2016.12.25                    Christmas Day

            From Darkness to Light

Good Morning everyone… I am glad that you are here…. I have Good News for you… His name is Jesus….

Isaiah 9: 1-3                     NLT   Neues Leben

1 Nevertheless, that time of darkness and despair will not go on forever. The land of Zebulun and Naphtali will be humbled, but there will be a time in the future when Galilee of the Gentiles, which lies along the road that runs between the Jordan and the sea, will be filled with glory. 2  The people who walk in darkness will see a great light. For those who live in a land of deep darkness, a light will shine. 3 You will enlarge the nation of Israel, and its people will rejoice. They will rejoice before you as people rejoice at the harvest and like warriors dividing the plunder. 

23 Doch diese Zeit der Dunkelheit und Verzweiflung wird nicht für immer andauern. Wurden früher auch das Land Sebulon und das Land Naftali gedemütigt, so wird später das Gebiet der Völker, die Gott nicht kennen, die Straße am Meer jenseits des Jordan, zu Ehren kommen. 1 Denn das Volk, das in der Dunkelheit lebt, sieht ein helles Licht. Und über den Menschen in einem vom Tode überschatteten Land strahlt ein heller Schein.  2 Du vermehrst das Volk und schenkst ihm große Freude. Es freut sich über dich wie ein Volk zur Erntezeit, wie jubelnde Menschen, die Beute unter sich aufteilen.

This text is one of hundreds of Promises…. Prophesies of the coming Messiah… We have been using it this month as we prepare for the Advent…. The coming of the Lord Jesus… I would like to read the account of Jesus birth from Luke 2…

Luke 2: 1-18                      NLT

1 At that time the Roman emperor, Augustus, decreed that a census should be taken throughout the Roman Empire. 2 (This was the first census taken when Quirinius was governor of Syria.) 3 All returned to their own ancestral towns to register for this census. 4 And because Joseph was a descendant of King David, he had to go to Bethlehem in Judea, David’s ancient home. He traveled there from the village of Nazareth in Galilee. 5 He took with him Mary, his fiancée, who was now obviously pregnant. 6 And while they were there, the time came for her baby to be born. 7 She gave birth to her first child, a son. She wrapped him snugly in strips of cloth and laid him in a manger, because there was no lodging available for them. 8 That night there were shepherds staying in the fields nearby, guarding their flocks of sheep. 9 Suddenly, an angel of the Lord appeared among them, and the radiance of the Lord’s glory surrounded them. They were terrified, 10 but the angel reassured them. “Don’t be afraid!” he said. “I bring you good news that will bring great joy to all people. 11 The Savior—yes, the Messiah, the Lord—has been born today in Bethlehem, the city of David! 12 And you will recognize him by this sign: You will find a baby wrapped snugly in strips of cloth, lying in a manger.”13 Suddenly, the angel was joined by a vast host of others—the armies of heaven—praising God and saying, 14 “Glory to God in highest heaven, and peace on earth to those with whom God is pleased.” 15 When the angels had returned to heaven, the shepherds said to each other, “Let’s go to Bethlehem! Let’s see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.” 16 They hurried to the village and found Mary and Joseph. And there was the baby, lying in the manger. 17 After seeing him, the shepherds told everyone what had happened and what the angel had said to them about this child. 18 All who heard the shepherds’ story were astonished,

