Christmas Calls You to Glory.

Steve Gentry

[0:09] I’m going to have a seat. [0:11] Welcome to Village Church. [0:12] If this is your first time here, my name is Steve, [0:13] one of the pastors here at Village Church. [0:15] And as always, I’m thankful and grateful [0:17] to see each and every one of you this morning.

[0:20] Got some friends that are gonna join me on stage. [0:22] Come on up. [0:24] Lead them, Owen. [0:24] You were born for it. [0:25] You were destined for this.

[0:30] You are all very underdressed, [0:31] and that must be so embarrassing for you compared to me. [0:35] And so I’m sorry you didn’t get the memo to wear a tux. [0:38] But my friends are up here this morning [0:40] because they’ve been working really hard [0:42] all of the holiday season.

[0:44] I know you guys have been working really hard. [0:46] And from the, between the Lottie Moon Christmas Market, [0:51] as well as all of them working illegal jobs [0:55] against child labor laws. [0:57] I own most of those factories. [0:59] But they have raised over $12,000

[1:04] for the Lottie Moon Christmas offering. [1:07] [1:08] Give them a hand. [1:09] That’s a combined effort of all of the kids [1:12] and village kids, all of their parents. [1:14] Just to put that in perspective,

[1:16] just our children raised more [1:18] for the Lottie Moon Christmas offering [1:20] than most entire SBC churches will all year. [1:23] And so give our kids another round of applause. [1:26] They have done such, such great things. [1:31] And did you have a few words you wanted to say?

[1:34] No, okay.

[1:36] What I wanna do right now is I want to pray to God [1:40] in using that money to reach the nations. [1:43] And then we’re gonna move on [1:45] and one of them is gonna preach. [1:47] I’m not sure which one of them, [1:48] but we’ll figure that out while we pray.

[1:51] Pray with me. [1:52] Father, we are so grateful this morning for our kids. [1:56] But we are so thankful for the gospel [1:59] and so thankful that you’ve given us a kids ministry [2:04] where they’ve got a heart to see people [2:05] hear the name of Jesus.

[2:08] Lord, first I wanna pray for these kids. [2:10] Lord, give them faith in your son Jesus Christ. [2:13] All of the kids, use our kids’ workers [2:16] to preach the gospel and word and deed to them. [2:19] But Lord, also bless the efforts [2:22] that they have put into place to raise money

[2:24] to reach the nations with the gospel. [2:27] Lord, we’re so thankful for what you’ve done through them, [2:29] God, we thank you so much. [2:31] More than 12,000, we pray that you will use [2:33] every dime of that so that people all over the world [2:38] can hear the name of Jesus Christ

[2:40] through the International Mission Board. [2:42] Lord, bless these kids, bless this money, [2:45] bless our church, bless the nations as you’ve promised [2:48] to do from the book of Genesis forward. [2:51] Thank you, Lord. [2:52] In the name of Jesus, I pray, amen.

[2:55] Thanks for joining me, guys, thank you so much.

[2:59] Well, at the end of the service, [3:01] we’re going to take up, oh, you guys are staying?

[3:05] You guys, you can stay, it’s gonna get [3:07] really uncomfortable for me if you do, though.

[3:13] Big dreams, big dreams.

[3:16] But at the end of the service, [3:18] we will take up another offering, [3:20] I promise, it’s not all about money today, [3:22] but we’re gonna take up our legacy offering, [3:25] this is something that we do every year, [3:27] and so we just ask that if you’ve been blessed

[3:29] by Village Church this year, [3:31] that you would consider giving. [3:33] 100% of this offering is going to be used in a unique way [3:36] because we’re at a unique place in our ministry this year, [3:40] but it’s going to be used [3:41] to build our next generation building.

