Jesus is Everything You Could Ever Hope for at Christmas
Luke 2:21-35
Dec 23, 2018 AM
Pastor Craig Ledbetter
Bible Baptist Church, Ballincollig, Cork, Ireland
I. Introduction (Luke 2:25-30)
A. What do most people think of the baby in the manger?
1. To many, He is a plastic or porcelain doll in a crib
2. To others, He is a past relic of an out of date religious belief
3. To some, He is a baby-god that never answers prayers
4. To still others, He is a Fairy tale story of an impossibility
5. Even an outright lie
6. And an inconvenience – interrupting and interfering with normal life
7. A source of bad memories and pain that seem to surround Christmas
8. To most people, that baby in a manger is DEFINITELY not someone to worry about. As shown by what is shown on everyone’s TV almost nonstop!
9. No wonder most people have replaced baby Jesus with a benevolent old man called Santa who gives them everything they want and ask for!
10. A U.K. survey carried out by the research firm OnePoll discovered that 38% of Britons between the ages of 21 and 28 (about 1 out of 3) did not know the identity of the baby in Christmas Nativity scenes. Fewer than 10% could name all three gifts given to the Lord Jesus by the wise men (gold, frankincense, and myrrh), and some even believed that Santa Claus is actually part of the Christmas story.
11. Ugh!
B. The question is NOT what Jesus means to you, or whether you even believe in Him, but who He actually is!
1. We wouldn’t know who He was, except for the fact that at every step, Mary’s new baby was not only being announced, but revealed as someone unlike any other baby ever born
2. The angels told all about Jesus
3. Elisabeth know who Jesus was even before he was born
4. The shepherds knew
5. The wise men knew “where is He that is born, King of the Jews?”
6. The scriptures foretold it all through the Prophets. (Isa 9:6,7) “For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever.”
C. There should be no doubt about what this newborn Child actually was
D. And yet 99% of all people today still don’t know who that baby actually was
1. How do I know this to be true?
2. Because, once you know just what that little baby is, your life will change
3. And you too will actually WORSHIP that Baby of Christmas like the wise men did, like the angels did, like the shepherds, and even John the Baptist in the womb of his mother Elisabeth did!
II. Background (Luke 2:22-25,36)
A. Joseph and Mary have just brought baby Jesus to the Temple in Jerusalem
1. Jesus is only 40 days old
2. Every first-born male child among the Jews was regarded as “holy” and belonging to the Lord. Exodus 13:2 Sanctify unto me all the firstborn, whatsoever openeth the womb among the children of Israel
3. So, they travelled the 8 miles from Bethlehem to Jerusalem to dedicate the life of their first-born son to the will of God
B. Along with Jesus, they brought two turtledoves as a sin offering
1. A sin offering because all of us (including both Joseph AND Mary) are sinners
2. They were too poor to bring a lamb for their sin (do you know how expensive a lamb is?) How funny though, that they actually had the LAMB of God in their arms!
3. And that Lamb was capable of paying off not only the sin debts of Mary and Joseph, but also everyone who will ever be born!
4. So they purchased two gentle birds called turtle doves as allowed by the Law of God
C. While passing through the Temple courtyard, two people run up to them
1. The first one is an elderly guy named Simeon
2. The other person was an old lady named Anna
D. Simeon stops right in front of Mary and Joseph and stares at the little baby in Mary’s arms
1. Simeon was not impressed with either Mary, or Joseph!
2. All he saw was that little baby in her arms!
3. You couldn't have diverted Simeon's attention away from that baby! He was mesmerized
4. Then, Simeon snatched that baby out of his parent's arms and swung Him around and around in such joy and excitement - imagine what Mary thought!
5. All Simeon could do was shout and praise God for a little baby named JESUS!
E. And then announced eight great truths about what kind of Child Jesus actually was!
1. Hey, forget the presents, tree, Christmas food, and even the family – Jesus was born!
III. Message – What Child Is This?
A. What Child is This?
That Baby is the Lord’s Christ (Luke 2:26) – The MESSIAH
1. It is a big deal
2. Simeon looks at that tiny baby and says, “THIS is the Christ!”
a. The world has desperately looked to political leaders for answers
b. To the very rich
c. To the very smart
d. But here, in the form of a Baby was ‘Messiah’!
