, 00:16:54.720 --> 00:16:58.879 so that the great sovereign came into the world 00:16:58.879 --> 00:17:05.380 humbled as a servant, as a slave. He laid aside 00:17:05.380 --> 00:17:09.460 the prerogatives that he enjoyed as God. And 00:17:09.460 --> 00:17:14.559 he, secondly, incarnated himself. He was made 00:17:14.559 --> 00:17:19.680 in the likeness of men, it says. It says he was 00:17:19.680 --> 00:17:22.980 found in appearance as a man. Now what that means 00:17:22.980 --> 00:17:30.839 is that he was true man, fully human. But the 00:17:30.839 --> 00:17:33.779 language leaves room for his being more than 00:17:33.779 --> 00:17:37.700 that, for he was. For as well as being fully 00:17:37.700 --> 00:17:44.680 man he was holy God But he incarnated himself 00:17:44.680 --> 00:17:49.000 allowing that glorious deity to be veiled in 00:17:49.000 --> 00:17:55.660 our humanity Step number three he sacrificed 00:17:55.660 --> 00:18:00.900 himself He made the choice to be obedient to 00:18:00.900 --> 00:18:05.740 the point of death even to the agonizing, shameful 00:18:05.740 --> 00:18:11.279 death of the cross. Those are the three steps 00:18:11.279 --> 00:18:17.259 downward of this one who abased himself. What 00:18:17.259 --> 00:18:21.480 was his attitude about coming? Self -abasement. 00:18:21.880 --> 00:18:25.220 Setting aside self -interest for the welfare 00:18:25.220 --> 00:18:30.849 of others, whatever the price might be. So complete 00:18:30.849 --> 00:18:34.769 was his renunciation of self -interest that he 00:18:34.769 --> 00:18:40.349 gave himself completely, completely, for the 00:18:40.349 --> 00:18:44.769 sake of others. Some unknown writer has put it 00:18:44.769 --> 00:18:49.130 this way. He stepped from the measureless eons 00:18:49.130 --> 00:18:52.650 of eternity into the confinements of time and 00:18:52.650 --> 00:18:56.450 space. He laid aside the shining garments of 00:18:56.450 --> 00:19:00.069 glory. to be clothed in the flesh of a helpless 00:19:00.069 --> 00:19:04.670 infant. He left the immortal fragrances of heaven 00:19:04.670 --> 00:19:08.730 for a world sick with the scent of mortality. 00:19:10.069 --> 00:19:13.950 He turned his back on gem -studded mansions to 00:19:13.950 --> 00:19:17.589 live where he had no place to lay his head. He 00:19:17.589 --> 00:19:20.869 waved aside the Father's loving smile to walk 00:19:20.869 --> 00:19:25.349 with men who spat upon him. He moved away from 00:19:25.349 --> 00:19:29.529 a throne of honor to be nailed to a cross, which 00:19:29.529 --> 00:19:35.630 was his curse. That was his willing self -abasement 00:19:35.630 --> 00:19:41.109 and sacrifice for you and for me. As we come 00:19:41.109 --> 00:19:45.670 to our own Christmas celebration on earth, how 00:19:45.670 --> 00:19:48.710 can we think to celebrate Christmas and to forget 00:19:48.710 --> 00:19:53.140 what it meant to him? How can we claim to celebrate 00:19:53.140 --> 00:19:57.200 it and ourselves be living for ourselves and 00:19:57.200 --> 00:20:00.900 to forget the welfare of others? That's why Paul 00:20:00.900 --> 00:20:03.920 puts this particular doctrinal statement just 00:20:03.920 --> 00:20:06.799 where he does in the book of Philippians. For 00:20:06.799 --> 00:20:10.240 back up just a couple of verses to verse 3. For 00:20:10.240 --> 00:20:14.940 he says to us, do nothing from selfishness or 00:20:14.940 --> 00:20:20.460 empty conceit. But with humility of mind, let 00:20:20.460 --> 00:20:24.700 each of you regard one another as more important 00:20:24.700 --> 00:20:28.880 than