[3:44] You know, I preached a few weeks ago [3:45] that our goal is to build our church out [3:48] for the next generation. [3:50] Our desire is not just to be kind of consumers [3:54] where Village Church is concerned, [3:55] but we want to have an outlook

[3:57] that God is going to use this church [3:59] for generations to come. [4:01] And if you’ve been back in our kids’ wing recently, [4:05] you know that we are maxed out on space. [4:07] You go back there and we’ve filled every room. [4:10] All of the rooms outside of this in the foyer

[4:13] are used for kids’ ministry here at Village Church, [4:15] and we know that we need to expand our facilities [4:19] in order to make disciples of the next generation. [4:22] Just to put it bluntly, we’re desperate for more, [4:24] you know, quote unquote, kid space, [4:26] but we’re also in need of education space

[4:28] for our student ministry that meets on Sunday nights, [4:31] for our homeschool ministry [4:33] that meets here every single Wednesday, [4:35] as well as our new initiative [4:37] with Reformed Baptist Institute. [4:39] And so we’re gearing to really be who we say we are,

[4:43] that we want to make disciples of as many people as possible, [4:47] and that extends beyond our lifetime. [4:49] And so we’re trying to outfit our church [4:51] for the next generation, but to do that, [4:53] I don’t know if you’ve tried to build recently, [4:55] but it’s not the cheapest thing in the world to do,

[4:57] and us building this home base [4:59] for training the next generation of disciples, [5:02] of pastors, of even church planters [5:04] to impact the entire world with the gospel [5:07] does come with a price. [5:09] And so at the end of this sermon,

[5:11] we’re going to take up an offering. [5:13] Of course, the QR code will be up there. [5:16] I know for some of you, you’re like, [5:17] I don’t carry cash, I don’t carry checks. [5:20] Do you have a place I can swipe? [5:21] No, I got something better.

[5:23] I’ve got a QR code [5:24] where you can just give us everything you’ve got, all right? [5:27] Right in the convenience of your chair, on your phone. [5:31] And so throughout the sermon, [5:32] if you haven’t thought before, [5:33] ask God how generous He would like you to be.

[5:37] But you know, we’re in the final week. [5:39] The final countdown for Christmas has begun. [5:42] I was looking at our Christmas calendar yesterday. [5:45] Yesterday was five days before Christmas. [5:46] What is today? [5:47] Four days before Christmas.

[5:48] What happened in 2025? [5:50] I still remember the outfit I was wearing last year [5:52] for this service. [5:54] And so it’s crazy that Christmas is this week. [5:59] And so for many of you, [6:00] the last few weeks has been filled with parties,

[6:02] it’s been filled with shopping, [6:04] it’s been filled with touring, [6:06] all the tacky lights, the gifts, [6:08] all types of festivities. [6:10] Some of you have gained anywhere between five and 50 pounds [6:15] since Thanksgiving Day.

[6:17] But some of you, this is just the best Christmas ever. [6:20] You’re having the time of your life right now. [6:23] And I also know that others of you [6:24] are limping into this week. [6:27] And really, your desire is that this week [6:29] would just be over.

[6:30] But I wanna talk about today [6:32] is why the objective reality of what Christmas is about [6:37] should, in fact, make this season a season of joy, [6:41] regardless of the situation you find yourself in, [6:45] regardless of the just circumstances [6:47] that this Christmas may find you,

[6:49] whether it’s the circumstances [6:51] that you’ve always dreamed of [6:52] or whether you’re just looking at your life circumstances [6:55] and you’re like, this is less than stellar. [6:57] This is not what I thought this Christmas season, [7:00] this year, this season, this decade was going to be like.

[7:05] And I wanna talk about why, if you anchor yourself [7:08] to the objective reality of what God has done [7:12] through the person and work of Jesus Christ, [7:15] this can be a great Christmas, and not just great Christmas. [7:19] This can just be a great life, [7:20] regardless of what the circumstances throw at you.

