Luke 2:8-20 GOD’S CHRISTMAS LIST Sermon Luke 2:8-20 GOD’S CHRISTMAS LIST  

No more lives, torn apart The wars would never start, and time would heal all hearts. Every-man would have a friend; That right would always win, And love would never end. This is my grown up, Christmas list.

The now and not yet converge in Jesus, the Messiah and now we await the return of Christ and the consummation of the ages.

Exalt Embrace Equip Encourage Express

After hearing the glorious announcement from the angels (Exalt- Luke 2:14-20), the shepherds and the wise men go to see and worship the New Born King (Embrace -Matthew 2:1-3).

Exalt – A Heart Response of Faith Toward God That Celebrates His Glory.

Is there a Hallelujah factor in your life?

Christians have their hymns and pages, Hava Nagila is for the Jews, Baptists have the Rock of Ages, Atheists just sing the blues. Romantics play Claire de Lune, Born againers sing “He is risen,” But no one ever wrote a tune, For godless existentialism.

For Atheists there’s no good news. They’ll never sing a song of faith For Atheists there’s no good news. They’ll never sing a song of faith. In their songs they have one rule: the “he” is always lowercase. Some folks sing a Bach cantata, Lutherans get their Christmas trees, Atheist songs add up to nada, But at least they do have Sundays free. -Steve Martin

David Foster Wallace- Because here's something else that's weird but true: in the day-to day trenches of adult life, there is actually no such thing as atheism. There is no such thing as not worshipping. Everybody worships. The only choice we get is what to worship.

 

 But the insidious thing about these forms of worship is not that they're evil or sinful, it's that they're unconscious. They are default settings.

Advent is a time to reset the DEFAULT SETTINGS OF OUR HEARTS.

Isaiah 29:13  Then the Lord said, "Because this people draw near with their words And honor Me with their lip service, But they remove their hearts far from Me, And their reverence for Me consists of tradition learned by rote..”

Embrace – A Heart That Trusts And Treasures Christ (Matthew 2:1-3)   This is the ongoing condition of the heart which enables us to express a Christ like walk of faith.

Jesus was the Long Expected Messiah Jesus was the Long Expected Messiah. Zacharias, Elizabeth, Mary, and Joseph had been Equipped and Encouraged by the Holy Spirit (Luke 1:13, 67; Luke 1:41), the scriptures and angels (Luke 1:11, 26-38) to walk by faith as they played a part in welcoming the promised Savior.  

Equip – Experiencing personal gospel driven transformation for cultural renewal and global mission.  

 ENCOURAGE –Loving Others And Helping Them Be A Part Of The Body Of Christ.

 

 ExpresS – To Communicate The Reality Of Christ Through Word And Deed.

 

F-I-N-E Frustrated Irritable Neurotic Exhausted  

 

Exalting the Father Embrace the Father Equipped by the Holy Spirit and sending the Spirit to us Encouraging His followers Expressing the Good News of the Gospel of the kingdom  

Remember to look past the baby in the manger and see the Savior who came to live the life we should have lived and died the death we should have died.  

Let the joy of Christmas give you a “5-E” focus in your life.

 

 

 

 

 

FIRST COMMANDMENT AND ROOTS, BRANCHES, FRUIT  

The ABC’s of coming to faith – A - Admit that you’re weak and need grace and strength – That means there is GOOD NEWS FOR YOU   B- Believe that Jesus is the only savior who can heal your heart. C- confess to God that you want to trust Jesus as your savior and Lord.