1 00:00:00,160 --> 00:00:03,520 Hello and welcome to the Middletown Baptist Church Podcast, 2 00:00:03,600 --> 00:00:06,480 where we are proclaiming the truth to the world. 3 00:00:06,640 --> 00:00:09,720 My name is Pastor Josh, and I want to thank you for listening to 4 00:00:09,720 --> 00:00:10,480 this podcast. 5 00:00:10,960 --> 00:00:14,680 I hope that this podcast can be a blessing to you and strengthen 6 00:00:14,680 --> 00:00:16,080 you in the word of God. 7 00:00:16,800 --> 00:00:17,560 Now, come along. 8 00:00:17,560 --> 00:00:21,440 Let's look into the Bible and see what God has for us here today. 9 00:00:23,600 --> 00:00:27,880 Well, as many of you know, a while ago we had started a new study 10 00:00:27,880 --> 00:00:29,200 in the Book of Joshua. 11 00:00:29,880 --> 00:00:35,240 And I typically like to finish books before we move on. 12 00:00:36,040 --> 00:00:37,760 But I'm going to make a deal with you all. 13 00:00:37,760 --> 00:00:38,560 I'm going to say this. 14 00:00:38,560 --> 00:00:40,520 We're going to pause in the Book of Joshua. 15 00:00:40,520 --> 00:00:42,040 We're at the end of chapter four. 16 00:00:42,280 --> 00:00:45,720 And if you can promise me that you'll remember what happened in 17 00:00:45,720 --> 00:00:49,280 the first four chapters, we're going to take a break here for the 18 00:00:49,280 --> 00:00:52,000 month of December and come back in January and study the Book 19 00:00:52,000 --> 00:00:52,760 of Joshua. 20 00:00:53,080 --> 00:00:56,590 They crossed the river Jordan and it's a good stopping place. 21 00:00:56,590 --> 00:00:56,990 Okay. 22 00:00:56,990 --> 00:01:01,030 We're going to now follow them in January as they get into the land 23 00:01:01,030 --> 00:01:03,830 of Canaan and all of the conquests there. 24 00:01:03,830 --> 00:01:07,430 But what I thought would be appropriate here for the month of 25 00:01:07,430 --> 00:01:11,389 December on Sunday nights and Wednesday nights is to look into 26 00:01:11,390 --> 00:01:15,590 scriptures, specifically the Old Testament, and see what the Old 27 00:01:15,590 --> 00:01:18,830 Testament has to say about the coming of Jesus Christ, particularly 28 00:01:19,310 --> 00:01:22,910 his first coming in the fact that he came as a baby in the manger 29 00:01:23,350 --> 00:01:24,230 there in Bethlehem. 30 00:01:24,470 --> 00:01:27,910 As you well know, that that was prophesied in the Old Testament 31 00:01:27,910 --> 00:01:31,950 actually where he would be born, how he would be born, what 32 00:01:31,950 --> 00:01:34,390 would the circumstances be like after he was born. 33 00:01:34,630 --> 00:01:39,110 The Old Testament is full of prophecies that are fulfilled in 34 00:01:39,110 --> 00:01:40,550 Jesus Christ in many ways. 35 00:01:40,870 --> 00:01:43,390 And I thought that that was an important study that we all should 36 00:01:43,390 --> 00:01:46,110 follow, because a lot of times people think that the Old Testament 37 00:01:46,110 --> 00:01:50,230 something for, you know, other people, not for us as Christians. 38 00:01:50,650 --> 00:01:53,330 As Christians, we're in the New Testament, in which there are 39 00:01:53,330 --> 00:01:55,650 a lot of things in the New Testament, many things in the New 40 00:01:55,650 --> 00:01:57,210 Testament that we have to learn and understand. 41 00:01:57,610 --> 00:02:00,050 And we know that we are part of the New Covenant, we are part 42 00:02:00,050 --> 00:02:00,970 of the church age. 43 00:02:01,130 --> 00:02:04,770 But at the same time, the Old Testament points to Jesus Christ. 44 00:02:04,770 --> 00:02:07,610 And it gives us the surety that from Genesis to Revelation, 45 00:02:07,610 --> 00:02:09,930 God's word is true and it's complete. 46 00:02:10,170 --> 00:02:12,850 And so I wanted to take you to a passage of Scripture as we look 47 00:02:12,850 --> 00:02:13,210 at this. 48 00:02:13,210 --> 00:02:15,730 And when we think of Christmas, we think of what we think 49 00:02:15,730 --> 00:02:16,490 of Luke 2. 50 00:02:17,110 --> 00:02:18,790 Well, I'm not going to take you to Luke 2 yet. 51 00:02:18,870 --> 00:02:21,110 I'm going to take you to Luke 24. 52 00:02:21,430 --> 00:02:22,590 You say Luke 24. 53 00:02:22,590 --> 00:02:23,430 That's the end. 54 00:02:23,750 --> 00:02:26,830 Why are we studying Luke 24 when we're talking about Jesus coming? 55 00:02:26,830 --> 00:02:30,870 Well, it's actually Jesus talking in resurrected form, right? 56 00:02:30,870 --> 00:02:34,150 So this is after Jesus died on the cross. 57 00:02:34,550 --> 00:02:40,710 This is Jesus as he's speaking in the the fellas to the road of 58 00:02:40,710 --> 00:02:41,190 Emmaus. 59 00:02:41,190 --> 00:02:46,610 And most of you know the story Matthew chapter 24, Jesus has resurrected. 60 00:02:47,010 --> 00:02:50,730 And we have these two followers of Jesus, these two disciples 61 00:02:50,730 --> 00:02:52,130 of Jesus that are walking. 62 00:02:52,610 --> 00:02:54,410 And we see that they have lost hope. 63 00:02:54,410 --> 00:02:56,770 We see that they are disappointed. 64 00:02:57,410 --> 00:03:00,850 And we see that after Jesus was crucified, many of his followers 65 00:03:00,850 --> 00:03:01,890 were crushed. 66 00:03:02,690 --> 00:03:05,930 Their hope was that the Messiah would free them from the 67 00:03:05,930 --> 00:03:09,250 tyranny of Rome right then and there and restore the kingdom right 68 00:03:09,250 --> 00:03:09,570 then. 69 00:03:10,500 --> 00:03:14,060 And when Jesus did not meet their immediate expectations, they 70 00:03:14,060 --> 00:03:16,420 were confused, they were disheartened. 71 00:03:16,820 --> 00:03:22,380 And we see that there In Luke chapter 24, we see them saying, don't 72 00:03:22,380 --> 00:03:23,420 you know what's going on? 73 00:03:23,420 --> 00:03:26,180 And Jesus asked them, well, what's going on? 74 00:03:26,180 --> 00:03:26,660 Verse 19. 75 00:03:26,660 --> 00:03:28,020 And he said unto them, what things? 76 00:03:28,660 --> 00:03:31,700 And they said unto him, concerning Jesus of Nazareth, which 77 00:03:31,700 --> 00:03:35,300 was a prophet, mighty indeed, and word before God and all people, 78 00:03:35,720 --> 00:03:38,560 and how the chief priests and our rulers delivered him to be condemned 79 00:03:38,560 --> 00:03:40,440 to death and have crucified him. 80 00:03:40,600 --> 00:03:42,920 And then verse 21 really is where their heart is. 81 00:03:42,920 --> 00:03:47,680 They said, but we trusted that it had been he which should have 82 00:03:47,680 --> 00:03:48,600 redeemed Israel. 83 00:03:49,000 --> 00:03:52,320 Their hope was that he was immediately at that time, going to 84 00:03:52,320 --> 00:03:53,040 redeem Israel. 85 00:03:53,040 --> 00:03:57,040 And when he did not, in their minds accomplish that in the way 86 00:03:57,040 --> 00:03:58,760 that they expected, they were disheartened. 87 00:03:58,760 --> 00:04:00,800 They said, we believed, we trusted. 88 00:04:00,800 --> 00:04:02,520 And now we're confused. 89 00:04:02,520 --> 00:04:04,080 Now we don't know what's going to happen. 