All The Counsel of God

Bible Reading: Hebrews 4:1-16.

Aim: To exhort each other to do 14 things.

1. Let us Fear lest a promise being left us of entering into his rest any of us come short of it. Heb 4:1.

2. Let us Labour to enter God’s rest. 4:11.

3. Let us Hold fast our profession. 4:14.

4. Let us Come boldly to the throne of grace in prayer. 4:16.

5. Let us Go on unto perfection. 6:1.

6. Let us Draw near with a true heart. 10:22.

7. Let us Consider one another to provoke to love and good works. 10:24.

8. Let us Lay aside every weight and the sin which doth so easily beset us. 12:1.

9. Let us Run with Patience the race that is set before us. 12:1.

10. Let us Have Grace whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear. 12:28.

11. Let Brotherly Love continue. 13:1.

12. Let your conversation be without covetousness. 13:5.

13. Let us go forth unto him without the camp ……, bearing his reproach. 13:13.

14. Let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually. 13:15.

The Answer Book – Keith Piper

A striking Christmas card was once published with the title “If Christ Had Not Come.” It was founded upon our Saviour’s words, “If I had not come …”, in John 15:22. The card represented a pastor’s fallinginto a short sleep in his study on Christmas morning and dreaming of a world into which Jesus had never come.

In his dream he found himself looking through his home, but there were no bells, or candles, or wreaths of holly. He walked out into the street and found no church with its spire pointing to Heaven. He came back in and sat down in his library, but every book about the Saviour had disappeared from the shelves.

A knock at the door brought a request for him to visit a poor, dying mother. He hastened, and as he reached her bedside, he sat down and said, “I have something to read that will comfort you. “He opened his Bible to share some familiar promises, but the Book ended with Malachi. There was no Gospel and no promise of hope and salvation. He could only bow his head and weep with her in hopeless desperation.

Two days later, he stood beside her coffin and conducted this mother’s funeral, but there was no message of comfort, no words of a glorious resurrection, and no thought of a mansion awaiting her in Heaven. There was only “dust to dust, ashes to ashes,” and one long, final farewell. In his dream, he burst into tears and bitter weeping.

Suddenly, nearby music woke him from his sleep. A great shout of joy burst from his lips when he realized he was hearing the choir in his church next door singing:

O come, all ye faithful, joyful and triumphant,

O come ye, O come ye to Bethlehem!

Come and behold Him, born the King of angels:

O come, let us adore Him, Christ the Lord

Had Christ not come, we would have no New Testament, no Gospel, no church, no Lord’s Day, no repentance, no forgiveness of sins, no changed and transformed born-again hearts, no hope of eternal life.

Let us be glad and rejoice because Christ has come. Let us remember the proclamation of the angel, “…I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord” (Luke 2:10-11).

Christ’s coming is meant to be for all the people in the world. We are called to communicate the message of the angels to all people so that they can enter into and enjoy the Good News of great joy. During this Christmas season, may our hearts go out to all those in the world who have no understanding of Christ’s coming.

“This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief” (1 Timothy 1: 15).

The Gospel Standard

In 1847, Sir James Simpson, a doctor from Edinburgh, discover that chloroform could be used as an anesthetic to render people insensible to the pain of surgery. Dr. Simpson made it possible for people to go through the most dangerous operations without fear of pain and suffering.

Some years later, while lecturing at the University of Edinburgh, Dr. Simpson was asked by one of his students, “What do you consider to be the most valuable discovery of your lifetime?” To the surprise of his students, who had expected him to refer to chloroform, Dr. Simpson replied, ” My most valuable discovery was when I discovered myself a sinner and Jesus Christ became my Saviour.

Coming to the end of lives of great renown and valuable service, hundreds of outstanding men have counted the forgiveness of their sins and the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ into their lives as the most significant thing they ever experienced or did. All else was counted as insignificant when compared with this.

-The Gospel Standard-

A pastor in England asked a dying Christian woman where she found the Saviour. She gave him a piece of paper torn from an American journal containing one of C. H. Spurgeon’s sermons. The scrap had been wrapped around a package that came to her from Australia. The words of Spurgeon were read by her and were the means of leading her to Christ.

Commenting on this incident, a writer says, “Think of it, a sermon preached in England, printed in America, in some way coming to Australia, a part of it used in wrapping paper there, coming back to England, was the means of converting this woman.

