Alba 12-17-2023
UNTO YOU IS BORN – THE LORD
Luke 2:10-11
If you have ever worked for a boss, you know that you are expected to do whatever the boss tells you to do. Some bosses are good, and some bosses are bad. Readers Digest had an article about bad bosses.
Gail Snyder from Georgia told how her boss was notoriously cheap. She said: So when he handed me a birthday card, I was pleasantly surprised. “Thank you,” I said. “You’re welcome,” he replied. “And when you get through reading it, take it to Robin down the hall. It’s her birthday today too.”
I got my first job at the end of my sophomore year in high school, when I was 15 years old. It was at a shoe store. About two weeks after I started working my family took a trip to Washington State to visit my oldest sister who was working with McKinley Indian Mission in Toppenish, Washington.
I didn't go with them because I had just started the job and felt that I shouldn't ask for time off so soon. So my family went without me. I stayed home alone. They didn't make a movie about it though.
Somehow the subject came up about the trip and my boss heard about it. It was then he told me that if I had just said something, he would have let me go. I found out that he was a good boss.
Actually, even without me, the car was full. It included my mom and dad, two sisters, my brother with his wife and their baby, plus a cousin who lived with us. And it wasn't a van.
But if you are working for someone, they have authority over you as an employee, at least in the area of the work you are doing. And if you are not doing the work, don't be surprised that they would tell you they don't need you any more. Because they are in charge.
In the 1980's there was a television program called “Who's the Boss?” That question could be asked of any person's life. Who is it that calls the shots? Who gives direction? Who is in charge? Frank Sinatra sang, “I did it my way”. But sadly, that does not always work out well.
Jeremiah 10:23 says, “ O Lord, I know the way of man is not in himself; It is not in man who walks to direct his own steps.” In other words, we need help! So many bad choices. So many missteps. Thankfully there is help.
At this time of year we celebrate the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ. He came and died on that cross so that we could be forgiven of our sins. And when the angel announced His birth to those lowly shepherds, they were told, “Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people. For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.” (Luke 2:10-11) Notice that the angel said that there were three ways to describe this special babe, and the person He would become. This one, whose name is Jesus, is also Savior, Christ and Lord.
As Savior, He took our sins (He had none) to the cross to pay the penalty for us in our place. As Christ, He is the Messiah who came as was prophesied. He is our Prophet, Priest and King. And as Lord, He is the Master we should obey.
To call someone Lord puts that person in charge., the one who is calling the shots, the boss. In a human sense Lord is a term of respect and esteem, given to someone in a position of leadership and authority.
In England, the term Lord is an honorary position given to people of nobility. In biblical times, Lord was the title used by those who owned slaves. To call someone Lord is to acknowledge one’s subservience to that person. But in the context of our text, Lord is no mere elevated human designation. It is a divine title. For...
1. Jesus Is Lord of All Creation
Many are not aware that Jesus existed before His birth in Bethlehem. Father, Son and Holy Spirit were working together in the creation of the world. Genesis chapter one tells us that God spoke and things came into being. It happened by the very Word of God.
In John 1:1-3 we are told, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made.”
It speaks of the Word as a who, and not as a what. So who is the Word that made all things? John 1:14 says, “The Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.” That is Jesus!
If we don't understand that, Colossians 1:15-17 spells it out for us. It says concerning Jesus, “He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him. And He is before all things, and in Him all things consist.
In “The New Answers Book 1” by Ken Hamm and Bodie Hodge they say concerning the laws of nature, “Everything in the universe, every plant and animal, every rock, every particle of matter or light wave, is bound by laws, which it has no choice but to obey.” That is another way of saying that Jesus is Lord over all creation. “In Him all things consist.”
So the question is, do we acknowledged His Lordship over us and over all the things we possess? After all, He made it all. Therefore He is Lord of all.
That means that while we are on this earth, our basic task is to take care of what belongs to the Lord. He is the boss when it comes to how we spend our money and what we do with what we have. We are responsible to Him as Lord in all things.
Colossians 3:17 says, “Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.”
Here’s a simple way to look at that verse: Would Jesus say it? Would Jesus do it? And if the answer is "yes", would He both say it and do it with a spirit of thankfulness. Our words and our actions must go beyond just saying or doing the right thing. Our motivation needs to be right as well. Jesus is Lord of us because we are His creation. But also...
