Christmas Eve service 12/24/2021

First Baptist Church Leominster

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Well, good evening folks Welcome to our Christmas Eve service. I'm pastor

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Lars Larson. We greet you in the name of God our Father his son our Lord Jesus we trust that you

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Obtained a candle when you came in through the door for the end of the service.

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We'll Move to the perimeter of the of the sanctuary and light candles and sing silent night

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So if you don't have one, please obtain one And then we also have a order of service for you

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Also, I see we're kind of gravitating over to the left here tonight. Aren't we everybody sitting over there?

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Good to see you. Good to have you We're also airing our service this evening for our shut -in.

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So a number of them are joining us right now. I suspect And so before we invoke

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God's presence with us We're going to have the lighting of the fifth

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Advent candle And so Brad and Debbie if you would do that, please, thank you

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Tonight's reading comes from John in the beginning was the

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Word and the Word was with God and The Word was

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God He was with God in the beginning Through him all things were made

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Without him and nothing was made that has been made in Him was life and that life was the light of men the light shines in the darkness

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But the darkness has not understood it They came a man who was sent from God.

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His name was John. He came as a witness to testify concerning that light

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So that through him all men might believe He himself was not the light

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He came only as a witness to the light The true light that gives light to every man was coming into the world

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He was in the world and through the world was made through him The world did not recognize him.

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He came to that which was his own But his own did not receive him Yet to all who received him to those who believed in his name he gave the right to become children of God Children born not of natural descent nor of human decision or a husband's will but born of God The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us.

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We have seen his glory the glory of the one and only Who came from the

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Father full of grace and truth and When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said

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I am the light of the world Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness.

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What will have the light of life? the fifth and final

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Advent candle lit tonight Symbolizes Jesus's birth as the advent of life

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Go to our father in prayer, please Our Heavenly Father we thank you for this opportunity this occasion.

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We have to gather together in the name of your son our Lord Jesus And we celebrate our

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God the incarnation when you sent your eternally begotten

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Son Into this world to assume our human nature Truly God truly man so that we might not only learn of you our

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God, but that we might be redeemed and brought into Relationship with you to faith in him

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We pray our God that you would help us to celebrate this occasion as we gather together in your son's name help us our

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God as we sing and as we read Holy Scripture as we also consider the message of this

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Christmas Eve And so help us now our God we commit this time to you in Jesus name

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Amen The carols that we'll be singing this evening the hymns will all be out of the red hymnal

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And so for the first hymn if you'll please turn in your red hymnal to hymn 195 and we'll sing this

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Familiar carol let's stand, please Oh Oh Oh Well on the

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Lord's Day mornings this Advent season We've been reading through the gospel of Luke the infancy narrative of Luke Luke 1 and 2 and so we thought this evening we would read

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Matthews and So pastor Jason will come and we'll read

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Matthew chapter 1 18 through 25 Now the birth of Jesus Christ took place in this way

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When his mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph before they came together She was found to be with child from the

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Holy Spirit and her husband Joseph being a just man and unwilling to put her to shame

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Resolved to divorce her quietly But as he considered these things Behold an angel of the

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Lord appeared to him in a dream saying Joseph son of David do not fear to take

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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

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Jesus for he will save his people from their sins All this took place to fulfill what the

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Lord had spoken by the prophet Behold the Virgin shall conceive and bear a son and they shall call his name

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Emmanuel which means God with us When Joseph woke from sleep he did as the angel of the

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Lord commanded him He took his wife but knew her not until she had given birth to a son and he called his name

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Jesus He Oh True Oh Although we're reading through Matthew's infancy narratives

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Later on we're going to make some comments of an Old Testament passage a prophecy of the birth of Christ one well known to most of us and that's from Isaiah 9 and So I'm going to read the first seven verses of this chapter

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Nevertheless a gloom will not be upon her who is distressed as when at first he lightly esteemed the land of Zebulun the land of Naphtali and Afterward more heavily oppressed her by the way of the sea beyond the

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Jordan in Galilee of the Gentiles The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light

