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Being Wise and Unwise
Matthew 2:1-11
Skip Heitzig

Matthew 2 (NKJV™)
1 Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem,
2 saying, "Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him."
3 When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him.
4 And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born.
5 So they said to him, "In Bethlehem of Judea, for thus it is written by the prophet:
6 'But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, Are not the least among the rulers of Judah; For out of you shall come a Ruler Who will shepherd My people Israel.'"
7 Then Herod, when he had secretly called the wise men, determined from them what time the star appeared.
8 And he sent them to Bethlehem and said, "Go and search carefully for the young Child, and when you have found Him, bring back word to me, that I may come and worship Him also."
9 When they heard the king, they departed; and behold, the star which they had seen in the East went before them, till it came and stood over where the young Child was.
10 When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy.
11 And when they had come into the house, they saw the young Child with Mary His mother, and fell down and worshiped Him. And when they had opened their treasures, they presented gifts to Him: gold, frankincense, and myrrh.

New King James Version®, Copyright © 1982, Thomas Nelson, Inc. All rights reserved.

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Christmas Messages

This collection of Christmas messages from over the years focuses on the birth of Jesus Christ—"Immanuel, which is translated, 'God with us'" (Matthew 1:23). You'll be encouraged to keep your eyes on Christ no matter the season.

Outline

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  1. The Wise Men’s Question

  2. The Foolish Men’s Reaction

  3. The Proper Adoration

Transcript

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Being Wise and Unwise - Matthew 2:1-11 - Skip Heitzig

[MUSIC PLAYING]

Well, good morning, once again. I hope you had a great Christmas day yesterday with your family. It's great to be with The Family gathered together today.

Hey, if you brought a Bible-- and I trust you did-- turn to the Gospel of Matthew, chapter 2. If you didn't bring one, somebody next to you has one. If they didn't bring one, there probably is one in the chair in front of you. If there is not, I bet you have one on your phone so turn to Matthew, chapter 2.

So there was a small town in the deep South-- I'm not going to say which town or which state so that you don't think badly of it-- and they had a beautiful nativity set in the center of their town by the courthouse. Everybody could drive by and see it. And there was a visitor to that town from one of the northern states, who admired the nativity set and went to look at it and see the details.

So he got a little bit close, and he noticed that it was indeed a beautiful nativity set. But something that was really odd is that the three wise men in the nativity set were all wearing fire hats-- firemen's hats. And he thought, well, that's kind of weird, so I've never seen that before. He couldn't figure it out.

And he was driving around town. On his way out of town, he stopped at the 7-Eleven, and he decided he would ask the clerk at the 7-Eleven what's up with the three wise men in your town with fireman hats. And so he asked her about it, and the clerk looked back at him as if he were as dumb as dirt and said, "You stupid Yankees, don't you ever read your Bible?"

And the man said, well, yeah, I actually have read the Bible before, and I'm pretty familiar with the birth scene of Christ but I-- and the Magi, but I certainly don't remember them as firemen. And so she grabbed her Bible behind the counter at the 7-Eleven, opened it up, and jabbed her finger in it, and said, see, it says right here. "The three wise men came from 'a-fire.'"

Well, they did come from afar but not from "a-fire." Now we are studying that passage in Matthew, chapter 2. And you're probably thinking, uh, Skip, just so you realize, Christmas is now over. Bethlehem, wise men, nativity sets, that is so yesterday. What are you doing speaking on it today?

Here's why. It's because the events that we are about to read of the Magi visiting Jesus did not happen on Christmas night or Christmas day, but it happened sometime after Christmas day, as it says in verse 1 of Matthew, chapter 2, "now after Jesus was born." How far after, we're not sure, perhaps at least weeks, even months. Many say up to a year after Jesus was born.

Most scholars kind of land between months or a year, and that is for a few reasons. Number one, Jesus had been circumcised eight days after His birth, according to the Gospels. Then Mary was purified 40 days after his birth, according to the Gospels, in which Jesus was then presented in the temple. And we read that on Christmas Eve with Simeon and Anna.

And then we read here in the text in verse 11, that Jesus and Mary and Joseph were in a house. They were living in a house. So the wise men entered a house.

They didn't go to a manger scene. They didn't go to a cave. They came to some rented house in Bethlehem. So that's why most scholars think that the Wise Men showed up between weeks, months, or even up to a year after His birth, which means we should be singing, "We Three Kings of Orient Are" like in the summer if we want to be more accurate.

But we probably won't do that. And besides that, Christians celebrate Christ not one day a year. We celebrate Him every day of the year, all year long.

[AUDIENCE CLAPS]

And today-- today, I want to consider-- I want to look at how to celebrate Christmas now that Christmas is over. And to do that, we're going to take a quick look at those who adored Him, sought Him-- the Wise Men in the story, the Magi-- and we're going to look at those who were not so wise, the unwise in the story. But, you know, I say it often at Christmastime, we kind of have the whole Christmas story messed up.

And the biggest culprit to our misinformation, our disinformation, happen to be the Christmas carols that we sing. And probably no one in the story has had more confusion concerning them than the group that we're about to study, the Magi. And the reason that confusion surrounds them is principally because of the song we just sang, "We Three Kings of Orient Are."

