The clearer you see Jesus, the clearer you see everything else. Dr. Tony Evans says when Jesus is your reference point, everything else comes into focus. He is the basis of illumination. That is, your ability to see reality.
This is the alternative broadcast, featuring the timeless biblical teachings from the archives of Dr. Tony Evans.
Sometimes the most important things in life are the easiest to overlook. Today, Dr. Evan shows how people who were right in the middle of the first Christmas still manage to miss the Savior right in front of them. They had proximity but not perception. Let's join Dr.
Evans as he explores the blind spots that can keep us from recognizing Christ, and why once we do, everything else in life becomes clearer. The innkeeper missed him. He had the Son of God. needing a hotel room, but there was no room for him. King Herod missed Jesus.
Because he didn't want. Anybody else to compete with the rulership? and control of his life. The religious leaders miss Christmas. Because even though they had read the word of God where he would be born.
They didn't make the trip to see him. But there were those who found him on Christmas. There were those who located Christ on Christmas. There were those who. Came face to face.
with him on this first Christmas. You and I are living in a world that's blind spiritually. But Jesus is the light of the world, which means. The clearer you see Jesus, the clearer you see everything else. So, even though you can't see the physical Jesus.
If he is your point of reference, you can see everything else. As it ought to be seen. This word or this concept of seeing. Jesus being the light. Can be summed up in the word illumination.
Illumination. Is when the light bulb comes on and you can see something. Many of us. Having our home dimmer switches, which means that If you turn the knob. You can See things more clearly.
What Jesus is, is he is the Illuminator. That is, he turns up the light so you can see life. Clearer. Many of the problems we have in our lives is because of darkness. We are not seeing reality.
We think we're seeing reality when we're actually feeling ourselves around, which is why we keep tripping over stuff. In life. But when the Bible declares that Jesus is the light of the world. He is the basis of illumination. That is.
your ability to see reality. And not just see what you think you see.
So let's look. Today, as we anticipate Christmas. And these four illuminating scenarios. And let's learn some principles from our own lives. As we Move from Christmas into the new year.
The first person I want to identify. Who got illumination is Mary. Jesus' mother. In Luke chapter 1. An angel comes to Mary.
He tells her. that you found favor with God. In verse 30. And he goes on to say that. You will conceive in verse 31.
In your womb. And you will bear a son, and you will name him Jesus. He will be great. He'll be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David.
Now, when this angel shows up, she is, we're told in verse 29. Perplexed. She's confused. We're told that she is pondering. She's trying to.
Figure out what's going on here. What the angel has told her. Does not make biological sense. It sounds a little bit ridiculous. Mary, you found favor with God.
And you are going to bear a son.
So Mary Says, how can this be in verse 34? Because I am a virgin.
So, what you just said, God's going to do. Can't happen. I've never been intimate with a man. It's not normal. It's not natural.
And it's Illogical. An angel is telling her this. He is telling her that God has a supernatural plan, Mary, for your life. She figures, how can this be? It is a natural question in the natural.
The point I want to point out as we go along here is. If you only live your life in the natural.
Something that fits your box, something that fits your. Education, your knowledge, your experience. Then you will not get all that God has for you. The angel gives her a word, an illuminating word that I want to give you as you approach Christmas and as you approach the new year. And it is found in verse 37 of chapter one.
For nothing will be impossible. with God. Oh, that's a Christmas message right there. That the virgin birth of Jesus Christ Led to Mary hearing the statement. That what does not seem possible in the natural.
Because you're a virgin. is not to be ascribed to God. Ascribe it to your mama and your daddy. Your brother and your sister. And the other peeps in your circle.
But when God decides to do something. The supernatural transcends the natural. Don't limit God to your five senses. To what you can see and touch and taste and hear and smell. Don't limit God.
to what you can figure out. because he is the unfigure-outable God. The illuminating message of Christmas is that nothing. is impossible, although it looks impossible. No.
She had a relative named Elizabeth. Elizabeth was married. To a priest called Zacharias. Elizabeth got pregnant in her old age. With John the Baptist.
When In chapter one, verse eighteen, the angel tells. Zacharias About The child that he would have. Zachariah said to the angel, How will I know this for certain? Verse 18, for I am an old man, and my wife is advanced in years.
