Sermon Central
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The Angel's Perspective Series
Contributed by Curtis Rowe on Dec 11, 2007 (message contributor)
Summary: The angel’s perspective on the birth of Christ reminds us of the essential nature of the incarnation.
Christmas Perspectives #1
The Angelic Appreciation of Christmas
We hear a lot about the results of public opinion polls. Sometimes they’re interesting and informative; then sometimes you wonder, “Where do they find all these misinformed people?” and sometimes you think, “Who really cares?!”
This year’s Christmas series will highlight different perspectives on the birth of our Savior. The opinions and insights we will receive all matter and they’re very well-informed!
The angel who announced the first Christmas offers us a perspective that’s …
• unclouded by sin
• Unimpeded by selfish motives
Read verses 7-12
He that walketh with wise men shall be wise: but a companion of fools shall be destroyed. Prov. 13:20
The Father was pleased with what the angel had said, but every single angel wanted to have the privilege of announcing their praise over the miracle of Divine condescension! This was, God manifest in the flesh!
“All things were made by Him & without Him was not anything made that was made!”
So, the Father allowed every angel under heaven to join in the chorus of praise !
“… when he bringeth in the firstbegotten into the world, he saith, And let all the angels of God worship him.”
Heb. 1:6
Read verses 13-14
“… in the multitude of counsellors there is safety.”
Prov. 11:14
The angels of heaven are above any expert opinion or human consensus. So what they tell us about God coming to be with us is extremely important and accurate!
What can we learn from this enthusiastic Hallelujah chorus of glory?
I. The Highest Good is still Done by Communicating the Gospel of Jesus Christ! Vs.10, 11, 14
• If our greatest need had been information, God would have sent us an educator.
• If your greatest need had been technology, God would have sent us a scientist.
• If our greatest need had been money, God would have sent us an economist.
• If our greatest need had been pleasure, God would have sent us an entertainer.
These are all good things that can be done for people. But they’re only temporarily helpful and they fail to address our permanent need! We need someone to take the punishment for our wicked sins!
A flood of false doctrine has lately broken in upon us. Men are beginning to tell us “that God is too merciful to punish souls for ever...that all mankind, however wicked and ungodly...will sooner or later be saved.” We are to embrace what is called “kinder theology,” and treat hell as a pagan fable...This question lies at the very foundation of the whole Gospel. The moral attributes of God, His justice, His holiness, His purity, are all involved in it. The Scripture has spoken plainly and fully on the subject of hell... If words mean anything, there is such a place as hell. If texts are to be interpreted fairly, there are those who will be cast into it...The same Bible which teaches that God in mercy and compassion sent Christ to die for sinners, does also teach that God hates sin, and must from His very nature punish all who cleave to sin or refuse the salvation He has provided.
God knows that I never speak of hell without pain and sorrow. I would gladly offer the salvation of the Gospel to the very chief of sinners. I would willingly say to the vilest and most profligate of mankind on his deathbed, “Repent, and believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved.” But God forbid that I should ever keep back from mortal man that scripture reveals a hell as well as heaven...that men may be lost as well as saved. J.D. Ryle,
“But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honour; that he by the grace of God should taste death for every man.” Heb. 2:9
The wages of sin is death…
Whosoever was not found written in the Lamb’s book of life was cast into the lake of fire… this is the second death.
“Fire is evidently the only word in human language which can suggest the anguish of perdition. It is the only word in the parable of the wheat and the tares which our Lord did not interpret (Matt. 13:36-43)...The only reasonable explanation is that fire is not a symbol. It perfectly describes the reality of the eternal burnings.
As we paid nothing for God’s eternal love and nothing for the Son of His love, and nothing for His Spirit and our grace and faith, and nothing for our eternal rest...What an astonishing thought it will be to think of the immeasurable difference between what we deserve and what we receive.
O, how free was all this love, and how free is this enjoyed glory...So then let “Deserved” be written on the floor of hell but on the door of heaven and life, “The Free Gift”