3. What does that mean?
a. It means He is the Anointed One – Chosen by God
1) Not just some baby - But THE Baby
2) A special Child, not chosen to BE God, but chosen to fulfil all promises God ever made!
b. He is THE Promised One - He was the promised Messiah (John 1:41)
1) What we all so desperately needed, GOD was providing in the form of a Baby
2) God promised a Prophet greater than Moses
3) God promised a final and perfect Lamb to Abraham
4) God promised a Son to David that would reign forever on David’s throne
5) God promised Daniel a Stone that wold crush all nations and replace them with a perfect eternal kingdom
6) And God promised the world someone who could save it
7) That may mean nothing to you, but that means that Baby would be the answer to all of life’s problems
8) What did we need?
c. The DELIVERER from all enemies and all troubles and all sorrows
d.
The Answer to all of Life’s Problems - the
answer to every human need
Even to EVERY ONE OF YOUR AND MY NEEDS
1) Just at His presence in the world… (Isa 35:1-10)
a) The desert shall be made new and blossom as a rose
b) Everyone will see the glory of the Lord
c) The Weak will become strong
d) The Fearful will be encouraged
e) Justice and vengeance will reign – not crime
f) The eyes of the blind shall be opened
g) The ears of the deaf shall be unstopped.
h) The lame man leap as an hart/deer
i) The tongue of the dumb shall sing
j) There will be STREAMS in the desert
k) And an highway shall be there - The way of holiness
l) The redeemed shall walk there
m) And the ransomed of the LORD shall return [to God], and come to Zion with songs and everlasting joy upon their heads: they shall obtain joy and gladness, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away.
2) He was ALL the promises of God in one small package
3) All of that happened as Jesus entered into this world of ours and grew up and walked among men, and gave us everything He had!
e. Here was EMMANUEL - all of God Himself, contained in the small, frail life of a baby! (Mat 1:23) Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us.
f. And old Simeon knew it!
B. What Child is This?
That little Baby is Our Salvation (Luke 2:30,31)
1. That’s right! This little baby was going to save the world!
a. Not just deliver people from physical enemies, but from our greatest enemy - Sin
b. Salvation could never be found in a Temple, or Church, or School, or Prayer, or Belief
c. It is found ONLY in a frail, small, helpless looking Baby, born to save the whole world
d. That 8 day old baby was SALVATION itself
1) Luke 2:10,11 And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.
2) John 1:29 The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.
e. That little child of Bethlehem is salvation! Look no further! If you do, you will die in your sins!
2. Because, Salvation is something only Jesus can do
a. Born to actually keep all of God’s laws, to the letter – that is something none of us ever could do
b. Born to feel and know every sorrow, every pain, every struggle that we experience
c. Born to be a substitute – be judged and condemned in the place of the guilty
d. Born to die at the hands of sinful men, under the wrath of almighty God, so that anyone by faith can look to Him and in simple, child-like faith, believe in HIS saving power, can actually be born again!
3. And here was Simeon… holding Salvation in his trembling hands!!!
C. What Child is This?
He is God’s Light that Shines Even to the Gentiles (Luke 2:32)
1. That little baby was pure LIGHT!
a. He looked like a Baby, yes, but what He SAID and what He DID throughout His life was PURE LIGHT!
b. Isa 42:1 Behold my servant, whom I uphold; mine elect, in whom my soul delighteth; I have put my spirit upon him: he shall bring forth judgment (JUSTICE) to the Gentiles.
c. Isa 42:2 He shall not cry, nor lift up, nor cause his voice to be heard in the street.
d. Isa 42:3 A bruised reed shall he not break, and the smoking flax shall he not quench: he shall bring forth judgment unto truth.
e. Isa 42:4 He shall not fail nor be discouraged, till he have set judgment in the earth: and the isles shall wait for his law.
f. Isa 42:6 And then God says, I will “give thee for a covenant of the people, for a light of the Gentiles.”
2. We need LIGHT - lots of it
a. Constantly Sitting in darkness will hurt anybody
1) Studies have shown that people who live way up north, like in northern Finland and Iceland, and northern Alaska, battle serious depression simply because of so little daylight
2) The health of modern westerners is collapsing because so many stay indoors, and sit in darkened rooms with only the TV on!
3) People need a lot of light to stay healthy, and to even stay sane!!!
b. Light has a good effect on us – improves our moods, increases our health, allows us to think clearer, and enables us to see where we are headed
1) Long ago, ships needed strings of lighthouses to navigate near to shores at night or during storms, or were doomed to the rocks!
