The Necessity of Christmas

I'm going to guess that you would not expect me today to say turn in your Bibles to John.

Is that right?

You who have been part of our fellowship from week to week know that our studies have been in the book of John.

And we have actually worked our way through chapters 1, 2, and into chapter 3.

And as we come to this Christmas season and as we think about the significance of the Lord Jesus coming to this earth,

I can't help but having had my heart in John for about a year to come back to the book of John

and ask that you turn this morning to John chapter 1.

John 1 · chapter mention

We are going to look at verse 14.

And we're going to take the time to think about John chapter 1 in particular in relationship to the unbelievable doctrine of the incarnation.

John 1 · chapter mention

And as we do that this morning, it would be appropriate for us to begin with prayer,

reminding ourselves of how absolutely we are dependent upon the Holy Spirit to help us in the study,

in the understanding, and the application of the Word of God.

So you join with me this morning as we come to the Lord.

Our Father God, this morning as we come together as your people,

our hearts are reminded of the clear instruction of Scripture in relationship to the matter of your Word

and our dependence upon your Spirit, quickening us to comprehend, to apply,

to have our lives affected by the beauty of the truth that we find in the Scriptures,

and to grow to be more like the Lord Jesus Christ as a result.

I pray, Lord, that my preaching this morning would be marked by the power of the Spirit of God

and that the reception of the preaching of the Word would be something that is recognized in the hearts of your people,

first by continuing growth in the grace and knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ,

and also that those who are here today that do not know Christ would be drawn to the cross

and come to faith in the Lord Jesus.

We ask this in Jesus' name. Amen.

Let me read the passage to you in John chapter 1.

John 1 · chapter mention

We begin there in verse 14. It says,

And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen His glory,

the glory, as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.

Look at it again, if you would. It says,

And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us.

This morning, as we kind of think about what this verse says to us,

I want you to understand that if we were to take this out into the larger arena of the world

that you and I associate in and where we travel day to day,

and we were to say to people as they're kind of going through the Christmas spirit and season

and all those kind of things,

if you would say to them,

Jesus came in the flesh,

He is all God and all man,

you'd probably get a little bit of a weird look on your face

and people say,

What does that have to do with Christmas?

I mean, after all,

Christmas is a time where everybody kind of gears up.

I mean, driving through the new neighborhood

that Judith and I are living in over on Guernsey,

it seems that we are the only house that is not decorated.

And part of that is probably because we are in the process of moving,

but the other part of it is,

if you really want to know the truth of it,

we are not those people who kind of light our house

and then when you turn on the lights,

the rest of the neighborhood kind of dims down a little bit.

You follow me?

It's like stealth Christmas practicers.

How's that?

And when you drive through our neighborhood,

everybody's kind of lit up with reindeers and Santa Claus.

I was actually walking my dog

and I see this huge blow-up Santa Claus

and I thought,

Well, what does this really have to do with Christmas?

It doesn't.

It's just kind of add-on

and it really isn't the heart of what Christmas is all about.

And I want you to look at this passage

and fix it in your mind

that at the heart of Christmas

is the doctrine of the incarnation

and it is the very foundation of our faith.

Now, I want to confess this morning

that the doctrine of the incarnation

is not an easy doctrine.

It's not one of those that you pick up and say,

Oh, I got that.

It's easy.

It just makes perfect sense.

It is complex to the point

that J.I. Packer, commenting on it,

he said,

Here are two mysteries for the price of one.

The plurality of the persons

within the unity of the Godhead

and in that union of the Godhead,

God and man together in the person of Christ.

And so as we think this morning about the incarnation,

I want you to recognize

that it is something that you,

as you sit here this morning,

appropriately should say,

Lord, I need the help of the Holy Spirit

that my heart can be enriched and encouraged

and strengthened by the mystery

of what the incarnation actually is.

Let's begin by taking a little bit of time

to understand the doctrine in broad terms.

And this morning,

if we're going to talk about a Christmas sermon,

I want you to recognize,

fundamentally,

what we're going to be doing

is dealing with a doctrinal truth.

And when you think about the word doctrine,

we have a tendency to kind of gray out a little bit.

Oh, okay, heavy duty.

