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Series Code: BOL
Program Code: BOL000699S
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00:01 (Breath of Life Theme Music)
00:06 Sermon #B699 - Christmas, What Is It? 00:20 Dr. Byrd: We want to get into the word of God now 00:23 and so I want to invite you to take your Bibles and take them and turn with me to the Book of Luke, 00:29 Luke Chapter 2, and we're going to go to verse number 8. Luke Chapter 2 00:34 and we're going to verse number 8. Luke Chapter 2 today, verse number 8 00:39 and we're going to read these verses, verses 8 through 14. Today, Luke 2:8, 00:46 the word of God from the King James version, for the people of God says, 00:50 "And there were in the same country, 00:53 shepherds abiding in the field keeping watch over their flock by night. 00:59 And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, the glory of the Lord shone round about them: 01:05 and they were sore afraid. And the angel said unto them, Fear not, for behold, 01:12 I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. 01:17 For unto you is born this day in the city of David a savior, which is Christ the Lord, 01:25 and this shall be a sign unto you. Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, 01:31 lying in a manger. And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God 01:39 and saying, Glory to God in the highest and on earth, peace goodwill toward men." 01:51 Today, our subject is entitled simply, Christmas - What is it? Christmas - 01:59 What is it? Before we talk to you, let's talk with the Lord. 02:02 God, we thank you today for all that we've experienced already in this worship experience. 02:08 But now it's time for us to hear a word from you. Lord, if we don't hear from you, what will we do? 02:14 So, speak, Lord, your servant heareth. Go through the television airwaves, go through the internet 02:21 and the computer airwaves, and may your anointing be seen, be felt, and be heard. 02:27 Hide me behind your cross and we praise you in advance for what you're going to do. 02:31 Now, when the appeal time comes, as you do each week, speak to your people, 02:36 and may your people hear your voice and may they follow you. Forgive me of my sins. 02:41 We pray, in the name of Jesus. Amen. 02:46 Christmas - What is it? Christmas - What is it? This is the season that is supposed to be jolly. 03:02 This is supposed to be the most wonderful time of the year. 03:08 This is the time of year when the malls are supposed to be packed, people are giving 03:15 and sharing with others, drinking eggnog, and singing Silent Night, Holy Night. 03:25 But instead of Christmas blessings, in many cases, we're experiencing Christmas blues. 03:35 We have over 75 million coronavirus cases worldwide and we're approaching 1.7 million deaths. 03:45 It's starting to hit close to home now as many of our church members have contracted the virus 03:52 and we've even experienced death in our church family. Hospitals are at full occupancy, 04:01 medical workers many are at their breaking points, 04:05 vaccines have begun to be given with many still skeptical of the uncertainty of their effects. 04:13 People are out of work and our elected leaders who at a minimum, make one hundred 04:19 and seventy-five thousand dollars per year, 04:22 can't settle on a stimulus package of six hundred dollars for the least of these. 04:29 There's a winter storm pounding the Northeast, a transition of power in our federal government, 04:36 which some people still can't acknowledge its in 31 days. 04:41 A runoff election in the state of Georgia that will determine the balance of power in the senate in 04:47 17 days. People are still contracting cancer. People are still dying of heart disease. 04:56 Car accidents are still happening. But yet we're supposed to be jolly. We're supposed to be happy. 05:06 Christmas time is supposed to be the most wonderful time of the year, 05:12 but let's put Christmas in perspective today. It's not supposed to be about us anyway. 05:20 The key to making Christmas a time of blessings and not a time of blues, 05:24 is we've got to get our minds off ourselves because Christmas is not about us, 05:31 Christmas is all about him. I wish somebody knew what I was talking about. 05:36 You see, we have a tendency of forgetting whose birthday it actually is. 05:41 We're not celebrating our birthday, but we're celebrating Jesus's birthday. 05:48 Now, don't get it twisted because somebody will try to take my words and twist them. 05:52 Don't do that. I'm not saying December 25 is Jesus' birthday, but I am saying Jesus was born, 05:59 and at Christmas time, we're celebrating his birth. 06:03 For many, 2020 has been the worst but maybe, just maybe, 06:10 God is using this season to refocus us on the real reason of the season. 