Christmas Day Message 25/12/2018

Micah ch5 vs2

Luke’s Gospel ch2 vs1 – 20

John’s Gospel ch1 vs14

“THE GREATEST GIFT OF ALL”!

Well it’s Christmas morning again, and this means many things to many people, but undoubtedly most peoples minds are on opening their Christmas gifts. We who are Christians also have our minds on a gift, a most special gift - and it’s the very same gift we are all sharing!

The Apostle Paul describes it as “thanks be to God for his unspeakable gift”, or alternatively it is “his indescribable gift”, “a priceless gift” or “this gift that is too wonderful for words”.

Truly then, a gift that is like no other!

This is the gift that The Father above has given to all mankind – through the birth of His Son, who always was The Eternal Son of God -  The Lord Jesus Christ came into this world to be The Saviour of Sinners!

Our great gift had a very different start to any other Christmas gift. This first Christmas gift was not a last minute dash to the shop the day before, but was safely prepared and personally carried within her body for nine months!

Not a big box wrapped in shiny paper and decorated, but a small package weighing just a few pounds! When this special gift was delivered, the world was never to be the same place again!

When we are buying gifts for our family and friends, it has to be the right gift – there would be no point in buying aftershave for a man who was fully bearded all year round, or buying a percolator for someone who didn’t like coffee!

But the gift needs to be perfect for each person, and it has been said that a gift must meet three criteria for it to be considered perfect…

Criteria number 1:

The gift should reflect the one who gives it.

Criteria number 2:

The gift should reflect knowledge of the one who receives it. In other words, knowing their needs, desires and tastes.

Criteria number 3:

The gift should be of a nature and quality that will hold its value as time goes on.

By these same three criteria’s we know that God gave each and every person the perfect gift, when He sent His beloved Son, Jesus Christ, into the world to be miraculously born of a virgin…

Criteria number 1

 – Jesus Christ reflects The One who gave Him – God The Father!

The Word of God tells us “The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of His being” (Hebrews ch1 vs3)

“The Son is the image of the invisible God” (Colossians ch1 vs15)

 Jesus Christ Himself said “He that hath seen me hath seen the Father”

 (John’s Gospel ch14 vs9)

Yes, The Father’s very words were spoken from the lips of Jesus Christ!

Also, The Father’s mercy and compassion were reflected in Christ’s actions, The Father’s most abundant provision was reflected through Christ’s generosity, and The Father’s great power and love was revealed to us through Jesus Christ.

Undoubtedly then, Jesus is the perfect gift, fully meeting Criteria number 1 - being the perfect reflection of The One who gave Him!

Criteria number 2

Again, Jesus is the perfect gift by most certainly reflecting knowledge of our individual needs and desires. God knew we all had a desperate need of a Saviour. We each are in need of a Redeemer, a Deliverer, and a true friend.  We needed someone who was fully God and fully Man, and no other than Jesus Christ could meet this need.

Being fully God enabled Jesus to pay the price of our sins in His own sinless body, which was laid down at Calvary’s Cross for you and I. Only His Deity alone enabled Christ to be the sacrifice which could bear the sins of the world and free us from the eternal condemnation and punishment we all otherwise deserved.

Yet, being fully Man, allowed Jesus to completely identify with what each of us personally go through each day, enabling Him to provide for all our needs and desires. Jesus is able to care for us in any daily situation we may face.

The Word of God tells us “For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin” 

(Hebrews ch4 vs15)

Reverently speaking, if our greatest need had purely been information, then God could have just sent a scientist. If our greatest need had been money, God could have just sent us an economist. Or if it had been pleasure, God could have just sent an entertainer.

But no, dear friend, the truth is our greatest need was to be saved from the penalty of our sins, and God – praise be! – sent us The Saviour!

Jesus Christ became our Substitute. We owed a great debt we could never pay, and in His most wonderful love, He paid a debt He did not owe.

Therefore, Criteria number 2 is totally met – Jesus Christ reflects full knowledge of each of our needs and desires!

Finally, Criteria number 3

The gift of Jesus IS of a nature and quality that will hold its value as time goes on – Jesus Christ’s value is absolutely eternal!

