The Child Arrives
Series: Christmas 2024
Speaker: Steve Jeffrey
Date: 25th December 2024
00:00:00 --> 00:00:03 And let me add my welcome to the other welcomes here this morning.
00:00:03 --> 00:00:05 My name's Steve. I've never met you before.
00:00:06 --> 00:00:07 I've seen you past here at St Paul's.
00:00:07 --> 00:00:14 And what a great day to be gathering on this Christmas Day to celebrate the birth of Jesus.
00:00:15 --> 00:00:18 Christmas is huge. It's big.
00:00:18 --> 00:00:29 It is incredible that something that is started so small would grow into something as magnificent as it is today.
00:00:29 --> 00:00:36 So small that a poor, unwed teenage girl would give birth to a baby.
00:00:37 --> 00:00:45 And this day, 2 years later, around half of the world's population, 3.5 billion people celebrate Christmas.
00:00:47 --> 00:00:52 160 countries in our world declare it to be a holiday season.
00:00:53 --> 00:00:57 That's over 80% of our countries in this world declare it to be a holiday season.
00:00:57 --> 00:01:08 To go from something so small to something so big points to something clearly very significant that's happening here on this very first Christmas Day.
00:01:08 --> 00:01:13 It's celebrated differently around the world.
00:01:13 --> 00:01:24 But one of the interesting things about Christmas, which we don't get in any other celebrations throughout our calendar year in the year,
00:01:25 --> 00:01:30 is the fact that the giving and receiving as gifts is so widely spread.
00:01:30 --> 00:01:32 You know, like birthdays or retirement, that sort of stuff.
00:01:32 --> 00:01:35 It's normally one person getting all the gifts.
00:01:35 --> 00:01:40 Whereas Christmas is about everyone involving and sharing the gifts.
00:01:40 --> 00:01:47 And it's pointing to the symbolic nature of the magnificence of the gift of Jesus Christ.
00:01:47 --> 00:01:51 Who he is and what he has come to do for our sake.
00:01:51 --> 00:01:53 That's what makes Christmas so, so big.
00:01:54 --> 00:01:57 And that's where we want to head today as we look at Matthew chapter 2.
00:01:58 --> 00:01:59 It'd be great if you got your Bibles open.
00:01:59 --> 00:02:07 We want to see three personal gifts, three personal reactions, and one personal response to the person of Jesus.
00:02:08 --> 00:02:09 So three personal gifts.
00:02:09 --> 00:02:11 We read there in verse 11.
00:02:12 --> 00:02:17 Jesus, as a baby, received a bunch of gifts, three gifts from some strangers.
00:02:18 --> 00:02:19 Odd sort of thing.
00:02:20 --> 00:02:24 He gets gifts of gold, incense, and myrrh.
00:02:24 --> 00:02:32 As a poor peasant girl, Mary would have been fairly pleased, I'd imagine, with this.
00:02:32 --> 00:02:34 You know, like these are expensive gifts.
00:02:35 --> 00:02:43 And so this newborn baby comes with this extensive trust fund that would have been deeply encouraging for her.
00:02:43 --> 00:02:49 But these gifts are deeply personal and confusing at the same time.
00:02:50 --> 00:02:54 They reveal, in the end, three significant things.
00:02:54 --> 00:03:01 Who Jesus is, what he came to do, and how he did it.
00:03:02 --> 00:03:05 The gold that he receives points to the kingship of Jesus.
00:03:06 --> 00:03:13 Gold was a gift that was brought to an audience of a king in the ancient Near East in the first century.
00:03:13 --> 00:03:17 You didn't turn up to a king without a gift of gold.
00:03:17 --> 00:03:24 So the Magi, when they turned up, were expecting to see a king.
00:03:24 --> 00:03:34 Once upon a time when Queen Elizabeth II visited Australia, the nation, the grateful nation of Australia, gave her the 50th edition of Who's Who in Australia.
00:03:35 --> 00:03:36 That's the gift she received.
00:03:37 --> 00:03:39 Obviously, we really appreciate her.
00:03:39 --> 00:03:47 So they turn up to say, where is the one born who's to be born king of the Jews?
00:03:49 --> 00:03:54 And what alerted them to the arrival of a new king is in the second half of verse 2.
00:03:55 --> 00:04:00 We saw his star in the east and we have come to worship him.
00:04:00 --> 00:04:06 Now, the Magi were astrologers.
00:04:06 --> 00:04:09 They were magicians and interpreters of dreams.
00:04:09 --> 00:04:13 And in the ancient world, people believed in astrology.
00:04:13 --> 00:04:18 And so the Magi, in their culture, were considered the elite.
00:04:19 --> 00:04:20 They were the academics.
00:04:21 --> 00:04:23 They were the wise men, the professors.
00:04:23 --> 00:04:32 And when these guys saw the star, they really recognised in this moment that something significant was happening.
00:04:33 --> 00:04:33 Why is that?
00:04:34 --> 00:04:46 Well, in 44 BC, Julius Caesar, when he died, one of the most astonishing flukes in history, if you like, took place.
00:04:47 --> 00:04:52 A nova appeared in the sky above his funeral.
00:04:52 --> 00:05:04 And so from that moment on in the ancient Near East, stars were associated with great men and particularly rulers.
00:05:05 --> 00:05:08 And so these Magi are putting two and two together here.
00:05:08 --> 00:05:14 And so what would have particularly encouraged them to dust off their passports and head off
00:05:14 --> 00:05:21 was the strong rumour in the first century that there would be a change in world dominion.
00:05:22 --> 00:05:26 Rule would start to come out of centralised in Judea.
00:05:27 --> 00:05:36 Famous and diverse first century historians like Tacitus, Josephus and Suetonius all recorded this incident.
00:05:36 --> 00:05:49 It would have been not really much of a leap at all for the Magi to conclude that political changes were underway when they saw the star.
00:05:50 --> 00:05:58 And they set out on this long and difficult journey to find the ruler of the world and to offer him gold.
00:05:58 --> 00:06:03 But frankincense or incense was an unexpected gift.
