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liberty bible church 12~/30~/07 a.M.
By Tom Zobrist
“the purpose of christmas”
John 3:9-17
introduction
Illus. of the purpose of Christmas for the retail world.
READ the excerpts from the article.
The world has a clear purpose for the Christmas season, albeit a very materialistic one.
I guess we’ll know January 10th if Christmas saved the economy.
Whether the world remembers it or not, God’s original purpose for Christmas was to save, but it wasn’t intended to save the economy.
That purpose has evolved in recent years.
No, Christmas is not about saving the economy, it’s about saving souls and no passage identifies that purpose better than the one we’re looking at today.
OPEN to passage.
*Prop.
*In this passage, we see the ultimate purpose of Christmas.
Open in PRAYER.
PREVIEW the passage.
Jesus is in the midst of a personal encounter with one of the top religious leaders in the nation and it doesn’t seem to be going real well.
READ 1-8 to get the context.
As we move on in the conversation, Jesus begins to clarify some of these deep Spiritual truths for Nicodemus.
Why is it so hard for some to get it, the truth about Jesus?
Why do they struggle so with understanding why He came?
Why are they so offended by the word Christmas?
First, understanding Christmas…
i.
requires a heavenly mind vs. 9-12
Illus. of the world’s Christmas is much different than ours.
Illus. of the number of movies that have to do with Christmas.
“A Christmas Story” contrasted with “The Nativity.”
We live in the culture but to fully understand what God wants us to about Jesus and His incarnation requires us to think outside of the flesh.
Let’s start with…
a. kindergarten christianity
V 9 1.
Nicodemus asks how this spiritual rebirth can take place.
He was thinking in the physical realm when Jesus wanted him to go outside that box into the spiritual.
V 10 2.
Jesus asks a rhetorical question that really puts Nicodemus in his place.
The Greek as the article the before teacher.
I don’t believe the NIV has this.
Nicodemus was considered one of the preeminent teachers in Israel.
Illus. of John MacArthur or Chuck Swindoll being rebuked by the Lord.
They should get it.
Nicodemus didn’t get it…the spiritual birth that was necessary to enter the Kingdom of Heaven.
The OT prophets spoke of the day when the Spirit would be working among the people.
Cf. Ezek.
36:25-27 Certainly Nicodemus knew that God could give someone a new heart.
b.
good teacher, failing students
V 11a 1.
Jesus like the prophets spoke of the things of God; basic truths about salvation and the Kingdom.
They were taught about repentance and forgiveness; He taught them how to relate to God and one another.
Being God, Jesus was not teaching abstract philosophy.
He was teaching truths that to which He had been witness.
V 11b 2.
Like the prophets, Jesus’ teachings were rejected by the Jews.
The word for witness is the Greek word from which we get martyr from and John uses it frequently.
In a sense, a martyr is a rejected witness.
V 12 3.
Another rhetorical question.
If Nicodemus didn’t get how to be saved on this earth, the basics truths of being born again…including sin, repentance, trust, etc.
If he doesn’t believe when confronted with these truths, how will he believe and accept deeper truths of God.
How would he understand the virgin birth, the Trinity, the resurrection, the Second Coming, etc.
If one is not born again, their understanding of God’s Word is hindered.
That’s why the study of the Bible is boring to some.
They don’t understand.
*Trans.*
To understand the purpose of Christmas REQUIRES A HEAVENLY MIND.
That can only be had when one is born again and the Spirit changes us.
That’s where Jesus comes in.
To really have Christmas…
ii.
requires a heavenly man vs. 13-15
Illus. of Mike Huckabee’s Christmas ad that asks if we’re tired of all the political advertising.
He said, “I don’t blame you.
What really matters is the celebration of the birth of Christ and being with family and friends.”
In the background is a tree and a part of a bookshelf that looks like a cross.
The political pundits say that it is a subliminal message forcing Christianity on the nation and that non-Christians will be offended.
One non-Christian blogger said, “As a non-Christian I found it to be a very refreshing bit of individual expression of personal conviction.
I celebrate the holidays because it's a nice time for a holiday.
I don't care what your religion is or how you celebrate.
Have a good time.
Don't hurt anyone and don't break anything.”
Christmas isn’t Christmas without Jesus.
a.
Were you there?
V 13a 1.
No one has ever gone to Heaven and returned.
Some say Paul did, but at this time they had not.
We have no clear witness of Heavenly things.
There is one exception.
V 13b 2.
When God became a man in the incarnation, Jesus became the first person to give first hand testimony of the heavenly realm.
Cf.
Dan.
7:13 Jesus is link between Heaven and earth, having access to both.
b.
Jesus is there for those who call on him
V 14 1.
Jesus ascending to Heaven will not happen until after He fulfills the purpose for which He came.
This was pictured in the OT event that we read about earlier.
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