Keep sharing good news without ads.
No description available
Good evening everybody. We're gonna be in our prelude.
So Evelyn's gonna start playing the piano. Glad you're here. This is a tradition in our church.
Of course those of you are part of us know the night of carols that we do every year. I'm not exactly sure how many years we've done it I do remember the first year we did it all as we did was the congregation sing carols until At the end of it.
We're all hoarse and raspy and could hardly talk. So it's developed since then and we have a great time singing carols and listening to others. They minister to us. So before we start, let's just commit this time to the Lord and ask his blessings.
Father, thank you for the time that we have together to sing your praises to hear praises sung to you to To hear different ways of praising your name. We thank you that this time of the year. We sing these things called carols because we are thankful and for for the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ the Savior and so Lord help us tonight and To rejoice in his birth to rejoice and why you sent him to rejoice in the salvation that we have in him.
Thank you now for our time already. Because we know as we sing praises to you, we can't help but find great joy and thanksgiving in our hearts. So bless this time we pray as we praise you in Jesus name.
Amen, the people who walked in darkness have seen a great light.
Those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness on them has light shined. You have multiplied the nation you have increased its joy. They rejoice before you as with as with joy at the harvest as they are glad when they divide the spoil.
For the yoke of his burden and the staff for his shoulder the rod of his oppressor You have broken as on the day of Midian. For every boot of the tramping warrior in battle to molt and every garment rolled in blood will be burned as fuel for the fire.
For to us a child is born to us a son is given and the government shall be upon his shoulder and his name Shall be called wonderful counselor mighty God Everlasting father prince of peace. Of the increase of his government and of and of peace there will be no end on the throne of David and over his kingdom to Establish it and to uphold it with justice and with righteousness from this time forth and forevermore.
The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this if you would please stand.
Single come will come Emmanuel.
Oh.
Place in this way.
When his mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph before they came together she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit and Her husband Joseph being just man and unwilling to put her to shame resolved to divorce her quietly.
But as he considered these things Behold an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream Saying Joseph son of David Do not fear to take Mary as your wife. For that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.
She will bear a son and you shall call his name Jesus For he will save his people from their sins. All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the Prophet. Behold the Virgin shall conceive and bear a son and they shall call his name Emmanuel Which means God with us.
When Joseph woke from the sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him. He took his wife but knew her not until she had given birth to a son and he called his name Jesus.
And in the same region there were shepherds out in the field keeping watch over their flock by night and An angel of the Lord appeared to them and the glory of the Lord shown around them and they were filled with great fear.
And The angel said to them fear not. For behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior who is Christ the Lord and this will be the sign for you you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger.
And Suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying glory to God in the highest And on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased. When the angels went away Into heaven the shepherds said to one another let us go over to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened which the Lord has made known to us.
And they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph and the baby lying in a manger. And when they saw it they made known the saying that had been told them concerning this child. And All who heard it wondered at what the shepherds told them.
But Mary treasured up all these things.
Pondering them in her heart. There was a boy.
Went for a walk. Down by the stream. Picked out some rocks.
And stepped out on the battlefield no shield or sword.
For him do we the giant.
Boy just held his cry the stone faces sling And slung around singing glory to God was hiding an angel called.
Told him to go.
And lead his kin to overthrow.
Their wicked foes. His truth was small.
300 men too vast to count like sand in jars of lights to God were told to take a.
Fortress town. No siege ramps built.
No battery could have got their plan. Six days a March the seventh day. To God sing in glory to God Say in the barn he read the trough and clean.
Rock now strikes.
The giant's fair does not break. Those walls are tumbling down. The angel shouts singing Stand and sing again. Park the herald angels sing here. I say I'm not. I'm going to get up here and not be nervous.
And then every year I'm sitting back there shaking in my boots. So I pray that this would be used to bless. And may y 'all see the spirit in our Christian circles. We throw around words that we assume everyone knows the meaning of words like propitiation.
Sanctification evangelism. Or see used to these words that we forget that to the world out there. These words may be foreign or have a completely different meaning altogether for example out to the world outside these walls.
Evangelism has taken on political meaning. To the world at large. The term seems to have become a Term for a clique of Christians that are willfully blind to anything and everything. Except for voting certain people into power.