So Zacharias. says that's illogical. This can't work. Plus. My wife is far beyond Pregnancy possibilities.
She's advanced in years. The angel says in verse 19. I am Gabriel. Who stands in the presence of God? And I have been sent to speak to you and to bring you this good news.
And behold, you shall be silent and unable to speak until the day when these things take place. Because you did not believe my words. which were, will be fulfilled in their proper time.
Now I want to compare Mary and Zacharias. Both have received a message that didn't make sense. Both have received a supernatural declaration. That does not fit nature. But One gets judged and is made silent.
Because you didn't believe. And yet, Mary It is celebrated. But both had questions. Mary said, How can this be? I'm a virgin.
Zachariah says, How can this be? I'm old.
So they both had Questions.
So, why was Zacharias made silent due to unbelief? And Mary celebrated. even though she had questions. Because when she got the information. Mary says in chapter 1, verse 38.
Behold the bond slave of the Lord, may it be done to me according to your word. I'm trying to tell you there are two kinds of doubts. There's A doubt that leads to unbelief and rejection. And there's a doubt that leads to acceptance and embracing. Both were doubts.
But the doubts led in two different directions. If you hold God hostage. To your human understanding, you won't see all that God can do. You won't get the illumination. You won't get the visual.
That God wants to bring about. in your life and in your circumstance. Dr. Evans will return with more about the true light of Christmas in just a moment. Right now, though, he's here to share a word about why we're so grateful for your support.
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If you've ever wished Christmas felt more meaningful and less mechanical, Dr. Evans wants to help you reclaim the season's true center. His new devotional and prayer guide, Messages from the Manger, Invites you to pull away from the noise and rediscover the awe of Christ's birth through daily readings, scripture reflections, and guided prayers. It's a beautiful way to pause, reconnect with God. and experience the joy and hope he offers.
And for those who make a year-end donation to the ministry right now, we're also including the full nine-message sermon collection when the king came to town. featuring a compilation of doctor Evans's Christmas sermons from over the years, rich biblical teaching that extracts relevant truths for life from the familiar story of our Lord's birth. You can request both of these resources today. They're our gift to you and thanks for your donation to help continue this important outreach to a world in need of the good news of the Savior. Make your donation and request when you visit TonyEvans.org.
or call us at one eight hundred eight hundred thirty two twenty two. A team member is standing by ready to help with your request any time of the day or night. Again, that's 1-800-800-3222. Right now, let's get back to more of today's message about the true light of Christmas. Here's Dr.
Evans. Nothing is impossible with God. You say, but they heard from angels. The angel spoke to Zacharias. The angel spoke to Mary.
I don't have an angel speaking to me. Oh, yeah, you do. Yeah, you do. Hebrews 13, 1 says. That God still has angels unaware.
Now, they may not come in the form of a supernatural presence. It may come in the form of a person that God uses to speak into a situation that you're in. Or a set of circumstances that he arranges. But he's still, the Bible says that Hebrews chapter 1, verse 14, that God still has ministering spirits assigned to believers.
So my challenge to you this Christmas is to be like Mary. And embrace. What you do not understand. To seek God's favor to ask questions. She had questions.
She couldn't figure this out. There's a second group. that are affected by Christmas. The Shepherds. We read in chapter 2.
In verse eight, in the same region there were shepherds. Staying out in the fields and keeping watch over their flock by night. An angel of the Lord suddenly stood before them. And the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were. Terribly frightened.
They were scared. They'd never seen this before. Yeah. And the angel said to them, Do not be afraid. For behold, somebody say behold.
Okay. They are scared at what they're seeing. This is not normal.
Something as Come from heaven that is. Shaken their world. But the angel says. Do not be afraid. Behold, in other words, Change what you're looking at if you want to overcome your fear.
There's a lot to be afraid of today, a lot of things. That we do not understand, but he says, at Christmas, behold. Change what you're looking at. I bring you good news. Of great joy which will be for all the people.
For the day in the city of David, there is born for you a savior. who is Christ the Lord.
So let me suggest something to you. The more afraid you are of something in your life, The more you need to focus on Jesus. They were afraid. The angel says, behold, look at Jesus. Because the more you concentrate on Jesus, The easier it is to overcome what's scaring you.
