This is a moment in our history as a nation when people are probably more open to the gospel than maybe they've been in decades. And harvest is at the right place at the right time. We've seen 1,200,000 professions of faith in the history of harvest. 10,000 people baptized through harvest since 2023.
So, this is a really good time to pour some rocket fuel on a burning fire. When you give, you're investing in this revival fire. Just go to harvest.org. There was a faithful man named Simeon who was anticipating the birth of Jesus. Coming up today, Pastor Greg Laurie points out how important that birth was to him.
Simeon was waiting. He was waiting for Christ because it was revealed to him that he would not die until he had seen the Messiah with his own eyes.
So old Simeon hung on to the promises of God. And I encourage you, hang on to God's promises. They're true and they're trustworthy. Lost or found. This is the day for a new beginning.
Amazing grace can squeeze the sound. But can you hear when the angels are singing? This is the day the day will lie in any gathering. There are a few people in the spotlight, so to speak, and there are a few on the periphery. Those in the spotlight may seem like the most interesting people in the room.
but those on the periphery sometimes have the most fascinating stories. Today on a new beginning, Pastor Greg Laurie takes us to the birth of Christ. It helps us meet a couple of people who seem to be on the periphery of the story. but who have much to teach us about having a love for Christ. Let's grab our Bibles and turn to Luke chapter 2.
The title of my message is Jesus. And the expectant, let me take a quick poll. How many of you are done with your Christmas shopping? Raise your hand. Wow, impressive.
All four of you. There are a few more, a few more. We're good. How many of you are still in the midst of your Christmas shopping? You're still doing it.
Okay, good. Are you going to shop today? Today, maybe?
Okay, how many of you have not started your Christmas shopping? Wow, that's the majority. How many of you are not doing any Christmas shopping because you don't care? There's always a guy, always a guy. And it's right.
So I looked this up. I was curious: what is the top gift that Wives give to their husbands at Christmas. And number one, it's tech gadgets. Doesn't that make sense? Also, they buy their husbands foot massagers.
Now, I've never heard. Had a foot massager, and I've never wanted one. And then also, slim wallets. That makes sense to me. Because guys end up with fat wallets, right?
Because we have nowhere else to put our stuff.
So we just shove it in the wallet. Girls have all these little purses and things to carry around. We just have a fat wallet.
Now you might try to carry some version of a purse. You might call it a merse. You might call it a satchel. But you're gonna be harassed by other guys. It's a purse, right?
So we end up with fat wallets, so slim wallets. What do you think the number one gift that husbands give to wives during Christmas is? Take a guess. Jewelry, yeah, that's right. Jewelry, exactly.
Heard about a wife that said to her husband, honey, I had a dream last night. And in my dream, you gave me a beautiful diamond necklace. What do you think that dream means? He says, wait until Christmas Day and you'll know.
So Christmas Day came and she saw a nice little box wrapped Under the tree from her husband, she opened it up. And it was a book with the title, How to Interpret Dreams. Apparently He missed the memo.
So, if you can't wait until Christmas, you're probably young. If you can't wait for Christmas to be over, then you're probably older. But I want to talk about two people that were waiting for Christmas. Two people that are an integral part of the Christmas story, but yet very few have heard their names. Of course, I'm not talking about Joseph and Mary.
I'm talking about Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer and Frosty the Snowman. It's time to tell their story. Not really. No, I'm talking about two people with the name Simeon and Anna. And actually, they're closer to the actual nativity story than even the wise men were.
Now remember, I told you last time the wise men came later to the house where Jesus was, not the stable where the baby Jesus was.
So I don't know if that was a year later, even two years later, but Simeon and Anna saw. the newborn Jesus eight days after his birth in the temple.
So, I want to look at the role they play in the Christmas story.
So, let's sort of set the timeline out so we'll know what happened chronologically.
Well, of course, the angel Gabriel. Comes to a young girl named Mary in the little town of Nazareth. Basically, Mary was a nobody in a nobody town in the middle of nowhere. And by the way, Nazareth was known for wickedness, it was known for immorality. Because it was one of those places you pass through when you were on your way from one place to another.
It was sort of the barstow of the Bible, if you will. And I don't think anyone goes to Barstow, but they go through Barstow. And so on the way to Lake Cavasau or whatever. But it was also a place where Roman soldiers would travel through.
So let's just put it this way: more than one young woman found herself pregnant outside of wedlock, living in Nazareth. And that is why when Nathanael was told that Jesus was from Nazareth, he said, can any good thing come out of Nazareth?
So here in the town known for immorality was a very moral woman. a young girl named Mary. And she was going to fulfill Bible prophecy. Do you ever think she thought she would be the one? Who would be spoken of in Scripture?
