TNG The Story of Christmas

Bestselling author, speaker, and advocate for Christian apologetics, Dr. Alex McFarland.

Bestselling author and apologist, Dylan Burrows. Together bringing you truth. For a new generation, this is TNG Radio. A Christmas story.

Only the Lord knows how many songs, poems, paintings, how many wonderful works of art, literature, and music have been birthed by the Christmas story, the story of Christ's birth. And today on TNG Radio, we're going to talk about the story on which all other stories are based. Welcome to the program. Alex McFarland here with Dylan Burrows. We're so glad you're with us.

And I want to read a scripture from Luke chapter 2. But Dylan, first of all, let me say as this show begins, and as a year, an incredibly busy year of events, publishing, and broadcasting winds to a close, how thankful I am for you, all of our board and staff, and there's a lot we could say. But Dylan, Merry Christmas. Good to be with you around the microphone. And thanks for all that you bring to the ministries of Truth for a New Generation.

Well, Merry Christmas to you, too, Alex. And it's been an exciting year of ministry, as you mentioned. We are now starting our second year of Truth for a New Generation radio and reaching the next generation of young people with the gospel of Christ and equipping them with a Christian worldview.

And there's been no greater time and no greater need in our nation's history to equip the next generation than now. So it's been a thrill to see that happen over the past 12 months and looking forward to what God does in 2019 and ahead. And for all those listening and all those who have been partnering with us and praying, we thank you and encourage you to join us today as we talk about the true reason for the season, the birth of Jesus Christ.

Absolutely, absolutely. You know, as I turn to Luke chapter 2, it's interesting, at Christmas people get a little bit introspective sometimes, and they think about memories and the journey they've been on. It really is astounding, the journey that this ministry has been on over the last couple of years in terms of our events and people accepting Christ. And even as we speak, one of our gospel booklets is being put into Spanish, and right now in El Salvador is being printed 100,000 copies. I don't know if I've even told you about this. I'm going to bring this up at our board meeting next week. But we've got 100,000 Spanish language gospel booklets going out in El Salvador.

You and I have finished a book this year that will be out in the spring of 2019, the conferences. But you know, regardless of all the myriad of things God's called us to do, there's one message, and it's the message that for 2,000 years the Church has proclaimed Jesus Christ, and it was the message of the angels in Luke chapter 2. And we give God the glory, folks, we give God the glory. But let me read this from verse 8 of Luke 2 and following, it says, And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them, and they were sore afraid. And the angel said unto them, 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 Savior, which is Christ the Lord.

And this shall be a sign unto you, you shall find the babe, wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, Luke 2.14, and we say it as well, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men. Dylan, I guess that Luke passage, Luke 2, is not only some of the most well-known scripture from the Bible, those are probably some of the most famous words, most oft-repeated words in all of history, aren't they?

They may be, and it's interesting, I was talking just this past Sunday night with a group of high school guys about their favorite Christmas movies, and they had their favorites, whether it was Buddy the Elf or whether it was Polar Express. But I always think of the Charlie Brown Christmas, and as I think about the Charlie Brown Christmas, one thing I love is that it includes the real story of what Christmas means, these very verses you talked about that Linus says from the stage. And I love that still to this day, many places you can watch that on television or watch it on a DVD or stream it on video and hear the real message of Jesus and portray it in a way that anyone of any age can appreciate. Amen.

Amen. You know, we are recording this, well, I at least am in Greensboro, North Carolina, and growing up in grade school, Dylan, we learned about a man named William Sidney Porter, O. Henry. And many people will know of O. Henry, he wrote a number of things, but probably the most famous, I mean this is a worldwide famous story, it's been put in many languages, The Gift of the Magi. And it's a story about a young couple, they're very deeply in love, but they were financially poor, and so Christmas is coming, and they sacrifice to give a gift to each other. And the husband sells an heirloom pocket watch in order to buy his wife a set of combs for her beautiful hair.