The focus on Jesus, he says, will overcome the insecurity that you are afraid of at this moment. He tells them. There will be a sign for you. There will be a sign for you. That sign you will find A baby wrapped in claws.
and lying in a manger.
Now, there's a lot more to that statement than you might initially recognize. There's a child, this Jesus. And I'm going to give you a sign to identify. That's what I am talking about is real, because anybody can say something. In our pregnancy center, When a lady comes.
for a sonogram to determine if she's pregnant. She has. Information. Maybe there's a Pregnancy tests that she's taken that's given her information that she is pregnant. But then she comes, and the sonogram gives her a visual.
It gives her a visual. Of something she could not see. but something she's read on a test. that declares she's pregnant. She has not seen a baby.
But there's been a record. Through the test that there is a baby. In the sonogram, she gets a visual. Of the baby.
So that there is a sign that is a visual. to confirm the information. What the sonogram does is confirm. What may have been known but unseen. The way God helps us to know that what he has written is real is when he confirms it.
That's called confirmation. Of illumination. Illumination is what you see, confirmation is validation of it. He tells the shepherds. You're going to see.
A baby. Wrapped in cloth.
Now, when you first hear that, that doesn't seem spectacular. Any baby would be wrapped. If a mother has a baby. She's going to be wrapped. She's a baby's going to be wrapped in something.
We would say diapers today. But you would expect the baby to be encased in some sort of clothing of cloth.
So Why would that be spectacular?
Well, you might say, well, he's laying in a manger, not in a crib. But obviously, if she's in a In the stable and in and in. then that wouldn't be spectacular either.
So maybe there's a little bit more to this. Cloth. Then you might Initially, see. Let me tell you about These shepherds. These shepherds Oversaw The Lambs That would be offered in sacrifice.
The priests would take the lambs and they would. Provide the lambs for the sacrifices. The shepherds would raise the lambs that would be offered in sacrifices. The Bible makes it clear that when you offered a lamb in sacrifice, it had to be without spot or blemish. In other words, there could be no flaws on the lamb that was to be offered to God in sacrifice.
Well, the way that the shepherds Would keep the lambs. From being not being spotted, not falling over and getting cut or tripped, is they would take the lambs and they would wrap them in cloth. The King James Version, I believe, calls it swaddling clothes. They would swaddle the clothes. I got to see this in real time.
with one of my when my great-grandchildren were born And their mother, my granddaughter. would wrap them up. From top to bottom, except their face. And she would wrap them all the way down to their feet. And it became a way of them being oversaw and overseen.
I don't know where she got that from. I had never seen that before, like that. But they were totally wrapped as she laid them down. They would wrap the lamb. Because the lambs, of course, would be moving about and could easily.
Get a spot or blemish.
So to keep that from happening, they would wrap them. Because they were there for an offering. Because those were the only kind of lambs that you could offer to the Lord.
Okay. So when the angel tells the shepherds, you will find a child wrapped in cloth. That was not just. A wrapping of a baby. That was rapping of a lamb.
And the purpose of wrapping the lamb was to offer a perfect sacrifice.
So, when they say that you will find this sign, it would be a sign of what they did with their faith. Physical lambs. being applied to the Lamb of God.
So they would be connecting it. To the purpose of sacrifice. And the reason that that connection is there is because this baby was meant for sacrifice. For he is the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world. And so it is illumination.
It is seeing things more deeply and they got to see it. Dr. Tony Evans.
talking today about the true light of Christmas.
Now before we wrap up today, remember to request your copy of Messages from the Manger. Dr. Evans' brand new devotional and prayer guide, created to help you reclaim Christmas as a season of worship. Along with the book, you'll also receive our current message collection called When the King Came to Town. It's a compilation of nine audio messages from Tony, filled with biblical insight and encouragement for your holiday season.
These resources are our way of thanking you for your generous support of the alternative. To get the details and make your donation, stop by TonyEvans.org today. or call one of our friendly team members at 1-800-800-3222. That's online at tonyevans.org. or by phone at 1-800-800-3222.
You know, you can't navigate a dark room until someone turns on the light. And the same is true in the spiritual world. Tomorrow, Dr. Evans continues his look at Jesus as the light of the world. how his arrival brings clarity where confusion had reigned.
and exposes reality as it truly is. I hope he'll make plans to join us.
