Let's begin our service with
prayer. Let's pray. Almighty God and
our loving Heavenly Father, we thank thee for this and other
opportunity to gather together around thy holy word and to worship
thee, our creator. We thank thee Lord and we pray
that thy presence may be known and felt amongst us as we sing
thy praises as we come to thee in prayer and as we read from
thy holy word and as our little ones remember those texts that
they have been given to learn we ask that they may know thy
strength and thy comfort that thou remove all fear from them
that they may experience the joy of the Lord being their strength. We ask, Lord, that the scriptures
that they have learned may be of benefit to their never-dying
souls, that they may come to know the Lord Jesus Christ as
their only hope of salvation and that one thing that is needful.
We pray for thy blessing then to rest upon us and to those
who are listening online, do be with them also we pray. Help
Daisy as she prays for us as well and help us to sing with
the joy of the Lord as we pray in Jesus' name. Amen. Well our opening hymn is from
Hymns of Worship number 144. Teach me thy way, O Lord, teach
me thy way. Thy gracious aid afford, teach
me thy way. Help me to walk aright, more
by faith, less by sight. Lead me with heavenly light,
teach me the way. Hymn number 144 from Hymns of
Worship. All thy faith blessed by sight,
Lead me with heavenly light, Teach me thy love. Spread the skies, teach me thy
way. Shine through the cloud and rain,
through sorrow, toil, and pain. Make thou my pathway, make, teach
me Teach me thy way. Until the race is round, until
the jack is found, until the crown is found, Well, now the bit the children
have been looking forward to. So they will be reading through
the gospel according to Luke, chapter two, verses one to 18. So if you go in your order. And it came to pass in those
days, that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus, that all
the world should be taxed. And this taxing was first made
when Cyrenius was governor of Syria. And all went to be taxed,
everyone into his own city. And Joseph also went out from
Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judea, out of the city of
David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and
lineage of David, to be taxed with Mary, his espoused wife,
being a great child. And so it was that while they
were there, the dates were accomplished that she should be delivered.
And she brought forth her firstborn son and wrapped him in swaddling
clothes and laid him in a manger, because there was no room for
them in the inn. And in the same country there were shepherds
abiding in a field, keeping watch over their flocks by night. And
lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the
Lord shone round about them, and they were so afraid. And
the angel said unto them, Fear not, for behold, I bring you
good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day
in the city of David a Saviour which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be our sign unto
you. You shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes
lying in a manger. And suddenly there was with the
angel a multitude of heavenly hosts praising God and saying,
Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, goodwill
toward men. And it came to pass when the
angels went away from them into heaven, the shepherds said one
to another, let us go even on to Bethlehem to see this thing
which has come to pass, which the Lord has made known to us. And it came with haste, and found
Mary and Joseph and the baby lying in a manger. And when they
had seen it, they made nine aboard the same, which was told them
concerning this child. And all that it had, it wondered
at those things which were told them by the shepherds. Well done, there'll be some presentations
of some gifts after the last hymn. So God willing, the notices
for this coming week, we have our Christmas service at 10 a.m.
