Christmas - The Final Hope Of A Lost World

Theme: Christmas

Text: Galatians 4:1-7

Proportional Statement: Christmas is the final hope of a lost world.

1.Christmas is when God sent forth His Son into the world, Gal 4:4

a.God’s birth into the world

b.God’s expression in Jesus

c.God’s final dealing with man

2.Christmas is when God sent forth His Spirit of His Son into our hearts, Gal 4:6

a.Sons of God – God’s birth in believers

b.Heirs of God – God’s expression in believers

c.Messengers of God – God’s final ambassadors to man

Introduction

According to a legend Satan and his demons were having a Christmas party. As the demonic guests were departing, one grinned and said to Satan, “Merry Christmas, your majesty.” At that, Satan replied with a growl, “Yes, keep it merry. If they ever get serious about it, we’ll all be in trouble.”

The real problem is we are not serious about Christmas. We call that a Christmas tree. We sing Christmas carols. We give out Christmas cards and buy Christmas gifts. How much of these is really Christmas?

I went to a shop to buy some shampoo yesterday. After giving the change to me, the sale person at the counter said, “Merry Christmas”. I thought to myself, “Does she know the meaning of Christmas?”

The word Christmas in Mandarin is literal. It means ‘holy birth’. Christmas is about the birth of the Son of God.

The meaning of Christmas, like many festivals, gets eroded overtime. People remembers the feasting and the celebration BUT the meanings and stories of the festivals. How many of us know the original story behind the “Bak Chang (Rice Dumpling)” or “U-Chia Kuey (Fritter)” or the “ti kuey (sticky cake)”. What has Santa Claus to do with Christmas? In Mandarin, the word for Santa Claus means the old man of the holy birth.

Apart from the commercial values, the many things associated with Christmas are Satan’s ploy to erode Christmas; and, if it were possible to destroy the meaning of Christmas altogether.

Today, I like to share with you the meaning of Christmas from the perspective of God’s Calendar.

Let read Galatians 4:1-7

1. Now I say, as long as the heir is a child, he does not differ at all from a slave although he is owner of everything, 2. but he is under guardians and managers until the date set by the father. 3. So also we, while we were children, were held in bondage under the elemental things of the world. 4. But when the fullness of the time came, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the Law, 5. so that He might redeem those who were under the Law, that we might receive the adoption as sons. 6. Because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, crying, "Abba! Father!" 7.Therefore you are no longer a slave, but a son; and if a son, then an heir through God.

Verse 3 tells us that we were in bondage. We were held in sin. Other Bible text tells us that world sat in darkness waits for the Star of Christmas. The world without Christ is heading toward hell.

Christmas is the beginning of God’s special dealings with mankind. Because of these dealings it is imperative that we respond to the message of Christmas.

From today’s Bible text I will share with you two unique things that God did. It is unique because it has never happened in history until Christmas. It is unique also because it is only for a time only. After that it will never happen again. The two unique things are two gifts found in the phrase “God sent forth”

The first unique thing is found in verse 4, Christmas is when God sent forth His Son into the world.

One raw winter night a farmer heard an irregular thumping sound against his kitchen storm door. He went to a window and watched as tiny, shivering sparrows, attracted to the evident warmth inside, beat in vain against the glass.

Touched, the farmer bundled up and trudged through fresh snow to open the barn door for the struggling birds. He turned on the lights and tossed some hay in the corner. But the sparrows, which had scattered in all directions when he emerged from the house, hid in the darkness, afraid.

The man tried various tactics to get them into the barn. He laid down a trail of Saltine cracker crumbs to direct them. He tried circling behind the birds to drive them to the barn. Nothing worked. He, a huge, alien creature, had terrified them; the birds couldn’t comprehend that he actually desired to help. The farmer withdrew to his house and watched the doomed sparrows through a window. As he stared, a thought hit him like lightning from a clear blue sky: If only I could become a bird - one of them - just for a moment. Then I wouldn’t frighten them so. I could show them the way to warmth and safety.