I doubt that. But the angel Gabriel appeared to her. It's a big deal when an angel shows up. It's even a bigger deal when Gabriel shows up. Gabriel, a high-ranking angel found in both the Old and New Testament, comes to Mary and says, The Holy Spirit will come upon you, the power of the Most High will overshadow you, and the baby to be born will be holy and will be called the Son of God.
Now she has to break the news to Joseph, who she is engaged to. espoused to. Engagement was different in Bible times. The parents would generally decide who you were going to marry. You didn't decide.
So it was decided when she was still a very young girl that she would marry this. Young man Joseph. And so they're waiting for their wedding day still. And now Mary comes to Joseph and says she's pregnant. Not shocking living in Nazareth, but she says, actually, the angel Gabriel came to me and told me I'm going to be the mother of the Messiah.
Joseph was probably thinking. Yeah, right.
Now he loved Mary. But he couldn't go on. And so he thought, I'm just gonna put her away privately. I'm not gonna make a big deal about this. His heart was broken, but then an angel of the Lord appeared to him.
And told him she was telling the truth, that she was to fulfill Bible prophecy.
So now Mary and Joseph make their way, of course, to Bethlehem. Why did they go to Bethlehem? Because the decree was given by Caesar. that everyone was to be attacked, so you had to go to your hometown, so to speak. Where your ancestors came from.
They were both. Connected to King David, who you remember lived in Bethlehem as well.
So it's just another night in Bethlehem. There were no lights strung on any buildings, no visions of sugar plums dancing in anyone's head. But human history was about to change. One person put it this way, quote, history swings on the hinge of the door of a stable in Bethlehem, end quote.
Now the Creator is going to enter our world in human form. And the message is going to go out and be announced. And of course, we told you last time, it went to shepherds who were the lowest of the low on the social ladder, not to Caesar. I was telling this story to my grandkids, and I mentioned that historians tell us Caesar was rather small. five feet seven inches tall.
And my granddaughter Lucy said, like little Caesar, yeah, that's it. Pizza, pizza, right?
So she got that part pretty well. But anyway, so the message is given now. that the Messiah has been born.
So eight days after his birth, Mary and Joseph come into the temple to have him circumcised. And they run into the first character in our story, Simeon, a godly man eagerly waiting for the Messiah. It's amazing how much faith Simeon had considering the fact that that Israel had not heard from God for 400 years. They had not seen a single miracle. No angelic appearance, no prophet speaking on behalf of God, 400 years of an icy silence, so to speak, from heaven, and suddenly this chain of events of the arrival of Messiah are happening before them.
And it was all according to God's timing. Because God tells us in Galatians chapter 4, when the time is just right, God sent forth this Son, born of a woman, made under the law, to redeem those that are under the law, when the time was just right.
So Simeon was waiting. He was waiting for Christmas, effectively, waiting for Christ. Because it was revealed to him that he would not die. until he had seen the Messiah with his own eyes.
Sometimes you get a box ahead of time. A ship to you and it says do not open until Christmas. It was revealed to Simeon he would not die until Christmas, so he was waiting. Peace and late. Yeah.
Pastor Greg Laurie will have the second half of his message in just a moment. It's such a blessing to hear from listeners who take time to express their appreciation. Pastor Greg. Your podcasts are so uplifting. Every time I listen, I always learn something new.
And I want to thank you for your ministry. I love listening to you, Pastor Greg. Your messages are always clear and perfectly articulated with both firmness and a light heart. You are a blessing to me. Thank you so much.
When we hear from you, it's not only a blessing, it also confirms that the program is touching lives. Would you consider sharing your story? If so, send an email to Pastor Greg. Send it to greg at harvest.org. That's Greg at harvest.org.
Well, today we're focusing on a man who was waiting patiently for the birth of the Christ child. Pastor Gray continues his look at Simeon from Luke chapter 2. You know, we spend a lot of our lives waiting for things. I looked this up and I read that we spend six months to two years of our lives waiting. waiting in lines, in amusement parks, in markets at the DMV.
You know, people say they want more government involvement in our lives. Have you been to the DMV lately? Right.
So we wait and wait. They have these little signs and amusement park lines now. If you're waiting at this point in the line, you will be on the right end one month, right?
So I almost like not knowing actually.
So we wait. We spend a lot of time waiting at lights. Uh I've never seen so many lights. Apart from the city of Irvine. Do you know what I'm talking about?
What is going on with the lights in Irvine? You know, the light goes green and you never have enough time to get to the next light. It just goes red. And then you sit at lights. I think I've spent three years of my life waiting at lights in Irvine.
And then we spend a lot of time waiting for other things.
So they were waiting. Simeon and Anna were patiently waiting, waiting to hear from God. And Simeon held on to the promises of God given 400 years before the birth of Christ by the prophet Malachi, who said, the son of righteousness will rise with healing in his wings. Even though that promise was 400 years old, he believed it. He's listening.
