Gabriel's announcement concerning
the birth of Jesus Christ was first given to Mary. That's recorded
in Luke's Gospel, chapter 1. Let's read that. And then also
we'll go to Matthew's account, chapter 1, where he relates the
news to Joseph, her husband. First Luke, chapter 1. Let's
begin reading at verse 26. Luke 1 and 26. And in the sixth
month, The angel Gabriel was sent from God into a city of
Galilee named Nazareth, to a virgin and spouse, to a man whose name
was Joseph, of the house of David, and the virgin's name was Mary. And the angel came in unto her
and said, Hail thou that art highly favored. The Lord is with
thee. Blessed art thou among women.
And when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and cast
in her mind what matter of salutation this should be. And the angel
said unto her, Fear not, Mary, for thou hast found favor with
God. And behold, thou shalt conceive
in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name
Jesus. He shall be great. and shall
be called the Son of the Highest, and the Lord God shall give unto
him the throne of his father David. And he shall reign over
the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there shall be
no end. Then said Mary unto the angel,
How shall this be, seeing I know not a man? And the angel answered
and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the
power of the highest shall overshadow thee. Therefore also that holy
thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son
of God." That is indeed a mystery. And Paul said, without controversy,
great is the mystery of godliness and left it there. God was manifest
in the flesh. Verse 36, And behold, thy cousin
Elizabeth, she had also conceived a son in her old age, and this
is the sixth month with her who was called barren. For with God
nothing shall be impossible. And Mary said, Behold, the handmaid
of the Lord, be it unto me according to thy word. And the angel departed
from her. Now, if you will, go to Matthew
chapter 1. Matthew chapter 1, begin reading
at verse 18. As we said, Gabriel first appears
to Mary. And then after she's conceived,
and you're familiar with this, very familiar with it, Joseph
is unaware of what's taking place. Therefore, the angel Gabriel
goes to him. to set his mind at ease concerning
that holy thing that she was carrying in her womb. Verse 18,
Matthew chapter 1. Now the birth of Jesus Christ
was on this wise, when as his mother Mary was a spouse 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, 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. And now he's quoting from, or
rather this is a quote from Isaiah chapter 7 verse 14, which took
place over 700 years before this that we just read of, verse 23. 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. So she had brought forth
her firstborn son, and he called his name Jesus." Now, turn back,
if you will, to Luke's account. I want to consider what time
we have Who was born and why? We just read it in those two
accounts. Who was it that was born and
why? And the title of my message is
Still Good News. Lester, it's still good news. Mary was told, call his name
Jesus. He shall be Joseph was told,
call his name Jesus, for he shall save his people from their sins. And we read in Luke 2 verse 21,
that when the days were accomplished for his circumcision, that his
name was called Jesus. He was named by God Himself. I know Gabriel delivered the
message, but he was the messenger. He was delivering what God Almighty
Himself told him to deliver. Look if you will in chapter 1
of Luke at verse 19. In this account, The angel, Gabriel,
is appearing to Zacharias, the father of John the Baptist, telling
him that his wife, Elizabeth, even though she's well stricken
in years, and so is Zacharias, she shall have a son. Oh, not
like Christ, the forerunner of Christ. Christ was born sinless
in the womb of the virgin. But here's the announcement to
Zacharias at verse 19 of Luke 1. And the angel answering said
unto him, I am Gabriel that stand in the presence of God and am
sent to speak unto thee and to show thee these glad tidings. And behold, thou shalt be dumb
and not able to speak until the day that these things shall be
performed. performed. What God promised
Zacharias, he's able to perform. Don't you doubt it. Don't you
doubt it. And he didn't doubt it after
this. Oh, because they shall be performed, because thou believest
not my words, which shall be fulfilled in their season. So you see, Gabriel was the messenger
sent from God. One more verse or two along this
line. Look at, if you will, at verse
37. This is Gabriel's words to Mary
that we read of a moment ago. In chapter 1 rather, no, chapter
2 we read in the reading, but in chapter 1 verse 37, for with
God nothing shall be impossible, nothing. Look down at verse 45.
This is Elizabeth's response to the visit of Mary. She said,
When you came in my door, the babe in my womb, John the Baptist,
the forerunner of that one whom you bear in your womb, leaped
for joy at the sound of your voice. And this was Elizabeth's
words to Mary, verse 45. And blessed is she that believed.