90 00:04:04,480 --> 00:04:08,160 And he says, and beside this to today is the third day since these 91 00:04:08,160 --> 00:04:10,840 things were done, meaning if he was going to do something, he 92 00:04:10,840 --> 00:04:11,840 would have done it by now. 93 00:04:12,320 --> 00:04:13,600 That was where they were. 94 00:04:13,600 --> 00:04:15,360 That's where their understanding was. 95 00:04:15,360 --> 00:04:19,600 And so what happens here is that Jesus in their minds does not 96 00:04:19,600 --> 00:04:23,720 fulfill what he promised or in their minds not fulfilling their 97 00:04:23,720 --> 00:04:24,480 expectations. 98 00:04:26,000 --> 00:04:31,800 And I want you to see here in verse 25 what Jesus's reaction is. 99 00:04:32,440 --> 00:04:38,200 Then he said unto them, o fools, and slow of heart to believe. 100 00:04:38,440 --> 00:04:44,399 All the prophets have spoken, not Christ, to have suffered these 101 00:04:44,399 --> 00:04:46,520 things to enter into his glory, meaning this. 102 00:04:46,920 --> 00:04:48,960 You don't know what the prophets have said. 103 00:04:48,960 --> 00:04:51,480 You don't understand that this is part of God's plan. 104 00:04:52,200 --> 00:04:55,160 You don't understand that Jesus told you that this was what 105 00:04:55,160 --> 00:04:56,000 was going to happen. 106 00:04:56,000 --> 00:04:59,650 Now, again, remember, in context, these guys, their eyes are 107 00:04:59,650 --> 00:05:00,970 blinded to this being Jesus. 108 00:05:00,970 --> 00:05:03,690 And so they don't understand that this is Jesus standing right 109 00:05:03,690 --> 00:05:04,330 before them. 110 00:05:04,570 --> 00:05:07,490 But Jesus is telling them, hey, you should have known this was 111 00:05:07,490 --> 00:05:08,090 going to happen. 112 00:05:08,410 --> 00:05:11,450 This was all part of God's plan from the very beginning. 113 00:05:11,530 --> 00:05:15,930 He Sundays in verse 27, and beginning at Moses, for them, that's 114 00:05:15,930 --> 00:05:18,370 when the beginning happened, when the law was instituted, when 115 00:05:18,370 --> 00:05:20,490 they had exited Egypt. 116 00:05:20,490 --> 00:05:24,210 And he says at the beginning, at Moses and all the prophets, he 117 00:05:24,210 --> 00:05:29,010 expounded unto them in all the Scriptures, the things concerning 118 00:05:29,010 --> 00:05:29,570 himself. 119 00:05:30,450 --> 00:05:32,930 So Jesus says, okay, I'm going to tell you about me. 120 00:05:33,010 --> 00:05:34,810 Well, Jesus doesn't use the New Testament. 121 00:05:34,810 --> 00:05:35,010 Why? 122 00:05:35,010 --> 00:05:36,530 Because the New Testament wasn't there. 123 00:05:36,850 --> 00:05:37,690 So what did he do? 124 00:05:37,690 --> 00:05:40,530 He went back all the way to the beginning. 125 00:05:40,530 --> 00:05:42,770 He went all the way back to the Old Testament. 126 00:05:42,770 --> 00:05:45,450 For them it wasn't the Old Testament, but for us it's the Old 127 00:05:45,450 --> 00:05:45,970 Testament. 128 00:05:45,970 --> 00:05:50,560 And he says that he expounds out to them in all the Scriptures 129 00:05:50,560 --> 00:05:54,080 the things concerning himself, meaning he went to the, what we call 130 00:05:54,080 --> 00:05:58,960 the Old Testament to prove what Jesus was all about, to prove 131 00:05:59,360 --> 00:06:01,200 what God's plan was for him. 132 00:06:01,600 --> 00:06:04,040 And so I think that if Jesus does this, I think it's important 133 00:06:04,040 --> 00:06:07,840 for us to go back and to see where Jesus is inserted in the Old 134 00:06:07,840 --> 00:06:08,480 Testament. 135 00:06:08,880 --> 00:06:12,240 And I would venture to say that really all of the Old Testament 136 00:06:12,240 --> 00:06:13,760 is pointing to Jesus. 137 00:06:13,840 --> 00:06:19,110 It's pointing to his life, his ministry, his death, his resurrection, 138 00:06:19,110 --> 00:06:22,790 ultimately his rule and reign as he returns in his second coming. 139 00:06:23,270 --> 00:06:26,150 And I think it's important for us as Christians to have a framework 140 00:06:26,150 --> 00:06:29,990 of understanding that Genesis to Revelation is a story about Jesus. 141 00:06:30,550 --> 00:06:33,790 It's not a story that we tell children to entertain them, even 142 00:06:33,790 --> 00:06:36,310 though stories in the Old Testament do entertain us. 143 00:06:36,390 --> 00:06:39,430 I love the stories of the Old Testament, but it's more than that. 144 00:06:40,150 --> 00:06:43,630 The prophecies that are there point us back to the surety of knowing 145 00:06:43,630 --> 00:06:45,190 that God keeps his Word. 146 00:06:46,310 --> 00:06:47,230 Where does it start? 147 00:06:47,230 --> 00:06:49,270 Where, where is Jesus first mentioned? 148 00:06:49,590 --> 00:06:52,790 Well, some would argue that Jesus is mentioned in Genesis 1:1, 149 00:06:53,350 --> 00:06:55,190 and I would, I would agree to that. 150 00:06:55,830 --> 00:06:58,670 Where it says in the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. 151 00:06:58,670 --> 00:07:00,230 We, we know that Jesus is God. 152 00:07:00,390 --> 00:07:01,110 John 1. 153 00:07:01,349 --> 00:07:03,670 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the 154 00:07:03,670 --> 00:07:04,470 Word was God. 155 00:07:05,110 --> 00:07:09,310 But I, I would also say that the Gospel specifically mentioning 156 00:07:09,310 --> 00:07:14,110 Jesus is mentioned in Genesis 3:15. 157 00:07:14,750 --> 00:07:16,230 So we're going to go back to Genesis. 158 00:07:16,230 --> 00:07:17,630 We're going to go back to the very beginning. 159 00:07:17,630 --> 00:07:22,270 And I want us to look at some of These prophecies that we know 160 00:07:22,510 --> 00:07:26,790 as we have the full scope of Scripture, reveal the truth of who 161 00:07:26,790 --> 00:07:31,070 Jesus is and what he has done and the promise of God in our lives 162 00:07:31,070 --> 00:07:31,470 today. 163 00:07:31,950 --> 00:07:33,150 So Genesis, chapter three. 164 00:07:33,150 --> 00:07:36,030 Most of you know the context, if you were here a while ago. 165 00:07:36,030 --> 00:07:38,150 We went all the way through the book of Genesis. 166 00:07:38,150 --> 00:07:40,630 We went verse by verse through the book of Genesis. 167 00:07:40,630 --> 00:07:41,950 And it's an amazing study. 168 00:07:42,350 --> 00:07:46,270 But many of you know that in Genesis 3, we see what we call the 169 00:07:46,270 --> 00:07:47,070 fall of man. 170 00:07:47,470 --> 00:07:49,230 We see Adam and Eve sin. 171 00:07:50,030 --> 00:07:53,870 And we see really the effects of sin, the curse, verse 14. 172 00:07:54,350 --> 00:07:57,190 And the Lord God said unto the serpent, because thou has done this, 173 00:07:57,190 --> 00:08:00,670 thou art cursed above cattle and above every beast of the field. 174 00:08:00,670 --> 00:08:04,230 Upon thy belly shalt thou go, and thus shall thou eat all the days 175 00:08:04,230 --> 00:08:04,910 of thy life. 176 00:08:04,910 --> 00:08:09,680 And so we know that temptation came to the garden through Satan. 177 00:08:09,920 --> 00:08:11,440 Satan comes and tempts Eve. 178 00:08:11,440 --> 00:08:14,640 And we know that Eve is deceived, and we know that Adam is 179 00:08:14,640 --> 00:08:15,080 part of it. 180 00:08:15,080 --> 00:08:17,600 And therefore they partake in sin. 181 00:08:17,600 --> 00:08:21,200 They partake in the original lie that they can become God. 182 00:08:21,840 --> 00:08:26,240 And so from that moment on, that is why this earth is full of 183 00:08:26,240 --> 00:08:27,200 pain and suffering. 184 00:08:28,080 --> 00:08:31,840 A lot of people will look to God for the cause of pain and suffering. 