Welcome to PowerPoint with Jack Graham. The fact is, there are two arrivals, there are two advents. And the second advent is just as sure as the first arrival of Jesus. Because the Christ of Christmas is coming. Again.
On today's PowerPoint, Dr. Graham brings a message about how you can be ready for Christmas and any day after.
Now here's Dr. Graham with his message. Are you ready for Christmas? Take your Bibles and turn with me. to Luke's Gospel chapter 2.
Now The well-known Characters of Christmas. In this great story, the greatest story that was ever told, the story of Jesus. These personalities, these people are Are well known. They're in our nativity scenes and they're in our plays. And of course, the primary people in the story of the birth of Jesus, we see Mary and we commend her for her courageous devotion, and then Joseph.
For his faithful obedience, and the shepherds for their exuberant witness, and angels for their glorious praise, and wise men for their generous. Sacrificial worship, and then, of course, Jesus born in a manger, the Savior who has come into the world. But there are lesser-known players in this cast of characters that come to us. in the Gospel of Luke. And one of those players is a man by the name of Simeon.
And The story of Simeon. is really in the aftermath of what happened at Bethlehem. In effect, it's a kind of sequel. To the story that Jesus is born and what happened after his birth. He was not at the main event.
When the angel sang and the shepherds worship with wise men and the babe was born and Simeon was not present at that. Simeon. A seasoned saint of God. Declares his faith and trust and expected hope in God if all these others express. their faith.
This man, Simeon, He expresses hope and he stands out, and in effect. After Christmas, after Christ is born, he stands with us. With this expected hope of the one who has come. The word symbol. means the one Who hears?
Or you might even say the God Hero. The one who hears. And he shares a story and a song. Of the four, maybe five songs that we find in Luke chapter 2 relative to the birth of Jesus, he shares one of these songs of Christmas. And it's a beautiful song.
Let's pick up the reading in verse 22 of chapter 2 of Luke. And when the time came for the purification according to the law of Moses, They brought him up to Jerusalem, that is Jesus, to present him to the Lord. And as it is written in the law of the Lord, every male who first opens the womb shall be called holy to the Lord. And to offer a sacrifice according to what is said in the law of the Lord, a pair of turtle doves or two young kids. Pigeons.
Now there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon. The hearing one. And this man was righteous and devout. Waiting for the consolation of Israel. Do you know what that means?
He was waiting for the Messiah to come. Comfort ye, comfort ye my people. The prayers, the prophecies. The one who would come to deliver Israel, the one who would come to be the savior of his people and of the world. He was waiting, waiting, waiting on the consolation of Israel.
And the Holy Spirit was upon him. And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord's Christ. What a promise. And he came in the spirit into the temple, and when the parents brought in the child Jesus to do for him according to the custom of the law, he took him up in his arms and he blessed God and said, Lord, now you are letting your servant depart in peace according to your word. For my eyes have seen your salvation that you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, a light for revelation to the Gentiles, a light to the world, and for the glory of your people Israel.
It happened. Forty days. After the birth, of Jesus. Mary and Joseph are bringing the Christ child to the temple. For a ritual ceremony of purification and dedication according to the laws of God.
of Moses. And They are bringing King Jesus. to this place of worship. And there they meet a man. that we meet today by the name of Simeon.
And what stands out about this seasoned saint of God. is that he is described as a righteous And devout. Man. That he is worshiping. Waiting.
Spirit-filled. For the arrival of the Messiah. He is living in hope. An older man. Who's been waiting years and years and years, like Israel had waited for centuries for the coming of the Messiah?
Ultimately, he meets Christ. And In that moment, he says, now let your servant depart in peace. Dismiss your servant in peace. That is why. This song of Simeon.
This story of Simeon is called the Nunk Demetris. Not Demetrius. which is Latin for Dismissed.
Now Dismissed. And he experiences the presence of God. He embraces Jesus. But stop for me, with me for just a moment with these two words. He was righteous and he was devout.
In our study of Romans, we have discovered what true righteousness is. That righteousness is to receive the righteousness of God in Jesus Christ. Not in our self-righteous or human effort or ability, but rather we are standing in the righteousness of Christ. We are made righteous in the Lord Jesus Christ. Simeon, just as we are saved in looking back to Christ and what Christ has done by coming to earth, dying on the cross, rising again.
That's the gospel. We are saved by looking back. To Christ, this man Simeon was a righteous man, saved man, if you will, because he was looking forward and believing in the one who would come.
So he was righteous, and the only way to be righteous. is to receive Christ the righteous one into your life. We are justified by faith. That is, we are made righteous in Christ alone. But that second word, the word devout, It's not a word we hear much today.
describing someone. How long has it been since someone described You or someone else as a devout. Man or woman. Devout. Devoted.
Who among us? Aspires. It makes it our holy ambition. To be devout. To be godly.
and dedicated through and through to the Lord. To be Separated unto God and separated from the world. To be devout is to be led by the Spirit. To be filled by the Spirit is this man is led and filled by the Spirit. And I was just wondering as I was reading these words.
