From the Cradle to the Cross
A Christmas Day Lord's Supper Service
Luke 2:8-20, Isaiah 9:6, Romans 12:1, 1 Corinthians 11:23-32
(Initial reading: Luke 2:1-20)
Sermon by Rick Crandall
(Prepared April 6, 2025)
INTRODUCTION:
*Welcome to worship today, as we go all the way from the cradle to the cross of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. This Lord’s Supper Service will help us worship our Lord, and remember why Jesus came to earth on the first Christmas Day.
Hymn 305 "You Are My King"
Hymn 402 "A Communion Hymn for Christmas"
PRAYER
SPECIAL CHRISTMAS MUSIC:
MESSAGE:
*I remember Christmas as a little kid. I know it’s hard to picture me in little footie P.J.'s, but I can remember those years. We were so excited about Christmas morning that we would be up before the crack of dawn, just chomping at the bit for Dad and Mom to wake up too.
*We were overjoyed about the Christmas gifts we would receive. But the greatest Christmas gift is our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ! As we read in John 3:16, "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life."
*The greatest Christmas gift of all is Jesus Christ! -- What should we do with God's gift?
1. FIRST: LET JESUS SAVE YOU FROM YOUR SINS.
*God gave His greatest gift to save us from our sins. That's what the angel was talking about in vs. 8-12:
8. Now there were in the same country shepherds living out in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night.
9. And behold, an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were greatly afraid.
10. Then the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people.
11. For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.
12 And this will be the sign to you: You will find a Babe wrapped in swaddling cloths, lying in a manger."
*Jesus Christ was born on the first Christmas Day to be our Savior. He was born to save us from our sins! Jesus was born on earth so we could be born again. The eternal Son of God was born on earth, so that we could be re-born for Heaven. Not re-born physically, but born again spiritually to live forever! Given this new birth by the Holy Spirit of God.
*You must be born again in order to have eternal life. You must be born again to live forever in Heaven. Please listen to the way Jesus put it in John 3:3-6:
3. . . "Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.''
4. Nicodemus said to Him, "How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother's womb and be born?''
5. Jesus answered, "Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.
6. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit."
*You must be born again. This is also why John 1:12-13 says:
12. But as many as received Him (that is Jesus Christ), to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name:
13. who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.
*When we open our heart to receive Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior, His Holy Spirit comes to live in us, and we are born again. Just think about it: The Virgin Mary carried the Lord for 9 months, until the day Jesus was born. But there was another time the Lord came to live in her. It was in Acts chapter 2, when the Holy Spirit came in a brand-new way on the Day of Pentecost. That time the Lord came to live in her forever!
*And now the same Holy Spirit of God comes to live in us, when we trust in Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior. That’s how we are born again. And Jesus was born so that we might be born again.
*But on Christmas Day, we must not only think of Jesus's birth. We must also remember the Lord's death. On Christmas Day and every day, we must remember the price that Jesus paid to be our Savior. We must remember the price that the Lord paid on the cross to save us from our sins. The cross can get quickly lost in the pile of presents and paper around our trees.
*And as we celebrate the birth of Christ in Luke chapter 2. We must also remember that there is a Luke 22. There Jesus suffered in the Garden of Gethsemane and prayed, "Father, if it is Your will, remove this cup from Me; nevertheless not My will, but Yours, be done.'' We also must remember that there is a Luke 23, where Jesus suffered and died on the cross for our sins.
*Jeff Strite posted this poem to remind us of the cross at Christmas:
-"It’s Christmas time at our house, and we’re putting up the tree.
-I wish I could find a simple way to remember God’s gift to me.
-Some little sign or symbol to show friends who are stopping by.
-That the little babe was born one day, but He really came to die.
-Some symbol of His nail pierced hands, The blood He shed for me.
-What if I hung a simple nail on my shining Christmas tree?
-Then tied red ribbon around the nail for His blood that flowed so free.
-I know it was His love for us that held Him to the tree.
-But when I see this simple nail, I’ll know He died for me." (1)
*Church: The greatest Christmas gift of all is Jesus Christ!
2. SO LET JESUS SAVE YOU FROM YOUR SINS. AND GIVE YOUR HIGHEST PRAISE TO GOD.
*Praise God like the angels praised Him in vs. 13-14:
13. And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying:
14. "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, goodwill toward men!''
