In Christ

I Am A New Person
2 Corinthians 5:17

 Pastor Barry Kerner

In Christ, I am a new person.

In 2 Corinthians 5:17 we read, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!”

When you become a Christian, you become a whole new person.  There’s a new you! It’s a new you that is now “in Christ.” You’re now connected to Christ. And being in Christ and connected to Jesus means what’s true of Him begins to become true of you. Does that mean that your personality suddenly changes?  For example, that you go from an extrovert to an introvert?  No. You are still you, but a new and improved version of you.

I became a Christian in my mid thirties, and some changes were so obvious and immediate that some people began to ask, “What happened to you?  You’re different!”  I was so new to the faith that I didn’t have vocabulary to describe the change, so I said, “I’m religious now.”  But I was wrong,  because I wasn’t religious—I was a Christian—and there’s a difference.

Religion is what we do to reach God.  Christianity is what God has done in Christ to reach us.  Religion is all about what we do.  Christianity is all about what God has done in Christ. Religion is primarily about me; Christianity is all about Jesus.  Religion is spelled DO; Christianity is spelled DONE.  Big difference!

When I became a follower of Jesus, some things changed immediately. There were some immediate behavior changes that people observed that made them ask, “What happened to you?” But what I didn’t know at the time was that much deeper changes had started inside me, changes that would go far beyond surface behaviors and transform the deepest parts of me—changes that were far more important.  Here are four huge changes.

First, my relationship with God changed. Jesus said the most important thing is loving God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength—loving God with all you’ve got. I went from having no relationship with God to that relationship being the most important thing in my life. My whole life reoriented around God.  From no-God to God-first.  I can’t tell you how huge this is.  Loving God first changes everything else—which is probably why Jesus said it’s most important.

Second, my character changed.  As my relationship with God grew, I began to change.  My character started slowly changing.  You become like the people you hang out with, so if you hang out with Jesus, you start becoming more like Him.  I became more honest, disciplined, joyful, peaceful, and less angry, selfish and proud.  Not long ago, someone commented to me about a mutual acquaintance who had become a Christian, and said, “He is a different person.”  The change in this guy’s character was that obvious.  Hanging out with Jesus will change your character.

Third, my relationships with others changed.  My relationship with God changed me and that in turn changed my relationships with others. Every relationship in my life came under the influence of Jesus’ leadership, and because of that, got better. 

Fourth, my calling changed.  Following Jesus changed who I am and what I do in the world.  I became part of something much larger than myself—the Kingdom of God.  In Christ, I was called to serve God and serve people—every Christian is!  The question is how is God calling you to serve others around you?  This is a huge change!  We go from self-serving to God and others-serving.  We go from me to Thee to we.

When you look at those four things—your relationship with God, your character, your relationships with others, your calling—that pretty much changes everything about you!  In Christ, I became a new person!

I’ve got to emphasize that this is a process, not just an event.  It starts, like all processes do, with an event, with a single step.  You choose to follow Jesus.  You say yes to Jesus.  You enter into Christ.  Then, once you are in Christ, all that is true of Him starts becoming true of you.  Some of it happens quickly.  But much of it is a process—a process that will go on the rest of your life.  How many of you are works in progress?  I once saw a button that said: PBPGINFWMY.  “Please be patient: God is not finished with me yet.”  We’re all under construction!  It’s a process.  As you live in relationship with Jesus, you grow into all that is true of you in Christ.

This is why in John 15, Jesus used the illustration of a tree and its branches.  He is the tree, we are the branches.  If we abide in Him—if we stay connected to Him—we bear much fruit.  All these changes, the new person we become, happen as we simply abide in Him.  Stay connected to Jesus, and you will grow into all that is true of you in Christ.  Stay connected to Jesus and you will steadily become a new person.

In Christ, I am a new person!

Second, In Christ, I am a saint.

I love this!  How many of you are saints?  Most of us are reluctant to raise our hands because we think of saints as the super-good, extra-holy folks.  The Apostle Paul was a saint.  Billy Graham was a saint.  Bill Murray is a saint—Saint Vincent.  Ok, that’s a movie—it’s not real.  Saints are the super-holy, the very spiritual, therefore, I’m not a saint.  That’s what we think.  But Paul thought otherwise.  

1 Corinthians 1:2 Paul wrote, “To the church of God that is in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints together with all those who in every place call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, both their Lord and ours.”

Paul begins his letter to the Corinthian Christians by addressing them as “sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints.”  First, let’s remember that Paul is writing this letter to correct some terrible problems in this church: they were divided and fighting with each other; one man was sleeping with his step-mom; people were getting drunk at communion services.  You get the picture—this church was a mess.  Yet Paul calls them saints.  Sanctified in Christ.  The word “sanctified” comes from the same Greek root as the words “saint” and “holy”: hagios.  It means to set something apart for a special purpose; to take a common thing and make it special, different.  In Christ, we are made holy.  We are made special, set apart for God and His purposes.  In Christ, we are saints.  Paul thought this was true even of these messed up Corinthian Christians.  It’s true of you too.  It’s true of every Christian.  If you are in Christ, you are a saint.

There were other times when Paul referred to others as saints. In Philippians 1:1 he wrote,  “Paul and Timothy, servants of Christ Jesus, To all the saints in Christ Jesus who are at Philippi, with the overseers and deacons.”

In Philippians 4:21he told them, “Greet every saint in Christ Jesus. The brothers who are with me greet you.”

And in Colossians 1:2 he wrote, “To the saints and faithful brothers in Christ at Colossae, Grace to you and peace from God our Father.”

In the Bible, the word “saint” is not used of a handful of super-spiritual elites.  It is used of every Christian.  Every Christian is holy, sanctified in Christ, a saint.  Every Christian is set apart for God’s special purposes.

Turn to your neighbor, and introduce yourself. Tell them, “I’m St. Barry,” except use your name. So when you come to Christ, you become a saint.  That is your status in Christ.  In Christ, you are a saint.  Set apart for God’s purposes.  Then as you live in relationship with Jesus, it becomes more and more true of you.  You become more saintly.  You become more devoted to God’s special purposes for you.  You grow into sainthood.  You progressively live more and more like what you are!

In Christ, I am a saint.

Third,  In Christ, I am dead to sin and alive to God

In Romans 6, Paul explains to the Roman Christians the meaning of their baptism. He told them, “What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? 2 By no means! We are those who have died to sin; how can we live in it any longer? 3 Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? 4 We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.”

They were baptized into Christ, into His death, burial and resurrection.  That’s what baptism means.  When we baptize someone we dunk them in the water—all the way under.  Why do we immerse?  That’s what the word “baptize” literally means: to immerse, to plunge, to dip.  And immersion is a picture of what’s happening.  You died with Christ—what do we do with a dead person?  Bury them.  So we bury you in the water—buried with Christ.  And then we raise you out of the water—raised with Christ to live a new life. Paul goes on to explain that when we die with Christ, we die to sin but we are alive to God.  Sin doesn’t have any mastery over a dead person.

Paul says this is what happens when we’re baptized into Christ.  We are baptized into His death, burial and resurrection.  We die with Christ and we’re raised with Christ. Here’s Paul’s conclusion: In Romans 6:11 we’re told, “In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus.”

