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Now, here's today's podcast, From Pathway to Victory. Hi, this is Robert Jefferson. I'm glad to study God's Word with you every day on this Bible teaching program on today's edition of Pathway to Victory. Everything that exists in this vast universe was created by Hey. Not God the Father.
No, it was that baby born in Bethlehem who is the creator of everything that has ever existed. He is the creator of the universe. He is the generator of eternal life. And third, and most importantly, Jesus Christ is our reconciler to God. Welcome to Pathway to Victory with author and pastor Dr.
Robert Jeffress. Did you know that secular historians don't doubt that Jesus is a real historical figure? There's way too much evidence to deny that he existed. No, the issue isn't whether Jesus is real, but whether Jesus is who he said he is. Today on Pathway to Victory, Dr.
Robert Jeffress answers this all-important question, what child is this? But first, let's take a minute to hear some important ministry updates. Thanks, David, and welcome again to Pathway to Victory. All this month, we're presenting a special series of Christmas messages that I've decided to call Celebrate the Savior. And already I'm receiving wonderful feedback from our listening family.
People like you are expressing their gratitude. You see, most of us have a hard time cutting past the clutter of Christmas in order to truly embrace our Savior. That's true, not only of Christmas, but it's a struggle for us every single day of the year. For this purpose and more, I've written a brand new daily devotional for you. It's intended to help you start or end your day in God's Word.
And every season has a specific learning plan. You'll start the year in January with a spiritual fitness program. Then in March through May, you'll learn how to walk with God by faith. In the summer, you'll gain a biblical understanding of grace. And in the fall and winter of 2026, you'll meditate on the parables of Jesus.
It's going to be a great journey together.
So, while there's still time, please get in touch with us to request the 2026 Pathway to Victory Daily Devotional. A tan leather-bound copy is yours when you give a generous year-end gift to support the ministry of Pathway to Victory.
Well, at First Baptist Dallas, we love music. I suspect you do too. God gave us music to express our hearts. And right now, I'd like you to enter the worship center with me. Together, let's lift our hearts in praise to God.
who placed a bright star in the skies, the star of wonders. My thanks to the First Baptist Dallas Choir and Orchestra for this beautiful medley of our Christmas favorites. And now let's open our Bibles to the first chapter of Colossians. As we continue to celebrate the Savior, I'm presenting a message that comes in the form of a question. What child is this?
There are a lot of people who really believe that Jesus is whoever they imagine him to be. And while the real Jesus, though, the Jesus of the Bible came into this world as a tiny baby. He was much more than that. Who is this child that was born in the feeding trough in Bethlehem 2,000 years ago? Was he just another tiny baby?
Or was he more? If you have your Bibles, I want you to turn to Colossians chapter 1 as we discover the real identity of this baby born in Bethlehem 2,000 years ago. First of all, Paul says Jesus Christ Is the creator of the universe. You know, a lot of Christians believe that Jesus just came on the scene at Bethlehem. That was the first time he was created at the conception, and nine months later, when he was born in Bethlehem.
No. The Bible says Jesus Christ is eternal just as God is eternal. And in these verses, verses 15 through 17, Paul shows that by showing the central role that Jesus had in the creation of the universe. First of all, Jesus was pre-existent to the creation, he actually existed before Bethlehem. Look at verse 15.
For he, Jesus, is the image. of the invisible God. And then Paul adds the phrase, he is also the firstborn. of creation. Jesus Christ was pre-existent creation.
Not only that, secondly, he was the cause of creation. Look at verse 16. For by him, Jesus, all things were created both in heaven and earth, visible and invisible. Think of that. Everything that exists in this vast universe was created by...
Hey. Not God the Father. We think of God the Father as the creator. No, it was that baby born in Bethlehem who is the creator of everything that has ever existed. And not only that, if that were not enough, not only did he create it, he sustains the creation.