00:06:04 --> 00:06:13 Because this gift was used by priests in the temple as they mediated between God and people.
00:06:13 --> 00:06:20 That is, frankincense was symbolic of relationship with God.
00:06:20 --> 00:06:28 And so the Magi were recognising Jesus at this point, not just as a king, but as a priest.
00:06:29 --> 00:06:36 The one who would mediate between God and humanity, the divine and a rebellious people.
00:06:37 --> 00:06:44 But the third gift would have really been something that would have thrown any brand new mother, the gift of myrrh.
00:06:44 --> 00:06:53 That's because in the first century ancient Near East, myrrh was the main ingredient for the embalming of a dead body.
00:06:54 --> 00:06:56 It's a symbol of death.
00:06:57 --> 00:07:00 And so the gift of myrrh is prophetic.
00:07:01 --> 00:07:06 The baby born a king and priest was a baby born to die.
00:07:06 --> 00:07:14 And that, in the end, is what was needed to bring about reconciliation between God and humanity.
00:07:15 --> 00:07:18 Jesus would die for the sins of humanity.
00:07:19 --> 00:07:25 The title, King of the Jews, is only used twice in Matthew's Gospel.
00:07:26 --> 00:07:31 Here at the birth of Jesus, again at the crucifixion of Jesus.
00:07:31 --> 00:07:41 Born a king who exercises his rule by sacrificing himself to bring us back into relationship with God.
00:07:41 --> 00:07:42 That's the three gifts.
00:07:42 --> 00:07:48 Who Jesus is, what he came to do, and how he would do it.
00:07:49 --> 00:07:54 And then, in this text, we see three reactions to the person of Jesus.
00:07:54 --> 00:08:06 One thing you notice in all the historical biographies of Jesus is that whenever Jesus turns up, he divides people's opinion rapidly.
00:08:07 --> 00:08:09 It's like he's this bowling ball.
00:08:09 --> 00:08:11 It just sort of smashes people's views.
00:08:12 --> 00:08:17 And see, here at the start of his life, we see three immediate reactions.
00:08:17 --> 00:08:21 And really, if you like, two groups, two camps forming already.
00:08:21 --> 00:08:24 One is full of praise and welcome.
00:08:25 --> 00:08:27 The other is full of hatred, opposition, and indifference.
00:08:28 --> 00:08:30 So first of all, we have hostile Herod.
00:08:30 --> 00:08:32 Herod lies through his teeth.
00:08:32 --> 00:08:33 Verse 8.
00:08:33 --> 00:08:36 Go and make a careful search for the child.
00:08:36 --> 00:08:42 As soon as you find him, report to me so that I too may go and worship him.
00:08:43 --> 00:08:50 Now, Herod has as much interest in worshipping Jesus as I have to take up knitting lessons.
00:08:50 --> 00:08:54 Which, you don't know me, no interest at all.
00:08:55 --> 00:08:58 Later in the chapter, we read Herod didn't fool the Magi.
00:08:58 --> 00:09:03 They sneak off a different way, telling, you know, without telling Herod where Jesus is.
00:09:03 --> 00:09:05 And he is furious.
00:09:06 --> 00:09:08 He is furious, Herod.
00:09:10 --> 00:09:11 So furious.
00:09:11 --> 00:09:18 He orders all the boys two years old and under in Bethlehem and all of its surrounds to be put to death.
00:09:19 --> 00:09:21 And Mel was right.
00:09:21 --> 00:09:26 I heard Mel there when she's reading the emotion associated with that.
00:09:26 --> 00:09:29 This guy is a brutal tyrant.
00:09:30 --> 00:09:31 A brutal tyrant.
00:09:31 --> 00:09:32 He was known to be brutal.
00:09:33 --> 00:09:36 Anyone who challenged his authority at all was murdered.
00:09:36 --> 00:09:41 He killed one of his wives and two of his sons.
00:09:43 --> 00:09:46 He's the Roman appointed king of the Jews.
00:09:46 --> 00:09:50 And he does not like the news that a king has been born.
00:09:50 --> 00:09:53 He is immediately threatened.
00:09:54 --> 00:09:57 And his response is hatred and fear.
00:09:58 --> 00:10:04 A hatred of anything or anyone that threatened his self-centeredness and autonomy.
00:10:04 --> 00:10:16 This account of deception and fear, bloodshed, injustice and homelessness are all too familiar.
00:10:17 --> 00:10:19 There is an awful lot wrong in our world today.
00:10:21 --> 00:10:29 One under the spectrum says that the reason there's so much problem in our world today is because of the rich and powerful.
00:10:29 --> 00:10:31 We need to blame the rich and powerful people.
00:10:31 --> 00:10:40 This world tends to make the poor, the minority groups in our world the heroes, the victims and the heroes at the same time.
00:10:40 --> 00:10:48 The other end of the spectrum are those who insist that it's the immoral, irresponsible people who are the main problem in our world.
00:10:48 --> 00:10:56 And this view of the world tends to make hardworking, decent, middle class people, the heroes of the world.
00:10:58 --> 00:11:02 And yet what we have here, and in fact the full teaching of the Bible,
00:11:02 --> 00:11:09 is that the source of evil in the world and the source of our problems in life,
00:11:09 --> 00:11:11 the underlying issue of everything,
00:11:12 --> 00:11:14 is in fact the human heart.
00:11:14 --> 00:11:23 Herod's reaction to Jesus here is just a glimpse of all of us.
00:11:24 --> 00:11:26 If you want to be king,
00:11:27 --> 00:11:30 you want to rule your life,
00:11:30 --> 00:11:32 autonomous over your life,
00:11:32 --> 00:11:35 and someone else comes along and says that they're king,
00:11:35 --> 00:11:39 then only one person has to give way.
00:11:41 --> 00:11:44 Only one person can sit on the absolute throne.
00:11:47 --> 00:11:51 And Jesus came into this world and in from his birth,
00:11:51 --> 00:11:53 his claim to be king,
00:11:53 --> 00:11:54 to be God,
00:11:55 --> 00:11:57 to be the ultimate ruler of all things.