You are in Christ.  What is true of Him is true of you.  You are dead to sin, but alive to God in Christ.  As you live in Christ every day, this becomes more and more true of you.  When you’re tempted, you remember, “I’m in Christ, and I’m dead to this.”  But even more importantly, you remember, “I’m in Christ, and I’m alive to God.”  You are unresponsive to sin, but you are responsive to God and ask, “God, what do You want me to do?”

The Christian life isn’t defined primarily by what we don’t do, but what we do.  What good is it if you avoid sin but aren’t responsive to God? The big goal isn’t just being dead to sin, but being alive to God.  In Christ, we live every moment alive to God, responsive to God’s love and His leadership in our lives.  This is what makes the Christian life such an adventure!  We’re alive to God!  We are responsive to His love and leadership.  That’s what makes life full and rewarding.

Just avoiding sin doesn’t work.  If you’re going to say “no”, you’ve got to have something better you’re saying “yes” to.  It’s the expulsive power of love.  When you love God, when you’re responsive and saying yes to God, it’s easy to say no to sin.  Our focus isn’t on avoiding sin, but on being alive to God in Christ.

In Christ, you are dead to sin, and alive to God.

Fourth, In Christ, I am created for good works.

Ephesians 2:10 tells us, “For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.”

I love this verse!  Paul says that you are God’s handiwork.  The Greek word is poiema; we get the English word “poem” from it.  It means “that which is made, a creation,” and it was used of works of art.  You are God’s creation, God’s work of art, God’s masterpiece.

In the New Living Translation Ephesians 2:10 reads like this, “For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.”

Turn to someone and tell them, “You are God’s masterpiece.”  You’re not only a saint, but a one-of-a-kind work of art!

Now we can’t stop there and just congratulate ourselves on being masterpieces.  Why did God create us as His works of art?  So we can do the good works He planned for us long ago.  We are created in Christ for good works.  God wants you to join Him in the good works He planned for you long ago.

Think about that.  When God dreamed you up, He also dreamed up good things you would do.  He made you as a unique work of art with a purpose.  No one else can do exactly what you can do.  God has planned good works for you, and designed you to do them.  Your design and your assignment match.

This is a Frisbee.  It’s designed for one purpose: to fly.  It’s designed to fly and by flying to bring pleasure to it’s users.  Now, you could use it for other things.  Like what?

• Dinner plate.
• Dog dish.
• Draw circles.
• Door stop.
•  

Those are ok, but none of those bring the pleasure of flying.  And none of those other things fly like Frisbee. You are God’s masterpiece, and He made you with a plan, with good works that only you can do.

What do we call God’s work?  Ministry.  And who does ministry?  Ministers.  For too long, people have thought that ministry is done in church by professional ministers.  But God’s work is done everywhere in the world, and it’s done by all of us.  Let me see the hands of the ministers in the room.  If you are a Christian, you are a minister.  The word “minister” just means servant.  To minister is to serve others.  We meet people’s needs right where we are as Jesus’ representatives.   How many of you are ministers?

I want to close with one of my favorite stories from Jerry Cook’s book, Love, Acceptance and Forgiveness. It is about a new Christian named Jackie.  She was shopping and noticed a women in prescription area who looked sick.  Jackie felt an impulse to pray with her, but thought, “No way; she’d think I’m nuts.”  After she finished her shopping, she passed that way again and noticed the woman sitting down, still obviously ill.  Again Jackie had the impression, “Go pray with her.”  Again she resisted.  She was halfway out the door and turned around and decided to become the classic fool for Jesus.

She sat down beside the sick woman and said, “I can see that you’re sick, and I don’t want to impose, but I’m a Christian and wonder if you’d mind if I prayed for you.”  The woman consented, and Jackie held her hand and with her eyes open said, “Lord Jesus, I know you love this lady, and I know you don’t want her to be sick.  Just because you love her, heal her and show her how much you care.”

That was it.  They exchanged numbers and Jackie went home.  The next day Jackie got a call from this woman asking her to come to her home.  Jackie went.  The woman’s husband had stayed home from work to meet Jackie.  Her prescription was on the table unopened.  The woman said, “I came home yesterday, went to bed and slept all night.  I haven’t slept through the night for years.”  With her particular illness, she slept only short periods.  Her husband thought she had died, and in his alarm, woke her up.  She said she felt great.

She told her husband what had happened at the store, and he wanted to meet Jackie.  Neither of them knew anything about the gospel, so Jackie explained the love of Jesus to them and how He could make them new.  Both of them became Christians.

Jackie was just an ordinary Christian open for business, willing to do the good works that God had planned for her.  It can be as simple as loving someone, praying, listening, serving.

In Christ, God created you for good works.  You simply need to live with Jesus and be open for business wherever you are.

Let us pray.

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In Christ – What does it mean to be “in Christ”?

Ephesians 1:1-14

Pastor Barry Kerner

Today we start a new series, “In Christ.”  In his 13 letters, to churches and individuals, found in the New Testament, the apostle Paul uses the words “in Christ,” “in the Lord,”or “in Him (whom)” about 170 times.  It is one of his favorite phrases and is both theologically rich and practically important.  As an example, let’s read the first 14 verses of Paul’s letter to the Ephesians, and look for how Paul uses “in Christ” or some version of it.

Ephesians 1:1–14 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God,

To God’s holy people in Ephesus, the faithful in Christ Jesus:

2 Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. 4 For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love 5 he predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will 6 to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves. 7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace 8 that he lavished on us. With all wisdom and understanding, 9 he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, 10 to be put into effect when the times reach their fulfillment—to bring unity to all things in heaven and on earth under Christ.

11 In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will, 12 in order that we, who were the first to put our hope in Christ, might be for the praise of his glory. 13 And you also were included in Christ when you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation. When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, 14 who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession—to the praise of his glory.

How many times does Paul use the phrase “in Christ?”  Ten times!  Here’s the list:

• 1—We are called “the faithful in Christ.”
• 3—God has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in Christ.
• 4—God chose us in Christ.
• 6—God has freely given us grace in Christ.
• 7—We have redemption, the forgiveness of sins in Christ.
• 9—God made known the mystery of His will in Christ.
• 11—We were chosen in Christ.
• 12—We put our hope in Christ.
• 13—We were included in Christ.
• 13—We were marked in Christ with the seal of the Holy Spirit.

It seems like being in Christ is pretty important!  But what does it mean? Here’s the Big Idea for this whole series. 

The Big Idea: When you are in Christ, all that is true of Him changes what is true of you.

Let me say that again, When you are in Christ, all that is true of Him changes what is true of you.

All ten of those things we listed from Ephesians 1 are true of you when you are in Christ.  You are blessed, chosen, redeemed, graced, included and much more.  And those are just from one passage; As I said Paul uses this idea of being “in Christ” almost 170 times!  I encourage you to begin to read through Paul’s letters and take special note of where Paul uses that phrase, “in Christ.”  Try it!  In the weeks to come, we’re going unpack some of these verses to see what’s true of you when you are in Christ.

But first, what does it mean to be in Christ? That’s what we’re going to think about today.  I’m going to come at it from two angles.