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Those who dwell in the land of the shadow of death upon them a light has shined You have multiplied the nation and increased its joy

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They rejoice there before you according to the joy of harvest as men rejoice when they divide the spoils

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For you have broken the yoke of his burden and the staff of his shoulder the rod of his oppressor as in the day of Midian For every warrior's sandal from the noisy battle and garments rolled in blood will be used for burning and for fuel of fire

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For on to us a child is born on to us a son is given and the government will be upon his shoulder and His name will be called wonderful counselor mighty

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God everlasting father prince of peace and of the increase of his government and peace there will be no end and upon the throne of David and over his kingdom to order it and establish it with judgment and Justice from that time forward even forever

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The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this And so we have a foretelling of the birth of Jesus over 700 years

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Before that event in Bethlehem Well, Jennifer and Lizzie Weir will come now and sing the

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Christmas miracle I Oh Oh That right

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Oh Sing rejoice

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Oh Well, let's turn in our red hymnals to him number 214 and let's stand to sing please

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Oh Oh You see you didn't and pastor

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Jason will now come and read Matthew 2 verses 1 through 12 Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king

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Behold wise men from the east came to Jerusalem Saying where is he who has been born king of the

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Jews for we saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him when

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Herod the king heard this he was troubled and all Jerusalem with him and Assembling all the chief priests and scribes of the people.

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He inquired of them where the Christ was to be born they told him in Bethlehem of Judea for for so it is written by the prophet and You Oh Bethlehem in the land of Judah are by no means least among the rulers of Judah For from you shall come a ruler who will shepherd my people

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Israel Then Herod summoned the wise men secretly and ascertained from them the time the star had appeared and he sent them to Bethlehem saying

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Go and search diligently for the child and when you have found him bring me word that I too may come and worship him after listening to the king they went on their way and Behold the star that they had seen when it rose went before them until it came to rest over the place where the child was

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When they saw the star they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy and going into the house

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They saw the child with Mary his mother and they fell down and worshipped him then opening their treasures they offered him gifts gold and frankincense and myrrh and Being warned in a dream not to return to Herod.

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They departed to their own country by another way My If the promise is true

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Is there any room at the manger for me?

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Has dawned upon the world promise from creation

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God's salvation now on firm foundation

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Not with fanfares from above Not with scenes of glory

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But a humble gift of love Jesus born of Mary Sounds of wonder fill the sky

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With the songs of angels As the mighty prince of life

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Shelters in a stable Heads that set each star in place

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Shape the earth in darkness Cling thou to a mother's breast

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Vulnerable and helpless Shepherds bow before the

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Lamb Gazing at the glory Gifts of men from distant lands

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Prophesy their story Golden King is born today

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Incense God is with us Myrrh His death will make a way

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And by His blood He'll win us Son of Adam, Son of Eve Given as a ransom

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Reconciling God and men Christ our mighty champion

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What a Savior, what a friend What a glorious mystery

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Once a babe in Bethlehem Now the

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Lord of history Hymn number 213 please, your red hymnal.

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Once again let's stand to sing. Please be seated.

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And Pastor Jason, why don't you come and read this too. Matthew 2, just a few verses here, 13 -15.

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Now when they had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said,

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Rise, take the child and his mother and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you.

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For Herod is about to search for the child to destroy him. And he rose and took the child and his mother by night and departed to Egypt and remained there until the death of Herod.

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This was to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet, Out of Egypt I called my son.