00:11:57 --> 00:12:00 And throughout his life,
00:12:00 --> 00:12:03 he calls for an allegiance so supreme
00:12:03 --> 00:12:09 that it makes all other commitments in life look weak in comparison.
00:12:10 --> 00:12:13 It is a claim to absolute authority,
00:12:14 --> 00:12:16 a summons to unconditional loyalty,
00:12:17 --> 00:12:23 and it inevitably triggers deep resistance from every human heart.
00:12:23 --> 00:12:27 Who has the right to rule my life?
00:12:28 --> 00:12:33 That is the most disturbing question possible for any human heart.
00:12:34 --> 00:12:37 We want to remain on the throne of our lives at all costs.
00:12:39 --> 00:12:40 It's interesting how we do it.
00:12:42 --> 00:12:47 Some of us use religion to hold God at arm's length.
00:12:47 --> 00:12:52 We try to put God into a position where he owes us
00:12:52 --> 00:12:54 in some kind of way
00:12:54 --> 00:12:56 because, you know, we've been obedient
00:12:56 --> 00:12:57 or we do things for him.
00:12:57 --> 00:12:59 And so we want to,
00:12:59 --> 00:13:01 ultimately, we want to stay on control of our thrones.
00:13:01 --> 00:13:02 We want to be in,
00:13:02 --> 00:13:05 and we want to keep even God in our back pockets of controlling.
00:13:05 --> 00:13:06 So some of us use religion.
00:13:07 --> 00:13:10 Some of us flee from religion altogether,
00:13:11 --> 00:13:12 become atheists maybe,
00:13:12 --> 00:13:16 and they only proclaim that there is no God.
00:13:17 --> 00:13:22 Either way, we're expressing our natural hostility
00:13:22 --> 00:13:25 to anyone controlling, ruling our life,
00:13:25 --> 00:13:26 and particularly God.
00:13:28 --> 00:13:30 What is interesting here,
00:13:30 --> 00:13:33 if you read to the verse 19,
00:13:34 --> 00:13:35 Herod could not get rid of Jesus,
00:13:36 --> 00:13:38 even with an entire army at his disposal.
00:13:38 --> 00:13:40 In fact, verse 19 says,
00:13:41 --> 00:13:41 just very simply,
00:13:42 --> 00:13:43 Herod died.
00:13:44 --> 00:13:45 He died.
00:13:47 --> 00:13:48 That's Herod, hostile Herod.
00:13:48 --> 00:13:50 And then we have the passive priests.
00:13:51 --> 00:13:53 Their reaction is not as hostile as Herod,
00:13:53 --> 00:13:54 but it's just as negative.
00:13:55 --> 00:13:56 They're the ones who simply do nothing.
00:13:58 --> 00:14:00 He is a non-entity in their life.
00:14:01 --> 00:14:03 And this group is represented
00:14:03 --> 00:14:04 by the chief priests and the scribes.
00:14:04 --> 00:14:04 Verse 4,
00:14:05 --> 00:14:06 gathering together all the chief priests
00:14:06 --> 00:14:08 and scribes of the people,
00:14:08 --> 00:14:10 Herod inquired of them
00:14:10 --> 00:14:13 where the Messiah was to be born.
00:14:16 --> 00:14:17 They told him,
00:14:18 --> 00:14:19 well, this is what history tells us.
00:14:19 --> 00:14:20 This is what we know
00:14:20 --> 00:14:22 about where the Messiah,
00:14:22 --> 00:14:23 the king of the Jews,
00:14:23 --> 00:14:23 is to be born.
00:14:23 --> 00:14:25 He's going to be born in Bethlehem.
00:14:25 --> 00:14:26 They told him,
00:14:26 --> 00:14:28 these are the elite,
00:14:28 --> 00:14:29 these are the scholars,
00:14:29 --> 00:14:31 these are the Bible guys,
00:14:31 --> 00:14:31 and they said,
00:14:31 --> 00:14:32 here it is.
00:14:32 --> 00:14:34 He's going to be born there.
00:14:34 --> 00:14:37 And then it was back to normal for them.
00:14:37 --> 00:14:40 They didn't even so much as raise a sandal.
00:14:41 --> 00:14:43 Why not go with the Magi?
00:14:43 --> 00:14:45 This is your job after all
00:14:45 --> 00:14:46 to know where the Messiah is
00:14:46 --> 00:14:47 and when he's coming.
00:14:47 --> 00:14:49 Why not go with them?
00:14:50 --> 00:14:51 They knew it all,
00:14:52 --> 00:14:53 and yet they knew nothing.
00:14:55 --> 00:14:56 They knew their Bibles.
00:14:57 --> 00:14:57 They were the scholars.
00:14:57 --> 00:15:00 They had no problem in answering Herod,
00:15:00 --> 00:15:02 and yet they entirely missed God.
00:15:04 --> 00:15:09 Their apathy eventually handed
00:15:09 --> 00:15:11 into outright opposition to Jesus.
00:15:12 --> 00:15:13 In the end,
00:15:13 --> 00:15:14 their knowledge of Jesus
00:15:14 --> 00:15:15 and who he is
00:15:15 --> 00:15:17 made as no substitute
00:15:17 --> 00:15:18 for obedience to him.
00:15:19 --> 00:15:21 But the final reaction we see,
00:15:22 --> 00:15:23 and the only positive one,
00:15:23 --> 00:15:26 is the malleable Magi.
00:15:26 --> 00:15:27 It's the best word I could find
00:15:27 --> 00:15:29 to represent their response
00:15:29 --> 00:15:30 that starts with an M.
00:15:30 --> 00:15:34 I'm trying to get it all working out here.
00:15:35 --> 00:15:36 Their response is remarkable.
00:15:37 --> 00:15:39 Impressed by what they saw
00:15:39 --> 00:15:40 in the sky that night,
00:15:40 --> 00:15:42 they journeyed west to Judea
00:15:42 --> 00:15:44 to find out what it all meant.
