The Last Word

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What we say makes a difference. Our words influence us , and they influence others. And our words even make a difference to God.

 

Numbers 13 NKJV

1  And the LORD spoke to Moses, saying,

2  “Send men to spy out the land of Canaan, which I am giving to the children of Israel; from each tribe of their fathers you shall send a man, every one a leader among them.”

 

It had been 650 years since God promised to give the land of Canaan to Abraham and his descendants. Nine generations had lived and died, more than 400 years of that time had been spent in slavery in Egypt. Yet the promise God made to Abraham hundreds of years earlier was still speaking, still leading, still compelling the Children of Israel to go forward.

 

Having been delivered from Egypt by the miraculous hand of God, and provided for in the wilderness with manna from heaven each day, the Children of Israel had received the 10 Commandments and witnessed the glory of God descend on Mt Sinai. They heard the voice of God speak from out of the cloud and felt the earth tremble. A pillar of fire protected them each night and a cloud of God’s presence covered and led them each day. 

 

They were never alone, never forsaken, never left without leadership in their lives, yet many were angry and afraid. The leaders of the day were mad at God, mad at Moses, and afraid for their families and the future. 

 

Still, God wanted and needed their support if He was going to accomplish His plan for them, for their children, and for their children’s children. So what did God do? He included them all – the ones who were for Him and the ones who were against Him … God includes us all in His plan.

 

Two years after leaving Egypt, God was ready for the Children of Israel to enter the Promise Land. All God needed was their support – their trust – their faith in Him and the promise He made to their forefathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. The only thing God needed was for His children to believe His Word.

• To talk like they believed His Word.

• To walk like they believed His Word.

 

God needed support. He told Moses to choose 12 influencers of the day. They were like investigative reporters. Here were their instructions:

 

Numbers 13

18  “See what the land is like: whether the people who dwell in it are strong or weak, few or many;

19  “whether the land they dwell in is good or bad; whether the cities they inhabit are like camps or strongholds;

20  “whether the land is rich or poor; and whether there are forests there or not. Be of good courage. And bring some of the fruit of the land.” 

 

These 12 spies spent 40 days searching the Land of Canaan and gathering information and some of its fruit. They all saw the same things, and all had the same experiences. However upon their return, they drew two distinctly different conclusions.

 

Numbers 13

27  “We went to the land where you sent us. It truly flows with milk and honey, and this is its fruit.

28  “Nevertheless the people who dwell in the land are strong ; the cities are fortified and very large; moreover we saw the descendants of Anak there.

29  “The Amalekites dwell in the land of the South; the Hittites, the Jebusites, and the Amorites dwell in the mountains; and the Canaanites dwell by the sea and along the banks of the Jordan.”

 

There was no disagreement among the spies. The land was fruitful, the people strong, and the cities were large and fortified. Also, there were giants in the land. These are the things on which they all agreed.

 

30  Then Caleb quieted the people before Moses, and said, “Let us go up at once and take possession, for we are well able to overcome it.”

 

Sounds like an action movie. We tend to like the heroes who have the courage, and muster the strength to fight even against the evident odds.

 

Who will be the hero in your life’s story? Remember: Courage is not the absence of fear but rather what we do in the face of fear. You are writing the story your grandchildren will one day tell about you. Are you able?

 

31  But the men who had gone up with him said, “We are not able to go up against the people, for they are stronger than we.”

 

Don’t be a stick in the mud … it will show. God included everyone, but not everyone included Him.“Well able” versus “Not able” – these were the two opposing opinions. Both of these spies live in each of us at various times. Which one dominates is up to you. In Numbers, God included them because He needed their support, but He didn’t get it. Instead:

 

32  They gave the children of Israel a bad report of the land which they had spied out, saying, “The land through which we have gone as spies is a land that devours its inhabitants, and all the people whom we saw in it are men of great stature.

33  “There we saw the giants (the descendants of Anak came from the giants); and we were like grasshoppers in our own sight, and so we were in their sight.”

 

Numbers 14:1  So all the congregation lifted up their voices and cried, and the people wept that night.