3. "Light", is one of the names of the Messiah in the Old Testament, as in:
a. Isa 60:1-3 Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the LORD is risen upon thee. For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people: but the LORD shall arise upon thee, and his glory shall be seen upon thee. And the Gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising.
b. John 8:12 Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.
4. The effect of the brightness of this Baby’s life would not just affect and change religious Jews, but even reach pagan, lost, Gentiles in the farthest island away (Matt 4:12-16)!
a. Mat 4:12 Now when Jesus had heard that John was cast into prison, he departed into Galilee;
b. Mat 4:13 And leaving Nazareth, he came and dwelt in Capernaum, which is upon the sea coast, in the borders of Zabulon and Nephthalim:
c. Mat 4:14 That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Esaias the prophet, saying,
d. Mat 4:15 The land of Zabulon, and the land of Nephthalim, by the way of the sea, beyond Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles;
e. Mat 4:16 The people which sat in darkness saw great light; and to them which sat in the region and shadow of death light is sprung up.
5. By the way, This thought was very offensive to the culture of the Jews!
a. That LIGHT was going to be given to the unworthy Gentiles!!!
b. It took time for even the apostles to accept such a doctrine (Act 10:18; Act 11:18)
c. It was over this very idea of Gentiles getting saved that controversies raged in the early church (Act 15:1-41; Gal 2:1-21).
6.
But that Baby was GOOD News for us all the way
up here in Hibernia!
I am so glad that God overrules people’s prejudices and limits on God!
D. What Child is This?
He is the Glory of God’s People, Israel (Luke 2:32,33)
1. This is awesome! That little baby was GLORIOUS! No halo, but amazing!
2. Listen to how the Apostle John describes the glory of Jesus.
a. Joh 1:14 And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.
b. Joh 2:11 This beginning of miracles did Jesus in Cana of Galilee, and manifested forth his glory; and his disciples believed on him.
c. 1Jn 1:1,2 That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life; (For the life was manifested, and we have seen it, and bear witness, and shew unto you that eternal life, which was with the Father, and was manifested unto us;)
3. He was more amazing than the temple
4. More glorious and beautiful and stunning than king’s palaces
5. He Himself is Israel’s perfection, splendour, beauty, wonder, brilliance, their success
a. Baby Jesus was the best Jew ever born
1) He was the perfect Jew
2) That made Him the perfect human
3) He lived His entire life like God had intended all men to live
4) King David was not as glorious as this little baby boy in Mary’s arms
5) King Solomon was not as glorious. A greater than Solomon was there
6) Moses, Isiah, Elijah, Samuel – none of them could hold a candle to that Baby!
b. That Baby was perfect wisdom Himself, righteousness, sanctification, and redemption (1Cor 1:30) But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption
6. If Jesus can make rebellious Israel something glorious…
7. He can make YOUR life glorious too!
a. The glory of Israel is Jesus
b. The only glory of Christians is… Jesus!
c. The best life we could ever know… is Jesus
d. The greatest Being we could ever worship… is Jesus
e. The highest calling we could ever accomplish is… to do His will!
f. The greatest knowledge we could ever know… is to know Him and love Him, and spend each day in fellowship with Him
E. What Child is This?
A Stumbling Stone - Jesus is Set for the Fall and the Rising Again of so many
in Israel (Luke 2:34,35) – and throughout the rest of the world!
1. Israel, as a people were far away from God
a. They had head knowledge – loads of teachings
b. Rituals and traditions and fancy ceremonies by the bucket-load
c. But they did not know God
1) Isa 45:5 “I am the LORD, and there is none else, there is no God beside me: I girded thee, though thou hast not known me:”
2) Jer 4:22 “For my people is foolish, they have not known me; they are sottish [dull, foolish, senseless] children, and they have none understanding: they are wise to do evil, but to do good they have no knowledge.”
3) John 16:3 Jesus said, “And these things will they do unto you, because they have not known the Father, nor me.”
d. And they could not know God until they had been humbled – brought down LOW
2. The purpose of that baby, as precious as He was, was to cause trouble! Like it or not
a. Not to make everyone’s life nicer and better and happier and more prosperous
b. But to humble and break every human heart of pride - To bring everyone to zero
1) To trip us and cause us to fall down
2) 1Pe 2:6-8 Wherefore also it is contained in the scripture, Behold, I lay in Sion a chief corner stone, elect, precious: and he that believeth on him shall not be confounded. Unto you therefore which believe he is precious: but unto them which be disobedient, the stone which the builders disallowed, the same is made the head of the corner, And a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offence, even to them which stumble at the word, being disobedient: whereunto also they were appointed.
