The Gift of Christmas - Glory, Peace and Joy to all the world

I now want to invite you to go to the Word of the Lord in two different passages of Scripture, one is found in the Book of the Prophet Isaiah in chapter 9, we are going to read verses from 1 to 7 and then we are going to read in the Gospel according to Saint Luke in chapter 2.

Isaiah says in chapter 9: “But there will not always be darkness for the one who is now in anguish, such as the affliction that came to him at the time that they lightly touched the land of Zadulon and the land of Neptali for the first time, for at the end will fill the road to the sea on that side of the Jordan in Galilee of the Gentiles with glory.”

“The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light, those who dwelt in the land of the shadow of death, light shined on them; you multiplied the people and increased the joy, they will rejoice before you as they rejoice in the harvest, as they rejoice when they distribute spoils; for You have broken his heavy yoke, and the rod from his shoulder, and the scepter of his oppressor as on the day of Midian, because all shoes that the warrior wears with the tumult of battle and all cloaks covered in blood will be burned, pastures of fire."

So we see here one, before continuing, a series of wonderful promises, things that are going to happen for the benefit of humanity and those who read this passage, and the question is what is the reason that all these wonderful things happen?

Says the Prophet Isaiah: "For a child is born to us, a son is given to us, and the principality on his shoulder, and his name will be called admirable, counselor, Mighty God, eternal Father, prince of peace."

"The dilation" that is to say the extension "of his empire and peace will have no limit, on the throne of David and on his Kingdom arranging and confirming it in judgment and justice from now and forever, the zeal of Jehovah of Armies will make this".

And so we're going to turn now to the Gospel according to Saint Luke, and what I want you to notice are the parallels that exist between the Isaiah passage written hundreds of years ago and this account of Christmas and the birth of Jesus Christ, and some of the events that accompanied that birth.

In Luke chapter 2 verse 8 we are told: “There were shepherds in the same region who kept watch and kept watch over their flock by night, and, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them. And they were greatly afraid, but the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you tidings of great joy that will be for all the people, for a Savior, who is Christ Jesus, has been born to you today in the city of David."

“And this will serve as a sign for you: you will find the child wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger, and suddenly a multitude of heavenly hosts appeared with the angel, praising the Lord, and saying: Glory to the Lord in the highest and on earth peace. and good will towards men.”

I will read you one last verse, verse 15, and it says: "And it happened that when the angels had gone from them to heaven, the shepherds said to one another: let us go to Bethlehem and see what has happened, and that the Lord has given us manifested.”

And it is interesting that these two passages, written as we say, hundreds of years apart from each other, essentially contain the same message and point out very important aspects about the nature of Jesus and also about His messianic Ministry. And it is things like these that convince me of the authenticity of the Christmas message, of how true and real that message is that accompanies the events of Christ's coming into the world because it is obvious that Luke and Isaiah had not spoken to each other. For them, the two passages are very different and it is clear that there is not an intention of Lucas to fix and tie with the passage of Isaiah, there are things that are true and therefore there is a coincidence in the same event.

Both passages tell us about the divine nature of Jesus Christ among other things. Both passages tell us about the birth of a child who is not only an ordinary child but a child who will have an impact that will change the history of humanity and both passages tell us about the birth of that wonderful and full baby of power there will be some effects on humanity, we see the same effects on this passage. We see amazement, we see a call for peace, we see both passages speaking of light that will invade the darkness, we see that both passages also speak of joy that will come to the heart of a humanity that is oppressed by fear.

We also see that the ministry of this wonderful child is a universal ministry that is not only related to the people of Israel but is destined to impact all nations, all ethnic groups, and all genders of humanity.

And finally, we see in both passages as coded, embedded within the narrative, this idea that this very human, very fragile child is God himself. And if you think about how incredible this claim that he is God and man is also in the light of Hebrew theology, for example, that God is one and that only He is worthy of worship, and for the moment also this call to pointing out this child as God himself worthy of worship in both passages, this assures us of the unconventional, the strange but also the true of this passage.

Let me take the diversity of these things that I have pointed out and put them into five elements that are in common so that we see the similarity in a more developed way, we are going to see the qualities of God revealed in that child: first, a God of glory, then we see a God of peace, three, we see a God of joy, fourth, we see a personal God, and at the end we see a universal God.

God of glory, God of peace, God of joy, a God who wants personal contact with His people, and a God who is accessible to the whole world. We begin with the God of glory, a God who inspires wonderful wonder. We see in the Gospel of Luke these shepherds there in the field, a daily scene, natural at night, in the dark, and there penetrating the darkness we see the glory, the shekinah of Jehovah there exploding in the sky and the angels, and the glory illuminating the entire environment where they are.

