Christmas Play and Message 2025

Well, good morning. Thank you all so much for coming. We've got a lot of guests with us this morning. This might be your first time here to Holly Hills. So we're so glad to have you. If it is, and if you need the bathroom, there's one down the hall on the right or down two flights of stairs and down the hallway, just so you know. My name is Miles Draeger. I'm kind of the new guy around here. And we're so blessed and privileged to be here and excited to share this special service with you guys this morning.

It's going to be a lot of fun. We've got some acting and some singing and a message that we want to share with you as well. This is Holly Hills, not Hollywood, in case you misread the sign out front. So we're going to bumble our way through the program this morning, but we're going to have a lot of fun doing it. So I hope you guys enjoy joining us in this this morning.

If you are new to Holly Hills, I just want to tell you a little bit about Holly Hills Bible Church. As the name implies, everything that we do here is centered around the Bible, God's word. And we believe that the Bible is God's revelation to mankind for the explicit purpose of allowing us to come to know him, to come to know him and have a relationship with him. And so everything we do here is focused around the Bible, God's Word.

And we want to share a little bit this morning about that wonderful, wonderful message. So before we begin, let's open with a word of prayer. Heavenly Father, we thank you for your son, Jesus. We thank you for sending him to this world. And Lord, we just pray that this morning he would be glorified as we just remember and recall what it means that he came to this world to be our Savior. It's in his name we pray, amen. All right, beginning, we will sing Come Thou Long Expected. Jesus, one stanza of that and then into O Come, O Come, Emmanuel. Please stand and we'll sing. Follow along on the overhead.

Mary, are you nervous? Are you excited? Both. I can hardly describe it. There will be so many changes. I know exactly how you feel. I felt the same way when I was engaged to your father. Joseph is a godly man. He will be a good husband. I know he will. And you'll be a good wife, Mary. I'm sure Joseph right now is working night and day to go fix the home that he will be living in so he can come and fetch his bride. Well, so well, Mary, I need to go now. I will see you soon. Shalom. 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 Son of the Highest. And the Lord God will give him the throne of his father David. And he will reign over the house of Jacob forever. And of his kingdom there will be no end. How will this be, since I am a virgin?

The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the highest will overshadow you. Therefore, the Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God. And behold, Elizabeth, your relative, has also conceived a son in her old age. And this is now the sixth month for her who was called barren. For with God, nothing will be impossible. Behold, the maidservant of the Lord. Let it be to me according to your word. I must speak to Elizabeth. Oh, Elizabeth. Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb.

But why is it that I should be blessed by the visiting of my Lord's mother? For as soon as the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby in my womb leapt for joy. Blessed is she who has believed, for there will be a fulfillment of those things which the Lord has told her. My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior, for He has regarded the lowly state of His maidservant. For behold, from now on all generations will call me blessed, for He who is mighty has done great things for me, and His mercy is on those who fear Him from generation to generation. How can this be? It's so wonderful. You have been chosen to be the mother of the Messiah. Yes, Elizabeth. Finally, God has sent us the Savior.

Genesis 1.31 says, God saw all that he had made and it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning the sixth day.

Genesis 2.7, the Lord God formed the man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being. Genesis 2, 15 through 17. The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it. And the Lord God commanded the man, you are free to eat from any tree in the garden, but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it, you will surely die.

In Romans 5.12, therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man and death through sin, and in this way death came to all men because all sinned.

So we've got to start at the beginning. God created. He decided that he was going to create. So as Carolyn read, After six days, it says that God said, let us make man in our own image, and after our own likeness, and let him rule over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the sky, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth. It's interesting with this verse. Notice it says, let us make.

It's the first indication that God is more than just a single person. That he is actually three persons in one life. God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, they share. They share the same life, but they're three different persons. God as a person makes man as a person.

Why did he do that? So man was endowed with the faculties of intellect, he has emotions, and he has a will. And God could share with him his life, God's life. He could share his love with him. He could share his purpose God had a purpose. Accordingly, God and man could have fellowship. They could have a relationship.

So, God is infinite, though, and that He's heavenly, and He's the source of all life. On the other hand, God's first man, Adam, he was finite. He wasn't infinite. He was created and he was an earthly man, an earthly man. So, God exists in the divine plane. Adam exists in the human plane, just like all of us. And so, Adam was made on the human plane and they were immediately separate in being but they were alike in personhood. I hope that's clear because God is a person and you're a person. God made Adam to be the source. He made him to be the original, the head, and the representative of an entire race of humanity.