“… that whosoever believeth in him, shall NOT perish but have everlasting life”

(John’s Gospel ch3 vs16)

Dear friend, Jesus is the only gift that never expires, never goes out of style and never becomes obsolete!

Every generation, every man, woman, boy or girl needs a Saviour to lift them out of their sin and into the righteousness of God, through Jesus Christ.

Through Jesus Christ “we are brought into an inheritance that can NEVER perish, spoil or fade in Heaven” (1^st Peter ch1 vs4)

The quality of this gift for each person who will receive it is eternal!

Even though not a single one of us deserves this gift and all that flows from it, yet God freely gives Jesus to all, who will in faith and repentance, receive Him as their personal Saviour.

God’s love for us in Jesus Christ never fades or weakens, His love is ever constant and unfailing.

So, again, in Jesus Christ, Criteria number 3 is completely covered!

His gift IS of a nature and quality that will hold its value as time goes on!

We have joyfully received this perfect gift of a Saviour into our hearts and lives…

But what can we give back to God in return for such wonderful love given to us?

We can think about Mary, the virgin who bore The Christ – she had no array of gifts to give back to God, but she simply gave the only thing back she had – she gave herself!

Mary said “I am the Lord’s servant, may it be to me as you have said”

(Luke’s Gospel ch1 vs38)

Mary had no complaining, no excuses or postponing, just the immediate surrendering of her life to her Lord…

What better gift could a person return to The Lord Jesus Christ this Christmas?

This is what God really wants from each of us – simply to give our hearts to The Lord Jesus Christ, and to live our lives in obedience to His precious, living Word.

May we all do so, for His Name’s sake.

Merry Christmas!!

“Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.”

(James ch1 vs17)

Gospel Meeting 16/12/2018

John’s Gospel ch1 vs1 – 5, 10 -18.

If you were asked, what would you say was the greatest miracle of all time?

There are many choices, including ones with humour, but undoubtedly it is the birth of the eternal Son of God coming from Heaven and being born here of a virgin!

As our reading tonight says – He always was from the beginning, everything was made by Him, and yet He chose to step into time and take flesh here on Earth!

Truly beyond us to fully comprehend, yet such tremendous truths to dwell upon!

“Let earth and heaven combine,

Angels and men agree

To praise in songs divine

Th’ incarnate deity,

Our God contracted to a span,

Incomprehensibly made man”

-  (Words from hymn by C. Wesley)

A body was prepared for Him – fully man yet fully God!

He became man without ever ceasing to be God!

Why did the eternal Son of God become a human being? For our utmost blessings.

The Lord Jesus Christ is our Salvation!

He came as the long promised Saviour.

Jesus Christ was able to yield up His life as atonement for every person’s sins.

His body and His life were unique - , because He was completely without sin. He could not sin because He is Holy God!

When the Holy Spirit touched Mary, she conceived.

“And the angel came in unto her, and said, Hail, thou that art highly favoured, the Lord is with thee, blessed art thou among women”.

- Luke’s Gospel ch1 vs28

Important to note here, that Mary was highly favoured AMONG women, not OVER women… and herself not to be worshipped. Mary was still a sinner, the same as you, me, and the entire human race!

“And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory”.

-  1^st Timothy ch3 vs16.

“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)…

-  1^st Epistle of John ch1 vs1 – 2.

Dear friend, in His great love, the eternal Son of God came, took a body, that He could live a sinless life and sacrifice that body upon The Cross, that each of us can be forgiven and not be condemned to eternal punishment. This is love, grace and mercy!

His soul and body suffered intense agony when He was made sin for our sake – both before He arrived at The Cross, and during.

No man suffered more than Jesus Christ did.

“…But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross”.

-  Philippians ch2 vs7 – 8.

Dear friend, will you not accept Jesus Christ’s offer of this full and free Salvation?

Will you reject His great love for you – He who paid your debt of sin in full by His own body and shed blood?

There is no other means of forgiveness, no other way to Heaven, than through repentance and faith in this God- this God who came and took flesh!