himself. Do not merely look out for your 00:20:28.880 --> 00:20:32.400 own personal interests, but also for the interests 00:20:32.400 --> 00:20:35.140 of others. Have this attitude in yourselves, 00:20:35.220 --> 00:20:39.539 which was also in Christ Jesus. You and I are 00:20:39.539 --> 00:20:44.240 to imitate this attitude in action. Christmas 00:20:44.240 --> 00:20:48.650 is a time of getting, but Too often we allow 00:20:48.650 --> 00:20:55.329 the attitude of getting to dominate. That's because 00:20:55.329 --> 00:20:59.109 self abasement runs counter to everything that 00:20:59.109 --> 00:21:03.890 our culture preaches. Our culture says watch 00:21:03.890 --> 00:21:10.589 out for yourself. Live for yourself. The ethic 00:21:10.589 --> 00:21:14.769 that controls the culture of our world is duty 00:21:14.769 --> 00:21:21.519 to self. The highest good you can do is what 00:21:21.519 --> 00:21:29.160 is good for you. But Jesus Christ preaches just 00:21:29.160 --> 00:21:33.759 the opposite of that. He says sacrifice yourself. 00:21:36.099 --> 00:21:42.640 He says die to yourself. The world says duty 00:21:42.640 --> 00:21:50.000 to self. Jesus says death to self. It is a message 00:21:50.000 --> 00:21:53.480 that is absolutely contrary to what is preached 00:21:53.480 --> 00:21:57.299 to us from every other quarter in this day. That's 00:21:57.299 --> 00:21:59.480 why it's so hard for us to come to Christmas 00:21:59.480 --> 00:22:02.559 without thinking of getting, getting, getting. 00:22:06.079 --> 00:22:11.240 What does Christmas mean to the Son of God? It 00:22:11.240 --> 00:22:15.839 means giving. Giving oneself for the welfare 00:22:15.839 --> 00:22:21.450 of others, whatever the price may be. I'd like 00:22:21.450 --> 00:22:26.069 you to look also at Romans chapter 15 as we see 00:22:26.069 --> 00:22:30.869 another passage dealing with the same thought. 00:22:33.289 --> 00:22:38.809 Romans 15 and verse 1. Now we who are strong, 00:22:39.809 --> 00:22:44.349 that is, who are strong of conscience, ought 00:22:44.349 --> 00:22:48.349 to bear the weaknesses of those without strength, 00:22:48.869 --> 00:22:54.910 that is, the immature. the young, and not just 00:22:54.910 --> 00:22:59.750 please ourselves. Let each of us please his neighbor 00:22:59.750 --> 00:23:04.769 for his good, to his edification, for even Christ 00:23:04.769 --> 00:23:10.710 did not please himself." How do we know when 00:23:10.710 --> 00:23:17.269 our desires please ourselves or please Christ? 00:23:18.109 --> 00:23:21.819 Does this mean that anything that would please 00:23:21.819 --> 00:23:27.740 me must be laid aside and sacrificed? Is anything 00:23:27.740 --> 00:23:33.559 that pleases me sinful? No. That is not the meaning. 00:23:33.859 --> 00:23:37.900 How do we know when what we want is for our self 00:23:37.900 --> 00:23:42.000 in a sinful sense, or if it's for Jesus Christ 00:23:42.000 --> 00:23:46.319 and for ourselves, secondly, in a good and positive 00:23:46.319 --> 00:23:52.490 sense? It seems to me that if our minds are saturated 00:23:52.490 --> 00:23:56.589 with the Word of God, if we are living under 00:23:56.589 --> 00:24:01.849 the control of the Holy Spirit, if what we desire 00:24:01.849 --> 00:24:06.970 will bring true good to others also, then it 00:24:06.970 --> 00:24:10.450 is not sinful self that is involved in our decisions. 00:24:11.620 --> 00:24:14.059 That's why the psalmist was able to say as he 00:24:14.059 --> 00:24:17.200 does in Psalm 34, Delight yourself in the Lord 00:24:17.200 --> 00:24:20.539 and He will give you the desires of your heart. 