Sermon Central
-
Advent Week 2 - 2012 Series
Contributed by Stephen Belokur on Dec 11, 2012 (message contributor)
Summary: Advent is about God and God alone initiating His grand plan of salvation. Don't get sidetracked by and over emphasize the secondary characters in the narrative.
Today is the second Sunday of Advent
The whole reason for the Advent was to initiate the new covenant and to save the lost.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[This next segment is a promo for an upcoming Christmas Dinner Drama]
But before we get into the story of the Advent let’s take a look at
“Though I am free and belong to no one, I have made myself a slave to everyone, to win as many as possible. To the Jews I became like a Jew, to win the Jews.
“To those under the law I became like one under the law (though I myself am not under the law), so as to win those under the law.
“To those not having the law I became like one not having the law (though I am not free from God’s law but am under Christ’s law), so as to win those not having the law.
“To the weak I became weak, to win the weak. I have become all things to all people so that by all possible means I might save some.”
That’s the same reason for the upcoming drama.
The purpose of this dinner drama is not for our own benefit.
It’s not because we were bored and looking for something else to do.
It’s not because we think we are great actors.
Here is why were putting this dinner drama on.
Every born again believer in this church knows people who are not born again. People who are, at this very moment, in grave danger of an eternity without Jesus, lost in outer darkness.
Many of these people will not come to a church service.
Perhaps, just perhaps, one of them would come to a dinner drama where they could see the story of Christ coming into the world.
Perhaps they would understand the message of salvation given at the end of the drama.
Perhaps they might take one step closer to faith in Christ.
You may not like dramas in church.
You may say we never did this in the past.
You may have some reason or other for not wanting to participate but my question to you is this; are you willing to do whatever it takes so that, like Paul you can say, “I have become all things to all people so that by all possible means I might save some.”
Will you ever get a chance to invite that unsaved person to an event like this again?
Please make this a matter of urgent prayer and ask the Lord to guide you to the person He would have you to ask and then ask them to come with you.
[End of Promo segment]
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Now, as we spoke about before, today is the second Sunday of Advent and the whole reason for the Advent was to save the lost.
You won’t believe some of the things people who claim to be Biblical scholars say about the birth of Jesus. One of the most amazing “facts” I came across this week was the “fact” that Jesus most likely was NOT born in a stable or cave that housed animals. The reasoning was that the Scriptures only say that Jesus was placed in a manger after being born and was found there by the shepherds. Now, I ask you, where else would a person find a manger but in a stable or barn or some other equivalent place where animals are kept? This guy thought that He was probably born in the home of a relative and apparently taken out to the stable to sleep. Makes you wonder doesn’t it?
This is exactly why we confine our “facts” to what is in the Bible and not on what we think or imagine.
Anyway, let’s take a look at the Scripture for today …
“In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary.
“The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.” Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be.
“But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary; you have found favor with God. You will conceive and give birth to a Son, and you are to call him Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High.
“The Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David, and He will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; His kingdom will never end.”
“‘How will this be,’ Mary asked the angel, ‘since I am a virgin?’ The angel answered, ‘The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the Holy One to be born will be called the Son of God.’