Luke 2: 1-18     Neues Leben

1 Zu jener Zeit ordnete der römische Kaiser Augustus eine Volkszählung im ganzen Römischen Reich an. 2 Dies war die erste Volkszählung; sie wurde durchgeführt, als Quirinius Statthalter von Syrien war. 3 Alle Menschen kehrten in ihre Heimatstadt zurück, um sich für die Zählung eintragen zu lassen. 4 Weil Josef ein Nachkomme Davids war, musste er nach Bethlehem in Judäa, in die Stadt Davids, reisen. Von Nazareth in Galiläa aus machte er sich auf den Weg 5 und nahm seine Verlobte Maria mit, die hochschwanger war. 6 Als sie in Bethlehem waren, kam die Zeit der Geburt heran. 7 Maria gebar ihr erstes Kind, einen Sohn. Sie wickelte ihn in Windeln und legte ihn in eine Futterkrippe, weil es im Gasthaus keinen Platz für sie gab. 8 In jener Nacht hatten ein paar Hirten auf den Feldern vor dem Dorf ihr Lager aufgeschlagen, um ihre Schafe zu hüten. 9 Plötzlich erschien ein Engel des Herrn in ihrer Mitte. Der Glanz des Herrn umstrahlte sie. Die Hirten erschraken, 10 aber der Engel beruhigte sie. »Habt keine Angst!«, sagte er. »Ich bringe eine gute Botschaft für alle Menschen! 11 Der Retter - ja, Christus1, der Herr - ist heute Nacht in Bethlehem, der Stadt Davids, geboren worden! 12 Und daran könnt ihr ihn erkennen: Ihr werdet ein Kind finden, das in Windeln gewickelt in einer Futterkrippe liegt!« 13 Auf einmal war der Engel von den himmlischen Heerscharen umgeben, und sie alle priesen Gott mit den Worten: 14 »Ehre sei Gott im höchsten Himmel und Frieden auf Erden für alle Menschen, an denen Gott Gefallen hat.« 15 Als die Engel in den Himmel zurückgekehrt waren, sagten die Hirten zueinander: »Kommt, gehen wir nach Bethlehem! Wir wollen das Wunder, von dem der Herr uns erzählen ließ, mit eigenen Augen sehen.« 16 Sie liefen so schnell sie konnten ins Dorf und fanden Maria und Josef und das Kind in der Futterkrippe. 17 Da erzählten die Hirten allen, was geschehen war und was der Engel ihnen über dieses Kind gesagt hatte. 18 Alle Leute, die den Bericht der Hirten hörten, waren voller Staunen.

V18… And all who heard the Shepherds report were astonished… We just read the first 18 verses of Luke 2… Let´s look closer at verses 8 thru 11 this morning…

Luke 2: 8-11               NLT    Neues Leben

8 That night there were shepherds staying in the fields nearby, guarding their flocks of sheep. 9 Suddenly, an angel of the Lord appeared among them, and the radiance of the Lord’s glory surrounded them. They were terrified, 10 but the angel reassured them. “Don’t be afraid!” he said. “I bring you good news that will bring great joy to all people. 11 The Savior—yes, the Messiah, the Lord—has been born today in Bethlehem, the city of David!

8 In jener Nacht hatten ein paar Hirten auf den Feldern vor dem Dorf ihr Lager aufgeschlagen, um ihre Schafe zu hüten. 9 Plötzlich erschien ein Engel des Herrn in ihrer Mitte. Der Glanz des Herrn umstrahlte sie. Die Hirten erschraken, 10 aber der Engel beruhigte sie. »Habt keine Angst!«, sagte er. »Ich bringe eine gute Botschaft für alle Menschen! 11 Der Retter - ja, Christus, der Herr - ist heute Nacht in Bethlehem, der Stadt Davids, geboren worden! 

Look also for a minute at the account from Matthews Gospel… Matt 12: 21…

Matt 12: 21        NLT   Neues Leben

21 And his name will be the hope of all the world."

21 Und auf seinem Namen wird die Hoffnung der ganzen Welt ruhen.

This baby… Born in a manger… In  his name will be the hope of all the world…? Hope has a name… Yes It is Jesus!.. The Hope… The light of the whole world…

This wonderful story is familiar to most people… but most do not understand how very important it is to their own future… There is no hope without Jesus…

I have Three words for us to look at from the text today…

1 fear… v9

2 Redemption… v11

3 Joy… v10

Jesus is the only one who can remove all of our fears… and give us the Joy that no one can take away … because this baby… born in a manger is the Savior…

the Redeemer… Jesus is the only one who can rescue us from death! No wonder that we can celebrate and rejoice! Praise the LORD!