And we see the glory of Jehovah because the shepherds and the kings that come are called to worship the baby, it is known that only God is worshiped, and it is known that worshiping the baby Jesus is worshiping God himself there in the manger.

Isaiah speaks even more directly about it and says that this baby is going to be wonderful and admirable, and we see in the narrative of Gideon and that of Samson, in this passage Manoa asks the angel: and what is your name? and the angel says to him: why do you ask my name, which is admirable, which is wonderful? because it is the angel of Jehovah, the angel of God who is there present, God in a theophany presenting himself to Manoa, that same word is applied to this baby, admirable, wonderful, who inspires fear, who inspires admiration as God inspires admiration.

Let's see this accompaniment of the glory of God, the light that we see in Isaiah also, says that: "There will not always be darkness because the people who walked in darkness saw great light, those who dwelt in the shadow of death, light shone on them" that bright and powerful light from Almighty God.

I love to meditate on the glory of Jesus because that glory, that divine power is what guarantees me that the things that He has declared about my life, about His people are going to be fulfilled because it is that glorious God who is declaring those things over my life and if He declares them and He wants them to happen they will happen because it is God who guarantees it.

That is why meditating on the glory of God is not only a theological idea, it has practical applications for our lives. We have to meditate on the glory and divine power of Jesus, and He wants it to be so because we also see that in the last great commission the Lord, before calling His people to go out and preach the Gospel, and conquer the nations for the Kingdom of God says: "All power is given to me in heaven and on earth" and as He says all that power is given to me, I have it, therefore go and preach the Gospel to all nations, it is for that glory, by that deity of Christ that we have that authority to intervene in the world and in reality, so this Christmas let us remember that glorious Christ who is living in us and who wants us to move in that authority for any situation , any challenge we may face in our lives.

And we see a second quality of this wonderful incarnate God and that is that he is a God of peace, a God who brings peace to our hearts. In Luke's story we see that when that glory of God invades the shepherds and they feel overwhelmed, what happens, what happens when people have contact with the divine? they experience terror and trembling as in the case of Ezekiel, Isaiah and other prophets who were confronted with the glory of God and said: we are dead because no one can see God and survive. And yet what do the angels tell them? "Do not be afraid" is also another thing that accompanies that terror that they experience, the Lord says: No, do not be afraid, may peace come to your heart.

When Peter, after the miraculous catch of fish, realizes that this being has allowed nature to go to them to bless them with a great catch, he says that Peter and his friends experienced great fear and said: it has to be God to do this, and again : The Lord tells him do not fear Peter, from today you will be a fisher of men.

It is that wonderful thing, that contrast of the powerful deity that inspires terror in human beings but accompanied by that merciful and gentle God who calls us to trust in His mercy and goodness.

And the Prophet Isaiah alludes and refers to that same effect of peace that there is in the promised Messiah, and he says at the beginning of chapter 9: "There will not always be darkness for those who are now in anguish, such as the affliction that in another time experienced by the Jewish people.

We have a God who the Prophet also says is a counselor God, who advises us in our times of difficulty and terror, and is also a God who eliminates and who comes one day to put an end to war and conflict between beings. humans, and comes to make peace among men.

In verse 5 of Isaiah 9 it says that: "All footwear that the warrior wears in the tumult of battle and every cloak rolled in blood will be burned", will be eliminated from human history, it is a graphic, symbolic way of saying: hey the instruments of war, due to the cumulative effect of the promised Messiah, will one day be completely eliminated, and we know that this message has not yet been fully fulfilled, this message will be fulfilled when Christ reigns in His total way over humanity, but precisely that is what that the Coming of Jesus has come to bring to the world, is to break the inevitability of human war and conflict, and establish the bases so that one day the peace of God will reign in all human spheres.

Now, Isaiah says in verse 7: "The extent of his empire and peace will have no limit" and I like to think that that promise includes not only the aspect of peace thus superimposed on war and human physical conflict, but that it is also the extension of the peace that Christ makes possible and that extends to the heart of humanity; those who were in darkness, in anguish, in sadness, in despair can now experience peace through Christ Jesus.

And what to say about peace between God and man, God and woman, us and God. When Christ comes into the world between God and man there was an insurmountable enmity. When Christ comes into the world there is now peace between God and man through Christ Jesus.

We already have peace with God, I believe the writer of Romans says, God's gift is peace with us, eternal life in reconciliation with God. Romans 5 says: "Justified by faith we have peace with God through Christ Jesus" and I like to think of Christmas as such a time to remember this Christ who calls us to peace even in the midst of storms and the difficulties of life.

