Today, on the verdict with Pastor John Monroe. That the Son of God is going to be born in the humblest of circumstances. The Son of God, the Son of Mary. Is not born in wonderful circumstances. He's not born in a hospital, he's not born in a house or a hotel.
But in a stable. At the back of the inn, says the inn. There was no place for them in the inn. Welcome to the verdict, featuring the Bible teaching of Pastor John Monroe. The Son of God didn't arrive in a palace.
Instead, he was laid in an animal's feeding trough, wrapped in strips of cloth, born in the humblest of circumstances. Today, John explains why Jesus came in such poverty and reveals the heart of the gospel message. Continuing our Christmas series with a message titled No Room at the Inn, here's Pastor John Monroe. Have you ever thought of the greatest birth in the history of the world? A unique birth.
The birth of our Lord Jesus Christ. But as we learned last time, every detail of the birth of Jesus Christ, the Messiah, the Savior of the world, was sovereignly planned. This certainly was a birth like no other. Here is the eternal God. coming into time and space.
Think of it. The infinite God who is so immense that the universe cannot contain him is born in a stable and born at the time of God's choice. Let's continue as we look at the opening verses of Luke 2. Join me as we think afresh of the timing and place of the birth of Jesus. The Messiah, the Son of God.
And he comes to save you. Let's stand and read it as it's contained in Luke chapter 2. Verses one. Through seven. Read with me.
In those days, A decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be registered. This was the first registration. when Quirinius was governor of Syria. and all went to be registered. Each to his own town.
And Joseph also went up from Galilee. from the town of Nazareth to Judea. to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem. because he was of the house and lineage of David. to be registered with Mary.
His betrothed. It was with child. And while they were there, the time came for her to give birth. And she gave birth to her firstborn son. and wrapped him in swaddling cloths.
and laid them in a manger because there was no place for them. in the end. Amen. Please be seated. I want to see, first of all, that Jesus was born at the time of God's choice.
Paul writes, When the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son. He so loved the world that he gave his only son. When is he going to give his son? Of all of the times he could have chosen, it was this time. It was the perfect time historically, geographically, culturally.
It's going to be the best time evangelically for the spread of the gospel. and God's plan of salvation. Jesus is born at the time. of God's choice. I love that.
Secondly, Jesus is born in the place of God's choice. Who would you have chosen that Jesus was to be born? He's born. It Bethlehem. Of all of the places that God did have chosen.
Location? Major at Bethlehem. We marvel, don't we, when we see the the pictures of the world from space. You think of the size of the universe and this great God as he looks down at the world that he had created. And he's going to choose a place for his son to be born.
And it's there. in this tiny village. of Bethlehem. And God sovereignly arranges through the senses for Mary to be at Bethlehem for the birth of Jesus. The Son of God is going to be born in the humblest of circumstances.
Now when babies are born today There's tremendous preparation before the Barcante. When they go to give birth, they're surrounded by well-trained medical personnel in hospitals full of technology, ready for any eventuality in terms of the birth of the child. Very different, isn't it, here in the first century. Do we notice? It says, verse 7: she gave birth to her firstborn.
Son. And this son of David The Son of God, the Son of Mary. is not born in wonderful circumstances. He's not born in a hospital, he's not born in a palace. It's not really born in a house or a hotel.
But In a stable. At the back of the inn, it says the inn. There was no place for them in the inn. Then I have a footnote in my Bible saying a kind of guest house.
Sometimes in these houses at the back of the house, there would be a place for the animals, a stable for the animals, a separate building, and it's there that Jesus is born. We live in very different circumstances, don't we? Yeah, we think of our own comfortable existence today.
So when you think of it, here it is. Mary is about to give birth. They go to this inn, they go to the guesthouse, then they're told it's full. Bethlehem is bustling. It's the time of the senses.
They're not the only ones who have traveled. And there's no room for them, but there's no place. This woman is about to give birth to this child, and there's no room in the end. In a sense, the Savior is rejected before he's even born. Um but but um someone kindly says well We do have in fact uh a stable.
Why don't you? You go there. We think of something which is Very cute. We think of a circumstance of the birth of Jesus, which is kind of sentimental. Don't think like that.
Think of cold. Think of Krant. Think of the of the smell. Think of the of the darkness. And here is Mary.
Probably about 14 years old, 14, 15 years old. with a fiancée. And there's the R. in the stable. And she gives birth.
to her firstborn. And Jesus is born. in a place Where the animals stay. And when Jesus is born, He's taken. and he's laid not in a fancy little crib or beset, whatever it is.
He's laid. Yeah. A major. Do you know what a major is? It's the animal's feeding trough.
And here The Son of God. God incarnate. It's late. In a manger. And then the scripture says that he's wrapped in swaddling cloths.
Strips of cloth are bound round this little boy. to keep the limbs straight. and probably to keep them warm. Do you see the Son of the Most High lying in a feeding trough? Darrell Bock.