First, being “in Christ” is a status.

By status, I mean state of being. This is a ball.  This is a bucket.  If I put the ball in the bucket, what is the ball’s status?  It is in the bucket.

The word “in” is used to describe the state or position of one thing in relation to another.  The ball is in the bucket.  The check is in the mail.  This year the New York Jets were in the toilet.

So when Paul says that we are in Christ, he is describing our status, our state of being.  Like the ball is in the bucket, you are in Christ.  This is an imperfect illustration, but bear with me.  If I swing the bucket, what happens to the ball?  It swings too—because it is in the bucket.  What’s true of the bucket is true of the ball.  If the bucket is lost, what happens to the ball?  It’s lost too—because it’s in the bucket.  In the same way, but in a much deeper way, what is true of Christ becomes true of you, because you are in Christ.

For example, in Ephesians 2, Paul says that apart from Christ, we are dead in our sins.

Ephesians 2:4–6 But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, 5 made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved. 6 And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus,

Apart from Jesus, we were dead in our sins.  But God made us alive with Christ, raised us with Christ, and seated us with Christ in the heavenly realms—all of this happens in Christ.  When Christ was raised from the dead, you were too.  Now Christ is seated at the right hand of God, and you are too.  When you are in Christ, what is true of Him becomes true of you.

So how do you get “in Christ”? John 3:16 tells us, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” Literally, the Greek reads, “whoever believes into Him.”  We believe into Jesus.  Like saying, “I put the ball into the bucket.” When we repent—turn from our sin and turn to God—and believe in Jesus, we believe into Christ.  We are in Christ. 

In Romans 6:3–4 Paul adds, “Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? 4 We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.”

We believed into Jesus, and we were baptized into Jesus.  This is what happens in baptism: you are baptized into Christ.  You are baptized into His death, and into His resurrection.  Just like Christ died to sin, you died to sin in Him.  And just like Christ was raised to live to God, you are raised to live to God in Christ.

You believe into Jesus, you are baptized into Jesus, and you are in Christ—that is your status, your state of being.  What is true of Him becomes true of you.

Let me illustrate it with an every day example that is better than the bucket and ball. When you fill out an application, you are often asked about your marital status: married, single, divorced, and so on.  If you check the “married” box, you are indicating that your status is married, and therefore certain things are true of you.  Your life is not your own.  You share resources and liabilities.  You know how to say, “Yes dear.”  You have in-laws.  You are taken.  You are in a marriage.  This is your marital status.

A wedding ring indicates your status: you are in a marriage.  And that means certain things are true of you. You belong to your spouse. You are taken By the way, if you are in Christ, you are in a marriage.  We are the bride of Christ, and He is our groom.  We are taken; we are His.

To be in Christ describes your status.  All that is true of Jesus changes all that is true of you.  Over the next several weeks, we are going to unpack some amazing things that are true of you in Christ.  But there is more…

Second, being “in Christ” is a relationship.

To be in Christ means that you are in relationship with Him.  It is not just a static status; it is a living relationship.  This is where the bucket and ball fail us.  They are inanimate objects.  You and Jesus are living persons.  To be in Christ is to live in relationship with Him.  Marriage is the better illustration.

I said that to be in Christ is a status; it describes your position in relation to Christ.  You are in Him.  Some people call this positional theology.  What is true of Jesus is true of you because of your position: you are in Him.  Christ is righteous, therefore you are righteous in Christ.   Christ is risen, therefore you are risen in Christ.    These things are true, even though they are not yet fully realized.  I’m not risen yet, and I’m not always righteous.  So how does this work?

As we live in Christ (in relationship with Him), we grow into all that is true of us in Christ. All of those positional truths become practical realities as we live in Christ, in relationship with Jesus.  Living in relationship with Jesus changes you.  You will grow into all that He says is true of you.  Being in Christ is more than just a status; it’s a relationship.

Back to our marriage illustration.  You can be in a marriage, and not have much of a relationship with your spouse.  You can be married and checked out.  You can be married and distant, detached, alienated, gone.  Your status is married, but the relationship isn’t happening. Is that acceptable?  No!  No one wants that.

It’s not enough to say, “I believe in Jesus.  I am saved.  That’s my status.”  You need to be living in Christ, and growing into all that He says is true of you.  You need to be in a relationship.

David Platt, in his book, Follow Me, says that we are called to believe in Jesus and to follow Jesus.  It’s not one or the other, but both: believe and follow.  Many people only want to believe, not follow.  They want a ticket to heaven without following Jesus on earth. That’s like a marriage without love, without a relationship.

It’s possible to be married in name only, to have the status without the relationship.  And that is possible for Christians too.  You can be a Christian in name only, have the status without the relationship. 

Jesus warned about this in Matthew 7:21–23 where he said,  “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. 22 Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ 23 Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!”

“Many will say to me…”.  Evidently there will be many people who think they are Christians but are not, who had the status but not the relationship.  Jesus says, “I never knew you.”  There was no relationship. If you’re going to talk the talk, you have to walk the walk.  We are called to believe and follow.  We are called to be in Christ, in relationship with Jesus, and to grow into all that is true of us.

Let’s say you join a gym; you buy a membership.  You are in the Y, or Planet Fitness, or Powerhouse Gym, therefore certain things are true of you.  You can use the facilities whenever you want.  You get newsletters and special offers! You are a member in good standing. This is your gym status.

All well and good.  But your status only benefits you if you use it.  You must have a “relationship” with the gym—the more often, the better.  When you work out regularly, then all the potential in your membership status can be realized.  You’ll be this guy. If you don’t use it, then you’re a gym member in name only and it won’t benefit you.  You’re just wasting your money, and you’ll be this guy.

Or let’s say you join a church; you become a member—this is your status. But do you know how many inactive church members there are? They are members in name only, and that status won’t do them a bit of good.  You need to have a relationship; you need to participate.  Status alone isn’t enough.  You can have a gym membership and be in terrible shape.  You can have a church membership and be far from God and end up in hell.

That’s why churches needn’t have formal memberships but they should have functional memberships. They should have participatory memberships.  We shouldn’t be interested in just getting a name on the church membership roll; we should be interested in getting people engaged and participating so that they can grow into all that God says is true of them.  When people ask us how to become members, we should say, “Participate!”  And here are five ways you can do that.

• Meet: meet together in worship, studies and church events.
• Seek: seek God in daily prayer, and daily Bible reading.
• Serve: serve in our church and community.
• Give: give to God and the poor.
• Share: share your faith by doing, by telling, and by bringing.

This is what church members need to do.  Why?  Because that’s how you grow spiritually, and that’s the whole point.  You need to have a relationship with Jesus so that you grow into all that He says is true of you.

In Colossians 2:6–7 we’re told,  “So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live your lives in him, 7 rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.”

You received Christ as Lord—now you are in Christ.  But don’t stop there.  “Continue to live your lives in Him.”  Live you life in Christ.  Live in daily relationship with Jesus.  “Rooted and built up in Him.”  Put your roots down deep into Jesus, and be built up in Him.  The more you are rooted in Christ, the more you will be built up.  A tree gets taller only if it’s roots go deeper.  So how do you get rooted in Christ?   How do you go deep in Jesus?  Let me tell you a few ways.

