"Matthew 1v18-24"

This has been automatically generated, and therefore may contain some unintended inaccuracies.

Good evening, everyone. Happy Christmas. I'm Bart, pastor here at Hope Church, and you're in good voice this evening. It's sounding good, and thank you to the music group as well. And to everyone who's done such hard work to make this evening happen, including those doing decorations and those doing refreshments.

Thank you so much for your work. Well, it's Christmas time, and I know you've got lots that you need to be thinking about. So it's great that you're here this evening. You've got lots to think about. You've got lots of presents to buy, although maybe you've bought them all.

You've got lots of wrapping to do. You've got lots of food to prepare. And you've got a lot of illnesses to try and avoid as well, which seem to be around. And if you manage to do all that, you've done very well. But I hope at Christmas time you've got in your mind a traditional Christmas scene.

And that is the scene of Mary and Joseph and the baby Jesus. You don't see it quite so much around. You don't see that scene as much in cards and maybe in other places, but I hope that's in your mind. Certainly, there's a stamp that's gone around more recently, where a stamp, which was actually postage stamp used in, 20 15. It was on social media.

It was this 1, which I saw there you go, the traditional scene. And then did you see the caption someone put with it? I quite liked it. Great to see Mary on keyboards and Joseph on vocals. And the more you look at it, the more you think, yeah, that is what it looks like, isn't it?

Joseph really looks like he's giving it something. Well, maybe it's not that scene, but there are other scenes around around the country, up and down the country. There'll be Nativity plays. I think there was 1 done here in the school with children, performing the roles as usual. Maybe you saw the clip.

Did you see the clip? I I'm not gonna show you the whole thing, but did you see this kid? Milo, not if you saw him. Oh, not many people saw it. He went he managed to be interviewed on this morning because of it as well.

But he was a kid. You've gotta go and okay. You've gotta go and look it up. Not right now, but, look it up afterwards. Kink called Milo telling his mum, mind you, I'm gonna give it all away now, but, telling his mum about the part that he got for in the nativity play.

And he says he's so enthusiastic about it. And he says to her, it's a classic part. And she said, oh, great. What? Yeah.

What is it? What is it? Is it? Wise man? He says, no.

No. Is it Joseph? She said, no. No. No.

She said, but it's a classic part. He said, yeah. It's a classic part. She said, okay. Go on then.

What is it? He says, it's door holder number 3. And he is so excited about it. She said, what was it like when you were told? He says, I thought, get in there.

I'm gonna be holding doors. He then said he thought he'd gotta be dressed in brown because he's gotta look like a door, which She said he didn't. So you gotta look it up. It's quite a funny little tip, although I've just given it all away. But it's lovely that schools are doing the nativity story, even with the additional characters.

But I think sometimes with those nativity stories and nativity scenes, we can miss what's going on. We can miss the real significance of what's happening. And so this evening, I just want us to think about 3 things from the nativity, which are really significant, 3 things. And the first is that we need to grasp that these are real events. They're real events that happened That's why we had the not very christmasy reading, 1 of them from the beginning of Luke's gospel.

You might have thought, what have I got this for? But actually it's really important because at the beginning of Luke's gospel, he tells you something really important that influences the way that you then read Luke's gospel or the way you listen to it if it's being read to you. And this often happens in stories, in films, or in books. Right at the beginning, it will tell you something really significant that influences how you read it. Lots of films start with what I gather is called a fictitious person's disclaimer, which says, all characters appearing in this work are fictitious.

Any resemblance to real persons living all day is purely co in identity. In other words, as you're watching it, as you're watching die hard, you don't need to think this is real events that are happening. It's just all made up. You can just let it wash over you. You can just enjoy it.

But other things that you watch or read might say This is based on real events. And at that point, you've got decisions to make as you go through, haven't you? Was this real? Was it not? I don't know.

It was based on real events. SAS Rogue Heroes, if you ever watched that TV program begins with the disclaimer, the the events depicted, which seem most unbelievable, are mostly true. So even still you don't know which ones are true and which aren't, but then leading you to believe that the really incredible ones might be true, but they might not. Now I think if you watch a nativity play or film with the nativity in it, you're probably thinking This is based on real events, but possibly the most extraordinary things are untrue. Well, when Luke wrote his gospel, his account of Jesus's life, including Jesus' birth.

He began by saying something very important. He says that many people wrote and written accounts of Jesus' life. And eyewitnesses wrote them down. And Luke then says, this, with this in mind, since I myself have carefully investigated everything from the beginning, I too decided to write an orderly account. So you see Luke is saying there, I've done the homework.

