WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:02.319 Welcome to the Awakening Church podcast. 00:00:02.479 --> 00:00:07.040 We pray this message encourages you and provides the hope and light of Jesus Christ. 00:00:07.200 --> 00:00:08.640 Thanks for tuning in. 00:00:19.839 --> 00:00:24.879 Merry Christmas! Hey, that was great. 00:00:25.280 --> 00:00:28.239 I'm so glad you joined us this Christmas Eve. 00:00:28.480 --> 00:00:35.439 It really is the most wonderful time of the year, unless you still have some shopping left to do. 00:00:35.759 --> 00:00:37.359 Anyone still have shopping? 00:00:37.520 --> 00:00:37.759 No. 00:00:37.920 --> 00:00:38.960 Okay, you're you're good. 00:00:39.119 --> 00:00:44.079 Or maybe you're still tracking a package that was supposed to arrive two days ago. 00:00:44.399 --> 00:00:46.799 Um I yeah, yeah. 00:00:47.119 --> 00:00:54.240 I have become an incredible uh tracking stalker recently on my phone checking packages. 00:00:54.399 --> 00:00:57.280 Uh, how many of you are excited for Christmas? 00:00:58.240 --> 00:01:01.280 Alright, kids, tell me, are you excited for Christmas? 00:01:02.000 --> 00:01:04.159 Yeah! That was decent. 00:01:04.319 --> 00:01:05.120 That was good. 00:01:05.359 --> 00:01:08.719 Now, how many of us are ready for Christmas? 00:01:09.359 --> 00:01:12.560 Can you believe that it's already Christmas Eve? 00:01:13.519 --> 00:01:16.079 I mean, we blinked, and here we are. 00:01:16.560 --> 00:01:25.359 Uh, the other day, my wife and I were at the beach with our dog Finley, and we named her Finley because finally mom let us get a dog. 00:01:25.519 --> 00:01:29.120 Um, and Finley is the happiest beach dog. 00:01:29.760 --> 00:01:43.519 She loves chasing birds with a kind of blissful joy that makes you just want to like get out your phone and film her and set it to a slow-motion music track. 00:01:43.680 --> 00:01:45.680 I mean, it's unbelievable. 00:01:45.920 --> 00:01:55.439 And so she is chasing birds with joy in her heart, and she's coming up to what I think she thinks is a shallow pool uh filled with birds. 00:01:55.599 --> 00:01:59.920 She leaps as if she's gonna dive into this, you know, oasis of birds. 00:02:00.079 --> 00:02:03.200 Um, and it wasn't so shallow. 00:02:03.519 --> 00:02:14.159 She disappears completely, goes all the way under, and then a few moments later comes up, flailing, gasping, doggy paddling as fast as you can. 00:02:14.400 --> 00:02:15.840 Jenny and I are laughing. 00:02:15.919 --> 00:02:17.759 We probably should have been more concerned. 00:02:17.919 --> 00:02:23.599 I was more worried that I was gonna have to jump in after her and get wet uh there. 00:02:23.840 --> 00:02:31.439 But I think finally, that picture actually perfectly describes how many of us are coming into this Christmas season. 00:02:31.599 --> 00:02:39.840 It started out full of joy and excitement, and then suddenly we're just in over our heads. 00:02:40.319 --> 00:02:42.800 I mean, the speed of the season, right? 00:02:43.759 --> 00:02:54.879 The amount of parties and gatherings and presents and wrapping and the list of to-dos that never gets finally done. 00:02:55.759 --> 00:03:05.120 And then all the emotions that come with this season and family and the stressors and the things and questions that come up. 00:03:06.159 --> 00:03:12.719 We can just find ourselves just gasping for air, wondering how we got here. 00:03:14.800 --> 00:03:19.199 And so tonight, what we want to do is something a little different. 00:03:19.439 --> 00:03:22.960 We want to pause in the midst of the rush. 00:03:23.840 --> 00:03:40.240 We want to stop and see, to behold, to take time and really look at the beauty, the meaning, and the miracle of Christmas. 00:03:40.479 --> 00:03:45.039 You know, behold is a word that we don't use very often, is it? 00:03:45.360 --> 00:03:59.840 And yet it is one of the most beautiful invitations in Scripture to behold, to look at, to see, not to just glance at, not to just skim over, but to really look at. 00:04:00.000 --> 00:04:16.800 It means to gaze at, to wonder, to look at something or someone long enough to understand something of the significance of that person or thing. 