• Soak in Scripture: Get God’s word in you and get to know Jesus better.
• Prayer: Relationships are built one conversation at a time.
• Follow: Jesus is Lord. Live your life under the leadership of Jesus.
• Learn: Disciples are learners. Learn every chance you can, every way you can.
• Fellowship: Learn from other believers. Christianity is a team sport.  We do it best together.  When the church doors are open try your best to be here!

Church members should be expected to meet, seek, serve, give, and share.  These are ways we grow in Christ, ways to go deeper in Christ, ways to live in Christ.

In Colossians 1:28 Paul wrote, “He is the one we proclaim, admonishing and teaching everyone with all wisdom, so that we may present everyone fully mature in Christ.”

Paul’s goal in his teaching was to “present everyone fully mature in Christ.”  That should be our goal as well.  I want you to live your life in Christ and become fully mature in Christ.  The apostle Paul told the Ephesian pastors, in Acts 20:20 You know that I have not hesitated to preach anything that would be helpful to you…

If it’s helpful, this year I’ll preach it.  And what do I want to help you do?  Live your life in Christ. I want to help you put your roots deep into Jesus and grow up in Christ until you become “fully mature in Christ.”  I want to help you to live your life in Christ.

This is what it means to be a Christian: we live our lives in Christ.  We live every moment with Jesus.  We are in Christ—in relationship with Jesus.  And this changes everything!

2 Corinthians 5:17 says, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!” As we live in Christ, we change, we grow, we become new people.  Everything changes: our relationship with God, our character, our relationships with people, who we are and what we do in the world, our eternal destiny.  It’s all new!  This doesn’t happen because your name is on a church roll, any more than you get in shape because you pay for a gym membership.  It happens because you live in Christ.  A relationship with Jesus changes everything!

As we live in Christ (in relationship with Him), we grow into all that is true of us in Christ. That’s what we’re going to unpack for the next several weeks.

Let us pray.

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New Year: Make This the Best Year of Your Life

Matthew 11:28-30

Pastor Barry Kerner

1. S. Lewis once wrote, “What a sorry world it would be if it were always winter but never Christmas!” The chill of December has certainly been alleviated by the warmth of the holidays. As we begin 2021 we need remember what a sad life it would be if it were always the old year and never the new! Time, of course, does not know the divisions we give it. It is man who rings bells, blows horns, and throws confetti to usher in the new year. We do this because we, of all God’s creatures alone, have an awareness of time. And, we long for times of new beginnings.

Louise Fletcher Tarkington expressed the longings of many when she wrote: “I wish there were some wonderful place called the land of Beginning Again, where all our mistakes, and all our heartaches, And all our selfish griefs could be cast like a shabby old coat at the door And never be put on again.”

The new year is fresh upon us. Relentlessly, the pages of the calendar have fallen away so that the future is suddenly now. No thoughtful person can approach such a time without some introspection. We are bound to ask, “What will it mean to me?” “What can I do with it?” These are thoughts which come naturally with each year end and each new beginning. While we cannot know what the future holds, we do know this, it will largely be what you and I and God make of it. It is appropriate, therefore, that in these first days of the new year that we plan for the three hundred and sixty-odd successive days that will follow in this new year – 2021.

A long time ago Ralph Waldo Emerson expressed what ought to be the desire of every one of us, “Write it on your heart that every day is the best day of the year.” Despite the failures and mistakes of the past we can make it so. What can we do to make every day the best day for us? Here are some suggestions. If you follow them they can not only help make every day the best day of the year, they can also help make this new year the best year of your life.

First, we should live life one day at a time. Life is Not a Dress Rehearsal. Stan Ghetz, the outstanding jazz saxophonist, had a life-threatening bout with cancer. In a radio interview several years later he was asked, “What did you learn from this illness?” He replied, “I learned that life is not a dress rehearsal.” Marcus Aurelius, the great Roman emperor/philosopher wrote, “To live each day as though it was one’s last, never flustered, never apathetic, never attitudinizing — here is the perfection of character.”

There is no second chance at life. The only moment any of us ever has is the present moment. Time can’t be saved, only savored. In Psalm 118:24, the psalmist must have had this in mind when he resolved, “This is the day which the Lord hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.”

Some people live their lives in the past, weighted down by the mistakes and failures of their yesterdays. Others live on an expectancy basis, always looking for something in the future. A boy in high school anticipates college; in college, he anticipates the joy that will be his when he gets an engineering job; when he gets an engineering job, he believes the joy will come when he marries Mary and has a home; and so he goes on . . . anticipating.

Living one day at a time means keeping yourself responsive to simple things. For most of life, few wonderful things happen. For most of us, there are not big moments — only a pile of small ones. Most of us miss life’s big prizes: The Pulitzer. The Nobel. Oscars. Tonys. Emmys. But we’re all eligible for life’s small pleasures. A pat on the back. A kiss behind the ear. A four pound bass. A full moon. An empty parking space. A crackling fire. A great meal. A glorious sunset.

Art Rooney reminded us that if we don’t enjoy getting up and working and finishing our work and sitting down to a meal with family or friends, then chances are we’re not going to be very happy. If our happiness or unhappiness is based on some major event like a great new job, huge amounts of money, a flawless happy marriage or a trip to Paris, we will not be happy much of the time. If, on the other hand, happiness depends on a good breakfast, flowers in the yard, a brisk walk or a nap, then we are more likely to live with quite a bit of happiness. So we must not fret about gaining life’s grand awards. We have to enjoy it’s tiny delights. They are always near at hand and there are plenty for all of us. The motto of our life, therefore, ought to be: “Learn from yesterday, and hope for tomorrow, but live today.” If you will do that, this will likely be the best year of your life.

Second, we should live our life with a view to the end. You need to train for the final event

Ted Koppel interviewed Mikel Gorbechev the day before he stepped down as president of the Soviet Union. He asked President Gorbechev if there were some story, some Russian fable, that summed up his feelings. Gorbechev said that there was, and then told the story of a young prince who came to power in Russia. He wanted to rule the country well and so he asked the wise men of his country to share their wisdom with him so he could rule his people wisely. Ten years later they sent to him ten wagons loaded with books. He asked, “When can I read all of these? I must govern the people.” He asked if they could condense the wisdom contained in the wagon loads of books for him. Ten more years passed and they sent him ten volumes. This was still too much for him to read, and he asked that the wisdom in those ten books be reduced even more. Five more years passed and they brought him one volume. But, by this time, he was an old man and on his deathbed. He asked the wise men if they could sum up their message in one sentence. They replied, “People are born. People suffer. People die.” That is not the sum of all wisdom but life’s ultimate statistic is the same for all of us, one out of one dies. And if we are wise we will live it with that end in view. We would all do well to pause and think how we would like to be remembered when that time comes. We should then begin by doing those things for which we would like to be remembered such as loving, serving, giving, and so on.

Robert T. Morris said, “I hate funerals and would not attend my own if it could be avoided, but it is well for every man to stop once in a while to think of what sort of a collection of mourners he is training for his final event.” To do that will help you make this the best year of your life.

