Sermon Central
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What Difference Has Jesus Made In Your Life?
Contributed by Glenn Newton on Dec 17, 2016 (message contributor)
Summary: When Christ came to Earth, He changed the world. When He comes into our lives, our lives are transformed. The Christmas message is that a huge change has taken place because the King has taken his place.
What Difference has Jesus made in your Life?
Pastor Glenn Newton, December 11, 2016
14 Therefore the Lord himself will give you[c] a sign: The virgin[d] will conceive and give birth to a son, and[e] will call him Immanuel.[f] (Isaiah 7:14)
Luke 2: 8-20
8 And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. 9 An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. 10 But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. 11 Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. 12 This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”
13 Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,
14 “Glory to God in the highest heaven,
and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”
15 When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.”
16 So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. 17 When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, 18 and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. 19 But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. 20 The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told.
What a great time of the year! This time of the year brings all kinds of thoughts, memories, and also brings our families together to celebrate our Savior, Jesus Christ.
You see, being a Christian makes Christmas different from what it means to those who don’t follow Jesus, the Messiah. Let’s start with our first verse found in Isaiah 7:14…
14 Therefore the Lord himself will give you[c] a sign: The virgin[d] will conceive and give birth to a son, and[e] will call him Immanuel.[f] (Isaiah 7:14)
The 1st Fact I want you to hold onto today is… Jesus was the Hope for Israel before He was even born.
God the Father promised his people that a messiah would come and would be their Peace, would provide for them Salvation and Hope for all of Eternity. When they found themselves in captivity, Jesus, the promised Messiah was what they held onto. When they were wandering around in the desert because of their own disbelief, the promised messiah was still their Hope.
When the people of God inherited the land promised them, they still were looking to the future when Jesus would be revealed.
Jesus has always provided Hope and brought about real change in people’s lives. You see when you have someone to live for, you live different.
When you are just living for yourself, your life becomes self-centered, it becomes a lonely, frustrating, empty life, not the kind of life we were created to live. We were Created to Live a life of Worship, and that Worship belongs to only One… Our Lord and King, Jesus.
What Difference Has Jesus Made on our World?
We have BC and AD. Our calendar has been divided based on His life. Don’t let anyone tell you different, that has always been what it stood for, some have come along and tried to erase this fact by rewriting history, but the World has recognized when Jesus entered our World, when He died, and when He Rose from the Dead.
What Difference Has He made?
Watch this video that gives us a visual effect of how Christianity has spread throughout the world and God has been offering His Peace and Hope to all who say Yes.
“The Spread of Christianity” on YouTube.
The Second Fact that I want to share with you is, Simply this… When you move from non-Christian to Christian, your life if Forever Changed.
12 Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. 2 Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.
2 Corinthians 5:17 “ 17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come:[a] The old has gone, the new is here!”