Every single one of us here comes from that race. We're from that race. And the whole family of man springs from Adam and Eve. Every single one of us. So the way of personhood, the human characteristics of Adam, were installed as the race began to propagate. All of those offsprings of Adam had the same characteristics as Adam, and they had a nature, a oneness of nature that Adam had.

And as God created him, he was supposed to have fellowship. So, initially, the phase of God's eternal purpose for mankind was that he would be the representative man. In other words, he's the prototype. And a whole race of people, as I said, are going to come from him. And by the means of that race came from Adam, would continue to fellowship with God and grow and multiply.

So God also had another purpose for this creation of a man. He wanted somebody to represent him to the whole creation that he just made. And so he used Adam to be the one that would represent and people would know that there was a God because they know Adam.

The birds of the air and the fish in the sea and all the other creatures that God created couldn't do that, but Adam could. That was another reason for why God created him. Now, watch what God does. Caroline read in Genesis 1 27 and 28 that God created man in his own image and his own likeness and He created him male and female he created them and he blessed them and God said to them be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and and subdue it, and rule over the fish of the sea, and the birds of the air, and every living thing that moves on the earth.

Boy, what a responsibility to be the first man, and this is the mandate. So from the creation of the first six chapters of Genesis, everything is created, but we really don't know specifically when the Lord made the man. In chapter two, he talks about it, but he also talks a little bit about it in chapter one. So the purpose being at the end of chapter one, God says, and it was good. He looked at what he'd done and he said, it's really good. But then in chapter two, you start to get the way in which God created Adam.

Adam wasn't created out of nothing. God took material that he'd already made and he formed a body and he breathed into it the breath of lives, in this plural, and Adam became a living soul. So Adam is different. He's contrasted. with the creatures which the earth brought forth. And so man is formed according to the counsels and according to the image of God.

Understand, back to when I said that God is a person, man is a person, mind, emotion, and will. So Adam wasn't righteous in the sense that we know righteousness. He didn't really know and understand what good and evil was. He was innocent. He was righteous to an extent but not entirely like believers are. So God had a purpose.

If you look in first Corinthians 1545, Paul the Apostle says the first man, Adam, was made a living soul, a living soul. The soul represents his characteristics like God. And here's why I think God did it. It's because God is a lover. The main core of God's existence is that he loves. And so love must have an object upon which to lavish itself or himself. And God made the first man in his image so that he might give him love, and the man could return it. That's why he did it. Because God being a lover, that's what lovers do.

So when you get to Genesis 2-7, you hear that the Lord formed God of the dust of the ground, and he breathed into him the breath of lives, that word life is plural, lives. and man became a living soul. So, so far, things are going really well for God and Adam. But God is God and Adam is Adam, and God being the creator and being sovereign, he has to subject this creature to a test.

He has to complete... Adam has a complete liberty in his environment to develop in every way in the line of God's eternal purpose and his own personal eternal benefit. He gave him all the space he needed. He must remain, however, in the circle of God's sovereign will because God is a creator, man is created.

So in order for God to establish this for Adam, he had a single condition, just one. He said to Adam, and the Lord commanded the man saying, from every tree of the garden, you can eat freely, no restrictions. But from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, you shall not eat. For in the day that you eat thereof, you shall surely die. So God gave him a test and he also gave him the consequence. So when you look at Adam, he had all this responsibility.

He was a loving companion to God and he wasn't a robot. God didn't want a robot. He wanted somebody who with the will he gave him to choose, to choose him. And so the choice is real simple. You either choose God's will which is the way of eternal life, or you choose against God's will, or you reject His will, and the consequence is the way of death. Real simple. You find that God isn't real complicated sometimes. So, any deviation from the will of God is lawlessness and it's sin.

And of the necessity When you get to Romans 6.23, it says, the wages of sin is death. The wages of sin is death. So it isn't 40 years of hard labor. It isn't a fine. It's separation from God himself, who is the source of life. And it's because God is holy. He's utterly holy. And he's pure. And once sin shows up, He must banish the thing that is sinful, that can't be in his sight.

So the first thought that a rational thinking human being who belongs to the Adamic race would think, well, that's kind of harsh, isn't it? Isn't the fact that God's consequence was death, that's kind of unreasonable, isn't it? I mean, death for just one disobedience. And the first one at that, it's the first violation, the first sin. Why didn't God even just say to Adam, well, that's one. Like you get three strikes. Why didn't he say that? Because he's holy and because he's righteous.