This will be taken by our pastor. We'll also be preaching next
Lord's Day at 11 a.m. and 6.30. There will be no Sunday
school or Bible study. Please keep in prayer our brother
Keith preaching at Wibblesfield. And also after this service,
you're welcome to stay for tea, coffee, and some cake in the
back room. Our next hymn is number 61 from
Hymns of Worship, Away in a Manger. Away in a manger, no crib for
a bed, the little Lord Jesus laid down his sweet head. The
stars in the bright sky looked down where he lay, the little
Lord Jesus asleep on the hay. Hymn number 61 from Hymns of
Worship. The little Lord Jesus lay down
his sweet head. The stars in the bright sky looked
down where he lay. I am little Lord Jesus, I'm crying
in peace. I love thee, Lord Jesus, I'm
down from the sky. Lord Jesus, I ask Thee to stay. Bless my people ever, and love
me, I pray. Bless all the dead children in
Thy tender care. Let us come once again to the
Lord in prayer. Let's all pray. great and eternal God, the true
and living God, we bow before thee once again at the throne
of grace. We thank thee for the way of
salvation and we thank thee for the way that has been made through
thy beloved Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, who has made this way
that we can approach thee We thank thee that he put on flesh
and became a truly man, that he may be able to redeem us from
the consequences of our sins. We thank thee that the blood
of the Lord Jesus Christ, God's Son, cleanses us from all sin. And we pray as we have met together
this afternoon to remember all that thou hast done for us as
a church and the little children at the Sunday school. And we
ask, Lord, that we may be able to see clearly the Lord Jesus
Christ. We may be like, do make us, Lord,
like those shepherds and those wise men who searched diligently
for the young child until they found him. And we pray, Lord,
that we may be given that spirit of searching, to be able to search
the scriptures for him, them, we do have life. And we pray,
Lord, that as we search, we may be pointed to our need of the
Lord Jesus. We pray that thou work amongst
us and work amongst these dear little children that thou hast
given unto us. Do show them their need of the
Lord Jesus Christ as their only hope. Do enable them, Lord, to
seek thee early and to find thee. Do help them, Lord, to seek thee
with all of their heart. Help them Lord to come to know
the Lord Jesus Christ, the friend of sinners. We pray that help
us to raise them in thy knowledge and in thy fear and to help us
to teach them the truths of thy holy word. and to bless the labours
of the Sunday school teachers, to help them Lord as they study
and as they prepare for the lessons. We pray that their preparations
may be made a blessing to their own souls, that they may present
to the children things that they have handled and felt by their
own experiences. Help them to teach of the Lord
Jesus that they love and know. Help them, Lord, to rightly divide
thy word as the truth, to enable them to be faithful messengers
with thy message, and do anoint them with the power of thy Holy
Spirit that they may speak a few words under the unction of thy
spirit that it may affect these little children for the rest
of their lives and for even eternity. We pray Lord that thou help us
in our labours as we seek to live a life that is honouring
and glorifying unto thee. I do help us as we endeavour
to shine as lights in a dark place to grant us Lord opportunities
to speak and to point to the true risen saviour. We pray Lord that our interactions
over these next few weeks may have an effect, that we may be
guided in conversation and character and disposition. We pray, Lord,
that we may be faithful witnesses of the Lord Jesus to draw others
to thyself rather than to drive them away. We pray then, Lord,
for each of these little children that thou bless thine own word
unto them, that thou engrave the truth that they learn upon
their hearts and souls, and that in thy time and way that seed
may bear fruit for thy honour and for thy glory. Do help them,
Lord, in their troubles. Do teach them from a young age
how to cast their burdens upon thee. Do teach them, Lord, how
to pray. Help them not to be afraid to
come to the Lord Jesus. For he has said, permit the little
children to come unto me, and forbid them not, for such is
the kingdom of heaven. And then we pray, Lord, that
thou help us each to become like the little children, to have
that childlike trust in our heavenly Father, to rest upon thee for
our all, for our needs, and even for our fears and for our concerns. We know, Lord, that thou art
far more able to do, thou art able to do far more than we can
ask or think. Thou art the Great Shepherd.