06:17 That we really need to stop worrying about what's going on all around us in this world, 06:22 and we really need to stop complaining about what we don't have 06:26 and just start thanking God for what we do have. Food on your table, 06:32 that's a blessing you better thank God. Clothes on your back, that's a blessing you better thank God. 06:39 Clothed in your right mind, that's a blessing you better thank God. 06:43 A roof over your head, that's a blessing you just ought to thank God. 06:48 A reasonable measure of health, that's a blessing you ought to thank God because things just might be bad, 06:56 but you better trust me, things can be a whole lot worse than what they are right now 07:00 because all of your good days still outweigh your bad days. So stop complaining, 07:06 you better understand what Christmas is all about. 07:09 Because too many people don't really know what Christmas is about, I want to talk about Christmas today. 07:14 What it is, what it means, and what it's about. 07:20 In the text that we just read from Luke Chapter 2, 07:23 the Bible declares in verse number nine again that the angel of the Lord came upon the shepherds 07:31 and the glory of the Lord showed all round about them, and the Bible says that they were sore afraid. 07:39 Now, I don't know if you just read what I just read but the Bible said that the glory of the Lord came 07:45 and they were sore afraid. Isn't it amazing that they were afraid of the glory, I wish I had time. 07:53 Some people are afraid of the glory. When the glory cloud comes, some people are afraid. 08:00 When the spirit of God gets to moving, some people are afraid. Verse 10 says, 08:06 "And the angel of the Lord said unto them, Fear not, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy," 08:14 and now let's stop right there. In other words, the angel was saying, 08:17 I'm bringing you something you've never had before. That's a message for somebody right now. 08:23 Let me just say this to somebody who's watching. Don't be afraid of something you've never had before. 08:27 Don't be afraid of something you've never experienced before. 08:30 Don't be afraid of something you've never seen before 08:33 because you are about to experience breakthroughs you've never had before. 08:37 You are about to experience miracles you've never seen before. When God brings you something-- 08:43 I wish somebody knew what I was talking about. That when God brings you something, 08:47 you don't have to be afraid. You just keep walking in the blessings that God has for you. 08:53 I wish I had a witness in this place. 08:54 We go back to verse number 10. The Bible says, "And the angel of the Lord said unto them, 08:59 Fear not, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people," 09:06 verse number 11, "For unto you is born this day, in the City of David, a savior, 09:13 which is Christ the Lord," verse number 12, 09:15 "And this shall be a sign unto you that ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes 09:22 and lying in a manger." And it's from these verses that we get three things of what Christmas is all 09:30 about, from these three verses. Number one, quickly 09:34 and I'm gonna say these things that I'm gonna sit down. Number one we get from the text, 09:37 we get the message of Christmas. The message of Christmas. But somebody may be asking, "Pastor Byrd, 09:45 what is the message of Christmas?" I'm so glad you asked. 09:48 The message of Christmas is that Jesus came to save us, hallelujah. That's the message of Christmas, 09:55 that Jesus came to save us. The very name of Jesus means salvation 10:02 and when Jesus came into this world as a baby, he came to save us. The text says, 10:09 "For unto you is born this day, in the city of David, a savior, 10:15 which is Christ the Lord and she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name Jesus, 10:21 for he shall save his people from their sins." When Jesus came to this earth, he came to save his people, 10:29 he came to save them from sin. He came to save them from lying. He came to save them from cheating. 10:36 He came to save them from stealing. He came to save them from adultery. He came to save them from doubt. 10:42 He came to save them from depression. 10:44 The Bible says that he came to seek and to save that which was lost. 10:49 That's why he came the first time to save his people and the Bible teaches that whoever believes 10:53 in the name of the Lord shall be safe. When God set out to save, God gave. Let me say that one more time. 11:02 I said when God set out to save, God gave. God gave us Jesus and when God gave us Jesus, 11:11 I'm so glad that he gave us his best. God didn't send an angel, God didn't send Gabriel, 11:19 God didn't send cherubims and seraphims but God gave up His most prized possession, 11:26 He gave up his son that we could be saved. So don't you ever doubt God's love for us. 11:31 It doesn't matter how we feel, it doesn't matter what we've done, 11:36 it doesn't matter how many mistakes we've made, God gave us - thank you, 11:41 Jesus, His best when he gave us his son because God loves us. 11:45 The Bible says, "For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son that whosoever believeth 11:51 in him should not perish but have everlasting life." Notice in this scripture that we say all the time, 11:58 John 3:16, that God so loved the world that the Bible says he gave. So we need to understand, 12:04 friends of mine, that Jesus is like wasn't taken from him. 12:08 But Jesus gave his life so that we might have life and have it more abundantly. 