I've checked things out. I've checked out what's true and what's not, and I've only included in my book things that I know are true. Now what difference does that make to the way you read it? He then goes on to say in the next verse. He's done this so that the reader may know the certainty of things that have been taught.

He's saying I've included things. I don't I've checked them out so that you can have certainty about what I'm telling you about. And that's why at the beginning of the account of Jesus' birth, He begins by saying, do you remember in those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a sensor should be taken of the entire Roman world? Now why is he telling you that? He's saying that because he wants you to know when it happened.

It was in the time of Caesar Augustus. When Quwerinius was the governor of Syria. Why does he give you those words? Is it so that it's difficult to read? No.

It's so that you know when it was. And he says because of that census, Mary and Joseph had to go to Bethlehem. That was true. A real event. He checked it out.

So he's telling you when it happened and where it happened. And actually, when it comes to telling you about the birth, he doesn't give you a lot of detail. He doesn't give you a lot of information. It's quite matter of fact. He just says while they were in Bethlehem, Mary gave birth to her firstborn, her son, and she laid him in a manger because there was no room in the inn or there was no guest room.

And that's all you get about the birth. And then the scene moves to the hillside and the shepherds and an angel appearing to them. And we know Luke said that he checked it all out. So he's saying this really happened. It may seem to be extraordinary.

It may seem to be 1 of the most extraordinary events, but Luke's saying it really happened. And in what they say, in what the angel says to the shepherds is the second thing that I want us to spot. And it's this. This is great news. This is great news.

That's what the angel says to the shepherds. First 10 of, of, of the reading that we had up at it on the screen. It says this. This is what the angel said to the shepherds. Do not be afraid.

I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Now you notice that the angel is underlining how great this news is, how wonderful this is. He doesn't just say this is good news. He says this is good news of great joy. Now we know that there are different levels of good news.

You know? I mean, there's the kind of good news, which is I found my car keys. That is good news of great relief for 1 person. But this, the angel says, is good news of great joy for all people. This is a level of news which is way above that.

It is extremely good news. I was listening, Last week to an interview, of, a girl called, Alyssa Tapley. You might have heard the interview. She it was very moving. At 13 years old, she, was diagnosed with leukemia and was told she was gonna die.

And she was told that her parents told her everything. Said that, you know, she she probably only had weeks to live. They decided to tell her everything. And they decided to go for an experimental treatment, and, wonderfully, it worked. Incredibly, at 16 years old, she received the news her cancer was undetectable.

And she said in the interview, this is a bit that struck she said in the interview. I don't think I'll ever have that feeling again. Of hearing that kind of news. When you hear that, your life is over, and then here, you've got your whole life ahead of you. She said, I don't think I will ever have that kind of feeling again.

Now that is good news of great joy. The angel is saying, this news they've got is that kind of good news. In fact, it's even greater good news because this is good news of great joy for all people, and that includes you and me. Guys on the door, just to be aware there are some people who might wanna come in, and join us. And it is great timing because they're gonna hear about the good news.

So what is this good news? What is the good news of great joy that the angels have got? What is this good news? It says in verse 11, in the next verse after this 1. And it is this, and this sums up what Christmas is all about.

Let me show you. It it sums up what Christmas is all about. Christmas is a rescue. That's what this good news is that Christmas is a rescue. You.

The angel goes on to say. So the angel has just said, this is good news of great joy for all people. What is the good news? It's that Christmas is a rescue. The angel says, today in the town of David, a savior has been born to you.

He is the Messiah, the Lord. Now just focus in on that 1 word where it says today in the town of David, a savior has been born. A savior, a rescuer. Now can I say if when you think of Christmas and you think of that traditional nativity scene, You're not thinking this is a rescue? Can I say you've not really understood what Christmas is all about?

It is about a rescue. Now that is only good news of great joy for all people if all people are in some kind of danger, if we need a rescue. So what is it that we all need rescuing from? And the answer the Bible gives to that is it's our sin. Now what is sin?

It's a maybe we don't use the word very much. And therefore, we need to think about it. SIN is well, 1 way of putting it is it's it's the wrong things that we do and think and say. And some here don't need any convincing that they've done bad things. You know it.

There are things in your past that you're ashamed of, and they weigh you down. And Christmas is really good news for you. Just hang on. We'll get to it. But there'll be some here who are probably thinking, I think I'm alright.

I don't think I'm that bad. I think I'm okay. Maybe you've heard that Christianity says that we're all sinners. But you think, well, that's pretty negative. Pretty low self esteem Christians have, but be aware that being a sinner doesn't mean that you're as bad as you could possibly be.