185 00:08:32,310 --> 00:08:37,110 They will look to God for the cause behind sickness and evil. 186 00:08:37,190 --> 00:08:41,430 But we see the reason why we live in a broken world, the reason 187 00:08:41,430 --> 00:08:44,230 why we struggle with these things in our life, both physically, 188 00:08:44,710 --> 00:08:48,029 spiritually, emotionally, is because of the sin that entered into 189 00:08:48,029 --> 00:08:51,110 the world through the temptation of the evil one. 190 00:08:51,430 --> 00:08:56,910 And so in verse 15, God says to the enemy, to Satan, I will put 191 00:08:56,910 --> 00:09:01,750 enmity between thee and the woman and between thy seed and her 192 00:09:01,750 --> 00:09:02,190 seed. 193 00:09:02,910 --> 00:09:06,230 So this is a picture of the division of good and evil. 194 00:09:06,230 --> 00:09:08,870 This is the picture of what we're going to see throughout all 195 00:09:08,870 --> 00:09:09,510 of Scripture. 196 00:09:09,510 --> 00:09:09,870 This. 197 00:09:09,870 --> 00:09:12,270 This battle, the struggle that's going to be out there. 198 00:09:12,270 --> 00:09:15,630 Ultimately, we know that it is not equal sides. 199 00:09:15,630 --> 00:09:18,368 There's a lot of people that teach good and evil are like 50, 200 00:09:18,452 --> 00:09:18,830 50. 201 00:09:18,990 --> 00:09:22,390 And there's this equal battle that God and Satan are. 202 00:09:22,390 --> 00:09:24,350 Are in this struggle back and forth. 203 00:09:24,940 --> 00:09:26,700 And that's not really what we see here. 204 00:09:26,940 --> 00:09:30,580 We see that there is a struggle, but we know that God is 205 00:09:30,580 --> 00:09:32,460 completely sovereign over the evil one. 206 00:09:32,460 --> 00:09:34,220 That's what it says at the end of verse 15. 207 00:09:34,860 --> 00:09:38,340 This is called the proto Evangelion, which means the first 208 00:09:38,340 --> 00:09:42,020 mention of the gospel or the first mention of evangelism, the 209 00:09:42,020 --> 00:09:44,380 first mention of a messiah that is to come. 210 00:09:44,380 --> 00:09:49,620 And it says in verse 15, it shall bruise thy head, meaning the 211 00:09:49,620 --> 00:09:50,460 seed of a woman. 212 00:09:50,460 --> 00:09:55,890 Shall bruise thy head, meaning kill you and thou shalt bruise his 213 00:09:55,890 --> 00:10:00,770 heel, meaning there will be an action, an effort from the evil one 214 00:10:00,930 --> 00:10:03,970 to take control, to try to defeat God. 215 00:10:03,970 --> 00:10:06,130 And we know that through Scripture. 216 00:10:06,130 --> 00:10:09,810 But we also know that there is a promise here that Jesus would come. 217 00:10:10,210 --> 00:10:14,530 And as Jesus is the seed of the woman, come and destroy evil 218 00:10:14,690 --> 00:10:18,450 and ultimately restore all things to good. 219 00:10:18,450 --> 00:10:22,420 And so that's the first mention of Jesus and the Gospel there 220 00:10:22,420 --> 00:10:23,580 in the book of Genesis. 221 00:10:23,580 --> 00:10:27,660 Now I want you to see more about that because the Messiah, as 222 00:10:27,660 --> 00:10:30,540 he is called, would be the seed of the woman. 223 00:10:30,620 --> 00:10:33,220 And we see that reference throughout the New Testament. 224 00:10:33,220 --> 00:10:36,580 And I want us to see a few of the references to that there in the 225 00:10:36,580 --> 00:10:37,180 New Testament. 226 00:10:37,180 --> 00:10:41,020 So I hope you have your Bible fingers ready to go to search through 227 00:10:41,020 --> 00:10:41,500 Scriptures. 228 00:10:41,500 --> 00:10:45,380 If not, some of you have your phones or your tablets, I would encourage 229 00:10:45,380 --> 00:10:46,460 you always to check. 230 00:10:47,400 --> 00:10:48,520 Don't take me for granted. 231 00:10:49,160 --> 00:10:50,600 Be a berean and follow us. 232 00:10:50,600 --> 00:10:54,680 And so in Genesis 3:15, we see that there is this promise of the 233 00:10:54,680 --> 00:10:57,960 seed of the woman that would come and destroy the enemy. 234 00:10:58,440 --> 00:11:01,160 Well, let's see some of the references in the New Testament. 235 00:11:01,160 --> 00:11:02,280 Romans, chapter 16. 236 00:11:02,759 --> 00:11:05,040 We're going to get that in our study in Romans. 237 00:11:05,040 --> 00:11:08,800 But we see that there's New Testament citations to that very 238 00:11:08,800 --> 00:11:13,460 same passage, really throughout the New Testament, these 239 00:11:13,460 --> 00:11:16,060 New Testament citations of Genesis 3:15 are seen. 240 00:11:16,460 --> 00:11:20,620 One example would be in Romans chapter 16, verse 20. 241 00:11:21,740 --> 00:11:24,940 And we're going to see that Jesus is the seed of the woman. 242 00:11:25,420 --> 00:11:26,740 And this speaks to many things. 243 00:11:26,740 --> 00:11:28,740 This speaks to the virgin birth, which we're going to talk 244 00:11:28,740 --> 00:11:29,580 about later on. 245 00:11:29,980 --> 00:11:32,220 This speaks to how Jesus is distinct. 246 00:11:32,220 --> 00:11:32,740 He's different. 247 00:11:32,740 --> 00:11:35,660 He's the firstborn, he's the only begotten son. 248 00:11:35,740 --> 00:11:38,500 And we know that that's a unique element of Jesus that no one 249 00:11:38,500 --> 00:11:39,140 else can claim. 250 00:11:39,140 --> 00:11:40,620 No one else can claim that title. 251 00:11:40,820 --> 00:11:42,660 So it says in Romans, chapter 16, verse 20. 252 00:11:42,740 --> 00:11:47,260 And the God of peace, the God of peace, the Prince of peace, shall 253 00:11:47,260 --> 00:11:49,260 bruise Satan under your feet shortly. 254 00:11:49,260 --> 00:11:51,540 The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. 255 00:11:52,100 --> 00:11:55,180 And so this speaks to this understanding that we that are identified 256 00:11:55,180 --> 00:11:57,540 in Christ can be part of the victory. 257 00:11:57,540 --> 00:12:01,500 Even though we're not the ones in the work of the victory, we get 258 00:12:01,500 --> 00:12:02,260 to be part of it. 259 00:12:02,260 --> 00:12:05,180 Why, as it says there, the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ is 260 00:12:05,180 --> 00:12:05,500 with us. 261 00:12:05,500 --> 00:12:08,900 And so we will be part of the victory in the fact that the seed 262 00:12:08,900 --> 00:12:12,980 of the woman Jesus shall bruise Satan under your feet shortly, 263 00:12:12,980 --> 00:12:13,660 as it says here. 264 00:12:13,660 --> 00:12:17,100 So that's one reference to Genesis 3:15, a completion of that 265 00:12:17,100 --> 00:12:21,460 circle of Genesis 3:15, Jesus the one who is coming to destroy 266 00:12:21,460 --> 00:12:22,020 the evil. 267 00:12:22,020 --> 00:12:26,700 And this is a circular motion back to Romans 16:20, that Jesus 268 00:12:26,700 --> 00:12:30,100 is that one, and relationship with him gives us the victory as 269 00:12:30,100 --> 00:12:30,380 well. 270 00:12:30,380 --> 00:12:34,330 Another passage of Scripture that deals with this similar spot 271 00:12:34,330 --> 00:12:39,090 would be Galatians Chapter 4, Galatians, Chapter 4. 272 00:12:42,770 --> 00:12:46,450 This speaks of us as Christians being heirs to God's grace. 273 00:12:46,450 --> 00:12:48,210 And so we're part of the victory. 