12:13 You don't hear what I'm saying today. You and I had a need and that need was a savior. 12:20 God gave us the perfect gift to meet our biggest need. If our greatest need had been information, 12:28 God would have sent an educator. If our greatest need had been technology, 12:33 God would have sent a scientist. If our greatest need had been money, God would have sent an economist. 12:40 If our greatest need had been pleasure, God would have sent an entertainer. 12:45 If our greatest need had been to exercise, God would have sent an athlete. 12:49 But our greatest need was a savior. Our greatest need was forgiveness, so God sent a savior, 12:57 for, unto us, a child is born. Unto us, a savior is given in the city of David a savior, 13:03 which is Christ the Lord and that's the message of Christmas that Jesus came to save us. 13:09 But not only from his text do we get the message of Christmas. But number two, 13:13 we get the motive of Christmas. Verse 12 says, "And this shall be a sign unto you, 13:20 ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger." 13:28 Now, you need to understand that the Greek word for sign here is Simeon which means this is an indication 13:36 that has a meaning or this is a token that has a meaning. In other words, 13:41 this is a sign that's pointing to something. Are you following what I'm saying? 13:46 Luke mentions two things in this text. First, Luke mentions, 13:50 ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes and then Luke says, lying in a manger. 13:58 Now, these signs - wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger, they point to something, 14:04 they indicate something. Let's deal with swaddling clothes first. Now, when Jesus was born, 14:10 they did not wrap Jesus in a beautiful blue blanket like they wrap baby boys today. 14:18 The text says he wasn't wrapped in a blue blanket, but the text says he was wrapped in swaddling clothes. 14:25 I'm going somewhere. Swaddling clothes were long strips or long bands of cloth. 14:32 Jesus was wrapped tightly in long strips of cloth, swaddling clothes were tight clothes, 14:41 but tight clothes were also what they wrapped the dead in when they were buried, 14:46 y'all don't hear what I'm saying. At Jesus's birth, he was wrapped in tight clothes. 14:51 At Jesus's death, he was also wrapped in tight clothes. 14:55 Now, remember, Jesus was born to die. The reason for Jesus's birth is that he had to die 15:02 because you can't die unless you've been born. Are you hearing what I'm saying? 15:06 For our sins to be forgiven, blood had to be shed 15:10 and the only way blood could be shed was that Jesus had to die. But in order for Jesus to die, 15:17 Jesus, first, had to be born. 15:19 The motive of Christmas is that we serve a savior who was born to die for us. He died for our sins, 15:28 he died for the sins of the world. So the very then clothes Jesus was wrapped in, swaddling clothes, 15:35 gives us the purpose of his life. He was born to die. But that's not all. Why was he lying in the manger? 15:43 Remember now, the birth of a king should be attended by other royalty, other monarchs, 15:49 other presidents, other heads of state, but the birth of King Jesus, 15:54 the birth of baby Jesus was surrounded by sheep, cattle, and goats. Think about it, Jesus, 16:02 the King of Kings, could have been born in a synagogue. Jesus, the King of Kings, 16:08 could have been born in a church. Jesus could have been born in the finest hospital. 16:13 Jesus could have been born in a mansion. Jesus could have been born to rich people. 16:19 He could have had maids and servants, butlers and bakers. 16:23 He could have had ten thousand angels to take care of him, but no, Jesus was born without a doctor. 16:29 Jesus was born without a nurse. Jesus was born without a midwife. Jesus was born without a nanny. 16:38 Jesus was born without anything or anybody in an old, tired, dilapidated manger. 16:46 Jesus is King of Kings and Lord of Lords, but in this Kingdom, he's a meek, mild, humble, 16:55 and lowly servant who gives his life for the last, the least, the lost, the unlucky and the left out. 17:04 God, who stepped out from behind the curtain of nowhere on the platform of nothing 17:10 and spoke this world into existence was born in a lowly manger which shows us how low he would go 17:18 to save us, that he believed the celestial courts of heaven to come to this sin infested 17:24 earth to save you and me. We couldn't reach him, so he decided, thank you, Jesus, 17:30 to come where we are. 17:33 The difference between Christianity 17:36 and every other religion in the world is that all the other religions are about a man trying to reach 17:43 up to God. But Christianity is about God reaching down to man, that the super has come to the natural. 