3. That Baby in Simeon’s arms was a stumbling stone, that would cause people to trip and fall on their face when they encountered Him – why?
a. Because we are way too proud – every last one of us!
b. Because our pride is our biggest flaw – keeps us from being saved
c. So God has to embarrass us – humble us – break our pride
d. So that He can start over with us from the ground up – from zero
e. The same Stumbling Stone that brings us to our knees, and crumbles us, is what will raise up anyone’s life brand new!
F. What Child is This?
Jesus is a Sign to Israel that will be Rejected (Luke 2:34; Isaiah 53:3)
1. Who could ever reject a sweet brand newborn baby?
a. There is just something in every one of us that attracts us to a little baby
b. But the cuteness of baby Jesus soon wears off
c. People will not like the news that they are in trouble with God and in need of a Saviour
2. Every aspect of the life of Jesus was a sign of God’s presence and promises
3. But He will be spoken against, instead of accepted. Even call for crucifying him
4. Isa 53:3 He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not.
G. What Child is This?
Jesus will bring Pain that will hurt Mary deeply one day (Luke 2:35)
1. What a prophecy!
a. That this baby, that had been such a joy to have, being announced by angels, and was a priceless gift from God…
b. Would actually bring great pain and heartbreak to Mary
2. Mary will experience the worse thing a mother can ever experience - The death of her son before her eyes on the cross!
a. It will be so wrong what happens to that baby in the future.
b. There will be no justice to protect Him from all the people turning on Him and abandoning and rejecting and falsely accusing Him.
3. It will cut her like a knife
4. And Notice that Joseph won’t be around for her
a. That is a shocker to Mary – he is not mentioned at all
b. So, at some point JOSEPH would die and Mary would be left to raise 7 children alone (Mt 13:55,56)
H. What Child is This?
He is a powerful Revealer of Hearts – like a X-Ray machine (Luke 2:35)
1. Most of the time, babies bring out the BEST in people
a. Awwww how cute
b. Can I hold her?
c. Cuchi cuchi goo!
2. But this Baby is going to expose what is REALLY in people’s hearts
a. Sin - Jesus came to expose our sin. Jesus said in John 15:22, “If I had not come and spoken unto them, they had not had sin: but now they have no cloke for their sin.”
b. Unbelief – it is easy to be atheistic, agnostic, religious and not actually believe in anything but your self and a god of your own imagination!
c. Apathy - Jesus shows us that people really don’t want God, nor forgiveness, nor heaven
d. Or worship – like what was in Simeon’s heart!
3. What is in YOUR heart? That Baby named Jesus will expose you for what you are
a. Will you one day be exposed as a man or woman enslaved to your sin?
b. Or someone living in unbelief?
c. Or someone who just couldn’t care less about God or sin, or hell?
d. Or someone who loves and worships that name above all names – Jesus!
IV. Invitation
A. 99% of people today do not actually know who that baby actually was
B. So, OUR culture has replaced all that Jesus is, with:
1. A fairy-tale Santa, that loves wealthy people a whole lot more than poor people
2. Selfish Greed and guilt-buying that pleases western economies by bringing in 50% of all sales in the final month of the year
3. Twinkling electric lights and glitter that break and burn out
4. Christmas trees and expensive presents that never seem to satisfy
5. Drink and more drink
6. I think our world needs to discover again and again what Simeon knew!
C. This 1 ½ month old Child actually was - Everything you could ever hope for at Christmas
1. The Messiah – the Christ
2. Salvation Himself – no need to look to anything else
3. Light in such a dark world
4. The glory of Israel
5. A precious stone that first humbles and breaks, so that we can be born again
6. A sign of God’s commitment that will usually be rejected
7. A sorrow to Mary and to anyone who discovers what all that baby had to go through just because he loved sinners!!!
8. A revealer of your and my heart
D. These FACTS about this Baby enabled Simeon to die in peace. To know that his life was not a waste. That waiting for God to fulfil all His promises was worth it
E. What will you do with Him today?
F. Do YOU want to live a long life? Wold YOU like to have few regrets at its end?
1. Accept the Saviour AS HE IS. Not the Saviour we desire. Just believe on Him
2. Get to know Jesus – what He is, who He is
3. Worship Him and ONLY Him – to the exclusion of everything and everyone else