What an encouragement there is in such an incident for those who preach the Gospel by means of printer’s ink! Tracts and religious papers have been wonderfully used of God in the salvation of souls.

“So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it. For ye shall go out with joy, and be led forth with peace: the mountains and the hills shall break forth before you into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands” (Isaiah 55: 10-11).

-The Gospel Standard-

Text:                     2 Timothy 4:2-8

Intro:

Notice with me what the Apostle Paul says in v. 6.

Paul makes this statement at the end of his life.

Just before he was to be beheaded for the cause of Christ.

The word “departure” makes one think of a ship ready to set sail.

Paul was saying that the end of his life was near.

However, his ship was ready to set sail.

He was ready to depart this life and go to the next.

Why?

Because Paul knew that he had some eternal cargo on board to take home to heaven.

Just look at what Paul had to say about what was waiting for him when he got to the shores of heaven in v. 8.

Let take a look of some of the cargo that Paul had on board to take home to heaven.

I.  Paul’s Cargo

Suffering –

The word of God says in 2 Tim, 2:12, “If we suffer, we shall also reign with him”

Paul certainly suffered for Christ.

See 2 Cor. 11:21-30

See 2 Cor. 4:8-11.

Paul said in Phil. 3:10, “That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death;”

Souls –

The Apostle Paul was a soul winner.

The Bible says, “he that winneth souls is wise”

Paul would be taking a lot of souls that he had won to the Lord to heaven.

Notice with me what he called those he had won to the Lord in Thessalonica.

See 1 Thess. 2:19-20.

V. 19 – “our hope, or crown of rejoicing”

V. 20 – “our glory and joy”

The Bible witnesses to the fact that the Apostle Paul established many New Testament churches in most of the known world at the time.

This is evidenced by the Book of Acts and the many epistles or letters Paul wrote to encourage and exhort the churches that he had established.

Self- Control

Paul lived a life of self control.

Notice the statement that he made in 1 Cor. 9:25-27.

That Paul lived a life of self control is further evidence by what he had to say:

1 Cor. 6:12, “All things are lawful unto me, but all things are not expedient: all things are lawful for me, but I will not be brought under the power of any.”

1 Cor. 10:23, “All things are lawful for me, but all things are not expedient: all things are lawful for me, but all things edify not.”

Service

See Acts 20:17-27

v. 19 – “Serving the Lord”

v. 20 – “kept nothing back that was profitable”

v. 20 – “shewed and taught” the word of God

v. 21 – “testifying” Paul continual testified how to be saved.

vs. 22 & 23 – tells us that Paul risked life for the cause of Christ.

v. 24 – “none of these things move me”

v. 24 – “neither count I my life dear unto myself”

Paul is saying that he did not  let anything stop him even if it meant risking his own life to “testify the gospel of the grace of God.”

v. 26 – Paul’s conscience is clear.

He did not have the blood of anyone on his hands.

He took every opportunity given him to tell people how to be saved by the grace of God.

v. 27 – Paul told it like it was.

He held nothing back in his preaching.

He preach all of the Bible not just the stuff people liked to hear.

Spend & Be Spent

Paul was a spend and be spent Christian.

See 2 Cor. 12:15

“And I will very gladly spend and be spent for you; though the more abundantly I love you, the less I be loved.”

Notice Paul says “I will very gladly spend”

Paul practiced what he preached.

He was a cheerful giver.

Did you know that the Apostle Paul never went full time.

He often had to work to support himself and not be a burden to some of the churches.

Especially to the cheap skate Christians that made up the church of Corinthians.

He was a tent maker by trade.

The Apostle Paul gave of us own material possessions and finances to further the gospel of Jesus Christ.

That’s the Spend

Besides that he gave of himself physically and emotionally to the point of death for the cause of Christ.

That’s the Spent

Paul knew very well what it was like to be used and abused by other Christians.

Despite this he still said, “And I will very gladly spend and be spent for you; though the more abundantly I love you, the less I be loved.”

What a statement!

The more he gave of himself the less he was loved.

Beside all this, the Apostle Paul wrote most of the New Testament.

Yes, my friend Paul was ready to depart.

His ship was ready to sail.

II.  How About You?

Is your ship ready to set sail?

Do you have any eternal cargo on board to take to heaven’s shores?