2. Jesus is Lord by Right of Purchase
For those of us who are Christians, there is a greater purpose for acknowledging Jesus as Lord of our lives. When Jesus went to that cross, He didn't need to do it. He did it out of love for us. Before we became Christians, the devil owned us, and a price had to paid to free us from his clutches.
I Corinthians 6:19-20 tells us, “Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s.”
Colossians 1:13-14 says that out of His great love for us, God “ has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love, in whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins.”
As the hymn by Fanny Crosby says, “Redeemed how I love to proclaim it! Redeemed by the blood of the lamb; Redeemed thro' His infinite mercy, His child, and forever I am.”
Another hymn by James Rowe has this refrain: “I’m redeemed by love divine! Glory, glory! Christ is mine. All to Him I now resign. I have been redeemed!”
When something or someone is redeemed, it means that a price was paid for deliverance, for rescue, an atonement for a wrong. The price paid for our salvation required the very blood of Jesus, which He poured out on that cross.
The Elders of the church at Ephesus were told by the apostle Paul in Acts 20:28, “Take heed to yourselves and to all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood.”
When someone says that something is “bought and paid for”, we know what is meant by that. Do we also know that we have been bought and paid for by Jesus Christ. He owns what He paid for. He paid for our redemption, yours and mine.
If we understood that better, we could live better lives. Some people, even Christians, think that what they do in their personal lives doesn't matter if they are seen by others as generally good people.
But what is done in private should match what is portrayed to others. That is why, in I Corinthians chapter six when it tells us that we have been bought at a price and that we should glorify God in our bodies, that the verse just before says, “Flee sexual immorality. Every sin that a man does is outside the body, but he who commits sexual immorality sins against his own body.” (I Corinthians 6:18)
Our lives belong to the Lord. He gives us instructions that will benefit us if we follow them. And we should, because He is Lord, He is our Master. And also because...
3. Jesus is Lord Who Has All Authority
Remember what Jesus said before He left this earth? “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. (Matthew 28:18) He said that after He proved it by His resurrection from the dead. And that is not just “some” but it is “all” authority.
It simply means that Jesus is the boss. And as the boss, He wants His people, those of us who are called by His name, to spread the news that there is hope when we come to Him for salvation. And that He is willing to accept those who put their faith in Him. He wants us to share that good news.
His authority goes over every area of life on this planet. Even when the time comes that we die, we will be under His authority. And if we belong to Him now, we will continue to be His after death.
Romans 14:8-9 says, “If we live, we live to the Lord; and if we die, we die to the Lord. Therefore, whether we live or die, we are the Lord’s. For to this end Christ died and rose and lived again, that He might be Lord of both the dead and the living.
That Jesus is the Lord of the living and the dead means His authority will not end. It is valid in the here-and-now, and will continue in the hereafter. That gives true and lasting hope. And people in this world need hope. So each person needs to answer the question:
4. Is Jesus Lord of Your Life?
It’s not just saying Jesus is Lord with our lips, it is saying Jesus is Lord with our lives. Luke 6:46 "Why do you call me, ’Lord, Lord, and not do the things which I say?”
Jesus is saying that just because you say, I’m your Lord, does not make me your Lord. How can I be your Lord, when you’re not obeying me. There may be a large number of people who go to church, and even join the church, and say words of lordship but do not back it up with their lives. Jesus is saying, I’m surprised they can even do that.
Alba 12-17-2023
UNTO YOU IS BORN – THE LORD
Luke 2:10-11
If you have ever worked for a boss, you know that you are expected to do whatever the boss tells you to do. Some bosses are good, and some bosses are bad. Readers Digest had an article about bad bosses.
Gail Snyder from Georgia told how her boss was notoriously cheap. She said: So when he handed me a birthday card, I was pleasantly surprised. “Thank you,” I said. “You’re welcome,” he replied. “And when you get through reading it, take it to Robin down the hall. It’s her birthday today too.”
I got my first job at the end of my sophomore year in high school, when I was 15 years old. It was at a shoe store. About two weeks after I started working my family took a trip to Washington State to visit my oldest sister who was working with McKinley Indian Mission in Toppenish, Washington.
