Understanding the Significance of Jesus' Birth: Isaiah 7 and Matthew 1

In this sermon, we explore the importance of Jesus' birth within a biblical context. Beginning with Isaiah 7, Preston uncovers the Old Testament prophecy and its immediate context during the Syro-Ephraimite War. The sermon then transitions to Matthew 1, highlighting how Jesus' genealogy and birth fulfill Old Testament prophecies in a profound way. With the Gospel story framing the holiday season, Preston encourages practical ways to share the message of Jesus' birth and its significance with others. Join us as we delve into the theological implications and modern applications of Jesus as 'God with us.'

00:00 Introduction and Handouts
00:28 The Christmas Season and Jesus' Birth
01:46 Diverse Opinions on Christmas
03:09 Biblical Truths About Jesus' Birth
05:29 Isaiah 7: Context and Prophecy
14:12 Matthew 1: Fulfillment of Prophecy
25:25 Practical Ways to Share the Gospel
32:24 Conclusion and Call to Action

Transcript

Good evening. It's good to see all of you out and get to be able to break the word of life with you tonight. There's some handouts being handed out. If you guys don't have one, you can raise your hand. And I got a couple guys handing those out if you'd like one. I'm going to be covering a good bit of text tonight, so it might be helpful in trying to follow along a little bit.

We're going to cover a good bit of ground tonight. But I'm starting by way of, you know, introduction. You know, if you think of Now what time of the year it is? It's December, right? If you didn't already know, we're eight days in, so now you can know that. But we know what all that kind of, what that comes with in our country right now, right?

I'm just on the way to, from the building from where Abby and I live, I noticed in the last couple days and weeks, all these different activities things are popping up in several different yards. I've probably passed like four or five on the way here to the church building and, you know, local churches are advertising for Christmas pageants and things like that and the big signs across the road in Lufkin here.

Whoa, we're not talking about Psalm 2. No iron rods in here tonight. And then, you know, people are decorating their homes for Christmas. There's people reciting the common phrase you hear, you know, remember the season the reason for the season, and so many other things. And so, you know, So tonight, you know, I don't know where you kind of land on the spectrum of like, what you think about Christmas, but however you feel about Christmas and the holiday season, I think we can all recognize that right now Jesus and particularly his birth is on a lot of people's minds.

And so as all of us are Christians, those of us who have become Christians, we all should have something to say about Christ's birth. What is that going to be? I think in my experience growing up in the church, and I'm not saying this is here, but in my experience at least, there's been a diverse array of opinions on Christmas wherever wherever I've been, whether that's Florida, Tennessee, or South Florida.

And I think because of that diverse array of opinions, there's a lot of hesitancy at times to even talk about Jesus birth when December rolls around. And that comes for a lot of different reasons, right? Some people maybe, we don't want to offend other people who feel really strongly about abstaining from practicing Christmas.

Maybe you just don't want to, you just want to totally avoid those conversations altogether. Maybe you want to avoid misunderstandings that might be associated with the, the birth narrative of Jesus in the Old or in the New Testament and common kind of misconceptions that are promoted in the holiday season.

Maybe you just don't want to resemble other Christian traditions that you might disagree with doctrinally. And so they celebrate the Advent season really it's really emphasized in their tradition. So we want to stay away from that. And, you know, we certainly want to encourage all these things. We want to encourage unity among our brethren.

We want to encourage biblical truth. And we also want to encourage distinctiveness in our Christian faith. But at the same time, we can't swing the pendulum so far back the other way. That we totally neglect essential truths about Jesus and his birth. And so as we read in the New Testament over and over again, not only in the Gospels but in Paul's writings and Hebrews as well the birth of Jesus is reiterated over and over again.

In the New Testament, John 1 verse 14 says the Word became flesh and dwelt among us. Galatians chapter 4 verse 4, Paul says when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth His Son born of a woman. And Philippians chapter 2 says that Christ emptied Himself by taking the form of a servant being born in the likeness of men.