Thou art the Almighty God. And we acknowledge, Lord, that
nothing shall be called too hard for the Lord. And we pray, Lord,
that thou help us each then in our lives to commit all our ways
unto thee. Help us, Lord, when life becomes
difficult and uncertain. Do give us true faith to rest
upon thy word. Do give us a hope, a hope that
makes us not ashamed, a hope that causes us to rest in the
unchanging word of God. O Lord, we pray that thou enable
us and give us true living faith for time and for eternity. We ask that thou work amongst
us as a congregation. We pray that thy word may have
an effect upon us each week by week as we meet together. We
ask that it will not fall to the ground but it will not return
unto the void. We pray that it will accomplish
great things in our lives. that we may witness, Lord, a
moving of thy Holy Spirit in each who gather with us. We pray,
Lord, that thou soften our hearts, that we may receive thy word
as truth, that thou take away our hard hearts of stone and
give us a soft heart of flesh, to give us a true hatred for
sin and for uncleanness. To help us, Lord, to watch our
eyes and our ears and our mouths. Help us to be absorbed with the
things of God and to neglect the things of the world. Help
us to walk, laying aside every sin and every weight that so
easily besets us, and help us to run with patience the race
set before us, looking to the Lord Jesus Christ. to give us,
each Lord, an eternal perspective. Help us to fix our eyes upon
our great High Priest, the Lord Jesus Christ, at thy right hand.
Prepare us, we pray, every day to meet him, that we may live
each day as it were our last. Help us, Lord, to have one eye
in the sky and one eye upon our work, that we may be ready for
the coming of the Lord Jesus. We pray, Lord, that none here
may be left out. We ask, Lord, that they may be
made ready, that he will not come as a thief in the night
to them, but each may be ready and waiting, that when the good
master returns, they will be found doing, that the door will
be opened and they will be able to enter in. Lord, we pray that
thou then work amongst us and draw each to thyself. that we
may know that Christ is our Saviour and our God. We pray, Lord, that thou hear
a prayer for those who are unwell at this time. Do lay thy healing
hand upon them, encourage them, and comfort them. We pray, Lord,
for those who struggle at this time of year again with loneliness
and anxiety and difficulty. Do comfort, we pray. We pray
again for those that are mourning. Do bind up the brokenhearted,
Lord, and do comfort them with the hope that all is well. We
pray Lord for others who have loved ones who are out in the
world, do hear prayer regarding their salvation, do grant opportunity,
do use this time of year if it could please thee to prompt and
to bring to the surface things that they have remembered and
that they have heard over the coming years. We ask God to help
move in a mighty way, in a wonderful way, to bring the prodigal sons
and daughters back to their father's house. We pray, Lord, for thy
blessing upon this nation of ours. Do encourage our leaders. Do work amongst the churches. Do help the families. Do go before Lord in all things. We pray that thou hear the cries
of those who sigh and cry for the abominations done in this
land. We ask, Lord, that thou not deal with us as we deserve
to be dealt with, but do in thine anger towards us remember mercy.
Help us, Lord, to come to true confession over our own sin and
to confess the sins of our people before thee. And do, Lord, we
pray, look with favour and mercy again upon this land and turn
us. We beg of thee unto thyself.
Again we remember Sam and Hannah. Lord to be with them we pray
at this time of year separated from their families. Do comfort them and do bless
them as they have some time together. Do be with them in their travelings
and watch over them Lord and do enable them to have a nice
time as a family. Do lay thy healing hand upon
Sam and do restore him we pray to full strength. We pray for
Ryan and Samantha also who are away from their families. We
pray that they may know the blessing of the Lord at this time of year
and do continue to keep them safe and do help them in the
ministry and do work, if it could please thee, amongst those Somalian-speaking
people. We pray, Lord, for the work of
the TBS and other Bible translators. Lord, do help them and encourage
them in their labours. We pray that thy word may go
forth into many, many countries that that each may come to hear
thy word in their own language. We thank thee, Lord, for thy
word and for the truth that is found therein. We ask that thou
help us not to neglect the truth, but we pray that thy truth may
