The Line 1
The Line • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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Intro
Intro
Christmas is a time where we celebrate the birth of Jesus
The single most significant person to be born
His birth signified the a great change in human history
The very calendar system that we use today has been divided into BC and AD, the divide being the birth of Jesus
His birth is the great divide of all of human history
So in this series we are looking at how Jesus’ birth is the line, or the great divide of all human history
Today I want to focus on life pre-Jesus, and life post-Jesus
Body
Body
Without Jesus man attempted to pay for their sins
Without Jesus man attempted to pay for their sins
Without Jesus man attempted to pay for their sins
The thing we notice pre-Jesus is that man had to attempt to pay for their sins
In Genesis 3 at the very creation of mankind we see that man was thrust into sin
They were cast out of the garden and left on their own
In Genesis 4 we see the first offering for their sins
3 In the course of time Cain brought to the Lord an offering of the fruit of the ground, 4 and Abel also brought of the firstborn of his flock and of their fat portions. And the Lord had regard for Abel and his offering,
Cain and Abel are paying for their sins by offering a sacrifice
Mankind continued to become more and more wicked to the point in Genesis 6 that God said this
6 And the Lord regretted that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him to his heart. 7 So the Lord said, “I will blot out man whom I have created from the face of the land, man and animals and creeping things and birds of the heavens, for I am sorry that I have made them.”
Leading to God sending rain and flood that wiped out all of life except for Noah and His family
From that point, God promised to not wipe out the earth, but mankind still had sin that needed to be paid for
This led God to give the people of Israel the Law, including the ten commandments
God also established the sacrificial system, a way the people could pay for their sins
In this system if someone committed a sin there was a set sacrifice that the people had to do: typically they would take a bull without blemish, bring it to be priest to be inspected, then have it killed and burned on the offering
While this system worked for man, it wasn’t perfect
One of the biggest flaws was if you sacrificed an animal, but then sinned, you had to sacrifice another animal
It was a constant cycle that mankind could never complete
Mankind, before Jesus, was bound to be in an endless cycle, sin - make a sacrifice to God - sin - repeat
There was no hope, and while they had the ability to offer a sacrifice it wasn’t permanent
Mankind without Jesus was ultimately suffering and in need of saving
Jesus’ birth was the turning point
Jesus’ birth was the turning point
Jesus’ birth was the turning point
While mankind without Jesus was suffering and couldn’t pay for their sin, there was a promise of a Savior, one who would be the turning point for all of humanity
We see whispers of Him from the very beginning in Genesis 3
15 I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.”
When sin entered the world, God promised a Savior, one to come
God tells them that the savior will crush the head of the serpent
When God flooded the earth, we see a whisper of a savior
12 And God said, “This is the sign of the covenant that I make between me and you and every living creature that is with you, for all future generations:
13 I have set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and the earth.
God promised Noah, and all the earth, that He wouldn’t flood the earth and destroy every person
That God offered grace and forgiveness
These whispers of a Savior show us that Jesus’ birth is the turning point
Isaiah 9 tells us this
6 For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
That this savior that we see whispers of all throughout the Bible will be God, he will be the one that forgives sin permanently
With Jesus, our sins can be forgiven
With Jesus, our sins can be forgiven
With Jesus our sins can be forgiven
The beauty of Jesus’ birth is that he came to pay for our sins
He was the one that was promised to save us from our sins
Before Jesus came, man tried to pay for their sins by giving sacrifices that only lasted for the moment
But Isaiah tells us that Jesus was promised to come and take our sins away and offer forgiveness
4 Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted.
5 But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed.
6 All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned—every one—to his own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.
7 He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth; like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent, so he opened not his mouth.
8 By oppression and judgment he was taken away; and as for his generation, who considered that he was cut off out of the land of the living, stricken for the transgression of my people?
9 And they made his grave with the wicked and with a rich man in his death, although he had done no violence, and there was no deceit in his mouth.
10 Yet it was the will of the Lord to crush him; he has put him to grief; when his soul makes an offering for guilt, he shall see his offspring; he shall prolong his days; the will of the Lord shall prosper in his hand.
11 Out of the anguish of his soul he shall see and be satisfied; by his knowledge shall the righteous one, my servant, make many to be accounted righteous, and he shall bear their iniquities.
12 Therefore I will divide him a portion with the many, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong, because he poured out his soul to death and was numbered with the transgressors; yet he bore the sin of many, and makes intercession for the transgressors.
He takes all of our sin, all of our wrong, everything we have done and is offering us forgiveness
This promised Savior that all of Scripture is telling us about came to save us
The birth of Jesus is the turning point for all humanity
No longer does man have to attempt to pay for their sins
No longer does man have to suffer
We now have hope in Jesus
Isaiah tells us this
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.
He will be called Immanuel
Immanuel means “God with us”
That this savior that is born, who turns all of human history, is God
Conclusion
Conclusion
Jesus’ birth is the line that changed all of human history
No longer do we have to try and pay for our sins, offering sacrifices and struggling
We can trust in Jesus because of His birth, life, death, and resurrection
He is the one that paid for our sins
If you are sitting here still trying to pay for your sins, still thinking you need to do more, be better, it’s time to stop and turn to Jesus
Realize that He is the one that shaped all of human history
He is the one that took on our sin
And He is the one that offers salvation
He said this:
6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.
No one comes to God except through Him
Our salvation is only through Him
He is the Line