274 00:12:48,290 --> 00:12:50,610 And I think that's why it's so important to understand this. 275 00:12:50,850 --> 00:12:54,610 Yes, we know Jesus is going to be victorious, but if you are in 276 00:12:54,610 --> 00:12:56,690 Christ, you are part of that victory as well. 277 00:12:57,410 --> 00:12:59,330 And so we can be excited about these things. 278 00:12:59,330 --> 00:13:03,370 And so In Galatians chapter 4, verse 4, it speaks of us being the 279 00:13:03,370 --> 00:13:06,610 children we were once in bondage under the elements of this 280 00:13:06,610 --> 00:13:06,970 world. 281 00:13:07,770 --> 00:13:11,450 We were part of, as it says there, the seed of evil. 282 00:13:11,450 --> 00:13:13,690 We were at enmity with God. 283 00:13:14,010 --> 00:13:16,409 The Bible says that we were children of this world. 284 00:13:16,409 --> 00:13:18,010 We are children of the evil one. 285 00:13:18,090 --> 00:13:22,490 But when the fullness of time was come, God sent forth his son 286 00:13:23,130 --> 00:13:28,220 made of a woman, the seed of a woman made under the law, verse 5, 287 00:13:28,220 --> 00:13:32,180 to redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the 288 00:13:32,180 --> 00:13:33,660 adoption of sons. 289 00:13:34,700 --> 00:13:37,620 And because you are sons, God has sent forth the spirit of his 290 00:13:37,620 --> 00:13:38,700 son into your hearts. 291 00:13:38,700 --> 00:13:40,060 Crying Abba, Father. 292 00:13:40,620 --> 00:13:44,020 Again, another connection between Jesus being the seed of the 293 00:13:44,020 --> 00:13:45,820 woman and what that means for us. 294 00:13:46,700 --> 00:13:48,780 Jesus being born of a virgin. 295 00:13:48,780 --> 00:13:51,860 Jesus coming to this earth, not being bound by the law. 296 00:13:51,860 --> 00:13:52,220 Why? 297 00:13:52,380 --> 00:13:54,260 Because he didn't come to destroy the law. 298 00:13:54,260 --> 00:13:55,660 He came to fulfill the law. 299 00:13:56,350 --> 00:13:59,990 And Jesus kept the law perfectly so that we who cannot keep 300 00:13:59,990 --> 00:14:02,470 the law can be part of the family of God. 301 00:14:02,470 --> 00:14:03,710 What an amazing truth that is. 302 00:14:03,710 --> 00:14:05,150 Okay, another New Testament verse. 303 00:14:05,150 --> 00:14:07,030 Okay, I told you we're going to be looking at this. 304 00:14:07,030 --> 00:14:10,150 And I told you that the New Testament is full of Old Testament 305 00:14:10,150 --> 00:14:10,670 references. 306 00:14:10,910 --> 00:14:14,590 Hebrews, chapter 2, Hebrews, chapter 2, verse 14. 307 00:14:15,870 --> 00:14:20,070 This is speaking of Jesus being our high priest. 308 00:14:20,070 --> 00:14:24,580 And there's so much to be said about Jesus being our high priest. 309 00:14:25,300 --> 00:14:29,020 We know that we have a high priest who has been identified in 310 00:14:29,020 --> 00:14:29,780 our struggles. 311 00:14:29,860 --> 00:14:31,100 We know without sin. 312 00:14:31,100 --> 00:14:32,580 And that's what makes Jesus distinct. 313 00:14:32,580 --> 00:14:35,020 But remember, what was the Old Testament role of a priest? 314 00:14:35,020 --> 00:14:39,620 The Old Testament role of a priest was to connect people to God, 315 00:14:40,180 --> 00:14:42,420 the mediator, so to speak. 316 00:14:42,820 --> 00:14:46,220 We know that as Christians now, we have what's called priesthood 317 00:14:46,220 --> 00:14:50,190 of all believers, meaning we that are in Christ can access God 318 00:14:50,190 --> 00:14:50,830 directly. 319 00:14:51,070 --> 00:14:53,630 And so we know that we have a merciful high priest. 320 00:14:53,630 --> 00:14:55,470 And so in Hebrews chapter 2, verse 14. 321 00:14:55,790 --> 00:14:59,110 It says, for as much then as the children are partakers of flesh 322 00:14:59,110 --> 00:15:03,910 and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same, that 323 00:15:03,910 --> 00:15:08,110 through death he might destroy him that had the power of death. 324 00:15:08,190 --> 00:15:09,870 That is the devil. 325 00:15:10,430 --> 00:15:11,190 So the Bible says. 326 00:15:11,190 --> 00:15:15,740 Yes, Jesus came like us, in the flesh, seed of the woman, lived 327 00:15:15,740 --> 00:15:16,100 a life. 328 00:15:16,100 --> 00:15:18,380 But he came for a different purpose. 329 00:15:18,380 --> 00:15:20,740 Our purpose is to glorify him and trust in him. 330 00:15:20,820 --> 00:15:25,420 His purpose was, as it says there, through death, he might destroy 331 00:15:25,420 --> 00:15:27,620 him that had the power of death. 332 00:15:28,660 --> 00:15:30,980 As brother Jeff saying this morning, born to die. 333 00:15:31,060 --> 00:15:36,860 It was Jesus's purpose to come, to be in the flesh, to fulfill 334 00:15:36,860 --> 00:15:39,860 the plan of God, to fulfill the law. 335 00:15:40,100 --> 00:15:40,500 Why? 336 00:15:40,500 --> 00:15:41,380 So that he. 337 00:15:41,450 --> 00:15:45,290 He could die to destroy him that had the power of death. 338 00:15:45,850 --> 00:15:47,970 It was only because of Jesus's perfection. 339 00:15:47,970 --> 00:15:52,650 It was only because of Jesus's godhood that he could come and distinctly 340 00:15:52,650 --> 00:15:55,770 be different than anybody else that has ever walked this planet. 341 00:15:56,170 --> 00:15:57,290 He's the seed of the woman. 342 00:15:57,690 --> 00:16:01,130 And that's where we see Jesus there in Genesis, chapter. 343 00:16:02,650 --> 00:16:03,690 3, verse 15. 344 00:16:04,410 --> 00:16:08,180 One last passage of Scripture, and then we'll go to another thought. 345 00:16:08,500 --> 00:16:12,500 Revelation, chapter 12, revelation, chapter 12. 346 00:16:14,820 --> 00:16:19,620 Who knew we were going to start in Genesis and go all the way 347 00:16:19,620 --> 00:16:20,340 to Revelation? 348 00:16:21,380 --> 00:16:21,940 I did. 349 00:16:22,340 --> 00:16:23,540 But you did. 350 00:16:24,580 --> 00:16:25,900 Revelation, chapter 12. 351 00:16:25,900 --> 00:16:26,180 We. 352 00:16:26,180 --> 00:16:28,340 We see the full picture from the very beginning. 353 00:16:28,500 --> 00:16:29,860 Sin comes into the world. 354 00:16:30,020 --> 00:16:33,440 God's plan for sin is sending the seed of the woman to come and 355 00:16:33,440 --> 00:16:34,720 crush the head of Satan. 356 00:16:34,720 --> 00:16:37,960 And we see that struggle happening for all of these years. 357 00:16:38,680 --> 00:16:43,440 And though sometimes it does seem to the human eye that good is 358 00:16:43,440 --> 00:16:45,360 losing to evil, that. 359 00:16:45,360 --> 00:16:47,320 That sometimes for us, it seems like man. 360 00:16:47,480 --> 00:16:49,399 Why isn't God just doing it? 361 00:16:49,399 --> 00:16:51,640 Why doesn't God just crush the head of the serpent? 362 00:16:51,880 --> 00:16:55,480 Well, there's a lot of reasons why and there's a lot of opinions 363 00:16:55,480 --> 00:16:55,880 why. 364 00:16:56,520 --> 00:16:58,840 I can tell you one of the reasons why is because. 365 00:16:58,920 --> 00:17:00,680 Because God is merciful. 366 00:17:01,000 --> 00:17:02,200 God is patient. 367 00:17:02,760 --> 00:17:06,360 He's waiting and giving us opportunity and giving generation 368 00:17:06,520 --> 00:17:09,000 after generation opportunities to come to Him. 369 00:17:09,000 --> 00:17:14,320 But there will be a time when completely there will be that judgment 370 00:17:14,320 --> 00:17:17,400 and no longer will there be a choice to honor God. 371 00:17:17,480 --> 00:17:21,240 We know that there will be a time when every tongue will confess 372 00:17:21,400 --> 00:17:25,320 that Jesus Christ is Lord, either through judgment or through 373 00:17:25,320 --> 00:17:25,800 faith. 