*"Glory to God in the highest!" The Lord God was worthy of the angels’ praise. And He is worthy of our praise today! Jeremiah 29:13 promises us that the more we seek the Lord, the more we will see Him. As the LORD says in that wonderful verse, "And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart."
*Now, the more we see Jesus Christ as He truly is, the only begotten Son of God who humbled Himself to become a mortal man. Then Jesus died on the cross for all of our sins, and three days later, He rose again from the dead in everlasting victory over sin and death. The more we see Jesus, as He truly is, -- The more we will praise our God! That’s why vs. 20 says, "Then the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen, as it was told them."
*The greatest Christmas gift of all is Jesus Christ!
3. SO GIVE YOUR HIGHEST PRAISE TO GOD. AND GIVE YOUR LIFE TO THE LORD.
*Why do we give gifts at Christmas? Mostly because our God is a giver. And on the first Christmas Day, He gave us the greatest gift of all. As Isaiah 9:6 says, "For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, The mighty God, the everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace."
*God has given us the greatest gift of all. And now God wants us to give our lives to Him, as our greatest act of worship. This is why Paul made this plea to us in Romans 12:1, "I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service." The idea behind the original word for "service" is all about worship. So we are to present our lives to God as a devoted act of worship.
*Charles Krieg helped us with the story of a preschool girl on her mother’s birthday. The family had planned a party for mom. And when the time came for the presentation of the gifts, Mom was instructed to sit in her favorite living room chair. One by one, Dad and the two older children came in from the kitchen carrying their gifts on a tray. They presented their birthday gifts to Mom just as if she were a queen.
*Unfortunately, they forgot to include the smallest girl in their plans. But as she watched the others, she got a great idea. And when everyone else thought the party was over, this little girl came in from the kitchen with the empty tray. As she got close to her mom, she placed the tray on the floor. Then she stepped on it herself. -- And with a great burst of joy she said, "Mommy, -- I give you me!" That's the best present we can give Jesus on His birthday -- or on any other day. (2)
*The greatest Christmas gift of all is Jesus Christ!
4. SO GIVE YOUR LIFE TO THE LORD. AND SPREAD THE GOOD NEWS ABOUT OUR SAVIOR.
*God wants us to be like the shepherds in vs. 15-20:
15. So it was, when the angels had gone away from them into heaven, that the shepherds said to one another, "Let us now go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has come to pass, which the Lord has made known to us."
16. And they came with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the Babe lying in a manger.
17. Now when they had seen Him, they made widely known the saying which was told them concerning this Child.
18. And all those who heard it marveled at those things which were told them by the shepherds.
19. But Mary kept all these things and pondered them in her heart.
20. Then the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen, as it was told them.
*I am so glad that the angel appeared to these unnamed, ordinary shepherds. They remind us that Jesus Christ came for ordinary people like us. But the shepherds also remind us that ordinary people like us can spread the good news about our crucified and risen Savior everywhere we go.
*If we have believed in Jesus Christ, if we have received God's greatest gift, then we will surely have good news to share, and God wants us to share it!
*God wants us to faithfully spread His good news about Jesus Christ every way we can. And there are many ways to do it: Tell them how you got saved. Tell them other great things God has done in your life. Explain the good news to someone else. Invite people to church. There are many ways to share the good news about Jesus Christ.
*Rose Kennedy was the well-known matriarch of the Kennedy family. There are very few people in American public life who endured more heartache than Rose Kennedy. One son was killed over the English Channel during World War II. Two sons were assassinated. One daughter was killed in a plane crash, and another daughter had handicaps so severe that she had to live in an institution. But in spite of all the heartaches, Rose Kennedy was a woman of great faith.
*Pastor Jess Moody reported a conversation he had with her. Rose recalled that after the birth of their handicapped daughter, she gave up on God and withdrew from life. Rose plummeted into anger, bitterness, depression, alcohol and all kinds of medications. She became someone that nobody wanted to be around.
*One day Rose lashed out at one of her housekeepers. And it must have been close to Christmas, because the woman gently replied, "You'll never be happy until you make your heart a manger where the Christ child may be born."
*Mrs. Kennedy fired that maid on the spot. But she couldn't forget her words. And that night, Rose Kennedy knelt by her bed and prayed that her heart would be a manger where the Christ child could be born.
*She went on to explain, "God did that, and I invited Jesus Christ into my heart. Since that night, I've never been the same." From that day on, Rose had a new peace and perspective. She also re-hired her maid. (3)
*Rose Kennedy will be grateful forever for the housekeeper who cared enough to tell her the truth about Jesus. And we can be like that housekeeper. We can be the ones who spread the good news about Jesus Christ. And we should.