00:15:44 --> 00:15:47 It is astonishing
00:15:47 --> 00:15:50 that these men
00:15:50 --> 00:15:53 with so little to go on
00:15:53 --> 00:15:55 should venture so far
00:15:55 --> 00:15:58 to endure such hardship in travel
00:15:58 --> 00:16:00 and face such uncertainty
00:16:00 --> 00:16:02 of finding the one
00:16:02 --> 00:16:04 to whom the star pointed.
00:16:04 --> 00:16:09 And what is more,
00:16:09 --> 00:16:11 they gave him costly gifts
00:16:11 --> 00:16:12 and the worship
00:16:12 --> 00:16:14 and the honour of their hearts.
00:16:15 --> 00:16:16 It is astonishing
00:16:16 --> 00:16:20 where the religious leaders
00:16:20 --> 00:16:21 expend no time,
00:16:21 --> 00:16:22 no energy,
00:16:22 --> 00:16:23 no expense
00:16:23 --> 00:16:24 or inconvenience,
00:16:24 --> 00:16:26 where Herod expended
00:16:26 --> 00:16:28 a great deal of time
00:16:28 --> 00:16:28 and energy
00:16:28 --> 00:16:29 and expense
00:16:29 --> 00:16:30 and inconvenience
00:16:30 --> 00:16:31 to try and find Jesus
00:16:31 --> 00:16:32 in order to kill him.
00:16:32 --> 00:16:33 The Magi expend
00:16:33 --> 00:16:34 a great deal of time
00:16:34 --> 00:16:36 and energy
00:16:36 --> 00:16:36 and expense
00:16:36 --> 00:16:38 and inconvenience
00:16:38 --> 00:16:39 to try and find Jesus
00:16:39 --> 00:16:40 so that they could worship
00:16:40 --> 00:16:41 and honour him.
00:16:43 --> 00:16:44 The Magi
00:16:44 --> 00:16:45 are the worshippers,
00:16:46 --> 00:16:48 the ones who joyfully
00:16:48 --> 00:16:50 ascribe dignity,
00:16:51 --> 00:16:51 authority
00:16:51 --> 00:16:54 and honour to King Jesus
00:16:54 --> 00:16:55 and whose lives
00:16:55 --> 00:16:57 are satisfied in him.
00:16:59 --> 00:17:01 Even if they did not know fully
00:17:01 --> 00:17:02 what they were getting into
00:17:02 --> 00:17:02 at this point,
00:17:03 --> 00:17:05 they went on the journey
00:17:05 --> 00:17:07 expecting to see a king,
00:17:08 --> 00:17:10 which is why they turned up
00:17:10 --> 00:17:10 to the palace
00:17:10 --> 00:17:12 in Jerusalem.
00:17:14 --> 00:17:15 Instead,
00:17:15 --> 00:17:16 they were directed
00:17:16 --> 00:17:17 to a king,
00:17:18 --> 00:17:20 not like Herod,
00:17:21 --> 00:17:21 a king,
00:17:21 --> 00:17:25 not a tyrannical ruler,
00:17:26 --> 00:17:27 not in a palace,
00:17:27 --> 00:17:27 not in a throne,
00:17:28 --> 00:17:30 but to a king
00:17:30 --> 00:17:31 in a manger,
00:17:32 --> 00:17:33 a baby,
00:17:34 --> 00:17:34 helpless,
00:17:34 --> 00:17:35 weak
00:17:35 --> 00:17:35 and humble.
00:17:37 --> 00:17:39 The kingship of Jesus
00:17:39 --> 00:17:41 is fundamentally
00:17:41 --> 00:17:42 different
00:17:42 --> 00:17:43 than the kingship
00:17:43 --> 00:17:44 of Herod.
00:17:44 --> 00:17:47 when Queen Victoria
00:17:47 --> 00:17:49 ruled as the British monarch
00:17:49 --> 00:17:50 in the 1800s,
00:17:51 --> 00:17:52 she controlled
00:17:52 --> 00:17:53 a third of the world
00:17:53 --> 00:17:53 at that point
00:17:53 --> 00:17:55 and one day
00:17:55 --> 00:17:55 she said
00:17:55 --> 00:17:57 that she couldn't wait
00:17:57 --> 00:17:58 to meet Jesus
00:17:58 --> 00:17:59 and she was asked
00:17:59 --> 00:18:00 why
00:18:00 --> 00:18:01 and her response
00:18:01 --> 00:18:02 was profound,
00:18:02 --> 00:18:03 so that I can cast
00:18:03 --> 00:18:04 my crown
00:18:04 --> 00:18:05 before him.
00:18:07 --> 00:18:08 Even Queen Victoria
00:18:08 --> 00:18:09 recognised
00:18:09 --> 00:18:10 that even as the,
00:18:11 --> 00:18:11 in fact,
00:18:11 --> 00:18:12 at that time,
00:18:12 --> 00:18:13 the most powerful person
00:18:13 --> 00:18:14 in the world,
00:18:15 --> 00:18:16 she too had a ruler,
00:18:17 --> 00:18:19 one who deserved
00:18:19 --> 00:18:20 her everything,
00:18:21 --> 00:18:21 even her crown.
00:18:23 --> 00:18:24 So there's the,
00:18:24 --> 00:18:25 there's the two,
00:18:25 --> 00:18:27 the three broad responses,
00:18:28 --> 00:18:28 indifference,
00:18:29 --> 00:18:29 hostility
00:18:29 --> 00:18:31 and worship
00:18:31 --> 00:18:32 and really
00:18:32 --> 00:18:32 they're,
00:18:32 --> 00:18:33 they're,
00:18:33 --> 00:18:33 they're divided
00:18:33 --> 00:18:34 into two camps,
00:18:34 --> 00:18:35 the positive
00:18:35 --> 00:18:35 and the negative.
00:18:36 --> 00:18:37 So I want to speak
00:18:37 --> 00:18:38 to two broad groups
00:18:38 --> 00:18:39 here today
00:18:39 --> 00:18:40 about what your
00:18:40 --> 00:18:42 personal response
00:18:42 --> 00:18:42 might be.
00:18:43 --> 00:18:44 Firstly,
00:18:44 --> 00:18:44 the Christians.
