Today in the Town of David

Luke 2:1-20

Let's take a moment and pray that the Lord would speak to us by His Holy Spirit.

Lord Jesus, thank you for coming as a baby more than 2000 years ago. Thank you for stepping down out of the majesty of heaven to endure scorn and squalor beyond comprehension. You could only have done it out of love. There is no other motivation that could cause One who is perfect and has all things to leave it behind for a chance to redeem ones who rejected You from the start. Your compassion knows no bounds and Your glory will know no end. All praise to You, in Jesus’ Name. Amen.

I don’t know how you find Christmas. When you stop to think about it, there are a couple of ways to take the question, “How do you find Christmas?” I imagine my meaning is not quite what you would expect. At first, what I mean to say is given all the hubbub and commercialism and fictional storybook trappings, what do you think of Christmas and what the season has become? What impressions do you take away from the entire Christmas experience? What is Christmas like? How do you find Christmas to be?

His Mercy Extends

Luke 1:46-55 & 67-79

The song we sang earlier is a really good song. It says, “Come though expected Jesus, come to set Thy people free.” And in Acts chapter 3 it’s really interesting because it says that Jesus actually came into the world to bless us by turning us away from our sins. And so I think that’s really cool just to remember that is one of the ways God’s been merciful to us, is that He blessed us to turn us away from our sins. And as that song said He came to set us free. So that’s God’s mercy thinking about how He doesn’t really give us what we deserve. If we turn from our sin that means that we are not going to get what we deserve which is an eternity in hell. So that’s really cool to realize this Christmas season, even as we look at the topic today of His mercy, the fact that His mercy extends. Let’s look in Luke Chapter 1. As you turn there I will open us up in prayer.

God, we just thank you for this morning. We just really pray that you would speak to our hearts. Pray that you would remind us of how great your mercy really is. How you have been merciful to us over and over and over and over. God I just pray that you would help me to step aside this morning and let you speak God and take away any desire that I might have that would want people to look at me God but I just pray that people would look at you this morning God. That we just really meet together this morning so we can bring attention to you. So we can lift you up so we can magnify you. And God I pray that we would open our hearts to your words and that you would cause us to be people that would be changed. And we just give you thanks. Amen.

Blessed is the Child

Luke 1:26-45, 56-66, 80

Good morning, are you ready to continue on in the Christmas story? Today, we’re going to look at the rest of the narrative, the story, in chapter 1 of the book of Luke. Last week, Fred spoke about the angel Gabriel coming to Zechariah to proclaim that even in their old age, his wife Elizabeth would conceive, get pregnant, and have a son. Their son would be called John, and he would be a kind of Elijah, a forerunner of the Messiah. John’s ministry would “make ready a people prepared for the Lord.” After 400 years of prophetic silence, we have the announcement of the one who will prepare the way for the ultimate fulfillment of prophecy: the coming of our Savior, Jesus Christ.

Make Ready a People

Luke 1:1-25

I am really encouraged by this message. I hope it brings you a spiritual blessing this morning.  I think it will be different than you expect and so I hope the Holy Spirit just really moves your heart to be encouraged by this message this morning.  The Christmas message really starts off about 400 years before the first Christmas in the book of Malachi chapter 4.

Malachi 4:1-6

“Surely the day is coming; it will burn like a furnace. All the arrogant and every evildoer will be stubble, and that day that is coming will set them on fire,” says the LORD Almighty. “Not a root or a branch will be left to them. But for you who revere my name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its wings. And you will go out and leap like calves released from the stall. Then you will trample down the wicked; they will be ashes under the soles of your feet on the day when I do these things,” says the LORD Almighty. “Remember the law of my servant Moses, the decrees and laws I gave him at Horeb for all Israel. “See, I will send you the prophet Elijah before that great and dreadful day of the LORD comes. He will turn the hearts of the fathers to their children, and the hearts of the children to their fathers; or else I will come and strike the land with a curse.”

