P Levy Carol Service 241224c

I want to speak to you from Matthew's Gospel. I don't know if you've ever read a Gospel.

You don't even know what a Gospel is. It is an account of the life of Jesus Christ.

There's four of them. Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. And we've got copies over here. We'd love

you to take one away. And I've tried to read through Matthew's Gospel this week. It's 78

pages. It takes about an hour. Maybe a little bit more depending on how quick a reader you

are. But I wonder whether you've ever read a Gospel. And one of the interesting things,

as I read through Matthew's Gospel, which I've done quite a bit of work in over the past year,

the start of Matthew's Gospel, it speaks about the birth of Jesus Christ. And Matthew really

only has one thing to say. He has one thing to say. His only point really is this. That

the Lord Jesus is a supernatural child. The child in the manger is a supernatural child.

Now you might not agree with that. But that is, undisputably, the message of the Gospel.

That he's a unique child. He's a child long promised. That's why we have these readings

tonight that have gone through parts of the Bible. That Jesus is a child who was promised,

right the way through the Old Testament. He is a child with a worldwide universal mission.

And that he's a divine child. All these things are sure. And the evidence that Matthew brings

forward for these tremendous claims is the evidence of the virgin birth. The virgin birth

is often apologised for by church leaders. And even maybe people who call themselves Christians

when you've been in churches like that. But Matthew is not embarrassed in the least.

And at every point that he makes in the few verses that he gives us, nearly every verse

is about the virgin birth. It talks about the horror of Joseph when he finds out that his fiancée

is with child before they've slept together. It talks about Joseph's resolve to divorce her

quietly. It talks about the extraordinary message of reassurance that Joseph received from an angel

that all was well. And that the child had actually come from God. It's about the steady obedience

of the silent Joseph we never hear speak. It's about the consummation of the marriage between

Joseph and Mary after the birth of the child. And there's the naming of this child with the

strange name Jesus which means deliverer or saviour or rescuer. And it always seems odd to me that

there are people who live 2,000 years after the event today who are quite sure that that event

was not true. Whereas Matthew and Luke who were there at the time, who were the eye-witnesses,

who lived close to the event, who wrote near the time when people would have known Jesus,

they are quite sure that it was true. Strange isn't it? We live so long afterwards and we throw

doubt on something on which those at the time were quite certain. Those who knew Jesus face to face

and at first hand experience and witnesses to turn to. And I think and I hope it's not too bold

to say that actually I'm going to argue that the very of birth is common sense. It suggests,

doesn't it, to us that Jesus is different. That he is very God of very God. He's light of light.

He's begotten and not made. He's of one substance with the Father. All those tremendous phrases that are

found in the Nicene Creed. That Christians have confessed for generations and centuries after

century. If he is indeed very God of very God lying in the manger. If he is really God lying in the

manger. Then I think it's no surprise. It's no surprise to me. I don't think it should be a surprise to you

as well. If his entrance into the world and his exit from the world are startling to be unique.

Would you expect the entrance of the God-man to be normal? Would you expect him to enter into this world

like any normal, ordinary human being? Would you expect him to leave this world like that? A normal human being

being turned into ashes? No, he enters in a supernatural way. And he leaves the tomb, doesn't he, by a mighty resurrection

according to the Gospel writers. As I tried to ask myself this week, why is it that so many sincere

sincere church leaders and writers and journalists have soft paddled the supernatural parts of the Christmas story?

Why is it that they're embarrassed about a virgin birth? When Christmas comes around and we read and we sing around

about the virgin birth, but actually there are many people who call themselves Christians who are slightly embarrassed by it.

And I'm sure they're sincere, but I'm also sure they're mistaken.

I believe the reason why lots of these people are deeply embarrassed and they've soft paddled the miraculous and the supernatural

in this Christmas story is because they want to make it easier for you to believe.

They want to make it easier for you to believe. And so what has happened, isn't it, is miracle after miracle.

It's kind of jettisoned. Because they say they can no longer be defended.

And they talk about the moral values of Christianity.

But actually are silent on the miraculous.

That God has come in the person of his son, Jesus Christ.

But what's happened in that experiment?

Well in 150 years, the church has lost its grip on the real Christ, hasn't it?

Long years of decline

have started because of that policy.

Archbishop William Temple wrote this.

He said, the only Jesus for whom there is any evidence

is a supernatural figure

making stupendous claims.

Let me read that to you again.

It's a striking sentence, isn't it?

The only Jesus for whom there is any evidence

is a supernatural figure

making stupendous claims.

And that is the Jesus we believe in here in this church.

Because we believe that the evidence

that Matthew and Mark and Luke and John present to us

is that of a supernatural child.

And through that child

you can know God.

So let me give you two final comments

before we sing again when I sit down.

