A Promised Christmas: A Promised Savior

And we're just glad that you're here. And I hope you, if you

have your Bibles, hope that you do if your turn with me to the

Gospel of Matthews Matthew chapter two, and we're going to start in verse thirteen

in just a minute now. Title my sermon today is the Promise Savior,

The Promised Savior. I don't know about you. Have you ever made a

promise that you didn't keep? You ever made a promise that you maybe forgot

that you even made and then someone reminded you. I remember when I was

in college and I had came home from a Christmas break, and I believe

and I think it was around Christmas, but I know I came home from

college and a bunch of my friends from church we're gathering at one of my

friend's house, and so we went there, and I really do believe it

was a Christmas party for the Sunday school class or something, but some reason

we gathered together at the home was the Connor home and the dad name was

Alan Connor, and so we went there and then we had I think we

had a little meal, and then we exchanged gifts, and then those typical

guys in high school and in college, we went outside or a friendly game

of basketball. So we playing basketball outside, and I remember his goal at

his house. I think it was just a little shorter than the ten foot

mark. It was maybe nine foot or maybe it was retractable, you know,

some of those adjustable ones. But as typical guys, after the game,

we decided we'd have our own duck competition. Yep. And so now

again I want to be clear, Jonathan cannot dunk. Okay, Jonathan has

never been able to dunk. But when you lower the goal, Jonathan can

dunk. And so I decided I would go up and I would I dunked.

I don't and I don't know idea it was probably three sixty reversals.

No, I'm just kidding. It was just just as simple dunk because that's

all I could do. And I think for some reason I hung on the

goal, and I don't know if somebody was I'd probably just showing off,

who knows, But for some reason I dunked and I hung on the goal

and I bent in the rim. And about that time, the dad,

of course, was out there watching. And I really vaguely remember this story

because as you can tell, I can. I'm leaving out a lot of

details, but I remember I've been at and he, you know, the

dad came up and says, you know, you've been my goal. And

I think I said I'm sorry. I felt really bad, and so I

think I may even made the promise. I'm so sorry, mister Connor.

I promise you I'll come back sometime and I'll bring my grandpa's truck and i'll

bring some wrenches and i'll take the rim down. And I think I made

a bunch of promises that I would fix his goal. Because I broke it.

Well, I went back to school, I went back to college,

forgot all about it. Well the next time, it was the summer,

or next time I came back and I went to church, Well I saw

mister Connor. Well, mister Connor, I may have forgotten what I had

done, but mister Connor did not, and he was very quick to remind

me of what I did and also what I had said. And he was

very quick to remind me that I made a promise and I did not keep

my promise. As we come to Matthew chapter two, Matthew is warning you

to see that God keeps his promises. God makes promises, but God just

doesn't make empty promises. God keeps his promises. And as we come to

Matthew chapter two, Matthew is wanting you and I to see. God made

some promises about his messiah, about his savior, and Jesus fulfilled those promises.

And therefore Jesus is the Messiah, and he wants you and I to

see this morning that God keeps his promises. God keeps his word, and

he fulfills those promises in Jesus. Do you know Scripture tells us in Second

Corinthians chapter one twenty for all the promises of God find their yes in him.

Think about now, all the promises in Scripture they find their fulfillment in

Jesus. Matthew today in chapter two, as we see this another part of

the Christmas story of Matthew. Chapter two, Matthews wanting you to see in

the story that God is God's faithful to his word, God's faithful to his

promise, and Jesus is a fulfillment of those promises. You know something about

when you break your promises, it tells you a little bit about yourself,

right or because it may be the person you brought the promise, maybe characterize

you in a certain way. If mister Connor looked at me as a college

student, he may have thought, well, he's not what is he?

He didn't keep his promises, so therefore he's not trustworthy. You can even

go on worse. Right, you can have said to well, Jonathan is

not only trust not trustworthy, he's he's a liar because he said something and

he didn't keep what he said. Right, as we think about Matthew wants

you to think about who Jesus is. He wants you to see that Jesus

is a fulfillment of God's promises, so he is the Messiah. But he

wants you to know and how Jesus fulfilled the prophecy a little bit about who

Jesus is. So this morning, as we see this promised savior, Matthew

wants you to see this morning, Jesus is the Messiah, and he wants

you to see just a little bit about who Jesus is because how he fulfilled

God's promises. Now I want to ask you this morning, Matthew says,

he writes all these things this morning, hear me. As you are listening

to God's word today, Matthew says, he wrote his word, and he's

writing this gospel message today because he wants people who are not believers to believe.