First, Tennessee three 16 says he was manifested in the flesh and Hebrews chapter two, a passage that Reagan read part of this morning says since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise partook of the same things that through death, he might destroy the one who is the power of death.

That is the devil. I think in our context, and for good reason, so much of what Jesus story is emphasized is His death, His burial, and His resurrection. But at the same time, all of these aspects of the gospel story, they're only made possible by the incarnation and the birth of Jesus. And so tonight, I really want us to look, as we sang about already tonight, the passage in Isaiah chapter 7 and its fulfillment.

In Matthew chapter one. What I want us to do tonight is really three things. One, I want us to investigate what's going on in Isaiah seven. What's the Old Testament context. And then how does Matthew see Jesus as fulfilling context in a greater, more meaningful way. And then thirdly, how does that pertain to us, especially in this time of year when so many people have Jesus on their minds, especially his birth, how can we use a text like Matthew chapter one.

and teach people about Jesus in a time where they might need to really hear about him during the holiday season. So again, wherever you stay on the spectrum, we're not really addressing questions about that tonight, but really just trying to say, how can we use this time? Just recognize this is a time of the year where Jesus's birth is on people's mind.

Let's take advantage of that and use that as an opportunity to share the gospel with people. with people. And so let's go ahead and dive in without further ado. If you would open up your Bibles to Isaiah chapter 7. That's where we're going to start tonight. I think, you know, a lot of times when we talk about Messianic prophecies, we really like to skip over the Old Testament context.

And we like to kind of jump to the New Testament. How does Christ fulfill it, right? And, you know, if we're being honest with ourselves, the reason why is because the Old Testament can be really hard sometimes. It can be really frustrating. It Because there's a lot of background and information that sometimes we're not as fresh with.

And certainly there's a lot of passages that warrant that, where you jump straight to the New Testament where in the Old Testament it's prophesied, and that prophecy is strictly referring to some messianic figure or Christ in the future. But, as in most cases in the Old Testament, prophecy has an immediate and localized context.

And this is exactly the case in Isaiah chapter 7. So we're going to look at the context and see how Christ fulfills it in a greater way in Matthew chapter 1. So if you will, look in Isaiah chapter 7, and we won't have time to read every single bit of it. We'll read the pertinent bits for us in verses 14 through 17 in just a second.

But to give you the background. We're Got a map up here so you can kind of visualize what's going on in Judah. In 7, between 738 and 732, 7th century, there's this thing going on, this crisis, it's called the Syro Ephraimite War. It's named after these two different countries, you know, Israel, Ephraim being the kind of most large, prominent of the tribes that were a part of Israel at the time, and Syria.

And you can't see, but like, think like right up here. Assyria is this really big nation that is becoming powerful, they're demanding tribute from local kings and making them vassals, and all these countries like Syria and Israel, they are really worried about these guys of Syria up north. And they start this coalition among themselves to kind of band together and say, Hey, we're not going to accept tribute from these guys anymore.

We're not going to let them control us. But unfortunately, not everybody, well, not unfortunately, not everybody was convinced that they should join the coalition. And one of those people was King Ahaz of Judah. And so King Ahaz kind of rejects the coalition. And so Rezin and Pico, the two different kings that come from these two different nations, they come and they bring their armies to the doorsteps.

of Jerusalem. And while this takes place, it's so terrifying. It says in verse two of chapter seven, the Ahaz and his people were greatly afraid and their hearts shook as the trees of the forest shake before the wind. And so there's this great crisis that's going on in the land of Judah. And as a result, God does what he always does in times of crisis.

He sends his prophet to go speak to his people. And he sends Isaiah with his son, Shear Yashuv, which just means a remnant will return. Isaiah's got a ton of sign acts that are done through the names of children in, in Isaiah. Isaiah will go on as we're going to talk about, to talk mention Immanuel being God with us.