And you know, like a hundred years ago, they would make these combs and these hairpins out of tortoise shell or pearl or something, they were very expensive. And the wife, her hair was her pride and joy, but she cut it and sold her hair in order to buy the husband a gold chain for his beloved pocket watch. And the point of O. Henry's story was that selfless love was demonstrated in their actions. And when I was a kid, this story, The Gift of the Magi, frustrated me. And I knew it was really famous, we studied it in school, we went downtown to the museum to see where O. Henry, this famous iconic writer, wrote.

But it really took me years of grappling with this story. I thought, well, you know, he sacrifices for her, she sacrifices for him, but they both end up with a gift that can't do the other any good. And then I began to realize that, you know, O. Henry was renowned for his surprise endings, but the ultimate act of sacrifice on which O. Henry's story was based was the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. And the book of Isaiah in the Old Testament points to a number of things about the salvation message. How that the Son of God would come, the perfect, righteous, sinless Son of God, and he would come and he would show love like had never been displayed, he would teach truth, and in fact, even in his day, they said, never a man spake like this. Dylan, I was on the phone earlier today with our friend Mike Lacona, renowned New Testament historian, and Mike said this, that there's not a scholar in the world, a reputable scholar, even non-believers, there's not a scholar in the world that doesn't recognize that Jesus was viewed as a worker of miracles in his own lifetime.

So here's this perfect, righteous, sinless Son of God who does miracles even renowned, recognized in his lifetime, and yet Isaiah 53.7 said that he would be led like a lamb to the slaughter. So we've got to pull away for a break, but Christmas is the ultimate example of how God can solve an insoluble dilemma. The catch-22 that can't be fixed, God can fix it, and Christmas is a promise of that.

Stick with us. We'll be right back and talk more about the true meaning of Christmas here on Truth For A New Generation. Christians don't necessarily agree with one another when it comes to questions of religious pluralism, homosexuality, the role of government, abortion, and war. Too often we manage these disagreements by ignoring them. Yet we're called to engage the world for the sake of Christ.

How can we be effective if we avoid society's most pressing questions? In 10 issues that divide Christians, Alex McFarland challenges us to drill down to the biblical core of 10 current issues, such as social justice, evil and suffering, pornography, and environmentalism as he echoes the biblical invitation, Come, let us reason together. Only by engaging the scriptures deeply, thinking clearly, and speaking truthfully can we and God's family address our differences and discover the peace that comes with unity of purpose. Ten issues that divide Christians.

Find this book and many others at alexmcfarland.com. If you're a Christian parent, you of course want to instill a biblical view of life in the hearts of your children. If you're a pastor, you want to offer ministry that draws young families to your church. This is Alex McFarland encouraging you to check out my new book and video curriculum, The 21 Toughest Questions Your Kids Will Ask About Christianity. Why do bad things happen? I interviewed hundreds of children, ages 5 to 12, and we address actual questions from actual children, the spiritual issues that are on the minds of your kids.

Did Jesus ever sin? The book and video lessons are great for groups of any size and was produced with the goal of equipping kids to stand strong for Christ in any situation. The 21 Toughest Questions Your Kids Will Ask, the book, study guide, and video series. You'll find it at afastore.net. Rejoice, rejoice, Emmanuel! We'll rest our hearts in the light of the Lord. O come, O come, Emmanuel and ransom, captive Israel, that mourns in lonely exile here until the Son of God appear. A very famous song there based on Isaiah 7-14. The chorus I love, Rejoice, rejoice, Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel.

Welcome back to TNG Radio. This is a Christmas program. We're talking about the story of Christmas, which is really the story on which all other great stories are based. Dylan, a few years ago there was an article I read about, you know, now that we're solidly into the 21st century, almost two decades into the 21st century, that we're talking about throughout world history, the greatest stories, even things like Les Misérables or Moby Dick or the Sistine Chapel or the great symphonies, Canon and Dee, the great works of music, past and present, art, literature, music, sculpture, regardless of the media, the greatest, most beloved, most iconic works in history that have inspired the imagination, lifted the soul and lifted the emotions and frankly contributed to the betterment of the human condition. The majority, more than 80%, are based on biblical themes. Isn't that interesting how so many of our beloved stories are really drawn from the story, which is the story of God so loving the world that he sent his Son? I think that's a point that needs to be noted.