I didn't go with them because I had just started the job and felt that I shouldn't ask for time off so soon. So my family went without me. I stayed home alone. They didn't make a movie about it though.
Somehow the subject came up about the trip and my boss heard about it. It was then he told me that if I had just said something, he would have let me go. I found out that he was a good boss.
Actually, even without me, the car was full. It included my mom and dad, two sisters, my brother with his wife and their baby, plus a cousin who lived with us. And it wasn't a van.
But if you are working for someone, they have authority over you as an employee, at least in the area of the work you are doing. And if you are not doing the work, don't be surprised that they would tell you they don't need you any more. Because they are in charge.
In the 1980's there was a television program called “Who's the Boss?” That question could be asked of any person's life. Who is it that calls the shots? Who gives direction? Who is in charge? Frank Sinatra sang, “I did it my way”. But sadly that does not always work out well.
Jeremiah 10:23 says, “ O Lord, I know the way of man is not in himself; It is not in man who walks to direct his own steps.” In other words, we need help! So many bad choices. So many missteps. Thankfully there is help.
At this time of year we celebrate the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ. He came and died on that cross so that we could be forgiven of our sins. And when the angel announced His birth to those lowly shepherds, they were told, “Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people. For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.” (Luke 2:10-11)
Notice that the angel said that there were three ways to describe this special babe, and the person He would become. This one, whose name is Jesus, is also Savior, Christ and Lord.
As Savior, He took our sins (He had none) to the cross to pay the penalty for us in our place. As Christ, He is the Messiah who came as was prophesied. He is our Prophet, Priest and King. And as Lord, He is the Master we should obey.
To call someone Lord puts that person in charge., the one who is calling the shots, the boss. In a human sense Lord is a term of respect and esteem, given to someone in a position of leadership and authority.
In England, the term Lord is an honorary position given to people of nobility. In biblical times, Lord was the title used by those who owned slaves. To call someone Lord is to acknowledge one’s subservience to that person. But in the context of our text, Lord is no mere elevated human designation. It is a divine title. For...
1. Jesus Is Lord of All Creation
Many are not aware that Jesus existed before His birth in Bethlehem. Father, Son and Holy Spirit were working together in the creation of the world. Genesis chapter one tells us that God spoke and things came into being. It happened by the very Word of God.
In John 1:1-3 we are told, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made.”
It speaks of the Word as a who, and not as a what. So who is the Word that made all things? John 1:14 says, “The Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.” That is Jesus!
If we don't understand that, Colossians 1:15-17 spells it out for us. It says concerning Jesus, “He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him. And He is before all things, and in Him all things consist.
In “The New Answers Book 1” by Ken Hamm and Bodie Hodge they say concerning the laws of nature, “Everything in the universe, every plant and animal, every rock, every particle of matter or light wave, is bound by laws, which it has no choice but to obey.” That is another way of saying that Jesus is Lord over all creation. “In Him all things consist.”
So the question is, do we acknowledged His Lordship over us and over all the things we possess? After all, He made it all. Therefore He is Lord of all.
That means that while we are on this earth, our basic task is to take care of what belongs to the Lord. He is the boss when it comes to how we spend our money and what we do with what we have. We are responsible to Him as Lord in all things.
Colossians 3:17 says, “Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.”
Here’s a simple way to look at that verse: Would Jesus say it? Would Jesus do it? And if the answer is "yes", would He both say it and do it with a spirit of thankfulness. Our words and our actions must go beyond just saying or doing the right thing. Our motivation needs to be right as well. Jesus is Lord of us because we are His creation. But also...
2. Jesus is Lord by Right of Purchase
For those of us who are Christians, there is a greater purpose for acknowledging Jesus as Lord of our lives. When Jesus went to that cross, He didn't need to do it. He did it out of love for us. Before we became Christians, the devil owned us, and a price had to paid to free us from his clutches.
I Corinthians 6:19-20 tells us, “Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s.”
Colossians 1:13-14 says that out of His great love for us, God “ has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love, in whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins.”
As the hymn by Fanny Crosby says, “Redeemed how I love to proclaim it! Redeemed by the blood of the lamb; Redeemed thro' His infinite mercy, His child, and forever I am.”