17:53 The heavenly has come to the earthly. Divinity has met humanity. 17:58 Creator has come in contact with creation. That's the message of Christmas. 18:05 That's the motive of Christmas. 18:07 But I've got one more point to make and then I will sit down. Number three, the meaning of Christmas. 18:14 The meaning of Christmas. Now, the word Christmas is a compound word. 18:20 I learned in grade school that a compound word is just two words that are put together. 18:24 Are you hearing what I'm saying? The word of Christmas is a compound word. Christ is for Christ 18:30 and mass is for mass and mass means celebration, which means Christmas is a celebration of Christ. 18:40 Now look at verses 13 and 14, then I'm going to sit down. Look at verses 13 and 14, the Bible says, 18:45 "And suddenly, there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host, Hallelujah, praising God 18:54 and saying, Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace goodwill toward men." 19:02 Let me read that one more time, "There suddenly with the angel, 19:05 a multitude of the heavenly host praising God," which means they know how to have church in heaven too. 19:10 I wish I had a witness in this place. Saying, Glory to God in the highest and on earth, 19:16 peace goodwill toward men." 19:19 All right, here we go. The angels were celebrating. The angels were rejoicing. 19:24 The angels were praising. Christmas is a time of celebration. Christmas is a time of praise. 19:33 That's why we say Merry Christmas because we're giving God praise. We're giving God glory. 19:39 We're giving God adoration. We're celebrating God and when the praises of God are going up, 19:45 I believe I've got somebody who knows the blessings are coming down. If there's one era 19:51 and thing in the Christian faith that I believe is underestimated, it's the power of praise. 19:56 Praise means to speak well of a person. Praise means to speak well of a personality 20:02 and to speak well and loud that's where we get the word Shabak from but for the believer, 20:07 there's so much tied to praise that some people just haven't gotten it yet. I have to admit it, 20:13 but when I was growing up in the church, I used to look at some people praise God like they did 20:18 and I mean I felt at that time, it didn't take all that. But as soon as I got a little older 20:25 and I discovered that I hadn't been through anything because you can't have a testimony without a test. 20:31 I wish I had a witness in this place. And I was criticizing everybody else 20:34 because I didn't understand the things that they were going through. 20:37 I came to understand that I had judged them unfairly because when I have gone through some things 20:42 for myself when I had been dragged down through the mud, when I have been talked about, 20:48 when I have been criticized, when I have been lied to, when I have been abused 20:52 and misused then I came to understand why people praise God like they did 20:58 because I found out that if God has ever done anything for you, you just can't help but praise His name. 21:05 Does anybody know what I'm talking about? 21:06 You see, whenever you've been through some things and God has brought you out, 21:10 you literally stop trying to be cute, you stop worrying about what people say about you. 21:14 You stop worrying about what people are going to think about you, you just start praising God. 21:19 As a matter of fact, God has been so faithful. I feel my help coming. 21:23 By now, you don't even have to wait till you come out of a situation. Don't wait till the battle's over, 21:28 you can shout now. But you've learned how to praise God in the midst of your situation, oh, 21:33 my help is coming. I praise God because when I think of the birth of Jesus, 21:38 no other birth was like the birth of Jesus. No other birth caused a virgin to conceive. 21:44 No other birth caused wise men to come from the east. No other birth call stars to skip in the sky. 21:51 No other birth caused angels to get on an elevator and come down to the shepherd's fields and say, 21:56 "I bring you good tidings of great joy." No other birth called 22:01 and caused angels to assemble their choir stands in midair 22:05 and caused Gabriel to direct while Mercy was on the piano, 22:09 while Justice was on the organ and they started singing, Glory to God in the highest and on earth, 22:15 peace goodwill toward men. There's no birth like Jesus' birth because there's nobody like Jesus. 