Turn in your Bibles today, if
you would, to Matthew, the Gospel of Matthew chapter 1. I'm going to read some verses
of Scripture this morning that will probably be read many times in the next couple of weeks. Matthew chapter 1 beginning in
verse 18. Now the birth of Jesus Christ
was on this wise, when as his mother Mary was espoused to Joseph,
before they came together she was found with child of the Holy
Ghost. Then Joseph, her husband, being
a just man, and not willing to make her a public example, was
minded to put her away privately. But while he thought on these
things, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in
a dream, saying, Thou Son of David, fear not to
take unto thee Mary thy wife, for that which is conceived in
her is of the Holy Ghost. And she shall bring forth a son,
and thou shalt call his name Jesus, for he shall save his
people from their sins. Now all this was done. that it
might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet,
saying, Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring
forth a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel, which being
interpreted is God with us. Then Joseph, being raised from
sleep, did as the angel of the Lord had bidden him, and took
unto him his wife, and knew her not till she had brought forth
her firstborn son, and he called his name Jesus." Now I'll say honestly, this morning
that I love this time of year. I love
this season. I love to see families getting
together, spending a little bit of extra time together. I like to see friends getting
together and people giving each other gifts. things of this nature,
I like to see people slow down just a little bit. But I'll have to say that for
a preacher of the gospel and for any true believer, on the
other hand, it's not an easy time. And that is because there is
so much blatant idolatry. There are so many images. Even though God had said a long
time ago, thou shalt not make unto me any graven image. Even though He says in the New
Testament that those who worship Him They worship Him in spirit
and in truth. And so when you drive down the
road and you see all the sites and all the plywood Jesuses, it's a very heart-breaking thing. There's so much religiosity that
comes out. And there are so many things
that go on that make this time a bit of
a difficult time for the Lord's true people. I was riding down the road. I'll
admit, I like a lot of the old Christmas music. I just like that white Christmas
stuff and jingle bells and things like that. But I was driving down the road
and I heard that old Christmas carol, O Come, O Come. Emmanuel. And I thought there are so many
good things in that particular song, but the truth of the matter
is, Emmanuel has come. He has already come. And I also know that it always
comes as a surprise to a lot of people this time of year if
you try to tell them that the Lord Jesus Christ was not born
on December 25th. As a matter of fact, He would
not even have been born this time of year. All you have to
do is, if you really want to know, is study the Scriptures. And not only that, but God doesn't
even tell us or command us to observe any special holy day
with regard to the birth of Christ. He doesn't tell us to do that
anywhere. As a matter of fact, you won't
find Christmas mentioned in this book. And not only that, but
he doesn't command us to observe any holy day, not Easter, not
any of these things. As a matter of fact, they are
all mostly based on an old pagan tradition. Christmas came about simply as
the Christ mass of Roman Catholicism. We don't celebrate any mass. We don't believe, and the Bible
does not teach that a priest can take bread and wine and say
something over it, give it to someone, and it will actually
become the blood and body of Christ. We don't believe that. The Bible doesn't teach that.
As a matter of fact, Paul, writing to the church at Colossae, he
says this, let no man therefore judge you in meat or in drink
or in respect of a holy day." That's not where it's at. And
anything that went on, such as Sabbath days or feasts or ceremonies
in the Old Testament, they were simply types and pictures of
the Christ that was to come. Emmanuel, God with us. But even though these things
are true, it is vital for us to have some knowledge and understanding
of the incarnation of Jesus Christ. He was as we have just read,
born into this world. At the exact time appointed by
God and ordained by God before the foundation of this world,
at the exact time, the Lord Jesus Christ was born into this world. That was what the prophets had
been led by the Spirit of God to prophesy. Isaiah was one of
them. In chapter 7 he says, Therefore
the Lord himself shall give you a sign. He said this many, many
years. before Christ came. He said,
the Lord will give you a sign. Behold, a virgin shall conceive
and bear a son and shall call his name Immanuel. Immanuel. He said that hundreds
of years before Christ was born. And then he goes on in chapter
9, and he says this, catch this, he says, For unto us a child
is born, unto us a son is given. This child that will be born,
He's not the Son that will be born. He's the Son that already
is. He's given. He existed before
the child is born, before He takes on Himself this body. He's the eternal Son of God. And the government, what government
is that? All government. and the government
shall be upon his shoulder. He'll have the responsibility
of ruling and reign and sustaining all things, and his name shall
be called Wonderful, Counselor, the Mighty God, the Everlasting
Father, the Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government
and peace there shall be no end upon the throne of David and
upon his kingdom to order it and to establish it with judgment
and with justice from henceforth even forever." The zeal of the Lord of hosts
will perform this. And everything under that Old
Testament law that was given to Moses, everything was appointing
to the coming of this One, the Messiah, the Lord Jesus Christ. Listen to what God commands him
in Exodus chapter 13. He says, sanctify unto me. That word simply means set apart
unto me all the firstborn. Whatsoever openeth the womb among
the children of Israel, both of man and of beast, it is mine."