It is a foundational truth

and it's the very heart of our faith.

When we think about the matter

of the doctrine of the incarnation,

we recognize that what this truth declares

is that Jesus Christ is fully God

and fully man in one person.

Now, is that a little complicated?

How can you be all God and all man?

The truth of the matter is,

it is not a truth that we put together

simply by just rational, logical comprehension

and say, well, I got that.

It's an easy one.

Second, and I think it's important for us

to comprehend this truth,

this doctrine is not understood

apart from the grace of God.

It's not something that the natural man

kind of just picks up on and says,

hey, that makes undeniable truth.

It's easy to see.

It's recognizable.

I've got it.

In fact, if you would take just a moment

and turn over in your Bible

to 1 Corinthians 2,

we are reminded of the fact

that ultimately all spiritual truth

is something that is comprehended

by the mind of the individual

or the believer

by the grace of God

and the work of the Holy Spirit.

So you look here in 1 Corinthians 2,

1 Corinthians 2:10

verse 10, it says,

these things God has revealed to us

through the Spirit,

for the Spirit searches everything,

even the depths of God.

For who knows a person's thoughts

except the Spirit of that person

which is in him?

So also no one comprehends

the thoughts of God

except the Spirit of God.

Now we have received

not the Spirit of the world,

but the Spirit who is from God,

that we might understand

the things freely given us by God.

How is it that you and I sit here

as people who have come to faith

in the Lord Jesus Christ

and we can put together,

we accept, we understand,

we receive the truth

that Jesus Christ is all God

and all man.

All God and all man.

We understand that

because of the grace of God.

Third, I want you to recognize

that this doctrine

is absolutely unique

to Christianity.

Many world religions

have mythological events

in which the gods came down

to visit humankind.

If any of you can remember

your Greek mythology

from when you were in grade school

or whatever,

you remember all kinds of stories

about things that the gods did.

Whether it was getting angry

at certain individuals

or causing one heartache

or another

or engaged in immorality,

whatever,

there are all kinds of ideas

of God's coming down.

There are also very clear ideas

of God being judgment,

judging sin

and dealing with things.

And you have all kinds

of illustrations of that

in a lot of the different religions.

But in no religion in the world

does the truth come forward

that God sent his son

into the world

to take upon himself

humanity

for the sake

of mankind's salvation.

I want you to understand also

that there is

no doctrine

that probably has been

the focus

of more theological

study

and attention

than this one.

No other doctrine.

And I'm not going to take

the time this morning

to run through

all the history

of the councils,

but suffice it to say

that the doctrine

of the incarnation,

the nature of Christ,

was of such a challenge

to the early church

that it wasn't

finally reconciled

until 451

or 60 AD.

460 years.

Actually,

it was 300 and some

after Christ's crucifixion.

But you recognize

that it's a profound,

complex doctrine

that really

was a great challenge

to the church

to think through.

It is clearly settled

and it is understood

that Christ is

all man

and all God.

I want you to understand

also that this doctrine

rests on a great deal

of scriptural evidence.

It's not just

one little verse here

or one little verse there.

And the Bible

hammers home the fact

that Jesus indeed

is all God

and all man.

Let's take a minute

and look at a couple

of the different verses

that make this point clear.

John chapter 1 verse 14

John 1:14

put your finger on it

and let me just remind you again

the word became flesh

and as we know

from verse 1 of John

when it talks about the word

it's talking about God

the creator

the Lord Jesus Christ.

Then in John chapter 6

John 6:51

verse 51

Jesus as he is preaching

and you'll remember

that John chapter 6

John 6 · chapter mention

is that kind of

break over

break over chapter

in which Jesus

having had this great public

ministry

and everybody

being very excited

about his ministry

he then preaches

a series of sermons

actually a sermon

and the outcome is

most everybody leaves.

One of the things

that he says

in relationship to that

is in verse 51

I am the living bread

that came down

from heaven.

I

Jesus

I am

the living bread

and I came down

from heaven.

How does a person

come down from heaven?

Nobody who is

in the flesh

comes down from heaven

just naturally

it was God the son

who came down here

to be our savior.

