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A King Among the Critters - Luke 2:1-7

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In our current series, Rediscovering Our Foundations, we've come to the person of Christ. Last time, we considered His identity; today, we contemplate His nativity. For the next few weeks, we'll look closely at Jesus' birth, His early years, ministry, and death on the cross, which was the very purpose of His birth. It's my hope that we'll all emerge with a fuller understanding of Jesus and a deeper desire to worship and serve Him. Today, let's look at the strange circumstances of His birth.

Date Title   ListenNotes Share SaveBuy
12/1/2002
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A King Among the Critters
Luke 2:1-7
Skip Heitzig
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Message Summary
In our current series, Rediscovering Our Foundations, we've come to the person of Christ. Last time, we considered His identity; today, we contemplate His nativity. For the next few weeks, we'll look closely at Jesus' birth, His early years, ministry, and death on the cross, which was the very purpose of His birth. It's my hope that we'll all emerge with a fuller understanding of Jesus and a deeper desire to worship and serve Him. Today, let's look at the strange circumstances of His birth.
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Rediscovering Our Foundations

Rediscovering Our Foundations

We live in an age where truth has become a relative term. But the Bible leaves no room for doubt when it comes to the absolute nature of truth. Unfortunately, our culture is vastly biblically illiterate. In this series, Pastor Skip Heitzig gets back to the roots of our faith, looking at what the Bible has to say about God, Christ, the Trinity, mankind, the church, heaven, and hell. Learn to stand on a firm foundation in the midst of an unstable culture.

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  1. His Humility
  2. His Incompatibility
  3. His Personality
    A. His Humanity
    B. His Deity
  4. His Accessibility

Transcript

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Two thousand years ago, you would not find a newspaper in the Roman Empire that would run the headline "Jewish Baby Born in Bethlehem." Nobody cared frankly. The hot news was in Rome itself. The hot names were Augustus. A little farther to the east, Cornias over in Syria. And in Israel the only highlighted one would be Herod. Herod the Great, he liked to call himself. But looking back over time, the fame of those individuals pales in comparison to the fame and influence of the name that we all celebrate, the name of Jesus Christ.

Now we're in the middle of a series that we've called "Rediscovering our Foundations," and it's the building locks of the historic Christian faith. And last time we met we looked at the identity of Jesus Christ. And tonight we look at the nativity of Jesus Christ, his birth. Next time we'll probably look at his maturity, his ministry; and then finally his death. So in the next few weeks we're going to be studying Jesus Christ. And tonight his birth and what a fitting time of the year as tomorrow is I think December 1st. And we're entering officially into the Christmas season.

I remember back as a kid putting up the manger scene in my parents' home. That was my job every year at Christmas. And I liked it. And I still remember the manger set that we had. It was porcelain, we had a nice little wooden stable, we even had an angel that we suspended on a wire over the stable with the star. It was pristine, it was temperature-controlled, it smelled good. In other words, it was absolutely in accurate as to the very first setting in Bethlehem.

Now tonight I'm probably going to shatter so of what you thought was traditionally Christmas. Some of those thoughts of t he first setting in Bethlehem, those longstanding assumptions. And I'm going to shatter them not because I like to shatter them but because we in our culture we've sort of Disneyed up Christmas, haven't we? I mean we've even added snow to the scene, we've now named the wise men and we've even added a little shepherd boy, oh excuse me a little drummer boy. So the magi have names and there's a drummer boy. Now none of that is found in the Bible but it's found as part of our tradition. And frankly we like that. We don't like anybody messing with our tradition. But I'm going to do that tonight a little bit. And take you back to the first setting in Luke chapter 2. First of all, just a note as to when Jesus Christ was born. Now it was December 24th as a kid when I would look at that little manger scene and I would imagine those shepherds on a very cold night, watching their sheep, thinking, "Man it must have been cold over there." And you can imagine my disappointment when I discovered shepherds don't watch flocks in December out in the fields at night. And I was even more shocked to discover that Jesus wasn't born December 25th. In all probability he was born somewhere around the Passover season. Same season as his death. And so it's asked by so many people, "Well how do we get December 25th then?" Let me give you a little sketch: Around the 4th century AD, Christians really wanted to find out when Jesus was born, nobody really knew. There were all sorts of different dates that had been celebrated. January 6th as one of them. More popular, it was celebrated on March 29th, April the 20th, May the 20th as well as September the 29th. All of those were popular dates where the birth of Christ was celebrated. And notice, not a one of them was December 25th. So right around then, that part of the 4th century, the bishop of Jerusalem named Cyril wrote a letter to the bishop of Rome named Julius as to when Jesus was born. Julius wrote back and said, "Well gee I've always favored December 25th. So 354 AD two years after the reign of Julius as bishop of Rome, Iberius the new bishop of Rome almost enforced it and said, "All of the followers of Christ must celebrate Christmas on December 25th. Now tnight we want to look not at that date because that doesn't matter really, does it? Do we really care if he was born December 25th? Isn't it more important that he was born? That he came? That he gave us life? But as to the manner of his birth, now I love the songs as much as you do, 'O Little Town of Bethlehem, how still we see thee lie.' Or, 'O Holy Night.' Truth be told, it would be more accurate to sing probably, 'O Hectic Night.' 'O Little town of Bethlehem, how feverishly busy we see thee lie.' Because remember there is a census in place and there is a mass movement of population. It is pandemonium in Bethlehem. Let me tell you how they got there, Joseph and Mary. They didn't take rapid transit, they went ninety miles from Nazareth down to the city of David, Bethlehem. Usually in those days 20 miles a day was hoofing it. With the rough terrain of Nazareth and Judea and carrying a woman whose pregnant, they were doing good if they could make ten miles a day. So the journey from Nazareth down to Bethlehem would take anywhere from a week to ten days. They would have to carry their own provisions. You can just see these donkeys, loaded up probably with wineskins filled with water. And cloth bags filled with bread. Their breakfast would consist of dried bread. Their lunch would consist of bread with oil and herbs. And their dinner the same. Then they get to Bethlehem and they go to an inn. And don't picture an inn like we have today. It was no holiday, believe me, it was simply a barn with beds. But there wasn't even any room in that. And so Jesus was born in a manger.