00:18:45 --> 00:18:46 Let me just say
00:18:46 --> 00:18:47 those who
00:18:47 --> 00:18:48 accept
00:18:48 --> 00:18:49 Jesus
00:18:49 --> 00:18:50 and Christmas
00:18:50 --> 00:18:51 and Christianity.
00:18:53 --> 00:18:55 If that is you,
00:18:56 --> 00:18:57 I think it's important
00:18:57 --> 00:18:57 for you to remember
00:18:57 --> 00:18:58 that
00:18:58 --> 00:19:00 every Christian
00:19:00 --> 00:19:02 still has
00:19:02 --> 00:19:03 a heart
00:19:03 --> 00:19:03 of residual
00:19:03 --> 00:19:04 anger
00:19:04 --> 00:19:05 and hostility
00:19:05 --> 00:19:06 towards God.
00:19:07 --> 00:19:08 Every one of us.
00:19:08 --> 00:19:10 and it will always
00:19:10 --> 00:19:11 be there to the end.
00:19:12 --> 00:19:13 And that is why
00:19:13 --> 00:19:14 it is so hard
00:19:14 --> 00:19:15 to pray,
00:19:16 --> 00:19:16 to give,
00:19:17 --> 00:19:17 to obey,
00:19:17 --> 00:19:18 to grow.
00:19:18 --> 00:19:19 There is still
00:19:19 --> 00:19:20 that Herod
00:19:20 --> 00:19:21 in each of us.
00:19:22 --> 00:19:22 There is still
00:19:22 --> 00:19:23 something in us
00:19:23 --> 00:19:26 that fights God.
00:19:27 --> 00:19:28 We cannot glide
00:19:28 --> 00:19:29 through
00:19:29 --> 00:19:30 the Christian life.
00:19:31 --> 00:19:32 We've got to be
00:19:32 --> 00:19:33 far more intentional
00:19:33 --> 00:19:34 about
00:19:34 --> 00:19:36 Christian growth
00:19:36 --> 00:19:36 to overcome
00:19:36 --> 00:19:37 all of those
00:19:37 --> 00:19:38 bad habits.
00:19:38 --> 00:19:38 which is why
00:19:38 --> 00:19:39 we keep talking
00:19:39 --> 00:19:40 about taking
00:19:40 --> 00:19:41 your next step
00:19:41 --> 00:19:42 here at St Paul's.
00:19:42 --> 00:19:43 But taking
00:19:43 --> 00:19:44 your next step
00:19:44 --> 00:19:44 knowing
00:19:44 --> 00:19:46 that the God
00:19:46 --> 00:19:47 who you are
00:19:47 --> 00:19:48 obeying
00:19:48 --> 00:19:49 is not
00:19:49 --> 00:19:49 Herod,
00:19:50 --> 00:19:51 a tyrannical ruler.
00:19:53 --> 00:19:54 He is a God
00:19:54 --> 00:19:54 of grace
00:19:54 --> 00:19:55 and mercy.
00:19:56 --> 00:19:56 A God
00:19:56 --> 00:19:57 who laid aside
00:19:57 --> 00:19:58 his glory
00:19:58 --> 00:19:59 as we have
00:19:59 --> 00:19:59 already sung
00:19:59 --> 00:20:00 this morning
00:20:00 --> 00:20:01 and descended
00:20:01 --> 00:20:02 humbly
00:20:02 --> 00:20:04 to serve us.
00:20:05 --> 00:20:05 That kind
00:20:05 --> 00:20:05 of king
00:20:05 --> 00:20:06 is calling
00:20:06 --> 00:20:07 you to follow
00:20:07 --> 00:20:07 him.
00:20:09 --> 00:20:09 Now,
00:20:09 --> 00:20:10 if however
00:20:10 --> 00:20:10 you're here
00:20:10 --> 00:20:11 today
00:20:11 --> 00:20:12 and you're
00:20:12 --> 00:20:13 unsure
00:20:13 --> 00:20:13 about
00:20:13 --> 00:20:14 Christmas
00:20:14 --> 00:20:15 and
00:20:15 --> 00:20:16 Christianity
00:20:16 --> 00:20:17 or perhaps
00:20:17 --> 00:20:17 even the
00:20:17 --> 00:20:18 existence of
00:20:18 --> 00:20:18 God,
00:20:19 --> 00:20:20 if there's
00:20:20 --> 00:20:21 one thing
00:20:21 --> 00:20:21 you want
00:20:21 --> 00:20:21 to hear
00:20:21 --> 00:20:22 from me,
00:20:22 --> 00:20:22 you need
00:20:22 --> 00:20:22 to hear
00:20:22 --> 00:20:23 this.
00:20:23 --> 00:20:25 you are
00:20:25 --> 00:20:26 not
00:20:26 --> 00:20:26 objective
00:20:26 --> 00:20:29 in your
00:20:29 --> 00:20:29 view.
00:20:31 --> 00:20:31 You are
00:20:31 --> 00:20:32 not
00:20:32 --> 00:20:32 objective
00:20:32 --> 00:20:33 in your
00:20:33 --> 00:20:33 view of
00:20:33 --> 00:20:34 Jesus
00:20:34 --> 00:20:35 and God
00:20:35 --> 00:20:35 and Christmas
00:20:35 --> 00:20:36 and Christianity.
00:20:37 --> 00:20:38 It is an
00:20:38 --> 00:20:39 absolute
00:20:39 --> 00:20:39 fallacy
00:20:39 --> 00:20:41 that anyone
00:20:41 --> 00:20:41 would say
00:20:41 --> 00:20:42 that they're
00:20:42 --> 00:20:42 objective.
00:20:43 --> 00:20:44 You're not.
00:20:45 --> 00:20:46 The
00:20:46 --> 00:20:48 philosopher
00:20:48 --> 00:20:48 Thomas
00:20:48 --> 00:20:49 Nagel,
00:20:50 --> 00:20:50 he's an
00:20:50 --> 00:20:51 American
00:20:51 --> 00:20:51 philosopher,
00:20:51 --> 00:20:51 he's an
00:20:51 --> 00:20:52 atheist,
00:20:52 --> 00:20:53 who's very
00:20:53 --> 00:20:53 candid about
00:20:53 --> 00:20:54 this point.