It is a song written in 1857 by John Henry Hopkins. "We Three Kings of Orient Are," stop right there. All of that is wrong. All of that is wrong.

First of all, there probably weren't three of them. The only reason three is mentioned is because there were three classifications of gifts, it says, that were brought, gold, frankincense, and myrrh. But people like that did not travel in small groups of three. They usually traveled in a large entourage of people. There were many more than three.

Also, they are not kings. And the Bible never says they were kings. They probably were more like astronomers, court advisors, mathematicians.

And also they're not from the Orient, as we know the Orient. They would have been from an area called Media, Persia, Parthia. They would be modern-day Iranians. So a more accurate song to sing would be, "We Huge Entourage of Parthian Astronomers from Iran Are, bearing gifts we traverse afar." But that would not have passed the songwriting committee, so we're sort of stuck with "We Three Kings."

Now to really understand the story, I need to fill in some of the historical blanks, and I'm going to do that in the passage. We want to strip away some of the baggage, the tradition, from the Christmas story. And let's look at verse 1 of chapter 2 of Matthew and read a little bit down.

(READING) "Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, saying, 'Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him.' When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him. And when he had gathered all the chief priests and the scribes of the people together, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born.

So they said to him, 'In Bethlehem of Judea, for thus it is written by the prophet: "But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are not the least among the rulers of Judah; for out of you shall come a Ruler who will shepherd My people Israel,"'" quoting right directly from the prophet Micah in the Old Testament, hundreds of years before this event. "Then Herod, when he had secretly called the wise men, determined from them what time the star appeared. And he sent them to Bethlehem and said, 'Go and search carefully for the young Child, and when you have found Him, bring back word to me, that I may come and worship Him also.'" Wink, wink.

"When they heard the king, they departed; and behold, the star which they had seen in the East went before them, till it came and stood over where the young Child was. When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy. And when they had come into the house, they saw the young Child with Mary His mother, and fell down and worshiped Him. And when they had opened their treasures, they presented gifts to Him: gold, frankincense, and myrrh. Then, being divinely warned in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed for their own country another way."

I want to begin with the wise men's question. These people come from the East, called the Magi. They end up in Jerusalem. They sort of come from out of nowhere, it seems in the story.

They get an audience with Herod the king. Their presence scares the snot out of Herod and everybody in Jerusalem. Because Herod is freaked out, they're freaked out. So who are they and what was all this about?

Well, over the years, a lot of baggage has been added to this simple story that we read, a lot of tradition and, as I said, misinformation has been added. Myths have developed. Some have said that these represent-- these three wise men, even though there weren't three; there were far more than that-- they represent the lineage of Abraham, the sons of Abraham, Shem, Ham, and Japheth.

In the Middle Ages, somebody decided to give them names, even though they are not named. But their names that came in the Middle Ages were Gaspar, Balthasar, and Melchior. Some of you have heard those names before. All of this is added.

Marco Polo even said that he knew of the Persian village from which the wise men began their journey. In the 12th century, a German Bishop named Reinhold of Cologne claimed to have found the wise men's skulls. And he said that he knew they were the three Magi because the eyes were still in their sockets, and they were fixed toward Jerusalem. All of that nonsense that is added as time goes on.

It simply says, "wise men from the East." The term "wise men" is the Greek word, "magoi." "Magoi" is the term in Greek where we in English get our term the "Magi."

History tells us the Magi were from ancient Medo-Persia. And one of the historians from antiquity named Herodotus, a Greek historian, said they were a priestly caste of Medes. They were from Parthia and Mesopotamia.

And that at one point, they tried to overthrow the Persian government. They failed. And when they failed, they simply became priests, that is, advisors to the kings.

They were, according to history, skilled in philosophy, skilled in science, regarded as wise. They were interpreters of dreams. And because of their knowledge and their wisdom, they influenced kings, governments.

Governors, governments hired them. They were kingmakers. That's what they were seen as. They were ones who would identify and crown kings. They were ancient Gentile kingmakers.

Now the religious system they come from is interesting. I don't know if you know much about world religion, but there's an ancient Persian religion called Zoroastrianism. And what makes that significant-- and that's what they were. They were Zoroastrians probably.

Zoroastrianism in Persia, they were monotheistic. That made them very singular because most cultures were polytheistic. They worshipped many gods. But these were monotheistic. They worshipped one god, and the god they worshipped was somebody called Ahura Mazda.

But we know of the Magi if we are Bible students because, if you read the book of Daniel, King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon has bad dreams. And he has people around him who are the highest-ranking officials in the Babylonian court. They are his wise men. They are his Magi. The Magi were in the Court of Nebuchadnezzar.

And we know that a Jewish boy grew up in Babylon, who became the head of the Magi because he was able to interpret Nebuchadnezzar's dreams. What was his name? Daniel, Daniel, the prophet, grew up. And because he saved the bacon of the wise men, saved their lives because he interpreted the dream, he became the chief of the Magi.

So look again at verse 2. Here's the question they ask. "Where is He who has been born King of the Jews?" Here's a question for you.

Why on Earth would Gentile kingmakers from that part of the world come all the way to Jerusalem to ask about a Jewish monarch, a Jewish king? Answer, Daniel must have primed their pump. Daniel must have given information to their predecessors, and he did.