That firstborn, of whether it was man or beast that was regarded
as the Lord's. But notice what he says here.
He says, sanctify unto me all the firstborn whatsoever openeth
the womb among the children of Israel. And this had to be talking about
Christ because He is actually the only one who ever himself
opened the womb. That's what we just read about
here in Matthew chapter 1. Here is the firstborn of God,
described as the firstborn of many brethren. And He is the
only one, this only begotten Son of God, come in human flesh. He is the only one who ever Himself
actually opened the womb. He says in John 17, And for their
sakes I sanctify myself. that they also might be sanctified
through the truth. And when we come to Luke chapter
1, it says of him, the Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the
power of the highest shall overshadow thee, therefore also that holy
thing. that holy one. Here is one who is born a woman,
yet at the same time, though she herself is a sinner, he is
described as that holy thing. Why? Because he has no earthly
father. It goes on to say, therefore
also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called
the Son of God. Turn over to Luke's Gospel, the
second chapter. Next book over, just Luke chapter
two, or Matthew Mark and then Luke chapter 2, and look down
in chapter 2 at verse 21. It says, And when eight days
were accomplished for the circumcising of the child, his name was called
Jesus, which was so named of the angel before he was conceived
in the womb, And when the days of her purification according
to the law of Moses were accomplished, they brought him to Jerusalem
to present him to the Lord. As it is written in the law of
the Lord, every male child that openeth the womb shall be called
holy to the Lord. That's the Christ of God. That's
the Son of God. But maybe there isn't anywhere
in all of this book where it is stated any more clearly than
in 1 Timothy and the 3rd chapter. Turn over to 1 Timothy and the
3rd chapter. Listen to what Paul says in that
last verse. Verse Timothy chapter 3 and verse
16. He says, and without controversy. What does that mean? That means
it is not even up for debate. It is a matter that cannot successfully
be debated against. It is the fact and truth of God. And without controversy, great
is the mystery of godliness. Now, what does that word mystery
mean in Scripture? Does it mean something that can
never in any way be known or actually be rested in as a true
thing? No, it means this, that which
to this point had not yet been manifested. Great is the mystery of godliness. And there's a colon after that
word godliness, which means that what follows after that will
be the description of it. What is the mystery of godliness? You might say the mystery of
God throughout all the ages past up to that hour. Here it is. God was manifest in the flesh. Now I'll tell you this, if that
was not stated again and again in this book, if it was not set
forth in a number of different ways and many times in this book,
I'd never tell you that. Because you would bound to look
at me in the eye and say, you're the biggest fool that ever lived. You mean to tell me that the
God who created all this world and everything in it, that the
One who is described as the infinite of days, without days, that He
actually as an infant in days existed on this earth? That's what it says. God was
manifest in the flesh. And the prophet, as well as the
angel that spoke to Joseph, said, this is why his name shall be
called Emmanuel, which simply means God with us. He ain't just a good man. He's
not just a prophet. He's not just a fine moral example. He's not just a teacher. He's not just a politician or
a great leader or a historical figure or something like that. He's nothing less than God manifest
in the flesh, God eternal. God the Infinite One and the
Invisible One. He is none other than the one
that the Apostle John is led to describe in the very first
chapter of John when he says this, In the beginning was the
Word. Capital letter. And he says,
in the beginning was the Word, and there was not anything that
was made that was not made by Him. In the beginning was the
Word, and the Word was with God. Now catch this, and the Word
was God. You say, how can that be that
the Word was with God, and the Word also was God. Well, John writes in I John,
and he tells us that there are three that bear witness in heaven,
and simply said, the Father, and the Son, and the Spirit,
and these three are one. That's the triunity of God. God is set forth in this book,
He sets Himself forth in these three sacred persons of the Godhead,
God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit, and to our
lack of understanding I'm sure He says, and these three are
one. So who is this one? He's God
manifest in the flesh, because John goes on in John 1 and verse
14, and he says this, and the Word was made flesh and dwelt
among us. And we beheld His glory as the
only begotten of the Father. My friends, in all our attempts