Third, we should give ourselves to others. You need to let happiness sneak up on you. Jesus, toward the end of his ministry, met with his disciples in the upper room. He wrapped a towel around his waist, took a basin of water, and moved among the disciples washing their feet. In so doing, he was assuming the role of a common servant. When he had finished, he sat down and asked the disciples if they understood what he had done. He, the Lord of glory, had become a servant. John 13:17 tells us that he then said, “I have given you an example, that you should do as I have done for you.” This is the only place in scripture where Jesus ever said he had given us an example. Then he concluded by saying, “If you know these things, happy are you if you do them” (John 13:17).

Jesus knew that happiness is like a butterfly — the more you chase it, the more it flies away from you and hides. But, if you stoop and serve patiently, it will light on you. The happiest people I know are the ones who work at being kind, thoughtful, helpful, and generous. And when they do, happiness sneaks into their lives.

Albert Schweitzer spoke to a graduating class in an English boy’s school back in 1935. He said, “I do not know what your destiny will be. Some of you will perhaps occupy remarkable positions. Perhaps some of you will become famous by your pens, or as artists. But I know one thing: the only ones who will be really happy are those who have sought and found how to serve.”

Helen Keller said, “I find life an exciting business — and most exciting when it is lived for others.” And actor Danny Glover said, “We make a living by what we do. We make a life by what we give.” Elizabeth Barrett Browning put it beautifully when she wrote: “A child’s kiss set on by sighing lips shall make thee Glad; A poor man served by thee shall make thee Rich; A sick man helped by thee shall make thee Strong; Thou shall be served thyself by every sense Of service which thou renderest.” We are best to ourselves when we are good to others. It’s one of the things we can do to make this the best year of our life.

Fourth, we should learn to forgive and forget. Don’t hug a grudge. A person is what he remembers, but he is also what he forgets. One of the healthiest things a human being can do is become a master of forgetting. It’s good to have a good memory, but it’s also good to be good at forgetting. In Philippians 3:13-14, the apostle Paul gave us a part of the secret of his great life when he said, “Forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.” We can’t be sure of all the things Paul had in mind when he spoke of “forgetting those things which are behind,” but I’m sure he must have included his failures and disappointments, the hurts he had suffered, as well as his successes and achievements.

To live a victorious life you can’t rest on yesterday’s laurels and you can’t harbor yesterday’s hurts. As someone has said, “The rewards in life go to those who are willing to give up the past.” Someone once said, “There ain’t no burden so heavy as carrying a grudge.” Bernard Baruch, advisor to six presidents, said, “One of the secrets of a long and fruitful life is to forgive everybody everything before you go to bed at night.”

In the movie, The Revengers, a rancher is searching for a gang that killed his family and destroyed his home. In a moving scene a woman who had befriended him said, “You must be careful what you put in your heart. If you fill it with hate, there will be no room for love and laughter and tears. And your heart will rot.”

Anger and bitterness are poisons just like strychnine. They can build up slowly in you until they kill you. So, whatever you do, don’t hug a grudge. Don’t lug into the new year your resentments, your hates, your frustrations, your disappointments, your regrets. There is too much impediment in that. They will wear you down. The thing to do today is to drop the past—forget it—skip it—throw it into the past—and look to the future. There is an old Chinese proverb that says: There can be no joy like peace There can be no gift like health There can be no faith like trust There can be no sickness like hate. If you want to make this year the best year of your life, forgive and forget. It’s the only way to live happily.

Fifth, we should face adversity with courage. Remember, life sees you coming. Most of us get at least one knock down punch in life—a death, a divorce, a disease, a wayward child, an alcoholic relative. As novelist Alan Patton, in a poem to his son, wrote, “Life sees you coming. She lies in wait for you; she cannot but hurt you.” Adversity is never pleasant, but it can be good for us. If responded to correctly it can bring out the finest qualities in our life. Christian graces are like perfumes, the more they are pressed, the sweeter they smell; like stars that shine brightest in the dark; like trees, which, the more they are shaken, the deeper root they take, and the more fruit they bear.

That’s a part of why Paul, in Romans 5:3, said “we glory in tribulation.”  Like Job, I don’t understand all of God’s ways, but even the Lord learned obedience through the things he suffered. I would not, therefore, ask to go through a world without adversity, for it is sorrow and suffering which increases our sensitivity toward God and others. And, if we could somehow keep pain from our children’s door, it would be life itself that we would be keeping out. Adversity is a part of life. There is no way to escape it, no way around it. You must go through it. But, by God’s grace we can do that and not be defeated by it. And that’s what we must do to make this the best year of our life.

Sixth, we should keep a sense of humor. Happiness is a choice. When Georges Pompidou became president of France in 1969 he created a new cabinet post. He called it “Secretary of State Charged with Public Opinion.” It was the responsibility of this person to keep his ear to the ground and report to the president any cause of discontent. The man who was appointed described his responsibility, “I am,” he said, “the minister of moans and groans.” We don’t have to go through life moaning and groaning. We can look on the bright side of life. We can be positive and optimistic. We can acknowledge the clouds of life and also see the silver linings. When my wife and I were planning to move from Pittsburgh to Homer, New York to be a Pastor in a local church, friends asked, “How are you going to like Homer?” I replied, “We will do just fine. We are happy people. We can be happy wherever we are.” Happiness is always a choice.

Abraham Lincoln was right when he said, “Most folks are about as happy as they make up their minds to be.” We especially need to learn to laugh at ourselves. Once when Lincoln was engaged in a debate with Frederick Douglas, Douglas accused him of being two-faced. Lincoln, who was far from handsome made a classic reply, “I will let the audience decide for itself. If I had another face, do you think I would be wearing this one?”

Proverbs 15:13 says, “A merry heart doeth good like a medicine.” So cultivate a happy, cheerful disposition. It is essential to making this the best year of your life.

Seventh, we should put our life in the hand of God. We cannot know what the future holds. We cannot see five years or five weeks or five minutes into the future. Therefore, we make a mistake if we presume on tomorrow. James 4:13-15 tells us, 13 Now listen, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money.” 14 Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. 15 Instead, you ought to say, “If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that.” Our life is like a vapor and no man knows what one day may bring forth. So, we ought to live it in conscious dependence upon God and surrender to His will.

I’ll close with these thoughts. In his 1939 Christmas message to the nation, King George VI of England expressed the faith we all need when he quoted the words of Lewis Haskins: I said to the man who stood at the gate of the year, “Give me a light, that I might tread safely into the unknown.” And he replied, “Go out into the darkness and put your hand in the hand of God. That shall be to you better than light and safer than a known way.” In what may be the greatest invitation of the Bible, the Lord invites us to do just that, to put our hand in his. In Matthew 11:28-30 He said, 28 “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

Life was never intended to be borne in a single yoke. The Lord invites us to yield our lives to him and let him share and bear life’s load with us. The poet John Richard Moreland put it best: The hands of Christ Seemed very frail. For they were broken by a nail. But only they reach heaven at last whom those frail, broken hands hold fast. Take your hand of faith and put it in his hand of grace and it will be the best year of your life. And as you do, remember this: You can spend your life Any way you like. But you can only spend it once!