Because as we look at that child in the manger

we have to say this

we have to say that no one ever stopped

at the cot of the infant Jesus

and said

doesn't he look just like his dad?

Nobody said today

like we say to a newborn baby

nobody says we should go to his father's nose

because dad's eyes

You know what it's like

when you see a new baby

you're desperate to say something positive

But on the certain evidence

of the New Testament

no one says

to the infant Jesus

in his cot

you don't look just like your dad

It's the mirror image of his father

Because he was not like Joseph

Because Joseph was not his father

But what was so amazing

is that later on in his life

when this child had become

a full grown teacher

he kept saying

in different ways

and in all sorts of places

for those who care to listen

I'm just like my father

you know

I'm just like my father in heaven

Well one of his friends

Philip

comes to him and says

Lord please show us

the father

And the extraordinary reply

that Philip receives

is

Philip if you've seen me

you've seen the father

Yes

No one saw the likeness

of Joseph

in the infant Jesus

But ever since

for 2,000 years

the universal church

has seen the likeness

of God

in the face

of Jesus Christ

So that as we

rediscover Jesus

we discover

his father too

That's my first comment

Secondly

lots of people

at that time

I knew I'm guessing

because we're not told

but I think I must be right

lots of people

peeped into that cot

and this manger

and they heard

about this strange name

what's his name

his name is what

Jesus

this strange name

that the baby's been given

at the command of the angel

this name of deliverer

or rescuer

or saviour

and as they peeped

into the cot

and they said

to his mother

is this really

the deliverer

that God

has raised up

to save us

from the Roman

oppressors

our hated occupiers

is this the deliverer

that our nation

has been praying for

for so long

is this the

freedom fighter

who's going to

fix my life

and the answer

from Mary

this very faithful woman

the answer is no

he is not Jesus

the freedom fighter

he doesn't come

to save people

from their grim

present problems

but he is

Jesus

the divine deliverer

who has come

to save his people

indeed

all that will come

to him

from a far

far worse plight

than being occupied

by a foreign power

like the Romans

from the plight

of eternal death

very famous word

isn't it

for you shall call

his name Jesus

for he will save

his people

from their sins

I hope you understand

that phrase

what it doesn't mean

it doesn't mean

that Christians

are sinless

in fact stay around

you every about

20 minutes

and you'll find that out

it means that

we are saved

from the judgment

that would be otherwise

on our lives

and from our sins

and if you will

forgive the crudity

of my language

he came to save us

from hell

I've done a lot

of work in Matthew's

gospel

I'm actually preaching

through it

on a Sunday morning

and I found myself

thinking about

eternal death

and hell

to try to imagine

the awfulness

of such a fate

and such a future

I watched a clip

this week

of Les Mis

with Jean Valjean

you know the story

it's a brilliant story

so if you've got me

to see the musical

go see it

Jean Valjean

is in prison

for 19 years

for stealing

a loaf of bread

and yet in that prison

Jean Valjean

never lost hope

he had hope

he was never

without hope

that he would escape

and he did escape

but when the Bible

teaches us

about eternal death

it says that

to die

unforgiven

but to die

without Christ

to die

having paid

no attention

to the offer

of salvation

that God

has brought

into this world

at Christmas

is to die

not only without God

but without hope

and for me

and probably for you

if you're willing

to think about it

that is an

unimaginable thing

to have no hope

for the future

to know that

there is no escape

and no return

and no end

but that faith

need not be ours

because the Christmas

story is about

love isn't it

the Christmas story

is about love

finding a way

about divine love

finding the way

it is God

the Father

saying

my son

I want you to

go to earth

and I want you

to share human life

I want you

to be perfectly

obedient to me

in a world

that is disobedient

and I want you

to offer yourself

as a pure

and blemished

sacrifice

for the sins

of my people

you see

the glory of Christmas

is that love

found a way

for God

so loved the world

that he gave

his one and only son

that whoever

believes on him

will not perish

but have eternal life

yes love

did find a way

and I can't

imagine anything

more foolish

or wicked

than to turn

away from

the solution

that God

gave

let me ask you

to do three

things

let me ask you

firstly

take one of

these gospels

there's a Luke's

gospel or a Matthew's

gospel

if you've never

read it

what's the harm

in reading it

read it

ask the Lord

if you're there

if it's true

show me

and read it

and see

if you live locally

we'd love to

welcome you back

we'd love to

welcome you back

come let's hear

the Bible

explain

maybe lots of

us tonight

it's completely

new and foreign

or go to a church

which teaches

the Bible

and we'll show

you the truth

and thirdly

you can pray

I don't know

your life

I don't know

your problems

I don't know

your concerns

and say

whether you

don't know

mine

but tonight

you can cry

to God

and he will

hear you

we're going to

step apart