to show the blessings of Christ's people as they are counted as
one with Christ before God. Never let us lose sight of this,
and that is the uniqueness of His person. He is the only begotten
Son of God. We will be made like Him. As He
is, so are we in this world. But in a greater sense, there's
only been one like Him, and only will be one like Him. So much so that Paul, writing
to the Colossians again, he says this about Him. He says, for
in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily. bodily. All the fullness of divine power,
all the fullness of divine authority, all the fullness of holiness
and grace and love and mercy, all the fullness of God as that
which He has to give to sinners like you and me in His grace,
as a matter of fact, all spiritual blessings. Not most of them, not the best
of them, all of them. Everything that God has to give
of Himself in mercy to poor wretches like you and I, all these spiritual
blessings were given us in Christ. The Bible says, before the world
began. Turn over to Hebrews chapter
1. Hebrews chapter 1 and look down
in verse 2 where it says that God hath in these last days spoken
unto us by his Son whom he hath appointed air of all things,
by whom also He made the worlds, who being the brightness of His
glory." Somebody said, well, I saw God in that beautiful sunset
last night. No, you didn't. No, you didn't. The brightness of God's glory. and the express image of his
person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when
he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand
of the majesty on high." God became a man. God came into this
world and was manifest in human flesh. And Paul, if he's the
writer of Hebrews, says that in all those offerings and in
all those sacrifices, there was never any sin put away. God never accepted one of them
for one sin. And so the Christ said this,
"'A body thou hast prepared for me.'" A body. Why a body? Well, we'll find out. Hebrews
chapter 1, and look down at verse 6. He says, And again, when he
bringeth in the first begotten into the world, he saith, And
let all the angels of God worship him. Do you realize that? that for the first time when
the Lord Jesus Christ was born, angels from heaven actually came
down to this earth at his birth and worshipped him. And of the
angels, he saith, who maketh his angel spirits and his ministers
a flaming fire, but unto the sun, he saith, thy throne, O God, is forever
and ever. A scepter of righteousness is
the scepter of thy kingdom." Who did the Father say that of?
His Son. The Father looked at that babe
even as in the womb of Mary Even as in that manger wrapped in
cattle cloth, He looked at him and He said of His Son, Thy throne,
O God, is forever and ever. Turn over to Hebrews chapter
2. Hebrews chapter 2 and look down
at verse 14. He says, for as much then as
the children. Who's that? The children that
are the children of Christ. You see, there are so many names
given in Scripture of Christ because these various names describe
and set forth some aspect of His character or His work. He's described as the everlasting
Father. Why? Because he has some spiritual
children. You care for your children, don't
you? Well, he cares for his children. Listen to what it says. For as
much then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood,
he also himself likewise took part of the same. You see that word, that? It means
He did this for this reason, that through death He might destroy him that had
the power of death. that is, the devil, and deliver
them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject
to bondage. For verily he took not on him
the nature of angels, but he took on him the seed of Abraham,
wherefore in all things it behooved him to be made like unto his
brethren that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest in things
pertaining to God." Now, you look back under that Hebrew economy. And God identified on this earth
with one nation of people, the Jews. And He would not meet with
them would not be spoken to by them, would not speak to them
except by a mediator which he had himself appointed, this one
priest that was called out from among the people. And he went into that Holy of
Holies, and did business with God. He did those things pertaining
to God on the behalf of these people. He was one from among
the people, and so did God's Son have to be. To make reconciliation for the
sins of the people. Now, this isn't something that
just starts out in Hebrews or Timothy or even in Matthew. As a matter of fact, one of the
very first things after the fall of Adam and Eve that we read
about is this. You might say it's the first
proclamation concerning the one who would be the Savior of God's
people. When he is talking in Genesis
chapter 3 concerning the serpent, he said, there's one
coming. He said, you'll bruise his heel, but he'll bruise your head. Who does he say there it was? He said it's the woman's seed.
Now that's kind of interesting because woman doesn't have a
seed. None of you ladies have a seed.