If you read the book of Daniel, Daniel talks about the Messiah coming, that He will be the King, the Ruler over the Jews, eventually over the whole world, as it says in Daniel, chapter 9. And we know that the Jewish people had been in Babylon a long time, even after the captivity. After that was over, they stayed, and there were copies of the Scriptures in Babylon that had been left in Babylon.

And I can picture the wise men, the Magi, combing through those texts of Scriptures and finding significant ones, like in Numbers, chapter 24, which says, "A Star will come from Jacob. A Ruler will rise from Israel." I can see them making notes on that.

Or Isaiah, chapter 9, "The people who walked in darkness have seen a great Light, and those who dwell in the shadow of death, on them a great Light has shined." Or Isaiah, chapter 60, "The Gentile shall come to your Light and kings to the brightness of Your rising." I imagine they looked at that and some of the other predictions, and they knew that a Jewish King who would rule was going to be born. They applied their math, their astronomy, to that.

The question comes every time this passage is read. "What is the star of Bethlehem?" And it's a fun question because nobody really knows the answer to it. Every year on TV, there's some TV documentary, some special, where they interview a scientist who says this and another says that and another says something else.

And you go through the whole program, and then you come out the other end of the program having watched it, still not knowing what it is. So there's a lot of different explanations. Alfred Edersheim, the Hebrew scholar, said he thinks it was a conjunction of the planets Jupiter and Saturn and the constellation of Pisces. Maybe.

Others say it was a supernova. You know, that's a star that explodes and continues to emit light for weeks and even months. Some say it was a comet in the earth's rotation. Others say a low-hanging luminous meteor.

What it was exactly is inconsequential. What's most important, and the point of the story, is that even foreigners were aware of a significant birth that had taken place. Even foreign kingmakers made a long journey because even they knew that something significant happened. And what's also significant is that the star provided sort of like a GPS system for these astronomers from Parthia. A GPS system, a global positioning system, some way to direct their steps, and they made it all the way toward Bethlehem, which is only five miles away from Jerusalem.

And they asked the question, so they asked the question following the star. Where is He? We've been studying about this for years. Our pump has been primed by Daniel.

We've been expecting a Jewish King. Where is He who's been born King of the Jews? So that's the wise man's question. Let's look at the foolish men's reaction to that.

First of all, Herod the king, it says, "When Herod the king," verse 3, "heard this, he was troubled." Now the word "trouble" literally means agitated, shaken to the core, deeply perturbed. Here's a better translation. He freaked out. Here's Herod the king in his palace freaking out because this huge entourage of Parthia, Median, Iranian astronomer show up, and they've been tracking something.

And they're saying, OK, where is he? Where's who? The King who has been born. The King? Yeah, the Jewish-born King of the Jews.

That's why Herod freaked out. Because when he heard that-- that there's a King of the Jews born-- everything in his competitive nature rose to the surface. You know, insecure people are easily threatened. If somebody is prettier than they are, if somebody's smarter than they are, if somebody's more capable or earns more money, insecure people don't do well with competition. Herod was now in competition.

Now here's a little background on Herod. Herod was not a Jew. Herod was an Edomite from next door, from the area of Jordan. He was an Idumaean.

His dad-- Antipater was his name-- had helped out Rome. And because his dad Antipater helped out Rome, Julius Caesar let his dad rule Judea. Eventually, his dad died. He took over.

Herod the Great, he is called. And Herod the Great was allowed by Rome to take a very important title to himself, the King of the Jews. He's the King of the Jews. Herod is called the King of the Jews.

So these people from the East come, and they go, well, "Where is He, the King of the Jews?" What, what, what? He didn't like competition. That's why you read later on, Herod wants to kill every baby in that region.

He held tightly to the title King of the Jews. You may not know this about Herod, but history remembers him as cruel and paranoid. Did you know that Herod killed one of his wives, Mariamne, killed his father-in-law? Some of you go, I understand that. No, no, no.

He killed his wife. He killed his father-in-law. And he killed two of his sons, lest his sons take over his throne. He didn't like competition.

There was a saying that said, "It's safer to be Herod's pig than it is to be Herod's son." In fact, when Herod was toward the end of his life, and he was failing in his health, he was very, very sick. And he knew he was going to die, he had all of the prominent citizens of Jerusalem arrested and incarcerated.

And the order was given, he said, when I die, I want all of them killed. And the reason being is he knew that when he died, nobody would shed a tear. But he wanted to make sure that when he died, there would be weeping heard in Jerusalem. That's how nuts he was.

So these Magi come, and they ask Herod, "Where is He who has been born King of the Jews?" And he says, well, I'd like to have more information on that. Tell me where he is when you find him so I can worship him, too. So that's Herod, the king.

Let's look at another group, the chief priests and the scribes. Now he goes to them-- Herod does-- and says, hey, where is this King of the Jews going to be born? And you'll notice in verse 5, they said to him, "in Bethlehem of Judah." They didn't have to pause.

They didn't have to say, wait a minute. Let me look that up on Google. They knew instinctively the prophecies of the Old Testament and could, at a snap of the finger, give the answer. "In Bethlehem in the land of Judah because it says it is written of Him by the prophet. 'But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are not the least among the rulers of Judah; out of you Bethlehem shall come a Ruler who will shepherd My people Israel."

Now these are the theological religious elite of the day. They are the temple hierarchy. They are the big wigs religiously.

