WHY CHRISTMAS HAPPENED – John 3:16-17
Posted by Pastor Greg Allen on December 22, 2019 under 2019 |
Bethany Bible Church Christmas Sunday Message; December 22, 2019 from John 3:16-17
Theme: Christmas happened because of certain things that are true about God.
(All Scripture is taken from The New King James Version, unless otherwise indicated).
Click HERE for the audio version of this sermon.
I heard a young man walk into the room and call out to one of his co-workers and say, “Happy all-idays!” I thought that was a strange thing to say. I wondered, at first, if he had simply miss-pronounced things … or that perhaps that he was doing a bad imitation of a cockney accent. But as I was just walking out, I could hear him explain, “That’s the new way to say it! ‘Happy all-idays!’ That way, you cover them all!”
Now; I’m not sure what his motives might have been. It may have been that he was wanting to include Hanukkah in his greeting—or perhaps other holidays as well. But it made me think very seriously about the Christmas Eve booklet that I was working on, and about the remarkable story it told. It contains all of the New Testament Christmas passages set in order; and is mixed with Christmas hymns that help us to focus our celebrate upon the birth of Jesus. And overhearing that brief conversation, especially in the context of what I was doing that morning, confirmed to me that Christmas is not just another “all-iday”. Because of what it celebrates, it’s a day to be preserved as something unique above all others. It made me think of how important it is that, in the spiritually dark times in which we’re living, we faithfully keep the focus upon Jesus Christ.
The importance of Christmas is kept in front of us—and the Lord Jesus who was born on Christmas Day is kept in the foreground—if we remember ‘why’ Christmas happened. It’s not just another holiday that can be thrown into the mix with all the others. It’s a day that commemorates something that was profoundly necessary for all of humanity—something that God did in great love for us—something that, ultimately, finds its reason for existing in the very character of God Himself.
And this morning, I ask you to turn with me to John 3. Let’s look at a couple of very well-known and much-loved verses of the Bible. They help us to appreciate why Christmas happen.
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John 3 describes one of the most remarkable conversations that has ever occurred. It was a conversation between the Lord Jesus Christ, and a Pharisee named Nicodemus.
Nicodemus had been hearing a lot about Jesus. He wanted to interview Him personally. But it seems that he was a little fearful, and didn’t want to meet with Jesus in public. And so, John 3:1-3 tells us;
There was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. This man came to Jesus by night and said to Him, “Rabbi, we know that You are a teacher come from God; for no one can do these signs that You do unless God is with him.” Jesus answered and said to him, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” (John 3:1-3).
It seems that Nicodemus had an unspoken concern; and Jesus knew what was really on his heart. And so, He answered the real question; and told him that unless he was born again—or, as it can be translated, ‘born from above’—he could not see the kingdom of God.
This seemed impossible to Nicodemus. He only thought of ‘physical’ birth; and said, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?” The whole idea seemed absurd to him. But Jesus then told him;
“Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’ The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but cannot tell where it comes from and where it goes. So is everyone who is born of the Spirit” (vv. 5-8).
Jesus was not speaking about a physical rebirth, but rather a spiritual one. Someone cannot enter the kingdom of heaven unless he or she has been ‘spiritually reborn’. It is something that only God the Holy Spirit can do for someone. Jesus said that before anyone can enter the kingdom of heaven, they must be ‘born again’.
Nicodemus was bewildered by it all. “How can these things be?” he said.
Jesus answered and said to him, “Are you the teacher of Israel, and do not know these things? Most assuredly, I say to you, We speak what We know and testify what We have seen, and you do not receive Our witness. If I have told you earthly things and you do not believe, how will you believe if I tell you heavenly things? No one has ascended to heaven but He who came down from heaven, that is, the Son of Man who is in heaven” (v. 10-13).
Jesus was saying that the answer to ‘how these things can be’ is found in Himself. He is the Son of Man who came down from heaven, and into the human family, to tell us these things and reveal them to us and to make them possible. And then Jesus said this:
“And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life” (vv. 14-15).
Jesus was reminding Nicodemus of a story in the Old Testament. The people of Israel, as they wandered long ago in the desert on their way to the promised land, had rebelled against God and complained against Him. And in punishment of their sin, God had sent fiery serpents among them to bite and kill many of them. But God also showed mercy to His rebellious people. He provided for them a way to live. He commanded Moses to make a bronze replica of one of the serpents, put it on a pole, and hold it up high so that the people could see it. All who looked at the serpent that Moses lifted up, with faith in God’s promise of salvation, would then live.