I'll describe that, but let's read the text in Luke chapter 2 shall we together? "And it came to pass in those days that a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be registered. This census first took place while Corinias was governing Syria. So all went to be registered, everyone to his own city. Joseph also went up from Galilee out of the city of Nazareth into Judea to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem because he is of the house and the lineage of David; to be registered with Mary, his betrothed or engaged wife who was with child. So it was that while they were there the days were completed for her to be delivered. And she brought forth her firstborn son and wrapped him in swaddling cloths and laid him in a manger because there was no room for them in the inn." That's the story that we look at tonight. We're going to look at this, a little bit of Matthew 2, tiny little bit out of Isaiah chapter 9. The birth of Jesus Christ, his entrance into the world speaks first of all of his humility. I mean look at this setting. Swaddling cloths ina manger. There is nothing in the scripture to support the tradition that Jesus was born ina wooden stable. I know all the nativity sets usually have that but that just isn't how they did things back then, they didn't build things out of wood for animals. Animals were kept in caves. Mangers were feeding troughs, it was like a stone table, no wood, stone table. And a little lip of stone all the way around. Hay was put on top, food was placed in it. It was a feeding trough for animals. One author paints this realistic picture. He says, "Were someone to chance upon that sheep enclosure on the outskirts of Bethlehem that morning, what a peculiar scene they would behold. The cave stinks like all stables do. The stench of urine, dung, and sheep reeks pungently in the air. The grounds in hard, the hay is scarces, sobwebs cling to the ceiling and a mouse scurries across a dirt floor. A more lowly humble place of birth could not exist. Near the young mother sits the weary father, if anyone is dozing it's him. He can't remember the last time he sat down. And now that the excitement has subsided a bit, now that Mary and the baby are comfortable, he leans against the wall of stable and feels his eye grow heavy. He still hasn't figured it all out, the mystery of the event puzzles him. But he hasn't the energy to wrestle with the questions. What's important is that the baby is fine and Mary is safe. Wide awake is Mary, my how young she looks. Her head rests on the soft leather of Joseph's saddle. The pain has been eclipsed by wonder. She looks into the face of the baby, her son, her Lord, his majesty. At this point in history, the human being who best understands who God is and what he is doing is a teenage girl in a smelly cave." What a thought, isn't it? Humility. Now the birth of Jesus Christ in such humble setting symbolizes what his entire life would be from cradle to the cross, absolute humility. He was born in a cave, he said to his disciples on one point, "Birds of the air have nests. Foxes have holes but the Son of Man doesn't even have a place to lay his head." And when he died he was buried in a borrowed tomb.

God didn't have to do things that way. It didn't have to be in humility, it could have been in splendor. I mean, why not aristocratic parents? Why not Rome General Hospital? God could have done that. And after all since he is God the king, Messiah, why not a golden bed with satin sheets and let's thrown CNN to cover it. God didn't do that. He could have provided an army of servants, angels perhaps, to attend to every whim, every beck and call of the parents. Evan an orchestra in the background playing soft music durigh the birth of the child. He didn't do that and here's why, he said, "He made himself of no reputation. Or the New Living translation, "He made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant. Now some of you know the word behind that. It's kinosis. He poured himself out to the very last drop in becoming a man. What could be more humble then than this? A frail baby, the stepson of a carpenter peasant born in a cave. Talk about simple wrapping, huh? The greatest gift to the world in the simplest of wrapping.