[7:24] You know, sometime during the eighth, the ninth century, [7:28] an unknown composer penned a song called Veni Emanuel, [7:34] which in 1851 was translated into what we’ve come to know [7:39] as O Come, O Come, Emanuel, [7:42] a song that centers on the Old Testament promise [7:46] of Isaiah chapter seven, verse 14,

[7:48] that God would send a sign of salvation. [7:52] Now, every verse of this song contains a biblical promise [7:56] of the coming Son of God, [7:57] and what I want to emphasize this morning [8:01] is that Christmas calls you to glory [8:04] because God has fulfilled all of his promises

[8:06] through his Son, Jesus Christ, [8:09] whose miraculous birth is what you need to understand [8:12] is what your Christmas is all about. [8:16] And so I wanna read this promise from Isaiah 7, 14, [8:18] and then unpack it for the next few moments. [8:22] The prophet wrote, he said,

[8:24] Therefore, the Lord himself will give you a sign. [8:28] Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, [8:32] and shall call his name, Emmanuel. [8:36] Number one, this morning, [8:38] I hope to tell you that Christmas is about an event [8:41] more than a feeling.

[8:43] Christmas is about an event more than a feeling. [8:48] That if you will seek more than a feeling [8:52] through this season, you can have absolute, unshakable joy [8:58] regardless of where life finds you. [9:01] And so when I talk about Christmas calling us to glory, [9:04] what I wanna talk about is this historic move of God

[9:08] to bring himself glory through Jesus, [9:11] this child born of a virgin, no room in the inn, [9:16] laid in a manger, shepherds called to come see him, [9:20] the rest of his life, the most historic life [9:24] in the face of the earth, yet.

[9:29] That was not the beginning of his life. [9:32] If you’re a follower of Christ, I hope you realize [9:35] that this is the eternal son of God. [9:38] This is God, the creator of heaven and earth, [9:41] the one who is, who was, who always will be, [9:45] has no beginning, has no end, born that day into this world.

[9:53] You know, there’s so much sentimentality and nostalgia [9:56] about the Christmas season. [9:59] From the desire that many of you parents have to see [10:02] just the look of joy in your child’s face [10:05] as they open the gift that they’d been wanting all year, [10:10] the hope that a family gathering

[10:11] will reconcile old differences [10:14] and not devolve into bringing up the old differences. [10:19] We watch movies, we eat lots and lots of food, [10:22] we look at lights, we enjoy the company of people [10:26] in a search for this feeling. [10:31] Maybe it’s a feeling that you used to have,

[10:33] maybe it’s a feeling that you hope to maintain, [10:36] but all of your hopes and dreams tend to be about that day [10:40] and feeling a certain way that maybe you felt [10:43] sometime in your life, and here’s the deal. [10:47] All of that is fine, in theory.

[10:52] But life has a way of constantly showing you [10:56] that feelings fade. [10:59] The experience doesn’t always happen. [11:03] Your measure of the way that your family is supposed to act [11:07] isn’t always reached.

[11:12] Food, believe it or not, doesn’t always taste as good [11:16] as it did when you were eight years old, [11:18] and your stomach certainly won’t. [11:20] But the fact is that if all that you have are feelings, [11:26] then quite frankly, your experience of Christmas [11:30] will not generate lasting, real, objective joy.

[11:37] But if joy can transcend feeling [11:41] and can transcend experience to something objective, [11:46] something unchanging, something unshakable,

[11:52] then what you will experience is a bit of the glory of God [11:56] that is vital for each one of us to follow Him faithfully [12:01] through every season of our lives. [12:04] Now Isaiah 714 is a text that was written somewhere [12:07] around 700 years before the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem.

[12:13] And if Isaiah was specifically pointing [12:16] to the birth of Jesus in this text, which I believe he was, [12:20] then the truth is you cannot overstate its significance [12:23] in the history of the world, [12:24] and you must consider the implications of God revealing [12:31] to a prophet more than 700 years earlier,

[12:35] the birth of this specific child. [12:40] Now some would deny that Isaiah [12:42] is referring to Mary and Jesus. [12:46] This reduces the impact of one term in the text [12:50] to meaninglessness. [12:52] And that term is the term sign.

[12:56] One of the terms in the text that we don’t really look [12:59] at very much, we don’t think about it very much, [13:01] because we look at the virgin later in the passage, [13:03] God with us later in the passage. [13:05] But remember, all of that is qualified by the promise [13:09] that the birth of this child would be a sign.