22:21 Why do I praise him? I praise him because nobody can speak like Jesus, when Jesus spoke, trees withered. 22:29 When Jesus spoke, seas laid down. When Jesus spoke, fires lost their heat. When Jesus spoke, 22:36 the lame walk. When Jesus spoke, the dumb talk. When Jesus spoke, the blind saw. When Jesus spoke, 22:43 graves gave up the dead. 22:45 He took sodium and chloride 22:48 and made salts. He took hydrogen and oxygen and made water. He put vitamins in vegetables, 22:54 sugar in fruit, protein in beans, calcium in milk. He took two fish, five loaves of bread, 23:01 and fed 5,000 and I believe I've got a witness in this place that knows he's still bread on my table. 23:07 Nobody can feed like Jesus. Why do I praise Jesus? One day, nobody can heal like Jesus. 23:16 One day, he spoke and he said, "Pick up your bed and walk," and a man started walking. 23:23 One day, he didn't feel like preaching or reaching, he just stopped 23:26 and let a woman touch the hem of his garment and she was made whole. One day, he spat on the ground, 23:33 made mud, and put it on a man's eyes and the blind man was able to see. 23:37 One day, he was four days late to Lazarus' grave, but somebody knows he's an on-time God. 23:43 Yes, he is. And when he got there to Bethany, at Mary and Martha's house, he told him, 23:48 "Why are you weeping? Do you know who I am? I am the resurrection and the life. Lazarus, come forth," 23:57 because nobody can heal like Jesus. 24:01 Why do I praise him? Well, finally nobody can see like Jesus. Men can slip around the corner, 24:09 but Jesus can see around the corner. Men can see what it is, but men can't see what it's going to be. 24:16 Men can see the smile on your face, but men can't see the attitude of your heart, 24:21 but Jesus can look at you. Jesus can look in you. Jesus can see what's bothering you. 24:27 And since nobody can see like Jesus, that's why I praise him like I do, 24:33 that's why I magnify him like I do, that's why I adore him like I do, 24:39 that's why I celebrate him like I do. Nobody was born like him. Nobody spoke like him. 24:45 Nobody feeds like him. Nobody heals like him. Nobody can see like him. Herod couldn't kill him. 24:53 Governments couldn't silence him. Money couldn't buy him. Satan couldn't seduce him. 24:58 Death couldn't destroy him. Hell couldn't handle him and the grave couldn't hold him 25:03 and that's the meaning of Christmas. It's time to celebrate the message of Christmas, 25:10 the motive of Christmas, the meaning of Christmas. I said the message of Christmas, 25:15 the motive of Christmas, the meaning of Christmas. I said the message of Christmas, 25:21 the motive of Christmas, the meaning of Christmas. Jesus came to save us, 25:27 Jesus was born to die for us, and Christmas is a celebration of Christ. 25:34 Isaiah said, he's a wonderful counselor, mighty God, everlasting father. 25:42 He's the prince of peace and that's the message of Christmas. That's the motive of Christmas. 25:50 That's the meaning of Christmas. So, Merry Christmas, Feliz Navidad. Lift up your heads, 26:01 O, ye gates lift up your heads, O ye gates. I said lift up your heads, O ye gates 26:10 and be ye lifted up ye everlasting doors and the king of glory shall come in. 26:18 Somebody said who is the king of the glory? The Lord, strong and mighty. 26:23 Who is the king of glory? The Lord, mighty in battle. That's the message of Christmas. 26:30 That's the motive of Christmas. That's the meaning of Christmas. What is Christmas? 26:36 The message, the motive, and the meaning - Jesus came to save us, Jesus was born to die for us, 26:45 and Christmas is a celebration of Jesus. So bring out the balloons, bring out the party favors 26:52 because Jesus was born, Jesus lived, Jesus died, and Jesus is coming back, Hallelujah. 27:02 Christmas - What is it? What is it? It's a message. There was a motive and it has meaning. 27:17 The message, he came to save us. The motive, he had to be born to die for us to save us. 27:29 And then finally, the meaning of it all means we have to celebrate, Christmas, a celebration of Christ. 27:39 Thank you very much for tuning in to this week's Breath of Life broadcast. 27:43 We hope and pray that you've been blessed by Dr. Byrd's inspirational message. 27:48 If you would like to hear this sermon in its entirety, 27:50 please feel free to visit us at www.breathoflife.tv. 27:57 Or, call us at (256) 929-6460. 28:09 Dr. Byrd: Pain, loss, trama, 28:19 in life we experience these things. 28:22 My wife and I have a story, 28:25 we have a testimony of how we lost 28:29 our first born daughter in a horrific car accident. 28:36 We have this new sharing book, its en-titled “Gone.” 28:41 And, in it I want to share with you 28:45 how God has helped me, 28:47 how God has helped my wife, how God has helped us, 28:52 as we had to endure the fact that our first born daughter is gone. 29:01 www.breathoflife.tv 29:07 [END] |
Revised 2020-12-23