So when we realize something of the only possible relationship between the creature and the creator and the unbelievable consequences for the creator if he rebels, there was no choice on God's side. He had to lay down the ultimate penalty for sin, which was death.

I found a verse in Habakkuk 1, 12, and 13. Art thou not from everlasting, O God, my Lord, my Holy One? Thou art of purer eyes than to behold evil, and canst not look upon iniquity. God can't even look on sin. So, now we have a problem. We don't, God does, because he has an intention to make God in his image and likeness.

So in Romans 5.12, really interesting verse, it says, therefore, just as through one man, Adam, sin entered the world. That's how it got here. And so through that sin, death passed on to every man, because every man sinned.

It's interesting that the principle in Genesis is that like begets like. If you're a bird, you're going to generate a bird. If you're a dog, you're going to generate a dog. If you're a certain kind of a plant, you're going to be that kind of a plant. Well, that same principle holds true in the spiritual realm of things. If you're righteous and holy, that's what you're going to generate. If you're sinful, you're going to generate sinfulness. So Adam's entire line of humanity shows up on the earth via natural birth sinners. People say, well, did I become a sinner when I first sinned? No, I became a sinner when Adam sinned because I came from him.

So a couple of interesting things about the attributes of a fallen man. Our conception of man is based upon a few significant sentences early in the book of Genesis, which show us man's spiritual and moral as well as his physical nature, and which lay the foundation for all further revelations as to his being, his responsibility, his position, and his destiny. It's all in Genesis. In the same way, too, the conditions imposed on him at his creation, the fact that he was a free moral agent, he had free will, and he had responsibility. He was the head of the race, and he was to control everything, the planet, everything.

Together with the fall and its awful consequences, are all presented to us in the early pages of the book of Genesis. So much so that without the third chapter of Genesis, we could not understand the epistle to the Romans. If you don't know Genesis, you don't understand Romans because they parallel in terms of this man, Adam. Certainly the mission of the Son of God, a whole history of redemption and the ultimate consummation would all be just partially understood were we deprived of this first revelation in Genesis.

So, watch carefully now as we go forward and see what God has done for you. Having kept your eye on the first Adam, that was my job, long enough you can now keep your eye on the last Adam for all eternity. So pay attention and see how God has been silently working in order to consummate his eternal purpose, which was making man in his own image.

Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife. For that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit, and she will bring forth a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins. And Joseph will walk from his sleep. And did as the angel of the Lord commanded him, and took Mary as his wife.

A decree went out from Caesar Augustus, that a census be taken of all the inhabited earth. This was the first census taken while Quirinius was governor of Syria. and everyone was on his way to register for the census, each to his own city. Joseph also went up from Galilee, from the city of Nazareth to Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and family of David, in order to register along with Mary, who was engaged to him and was with child. While they were there, the days were completed for her to give birth, and she gave birth to her firstborn son, And she wrapped him in claws and laid him in a manger because there was no room for them in the inn.

In the same region, there were shepherds staying out in the fields and keeping watch over their flock by night. An angel of the Lord suddenly stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terribly frightened. which will be to all people. For today, in the city of David, has been born to you a Savior, which is Christ the Lord. This will be a sign to you. You will find the baby wrapped in swaddling cloths, lying in a manger. And suddenly there appeared with the angel a multitude of the heavenly hosts, praising God and saying, Glory to God in the highest. In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God. and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him nothing was made that was made.

In him was life, and the life was the light of men. And the light shined in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it. There was a man sent from God whose name was John, This man came for a witness, to bear witness of the light that all through him might believe. He was not that light, but was sent to bear witness of that light. That was the true light which gave light to every man coming into the world.

He was in the world, and the world was made through him, and the world did not know him. But as many as received him, to them he gave the right to become children of God. To those who believe in his name, who were born not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. And the word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld his glory. the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth."

Okay, well I have the privilege of doing kind of the middle part of this, and if you notice there's actually maybe two themes going on. Maybe you are a little confused. One is the story you know well of Christ coming as a baby. But the other story is what Mike started. It's kind of the back story, or the rest of the story, some people say. And so I have the middle part of that, and it's a tremendous part, because Mike presented the problem. I'm going to present the solution. And then Miles is going to talk about, well, how does man enter into God's solution?