[13:15] And the critics would say that the impact of that term sign [13:19] was meant to be a contemporary of Isaiah. [13:23] And so this is something that was going to take place [13:25] in the life of Isaiah. [13:28] And so to help us kind of unpack what are we talking about, [13:33] I wanna bring in Matthew chapter one, verses 22 and 23.

[13:37] The disciple of Christ, the apostle, Matthew wrote this. [13:41] After the angel speaks to Joseph, [13:45] all this took place to fulfill what the Lord had spoken [13:48] by the prophet, behold, the virgin shall conceive [13:53] and bear a son and they shall call his name Emmanuel, [13:55] which means God with us.

[13:59] And as I said, in this text, a personal disciple, [14:02] an apostle of Jesus, someone who walked with Jesus [14:06] during his earthly ministry, makes a direct claim [14:10] about Isaiah 7, 14, and he’s saying that text referred [14:14] to Jesus and he uses the term virgin [14:17] to describe Mary’s birth.

[14:20] Now critics claim that by stating that Matthew [14:24] interprets it virgin is erroneous, [14:27] because they’re saying Matthew was actually wrong [14:29] in his interpretation. [14:31] The claim is that Matthew did not use the specific term [14:38] Bethulah, which is the specific term in Hebrew for virgin.

[14:43] That’s not what Matthew was translating. [14:44] They say Matthew mistranslated because Matthew’s [14:47] referring to the Septuagint, which is the Greek [14:51] interpretation translation of the Old Testament, [14:55] which uses the term Alma, which is what Isaiah actually said, [15:01] but misinterprets it to be virgin

[15:02] when it should have just said young maiden. [15:06] Because Alma does not specifically mean virgin. [15:10] Alma means a young woman of a marryable age. [15:15] And so critics use that to argue that Matthew [15:18] was either lying or basing his interpretation [15:22] from what I said, that Greek Septuagint translation,

[15:25] which by the way, was written over 200 years [15:29] before the birth of Christ rather than the Hebrew. [15:33] Now in response to that, we must understand [15:35] that there are no examples of the use [15:39] of the Hebrew term Alma in the Bible or beyond [15:44] that would not at minimum infer virginity of the woman.

[15:51] And so the question then, if you’re a good translator, [15:55] should be why use that term instead [15:58] of the technical term Bethulah? [16:01] To put it simply, what it seems to be [16:03] that Isaiah was doing is, is he was using the term Alma [16:08] to specify the sign.

[16:11] And what I mean by that is the use of the term Alma [16:15] distinguishes between a three-year-old virgin [16:19] and a woman of a marryable age who would have been a virgin. [16:24] Isaiah used this to distinguish [16:26] between a 70-year-old woman of marryable age [16:31] and a woman just reaching adulthood of marryable age.

[16:36] So rather than being ambiguous, [16:39] Isaiah is actually being more specific [16:43] in the terminology that he uses. [16:45] And more than that, secondly, even if Isaiah, [16:48] or excuse me, even if Matthew is basing his quotation [16:52] on the Septuagint, that actually only serves

[16:56] to prove the case that there was a historic precedent [17:01] to translate Alma as a virgin. [17:04] Further, as someone who spent a significant amount [17:07] of personal time with Jesus Christ, [17:10] Matthew had firsthand knowledge [17:12] of Jesus’s own narrative of his life,

[17:16] details of his childhood, details of his birth, [17:20] as well as Jesus’s own interpretation [17:23] of Old Testament prophecy. [17:27] And so what that does is it builds a case to say [17:30] that we can actually take Matthew 1, 22 through 23 [17:33] to be the authoritative interpretation of Isaiah 7, 14,

[17:38] not to mention the fact that if Jesus Christ [17:40] actually did rise from the dead, [17:43] well, that’s the whole ballgame right there.

[17:47] But so the fact is that God planned to showcase his glory [17:52] through this most miraculous birth. [17:57] Even without Matthew 1, 22 through 23, [17:59] we still have that promise from Isaiah, a sign. [18:04] Now, if Isaiah did not mean virgin, [18:08] then that begs the question.