And what's amazing is they knew the Messianic expectations of the people of Judah. They knew where the Messiah was to be born. They could quote Micah, chapter 5, verse 2.

What's amazing to me is they wouldn't get up and check it out. They could quote the scripture, but they wouldn't move their feet. Bethlehem is just really a suburb of Jerusalem. I bicycled and even almost walked to Bethlehem from Jerusalem.

It's that close. So why didn't they go check it out? It's only a five-mile walk. I mean, the Magi have been traveling for months at their own expense from "a-fire," from "a-fire," and had made it all the way to Judea. And these sluggards can't even get to their little religious feet and walk a few miles to see what happens.

It reminds me of a scripture in Amos, chapter 6, verse 1. It says, "Woe to those who are complacent in Zion." They're in Zion. They're in Jerusalem. But they're so apathetic, they are so complacent, they're at ease in Zion.

There's a lesson there, you know. Some people think they know enough Bible. They've heard enough of the Bible stories. In fact, some people know a lot of Bible stuff, and they even study it, and they analyze it. And they look at it in the original language, and they chart it all out.

They do everything except obey it. They don't do it. That is this group of people. Even in the church, some have been inoculated with a mild form of Christianity, so as to render them immune from the real thing. Complacent in Zion.

And yet some who are in that condition will even brag about it. "Well, at least I'm not a fanatic. I don't take this thing overboard." Well, I've always found it's much easier to cool down a fanatic than it is to warm up a corpse. These people were spiritually dead, even though they were the priests and should have known better.

So that's the foolish men in the story. We looked at the wise men and their question, the foolish men and their reaction. Let me close with this, the proper adoration.

Now the story goes in verse 9, "When they heard the King"-- that's Herod-- "they departed." They left Jerusalem. "Behold the star, which they had seen in the East, went before them until it came and stood over where the young Child was. When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy," probably jumping up and down a little bit, hooting it up.

"When they had come into the house, they saw the young Child"-- not a baby anymore, a child-- "with Mary, his mother, and fell down and worshipped Him. And when they had opened their treasures, they presented gifts to him, gold, frankincense, and myrrh." Whatever sort of wise men they were before this, now they're really wise men. Now they're really showing their wisdom.

Now, again, notice, they come into the house. It's not a manger. As the Christmas card depicts, the Magi in the background on Christmas Eve, coming in, this is now a rented house somewhere in the environment of ancient Bethlehem.

And what I want you to make a note of is that they worshipped Him before they gave Him their gifts. Now you might even say their gifts were part of their worship certainly. But it says in the text, they worshipped Him, and then they gave Him their gifts. They gave themselves first, and then they gave their gifts to Him.

And I just want to say to you, that's what God is interested in. He's more interested in your heart than in your financial year-end gift. Not that gifts-- there's nothing wrong with giving to the Lord, and we encourage that. But God knows that when He has your heart, then He has you, all of you.

And so they did that. They understood that. They gave themselves first, and then they gave their gifts.

Now what gifts did they give? Gold, frankincense, and myrrh. Gold, we understand because gold is the metal of kings. It was customary, especially in antiquity, that if you approach a king, you must always bear a gift.

You bring a gift when you come to a king. You don't just show up in the court and go, yo, what's up. You've got to bring something.

And typically you bring for a king something made out of gold. Gold would be a very typical gift to give to an ancient king. And since Matthew's theme, the theme of the Gospel of Matthew, is to present Jesus as the King of the Jews, it would only make sense that Matthew would be the one that would include the story of Gentile kingmakers giving to that young Child a gift of gold, the metal of kings.

A second-century theologian by the name of Tertullian sees this as the fulfillment of Isaiah, chapter 60, verse 5, which says, "the wealth of the Gentiles shall come to You," interesting text of Scripture. Interesting prediction, "the wealth of the Gentiles," and this is Gentile wealth. And these are Gentile kingmakers, astronomers, who have given Him wealth, gold.

Now one thing we know about Joseph and Mary, they were poor. They were in abject poverty. They were dirt poor.

We know that because when they come to bring Jesus to the temple and present Him with Simeon and Anna, they bring the gift of two birds. And two birds, two pigeons, two turtledoves, is what only the poorest of the poor would bring. Normal people bring a lamb. They couldn't afford a lamb.

But now they can. Now they have gold. And it's my guess that this was the financial capability that enabled Joseph to take Mary and Jesus all the way down to Egypt and start all over again. Now they had the finances to be able to fund that trip. So gold is the first gift.

Second gift is frankincense. Now frankincense, it's incense. But frankincense is a very expensive fragrance, or it was in that day a very expensive fragrance from the East.

But in Judaism, it was a spice that was used by the Jewish priesthood. The Jewish priesthood for the meal offering would include frankincense in that meal offering. And I think that's significant because it reminds us Jesus is our great high priest.

I don't know if you remember this, but in the Old Testament, it was Job-- right in the midst of his worst suffering-- that he cried out for a mediator. He said, Oh, I wish there was somebody who can lay his hand on God and lay his hand on me, somebody who could mediate between humanity and heaven and bring us together. He cried out for a priest who could do that. Jesus became our great high priest, and the New Testament calls him that.