 

Not only did these spies depress themselves but they successfully depressed everyone else around them.This was the last word many of them ever heard. That whole generation died believing a lie. If you are not familiar with the outcome of this story, please read Numbers chapter 14 and beyond. It was disastrous to say the least. So, in light of these things, as we close 2024 and begin our New Year, let’s keep these truths in mind:

 

1. God needs your support to accomplish His plan.

2. What you say makes a difference.

o To you; to others; and to God

3. God includes everyone … but not everyone includes God.

 

What will your last words be? We are not able! … or … We are well able! …?

 

Philippians 4:13 I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.

The Christmas Story

Gtcotr/ss122224 

I want to say thank you to everyone who planned and worked so hard to make today’s special Christmas service such a blessing. The combined efforts of so many came together to tell the Christmas story.

 Jesus is the reason for the season. 

Unfortunately not everyone has heard and not everyone will get to hear this wonderful account of the birth of our Savior this year. In fact:

Let’s join together in prayer right now for our Church Family in Kazan, Russia. Today they had to cancel the special Christmas program they have worked so hard on due to yesterday’s drone attack on residential buildings in the city. More than 550 people were pre-registered to see the Christmas program. For some, this may have been the first time they would have gotten to hear the Christmas message in such a compelling way. 

 

Kazan is the city where Pastor Sergey, Nina, and their daughters lived. Internet videos of the attack show two of the drones hitting a high-rise residential building that is only 7 minutes from their house. Families in Kazan are afraid. The war was real in the minds and hearts of the people in Kazan, but no one expected it to cause such destruction in their own city. Again, let’s join in prayer for our Church Family in Kazan and for all the people in war-torn areas of the world during this Christmas season.

 

And let’s pray the war ends soon.

 

The Christmas Story

 

Luke 2 NKJV

1 ¶  And it came to pass in those days that a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be registered.

2  This census first took place while Quirinius was governing Syria.

3  So all went to be registered, everyone to his own city.

4  Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and lineage of David,

5  to be registered with Mary, his betrothed wife, who was with child.

6  So it was, that while they were there, the days were completed for her to be delivered.

7  And she brought forth her firstborn Son, and wrapped Him in swaddling cloths, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.

8 ¶  Now there were in the same country shepherds living out in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night.

9  And behold, an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were greatly afraid.

10  Then the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people.

11  “For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.

12  “And this will be the sign to you: You will find a Babe wrapped in swaddling cloths, lying in a manger.”

13  And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying:

14  “Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace, goodwill toward men!”

15  So it was, when the angels had gone away from them into heaven, that the shepherds said to one another, “Let us now go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has come to pass, which the Lord has made known to us.”

16  And they came with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the Babe lying in a manger.

17  Now when they had seen Him, they made widely known the saying which was told them concerning this Child.

18  And all those who heard it marveled at those things which were told them by the shepherds.

19  But Mary kept all these things and pondered them in her heart.

20  Then the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen, as it was told them.

 

1. What may seem like a hardship for you, is often a blessing from God.

2. Your comfort may not be the most important part of your story.

• Be thankful and make do with what you have.

3. The first Christmas message included an invitation.

• And so does The Christmas Story today … come and see!

A Special Family Christmas

The past couple of weeks we have been talking about the reason for the season.

The reason for the season is Jesus! At the core, Jesus is what Christmas is all about. He was the gift that God gave to the entire world. It is important that we take time to focus on the true meaning of Christmas.

With that said, if there is a secondary reason for what Christmas is all about, I would say that it would be family. Christmas is about Jesus first, and Christmas is also about family! It is a time in which we come together with close and extended family in order to spend time with one another.

Family is important to God

One of the things that learn from the Nativity story is that family is important to God. He had a plan to redeem all of mankind back to Himself through the sacrificial death of His only son, Jesus. God could have sent Jesus to this earth any way He wanted. Yet, He chose to do it through the family unit. Family is not man-made. Instead, it was instituted by God Himself. He kept the family unit in tact when He sent Jesus to the world as a child born into the world. God knew what He was doing. This was His way of showing us that family is important.