That is Mary believing the words of Gabriel. For there shall be
a performance, he'll perform what he promised, of those things
which were told her from the Lord. Who better than God knew
who and why he was sending his Son into this world? All this was done We're told
again, referring to Matthew's account, that it might be fulfilled
by the prophets. The word spoken hundreds of years
before. All this was done. Every minute
detail. Nothing was left to what we call
chance. God arranged everything, everything,
to the birth of His Son. This event the birth of Jesus
Christ, before He was born, He was the eternal Son of God,
before He came forth. Oh, before He was born in that
stable in Bethlehem, before He became flesh of our flesh and
bone of our bones, He was before unto us the child born, but before
that the very Son of God Himself. This event is the greatest, the
grandest event ever to take place on earth. Now I don't think I've
exaggerated that as a matter of fact. I don't think it's possible. I don't think it's possible to
exaggerate the importance of this one event. Everything, everything
from eternity past to eternity to come revolves around this
event, this miraculous birth of that one who himself was God. Oh, the Word made flesh, John
said, and dwelt among us. You say, well, I thought His
death was the most greatest event. Well, He must be born first.
He cannot die. As God, He did not die. God cannot
die. Oh, but His man may liken to
His brethren that He might taste death for them. This miraculous birth of He who
is God himself reaches back, as we said, to eternity past. And it reaches down to the day
that it actually took place. And it reaches down to our day
now. And it reaches back and continues
to redound to the glory of the triune God for eternity to come. I dare say that the angels are
still singing that song of praise unto God, adoring and wondering
at the footstool of Him who was indeed the God That's how significant
this event is. There could be no salvation without
it. This is that rock of ages. the
stone that the builders refused, the rock of ages chosen by God,
elect, precious, which dropped into the vast ocean of God's
eternal purpose, will continue to send wave after wave of effectual
grace and redeeming love from one eternal shore to the other. From everlasting to everlasting,
He shall save His people from their sins. Oh, what a Savior! What a Savior! This blessed word to Joseph in
Matthew 1 of what he would name the baby in Mary's womb and why
was always then the mind and the purpose of God from everlasting. It had no beginning. Lester,
our little brains, mine especially, cannot get a grip on that. God
never has a new thought. God never has an idea. Oh no, or a new idea, or a better. Oh no, this fact of the birth
of Jesus Christ, Him sending His Son into the world in the
fullness of time, His time, His appointed time, to the very place
that the prophet said He should come, it was always the purpose
of God to do so from everlasting. Before there was an angel to
announce His birth, God had purposed it. Before there was a sinner
that stood in need of His birth, He, that is Christ, stood as
that one who shall save His people from their sins. Always. Always, Louis. There was never a time in the
purpose and counsels of God Almighty that Jesus Christ didn't stand
as the Savior, the substitute of His people. Never. Isn't that something? As you've
heard said, and it's so, before there was a sinner, there was
a Savior. He's the Lamb slain, we're told,
from the foundation of the world. This glorious proclamation. as I said, is still good news. Two thousand years is not enough
time to adore the luster of this blessed, blessed event. Eternity
won't prove long enough to allow the glorious truth this glorious
truth that God Almighty sent His only begotten Son into the
world to save His people from their sins. Eternity itself won't
be long enough to allow this glorious truth to fade. No, not in the least. As a matter
of fact, it will grow brighter in our estimation because in
that day when we surround the throne and we cast our crowns
at the feet of our glorious Redeemer, that Jesus who loved us and gave
Himself for us, then we shall no longer be looking through
a glass darkly, but we'll see Him face to face and we'll join
a multitude of redeemed sinners singing, worthy is the Lamb. How do I know that? Well, the
same way that Mary knew, the same way that Joseph knew concerning
the advent of the birth of Jesus Christ, because God Himself that
said it will perform it. That's how I know it's so. Look,
if you will, in Revelation chapter 5. How do I know that what I
just said is so? Because God Almighty says it's
so. And what He says, He does. When He says it, it's as good
as done. In Revelation chapter 5 verse
9, oh Lord, what will it be? What will it be when we get over
yonder and join that throne upon the glassy sea? What will it
be? Verse 9 of Revelation 5, And
they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book,
and to open the seals thereof, for or because thou wast slain,
