The Crisis of Christmas

I want you to turn with me this morning to Luke chapter 1.

Luke 1 · chapter mention

And if you're here this morning, you do not have a worship guide.

The lights are a little strong on me right here.

Can we dim them a little bit?

And uh but right here, do you, if you need a worship guide, raise your hand.

Because today we're going to be looking at a subject called the Crisis of Christmas.

The Crisis of Christmas.

Now, in fact, uh I was sharing, we had two uh parties yesterday and our maze and grays, and boy, we had a good time there.

And then we had a pickleball party.

Had about over 70 there yesterday afternoon.

And I they were always, I kind of, I've kind of, I guess I'm the only pastor of the whole bunch, so they love picking on the preacher.

But they always asked me, what are you preaching on?

And I said, the crisis of Christmas.

And Greg looked at me, he said, The crisis?

I said, yeah, let me give you the definition of crisis.

The word crisis, one of the definitions is a time when difficult or important decisions must be made.

Crisis.

A time when a difficult or important decision must be made.

Now, how many of you have ever been in a crisis?

Raise your hand.

Come on.

I want to see them.

Every hand ought to be up, except for maybe the children.

But it's a crisis when you tell them you're going to spank them, I promise.

Amen.

Trust me, it's a crisis.

Okay?

But I really want you to understand something.

And I could tell when Greg looked at me, I said, see, there's a crisis each and every time a person is confronted with the name of Jesus.

Because when you are confronted with the name of Jesus, then you have to make a decision whether you receive Jesus or you reject Jesus.

And we saw that on Calvary itself.

One of the thieves received Christ, the other rejected Christ.

So the crisis of Christmas is that beautiful, wonderful name of Jesus.

I'm telling you, there's no other name.

Neither is there salvation in any other name, for there's none other name under heaven given among men whereby we must be saved.

Acts 4.12.

So this morning I want us to look at how we can define the crisis of Christmas through the beautiful, wonderful name of Jesus.

It was the name of one of the greatest heroes in the history of Judah.

Joshua is the Hebrew name for Jesus.

And in the Greek, the name is Jesus or Jesus.

In the Spanish name, they both mean the same, and what it means, they both mean Jehovah is salvation.

Jehovah is salvation.

When the angel came to Mary here in this passage, in verse 31, he makes a profound statement to Mary.

And he says to Mary, and behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb and bring forth a son, and you shall call his name Jesus.

And then he also in Matthew chapter 1, verses 20 through 21, he met with Joseph, and he told Joseph also, and he said, And Mary shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Jesus, for he shall save his people from their sins.

Matthew 1:20–21

And then also we see after the eighth day, and they brought Jesus to be circumcised to the temple, that the Bible says in Luke 2.21, and when eight days were accomplished for the circumcising of the child, his name was called Jesus, which was so named of the angel before he conceived in the womb.

Luke 2.21.

So with that said, this morning, I want us to look at three things about this beautiful, wonderful name that is descriptive of Jesus.

Number one, his name declares his identity.

Verses 32 and 33, look at him.

And he shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest.

And the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David, and he shall reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there shall be no end.

Now I want you to notice four things about his identity.

Number one, verse 32, he is the Son of God.

He shall be called the Son of the Highest.

This baby would not be like any other baby.

He would be the Son of God, the eternal Son of God, who had existed with his Father from eternity past.

I got to thinking about that.

That Jesus, who was with God for eternity, stepped out of eternity and came to earth so that he could become a man like me and you, so that he could take on, hey, our sins and the world's sins, so that he could deliver us from the damnation of sin and bring us in to life everlasting.

And I thought to myself, what a beautiful name, Jesus.

The ancient prophecy of Isaiah was fulfilled when Jesus stepped out of eternity and came to earth.

Isaiah 7.14.

Therefore the Lord Himself shall give you a sign.

Behold, a virgin shall conceive and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which in Matthew says Emmanuel means God with us.

Can you imagine?

Over 2,000 years ago, during this time of the year that we celebrate Christmas, that God Himself literally stepped out of heaven through his Son Jesus Christ and came and dwelt among me and you.

Wow.

See, that's too much to comprehend, Pastor.

I know, but it happened.

It literally happened that this who Jesus is, who is Jesus?