The next month you're going to be buying presents and getting a few as well. And probably they're going to wrapped. Now it's interesting that some people will spend more time and attention and even money on the wrapping than the gift. There are even stores that are wrapping stores. They will wrap the present for you and there is a variety, a huge array of selected papers and bows to choose from. That's all cool but let me just give a hint to you gals, it's an absolute waste of time on the male species to wrap presents in a beautiful manner. Ever seen a guy open a gift? He doesn't do it elegantly. He doesn't care. It's ________, trashes it. Very much the same way the world treated God's gift, trashed him. The greatest gift in a simple wrapping, his humility. Also, the scene speaks of his incompatibility. And what I mean by that, the world had no room for him. Look at verse 7, "She brought forth her firstborn son, wrapped him in swaddling cloths (that was t he custom incidentally, short strips of cloth around the arms and the legs, especially the hands, to protect the child. We put mittens over kids nowadays. They put swaddling cloths then. Laid him in a manger, a feeding trough because there was no room for them in the inn. Now I mentioned that the inns were different. Don't think of a motel, don't think of a hotel, don't think of Cable TV or a pool or a restaurant. Think of a barn. Scholars call it a caravanserie, a place where caravans will stop. The modern term would be kahn, K-A-H-N, it was a square structure, a square stone edifice, courtyard in the middle and r ooms along the side, the floor of which were raised maybe eighteen inches off the ground, just to give you a little separation from the animals right outside the door. That was the inn. The inns were full, virtually the entire population were nomads, the were all traveling tot heir place of origin, their forefathers. So simply there's no room anywhere to spend the night because everybody, virtually everyone is looking for an inn. However, be that as it may, in a simple fashion there was no room in the inn; at the same time this would speak of history yet future. There was no room for Christ back then in the inn and for so many people, there still is no room. That's what Jesus said, he said, "He came unto his own and his own did not receive him." Isaiah predicted, "And he is despised," he said, "And rejected among men." There still is no room for Christ. It's not just a piece of history, of travelers, where he couldn't get a night. There just is no room in people lives any more. Even at Christmastime.

Two thousand years ago, the inns were full and I would say the political inns were full. Right? I mean think of Herod the Great. Did Herod really c are that the Messiah was born, the king of the Jews? Did he go, "Great!" Oh he pretended he did. He said, "Search him out, I want to worship him," Matthew chapter 2. We know what he did, he was so power hungry, he was so intimidated, so threatened, and by the way here's why, Herod the Great was given authority by Rome but he gave himself the title, Herod the king of the Jews. So imagine what he thought when these eastern guys come and say, "Where is the one who is born king of the Jews? We have seen his star and we are hre to worship him." (Oh really?) And so a decree went out to kill all of the male children two years and younger in hopes of stamping out this intruder. You see Herod was a professional politician. He would stop at nothing in keeping his office. History tells us he murdered two of his own sons, his oldest sons because they might get on the throne. They were next in line. So, solution? He killed them. In fact there was a saying to went around two thousand years ago, the saying was this, "It's safer to be Herod's pig than his son." Indeed it was. And now Herod the politician wants to put Jesus out.

Now I don't want to make a huge deal of this but I do want to say that I believe politics still has no room for Jesus Christ. Well they talk about separation of church and state. They hold on to that. But what they mean by that is "We want a huge distance between God and government. We want God out of government frankly." In fact, we'll fight to take "in God we trust" off the coins, off the paper, out of the courthouses, throw the Bibles out. That's the kind of separation that the political world is vying for, except around election time. Around election time, politicians love to court the churh. They show up and they smile and, "I'm involved in this fellowhip." And, "Glory to God." And then after the election, "Bye-bye."

Back in 1984 two Congressmen were disciplined by the House of Representatives for immoral behavior. One was a conservative, one was a liberal. T he conservative was very anti-abortion on demand, anti-pornography, and he stood publicly and repented of what he had done, said it was wrong, even voted with his colleagues that he himself be cesured. The media was not satisfied with that. They dogged him, called him a hypocrite, went back to past inconsistencies, and they were not impressed with his repentance. The second congressman was a liberal, he stood for abortion, for pornography. And he was absolutely defiant. He said, "I've done nothing wrong." And as you would expect, the press was much more lenient and favorable toward the liberal, pro-abortion, pro-pornography, than the conservative even though he had repented publicly. Why is that? Simply because that world is much more comfortable with immorality than repentance. Politics has no room. I'm not saying don't get involved but I'm saying if you try this is what you'll be up against, an unfavorable system.