Would you agree? Yes, it is very interesting when you observe the structure of modern films even, how many of our superhero films are based on this special chosen one who comes and has special powers and is defeated but comes back from the dead in some miraculous way and sometimes even ascends off into the sky at the end. You think of The End of Matrix, for example, to give one older example or illustration, but also many of the Marvel films do the same type of plot line where it's based on this idea of a coming one who would give themselves for others and be the special chosen one, or in biblical terms, the Messiah, as Jesus Christ is here at the Christmas season. I was doing research for a book I was writing and the question was, was Superman Jewish? This was not being flippant or anything like that.

It wasn't a joke. This was a very serious scholarly book and it looked at all the superheroes, like you mentioned, the Marvel heroes. Just recently the world mourned the passing of Stan Lee who made so many of his heroes very, very messianic. We love stories. I think about The Green Mile, which is a film a lot of people love, and John Coffey was kind of the hero savior of that film and certainly it wasn't lost on movie viewers that his initials, J.C., were like Jesus Christ.

What are we saying? The art and the literature and the music and the stories that seem to really stir our soul, I think it's because of this objective reality known to all people that there is a need for a savior. We are waiting on the hero to ride up on a white horse and save the damsel in distress and even the book of Revelation talks about the return of the king. Christ the king will return and he'll come on a white stallion.

He left on a donkey. Isn't it amazing, talking about story, and I was an English major in my first go-round of college and I do love stories, there was a donkey at the birth of Christ, there was a donkey at the end of Christ's life, Mary and Joseph going to Bethlehem, Mary and Joseph fleeing to Egypt to escape the killing of the innocents by Herod. Then in Zechariah 13, Palm Sunday, Christ is on his way to the cross, he comes as a man of peace on a donkey.

At the beginning of Christ's earthly ministry at the end there was a donkey, but when he returns it will not be as a suffering servant it will be as a victorious king and he will come on a white horse. And the book of Isaiah I mentioned before the break, it says that in Isaiah 53.5, by his stripes we are healed, and 1 Peter 2.24 references that. And think about this, seven centuries, nearly eight centuries before the birth of Christ, Isaiah amazingly portrays the scenes from Christ's life that we would later read about in the gospels. Born of a virgin, Isaiah 7.14, Luke 1.34. He would be God incarnate, that's Isaiah 9.6, and we see that in Mark 14.61 and John 10.30-33.

He would be beaten beyond recognition, even before being put to death on the cross, Isaiah 52.14, Matthew 27.26-31. And so the good news is great news, how that God so loved the world that he would lay down his life for each one of us. And I hope your family is celebrating this, I hope you're planning to be in church and go to a Christmas Eve service.

Utilize this time to bring an unsaved friend or a young person under the sound of the gospel. And Dylan, if you can tell that I'm pretty enraptured and just so committed to all that is Christmas, it's because it is truly the greatest story ever told. Yes, and it's interesting in families, many times that manger scene or that nativity that you look at is a big part of the Christmas story, and we look at it as the cuddly animals and the shepherds and the wise men, but for Jesus, it would have been a time of humiliation. He was born in a manger, a place where animals would come. And we see that again in his death to give a parallel, that he died on a cross, a place where criminals would be put to death. So he came in humility, but he was also humiliated throughout his life on earth. But then he came and proved himself as the risen Son of God and will come again as King. So we want to encourage people that often we see this as a story of baby Jesus, cute, meek, mild. But the truth is, he came and humbled himself as a servant, as Philippians 2 speaks about, come to the point of death on a cross. Why did he do this? He did it for you.

He did it for me. He did it to give us eternal life and life abundantly. The story of Christmas is much more than wise men or angels or shepherds or even Mary and Joseph. It's about the baby in the manger who was and is the Messiah, Jesus Christ.