So my part is really wonderful. And it turns out my granddaughter has memorized this verse in Camp Elam. John chapter 1, 1-14 and her name is Paige. So she was really excited when I told her I was going to talk about it. So it starts off with an incredible verse. You know, this verse for me has a special meaning. When I became a believer, I remember, and I think I told Bonnie this on a lot of different time periods, this verse I remember one night I was overseas in England And it was like God was talking to me. I mean, this is like we're on the throne room of heaven.

He's telling me, he says, in the beginning was the Word. So your first question is, if you haven't read the rest of the chapter, you say, what in the world is this Word? Well, it's speaking of the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. He is the spoken Word. He is the living Word. In contrast to the written word, he is God's expression. Everything God has to say to man is wrapped up in Jesus Christ. And Mike talked about him, and he's the solution to man's problems. So it says he was in the beginning. So it takes you back to Genesis. All of a sudden, you're back to Genesis, and we're going to learn more detail about the Lord Jesus Christ. He was in the beginning. He says he was both.

And the Word, Jesus Christ, was with God and was God. So here again, we see that Jesus Christ is God, but he's separate from God. This marvelous thing about three in one, Father, Son, Holy Spirit. Just a tremendous thing. And then it says, He was in the beginning with God, and the idea is he was continually there from eternity past. He was there before he ever started creation. God was there. So just marvelous words here. And that goes on to say, it gets kind of specific. Here's what happened.

All things came into being by Him, Jesus Christ, and apart from Him, nothing has come into being that has come into being. So everything we see, from the smallest atom to the biggest mountain to the asteroids to all of space, was all created by Him. We learn other verses and for Him. And also, even more incredible, He holds all things together.

He is the atomic force, if you will, of all things. you begin to realize, in the person of Christ, God has put all his eggs in one basket. That's totally different than what man thinks. Well, we'll put our eggs in a bunch of baskets. No, God puts his total plan for mankind in his Son, Jesus Christ.

And that's what's so wonderful. Okay, so let's go on, and it says, because he was creator, he created life. So he talks about that in verse 4. In was life, and his life was a light of men. His life is the only true life there really is. You may not, you think, well, I sort of have life. Well, you do and you don't. In God's terminology, until you realize that all life is in Jesus Christ, That is the beginning of your understanding, that's the beginning of your life. All life is in Jesus Christ.

And it goes on, in the next verse it talks about, and this light, Jesus Christ, shines into the darkness, but the darkness is not comprehended. And probably a better rendering is the idea that it, you know, his light goes out and it can't be put out, it can't be extinguished.

And I came across this fact, which is a well-known fact, this gentleman named Voltaire, In the 18th century, he was in the French Revolution. He was an atheist, and he made this statement. Probably, if he could take it back, he's long dead now, but he might want to take it back. He says, in a hundred years, the Bible would be a museum piece. Well, I did a search on Google yesterday, and the Bible is the most published most bought book, purchased book in all time, or distributed book of all time, the number is somewhere between six to eight billion copies.

So a pretty astounding thing. Now the cool part, then the verse kind of changes a little bit. In the John passage, it says, it talks about John. We had Elizabeth up here earlier. And her son, John the Baptist, it talks about him. He says, there came a man sent from God whose name was John.

He came for a witness to testify about the light, Jesus Christ, so that all might believe through him. He was not the light, but he came to bear witness to the light. So John the Baptist was sent as a forerunner, to spotlight, to shine out the message of Jesus Christ, and his purpose was so that all might believe through him. And that kind of turns the corner here. We're going to see this connection between belief And based upon your belief what God does, I don't want to get too far into that because that's Miles' job, I'm going to let him have that job, but it says, it's wonderful, so that all might believe in Jesus Christ the light. And then John says, and you know, by the way, I'm not the light. I love this passage, he says, behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. So we go on. Now we see, well, what kind of reception did Jesus Christ get? We kind of see the reception portrayed here.

Did he have a reception in a palace in Jerusalem? Did he go to the highest? Did all the dignitaries come and see him? No, he didn't have much of a reception, right? Almost nobody knew he was there. The ones who had studied about him knew he was there. And today, do men give? What kind of reception did Jesus Christ get? Depending upon who you talk to, you'll get a wonderful reception or maybe not so good a reception.