Not only was the political inn full two thousand years ago, so was the religious inn. Let's think about that for a minute. Religion two thousand years ago had no room for Christ. Here's how I know, Matthew chapter 2 and you might want to look at it later, Herod the great has a meeting with the religious elite, the scribes and the chief priests. Because these wise men came from the East and said, "Where is the Messiah?" And so he had a little conference and said, "Tell me about this Messiah. Where is he to be born?" What's interesting is that these chief priests, cited chapter and verse. They immediately said, "In Bethlehem of Judea for it is written in the prophet" and they quoted Micah chapter 4, verse 2, "But you Bethlehem, though you be small among the thousands of Judah, yet out of you shall come forth the one who is to be the ruler of Israel." And they cited it, they quoted it, they knew it verbatim by heart. But they really could care less. I mean wouldn't you think if wise men traveled hundreds of miles from the east to check out a baby who they say is the Messiah because we saw a wonder in the sky, that these guys would be the slight bit curious and maybe tag along? But it was almost like, "Oh yeah (yawn) Bethlehem, that's what the Bible says. They could care less. In fact, thirty years later they conspired his death. It was those very same ones that shouted out, "Crucify him! Crucify him!" They had no room for him. It is the same now friends. Religion has no place for Jesus, never has, really never will. Oh yeah, Jesus is all right as long as you say he's a great moral teacher, a good example and all roads lead to God, Jesus happens to be one of them. Okay, that's all right then. But the minute the real Jesus speaks up and says, "I am the way, the truth, the life, nobody will ever go to heaven unless he comes by me." Whoa, religion will quickly dump him. Isn't it ironic that in Revelation Jesus says these words to the church, "Behold I stand at the door and knock. If anyone will open the door I will come in and have fellowship with him and he with me." We love to quote that to unbelievers. Jesus was speaking it to those who claim to be his. "I'm knocking, let me in." Let me in to the church. So his birth speaks of his incompatibility.

Third, it speaks of his personality. Now I want you to look at verse 4 and consider a few things, "Joseph also went up from Galilee out of the city of Nazareth into Judea to the city of David which is called Bethlehem because he was of the house and the lineage of David, to be registered with Mary, his betrothed wife, who was with child. So it was while they were there the days were accomplished for her to be delivered." You have young man, you have a young woman, they're engaged, they have never been intimate, she's pregnant. Go back to chapter 1, let's just get a little bit of background. I know you know this if you've celebrated one Christmas in your lifetime. But go back to Luke chapter 1, verse 26, "Now in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth to a virgin (we know what that is, we don't have to explain, do we?) betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph of the house of David. The virgin's name was Mary. And having come in the angel said, 'Rejoice highly favored one, the Lord is with you, blessed are you among women.' But when she saw him she was troubled at his saying and considered what manner of greeting this was. Then the angle said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary. For you have found favor with God. And behold you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a son and shall call his name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the son of the highest." And the Lord God will give him the throne of his father David. He will reign over the house of Jacob forever. Of his kingdom t here will be no end. Mary said to the angel, 'How can this be seeing I do not know a man?' And the angel answered and said, 'The Holy Spirit will come upon you. The power of the highest will overshadow you. Therefore also the holy one who will be born will be called the Son of God.'"

One other text, go over to chapter 3, just sort of a sandwich version here. Verse 23, "Now Jesus himself began his ministry at about thirty years of age being (notice) as was supposed the son of Joseph. All of these verses speak plainly to one thing: a unique personality. He was virgin born. Jesus Christ was the only baby ever born without a human father, conceived by the Holy Spirit. It is Isaiah the prophet that combines the two when he predicts in chapter 9, "For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given." Those aren't there just for poetic reasons, child is born, son is given, they mean something. One speaks of his humanity, the other speaks of his deity. Combined they speak of his unique personality, fully God, fully man. "Unto us a child is born." This is Bethlehem. Jesus was born like any other baby was born. Now I've heard stories that when Mary was in labor, she didn't feel any pain and all sorts of fanciful stories. Jesus was born like any other human would be born into this world. A child was born. The evangelical church traditionally and to its credit has defended the deity of Christ, that he is God. We've done a good job of it. What a lot of us fail to recognize is the first heresy in the church was not a denial of the deity of Christ, it was a denial of the humanity of Christ. Did you know that? They called it gnosticism and the Gnostics believed that Jesus Christ didn't have a human physical body that when he walked on the san he didn't leave footprints and all sorts of fanciful stories. Never forget that God became human. Jesus was absolutely fully a human being. "The word became flesh and dwelt among us." John Weiburg had the boldness to write it this way, "There is God in the flesh thriving in a placenta, protected by a water bag, bouncing on a donkey ride to Bethlehem where his folks had to meet the local IRS. No different than any toher baby at the time, God deep in the flesh became God deep in the straw. Mary the mother of the creator sustained the one who sustained everything." A child is born, that's part of his personality. But Isaiah predicted and it's alluded to in what we just erad, "Unto us a son is given." Now notice the wording is different. Children are born but here it is, a son is given. This suggests pre-existence. For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son." The wording suggests pre-existent deity. God stepped into the world. Now even as Jesus Christ is the only baby in the world who didn't have a human father, Jesus Christ is the only person who existed before he was born. How's that for you? He said, "Before Abraham was, I am." He didn't become God after a period of time on earth. He didn't awake one day when he was thirty years old and go, "Oh, I'm God now." He was God pre-Bethlehem, pre-Mary. This the incarnation, God becoming flesh. If you want the theolotical term, he is theanthropos or the theanthropic personality. I know it sounds erudite but it's simple: theos, God. Andthropos, man. God and man in one package. You're going, "Huh?" That's what Paul said but in a little bit better terminology. He said, "Great is the mystery of godliness, God manifest in the flesh. That's a wonderful, biblical, poetic way of going "Huh?" It's a mystery. Think of this, the one who created all the food supplies on the earth and fed people who were hungry was himself hungry. He was weary and yet he is our rest. He paid taxes and yet he is the king of kings. He prayed and yet he hear all of our prayers. He weeps and yet he dries our tears. He was sold for thirty pieces of silver, but he redeemed the world. He was led as a sheep to the slaughter but he's the good shepherd. His death is what gives us life and by dying he destroyed death. He was larger than the universe but he became an embryo inside of a girl. Great is the mystery of godliness. Now why'd he do that? Why this unique personality? Why the bother? Why the trouble? And this is important because people go, "Well is the virgin birth really important?" It's crucial, for this reason: As a man Jesus was the perfect representative of humanity. He was one. He experienced physical human death. Perfect representative. But as God he was perfectly sinless. Therefore he is the perfect sacrifice for sins. Thus in his death he could take a hold of God the Father, take a hold of humanity who were at this point not reconciled to each other and being the God-man bring them together and say, "You can meet. You can have fellowship." That's his ministry.