00:24:24.519 --> 00:24:27.960 That is because your heart will form desires 00:24:27.960 --> 00:24:30.900 that are right if you're delighting in the Lord. 00:24:33.220 --> 00:24:36.000 So that when there are desires within myself, 00:24:37.319 --> 00:24:39.960 when I'm walking with God, those desires may 00:24:39.960 --> 00:24:45.809 be fulfilled. And it's not sinful. On the other 00:24:45.809 --> 00:24:50.650 hand, if I'm not walking with God, if what I 00:24:50.650 --> 00:24:54.210 desire will ignore others' welfare or will hurt 00:24:54.210 --> 00:24:58.730 others, if what I want to do for myself is for 00:24:58.730 --> 00:25:03.710 my ego trip, for my pride, my selfish advancement, 00:25:05.789 --> 00:25:10.400 then that self is sinful. And it needs to be 00:25:10.400 --> 00:25:18.119 abased, it needs to be renounced. It seems to 00:25:18.119 --> 00:25:20.799 me that an awful lot of the problems that we 00:25:20.799 --> 00:25:24.319 confront in our world is rooted in this matter 00:25:24.319 --> 00:25:30.279 of pleasing ourselves. So often that is the root 00:25:30.279 --> 00:25:36.240 of marital problems. Husbands and wives wanting 00:25:36.240 --> 00:25:42.700 to please themselves. and not please the other, 00:25:43.019 --> 00:25:47.740 but please Christ. That's why roommates run into 00:25:47.740 --> 00:25:51.680 problems. Isn't it interesting how God assigns 00:25:51.680 --> 00:25:54.819 roommates? Even when you think you've got it 00:25:54.819 --> 00:25:59.660 all figured out in advance. Even when you request 00:25:59.660 --> 00:26:04.079 that person that you're living with and three 00:26:04.079 --> 00:26:06.240 weeks later you've come to understand that other 00:26:06.240 --> 00:26:12.319 person a whole lot better. So often the conflicts 00:26:12.319 --> 00:26:15.460 of our lives come because we are not willing 00:26:15.460 --> 00:26:21.579 to abase ourselves for the sake of others. Our 00:26:21.579 --> 00:26:25.200 repeat is not always sinful to do what we want 00:26:25.200 --> 00:26:28.920 to do. If we're walking with God under the control 00:26:28.920 --> 00:26:32.240 of the Holy Spirit, if what we want to do will 00:26:32.240 --> 00:26:34.619 really minister to others and be for their good, 00:26:34.940 --> 00:26:38.359 then we need not be concerned about what we want 00:26:38.359 --> 00:26:43.250 to do as being sinful. How wonderful to delight 00:26:43.250 --> 00:26:45.849 ourselves in the Lord so that the desires of 00:26:45.849 --> 00:26:51.089 our hearts are what God wants. And we agree together 00:26:51.089 --> 00:26:54.269 and He fulfills those desires and we find what 00:26:54.269 --> 00:26:57.109 we want to be what He wants and we're satisfied 00:26:57.109 --> 00:27:01.430 and happy. What a great way to live. That's the 00:27:01.430 --> 00:27:05.710 way Jesus lived. Because as He stepped out of 00:27:05.710 --> 00:27:07.890 heaven to come down to this earth, as He laid 00:27:07.890 --> 00:27:11.490 aside that crown as we sang earlier, and came 00:27:11.490 --> 00:27:17.049 down, was born in that manger. That self abasement 00:27:17.049 --> 00:27:20.670 was exactly what He wanted. That was the desire 00:27:20.670 --> 00:27:23.910 of His heart. Why? Because He knew He was accomplishing 00:27:23.910 --> 00:27:26.549 what the Father wanted, and He was accomplishing 00:27:26.549 --> 00:27:30.970 our welfare. Now you go out and live the same 00:27:30.970 --> 00:27:37.190 way. You treat others in your family the same 00:27:37.190 --> 00:27:42.319 way. You treat