374 00:17:26,469 --> 00:17:31,789 And so in Revelation, chapter 12, verse 9, we see this reference 375 00:17:31,789 --> 00:17:35,269 to this war, this, this great war against the dragon. 376 00:17:35,269 --> 00:17:37,509 Now, I know that some of you are like Revelation, we're getting 377 00:17:37,509 --> 00:17:38,589 down the rabbit trail. 378 00:17:38,589 --> 00:17:41,869 Well, we're not going to go fully into the whole end times discussion 379 00:17:41,869 --> 00:17:45,429 right now, but we See here In Revelation, chapter 12, verse 9, 380 00:17:45,429 --> 00:17:48,749 it says, and the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent called 381 00:17:48,749 --> 00:17:51,549 the devil and Satan, which deceived the whole world. 382 00:17:51,549 --> 00:17:55,970 He was cast out, out into the earth, and his angels were cast out 383 00:17:55,970 --> 00:17:56,450 with him. 384 00:17:56,690 --> 00:18:00,210 Another reference there in verse 17 of that same chapter, it 385 00:18:00,210 --> 00:18:03,850 says, and the dragon was wroth with the women and went to make war 386 00:18:03,850 --> 00:18:06,930 with the remnant of her seed, which kept commandments of God and 387 00:18:06,930 --> 00:18:08,450 have the testimony of Jesus Christ. 388 00:18:08,530 --> 00:18:09,010 Eventually. 389 00:18:09,010 --> 00:18:14,010 This is the foretelling of the eventual destruction of Satan. 390 00:18:14,010 --> 00:18:15,090 And we know his end. 391 00:18:15,890 --> 00:18:20,490 His demise is that through a lot of fighting, through a lot of 392 00:18:20,490 --> 00:18:23,050 opposition, he is cast into the bottomless pit. 393 00:18:23,370 --> 00:18:23,730 We. 394 00:18:23,730 --> 00:18:26,570 We know that he will be completely defeated. 395 00:18:26,570 --> 00:18:29,730 And I would even venture to say that he already is defeated because 396 00:18:29,730 --> 00:18:32,730 of the work of Jesus Christ on the cross, when he said, it is finished. 397 00:18:32,970 --> 00:18:36,450 But the complete work of him being thrown away and never to come 398 00:18:36,450 --> 00:18:37,410 back again is coming. 399 00:18:37,410 --> 00:18:39,050 And that's a day that we long for. 400 00:18:39,770 --> 00:18:42,090 But that's all seen in Genesis 3:15. 401 00:18:42,090 --> 00:18:43,410 Jesus coming to this earth. 402 00:18:43,410 --> 00:18:45,210 It was mentioned at the very beginning. 403 00:18:45,210 --> 00:18:47,230 And Jesus came with a purpose. 404 00:18:47,230 --> 00:18:51,790 And that was the purpose of coming to defeat evil, to defeat 405 00:18:51,790 --> 00:18:52,150 death. 406 00:18:53,030 --> 00:18:55,750 I love the passage of Scripture in First Corinthians. 407 00:18:56,550 --> 00:18:59,590 We're going to just get a whole systematic theology here today, 408 00:18:59,750 --> 00:19:01,550 and we might hit every single book of the Bible. 409 00:19:01,550 --> 00:19:02,030 I don't know. 410 00:19:02,030 --> 00:19:03,590 But First Corinthians, chapter 15. 411 00:19:03,590 --> 00:19:09,990 If, if you want to study the importance of the resurrection, I, 412 00:19:09,990 --> 00:19:13,030 I would say that probably one of the best places to go is First 413 00:19:13,030 --> 00:19:17,620 Corinthians, chapter 15, because it speaks to how the resurrection 414 00:19:17,620 --> 00:19:21,620 of Jesus Christ is vital to what we are preaching in the Gospel. 415 00:19:22,100 --> 00:19:24,180 The word gospel is thrown around a lot today. 416 00:19:24,980 --> 00:19:28,260 There's the social gospel, there's the American gospel. 417 00:19:28,420 --> 00:19:31,220 All really the word gospel means is good news. 418 00:19:31,220 --> 00:19:34,140 And so when we talk about the gospel, we have to be very clear 419 00:19:34,140 --> 00:19:35,460 about what we're talking about. 420 00:19:35,940 --> 00:19:37,300 The Gospel of Jesus Christ. 421 00:19:37,300 --> 00:19:39,060 Well, what is the Gospel of Jesus Christ? 422 00:19:39,380 --> 00:19:39,640 We. 423 00:19:39,710 --> 00:19:43,110 Well, if you're just a good person, God will love you and grant 424 00:19:43,110 --> 00:19:43,910 you forgiveness. 425 00:19:43,910 --> 00:19:46,110 That's not what the Bible says the gospel is. 426 00:19:46,990 --> 00:19:49,790 The gospel is, is if you're just passionate about something, 427 00:19:50,270 --> 00:19:53,710 if you're just religious, if you're just spiritual, God will save 428 00:19:53,710 --> 00:19:53,950 you. 429 00:19:53,950 --> 00:19:54,830 The Bible says. 430 00:19:54,830 --> 00:19:56,910 No, the Bible says there is one way to heaven. 431 00:19:56,910 --> 00:19:59,750 John 14:6, I am the way, the truth and the life. 432 00:19:59,750 --> 00:20:02,990 Jesus says that no man cometh unto the Father, but through Jesus 433 00:20:02,990 --> 00:20:03,310 Christ. 434 00:20:03,310 --> 00:20:06,990 But in First Corinthians, chapter 15, Paul explains what the 435 00:20:06,990 --> 00:20:09,830 gospel really is verse three. 436 00:20:11,030 --> 00:20:16,030 He says, For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also 437 00:20:16,030 --> 00:20:16,390 received. 438 00:20:16,470 --> 00:20:16,750 How? 439 00:20:16,750 --> 00:20:21,430 That Jesus died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and 440 00:20:21,430 --> 00:20:25,830 that he was buried and that he rose again the third day according 441 00:20:25,830 --> 00:20:26,790 to the Scriptures. 442 00:20:28,070 --> 00:20:32,300 And so the Bible says, really what we know as the Gospel is that 443 00:20:32,300 --> 00:20:33,020 Jesus came. 444 00:20:33,020 --> 00:20:34,340 He lived that perfect life. 445 00:20:35,140 --> 00:20:37,140 He died on the cross for our sins. 446 00:20:37,300 --> 00:20:40,140 He was buried and he rose again. 447 00:20:40,140 --> 00:20:41,460 The resurrection is so important. 448 00:20:41,620 --> 00:20:46,020 And later on, what we see is Paul says that if we do not preach 449 00:20:46,020 --> 00:20:47,620 the resurrection, we are in. 450 00:20:47,700 --> 00:20:48,980 We are in waste. 451 00:20:49,300 --> 00:20:50,180 It is vain. 452 00:20:50,660 --> 00:20:52,820 Verse 12 of 1 Corinthians, chapter 15. 453 00:20:52,980 --> 00:20:55,620 Now, if Christ be preached that he rose from the dead, how say 454 00:20:55,620 --> 00:20:58,100 some of you that there is no resurrection of the dead? 455 00:20:58,620 --> 00:21:00,580 But if there be no resurrection of the dead, then is 456 00:21:00,580 --> 00:21:01,420 Christ not risen. 457 00:21:01,420 --> 00:21:04,780 And if Christ be not risen, then are preaching vain and your 458 00:21:04,780 --> 00:21:06,780 faith is also vain. 459 00:21:07,740 --> 00:21:10,580 He says, without the resurrection of Jesus Christ, without 460 00:21:10,580 --> 00:21:13,620 the complete message of the Gospel, everything that we do is 461 00:21:13,620 --> 00:21:14,140 in vain. 462 00:21:14,860 --> 00:21:18,940 Going to church is in vain if we are not doing it in the spirit 463 00:21:19,020 --> 00:21:22,420 and the teaching of the Gospel of Jesus Christ completely with the 464 00:21:22,420 --> 00:21:23,100 resurrection. 