00:20:55 --> 00:20:56 He wrote,
00:20:56 --> 00:20:57 I'm talking
00:20:57 --> 00:20:57 about the
00:20:57 --> 00:20:58 fear of
00:20:58 --> 00:20:58 religion
00:20:58 --> 00:20:59 itself.
00:21:00 --> 00:21:00 I'm speaking
00:21:00 --> 00:21:01 from experience,
00:21:02 --> 00:21:03 being strongly
00:21:03 --> 00:21:04 subject to
00:21:04 --> 00:21:04 this fear
00:21:04 --> 00:21:05 myself.
00:21:05 --> 00:21:07 I want
00:21:07 --> 00:21:08 atheism to
00:21:08 --> 00:21:09 be true
00:21:09 --> 00:21:10 and are
00:21:10 --> 00:21:11 made uneasy
00:21:11 --> 00:21:11 by the fact
00:21:11 --> 00:21:12 that some
00:21:12 --> 00:21:12 of the most
00:21:12 --> 00:21:13 intelligent
00:21:13 --> 00:21:14 and well
00:21:14 --> 00:21:15 informed
00:21:15 --> 00:21:15 people I
00:21:15 --> 00:21:16 know are
00:21:16 --> 00:21:17 religious
00:21:17 --> 00:21:17 believers.
00:21:19 --> 00:21:19 It isn't
00:21:19 --> 00:21:20 just that I
00:21:20 --> 00:21:21 don't believe
00:21:21 --> 00:21:21 in God
00:21:21 --> 00:21:22 and naturally
00:21:22 --> 00:21:22 I hope
00:21:22 --> 00:21:23 that my
00:21:23 --> 00:21:24 belief is
00:21:24 --> 00:21:24 right.
00:21:25 --> 00:21:26 I hope
00:21:26 --> 00:21:26 there is
00:21:26 --> 00:21:27 no God.
00:21:28 --> 00:21:28 I don't
00:21:28 --> 00:21:29 want there
00:21:29 --> 00:21:29 to be a
00:21:29 --> 00:21:30 God.
00:21:30 --> 00:21:30 I don't
00:21:30 --> 00:21:31 want the
00:21:31 --> 00:21:32 universe to
00:21:32 --> 00:21:32 be like
00:21:32 --> 00:21:32 that.
00:21:33 --> 00:21:34 My guess
00:21:34 --> 00:21:34 is that
00:21:34 --> 00:21:35 cosmic
00:21:35 --> 00:21:35 authority
00:21:35 --> 00:21:36 problem
00:21:36 --> 00:21:37 is not
00:21:37 --> 00:21:37 rare.
00:21:39 --> 00:21:40 His point
00:21:40 --> 00:21:41 is,
00:21:42 --> 00:21:42 and which
00:21:42 --> 00:21:43 is why I
00:21:43 --> 00:21:43 respect him
00:21:43 --> 00:21:43 at this
00:21:43 --> 00:21:44 point,
00:21:44 --> 00:21:45 is that
00:21:45 --> 00:21:46 he's entirely
00:21:46 --> 00:21:46 honest.
00:21:47 --> 00:21:48 He's entirely
00:21:48 --> 00:21:49 honest.
00:21:49 --> 00:21:49 honest.
00:21:50 --> 00:21:51 Nobody is
00:21:51 --> 00:21:52 neutral about
00:21:52 --> 00:21:53 whether Christmas
00:21:53 --> 00:21:54 is true.
00:21:56 --> 00:21:57 Thomas Hagel
00:21:57 --> 00:21:58 is entirely
00:21:58 --> 00:21:58 honest.
00:21:59 --> 00:22:00 I don't
00:22:00 --> 00:22:01 want there
00:22:01 --> 00:22:01 to be a
00:22:01 --> 00:22:02 God who
00:22:02 --> 00:22:02 rules my
00:22:02 --> 00:22:02 life.
00:22:03 --> 00:22:04 I want
00:22:04 --> 00:22:04 to be
00:22:04 --> 00:22:06 Herod in
00:22:06 --> 00:22:07 my life.
00:22:07 --> 00:22:11 none of
00:22:11 --> 00:22:11 us are
00:22:11 --> 00:22:12 neutral
00:22:12 --> 00:22:14 about
00:22:14 --> 00:22:14 whether
00:22:14 --> 00:22:15 Christmas
00:22:15 --> 00:22:15 is true.
00:22:16 --> 00:22:17 If the
00:22:17 --> 00:22:17 Son of
00:22:17 --> 00:22:18 God was
00:22:18 --> 00:22:18 really born
00:22:18 --> 00:22:19 in a
00:22:19 --> 00:22:19 manger,
00:22:20 --> 00:22:21 then every
00:22:21 --> 00:22:22 single person
00:22:22 --> 00:22:23 has lost the
00:22:23 --> 00:22:24 rights to
00:22:24 --> 00:22:24 oversee their
00:22:24 --> 00:22:25 lives,
00:22:25 --> 00:22:25 if it's
00:22:25 --> 00:22:26 true.
00:22:27 --> 00:22:28 You cannot
00:22:28 --> 00:22:29 be objective
00:22:29 --> 00:22:29 about a
00:22:29 --> 00:22:30 claim like
00:22:30 --> 00:22:30 that.
00:22:32 --> 00:22:33 So just
00:22:33 --> 00:22:33 keep that
00:22:33 --> 00:22:34 in mind
00:22:34 --> 00:22:35 for the
00:22:35 --> 00:22:35 rest of
00:22:35 --> 00:22:35 Christmas
00:22:35 --> 00:22:36 Day,
00:22:36 --> 00:22:37 if that's
00:22:37 --> 00:22:37 where you
00:22:37 --> 00:22:37 sit at
00:22:37 --> 00:22:38 the moment.
