Why Was Jesus Born?

 I won't deliver the normal Christmas sermon. You know the one:

 Christ wasn't born on Christmas, It was a Catholic holiday,

Should not be a religious holiday,

 This is my favorite time of the year. Everything means more now, deeper feelings

 Whole world is focused on Jesus Except, ironically, in the Middle East where it all started

 People are focused on doing good, charitable contributions, gifts People feel more deeply, hear of tragedy or good tidings, it means more

 Brings back memories

 Good memories from childhood,

 Same TV specials they aired when I was a kid 

 Interesting the Gentiles had to tell the Jews their Messiah had come 

The Earth was oblivious to what was happening 

A. On the eve of that birth there was a farewell going on in heaven, conversation is recorded for us

B.   Heb 10:5-7 "Sacrifice and offering You did not desire, But a body You have prepared for Me. In burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin You had no pleasure, Then l said, 'Behold, I have come — In the volume of the book U is written of Me To do Your will, O God.'" 

Jesus came, ignored by the world, but with all the fanfare of heaven, as angels waited to shout their praise.  

And every Christmas many acknowledge the birth of Christ, & even accept He is God to some degree.

 The issue is not that Jesus came, but WHY! 

 To reveal God?      To teach truth?    To fulfill law?   Build a kingdom?    To reveal love?     Bring Peace?

(Yes! but all that is secondary.)  

He came primarily to suffer and to die to pay the penalty for our sins. He only lived in order to die. 

Jesus was born to die. 

Man was made to have dominion over everything. 

1. But he settled for sin and lost everything.

2. He should be a king, but he is a slave: weak, witless, & sinful.

3. And into this situation came Jesus.

4. He came to suffer & to die to make man what he could not be w/o Him.  

Notice the five things that Jesus was because He came and died           

1 Our substitute.

2 Our Salvation Captain.

3 Our Sanctifier.

4 Our Satan Conqueror.

5 Our High Priest. 

But He could be none of those if He had not died.         We' II notice the first of the five. 

I. Our Substitute.

A. Heb. 2:9 But we do see Him who was made for a little white (time) lower than the angels, namely, Jesus, because of the suffering of death crowned with glory and honor, so that by the grace of God He might taste death for everyone.

B. Rom. 6:23 for the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

1. The law of sin & death says that if you sin, you die.

 Physically, spiritually & eternally.

And He sent Jesus to be our substitute.

To pay our debt.

To suffer our fate.

To remove our sins. 

Note six things about His substitution in that verse.

1. For a little while lower than the angels

2. Because of the suffering of death.

3. No one else could do it.

4. Tasted death for everyone the reason for His humiliation (2 Cor 5:21) He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God.

5. By the grace of God The cause of His substitution.

a. Eph. 2:4-6 4 But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, (Jn. 10:18) No one has taken it away from Me, but I lay it down on My own initiative. Rom. 5:8BGod demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

That's God's love.         You didn't deserve it.         I didn't         But He gave it freely.

6. The results of His coming & His suffering: crowned with glory and honor,

Phil. 2:9-11 For this reason also, God highly exalted Him, & bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, of those who are in heaven & on earth & under the earth, & that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Heb. 2:10 For it was fitting for Him, for whom are all things, and through whom are all things, in bringing many sons to glory, to perfect the author of their salvation through sufferings. 

Enormous patience on God's part for those who spit on his son, cursed him, ridiculed him, then hung him on the cross. 

All the sufferings Christ has gone through, all the sufferings his chosen people have endured,

All the pain God has endured watching all this suffering on the part of rebellious ants (we think of as humans)