Look at verse 17. He is before all things, and in him, in Jesus, all things hold together. He is the one who created it, and he's the one who upholds this world. And here's the point. If Jesus Christ is powerful enough to uphold everything in this universe, don't you think He's powerful enough to uphold every detail of your life?
Jesus Christ is the creator of the universe. His sufficiency is also seen in the fact that he is the generator of eternal life. Look at this in verse 18. He, Jesus, is also head of the body, the church. Jesus Christ is the head, the power source, the generator for all Christians.
The power flows through him into us. What kind of power, Pastor, are you talking about? Certainly, the power to overcome the power of sin in our life. We have that power. We have the power to sustain us through life's crises, but the primary power that comes from Jesus Christ is the power of eternal life.
How do I know that? Look at the second phrase. He is the firstborn. From the dead. And there's that word again, prototypus, the firstborn of the dead.
He is the prototype. He is the leader, the first of a whole kind of new resurrection and a new body that will never die. I remember a few years ago when the Boeing Aircraft Company in Seattle, Washington. Decided that they were going to develop the most sophisticated jumbo jetliner ever developed, the 787 Dreamliner. They poured $32 billion into the development of that jet airplane.
And once they had all the research done, what did they do? They built the prototypeus, the prototype of that airplane.
Now If they had spent $32 billion to build one airplane, that would have been a bad business decision. There's no airplane that's worth $32 billion. But that first airplane wasn't the last one. It was the first of thousands of others that would be built and modeled just after the Prototicus, the prototype. That's who Jesus Christ is.
He is just the first in a long line of millions of Christians who will inherit the same kind of body that Jesus inherited and was given. And Paul said in 1 Corinthians 15: as in Adam all die, so in Christ, all shall be made alive. The Bible says he is the generator of eternal life for everyone who trusts in him. Isn't that great news? One day we're going to receive that brand new body from Jesus that is free from pain and suffering and sin and heartache.
The same kind of body Jesus has is the same kind of body you and I will have forever. You know, at this time, that's worth applauding. Amen to that. You know. At this Christmas time, especially.
There are some of you who are grieving over the loss of somebody. That has left you perhaps this year or maybe years ago, and you wonder where they are. You wonder if you're ever gonna know them or see them again. What are they doing right now? What is their existence like?
All you have to do is look at Jesus and the body gave him, God gave him to know what your body is going to be like and the body of your loved one, Jesus and his new resurrection body. He knew other people. He knew his disciples. The relationship he had with them in his old body just continued in the new body. They fellowship together.
Our relationships don't end on earth. They don't end at the graveyard. The Bible says those family members, those friends you have, if they know Christ as Savior, you'll be with them in heaven forever and ever and ever. You say, Pastor, how can you say that with such certainty? Listen to what John the Apostle said in 1 John 3:2.
Beloved, now we are children of God, and it's not appeared as yet as to what we shall be, but we know when he appears, we shall be like him.
Now, here's the point again of what Paul is saying to us: if Jesus Christ has the power to deliver you out of the grave and give you a brand new body, don't you think that same Jesus is powerful enough to deliver you through the problem you're going through right now? It's small potatoes compared to what He's getting ready to do for you one day at your death. Jesus Christ is sufficient, He is the creator of the universe, He is the generator of eternal life. And third, and most importantly, Jesus Christ is our reconciler to God. He is our reconciler to God.
Look at verse 19. For it was the Father's good pleasure for all the fullness to dwell in him. All of God dwelt in Jesus, not just a little bit of God or 50% of God. All of God was poured into his Son, Jesus Christ. Why?
Verse 20. And through him, Jesus, to reconcile all things to himself. Having made peace through the blood of his cross through him, I say, whether things on earth or things in heaven. The reason all of God dwelt in Jesus is so that Jesus could fulfill his primary mission on earth, and that is to reconcile us to God, making peace for us with God.