So just think about that as you read this passage today. We're going

to read it just a moment, Matthew writes, because he's trying to an

apologetic way convince you that Jesus is the Messiah, and that by convincing you

that he is Messiah, that today you'll believe in Jesus. So I wanted

to ask you today, as you hear God's word, have you believed in

Jesus. It's very important for Matthew. I think it's very important for all

you to ask that question today. I also think it's a very important for

you to ask another question. If it was so important for Matthew to see

that God kept his word, I wonder today, how have you kept your

word to God? Scriptures Matthews want you to see God keeps his word.

Well, I ask you today, how have you kept your word to God?

Can I tell you God is coming back one day. Jesus is coming

back, and he will hold his account of the things that we've committed to

him. Today, let's consider the promises of God Let's consider that Jesus is

the promise savior. Let us see who Jesus is. And may we consider

today where that we have believed in Jesus, the Son of God. And

may we consider today how we have made promises and covenants to God, commitments

to God. And then secondly, maybe we consider today how have we kept

those promises. Let's stand un let's read God's word together. It's Matthew chapter

two. We're going to start in verse thirteen. This morning I worried all

the way through the end of the chapter. It says, Now when they

had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared Joseph in the dream

and said, take the child and his mother and flee to Egypt and remain

there until I tell you, for Herod is about to search for the child

to destroy him. And he rose, and he took the child and his

mother by night and departed to Egypt and remained there until the death of Herod.

And listen to this here, Matthew's trying to draw in. Let you

see that Jesus fulfilled scripture. And he says, even narrates here this was

to fulfill what the Lord has spoken by the prophet out of Egypt, I

called my son. Verse sixteen says, then Herod, when he saw that

he had been tricked by the wise men, become furious, and he sinned

and killed all the male children in battle Heim and all of the region who

were two years old and under, according to the time that he ascertained from

the wise men. Then was fulfilled what spoken by the prophet Jeremiah. A

voice heard in rama weeping in loud limitation, Rachel weeping for her children.

She refused to be comforted, because they are no more. But when Herod

died, Hold, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph

in Egypt, saying, rise and take the child and his mother, go

to the land of Israel, for those who sought the child's life are dead.

And he rose, and he took the child and his mother, and

he went into the land of Israel. But when he heard of Archiles,

who was reigning over Judea in the place of his father Herod, he was

afraid to go there, And being warned in the dream, he withdrew to

the district of Galilee, and he went and lived in a city called Nazareth.

Here again that what was spoken by the prophets might be fulfilled. He

shall be called a Nazarene. Let's pray together, Father, we thank you

for your word today. God, I pray today as we hear Lord,

the message of the Gospel. As we hear that God, you are true

to your word and how you fulfilled your promises in Jesus. Today, May

we as hearers today of your word. May we consider it today where we

have bleed and your son, Jesus. May we consider today, Lord,

of what promises that we've made to you, Lord, And may today be

today that we would put our faith in you. We would believe in you

Jesus, and we would promise commit our life to you, Lord, and

submission to you. Lord. Lord, we love you. Lead us today.

Lord, I pray that you know the things I prepared, You know

the words that you've given me. Lord, and I pray that you would

give me clarity of speech and clarity of thought. Lord, that I would

rightly divide your word, and Lord, I would Lord lead your people through

your word. So God give me wisdom. Lord, I pray that I

would decrease and you would increase that Lord, you would give me the very

words that you would have me declare, Lord, So Lord speak through me

as your messenger. Lord, we come today Lord to hear from you.

So speak now, Father, we pray, Amen, you may be seen

that. So we come to the scripture. The very first thing that Matthew

wants you to see, who is this promise Savior and seeing how Christ fulfilled

the promises of God. First, the Promised Savior is God's Son. The

Promised Savior is God's Son. Now, as you come to this pastor of

scripture, it's very important for Matthew to see the Lord sovereignly leading Joseph and

Mary in Jesus. He shows the kind of the early years. In verse

thirteen we kind of see. Now as you come to Matthew, you see

a third dream by Joseph. And now the second time the Angel of the

Lord appears. Verse thirteen says, now when they had the party and behold

an angel Lord appear to Joseph in a dream. So here the Angel Lord

appears to Joseph for the second time, and in this dream he instructs.

