CHRISTMAS/EVE DAY

MATT 1.18-25

Mt 1:18 ¶ Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: After His mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Spirit.

·      Espoused is similar to what we call the engagement period in our culture. You and I would say that Joseph and Mary were engaged to be married.

·      In that culture, like many cultures today in that part of the world, the marriages were almost always arranged by the families of the bride and groom, often without consulting them. A contract was made and was sealed by payment of the dowry or bride price, which was paid by the groom or his family to the bride’s father.

·      This espousal period of time was around 1 year, and for all intents and purposes, you were legally married. The only part of the marriage that was not upheld was the actual cohabitation and sexual consummation of the union, which would be entered into after the official ceremony.

·      It was during this period of time that you could actually divorce the person you were engaged to if they were found unfaithful during that period of time. So you can see the predicament that Joseph was in. Mary at this time is estimated to be between the ages of 14-16 years old and she is pregnant with child, but she tells Joseph that she has not had any intercourse with a man.

o   The entire Christmas story is shrouded with mystique, drama and divine majesty at the same time. As the NT account of the earthly ministry develops, we read in John 8 how the Pharisees, not understanding the prophecies of the Virgin Birth or the power of God, would accuse Jesus of being born of fornication.

Mt 1:19 Then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not wanting to make her a public example, was minded to put her away secretly.

·      The penalty for adultery under Old Testament law was death by stoning, and this penalty applied to infidelity during betrothal as well (Deut 22:23-24).

·      By the time the New Testament rolled along, Joseph would have merely been required to divorce Mary and expose her to shame, because the death penalty was rarely if ever executed for this offense.

·      Joseph is the underrated member of the Christmas message. He is a just man...he is both moral and merciful towards Mary.

·      We need to remember that Joseph is not hearing what Mary says about how she is pregnant with a copy of the New Testament in his hands.

Mt 1:20 But while he thought about these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, "Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take to you Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit.

·      The angel of The Lord tells Joseph that what Mary told him was true. One of the foundational doctrines in Scripture is the doctrine of the Virgin Birth. The Incarnation, or Virgin Birth of Jesus Christ, was a miracle that was the fulfillment of the prophesy that was given by God right after the fall of Adam and Eve in the garden of Eden.

o   Ge 3:15 And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.

o   The Virgin birth was later on prophesied in Isaiah 7.14, the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son. The Greek word for the English word virgin is parthenos, which describes a woman who has never known a man intimately. It would not be a sign of any miracle if a young woman conceived and bore a son, but a virgin bearing a son is a miracle.

o   So we see both the divine and human nature of The Lord Jesus Christ foretold in this amazing prophecy. Jesus had to have one human parent or He could not have been the human Son of Man, and thereby a partaker of our flesh. But He also had to have divine parentage or He could not be The Son of God, the sinless and perfect sacrifice for sin on our behalf.

o   The gospel of Luke gives us more revelation information about how this miracle would take place. Lu 1:34 Then said Mary unto the angel, How shall this be, seeing I know not a man? 35 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.

o   Genesis 3:15 has been called the protoevangelium, the first gospel. Neither Adam or Eve could fully have known what these words would one day mean. Jesus Christ is The Seed of the Woman who would one day come to crush the serpent’s ugly head. Christ’s “heel” would be bruised on the cross. But by His death on the cross, sin debt would be full paid and Satan’s stronghold on mankind would forever be broken.

o   These words would be fulfilled thousands of years later at a place called Calvary outside the city wall of Jerusalem. But all of that was in the future when God first spoke these words.

o   Francis Schaeffer speaks of “two humanities” that arise after the Fall:From this time on in the flow of history there are two humanities. The one humanity says there is no God, or it makes God in its own imagination, or it tries to come to God in its own way. The other humanity comes to the true God in God’s way. There is no neutral ground. The “seed of the woman” and the “seed of the serpent” have opposed each other continuously across the centuries. The struggle continues to this present hour.

Mt 1:21 "And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name JESUS, for He will save His people from their sins." 22 So all this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying: 23 "Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel," which is translated, "God with us."