your roommate the same way. Let 00:27:42.319 --> 00:27:45.599 that attitude be in you, which was also in Christ 00:27:45.599 --> 00:27:51.259 Jesus. And seek the good of others and not just 00:27:51.259 --> 00:27:56.500 yourself. The meaning of Christmas to Jesus Christ 00:27:56.500 --> 00:27:59.160 involves self -abasement for others welfare, 00:27:59.339 --> 00:28:01.619 whatever the price. Are you willing to pay the 00:28:01.619 --> 00:28:06.480 price? Sometimes we say, oh yes, I'll live for 00:28:06.480 --> 00:28:11.519 others. up to this point. Yes, Lord, I'll do 00:28:11.519 --> 00:28:16.500 it, but I won't pay that price. The price that 00:28:16.500 --> 00:28:19.299 Jesus was willing to pay for our good was his 00:28:19.299 --> 00:28:25.380 own death, even the cross death. Will you choose 00:28:25.380 --> 00:28:28.339 today to let Christmas mean to you what it did 00:28:28.339 --> 00:28:34.680 to Jesus Christ? Will you choose to die to your 00:28:34.680 --> 00:28:41.119 selfish self -interest? Will you nail to the 00:28:41.119 --> 00:28:47.140 cross your self -centeredness? After all, that 00:28:47.140 --> 00:28:49.660 self -centeredness that all of us struggle with 00:28:49.660 --> 00:28:54.059 in the end only means a small life, a miserable 00:28:54.059 --> 00:28:59.599 life. And yet we struggle to bring it to the 00:28:59.599 --> 00:29:02.500 cross and to nail it there and leave it there. 00:29:03.759 --> 00:29:06.259 But if Christmas is going to mean to us what 00:29:06.259 --> 00:29:10.099 it did to Jesus, it has to include this element 00:29:10.099 --> 00:29:21.279 of self abasement. Finally, to Jesus Christ, 00:29:21.980 --> 00:29:25.680 Christmas means identification. Identification 00:29:25.680 --> 00:29:30.900 with the world's wretchedness, whatever the burden. 00:29:32.109 --> 00:29:36.890 He himself was born into a poor family of an 00:29:36.890 --> 00:29:43.269 oppressed people. He was without personal or 00:29:43.269 --> 00:29:46.309 original sin and absolutely unique in that sense. 00:29:46.769 --> 00:29:50.089 And yet he took action in his life to identify 00:29:50.089 --> 00:29:54.710 with sinners over and over again. That was why 00:29:54.710 --> 00:30:00.109 he was baptized by John. That he might identify 00:30:00.109 --> 00:30:03.329 with the sinners who needed to be baptized with 00:30:03.329 --> 00:30:08.589 that baptism of repentance. That's why he chose 00:30:08.589 --> 00:30:12.549 to live where he did in Capernaum, that he might 00:30:12.549 --> 00:30:16.750 be located near sinners, both Jews and Gentiles. 00:30:17.710 --> 00:30:22.789 That's why he touched the lepers, because he 00:30:22.789 --> 00:30:28.309 was willing to identify with those who were unclean. 00:30:29.259 --> 00:30:32.920 He associated with those that society of that 00:30:32.920 --> 00:30:40.359 day called rejected. He was called a man of sorrows 00:30:40.359 --> 00:30:46.980 and acquainted with grief. He suffered as man. 00:30:48.359 --> 00:30:52.339 He was willing to identify with the world's wretched 00:30:52.339 --> 00:30:57.420 suffering. The sufferings that Jesus experienced, 00:30:57.680 --> 00:31:01.410 writes Donald Cole. during his incarnation included 00:31:01.410 --> 00:31:05.869 the internal and the external. Because he was 00:31:05.869 --> 00:31:08.569 sinless, he could not experience such things 00:31:08.569 --> 00:31:13.329 as pangs of conscience, delusions, anxiety, frustration 00:31:13.329 --> 00:31:16.230 over not having his own way, or the torment of 00:31:16.230 --> 00:31:19.549 hatred or revenge. Those kinds of sufferings 00:31:19.549 --> 00:31:24.269 are due directly to sin. Yet no human being was 00:31:24.269 --> 00:31:27.190 ever as sensitive to the suffering of others. 