CONCLUSION:
*The greatest Christmas gift of all is Jesus Christ! So let Him save you from your sins. If you have never received Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, please call on the Lord to save you today. This is the most important thing we can ever do in life. Jesus knows everything about our lives, both the good and the bad. But Jesus still loves us anyway! He is the only way to God's forgiveness and eternal life in Heaven, so please put your trust in our crucified and risen Savior. You can do that as we go back to God in prayer. Then give your highest praise to God. Give your life to the Lord. And spread the good news of Jesus every way you can.
INVITATION
LORD'S SUPPER:
*Taking the Lord's Supper on Christmas Day is one of the best ways to remember the cross of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
*My favorite Lord's Supper story came from Dr. Jon Stubblefield. He used to be the pastor of First Baptist Church in Shreveport, and he is one of the best teachers I ever had.
*Dr. Stubblefield told the story about a young lady who was a brand-new Christian. She had almost never been to church before, but now she was getting involved. One Sunday, she looked at the bulletin, and saw that they were having the Lord's Supper the next Sunday.
*She was really interested, so on Monday, she called the church office about it. And she told the secretary that she had a couple of questions about the Lord's Supper: First: "Who can come? -- And how much does it cost?"
[1] WHO CAN COME? SAVED PEOPLE CAN COME.
*Everyone who knows Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior can come. If you believe in the cross of Jesus Christ, if you believe in the price He paid for our sins, If you believe in His resurrection, if you have trusted in Jesus as your Lord and Savior, you can come.
[2] WHO CAN COME? SAVED PEOPLE CAN COME. AND SINFUL PEOPLE CAN COME.
*God knows that we're not perfect yet. The glorious, infinite, eternal perfection of God is the measuring stick for our lives, and Romans 3:23 tells us that we "all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God."
*It astounded me when I began to really think about this truth. The glory of God?!? That’s the standard? The unlimited, indescribable, perfect glory of God? The glory that He must shield us from, or we would melt like a snowflake in the hot desert?
*Could we ever measure up to the glory of God? Could a goldfish climb Mount Everest? Could a mosquito learn how to fly a jet plane? Could a germ graduate from LSU with perfect grades? Of course not! It's never going to happen. It never could happen. And we could never measure up to the glory of God!
*And we all fall short of the glory of God. That's why Paul tells us to search our hearts before we take the Lord's Supper.
[3] SAVED AND SINFUL PEOPLE CAN COME TO THE LORD'S SUPPER. BUT HOW MUCH DOES IT COST?
*From a dollars and cents point of view, not that much. This grape juice costs about 4 dollars. But think how much the Lord's Supper really cost. More than all the gold and diamonds that have ever come out of the ground. If we had all the money in the world, we still couldn't pay for the Lord's Supper. It cost the highest price that has ever been paid: The death of Jesus Christ on the cross for our sins.
*"(Think) of the cross where they nailed Him, Writhing in anguish and pain.
-(Think) of the grave where they laid Him, (Think) how He liveth again.
-Love in that story so tender, Clearer than ever I see.
-Stay, let me weep while you whisper, Love paid the ransom for me." (4)
*And this Lord's Supper is for everyone who has received Jesus as their Lord and Savior. -- So we invite you to join us today. The Apostle Paul told us how to take the Lord's Supper in 1 Corinthians 11:23-32. There Paul said:
27. Therefore whoever eats this bread or drinks this cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord.
28. But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of that bread and drink of that cup.
29. For he who eats and drinks in an unworthy manner eats and drinks judgment to himself, not discerning the Lord's body.
30. For this reason many are weak and sick among you, and many sleep.
31. For if we would judge ourselves, we would not be judged.
32. But when we are judged, we are chastened by the Lord, that we may not be condemned with the world.
1. AND AS WE THINK ABOUT THIS SCRIPTURE, THE FIRST THING WE NEED TO DO IS REPENT.
*The only way to receive the Lord's Supper in a worthy way is to search our hearts, repent, and confess our sins to the Lord. All of us need to do this, because all of us have sinned. So please join me in a time of silent prayer, as we search our hearts before the Lord.
SILENT PRAYER OF EXAMINATION
DEACONS COME FORWARD TO SERVE THE ELEMENTS
2. THROUGH THE LORD'S SUPPER WE REPENT AND WE REMEMBER.
*It is always a good thing to remember what the Lord has done for us, and the Lord's Supper helps us do that.