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We who walk in darkness deep

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Now see the light of morning

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The mighty God, the Prince of Peace A child to us is born

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Behold the Lamb of God Who takes away our sin

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Behold the Lamb of God The life and light of man

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Behold the Lamb of God Who died and rose again

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Behold the Lamb of God Who comes to take away our sin

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Wanderers in the wilderness

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Oh, hear the voices crying

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Prepare the way, make straight the path

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Your King has come to die

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Behold the Lamb of God Who takes away our sin

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Behold the Lamb of God The life and light of man

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Behold the Lamb of God Who died and rose again

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Behold the Lamb of God Who comes to take away our sin

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Son of God, Emmanuel Son of man, we praise you

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Behold the Lamb The hope of man

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Behold the Lamb Behold the

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Lamb of God Who takes away our sin

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Behold the Lamb of God The life and light of man

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Behold the Lamb of God Who died and rose again

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Behold the Lamb of God Who comes to take away our sin

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Well, Pastor Jason, we'll come down and read the last portion of Matthew's infancy narrative,

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Matthew 2, 16 through 23, and then Jason, if you'll pray for us, please. Then Herod, when he saw that he had been tricked by the wise men, became furious, and he sent and killed all the male children in Bethlehem and in all that region who were two years old and under, according to the time that he had ascertained from the wise men.

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Then was fulfilled what was spoken by the prophet Jeremiah. A voice was heard in Ramah, weeping and loud lamentation,

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Rachel weeping for her children. She refused to be comforted because they are no more.

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But when Herod died, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, saying,

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Rise, take the child and his mother, and go to the land of Israel, for those who sought the child's life are dead.

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And he rose and took the child and his mother and went to the land of Israel. But when he heard that Archelaus was reigning over Judea in the place of his father

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Herod, he was afraid to go there, and being warned in a dream, he withdrew to the district of Galilee.

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And he went and lived in a city called Nazareth, so that what was spoken by the prophets might be fulfilled, that he would be called a

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Nazarene. Let's pray. Heavenly Father, we are so grateful for the

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Incarnation, for the miracle of the Incarnation, God becoming flesh,

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God entering into history, God entering into His creation. Lord, we rejoice that this happened, because through Christ there is salvation, and there is salvation in no one else.

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And so, Lord, as we reflect upon the Incarnation, as we reflect upon His birth and His life and His death, we thank

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You, Lord, that You imputed His righteousness to us, and our sinfulness

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You imputed to Him. Double imputation. Lord, this is why we are saved, because of Christ's work,

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His life, His death, and His resurrection. Lord, help us to remember these things as we reflect upon Your Word.

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Thank You, Lord, in Jesus' name, amen. Earlier we read from the prophecy of Isaiah, again over 700 years before the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem.

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In reading that passage, Isaiah first spoke about the very difficult situation that existed among the people of Israel at that time.

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It was a period of gloom. It was a period in which the people of Israel were greatly distressed because God had brought judgment upon that nation.

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Although God had been very gracious and merciful to that nation for hundreds of years, the nation had not been responsive to God as God required of it.

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Rather than the nation ordering its life according to the laws of God, it rather sought after other gods, lived in sinful defiance of God, and ultimately it brought the final and full judgment of God upon that nation.

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The Assyrian Empire was raised up by God, and it came down and destroyed the nation.

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And Isaiah proclaimed this event was about to take place.

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Again, it would be a period of gloom, a period of darkness. The land of Zebulun, the land of Naphtali, speaking about the region in northern

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Samaria or Galilee, more heavily oppressed by the way of the sea beyond the

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Jordan and Galilee of the Gentiles, the people walked in darkness. They were in darkness because God had turned away from them and brought his judgment upon them for their sin.

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And yet there's a theme expressed here in Isaiah 9, one that is actually common to Isaiah's prophecy and one that is actually frequently seen throughout the

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Old Testament. It's that God has purposed to bring salvation to his people through judgment.

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In other words, judgment precedes salvation. And it was his purpose,

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God's purpose in bringing salvation to his people, but first he would judge that people for its sin.

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He brought them to a place where they realized their great defiance, rebellion against God had brought this misery upon them, that they warranted

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God's wrath upon them because they lived in total disregard of their God who had created them and been so kind to them.

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And so in the midst of this difficulty and this hardship and this judgment, God promised through his prophet that he would send a savior for them.

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He would be a king, one who would truly lead them in the way of righteousness, one who would deliver them from the wrath that was upon them.

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He would be as light shining in a dark place, that land of Naphtali, that land of Zebulun under great darkness, the clouds of judgment lying over that land.