[18:11] How would it be a sign? [18:13] How would you even be sure if the sign had taken place? [18:18] Was Isaiah or someone else supposed to be able [18:20] to decipher a married woman who has a normal [18:23] biological birth as the fulfillment of a sign? [18:28] Were they just supposed to weed through

[18:30] all of the natural biological births of married couples [18:34] in contemporary Isaiah’s lifetime to say, [18:37] hey, were any of these babies born [18:39] where you heard an angel singing over it?

[18:43] That doesn’t even make sense. [18:45] And so it’s clear that when Isaiah is writing the text [18:49] under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, [18:51] just the fact that it claims to be a sign [18:53] means that it is going to be an obvious miraculous birth. [19:01] But the critics obviously have no answers to such retorts.

[19:05] So the answer is, of course, [19:07] that the sign was going to be obvious. [19:09] A young woman of marriageable age [19:12] who was not in fact married and was a virgin [19:15] and had never been with a man [19:16] would miraculously become pregnant with Emmanuel,

[19:21] God with us. [19:23] This is the sign of God’s glory [19:27] being born into the world of man. [19:32] And so because of that, number two this morning, [19:34] I want you to understand that the hope of Christmas [19:36] is found in God keeping his promises.

[19:40] If you want unshakable joy this Christmas, [19:44] here’s the deal, I hope you get all the gifts [19:46] that you want.

[19:49] I hope your kids aren’t brats on Christmas Day.

[19:54] I hope you don’t get a stomach ache [19:56] because of all of the food that you eat. [19:58] I hope that you have all of the sentiment. [20:01] I do hope that Home Alone is just as funny [20:04] on the 300th viewing as it was on the first viewing. [20:08] I really do hope that for you.

[20:10] I do not want you to have a less than Christmas season. [20:14] I want you to have a great Christmas. [20:17] But I will still say even if you have the best Christmas [20:20] that you’ve ever had in your life, you’re still missing it. [20:23] If you do not anchor your joy to the object of reality, [20:29] that you will receive a sign.

[20:32] And the birth of Jesus Christ is the sign [20:35] that God came into the world to save sinful man [20:40] and redeem you from your sin forever. [20:43] That’s what I mean by an objective joy [20:46] that we have real hope because God is who he says he is. [20:51] He did what he said he would do

[20:53] and he will redeem you from your sin [20:56] if you will put your faith in his son, Jesus Christ. [20:59] Because Jesus is the ultimate revelation of God’s glory.

[21:04] We often as Christians use the phrase, the glory of God. [21:09] We must though ensure that we actually understand [21:12] the terms that we use so that it won’t be used [21:16] to refer to things that aren’t actually glorious. [21:20] Biblically, glory is a concept [21:22] that conveys a type of weight of splendor from God.

[21:29] And glory really is something that only God himself can do [21:32] because throughout the scriptures, [21:34] every time glory is mentioned, [21:36] it is about God manifesting his presence among us. [21:39] It is about the weight of God’s presence before us. [21:44] And so biblically then, glory is a reference

[21:47] to something that only God can reveal [21:49] and you better hope he reveals it to you [21:51] because you were created to experience glory. [21:54] And so that’s what Isaiah 7, 14 is getting at [21:57] and that very last stanza when he says, God with us,

[22:03] Emmanuel, it’s because God was bringing his presence [22:07] into the world in a way that we’d never known previously. [22:12] In Luke chapter two, that narrative of the actual events [22:16] of the birth of Jesus Christ, [22:19] when the angels appear to the shepherds in the field, [22:23] first they have to tell them not to be afraid.

[22:24] And that’s fascinating because we don’t think about glory [22:27] and fear in the same sentence, [22:28] but the weight of the splendor of God for sinful man [22:33] is a terrifying thing. [22:36] And so the full fledged glory of God on display [22:39] is a thing that could and should be fearful

[22:44] if you are dead in your sins. [22:46] But look at verses 10 and 11, [22:47] the angel said to the shepherds, fear not for behold, [22:50] I bring you good news of great joy [22:53] that will be for all the people. [22:55] For unto you is born this day in the city of David,

[23:00] a savior who is Christ the Lord. [23:04] Then a few verses down in verse 14, [23:06] they sing glory to God in the highest [23:09] and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased. [23:14] You see, the glory of God doesn’t necessarily bring peace. [23:18] As I said, it could bring terrible news of wrath.

