THE MOST IMPORTANT EVENT EVER
12/25/05
Today we gather together to worship and celebrate the most significant event in human history; the birth of the Savior of humanity, the Lord Jesus Christ.
There is nothing that has happened in the past, nor will come in the future that has the implications that the birth of Jesus Christ brought to earth 2000 years ago.
Matt 1:21 Matt1:23 Luke2:11
These verses we have just read clearly show the importance of Christ’s coming. Luke 2:11 tells us The Savior is born today; Matt 1:21 reminds us that His name, Jesus means that He will save His people from their sins, and vs 23, Emmanuel, which also references Jesus and means God with us!!!
There is no more explaining that needs to be done about these verses and who Jesus Christ really is… He is the Savior of men, God in the flesh. There is no doubt about it folks…
Jesus Christ is the payment for your sin and the sin of all men.
God knows who Jesus is and the bible is very clear about the importance of His birth, death and resurrection, but do you realize who Jesus Christ is and the importance of His coming?
Illustration
There is an ancient Scottish legend - a shepherd boy tending a small flock of sheep on the side of a mountain. One day as he cared for his sheep he saw at his feet a beautiful flower -- one that was more beautiful than any he had ever seen in his life. He knelt down upon his knees and scooped the flower in his hands and held it close to his eyes. As he held the flower close to his face, suddenly he heard a noise and looked up. There he saw a great stone mountain opening up right before his eyes. And there inside the mountain, he saw the sprinkling of the beautiful gems and precious metals that it contained.
With the flower in his hands, he walked inside. He laid the flower down, & began to gather all the gold and silver and precious gems he could in his arms. Finally with all that his arms could carry, he turned and began to walk out of that great cavern, and suddenly a voice said to him, "Don’t forget the best."
Thinking that perhaps he had overlooked some choice piece of treasure, he turned around – put down a few of the gems - and picked up other pieces of treasure that caught his eye. Then, with his arms literally overflowing with wealth, he turned to walk back out of the great mountainous vault. And again the voice said, "Don’t forget the best."
But by that time his arms were filled and he walked on outside, and all of a sudden he heard a great noise. He looked around in time to see the great stone mountain closing its doors again. A third time he heard the voice, and this time the voice said, "You forgot the best. For the flower was the key to the vault of the Mountain."
This legend is a great illustration of what life is to too many people. People place value on many things that life has to offer, but they refuse to recognize the giver of life, and all the good things in life truly has to offer.
Jesus is the key to the mountain of eternal life and all the rewards to be offered including most importantly, the forgiveness of sin.
Jesus is the payment for your sin and the sin of all men.
Some people pursue wealth, and reap the rewards of all the good things that wealth has to offer, but never recognize the key to unlocking riches beyond anything they have ever dreamed; the riches of salvation by Jesus Christ our Lord.
Some pursue power, they gain stature and influence among others, and reap all the rewards that power has to offer, yet never find the lasting influence that comes from only one source; the saving power of Jesus Christ Our Lord.
Some pursue health, they spend dollars and hours sculpting their bodies with exercise and diet, and they are rewarded with health and vitality; never realizing the key to eternal life is in the hands of Jesus Christ our Lord.
There are good things to be had from many things in life, but don’t expect your life to be complete without the salvation that is provided by Jesus Christ.
What is salvation and why do you need it?
Exodus 20
Have you ever done any of the things on this list? If you have then I’ve got bad and Good News for you. First the bad news…
The bad news is that if you have done any of the things on this list then you have broken God’s rules, and God is going to punish you for breaking His rules. You cannot escape punishment because God will punish all who have disobeyed Him.
That is pretty scary stuff to anyone, whether you’ve heard it before or not. It scares me to stand here and say it to you even after hearing it and knowing it for as long as I have, and what makes it worse is that even if you’ve only broken God’s rules just one time you are going to be punished as a result of your sin.
And the punishment is the same for all who have disobeyed God… eternal condemnation to hell. No matter if you just took a piece of penny candy from the store or murdered an innocent child you will suffer for eternity in hell for breaking even one of God’s rules.
If you’ve broken God’s rules then you need salvation from the punishment that awaits you.
Romans 3:23 says that all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. Sin is what God calls anything you think, say, or do that breaks His rules, and He knows that we all will break His rules because it is part of our human nature to break His rules.
And God says in Romans 6:23 that the wages of sin is death, meaning hell. That’s pretty scary stuff when you think about it because you’re thinking… man, I’m going to hell because I’ve broken some of those rules that were listed… what am I going to do? Is there anything I can do?
That’s the Good News! God has already done something about your sin!
That’s the reason we are here today celebrating Christmas. Two millennia ago Jesus came to earth and gave you the way to have your sin forgiven and forgotten. The most significant event in human existence was the birth, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
The day Jesus was born God gave you a gift of unspeakable proportions; because Jesus; who is God in the flesh, willingly came to earth to suffer your punishment by dying on the cross to pay for your sins, and when He was resurrected from the dead it proved that you could have forgiveness from your sin, and eternal life.