Says a stable was the Messiah's first throne room. Jesus is born in humility. He's born in obscurity. He's born in rejection. No room in the end.
No room for you.
Sorry, but no room. and for the coming of the Son of God. The long-prophesied Messiah. When he comes into the world, there is no kingly welcome. He's not born.
In Jerusalem. There's no fanfare. I'd bet him. There is in the fields. with the heavenly host.
But here in this little stable, There's no fanfare. And John writes, in John 1. He comes to his own. and his own received him. Not Get this birth.
This birth in Bethlehem. is the greatest birth in the history of the world. This birth at Bethlehem alters the course of human history. We did our calendar from the date of the birth of Jesus. And this birth, the birth of Jesus, is a birth.
that you have to reckon with, that I have to reckon with. This holy child This little baby, Jesus, is given the name Jesus. meaning he will save his people from their sins. And when he comes. He's born in the place.
Chosen by God. I Bethlehem. If you're familiar with the Gospels, You understand The wonder of the incarnation. And we're not then too surprised that one of the key virtues of the Christian as we follow Jesus Christ is humility. Why?
Because we follow the one, the Savior. Who came in humility, who humbled himself, who became obedient, who became a man, a servant, was obedient to death on the cross. And so we who follow him Must. Must be characterized by humility. God is opposed to the proud.
He gives grace to the humble. And we know The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. Paul writes, You know. The grace. of God, though he were rich.
How rich is God? He owns everything. He creates everything. That though he were rich Yet for your sake He became poor. that you through his poverty might become rich.
No one was richer, no one was poorer. Why? He comes. Into poverty, into our world, so that we who are poor. spiritually poor.
Utterly bankrupt spiritually, unable to save ourselves, that we in the grace of God may receive the abundant riches which He lavishes upon us in His grace. Do you understand this? And so when you think of this, we shouldn't be too surprised. That when God in His eternal plan, His perfect plan. He chooses the time.
and the place for his son. to be born. And this He does. in love. Because we must understand that that manger leads to the cross.
And the very name of Jesus means Savior. It means that our God comes to save us. Unto you is born this day a Savior who's Christ the Lord. He comes to save. This is the unmistakable testimony of Scripture.
His name is Jesus. Why? For he will save his people from their sins.
Some people today don't like this word saved. They think it's old-fashioned. Let me tell you, it's a very biblical word. It's a very graphic word because it tells us that we left by ourselves will never ever be delivered. We will never be redeemed.
We need someone to come and redeem us, deliver us, change us, save us from our sins.
So John the Baptist. The forerunner of Christ. Says Luke, Luke. Look at the Lamb of God. That's Jesus, who takes away the sin.
of the world. Our Lord himself said, For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save. The lost. Paul in 1 Timothy 1 says, That Christ Jesus Came into the world? Why did he come into the world?
How would you answer that? Paul says Christ Jesus came into the world to save Sinners Many churches have taken out the concept of sinners. I'm told sometimes by people it's too negative. We need to be more uplifted in our sagging self-esteem. Lifted.
Before we are lifted, we first must recognize that we're sinful. And then in the grace of God, He lifts us up. He changes us. The righteousness of Christ becomes ours, and we're lifted so high that we shall reign with him forever. Endeavour.
And so it's clear from scripture. That Jesus the Son of God comes to earth not primarily to teach. Not primarily. to heal Not primarily to give us an example of love and compassion. He does all of these things brilliantly.
He comes. I love this. He comes. to save people like me who've who failed. people who have sinned, people like you.
That is the unique mission of Jesus: to seek and to save the lost. When I was a wee boy in Sunday school, We used to sing. I was going to sing it, but with my voice, it would be terrible. But it said this.
Some of you may know it. He did not come. to judge the world. He did not come to blame. He did not only come to seek, it was to save he came.
And when we call him Saviour, And when we call him Savior, And when we call him Savior, we call him by his name. That was good to teach a little boy. To understand that when Jesus came, He did not come to judge us. He did not come to condemn us. He doesn't come as the judge with the sword.
Although we deserve that. He comes in love. And he comes in compassion. And he offers your hand and says, come. Come to me.
I'll change her. As you turn from your sin, as you embrace me. You will be saved because this is the very reason why I have come. And Mary herself, as we saw in the Magnificat, it says, My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God, my Savior. Can you say that?
Could you honestly say Today. Search your heart. Could you honestly say That Jesus is my Savior? Have you been saved? You say, Well, you're telling us he comes to the saved.
Yes, but you must accept that salvation. The salvation is offered to you as a gift. I'm giving you the invitation to receive the gift, to receive Christ, to repent of your sins and to trust Christ. And Jesus' mission of saving sinners is accomplished by the cross. The shadow of the cross is over the manger.
Jesus is born to die. When we think later of the prophecy of Simeon to Mary, he tells Mary, a sword is going to pierce your soul. that Jesus, this little baby. He's going to come to die. He's going to suffer.
He's going to be rejected. He's going to be beaten. He's going to be spat upon. He's going to be taken and... hung on a cross.