[23:23] But in this instance, the angels say the way [23:27] that God is manifesting his presence through God the Son [23:30] is not something that brings terror, [23:33] but rather it’s something that brings great peace [23:37] for those with whom he is pleased. [23:40] See, some ask why he was named Jesus instead of Emmanuel.

[23:47] And you may think, ah, there’s a flaw in our program here. [23:50] Why did they name him Jesus? [23:52] Well, simply put, he would be called God with us. [23:55] That’s just his identity. [23:57] That’s who he was. [23:58] He is God the Son.

[24:00] But the glory was not limited [24:02] to just his presence in human form. [24:06] He was named Jesus, which by the way is a transliteration [24:11] of Yeshua or Joshua. [24:13] And that literally means the Lord is salvation. [24:19] And so what God’s presence through Christ

[24:23] was not just something that we look at. [24:26] No, instead there was a mission to save. [24:29] And the purpose was to experience greater glory [24:32] through his missional presence [24:34] rather than just a mere static presence. [24:38] And so God became a human being to save us

[24:42] and to secure for us this glory of Emmanuel forever. [24:49] It’s a world changing application [24:52] that this name, Emmanuel brings to us. [24:55] And further in Isaiah, I just wanna show you [24:58] how he wields this glory. [25:00] In Isaiah 22, 22, it is stated that the responsibility

[25:04] of ruling the kingdom of David [25:07] would be upon Emmanuel’s shoulders. [25:12] I will place on his shoulder the key of the house of David. [25:15] He shall open, none shall shut. [25:17] He shall shut, none shall open. [25:21] The opening and shutting is a reference to the authority.

[25:24] The people with whom God is pleased in Luke 2, 14 [25:28] are the people who would have faith in Christ, [25:30] the people who would experience the benefit of the opening. [25:36] Then in Matthew 16, 19, it’s revealed that Jesus [25:40] would be using his eternal authority through his church. [25:43] I will give you the keys to the kingdom of heaven.

[25:46] And here it is, whatever you bind on earth [25:48] shall be bound in heaven. [25:49] Whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. [25:52] The opening and the shutting, the shutting and the opening.

[25:57] This is the spreading of his glory over the earth [26:01] through the proclamation of the good news [26:04] that the Lord is salvation [26:06] and he’s given it through Jesus Christ. [26:09] Then further in Revelation 3, verse 7, [26:12] we have another connection to the keys of the authority

[26:14] for the church throughout all history [26:16] with Jesus being the king on the throne. [26:19] The angel said to the church in Philadelphia, [26:22] the words of the Holy One, the true one, [26:25] who has the key of David, here it is again, [26:27] who opens and no one will shut,

[26:29] who shuts and no one opens. [26:32] You see friends, the fulfillment of the promises of God [26:36] through Jesus, it’s not just mere sentiment [26:42] for us to gain a feeling through this season. [26:46] No, it’s an objective anchor of hope [26:49] for us to build a life upon

[26:51] that the one who has the authority to open eternity [26:55] and to close eternity has promised through his work [27:00] and his work alone that he has opened it [27:03] if you will put your faith in him forever.

[27:08] Jesus has the keys to an eternal kingdom [27:11] that is over every other kingdom [27:15] that has ever or will ever exist on this earth [27:20] and it is only if you anchor your Christmas [27:23] and your life to that that you will understand [27:28] what Christmas is really all about.

[27:31] Here’s number three this morning, [27:32] Christmas is a celebration of God’s mission of glory. [27:37] Christmas is a celebration of God’s mission of glory.