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And yet the prophet declared that they would see a great light. This was the light of the revelation of God.

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And when we turn into the New Testament, we discover that that was a prophecy of the Lord Jesus himself, that when he began his earthly ministry in Galilee, that passage from Isaiah 9 is quoted, that those people in Galilee saw a great light, and it was foretelling the coming of the

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Lord Jesus Christ, in which he revealed the way of salvation for these people that were caught in sin.

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And so afterward, more heavily oppressed, God more heavily oppressed her by the way of the sea beyond the

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Jordan in Galilee of the Gentiles. The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light.

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Those who dwelt in the land of the shadow of death, upon them a light has shined.

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And indeed, the Lord Jesus came in fulfillment of that prophecy and revealed the way of salvation, a way to return on to God.

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And so how would this be done? How would salvation would be obtained? Well, God himself would raise up a son of David, a promised king who would rule them and guide them into the way of righteousness, who would reestablish the kingdom of God, as it were, inaugurate the promised kingdom of God that God had promised

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David so long before. And so in verses 6 and 7 of Isaiah 9, we have this child, this son proclaimed so clearly.

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For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given, and the government will be upon his shoulder, and his name will be called

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Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. And of the increase of his government and peace, there will be no end.

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For upon the throne of David, over his kingdom, to order it and establish it with judgment and justice from that time forward, even forever, the zeal of the

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Lord of hosts would perform this. And so this prophecy was given through Isaiah to Israel in the 8th century, long before the birth of Jesus.

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God would spare that nation, would spare that people, that is a remnant of that people, in sending them a savior.

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And so in contrast to experiencing the wrath of God, they would be delivered from the wrath of God by God himself sending a savior.

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And those who looked to him and believed on him and trusted him as the promised king, as the promised

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Messiah, submitted to him as their Lord, he would save them from their sin.

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He is the judge. God is a judge to those who reject him. We are to trust ourselves to the

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Lord Jesus to spare us from the judgment of God that is upon this world. Jesus Christ will indeed be a savior to any and all that come unto him humbly and believe on him as their savior, as their king.

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Now this is a word of hope for hopeless sinners. They had absolutely no resources on which to fall back on to deliver them from their enemies.

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God had abandoned them. They were weak. The Assyrian Empire was far too great for them to withstand.

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And so they were brought to be humble before God and they cried out to God for mercy. They had nothing by which to merit

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God's favor toward them, but it was solely based upon the mercy and grace of God to them.

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And so this word of hope is given to hopeless sinners and that God himself would send a child, would send his son to be their savior.

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And so we have this promise of a savior in Isaiah 9, 6 and 7. For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given, and the government will be upon his shoulder.

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Again, the promise of a savior would have been understood as a descendant of King David, and only he would be the legitimate heir to the throne of Israel.

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It is said, for unto us a child is born. This speaks of our Lord Jesus with respect to his human nature.

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He's a child, a holy child. It's written in the present tense to show the certainty that this child will indeed be born.

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Unto us a child is born. He doesn't even say will be born, but is born to emphasize its certainty.

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Jesus Christ is God who became a child born unto us. It was necessary that the

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Savior not just be the Son of God, but that he be a man also. And so he's depicted here as a child.

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And only a man can be a redeemer of man, of fallen man. But this child born unto us is not only a child, but he's also described as a son who is given to us.

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This expresses the fact that the Savior is God himself. A child is born, a son is given.

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This speaks of the two natures of our Lord Jesus Christ. He is the free gift of God to his people, as was sung a little bit ago, for God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son.

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Christ had to be a man to die as our representative in order to represent us before God.

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But he must be God so that his death upon the cross might be of infinite worth and be sufficient to pay for our sins.

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And so God caused his child to be born among us, but he's also given us his son.

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And it's declared that the government would be upon his shoulder. Some ancient kings would wear a golden chain draped over one shoulder as a symbol of their kingly authority.

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And the prophet declares that the authority would be laid upon the shoulder of this child, showing the honor that was conferred upon him.