Later, my personal favorite is Meher Shalal Hashbaz. Imagine that being your name growing up. That would be pretty, pretty cool. He would, I think Meher Shalal HaShabas would give a boy, a boy named Su a run for his money. Although it'd be a very hard song to sing. And so Isaiah comes with his son. He brings this message to Ahaz.

And what we find out going on in the text through verses three through nine, is that Ahaz or Ahaz is going to be usurped. That's what these kings are trying to do. They're trying to take Ahaz out of his place so they can put a puppet king in his place, and the guy they want to put in is named Tabeel, and his name actually means good for nothing, which is also hilarious.

And so despite the present danger, With this king that they're wanting to replace ahaz with. In Psalm two fashion, God tells Ahaz not to fear because ultimately the, his opponents, they're just mere men. They can't stand against God and his anointed, his king on Mount Zion Mount Zion, they're just smoldering stumps in firebrands is what he calls them and his admonition to ahaz after telling him that this, this attack, it shall not stand, it shall not come to pass.

It's really simple. He tells him to be firm in the faith. He has, doesn't need to fear, all he has to do is not fear these enemies and put his faith and trust in God. And so, this is a really big crisis. The king is being tested here. Is he going to trust in God or not. And this is where we get the text talking about the promised sign.

And so Isaiah comes again to Ahaz, and God is now seeking Ahaz to respond in faith by asking for a sign. Read with me in verse 10 through 13. It says, Again the Lord spoke to Ahaz, Ask a sign of the Lord your God. Let it be as deep as Sheol, or high as heaven. But Ahaz said, I will not ask, and I will not put the Lord to the test.

And he said, Hear then, O house of David, is it too little for you to weary men, that you weary my God also? So Ahaz almost recites scripture here. He basically recites Deuteronomy 6, verse 16. But it's clear by Isaiah's response that Ahaz is not being sincere here. And Ahaz likely doesn't want to receive a sign from God because he knows if he gets it he's probably going to have to put his faith and trust in God rather than the king of Assyria.

And Ahaz really is the first person in the story to kind of embody that, that initial commission that Isaiah is given to go preach. He's going to preach to people who have eyes and ears. But they're not willing to see or hear the message of God. And so he rejects it, but even despite his rejection, God continues and says, Well, I'm going to give you a sign anyways.

So read on in verse 14 through 17 here. Of chapter seven says, therefore, the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold the virgin shall conceive and bears son and shall call his name Emmanuel. He shall eat curds and honey when he knows how to refuse the evil and choose the good for before the boy knows how to refuse the evil and choose the good.

The land whose two kings you dread will be deserted. The Lord will bring upon you and upon your people and upon your father's house such days as have not come since the day of Ephraim departed from Judah, the king of Assyria. And so, surprisingly, in this great time of crisis where enemies are knocking at the door of Jerusalem, God's answer comes in the form of nothing more surprising than a, a, a baby, just a small vulnerable child named Emmanuel.

And we've already read about Isaiah's other son. I mentioned his other two sons and now God gives this other child. And there's a lot of debate as far as who this child actually is. We don't have time to go down that rabbit trail, but the point that is really when I get to what is the point of the child?

And the child's name is Emmanuel. As we know, it means God with us. And so in this time of crisis, God gives the people hope by saying that I am with you. And before this child even matures or has the opportunity to choose its own food or choose right and wrong. Both of these nations, Syria and Israel, are going to be defeated.

But, as we read in the very last verse, in verse 17, there's also a stern warning as well. Ahaz and Judah are warned that they'll seek, they'll obtain the same fate if they continue to misplace their trust in foreign powers. And unfortunately, what we know from 2 Kings account is that's exactly what Ahaz does.

And Ahaz ends up writing a check that really he can't cash, and he gets in a lot of trouble for sure. But that's another story for another time. Really, what I want you to show, to show you in this context is really sorry, is this right here. It said, The child Immanuel, or God with us, is God's sign to his people during a time of crisis.