And so again this is God sovereignly leading Joseph and Mary by dreams, and

God speaks to marry and Joseph, and what is the instructions were he's instruct

He instructs Joseph to take Jesus and the family flee to Egypt. The instructions

are to flee to Egypt and stay in Egypt until what scripture says in verse

thirteen, riots tate the child and his mother, flee to Egypt and remain

there until I tell you and why? Now here's the last part of this

verse is why should you flee to Egypt? And the scripture says the Lord

explains that Herod is about the search for the child to destroy him. So

here God sovereignly understand. It shows the sovereignty of God, but it shows

the omniscience of God. God knows that Herod is about to come into Bethlehem

and kill every boy under the age of two. And so therefore God orchestrates

an angel to come to Joseph. Sovereignty of God speak to Joseph and give

his plans beforehands of what Herod is about to do. And he sovereignly ask

him commands him to go to Egypt. So here God's sovereignly leading. If

you imagine and battle him where they'd been at time it's probably a seventy five

mile journey from where they were. Says in verse fourteen that he listens to

the Lord and immediately he rises up. He takes his family, and he

takes them into Egypt. And so as you come to this passage of scripture,

I want to remind you, as we've come to Matthew, we've seen

that Matthew's been using this what we call a fulfillment formula. And what Matthew

does throughout chapter one and two is he shows how Jesus fulfills prophecy, how

he fulfills God's promises, and what he'll a lot of times do He'll tell

a story and then he'll say at the end of the story, this happened

in order to fill and then he'll give a prophecy that was in scripture and

how that story or that what happened to Jesus fulfilled a particular prophecy in scripture.

And so he did that. He did this in chapter one where he

sees that shows that there was a Jesus was born of a virgin Mary.

And then that very end he says, this was written to fulfill what and

he quotes the prophecy of Isaiah, the prophecy that Jesus would be what virgin

born. And he's showing that, Hey, listen, Jesus is the Messiah

because this is what happened to his life, and this is how he fulfilled

the promises of God. God said these things many long time ago, and

by Jesus fulfilling the prophecies and promises of God shows that he is the Messiah.

As you come to this latter part of chapter of Matthew chapter two,

what Matthew is doing is he's showing how Jesus is the fulfillment of prophecy and

almost like a geographical standpoint, according to the different places that Jesus moved,

and he's showing how God moot Jesus to live in certain areas, fulfilled prophecies

that were mentioned about Jesus. So that's what happens here. So he explains

it here that we're in Bethlehem and God and here was going to come and

kill all the children in Bethlehem. And so God orchestrated right, gave a

dream, spoke to Joseph about going to where to Egypt. And then look

at verse fifteen. Here's the fulfillment formula he's showing how that happened and to

fulfill prophecy. Look what it says, And this was to fulfill what the

Lord has spoken by the prophet, out of Egypt, I called my son.

The prophecy there is actually Hoseiah chapter two, verse fifteen. Hoseiah,

the prophet is actually talking about Israel, and he's reminding Israel about how God

led them. And in that prophecy he explains that at one point Israel had

been carried in to captivity, Egyptian captivity, and how God and his magnificent

power called his people Israel out of captivity, out of Egypt, and in

talking about that, he describes Israel as his son. So Hoseiah two fifteen

is Hoseiah describing the passive Israel and how Israel was God's son and as God's

son he called them out of Egypt. Now, Matthew says, what happened

to Israel just was foreshadowing a greater son that was to come, and that

son is Jesus. And God led Joseph and Mary and Jesus to Egypt that

God might call his son out of Egypt, just as he called Israel his

son out of Egypt. His true son, Jesus would come out of Egypt.

And Matthew does this. Listen, why does he show you this?

Why do you hear this today? Because Matthew wants those hear God's word this

morning to see the evidence that just as Israel came out of Egypt, so

did Jesus come out of Egypt. And just as Israel was God's son,

so was Jesus God's son. If God to understand, as you come to

this passage scripture, there are many who were reading Matthew or hearing Matthew,

and they did not believe that Jesus was the Messiah. They did do not

believe that he was the son of God. And Matthew is arguing he's an

apologetic way to convince people to believe. Can I say to you today,

God's word is written in such a way that it tries to give you evidence

that you might believe that Jesus is the son of God. And that's why

Matthew writes, I want to ask you today. I think it's very important

for you ask yourself this question. Do I believe? Do you believe that

Jesus is the son of God? Now some of you, probably all of

you in this room, and maybe all you may be watching online. You

probably say, you know what, Jonathan, I mean this is I know

you're giving me all this information. This is great, but I really don't

struggle. I may. I really believe Jesus is the son of God.

I've never really doubted that. I believe that. But Scripture says, demons

believe and shudder. So what's different about your belief that Jesus is the son

of God than the demons? Now? Scripture says, and Tanner mentioned it

this week and it was part of our Boy reading. If you've been reading

through John as we've been reading through and by playing, we're reading through John,

and Jesus is actually in John he's actually arguing with the Jews that he

is the son of God. He's battling back and forth with the Jews that

he is the son of God. And this is what he says to them.

And they say, well, we believe in God, we believe.

And Jesus very clearly says to them and he gives evidence of true belief,

and this is what he says that he's convincing them. He says this,

He says these words in John nine, he says, if we believe that

he is the son of God, then listen, then we'll love him.