465 00:21:23,100 --> 00:21:27,560 So we must teach the complete, complete, revealed message of Jesus 466 00:21:27,560 --> 00:21:27,920 Christ. 467 00:21:28,640 --> 00:21:31,480 There's so many other passages of Scripture in the Old Testament 468 00:21:31,480 --> 00:21:32,320 that speak to this. 469 00:21:32,800 --> 00:21:34,520 The Messiah would be resurrected. 470 00:21:34,520 --> 00:21:37,120 I mean, the Old Testament speaks of that all the way through. 471 00:21:37,760 --> 00:21:41,440 Psalm 16 speaks of the resurrection of Jesus Christ, that 472 00:21:41,440 --> 00:21:44,760 Messiah would bring the new covenant, that the Messiah would 473 00:21:44,760 --> 00:21:47,400 be forsaken and pierced for our sins. 474 00:21:47,400 --> 00:21:49,440 Did you know that's in the Old Testament? 475 00:21:49,520 --> 00:21:50,840 Oh, I. I gotta show you this. 476 00:21:50,840 --> 00:21:52,280 Okay, I got to show you this. 477 00:21:52,280 --> 00:21:55,920 In Psalm 22, some of you know where I'm going with this. 478 00:21:55,920 --> 00:21:58,320 Some of you are great scholars of scripture and you know where I'm 479 00:21:58,320 --> 00:21:58,480 going. 480 00:21:58,480 --> 00:22:00,880 But back in the Book of Psalms. 481 00:22:02,880 --> 00:22:08,480 Prior to the Roman Empire, prior to anyone knowing about the 482 00:22:08,560 --> 00:22:14,800 typical way of crucifixion in the Roman Empire, we see Psalm 22, 483 00:22:15,280 --> 00:22:17,520 which many call a Messianic psalm. 484 00:22:18,220 --> 00:22:22,420 And, and this is a foretelling, a prophecy of what the 485 00:22:22,420 --> 00:22:25,100 Messiah would do and what he would say and what people would do 486 00:22:25,100 --> 00:22:25,380 to him. 487 00:22:25,380 --> 00:22:29,140 And we won't go through the whole chapter here in Psalm 22, but 488 00:22:29,140 --> 00:22:32,860 I do think it's important to see what it's saying here. 489 00:22:32,860 --> 00:22:36,460 It says in verse one, my God, my God, why hast thou forsaken? 490 00:22:37,260 --> 00:22:39,220 Why art thou so far from helping me? 491 00:22:39,220 --> 00:22:40,900 And from the words of my roaring? 492 00:22:40,900 --> 00:22:42,460 So this is a reference. 493 00:22:42,620 --> 00:22:46,080 Obviously you could say that this is literally David talking, 494 00:22:46,080 --> 00:22:49,160 which it is, but it's also a messianic prophecy of what Jesus 495 00:22:49,160 --> 00:22:50,000 says on the cross. 496 00:22:50,320 --> 00:22:52,560 My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? 497 00:22:53,040 --> 00:22:53,800 Oh, my God. 498 00:22:53,800 --> 00:22:56,720 I cry in the daytime, but thou hearest not in night season. 499 00:22:56,720 --> 00:22:59,679 And I am not silent, but thou art holy and thou inhabitants. 500 00:22:59,679 --> 00:23:00,800 The praise of Israel. 501 00:23:01,120 --> 00:23:04,880 It goes on further and talks more about the. 502 00:23:05,200 --> 00:23:07,520 The, I would say is the crucifixion here. 503 00:23:08,080 --> 00:23:09,320 My strength, verse 15. 504 00:23:09,320 --> 00:23:11,590 My strength is dried up like a potsherd. 505 00:23:11,660 --> 00:23:13,340 My tongue cleaveth to my jaws. 506 00:23:13,420 --> 00:23:15,500 Thou has brought me into the dust of death. 507 00:23:17,020 --> 00:23:17,340 We. 508 00:23:17,340 --> 00:23:21,100 We see here that this speaks to Jesus's thirst that we see on. 509 00:23:21,340 --> 00:23:22,100 On the cross. 510 00:23:22,100 --> 00:23:25,740 And over and over again, over and over again. 511 00:23:25,740 --> 00:23:27,580 In this passage of scripture, we see references. 512 00:23:27,980 --> 00:23:30,380 But in this passage of Scripture, it speaks to him being 513 00:23:30,380 --> 00:23:33,260 pierced, that he was bruised. 514 00:23:33,340 --> 00:23:34,740 In Isaiah 53, he was bruised. 515 00:23:34,740 --> 00:23:35,820 For our iniquities, he was. 516 00:23:35,820 --> 00:23:36,700 He was pierced. 517 00:23:37,270 --> 00:23:40,950 And so this is all reference to what Jesus would do as our Savior. 518 00:23:41,590 --> 00:23:42,910 And I think about this often. 519 00:23:42,910 --> 00:23:46,150 I think about how often we just go through the Old Testament 520 00:23:46,390 --> 00:23:49,430 and we just take these verses and we don't connect them. 521 00:23:49,510 --> 00:23:52,350 We don't have the dots connected to the fact that this is 522 00:23:52,350 --> 00:23:55,950 all talking about what Jesus would do for us and who we are in 523 00:23:55,950 --> 00:23:56,310 him. 524 00:23:57,350 --> 00:24:00,350 And so when we get to this Christmas season, I want us to think 525 00:24:00,350 --> 00:24:02,790 about fulfilled prophecy. 526 00:24:03,060 --> 00:24:04,980 There's a lot of other things that we could think of. 527 00:24:05,300 --> 00:24:08,020 Obviously that the Messiah would be born of a version. 528 00:24:08,820 --> 00:24:10,580 Many of you know the reference there. 529 00:24:11,220 --> 00:24:13,020 We'll turn there, and that's really where we're going to spend 530 00:24:13,020 --> 00:24:13,300 the. 531 00:24:15,060 --> 00:24:16,260 Last few minutes here. 532 00:24:16,900 --> 00:24:18,980 Isaiah 7:14. 533 00:24:20,660 --> 00:24:23,500 When, if you come back Wednesday night, we're going to talk 534 00:24:23,500 --> 00:24:27,060 a little bit more about some of the prophecies here at Christmas 535 00:24:27,060 --> 00:24:27,340 and the. 536 00:24:27,340 --> 00:24:30,930 And the foretelling of when Jesus would come, how he would come, 537 00:24:30,930 --> 00:24:31,850 where he would come. 538 00:24:33,050 --> 00:24:33,570 But we. 539 00:24:33,570 --> 00:24:39,170 We know that in Isaiah 7:14, we believe that this is a reference 540 00:24:39,170 --> 00:24:40,130 to the Messiah. 541 00:24:40,130 --> 00:24:42,570 And this is therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign. 542 00:24:42,730 --> 00:24:46,610 Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall 543 00:24:46,610 --> 00:24:48,090 call his name Emmanuel. 544 00:24:48,970 --> 00:24:52,690 Now, we could talk a lot about that verse, but one of the things 545 00:24:52,690 --> 00:24:54,330 I want to point out is that word Emmanuel. 546 00:24:54,330 --> 00:24:55,540 What does that word, Emmanuel mean? 547 00:24:56,810 --> 00:24:58,170 Most of you know God with us. 548 00:24:59,050 --> 00:25:03,770 This is an understanding that God is not just in heaven, away from 549 00:25:03,770 --> 00:25:07,010 us, which many people believe that God is distant, that he's far 550 00:25:07,010 --> 00:25:07,770 away, that. 551 00:25:07,850 --> 00:25:11,050 That he is not able to be accessed. 552 00:25:11,530 --> 00:25:14,850 But here in this prophecy, we know that Jesus would Come, he would 553 00:25:14,850 --> 00:25:15,690 be born of a virgin. 554 00:25:15,690 --> 00:25:20,050 We know that in Luke 1 and Luke 2 he was born of Mary, who at 555 00:25:20,050 --> 00:25:22,170 that time was just betrothed to be with Joseph. 556 00:25:22,900 --> 00:25:27,700 But in that we see how Jesus would be born, who would be born 557 00:25:27,700 --> 00:25:30,460 to, and really what would his character be? 558 00:25:30,460 --> 00:25:33,340 And his character would be Emmanuel, God with us, God in the 559 00:25:33,340 --> 00:25:33,700 flesh. 560 00:25:34,340 --> 00:25:35,620 Why is that so unique? 561 00:25:35,780 --> 00:25:36,660 Why is that different? 