So he's going to deliver them from their enemies if they'll only put their faith in him. And so Matthew's going to take this prophecy and he's going to look at it in a completely new way. So turn to Matthew chapter 1 and let's look at this, the prophecy and how Matthew sees it being fulfilled. in the person of Jesus.

And as we read, continuing on, actually, in Isaiah's story, God delivers His people in Isaiah 7 through 8, even though they don't really show the faith in Him that He needs, He requires of them. And even later on in Isaiah 36 and 37, a few decades later in 701 B. C., they end up enduring a siege by that Assyrian king.

God brings Assyria against them. But as we know, Hezekiah prays and God ends up saving the people yet again. But this will be really the last time because Judah fails to learn the lesson that Israel before them had fallen prey to in their idolatry And as Israel was carried away by Assyria, so would Judah be by Babylon.

And this Babylonian exile was just totally crippling to the people of God. It was a disaster that left God's people reeling for centuries. And even after the return to the promised land, things were just not the same. And again, people, God's people, they find themselves in a time of crisis. And this is ultimately where Jesus's story starts in Matthew chapter 1.

And so just to look really briefly and summarize the first 17 verses, it's the genealogy you got there on your handout. There's a couple things I want to point out that I think. are helpful for us to understand our, our, our text in just a few minutes. And Matthew, he really begins his genealogy with two really important things.

He states in verse one, of Matthew chapter 1, the book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, son of David, the son of Abraham. So immediately Jesus is being identified with two of the most prominent figures in the history of God's people, the father of Israel, Abraham, and their righteous king, David. And from here, his lineage is really crafted in a very specific Matthew does it in three sections of fourteen generations.

And if you, some people think that the fourteen is specific because he leaves specific people out. It's more of a kind of a theological understanding of Jesus genealogy rather than a historical one. And 14, it's, if you use the practice of Gematria, it's like an ancient practice where every number of the alphabet, or letter of the alphabet, has a corresponding number.

So with David's letters, Dalet, Bob, Dalet, DVD if you want to look at it that way, DVD not Blu ray and that is 4 plus 6 plus 4 equal 14. So some people think that 14 is even a connection, again, to David and his line. But with the first two connections with Abraham and David, with these roots in the history of God's people, he also shows that catastrophe that they experienced in the Babylonian exile in the very last third section.

And so, Israel was kind of left in this state where they needed major restoration. Even after returning to the land, they still needed a spiritual restoration. And in response to all of these things, Israel probably had a lot of questions they were asking at this time that they needed answers to. They were probably asking, okay, well, who is going to help us fulfill the promise of Abraham that Israel be a blessing to all the nations?

Who is going to be our messianic king? Who is going to reestablish God's kingdom and save us from the subjugation of these other nations? Well, God's people find themselves in crisis and need of restoration. And again, God's answer is now a child, but this isn't just any child. He's not merely a sign, but this child is, verse 17 says, He's the Christ.

He is the Messiah. So let's read now that we've kind of got this up underneath us. Matthew chapter one, just we'll start in verse 18 through 20. I'll make a couple of observations and then we'll continue on. Now the birth of Jesus Christ took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with the child from the Holy Spirit.

And her husband Joseph, being a just man and unwilling to put her to shame, resolved to divorce her quietly. But as he considered these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife. For that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.

And we didn't mention this, but in the genealogy, there's four women besides Mary that are mentioned. Tamar, Rahab, Ruth, and Shiva. And so this story starts, Mary's story kind of starts as similar as those women that are pointed out. All of those women were associated with some form of either actually practicing some sort of sexual immorality, There's potentially a scandal related to them or an accusation.

And so the story of Mary and Jesus kind of starts with similar suspicions. But what we find out really quickly is that is not at all what is the case. This child was a product, not of sexual immorality, but the Holy Spirit. And so Mary has conceived this child, and this child is clear from the beginning.

It's supposed to be a unique child. He's already said to be the Christ, the Messiah. Yeah. But there's something different about him, and it's safe to say that he's going to be unlike any person in the history of the world. And so look on me in verses 21 21 through 23 here, it goes on to say, she will bear a son, excuse me, lost my place.