00:31:27.630 --> 00:31:31.250 And that element of his nature caused him great 00:31:31.250 --> 00:31:37.670 inner pain. Part of the pain and the sorrow of 00:31:37.670 --> 00:31:41.130 Jesus' life was the fact that he identified with 00:31:41.130 --> 00:31:45.430 you and me in our sin, in our wretchedness, in 00:31:45.430 --> 00:31:48.990 our misery. Whatever the burden, he was willing 00:31:48.990 --> 00:31:52.930 to associate with that, to identify with it, 00:31:53.170 --> 00:31:57.200 even to the point of in the passion, fully identifying 00:31:57.200 --> 00:32:23.009 with our sin. Donald Cole goes on to write, suffered 00:32:23.009 --> 00:32:26.289 on our behalf. It satisfies the demands of the 00:32:26.289 --> 00:32:29.450 law against us. Therefore he redeemed us from 00:32:29.450 --> 00:32:32.289 the curse of the law. The law has no further 00:32:32.289 --> 00:32:35.210 claims against sinners who turn to Christ in 00:32:35.210 --> 00:32:39.809 faith. He further says, Christ assumed responsibility 00:32:39.809 --> 00:32:44.890 for the wreck that mankind through sinning made 00:32:44.890 --> 00:32:49.609 of itself and of the world. The sinless one was 00:32:49.609 --> 00:32:53.460 treated as if he were sin, itself. He was treated 00:32:53.460 --> 00:32:57.480 by God as if he were cursed. Such humiliation, 00:32:57.740 --> 00:33:00.539 such intense suffering, such willing and loving 00:33:00.539 --> 00:33:05.579 sacrifice. We ought to fall at his feet and confess 00:33:05.579 --> 00:33:08.819 that he is Lord and Savior and all together lovely. 00:33:09.380 --> 00:33:12.779 As the hymn writer puts it, whatever curse was 00:33:12.779 --> 00:33:17.920 mine he bore, the wormwood in the gall. There 00:33:17.920 --> 00:33:27.859 in that lone mysterious hour If you and I are 00:33:27.859 --> 00:33:30.839 going to have the meaning of Christmas that Jesus 00:33:30.839 --> 00:33:34.359 had, then we must be willing to identify with 00:33:34.359 --> 00:33:40.559 those who are the rejected of our society, to 00:33:40.559 --> 00:33:44.180 those who are called unclean, to those who are 00:33:44.180 --> 00:33:51.000 the hurting and the searching. Around you students, 00:33:51.339 --> 00:33:54.099 there is someone who falls into that category. 00:33:55.700 --> 00:33:58.920 The one that is made fun of and mocked by others, 00:34:00.200 --> 00:34:04.319 who's hurting inside, that one needs the touch 00:34:04.319 --> 00:34:08.500 of Jesus through you. And in that office where 00:34:08.500 --> 00:34:14.280 you work, dear lady, gentlemen, in that office 00:34:14.280 --> 00:34:17.750 there is someone there who is hurting or who 00:34:17.750 --> 00:34:22.230 is rejected or who is called not wanted or who 00:34:22.230 --> 00:34:27.750 is searching. Those are the kinds of people that 00:34:27.750 --> 00:34:30.869 Jesus identified with. He associated with them. 00:34:30.989 --> 00:34:34.570 That's what Christmas means. He came down here 00:34:34.570 --> 00:34:37.050 and associated with people like you and me and 00:34:37.050 --> 00:34:43.719 our sin. As we come into Christmas, Let's approach 00:34:43.719 --> 00:34:45.679 it with that same meaning that we will touch 00:34:45.679 --> 00:34:48.420 the lives of others who need that touch of Him. 00:34:50.219 --> 00:34:53.920 There may be a neighborhood family, or an abused 00:34:53.920 --> 00:34:58.760 wife, or an