He's the Son of God.

He is God in human flesh.

In the beginning was the Word, the Word was with God.

And the Word was God.

Amen.

John 1.1.

And then John 1 14.

And what?

And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us.

And we beheld his glory, the glory of the only begotten Son of the living God.

Wow.

But not only that, secondly, not only is he the Son of God, but look at verse 32, he's the King of Israel.

In verse 32, he shall be great and shall be called the Son of the Highest.

And the Lord God shall give unto him, here it is, the throne of his father David.

Oh, this baby born to humble people who had humble means would be a direct descendant of King David.

More than that, he would be the fulfillment of God's promise to King David.

Hey, a thousand years earlier, you go to 2 Samuel 7, 4 through 17, and we see this exact prophecy being predicted that was fulfilled on that day, on that Christmas morning.

Unbelievable.

This baby would one day sit on the throne of David and be crowned the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords.

Oh, one day this king will return in glory as he, hey, rules with an iron, uh, with a rod of iron.

But one day everybody will know who he really is.

Oh, we shall.

I mean, he's the king of Israel.

He's the Son of God.

But look at thirdly.

He is the fulfillment of prophecy.

Look at verse 33.

And he shall reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there shall be no end.

This phrase reaches far back beyond the time of David to the days of Jacob.

It brings to mind the words of Jacob spoke to his son Judah just before he died.

Listen to what he says in Genesis 49, verse 10.

Genesis 49:10

The scepter, he said, shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet until Shiloh come.

And unto him shall the gathering of the people be.

Now the word Shiloh there literally means he whose it is.

In other words, it means that one day the supreme ruler and king of kings and the Lord of Lords will come, and he will be the possessor of the people of all the people.

Jacob goes on to say, and unto him shall the gathering of the people be.

I looked up that phrase because I wanted to make sure I understood it.

Gathering here refers to obedience, cleansing, and purging.

And what he is literally saying, this baby named Jesus is the fulfillment of this prophecy, and that he is coming to, hey, to cleanse and purge his people so that his people can be what?

A peculiar people of his own choosing.

Wow.

And then I went back and realized that not only was this a prophecy that was fulfilled, but are you ready for this?

Here's where you separate Jesus from any or all other gods.

333 prophecies were predicted that were fulfilled by Christ alone.

Can I get an amen?

333.

No false prophet.

All the predictions, no one has a hundred percent prediction rate but Jesus.

What a beautiful name.

The name of Jesus.

And what an unbelievable fulfillment of prophecy.

Yes, he's the Son of God, he's the King of Israel, He's a fulfillment of prophecy.

But look at verse 32, number four.

He is the champion of humanity.

Look at verse 32.

He shall be great and shall be called the Son of the Highest.

He shall be great.

I love that phrase.

The word means to be great in importance and in value.

That's what it means.

No other birth in human history was as monumental as the birth of Jesus Christ.

No one was, hey, could be compared.

When he came into the world, he took his place as the greatest of the greatest.

The best of the best.

See, the first Adam was a miracle, no doubt about it.

Because he was made in the image of God.

We're made in the image of God.

And because God formed him from the dust of the earth and breathed into his nostrils the breath of air, no doubt about it.

Genesis 1, 26 and 27 and chapter 2, verse 7.

But that man, the first Adam, now watch this.

The first Adam sinned and brought death and condemnation upon his descendants.

He says in Romans 5.12, wherefore as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin, so death passed upon all men.

That man, first Adam, brought shame, disgrace, and a curse upon the world and upon all the offsprings.

That's all of us.

But the second Adam, haha.

The second Adam fixed everything that the first Adam broke.

Amen.

The second Adam fixed everything that the first Adam broke.

When Jesus was born, God was made in the image of man.

Philippians 2, 5, 8.

Let's look at that.

Pull that up for me, Jason.

And he talks about that he, hey, yes, let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus, who being in the form of God, now I love this, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but was made himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and hey, and coming in the likeness of men.

And then he says, and being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became, hey, obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross.

Wow.

Wow.

When Jesus was born, he was without sin.

He lived without sin.

But in his death, he died for sin.

Wow.

The second Adam was a great miracle.