Fourth and finally, his birth shows us his accessibility. His accessibility. Listen, there's nothing intimidating about a feeding trough. Right? Anybody can come and not feel intimidated by that. A manger doesn't speak of wealth and status and pomp and fame, does it? A cave, a feeding trough. Even the poorest of the poor could come and feel comfortable. The rich would have more problem. They'd have to get humbler quidker. The poor would have no problem. You might have trouble getting into the White House or Buckingham Palace or show your ID to get in the health club for that matter. But not a manger, not a cave with a little baby. Absolute accessibility. The shepherds did, beginning in verse 8, "there were in the same country shepherds living out in the field keeping watch over their flocks by night," you know the story, I'm not going to even read it to you.

Go down to verse 16, "And they came with haste and found Mary and Joseph, the babe lying in the manger." No intimidation, absolute accessibility, even shepherds who were despised came walking in. Sometime late the magi came, these were the kings. So you have from the lowest to the highest strata of society all able to gain access. And what happened at his birth continue through his life, didn't it? Jesus was accessible to people. He was. In fact, he got mad at the disciples who tried to protect him. When the moms and dads brought their little kids for Jesus bless them and the disciples said, "Don't trouble the Master." Jesus got ticked, "All the children to come unto me," he said, "This is the kingdom of God." The time when he was on the way to heal Jairus' daughter who was deathly ill and they needed to get there quickly, there was a woman in the crowd who had a disease for twelve years, a flow of blood, there wasn't a doctor in Galilee who could fix her. And she touched Jesus and Jesus stopped and said, "Hey, who touched me?" The disciples were thinking, "Who didn't touch you? You're in a crowd, man, everybody touched you." Jesus said, "No, I perceive power has gone out of me." And there was that woman, right there, and I'm sure Jairus is going, "Can we go now? It's my daughter who's dying." But Jesus stopped, spent time and had an open access in his personality for this sick woman and then went on his way.

Finally, at the cross his death on the cross is what gained us access, isn't it? So that even though, if you weren't there two thousand years ago to hang out with Jesus one on one face to face, because he's the God-man who on the cross died for the sins of the whole world, anyone who is willing can come and gain access because of his death. That's the gospel. Hebrews 10 elucidates on that, "And so dear friends we can boldly enter heaven's most holy place because of the blood of Jesus." This is the new life-giving way that Christ has opened up for us through the sacred curtain by means of his death, "And since we have a great high priest who rules over God's people, let us go right into the presence of god with true hearts fully trusting him."

From birth to death, Jesus showed accessibility and the ultimate unveiling was the cross, where t he veil was torn and Jesus said, "Come on in." So that was his life. He was born among common animals, he died among common criminals. He demonstrated humility, he came in a simple wrapping, not satan sheets in Rome General Hospital. His birth showed incompatibility, people just don't have time, just don't have room, they've got their own agenda. His birth shows his divine and human personality. God in human flesh. And finally, accessibility. Anyone can come, anybody can be accepted. The question is will you? Will you receive the gift humble as it might look in a manger, awesome as it truly is in reality, will you receive God's gift through his son in salvation? I'll tell you what, this Christmas season millions of Americans won't. They'll celebrate it, they'll give and receive and they'll bypass the real gift. will you make room for him in your life? Will you come to the manger? To the cross?

I'm going to ask you this in closing and just answer it, honestly in your own heart. Was there a time in your personal life that you can remember asking Jesus to occupy your heart? Like he occupied that manger. I want you to come into my heart and my life and stay there, occupy it, live there. Is there a time you have personally honestly done that? I'm not asking, have you gone to church, prayed a few prayers, wept some tears, and even bought a book that you're supposed to carry when you come to church? Have you made room for him? And is he occupying your life tonight? Ask anybody who's authentically done that and you'll find a common denominator: they all have an unusual peace about them, an unusual and some think weird smile.