[1] SO THROUGH THE LORD'S SUPPER, JESUS CHRIST WANTS US TO REMEMBER HIS BODY.
*And in 1 Corinthians 11:23-24 the Apostle Paul wrote, "For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you: that the Lord Jesus on the same night in which He was betrayed took bread; and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, 'Take, eat; this is My body which is broken for you; do this in remembrance of Me.'"
*When we take the Lord's Supper, we eat the bread because it represents the Lord's body. And we remember that Jesus sacrificed His body on the cross to take the eternal punishment for our sins. That's why 1 Peter 2:24 says Jesus "Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness, by whose stripes you were healed."
*Think about that: When Jesus died on the cross, He literally bore all of our sins in His own body. That's amazing grace! And that's why we remember His body with this bread.
*We also remember the Lord's Body with this bread, because Jesus is the Bread of Life. As He said in John 6:
35. "I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst.
47. Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me has everlasting life.
48. I am the bread of life.
49. Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and are dead.
50. This is the bread which comes down from heaven, that one may eat of it and not die.
51. I am the living bread which came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever; and the bread that I shall give is My flesh, which I shall give for the life of the world.''
PRAYER TO BLESS THE BREAD
PASSING OF THE BREAD
*Again in 1 Corinthians 11:23-24, the Apostle Paul wrote, "For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you: that the Lord Jesus on the same night in which He was betrayed took bread; and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, 'Take, eat; this is My body which is broken for you; do this in remembrance of Me.'''
TAKING THE BREAD
[2] THROUGH THE LORD'S SUPPER, WE REMEMBER JESUS' BODY, AND WE REMEMBER HIS BLOOD.
*"What can wash away my sins? Nothing but the blood of Jesus!" (5)
*Romans 5:6-9 make this truth clear.
6. For when we were still without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly.
7. For scarcely for a righteous man will one die; yet perhaps for a good man someone would even dare to die.
8. But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
9. Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him.
*God demonstrated His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. And God is still demonstrating His greatest love to people today! Christians, we remember the blood of Jesus Christ, because "while we were still sinners, Christ died for us!" And "having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him."
*This cup represents the Blood of Jesus Christ. The Blood that He shed when He died on the cross for us.
PRAYER TO BLESS THE CUP
PASSING OF THE CUP
*"In the same manner He also took the cup after supper, saying, 'This cup is the new covenant in My blood. This do, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me.''' (1 Corinthians 11:25)
TAKING THE CUP.
*"For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death till He comes." (1 Corinthians 11:26)
*On this Christmas Day, celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ, trust in His cross, rejoice in His resurrection, and remember that Jesus is coming again to right all the wrongs in our world. Thank God, He's coming again! "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men!'' (Luke 2:14)
*Would you please bow for our closing Christmas Prayer:
-"O Christ of Bethlehem, let us not forget Thee on Thy birthday.
Forbid that we should spend all for transient pleasures and fail to find the deeper, richer joys that pass not away at eventide.
As we remember Thy wonderful birth, fill our hearts, we beseech Thee, with gladness of Thy great redemption.
May we live our lives in the Light of the Star of Bethlehem, and under the shadow of Thy cross.
In Thy Holy Name we pray. Amen." (6)
*May God bless you, and Merry Christmas to you all!
(1) SermonCentral sermon "Christmas Gifts -- God’s Christmas Gift" by Jeff Strite - John 3 1-18
(2) Adapted from Charles Krieg, St. Joseph's Seminary, Princeton, NJ.
(3) Jess Moody - "Club Sandwich Goes Great with Chicken Soup" - Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1999 - p. 29-34 - Source: "Preaching for Advent and Christmas, Vol. 4 - 2003" - Dynamic Preaching - "Your Heart a Manger" - Isaiah 11: 1-10
(4) "Tell me the story of Jesus, Write on my heart every word" - Source: Community of Christ Sings #623 - Author: Fanny Crosby - Hymnary.org - https://hymnary.org/text/tell_me_the_story_of_jesus_write_on_my_h
(5) "Nothing But the Blood of Jesus" - Author: Robert Lowry (1876) - Tune: Plainfield (Lowry) - Hymnary.orghttps://hymnary.org/text/what_can_wash_away_my_sin
(6) Prayer used for Many years at Christmas Eve services at McClendon Baptist Church in West Monroe, LA. Original source unknown