But being a sinner, it is it's saying that we all fall short of god's standards. We all break god's commandments. And you don't have to be as bad as you possibly can be to have broken god's law. Let me give you a, a, an illustration note, an example So, when it comes to driving, to break the speed limit, you don't have to drive at 150 miles an hour every time you drive to have broken the law. You just need to have driven at 30 miles an hour, round these local roads that may drive you mad, but you just need to have broke gone at 30 miles an hour, and you only need to have done it once.

And it doesn't actually help your defense. If if a police officer pulls you over, you say, I wasn't going 150, and it also doesn't help you particularly if you say to the police officer, well, I normally drive at 20, and sometimes I even drive at 15 just to make up for the times when I drive at 30. That won't help you because the point is you broke the law then. Now this isn't turning into a driving awareness course. The point is saying you're a sinner is not saying you've been as bad as he possibly could be, But it is saying we don't meet god's standards.

Now what are god's standards? Jesus at 1 point was asked to summarize the law, the old testament law. And he said, 1 of the things he said was, love your neighbor as yourself. Wasn't he anything he said, but that was 1 of the things he said. And I think we would all probably say that's a good way to live.

Love your neighbor as yourself. And I would think there are some here who would go, yeah, and I tried to do that. I do try to love other people. I try to help people. I try to help my neighbor.

I give to charity. I maybe, you know, if someone I know is ill, I try and support them. I try and do good things. Now the Bible then says, well, it's interesting that you try to do those things. You clearly agree that it's a good thing to love your neighbor as yourself.

Why do you think that? Why do you have that in you that you think that's a good thing? And Paul in the book of Romans in the Bible says, it's because God has written his law on your heart. You may not know all the laws of the Bible, but yet sometimes you do the things that are in there. You do try to love your neighbor.

And he says, so sometimes your conscience defends you, like just now, maybe it did. And you went, I don't think I'm that bad. I think I do try and help other people. And Paul says, yes, that's right. You do try and help other people.

Sometimes your conscience defends you. But sometimes, and here's the key thing, sometimes your conscience accuses you because you know you've not loved your neighbor as yourself. All the time. Sometimes you've not done all that you could. Sometimes you've withheld help from others, when you should have helped them, and sometimes you've been unloving to other people.

Sometimes you've been very unloving, trampled over others to get what you want. And sometimes, maybe, you've been very unloving. To those who are very close to you, and your conscience actually does accuse you. And when it comes to standing before god, which we will all do at some point, it won't help to say, but I didn't do the really bad things. And it won't help to say, sometimes I did the good things because all of us are sinners.

And we don't match up even to our own standards, let alone god's standard of love your neighbor as yourself. And that was only 1 of the things that Jesus picked out. There are other laws too. Do you see we all fall short? We've all broken god's commands, and the Bible tells us, because we're all sinners, the wages of sin is death.

Not just physical death, but eternal death. And that's the danger we're in. And that's why Christmas is such good news because the savior came to rescuers, The angel announced. I bring you good news, a great joy for all people. Today, in the town of David, a savior has been born.

He came to rescue us from our sin are not matching god's standards. And how did he do it? He did it in the most incredible way. He took what we deserve. If the wages of sin is death, Jesus died, for you and me.

You'd need to find out more about this, but he died in our place, taking what we deserve, taking the death we should have so that we can be forgiven. For all our sin, the big things, the small things, if we will admit we are sinners, and we all are. If we will come to Jesus, we can receive this gift from god, we can be completely forgiven. And then we're not just given a few more years of life. Wonderful, though that is.

But eternal life. Now that is quite a gift. Jesus coming to be our rescuer, shows how serious our situation is that we need him to come, but also shows god's incredible love. And that is news worth shouting about. It is news worth singing about.

At the heart of Christmas is a rescue. Here are the 3 things I wanted you to take away. That maybe you don't quite spot every time you see a nativity play or a nativity scene, they're real events. This is great news, and Christmas is a rescue. Now if you'd like to find out more, maybe this is news to you.

You maybe you've even seen Nativity plays many times or seen them on TV, and you it's never really hit home. Maybe you wanna find out more. And if that's true for you, We would love you to take home with you, a booklet. We've got several of them at the back. The people on the door will have them.

If you would like 1, please just take 1 from them. They're free, and we would love you to have 1. But also do come back come back on, any Sunday, half past 10, we're here. Or on Christmas morning, we'd love you to join us at half past 10 to celebrate Christmas morning.