00:04:17.600 --> 00:04:23.279 And behold is an invitation that's at the very center of Christmas. 00:04:23.519 --> 00:04:25.279 And so here's what I want you to do. 00:04:25.519 --> 00:04:28.399 I want you to just sit back, if you wouldn't mind. 00:04:28.560 --> 00:04:30.560 Go ahead, relax, you can do it. 00:04:30.879 --> 00:04:31.519 Yeah. 00:04:32.319 --> 00:04:34.079 Take a deep breath. 00:04:36.639 --> 00:04:38.800 Isn't that better already? 00:04:41.040 --> 00:04:45.680 Set aside, if you can, the to-do lists that are running through your mind. 00:04:46.480 --> 00:04:48.720 Be present in this moment. 00:04:49.920 --> 00:04:55.120 And would you listen afresh to the Christmas story? 00:04:57.120 --> 00:05:04.879 And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. 00:05:05.120 --> 00:05:12.800 An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. 00:05:13.439 --> 00:05:17.759 But the angel said to them, Do not be afraid. 00:05:18.399 --> 00:05:21.920 Behold, don't be afraid. 00:05:22.800 --> 00:05:28.720 Behold, I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. 00:05:29.279 --> 00:05:33.199 Today in the town of David, a Savior has been born to you. 00:05:33.439 --> 00:05:35.600 He is the Messiah, the Lord. 00:05:35.839 --> 00:05:37.439 This will be a sign to you. 00:05:37.600 --> 00:05:43.920 You'll find a baby wrapped in claws and lying in a manger. 00:05:44.879 --> 00:05:56.000 You know, the story of Jesus' birth gets wrapped up with all of our Christmas tradition, and it can easily just become white noise in the backdrop, can't it? 00:05:58.079 --> 00:06:23.360 And yet the invitation of the angel was to behold, to look, to look at this baby born whom angels announced and shepherds visited, and ask simply this question, as a song we often sing at Christmas time, ask, What child is this? 00:06:24.399 --> 00:06:25.920 I mean, think about it. 00:06:27.199 --> 00:06:32.079 What child is this whose life divided history? 00:06:32.800 --> 00:06:34.480 Would you do this for me real quick? 00:06:34.560 --> 00:06:38.639 Would you go ahead and say to your neighbor the year you're born? 00:06:38.720 --> 00:06:39.839 And don't lie, please. 00:06:39.920 --> 00:06:41.360 Okay, you're in church. 00:06:45.839 --> 00:06:52.800 I was born January 22nd, 1981. 00:06:52.959 --> 00:06:57.600 I'm gonna be turning 44, and everyone knows my birthday, so there you go. 00:06:58.560 --> 00:07:05.439 Most of us don't realize is that our birth date is actually in reference to Jesus' birth date. 00:07:05.759 --> 00:07:11.519 We live in the year 2024 AD or ano dominite. 00:07:11.680 --> 00:07:14.480 That's what it stands for, the year of our Lord. 00:07:14.800 --> 00:07:19.600 The guy that did the math to account for Jesus' birth was a little off. 00:07:19.680 --> 00:07:36.079 Actually, Jesus was born about six years before it, but still, every time we write the date 2024 or miswrite the date 2024 and 2025 for the next month, um, we're actually connecting it back to the very birth of Jesus. 00:07:36.399 --> 00:07:37.600 Think about that. 00:07:38.079 --> 00:07:46.800 A baby born in poverty in this obscure part of the Roman Empire has become the very hinge of history. 00:07:46.959 --> 00:07:52.879 Not a king, not a general, not someone powerful or prominent. 00:07:53.199 --> 00:07:54.000 In fact, H. 00:07:54.160 --> 00:07:54.240 G. 00:07:54.399 --> 00:07:59.279 Wells, a historian and novelist, said this: I am a historian. 00:07:59.519 --> 00:08:01.199 I'm not a believer. 00:08:01.600 --> 00:08:12.319 But I must confess, as a historian, that this penniless preacher from Nazareth is irrevocably the very center of history. 00:08:13.040 --> 00:08:24.959 I mean, if we have any intellectual integrity, we have to stop and ask, what child is this whose life divided history and whose teaching directed humanity? 00:08:26.240 --> 00:08:30.560 Jesus is widely considered the greatest teacher who ever lived. 00:08:30.879 --> 00:08:39.200 Gandhi recognized Jesus, his life and his teaching that fundamentally shaped his philosophy. 00:08:39.440 --> 00:08:49.759 He said that the Sermon on the Mount was the greatest ethical and moral literature ever written. 