Scripture says, Jesus said to them, if if God were your father,

you would love me. I came from God, and I'm here. I

came not of my own cornback, but on a cord. But he who

sent me. Jesus says to the Jews, if you really believe that I

am the some of God, what you love me? Can? I ask

you today? You say you believe that Jesus and the Son of God.

Do you really love And I'm not just saying superficial I love you? Know?

Does your life demonstrate every day a love for Jesus? No, you

say, well, pastor, I believe in God, do you love him?

Jesus says, if we truly believe he is the son of God,

and only will we love him. But if we believe he is the son

of God, then we will worship him. In John chapter nine, heals

this blind man, and there's a lot of debate about why Jesus did this

and that at the very end he goes in the sn of God, and

Pharisees are all mad about it in all different things, and finally at the

very end of the story, Jesus finds this blind man, and he comes

to the blind man and he asks the blind man, do you believe that

I am the Son of God? And he says, well, tell me

who is this son of God? And I'll read you the pastor of Scripture

nine thirty five. He says, he heard that, and Jesus heard that

that cast him out, and having found him, and he says, do

you believe in the son of Man? And he answered, who is he?

Sir? That I might believe in him? And Jesus said to him,

you have seen him. It is he who is speaking to you.

And he said, Lord, I believe, and listen what says, and

he worshiped him. Can I tell you, if you believe Jesus is the

son of God, listen, it will change how you love the Lord.

But I tell you, if you believe in the Son of God, it

will change of what you worship. Here for this blind man when he believed

in Jesus and only started a love for the Lord, but also started a

worship for the Lord. And lastly, here Jesus says in John ten,

when he talks about the good Shepherd, he says, the sheep wont know

my voice and they follow my voice. You know what Jesus is speaking there

those who believe in the Son of God and only will love him, and

not only will worship him. But those who believe and the Son of God

will listen, will know the voice of God and follow the voice of God.

They'll know the voice of God, and they'll obey God's voice. Can

I ask you, you say today, I believe in the Son of God.

Do you worship him? You say, I believe in the Son of

God. You love him? You say I believe in the Son of God.

Do you obey his voice with your life? You know? Thinking about

this today, and I was thinking about just the other day. I was

talking to my sister. I have two sisters, and Judith is the one.

We're closest in age. We're about fourteen months apart, and she was

telling me to the day about how she came to know Jesus. You got

to know, we grew up in a Christian home, went to church every

Sunday. My grandpa was a Baptist preacher. He made sure we're in church.

We had knowledge, we had belief in Jesus, we knew had the

intellectual knowledge of Jesus, but we didn't have heart knowledge. And Jesus and

Judith told me the other day, she says, I never get into church

service when the Lord spoke to me and said, Judith, you don't love

me with everything. You just loved me with some things. And she said

that Lord reminded her of that passage where it says he said to them,

you should love the Lord your God. Listen to this with all your heart,

with all your soul, with all your mind. She said that I

had given him part of my heart, but I had never given him at

all. Listen today, Jesus is wanting you to hear that he came out

of Egypt as the Son of God, that you might believe in the Son

of God, and that you'll love him with all your heart. Not just

your heart on Sunday mornings, or just your heart on Christmas mornings. No,

all of your heart every day. You'll worship him every day, You'll

love him every day you obey him. I wonder today there's some of you

here today and hear me with all of that I can. There's been a

time in your life where you feel like you've made a promise with God.

And you may say today you know a pastor Johnathan, I'm okay, I

remember a time of life. I made a decision for the Lord. But

you know, and you may have made that decision. You may say,

Jesus, I met that you died, you came. I meant that I'm

a sinner. May say, believe Jesus, I believe that you are the

son of God. You may say, I confess. And you may have

made a decision one time in your life as a boy or child, a

teenager, young adult. But listen, thiss not changed you. Maybe in

that time you made a promise of God. You live for God. But

how today are you fulfilling that promise you made to God? Today you said

you believe in Him whenever it was as a teenager, as a young person,

as a young adult, how today are you faithful to that promise to

God? Listen, he writes that you might believe. He wants you to

love him, He wants you to worship him. Boy, we got so

much more stuff in this passage. Let's look together. He is the promised

Savior, and the promised Savior is God's Son. Secondly, the Promised Savior

is the new Covenant. The Bible says that in let's just read the verses

sixteen through eighteen, it says, then heard when he saw that he had

been tricked by the wise man, and became furious, and he sinned and

killed all the children in battle, him and all the region who was two

years old and under according to the time that he had ascertained from the wise

men, and then was fulfilled what was spoken by the prophet Jeremiah. Voice

heard in Ramah weeping and loud lamitation, Rachel weeping for her children, and

she refused to be comforted because they are no more Scripture. Now he kind

of gives you the first part, and he kind of separates a little bit

of the details because he kind of gives Joseph in Marriag's perspective of why they

fled to Egypt. And now he comes into the passage of Herod and what

happened in Herod and how Herod did just what Jesus the Angels said to Joseph.