He's waiting. He's hearing from God. That's a good thing. We should want to communicate with God more and hear from God more. I read an interesting article the other day about how pet owners want so desperately to communicate with their dogs.
and have their dogs communicate with them.
So they've developed this rather sophisticated way of communication. where the dog can press little buttons. And by pressing these buttons, the dog tells you what they want. Like one button says outside. Another one says treat.
Another one says party. Another one says play.
So the dog pushes the button telling you what The little one really wants well, there's one other button that says I love you And the pet owners were very discouraged because the dogs were never pressing the I love you button. Just treat, outside, party. No, I love you. The pet owners were pressing the I love you button. No response from the dog.
Because maybe your dog doesn't love you at all. I'm not really sure what relevance this has to my sermon, but somehow I wove it in.
So I'll make an attempt at it now.
Well, you want to communicate with your dog. That's one thing. How about communicating with God? He wants to speak to you. He wants to hear from you.
So old Simeon hung on to the promises of God. And I encourage you, hang on to God's promises. They're true and they're trustworthy. In 2 Peter 1:4, it says, God has given to us great and precious promises. 2 Corinthians 1.20 says, God's promises have been fulfilled in Christ with a resounding yes.
Now someone figured out that there are over 8,000 promises in the Bible given to us as believers. I've not gone through and counted them all. I'll take their word for it, but that's a lot of promises. And promises from God are a lot like gift cards. You gotta cash them.
Cash them in. You got to take hold of them. Apply them in your life. You can read them. You can memorize them, but you've got to believe them.
and apply them and say i believe God's promise to me right now. Let me give you an example. You're in a stressful situation. You've heard some scary news.
Now go over to the promises of God. Philippians, don't worry about anything. Pray about everything. And the peace of God that passes all human understanding will guard your heart and mind in Christ Jesus. Take hold of that promise for yourself.
You feel abandoned. You feel forgotten. You feel alone. Take hold of the promise of God. Jesus said, I will never leave you or forsake you.
But the problem is, we know these promises, but we don't cash them in like those gift cards people give to us.
Now, I don't know why I get these particular gift cards, but I've received more than one gift card. To win an up burger. and krispy cream donuts. Probably because I mentioned them in my sermons. Maybe I should talk about more expensive restaurants.
I don't know. But if I used all those gift cards that people give me, I would be morbidly obese.
Someone would say, Maybe you are. I don't know. Well, I'm not going to cash them all in. But we need to take hold of these promises of God because the Lord promises to hear our prayers. Jeremiah 33:3, the Lord says, Call to me, and I'll answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things.
You did not know. And by the way, Simeon's very name means God has heard.
So he was waiting. He was looking for the Messiah to come. And in the same way, we should be looking for the Messiah to come as well.
So one day, Mary and Joseph walk into the temple. And Simeon knew these are the ones. This is the child. How did he know? I don't know.
Probably because he heard from God. Probably because he was close to God. I don't think they glowed in the dark. I don't think they had halos like we see in some religious art. But somehow Simeon knew.
This is the Messiah I'm looking at. And so he says this in Luke chapter 2, verse 32. Speaking of Jesus, he is a light to reveal God of the nations, and he is the glory of your people, Israel. Mary and Joseph were amazed at what was being said about him. Then Simeon blessed him and said to Mary, the baby's mother, This child is destined to cause many in Israel to fall and many others to rise.
He has been sent as a sign from God, and many will oppose him. As a result, the deepest thoughts of many hearts will be revealed. And then he says to Mary, and a sword will pierce your very soul. Mary made quite the sacrifice to be the mother of the Messiah. Oh, yes, it was a great privilege.
To carry the Son of God in her womb. But oh. She had to suffer so much. As an example, she had to go through her life being thought of as an immoral woman. In fact, on one occasion the Pharisees said to Jesus, at least we weren't born of fornication.
Implying that Jesus was conceived out of wedlock. And the irony of this is Mary was such a moral woman, such a godly girl, and yet she had to live with this reputation. A sword was piercing her soul, so to speak. When Jesus was 12 years old, Joseph and Mary went to Jerusalem and they traveled back separately. When they got home, Mary thought Jesus was with Joseph.
Joseph thought Jesus was with Mary. And he wasn't with either of them and they had effectively lost Jesus.
So they went back to Jerusalem and they found him with the leaders in the temple. And they corrected him. And he turned to them and said, did you not know that I must be about my father's business? Speaking of his heavenly Father, sword pierced a little more. Then there was the first miracle of our Lord performed at the wedding feast in Cana of Galilee.