So his reception, so here's a verse, it says, he was in the world, this is verse 10, he was in the world and the world was made through him, but the world did not know him. He really did not know who he was. It says he came to his own and his own did not receive him. He came to the nation of Israel and even in his own nation, his own people, he was not received well.

But then in verse 12, there's a little bit of hope here. He says, but as many as received him, to them he gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believed in his name. So there was a spark of hope, if you will. There were a few that believed in his name. And this is where I'm getting into Myles' territory again. I keep pushing this off a bit, because I know Myles is going to do a good job here. We're going to talk about being born again, or being a child of God. A wonderful thing.

But you know that's not something that you strive for. That's something you believe. You believe what God has said. God has said that belief is what He's interested in, or your trust or faith. And we come down to verse 13, and it kind of says, verse 13 says, you know, you can't obtain this being a child of God by any human effort, by any bloodline. It must be God's doing in your life.

It's by God's grace. And then lastly, it finishes out with that beautiful passage in verse 14. And it says, the word, Jesus Christ, became flesh and dwelt among us and we beheld his glory, glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.

So Jesus Christ came down, as we saw as a baby here, But also he came as a man, and he lived and preached and talked to people for 33 years. He was here for 33 years and for 3 years. And he pitched his tent. He was here. He was among us. He set up a residency. He bought a home, so to speak. He was here with us. He was among us.

I just copied down three statements by three different individuals in the New Testament that spoke about the kind of person they came across when they met Jesus Christ. The temple guard said, never has a man spoke the way that this man speaks. Nicodemus, Rabbi Nicodemus in John chapter three said, no man can do these miracles unless God is with him. And then the woman at the well, the woman that had a kind of assorted past, she said, He told me all things that I have done. So this wonderful Savior that God has provided, He is a God-man. He's not only God, but He's fully man. Fully man and fully God. And it took that kind of man to solve the problem of sin.

So I'm going to let Miles, but one final thought. You know, it's, as pointed out, it's a relationship. Lots of people say, Roger, you know, I know about Jesus. I know about God. Yeah, don't tell me about that. I know about that already. You don't need to tell me about that. I know.

I said, well, do you really? What kind of relationship do you know your wife, do you know your children? You have a relationship with your family. You know them, you weep with them, you rejoice with them. That's the kind of relationship that God desires with us.

Amen. Stand and sing with us, O come, all ye faithful. O come, all ye faithful, joyful and triumphant, O come ye, O come ye to Bethlehem. Lord, the King of Angels, O come let us adore Him. O come, let us adore Him, O come, let us adore Him, Christ the Lord. Choirs of angels, sing in exultation, O sing, all ye bright hosts, of Him above. Glory to God, all glory in the highest O come, let us adore Him O come, let us adore Him O come, let us adore Him Christ, the Lord Yea, Lord, we greet Thee For this happy morning, Jesus, to Thee be all glory given. Word of the Father, now in flesh appearing, O come, let us adore Him.

Oh, come, let us adore Him, Christ the Lord. David's city stood alone in cattle shed, where a mother laid her baby in a manger for his bed. Jesus Christ, our little child He came down to earth from heaven Who is God And His shelter was a stable, And His cradle was a stall. With the Lord we adore Him, Live on earth our Savior, And our eyes at last shall see Him Through His own redeeming love For that Child so dear and gentle Is our Lord in heaven When he was at the table with them, he took the bread, and blessed, and broke it, and gave it to them. And their eyes were opened, and they recognized him, and he vanished from their sight. Do you ever wish you could have a do-over on something? Yeah, no need to show our hands, right?

Well, as I was preparing for this message, something happened in our lives that really caused me to stop and think. Just under two weeks ago, a friend of mine back in Canada, from where we hail, was killed in a head-on collision. Same age as me, young father, two young children. left behind his wife and his two kids.

And I wouldn't say that Jesse was a close friend, but he was a friend. And we'd had a number of conversations over the years. We'd worked together on different things, usually had our heads hung inside a diesel engine or something like that. But, you know, if I could go back and have a do-over with Jesse, it would be to start a conversation this way.

Let me tell you about Jesus. And I won't be able to do that with Jesse, but that's what I want to do with you guys this morning. We've heard a lot about Jesus already this morning, right? That's what Christmas is all about. We talk about Jesus coming, but the question is why? Why did he come? What's the purpose in it all? And that's what we want to think about here. It all has to do with His love for you. Jesus came to this world because He loves you. And Jesus' love for you is unlike any other love that you will ever find or experience. It's perfect, it's unlimited, it's without measure. And really it's what all of us deep down inside long for. We have this desire to be loved with that kind of love. God put that in us when he created us. To be loved by him and to love him. And nothing else will ever satisfy that longing.