In our own life as Christians we have Christ in our hearts but moments of affliction come, moments of trial and sickness come, but mysteriously in the fact that Christ reigns in our hearts we can have peace too, we can hope that He will take control from all the storm

We serve a Jesus who slept through the storm, amen? a big storm around, the waves and the winds, and our Jesus sleeping in peace because He knows who has control over the situation.

God does not force us to deny that there are storms, He does not ask us to say that we do not have problems when we do have them, but what He does invite us to know is that if Jesus is in the boat with me, I will reach the other side, He will guide me. take care, I'll be fine. Brothers: no matter what we are going through in these Christmas times, let us keep our eyes fixed on that powerful and glorious God who is Christ Jesus and He will give us peace. Don't take that gaze from Jesus, eyes on Jesus, eyes on Jesus and then I'll get to the other side, the storm can't overwhelm me.

We have a God of glory, a God of peace, and we have a God of peace and joy far beyond what we can imagine. God not only invites you to drink the juice but also a coke, I don't know what, that is overflowing with foam and gas, with a delicious flavor, and other holy drinks and flavors, thank God. What did Jesus Christ say? He said: Those who believe in me rivers of living water will flow from their interior, amen.

Joy is something that springs from within, rivers of living water spring within us. When Elizabeth met Mary, the baby John the Baptist, even in the womb she jumped for joy within her, this is the joy that God gives you, it makes you jump with joy in your heart. What do the angels say? "I bring you tidings of great joy, that today a savior has been born for you in Israel" not only joy but an overflowing joy.

I imagine that for those pastors, realizing that God was interested in them knowing that this child had been born, they felt privileged, they felt included, they were no longer worn out, poor, insignificant, but God cared about them too and this heralded a new era for all that humble, poor, worn out, ignored humanity, now they could also be part of the drama of salvation and that was a source of great joy for them.

Isaiah in chapter 9 in verse 3 says: "You multiplied the people and increased the joy, they will rejoice before you as they rejoice in the harvest, as they rejoice when they distribute the spoil." We see that right? any nation likes the idea of growing, of expanding, that the population is increasing because that ensures its future destiny, and the writer Isaiah says this: they will rejoice as they do when nations increase their number, people multiply and they rejoice as when harvesting that ah! finally the harvest is secure, we have food for the future months and people celebrate autumn and harvest festivals, and also in a somewhat gloomy way the warriors and the people when they have defeated an enemy nation and they win the lottery dividing up all the food and spoils of the enemy, in a sense there is an enemy who has been spoiled, the enemy of humanity has been spoiled and we also rejoice and celebrate that victory. The writer John says that: "He came to undo the works of the devil" and that is why we can rejoice this Christmas too.

The only thing I can say, brothers, is that joy is a decision, I would like to have time to develop that and perhaps one day I could dedicate a sermon on that call to joy in Scripture, but perhaps one of the things that I can leave you there as a piece of advice is that: decide to enjoy yourself even in the midst of tribulations and struggles, make a decision; "I will rejoice with everything" says the writer of Habakkuk, and I will rejoice in the God of my salvation even though there is no visible reason to do so, but I am going to rejoice anyway, amen? rejoice in the Spirit.

Glorious God, God of peace, God of joy and also a personal God, we are going to see the universal God first and then at the end I think we are going to talk about the personal God, a universal God.

On one occasion, the Lord Jesus Christ Himself quoted a passage from Isaiah and He said: "Remember what Isaiah said, that my house will be called a house of prayer for all peoples." One of the wonderful things about the Gospel message is that it is for all humanity, it does not matter what gender you are, it does not matter if you are rich or poor, Christ has been born for your life and for your blessing brother.

Christ has been born for the young and for the old, Christ has been born for the intellectuals and for those who do not have much education. We see that when the people came to Jesus to be healed, they say that he healed them all. In the Gospel accounts we see Jesus healing men and women, resurrecting a girl, resurrecting a young man, Martha and Mary were women and the Lord ministered to them at a time when women did not have great value.

Jesus healed pagans who were not part of Israel, the Cyrophoenician woman, ministered to the Samaritan woman who became the first evangelist in a sense to come back and preach in her community in Samaria, and likewise the shepherds hear this idea that the good news will be for all the people. The angels also declare that: "there will be peace on earth and goodwill toward all men."

Isaiah himself in chapter 9 in this story that we are studying says that there will be joy in Galilee of the Gentiles, in verse 1 at the end, it is a somewhat obscure reference and experts debate what Isaiah meant but it is clear that his The intention is to illustrate that Jesus comes to minister to all people, to all peoples.