You may say, “Oh, I have plenty of time before it is my time to depart.”

My dear friend we are not promise tomorrow.

None of us know when we will breath our last breath.

David said, “there is but a step between me and death.” 1 Sam. 20:3.

The Word of God tells us in Proverbs 27:1, “Boast not thyself of to morrow; for thou knowest not what a day may bring forth.”

What cargo do you have on board

Have you laid up any treasure in heaven?

What have you done with the money God gave you?

Was any of it spent on supporting a good local bible believing church?

Was any of it spent on supporting missions?

Have you led anyone to the Lord?

When is the last time you handed out a gospel tract?

When is the last time you gave some one your testimony?

How Jesus saved you and what your life was before Jesus and the change that has taken place since.

When is the last time you stood for the things of God?

When the last time you had some slam a door in your face for trying to witness to them about Christ?

Do people know where you stand on –

Prayer in School & the ten commandments

Homosexuality

Porno

Abortion on demand

Adultery and fornication

Support of Israel

Are you a spend and be spent Christian?

Do you give gladly of your material resources and of yourself physically and emotionally to further the gospel of Christ?

Would there be enough evidence in a court of law to convict you being a Christian.

Conclusion:

My friend if you have not started already then today is time to start putting some eternal cargo on board your ship.

So when your time comes “Your Ship Will Be Ready To Sail!”

There are many critics of the Bible whose mantra is “Why should we believe the Bible because man wrote the Bible.”

Well, all one must do is read just few verses of the Holy Bible to realize that man could not have written the Holy Bible. The reason I make this statement is because the Holy Bible is very critical of man. Now, man would not write something that would be highly critical of himself. Usually, anything that man puts in print tends to glorify and elevate man. Therefore, it is very clear that God wrote the Holy Bible.

Let me provide the proof of what God’s says about man that is anything by complementary.

“Behold, thou hast made my days as an handbreadth; and mine age is as nothing before thee: verily every man at his best state is altogether vanity. Selah.” Psalms 39:5

“Thus saith the LORD; Cursed be the man that trusteth in man, and maketh flesh his arm, and whose heart departeth from the LORD.” Jeremiah 17:5

^“The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?” Jeremiah 17:9

“For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;” Romans 3:23

^“Man is like to vanity: his days are as a shadow that passeth away.” Psalms 144:4

“Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me.” Psalms 51:5

Text:    Philippians 2:5-8

Intro:  

-Apostle Paul instructs the believer in v5, that he is to have the same mind as Christ did when he walked this earth.

-V6. – Paul tells us by the way, Christ Jesus is God.

-They are equal.

-They one and the same.

-1 Tim. 3:16 – Jesus was “God manifest in the flesh”

-V7. – Begins with “But”

-Paul is saying in v7, “Despite Christ Jesus being God, he did not forget why he came to this earth to take upon himself a form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of man.

-Paul is telling us that Christ had a mind of a servant as evidenced by the two words in v. 8, “humbled” and “obedient”.

-As Christians my dear friends we are to have a servant’s mind like Christ did.

-Jesus is our example to follow.

-Two important characteristics of a servant is “humility” and “obedience”.

-Jesus displayed them throughout his entire ministry.

-Culminating with his obedience to the Father by His death on the  cross.

-This morning we want to look at three aspects of the servant, Jesus Christ.

I.          THE EXCLAMATION OF A SERVANT

            A. Words of Humility

            -Mark 10:43-44 – On how to achieve greatness.

            *James & John wanted sit on right & left of Christ in glory.

            -Mark 10:45 – “give his life a ransom”

            *Jesus came to give not get!!!

            -Luke 22:27 – Greater to serve

            B.  Words of Obedience

            -John 5:30, 6:38 – Jesus came to earth fulfill the will of

             the Father.

            -Luke 22:42 – “Remove this cup, your will not my will be

             done. – The Father’s will always put first.

            *Cup, Jesus talking about no his death but the Father’s

             wrath poured out on sin.

            *See 2 Cor. 5:21

            *Earth grew dark for 3 hours.

            *Jesus cried, “My God, my God why hast thou forsaken me”

            *At this point God, the Father turned his back on His as

             Jesus was being made sin for us and God’s wrath was being

             poured  out on him.

            *God the Father turned His back on the Son because God is

             Holy cannot look upon sin.