No woman that's ever lived in this world of herself had a seed. But there's one who's described
as the woman seen. Who's that? That one we read
about, Matthew 1. She never knew a man, not Joseph,
until the Christ child was born, because that which was conceived
in her was of God himself. He is God manifest in the flesh. John says, No man hath seen God
at any time. The only begotten Son, which
is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared Him. The gospel, Paul writes in Romans
1, is concerning His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, which was made
of the seed of David according to the flesh. He is Christ who is over all,
God blessed forever. And if He is not God, I always have one question if
the Jehovah's Witnesses come to my door. I just have one question. Before I'll answer your question,
you answer one question for me. Is Jesus Christ God? Oh, well, we believe He's a good
man, or we believe He's one of the sons of God. No. He's God manifest in the flesh. And if He is, He must be worshipped. And if He isn't, He cannot save. If He isn't, He lied and was
an imposter. If He isn't, His sacrifice has
no value. But the truth is, God will reveal
Himself and His grace and His mercy and His salvation only
through this One who is the God-man mediator. There's one mediator
between God and men. Who's that? The man Christ Jesus. You see, the very name Jesus
means Jehovah the Savior. Turn back to Matthew chapter
1. Matthew 1. And look back up at
that 21st verse. Matthew 1 and verse 21. The angel says, And she shall
bring forth a son. What if she aborts? What if she
miscarries? It can't happen. She shall bring forth a son,
and thou shalt call his name Jesus, Jehovah the Savior, or
Jehovah's Savior. Four. For, because He, not He in us,
not He with our help, He shall save. I mean, T totally 100%. He shall save His people from
their sin. You see, that's why if you're
not a sinner, the gospel's not for you. All these people trying
to be as good as they can to please God. You ought to try
to be as good as you can. But don't ever offer it to God
for something He'll accept. There's only one who saves. His people from their sins. And He is God manifest in the
flesh. Why did He have to come in human
flesh? He created the world without
becoming human flesh. He gave the law. He spoke from
heaven. He did all these things from
heaven as simply the eternal Son. So why? Why did He have to be made flesh? Because the only one that can
represent men before God has to be man. The only one that God can accept
has to be a perfect, sinless man. And the only way that sin
can be put away is by death. And the only one whose sacrifice
and death could be of such infinite worth as to save a multitude
of sinners has to be God manifest in the flesh. Somebody asked this question.
It's really a good question. How could the death of one man
be the salvation for a whole lot of sinners? Tell me why could
God or how could God accept the fact that one man gives his life
as a payment for the sins of his people? How can it be that
his sacrifice would be of such worth and value that God could
accept it. Because he's God manifest in
the flesh. And if you don't ever remember
anything I say again, you remember this. Only God can satisfy God. Only God can receive from God. Only God can receive on the behalf
of such as we are that which He gives. Only that can go to
heaven which comes from heaven. And then Paul says, God was manifest
in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, justified or declared righteous
by the Spirit of God. God, who looks on the heart of
every one of us, looked on this man and He said, This is my beloved
Son in whom I am well pleased." He sure couldn't say that of
me. But he can if I'm in Christ. In his body. he was manifested
and put to death for the sins of his people which God had imputed
to him. and they were born away and put
away by his death. Justice says the soul that sins
shall surely die. And so God held his son account
for the sins of his people, and that's how he saves them, by
dying for them. If He, as Scripture says, bore
my sins in His body on the tree, I don't have to bear them. If He paid the debt I owe to
God in my place, I don't have to pay it. If God looks at me
in His Son, views me in Him, and in His Son receives me, then
I don't have anything to fear." You say, well, I'll tell you
this, and this is what unbelievers always say. That's what this
whole religious, self-righteous world says in the face of the
true gospel. They say, well, if I believe
that, I just sin and do anything I want to. Really? I got a feeling you're
doing that now. But I'll tell you this, if you
ever find out that Christ died for your sins in your place,
that God loved you before the world began, and chose you in
Christ before the world began, and blessed you with all spiritual
blessing. And you came as a fallen son
or daughter of Adam, born in sin and shaped in iniquity, come
forth from your mother's womb speaking lies, and you live just
like you live in this hatred and disregard for God all your
days. And then He confronts you, not to scold you, not to cast
you into hell, which is where you deserve, not to take from
you, not to promise you something if you'll do better, but to let
you know that He came into this world
and in your place. hung on that tree and wrought
your salvation, all of it. When He hung on that cross, not
so the Father could hear it, but so His people could hear
it, He cries out, it is finished. Finished. And when all the sins of His
people were laid on Him and He went to that cross, He dies on that cross. But He's raised from the dead
and declared to be without sin. Why? Because He
put them all away. They're gone. Could that really
be? What if I sin tomorrow? You will
if you live. What about if down the road I...