Your forgiveness comes at a price, because the bible says in Hebrews 9:22 that without the shedding of blood there is no remission/ forgiveness/ payment. Jesus had to bleed and die to pay for your sin, which was no small price to pay.
Illustration
One Sunday morning the preacher began addressing his congregation by inviting an old man up to the pulpit to tell his story. The old man walked up to the microphone and began. He said. “One day my son, his best friend and I set out on a fishing trip we had been planning on the outer banks. And boy, were we having a great day, the new boat was a joy to be in, and the fish seemed to be jumping out of the water to get on our hooks.
As you would expect, we were having so much fun that we lost track of time, it was getting dark, we had drifted further out into the ocean than we realized, and a storm was beginning to come upon us. So as quick as I could, I started for the coast. Boy that storm came up fast, we were in 10 foot swells and our boat was being pitched back and forth, and then it happened.” The man stopped at this point and began sobbing deeply.
The pastor was in tears as well, and just as he was about to comfort the old man, he started again. He said, “A wave crashed over the boat laying it sideways, sending both my son and his friend overboard. Because of the waves and the wind, by the time I got a rope to throw to them, they had separated and drifted almost out of reach. I was just getting ready to throw the rope when another wave rocked the boat and stalled the engine.
Another wave of tears came over the old man, then he began again,” So there I stood, boat dead in the water, with only one chance to save only one boy, my son or his friend. I quickly made a decision, and then tossed the rope.” At this point the old man began crying uncontrollably, so the pastor stepped in and finished his story.
“You see,” said the pastor, “The two boys had drifted so far apart from each other and the boat that the man only had time to throw the life line to one or the other. One boy would have to be lost. The father realized that his son knew Jesus, and his son’s friend did not, if his son were to die now, he knew that he would go to be with the Lord, but if his friend died now he would got to hell. The father chose to rescue his son’s friend.”
That’s when the pastor couldn’t control his tears any longer, and also began crying. Going on through his tears, the pastor said, “He sacrificed his own son to rescue his son’s friend-----------ME. Yes,” said the pastor, “I was the friend on that boat that fateful day, and because my best friend loved me more than himself I am alive today. How do I know that my best friend loved me more than himself you may be asking yourself? Because before I was rescued Jimmy’s father told him the situation and allowed him to choose to be sacrificed. My life was in Jimmy’s hands and he chose to save me rather than himself.
Just like the boy in this story, Jesus was given the choice to come to earth and die for you, or to stay in heaven and watch you die and go to hell as a result of your sin… he chose to give His life for yours.
I want to pause for a moment here to let this fact simmer in your hearts for a moment, and to speak to those of you who call yourselves a Christian.
Who is on your heart right now, is it your mom, dad, brother, sister, friend, co-worker, or neighbor? What fate awaits the people in your life?
Illustration
Some time ago an 18-year-old girl from Washington State attended a worship service. For the first time in her life she heard the gospel message. The following Tuesday the members of the church received a letter from her. It read:
Dear Church members:
Last Sunday I attended your church, and I heard the preacher. In the sermon the preacher said that all men have sinned and rebelled against God. Because of their rebellion and disobedience they all face eternal damnation and separation from God.
But then he also said God loved men and sent his Son, Jesus Christ, into the world to redeem men from their sins and that all those who believe in him would go to heaven and live with God eternally.
My parents recently died in rapid succession. I know they did not believe in Jesus Christ, whom you call the Savior of the world. If what you believe is true, they are damned.
You compel me to believe that if the message is true, that you yourself don’t believe this message, or that you don’t care. You see, we live only three blocks from your church, and no one ever told us.
You, Christian, hold the key to the fate of those around you. You may be the only thing that stands between that person and hell. Are you equipped to remove that person from the terrible fate that awaits him or her?
You should be, that is, if you’ve remembered the key to the mountain, and not left Him behind.
Remember…
Jesus Christ is the payment for your sin and the sin of all men.
Conclusion
Speaking of sin… if you want to know how to have your sin debt paid, God has given you a very clear and very simple instruction how to receive His forgiveness of sin and promise of eternal life.
Acts 3:19
Repent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord,
Exposition
Salvation came to you through the shed blood of Jesus Christ, a gift, yours for the asking. That’s the meaning of this passage; that if you truly believe that Jesus is God, and that He came to earth, suffered, died and came back to life so that you may have your sin forgiven, and then confess and repent of your sin, which means to turn your back on it and forsake it then trust Jesus Christ as the only acceptable payment for your sin, you can have forgiveness of your sin.
However, I must warn you that if you refuse the salvation offered by the Cross of Christ then you will have to face Him one day and you will spend eternity in Hell because of your transgression of His holy law.