So long as those people use the correct buzzwords. But in the New Testament meaning an Evangelist is simply one who is sent to deliver a certain message. That message need not be simply religious. Have you ever shared about a book you enjoyed or a shortcut to make life easier or anything like that at all?
Well, then congratulations. You're an evangelist. Tonight I'm going to introduce you to a figure in the Christmas story that is very often overlooked. This person is not the first in the New Testament to act as an evangelist.
But they're the first one whose name we know. The unnamed first New Testament evangelists were of course the shepherds who attended the Christ child on the night of his birth. Luke records them as telling people what they saw it that what?
A stammering tongue. Let's begin that again. Shall we? Luke records the shepherds is telling people what they saw that night because the people wandered at their tails. The first named evangelist however appears in the in-between story of the nativity.
They appear in between the stories of the shepherds and the wise men. During the small family's visit to the temple to purify Mary and Jesus after her child's birth. Approximately a month after Jesus was born Joseph and Mary brought two birds to the temple in Jerusalem to make Mary ceremonially clean after childbirth and to ritually redeem her firstborn son according to the Levitical law and.
During that visit we are introduced to two people who interacted with them. Simeon a devout man was told that he would not die until he saw the promised Christ. When he saw Jesus and held him He prayed that now he could depart in peace because Simeon had seen the salvation of the world.
He went on to utter a prophecy of the cross and of the pain that Mary would undergo When she was watching these events. Then we're introduced to Anna. Anna was an asherite and a prophetess of advanced years up until her 80s and probably older.
That lived at the temple and worshipped their day and night. Verse 30 38 of Luke 2 tells us this about Anna and Coming up at that very hour. She began to give thanks to God and to speak of him to all who were waiting for the redemption of Jerusalem.
She spoke of Jesus to anyone who had listened to her. This is our evangelist. An Older woman devoted to God is the first named mouthpiece for Christ to anyone Who would listen? The most unlikely person anyone at that time could think of.
Was used by God to spread the word the Son of God had arrived. And I find it fascinating that three decades and a few years later God did it again. He used the most unlikely person anyone at the time could think of.
To spread the word that the Son of God had risen from the dead. We know this evangelist's name as well. Mary Magdalene two women decades apart one unchanging message. The Messiah is here. And guess what?
Message is still the same. The Messiah is here. He is alive. He reigns as Lord he will return. So Evangelist go spread the good news.
I'm a blessed man. Don't you think? Y 'all don't know. That's my wife. It's a Nola now. Where's a. There was a man in Jerusalem. His name was Simeon. And this man was righteous and devout Waiting for the consolation of Israel and the Holy Spirit was upon him.
And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord's Christ. And he came into the spirit into the temple and when the parents brought the child Jesus to do for him according to the custom of the law he took him up in his arms and blessed God and said Lord now you are letting your servant depart in peace according to your word.
For my eyes have seen your salvation. That you have prepared in the presence of all peoples a light for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to your people.
Israel. Well, isn't it in a moment? I'm gonna close this in prayer, but we would like to invite you in the back for.
For a meal for different snacks and meal to enjoy with one another so I'll be praying for that as well. So pray with me Oh God in heaven. What gift is this that? True God would take on true flesh to save us from our sins.
Oh Lord when we consider Jesus Christ How can we not do anything but worship this great Savior God to consider our rebellion and our sin? That you wouldn't turn us away. That you wouldn't come in wrath but instead in Grace upon grace what a gift we have in Christ.
I pray God that our hearts would be warm. That in this moment in this season We wouldn't be cold-hearted to these wondrous things that you have done for people like us who are so undeserving. Let us Lord sing praises to our King not just in song here But also and the way we live our lives as a living sacrifice to you.
So that as we gather with friends and family to talk about Christmas May people see Christ in us for he has done a wondrous thing for us. We praise you and we thank you for him tonight. I pray God that we would enjoy this meal together as Christians as people who have been called out of darkness into light.
That we'd enjoy a meal with one another and even talk and have fellowship and conversations. Of praise to our King for this great work of salvation. We praise you and we thank you and may you be glorified now and forever in Jesus name.
Amen. You are dismissed. Thank you.