abused child, or a homeless person, 00:34:59.420 --> 00:35:04.699 or some victim of injustice that you need to 00:35:04.699 --> 00:35:07.719 associate with, that you need to identify with. 00:35:08.269 --> 00:35:10.809 So that Christmas can have the same meaning for 00:35:10.809 --> 00:35:13.070 you that it had for Jesus when He identified 00:35:13.070 --> 00:35:21.309 with us. Christmas has meaning to us because 00:35:21.309 --> 00:35:25.449 of what it meant to Jesus. To Him it meant that 00:35:25.449 --> 00:35:28.809 He was willing to do the Father's will, whatever 00:35:28.809 --> 00:35:36.869 the content. Are you willing? To Jesus, Christmas 00:35:36.869 --> 00:35:41.000 meant that He was willing to humble himself to 00:35:41.000 --> 00:35:46.179 seek our welfare, whatever the price. Are you 00:35:46.179 --> 00:35:48.579 willing to seek the welfare of somebody else 00:35:48.579 --> 00:35:53.780 in the same way? To Jesus, Christmas meant that 00:35:53.780 --> 00:35:56.420 he identified with the world's wretchedness and 00:35:56.420 --> 00:35:58.800 sin that he might save sinners. Are you willing 00:35:58.800 --> 00:36:03.119 to identify with the world's wretched and seek 00:36:03.119 --> 00:36:09.460 to touch them for Christ? I want to ask you three 00:36:09.460 --> 00:36:13.659 questions. Will you today commit yourself to 00:36:13.659 --> 00:36:18.099 the Father's will, whatever the content may be 00:36:18.099 --> 00:36:21.440 for your life? Though you don't know, of course, 00:36:21.500 --> 00:36:25.280 what tomorrow holds, not to speak of that relationship 00:36:25.280 --> 00:36:28.599 that you're in or those dreams that you have. 00:36:29.519 --> 00:36:31.920 But however that turns out, are you willing to 00:36:31.920 --> 00:36:38.380 say today on this Sunday before Christmas? that 00:36:38.380 --> 00:36:41.159 you are willing to do the Father's will, whatever 00:36:41.159 --> 00:36:47.980 the content? And are you willing to commit yourself 00:36:47.980 --> 00:36:51.360 to the welfare of some other person in your life, 00:36:51.780 --> 00:36:57.019 whatever the price may be? Are you willing to 00:36:57.019 --> 00:37:05.980 humble yourself to abase what self wants in you 00:37:05.980 --> 00:37:08.929 for the sake of another? whatever the price, 00:37:09.550 --> 00:37:14.070 are you willing to identify with the world's 00:37:14.070 --> 00:37:17.050 wretched whatever kind of a burden that may be 00:37:17.050 --> 00:37:29.369 to you? To Christ, Christmas meant coming and 00:37:29.369 --> 00:37:34.389 to you this morning, Christmas means coming to 00:37:34.389 --> 00:37:39.320 this place of commitment. I'm going to ask you 00:37:39.320 --> 00:37:43.579 to bow with me in prayer as we close the service. 00:37:52.139 --> 00:37:54.239 Has there been some application that the Holy 00:37:54.239 --> 00:37:59.480 Spirit has brought to your life as we've thought 00:37:59.480 --> 00:38:01.739 about the meaning of Christmas to God the Son? 00:38:04.820 --> 00:38:08.320 What is your response to that application? What 00:38:08.320 --> 00:38:16.940 will you say right now? Lord, I pray that none 00:38:16.940 --> 00:38:19.199 of us will be able to leave this morning without 00:38:19.199 --> 00:38:22.980 making some application to our lives so that 00:38:22.980 --> 00:38:30.380 as we celebrate Christmas, we'll be able to celebrate 00:38:30.380 --> 00:38:34.639 it with something of the same meaning, Lord Jesus, 00:38:34.719 --> 00:38:41.320 that it has for you. And we pray this in your 00:38:41.320 --> 00:38:44.239 lovely name. Amen.