II.         THE EXAMPLE OF A SERVANT

            A.  Humility

            -Footwashing – Jn. 13:3-5; 12-17.

            B.        Obedience

            -Jn 19:17-18 – “bearing his cross”

            -Phil. 2:8 – “…became obedient unto death, even the death

                         of the cross.”

            -Heb. 12:2 – Concerning Jesus, “…endured the cross,

                                            despising the shame.”

III.        THE EXALTATION OF A SERVANT

            A.  Position

            -Mark 16:19 – He went up to sit down on the right of the

             Father.

            B.  Person

            -Phil 2:9-11

            C.        Power

            -Rev. 5:11-13

-One day those who have been God’s servants down here will be exalted and glorified up there.

*1 Peter 5:6

*Rev. 3:21

*Col. 3:4

CONCLUSION

-We have examined the Mind of Christ which we saw is the mind of a servant.

-The mind of a servant is characterized by humility & obedience.

-We heard and saw in Christ:

*The exclamation of a servant

*The example of a servant

*The exaltation of a servant

-My question to you  is Do you possess the mind of Christ, the Servant’s Mind?

-It’s a humble mind.

-It’s an obedient mind.

-Would you rather be ministered unto or would you rather minister  to others?

-Would you rather be served or would you rather serve others?

-Are you denying self, taking up your cross and following Christ or are you satisfying the flesh, leaving your cross, and following the world, the flesh and the devil.