So gold, frankincense, and then you notice that the third gift is the gift of myrrh. This is the weirdest gift of the three. Gold, we understand. Frankincense, yeah.

But myrrh was odd because of how it was used during that time. Most often, myrrh was-- myrrh served two purposes typically. It was mixed with wine and used as an anesthetic to take away the pain. If a person had chronic pain or episodic pain, that mixture was given to that patient, that person, to dull the pain. They tried to give that to Jesus when He was suffering on the cross, and He wouldn't take it.

Also, myrrh, when it was mixed not with wine but with aloes, it was used to embalm the dead. If you know your Bible, it says that they took 100 pounds of myrrh and aloes. And the idea is that you take the burial cloths, and you soak it in that mixture.

And you wrap the body, and that would take away the stench when you put that body in a tomb and it begins to decompose. And so they did that. It was used to take away pain, and it was used to embalm the dead.

So can I just say that's a weird gift to give a baby? Here we are from the East. We'd like to give you a gift.

And they open it up. Oh, thank you, embalming fluid. What we've always wanted. I was going to say, talk about a gift that bombs. This is a gift that embalms.

But can I tell you that it makes perfect sense? Remember what the angel said to Joseph. Remember what the angel said to Mary.

You shall call His name Jesus because He will save His people from their sins. How did He save people from sins? By going to the place where myrrh was most often used to embalm.

So something else that I think would be helpful for you to note. The rabbis always associated myrrh not just with death but-- get this-- sacrificial death. When a rabbi thought of myrrh, a rabbi thought of sacrificial death because the Hebrew word for myrrh is the word "mor," "mor." M-O-R, we would translate it.

So the rabbis would connect the term myrrh with Abraham's sacrifice of his son on Mount Moriah, which is exactly the same mountain Jesus actually died on. I'm telling you. There's such significance built into this story.

By the way, something else about myrrh and we'll close this off. Myrrh is a spice that only gives off its sweet scent when it's crushed, when it's crushed. And what did Isaiah, the prophet, say would happen to Jesus in Isaiah, chapter 53? 650 years before He was even born, he said that He would be pierced for our transgressions and crushed for our inequities. It was that death, that crushing, that was a sweet smell to God because God could say, now I can forgive you and you and you and you and you, all of us. Myrrh.

So I want to end by asking you this question. Who in this story are you most like? Are you most like Herod? You are following the star of self.

You will not allow God to interfere with your life, interfere with your plans. You don't want any competition, even God's competition. Sadly, you might even claim-- like Herod-- to be a worshipper.

"Tell me where He is that I may come and worship Him." He wasn't a worshiper. And, sadly, many people in pews today are still consumed with a star of self.

Or are you like the religious leaders? They're following their star of religion. They have academic knowledge. They study.

They analyze, but there's no real relationship with God. It's not real. It's not actual in their lives. They knew the Bible.

They knew prophecy. They knew the birthplace. They had the right answer, but they had the wrong action.

Or number three, are you like the Magi? The Magi followed the star of Christ. They took it as a sign, and they came. And these kingmakers, these court entrepreneurs, these influencers of governments, came and bowed humbly, and they worshipped Him. They gave themselves.

I love the bumper sticker. You've seen it for years on the back of some cars that says, "Wise men still seek Him." Are you a wise man, a wise woman?

And I just want to close on this note. Look at verse 12 really quickly. It says, "Then being divinely warned in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed for their own country another way."

Now I know what that actually means. It actually means they took a different route home, right? They got warned, don't go back to Jerusalem. Herod will kill you. So they just took another route home.

But I also want to say, just let that verse seep into your heart as we close because that's what happens when any person has an encounter with Christ. When they actually come into contact with Christ, they leave differently than they come. They go a different way. They leave a different way.

"If any man is in Christ," the Bible says, "he is a new creation. Old things have passed away. All things become new." That's a promise for you. That's a promise for you.

Only God can do what you need to be done in life. Only God can fulfill your wildest dreams of peace and forgiveness and a clean slate and a purpose and a reason to live, so let Him. Be wise. Give yourself. Worship before Him.

Father, thank You for this last weekend of the year, where we can focus on these great truths. We have focused on a few of them leading into the season, on Christmas Eve, and now this. Father, we thank You for the great example of these Magi.

A strange group of people, huge entourage, no wonder Jerusalem, even the whole city, the population was perturbed and anxious and agitated because of their presence. Something was happening they should have known about, and they didn't. Even in their religion and religiosity, they were basically clueless.

I pray, Father, that we would live in close contact with You, encounter You, and grow to love You and serve You. So, Father, we give ourselves to You, not only in the closing part of the year but to welcome in the new year. We're so thankful for Your work on our behalf. You give us a purpose and a reason to live.

I pray for someone who may be here this morning, and they've opened up gifts at Christmas. But they haven't received the greatest gift of all. That is the gift of Your Son and His salvation for them.

If that happens to be you, right now you can just utter a simple prayer right where you are and just invite him in. Just say, Lord, take me. Just say that to Him. Just say something like, Lord, take me.

I give myself to you. I admit I failed. I admit I'm a sinner. I believe that Jesus came and died and bled for me and rose for me.

And I turn from my past. I turn to You as my Savior. I want to follow You as my Lord. Help me. Help me, in Jesus' name.