She will bear a son, and he shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins. All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet, behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son. They shall call his name Emmanuel, which means God with us. And so God's answer in a time of crisis is again, a baby.

And this time the baby is named Jesus. And Jesus is just as I mentioned in class this morning, so you already heard this, but Jesus is just the Greek version of the Hebrew name for Joshua, and Joshua's name means Yahweh saves or God saves. And in the Old Testament, Joshua, he himself was the successor to Moses.

And in the following chapters, Matthew goes to great lengths to show that Jesus is not just merely a new Moses, or excuse me, a new Joshua, but he's an even better Joshua, he's an even better Moses, he's a better David, and he's an even truer Israel. And in the end, what Matthew is trying to show Is it Christ and that Jesus is the answer to Israel's need for restoration, but he's saving them not just from some physical enemy as as in the case of Isaiah chapter seven, like a Syria or Israel coming and attacking Judah, but he's going to save them from the greatest enemy that the people have ever faced.

And he's coming to save them from their sins. And in Matthew one through five, Matthew goes on a show. Jesus really kind of. follows in the footsteps of Israel, and he kind of recounts their history and embodies it himself and, and succeeds where all the times where Israel failed. You think about Matthew chapter two, and, and Jesus and his family flee to Egypt because they're afraid that Herod is going to kill Jesus.

Then after that, in chapter three, he comes and begins, before he begins his ministry, he's baptized by John the Baptist. which becomes, you know, after his exodus experience for him now is like the Red Sea experience. And after his baptism, he goes immediately into the wilderness just like Israel did. And he spends 40 days and 40 nights as they did for 40 years.

And after Jesus begins his ministry, where we find him, but we find him on top of the Sermon on the Mount, where he's on a mountain delivering the teachings of the kingdom of God to his people as a new and a better Moses. And so Jesus goes on to say in Matthew chapter 5 in the Sermon on the Mount, this is what he says about himself, says, Do not think I have come to abolish the law or the prophets.

I have not come to abolish them, but to fulfill them. And he says, For truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the law until all is accomplished. And I think what Jesus means here is that he is bringing Israel's history, their laws and their covenants, all of these things that God had promised.

He's ultimately bringing all of Israel's history to its climax. and its fulfillment. And as we already read, Isaiah chapter 7, he even does that as well. And so he does all of these things. He follows in the footsteps of Israel. He repeats their history to bring salvation in a way that has never been seen before.

Salvation through the forgiveness of sins. So ultimately he can fulfill that Abrahamic blessing to be a blessing to all the nations. So all people could be members of God's family. And so, sorry, Jesus is I missed this slide, but Jesus is, He's God with us, not only in name but in person and, you know, Jesus is attributed, He's told to be named Jesus, right?

He's not supposed to be named Emmanuel. So how does Isaiah 7 apply to Him? It just said He's named Jesus, now we're saying to name Him Emmanuel? How does that work? Well, the child in Isaiah chapter 7 through 8 is actually named Immanuel, but this isn't a case for Jesus because Matthew sees Jesus fulfilling his prophecy in such a greater way.

It's not about Jesus being named Immanuel specifically, but he sees him as fulfilling this, as being God with us, not just in name, but actually in person. And Jesus was unlike any other prophet or king, any other Messiah, anointed one in Israel's history. As Messiah, He wasn't just coming to bring some temporary relief or establishment of some earthly kingdom for a time.

But literally, Christ, Jesus, was God with us. And He was sent to deliver people from their sins, if they would only put their faith in Him. Amen. And so, all right, we've covered the context of Isaiah. I know we've covered a lot of ground. So, I know I've thrown a lot at you tonight. I want to give you something to take with you tonight and the rest of the year as we're kind of in this season where people are talking about this story.