00:08:50.960 --> 00:08:54.559 Ideas like this turned the other cheek. 00:08:56.320 --> 00:08:58.320 Go the extra mile. 00:09:00.000 --> 00:09:05.759 Love your enemy and pray for those who persecute you. 00:09:06.159 --> 00:09:19.759 In fact, the teachings of Jesus on love, on justice, on the human dignity and equality are the very foundation for the values we hold dear to this day. 00:09:20.399 --> 00:09:22.080 And Jesus' life. 00:09:22.399 --> 00:09:36.399 He took special care and attention for the poor, the oppressed, the ostracized, the mistreated, the underrepresented. 00:09:38.960 --> 00:09:48.720 I mean, Jesus touched the untouchables and he ate with social outcasts, redefining what it meant to love our neighbor. 00:09:50.399 --> 00:10:05.759 It's widely agreed by historians that every major movement of compassion, of justice, and human dignity and history can be traced back to the very life and teachings of Jesus. 00:10:06.000 --> 00:10:07.279 What child is this? 00:10:07.440 --> 00:10:08.240 Come on. 00:10:08.639 --> 00:10:17.600 Whose life divided history, whose teachings directed humanity, and then whose death defied reality. 00:10:18.320 --> 00:10:30.559 You know, we gather two thousand years later, not because of a birth, but because he died and, well, didn't stay dead. 00:10:33.440 --> 00:10:44.960 At the very center of Christianity, all of Christianity hinges upon the historical death and resurrection of Jesus. 00:10:45.360 --> 00:10:54.240 If Jesus did not rise from the dead, in fact, the Apostle Paul in the Bible would write this our faith is futile, it's worthless, it's nothing. 00:10:54.399 --> 00:11:00.399 This is just meaningless what we're doing if Jesus didn't rise from the dead. 00:11:00.639 --> 00:11:01.679 Now think about this. 00:11:01.840 --> 00:11:10.799 If someone predicted their death and resurrection and then did it, wouldn't you give consideration to what they had to say? 00:11:11.519 --> 00:11:14.399 And wouldn't you ask, who is this? 00:11:15.279 --> 00:11:18.159 What child is this? 00:11:18.960 --> 00:11:23.039 In the ancient world, gods did not die for humans. 00:11:23.120 --> 00:11:26.240 No, they demanded humans die for them. 00:11:26.480 --> 00:11:28.960 And Jesus flipped the script. 00:11:29.360 --> 00:11:36.720 He was born to die, to take on the greatest enemy of humanity, death itself. 00:11:37.039 --> 00:11:43.360 And in the resurrection, he rewrote the story for humanity. 00:11:44.399 --> 00:11:49.360 And we can't quite grasp the significance of this. 00:11:50.000 --> 00:11:52.559 The cross, I have one right here. 00:11:53.840 --> 00:12:04.080 The cross was the recognized symbol of brutality in Rome's dominance and power today. 00:12:05.840 --> 00:12:09.200 It represents sacrificial love and eternal hope. 00:12:10.320 --> 00:12:12.240 I mean, what child is this? 00:12:13.840 --> 00:12:15.039 What child? 00:12:17.039 --> 00:12:25.039 Whose life divided history, whose teachings directed humanity, and his death defied reality? 00:12:25.919 --> 00:12:27.039 Let me ask you. 00:12:28.960 --> 00:12:31.440 What if it's not just a nice tradition? 00:12:31.600 --> 00:12:32.639 What if it's true? 00:12:34.639 --> 00:12:50.480 What if the angels were right that this child wrapped in swaddling cloths, lying in a manger, really was the savior of the world, the rescuer that our hearts desperately need? 00:12:50.879 --> 00:12:55.120 What if he is the Messiah, the king we long for? 00:12:55.360 --> 00:12:57.519 What if he is Emmanuel? 00:12:58.399 --> 00:13:00.559 God with us. 00:13:01.039 --> 00:13:03.840 And if he really is Emmanuel, think about this. 00:13:04.000 --> 00:13:04.960 This is incredible. 00:13:05.120 --> 00:13:12.000 If he really is Emmanuel, what does this child tell us about God? 00:13:13.200 --> 00:13:16.000 Well, it tells us first that God is personal. 00:13:16.639 --> 00:13:19.519 God isn't a distant deity, an impersonal force. 00:13:19.679 --> 00:13:22.399 He's not sitting back, got the world started. 00:13:23.919 --> 00:13:27.440 He's not, you know, good vibes or the universe. 