Christmas Program

Thank you for listening this Truth Network Podcast. Thank you for listening. Thank you for listening.

Thank you for listening. Thank you. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Light. First word from the Creator's lips. Chosen above all to be the reflection of divinity. For light is void filling, revelatory life nurturing, unshadowed essential and pronounced good. But at the first bite of rebellion the world fell to pieces becoming incomplete missing perfection. Through jagged cracks of brokenness sin slithered in killing spirits hissing lies defiling hearts. The light is dimmed. Darkness rules.

Its rain evident from wars near and far famine and poverty plagues of body and mind despair becomes the default emotion. Light though dimmed still glimmers and waits. Waits for the fullness of time of blessing in the very depth of night eternal light is worn a sun is given perfection returns. Raining darkness refuses to surrender no going silently into the night tempting taunting lashing piercing believing victory is won when light lays down his life. Three days he lies entombed in darkness but even the grave cannot hold back the light once more radiance bursts forth from the shadows the morning star is risen shining new light into hearts. Christmas is the season of light twinkling in windows shimmering round trees illuminating houses the darkness of winter is overcome by its brightness bearing witness to the world that the true light has come.

When a major fool is there with the eyes of golden fire Jesus was really to shine. He came down to hell and his shadow was unstable and his rain was so small with the glory of God with the heart of Satan God is the pleasure of Satan to his holy people and God so dear and gentle is the Lord in heaven the Lord and His light is still the place where He is born and with Him the Savior may He always escape me God but in heaven I shall see Satan once again in this gentle heaven His grace shall be done . Nearly a century ago in 1926 a pastor by the name of Dr. James Francis was preparing for a sermon in LA and he penned a passage in his preparation that would become to be called A Solitary Life and the words of that are just as true today as they were a hundred years ago and they'll be just as true a hundred years from now and I would like to share that with you. He was born in an obscure village. The child of a peasant woman. He grew up in another village where he worked in a carpenter shop until he was 30. Then for three years he became an itinerant preacher. He never held an office. He never went to college. He never had a family or owned a home. He never lived in a big city. He never traveled more than 200 miles from where he was born.

He never did any of the things that would normally accompany greatness. He had no credentials but himself. By the time he was 33 the tide of public opinion had turned against him. His friends ran away from him.

One of his best friends denied him. He was turned over to his enemies and he went through a mockery of a trial. He was nailed to a cross between two thieves and as he was on the cross dying, his executioners gambled for his garments, the only possessions he had on earth.

When he died he was laid into a borrowed grave through the pity of a friend. Twenty centuries have come and gone and he is the central figure of the human race. All the armies that ever marched, all the navies that ever sailed, all the parliaments that ever sat, all the kings that ever reigned combined have not affected the life of man on earth as much as this one solitary life. Immanuel God with us He gave us His name is God Immanuel Immanuel Immanuel His name is God Immanuel God with us He gave him us His name is God Immanuel Immanuel So this has been a strange year to say the least and I know as we observe the Christmas season many of you cannot assemble with some of your friends and family the way you normally do due to the COVID threat and as great as it is to get together with family this time of year that's not what the season is all about. You know I love Christmas decorations I love the Christmas songs the Christmas movies all that stuff is great but that's not what it's all about.

What it's all about is what we talked about tonight. That first Christmas we received the greatest gift that the world has ever known and it was not wrapped in pretty paper and laid under a tree it was wrapped in swaddling clothes and laid in a manger. God loved us that much so let's go to him in prayer. Dear Heavenly Father we are so thankful that you loved us so much that you sent your son and we're so thankful that he was willing to come down from the glories of heaven to be born in a lowly manger to be trapped in humanly flesh a life as a human as your creation the Creator living as creation and went through all the struggles that we go through and was able to live the perfect life to become the perfect sacrifice to be willing to be beaten for our transgression, bruised for our iniquities to be nailed to a cross to die and to rise three days later and to defeat hell and sin and death and to ascend into heaven and set your right hand and intercede for us. God we're so thankful that you loved us that much that you a holy God wanted to be reconciled to us a sinful people and gave us a way to do that if we would just believe in him that we could have every last life and we're so thankful and we pray that we'll never forget that and that we'll praise, glorify you in all things and in his precious name we pray amen. So this Christmas I want you to remember that he is the reason for the season and as you celebrate just remember that and we pray that God will bless you and your family this Christmas season and throughout the year may God bless you Goodnight and Merry Christmas.