Let´s look at the first word…. Fear…. verse 9…

Luke 2: 9                        NLT   Neues Leben

9 Suddenly, an angel of the Lord appeared among them, and the radiance of the Lord’s glory surrounded them. They were terrified,

9 Plötzlich erschien ein Engel des Herrn in ihrer Mitte. Der Glanz des Herrn umstrahlte sie. Die Hirten erschraken,

In the scripture… Every time an angel appeared to men… they were terrified…  These shepherds were also very afraid…

It is natural and human to be afraid of the unknown… Mankind is afraid of many things… We all know what it´s like to be afraid of the dark… What it is like to know that any moment can be our last…

We can be afraid of thousands of things but…

Number one on the list is the fear of death… For most… It´s the ultimate unknown… The Bible says we spend our lives in bondage to the fear of death… look with me at Hebrews 2…v14,15…

Hebrews 2: 14, 15        NLT  Neues Leben

14 Because God’s children are human beings—made of flesh and blood—the Son also became flesh and blood. For only as a human being could he die, and only by dying could he break the power of the devil, who had the power of death. 15 Only in this way could he set free all who have lived their lives as slaves to the fear of dying.

14 Da Gottes Kinder Menschen aus Fleisch und Blut sind, wurde auch Jesus als Mensch geboren. Denn nur so konnte er durch seinen Tod die Macht des Teufels brechen, der Macht über den Tod hatte. 15 Nur so konnte er die befreien, die ihr Leben lang Sklaven ihrer Angst vor dem Tod waren.

The baby born in a manger…..born to die for us…. to redeem us from fear of death……… to save us from the deep darkness….. forever……. to redeem us from our sins……. And set us free! That brings us to the second key word this morning…

2 Redemption… v 11…

Luke 2: 11               NLT  Neues Leben

11 The Savior—yes, the Messiah, the Lord—has been born today in Bethlehem, the city of David!

11 Der Retter - ja, Christus, der Herr - ist heute Nacht in Bethlehem, der Stadt Davids, geboren worden! 

The Savior is born… In German we see the phrase… The Redeemer… Christ the Lord… The redeemer… Here is the Miracle of God transforming Darkness to Light… Look again at Isaiah ch 9…

Isaiah 9: 2          NLT  Neues Leben

2 The people who walk in darkness will see a great light. For those who live in a land of deep darkness, a light will shine…

1 Denn das Volk, das in der Dunkelheit lebt, sieht ein helles Licht. Und über den Menschen in einem vom Tode überschatteten Land strahlt ein heller Schein.

This verse in German is powerful… look at the last part of verse 1… Death overshadowed land…

The light will shine in the land of the shadow of death…The Light breaks out to destroy the Shadow of death…

The birth of Jesus is the fulfillment of God´s great plan of redemption… We see Immanuel…. God with us…. This is the Incarnation… The appearing of God in Human form to redeem Mankind… It all began with Jesus birth that Christmas morning…  Our redemption was Completed by the death and resurrection of the Lord Jesus…

The Shadow of the cross was over the Manger…

I would like to look for a few minutes at the Theology of Christmas… Let´s look at us what happened from the divine side of the story… Paul wrote about it and I want us to look at what he said… Look with me at Phil ch2… V5-11…

Philippians 2: 5-11     NLT Neues Leben

5 You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had. 6 Though he was God, he did not think of equality with God as something to cling to. 7 Instead, he gave up his divine privileges; he took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being. When he appeared in human form, 8 he humbled himself in obedience to God and died a criminal’s death on a cross. 9 Therefore, God elevated him to the place of highest honor and gave him the name above all other names 10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth. 11 and every tongue declare that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

5 Geht so miteinander um, wie Christus es euch vorgelebt hat. 6 Obwohl er Gott war, bestand er nicht auf seinen göttlichen Rechten. 7 Er verzichtete auf alles; er nahm die niedrige Stellung eines Dieners an und wurde als Mensch geboren und als solcher erkannt. 8 Er erniedrigte sich selbst und war gehorsam bis zum Tod, indem er wie ein Verbrecher am Kreuz starb. 9 Deshalb hat Gott ihn in den Himmel gehoben und ihm einen Namen gegeben, der höher ist als alle anderen Namen. 10 Vor diesem Namen sollen sich die Knie aller beugen, die im Himmel und auf der Erde und unter der Erde sind. 11 Und zur Ehre Gottes, des Vaters, werden alle bekennen, dass Jesus Christus Herr ist.