Herod Herod was. Herod the Great was very a paranoid leader. We

know through Church historians that just within a few years of him becoming King of

Israel or King Judea that he was so paranoid that he saw anybody as a

threat to his king, he would eliminate them. One of the greatest threat

that he saw to his authority of his kingly reign was actually his family,

and it was his wife's family. Is his then loss. They were a

royal family, and they had a lot of power and influence in the area.

And when in his first two years he killed the entire family, including

his wife, he was so also paranoid that Josephus would tell us his historian,

that later on his life he had actually killed three of his own sons

with suspicion that they were going to try to take his throne. So this

was him. He was paranoid. Heres scripture says that there was this king,

you remember, the wise men. King came and said, who is

the king of the Jews born? Where is the king of the Jews that

was born? So he hears of this new king that was coming, and

so what does he do? He hears about that, and therefore he sends

soldiers into Bethlehem and he kills every boy. It's understood that's probably about this

time. There's probably about a thousand people, a population of Bethlehem. It's

believed that there's anywhere from twelve to twenty boys that would have been killed that

day, and he does that to eliminate the king. The Bible says that

Matthew explains that this happened, the murder of those boys and the crying of

those mothers who lost their sons' was a fulfillment of prophecy. This is what

he says here in verse seventeen. Then after the murder of those boys in

Batthlehem, then what's fulfilled what was spoken by the prophet. He even names

the prophet here Jeremiah. Again, this is this fulfillment formula. Here's this

is what happened. This is how it fulfilled. Prophecy was a prophecy.

He says. Jeremiah actually is Jeremiah in this passive scripture is Jeremiah thirty one

to nine and Jeremiah thirty one nine. He says that weeping shall come.

It gives the imagery here a voice of heard from Ramah weeping allowd limitation Rachel.

It is a mother weeping for her children because she refused to be comforted

because they are no more. The story what's happening in this passage of Scripture.

He's saying, there's these moms in Battlehem and they're weeping. They're weeping

because there's no more children. There's no more there's no more children, there's

no more sons in the age of twelve of two. They've been killed.

And so there's moms in Bethlehem were weeping, and the weeping of those mothers.

It's a fulfillment of Jeremiah's prophecy. This is probably the most difficult in

chapter one and two. This is the most difficult of all the passages of

Scripture. The reason why is because in Jeremiah, in Jeremiah thirty one,

Jeremiah is not talking about murder or murder of children. He's actually talking about

how Israel was going to be taken in exile, and that the imagery there

of Rachel weeping is Rachel weeping because the people of Israel are being carried away

into captivity by the Babylonians. And there's no more Jews in Israel anymore.

There's no more Jews in Bethelhem, there are no more Jews in the land

of Israel. And she's weeping because the nation of Israel is no more.

That's the imagery. So it's a difficulty end this and saying, well,

what is what is he trying to say? What is Jeremiah trying to say?

Well, the imagery is Jeremiah is not stopping. He doesn't stop in

chapter thirty one and in what There's no more, there's no more crying,

and she refused to be comforted because there are no more children. And Jeremiah's

prophecy in chapter one he explains, there's hope, there's hope that even though

Rachel can't be comforted because there's no more, there's hope. And the hope

in Jeremiah's time is that God promises that he will bring Israel back. So

there's hope because there is return and the imagery. Listen to me, because

this is very important, the imagery that Matthew's trying to show. Listen to

this that for those ladies who are crying in Bethlehem because their children have been

murdered, there's hope for their You know why, there's hope because there was

a baby that escaped in Egypt. And just as Israel return from captivity,

listen, Jesus is going to come again. And for those ladies who lost

their children, there's hope in a coming savior, but no others are hoping

that he is going to return. There's hope for Israel. There's hope for

these ladies in Bethlehem because that baby that's coming back, he is the New

Covenant. And Jeremiah thirty one. Not only it promises that these exiles would

come back, and so there's hope for the women who find that there is

no hope, there's also hope for them because there is this New Covenant and

Jeremiah thirty one. It gives us the promise of the New Covenant. And

the New Covenant says, Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord.

When I'll make a new covenant with the House of Issuel, the House

of Judah, the covenant that I made with their fathers on the day when

I took them by the hand and bring them out of the land of Egypt,

my covenant that they broke though I was their husband, declares the Lord.