We hope you enjoyed this special service from Calvary Church. We'd love to know how this message impacted you. Email us at mystory@calvarynm.church. And just a reminder, you can support this ministry with a financial gift at calvarynm.church/give. Thank you for joining us for this teaching from Calvary Church.

Additional Messages in this Series

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12/25/1983
completed
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Christmas 1983
Luke 1:26-33
Skip Heitzig
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Christmas 1983 - Luke 1:26-33 from our series of Christmas Messages with Skip Heitzig from Calvary Albuquerque.
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12/23/1984
completed
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Those Who Found Christmas
Luke 2:8-20
Skip Heitzig
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Those Who Found Christmas - Luke 2:8-20 from our series of Christmas Messages with Skip Heitzig from Calvary Albuquerque.
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12/24/1985
completed
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Christmas Eve Service 1985
Skip Heitzig
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Christmas Eve Service 1985 from our series of Christmas Messages with Skip Heitzig from Calvary Albuquerque.
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12/21/1986
completed
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A Gift for Jesus
Matthew 2:1-12
Skip Heitzig
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A Gift for Jesus - Matthew 2:1-12 from our series of Christmas Messages with Skip Heitzig from Calvary Albuquerque.
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12/20/1987
completed
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What Child is This?
Luke 2:1-14
Skip Heitzig
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What Child is This? - Luke 2:1-14 from our series of Christmas Messages with Skip Heitzig from Calvary Albuquerque.
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12/25/1988
completed
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Simeon's Christmas Present
Luke 2:25-35
Skip Heitzig
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Simeon's Christmas Present - Luke 2:25-35 from our series of Christmas Messages with Skip Heitzig from Calvary Albuquerque.
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12/24/1989
completed
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Christmas According to Isaiah
Isaiah 9:6-7
Skip Heitzig
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Christmas According to Isaiah - Isaiah 9:6-7 from our series of Christmas Messages with Skip Heitzig from Calvary Albuquerque.
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12/23/1990
completed
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Kinfolk of Christ
Matthew 1:1-17
Skip Heitzig
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Kinfolk of Christ - Matthew 1:1-17 from our series of Christmas Messages with Skip Heitzig from Calvary Albuquerque.
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12/22/1991
completed
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The Man Who Missed Christmas
Matthew 2; Luke 2
Skip Heitzig
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The Man Who Missed Christmas - Matthew 2, Luke 2 from our series of Christmas Messages with Skip Heitzig from Calvary Albuquerque.
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12/24/1992
completed
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Strange Birthday Gifts
Matthew 2:1-12
Skip Heitzig
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Strange Birthday Gifts - Matthew 2:1-12 from our series of Christmas Messages with Skip Heitzig from Calvary Albuquerque.
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12/24/1993
completed
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Christmas Eve Service 1993
Skip Heitzig
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Christmas Eve Service 1993 from our series of Christmas Messages with Skip Heitzig from Calvary Albuquerque.
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12/15/1994
completed
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Can Christmas Lead You to Christ?
Skip Heitzig
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Can Christmas Lead You to Christ? from our series of Christmas Messages with Skip Heitzig from Calvary Albuquerque.
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12/24/1994
completed
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Christmas Eve Service 1994
Skip Heitzig
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Christmas Eve Service 1994 from our series of Christmas Messages with Skip Heitzig from Calvary Albuquerque.
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12/25/1994
completed
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The Crisis of Christmas
John 1
Skip Heitzig
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The Crisis of Christmas - John 1 from our series of Christmas Messages with Skip Heitzig from Calvary Albuquerque.
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12/9/1995
completed
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What Makes Christmas So Right
Skip Heitzig
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What Makes Christmas So Right from our series of Christmas Messages with Skip Heitzig from Calvary Albuquerque.
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12/17/1995
completed
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O Holy Night
Skip Heitzig
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O Holy Night from our series of Christmas Messages with Skip Heitzig from Calvary Albuquerque.
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12/24/1995
completed
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Christmas Eve Service 1995
Skip Heitzig
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Christmas Eve Service 1995 from our series of Christmas Messages with Skip Heitzig from Calvary Albuquerque.
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12/28/1995
completed
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Christmas Outreach 1995
Skip Heitzig
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Christmas Outreach 1995 from our series of Christmas Messages with Skip Heitzig from Calvary Albuquerque.
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12/24/1996
completed
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Christmas Eve Service 1996
Skip Heitzig
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Christmas Eve Service 1996 from our series of Christmas Messages with Skip Heitzig from Calvary Albuquerque.
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12/24/1997
completed
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Christmas Eve Service 1997
Skip Heitzig
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Christmas Eve Service 1997 from our series of Christmas Messages with Skip Heitzig from Calvary Albuquerque.
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12/20/1998
completed
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Four Names for God's Gift
Matthew 1:18-2:5
Skip Heitzig
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Four Names for God's Gift - Matthew 1:18-2:5 from our series of Christmas Messages with Skip Heitzig from Calvary Albuquerque.
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12/24/1998
completed
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Christmas Eve Service 1998
Skip Heitzig
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Christmas Eve Service 1998 from our series of Christmas Messages with Skip Heitzig from Calvary Albuquerque.
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12/24/1999