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This child was destined from birth to be the king over the kingdom of God. His government consists of giving forth his laws as the ruler of the kingdom.

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His government involves leading and enabling his people to submit to his rule. In his rule, he subdues the enemies of his people, protecting his own from all forces that would threaten their well -being.

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The authority of the Lord over his kingdom is conferred upon him by his father. It rests upon his shoulder.

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He carries the responsibility because his father called him to the task and gave him the responsibility.

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And the Lord Jesus himself, of course, declared after his resurrection, all authority has been given unto me in heaven and earth.

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And then this child who is given, this son who is given to us, is described also as a ruler, a glorious ruler.

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He's depicted, first of all, as wonderful and a mighty counselor, a wonderful counselor.

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Actually, these two words should probably be read together. Wonderful describes the quality of him being a counselor.

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This is a prophecy of the wisdom that our Lord Jesus possesses. A king must be wise if he is to lead his nation rightly and be successful in defeating the enemies of his people.

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And our Lord Jesus Christ, of course, being the Son of God, possesses all knowledge.

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This speaks of his ability to wage warfare on behalf of his people and do all that is necessary to secure their eternal well -being.

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We pray for our nation's leaders, that they may be given wisdom from God to lead us rightly, that they might make wise decisions for our welfare.

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And our nation's leaders have not always been wise in their leadership. They've not always foreseen the danger to which they've exposed us until it was too late.

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Not so with the government of our Lord Jesus in the kingdom of God. For he, of course, is all wise.

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The life of the citizens of the kingdom of God are never threatened. They are secure. He is a wonderful counselor.

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He knows how to lead us. He knows how to protect us. He knows how to thwart the efforts of those enemies that would destroy us.

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He knows how to guide his people in a flawless manner because he's a wonderful counselor.

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And then his name would also be called Mighty God. Not only does our king know how to lead us, but he has all power that he might lead us.

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He is not only omniscient, our wonderful counselor, but he's omnipotent. He is the mighty

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God. Not only does he know how to lead us, he in fact does so perfectly and absolutely because he's

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Mighty God. He is Mighty God in that he is the creator of all things as the

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New Testament tells us. All things were created by him and without him not anything was made that was made.

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Our Lord Jesus is Mighty God in that he's also the ruler of all that is. He manages all events of all creatures in all of history.

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He governs history through providence. That is, he acts behind the scene ordering all events of all people's lives in order to accomplish the purposes of his father.

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And so our Lord Jesus, our wonderful counselor, is all -knowing and he's also

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Mighty God in that he's all -powerful. And then his name will also be called

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Everlasting Father. We should not understand this as being equated with God the

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Father. Now indeed, God is a Holy Trinity. God the Father, God the Son, God the

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Holy Spirit are one God and they have one essence. We believe in one

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God, not three. Nevertheless, the Son is not the Father. The Trinity manifests itself in three different persons.

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But here the Son of God is projected as being described as the Everlasting Father. This describes his relationship to his people.

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We speak of George Washington as the father of our nation. And here the Lord Jesus Christ is proclaimed, prophesied to be the

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Everlasting Father of his people. And so this speaks about his concern for his people, his care for them.

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He is watching over them, as one once wrote. Christ is a father to these people unto everlasting.

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He will never die and they will never be left fatherless. He and they will continue in this relationship.

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He as such supplies them with everlasting provisions. As a father, he clothes them with everlasting raiment, holiness.

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He gives them an everlasting portion, promotes them to everlasting honor, saves them from an everlasting salvation, bearing an everlasting love to them.

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And then fourthly, his name shall be called Prince of Peace. A prince is one who rules in the authority of his father.

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And here Christ is described as a prince, a ruler, whose realm is characterized by peace.

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We read in the scripture that Satan is a prince of the power of the air. That is, he's been given rule over demonic forces in this present age.

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Christ is a prince too in that he rules. His kingdom is the opposite of Satan's, which is characterized by sin and violence, uncleanness, and injustice.