For this is the covenant I will make with the health of Israel in

those days, declare the Lord. I will put my law within them.

I will write it on their hearts, and I will be their God,

and they shall be my people, I shall no longer shall each one teach

his neighbor or each his brother, saying know the Lord for that, for

they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest,

declared the Lord. For listen to this, for I will forgive their iniquity,

and I will remember their sin no more the promises you remember as Israel,

listen to this. Follow me here. As Israel came out of Egypt

into the Promised Land that actually became the nation of Israel, and they established

a new covenant. Matthew sees that came out of Egypt was God's Son,

and that son that was coming out of Ea Egypt was going to be the

new covenant. And by the new covenant, listen, he would deliver people

from suffering and from sin. You know what led Israel to captivity? Sin

They turned away from God. They broke that covenant, as Jeremiah just mentioned,

and because they continued to break God's covenant, that continue to be devastated

by war and captivity. That Matthew sees the day that when Jesus, the

Son of God came, he came in as a new covenant, that sin

and suffering would be no more I want you to ask you a question.

You think about Matthew, and you think about these ladies who died, who

lost their children at Bethlehem, you imagine the weeping there's moms losing their babies.

You ever wept ever suffering, Ever anything bad happened to you in your

life that you were overcome with. Sorry, not something that you did or

something that you caused, but just suffering of this world. You ever had

time in your life that you weeped over sin? There was time's life you

face suffering your life, and that brought pain in your life, just tragedy

that happened your life, and that brought weeping. But has there been a

time that you wept like those women in Bethlehem? And it was nothe because

of suffering, but it was because of your sin? And you felt like

the power of sin that came upon you and it had destroyed you. It

taken things away from you, it destroyed your life. And that's a lot

of the imagery of Jeremiah Rachel's weeping in Rayma. Rama is where they would

gather all the Jews, all the Israelites at Rama, and from there that

carried on that captivity. Rachel is standing where her grave is and she's crying

because she sees Sin has now taken everything from her. If you ever felt

that way, if you ever had that happen in your life, I'll never

get probably the hardest things as a pastor to see how pain and suffering in

the life of church members. Remember very first church of Sirvedallas, part time

youth pastor in South Carolina. And I remember a mom calling me one time

and says, Pastor, I need you to come over to my house.

And I walked in the house and there was her h son. He was

in my youth group. And I walked into his room and there he was.

He was just sitting on the bed, just crying, just just tears

flowing down his eyes. And his name was James. I said, James,

what is wrong? What is wrong? James? What has happened?

What is going on? And he was crying so hard he couldn't even talk.

And I remember James looking at me and says, Pastor johnthan I've kind

of been hiding some things from my family. He says. A boy came

to school and he sold me pornography. And in the last few years,

every little bit I've been buying pornography at school, and pornography. It had

such a grip of sin on his life and it was destroying him. And

he was crying because he was tired. He was frustrated that sin kept after

him, kept destroying and was ruining his life. Some of you feel that

same weight today. Can I tell you, I'm going to show you a

picture of a little girl. Can you start that up? This is a

little girl when we went to Tanzania a few years ago, and this little

girl named Winnie. I don't know. She's probably under the age of two

when he was in the orphanage because her mom was mentally ill. But it

gets worse. She's also in the orphanage because she had been sexually abused.

Can I tell you when he wept? Because she has suffered. But the

good news today is listen that in Matthew, Matthew's wanting you and I to

see, there is a promised Savior and he is the new Covenant, and

by the New Covenant his blood. Listen, he came to destroy sin in

your life, that you would weep no more. Can I tell you that

Savior come as a new Covenant, that your sin would be destroyed and you

would weep no more. But that same Savior promised. Savior came in as

a new covenant, that he might destroy suffering of this world, and that

people would weep no more, that Winnie would weep no more, that James

would weep no more of her sin, that you would weep no more over

sin. Today, have you received the promise of the Savior that he came

to be the new covenant of his blood for you, that he might cover

your sins and he might deliver you from suffering? Today, listen to ask

Listen to me. Have you ever placed your trust in Jesus for your suffering?

That Jesus, I want to place my suffering into your hands, knowing

that you came that you might deliver may for my suffering. Have you ever

done that? Have you ever placed your trust in Jesus to deliver you from

sin? He came that he might deliver you, that you would weep no

more of our sin? Have you ever given him your suffering? Have you

ever placed your trust of your sin in the hands of Jesus? That's why

it came? Can I tell you? Lastly, and only Jesus came.

