Tidings of Great Joy

 

[The following is the message of our Christmas Eve morning service of Sunday, the 24th of December and the 4th Sunday in Advent, 2023, at Pilgrim Reformed Church.  A recording of our service should be available on our YouTube streaming channel: 

https://www.youtube.com/@pilgrimreformedchurch1992/streams.]

“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.”  (Luke 2:10b-11 (KJV))

Today we rejoice in the greatest gift we’ve ever been given, the gift of salvation through our Lord Christ Jesus.  This is indeed a day for great joy and rejoicing, for God is coming down to earth to be among us and to take away our sin.  Let us rejoice and give thanks to our Lord!

Let us come together now with one heart and one voice to worship our Father God.  In the glorious name of Christ Jesus our Lord.  Amen.

Today we celebrate the fourth Sunday in Advent by lighting the candle of Joy.

Scripture tells us that when Solomon was anointed as king, "All the people went up after him, and the people were playing on flutes and rejoicing with great joy, so that the earth shook at their noise."  When Jesus came to us as a baby, the angel that heralded His birth told us to “Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.”  What a joyful day it was, Lord Jesus, and what a joyful day it will be when you return to take us home.  The very earth will shake at Your coming.

We light the first candle to remind us of all our hopes being placed upon the coming Jesus, the second candle to feel the love of God that Jesus brings us, and the third candle for the endless peace Christ brings.  The fourth candle is our celebration of joy – the great joy to all people that came with our Lord’s birth, and the great joy for all believers that will be ours upon His return.

Let us pray...  Savior Jesus, You are all we need to have true joy in our lives.  We await Your coming and the great joy it will bring.  As we wait, let us share Your joy with those who may not know You.  Come, Lord Jesus, come.  Amen.

Hear the words of God spoken through His prophet Micah in chapter 5, verse 2 of the book bearing his name…

2 “But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah,

Though you are little among the thousands of Judah,

Yet out of you shall come forth to Me

The One to be Ruler in Israel,

Whose goings forth are from of old,

From everlasting.”

--Micah 5:2 (NKJV)

The Apostle Luke tells of the birth of Jesus in the first 18 verses of the 2nd chapter of his Gospel account…

1 And it came to pass in those days that a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be registered. 2 This census first took place while Quirinius was governing Syria. 3 So all went to be registered, everyone to his own city.

4 Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and lineage of David, 5 to be registered with Mary, his betrothed wife, who was with child.

6 So it was, that while they were there, the days were completed for her to be delivered. 7 And she brought forth her firstborn Son, and wrapped Him in swaddling cloths, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.

8 Now there were in the same country shepherds living out in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. 9 And behold, an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were greatly afraid. 10 Then the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people. 11 For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. 12 And this will be the sign to you: You will find a Babe wrapped in swaddling cloths, lying in a manger.”

13 And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying:

14 “Glory to God in the highest,

And on earth peace, goodwill toward men!”

15 So it was, when the angels had gone away from them into heaven, that the shepherds said to one another, “Let us now go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has come to pass, which the Lord has made known to us.” 16 And they came with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the Babe lying in a manger. 17 Now when they had seen Him, they made widely known the saying which was told them concerning this Child. 18 And all those who heard it marveled at those things which were told them by the shepherds.

--Luke 2:1-18 (NKJV)

Hear now of a very special visit, by wise men who came from afar seeking the Messiah, from the 2nd chapter of the Apostle Matthew’s Gospel account, verses 1 & 2 and 7 through 11…

1 Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, 2 saying, “Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him.”

7 Then Herod, when he had secretly called the wise men, determined from them what time the star appeared. 8 And he sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and search carefully for the young Child, and when you have found Him, bring back word to me, that I may come and worship Him also.”

9 When they heard the king, they departed; and behold, the star which they had seen in the East went before them, till it came and stood over where the young Child was. 10 When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy. 11 And when they had come into the house, they saw the young Child with Mary His mother, and fell down and worshiped Him. And when they had opened their treasures, they presented gifts to Him: gold, frankincense, and myrrh.

--Matthew 2:1-2, 7-11 (NKJV)

The gift of God, as told by the Apostle John in the opening chapter of his Gospel account, verses 1 through 5 and verse 14…

1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. 4 In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. 5 And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.

14 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.

--John 1:1-5, 14 (NKJV)

Hear the words of God as spoken through His prophet Isaiah and recorded in the 9th chapter of the book bearing his name, verses 6 and 7…

6 For unto us a Child is born,

Unto us a Son is given;

And the government will be upon His shoulder.

And His name will be called

Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God,

Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

7 Of the increase of His government and peace

There will be no end,

Upon the throne of David and over His kingdom,

To order it and establish it with judgment and justice

From that time forward, even forever.

The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this.

--Isaiah 9:6-7 (NKJV)

Family, Valentine’s Day may be the time for lovers, but I think Christmas is the time for love.  For it is the celebration of when God showed His great love for us by sending His Son into the world to offer us redemption of our sins.  And it is the holiday when, if we are fortunate and blessed enough, we gather our loved ones close around us, sharing in the warmth of love as we share in the giving of gifts.

I just love the Christmas story as the Apostle Luke wrote it.  The Jews expected their Messiah to come as a conquering hero, but it didn’t happen that way.  Just the opposite; He came as an innocent, vulnerable baby, attended to by cows and sheep and shepherds.  Mary and Joseph couldn’t even find decent lodgings for her to give birth in, and had to seek shelter in a stable.  And there the little Baby Jesus was born and laid in a manger, a feeding trough, the King of all kings.

It’s hard to imagine any more humble surroundings for the Son of God to be born into this world.  A stable complete with animals and, I’m sure, their smells.  Lowly shepherds, following the directions of an angel, came to visit and see the holy Infant.

Sometime later, we don’t know exactly when, a small group of very learned men, following a heavenly sign, traveled a great distance to see this newborn King.  And they, too, shared some wonderful, and expensive, gifts.

Jesus came to us because His Father sent Him, because His Father loves us this much.  He came as one of us so we could relate to Him.  He came humbly, lived humbly, so that we could learn to be humble, too.  And He went to the cross humbly, willingly, to carry out His Father’s plan of salvation for mankind.  This is a gift from God, the greatest gift.  All anyone has to do to benefit from God’s love and Jesus’ sacrifice is to accept Jesus as their Lord.  That’s it – turn from our sin and accept Jesus as Lord, following Him, obeying His command.

Hold those you love close and near to you.  Let them know how much you love them, this Christmas time and all the time.  Love your Lord and keep Him close to your heart.  And treasure the greatest gift we have been given.

In the blessed name of Jesus. Amen.

Let us pray…  Father God, thank You so much for the greatest gift we could ever receive – the gift of everlasting life through Your Son.  Today and tomorrow we celebrate that birth of so long ago, when Jesus came to us as one of us, born of a woman just like us.  Even at His birth, His kingship and His sacrifice were foretold in the offerings He received from the wise men who sought Him.  Well, Father, wise men still seek Jesus, the Messiah, the Christ.  Thank You for choosing us to be among the wise.  Father, may the joy of this day carry on throughout the coming year.  And may the birth of the Prince of Peace bring peace to all the earth.  In the blessed name of Christ Jesus our Lord.  Amen.

And now, family, go in peace.  Let the joy of this day fill your heart and your entire being so that you glow with the beauty of Jesus for all to see.  Enjoy time with family and friends, but then let’s do as the shepherds did after they had seen the Christ Child.  Let us make widely known what we have been told about this child.  For unto all of us a Savior is born, Christ the Lord.

In the blessed name of Christ Jesus, the Son of God, our Lord and Savior.  Amen.