Galatians chapter 4

Galatians 4:4

verse 4

I want you to encourage

I want to encourage you

to kind of take the time

and track if you will

so turn over to Galatians

Galatians 4:4

chapter 4

verse 4

but when the fullness

of time had come

God sent

his son

born

of woman

born

under

the law.

Let me have you look at

another passage

in relationship to this

if you're there

in Galatians

just move forward

if you will

to 1st Timothy chapter 3

in 1st Timothy chapter 3

we have a very interesting

sequence of thought

and coming towards

the end of chapter 3

Paul explains

he says

listen let me tell you

why I'm writing this book

it's so that

you

part of the family of God

the body of believers

there

in Ephesus

he said that you would know

how to handle yourself

verse 15

if I delay

you may know

how one ought to behave

in the household of God

which is the church

of the living God

the pillar and buttress

of truth

and as Paul thinks

about the church

his heart then

moves up

further

into the glory

of thinking about

the church

and thinking principally

about who the church

is really all about

it's the Lord Jesus

that brings him

to verse 15

or 16

great indeed

we confess

is the mystery

of godliness

now what is a mystery

in the scriptures

a mystery

is something

that we wouldn't know

if we weren't told

how many of you

have sat through

one of those

TV shows

that's kind of a mystery

and you're sitting there

trying to figure it out

my wife and I

will be sitting there

and she'll say to me

have you figured it out yet

I said no

I never figure them out

I just wait till they tell me

you know

why waste the brain cells

trying to figure out

the mystery ahead of time

they'll tell you

within an hour

promise

in the Bible

a mystery is something

you would never figure out

unless God told you

and here is what it says

great is the mystery

of godliness

he was manifested

in the flesh

vindicated by the spirit

seen by angels

proclaimed among the nations

believed on in the world

taken up into glory

it is speaking

about the Lord Jesus Christ

and affirming

the fact

of his incarnation

let me have you look

at another passage

in relationship to this

over in the book of Hebrews

and by the way

if you're going to think

about the incarnation

and you're going to think

about the ministry

of Christ

in salvation

you always come back

to the book of Hebrews

as well

because it is so rich

in its explanation

of the ministry

and the work

that Christ has

look if you will

at Hebrews chapter 2

Hebrews 2:14

verse 14

it says

since therefore

the children share

in flesh and blood

and that's what you

and I are

flesh and blood

he himself likewise

partook of the same things

that through death

he might destroy

the one who has

the power of death

that is the devil

don't you like that fact

this coming Wednesday

my family

will gather

at a committal service

in Alton

cemetery

and we are going

to put the remains

of my father

in the ground

and I want you

to know

that when I think

about that day

I am thankful

that the Lord Jesus Christ

came in the flesh

and he died

and rose again

because if it were

not for the fact

of the incarnation

of Christ

and for his victory

over the cross

and his resurrection

from the dead

I would have

no confidence

whatever

when I stand

at that graveside

but because

of the incarnation

and because

of the certainty

of the resurrection

of Christ

I can say

with absolute certainty

Jesus is the first fruits

and others

will follow

after

here it says

that through death

he might destroy

the one who has

the power of death

even the devil

verse 17

therefore

he had to be made

like his brothers

in every respect

so that he might

become a merciful

and faithful

high priest

in the service

of God

to make

propitiation

for the sins

of the people

I want you to look

at one more verse

I can't help

but get away

from this one

if you will

turn in your Bible

to Hebrews

Hebrews 10:5

chapter 10

verse 5

in Hebrews

Hebrews 10 · chapter mention

chapter 10

the author

is continuing

his argument

of the supremacy

the sufficiency

of Christ

as the sacrifice

for sin

and look at

what it says

there

in verse

4

for it is

impossible

for the blood

of bulls

and goats

to take away

sins

so what is it

that you can do

to accommodate

the wickedness

of your soul

and to satisfy

the holy judgment

of God

against sin