Let me give you a little trivia, you've heard the term bedlam which means confusion. You know that it actually comes from the word Bethlehem? It's a corruption of the term, it came from the 1500s, here's the story. There was a hospital for the insane in London, England called St. Mary's of Beghlehem. In the 1500s you could buy a ticket to come into the insane asylum and heckle the inmates. It became one of London's favorite pastimes. St. Mary's of Bethlehem over time was shortened to just Bethlehem. "Let's go to Bethlehem tonight, got nothing to do." And it got further shortened and corrupted to bedlam. You know you an hear a Brit saying it, "Let's go to Betlem." "All right, go one." So the term in our language came to mean utter confusion, pandemonium, noise. Let mea sk you something: Is your life a Bethlehem where Christ lives? Or a bedlam of confusion? We're right at the beginning of t he Christmas season. I pray that this will be a bit different. Don't get sucked into the vortex. It's pretty powerful isn't it? It starts the day after thanksgiving, the sales, whoosh, you feel like you're being flushed (sorry for that analogy). There's a legend that, the legend says that Satan and his demons were having a Christmas party. And as the different demons were on their way out, one of them said, "Merry Christmas your majesty." Ad Satan growled back to him, "Yes, keep it merry because if they ever take it seriously we're all in trouble." Hey, take it seriously. Take God sending his Son for you seriously. Take the manger more seriously than the little pine-scented setting or something displayed on merchant's windows. Take it as God's ultimate gift for you, for your sins and my sins. Make room. Do it now.

Heavenly Father, what we read is a story that happens so often. In unannounced humility you come to a life and you knock. But the values of heaven are incompatible with the values of earth. But Lord you want to impose your unique divine personality upon people. But you won't do it without an invitation. You make yourself accessible and yet so few come. Lord, beckon more to come tonight and during this holiday season. May more receive the gift of eternal life. May more make room for the real authentic, historic, life-changing Jesus Christ.