Jesus was telling Nicodemus that that Old Testament story was a picture of Himself. Just as Moses lifted up the serpent, Jesus would also one day be lifted up on the cross. It was upon the cross that He bore the guilt of the sin of humanity and paid the death penalty on our behalf. And all who looked to Him in faith, and believed on Him as the atonement for our sin, would not perish but have eternal life.
And it’s then that we find two of the most important verses in the Bible. The first verse is rather well known; and the second is not quite so well known. But together, they tell us what we need to know to be born again. Jesus said;
For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved (vv. 16-17).
Jesus was born into this world so that we can become ‘born-again’ through faith in Him.
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These two verses, then, tell the story of what God did in order to save us—giving His Son to meet our need for salvation. Now; can you think of any other portion of Scripture in the Bible that tells us more plainly what Christmas is really all about? Let me read those words to you again; and think of them in terms of Christmas:
For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved (vv. 16-17).
These two verses tell us several things about God—the Father of our Lord Jesus. And they show us that Christmas happened, ultimately, because these things are true of God.
So; what are those things that are true of God? First, notice that Christmas happened …
1. BECAUSE GOD LOVES GRACIOUSLY.
Verse 16 tells us, “For God so loved the world …” Just think of what a marvelous thing those words alone tell us! What good news it is that the almighty Creator God loves the world!
Some folks say that the phrase ‘the world’ doesn’t really refer to all the people of this world. Rather, it just strictly refers to the elect that God has chosen from out of this world. But that’s not what it says. It says that God loves the world—the whole world—everyone in the world.
Christmas is all about how “the Word became flesh and dwelt among us” (John 1:14). God’s Son was born into the human family as one of us. And this wasn’t something that God sent Jesus to do out of love for just a portion of humanity—but for all humanity. In 1 John 2:2 it says;
And He Himself is the propitiation [that is, the satisfaction of God's just wrath] for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the whole world (1 John 2:2).
God needed to provide only one propitiation for all sin—and that one propitiation, the substitutionary death of His own Son, is sufficient for the sins of every person in the world who places their faith in Him. So, when we read that God the Father “so loved” that He gave His only Son, we can know that He did so out of love for the whole world. It wasn’t that Jesus came into this world in order to persuade His Father to love us; but rather that the Father already loved the world so much that He sent His Son to save us. As John says in 1 John 4:9-10;
In this the love of God was manifested toward us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him. In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins (1 John 4:9-10).
So; here’s the first thing we learn from these two verses about why Christmas happened. It happened because God loved graciously. He loved the world. What a reason to celebrate!
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A second thing we learn is that it happened …
2. BECAUSE GOD GIVES SACRIFICIALLY.
We’re told, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son …” What a great sacrifice of love the Father made for us! He gave that which was most precious and dear to His heart in order to save us. He gave His only begotten Son!
Think of that phrase “only begotten”. It reminds us of the Old Testament story of how God tested Abraham—calling him to offer up Isaac, his only son whom he loved. That’s who Jesus is to the Father. In John’s Gospel, Jesus is referred to four times as ‘the only begotten Son’ of the Father. In John 1:14—the verse we’ve already referred to—we’re told,
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 (John 1:14).
This doesn’t mean that there was ever a time when the Son of God did not exist. He was not ‘begotten’ in the sense that He came into being. He was eternally the Son of the Father. Rather, this phrase “only begotten” speaks of His unique preciousness to the Father. He is the dearest to His Father’s heart. He holds a unique place of love and closeness with the Father. It says in John 1:18;
No one has seen God at any time. The only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, He has declared Him (John 1:18).
All who have a relationship with the Father can only have it through His only begotten Son. As it says in John 3:18;
“He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God” (John 3:18).
All of this shows us how precious the Son is to His Father. And therefore, it shows us how very much the Father loved this world. When it came to giving to this world what it needed in order for people in it to be born-again, the Father’s giving was unlimited and unreserved. He gave that which is most precious to Him—His own Son. As it says in Romans 8:31-32;
What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things? (Romans 8:31-32).