completed
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Christmas Eve Service 1999
Skip Heitzig
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Christmas Eve Service 1999 from our series of Christmas Messages with Skip Heitzig from Calvary Albuquerque.
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12/24/2000
completed
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Christmas Lessons From The Family Tree
Matthew 1
Skip Heitzig
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Every year many folks buy a Christmas tree and place it in their homes, bedecking it for the holiday festivities. Meanwhile, the real Christmas tree is too often left out of the celebrations. I'm talking about the family tree - the genealogical record of Jesus' ancestry which forms the beginning of the Christmas story. If you've never considered it before, you're in for a pleasant (and shocking) surprise!
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12/23/2001
completed
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The King of Christmas
Isaiah 9:6-7
Skip Heitzig
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The King of Christmas - Isaiah 9:6-7 from our series of Christmas Messages with Skip Heitzig from Calvary Albuquerque.
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12/24/2001
completed
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Christmas Eve Service 2001
Skip Heitzig
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Christmas Eve Service 2001 from our series of Christmas Messages with Skip Heitzig from Calvary Albuquerque.
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12/24/2002
completed
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Christmas Eve Service 2002
Skip Heitzig
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Christmas Eve Service 2002 from our series of Christmas Messages with Skip Heitzig from Calvary Albuquerque.
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12/24/2003
completed
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Christmas Eve Service 2003
Skip Heitzig
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Christmas Eve Service 2003 from our series of Christmas Messages with Skip Heitzig from Calvary Albuquerque.
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12/19/2004
completed
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The Gift That Keeps on Giving
Matthew 1:18-2:6
Skip Heitzig
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The Gift That Keeps on Giving - Matthew 1:18-2:6 from our series of Christmas Messages with Skip Heitzig from Calvary Albuquerque.
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12/24/2004
completed
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Christmas Eve Service 2004
Luke 2:1-7
Skip Heitzig
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Christmas Eve Service 2004 - Luke 2:1-7 from our series of Christmas Messages with Skip Heitzig from Calvary Albuquerque.
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12/17/2005
completed
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Merry CHRISTmas
Matthew 1:18-25
Skip Heitzig
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Merry CHRISTmas - Matthew 1:18-25 from our series of Christmas Messages with Skip Heitzig from Calvary Albuquerque.
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12/21/2005
completed
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A Classic Christmas
Skip Heitzig
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A Classic Christmas from our series of Christmas Messages with Skip Heitzig from Calvary Albuquerque.
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12/23/2005
completed
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Christmas Eve Service 2005
Skip Heitzig
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Christmas Eve Service 2005 from our series of Christmas Messages with Skip Heitzig from Calvary Albuquerque.
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12/25/2005
completed
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How Did Jesus Celebrate Christmas?
John 10:22-31
Skip Heitzig
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How Did Jesus Celebrate Christmas? - John 10:22-31 from our series of Christmas Messages with Skip Heitzig from Calvary Albuquerque.
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12/24/2006
completed
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A Not-So-Silent Night
Luke 2:1-20
Skip Heitzig
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The Christmas season with its familiar carols wafting through the air evokes emotions of peace, tranquility and serenity. The birth of Jesus Christ was hardly that kind of an event. It was not a "silent night" but rather a boisterous and busy one. It's been that way ever since hasn't it? Into our busy world stepped the Son of God. Let's consider what lessons we can learn from the busyness of the first Christmas and how God wants to connect with our busy schedules.
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12/24/2006
completed
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Christmas Eve Service 2006
Skip Heitzig
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12/24/2007
completed
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Christmas Eve Service 2007
Skip Heitzig
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12/21/2008
completed
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Christmas in a Nutshell
John 1:14
Skip Heitzig
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12/24/2008
completed
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No Fear - Christmas Eve 2008
Matthew 1:1-25; Luke 1:1-80
Skip Heitzig
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12/28/2008
completed
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A One-Star Hotel in Bethlehem
Matthew 2:1-12
Skip Heitzig
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12/20/2009
completed
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Is It OK To Celebrate Christmas?
Matthew 2:1-6
Skip Heitzig
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Every year timid yet sincere believers ask this question. They can see the commercialization of what was intended to be a celebration of the Lord's birth. They've heard about the paganization of the ancient Babylonians and Romans. Perhaps they're worried about putting up a tree or giving gifts because they, like their Puritan predecessors, feel that this would be compromising their faith. So let's take a brief look backward to the origin of some these traditions and chart a reasonable and biblical course forward so we can celebrate with a clear and joyful conscience.
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12/24/2009
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A Christmas Island - Christmas Eve 2009
Skip Heitzig
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The circumstances surrounding the birth of Jesus form a paradox to the identity of our Savior -- the God who created heavens and earth born as a helpless baby in Bethlehem. Let's travel together to that Christmas Island of old, and consider the greatest gift ever given.
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12/8/2010
completed
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Is It OK To Celebrate Christmas?
Matthew 2:1-6
Skip Heitzig
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Message Summary
Every year timid yet sincere believers ask this question. They can see the commercialization of what was intended to be a celebration of the Lord's birth. They've heard about the paganization of the ancient Babylonians and Romans. Perhaps they're worried about putting up a tree or giving gifts because they, like their Puritan predecessors, feel that this would be compromising their faith. So let's take a brief look backward to the origin of some these traditions and chart a reasonable and biblical course forward so we can celebrate with a clear and joyful conscience.