It is amazing, the shepherds, the lowliest cast of society, and then the wise men, rich leaders from Persia, Jew, Gentile, the lowly, the elevated. For all people, Christ came. And it is the greatest story ever told.

And so he did it in love for the world, and he did it in love for you. And we've got to take a break. This is TNG radio. Stay tuned. We have another segment, and we're going to wrap up as we talk about the story on which all other stories are based, the story of Jesus.

Stay tuned. As we take a break, let me tell you about three tens, three books that'll answer questions that come your way from others or even yourself about the Christian faith. Book number one, Ten Answers for Skeptics. Today's skeptics are looking for authenticity, integrity, and straightforward faith. And in this book, you'll learn how to answer intimidating questions, identify the root issue behind those questions, and dismantle the spiritual bombshells dropped by non-believers.

Those usually end up just being a puff of smoke. Number two, Ten Answers for Atheists, where Alex looks at the philosophical assumptions at the root of atheism and agnosticism exposing logical, historical, and conceptual fallacies. Alex shares clear explanations of beliefs and biblical answers to those questions that often leave you stumped, but no more. And number three, the ten most common objections to Christianity and how to answer them. You know, many Christians hear these objections and have a crisis of faith, but Alex and Dylan have been around. They've visited many places and talked with many people through the years and can offer straight answers that'll give you confidence and understanding about your beliefs. So, the three tens once again, Ten Answers for Skeptics, Ten Answers for Atheists, and the ten most common objections to Christianity and how to answer them.

Find them wherever Christian books are sold or at alexmcfarland.com. As a group, millennials have more than a trillion dollars in purchasing power, so you know businesses are watching us. By 2025, we'll comprise 75% of the workforce, so employers are watching us. Despite these positives, millennials are losing our faith, so we know Satan is watching us. Engage Magazine is for millennials by millennials, and it speaks to faith, purpose, and a closer walk with Jesus. Because above all, God is watching us.

Visit engagemagazine.net. God rest ye merry, gentlemen, at nothing you dismay. Remember Christ our Savior was born on Christmas day, to save us all from Satan's power when we were gone astray. Oh tidings of comfort and joy, comfort and joy. Oh tidings of comfort and joy. Oh tidings of comfort and joy, comfort and joy. The great tidings of the birth of Jesus. Merry Christmas, everyone.

Welcome back to TNG Radio. I do want to remind you that we have a big, big 2019 ahead of us with at least five city-wide events and so much more events, broadcasting, publishing, to try to evangelize the lost and equip the saved. We give God the glory for all that he's doing, and we would ask you to pray for this ministry. To stay tuned, you can visit one of the websites, truthfornanewgeneration.com.

There's an app also that works on all mobile devices, regardless of the type of mobile device you've got. And we are, in the very first quarter, going to be doing some major, major updates to the websites and the apps, posting articles, content. So stay up to speed with what God is doing when we come to your town or near your city. Try to come out, and I do want to remind everybody that I will be at the Cove, the Billy Graham Training Center at the Cove in Asheville, March 22nd through 24th. I'll be doing Daniel and Revelation, Bible prophecy, and we would love to see you come out and love to meet you.

So wherever you are in America, the Cove is just so beautiful, very, very affordable, world-class accommodations, the greatest food you'll ever eat, and together we'll open up the Word of God and look at Bible prophecy, and their website is thecove.org. Well, Dylan, as we look at this, the story on which all other stories are based, the story of the cross, I used to also, not only was I sort of pondering the O. Henry, the surprise ending of Gift of the Magi, I used to also scratch my head a little bit on Isaiah 53.10. It says in Isaiah 53.10 that it pleased the Father to bruise him, literally meaning to crush him. Now here is the one that in Matthew 17, the voice from heaven says, This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased.

Hear him! And yet Jesus was rejected, despised, falsely accused, was beaten, was whipped, ripped his beard out by the roots, ultimately nailed to a cross, the most vicious, brutal mistreatment of the sinless Son of God, and yet it says it pleased the Father to bruise him. And the Heavenly Father was pleased in all this happening.