that you have created

and committed

you can do nothing

and why is it

because there is

nothing

that we can

contribute

in our finite

and incapable

person

to the infinite

offense

that sin is

against the holy God

and how did he

satisfy

the judgment

that would fall

on sinful man

he did it

by sending his son

infinite God

to become man

and in his flesh

to fully satisfy

the penalty

for sin

and so what we find

there in verse 5

it says

sacrifice is an offering

you have not desired

talking about the

the animals

the bull

the sheep

etc

he says sacrifice

an offering

you have not desired

but a body

you have prepared

for me

here is Jesus

recognizing

you made me

to be

all flesh

that I

could be

the satisfactory

substitute

for Tim

Knoyer

for Joe

Halsey

for Jeff Merrill

for Sharma

for all of us

isn't that right

he came to die

in our place

and to satisfy

the debt

of our sins

we think about

the broad scope

of understanding

the doctrine

but let's kind of

step into it

a little further

we'll take another

step down

and think about

the actual nature

of the incarnation

the nature

of the incarnation

let me say up front

that this is not

one of those

easy things

and it's one

that if you're

sitting here

and you're kind of

fuzzing off on me

a little bit

I would plead

with you

that what you do

right now

is stop and say

I need your help

Holy Spirit

fair enough

how many of you

understand that

mediocre preaching

can at least be

remedied in part

by a little bit

of prayer

I don't want

to be mediocre

in the task

but I do want

to challenge you

you got a part

to play

and that's

praying

I want to

understand

the doctrine

of the incarnation

and have it

make a difference

in my heart

because it's

so important

help me

the nature

of the incarnation

as I take

this section

what I'm going

to do

is reduce

what the council

of Chalcedon

hammered out

into 207 words

the Bible

teaches us

that Jesus Christ

is completely

God

and completely

man

and

recognize

that the council

of Chalcedon

at 450 some

years after

AD

finally came

to the point

of reducing

it down

to 207 words

not a one

of them

is really

just carelessly

thrown out

how many of you

know that

some authors

actually get paid

by the word

do you know that

Zane

what was the

guy

Zane Gray

I think it was

Zane Gray

one day they

asked him

why do

your heroes

always take

five shots

he said

well that's

not hard

I get paid

10 cents

a word

and so I

want you to

know that

the council

of Chalcedon

was not paid

by the word

and when you

have 207

they were

important

they are

important

to the

understanding

of the

doctrine

of the

incarnation

but we're

going to

push it

together

into

pockets

for us

number one

the Bible

teaches

that Jesus

is God

that Jesus

is God

Isaiah chapter

Isaiah 7:14

7 verse 14

identifies our

coming Messiah

as Emmanuel

which means

God

with us

and again

there in Isaiah

Isaiah 9:6

chapter 9

verse 6

and 7

Christ is

spoken of

as the

mighty God

the everlasting

father

the prince

of peace

peace

when you

read those

statements

made there

in Isaiah

Isaiah 9 · chapter mention

chapter 9

you can't

help but

wonder

why is it

that the

Jew doesn't

understand

the truth

of the

incarnation

we find

also that

John spoke

of Jesus

as God

in numerous

places

in John

John 1:1

chapter 1

verse 1

it says

in the beginning

was the word

and the word

was God

and the word

was with God

John chapter 1

John 1:1

verse 1

verse 2

verse 3

verse 14

and you can

work your way

through the book

of John

and hit

one time

after another

the clear

declaration

that Jesus

Christ

is indeed

God

Paul

also affirms

that truth

and we find it

in Romans

Romans 9:5

chapter 9

verse 5

and particularly

in Philippians

chapter 5

Philippians

Philippians 2:5–8

chapter 2

verse 5

through 8

remember where

it says

he did not

think it was

robbery to count

himself as God

and yet

he willingly

humbled himself

and took upon

himself

the form

of a servant

Jesus Christ

is 100%

God

secondly

the Bible

teaches us

undeniably

that Jesus

is truly man

he's truly man

he came in a human

body

that's what we

referred to

over there

in Hebrews

Hebrews 10:5

chapter 10

verse 5

you have made

for me

a body

and what he is

recognizing

is that

Jesus Christ

when he came

to this earth

he took upon