If someone were writing our Spiritual biography in just a sentence or two. Would they describe us as righteous and devout? My prayer for all of us is that this would be. our desire, devoutness. Patient in hope.
Righteous. In our relationship with Jesus Christ and devout in knowing Him. And do you know why he was devout? Do you know what motivated this man? to be devoted To the Lord.
He was looking forward to the consolation of Israel, the coming of the Messiah. And God By his spirit, he had shared a secret with Simeon, and that is, you're not going to die. Until you see the Messiah. You yourself. will live Until the Messiah comes.
He was waiting. anticipating, expecting. The arrival of Jesus. That was the first advent. The fact is that we live between two advents, don't we?
The first advent, the coming of Jesus. To the world and the second advent when Christ comes again. And what will motivate us To godly living, Christ-like living. Devoutness. Devoted to God is the very fact that Christ is coming again.
1 John 3:3 says, And everyone who has this hope in him purifies himself just as he is pure. Because we know that if we live with this Eager expectation in this advent anticipation of Jesus coming and coming soon, then it dynamically, dramatically affects the way we live our lives. God spoke to him, and the hearing one listened. How did God speak to him? We're told it was by his spirit that God shared this secret.
Was it in a dream? Was it in a desire in his heart? Was it the still small voice? Was it the scripture itself that spoke to him? He, no doubt, was a man of the spirit, a man of the world.
But he listened and God gave him something very special. And that was hope. and a promise. at this Christmas season. I'm asking God to speak to me.
And I'm praying God will speak to you. That you will listen to the voice of the Spirit. You will open the scriptures. And ask God to speak to you, that you will be present. In worship.
Be around the people of God, the things of God, that you would be devout. And because he was devout, He was different. He was different than everybody else. While some no doubt thought his best days are behind him, his best day was yet to come. Because he's about to meet Jesus.
And that's why he can say, not demittus.
Now let your servant depart in peace.
Now it's time to go. Mission accomplished. He's ready. for eternity to receive the promise. You're listening to PowerPoint with Jack Graham and the message.
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Now let's get back to today's message. Are you ready for Christmas? That was similar. I love his story. He embraced Christ, the scripture says, when Mary and Joseph brought him there for a kind of baby dedication, if you will.
But after all these years now of waiting and praying Simeon's skin is now Wrinkled. His hair and his beard white. But he's full of light and he's longing for Christ. He's officially old. But what kept him going?
Was the truth of Luke 2.26. that he would not see death until he saw the Lord. Come.
Now Simeon saw Jesus and embraced him and welcomed him. At his first coming. The first advent. But the fact is, there are two arrivals, there are two advents. And the second advent is just as sure as the first arrival of Jesus.
Because the Christ of Christmas is coming. Again. The second coming is just around the corner.
So you might say that this is the second act. And this time, when Christ comes, he will come sovereignly and subtly. While in the first occasion, he came quietly in a silent night. Mostly in obscurity. When Jesus comes again, he will come suddenly, visibly, and victoriously for all the world to see.
And the scripture says, every eye shall see him, and those also, even those who pierced him. Jesus said in John 14, 3, I will Come. Again. Jesus is coming. Sue.
The angels announced his first birth when he was born, his first arrival, when he was born. The clouds and the skies fill with the glory of angels singing and praising God. And it was an angel who said in Acts chapter 1 and verse 11: You men of Galilee, why do you stand gazing up into the heavens? This Jesus, this same Jesus, which was ascended, caught up together before you in the air, this same Jesus will so come in the same way that you've seen him go away. He will come again.
And then I love the words of Hebrews chapter 9 and verse 28. Mark these in your Bible.
So Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, he came the first time to offer his life on the cross. And the cradle touches the cross. and the cross touches the crown. When Christ The king shall come again. But he came the first time to save.
He comes a second time as sovereign, but you see it there: to bear the sins of many, to die on the cross. He will appear a second time. Not to deal with sin, but to save those who are eagerly waiting for it. That is Deliver those. to rapture us into his presence.
So when Christ comes again, it will not be on a silent night. It will be with blaring Blasting trumpets and shouts of angels, and Christ will rapture us gloriously, joyously into His presence. Christ is coming again because Bethlehem's babe is humanity's hope. Christ is the hope of the world. Simeon, righteous and devout, full of the Spirit, led of the Spirit.
Day after day after day, he would go to the temple thinking this could be the day. This is the day it's going to happen. Jesus, the Savior, the Messiah. I'm going to meet him. I'm going to hold him.
I'm going to embrace him. And then... I will be dismissed into his presence. Perhaps today. The Apostle Paul said.
2 Timothy chapter 1. I know whom I have believed. And I am persuaded that he is able to keep or to guard what I have committed unto him against. That Day. What day?
The day we see Jesus. And therefore, several things in closing, I want to mention to you: just how should we live in anticipation of that day? If Simeon lived to the day he embraced Christ, how then shall we live? We are to live. Looking for him.