Rejoicing and Being Content

 Philippians 4

Welcome! Today we finish our series on the book of Philippians, focusing on Chapter 4. Last week, in Chapter 3, we were warned to watch out for those who imply that practicing certain external things (basically, living as Jews) made people more godly. Paul, the author of Philippians, instead explained that our focus should be on knowing Christ Jesus, that so-called righteousness produced by external practices and self-effort were worse than useless, that instead what we should pursue is our relationship with Christ, that in this pursuit we would find righteousness that comes from God. It is Jesus, and not our feeble attempts at self-effort, that transforms us into His image. If I may summarize: If our goal is to know Christ, we will find Christ and righteousness; but if our goal is righteousness, we will find neither Christ nor righteousness. After encouraging us to stand firm, Paul, led by the Spirit to pen these words, writes this:

I plead with Euodia and I plead with Syntyche to agree with each other in the Lord. Yes, and I ask you, loyal yokefellow, help these women who have contended at my side in the cause of the gospel, along with Clement and the rest of my fellow workers, whose names are in the book of life. – Phil. 4:2-3

Knowing Christ and Pressing On

 Philippians 3

Welcome! Today we continue our study of Paul’s letter to the Philippians. This week on several occasions I had the opportunity to talk with people about matters of faith, and repeatedly I heard the idea that religious belief systems are all about what one must do to be “good”. I heard the idea that the essence of religion is the desire to better oneself, and that there is value in religion in that it motivates and inspires people to be better than they “naturally” are.

This sounds good, doesn’t it? After all, our world is a dark place, and there are all kinds of pressures to bring us down to our baser instincts, to have us give in to our most selfish desires, to take because we can, to live out the Darwinian so-called law of “survival of the fittest.” Not only this, but there is satisfaction in revenge, there is release in acting upon anger, there is even a pleasure in power, and this pleasure is not diminished by the means one uses to obtain this power.

Sending and Serving

 Philippians 2:19-30

Welcome! Today we resume our study of the wonderful book of Philippians. I want to start by giving a recap of some of the things we have discussed over the past few weeks. In Chapter 1, Paul gives thanks for the Philippians, calling them his partners in the gospel. And he says that, because they are his partners, he “prays with joy” for them. He then tells them his prayer, that their love “may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight.”

Paul then talks briefly about his chains, as he is in prison, but he then says he rejoices. With Christ’s help, he expects and hopes not to be ashamed, but to exalt Christ, whether he lives or dies. He then calls on the Philippians to conduct themselves in a manner worthy of the gospel, contending for the faith without fear, even if they are persecuted or suffer.

In Chapter 2, Paul then calls on them to have the love of Christ, being one in spirit and purpose, and he says that this will make his joy complete. You can see how joy is a major theme of Philippians; Paul has joy as he thinks of the Philippians, he rejoices as he thinks about his personal situation, in prison, chained to a soldier at all times, and he says that seeing the Philippians living together in love and unity and purpose together will be, in effect, the icing on the cake of his joy.

For the Joy Set Before Him

Good morning! Today we will have a short message followed by a time remembering our Lord and Savior with the bread and cup, and then we will gather together in a circle and those who desire can share what the Lord has been teaching them. Our church service takes this format once a month, because we truly believe Scripture when it says that God desires to use all members of His body to speak into and build up and encourage one another in the Lord.

One of the many things I love about our body, that is, I love about all of you, is the freedom we give each other to try things, even to fail, because we shower one another with grace and love. Today, I am going to break some well-known rules about public speaking and read a longish passage of fiction to you because it hits my heart, and I hope, hits your heart, in a way that I know no other way to express.

The passage I am going to read to you is from the novel Hinds’ Feet on High Places by Hannah Hurnard. The story is highly allegorical in nature, using a style of writing similar to that of the classic Pilgrim’s Progress by John Bunyan. I recommend both books, if you are looking for edifying things to read.

Humility and Obedience

Philippians 2:1-18

John Farmer started this series in Philippians last week and today I am going to continue where he left off.

First let’s pray and ask God to glorify Himself and bless us through His Word this morning.

Just for the benefit of you who missed John’s message last week, he talked about Philippi being named after King Philip, Philip the Conqueror, who was Alexander the Great's father. So the Philippians had a prestigious name from a prestigious heritage and really proud men who went on to conquer the world. But Paul wanted to address some of that pride in his letter to the Philippians.

Now let’s look at Philippians 2:1-2

If you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any fellowship with the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and purpose.

Circumstances and Attitudes

 Philippians 1

Today we begin a new four week series on the book of Philippians.  To most of us, it is a familiar book.  It is one where we can go for encouragement and perspective on our circumstances.  It is a book from which we have committed verses to memory.  In chapter 1 (v.6), “Being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will perfect it [carry it on to completion] until the day of Christ Jesus.” 

Then in chapter 2 (v.3-4), “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves.  Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.”

And then from chapter 4 (v.5-7, 8, 11-13, 19), “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.  And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”