Where they ran out of wine, and Mary went to Jesus and said, You need to do something. He says, Woman, what is that to you? My hour is not yet come. Interesting, he uses the word woman. It's more of a formal title, not an endearing term like you might use of your mother.
He's effectively saying, I've got a mission to fulfill. The sword pierced her soul a little bit more. But then, on one occasion, Jesus was speaking, and someone said, Your mother and your siblings are here. And he turned to the crowd and he said, Who is my mother and who is my brother? But he that hears the word of God and keeps it.
Now, that would have been a great time to exalt his mother. That would have been a great time to honor Mary. And I bring this up. Because we're told in the Catholic Church that we should pray through Mary to Jesus. The Bible does not teach such a thing.
The Bible teaches we go to the Father through Jesus. Mary has no role to play in any of this. We should not pray through Mary, and we should never pray to Mary or to any saint or to any angel. You pray to God through Jesus because there's one mediator. There's one mediator between God and man, and it's Christ Jesus.
Mary does not hear your prayers. Mary does not grant your prayers or pass them on to the Son. It is not taught in Scripture. And if Jesus wanted to exalt his mother, that would have been a great opportunity to do it. But he didn't do it.
Listen to this: Mary was a sinner like everybody else. In fact, after she heard she was going to be the mother of the Messiah, in the Gospel of Luke, in her psalm.
sometimes called Mary's Magnificat. She said, my soul rejoices in God, my Savior. See, Mary recognized she needed a Savior like the rest of us.
So, when you hear of Mary making appearances and giving messages, I'm sorry to tell you, that is not happening. If you want to know Mary's message for you, Go back to the feast, the wedding feast at Incana of Galilee. When she turned to the servants and she said of Jesus, whatever he says to you, do it. That's what Mary says to us. Whatever Jesus says, do it.
She would not want us praying to her or through her or exalting her.
Now that's not to denigrate her. She was a gifted, blessed woman in every way, but it's to understand her in the way the Bible presents her.
So the sword will pierce your own soul, says Simeon. Um Some revealing insights today on a new beginning from the story of the birth of Christ. Pastor Gregg Laurie with his message called Jesus and the Expectant. and there's more to come. But here on this Christmas Eve, you know, there's no better present to celebrate than the gift of eternal life made possible through the birth of Christ.
In fact, it's through the sacrifice of Christ that we're able to be forgiven of our sins and enjoy eternity in heaven. Have you ever come to the Lord and accepted that gift? Pastor Gregg, what would you say to the person listening who just doesn't know if they've ever done that? They can't think of a time when they made a deliberate decision for the Lord. It's just not a good idea to assume everything's going to work out okay, is it?
No, this is one area of your life you want to be sure about. where you're going to spend eternity. The Bible says, these things we write to you that you may believe on the Son of God and that you may know that you have eternal life. Listen, I know I have eternal life, I know I'll go to heaven one day. And I hope that doesn't sound boastful.
And if it does, I'm boasting in what God has done for me, not in what I've done for God. The reason I know these things is because I've turned from my sin and I've put my faith in Christ, you see. And if you do the same, you can have this same hope. You just need to call out to the Lord and admit you're a sinner and ask Jesus Christ to forgive you and come into your life. The Bible says, whoever will call upon the name of the Lord will be saved.
Will you call upon Him right now? I'm going to pray a simple prayer. And I'm going to ask you to pray this prayer. after me if you would So, if you want to know that you'll go to heaven when you die, if you want to know for certain that Christ is living in your life Then pray this prayer with me. Just pray these words.
Lord Jesus. I know I am a sinner. But I know you are the Saviour. who died on the cross for my sin. I turn from my sin now.
and I choose to follow you from this moment forward. as my Saviour and my Lord. As my God and my And my friend. Thank you for hearing this prayer. Thank you for answering this prayer.
And I ask this in Jesus' name. Amen. Amen. And listen, if you just prayed that prayer with Pastor Greg and you meant those words sincerely. The Lord has forgiven your sin, and you're now a Christian.
and we want to help you get started in this new life of faith. Let us send you Pastor Gregg's New Believer's Bible. It's in an easy-to-understand translation, and there are scores of features to help a new believer build a solid foundation.
So get in touch and ask for the New Believer's Bible. We'll send it free of charge. Just call 1-800-821-3300. Call anytime 24-7. 1-800-821-3300.
or go online to harvest.org and click Know God. And then, thank you for partnering with us to help these daily studies continue. Your investments have eternal benefits. Why not make this a part of your personal ministry to partner in an effort that's making a real difference with the gospel of Jesus Christ? Thank you for your prayers and for prayerfully considering how God might lead you to help tangibly.
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Well next time, more lessons from the example set for us by Simeon and Anna in the Christmas story. Join us here on A New Beginning with Pastor and Bible teacher Greg Laurie. This is the day, the day when life begins.