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Christmas: The Reason for the Season

Pastor Barry Kerner

One Sunday, a few years ago, a young girl said to me, “I’d like to talk with you, Pastor. I’m confused about the real meaning of Christmas.” I can see how that could happen to anyone, regardless of their age. It’s possible to become so intrigued with the tinsel and glitter, the decorations and presents, that we miss the starlight and straw. One little boy summed up the confusion of many as he and a friend shopped at Christmas time. He picked up a greeting card, and seeing the infant Jesus depicted on it, nudged his friends and exclaimed, “Imagine that! They’re even trying to drag religion into Christmas now!”

Don’t misunderstand me. I like everything about Christmas. I like Christmas trees. I like Christmas lights. I like Christmas cards. I like Christmas gifts. I even like Santa Claus. And, if that were all there was to it, it would be worth all we put into it because, for at least a little while at Christmas time, all the world is a better place. But, the real meaning of Christmas is not to be found in any of those things. To discover the real meaning behind Christmas, the real reason for the season we need to look again at the Christmas story as recorded in scripture.

Matthew, in his gospel, tells us that the birth of Jesus happened like this: Mary, a young Jewish maid, was engaged to Joseph, a Jewish man. According to Jewish custom, engagement lasted one year before the actual marriage took place. And, although the couple did not live together as husband and wife, they were considered legally married, and to break the betrothal took a writing of divorcement. It was during this period of time that it became evident that Mary was going to have a baby. Naturally, Joseph was distressed when he learned this. He knew the child was not his and he assumed Mary had been unfaithful to him.

According to Moses’ law, adultery was punishable by death and he had every right to have her publicly stoned to death. She had apparently not only disgraced herself, she had also disgraced him. But, being a kind and merciful man, rather than make her a public example Joseph determined to quietly divorce her. While he turned these things over in his mind an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and told him not to be afraid to take Mary as his wife. “The child,” the angel told him, “was conceived in her by the Holy Ghost.” The child was not the result of Mary’s unfaithfulness to Joseph. The conception was a miracle of God. It would be a virgin birth.

The angel then told Joseph that when the child was born he should “call his name Jesus for he will save his people from their sins.” Then Matthew adds this postscript, looking back to Isaiah 7:14: “Now all of this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet (Isaiah) saying, ‘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.”.

Joseph was then awakened from his sleep and did as the Lord commanded him. He took Mary to be his wife, and when the child was born he exercised the prerogative of a father and, in obedience to God, named him Jesus. In those two names, the one predicted by Isaiah and the one commanded by the angel, you’ll find the real meaning of Christmas.

The name Emmanuel tells us who Jesus is. The name Jesus tells us why he came. The name “Emmanuel” means “God with us.” And the name “Jesus” means “Jehovah is salvation.” It is the same as the Old Testament name “Joshua.” As Joshua in the Old Testament led Israel from the wilderness to the Promised Land, so Jesus, as the captain of our salvation, would lead all mankind from the bondage of sin to the Promised Land of God.

So, Christmas is the celebration of the incarnation-of God becoming flesh. It commemorates the time when God invaded this small planet; when omnipotence was wrapped in swaddling clothes and laid in a manger. It is the celebration of the fact that God has come to live among us, to reveal himself to us, to identify with us, and to give himself for us. It commemorates a time when God became flesh and dwelt among us in order to be our savior.

It is clear, then, that the real meaning of Christmas centers in Jesus Christ. If there had been no Christ there would be no Christmas. He is the reason for the season. When I think of the real meaning of Christmas, three words come to mind — revelation, identification, and salvation. Those three words explain the reason for the season. They tell us why the Word became flesh and dwelt among us.

The first reason for the incarnation was revelation. To know God has been the desire of people through the ages. There has never been a time, from prehistoric man until the present, when people did not want to know God. A Roman historian wrote that in his time he could find cities without a stadium and cities without a theater, but he could not find cities without a temple. There is an inner longing in the heart of each person to know God.

But, how can we know one who is indescribable and incomprehensible? We can look up into the heavens and see some revelation of God. We can see design and purpose and power. But we cannot know God fully. There are great revelations of God in the Old Testament, but they are all partial. If you want the surest and purest revelation of God you must find him in Jesus Christ.

The disciples once said to Jesus, “Show us the Father and we will be satisfied.” Jesus responded, “Have I been so long with you and you have not known me? He that hath seen me hath seen the Father.” If you should ask, “What is God like?” I would reply, “He is like Jesus Christ.” If you should then ask, “How much like Jesus Christ?” I would reply, “Exactly like Jesus Christ.” You could say, “He is the spittin’ image of God.” Or as Paul put it, “In him all the fullness of the Godhead dwells.”

Some suggest we can see God in all religions. Theologian Karl Barth stood before students and faculty at Princeton in 1963 during his Princeton Lectures. A student asked, “Sir, don’t you think God has revealed himself in other religions and not only Christianity?” Barth stunned many who were present when he thundered, “No, God has not revealed himself in any religion, including Christianity. He has revealed himself in his son.”

The essence of Christianity is this: Jesus Christ is God. He is not just a part of God, or just sent by God, or just related to God. He was and is God. Plato said that God is so vast that he is indescribable. The ancient Greeks thought that God was incomprehensible. So what did God do? He came down so we could comprehend him. As John put it, “God became flesh and dwelt among us.” It had to be that way.

A foreigner who expresses himself to me in Japanese will not get very far. That is a foreign language and I don’t understand it. Neither could God get far in expressing himself to me in celestial language. However, if God expressed himself to me in flesh, I can understand that. That’s what I am. That’s where I live. Jesus is God in flesh, getting down on my level where I can comprehend him. As S. D. Gordon put it, “Jesus is God spelling himself in language we can understand.”

Michelangelo expressed himself in marble; Rembrandt expressed himself in oils; Handel expressed himself in music; Shakespeare expressed himself in prose and verse; and God expressed himself in flesh. There is nothing more expressive than flesh. The twinkle of an eye, a smile on the face, a warm handshake, a rosy cheek, these are all great expressions. They all communicate. He became a man.

That’s the real meaning of Christmas. That’s the reason for the season.

The second reason for the incarnation was identification. God came not only to reveal himself to us but to identify himself with us. Someone has said, “To walk in another man’s shoes you must first take off your own shoes.” That’s what the Lord did in the incarnation. He took off his divinity in order to put on our humanity. In order to identify with us, the great God of heaven stripped himself of his deity and became one of us. That’s the reason for the season.

The incarnation was for the purpose of identification. One of the most famous tsars of Russia was “Peter the Great.” When he came to power, Russia was an isolated and backward land. His father, Tsar Alexis, like the rulers before him, had been far removed and inaccessible to his subjects. The tsars were all august figures, enclosed in an aura of semi-divinity. But Peter was not like that. He freely moved among his people and identified himself with them. Peter had an inquiring mind and frequently associated with the foreign merchants who lived in his country. He soon became fascinated with western civilization and desired to modernize his country.