Looking for Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith. Not staring at the sky like a crazy person. But living with the anticipation in view of his coming through the lens of the scripture and the signs of the times that are being written in these last days. That we live with this confidential Hope. Every day.
An eternal Hope. In Christ. That we are looking for him, that we would live with this attitude of simeon ourselves, which says, Perhaps Today. Today. And then we are to be longing for him to come.
So, in anticipation of the second arrival, the second advent, Are you preparing? Are you getting ready for the rapture? You say, how should I do that? I quoted earlier from 1 John Chapter 2 But let me read it again. 1 John chapter 2, the entire verse.
It says. Chapter 3, rather, verses 2 and 3, Beloved, we are now God's children. And what we will be has not yet appeared, but we know that when He appears, we shall be like Him, because we shall see Him as He is. And everyone who has this hope in Him purifies themselves. Devoutness.
1 John 2, 28 says, And now, little children, abide in him, remain in him, stay connected to him, so that when he appears, we may have confidence and not shrink from him in shame at his coming.
So if there's anything in my life or your life, That is misbehavior towards God. Bad behavior in life towards others. If there are places that I shouldn't be going and things that I shouldn't be doing. If there are attitudes or actions that I am taking that do not honor God. Not only those things that I'm doing, but those things that I'm not doing that dishonor God.
Am I being faithful in worship? Am I being faithful in my tithes and my offerings? To my church, work of Christ. Am I devout in this? Or no?
Am I devout in my witness? But about church. Hebrews chapter 10, verse 25 says that we should not forsake the assembling, the gathering of ourselves together, as is the manner of some. And so much the more as you see what? The day, the day.
You know one reason? I'll give you one good reason to be in church and in the gathering of God's people because the day is coming soon. And I don't want to let the Lord catch me hanging out doing something else when I'm supposed to be in church. It's time to be among the people of God. and to worship God and to be devout in this.
I'm telling you, to be devout, you need to be with God's people in God's house on God's day, worshiping Him and witnessing and bringing people to Christ. It's time. In light of the return of Christ, we need to do what God has called us to do: to be alert, to be aware, to be active in that. That means we love his appearing. The second coming is not something we dread or want to avoid.
We look forward to his arrival, don't we? with rapturous joy. Jesus said, Revelation 22, 20, he says, surely I'm coming soon. And John the Revelator responded as we ought to respond. Amen.
Come.
Lord Jesus. And not only are we to be longing for his coming and loving his appearing, And we must be laboring. Watching and waiting until he comes. And serving Christ and giving your life. Means that all your life, like this old man, this veteran believer who lived and lived and lived every day with hope to the moment he met Jesus, and he was ecstatic with joy when he laid his eyes on the Lord.
We're to live like that. You know, Christmas will get here soon enough, this Christmas. And it will come and go like every other Christmas, every other year. And if it's just a holiday to you, it will be over soon, and you'll get over it. But if Christmas is Christ...
If it's all about Jesus to you. You will be ready. Not only for Christmas, but every day afterwards. You're listening to PowerPoint with Jack Graham and the message: Are you ready for Christmas? With just a few days left in 2025?
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Just text CONNECT to 59-789. Pastor, what is your PowerPoint for today? You know, I've seen so many Christmas trappings and Christmas trees at this time of the year, and often we look under our tree and we can even be embarrassed because they're surrounded by so many gifts. You can't even see the tree for all the gifts. And of course, I believe in giving gifts.
I believe in being generous with our family and our friends. And it's a good thing to give gifts anytime. And especially at the Christmas season, it's an opportunity to say, I love you with gifts. But remember, giving of gifts and spending all the money that we spend, that's not really what Christmas is about. You know, I can remember growing up in the 1950s in a little town in Arkansas, and our Christmases weren't as elaborate as they are today.
And sometimes we got very little for Christmas. It was always enough. I mean, there was great joy and love and happiness. It was always great to have Christmas in our family, but it was just different because we didn't get a lot of gifts or a lot of presents. The best part of Christmas was our family and our friends and being together.
And all of that is fun. And I believe Christmas should be fun. There should be great joy, especially as we enjoy these times with our families and our church families and those that we love. But beyond all of that, so much more important than that, is what we give to Jesus Christ. It is to give Him our hearts and our lives.
I want you just to stop right now. And pray a prayer and ask God to give you his joy. this season. Begin focusing on the wonderful gift that our Savior has given us, the gift of eternal life. Think about God's wonderful, eternal love for you.
And don't let the pressures, the push, and the headaches, and the hassles of this season. destroy your joyful celebration of Jesus Christ. And that is today's PowerPoint. Remember that when you give a gift to PowerPoint, your gift will be doubled by a generous matching grant.
So text the word match to 59789. And join us again next time as Dr. Graham brings a message about what the birth of Christ meant for this cosmic battle between kingdoms. That's next time on PowerPoint with Jack Graham. PowerPoint with Jack Graham is sponsored by PowerPoint Ministries.