And it was a hey, the second Adam was a greater miracle than the first Adam because he caused light to shine into darkness.

Can I get an amen?

Light to shine into darkness.

He scalved, he calls life to spring forth from death.

Wow.

He's great.

He's the champion of all humanity.

Isaiah 9, 6.

One of my favorite verses for Christmas.

I go to Isaiah chapter 9, verse 6, and it says, Unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given.

Isaiah 9:6

And upon his shoulders shall the what?

Government rule.

And his name shall be called wonderful, counselor, mighty God, Prince of Peace, the everlasting Father.

Oh, what a beautiful name.

The name of Jesus.

Yes?

We see his name declares his identity.

Number two.

His name declares his poverty.

Look at verses 26 through 28.

And in the sixth month, the angel Gabriel was sent from God into a city of Galilee named Nazareth.

To a virgin, a spouse to a man whose name was Joseph of the house of David.

And the angel came in unto her and said, Hail thou, thou art highly favored.

The Lord is with thee.

Blessed art thou among women.

Oh, he said, Oh, hail thee favor one.

And I got to thinking about that.

We see how important the Bible tells us that the angel came to this young maiden, girl named Mary.

But we know that she was engaged to a man named Joseph, verse 27, who was a carpenter by trade.

And we know that Jesus was born into a family of meager and humble means.

And when we examine his birth and learn that he was born in a manger, I thought about that.

The King of Kings, the Lord of Lords, was born in an animal trough.

Have you ever thought about that?

An animal trough.

I'm not talking about a nice hospital.

I'm not even talking about where they come to your house, what do they call those ladies that help birth?

Midwives.

I'm not even talking about a midwife.

I'm talking about, and the only thing I can figure is it was, you know what?

Can you imagine what Joseph must have thought that night?

Because it had to just be Joseph and Mary.

And a bunch of stinking animals.

Can you imagine?

When she gave birth to Jesus?

Well, we take so much for granted, don't we?

I think that was the greatest statement from our Lord to us that could ever be made.

A man of humble means, born in a manger, in a stable.

In fact, listen to 2 Corinthians.

I think I have that on there.

2 Corinthians 8 and 9.

For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor that ye through his poverty might be rich.

Wow.

Hey, he became poor so that we could be rich.

How many of you know that's willing to do that?

Are you willing to become poor that so somebody else can be rich?

I doubt it.

And he was like that his whole life.

His whole life.

Oh, wait, what do you see what God gave me?

Let me watch this.

Watch this.

It remains, and I really believe this.

It remains such a witness because it reminds us that while he was the creator, now watch this.

Of all things, while he lived here, he possessed nothing that wasn't given to him by others.

I got to thinking about that and I just started doing my little research.

I'm about to.

Now you better buckle up, because when I before I get through, you're going to have a running spell.

When you see this, now you know why there is such a beautiful name.

The name Jesus.

All right, what's this?

He lived off the gifts of those who cared about him.

Luke 8.3.

Suzanne and others.

They gave of their means to him to finance his trip.

Remember, the angel came to Joseph and said, Hey, you got to get this little baby out of here.

They're going to kill him if you don't.

And they had no money.

Remember?

They were born, he was born in a stable in a trough, and they were living in a probably a little hut, if that.

And then two years later he said, You got to go, you got to get out of here because Herod's going to kill all the kids from to and under.

So what does he do?

He sends the magi from the east that bring gold and incense and frankincense to what?

To really bankroll their trip out of there.

Oh.

The magi to make that long, precious journey to Bethlehem with their gifts.

And then when he had to pay his taxes, remember what happened?

He said, Hey, go fishing.

I got a fish that's got your tax money.

Man, that would be nice, wouldn't it?

Hello, amen.

I'm going fishing today.

God told me to go fishing.

He's going to pay my taxes.

Got to catch a catfish.

He's got my money in his mouth.

Don't laugh.

It happened.

Matthew 17, 27, check me out.

And then when he died, the only possession he had was an expensive garment from which the soldiers gambled.

No doubt.

That this garment was a gift from a wealthy follower.

No doubt.

While he lived, nearly every significant event utilized something that was borrowed or had been intended for someone else's use.

Did you hear that?

Watch this.

He borrowed a boat to preach in.

Amen.