Romans 6:14-23

• Intro:
  • The passage we are using in this lesson deals with a saved person.
  • The issue that Paul is discussing is sin in the life of the saved person.
  • This lesson will have two parts and in the second part we will address the question of what does sin cost a person that is already saved.
  • In this lesson we are going to look primarily at verse 23 and answer the question of what did sin cost in general.
• In verse 23 the word of God says that the wages of sin is death.
  • What exactly are wages?
  • Wages are what you earn for doing something.
  • If you have a job and you are paid $10.00 per hour and you work 40 a week then your weekly wages are $400.00 per week (before taxes of course).
  • Therefore wages are simply what you earn.
• According to this verse the sin that a person commits earns them death.
  • Today people say that death is caused by disease, accident, homicide, or many other causes.
  • But the Bible gives us the true reason for all death and that is SIN. (James 1:14-15)
• There is a very important principle in regards to earning something.
  • It will always cost you one thing to earn another.
  • Remember that even though sin may be fun and seem exciting for a moment you must ask yourself what is it going to cost you in the end.
  • To answer the question of what does sin cost we are going to look at several people in the Bible and see exactly what sin cost.
• 1. Sin cost Satan his original position. (Ezekiel 28:13-17 ; Isaiah 14:12-15)
  • Satan was not created as Satan but as Lucifer the anointed Cherub that covereth (Isaiah 14:12 ; Ezekiel 28:14).
  • Satan was lifted up in his own heart and through pride he said that he would be higher than God and as a result he lost his position as the anointed Cherub and is now the being that we call Satan.
  • And if you are wondering what will happen to Satan as a result of all of this read Revelation 20:10 and you will see that he winds up in the Lake of fire for all eternity.
• 2. Sin cost Adam his physical life and living in Paradise. (Genesis 3:19, 22-24)
  • God told Adam that in the day he ate of the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil he would die.
  • Now Adam did die spiritual at that very moment and also from that point on he began to age physically.
  • Remember that the result of sin is death (Romans 5:12-14).
  • Also Adam and Eve were kicked out of the Garden of Eden and as a result of their sin and they also suffered many other physical conditions as a result their sin.
  • So sin cost Adam a whole lot.
• 3. Sin cost God his only begotten Son. (John 3:16)
  • Now we know that God did not sin but because of Adam’s sin it cost God something to get man back into fellowship with him.
  • God is Holy, Just, and Righteous therefore he cannot just overlook man’s sin.
  • So he provided his son the Lord Jesus Christ to come and die on the cross for our sins so that through the Lord Jesus Christ we could be saved and made righteous in the sight of God.
• 4. Sin cost Jesus Christ the Agony of the Cross. (Isaiah 53:1-12 ; Luke 22:63-71, 23:1-50)
  • The death of the Lord Jesus Christ on the cross of Calvary was both humiliating and excruciatingly painful, not to mention he was beaten severely before he ever even got to the cross.
  • And to top it all off he did not deserve any of it.
  • He had never sinned in his life.
  • What he was doing was paying for your sins and mine and the sins of the whole world.
  • This is why Hebrews says he endured the contradiction of sinners. (Hebrews 12:3)
• So you see sin has a terrible price and it will always get paid for one way or another.
  • Now if you are lost and are trying to get to heaven any other way than the shed blood of the Lord Jesus Christ you will not make it.
  • Many are trying to earn salvation through good works but if you can earn it then why did he die.
• You see Jesus has already paid the debt that you owe for your sin when he died on the cross of Calvary.
  • All you have to do is receive him as your Savior and accept this free gift of Salvation trusting in his shed blood to cover your sins and not your own works or goodness. (Romans 10:9-13 ; Ephesians 2:8-9)
• We also discussed how that if a person rejects the Lord Jesus Christ as their savior that ultimately sin will cost them death and their soul.
• In this lesson we are going to deal with what sin cost a person who is saved.
• Once you are born again you are spiritually circumcised according to Colossians 2:9-13.
  • As a result of this you are sealed unto the day of redemption by the Holy Spirit of God (Ephesians 4:30).
  • Therefore as a saved person when you sin after salvation you do not lose your salvation.  
  • There are some things that sin can cause us to lose.
  • This matter is discussed for us in Romans 6:14-23.
• What is the passage telling us :
• 1. We are under grace and not the law (verse 14)
  • The whole point of the law was to teach us what sin is (Romans 7:7).
  • But now that we are saved by grace through faith (Ephesians 2:8-9) sin does not have dominion over us.
  • This is not saying that you will never sin but that as a saved person you should not let sin have dominion over you.
• 2. We do not have a license to sin (verse 15)
  • Many think that because we have eternal security that we have a license to sin, but as this verse says we do not have a license to sin.
  • When we do sin after Salvation we need forgiveness of that sin and to get it out of our lives.
  • We should not let it have dominion over us which is why we have Jesus Christ as our advocate (1 John 2:1-2)
• 3. To whom ye yield is who you serve (verse16)
  • Notice the word yield.
    • To yield when driving mean to give way to the other vehicle.
    • This is exactly what happens when we sin as a saved person.
    • We give way to our flesh.
  • As a result of the spiritual circumcision that we mentioned earlier a saved person has 2 natures, the old man and the new man.
  • The old man is the flesh and that is the part of us that still wants to sin after salvation.
  • So when we are tempted to sin we will have a choice to make.
  • We will either yield to the flesh and sin or we will yield to the new man and avoid the sin.
    • The choice is ours.
• 4. The result of Salvation is that we are freed from being the servants of sin (verses 17-20)
  • Before salvation we were a slave to sin.
    • After salvation we have been freed from being a slave to sin.
    • That does not mean we will not sin but that we are no longer under the bondage of being a slave to sin.
  • Before salvation our flesh was yielded to sin automatically but now as a result of Salvation we should yield our members (that is our flesh) as servants to righteousness unto holiness. (verse 19)
• 5. The fruit of sin is shame and death and the fruit of righteousness is holiness unto Everlasting Life (verse 21-22)
  • Thanks to the gift of God we can now have everlasting life.
  • Therefore we should strive to yield ourselves to the Lord for his work and not to our flesh for our own desires and pleasures.
• What does sin cost a saved Person :
• 1. Joy and Peace (Nehemiah 8:10 ; Ephesians 6:10)
  • In Nehemiah we see that the joy of the Lord is our strength.
  • And in Ephesians we see that we are to do everything in the strength of the Lord, especially overcome sin.
  • Now sin always destroys and makes one weaker.
    • You are never made stronger by sin.
    • Therefore when we as a saved person sin and do not get it out of our lives it makes us weaker spiritually.
  • Some of the most miserable people on the earth are saved people who continue to sin and never get it right with God.
    • They may have fun with sin for a while but fun and joy are not the same.
    • Joy and peace is what brings true happiness.
• 2. Your Testimony (1 Corinthians 9:24-27)
  • At the end of verse 27 Paul says “lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway.”
  • Paul was not worried about losing his salvation but Paul did not ever want to lose his testimony for the Lord Jesus Christ so that he could not preach to others.
  • Your testimony as a saved person is one of the most valuable things you have.
  • Once you have ruined your testimony with certain people you will never get it back, and you might not ever get to help those people.
  • Sin will cost you to lose your testimony and maybe your effectiveness for serving God so you had better be careful and guard it heavily.
• 3. Your Rewards (2 John 8)
  • As a saved person we are earning rewards that will be given to us at the Judgement Seat of Christ.
    • Those rewards consist of crowns and reigning with the Lord Jesus Christ in the 1000 year millennial reign.
  • Now sin can cost us those rewards.
    • Now can you imagine standing before the Lord Jesus Christ who died for your sins and having to watch all of your rewards burn up and have nothing to place at the feet of the Lord Jesus Christ.
    • That is going to be really embarrassing for many saved people.
    • John says you and I need to be careful to gain a full reward.
• 4. Your Physical Life (Romans 6:16 ; 1 John 5:16)
  • Both of these verses have the phrase “sin unto death” found in them.
    • This is not one specific sin that causes people to die.
    • In the Bible people died for many different sins and some others committed those same sins and did not die immediately.
  • This sin unto death is talking about when a saved person continues to sin after being chastened and warned by God over and over without getting it right God may take that person out of this world.
    • Now remember that they do not lose their salvation but they may die before their time (Ecclesiastes 7:17).
• Remember God leaves us on earth after salvation to accomplish something for him and if we ruin our testimony to the point of being not useful for God why would he leave us here do to more damage to his name sake.