On one occasion he sent a “great embassy” of more than 250 of Russia’s young men, from the noblest of families, to western Europe for more than eighteen months to study seamanship, navigation, and ship-building. They would go to learn about western civilization and bring ideas back to re-mold the country along western lines and open the country to Europe. They would modernize Russia and cause it to emerge with new influence in the world. The most remarkable thing about all this is that the Tsar himself traveled with the great embassy, incognito. He traveled as a mere member of the ambassador’s staff to see and learn for himself.

In a sense, that’s what Jesus Christ did. He traveled from heaven to earth incognito. He was born in a manger in Bethlehem. He grew up in a carpenter’s shop in Nazareth. He died on a cross in Jerusalem. And, he did it, not only to reveal God to us, but to identify himself with us. He was born in a stable, not in a mansion, that he might identify with the homeless of our world; he was born in Bethlehem, the house of bread, and not in Athens, that he might identify with the hungry masses; he grew up in the home of a carpenter, rather than the home of a Caesar, that he might identify with the working class; he was born a Jew and not a Greek, that he might identify with the oppressed, the despised, and the rejected of all times. And, he died on a cross and not in a hospital to share the suffering of the world.

He was born and reared at the crossroads of the world that touches Africa, Asia, and Europe, because he belongs to the whole world. Jesus’ favorite term for himself was the “Son of Man.” It is used over 97 times in the gospels. He called himself the “Son of Man” rather than the “Son of God” because he really was the representative man, the man in whom humanity finds its perfect expression, its perfect example, its consummation, and its peak.

As F. W. Robertson wrote, “There was in Jesus no national peculiarity or individual idiosyncrasy. He was not the son of a Jew, or the son of a carpenter; nor the offspring of the modes of living and thinking of that particular century. He was the son of man.” And what does all of this mean to you and me? The writer of the book of Hebrews says, “Wherefore in all things it behooved him to be made like unto his brethren, that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make reconciliation for the sins of the people. For in that he himself hath suffered being tempted, he is able to succor them that are tempted” (Hebrews 2:17-18).

And again the writer of Hebrews writes, “Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the son of God, let us hold fast our profession. For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feelings of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need” (Hebrews 4:14-16).

Because he became one of us he understands us, relates to us, and can better minister to us. That’s the reason for the season.

The third reason for incarnation was salvation. He came not only to reveal himself to us and identify himself with us. He also came to give his life for us. The son of God became the son of man that we who are the sons of men might become the sons of God. In Galatians 4:4-5, Paul expressed the truth in these words, “He was made of a woman, made under the law, to redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons.” 

The apostle Paul said, “If in this life only we have hope, we are of all men most miserable.” Millions are like that today — miserable. They can be found everywhere. They fill the bars, the psychiatric wards, and cemeteries. They are also in the board rooms, class rooms, and operating rooms. They are people without hope. Someone has said, “Let Christ turn your blues and your blahs into oohs and aahs.” That’s what he can do. His redemption is from destruction — self-destruction as well as eternal destruction. We are, in many ways, our own worst enemies. We seem to be bent on self-destruction. When the scriptures say he would save us from our sins they mean in part that he would save us from ourselves.

On the cross Jesus said, “It is finished.” That Greek word translated “finished” was used of a runner who had completed the race and crossed the goal line. It was used of a soldier who was sent on an assignment, a special mission, and had fulfilled it. What did Jesus mean when he cried, “It is finished”? He meant the sacrifice was finished. There was no more need for more sacrifices. He meant death was finished. We need have no fear of it. He meant hell was finished. We now do not have to go there. He did not say, “I am finished.” He said, “It is finished.” What was finished? The sacrifice, the conquest, and our redemption. And that is the reason for the season.

I’m no longer in contact with, the young girl who wanted to talk with me about Christmas a few years ago. But let me answer those, just like her, who are confused about the real meaning of Christmas. Jesus is the reason for the season. Without Christ there would be no Christmas. Christmas celebrates His birth and His coming. Two thousand years ago, Caesar was on his throne in Rome, claiming to be earth’s chief deity. But still Jesus came. Hostility instead of hospitality was a way of life in Bethlehem, but still Jesus came. The Lord had no army except a few Galilean peasants such as Peter, John, and, yes, Judas, but still He came. He had no weapons except an open hand of love willing to take a basin and towel and be nailed to a cross, but still Jesus Christ came. And, in his coming, you will find the real meaning of Christmas.

He is the reason for the season. But I simply remind you, it is not enough that Jesus was born in Bethlehem 1900 years ago. He must be born again in you by personal faith and trust. And, when he is, Christmas takes on a new meaning.

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The Advent Candle Of Christmas

Christmas Eve Service 2020

Luke 2:1-20

 Pastor Barry Kerner

There are many passages we could read for Christmas Eve, but this passage from Luke is one of my favorites. When I was a kid my Mom always read to us from the gospel of Luke on Christmas Eve, and we would start with these verses from Luke 2. We would read about Joseph and Mary going to Bethlehem, about Jesus being born in the manger, about the angels appearing to the shepherds in the fields, about the shepherds visiting the baby in the manger and then going to forth to tell the whole town the glorious story that Jesus Christ is born. It was a wonderful way to celebrate Christmas Eve before going to bed in anticipation of Christmas morning.

Let us read Luke 2 verses 1-20.

The Birth of Jesus

In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world. 2 (This was the first census that took place while Quirinius was governor of Syria.) 3 And everyone went to their own town to register.

4 So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. 5 He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child. 6 While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, 7 and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no guest room available for them. 8 And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. 9 An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. 10 But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. 11 Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. 12 This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”

13 Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, 14 “Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.” 15 When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.” 16 So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. 17 When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, 18 and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. 19 But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. 20 The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told.

Well, it’s Christmas Eve, and we have gathered to celebrate in song, to worship in prayer and to focus on Christ at Christmas. One of our Christmas traditions here at Delphi Falls United Church is the Advent wreath. Each Sunday of Advent we light an additional candle on the wreath in anticipation of Christmas. That’s usually just a small part of our Advent celebration, but this Advent season we did something a little different.

For our Advent messages on Sunday mornings, we also used the various candles on the Advent wreath as the themes for our messages. For example, the first advent candle represents hope, so the first Sunday of Advent we looked at hope in light of Christmas and the Christmas story. The second candle represents peace, so the second Sunday we looked at peace and how it relates to Christmas. And then we did the same for the third and fourth advent candles which represent joy and love.

But you may have noticed there’s one candle left on the wreath, and that is the center candle, also called the Christ candle. The Christ candle is saved for last and lit on either Christmas Eve or Christmas morning. And so this being Christmas Eve we have lit all four outside candles as well as the center candle in celebration of Christmas.

The Christ candle is in the center because the Christ candle reminds us that Jesus is the center of Christmas. The four outer candles are all important, but they only make sense with Jesus at the center. Yes, Christmas is a time of hope, peace, joy and love, but once again, this is only because of Jesus. And so tonight I want us to look at Jesus as the center of Christmas, and how we only have real hope, peace, joy and love in our lives because of him.

First, there is no real hope without Christ

So, let’s talk about hope first. Jesus is the center of Christmas because there is no real hope without Christ. When we looked at the advent candle of hope, we saw that hope in Christ gets you through the waiting. We saw that hope in Christ helps you go the distance. And we saw that hope in Christ does not disappoint. (Romans 5:5) All real hope in the world is centered on Christ.