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9/15/2002
completed
resume  
Does the Truth Really Matter?
2 Timothy 4
Skip Heitzig
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Today I begin a new series I am calling Rediscovering Our Foundations. I am concerned about the vast biblical illiteracy that exists in our country in general and in our churches in particular. Truth is commonly seen by our culture as relative and not fixed. Often sentiments such as, "Well, that is your truth, but it's not my truth," are expressed by many. But if truth is absolute, then why not stand up for it? Why be embarrassed about it? What do you really believe about God, the Trinity, Christ, mankind, the church, heaven, and hell?
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9/22/2002
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Is Anybody Up There?
Hebrews 11:1-40;Romans 2:1-29
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We all remember the scene in The Wizard of Oz when Dorothy and her three friends come to approach the Great Oz. Out of the corner of their eye they notice a man pulling levers behind a curtain, working the mechanical, smoke-breathing Oz. The man then reacts by announcing, "Pay no attention to the man behind the curtain!" But how can they not? The man is the explanation for everything to them. They discovered that Oz didn't really exist! So how do we know that God exists and isn't a fabrication or projection of our own imaginations?
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9/29/2002
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The Bible - From God or From Men? - Part 1
2 Timothy 3:15-17
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In this series, Rediscovering Our Foundations, it's time to consider your own personal foundation. What is the final resting place for your cares, concerns, griefs, surprises and sorrows? Where do you turn for answers to life's deepest questions? What is your authority? How sure are you that the Bible is the inerrant and inspired Word of God? Can you articulate to others the difference between the Bible and other "sacred" religious works?
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10/6/2002
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The Bible - From God or From Men? - Part 2
2 Timothy 3:15-17
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Last week, we discovered exactly what the designation "Scripture" referred to and how books of the Bible were considered as part of the inspired text. We also learned what inspiration means and how God used humans in His process of having exactly what He wanted written down. But anyone can claim inspiration for their work. Yet how do we know that the Bible is the authentic Word of God? Moreover, how can we share with others its uniqueness so they, too, may listen to its message and apply it?
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10/13/2002
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The God Who Knows It All!
Psalm 139:1-6
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A little boy climbed his neighbor's apple tree when he saw their car leave. He didn't realize that while he was stuffing his pockets full of apples, another neighbor was watching through a pair of binoculars and saw the whole thing! God isn't spying on people, trying to catch them doing something wrong; but God is aware of everything. Such a truth has a profound effect on us: it can either be very comforting or else extremely unsettling.
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10/20/2002
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Are You a Big-Godder or a Little Godder?
Psalm 139:7-24
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11/10/2002
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Wholly Holy!
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In this current series, Rediscovering Our Foundations, we've considered some key attributes of the God we know and love. He is omniscient (knows everything); He is omnipresent (everywhere present); He is omnipotent (operates at full power). But there is another key attribute that is seldom considered, yet is fundamentally key in understanding the Bible—God's holiness. Let's observe one man's encounter with this holy God and what it means to us.
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11/17/2002
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Good Man, Mad Man, Con Man, or God-Man?
Matthew 16:13-17
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No other person from history has generated so much controversy and speculation, as well as written literature, as Jesus Christ. Theologians, philosophers, poets and pundits have all weighed in concerning who Jesus is. What is often forgotten is that Jesus can never be overestimated! John said that the, "world itself could not contain the books that should be written" (John 21:25) about His accomplishments.
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12/8/2002
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Jesus - The Boy With a Purpose - Part 1
Luke 2:1-52; Matthew 2:1-23
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Jesus' upbringing and boyhood has been the subject of much speculation and endless controversy throughout the centuries. Myths have developed about Jesus based (interestingly enough) on what isn't written. The Bible gives us five cameo glimpses of Jesus from early boyhood to age 30. We'll look at three of these today and then two more next week. We discover that Jesus' whole life was marked with purpose.
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12/15/2002
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Jesus - The Boy With a Purpose - Part 2
Luke 2-3
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We don't give much thought to Jesus growing up, developing into adolescence and then into manhood. But of course He did. Luke is really the only New Testament author who gives us information about these early years. He speaks generally about Jesus' growth as well as specifically about Jesus' capacity as a young boy of 12. At each stage of His life, Jesus demonstrated He knew His purpose for His life on earth.
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12/22/2002
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A Lamb at the River
Matthew 3:1-17; John 1:1-51
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When Jesus turned 30, He presented Himself to the nation of Israel in public ministry. His first appearance, however, seemed so out of character for the kind of Messiah that people were anticipating. What was He doing getting baptized in a river with everyone else? John was about to find out—and so was everyone else.
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1/12/2003
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The Holy Spirit: Invisible, Personal, Powerful
John 14-16
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Today in our series Rediscovering Our Foundations, we consider the Holy Spirit. Most of us have heard of Him, but who is He exactly? What does He do? How important is the Holy Spirit to your personal life, your family life, your work or your leisure time? Perhaps A.W. Tozer was right when he said, "For multitudes of Christians profess today the Holy Spirit is not a necessity. They have learned to cheer their hearts and warm their hands at other fires." It is my sincere prayer that will change for us in the few weeks ahead.
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1/19/2003
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The Gracious and Holy Hound of Heaven
John 16:5-11
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Having understood Who the Holy Spirit is (Person, not just power; Deity, not just dignitary), we now find out what He does, specifically what He does in the world of unbelievers. Since the greatest gift God ever gave to the world was His only Son (John 3:16), it stands to reason that the greatest sin one can commit is to reject the Son (John 16:9). How does the Holy Spirit both sentence the world as prosecutor and yet lead people away from judgment? And what role do we play in all of this?
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1/26/2003
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I Need Somebody, Help! Not Just Anybody
John 14-16
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To live one's life for God in an ungodly world sounds like mission impossible, right? It would be as if we had to do it without help. But be strengthened by this thought: God never intended for us to do it alone! That's why He has provided His people a Helper, the Holy Spirit. This ever-present divine Person is very busy helping God's people become all He wants them to be.
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2/2/2003
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Brand-Spankin' New Apostles!
Acts 1:1-8
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The legendary missionary to India, William Carey, didn't see obstacles; he saw opportunities. He was the "Let's go for it!" kind of guy. In fact, one of his most famous sayings was, "Attempt great things for God; expect great things from God." Carey did both and saw results! The Holy Spirit can take ordinary men and women and do extraordinary things with them. He is the God who "makes all things new" (Revelation 21:5). Such a truth can only create a sense of wonder and excitement in the heart of a child of God. After all, what new thing could God do through you?