That's the promise. Savior the Son of God, the promise that he is

not only the promised Savior, is the Son of God. Only is the

Promised Savior the new Covenant. But lastly, the Promised Savior is the despised

servant. Scriptures says, and I'll try to go fast here in verse nineteen

that he talks about Herod dying. Here, Matthew, I mean Joseph and

maryor and Egypt. Herod dies, and Angel the Lord comes again. That

the Angel Lord told him to stay in Egypt until they heard a word.

And here again is another dream, another angel of the Lord. Here's of

Joseph. Since hey, it's time to return to Israel. Joseph goes,

and he makes his way to Israel, and as he goes, he hears

a Archiles, which is Herod's son. It was believed probably Joseph probably thought

Herod attend a post was going to be over Judea. But when Herod before

Hair died, he actually divided his kingdom in three parts into three different sons,

and Archiles was over Judea or Bethlehem. And Archiles was the most ruthless.

He actually on passover, he actually killed three thousand Jews in one in

one day, just annohiliated, so he was more ruthless than his father Joseph.

Scripture says. Hearing this, he was fearful. And then Scripture tells

us again that he had another dream and instructed them to not go to Bethelhem,

but to go to another area. And the Bible says that. Then

Jesus and the family settles in Nazareth. And there, Scripture says. And

lastly, Matthew says in verse twenty three, and he went and lived in

the city called Nazareth, that what was spoken by the prophets might be fulfilled.

He shall be called a Nazarene. The word the term Nazarene was a

term of scorn. Actually, if you go to John chapter one, Philip

is actually going to share the gospel with a friend of his, Nathaniel,

And he goes to Nathaniel says his and we found the Messiah, the Son

of God, the one came from Moses. And Nathaniel says, can anything

come good from that Nazareth? It was a term of scorn. It was

you didn't want to be known as a Nazarene. Yet Jesus, all through

Scripture is Jesus the Nazarene or Jesus from Nazareth. Actually in I Acts,

in Acts twenty four five, there is a passage Scripture says, for we

have found this man of plague, who has stirred up brigs among the Jews

through the whole world, is a ringleader of the sect of the Nazarenes.

And that was a term of scorn. Matthew is saying. The difficult part

of this passage of scripture is there is no prophecies in the Old Testament that

mentions that Jesus is from Nazareth. None. Actually, Nazareth did not come

established until maybe the very first century. It was actually smaller than Bethlehem.

It's probably only like four hundred and eighty people in the population in the first

century, so it's not mentioned in the Old Testament. Also, you say,

he says in verse twenty three, spoken by the prophets, So what

is he talking about? What Jesus. What Matthew is explaining there is Jesus

was born in a place called Nazareth, just like Tanner mentioned, and therefore

because he was born in the area of Nazareth, he was born born and

with his name from the very beginning, at the age of two or older.

He was seen as a person, even his name was scorned. And

why why is that? Because that he might fulfill the prophecies of Psalm twenty

two. Psalm twenty two talked about the Messiah, and then the talking about

the Messiah, it says, but I am a worm, not a man,

scorned by mankind and despised by the people. The prophecy of the Messiah

was not a prophecy that he would be accepted or loved as a king,

or brought into this great triumphant procession, as Tanner mentioned. No, as

he came, he would come and be scorned. And Isaiah fifty three what

Tanner just read, just a moment ago said talking about the Messiah. For

he grew up before like a young plant, like a root of dry ground.

He had no form or majesty that we should look at him, no

beauty that we should decieve, I mean desire him. He was despised and

rejected by man, a man of sorrow and acquitted with grief. Matthew is

wanting you to say, look at scripture. He keeps going and says,

ask from one who ment hid their faces. He was despised, and we

esteem him. Not Matthew is saying, Jesus is the Nazarene. He was

despised, his name was despised, and he came as to despise servant from

the very beginning. He never came from majesty. He actually came as the

one to be scorned and the one to be despised. And as we close

this morning, you would say, pastor, why why did Jesus well?

Scripture says why. The Bible says, and Isaiah, surely he has borne

our griefs. He has carried our sorrows, and we esteem him strict and

smitten by God, afflicted. So why was he scorn? Why was he

despised? Because Scripture says that he was pierced for our transgressions. He was

crusted for our iniquities upon him, the chastipitizement that brought us peace with his

wounds. We are healed, We are we like sheep. I'm going astray.

We have turned everyone to his own way. The Lord has laid on

him the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he'd

opened not his mouth. He say, pastor, why was Jesus scorned?

Why did he fulfill the prophecy as the despised servant that was despised and scorned

even as a child. He was despised and rejected. Listen today, that

you might be accepted. He was condemned, that we might not be condemned.