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Christ rules over a kingdom characterized by peace. Peace set forth in the

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Bible comes in two forms. There is the object of peace, a state of peace that all

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Christians enjoy with God. We have peace with God through Jesus Christ. We are in a state of peace.

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Before coming to faith in Christ, we were his enemies. And he regarded us as his enemies.

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He was our enemy. We were his enemies. We were at enmity with one another.

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But through the death of Jesus Christ upon the cross, that came to an end for all those who believe on him.

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And therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.

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This is a state of peace, an objective peace that every child of God equally shares and enjoys through Jesus Christ.

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But the scriptures also speak about a subjective peace. Not only does Christ, as the prince of peace, rule over a kingdom at peace with God, but he sees to it that his people feel themselves to be at peace.

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Now, this is subjective. This rises or falls, depending on any number of things.

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And will vary from individual to individual. But the true Christian may indeed experience this peace that passes all understanding, this subjective peace, and it's brought to us through faith in Jesus Christ.

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In conclusion, Isaiah's prophecy promises full salvation for us through our

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Lord Jesus Christ. We, through faith, are the citizens of his kingdom when we believe on who he is.

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We mentioned at the outset that God brings salvation through judgment. He did back in Isaiah's day, and he does for each and every one of us who comes to faith in Jesus Christ.

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He brought us salvation through the judgment of God that fell upon Jesus Christ himself when he died upon the cross on behalf of sinners.

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That's why he died. He was suffering in the place on behalf as a substitute for his people.

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But he also brings us salvation through bringing judgment upon us. The Holy Spirit convicts the world.

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He judges the world. And when God begins to draw his people unto himself, he first convicts them of sin and shows them their great guilt and their helplessness and the fact that they need someone outside of themselves to deliver them.

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And so God saves us through judgment. Coming to Christ, we are to judge ourselves.

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We are to acknowledge and believe what God has declared about us. We are sinners. We fall short of the glory of God.

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There's only room for one Lord in this world. This is God's world, and that Lord is not you or me.

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God has declared that Jesus Christ is Lord, and those who humbly come to him in faith and embrace that, believe on him and submit unto him, are graciously brought into that kingdom, and they can enjoy this everlasting peace, everlasting joy, everlasting salvation through him.

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And that's what we're commemorating and celebrating, the birth of our Savior into this world. Thanks be to God for his unspeakable gift.

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Amen. If you would, folks, please take your candle and let's go to the perimeter of the sanctuary, please.

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And we'll begin to light these candles, and then we'll sing Holy Night, Silent Night.

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Perhaps somebody could help these folks over here. John, why don't you go over here and help these folks against the wall, please?

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And just before we sing, let's pray. Our Father, we thank you for this

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Christmas season. We thank you, our God, that we have this opportunity and privilege to gather with your people and celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ into this world.

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Thank you, Father, for having given us this child, having given us this son, your son, our

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God, to be our Savior, to be our Lord, to be our King. We pray that you would help each of us, our

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God, to have a sincere and full, a genuine faith in him. And so we pray, our

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God, that you would be merciful and gracious. May the blessed Holy Spirit make the Lord Jesus Christ very vividly real and apparent and needful to each and every one of us.

01:00:02

And we pray, our God, as we gather as families with one another tomorrow, perhaps, we pray that this spirit of Christmas, our focus and understanding of Jesus Christ, would be foremost on our hearts and our minds.

01:00:17

For we pray these things, our Father, in Jesus' name, amen. I share a stream from heaven far and sing out a cry is more cry is more silent night oh side yet from holy face with the name grace

01:02:24

Jesus Lord at thy birth

01:02:31

Jesus Lord at thy silent night star lend thy light with the angels let us sing hallelujah our king

01:03:09

Christ the Savior is born Christ the

01:03:18

Savior is born amen.

01:03:24

We'll ask Elder Dave Ferrer to come and give us a benediction. And upon his amen, we can blow out our candles.

01:03:36

And now may the Lord bless you and keep you. May the Lord cause his face to shine upon you and be gracious unto you.

01:03:45

The Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace. Amen.