Another hymn by James Rowe has this refrain: “I’m redeemed by love divine! Glory, glory! Christ is mine. All to Him I now resign. I have been redeemed!”
When something or someone is redeemed, it means that a price was paid for deliverance, for rescue, an atonement for a wrong. The price paid for our salvation required the very blood of Jesus, which He poured out on that cross.
The Elders of the church at Ephesus were told by the apostle Paul in Acts 20:28, “Take heed to yourselves and to all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood.”
When someone says that something is “bought and paid for”, we know what is meant by that. Do we also know that we have been bought and paid for by Jesus Christ. He owns what He paid for. He paid for our redemption, yours and mine.
If we understood that better, we could live better lives. Some people, even Christians, think that what they do in their personal lives doesn't matter if they are seen by others as generally good people.
But what is done in private should match what is portrayed to others. That is why, in I Corinthians chapter six when it tells us that we have been bought at a price and that we should glorify God in our bodies, that the verse just before says, “Flee sexual immorality. Every sin that a man does is outside the body, but he who commits sexual immorality sins against his own body.” (I Corinthians 6:18)
Our lives belong to the Lord. He gives us instructions that will benefit us if we follow them. And we should, because He is Lord, He is our Master. And also because...
3. Jesus is Lord Who Has All Authority
Remember what Jesus said before He left this earth? “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. (Matthew 28:18) He said that after He proved it by His resurrection from the dead. And that is not just “some” but it is “all” authority.
It simply means that Jesus is the boss. And as the boss, He wants His people, those of us who are called by His name, to spread the news that there is hope when we come to Him for salvation. And that He is willing to accept those who put their faith in Him. He wants us to share that good news.
His authority goes over every area of life on this planet. Even when the time comes that we die, we will be under His authority. And if we belong to Him now, we will continue to be His after death.
Romans 14:8-9 says, “If we live, we live to the Lord; and if we die, we die to the Lord. Therefore, whether we live or die, we are the Lord’s. For to this end Christ died and rose and lived again, that He might be Lord of both the dead and the living.
That Jesus is the Lord of the living and the dead means His authority will not end. It is valid in the here-and-now, and will continue in the hereafter. That gives true and lasting hope. And people in this world need hope. So each person needs to answer the question:
4. Is Jesus Lord of Your Life?
It’s not just saying Jesus is Lord with our lips, it is saying Jesus is Lord with our lives. Luke 6:46 "Why do you call me, ’Lord, Lord, and not do the things which I say?”
Jesus is saying that just because you say, I’m your Lord, does not make me your Lord. How can I be your Lord, when you’re not obeying me. There may be a large number of people who go to church, and even join the church, and say words of lordship but do not back it up with their lives. Jesus is saying, I’m surprised they can even do that.
The Lord is looking for people who are willing to enter into a true Lordship situation, not people who want to negotiate how little they are willing to do in their relationship with God.
What is at stake if we do not truly acknowledge the Lordship of Jesus Christ? One minister puts it this way: If Jesus is your Savior then He is your Lord, but if Jesus isn’t your Lord, then He isn’t your Savior!
Someone else has said: If Jesus is not "Lord of all" He is not "Lord at all." If you are following the Lord, if you are not just talking the talk but are actually walking the walk, then there should be Christ-like characteristics evident in your life.
Obedience to the Will and Word of God is the primary evidence of an understanding of Lordship.
When Mary was told she was chosen to be the mother of Jesus, she had questions. But her response was, “Behold the maidservant of the Lord! Let it be to me according to your word.” (Luke 1:38) Her decision was not based on her questions, but on obedience to the Will of God.
She should be an example for us. Because the issue of "Who is my lord" determines the way in which we are going to live our lives. Either Jesus Christ is in charge of all areas of our lives, or we are still in charge, bowing down to some other master.
There are questions we should ask ourselves, (1) “What am I holding on to?” Is there anything that is keeping me from being totally sold-out for Jesus?
And (2) “Who am I hanging out with?” Is there anything or anybody that is coming between me and Jesus?
And (3) “Where am I headed? What direction is my life taking? Is that direction being driven by the Lord, or am I setting my own course for life?”