be a lamp unto our feet and a light to our pathway. To be with those
who are seeking direction and guidance, do give them, Lord,
light upon the pathway. Do, Lord, be with our young people
also. Help them as they rest from their studies over this
time of year and to be with those who have assignments to finish
before they go back. Lord, do give them that diligence
and time structure and go before them each as they commit their
way unto Thee. We ask that Thou draw near once
again. Do help me, Lord, to speak in
Thy name. Do enable me to be simple. But most of all we ask that thy
word may be accompanied by the power of thy Holy Spirit, that
it may enter into our hearts and do us good, that thou turn
us unto thyself. Do forgive us, Lord, then of
our many sins, as we come to thee in the name of thy beloved
Son, the Lord Jesus. Amen. may be helped in singing once
again number 70 from Hymns of Worship. While shepherds watched
the flocks by night, all seated on the ground, the angel of the
Lord came down and glory shone around. Hymn number 70 from Hymns
of Worship to the tune 270. on the ground. In angel hope
the Lord came down, and glory shone around. When austerity, almighty dread,
hath seized earth, He is born of David, born of
David. O'er weary, rampt, and smold'ring
mounds, And in an angel's blest. First joy in Lucilla, ? Glory be to God on high ? ? And
to thee, every peace ? ? World, world, and soul, from hem to
hem ? ? Begin and never cease ? Thank you children for your recitals
and readings. We're just going to read again
from the Word of God from the Gospel according to Matthew chapter
1 and we'll begin reading at verse 18. The Gospel according to Matthew chapter
1 and beginning at verse 18. The birth of Jesus Christ was
on this wise, or it was like this. 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 privily. But while he thought on these
things, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in
a dream, saying, Joseph, 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 Emmanuel, which is being
interpreted, God with us. And 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 brought forth her
firstborn son, and he called his name Jesus. This morning, hopefully you can
remember that we looked at the prophecy in Isaiah about the
Lord Jesus Christ, that there was going to be a child. that
was to be born, a child that would be born in a dark time,
in a time when people had distanced themselves from God, when sin
had increased and it was seen as a dark time. People had lost
sight of who God is and they'd gone their own way. And so the
Lord speaks to Isaiah, his prophet, and tells him that The light
was going to come like the dawn of a new day. In the morning
when we look out of the window we see the sun it comes up out
of the horizon and so light comes upon a new day and light brings
life. And so the Lord Jesus is described
as a light like the dawning or the morning of a new day and
he is a child to be born. a child or a son that was to
be given. We read that God gave his son
into the world that whosoever believes in him would not perish
but have everlasting life. We also read of the many different
names of the Lord Jesus and we saw that he is going to be called
Wonderful. He's going to be called Wonderful
Counselor He's going to be called the mighty God, the everlasting
Father, the Prince of Peace. If we go back in the chapter
of, in the book of Isaiah, we see another name that this child
was going to be called. In Isaiah chapter seven, it says,
I'll give you a sign. Therefore the Lord himself shall
give you a sign. Behold, a virgin shall conceive.
bear a son and his name shall be called Emmanuel. And so in the book of Matthew
as we As we read of the birth of the Lord Jesus Christ, as
he says, the birth of the Lord Jesus Christ is like this. This
is what took place on that day when this light came into the
world, when this son that was given came into the world, when
this child that was given came into the world. This is what
it was like. Mary and Joseph were engaged together and they
were going to be married and she has found that she is expecting
a baby and this baby is from the Holy Spirit. He has given her a child and this child
was going to be different from any other child. He was going
to be called the Son of God. Not only was he to be called
the Son of God, he's going to be called Emmanuel. And now we
don't use that word in our language. And so the Bible interprets it
for us. This word means God with us. And sometimes there are words
in the Bible that are difficult to understand. And we have to
ask people, what does this word mean? What does this word mean?