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12/12/2010
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The PRESENTS of God
Matthew 6:25-34
Skip Heitzig
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No matter how generous you may be this Christmas or at any other time, you will never be able to out-give God! His lavish kindness can be plainly observed, but it is too often overlooked. Let's consider during this season just how openhanded God is to us and the nature of some of His presents that He gives to us who are His children.
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12/19/2010
completed
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Mary's Excellent ADVENTure
Luke 1:26-55
Skip Heitzig
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Christmastime has historically been referred to as Advent Season by the church. Advent means arrival or coming. At Christmas we celebrate the first advent (or coming) of Christ to earth to redeem the human race from sin, while we await His second advent when He rules forever. Mary of Nazareth was the human receptacle that God used to birth His Son into the world. She was a model believer in every way. Her example brings fresh encouragement to us. Let’s consider her.
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12/24/2010
completed
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The Light Was About to Shine - Christmas Eve 2010
Matthew 4:13-17
Skip Heitzig
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As the prophet Isaiah peered through his prophetic lens, he could see a small glimmer of light in the future. At the time of Jesus' birth the world sat in darkness--politically, economically, and spiritually. But when Jesus Christ was born, God Turned on the light! Let’s consider the beautiful source of illumination and learn that while we may be sitting in darkness, God is calling us to step into Son-light.
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12/15/2013
completed
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A Baby in an Old Man's Arms
Luke 2:25-35
Skip Heitzig
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To speak about a gruesome death seems out of place at Christmas time, doesn't it? Why would we take Communion (the elements that speak of Jesus' death) at a time we should be celebrating Jesus' birth? An old man answers that question for us: Simeon of Jerusalem takes the baby Jesus in his arms and tells us the rest of the Christmas story.
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12/22/2013
completed
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It's Darkest Just Before Dawn!
Matthew 4:13-17
Skip Heitzig
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A well-worn adage from the 1600s declares that it's always the darkest just before the dawn. Christmas is a celebration of light: Lights are strung everywhere both indoors and out. If you've ever wondered why, it's because Jesus, the light of the world, pierced the darkness of our world, making it possible for us to see clearly enough to escape one world and move into the next.
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12/24/2013
completed
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The Light Has Come
John 1:9
Skip Heitzig
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I love early mornings when sunlight first comes up over the eastern sky. But if you've ever had the experience of the sun suddenly shining into your eyes, it's not so pleasant. Most people wince when light is shined in their eyes. Jesus is presented here as being "the light of men" and "shining in darkness." But the world cries out, "Turn off that light!" How can Jesus enlighten your life and how will you respond to Him?
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12/24/2015
completed
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Jesus: Hope for All
Luke 2:4-14
Skip Heitzig
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The birth of Jesus Christ fulfilled prophecy and brought hope to all. In this Christmas Eve message, Pastor Skip explains how Jesus' birth is a preview to what His life and death means for us: Jesus was and is accessible to all people from all walks of life who believe in His name.
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12/24/2017
completed
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Christmas Under the Tree
Skip Heitzig
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With roughly 30 million sold every year, Christmas trees are one of the most popular and cherished Christmas traditions. Decorated trees adorn our homes, shops, and churches during the holiday season. The question is: What does a tree have to do with Christmas?
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12/23/2018
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Christmas Through the Ages
Romans 1:1-4; Galatians 4:4-5
Skip Heitzig
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Christmas stands as one of the major holidays within the church. On Christmas Day, we celebrate the incarnation, God coming to earth in human form through the person of Jesus of Nazareth. In this teaching, Skip Heitzig reflects on the unique aspects of Jesus' birth, looking to Scripture to find where Christmas began and why.
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12/24/2019
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Ornaments
Luke 2:8-11; John 17:6-12; Revelation 5:8-10
Skip Heitzig
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The night Jesus was born, an angel of the Lord invited all people to meet the newborn Savior, starting with the lowliest and most overlooked population: shepherds. This extraordinary invitation to the most ordinary people was a preview of the humble birth, life, and death of Jesus Christ. In this Christmas Eve message, Pastor Skip Heitzig explains how Jesus is God's gift to us and we are God's gift to Jesus for all eternity.
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12/24/2020
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A Candlelight Christmas
Skip Heitzig
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12/19/2021
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How Joseph Gave Us Christmas
Matthew 1:18-25
Skip Heitzig
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In the Christmas story, Jesus understandably gets top billing. Mary follows as a close second, again rightfully so since she was a young virgin girl who miraculously turned up pregnant with Israel’s Messiah. But then there’s Joseph. Though he is part of the nativity scene, he is regarded as almost incidental or supplemental, like a bystander. Today, we will follow Joseph’s uneasy emotional journey from Nazareth to the manger as we consider his role and reaction to it.
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12/24/2021
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A Thrill of Hope
Luke 2
Skip Heitzig
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So many of the great songs of the Christmas season have hope as the theme. Perhaps the most famous is the familiar hymn from 1847 “O Holy Night,” which describes the thrill of hope as the weary world rejoices. There are two people in the Christmas story who are usually overlooked, but who embodied this hope as they waited with expectation for years on end for Jesus’ birth. They are Simeon and Anna, and these two are great examples of what it means biblically to have hope.
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There are 56 additional messages in this series.
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