and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood. You did it. You accomplished eternal redemption
for us. And who are we, us, out of every
kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation? And has made us unto
our God kings and priests, and we shall reign with Him on the
earth. And I beheld and I heard the
voice of many angels round about the throne, and the beast, and
the elders. And the number of them was ten
thousand times ten thousand. and thousands of thousands sing
with a loud voice, worthy is the Lamb. They only sing one
song in heaven. There's only one tomb. There's
only one that wears the crown. There's only one that gets the
glory. And that's the one from whom
we have received all the grace. It's only right that he should
receive the praise. Worthy is the Lamb that was slain
to receive power and riches and wisdom and strength and honor
and glory and blessing. And every creature which is in
heaven Be ye a redeemed sinner, be ye an angel, every creature
on the earth, under the earth, and such as are in the sea, and
all that are in them, heard I say, blessing and honor and glory
and power be unto Him. Him. Does that not give us some
inkling some idea of His worth, that all this praise, all this
glory, all this honor is focused to one object, and one object
alone, the Lord of glory, Jesus Christ Himself. My soul, He must
be something. He must be something, and He
is. Thank God He is. I heard saying,
blessing and honoring, glory and power be unto Him, Him, only
Him. Him that has redeemed us to God
by His own precious blood. He alone who cried, It is finished. He alone who has made sin for
us who knew no sin. He alone who reconciled us to
God. He alone who came to this earth
on purpose to save His people from their sins unto the Lamb
forever and ever. Verse 14, And the four beasts
said, Amen. We agree. We're in perfect harmony
with every word you say. And the four and twenty elders
fell down and worshipped him that liveth forever and ever. Oh, bless God. How can I know? How can I know that I'm one of
those of whom the angel told Joseph his people that He came
to save from their sins. How can I know that? How can
I know that this is good news to me? Oh, and it is. As long as there's a needy sinner
anywhere, anytime, thank God there's a Savior. As long as
this world stands, and it's standing only because of this reason,
There are elect there. There are some of his sheep there
that he has yet to call. That's the only reason God allows
this world to exist. That's the only reason. It's
got nothing to do with who's in the White House. I mean, God
moved Augustus to make this decree concerning the taxation because
he had decreed before the world began that his son should be
born at this very place, at this very time. Oh, anywhere there's
a needy sinner, anytime crying, God be merciful to me, the sinner,
this will be good news. Jesus. The name means the salvation
of the Lord. Jesus shall save his people from
their sins. He's proven it multiplied thousands
of times, hasn't he? Hasn't he? He's proved it to
each of us. each of us that know Him. He's
proved that He's mighty to save. He's proved that He's worthy
of all honor and praise and glory. He's proved it because He did
for us what we couldn't do for ourselves, can He? or nobody
else could do, no preacher could do, no church could do. He came
to where we were and He called us out of darkness, He raised
us from the dead, and He breathed into our hearts the very life
that flows in His veins as well, eternal. And He said, Thy sins. Oh, sweet word. When justice
called for payment, it was more than we could give. Oh, but mercy,
mercy in the person of God's Son smiled upon us, saying, I
forgive. I forgive. Thy sins, which are
many, and one's enough to send me to hell forever, but they
were many. Thy sins, which are many, are
all forgiven. are all forgiven, no matter how
many. Your past sins, your present
sins, your future sins, they're all forgiven. They're all under
the blood of the crucified one. It's no wonder that they sing.
Worthy is the Lamb that was slain." How can I know that I have a
part in this? How can this be good news to
me personally? How can He become my Savior that
saves me from my sins? How can I know I'm one of those
people? Are you a sinner? Remember what
He said to Joseph? Call His name Jesus for He shall
save His people, what? From their sin. All of His people
are sinners. They're all sinners. He came
to save sinners. That's the Savior that He is.
He came to save sinners from their sin. Are you a sinner? Every one of His people are.
You say, well, but, but. No, no buts. No buts. There's no comfort that can be
brought to a sinner who has any reservation about that. who has
any argument about that. Oh no, but if there's ever a
sinner, if the King of Glory looks down from the throne of
His Sovereign Majesty and hears one cry, be merciful to me, He
will say, I tell you, He's going home. He's going home on earth
and He's coming home to glory where I am because He's justified. He's justified by my blood. Oh, we sing, Only a sinner saved
by grace. Only a sinner saved by grace.