But because this word is so important, the name of this little child
is going to be Emmanuel, God with us. Not only is he going
to be called Emmanuel, but he's also going to be called Jesus. Why? Because he shall save his
people from their sins. And so in this little portion
that we've read together from 18 to 25, Matthew refers to the Lord Jesus
Christ in three different ways. Throughout the Bible, the Lord
Jesus has many names. My name is James Thomas Gudgeon. Three. Most people, I think,
have three. Some people only have two. Some
people have more. But with the Lord Jesus, there
are a hundred and ninety eight different names or titles that
are given to him in the Bible. And those names, as I said to
you this morning, describe the work what the Lord Jesus Christ
did or described something about his character. And so there are
198 different ways in which the Lord Jesus Christ is spoken of
and we've seen some of them as we've looked over the I am's
of the Lord Jesus. Matthew speaks of three. He calls
him in verse 18 Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ. the Messiah. Christ means Messiah,
the anointed one or the chosen one of God. And so he tells us
by this name that his name is going to be called Jesus Christ. He's going to be the anointed
one of God, the one that God chose to fulfil his will and
to bring about salvation for his people. Christ, the Messiah. He then tells us that his name
should be called Jesus. And he gives us the reason. For
he shall save his people from their sins. If you remember,
we talked about it a few months ago, Jesus. Jehovah saves or the Lord saves. If you remember when the Apostle
Paul was converted, he says, who art thou Lord? And he says,
I am Jesus. whom thou persecutest. I am Jesus,
the Lord saves, Jehovah saves. And I am the one that has come
to save you from your sin. And then it is Emmanuel being God with us. So how can God be with his people? We read in the Bible that God
is in all places so God is essentially with everybody. God is spirit
the Bible says. It's hard for us to understand
spiritual things because we can't see them. The Bible says the
spirit is a bit like the wind. We can't actually see the wind
but we can see the effects of the wind. The wind has no boundaries,
no edges. you and I we have an edge we
have our skin that is the the end of us that's as far as we
can go I can't be here and there at the same time I can only be
in one place but the wind is in all places and so God is described
as like the wind he is in all places so though we can't see
him yet we see the effect of of him we see his wonderful creation
when we go outside we see the trees and we see the plants We
see the mountains and the downs and the sea and all of these
things that God has made. And when we wake up in the morning,
we see the sunshine. We hear the birds singing in
happiness to the Lord. And at nighttime, we see the
moon and we see the stars. And although we can't see then
God himself, but we can see the wonderful things that he has
made and he has made us. The Bible tells us, I formed
you when you are in your mother's tummies. And so you can see the
other things that God has made. You can see yourself. You can
see your friends, your family, your mothers and your fathers.
And so though God is a spirit, we can't see him. Yet we can
see the things that he has made and we can see the things that
he does and we can see his word. His word has been written down
for us to read and to think over. The Bible says that these things
have been written so that we may have life. As we read the
word of God it shows us who God is. It shows us who we are and
it shows us who Jesus is. And so God is essentially always
near everybody. But that can be in different
levels. You see with some people God
is near them but he's angry with them. He's angry because they
don't know him. He's angry because they enjoy
being in their sin and their misbehaviour. and so he's near them but he's
angry and the Bible tells us then he is near to the righteous
his ear is open to the cry of the righteous and so he can be
with us in love and in mercy and even as a Christian
we can experience different degrees of God's closeness if you have ever done any cooking.
Sometimes you have to bake a cake and you put it on a low temperature.
That is a low degree. It's a degree. Sometimes you
have to put it on a high temperature. If you're cooking a roast dinner
you put the temperature on really high as you put the meat in and
then you turn it down and so that is different degrees, different
temperatures. Or you can look at it like a
door. A door can be a little bit open
or a door can be fully open and so even in the life of a Christian
God can be near by degrees. Sometimes his presence is very
near to the Lord's people and it's almost like we can feel
his presence with us. then sometimes it feels that
he is far away, he has distanced himself from us but that doesn't
mean that he has abandoned the Lord's people, he distances himself
from them and so God is spirit and he is with all people yet
to different extents in anger or in love and mercy and also
in degrees, closeness to his people and what a blessing it
is if we can come to know the Lord Jesus Christ and to know
God as our Father and to experience that relationship with him, not
a God who is far away but a God who is close, a God who we love
and who we worship and adore. And so God is always with his
people. In Hebrews it tells us, Hebrews
chapter 13 and verse 5 it says, let your conversation or let
your way of life be without covetousness. Covetousness is wanting things
that belong to other people. Be content with what you have.