himself

the form

of mankind

he was born

of a woman

he came into

this world

the same way

the rest of us

have come into

this world

he grew

and developed

as any child

would grow

and if you turn

back in your

Bible there

to Luke chapter 2

Luke 2 · chapter mention

and don't need to

now time wise

but just kind of

recognize in Luke

Luke 2 · chapter mention

chapter 2

it talks about

his birth

and then over

in chapter 2

verse 52

it talks about

his progressive

growth

it says that

he grew

in wisdom

and stature

and so I want

you to understand

when you think

about the Lord

Jesus Christ

that there were

times where

he got tired

he got thirsty

his hands

I have no idea

exactly how it

played out

but when he was

working in a

carpenter shed

with his father

I would imagine

there are times

where a tool

slipped or something

and he got

nicks and dings

like everybody else

does

he learned

how it was

to be effective

he learned

obedience

he learned

in the environment

that God

had placed him

and I want you

to understand

that he died

like all mankind

dies

turn over in your

Bible if you will

to Luke chapter 23

Luke 23 · chapter mention

I should clarify

the uniqueness

of his death

I say that he died

like all mankind

what I mean by that

is that he did die

but look if you will

in Luke chapter 23

Luke 23:46

verse 46

here's what it says

then Jesus

calling out

with a loud voice

said father

into your hands

I commit my spirit

and having said

this he breathed

his last

I want you to

stop and think

about that

just for a moment

God

dying

it's pretty complex

isn't it

God

dying

God the son

in his human

form

dying

the Bible

also teaches

us that

Jesus Christ

to complete

natures

remain distinct

and retain

their own

properties

let me say that

again slowly

the Bible

teaches us

that Christ

to complete

natures

remain distinct

and retain

their own

properties

probably the

best illustration

of this

distinct

having their

own properties

would be if you

would turn

and just follow

with me in your

minds if you will

but remember in the

temptation of

Jesus

Satan came to

Jesus and he

relied upon

Christ's complete

humanity

after 40 days

of fasting

he said

hey

are you hungry

that's not what he

said

but he says

how you doing

there

40 days

40 days

and he

he

tempted

Jesus

in his

humanity

and reminded

him of the

hunger

and then he

challenged him

to rely upon

his deity

and he said

if you're the

son of God

do what

turn this

stone

in the

bread

you can do

it

the distinct

humanity

of Christ

tempted

the distinct

deity

of Christ

called upon

to satisfy

a personal

preference

and Jesus

said no

man does not

live by bread

alone

but by what

every word

that proceeds

from the

mouth

of God

the Bible

teaches us

that Jesus

Christ

is only

one

person

we

we may

not

be able

to get

that

easily

Christ's

two

natures

do not

make him

two people

John

John 1:14

chapter 1

verse 14

says it

well in

the statement

that the

word became

flesh and

dwelt

among us

deity

and humanity

in one

person

and living

in that

one person

in

that time

and for

all eternity

there's one

other little

thing I

add to this

in terms of

Jesus Christ

being only

one person

it's very

interesting

when you

stop and

do a little

bit of

Bible study

you find

that Jesus

never spoke

of himself

in the

plural

that's

interesting

isn't it

in fact

several weeks

ago when we

were preaching

in the

in

who's we

I have a mouse

in my pocket

when I was

preaching

you know

it's like

there we go

talking about

the we

and I

don't buy

that divine

plural

you know

the pastor

and God

it's like

Tim Kenoyer

said it

I was

preaching

and I

referenced

the fact

that in

John chapter

three remember

when Nicodemus

came to

Jesus and

he says

hey I

I

I

and then

he says

we

what was

the we

about

does anybody

remember

I do

yes

who said

that

Carrie

I make her

stand up

but I

won't do

that

that's

good

wow

that gives

me great

confidence

does anybody

else remember

it besides

Carrie

when he

says we

he was talking

about not

just Jesus

but he

was talking

about the

word

there are

two

testimonies

one is

Christ

the other

is the

word

but as

a point

of reference

Jesus when

he spoke

about himself

he used

I

first person

himself

me

he didn't

speak about

himself as