Please come to Him this night, in true sorrow and repentance, confessing you are a sinner and forsaking your sinful way of life.

“And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins”.

- Matthew’s Gospel ch1 vs21.

Gospel Meeting 02/12/2018

The Acts of the Apostles ch26 vs1 – 32.

Paul’s absolutely solid conviction was that Jesus Christ rose from the dead.

Those who know this awesome truth are compelled to share it!

Jesus Christ rose again because His Father fully accepted the sacrifice of His Sons sinless body and shed blood on The Cross to pay the terrible price of all our sins. 

Previously, Paul was the arch – enemy of Christians, going to great lengths to persecute them before he met Jesus Christ in that amazing personal encounter on the road to Damascus. He was addressed by the living God!

He testifies that having met Jesus Christ, He then transformed his life.

This is what Jesus Christ does – millions of Christians all over the world – and myself  included – can say “HE CHANGES LIVES!”, by personally asking Him into your heart and life.

Jesus Christ, God’s eternal Son, stepped into time and came to us to be our Saviour – the Saviour of sinners. He was the only one never to have sinned on this Earth – He couldn’t, as He was Holy God in the flesh! Our Emmanuel (God with us!), voluntarily laid down His life at Calvary, taking our punishment upon Himself.

Friend, if you do not know this one and only Saviour yet, please come to Him this day in faith and in repentance of your sinful way of life. His precious shed blood will cleanse you of all sin, and be made fit to enter Heaven for eternal life.

He is the most wonderful Man to know!

So Paul gave his testimony to the King and explained that God now had this job for him to do – preaching the Gospel (good news) to the Gentile people.

Though in chains and suffering many things Paul was not ashamed and loved preaching the Gospel.

“For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.”

- Romans ch1 vs16.

Paul then went on to explain this Gospel and the scriptures to the King.

There is only one message, one Gospel!

“This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into this world to save sinners, of whom I am chief”.

- Paul speaking, from 1^st Timothy ch1 vs15.

vs18 in tonight’s reading tells us that we need to move from darkness into light, in order to move ourselves from certain death into certain life.

“I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life” – Jesus Christ speaking, from John’s Gospel ch8 vs12.

Why do so many people prefer the darkness? …

“And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved”

- Jesus Christ speaking, from John’s Gospel ch3 vs19 – 20.

People everywhere desperately need to have their eyes opened to these great truths in the Word of God!

“But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost: In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them”

- Paul speaking, from 2^nd Corinthians ch4 vs4

Do you believe there is a real devil deceiving as many people as he can?

Friend, beware, he is still so very active in our world today!

Forget the false pictures of horns and prong – he deceptively appears “as an angel of light”! (2^nd Corinthians ch11 vs14).

You can be delivered from his power by accepting the Gospel of The Lord Jesus Christ.

Festus was having none of it, rudely answering Paul, but Paul responded graciously – a good lesson for all we who are Christians having conversation with the unsaved.

Having been accused of “losing it”, Paul had “found truth” rather!

“But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behaviour in Christ may be ashamed of their slander”

- Peter speaking from 1^st Peter ch3 vs15 -16.

Jesus Christ convicts us that we are sinners, desperately in need of the Saviour, and many people still do not like to accept this absolute truth.

 People all around us say they are good and not living bad lives, but the Word of God says different…

“All have turned away, they have together become worthless,; there is no one who does good, not even one” – Paul speaking from Romans ch3 vs12.

King Agrippa also rejected Jesus Christ – despite knowing these things - what a tragedy that he “almost” had his sins forgiven, and “almost” escaped an eternal Hell!

He chose darkness, having come so close to the light.

Was he perhaps embarrassed at what Caeser or his own family might have thought, had he bowed the knee and given his heart and life to The Lord Jesus Christ?

Friend, I sincerely hope that nothing will hold you back today from asking Jesus Christ to be your Saviour. Nothing is worth choosing the darkness and its eternal consequences over the light, forgiveness and life eternal with this wonderful Man!

Nothing and no one is worth rejecting Christ for!

“The preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God” – Paul speaking from 1^st Corinthians ch1 vs18.