Wasn't his boat.

Peter, launch out in the deep.

I gotta preach.

He didn't have a place to lay his head.

He had to borrow a house.

Peter's, hey, Peter's mother-in-law's house.

Matthew 8, 14, he borrowed a donkey to ride into town.

Mark 11, he borrowed a room for the upper, in the upper room for the Lord's Supper.

He borrowed a room to celebrate the Passover, Mark 14.

He borrowed a cross on which to die.

He borrowed a tomb in which to be buried.

He gave up his claims to all things so that we might be given all things.

Wow.

Who made it all.

He owns it all, willingly laid it all down so that people like us who have nothing could be made the heirs of the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords, folks.

Romans 8.17.

You've been put that up there.

Put Romans 8.17, Jason.

Woo! You've been made an heir.

Because of God's poverty, his son.

And if children, then heirs, heirs of God, and join heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with him, that we may also be glorified together.

Say this with me, church.

I'm an heir.

I'm an heir of the king.

Because of his poverty.

You and I became heirs.

Which brings me to the third and last thing.

Hey! Are you ready?

All right, buckle up.

His name declares his ministry.

His ministry.

And I'm talking about an unbelievable ministry.

Look at verse 31.

And behold, thou shalt conceive in the womb and bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Jesus.

And he shall bring forth a son in his name, Jesus, for he shall save his people from their sins, he says in Matthew 1 21.

How would this baby accomplish the salvation of all his people?

He would accomplish it by going to the cross in their place where he would be judged by God.

In their stead.

2 Corinthians 5 21.

Look at it.

For he hath made him to be sin for us who knew no sin, that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.

Wow, I thought about that.

Can you believe that?

Oh.

Jesus did not come to this world to teach.

Though no one ever taught like Jesus.

Can I get an amen?

Amen?

Jesus did not come to this world to heal.

No, he healed every sickness that he encountered.

Amen?

Jesus did not come to this world to raise the dead.

But Jesus had a habit of interrupting funerals.

Jesus did not come into this world to perform miracles.

Though he accomplished many during his time.

Jesus came into this world to die on a cross and to give his life a ransom for sinners.

For the Son of Man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister and give his life a ransom for many.

Mark 10, 45.

Oh.

I am the good shepherd.

The good shepherd gives his life for the sheep.

John 10, 11.

Every second Jesus lived from the second he was conceived until he cried, it is finished and yielded up the Spirit was for the purpose of it leading him to Calvary.

He had to go to Calvary.

See, the birth of Christ that we celebrate during Christmas was the beginning.

He was born to die so that we could live.

He was born to die so that we could live.

Wow.

Wow.

I got to thinking about that.

To make it even more personal.

Are you ready?

Watch this.

I started going through this.

I know Bear thought I was crazy.

He was, Bear comes in my study and lays right underneath my feet.

Big old bear, too.

And I got to say, he went.

I said, hang in there, Bear.

You ain't seen anything yet.

But I started saying this out loud to him, preaching to Bear.

I said, I'm making it personal.

This beautiful name.

And I wrote this down.

We are the reason he left heaven.

We are the reason he took upon himself humanity.

We are the reason he lived.

We are the reason he died.

We are the reason he rose again.

He came here for us.

He came here for us.

He came here for us.

He died for us.

He rose again for us.

He did it all for us.

Amen.

All for us.

I am come that they may have life and might have it more abundantly, he said in John 10.10.

When we say the name of Jesus, we're calling to mind the great price he paid to save us.

Who his own self bearish sins in his own body on the tree that we being dead to sin should live unto righteousness by whose stripes we are healed.

Well, when we whisper the name, we are saying a mouthful.

A mouthful.

That leads me to number four, verse 33.

His name, that beautiful name, declares his identity, his poverty, his ministry, but it also declares his glory.

And he shall reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there shall be no end.

This reminds me again that Mary's baby would be no ordinary baby.

This reminds us that Mary was giving birth to the King of Kings and to the Lord of Lords.

And I got to thinking about that.

While Jesus lived in the world, no one recognized his majesty.

No one recognized his glory.

No one recognized his authority.

No one really saw him as he was.

In fact, let me show you.

Isaiah Jason 53, 1 through 3 is powerful.