These questions help us answer yet another one, “Are we people who believe that Jesus has complete authority over our lives?” If not, then we need to rethink what it means to be a Christian, to be saved.
We never want hear the words from the Lord, “I never knew you, depart from me.” When Jesus is truly our Lord, we won’t have to try to convince Jesus of who we are, because we will have already heard, "Come and enter the joy of my kingdom, well done my Good and faithful servant."
As it says in I Peter 3:15 in the New American Standard Bible, we need to, “sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts.”
CLOSE:
The story is that years ago when Ivan the Great from Russia and his warriors converted to the Greek Orthodox Church, they all had to get baptized. But just before they were baptized, someone pointed out that a warrior could not be baptized because he would still kill other people.
The solution with the soldiers was for them to take their sword and lift it in the air. The priests would then take the soldier under the water except for his outstretched arm. It became known as the unbaptized arm which meant it was not submitted to the lordship of Jesus and could still be used to kill and loot the enemy.
You know what? There are a lot of unbaptized check books, a lot of unbaptized cars, unbaptized clothes, unbaptized homes, unbaptized relationships and unbaptized wills.
We shouldn't think that because we come to church and do some nice things that we are going to be able to slide into heaven. May we be moved to make lordship decisions, so that not only will we say Jesus is Lord with our lips, but also live it as well.
Because we know that one day “Every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord!” The day is coming when all Creation will confess the indisputable truth that Jesus Christ is Lord! Let's be first among them.
What is at stake if we do not truly acknowledge the Lordship of Jesus Christ? One minister puts it this way: If Jesus is your Savior then He is your Lord, but if Jesus isn’t your Lord, then He isn’t your Savior!
Someone else has said: If Jesus is not "Lord of all" He is not "Lord at all." If you are following the Lord, if you are not just talking the talk but are actually walking the walk, then there should be Christ-like characteristics evident in your life.
Obedience to the Will and Word of God is the primary evidence of an understanding of Lordship.
When Mary was told she was chosen to be the mother of Jesus, she had questions. But her response was, “Behold the maidservant of the Lord! Let it be to me according to your word.” (Luke 1:38) Her decision was not based on her questions, but on obedience to the Will of God.
She should be an example for us. Because the issue of "Who is my lord" determines the way in which we are going to live our lives. Either Jesus Christ is in charge of all areas of our lives, or we are still in charge, bowing down to some other master.
There are questions we should ask ourselves, (1) “What am I holding on to?” Is there anything that is keeping me from being totally sold-out for Jesus?
And (2) “Who am I hanging out with?” Is there anything or anybody that is coming between me and Jesus?
And (3) “Where am I headed? What direction is my life taking? Is that direction being driven by the Lord, or am I setting my own course for life?”
These questions help us answer yet another one, “Are we people who believe that Jesus has complete authority over our lives?” If not, then we need to rethink what it means to be a Christian, to be saved.
We never want hear the words from the Lord, “I never knew you, depart from me.” When Jesus is truly our Lord, we won’t have to try to convince Jesus of who we are, because we will have already heard, "Come and enter the joy of my kingdom, well done my Good and faithful servant."
As it says in I Peter 3:15 in the New American Standard Bible, we need to, “sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts.”
CLOSE:
The story is that years ago when Ivan the Great from Russia and his warriors converted to the Greek Orthodox Church, they all had to get baptized. But just before they were baptized, someone pointed out that a warrior could not be baptized because he would still kill other people.
The solution with the soldiers was for them to take their sword and lift it in the air. The priests would then take the soldier under the water except for his outstretched arm. It became known as the unbaptized arm which meant it was not submitted to the lordship of Jesus and could still be used to kill and loot the enemy.
You know what? There are a lot of unbaptized check books, a lot of unbaptized cars, unbaptized clothes, unbaptized homes, unbaptized relationships and unbaptized wills.
We shouldn't think that because we come to church and do some nice things that we are going to be able to slide into heaven. May we be moved to make lordship decisions, so that not only will we say Jesus is Lord with our lips, but also live it as well.
Because we know that one day “Every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord!” The day is coming when all Creation will confess the indisputable truth that Jesus Christ is Lord! Let's be first among them.