You know, Scripture says in Roman, there is now no condemnation to

those who are in Christ. Jesus, Jesus came to be despised that you

might be, that you might be accepted by God and listen today, and

that you might have peace with God. Can you just imagine that imagery Matthew's

wanting you see today, Jesus is the promised Savior. He is the promised

Savior, is the son of God who came that we might believe in him,

worship him, love him, obey him. Jesus is listen. He's

not only the promised Savior, but Jesus is the promised New Covenant. And

by the new Covenive's blood, he came to deliver you from sin and from

suffering. Today he is the despised servant that came to be rejected and condemned,

that listened today that you might not be condemned by God, but that

you might be received by God, and have what peace with God today?

Can you imagine, as you look at that passage of ten or mentioned a

minute ago, when Jesus came to Jerusalem, that last time he came on

a donkey, he didn't receive the reception as child, he was scorned from

earth. But can I tell you that that when Jesus first came, he

wasn't accepted, he was rejected, he was condemned, he was despised.

But listen to me, when Jesus comes again, he will be worshiped.

Scripture says, and Philippians says, when Jesus comes again, listen, every

knee will bow, and every tongue will confess that Jesus is Lord. But

you know, the Bible says in First John, and this passage is always

stuck with me First John, chapter two, that when Jesus comes again,

there will those will be cower at his coming. They won't be excited about

his coming. There'll be coward is coming, shrink back it is coming.

But there will be those who will be confident in his coming. You know

why. Those who will shrink back it is coming. You know why,

because they did not keep their word. You remember I told you story at

the very beginning that about mister Connor, that when I saw him, he

kind of reminded me, and I was really felt bad that I not kept

my promises. Can I tell you every time I went to the church,

I was kind of looking out for mister Connor to see where he was and

where I was going to see him again, and he was going to tell

me what I did not do, And so therefore I didn't look forward to

seeing him come. Can I tell you today, Jesus is coming back today.

Will if he came back today, would you not look forward to his

coming? Would you shrink back? And the reason you shrink back because listen,

listen, you're not ready. You've not truly believed, You've not truly

been worshiping, You've not loved him, you've not been obeying him. Today

you shrink back because listen, Sin's got a grip on you. But he

came to deliver you today. Some of you would shrink back because you just

liked those Jews. You've not accepted him, but you have rejected him today.

Jesus is coming back. As he comes back, will you make a

decision today that you might be ready for his return will you pray with me

every about every I close. Can I tell you today, just as you're

praying right now, that God so loved you that he gave his only son

for you, that his very word that we read today was written that you

might believe. Can you hear today not a God that wants to condemn,

but a God that wants to receive you. But today is today. Now

is the time for you to make that decision. So today maybe the first

time for some of you, will you put your faith in Jesus. Will

you believe on Jesus and say, today, Jesus, I admit that I

am a sinner. Jesus, I believe that you are the son of God

that came from me, that you might deliver me from sin and suffering.

Today I confess, Jesus, I need you, Lord, and I'll confess

that I'll give you my heart, my whole heart, hold nothing back.

Lord today, Would you make that your prayer today? If you've never done

that, whether you're here in person or watching online, listen God's calling you,

would you respond to him today? Maybe you are here today and you

have done that, But let's just be honest. There's there's been some times

that you really have not been keeping your promises. You've really not commit You've

not been keeping your commitment to the Lord. And if he came again today,

you will not be ready because you have not been faithful to your word

to him. Maybe today's a day where the Lord is saying, listen,

it's time you've been running long enough. Listen, I came to deliver you

from sin and suffering, not for you to continue in it. Maybe he's

calling you today said today, I don't want you to weep any more of

O sin. I don't want you to weep any more of a sorrow.

Come today, renew your commitment to me today, to live, for me,

to believe me, to worship me, O baby, that I might

deliver. However the Lord leads you today, would you respond to him right

now, right where you are. Lord, we thank you for this morning.

And God, it is evident that your word is speaking to you in

this place. God, we've all made even the promises to people. But

God, there's been times where we've made promises to you that we've not kept.

And Lord, I pray today would be a day of recommitment, a

day that we say, Lord, Lord, I want to be true to

my word to you, Lord, that I will worship you, I will

love you, or will serve you. Father, not just on Sundays,

but every day of my life. Lord, I'll give you my I give

you not just a part of my heart, but God, I give you

all of my heart. Lord. Today I pray be people today that have

maybe you just really have been rejecting you, have just found every reason why

not to follow you, Lord. But today God, they've heard of your

amazing love that you've came, that they would weep no more of her sin,

they would weep no more of suffering, and today would be the day

that they would place their trust in you, they receive you as Lord and

Savior. I pray there'd be those who would do that today, or we

love you, I pray today, Lord, it would be a day that

we would just respond, Lord to your leading us. Now your name,

we pray Amen Jesus to