This is my story, and I'm glad to sing it. I'm glad to sing
it. This is my story. To God be the
glory. I'm only a sinner saved by grace. The effects of this birth, this
one birth and life, of only a mere 33 years is still being realized
today, and it will tomorrow, and it will forever. Can I quote
another hymn that I quote often? But it's good. It's God-honoring. It gives God the glory. Dear
dying lamb, thy precious blood shall never lose its power till
all the ransomed church of God be saved to sin no more. This account that we read in
Luke 2 of his actual birth, I'm sure there was much hustle and
bustle going on in Bethlehem, don't you? I mean, all these
people that were born there, like Joseph, had to come back
there. That's why there was no room
in the inn. All the rooms were taken. So much hustle and bustle
when Joseph went with Mary, his espoused wife, being great with
child. Caesar's decree that all the
world should be taxed. So Joseph went up to Bethlehem,
the city of David, because as we read there, he was of the
house and lineage of David. Oh, but as we said, and it's
worth repeating, a greater one than Caesar Augustus had decreed
something to." That's right, Lord. Who's going
to have their way? Everything. Oh, he had decreed
something too. That's why Caesar acted as he
did. You remember what the wise man
said? The king's heart is in the hand of the Lord as the rivers
of water. He turneth it whether so ever
he will. And he decreed this. Listen as
I read of the announcement, the prophecy of it rather. 400 years
before it actually took place in Micah. But thou, Bethlehem,
Ephrathah. There was another Bethlehem,
that's why he specifies this one. Bethlehem, Ephrathah, Micah
5 and 2. Though thou be little among the
thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto
me. This is God speaking. Out of
thee, Bethlehem, shall he come forth unto me, That is to be
ruler in Israel, whose goings forth have been from of old,
from everlasting, from everlasting. That's God speaking 400 years
before this event that we read of in Luke actually took place. Bethlehem. The word means house
of bread. Bethlehem means house of bread. And I know what you're thinking.
What did our Lord say in John 6? I am the bread of life. Your fathers ate manna in the
wilderness and they're dead. Whosoever eateth of me, I'm the
bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats this bread, what
did he say? What did the resurrection and
the life declare? He that eateth this bread, me,
shall never die. Never die. Never die, Lord."
Oh, my soul, what a Savior. Because of the great influx of
people, due to this taxation, Mary wrapped her baby in swaddling
clothes and laid him in a manger because there was no room for
them in the end. Oh, the town was just packed
with people. Much coming and going. Much people
meant much business. I'm sure that the merchants would
have their displays of wares out. They would all be competing
for the crowd's money. Sound familiar? In the name of
religion, I'm sure there was many that sound familiar. And amidst all this hustle and
bustle, He who was very God of very God had just become man. My soul, with all this hustle
and bustle, with all this rush, with all this going on, with
all this get all you can get, With all that happening, at that
very time, the Son of God Himself, God Almighty, became flesh and
blood, and most people didn't even notice it. They just walked
by, just walked on by. Oh, again I ask, doesn't that
sound familiar? He was born through the seed
of a woman, the virgin, that He might be born without sin.
in order that He might save His people from their sins. My soul won an event, and very
few even noticed. John said He was in the world,
and the world was made by Him, and the world knew Him not. He
came unto His own, and His own received Him not." Him. The world doesn't revolve around
us. It revolves around Him. And so it should be, because
He made it. It's His world. Oh, in Colossians
1 we're told all things were made by Him and for Him they
do exist. Mary's Son is Mary's God. The world was created and man
put in it to display not man's merit, not man's worth, oh no,
but to display the glory of God's mighty rich grace on chosen sinners. This is exactly what Paul says
in Ephesians 2. That in the dispensation of the
fullness of time, God might show the exceeding riches of His grace. That's why the world is. This
world is just a stage, if you will, on which the God of glory
displays His mercy on chosen sinners. That's it. Paul said
in Romans 8, all the depth, both of the wisdom and knowledge of
God, Romans 11, how unsearchable is His wisdom and His ways past
finding out. Who had known the mind of the
Lord? Who's been His counselor? Can somebody advise God? No,
Paul said, of Him, and through Him, and back to Him are all
things to whom be glory both now and forever. He came unto
His own, His own nation, His own people, and His own received
Him not. He was in the world and the world
was made by Him. And the world knew Him not. As
I said, at His birth, He was mostly unnoticed. Mostly unnoticed. And this was the same truth throughout
His life. And it's still true today. Folks
will argue that point. They would take issue with that
last statement. They would say, oh, not so, not
so. After 2,000 years, we surely know better than that now. We're
more enlightened now. No, no. Sinners are just as dead
loyal today as they was when Christ walked this earth. It
still takes an act of God's miraculous grace. You cannot help but notice
unless you close your eyes while you're driving, which is not
a good idea. But when you pass these church signs, they're indicative
of the foolishness and the concept, the false concept people have
of who God is and who Christ is. When I was in Danville, I
made several trips between Danville and where my son lives, and I
passed this church, and I noticed this sign every time. I wanted
to chuck a rock through it, but I'm afraid somebody might be
watching. But it said this, Mary wrapped the first Christmas gift
for you herself. Isn't it time you accepted it? I don't know who they're talking
about, Lester, but it's not him. It's not Him. It's not the King
of Glory. It's not Him that has His way.