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2/9/2003
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Unholy Responses to the Holy Spirit
Ephesians 4:30
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You might say that we live in the "Age of the Holy Spirit." Jesus promised Him to us after He was done with His own earthly ministry. We have seen that He is very active both in the world among the unconverted and in the church among God's own people. But He has one overriding goal-to bring glory to Jesus Christ in every life. What does that mean to us? It means a total surrendering to Him. As Oswald Chambers said, "The Holy Spirit cannot be located as a guest in a house. He invades everything." But what happens when people don't respond to Him rightly? Then what?
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2/16/2003
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How Can Three Be One?
Matthew 28:16-20
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1+1+1=1. Is this new math? No, it's the doctrine of the Trinity. The Father is God, the Son is God, and the Holy Spirit is God. At the very heart of the Judeo-Christian faith is the belief that there is only One God. Yet the Bible clearly teaches the plurality within the Godhead—three persons who are distinct from one another yet perfectly One in essence. What are we to make of all this? Why is it important? And more fundamentally, how should it affect us personally?
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2/23/2003
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The Exceedingly Un-Holy Spirit
1 John 5:19
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Satan, the prince of darkness, has been around a long time. He has studied mankind for thousands of years, marking his strategies according to what he sees in us and what God's plan for the world is. He hates what God loves; he fights what God establishes. And let's remember, he's got help! Other spirit beings have joined his rebellion and control the system known in Scripture as the world. John even said, "the whole world lies under the sway of the wicked one" (1 John 5:19). What should we know about this arch-nemesis of God in order to stand against him?
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3/2/2003
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Touched by an Angel
Luke 1-2
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As even the title suggests, angels have become popular in modern culture. But whether we know it or not, we've all been "touched an angel." Martin Luther helped us to understand their role by remarking, "An angel is a spiritual creature created by God without a body, for the service of Christendom and of the church." He was partially correct, but angels serve an even greater role than being strictly for the church. Their ministry goes beyond us and is principally concerned with the glory and majesty of God.
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3/9/2003
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Man, Has God Got a Plan For You!
Genesis 1-3
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Alexander Pope once remarked that, "the chief study of man is man himself." That may be true, especially in our culture, but this could also be the reason why mankind is so desperate and spiritually thirsty. Looking only to ourselves rather than beyond ourselves can get pretty lonely! But why are we here? What is the purpose of mankind inhabiting this planet? How can I fulfill the God-given destiny that He originally designed for me?
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3/16/2003
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From Creation to Corruption
Genesis 2-3
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How did we, as the human race, get into the colossal mess we find ourselves in? Was it always this way? And what do Adam's actions, acted out so long ago, have to do with us in this modern technologically advanced age? Am I at all responsible? Can the effects ever be undone? Let's look at these issues in the opening chapters of Genesis.
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4/27/2003
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Church-Building 101
Matthew 16:13-20
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The church was God's idea; it was never man's notion. Jesus Christ is the founder, director, architect, owner and builder of the church. But there is an awful lot of confusion about what a church is supposed to look and function like. Today, we look at the first New Testament mention of the church and look at our spiritual origins. As we are Rediscovering Our Foundations, let's also rediscover our spiritual roots as the people of God.
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5/4/2003
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What Jesus Wants His Church to Be - Part 1
John 17
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The church is not a place, but a people (a called-out assembly of people who gather together and whose heartfelt conviction is that Jesus is Lord). Jesus laid claim on the church—it belongs to Him ("I will build My church"). So then, what does He want His church to be like? What should mark us overall? In Jesus' longest recorded prayer before His crucifixion, He prays for four characteristics that are to mark the people of God. Today we look at the first two.
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5/25/2003
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What Jesus Wants His Church to Be - Part 2
John 17
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Church shopping and church hopping have become one of American Christians’ favorite pastimes. We want a church that suits us, helps us, and pleases us. But since Jesus paid for it, it’s His church (Acts 20:28). So what does He want from us? What should the people of God be like? What ingredients and activities ought to be part of our makeup? In this series, Rediscovering our Foundations, we must rediscover the foundational purpose for our existence as His church.
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6/1/2003
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How to Build a Beautiful Body
1 Corinthians 12:3-22
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6/22/2003
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The Last Days
2 Peter 1-3
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On October 30, 1938, the day before Halloween, the novel War of the Worlds was made into a radio broadcast featuring Orson Welles. As millions of Americans were listening, the play was performed so it would sound like a news broadcast about an invasion from Mars. Many thought they were hearing an actual news account of an invasion from Mars and concluded this was the end. Some even committed suicide as their final fatal act! In Rediscovering Our Foundations, what can we know about the last days of this world and what can we do to prepare?
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6/29/2003
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I'll Be Back
John 13:31-14:6
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A little boy was trying desperately to tell his friends about what Jesus' return would be like. He described Jesus' coming in glory as being "greater than Superman, Batman, and the Power Rangers put together!" Of course even that would be an understatement. Jesus came here 2000 years ago and then left; but He promised to return. What will it be like? What difference should it make to us right here, right now?
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7/6/2003
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The Burning Question
Revelation 20:11-15
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Hell is an eternal and biblical reality that has been relegated to the junk pile of modern myths. Woody Allen once said that hell is the abode of all people who annoy him. The word hell is used on a daily basis in people's dicey language patterns—usually as a fill-in expletive. Of all the Christian doctrines unfolded in Scripture, hell is the toughest one to handle. Most love the notion of a blissful heaven awaiting them; few cling to the idea of a literal hell to punish the lost.
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7/13/2003
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Heaven: Our Final Frontier
Revelation 21:1-27
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Captain Kirk and his starship Enterprise weekly traversed the galaxies on the famed Star Trek episodes. That was fiction! But one day you will inhabit the recreated millennial earth in a glorified body and then explore the vast kingdoms of heaven in the eternal state. That is reality! It will be so different than what you're used to that it's linguistically impossible to convey its vastness. But there's enough here to whet the appetite for heaven!
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There are 29 additional messages in this series.
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