[27:44] Jesus is God made flesh, [27:46] that’s what it means the incarnate Christ. [27:49] God became a real living breathing human being. [27:54] We sang earlier Silent Night [27:56] and the concluding stanza repeats, [27:59] Jesus, Lord at thy birth.

[28:03] What I love about that text is that it zooms in [28:06] on that baby in a manger [28:08] but then doesn’t treat him as such, does it? [28:10] No, it proclaims his lordship. [28:14] I don’t know if you’ve ever seen a baby [28:16] but that’s not the usual thing you would say about a baby.

[28:20] Babies are fairly helpless, [28:21] I don’t know if you know this or not, [28:22] they don’t know how to do anything except cry [28:26] which is really nothing more than a mechanism [28:29] so that we will know when to feed them, [28:31] when to change them because they’re helpless

[28:33] and God intuits in them to do that [28:36] when they need someone else. [28:38] But it says of Christ that in that state,

[28:43] he was no less Lord than after his resurrection [28:48] he was Lord. [28:49] No, in that state, Jesus, Lord at thy birth. [28:56] Now it’s not making a chronological claim [28:58] that that was the moment he became Lord, [29:00] no, it’s a theological statement to say,

[29:05] do not mistake this as just a child in a manger [29:10] who needs to be fed, who needs to be changed. [29:14] No, he was, is and always will be the eternal Lord [29:20] of heaven and earth which makes that miracle [29:23] even more remarkable the more that you think about it. [29:27] But this did not change his status whatsoever.

[29:31] He was fully man, yet at the same time,

[29:38] fully eternal God. [29:41] Jesus did not grow into his deity. [29:45] He did not become God at the resurrection. [29:50] He did not age into royalty or authority. [29:53] No, his Lordship is intuitive to who he has always been [29:59] and always will be.

[30:00] He’s the eternal Lord over heaven and earth. [30:03] God the son, the second member of the Trinity, [30:07] he is God with us.

[30:12] We cannot reduce it to the sentiment of a cute baby [30:18] in a manger. [30:20] It’s so much more than that. [30:22] John 1, 14 states that the word became flesh [30:27] and dwelt among us and then he makes a statement [30:29] and we have seen his glory.

[30:33] Glory as of the only son from the Father [30:37] full of grace and truth. [30:42] That’s a fascinating thing biblically to think about [30:44] because if you go back to Exodus 33, [30:48] Moses was told he could not behold the glory. [30:52] He was told that if God revealed his glory before him,

[30:56] it would actually destroy him, he would die. [30:59] Moses could not survive the impact [31:02] of seeing the glory of God, [31:06] yet John 1, 14 states that the word became flesh, [31:12] the ultimate revelation of the presence of God. [31:15] That’s what it means when he’s saying, Logos.

[31:17] He’s saying that he came and we beheld his glory.

[31:24] That’s an amazing picture when we think about the child. [31:28] That right there in that manger is the glory of God, [31:33] the glory as of the only son from the Father [31:37] full of grace and truth because it shines a spotlight [31:42] on the problem that Moses had [31:45] and the problem that Jesus was born to eradicate.

[31:50] And that is the separation between God and man [31:57] based on my sin against God and your sin against God [32:02] and the eternal wrath that I and you and all of us [32:08] deserve to experience because of it. [32:12] The grace and truth of Jesus Christ [32:15] are seen in the purpose for which he came.

[32:21] I love it in the book of John later, Jesus says, [32:23] well, I came to judge. [32:24] It’s like, well, that’s not the Jesus I wanna think. [32:26] I like the hippie Jesus. [32:28] Jesus says a lot of piffy quotes that are inspirational. [32:30] Now Jesus says, for judgment I have come.

[32:32] And it’s fascinating because if all that you know [32:35] about Jesus is that statement, [32:37] well, that’s a fear-filled statement, why? [32:38] Because I deserve judgment. [32:39] I deserve a heaping load of eternal judgment. [32:43] But then the good news of his judgment

[32:46] is what Jesus was meaning by that is Jesus came [32:49] to take all of the judgment onto himself.

[32:54] That’s the grace.