Now listen to me very carefully. Every problem you face right now. Whether it's a financial problem, a health problem, a relationship problem, whether it's a problem with illness. Or emotional distress, every problem we experience every hour of the day. Is the result of a world that is not at peace with God.
Every problem we face is living in the aftermath of a world that has been separated from God. What we need is reconciliation with God. That word reconcile means to move from hostility to harmony. You see, the Bible says... We have all strayed from God.
We have all strayed from God. You see that all the time in relationships. A husband and wife have a bitter argument and they separate from one another. Two friends have a disagreement, and they decide to end the friendship and separate. A child decides he or she no longer wants to live under the authority of a parent, and they separate from their parent.
But then There comes a reconciliation and they agree to come back together. The Bible says in our relationship with God, God's not the one who left us. We separated from God. All we like sheep have gone astray. We've turned everyone into our own way.
But God, in spite of our sin, God made the first move in reconciling us to himself. The Bible said God demonstrated his love for us in that while we were yet sinners, he sent Christ to die for us. God made the first move in reconciling us in the world to God by sending Christ, the perfect Son of God, to die for our sins, to take the punishment that we deserve to take on the cross. And although God has made the first move, we have to decide whether we want to be reconciled to God or live separated from God in this life and all eternity. How did God reconcile us to Himself?
Look at this: Verse 20, through the blood of His cross. Hear me, ladies and gentlemen. There's only one way for you and me to be reconciled to God, and that's to be forgiven of our sins. We can't forgive ourselves. It is Christ whose blood.
forgives us, cleanses us from all unrighteousness. You know, there's a lot of false teaching today about the blood of Christ. On that interview program, I referenced Friday Night on Fox. The interviewer asked me, Pastor, what do you think about these preachers right now who are telling people not to get vaccinated? To protect themselves from the coronavirus.
This pastor who is saying, The blood of Christ is all you need to be protected from the coronavirus. All you need to do is be vaccinated with the blood of Christ. What do you think of that, Pastor Jeffers? And in an unguarded answer, I said two words: utter stupidity. But it is utter stupidity.
To say that the blood of Christ is gonna protect you from physical illness. You know why? It's utter stupidity to say that. The blood of Jesus Christ is not sufficient. It's not capable.
of preventing physical illness and death in any one of us here. How can I say that with such certainty? Because do you know what the statistics of death are for Christians? 100%. There has not been one Christian since the resurrection who has ever escaped death.
Every one of them have died. 91% of them die from disease and illness. Every Christian has Who has died? has died Thinking that the blood of Christ would protect him not from physical illness, but from spiritual death. Let me illustrate that for you.
You know why the blood of Christ isn't sufficient to protect you from illness? That's not what it was designed to do. That's not what it was designed to do. My car is a marvelous piece of technology. But my car is insufficient to take me from Los Angeles to Hawaii, either flying through the air.
It can't take me through the Pacific Ocean. As wonderful as my car is, it is not sufficient to do that. Why? It wasn't designed to do that. Hear me this morning.
The blood of Jesus Christ wasn't designed to protect you from illness, from problems, from physical death, but it was designed, and it is totally sufficient. To protect you from the greatest problem you and I have, and that's separation from God. If we trust in the blood of Christ for the forgiveness of our sins, we won't escape physical death, but we are guaranteed to escape spiritual death, separation from God. And the blood of Christ is the only thing sufficient. to reconcile you to To your heavenly Father and ensure eternal life for you and for those who trust in Christ as well.
That's why Peter said in 1 Peter 3:18, for Christ also died for sins once for all, the just for the unjust, so that he might bring us to God, having put to death in the flesh, but be made alive again in the spirit. Jesus Christ is sufficient. He is central in being our reconciler to God. How do I know Jesus is sufficient for everything that I'm facing today? Think of it.
He's the creator of the universe. He's the generator of eternal life. And he is our reconciler to God. Jesus is sufficient. You know, I saw a great illustration.
of the centrality of Jesus Christ in this universe. A number of years ago, when I was watching The Tonight Show. This was long before Jimmy Fallon or even Jay Leno. It was back in the Johnny Carson days of the Tonight Show.