562 00:25:36,740 --> 00:25:40,700 Well, the Bible teaches that Jesus came to have a personal relationship 563 00:25:40,700 --> 00:25:42,340 with those that follow Him. 564 00:25:43,220 --> 00:25:44,260 It's not deism. 565 00:25:44,340 --> 00:25:46,260 Deism is that God exists. 566 00:25:46,660 --> 00:25:49,180 He set the world in motion as the great clock Maker. 567 00:25:49,180 --> 00:25:51,460 But he doesn't care about our personal lives. 568 00:25:51,460 --> 00:25:56,300 He doesn't want to be involved with the day to day of our, our human 569 00:25:57,260 --> 00:25:57,820 struggle. 570 00:25:58,380 --> 00:26:00,540 But the Bible says it's the complete opposite. 571 00:26:01,260 --> 00:26:04,540 We have a high priest who feels our struggles, who has been 572 00:26:04,540 --> 00:26:06,740 betrayed and he has care for us. 573 00:26:06,740 --> 00:26:08,820 And he, he cries with the brokenhearted. 574 00:26:08,820 --> 00:26:12,180 He, he knows what we have struggled with, but yet he is the 575 00:26:12,180 --> 00:26:15,140 answer to all of our problems when we come to him and have that 576 00:26:15,140 --> 00:26:16,460 personal relationship with him. 577 00:26:17,390 --> 00:26:19,670 I hope that Jesus is real to you. 578 00:26:19,670 --> 00:26:25,070 I hope that he's not just a fairy tale or something that you 579 00:26:25,070 --> 00:26:28,870 trust in as a good luck charm or something that somebody else that 580 00:26:28,870 --> 00:26:31,950 you know trust in and, and you can appreciate that. 581 00:26:32,030 --> 00:26:34,590 No, it's so much deeper that, that he is my God. 582 00:26:34,590 --> 00:26:38,190 I, I know there was times in my life where I struggled with that. 583 00:26:38,750 --> 00:26:42,230 I, I went off to college and I was really challenged with a lot 584 00:26:42,230 --> 00:26:43,580 of questions. 585 00:26:44,300 --> 00:26:47,740 If you believe this, how can this be true? 586 00:26:48,220 --> 00:26:51,900 Or if God is real, then why does he fill in the blank? 587 00:26:52,220 --> 00:26:55,500 And I remember being at college and thinking, I don't have 588 00:26:55,500 --> 00:26:56,380 answers for this. 589 00:26:56,620 --> 00:27:01,100 To, to my shame, I, I, I was just like, I don't know, you know 590 00:27:01,100 --> 00:27:01,500 what I did? 591 00:27:01,500 --> 00:27:05,100 I, I called my dad, which is not a bad place to turn because my 592 00:27:05,100 --> 00:27:06,540 dad's one of the strongest Christians I know. 593 00:27:06,540 --> 00:27:08,780 And I said, dad, what do we believe about? 594 00:27:09,280 --> 00:27:12,520 And you know, he goes, well, I can tell you what I believe, but 595 00:27:12,520 --> 00:27:14,440 I want you to know what you believe. 596 00:27:14,440 --> 00:27:14,680 Right? 597 00:27:14,680 --> 00:27:19,800 And there's that idea there that I can't just adopt what someone 598 00:27:19,800 --> 00:27:22,960 else believes if I don't truly understand it and believe it myself. 599 00:27:23,600 --> 00:27:27,680 So it's not just my dad's God or my pastor's God, but he's my God, 600 00:27:27,680 --> 00:27:29,800 that he is God with me, God with us. 601 00:27:29,800 --> 00:27:35,400 He's personal and he intends to have that intentional walk with 602 00:27:35,400 --> 00:27:35,680 us. 603 00:27:35,680 --> 00:27:38,990 Just as we draw nigh to God, he draws near to us. 604 00:27:40,190 --> 00:27:44,190 And so this prophecy here in Isaiah 7, 14. 605 00:27:45,870 --> 00:27:48,990 Is, is fulfilled obviously in the New Testament. 606 00:27:49,470 --> 00:27:52,950 And, and many people actually today are arguing whether or not 607 00:27:52,950 --> 00:27:56,830 this is a necessity for the truth. 608 00:27:57,310 --> 00:28:01,230 Like if we deny the virgin birth, if we deny this, can we still 609 00:28:01,230 --> 00:28:01,790 be Christians? 610 00:28:01,790 --> 00:28:04,900 And I would say that this is a doctrine that we must stand on. 611 00:28:04,900 --> 00:28:05,900 It's being attacked today. 612 00:28:05,900 --> 00:28:09,620 A lot of, A lot of the things that we assume to be just what is 613 00:28:09,620 --> 00:28:12,220 the essentials of our faith are being attacked today. 614 00:28:13,100 --> 00:28:15,180 And we as Christians have to stand true to that. 615 00:28:15,180 --> 00:28:18,539 We have to say that, say if the Bible says it, we have to believe 616 00:28:18,539 --> 00:28:18,740 it. 617 00:28:18,740 --> 00:28:22,380 We can't be critical to what the word of God says, even if it 618 00:28:22,380 --> 00:28:24,020 goes beyond our comprehension. 619 00:28:24,020 --> 00:28:25,820 Because, by the way, God works miracles. 620 00:28:26,220 --> 00:28:27,020 We have to believe. 621 00:28:27,020 --> 00:28:29,060 If we don't believe that God works miracles, we're. 622 00:28:29,060 --> 00:28:33,330 We're missing the point of the Bible because Genesis to Revelation, 623 00:28:33,330 --> 00:28:34,330 all of this is a miracle. 624 00:28:34,330 --> 00:28:35,730 My salvation is a miracle. 625 00:28:35,730 --> 00:28:39,530 So if I don't believe that God can work miracles, I. E. The virgin 626 00:28:39,530 --> 00:28:45,010 birth, I don't believe that God can save a broken, sinful person, 627 00:28:45,490 --> 00:28:47,410 because my salvation is a miracle. 628 00:28:47,890 --> 00:28:49,370 Your salvation is a miracle. 629 00:28:49,370 --> 00:28:52,530 The fact that God can take a person whose good works are like 630 00:28:52,530 --> 00:28:56,210 filthy rags and change us and take his robes and put them on us 631 00:28:56,530 --> 00:28:58,770 and give us eternal life, that's a miracle in itself. 632 00:28:58,770 --> 00:29:02,490 And so when we talk about a Christmas miracle, Christmas miracle, 633 00:29:02,490 --> 00:29:05,650 obviously, is the whole story of Jesus, not just his birth. 634 00:29:05,810 --> 00:29:08,930 Even though that's a miracle in and of itself that we must trust 635 00:29:09,090 --> 00:29:09,890 by faith. 636 00:29:10,050 --> 00:29:13,130 Someone says, scientifically, prove to me how Jesus was born that 637 00:29:13,130 --> 00:29:13,410 way. 638 00:29:13,730 --> 00:29:14,530 I cannot. 639 00:29:14,530 --> 00:29:17,930 It was a work of God beyond my comprehension, just like all the 640 00:29:17,930 --> 00:29:18,690 other miracles. 641 00:29:18,770 --> 00:29:20,770 You cannot explain a miracle. 642 00:29:21,170 --> 00:29:22,810 Some people say, well, that's blind faith. 643 00:29:22,810 --> 00:29:24,540 Well, I don't want to call it blind faith. 644 00:29:24,540 --> 00:29:26,300 It's faith and believing that God is good. 645 00:29:26,300 --> 00:29:31,620 And folks, a lot of people will not go to heaven because they 646 00:29:31,620 --> 00:29:34,020 can't wrap their mind around the supernatural. 647 00:29:34,100 --> 00:29:36,620 They can't wrap their mind around believing that something is 648 00:29:36,620 --> 00:29:37,300 bigger than them. 649 00:29:37,700 --> 00:29:40,740 And we all, to some degree, have to take a step of faith. 650 00:29:40,740 --> 00:29:44,620 No matter where we're at in our belief system, everyone takes 651 00:29:44,620 --> 00:29:45,460 something by faith. 652 00:29:45,860 --> 00:29:46,980 How did we get here? 653 00:29:47,860 --> 00:29:50,020 I believe we got here because God created us. 654 00:29:50,720 --> 00:29:54,160 Well, the atheist says, well, no, we got here through the Big Bang. 655 00:29:54,160 --> 00:29:57,560 We got here through just accidents that have happened. 