You're going to experience pain, Mary. Although this is your Precious little boy. And so it means if we're going to get right with God as we must. We get right with God, not at the manger. Not on the hillside listening to his teaching.
Not at Capernaum witnessing his miracles. Although all of these things are wonderful to do and we love them all, but basically we meet God at the cross. It's at the cross. where we first see the light. It's at the cross where the burden of our sin rolls away.
It's there as we look to Christ. We see God's magnificent Son. In love coming. and loves us. And in order to redeem us and to free us, he has to die in our place because he is sinless and we are sinful.
And so the Christmas message is not just a cute little baby in a manger. The message of Christmas is that the one born in the manger is the Savior of the world. He's a savior who's Christ the Lord. And if you want to meet God, you must come. To the cross.
Listen to the words of Jesus. In John 3. Speaking to Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. And he says in John 3, verse 13, no one has ascended into heaven. except he who descended from heaven, the Son of Man.
The Lord Jesus has come from heaven to earth. And he says, as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness. There's a time when there's a plague in the Israel camp. And God told Moses to put a snake on a pole. And people look to the Paul and the snake, they would be healed.
And so Jesus is alluding to this, a story that Nicodemus knew very well. He says, as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness.
So must the Son of Man be lifted up. When is the Son of Man to be lifted up at the cross? But here's a promise. That whoever believes in him may have eternal life. We've seen the Savior in the manger.
Do you see him on the cross? The one who dies and is buried and raised again. And Jesus is saying, if you believe in him, I'll have eternal life. John 3:15, and then. The great verse of John 3.16, for God.
So loved the world. that he gave his only son. We've seen him giving it. Deciding the place, deciding the time that whoever believes in him. will not perish but have.
everlasting life. I plead with you. To trust the Saviour, to put your trust in Him. Today we've seen the Supernatural hand of God.
sovereignly orchestrating events.
So that Jesus is born at the exact place and the exact time, determined from all of eternity. What a glorious plan of salvation. Not wonderful. to be a follower of Christ. But what's your response?
No room, no place. A little bit of Jesus, but not to intrude. I still am going to live my own life. Yes, it's nice at Christmas time to sing a few carols. I may come back at Christmas Eve, invite some of my friends, but I'm going to live my own life.
No, that is not the Christian faith. Don't do that. Many do millions have done that. Humble yourself. And see in him the magnificent Saviour.
Trust and receive him as your saviour. And for those of us who are followers of Christ, can I remind you that God works? in places at times very different from our schedule.
So you're following archetries. Afresh. Will you place your life Your future. Your business Your family. Your dreams.
all at the hands of the sovereign God. Because We must surrender to God's timing in our lives. We must surrender to God's plan for our lives. I want to do that. And my own sinful desires.
I want to plan my own life, I want to do my own thing. Yeah. John, you must surrender. Your future? Your plans to Christ.
that God's plans And God's timing, please hear me. are always, always perfect. Don't go ahead of God. Don't go behind God. And delay.
Trust your life. Trust that ministry. Trust that child. Trust these business plans. into the hands of God.
And see God work in ways. that we can never imagine. as we trust him. I'd love him. with all of our hearts.
This is the verdict with Pastor John Monroe, and the conclusion of a message titled No Room at the Inn. Don't go anywhere just yet because John will be back in a moment with his closing remarks. Today's lesson reminds us that Jesus came to save sinners. He came for people like you and me who need redemption. But maybe you've wondered, once you're saved, can you lose that salvation?
What happens when you fail or fall into sin? John addresses these vital questions in a straightforward booklet called Eternal Security, Finding Certainty in a Chaotic World. This resource examines what the Bible teaches about the security of our salvation, helping you understand the unchanging promises of God. To receive your free copy of Eternal Security, just go to our website at theverdict.org. And while you're on our website, you'll have the opportunity to play a part in what God is doing through the verdict with a simple one-time donation of any amount.
Your support will help us share God's word with new listeners in your community and across the world. You can easily give whatever amount you feel led to by visiting theverdict.org. The verdict is a ministry of Calvary Church in South Charlotte. We're located on the corner of Highway 51 and Ray Road. If you've been looking for a church home or a community to help you grow in your walk with Christ, We invite you to join us this coming Sunday.
We'd love to meet you and learn more about you. For more details about Calvary and our current service times, visit theverdict.org.
Now, here's Pastor John Monroe.
Well, what's your verdict? The birth of Jesus, God incarnate, demands a response. He's born at the time and place of God's choice. A stable is the place of his birth. but it is also the first throne room for the king of kings and lord of lords.
and he comes to save. Don't push him away. Humbly receive him. as your Saviour and Lord. The time to receive him.
to receive this greatest of all gifts is now. And join me next time. as we think of the good news of great joy. Thanks for joining us today on The Verdict. I'm Michelle Davies.
Today's program with Pastor John Monroe was produced and sponsored by Calvary Church in Charlotte, North Carolina.