00:22:38 --> 00:22:39 In other
00:22:39 --> 00:22:39 words,
00:22:40 --> 00:22:40 what I'm
00:22:40 --> 00:22:41 encouraging you
00:22:41 --> 00:22:41 to do is
00:22:41 --> 00:22:43 question your
00:22:43 --> 00:22:43 doubts.
00:22:45 --> 00:22:45 Doubt your
00:22:45 --> 00:22:46 doubts,
00:22:46 --> 00:22:47 if you like.
00:22:49 --> 00:22:49 Now I
00:22:49 --> 00:22:50 figure you've
00:22:50 --> 00:22:51 got a bunch
00:22:51 --> 00:22:52 of stuff on
00:22:52 --> 00:22:52 your plate
00:22:52 --> 00:22:54 in the next
00:22:54 --> 00:22:55 24 hours,
00:22:55 --> 00:22:56 the next few
00:22:56 --> 00:22:56 days,
00:22:57 --> 00:22:58 but maybe
00:22:58 --> 00:22:59 soon you
00:22:59 --> 00:23:00 might want to
00:23:00 --> 00:23:01 look at that
00:23:01 --> 00:23:01 issue,
00:23:01 --> 00:23:02 come back to
00:23:02 --> 00:23:02 it again.
00:23:03 --> 00:23:04 Who is
00:23:04 --> 00:23:04 Jesus?
00:23:05 --> 00:23:05 What did
00:23:05 --> 00:23:05 he come
00:23:05 --> 00:23:06 to do
00:23:06 --> 00:23:07 and what
00:23:07 --> 00:23:07 did it
00:23:07 --> 00:23:07 cost him
00:23:07 --> 00:23:08 to do
00:23:08 --> 00:23:08 it?
00:23:09 --> 00:23:09 The
00:23:09 --> 00:23:09 Magi
00:23:09 --> 00:23:11 were the
00:23:11 --> 00:23:13 knowledgeable
00:23:13 --> 00:23:13 men of
00:23:13 --> 00:23:14 the East.
00:23:14 --> 00:23:14 They were
00:23:14 --> 00:23:15 the wise
00:23:15 --> 00:23:16 men,
00:23:16 --> 00:23:16 the sages,
00:23:16 --> 00:23:17 the elites,
00:23:17 --> 00:23:18 the academic
00:23:18 --> 00:23:18 elite,
00:23:18 --> 00:23:19 but their
00:23:19 --> 00:23:20 knowledge about
00:23:20 --> 00:23:21 the events
00:23:21 --> 00:23:22 of the
00:23:22 --> 00:23:23 first Christmas
00:23:23 --> 00:23:24 only took
00:23:24 --> 00:23:25 them so
00:23:25 --> 00:23:25 far.
00:23:26 --> 00:23:27 It only
00:23:27 --> 00:23:28 took them
00:23:28 --> 00:23:29 to the
00:23:29 --> 00:23:29 palace
00:23:29 --> 00:23:31 in Jerusalem.
00:23:31 --> 00:23:31 Jerusalem.
00:23:32 --> 00:23:32 Their
00:23:32 --> 00:23:33 observation
00:23:33 --> 00:23:33 of the
00:23:33 --> 00:23:34 star took
00:23:34 --> 00:23:35 them to
00:23:35 --> 00:23:35 Jerusalem,
00:23:35 --> 00:23:36 but that's
00:23:36 --> 00:23:36 it.
00:23:37 --> 00:23:38 The only
00:23:38 --> 00:23:38 way they
00:23:38 --> 00:23:39 got to
00:23:39 --> 00:23:39 Bethlehem
00:23:39 --> 00:23:41 was because
00:23:41 --> 00:23:41 of the
00:23:41 --> 00:23:42 scholars
00:23:42 --> 00:23:42 saying,
00:23:43 --> 00:23:43 the Bible
00:23:43 --> 00:23:44 says he's
00:23:44 --> 00:23:45 over there.
00:23:47 --> 00:23:48 They had
00:23:48 --> 00:23:48 to consult
00:23:48 --> 00:23:49 the Bible
00:23:49 --> 00:23:49 to find
00:23:49 --> 00:23:50 Jesus,
00:23:50 --> 00:23:51 and in
00:23:51 --> 00:23:51 finding
00:23:51 --> 00:23:52 Jesus,
00:23:52 --> 00:23:53 they found
00:23:53 --> 00:23:53 what they
00:23:53 --> 00:23:53 had been
00:23:53 --> 00:23:54 looking for
00:23:54 --> 00:23:54 all of
00:23:54 --> 00:23:55 their life.
00:23:56 --> 00:23:57 These wise
00:23:57 --> 00:23:58 men found
00:23:58 --> 00:23:59 the wisdom
00:23:59 --> 00:24:00 that they
00:24:00 --> 00:24:00 had been
00:24:00 --> 00:24:01 looking for
00:24:01 --> 00:24:02 all of
00:24:02 --> 00:24:02 their life.
00:24:05 --> 00:24:05 So I
00:24:05 --> 00:24:06 just want
00:24:06 --> 00:24:06 to say
00:24:06 --> 00:24:06 it without
00:24:06 --> 00:24:07 explaining
00:24:07 --> 00:24:07 it.
00:24:07 --> 00:24:08 I haven't
00:24:08 --> 00:24:08 got time
00:24:08 --> 00:24:08 to explain
00:24:08 --> 00:24:09 it,
00:24:09 --> 00:24:09 unpack it,
00:24:09 --> 00:24:09 and you'd
00:24:09 --> 00:24:10 be grateful
00:24:10 --> 00:24:10 for that
00:24:10 --> 00:24:11 right now.
00:24:12 --> 00:24:12 Jesus
00:24:12 --> 00:24:14 is the
00:24:14 --> 00:24:15 answer to
00:24:15 --> 00:24:16 everything
00:24:16 --> 00:24:17 that you've
00:24:17 --> 00:24:17 been searching
00:24:17 --> 00:24:18 for your
00:24:18 --> 00:24:19 entire life.
00:24:22 --> 00:24:22 There you
00:24:22 --> 00:24:22 go.