656 00:29:57,560 --> 00:29:58,880 Okay, were you there? 657 00:29:58,880 --> 00:29:59,520 Well, no. 658 00:30:00,160 --> 00:30:04,400 So both of us are taking the creation of this world by faith. 659 00:30:04,560 --> 00:30:09,280 And we have to come down to what has the most proof, what gives 660 00:30:09,280 --> 00:30:10,560 us the best answers. 661 00:30:11,200 --> 00:30:16,650 And for me, the big questions of morality, of destiny, of purpose, 662 00:30:16,970 --> 00:30:21,290 all of these things are best answered through the story of Jesus, 663 00:30:21,370 --> 00:30:23,050 through the story of the word of God. 664 00:30:23,770 --> 00:30:26,210 And so that's why it's so important to talk about these things 665 00:30:26,210 --> 00:30:26,890 at Christmas. 666 00:30:26,890 --> 00:30:27,210 The. 667 00:30:27,210 --> 00:30:29,690 The Christmas story can be very romanticized. 668 00:30:30,170 --> 00:30:32,009 I mean, watch a movie and it. 669 00:30:32,009 --> 00:30:34,930 It's, you know, everything's so nice, and baby Jesus is so clean, 670 00:30:34,930 --> 00:30:35,530 and he's. 671 00:30:35,530 --> 00:30:37,050 He's perfect in every way. 672 00:30:37,210 --> 00:30:37,530 And. 673 00:30:37,530 --> 00:30:40,490 And we think, oh, that's a nice story, and it is a wonderful 674 00:30:40,490 --> 00:30:40,810 story. 675 00:30:41,620 --> 00:30:44,860 But at the same time, we have to think of truly, like I was mentioning 676 00:30:44,860 --> 00:30:47,940 this morning, we have to truly think about the implications of Christmas, 677 00:30:47,940 --> 00:30:51,140 because really, it's just Jesus coming to this earth to die 678 00:30:51,140 --> 00:30:54,340 for us, born to die upon Calvary. 679 00:30:54,980 --> 00:30:57,820 And so think about these prophecies as we go. 680 00:30:57,820 --> 00:30:58,900 We're going to go through a lot of them. 681 00:30:58,900 --> 00:31:03,220 We're going to go through the classic one that many of you know, 682 00:31:03,540 --> 00:31:07,380 Isaiah 9, 6, and talk about what that all means. 683 00:31:07,830 --> 00:31:13,750 But ultimately, we see that Jesus is the scarlet thread, if you 684 00:31:13,750 --> 00:31:15,030 will, throughout all of the Bible. 685 00:31:15,350 --> 00:31:19,110 And if you want to take the Bible in without Jesus, you're removing 686 00:31:19,110 --> 00:31:23,350 the glaring mark of God in his word. 687 00:31:23,590 --> 00:31:26,630 The Book of Hebrews says that basically everything from the Old 688 00:31:26,630 --> 00:31:30,510 Testament system to the sacrificial system, all these things 689 00:31:30,510 --> 00:31:33,590 are just shadowy pictures to show us who Jesus is. 690 00:31:34,560 --> 00:31:36,560 And so today we have to come back to that. 691 00:31:36,560 --> 00:31:38,960 We have to say that we believe what we believe. 692 00:31:38,960 --> 00:31:39,280 Why? 693 00:31:39,280 --> 00:31:40,160 Because of the Bible. 694 00:31:40,640 --> 00:31:44,040 Not because it makes sense to me, not because I have proof. 695 00:31:44,040 --> 00:31:47,400 Even though it's amazing to know that every single archaeological 696 00:31:47,400 --> 00:31:53,000 find about Scripture, about the Bible, about the Holy Land, has 697 00:31:53,000 --> 00:31:54,680 never contradicted the word of God. 698 00:31:54,680 --> 00:31:55,520 That's a good thing. 699 00:31:55,840 --> 00:31:59,600 But we shouldn't have to say, I have to see it then to believe 700 00:31:59,600 --> 00:31:59,920 it. 701 00:32:00,430 --> 00:32:04,270 God has given us enough proof to believe, and it just only strengthens 702 00:32:04,270 --> 00:32:07,470 the argument to know that nothing can contradict what God's 703 00:32:07,470 --> 00:32:08,110 word has said. 704 00:32:08,670 --> 00:32:11,030 And that's a whole other argument for another day. 705 00:32:11,030 --> 00:32:14,110 And I'd love to talk to you about that, but I will conclude there. 706 00:32:14,110 --> 00:32:15,390 But what I will say is this. 707 00:32:15,390 --> 00:32:19,910 During the Christmas season, let us not just go through the Christmas 708 00:32:19,910 --> 00:32:22,230 story just as a blanket. 709 00:32:22,230 --> 00:32:23,350 Well, that's a beautiful story. 710 00:32:23,350 --> 00:32:25,790 We hear it every year and we just gloss over it. 711 00:32:25,790 --> 00:32:27,520 Let's think about the implications of. 712 00:32:27,670 --> 00:32:30,990 Of God's foretelling of this and Jesus coming and fulfilling all 713 00:32:30,990 --> 00:32:33,710 of that, and ultimately the gospel being the centerpiece of what 714 00:32:33,710 --> 00:32:34,230 we preach. 715 00:32:34,870 --> 00:32:39,510 The Christmas season is an awesome time to preach the gospel 716 00:32:39,830 --> 00:32:44,150 because maybe someone is more open to hearing stories about Jesus, 717 00:32:44,870 --> 00:32:45,750 maybe they're not. 718 00:32:45,750 --> 00:32:48,750 But at the end of the day, we have a responsibility to preach the 719 00:32:48,750 --> 00:32:52,710 gospel, not just in the Christmas season, but all year long 720 00:32:52,790 --> 00:32:55,750 because we get the opportunity to look to Jesus and thank him every 721 00:32:55,750 --> 00:32:57,510 day for his coming to this earth. 722 00:32:57,670 --> 00:32:59,630 But it's the complete story that we need to think about. 723 00:32:59,630 --> 00:33:01,230 So we'll come back and talk about more. 724 00:33:01,230 --> 00:33:04,390 We're going to address Isaiah 9, we're going to address Isaiah 725 00:33:04,390 --> 00:33:08,390 53, which is another passage of scripture that speaks of Jesus. 726 00:33:08,630 --> 00:33:12,510 And so I would encourage you to follow along with us. 727 00:33:12,510 --> 00:33:17,350 We're going to be doing this series on Sunday nights and on Wednesday 728 00:33:17,350 --> 00:33:20,880 nights and so just through the month of December and and if you 729 00:33:20,880 --> 00:33:23,800 have any questions or you have one particular prophecy that you're 730 00:33:23,800 --> 00:33:26,840 interested in talking about, come talk to me. 731 00:33:26,840 --> 00:33:32,320 I'd love to work through that and see how many New Testament verses 732 00:33:32,320 --> 00:33:34,560 we can look up in the middle of that. 733 00:33:34,560 --> 00:33:37,760 So thank you so much for your time and your attention. 734 00:33:38,560 --> 00:33:41,200 Thank you again for listening to the Middletown Baptist Church 735 00:33:41,200 --> 00:33:41,840 podcast. 736 00:33:42,080 --> 00:33:44,400 I hope that this sermon has been a blessing for you. 737 00:33:45,040 --> 00:33:47,320 If you would like to find out more information about our church 738 00:33:47,320 --> 00:33:50,840 or this sermon, you can find us at middletownbaptistchurch.org 739 00:33:51,160 --> 00:33:53,640 or find us on Facebook or YouTube. 740 00:33:54,440 --> 00:33:58,880 You can also email me directly at Josh Massaroiddletownbaptistchurch 741 00:33:58,880 --> 00:34:03,320 dot com if you've enjoyed this podcast, please subscribe and follow 742 00:34:03,320 --> 00:34:06,120 along for future podcast and updates. 743 00:34:06,760 --> 00:34:07,720 Thank you so much. 744 00:34:07,960 --> 00:34:08,680 God bless. 745 00:34:08,920 --> 00:34:10,200 Have a wonderful day.