Christmas happened because God is unlimited in His willingness to give us what we need in order to be saved. Isn’t that a reason to celebrate? Isn’t that a reason to keep this day sacred?
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We also see that Christmas happened …
3. BECAUSE GOD WELCOMES FREELY.
As it says in John 3:16, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him …” “Whoever believes in Him …” There’s absolutely no limitation.
Jesus said something about this that is truly wonderful. He said;
All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will by no means cast out (John 6:37).
If a sinner comes to Jesus, it’s because the Father first gave that sinner to Jesus. We never need to hold back in fear, or worry about whether or not the Father has given us to Jesus. We can just simply come. The one who comes to Jesus will never be cast out. And we can rest assured that we will never be lost to Him; because if any sinner comes to Jesus, it was because the Father—in love—first drew that sinner to Him.
This means that Christmas happened because God the Father welcomes anyone who wants to be saved. No matter who they are; no matter what they have done; no matter how much of a sinner they have been—“whoever believes on Him” is welcomed to come. That’s another reason to celebrate Christmas.
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And here’s another reason. Christmas happened …
4. BECAUSE GOD SHOWS SAVING MERCY.
His mercy through Jesus Christ is never partial. It is total. He saves those who believe on Jesus to the ultimate degree. As John 3:16 says, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.”
First of all, we’re being told here that God’s saving mercy is because of a great need. Apart from the atoning sacrifice of Jesus, we would be doomed to perish in an eternal separation from God. We have fallen in sin through Adam; and because of our fallenness, we commit our own sins every day. And the Bible tells us in Romans 6:23, “For the wages of sin is death …” Eternal death! Eternal separation from the God who made us for Himself. No wonder we need mercy!
But the rest of Romans 6:23 says
For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord (Romans 6:23).
The free gift of God through Jesus Christ is not just the removal of the prospect of our ‘perishing’ in eternal judgment. God doesn’t just save us and then tell us to go on our way. Instead, the free gift of God through Jesus is ‘eternal life’. And eternal life is much more than simply about ‘duration’. It’s about ‘relationship’.
Jesus was praying to the Father for us once—just before He went to the cross for us. And He told the Father;
“Father, the hour has come. Glorify Your Son, that Your Son also may glorify You, as You have given Him authority over all flesh, that He should give eternal life to as many as You have given Him. And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent” (John 17:3).
To “know” the Father means much more than to have a cognitive awareness of Him. It means to enter into the fullest possible relationship of love with Him. God’s saving mercy toward us extends all the way to the fullest sense of ‘eternal life’—all the way to the extent of sinners like us entering into a relationship of eternal love with the holy, heavenly Father as one of His own adopted children.
Christmas happened because God shows saving mercy—all the way to the point of bringing everyone who trusts in Jesus into eternal fellowship with Himself. That’s another reason to celebrate!
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And there’s one more reason we’re told that Christmas happened; and that’s …
5. BECAUSE GOD ACTS REDEMPTIVELY.
God the Father is not only loving, and giving, and welcoming, and merciful to the point of salvation. He also takes definitive action! He does what is needed to be done in order to buy us out of our lost condition, and bring us into reconciliation with Himself. As it says in verse 17, “ For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.”
Do you notice that it says that God ‘sent’? That means that our salvation was God’s idea—God’s initiative of action. And because it says that God “sent His Son” into the world, that means that the Lord Jesus came into this world as one of us in obedience to His Father’s will.
It is God the Father who has taken action to save us. And that’s what Christmas is. It is God’s redemptive “action” on our behalf. It happened because God acted redemptively on our behalf—doing for us what we could never do for ourselves—taking action to save us and to reconcile us to Himself—making it possible for us to be born again.. As it says in 1 John 4:19;
We love Him because He first loved us (1 John 4:19).
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So; all of this is to say that we should never relegate Christmas Day into unimportance by merely saying, “Happy All-idays”. It is a unique day. It is a wondrous day. It’s a day too great not to celebrate. It should be kept holy and distinct.
We will keep the Lord Jesus Christ in the forefront on Christmas if we are careful to remember why it happened. It happened because God is who He is—a God who loves graciously, who gives sacrificially, who welcomes freely, who shows mercy savingly, and who acts redemptively. He has shown Himself to us in all these ways by sending His Son into this world to be our Savior;
For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.
That’s why Christmas happened.
Click HERE for the audio version of this sermon.
EA