In fact, Jesus was not someone to look upon.

He was not lovely.

In fact, he tells us that.

That there was nothing special about him.

In fact, in John, he says he came unto his own, and his own received him not.

In verse John 1, chapter 1, verse 11.

They received him not.

They didn't understand who he was.

He was he was just ordinary.

Some looked at him and saw a poor Jewish carpenter.

The Jews did.

Some looked at him and saw him as a revolutionary.

The Jewish leaders did.

Some looked upon him and saw a healer.

The people that are surrounded the tomb of Lazarus.

They saw him as a healer.

Some looked at him and saw him as an earthly king.

Those who witnessed the feeding of the 5,000.

They tried to make him an earthly king then.

Right after that, he had to slide off out of their presence in order to keep them from doing that.

And some looked at him and saw an innocent man, Pilate, John 19, 6.

And some, a few looked at him and saw him the son of God, Martha.

And Peter saw him as a son of God.

A few looked at him and saw him as a righteous man, the centurion.

No one saw him for who he really was.

Peter, James, and John caught a glimpse of who he really was on the Mount of Transfiguration.

But he lived and he died as God, walking among men, and very few even knew or had the slightest idea who he really was.

The first time he came, he came veiled in the form of a child.

But the next time he comes, he'll be recognized by all.

The first time he came, a star marked his arrival, but the next time he comes, church, whole heaven will be lit with his glory.

The first time he came, wise men and and and shepherds brought him gifts, but the next time he comes, he'll bring gifts and rewards for his own.

The first time he came, there was no room for him in the end.

But the next time he comes, the world will not be able to contain his glory.

Oh, the first time he came, there was no room for him in the end.

But the next time he comes, oh, every eye shall see him, and every knee shall bow to him.

The first time he came, a few attended his arrival.

But next time, again, everyone will be in his presence.

First time he came, he came as a baby.

The next time he comes, he'll come as sovereign, king of kings, and lord of lords.

One day the following passage will be literally fulfilled.

What's this?

Philippians chapter 2, verses 9 through 11.

Philippians 2:9–11

Wherefore God has also highly exalted him and given him a name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee shall bow, of things in heaven and things in earth, and things under the earth, and that every tongue shall confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father.

Now, this is where it really gets good.

I got to thinking, what does that mean?

I spent hours just breaking down those verses.

And here's what I came up with.

One day, the name Jesus will be proclaimed from the throne of heaven.

When that precious name is uttered, are you ready?

I wrote it down.

Get ready.

The knee of every saint and angel will bow in worship and reverence.

The knee of every sinner will bow in the acknowledgement of his lordship and glory.

And the knee of every demon and Satan himself will bow in recognition that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father.

I got to think it.

What a day that will be.

So when we say his name, when we sing his name, when we shout his name, when we breathe his name, when we whisper his name, we proclaim the greatest name ever falling upon human ears.

The beautiful name of Jesus.

We proclaim the name of the Savior of the lost, the shepherd of the sheep, the redeemer of the soul, the bridegroom of the bride, the lover of men's souls, the glory of heaven, the one who calls himself our friend, the true and living one.

That is him.

But he's so much more.

In the precious, beautiful name, the name of Jesus, there's hope, peace, love, salvation, blessings, healing, wonder, joy, glory, majesty.

What a beautiful name.

The name of Jesus.

At the mention of that name, hell trembles.

Satan flees, sin is defeated, captives are delivered, fear gives way to peace, hopelessness is swallowed up in victory.

The lost are found, the blind see, and the dead live.

What a beautiful name.

The name of Jesus.

The mention of that name, drunkards are made sober, harlots are made pure addicts, are delivered from their addiction.

The lost are saved, and new life begins.

What a beautiful name.

The name of Jesus.

That name marks the difference between heaven and hell, between life and death, between hope and despair, between sin and salvation, between judgment and forgiveness, and between the grace of God and his condemnation.

What a beautiful name.

Thank God for this beautiful name.

Jesus bridges the gap between God and man, heaven and hell, and sin and salvation.

Many have shared that name.

They've been named that name.

But there's only one Jesus Christ, and He is the King of kings and Lord of Lords, and the salvation of the world.

What a beautiful name.

The name of Jesus.