Now, I remember one night he had a guest host, as he often did. It was that caustic comedian, Joan Rivers. Remember Joan Rivers? And she was interviewing That celebrity interviewer, Barbara Walters. They're having a discussion, and Joan Rivers asked Barbara Walters: if you could interview any person in the world, whom would you interview?
And Barbara Walters said, oh, that's easy. Jesus Christ. John Rivers said, well, what would you ask him? Barbara Walters said, I would have to think about that. But, Joan, if you were going to interview him, What would you ask him?
And in a rare moment of seriousness, Joan Rivers said. I would ask him. If I'm going to heaven when I die. Two Jewish women. on national television having a discussion.
And the central issue was Jesus Christ. That baby born in Bethlehem 2,000 years ago. is the central issue. In this vast universe, he created. and what you do with Jesus Christ.
is the central issue in your life. and for all of your eternity. Uh Jesus Christ is the one we celebrate every day on the pathway to victory. Jesus is the savior for all seasons and the one we promote through radio, television, the internet. And every technology at our disposal, because nothing is more important than elevating the one who has overcome the world.
Keep in mind that on December 31st, we'll be closing the books on another ministry year. And it's important to remind you that Pathway to Victory is the recipient of an exciting matching challenge in the amount of $1.7 million. the biggest matching challenge in our history. This means that your gift today is automatically doubled, having twice the impact. But the deadline is Wednesday, December 31st at midnight, and I'm boldly inviting you to take advantage of this incredible opportunity to create an arsenal of resources that we can deploy in the coming year.
This is critically important because there's never been a time in American history where moral clarity and biblical truth are more needed than right now. And especially as we enter the uncertainties of 2026, now's the time to give generously. Please, don't let this window of opportunity close without taking advantage of the matching challenge. Plus, I'll be saying thanks for your generous gift by providing the all-new Pathway to Victory Daily Devotional for 2026. Keep this devotional on your nightstand or in the kitchen or near your favorite chair.
We've printed this volume in a larger font so that it's easy to read. It'll become your daily companion as you walk with God and with me in the new year. The days are running short. The matching challenge is going on right now. And if you've been withholding your generosity in recent months, now's the time to take action as we strive to double our impact on our nation and the world.
Here's David with all the details. When you give a generous year-end gift to support the Ministry of Pathway to Victory, We'll say thanks by sending you the brand new 2026 Pathway to Victory Daily Devotional. To request this exclusive resource, call 866-999-2965 or go to ptv.org. And when your gift is $100 or more, we'll also send you Celebrate the Savior. That's a DVD video and MP3 format audio disc set that features the best Christmas teaching messages by Dr.
Robert Jeffers. Now remember, because of our now is the time matching challenge, your gift will be doubled in size and impact.
So be sure to get in touch with us today. One more time, call 866-999-2965 or visit ptv.org. You could also send your donation by mail right to PO Box 223-609 Dallas, Texas 75222. That's P.O. Box 223-609, Dallas, Texas, 75222.
I'm David J. Mullins. Wishing you a great weekend. Then join us again next week when our series called Celebrate the Savior continues here on Pathway to Victory. Pathway to Victory with Dr.
Robert Jeffress comes from the pulpit of the First Baptist Church of Dallas, Texas. You made it to the end of today's podcast from Pathway to Victory, and we're so glad you're here. Pathway to Victory relies on the generosity of loyal listeners like you to make this podcast possible. And right now, your special year-end gift will be matched and therefore doubled in impact thanks to the Now-Is-The Time matching challenge. Take advantage of this opportunity to double your impact before the deadline on December 31st.
To give toward the matching challenge, go to ptv.org/slash donate or follow the link in our show notes. We hope you've been blessed by today's podcast from Pathway to Victory.
