Sermon Notes
These two verses are one of the shortest and clearest verses of the Christmas story in the Bible.
Evangelion = gospel = bokeum
This morning = what the story of Christmas is.
What the gospel is in 3 things.
#1: The Christmas story = NEWS (Good news) What kind of news? Good news! of Great Joy! for ALL the people! Forever! Eternally!
Every day there is news. We don’t pass even one day without news. International news, domestic, regional, local, family news, etc.
Think about ALL the news we receive or hear everyday. How many of them are joyful? Good? The majority of the news in this world are NOT good. Rather terrible, ugly, sad, bad news… Sometimes there is good news – SOME – but there is never joyful news to ALL the people at the SAME time.
For example, the news that country A defeated country B in the World Cup = good news to country A, but bad news to country B. It’s the same news, but different for different people. This same news to MANY countries is uninteresting, neither good nor bad.
The news that my son is in the top 1% of the top 1% of the top 1% of schools with a FULL ride scholarship is AMAZING news to me and my family!!! But what happens at the same time to some other people? IF it had not been for my son, the SECOND place student would have been #1. THIRD place would have been #2. FOURTH would have been #3. And so on… Finally, the student who failed, would have passed…
The point: In this world, there is NO news that is joyful, good, grateful to ALL people FOREVER. (Except of course, THIS news… the GOSPEL.)
The Christmas story is the gospel. Gospel = the one and only Good News of Great Joy for all the people forever and ever.
That news is that Jesus was born! (Happy birthday!) The news that Christ came into the world. God became Man to give us eternal, abundant, joyful life.
#2: Christmas story = gospel. Gospel = history.
This event, Luke 2, REALLY happened, 2,000 years ago on a certain day which was called “today” in a town in Bethlehem. This is a historic FACT – a reality. This is the BIGGEST, GREATEST event since the Creation of the world. As the history of all histories, as the event of all events, this is the standard for ALL other stories and events and histories. We call this year “2013” on what basis? On the GROUND of THIS event.
Each of us has his own history – bio-data.
What year I was born, when I graduated, when I started/finished something, when I married, etc. On what grounds can you say your own personal history? On THIS SINGLE event.
We say World War II finished in 1945. When is 1945 really? On what ground do we call it 1945? Before Christ = B.C. After Christ (A.D.) The Old Testament and the New Testament are divided on what grounds? THIS EVENT.
ALL history is divided by Christ’s birth. He is the central figure of ALL history.
If I say a certain date, do you remember what happened? July 29, 1969? On that day, Neil Armstrong walked on the moon.
The President of the U.S. at that time (Nixon) stated (regarding this marvelous event), “The greatest event in human history happened when man first put his foot on the moon.” But later, Aldreen? another astronaut reacted on Nixon’s statement. “God, in Christ, stood on the Earth. The most marvelous accomplishment in all of human history is not that man stood on the moon, but that God stood on the earth.”
The greatest history and experience in all of human history is when God, in Christ, came to earth and planted his feet on this soil. Amen.
Christmas story as history = God, as Christ, came to Earth and put his Word in our hearts to seek and save the lost.
#3: Christmas story = gospel. Gospel = prophecy.
This is the foretelling about the future on the grounds of the present.
The manger – with a baby lying in it wrapped in clothes – the angel did not say, “A baby was born in a poor and pitiful condition. Let’s help that poor and pitiful family. Let’s take pity on them.”
Rather the angel said, “A SAVIOR has been born to you. He is Christ, the LORD.”
They, at that time, should wait at least 30 years from this event to see this same baby grown up as a man, to appear and act as a Savior, Christ, Lord, publicly.
The gospel message, the Christmas story is a prophecy.
The shortest gospel message = “Repent! And believe in Jesus Christ as your personal Savior and you will receive eternal life, abundant life!”
“Repent and believe!” When? Now!
“Now is the day of salvation and you will be saved!” When? Now! (And forever, and forever, until eternity.)
The Christmas story is the gospel, it is news, it is history, it is prophecy.
The gospel is the greatest prophecy which reaches eternity in its fulfillment and fruit.
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- News = today’s story.
- History = yesterday’s story.
- Prophecy = tomorrow’s story.
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In this world, there is NO story that is yesterday, today, and tomorrow’s story at once.
- There is no news that is history that is prophecy.
- There is no history that is news and that is prophecy.
- There is no prophecy that is news and history.
For example, World War II is history, but not news for today – not prophecy for tomorrow.
But the gospel is ALL these things.
If you say the Christmas story, the gospel message to others:
- You are heaven’s announcer.
- You are the greatest historian.
- You are a perfectly infallible prophet. Wow.
Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and tomorrow in saving the believing sinners and giving freedom, peace, joy, and abundantly eternal LIFE.
This is the Christmas story, the gospel message. May God bless all of us with the Christmas story from now, until forever, in Jesus’ name.
Let’s pray.