We also learned that the whole advent season is all about hope and anticipation. It’s about the people of the Old Testament waiting all those long years for Christ to come. And it’s also about us who are waiting and longing for Christ’s return. God promised to send Jesus the first time, and he did. God has promised to send Jesus a second time, and he will.

Christmas is all about hope because it’s all about Christ. Because God sent his Son into the world, you and I have hope. We have hope for today because Christ is with us. We have hope for tomorrow because Christ will never leave us. And we have hope for eternity, because Christ is coming back to take us to be with him forever.

Too many people live without hope today because they live without Christ. And so that’s the first reason Jesus is the center of Christmas, because all real hope is found in him. There is no real hope without Christ.

Second, there is no real peace without Christ

Jesus is the center of Christmas because there is no real peace without Christ. Once again, when we looked at the advent candle of peace we saw that Jesus brings peace with God – that Jesus came to save us from our sins so that we could be restored to right relationship with God. We saw that Jesus brings peace with self – that when you trust Christ, you enjoy a wonderful peace in your heart, a personal peace that is unlike anything you can find in the world. We saw that Jesus brings peace with others – that when you put Christ first and pray for your relationships, Jesus reconciles those relationships and allows you to live in peace with those around you. And then finally we saw that Jesus will bring peace on earth – that when Christ returns he will rule over this world in peace. All wars and conflicts will cease and even the world of nature and animals will be at peace with each other. All true peace in the world is centered on Christ.

Our world is sadly lacking peace today because our world is lacking Christ. The religious leaders of this world won’t bring you peace. The political leaders of this world won’t bring you peace. The pop psychologists of this world won’t bring you peace. All the drugs and medication in the world won’t bring you real peace.

Only Jesus brings true and lasting peace. He is the Prince of Peace. He is the Savior who came to bring peace between you and God. He is the coming King who comes to reign in peace over all the earth.

The angels who announced the birth of Christ to the shepherds out in the fields sang songs of peace on earth, goodwill towards men. And so that is a second reason Jesus is the center of Christmas, because Jesus brings peace. There is no real peace without Christ.

Third, there is no real joy without Christ

There is no real joy without Christ. When we looked at the advent candle of joy, we saw that Jesus brings the joy of salvation – that there is no real joy without salvation, and no real salvation without joy. We also saw that joy leads to proclamation – good news is for sharing – and that joy leads to praise. We saw that all true joy in the world is centered on Christ.

Once again, when the angels announced the birth of Christ to the shepherds, they not only sang songs of peace in the sky. They proclaimed good news of great joy for all the people. After the shepherds went to Bethlehem and found Jesus in the manger, they were so full of joy they ran out into the night to tell everyone that Christ was born. They couldn’t wait until morning! And they were so filled with joy in sharing that good news of Christmas that they returned glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told.

This world offers a lot of entertainment, a lot of excitement, a lot of thrills, but very little joy. Joy is deeper than happiness. Happiness is temporary and dependent on circumstances. But Jesus offers you a joy that transcends your circumstances. Christmas is not always a happy time for people. Especially if we have lost someone close to us, it colors the season for us. But Jesus offers you a joy that will sustain you even in your deepest sorrows. True joy doesn’t mean you will never be sad. It means that even in your saddest hours, God is with you, you can trust him, and therefore you can have joy.

And so that is a third reason Jesus is the center of Christmas, because Jesus brings a joy that is deeper than happiness and even deeper than our sorrows. There is no real joy without Christ.

Fourth, there is no real love without Christ

The fourth reason Jesus is the center of Christmas is that there is no real love without Christ. When we looked at the advent candle of love, we saw Joseph’s love for Mary as he looked out for her best interests even when he thought she had been unfaithful to him. We saw Mary’s love for Jesus as she wrapped the baby in swaddling clothes and laid him in the manger. We saw God’s love for sinners in sending his own Son into the world as a sacrifice for our sins. And we saw our love for others which is a natural response to God’s love for us.

When we say that there is no real love without Christ, we’re not saying that you can’t love your family or be loving towards others unless you’re a Christian. There are many people who do not follow Christ who are still very loving people. But what we are saying is this: whether you realize it or not, your love for others is only possible because of Jesus, because Jesus is the Son of God. And you cannot experience or express fullness of love without Christ.

The Bible tells us that God is love, and that all love comes from God. (1 John 4:7-8) Before God ever created the world, there was God and there was love. God loved his Son Jesus, and Jesus loved God the Father. God and Jesus both loved the Holy Spirit, and the Holy Spirit loved the Father and the Son. God is love because from all of eternity there has always been a perfect relationship between the three persons of the Trinity – one God, three persons in a perfect relationship of harmony and love.

When God created the world, that love God has for himself in the persons of the Trinity spilled over onto us. It’s like tracing a stream back to its source. You hike through the woods following the stream for hours until you find the lake or spring that is feeding the stream. When you see any act or expression of love in this world, and you trace it back to the source, you will always find God. God is the source of all love in this world. Every act of love in this world finds its source in him. God is love, and all love comes from him.

The story of Christmas is all about love, because Christmas is all about Jesus. The Bible says: “This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.” (1 John 4:9-10)

The baby born in Bethlehem grew to be a man. He lived a perfect life with no sin. He went to the cross and died a horrible death. And the Bible tells us why he did all this. He did it for you and for me. God sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. That’s why he came. That’s why he lived. That’s why he died. And that’s why he rose again – so he could be our Savior forever and rescue us from sin and Satan and death.

This is how God showed his love among us. He sent his Son. And so that’s the fourth reason Jesus is the center of Christmas, because God is love, and all love comes from him. There is no real love without Christ.

Let me close with an illustration to help us pull all this together. I’m not sure how many of you have log burning fireplaces but there’s something about a fire in the fireplace that is so soothing, so pleasing, especially around Christmas time. Years ago I found a channel and would sometimes turn the TV on to the “Fireplace Channel.” That’s right, there is an actual channel which simply broadcasts a fire in a fireplace on your TV screen twenty-four hours a day. It gives you the feel of a fireplace in the home.

What is it that people love about a fire in the fireplace? It’s the whole experience, isn’t it? The light that the fire sheds, the warmth that the fire brings, the scent of the burning wood and the crackling of the embers – these all combine to make it such a beautiful experience. But you can’t have all those things without the fire. The things we love about the fire come from the fire, and the fire is at the center of the light, the warmth, the scent and the crackling.

It’s the same with Christ at Christmas. We all want hope, peace, joy and love, but some people seem to want them without Jesus. It’s like wanting the light, warmth, scent and crackling of the fire in the fireplace without the fire. It doesn’t work that way. Just as the fire is central to all the good things about the fire, so Christ is central to Christmas. Hope, peace, joy and love come from him. He is the center, and we only enjoy the good things of Christmas because of him.

And so as you watch the Christ candle burning this evening in the center of all the other candles, remember that Christ is central. He is the reason for Christmas. He is the one who brings true hope, peace, joy and love for us all. And so let us draw near to him to worship, to praise, to follow and believe. O come let us adore Him! O Come Let Us Adore Him! O COME LET US ADORE HIM! HE IS CHRIST THE LORD!!!

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