Especially you think at Christmas time when you open your presents
and you maybe look at somebody else's present and you think,
oh, well, their present is better than my present. I wish that
I had their present. And you become jealous and you
become angry. And the Bible says, be content
with all the things that you'd have. Don't be overcome with
covetousness and jealousy. Why? Because he says, that is
God, I will never leave thee. nor forsake thee so that we may
boldly say the Lord is my helper and I will not fear what man
shall do unto me and so that's the promise that has been given
to God's people. I will never leave thee nor forsake
or forget thee. So what then is so special? If
God is always with his people If he promised to be with them
at all the times, if he says to Joshua, as I was with Moses,
so I will be with thee. What made Emmanuel so special? Why was it such a wonderful thing
to hear God with us, if God is already with us? Because he was going to come
in a different way. as we saw that God is spirit he's unable
to be seen we can see the effects of what he does but we cannot
see him we cannot enter into his presence because he is holy
yet we are going to witness something different that God was going
to be with us in a different way In Hebrews chapter 10 verse 5
it says, For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and goats
should take away sin. Wherefore, when he cometh into
the world, he says, Sacrifice and offering thou wouldst not,
but a body hast thou prepared for me. This was what was going
to be the difference. This is why it was such an amazing
promise, an amazing prophecy that was going to take place.
God with us. He wasn't just going to be as
a spirit. He was going to have a body prepared
for him. that he was going to come as
a man God revealed to us in the flesh God manifest in the flesh
he was now going to be truly man and truly God he was going
to be with us not outside but he was going to be with us he
was going to be one of us and we see as we read through the
New Testament of all the things that the Lord Jesus Christ did
how he spoke with people, how he provided them with food, how
he changed the water into wine, how he forgave people of their
sin, how he raised people from the dead. He came down to the
level of a man to understand the weaknesses of a man. You and I can't really understand
all that Norman went through. None of us I don't think have
ever, well maybe one has, have ever slept on the streets for
some time. Most of us children, you children,
have had all of your life living in nice comfy beds. And so we
can't really understand what it's like to live on the streets
and to have to go and ask people for food and to climb into a
cold sleeping bag and to sleep in the open. For us to understand
that we would have to go and live like that and then we could
appreciate the hardships of that situation. And so for Christ,
for God to enter into human flesh was to help him to comprehend
all of the frailty of the human body. The scripture says we have
a high priest who is able to be touched with the feelings
of our infirmities. And so Christ put on a human
body and was able to understand some of the infirmities and weaknesses
of the flesh. Hunger and tiredness. compassion,
tears. And so one of the reasons why
it is such a wonderful name, Emmanuel, God with us, is that
God who was spirit, who is spirit, put on the limitations of human
flesh so that he may associate himself with his people, that
he may live a life That was perfect that he may die for the consequences
of their sins. His name shall be called Jesus
for he shall save his people from their sins. And so God was
able to be seen. Before God had never been seen
and now God was seen in the flesh. In the Gospel of John chapter
1 verse 14 it says, And the Word was made flesh, the Word being
Christ, and dwelt among us. And we beheld his glory, the
glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace
and truth. So John saw the glory of the
Lord Jesus. And you remember when the Lord
Jesus Christ went up into the mountain with Peter, James and John. And the
Bible says the Lord Jesus was transfigured before them. He shone. And a voice from heaven
came, this is my beloved son, hear ye him. And this is what
John is speaking about. We beheld his glory, the only
begotten of the Father, the Lord Jesus Christ, Emmanuel. God with us. God down on our
level. God that we can see. He says
handle me. I'm not spirit. So God with us. As we continue reading the Bible
we read that the Lord Jesus Christ after he died he rose again from
the dead and he ascended up into heaven. And this made the apostles
sad. But Jesus said that he was going
to give them a comforter, a one to help them as he left them. So although you and I, we don't
