December 24, 2007
Romans 3:11-24
God At His Best!!
Adapted from a sermon by E.V. Hill
The Bible is full of miracles. When you read the Bible, page after page is filled with miracles about God’s creation, the miracle of God’s forgiveness, mercy, grace, God’s love, and the gift of new life. When we believe in God, the Bible becomes a book filled with hope, hope of a new today and a new tomorrow.
So on this Christmas Eve, what is God’s greatest miracle?
Is it the birth of Jesus?
Is it the death of Jesus?
Is it found in the resurrection?
Is it the hope of a glorious heaven?
Could it be the greatest miracle is life?
We could debate which miracle is the greatest of all, and we could all be correct.
And, when I think about miracles, I think about God at His best.
But it occurred to me, that God at His best may not even be in the Bible. Now that may be a shocking statement for a Christmas Eve message. But God at His best is not recorded anywhere in Genesis or in Revelation, nor anywhere inbetween. Let me tell you when God was at His best.
It occurred about 25 years ago, when a young man named Michael Deutsch was lost in his own world. I was living a life that was not pleasing to God; my life had only one purpose — to satisfy all of my cravings, my goal was simple. . . please myself, and don’t get in my way. You see, I was making it in the world, I was a success in my field, considered the rising star in the auditing field, but there was no joy in my heart, and I was drowning in my own misery.
And then. . . and then, the great God who made the heavens and the earth, stopped to see me, and He came into my heart. That’s when He was at His best. When somehow, and don’t ask me to explain it, but I can testify that no matter how great Jesus is, He arranges to meet all who would come. . . all who would come and confess their need for Him.
There are some days when I need to see a number of people and I receive phone messages, mail and way too many emails. But I can’t do ten things at one time, I have a hard enough time doing two things at a time. I cannot be everywhere, all at the same time. I am incapable of being everywhere that I am wanted.
But one night in Hinsdale, Illinois, Jesus, was at His best, because I called on Him. I was a nobody with no name and the great God of the universe came into my heart, and His name is Jesus. And somebody else here can testify that He too came into your heart. You were a nobody, lost in your sins, arrogant, and yet when that moment came — and you said ‘Lord, I know you’re the keeper of the heavens and the earth, I need You, I want You, I believe in You’ then the Lord Jesus came into your heart and made you into a new creation. And if there is anybody in here right now who has not done it, you can get the Creator of the heavens and earth and all there is, to come into your life right now.
And we must believe and trust with our hearts that this great big God will meet us right where we are!!!!!
I’ve had my 15 minutes of fame. I was on television after a destructive tornado, I was quoted and misquoted in the newspaper, I had newspaper articles written about me, I have spoken at the mayor of Dearborn’s inaugeration, had my picture taken with the governor of Michigan, and more, but you know what, you can shake my hand and say, ‘Oh, you’re Michael Deutsch, I have always wanted to shake your hand, and now I don’t want to wash it,’ but let me tell you something, hurry up and wash it, because if you never shake my hand, you’re not missing anything, but if you don’t shake the hand of God, you are missing everything. And if you say ‘Jesus, come into my heart, you’ve got it all.’
You see, God sent His Son, to leave the joy, the peace, the love, the eternal security of heaven to live on earth. That was a miracle. Jesus lived a life which was sinless, that was a miracle. He died on the cross and rose again on the 3rd day, that is a miracle.
Yet, God did not have to do any of that, He could have saved us in some other, much less painful way to Himself. But He didn’t. So we read from 1 John, “This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. 10 This is love: not that we loved God, but that God loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.”
Do you see what God did for us on that first Christmas day? He sent His Son, Jesus, because He loves you and wants us to freely choose to love Him back. When we do that, we experience God at His best - bringing us into His family of love and faith.
On our own we cannot find salvation. But God announces He has the only way. Salvation comes from heaven downward, not earth upward. Luke reminds us “A new day from heaven will dawn upon us” (Luke 1:78). And James tells us “Draw near to God and God will draw near to you.” (James 4:7).
You see, salvation is God-given, God-driven, God powered, and God-originated. The gift is always from God to you. Grace has been created by God and given to us. No other religion abounds in grace. Christianity is based on grace, God’s loving grace given to each of us in the person of Jesus Christ.
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For unto us a child has been born. Jesus is the great light, who helps us to find our way in a world filled with darkness. He is a Mighty, Powerful God, He is also the Prince of Peace. God sent Jesus into the world to bring love and hope to us. So that nothing, absolutely nothing can defeat us. Jesus gives us hope, hope that today and tomorrow will be filled with His greatness.
Christmas is about love, God’s love for you and God’s love for me. I know of no other way to tell you that if you were the only people living in this world, God would still have sent Jesus for you. That is how much you mean to God.
There is the expression,
If God had a refrigerator, your picture would be on it.
If God had a wallet, your picture would be in it.
Face it, God loves you and wants you and that is why He sent Jesus.
God at His best is God coming to you and saying, “You are my child, I love you, I gave my life for you.” We are promised we can be new creations in the name of Jesus Christ. We can have new attitudes of love, grace, joy and peace. But to find this we must ask Jesus to be an everyday part of our life. Maybe you have forgotten what it was like when you first accepted Jesus, and you have slipped away. Or maybe you have never accepted Jesus as Savior, then I urge you, tonight, give yourself a gift, the gift of hope, life and love through Jesus.
Let us pray
