O Come Emmanuel
Carols of the Christ • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
0 ratings
· 4 viewsNotes
Transcript
Introduction
Songs teach us.
They can help us learn something repetitive.
ABC’s
Greek Alphabet
Hebrew Alphabet
Presidents
They can teach us about someone:
“Better watch out. . .”
We learned about Santa Claus:
he’s watching
he knows your sleeping habits
he’s judging according to a moral standard
he dislikes emotional children
O Come, O Come, Emmanuel
9th-Century Latin hymn
chanted and sung in monasteries for 1200 years.
O Sapientia (O Wisdom)
O Adonai (O Lord)
O Radix Jesse (O Root of Jesse)
O Clavis David (O Key of David)
O Oriens (O Dawn of the East)
O Rex Gentium (O King of the Nations)
O Emmanuel (O God With Us)
John Mason Neale discovered the Latin hymn in the appendix of an early 18th-century manuscript,
Neale translated the hymn and included it in a collection of other translated pieces: Mediaeval Hymns and Sequences (1851).
Dr. Neale supposes that about the twelfth century an unknown author took five of the seven Antiphons and wove them into a hymn, Veni, veni, Emmanuel; but this hymn has not been traced further back than the Psalter of Catholic Canticles published at Cologne in 1722.
When the first letter of each antiphon is written out it forms an acrostic
(Emmanuel, Rex, Oriens, Clavis, Radix, Adonai, Sapientia) form a reverse acrostic spelling Ero cras — “I will be there tomorrow”
Both the hymn as we know it and the antiphon, O Emmanuel, are derived from two passages of Scripture: Matthew 1:23 and Isaiah 7:14
The significance of Christmas is it’s sign of God’s presence.
The Significance of the Incarnation
The Significance of the Incarnation
Incarnation = in the flesh
“The central miracle asserted by Christians is the Incarnation. They say that God became Man. Every other miracle prepares for this, or exhibits this, or results from this. . . .”
— C. S. Lewis —
Matthew 1:20–23 (ESV)
20 But as he considered these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. 21 She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” 22 All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet: 23 “Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel” (which means, God with us).
Mary = virgin
son = son
Jesus = Immanuel
This is significant in relation to other religions:
God is not standing afar
God is not “part of us” or “in us”
Jesus did not claim god-like status and seek to achieve it — an angel declared it before he was born!
GOD
Jesus’ divinity
In taking on humanity, Jesus did not lose his divinity
addition not subtraction
Colossians 1:19 (ESV)
19 For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell,
Jesus is the Second Person of the Trinity
Always existed
The One who created the human race will now become part of it.
WITH
Jesus’ humanity
As Jesus was fully God, he was also fully human.
This moment would, in one sense, change Jesus forever.
He would now have a body forever.
Prior to this, he had no body.
emotions
John 11:35 (ESV)
35 Jesus wept.
Jesus ate
Jesus slept
Jesus died
US
Jesus is God with you.
Jesus didn’t need to come. But he did — for you.
This has personal implications for your life.
Jesus became “God with us” to show God to us.
We’ll talk more about this later
Jesus became “God with us” to show us to God.
Hebrews 4:15 (ESV)
15 For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin.
1 John 2:1 (ESV)
1 My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.
Jesus became “God with us” to represent us.
As a man and before God
1 Corinthians 15:22 (ESV)
22 For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive.
Adam represents us in the Old Covenant.
Jesus came to enact a New Covenant.
Jesus became “God with us” to die for us.
Incarnation:
Jesus came “that there might be a way for man to man’s God through a God-man.”
— Augustine —
“The Son of God became man to enable men to become the sons of God.”
C S. Lewis in Mere Christianity. Christianity Today, Vol. 38, no. 14.
**Communion**
“In short, since neither as God alone could he feel death, nor as man alone could he overcome it, he coupled human nature with divine that to atone for sin he might submit the weakness of the one to death; and that, wrestling with death by the power of the other nature, he might win victory for us.”
— John Calvin —
The Sign of God’s Presence
The Sign of God’s Presence
Matthew grabbed a hold of a prophecy that by all accounts seemed to have nothing to do with Christmas.
It was a prophecy of Isaiah that was fulfilled in Isaiah’s day.
Isaiah thought it was done.
It was fulfilled, but God had more filling to do.
in Isaiah it was fulfilled but Matt saw it fully filled. Even when you think God is done - remember, HE’S NOT DONE!
Allow God to write (and rewrite) your story.
Allow God to write (and rewrite) your story.
How is it that this story was fulfilled in Isaiah’s day and (re)fulfilled in Matthew’s?
Only answer: God intended it that way.
The prophecy was a sign for a man who was in a bad situation - facing external pressures and problems.
Ahaz, King of Judah (Israel split) refused to join with Israel and Syria to form an alliance against the world superpower, Assyria.
Because of this, the kings of Syria and Israel join forces and attack King Ahaz.
Instead of turning to God,
2 Kings 16:5–8 (ESV)
5 Then Rezin king of Syria and Pekah the son of Remaliah, king of Israel, came up to wage war on Jerusalem, and they besieged Ahaz but could not conquer him. 6 At that time Rezin the king of Syria recovered Elath for Syria and drove the men of Judah from Elath, and the Edomites came to Elath, where they dwell to this day. 7 So Ahaz sent messengers to Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria, saying, “I am your servant and your son. Come up and rescue me from the hand of the king of Syria and from the hand of the king of Israel, who are attacking me.” 8 Ahaz also took the silver and gold that was found in the house of the Lord and in the treasures of the king’s house and sent a present to the king of Assyria.
.
.
God promised to be with Ahaz
Isaiah 7:14 (ESV)
14 Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.
The sign would prove that God was with Ahaz.
Don’t miss God’s presence this Christmas.
Don’t miss God’s presence this Christmas.
Do you need to sign the God is at work? Look at Christmas
Do you need to sign that God is still here? Look at Christmas
Do you need a sign that God is real? Look at Christmas
Do you need to sign that your sins can be forgiven? Look at Christmas
Do you need a sign that the broken things will one day be restored? Look at Christmas
Do you need a sign That comfort will come? Look at Christmas
Do you need a sign that things will be redeemed? Look at Christmas
Better yet, look at Christ.
The significance of Christmas is it’s sign of God’s presence.
“Worthy of it all”