see the Lord Jesus Christ anymore, because he lived on this earth
for those 33 years. And it was to them, Emmanuel
God with us, they could see him and touch him and hear him and
speak to him. Yet he ascended up into heaven
and he became the great high priest of his people. There he
is today, yet we can't see him. So he has given his Holy Spirit
who is the comforter. And so how can we know Emmanuel,
God with us. How can Jesus be with us when
he is in heaven? You have sung. I suppose it's
very good, isn't it, to actually look at the words that we are
singing and ask ourselves the question, do I really understand
or do I really want to know what this is saying? Be near me, Lord
Jesus. I ask thee to stay close by me
forever and love me, I pray. Bless all the dear children in
thy tender care and fit us for heaven to live with thee there. This song, hymn, I sang this
hymn for 22 years. I never knew what it meant. I
don't know how many times I would have sung it, but then one Christmas,
as I was singing that last verse, I understood exactly what it
meant. This was my prayer. This is exactly
what I wanted to happen. I wanted the Lord Jesus to be
near me and I asked him to stay. close by me forever and love
me, I pray. And so there was a difference
in the way that I was singing because I began to understand
exactly what I wanted. I wanted Emmanuel, God with us,
God with me. I wanted the Lord Jesus Christ
to be with me. And I asked him to stay close
by me forever. Now how could the Lord Jesus
Christ do that when he is in heaven at the right hand of God?
How can he who is Emmanuel be here also on earth? Well he says, he tells us how
he's going to do it. In John 14 from verse 15 he says,
if you love me keep my commandments And I will pray the Father and
he shall give you another comforter that he may abide with you forever.
Even the spirit of truth whom the world cannot receive because
it sees him not, neither knows him, but ye know him for he dwells
with you and shall be in you. I will not leave you comfortless.
I will come to you. That is how he's going to do
it. He says, I'm going, but I'm going to give you my Holy Spirit,
the Comforter, the Spirit of Truth. He will be in you. And Jesus says, I will come to
you. We believe in Father, Son and
Holy Spirit. Jesus says, if you have seen
me, you have seen the Father. If you have known the Father,
you will know me. And so by the blessed Holy Spirit
comes the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ into the life of
the Lord's people. And so we can pray, be near me
Lord Jesus, because he can be near us. Not only can he be near
us, he can be in us. Our body, cleansed from sin,
can become the temple of the Holy Spirit. I know this is very
difficult to understand, but I have a little illustration
that may help. Some of you may know what this
is. Some of you may not. This is a drone. And at this
present time, it is useless. Why? Because it has no battery. Where the battery is is a hole.
It can't fly, it can't flash. If I let go of it it would just
fall to the floor. It may look good but it's no
good. This is like many people. They
may look good on the outside but they're no good. In the sight
of God they are no good, they are empty. And they spend their
lives trying to fill this hole here, which is where the battery
goes, with so many other things. Entertainment. They try and make
themselves happy and content by trying to fit entertainment
into this hole. or friends. They try and occupy
their time by searching for many friends. They try and make themselves
happy by trying to put friends into this hole and it doesn't
work. Maybe it's education. They try
and fill their time with study and learning to make themselves
happy and to make themselves content. And as we get older
we try and fill our time with family and work and other things
and we try and ram it all into this hole here to make ourselves
happy but it doesn't work. You know the most common thing
people try and put into this hole here? Money. They think if I can just
get money I'll be happy. and they get a hundred pounds
and they think oh if I could just get a little bit more money
then I would be happy. And they keep trying to push
money money money into that hole and they find that they're never
happy. The only thing that will make this work is what? A battery. Only the battery fills the hole. Who can fill the hole in our
life? Can't be money, can't be friends,
can't be entertainment, can't be popularity. The only thing
that will fill the hole is Jesus and he says I will come to you. I will be in you. You see when
this thing has battery it can work only if it's connected to
this. This is the controller. So the
controller speaks to the drone. The drone speaks to the controller
and they fly. It's the same with a Christian.