Jesus Christ was born in the meanest of circumstances, but the air above was filled with the hallelujahs of the heavenly host. His lodging was a cattle pen, but later a star drew distinguished visitors from afar to do Him homage.

His birth was contrary to the laws of life. His death contrary to the laws of death. No miracle is so inexplicable as His life and teaching.

He had no cornfields or fisheries, but He could spread a table for five thousand and have bread and fish to spare. lie walked on no beautiful carpets, but He walked on the waters and they supported Him.

His crucifixion was the crime of crimes, but, on God’s side, no lower price than His infinite agony could have made possible our redemption. When He died, few mourned, but a black crepe was hung over the sun. Though men trembled not for their sins, the earth beneath shook under the load. All nature honoured Him; sinners alone rejected Him.

Three years He preached His Gospel. He wrote no book, built no church, and had no money to back Him. After almost two thousand years, lie is the one central character of human history, the perpetual theme of all preaching, the pivot around which the events of the age revoIve, the only Regenerator of the human race.

Was it merely the son of Joseph and Mary who crossed the world’s horizon nearly two thousand years ago? Was it merely human blood that was spilled on Calvary’s hill for the redemption of sinners, and which has worked such wonders in men and nations through the centuries?

What thinking man can keep from exclaiming, “My Lord and my God!”

The Gospel Standard

There is a very personal note in the Christmas message which is frequently missed by many. The birth of Jesus is not simply an interesting fact of history wholly unrelated to your present life, but rather it has a direct bearing upon it.

When the angel announced the birth of Jesus to the shepherds, the personal importance of His coming was emphasized. He said, “And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord” (Luke 210-11).

Have you ever thought that it was for you the Saviour was born? Do you realize that when God sent His Son into the world He sent Him to become your Saviour? Listen to the word of the herald angel, ” … I bring you good tidings of great joy … For unto you is born … a Saviour … “ Yes, it was for you that Jesus came.

When at this Christmas season the wonderful birth of Christ is brought again to your mind through Christmas carols, paintings and pictures, and through the sacred story itself, will you not consider it was for you that He came?

He did not come to be the inspiration of sacred art, nor to be the theme of glad song, much less to be merely a good man and a great teacher. Jesus came to be the Saviour, and as such He was born for you.

Bound inseparably together are the Saviour’s birth and His death. He came to save, and to save He must die, die in the sinner’s stead, bearing the full penalty of divine wrath for sin. This too, was personal it was for you.

Such a personal message of God’s love and grace demands a personal response. The Saviour who was born was God’s gift to you. He wants you to receive that gift. “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life” (John 3:16).

To receive the gift of God by faith, you must believe that Christ actually was born to be your Saviour. You should trust Him because He died for your sins. You should trust Him because He lives, having risen from the dead.

God’s call to you is “Come unto me … “ (Matthew 11:28).

The Gospel Standard