00:13:28.799 --> 00:13:35.600 Jesus came in person to have a personal relationship with you. 00:13:36.879 --> 00:13:41.440 God doesn't just love humanity generally. 00:13:42.399 --> 00:13:45.120 He loves you specifically. 00:13:46.240 --> 00:13:47.360 He knows your name. 00:13:48.159 --> 00:13:49.279 He knows your story. 00:13:50.080 --> 00:13:51.279 He knows your pain. 00:13:51.919 --> 00:13:55.120 And he's entered into that. 00:13:56.000 --> 00:14:04.639 Jesus never came to start a religion, but he did come to start a relationship with the God of the universe. 00:14:06.399 --> 00:14:11.600 And it's not just personal, but God is also approachable. 00:14:12.480 --> 00:14:16.960 Think about who heard the first announcement of the birth. 00:14:17.279 --> 00:14:20.879 It wasn't kings in a palace, and it was not priests in the temple. 00:14:20.960 --> 00:14:22.960 It wasn't powerful or perfect people. 00:14:23.120 --> 00:14:25.519 It was shepherds in a field. 00:14:26.240 --> 00:14:29.200 Shepherds, by the way, were a rough and rowdy crew. 00:14:30.159 --> 00:14:35.600 They had a dirty job and a fairly messy reputation. 00:14:36.879 --> 00:14:39.600 And the angels declared to the shepherds what? 00:14:41.679 --> 00:14:44.240 This is good news for all people. 00:14:45.600 --> 00:14:49.039 Not some people, not certain people, not perfect people. 00:14:49.600 --> 00:14:52.960 Every single person on the planet. 00:14:54.320 --> 00:14:58.960 I think that's a little bit of where we get stuck sometimes. 00:14:59.759 --> 00:15:04.799 Because if there is a God, well, he probably doesn't want anything to do with me. 00:15:04.960 --> 00:15:06.559 I'm a screw up, I'm a mess up. 00:15:06.639 --> 00:15:10.720 You don't even know what I did last week or last year. 00:15:12.879 --> 00:15:16.480 Maybe this year hasn't turned out the way you'd hope. 00:15:16.559 --> 00:15:20.000 Maybe you're on a path you didn't want to go down. 00:15:21.600 --> 00:15:24.320 You know, like I could never come to this God. 00:15:24.480 --> 00:15:31.519 And Christmas reminds us that God is personal, that God is approachable, that you can come. 00:15:31.679 --> 00:15:36.320 You're invited to come to Him, and then it's better than that. 00:15:37.519 --> 00:15:40.080 He came for you. 00:15:42.639 --> 00:15:46.720 That God is present in the mess. 00:15:47.919 --> 00:15:52.720 He was not content to stay distance from you. 00:15:53.840 --> 00:15:58.240 But he came in the most vulnerable way as a baby. 00:15:58.559 --> 00:15:59.840 In a manger. 00:16:02.000 --> 00:16:06.799 By the way, mangers are dirty and messy. 00:16:07.679 --> 00:16:09.120 They're ordinary. 00:16:09.679 --> 00:16:13.200 It's a feeding trough for animals. 00:16:14.879 --> 00:16:23.519 If I was going to write the story for the king of the universe, this is not how I'd write it, if him entering into humanity. 00:16:24.159 --> 00:16:26.480 And yet that's how he did it. 00:16:27.120 --> 00:16:27.759 Why? 00:16:28.799 --> 00:16:31.200 Speaks of this profound truth. 00:16:32.000 --> 00:16:37.279 We have a God that doesn't avoid the low places, he inhabits them. 00:16:40.720 --> 00:16:43.120 God is approachable. 00:16:43.759 --> 00:16:47.519 God is present in our mess. 00:16:47.840 --> 00:16:56.240 In our day and time, we're so focused on status, on power, on looking picture perfect. 00:16:56.320 --> 00:16:58.080 And you look really good today, by the way. 00:16:58.240 --> 00:17:00.879 You did real, real nice. 00:17:02.399 --> 00:17:13.359 And so we polish ourselves up and present something to the world and hide the messiness inside because we're afraid if you really saw me, you would reject me. 00:17:16.559 --> 00:17:23.519 Christmas tells us that God, who sees you already as you are, knows everything about you. 00:17:23.680 --> 00:17:25.759 He's not repulsed by the mess. 00:17:25.920 --> 00:17:28.000 He moves towards you in the middle of it. 00:17:28.160 --> 00:17:33.920 He's moved by love for you in whatever you're going through. 00:17:36.160 --> 00:17:44.160 And so the question, the question is, you know, what are we to do with this child? 