[32:57] The grace of Jesus Christ is that he did come to judge sin, [33:01] but in love he went to the cross [33:04] and he drank up every ounce of the wrath of God [33:08] for your sin and for mine. [33:13] Now the truth, just as important, [33:18] because the truth is is that if you reduce the identity

[33:21] of who Jesus is to just a wise teacher, to just a sage, [33:27] to just a guy who did a remarkable thing [33:30] in a small town many years ago, [33:33] then you cannot have the grace [33:35] because the identity is why he met the standard [33:40] to drink up every ounce of that wrath.

[33:44] He is the ultimate revelation of the eternal God [33:48] because that’s who he is. [33:49] He is God with us.

[33:54] And so faith in Jesus Christ [33:56] actually makes us recipients of glory. [34:01] If you go back to Isaiah, in Isaiah 9, 6, [34:05] we can see a picture of this work of reconciliation. [34:09] I love this text. [34:13] For to us a child is born, to us a son is given,

[34:18] and here is the authority again. [34:20] The government shall be on his shoulder [34:23] and his name shall be called wonderful, counselor, [34:26] mighty God, everlasting Father, Prince of peace. [34:34] The very thing the angels said Jesus was born to bring us. [34:39] God did not intend the world

[34:45] to eternally suffer under the curse of sin, [34:48] nor did he intend to condemn all of his creation [34:52] under his wrath, even if it might feel that way sometimes.

[34:57] A gift of this child, [35:01] he would bear the responsibility of ruling [35:05] and reigning the throne of David over all the earth [35:10] for all eternity, and here’s the deal, he will.

[35:16] Eternity is in the hands of Jesus Christ. [35:20] Look at these attributes, wonderful counselor, mighty God. [35:26] Everlasting Father, Prince of peace. [35:31] You see, glory, when you think about it, [35:36] biblically at least, is the outward radiance [35:40] of God’s perfection on display.

[35:45] It’s the splendor of his presence. [35:49] In that list from Isaiah 9, 6 are promises [35:53] that Jesus came to fulfill. [35:56] But here’s what’s great about it.

[36:00] A promise is only as certain as the one who makes it. [36:08] People have promised me all types of things. [36:10] Sometimes people promise me they’re coming back next week, [36:13] and I never see them again.

[36:16] That it was not a promise kept.

[36:20] Promise is only good as the one who makes it. [36:23] And here’s the most wonderful thing I can tell you [36:27] about God at Christmas, is that the birth of Jesus Christ [36:32] is a revelation, that he is a promise keeping God. [36:38] He never lies. [36:41] He fulfills every one of his promises,

[36:43] and the birth, life, death, and resurrection [36:48] of his son, Jesus Christ, is the sign

[36:55] that he can be trusted with everything.

[37:01] He was born of a virgin because he is God.

[37:06] He was born with a mission to display the perfection [37:11] of God and then substitute himself for us on the cross. [37:16] And then yes, he rose from the dead [37:20] because God has authority over death [37:24] and the sin that causes it. [37:27] He demands with all of his authority

[37:31] that you put your faith in him [37:35] and all that he has accomplished. [37:37] That is a gift so that you can live at peace with God. [37:46] This Christmas, all of the Christmas is to come [37:52] and every single day for the rest of your life, [37:55] but it gets even better than that

[37:59] because the day I draw my last breath [38:03] in this physical form, his promises will still be true [38:09] and I will awaken to eternity in his presence forever.

[38:17] A few application points this morning. [38:20] Seek the joy of God over shifting feelings. [38:24] There is a greater joy that is unshakable. [38:29] Secondly, trust that God has done what he says he has done. [38:35] There’s evidence. [38:37] Third, rest in the glory of God revealed in Jesus.

[38:42] Peace with God and from God. [38:46] Fourth, receive the gift of salvation [38:49] through faith in Jesus. [38:51] Friend, you cannot earn this.

[38:55] You cannot do this. [38:58] You must humble yourself and say, [39:02] Lord, I receive your gift.

[39:07] What an amazing promise.

[39:10] And then finally, this morning specifically, [39:12] live to give generously so that more can know this good news.