Have you ever pondered on that, Dylan? How could the Father have been pleased at the treatment received by his Son in this world? Right, and you even hear skeptics take it to that next level, saying that God is somehow abusive of his Son, like that is an equivalent that fits. But this is nothing like what we see in Isaiah 53.10.

We see it pleased the Father to bruise him or to literally crush him. It's that idea that there is a greater plan involved than just having Jesus coming to earth and being born in a manger. His life was to fulfill many prophecies, including those in Isaiah 53, in which he would live and suffer and die and be resurrected to prove himself as the Messiah, the Christ, the Son of God. So it's part of a larger plan that God had for his life, and it's a good time to point out the fact that God does not promise us a pain-free life. When he calls us to live for him, it sometimes involves persecution, it sometimes involves suffering, it sometimes involves pain. We are not called to a carefree existence. We are called to follow Jesus, to be like his example, no matter how difficult it may be at times, and know that God has a greater plan that includes his love for us. You know, that's true.

That's true. And in Isaiah 52, it's talking about this Savior, the Son of God, and it says in the King James, he will sprinkle many nations, and kings will shut their mouths at him. They will hear what they were not told, they will see what they have not known. Now, some skeptics will say, okay, well it doesn't say sprinkle as in the blood of Christ sprinkling, although many people have preached on that, and I agree that that is what he did. He shed his blood to wash our sins away. Some translations say he will startle many nations.

Well, either one works. And people have shut their mouths at Christ, they have been confounded. You know, G. K. Chesterton, in his book Orthodoxy, he talked about how he found Christ, and he said, you know, and this was a hundred years ago, but Chesterton was reading the critics, and some said he was too much Jewish and not enough Gentile, and then too Gentile and not enough Jewish, and he was too much this and not enough that. And Chesterton said, it hit me like a bolt out of the blue. Maybe Jesus was just right. Maybe it was Jesus who was sane, and all the critics were mad, or crazy. And he said, it hit me like a bolt out of the blue, Jesus was just right, in fact, perfect. Not just a good man, but the God-man. Jesus was not merely one who spoke for God, Jesus spoke as God. And we bring all this out now because it is the greatest story ever, and not only that, now think about it, brace yourself, prophesied coming, born in a manger, a king, yet humbling himself to be born among the animals where lambs are raised, and he would be called the Lamb of God, and he would give his life. Here is the thing that is just so amazing. Not only is it a good story, a great story, a personal story, it's a real story.

It really did happen. 2 Peter 1, 16, we have not followed cleverly devised fables. And so the good news of Christmas, Dylan, and I know Christmas can be a hard time for some people, and dear friends, we want to say in love, we are praying for you, we thank God for you, maybe there's an empty chair at your table this year, and maybe a beloved family member has gone on, or maybe you're in the middle of things that are pretty tough right now. The great thing about Christmas and Christ is that his love and his restoration and his forgiveness and his soon return and the reconciliation of all things, it is reality. Dylan, I think the greatest truth of Christmas is that there is something wonderful coming, and it's eternity with the Savior in the joys of heaven for all who will believe. I mean, the greatest part about Christmas is that in Jesus it is really, really real. Yes, we don't only look back to the manger in Jesus as a baby in the manger, we look forward to his coming again and our eternity with him as followers of Jesus Christ. Merry Christmas again from everybody at Truth For A New Generation Radio. We look forward to being with you next time.

Thanks so much. Truth For A New Generation, in association with Alex McFarland Evangelistic Ministries, exists to equip Christians with a biblical world view through conferences and camps. For information about upcoming events, visit truthforanewgeneration.com or give us a call at 877-Yes-God-1. That's 877-Yes-God and the number 1.

TNG radio is made possible by the friends of Alex McFarland Evangelistic Ministries. P. O. Box 10231, Greensboro, North Carolina 27404. That's P. O. Box 10231, Greensboro, North Carolina 27404. Or give online at alexmcfarland.com or truthforanewgeneration.com. Thanks for listening and join us again next time as we bring you more Truth For A New Generation on TNG radio.