As we look at this text… I want us to notice five points as we look at the Incarnation Five steps as God enters the world as Immanuel…

Immanuel (God with Men)

1 He left His sovereign position v6,7a

2 He became a slave v7b

3 He became just like His sinful people 7b

4 He was totally selfless v8 and finally…

5 God Restored him to the place of highest honor… v 9 to 11

1 He abandoned a sovereign position... look at verse 6

Jesus was… is equal with God… But having equality with God was not something He clung to… The fullness of that equality with God is described in John´s Gospel  as proston theon… a Greek phrase that means face-to-face… It means Total equality…  What did He give up? Look at v7a… He gave up His Divine Privileges…

The Bible explains it to us… He remained fully God but… He emptied Himself of His divine glory… His Glory in this world was Hidden just like a veil…  John 17:4

Instead point… 2 He accepted the humble position of a slave … Look at v7b…  he took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being…

The King of the Universe came down…  Not to be an Earthy King… He came to be a slave… He took off the robes of majesty and put on the rags of a human slave... This, of course, is what the Old Testament Prophesies… That is why Isaiah calls the Messiah… The servant of the Lord… He is called that again and again… The servant of the Lord takes on the form of a slave… Point 3 He associated with sinful people… We see the depths of His slavery as we continue in verse 7… It says, “He was made in the likeness of men… God Almighty has become like his creatures…. Like a sinful man… Not only did He become a man…. But He became a Slave… And even more than that a slave… point 4

Look at verse 8… “He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.” He came to die for us… For our sin and pride and rebellion… How selfless... 4 He Humbled even more… He allowed Himself to be Crucified for us…

Now to the final point… 5 God elevated him to the place of highest honor and gave him the name above all other names… scroll down to v 9 to 11…  Therefore… Why this restoration to Heavenly Rule…?

Because of His submission and obedience…  His obedience to death, even the death on the cross… Because He perfectly obeyed the Father and accomplished redemption… God highly exalted Him…

God raised Him from the dead as a sign of God’s acceptance of His sacrifice… and then God exalted Him to His own right hand… and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name…  

Jesus has come in the flesh…….. Immanuel…..God with us……. Come as a man so that he could die in our place……..To save us…. To give us the joy that no one can take away from us!

What Good News…. What Joy for the whole World… That brings us back to the last of our three words…

Understanding  The Coming of Jesus

1 fear… v9

2 Redemption… v11

3 Joy… v10

Point three Joy…

3 Joy…. Luke 2… v10…

Luke 2: 10                NLT  Neues Leben

10 but the angel reassured them. “Don’t be afraid!” he said. “I bring you good news that will bring great joy to all people.

10 aber der Engel beruhigte sie. »Habt keine Angst!«, sagte er. »Ich bringe eine gute Botschaft für alle Menschen!

Great joy to all People!

Joy to the World….. The Lord is come…..a Savior who is Christ the LORD…….

Jesus said you are the Light of the World……

shine in the darkness with the love of Jesus!

Let´s pray…

Two Great Purposes for This Great News

The coming of this child is the one who will one day fill the whole earth with righteousness and peace. “Of the increase of his government and of peace there will be no end (Isaiah 9:7).”

First and foremost… God is glorified because this child is born…

First to redeem us…. and take away our fear of everything…. Especially to remove our fear of death… To replace of of our fears and sorrows with His peace and Joy…. A joy that no man and no circumstance can take away…

There is no better way to sum up what God was doing when he created the world… or when he came to reclaim and Redeem the world in Jesus Christ… His glory, our peace… His greatness, our joy…

The point of creation and redemption is that God is Glorious…

He will be Proclaimed and Worshipped… Not only by the Host of Heaven… But one day soon… Jesus will be Worshipped by every living creature on earth as well… Worship your Redeemer with you very life…

Do that this Christmas. Take your fears and anxieties to God... Tell him about them... Ask him to help you… To protect you… To fill you life and home with His peace…