There's something about love, as I think Roger, maybe Mike alluded to, Love is only satisfied by being in the presence of that loved one, by being together. That's why this time of year we have so many songs written about being together with our loved ones. Love is satisfied by being together. And on the flip side, separation from loved ones is one of the most painful things that we ever experience.

The greater that separation, the greater the pain. And so, because God loves us, He desires to be with us. That's a really amazing thought. Really, really amazing thought. I think that the Creator God who made you wants to be with you and to fellowship with you as a close and intimate friend. But that's where we have a problem, as Mike was talking about, right? Because God is perfect, because He's holy, Our sinfulness cuts us off from being with them.

You can think of it like all of us, I'm sure, have had a loved one who's died, right? And death separates them from you. And all your love for them won't bring them back to you. It doesn't matter how much you love them, you can't bring them back. That's what death means. Death means separation. And that's why the Bible describes our separation from God as death.

Romans 6.23 says, For the wages of sin is death. In other words, the fair penalty or consequence is death. 1 Corinthians 15 verse 22, In Adam all die. That's not talking about physical death, but death to God, separation from God, which is far, far worse. than any other kind of death.

And so on the one hand, the Bible tells us that God loves the whole world. But on the other hand, it also tells us that our sin separates us from Him. And that is a problem for us, absolutely. But as Mike said, it's a problem for God because He wants to be with you. He wants you to be with Him for eternity. And so God did something about that.

He did something about our separation, about our death, about our sin problem. It's the whole reason that Jesus came. He came to pay the penalty for our sin. He came to die the death that we deserve. That's why Jesus was born. He was born to go to the cross for us.

And on the cross, Jesus, who is the Son of God, was separated from God the Father. That's what death is, right? He was separated from God the Father. On the cross, you may remember, he cried out, my God, my God, why have you forsaken me? In other words, why have you turned your back on me? And for all eternity, they had had close and intimate fellowship, and now here on the cross, Jesus, the Son, had to be separated from God the Father.

He was taking our death. Not because he deserved it, but because we did. In other words, Jesus died in our place. 1 John 2 verse 2 tells us that Jesus' death dealt with our sin penalty. It says, and he himself, Jesus, is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only, but also for those of the whole world. Jesus' death paid the penalty for the sins of every single person in the world, including you.

And not only did Jesus die, but the Bible tells us that God the Father raised him from the dead. He didn't stay dead. He's alive, never to die again. The work that he accomplished on the cross is finished once and for all. And because of that, Sin no longer has to separate anyone from God.

God is free to be with us, and we are free to be with Him. The Bible calls this eternal life. It's the opposite of death, right? It's being with Him, intimate fellowship with Him. That's what eternal life is, and it's amazing news. God offers eternal life to everyone, but we have to understand that it's a gift. That's really, really important to understand about eternal life. Because we all understand what a gift is, especially this time of year, right? A gift is something that is totally free, something that is given to you. You don't have to ask for it. You don't have to earn it. You don't have to pay it back. It's a gift, right? What's the only thing that you have to do when someone offers you a gift? You have to receive it. You have to receive the gift, right?

Imagine that on Christmas morning, You find a beautifully wrapped gift underneath the Christmas tree, and it's got your name on it. But rather than open it, you just go on with your day as if it's not there. Christmas Day passes and the gift just sits there. It's never opened, never enjoyed, you never know what's in it.

It's sort of a strange thought, right? But it's exactly what millions, billions of people have done with God's gift of eternal life. It's tragic. The gift of eternal life of God is offered to all, and yet most people have never received it. And I don't know where you're at this morning.

Maybe you've heard this all before. Maybe you think, I know, I know, I know, I've heard this message, I've, you know, I know it, I've got it. Then share it. Share it. It's the most wonderful gift that you can ever share with another human being. Maybe on the other hand, maybe this is new for you.

Maybe you've never heard about God's gift of eternal life. Maybe you've always thought that eternal life was something that you would get if you did the right things, but you never understood that it was offered freely as a gift. Maybe you've heard this before, you know what I'm talking about, but you've never actually received it. Or maybe you're thinking, I need this, I need what you're talking about, I need this eternal life, but you've never accepted it.