00:17:46.319 --> 00:17:49.440 The shepherds were not content just to hear the news. 00:17:49.599 --> 00:17:51.039 They went and saw. 00:17:51.200 --> 00:17:53.839 They said, let's go and see. 00:17:54.960 --> 00:18:00.000 I mean, they could have just, you know, heard it and gone about their day, right? 00:18:01.279 --> 00:18:03.519 They're in the middle of their work day. 00:18:03.680 --> 00:18:07.440 It's a normal, ordinary night shift for them. 00:18:08.319 --> 00:18:15.200 But they got an announcement, they got a revelation, they got new information. 00:18:15.759 --> 00:18:16.720 That's the question. 00:18:16.960 --> 00:18:22.000 What do you do when you get new information? 00:18:24.799 --> 00:18:33.359 Shepherds could have just sit back, go in one ear, out the other, dismissed it, gone on with their day. 00:18:34.079 --> 00:18:36.240 But instead they responded. 00:18:36.480 --> 00:18:42.640 They got up, they went and saw, and it changed their life. 00:18:47.039 --> 00:18:49.519 It can change your life. 00:18:51.359 --> 00:18:52.640 So what about you? 00:18:55.599 --> 00:18:59.279 How will you respond to this child? 00:19:04.240 --> 00:19:18.000 I mean, I can tell you what we kind of often do as we come to moments like these, they're nice, and maybe give us some warm fuzzies, let it wash over you, and just go on about life as normal. 00:19:20.160 --> 00:19:32.319 Or like the shepherds, you can stop and you can behold, and then you can respond. 00:19:35.359 --> 00:19:50.240 Maybe for some your response is simply this to slow down long enough to really see and take in the wonder of Jesus. 00:19:51.599 --> 00:19:58.720 To allow him to captivate your heart afresh this Christmas season. 00:19:59.599 --> 00:20:09.920 For others, maybe your response is actually to stop hiding from God, but allow him to enter into the messiness of your life. 00:20:12.640 --> 00:20:16.799 To all those places that you're like, I'm not so sure, I'm just trying to. 00:20:17.119 --> 00:20:19.440 In fact, I feel a little bit icky coming in. 00:20:19.519 --> 00:20:21.680 Well, thank God it's a school, not a real church. 00:20:21.920 --> 00:20:23.519 We're a real church though, in a school. 00:20:23.680 --> 00:20:25.680 Anyways, that's a whole nother story. 00:20:27.119 --> 00:20:31.200 Because I just don't know what how God will respond. 00:20:32.400 --> 00:20:48.240 And He's the God who enters into your messiness, whatever you're walking through, and meets you there, responds with love, and wants to lead you and help you and rescue you. 00:20:50.720 --> 00:20:57.759 And for some, yeah, it's just saying yes to the invitation. 00:20:59.839 --> 00:21:05.599 The invitation of Jesus who longs to have a personal relationship with you. 00:21:16.240 --> 00:21:17.599 The God of the universe. 00:21:17.759 --> 00:21:29.440 You can have a personal relationship with the God of the universe through Jesus and experience purpose and life and peace and hope. 00:21:30.480 --> 00:21:46.160 And so I would you can take a moment with me to stop to behold and respond. 00:21:50.720 --> 00:21:56.720 And if you're wanting to start a relationship with Jesus, would you just pray after me? 00:21:57.039 --> 00:22:00.160 Just simple prayer, and prayer is just a conversation with God. 00:22:01.759 --> 00:22:04.720 Jesus, today, I behold you. 00:22:07.440 --> 00:22:09.759 I believe that you came for me. 00:22:10.720 --> 00:22:19.279 You lived for me, you died for me, and you defeated death and rose again to give me life. 00:22:22.079 --> 00:22:25.920 Would you come into my life, be my rescuer? 00:22:26.799 --> 00:22:28.640 Would you be my leader? 00:22:30.480 --> 00:22:36.319 Would you forgive me of all the junk and bring new life? 00:22:38.640 --> 00:22:40.480 In Jesus' name. 00:22:41.039 --> 00:22:41.680 Amen. 00:22:42.960 --> 00:22:45.200 We hope you are blessed by this message. 00:22:45.440 --> 00:22:49.839 Please subscribe to our podcast for access to every episode as they're uploaded. 00:22:50.000 --> 00:22:52.079 And hey, we'd love to connect with you. 00:22:52.240 --> 00:23:11.279 Take a next step by filling out our virtual connection card at awakeningchurch.com slash cards, fix, five, six, fix, fix, fix, fix, fix, fix, six.