With the Holy Spirit in the heart is life. And that life enables
you to communicate with the controller who is God. There's a communication
there. The battery has been put in,
the Holy Spirit is in the heart, there is life. And we're able
to have communication with God. We're able to speak. We're able
to hear his voice. We're able to be guided and directed
by God himself. And we're able to know something
of God with us. So what is essential? The scripture
says that there is one thing in life that is needful and that
needful thing is to be filled with the Holy Spirit and to have
spiritual life and understanding and communication with God through
the Lord Jesus Christ. His name is Jesus. Why? Because
he will cleanse his people from their sin. His name is Emmanuel
because he came down to the level of his people and he is still
today with his people. He enables them by his spirit
to communicate with God the Father and as God the Father communicates
with his people through the word that they may be guided and directed
not into ways of uncleanness, ways of sin but ways of righteousness. So may you dear children come
to know what that hymn truly means. Be near me Lord Jesus
I ask thee to stay close by me forever and love me, I pray,
and fit us for heaven or make us ready for heaven to live with
thee there. May we not just look good on
the outside, but may we be filled with the Holy Spirit of God,
the battery that gives us spiritual life to be able to live for Emmanuel,
God with us. May the Lord bless you each.
Amen. Sorry, after this hymn, we'll
just sit down before we close in prayer, that's all. So all the hymns today were chosen
by Daisy. Closing hymn is hymn number 76 from Hymns of Worship. Jesus, who lived above the sky,
came down to be a man and die. And in the Bible we may see how
very good he used to be. Hymn number 76 from Hymns of
Worship to tune 304. came down to be a man that died. And in the Bible we may see how
very good he used to be. He went about, he was so kind,
To cure poor people who were blind. And any who were sick
and frail, He pitied them, And surmise, they would have
been certain. ? And gives a turn for the brave
? He knew how wicked men had been Son for His people, Jesus said,
prepare the way. So we've got some presents for
you children to thank you for your commitment over the whole
year. Hope you have learned something
of the Bible and something of the Lord Jesus Christ and we
pray that you will come to know him also as your saviour. So probably best if you don't
open your presents now, just give them to mummy and daddy
or something. So we've got John. Alfred Almanzo Alice Jack. Jethro. Isaac. Lisa? Daisy? Tessia? Johnny? Aegis? Lucy. Florence. Jacob. How are you? How are you? Thank you very much and well
done for saying your pieces. David, would you mind closing
in prayer, please? Our gracious God, we are humbled
at thy goodness and thy mercy. As we see these children and,
Lord, I'm fast growing up, some of them now fast becoming young
men and young ladies, we give thee hearty thanks for thy goodness
and thy mercy to this house of God. And we do thank Thee, O
Lord, for those pieces that they recited from St Luke's Gospel
so well. And Lord, we do ask that Thou
wilt abundantly bless these truths to their hearts, And we pray
that Thou wilt go on to call each one of them, Lord, by Thy
grace. We thank Thee where Thou hast
done that already. And Lord, we pray that Thou wilt
bless everyone, O Lord, from the youngest to the oldest in
this house of God this day with a time of sweet meditation at
this Christmas season. We thank Thee for Thy truth that
has been proclaimed here today and for the help given to our
pastor now, O Lord, in almost the first year has gone of his
pastorate here. And we do pray that as, Lord,
by Thy grace that we continue into the second year that we
may know much of thy goodness and thy mercy, that, O Lord,
thou wilt bless his labours and favour thy people as they come
under the sound of thy word. So we commit each other to Thee
now, and all whom we know and love, and ask that Thou wilt
bless the good food that we shall partake of. Lord, do bless that
to the nourishing of our bodies, and bless our time together in
fellowship, we pray, as we ask these things in that lovely,
all-prevailing Name, the Name of Jesus, and for His sake. Amen.