And you're wondering, what do I have to do? In Acts chapter 16, the Apostle Paul, just been freed from prison, and you can go read the story for yourself, but the Philippian jailer asks him, what must I do to be saved? And Paul answers that question for him. It's not do anything, but Paul says believe. Believe in the Lord Jesus and you will be saved. It's that simple. It's not pray a special prayer, It's not go to church. It's not give money. It's not do good works or keep the Ten Commandments. It's not get baptized. It's not any of these things. Believe. Believe. That's the way.

It's the only way to accept God's gift of eternal life, God's gift of salvation. And right now, this morning, if you've never done that, you can receive God's gift of eternal life. Just trust what the Bible says. Trust that Jesus died for your sins personally and that he rose from the dead. And in that moment, God will take you from your state of death, eternally separated from Him, and He will give you life, eternal life, which is to know Him. That's what eternal life is. It's not just to go on and on and on, you know, like Groundhog Day and just repeat the same boring things over and over and over. No, eternal life with God. Eternal life fellowshipping with Him.

Ephesians 2, 4 through 5 says, But God, being rich in mercy because of his great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our sins, made us alive together with Christ. By grace, you have been saved from death to life. That's what the Lord offers to everyone who'll receive it. That's what Christmas is all about.

Jesus came so that he could offer you and every single person in this world eternal life. I began talking about do-overs here. And there's some things in life that allow for do-overs, and there's some things that don't. And this is an issue that doesn't allow for do-overs. This is an eternal issue. One day, every single person is gonna stand before the Lord, and it won't be a question of whether you were a good person or not.

The only question will be, what did you do with Jesus? Did you receive what he offered? Did you receive his gift of eternal life, or did you turn it down? Will you live forever in the presence of the God who loves you, or will you spend eternity separated from Him?

Don't avoid the question. Let this be the day that you receive that gift. It'll be the greatest Christmas gift you've ever received. And there's no gift like it. And if this is something that you know, if you have this gift of eternal life, take the opportunity to share it with someone this Christmas. Let's sing together.

We who walk in darkness deep Now see the light of morning, the mighty God, the Prince of Peace, a child to us is born. Behold the Lamb of God, who takes away our sins. Behold the Lamb of God, the life and light of men. Behold the Lamb of God, who died and rose again. Behold the Lamb of God, Wanderers in the wilderness Oh, hear a voice is crying Prepare the way, make straight the path Your King has come to die Behold the Lamb of God ♪ Who takes away our sin ♪ Behold the Lamb of God ♪ The light and light of men ♪ Behold the Lamb of God ♪ Who died and rose again Behold the Lamb of God who comes to take away our sin. Behold the Lamb of God ♪ Who takes away our sin ♪ Behold the Lamb of God ♪ The light and light of men ♪ Behold the Lamb of God ♪ Who died and rose again Behold the Lamb of God who comes to take away our sin. He was despised and forsaken of men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. And like one from whom men hide their face, he was despised, and we did not esteem him.

Surely our griefs he himself bore, and our sorrows he carried. Yet we ourselves esteemed him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. but he was pierced through for our transgressions. He was crushed for our iniquities. The chastening for our well-being fell upon him, and by his scourging we are healed. All of us, like sheep, have gone astray. Each of us has turned to his own way, but the Lord has caused the iniquity of us all to fall on him.

Stand with me. Man of sorrows, what a name For the Son of God who came Ruined sinners to reclaim Hallelujah, what a Savior Bearing shame and scoffing rude, In my place condemned he stood, Sealed my pardon with his blood. Hallelujah! What a Savior! Guilty, violent, helpless we, spotless Lamb of God was He. Oh, atonement, can it be? Hallelujah, what a Savior! Lifted up was he to die, It is finished was his pride. Now in heaven exalted high, Hallelujah, what a Savior! When He comes, our glorious King, All His ransomed home to bring, Then anew this song we'll sing, Hallelujah! What a Savior! Hallelujah, what a Savior. Hallelujah, what a Savior.

Our Heavenly Father, we thank you for the gift of your Son. We thank you that he came to be our Savior and the Savior of each person here. We pray that the good news of the gospel of Jesus Christ will go out into the world this Christmas season. Thank you and praise you in Jesus' name, amen. Don't rush away. There's still a lot to eat out there. Thank you guys so much for coming this morning. Such a blessing to have you here with us. And a Merry Christmas. ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ so so so so