Preached by Pastor Mike Hess Sunday morning 12/20/2009.
Celebrating the Incarnation
John 1:14
Introduction:
Two truths about Jesus that separates Him from any other man-made false God:
1. The uniqueness of His conception, birth, life, and death.
2. His body did NOT stay in the grave…He bodily rose from the dead with irrefutable proof and a multitude of witnesses.
I. The Incarnation and the Virgin Birth (Matthew 1:18-23)
“And Mary said to the angel, “how will this be, since I am a virgin” And the angel answered her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy-the Son of God.” Luke 1:34-35
The Virgin Birth proves a few things:
1. The deity of Jesus Christ – He was indeed God in flesh
2. The fact that Jesus did NOT inherit Original Sin from Adam
3. God is faithful to His promises to the very last detail (Matthew 1:23)
“If we do not hold to the virgin birth despite the fact that the Bible asserts it, then we have compromised the authority of the Bible and there is in principle no reason why we should hold to its other teachings. Thus, rejecting the virgin birth has implications reaching far beyond the doctrine itself.” Millard Erickson
“If Jesus was not born of a virgin, who was His father? There is no answer that will leave the Gospel intact. The Virgin Birth explains how Christ could be both God and man, how He was without sin, and that the entire work of salvation is God’s gracious act. If Jesus was not born of a virgin, He had a human father. If Jesus was not born of a virgin, the Bible teaches a lie.” Albert Mohler
II. The Incarnation and the Life of Christ (1 John 1:1-2; 4:1-2)
He was fully man:
He thirsted (John 19:28), He hungered (Matt. 4:2), He slept (Mark 4), He had human emotions – anger, sadness and marveling at people’s faith, He knew physical pain and even knew death.
He was also fully God:
“Waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ.” Titus 2:13
Thomas answered him, “My Lord and my God!” John 20:28
Jesus clearly possessed the attributes of God – He knows everything (Mt. 18:20; 8:20; Acts 8:20), is everywhere (Mt. 16:21; Luke 11:17; John 4:29), has all power (Mt. 8:26-27; 28:18; Jn. 11:38-44; Lk. 7:14-15; Rev. 1:8), depends on nothing outside of himself for life (Jn. 1:4; 14:6; 8:58), rules over everything (Mt. 28:18; Rev. 19:16; 1:5) never began to exist and never will cease to exist (Jn. 1:1, 8:58), and is our Creator (Col. 1:16). In other words, everything that God is, Jesus is. For Jesus is God.
III. The Incarnation and the Atonement (1 Peter 1:18-19)
“Knowing that you were ransomed from futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of lamb without blemish or spot.” 1 Peter 1:18-19
Closing Thoughts:
1. Believing Scripture makes Christmas all that more glorious!
2. Look at the Christmas story in light of the whole Gospel – The eternal Son of God entering time and space to life a perfect life, to die on the Cross, to rise from the dead, ascend into heaven and one day to return to this earth.”
3. Christmas is worth celebrating and remembering – Jesus Christ is worth living and dying for!
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