I think of those wizards who came from the east, the Lord wanted there to be witnesses who spoke and that they were from other nations, and these wizards were not Hebrew, these wizards did not know the Hebrew scriptures, but God wanted to bring them to remember that He wanted them to there would also be witnesses from all nations and faraway places.

Brothers: let us remember this Christmas that God came to save all humanity, our entire city, our entire community, and I invite the other members of the Lion of Judah Congregation brothers in this year 2017 that begins to become a purpose to be a Church for the whole city and for the whole community, amen?

God has not only called us to be a Latino Church or an Afro-American or Asian Church, God has called us to be a Church that represents all the richness and diversity of this city, amen? As never before, brothers, your leaders and the Pastors of this Congregation are committed to making León de Judá a Church for all races and all socio-economic sectors of this city.

This morning we have enjoyed the special adoration in which we have seen precisely representatives of all the races of this humanity, Koreans, Latinos, all adoring and celebrating the beautiful message of the birth of Christ Jesus and that is what we have to work for. that it becomes possible in our Church every day more and more.

That is one of the most beautiful things and I want to have a second and say that being a Church as diverse as ours is not easy, it involves a bit of discomfort for all of us. We are still learning every day how to be that diverse Church where there is equal participation, influence, and message. This is not easy because there aren't really many models, I believe, unfortunately of Churches that are balanced and diverse, and we are in a sense of making a lot of things up, and it's going to take a long time for us to get to that balance but I thank God that we're willing, all of us here, to be a little uncomfortable until it's found out through the Holy Spirit how to be that diverse and balanced Church.

One of my favorite passages in all of Scripture is this one from Isaiah 9, it says: “For a child is born to us” that possessive that that child has been born to us, personalizes it for me. That child has not been born simply in some abstract theological and historical way, it is like when a child has been born to us, to a family, it has a particular and special meaning, that joy of a family to whom a child has been born as God has been born to us through Christ Jesus.

It is the same thing that Luke also says, it is the same idea in verse 11, that is why I say that the parallels are so great and so perfect, in Luke 2 verse 11 he says: "That he has been born to you today in the city of David a savior." I don't think Lucas was necessarily thinking of Isaiah who said that a child is born to us, a son is given to us but here we have that same idea, a child is born to us today, a savior. Christ was born in our womb, in our lives, in our Church, in our community.

I do not believe that there is in any other account of any religion in the world this idea that mixes an amazing, admirable, marvelous God, of great and infinite power but who also lives in the human heart, lives in a small place of our being, but it is also infinitely great and these two truths are united in the Christmas story.

And let's go to the end of all this, I invite you on this day to leave here with that idea of that personal God who remembers that we are dust, who sympathizes with our condition, who experienced all the temptations and sufferings that we experience and who not only knows everything theoretically because he is God and knows everything, but because He experienced our suffering and suffering firsthand.

The fact that Christ became man and that he is our high priest, and that he knows us just as we are, that personal God must be a source of confidence for us, to draw near to Him no matter what our situation is, no matter if we are still in the process of being sanctified, if we are struggling with a lot of internal conflicts and temptations, and so many other things, that personal God knows all the minutiae of the human soul and He receives us, and has compassion on us, and listens Our prayers.

And that is why the writer of Hebrews, and with this I end, combines this idea of the personal God with coming before Him with all confidence, with all peace in our hearts. In verse 19 of Hebrews chapter 10 the writer of Hebrews says: “So, brothers, having freedom to enter the most holy place through the blood of Jesus Christ, through the new and living way that He opened for us through the veil of His flesh , and having a high priest over the House of God, let us approach with a sincere heart in full certainty of faith, hearts purified from evil conscience and bodies washed with pure water.”

Hebrews 4:15: “Because we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin, let us therefore approach the Throne of Grace with confidence to obtain mercy and find grace for timely help."

So I want to invite all of us who are here, let us lower our heads for a moment if you would be so kind as to accompany me, meditate for a moment on this glorious God, this God of peace, this God of joy, this personal God, this universal God, And if you have not done it before or if you have but want to reaffirm your invitation to that God who is Christ Jesus to dwell in your heart, to be born to you, I invite you this afternoon to bring the Lord and let him enter into your heart and establish His Throne within your life, the personal God wants to enter your heart this afternoon, the God who is small enough to dwell within you, He offers Himself again through the Christmas message and He tells you: Open the door, let me in and if you already have me inside, invite me back to stay in your heart.