Maybe not in this great depth or things like that, but maybe I'll give you some bullets to kind of fire and and talk to people when you see the opportunity. To talk about Jesus when somebody brings up the idea of Jesus birth or Him being Emmanuel. And so, I want to talk about this spark, how can we spark some conversations in December while everybody's thinking about it, however you think about it, for good or for ill, how can we capitalize on an opportunity where these stories are on people's minds?

How can we share Jesus story? with other people at this time of year. Because sharing the gospel, I mean, it's, it's our mess or it's, it's such a goal, a big goal for us as Christians. And it shouldn't be just for this time of year, right? We all know that. It should be every time of the year, but because Jesus is kind of in the air, his birth is a topic of discussion.

It's visible. Well, what are some ways that we can do some practical things we can do to share the gospel? Well, I think the first thing. really easy one is to pray for opportunities. Pray for doors to open and conversations could be had with you and your co workers, or your family members, or your friends.

I think, you know, a lot of times we put pray up on applications and things like that, and if you're like me, you kind of like, oh yeah, duh, like, of course you need to pray, right? I had a conversation with somebody, a guy who's a preacher in Australia a couple months ago before I came here, And he's an American, but I was talking to him, and he was telling me, you know, we're having a lot of success in Australia with the gospel, and we're converting a lot of people.

And I was like, what is it that you're doing? Like, what's the secret? And he's like, honestly? It's not like a, there's no special sauce to it, like it's just me praying that God this week would give me one person that I can hopefully have an opportunity to share Jesus with and that he will bless me with the wisdom and knowledge on what to say to be able to share the gospel with this person.

We do not need to underestimate the power that prayer has, especially in terms of sharing the gospel. Do not underestimate prayer. Pray that God will give you an opportunity to share the gospel with somebody. And before you know it, you're going to have somebody in the office or knocking on your door, something that's going to happen.

That's going to give you an opportunity to share the gospel with someone. So we need to pray for opportunities. Secondly, I think, you know, maybe give somebody a thoughtful scripture based card. Maybe you don't practice Christmas and maybe. Maybe this could be a way that you kind of participate in the season in some way.

Where, maybe it's not Christmas related at all, you just give them a scripture with a thought, hey, you've been working really hard in the office, I appreciate this, here's a scripture that I, I want to kind of give you a blessing with, I'm, I'm praying for you. A message, something like that. Maybe a scripture like the Emmanuel passage that we're talking about tonight, or maybe one you're more familiar to talk about with someone.

But this gives an opportunity to share our faith with other people. People who are seeking, they need to know that we're Christians. Are we being vocal about that in our conversations? Well, maybe this can be an opportunity if we haven't been doing that, to maybe produce a conversation that's centered around Jesus.

Oh, some leaves falling there. That plant stain, wrap it up. All right, come on. I'm dying here and I'm a fake plant. Three more points, okay. So, may you talk about your favorite hymn related birth of Jesus I don't know if that sentence just made any sense. The plant flustered me. Talk about your favorite hymn related to the birth of Jesus.

My favorite one is an old English hymn I just got introduced to last year. It's called Come, O Come, Emmanuel. Beautiful song, very old, rooted deeply in scripture, and it's really about what I'm preaching about tonight. It's how Christ fulfills a long awaited expectation. of the Messiah and the story of of Israel.

But I think, you know, whether you like Christmas or not, or you think it should be done or not, If you are anywhere near a radio in December, nobody escapes the beautiful sonnets of my boy Josh Groban. I love Josh Groban, I'm not going to lie. And he has some great, great songs. And so maybe you hate Josh Groban, that's fine.

You're wrong, but it's okay. But we're all, we're all hearing these songs, whether we're intending to or not. And so they're a topic of conversation. Maybe people have conversations, what's your favorite song? Why is it your favorite song? Well, Mayus can open doors to talk about people, or talk with people about why this song is your favorite.