00:24:23 --> 00:24:23 I'm not
00:24:23 --> 00:24:23 going to
00:24:23 --> 00:24:24 unpack that
00:24:24 --> 00:24:24 any further
00:24:24 --> 00:24:24 than that.
00:24:26 --> 00:24:26 I just
00:24:26 --> 00:24:27 hope that
00:24:27 --> 00:24:27 sits.
00:24:27 --> 00:24:28 He is
00:24:28 --> 00:24:28 your goal.
00:24:29 --> 00:24:29 He is
00:24:29 --> 00:24:30 your destination
00:24:30 --> 00:24:31 in life.
00:24:34 --> 00:24:35 I'm hoping
00:24:35 --> 00:24:37 that encourages
00:24:37 --> 00:24:37 you to
00:24:37 --> 00:24:38 pursue that.
00:24:39 --> 00:24:39 Why would
00:24:39 --> 00:24:40 I make
00:24:40 --> 00:24:40 such an
00:24:40 --> 00:24:41 outrageous
00:24:41 --> 00:24:41 claim?
00:24:44 --> 00:24:44 I want to
00:24:44 --> 00:24:45 encourage you
00:24:45 --> 00:24:45 to be like
00:24:45 --> 00:24:46 these wise
00:24:46 --> 00:24:46 men and
00:24:46 --> 00:24:47 search for
00:24:47 --> 00:24:47 Jesus.
00:24:48 --> 00:24:48 But go to
00:24:48 --> 00:24:49 the source.
00:24:49 --> 00:24:50 The evidence
00:24:50 --> 00:24:51 is overwhelming
00:24:51 --> 00:24:52 and it is
00:24:52 --> 00:24:52 compelling.
00:24:53 --> 00:24:53 As Ash
00:24:53 --> 00:24:54 told us this
00:24:54 --> 00:24:54 morning,
00:24:54 --> 00:24:55 there are
00:24:55 --> 00:24:56 New Testaments,
00:24:56 --> 00:24:56 there are
00:24:56 --> 00:24:57 Bibles floating
00:24:57 --> 00:24:57 around everywhere
00:24:57 --> 00:24:58 in this
00:24:58 --> 00:24:59 place,
00:24:59 --> 00:25:00 out there
00:25:00 --> 00:25:00 in the
00:25:00 --> 00:25:00 free.
00:25:00 --> 00:25:01 If you
00:25:01 --> 00:25:02 haven't got
00:25:02 --> 00:25:02 one,
00:25:02 --> 00:25:02 take it
00:25:02 --> 00:25:03 and go.
00:25:03 --> 00:25:04 Take it
00:25:04 --> 00:25:05 and read
00:25:05 --> 00:25:05 it.
00:25:06 --> 00:25:07 Or there's
00:25:07 --> 00:25:07 a few
00:25:07 --> 00:25:07 copies of
00:25:07 --> 00:25:07 this,
00:25:08 --> 00:25:08 Is Christmas
00:25:08 --> 00:25:09 Unbelievable?
00:25:10 --> 00:25:10 Or there's
00:25:10 --> 00:25:11 other ones
00:25:11 --> 00:25:11 like Word
00:25:11 --> 00:25:12 Wonder.
00:25:12 --> 00:25:13 We here at
00:25:13 --> 00:25:13 St. Paul's
00:25:13 --> 00:25:14 would be
00:25:14 --> 00:25:15 delighted at
00:25:15 --> 00:25:16 any point to
00:25:16 --> 00:25:17 sit with you
00:25:17 --> 00:25:19 and to
00:25:19 --> 00:25:20 engage with
00:25:20 --> 00:25:21 those questions
00:25:21 --> 00:25:22 you have
00:25:22 --> 00:25:22 and to
00:25:22 --> 00:25:23 help you
00:25:23 --> 00:25:24 see why
00:25:24 --> 00:25:26 Jesus is
00:25:26 --> 00:25:26 the wisdom
00:25:26 --> 00:25:27 you've been
00:25:27 --> 00:25:27 searching for
00:25:27 --> 00:25:28 all of your
00:25:28 --> 00:25:28 life.
00:25:29 --> 00:25:30 And even if
00:25:30 --> 00:25:30 that means if
00:25:30 --> 00:25:31 you're online
00:25:31 --> 00:25:32 and you're at
00:25:32 --> 00:25:32 another part of
00:25:32 --> 00:25:34 this world,
00:25:34 --> 00:25:35 such as my
00:25:35 --> 00:25:35 mate Matt,
00:25:35 --> 00:25:36 who's currently
00:25:36 --> 00:25:36 in Utah,
00:25:37 --> 00:25:38 checking in
00:25:38 --> 00:25:39 for the
00:25:39 --> 00:25:39 service.
00:25:40 --> 00:25:40 You two
00:25:40 --> 00:25:40 guys in
00:25:40 --> 00:25:41 Utah,
00:25:41 --> 00:25:42 check in
00:25:42 --> 00:25:42 if you like.
00:25:43 --> 00:25:43 We'd be
00:25:43 --> 00:25:45 delighted to
00:25:45 --> 00:25:46 help you see
00:25:46 --> 00:25:47 why Jesus
00:25:47 --> 00:25:48 is the
00:25:48 --> 00:25:48 answer.
00:25:48 --> 00:25:49 So consider
00:25:49 --> 00:25:49 Jesus.
00:25:50 --> 00:25:51 That's the
00:25:51 --> 00:25:51 call for this
00:25:51 --> 00:25:52 Christmas.
00:25:52 --> 00:25:53 Ponder who
00:25:53 --> 00:25:53 he is,
00:25:54 --> 00:25:55 what he came
00:25:55 --> 00:25:55 to do,
00:25:56 --> 00:25:57 and what it
00:25:57 --> 00:25:58 cost him to
00:25:58 --> 00:25:58 do it,
00:25:59 --> 00:25:59 and what it
00:25:59 --> 00:26:00 means now
00:26:00 --> 00:26:02 to bow down
00:26:02 --> 00:26:02 and worship
00:26:02 --> 00:26:03 him 2
00:26:03 --> 00:26:04 years later.
00:26:04 --> 00:26:05 Merry Christmas.