There's no telling what you might, apart from God's grace. But when he died, they were all
future. All my sins. the Lord hath laid on him our
iniquities." Scene of angels. Scene of angels. Oh, did you
realize that the angels who cried in the presence of God, holy,
holy, holy, from all eternity, they've never seen God. And yet, here He is. Looks just
like all the rest of these creatures on the earth. They're described,
you know, as the ministering spirits to the heirs of salvation. And they look, lying in that
mother's arms, And that's God. Scene of angels. He says, not only scene of angels,
but he says, and preached unto the Gentiles. Actually, what
that means is preached unto the nations. Did you realize that
God never sent a prophet to any people on the earth except the
Jews? until Christ came. Why did He favor this people?
To show that His grace was toward a favored people spiritually,
and to preserve that line in which the Christ would come. Herod couldn't get Him. That
line could not be stopped. He is called the son of David,
and even according to the flesh, he has to come out of this lineage
of David. And now here he is, preached
to the Gentiles, to all this godless mass of humanity. He said, go ye into all the world
and preach the gospel. Why? Trying to save everybody? No. But he said, I've got some
sheep. They're scattered out. There
are people out of every nation, kindred, tribe, and tongue. And
you go out and you preach the gospel to them. And he said, my sheep will hear
my voice. They'll follow me. They won't
hear the voice of a stranger. They may be deceived in religion
somewhere. They may be brought up in a godless
religion like I was. They may be out-and-out worldly
losers, it seems like, but they're all sinners. You see, a man's lost out there
in the gutter. The man's lost in the church
building somewhere. They're in the same boat. That's
what always just kind of half amuses me in a sad, sick way,
I guess, but half amuses me when this moral crowd over here is
so looked down on everybody, and yet the very ones that they
look down on and the very ones that these despise because of
their self-righteousness, they're going to spend eternity together
in hell. But he said, my sheep will hear
my voice. Not only is he preached unto
the Gentiles, but it says, believed on in the world. Somebody has, well, they've told
me several times, preacher, there ain't nobody going to believe
what you're preaching. You're wasting your time. There's
nobody going to believe it. His sheep will. They are brought to know this
is the only way they could ever be saved, is by the free grace
of God in one outside of themselves. That we are such sinners that
the only way that we could ever be saved is for God, perfect
Holy God to come into this world in human flesh so that he could
do the one thing that couldn't be done from heaven for us and
the one thing essential to save us and that's to die in our place. Paul was preaching on one occasion
and a bunch of folks heard him They just walked away and said,
well, we're not buying into this. But then it says in Acts 13,
but as many as were ordained unto eternal life, they believed. They believed. He's believed
on in the world and received up into glory. What is glory? Glory, to be glorified, is just
to be openly manifested for what you really are. When I was a boy, I used to watch
Superman. I just thought Superman was the
stuff. And here's this old Clark Kent,
you know, he'd walk around in this suit and those black horn-rimmed
glasses, he looked like a dork and acts like one and everything,
you know, but all of a sudden he'd jump in that phone booth
or back alley or something like that, and he'll rip off his shirt
and clothes and everything, and there he is. Who is he? He's
really Superman. That's kind of what glory is
like. It's the full manifestation of who He really is. He's on the throne of His glory. The psalmist says, the Lord of
hosts is with us. He's Emmanuel, God with us. And He's always with His people.
He said, you go into all the world and preach the gospel,
teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I've commanded
you, and lo, I'm with you always, even unto the end of the age. He's with His people. He's for
His people. And He's working all things together
for good to them that love God, to them that are called according
to His purpose. He's Emmanuel. They'll sing, O come, O come,
Emmanuel. But the gospel is this, He's
already come. He's already come in human flesh. to die as the substitute for
His people and put away their sins. He's done something. He's
not in a manger, and He's not on a cross. He's on a throne. You can trust Him. You can rest
in Him. His name is Jesus, and He saved
His people. from their sins. So a preacher,
what should I do now? Rest in Him. Rest in Him. Trust Him. Find out more about
Him. Worship Him. It's not if you'll do something
for God, He'll do something for you. It's He's already done something
for you. Now you just do something to
His glory. Spread His Word. Help His people. He's Emmanuel. Father, we ask
this day that you take your Word and bring it home to the hearts
and minds of your people. Cause them to believe you. Cause
them to look outside of themselves to Christ. This is the good news that Christ
Jesus came into the world to save sinners. And He did it. That's all we are, Lord. That's
all we can be of ourselves as sinners. Help us to trust the Savior and
to look to Him. Follow Him. Believe what you
say. Watch over us as we leave out
of this place. We give you thanks and pray in
His name. Amen.