Because the scripture that are in it, that's in it. Because the story it tells. Because what it reveals about Jesus. Use that opportunity to share the gospel with someone. So many times, Reagan and I were talking about this this week, I'm sure people have probably heard this already, or you've seen it, blasted up, you know, Jesus is the reason for the season.

A really simple one is, hey, when you hear somebody say that, whether silly, in a silly kind of way, or in a serious way. Well, ask him, hey, what do you mean by that? Like, what does that mean to you that you say Jesus is a reason for the season? And don't ask it in an accusatory way. What do you mean by that?

You know, you probably won't get much of a conversation if you start like that. But just ask him an honest way. Hey, what does that mean to you? And maybe they have a lot of traditions related to the holidays, or maybe they don't. Maybe they have something going on at church that you want to talk to them about.

Either way, it opens a door. for spiritual conversations and especially people who you might uncover and realize, oh, I just kind of say that around the holidays. And maybe they go to church on Christmas time, maybe they go to Easter, but other than that, they don't really have much of a faith and they kind of just say it because that's what they've always said or that's what they've always done or that's what their parents did.

Maybe I can give us an opportunity to preach the gospel to someone that shows them he's not only the reason for this season, but for all seasons and that he requires something of you. And then lastly, you know, there's decorations everywhere. Abby told me this picture of this little statue is super creepy.

I'm kind of inclined to agree. But there's, these decorations are everywhere, right? Like I said, in just like a mile or two, me driving here to work, you know, a couple times a week. You know, there's like four or five that I pass. So they're all over the place. I'm sure people decorate in their offices and things like that where people in your neighborhood might decorate their homes.

Again, whatever you think about that for good or for ill, use these opportunities to start conversations. Maybe Jesus means nothing to them. Like we just said, maybe it's just something about the holidays they do. It's just a kind of a empty tradition. They do well, they need to be told who Jesus is and what he can do for them.

Maybe they had a faith before and they kind of let it. Go let it fall to the wayside and like ahaz and judah and the people of israel at the time of jesus They need restoration of that lost faith. Maybe they are that seasonal christian Or maybe they're practicing their faith and maybe they're misguided in some ways and maybe they could use some loving correction in the form of maybe more accurate information About jesus and who he is and what he desires from them in their faith and in their practice You So this December, you know, I just pray that you'd be emboldened to speak the good news of somebody.

And I used Psalm 2 a couple months ago to kind of say the same thing in terms of politics. I pray again we'll do the same thing in a time not of political strife, hopefully, but you know, joy in the holidays, right? That should be an easier time to talk about Jesus than during the political season, hopefully.

But I want to leave you, leave you tonight really with the words of Jesus as he ends the book of Matthew, because he bookends the entire gospel message. of the book of Matthew with this idea of God being with us. And so I pray that you'll realize that God is with you and go in and spreading the good news.

The great commission that was handed to the apostles is so much our commission as well. And I pray that we'll take the words of Jesus here seriously and realize He's with us in these conversations and we'll pray and we'll take advantage of these opportunities that we have. So read with me in chapter 28, verse 18 through 20.

And Jesus came and said to them, All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, listen to I am with you, always, to the end of the age.

You know, however you decide to spark a conversation with somebody in the next couple weeks, and hopefully in the beginning of the year and continuing on, we've got to make it personal, right? We've got to help people see that Jesus, He's not just some little baby in a manger. But he's the, the Christ, the Messiah who fulfills Israel's story.

He came and lived on this earth a sinful life. And he was crucified, he was buried and raised on the third day. And now he sits at the right hand of God in glory in heaven. And he's coming again, and how are you going to be found when he does come? Jesus expects the same allegiance and the same faith of all of us that he did of Ahaz, of Old, of all of God's people.

And so, this picture we see of Jesus throughout this, this season of being, of him being a baby you know, that baby grew up eventually and he was the Christ and he was the Messiah, and he calls you to put your faith in him. So if you would, if you'd like to follow in his footsteps in baptism tonight, well I ask you now to come as we stand and as we sing.

There's a thousand reasons for you