·      The name Jesus is Greek for the Hebrew name Joshua, which is a shortened form of, "Jehovah Shua" which means, "Jehovah is Salvation."

o   Jehovah jireh- The Lord will provide.

o   Jehovah tsidekeneu- The Lord our rightousness.

o   Jehovah rophe- The Lord our healer.

o   Jehovah shalom- The Lord is our peace.

o   Jehovah shammah- The ever-present Lord

·      Joshua (Yeshua) would be the name that would be a better translation to the meaning of the word in the Hebrew language. In the OT, who was Joshua? The successor of Moses, the lawgiver. God did not give the law to the nation of Israel through Moses to save them from their sin, but to reveal their sin nature and point them to their need for a sin substitute to atone for their sin.

·      The book of Hebrews clearly tells us that the entire OT system were types or Jesus Christ, the perfect high priest, the perfect sacrifice for sin, the perfect mediator between fallen man and God.

·      Please note that Jesus came to save His people from their sins. The “He” is here emphatic—His Name implies His mission, and that is that He came to save His people from their sins.

·      Jesus not only came to save us from the debt of sin, but He came to deliver us from the dominion of sin.       

Please note that the Name Jesus was given to convey the idea of Emmanuel, which means, God with us.

·      John 1:14 And the Word was made 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.

·      Jesus is the answer to the question, “What is God like?” Jesus is the express image of The Father. Jesus said, if you have seen Me, you have seen The Father.

·      Even before Jesus was born on earth, He was given 2 names, which both indicated His identity and ministry….Yeshua (Jehovah is salvation) and Emmanuel (God with us)….If time permits, tell the story about Pops Ranaletta and the baseball game in Gates.

·      What a great assurance it is for us to know that God will never leave us nor forsake us. Beloved, our God walks with us in and through every single situation that we will ever face in life.

Mt 1:24 Then Joseph, being aroused from sleep, did as the angel of the Lord commanded him and took to him his wife, 25 and did not know her till she had brought forth her firstborn Son. And he called His name JESUS.

·      I realize that what these verses say might be considered offensive or even heretical to some of you here today, but what I am telling you is in the Bible.

·      The Bible does not teach that Mary was a perpetual virgin. Mary was the most godly and blessed woman in all of Scripture in my opinion, but she was not a perpetual virgin.

·      Scripture clearly reads that Joseph did not know (biblical terminology to describe intercourse between and husband and wife) Mary physically until she gave birth to her firstborn, Jesus.

·      Joseph abstained from consummating the marriage until after Jesus is born. There is a list of Jesus siblings in Matt 13.55; Mark 6.3. It was prophesied that Mary would have other children in Psalms 69.8,9

·      In the gospel of Luke, the Magnificat records Mary declaring how her heart rejoiced in God My Savior.

·      The New Testament writers, James and Jude were the offspring of Joseph and Mary. Thus they were Jesus step brothers who eventually came to receive Christ as Lord of their lives.

She brought forth her firstborn son, and He called His Name Jesus (Yeshua).

·      This year Christmas Eve falls on the fifth night of the
Festival of Lights (Chanukah).   The most common Jewish custom on Chanukah is lighting a special
nine-branch menorah called a chanukiah.  This special menorah differs from the seven-branch one that was in the Temple and is used only at Chanukah. Another key difference between the menorah and the chanukiah is that the eight candles on the chanukiah are kindled with special candle called a shamash.  The shamash is considered the ‘servant candle’ because it is
used to light all the others.

·      Jesus Christ, Son of Man and Servant of all, is The Light of the world, through Whom we receive the light of life.

o   Mr 10:45 "For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many."

o   John 1:4 In Him was life, and the life was the light of men.

·      The Christmas message is not only a miracle, but it is a message of God’s love for mankind. While we were yet sinners Christ died for us.

·      The greatest gift that any human being can receive this side of heaven is the miracle of the new birth. You receive that miracle by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone. The gospel is not try harder, do better, but trust Christ…will you do that tonight? Will you by faith receive His gift of eternal life and commit your life to following Jesus Christ and living for His glory?

·      The Good News of Christmas is Emmanuel Himself…..God with us. Maybe you are a Christian and are finding yourself in the fight of your life tonight. At a time of celebration, you are finding yourself lonely and discouraged. Listen to these words from Dr. Jams Coffield: “The enticing invitation of the gospel is the scandoulous belief that no problem, situation, or circumstance is beyond the redemptive work of God.”

·      May the scandoulous grace of God bless you heart and homes…..bless Jesus this Christmas!