being

the Godhead

plural

so it's

important for

us to

understand

that Jesus

Christ

is only

one person

finally

the Bible

teaches

that the

unity of

Christ's

two

natures

is

permanent

the

unity

of

Christ's

two

natures

is

permanent

turn

over in

your

Bible

if you

will

to

1st

Timothy

chapter

2

verse

15

1st

Timothy

chapter

2

I

think I

want to

say

2nd

Timothy

chapter

2

no I

don't

okay here

we go

someone's

going to

have to

save me

help me

rather

for there

is one

God

and one

media

that's

got to

be

chapter

one

of

oh

that's

why we

have

deacons

thank you

excellent

John

Jack

appreciate

that

1st

Timothy

chapter

2

verse

5

look at

it

there

it

says

for

there

is

one

God

and

there

is

one

mediator

between

God

and

man

the

man

Christ

Jesus

one

God

and

one

mediator

between

God

and

men

the

man

the

man

the

man

Christ

Jesus

why

you

look

at

one

other

passage

in

relationship

to

this

issue

of

Christ

turn

back

if you

will

to

Acts

Acts 17 · chapter mention

chapter

17

Acts

Acts 17:31

chapter

17

verse

31

this

is a

wonderful

passage

in which

Jesus

is brought

out as

the judge

of

all

eternity

what's

happening

in this

passage

is that

Paul

ends up

preaching

to a

large

gathering

of

unbelievers

in

Athens

and

really

ostensibly

they gather

because

they're

curious

about

the idea

of the

resurrection

I mean

for the

Jew

I mean

for the

for the

Greek

the idea

was

this

life's

all you

got

and when

it's

over

it's

gone

done

you

know

and along

comes

Paul

and he

talks

about

the

resurrection

that's

really

intrigued

them

and so

Paul

starts

out

his

sermon

and

notice

how

he

kind

of

ends

it

up

there

if

you

will

in

verse

31

let me

go to

verse

30

the

times

of

ignorance

God

overlooked

but

now

he

commands

all

people

everywhere

to

repent

you

know

what

it

means

to

repent

to

repent

involves

fundamentally

an

admission

that

you're

heading

in the

wrong

direction

that

your

life's

a

mess

and

that

you

are

a

sinner

stands

justly

condemned

before

a

holy

God

and

something

needs

to

happen

something

needs

to

change

repentance

is

not

just

a

matter

of

saying

oops

I'm

sorry

no

biggie

no

repentance

means

understanding

that

the

Lord

of

this

universe

has

a

right

to

judge

your

life

and

find

it

contemptible

because

of the

wickedness

of your

heart

and you

stand

condemned

in the

eyes

of a

holy

God

and you

have

no

hope

apart

from what

Christ

Jesus

has done

in dying

for your

sins

and

there

in

verse

30

he

says

hey

listen

the

time

is

coming

when

God

is

going

to

judge

because

he

has

fixed

a

day

on

which

he

will

judge

the

world

in

righteousness

by

a

man

whom

he

has

appointed

and

of

this

he

has

given

assurance

to

all

by

raising

him

from

the

dead

how

do

we

know

that

Jesus

is

going

to

judge

sin

because

of

the

empty

tomb

and

who

will

judge

sin

not

a

distantly

removed

entity

who

has

no

personal

understanding

of what

it is

to live

a human

life

the

one

who

will

judge

sin

is

one

who

came

here

and

lived

on

this

earth

lived

a

sinless

life

and

died

in

my

place

and

in

your

place

to

satisfy

the

holy

judgment

of

God

against

my

sin

and

the

one

who

will

ultimately

judge

the

sinner

and

condemn

that

person

who

refuses

the

offer

of

salvation

through

the

Lord

Jesus

Christ

to

a

hopeless

horrible

eternity

will be

the

very

one

Christ

Jesus

who

came

here

in

the

flesh

died

upon

the

cross

rose

again

and

will

be

the

judge

of

the

whole

earth

so

let's

think

now

as we

bring

it

together

what

is

the

importance

of

the

incarnation

just

how

important

is

this

doctrine

for

one

it

is

the

true

test

of

our

faith

you

know

I'm

amazed

at

the

wishy

washiness

of

people

today

about

doctrine

well

it

ain't

no

big

thing

it

is

I

mean

if

we

take

the

Bible

at

face

value

we

have

to

say

if

this

is

what

God

said

he

must

be

serious

about

it

we

ought

to

believe

him

or

we

ought

to

admit

hey

I

don't

buy

it

look at

first

John

chapter

four

by

this

you

know

the

spirit

of

God

every

spirit

that

confesses

that

Jesus

Christ

has

come

in