It's not Him who attempts, but He who redeems that the angels
sang about. He was successful. Oh, John went
on to tell us, "...but to as many as received Him." Some received
Him. Some believed on Him. Some bowed
down to Him. There were some that actually
followed Him. Why? What made the difference? But to as many as received Him,
to them gave He power to become the sons of God who were born,
not of the will of man, not of the will of the flesh, but by
the will Salvation is God's work. It's not your work. It's God's
work. And that's why the Scriptures
declare that He gets all the glory. John said the Word was
made flesh in chapter 1 verse 14. The Word was made flesh and
dwelt among us and we beheld His glory. Many didn't receive
Him. Many didn't know Him. But John
said, He was in the world. The Word was made flesh. And John says, we, we beheld
His glory. There were some of us to whom
He revealed Himself. Remember what our Lord said to
His disciples? He rejoiced and said, I thank
Thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that Thou has revealed
these things, hid them from the wise and prudent, and has revealed
them to who? The babes. And He said to His
disciples, blessed are your eyes, because they see, Lonnie, they
see. God's done something for you
that He's not done for everybody. John said, we beheld His glory. The religious leader says, He's
Joseph's son. He's the son of Mary. He's nobody. John said, we beheld His glory,
full of grace and full of truth. What happened to you, John? Were
you smarter than the rest? Did you know something the other
Jews didn't? Oh, John said, He opened her eyes. The only
way anyone can know Christ is to whom God is pleased to reveal
Him. Look, if you will, again in chapter
1, or rather chapter 2 of Luke. We have an example of this concerning
the shepherds. Look at verse 8 of Luke 2. We have an example of this discriminating
grace, this revelation of Christ right here. And there were in
the same country shepherds abiding in the field keeping watch over
their flock by night. And lo, the angel of the Lord
came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about
them. They were in darkness till that happened. And they were
sore 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 Savior, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto
you. Ye shall find the babe. Ye shall find. Shepherds, go
into Bethlehem and there you will find the great Shepherd
of the sheep. Shepherds, leave your flock here
and go into Bethlehem and there you shall find the Shepherd and
Bishop of your souls. Ye shall find. And they said,
let us go and see this thing. Let us go. I want to see it personally. The angel has told us. He has
brought us God's message. Oh, but let's go see Him. Let's
go find Him for ourselves. And they made haste, verse 16,
and they found Mary. They found Mary. But that's not
who they were looking for. No. Yes, the Virgin Mary. Yes, highly favored. But she's
not the mediator between God and man, no matter what the Pope
says. No, she's not. No, she's not.
And then Joseph, we're told there. But that's not who they were
looking for either. And the babe. Oh, that's who
they were looking for. The babe. That babe is the hope
of needy sinners. That babe is the one who shall
save his people from their sins. That babe is the one that shall
be great. There he is. There he is. That's the Savior, which is Christ
the Lord. Oh, that's who I must find. Him. Only Him. To as many as received Him, John
says, to as many that received Him, God the Son,
God our Savior, as many as God intended, as many as He came
for, as many as the Father gave Him, as many as He gave His life
a ransom for, as many as He shall bring by His matchless grace
to glory. Oh, I love the beauty, don't
you? of the certainty, the matter-of-factness of God's Word. Religious folk
talk nonsense. The more religious, the more
nonsense they speak. They speak about God trying and
Jesus wanting to do something. It's foreign to God's Word. Oh,
it speaks as matter-of-factly as words could be put. It doesn't
speak as man does. It speaks certain and clear and
distinct. Mary, He shall be great. No doubt
about it. Joseph, He shall save His people
from their sins because He's Immanuel. That name describes
His nature, which is God with us. In wrapping this up, is He
a Savior unto you? Has He in His saving power come
to you? Is He your Emmanuel, God with
us? Again, just as it was over 2,000
years ago in Bethlehem, that precious name will be uttered
in sermons and songs and plays and all kinds of nonsense. It'll
be used to try to sell people things. Oh, but when this day
is done, they won't even consider, do I know him? Do I even know
him? The concern people will give
to unimportant matters and not be sure of this, the most important
thing in this life for Larry Criss that everything else pales
into comparison to is this one thing, do I know him? Nothing else matters, Lloyd.
I'm telling you, nothing else matters. Oh, that I might know
Him. Brothers and sisters in Christ,
God help us to leave this place with our hearts overflowing with
gratitude to our Savior, Christ the Lord, our Jesus, who shall
save His people from their sins. Thank most of Him this day. You'll have a delightful day
and thank God for it with family and friends and gathering. I
had a delightful time in Danville with my children and grandchildren. Oh, but at the end of this day,
when you look back, by God's grace say, oh, what a Savior. What a Savior. Call His name
Jesus. He shall save His people from
their sins. God bless you.