Evangelism In The Christmas Story

Date Written: December 9, 2006

Date Preached: December 10, 2006

Where Preached: OZHBC (AM)

Sermon Series: Evangelism in the Christmas Story

Sermon Title: Evangelism in the Christmas Story

Sermon Text: Matt 1:20-24; Luke 2:10-11; 26-28

Introduction:

For the average believer, there is NO greater fear (AT LEAST THIS IS TRUE IN AMERICA) than the commission and call of Christ on our lives to share our faith with those who do not believe on Christ as Savior!

The task seems impossible to the human eye and to all human understanding. When we think about how many people groups there are in the world and how many are hostile toward the gospel… our hearts sink and many despair because of the enormity of the task…

When is the last time you exercised obedience to the call of Christ and shared your faith with a lost soul? This task is difficult at best but it is not one to be taken lightly… it is not one that is going to be easy… and it is not one that will be accepted by all we share with…

The task of taking the Gospel of Christ to the world around us is one that has been around for over 2000 yrs when the Gospel was first proclaimed to a worried woman and a hesitant husband and many scared shepherds… And each one of these people were given the task to take this message to the world in one way or another…

Like these people we are called by God to be His witnesses and share the Gospel of Jesus Christ with the world around us… we are called to take His message of mercy, grace and forgiveness to the world… we are called to share His love and compassion with even those who do not like us… even those who hate us!

What are you doing today to take this wonderful message to the world around you? You may be sitting there this morning and saying but pastor I have tried but NO ONE has ever accepted Christ when I witnessed to them… I am a failure at witnessing and that is why I stopped!

Understand that Jesus did not call you to SAVE anyone, Jesus did not give the power to provide redemption, and Jesus did not commission you with the power of conviction of sins…

Jesus called you for ONE purpose and that purpose is to SHARE the Gospel… your job is just to share! If God sees fit to place you in a situation where the harvest is gathered… then so be it, but do not think yourself to be a failure because someone either rejected you or failed to make a decision when you were obedient in sharing your faith! For by rejecting the message you bring, they are, in reality, rejecting God Himself!

This morning I want to present to you three separate instances where God called and humanity answered. I want us to take a look at the hesitant husband... I want us to give a glimpse to the worried woman and seek out the truth about the scared shepherds!

First I want us to stand and turn in Matt 1:19-24… (read Scripture)

1. The Hesitant Husband (Matt 1:19-24)

18 The birth of Jesus Christ came about this way: After His mother Mary had been engaged to Joseph, it was discovered before they came together that she was pregnant by the Holy Spirit. 19 So her husband Joseph, being a righteous man, and not wanting to disgrace her publicly, decided to divorce her secretly. 20 But after he had considered these things, an angel of the Lord suddenly appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, don’t be afraid to take Mary as your wife, because what has been conceived in her is by the Holy Spirit. 21 She will give birth to a son, and you are to name Him Jesus, because He will save His people from their sins.” 22 Now all this took place to fulfill what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet: 23 See, the virgin will become pregnant and give birth to a son, and they will name Him Immanuel, which is translated “God is with us.” 24 When Joseph got up from sleeping, he did as the Lord’s angel had commanded him. He married her…

Matt 1:18-24 (HCSB)

Now if there was ever a man who was going to get ‘cold feet’ it was Joseph. Here he was about to marry the woman he had been dreaming about… the woman who had betrothed her love to him… and just before the wedding she tells him that she is pregnant.

But to beat all things, she tells him she is pregnant NOT by human hands, but by the hand of God and that the baby inside her was the Messiah… the long awaited Anointed One of God!