Family should be important to us as well. In fact, there are three lessons that I believe the Christmas story teaches about family. We will discover them by looking at three aspects of family found in the story of Christmas.

1. Family Provides

The first thing we see is that family provides a place to belong. We see this within the genealogy of Jesus.

Matthew 1:17 - “So all the generations from Abraham to David are fourteen generations, from David until the captivity in Babylon are fourteen generations, and from the captivity in Babylon until the Christ are fourteen generations.”

Now between the generations of Abraham, David, and Jesus, we find all types of people. There were heroes and there were zeroes. There was royalty and refugees. There leaders and there were followers, rich and poor, citizens and foreigners, saviors and murderers, humble and proud, liars, cheaters, thieves, etc.

Nevertheless, regardless of their past and their reputation, they all had a place within the family of Christ. When we come across some of the names that are listed in Christ’s genealogy, it is hard not to think about what they did and what they had been known for. However, they are still listed within the family of Jesus.

This is important, because no matter who it is, everyone in your family should have a place to belong. That includes the people in your family that you don’t get along with. If they can be included in the family of God, there should be room made in your family as well. It is all to easy to make those we don’t like in our family feel like they don’t belong. In fact, there may be some people in your family that might do that. However, as born again believers, we should be the ones extending grace to others.

2. Family Protects

We also see that family protects. God the Father could have sent Jesus to this world in any way that He wanted to. Yet, He chose to send Him as a baby born to a family. He was born to His mother Mary and His earthly father Joseph. While Jesus came to be a blessing to the world, the world was out to kill Jesus. However, God purposefully placed Him into a family knowing that Jesus would be well taken care of.

Matthew 2:13-14

“13 Now when they had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, “Rise, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you, for Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy him.” 14 And he rose and took the child and his mother by night and departed to Egypt”

While Joseph and Mary did many things for Jesus, I would dare to say that none were as important than what they did to protect Him. They followed God’s direct instructions and they kept Him out of harms way. It’s because that is what family does, it protects.

Family is one of God’s natural umbrellas of His protection. When we are born and placed in a family, we are in a place of safety. Family is meant to protect

our:

Faith

Integrity

Future

Therefore, just as Joseph and Mary protected Jesus, let us protect one another and those within our family. Don’t expose your brothers and sisters.

Don’t expose your family members. Instead, protect them.

3. Family Perseveres

Family perseveres through thick and thin. In other words, family does not give up on one another. I am so thankful that Mary and Joseph never gave up on each other. I am so glad that they never gave up on raising Jesus. I am even more thankful that Jesus never gave up on us. Jesus was faithful and persevered with us all the way to the end.

Ephesians 4:1-2

“I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love” Family is not about me and its not about others; it is about “us.” In order for me and you to come together, there is going to have to be some understanding between us. It means that we will need to:

• Humble - We will need to humble ourselves. We don’t need to make everything about ourselves. Instead, consider others before ourselves.

• Gentle - Let us be kind toward others. Let us not be harsh in how we treat our children, siblings, or those who are hard to be around.

• Patient - We must be patient with one another. Don’t be quick to get upset with those who bother you the most. Show them grace. Give them room to make mistakes. That is is how you would want to be treated. Therefore, let us be understanding of those in our family and of one another here in our church family. That is what family is about.

Takeaways:

As we gather together with our family this Christmas, let us remember to:

I. Invest in Family

• Family is important to God

• Family should be important to us

• Invest in family relationships

• God affirmed the family unit when He sent Jesus to be born to

• Build broken bridges

• Every person deserves to have a place in your family

II. Pray for your family

• The greatest way we can protect our family is by praying for them

• When we pray for our family we are invoking God’s hand of deliverance and protection

• The greatest thing we must protect our family from is a Christ-less eternity

III. Be patient with your family

• If God can patient with us, we should be patient with one another

• Be patient with your family, especially those you struggle to get along with

• Show them grace and give them room to make mistakes

The Christmas Miracle

Gtcotr/ss121524

 

Without regard as to what a person believes, everyone realizes that there is a definite spirit of the Christmas season.

 

Beyond the pressures and the commercialization of Christmas, beyond the stress and the disappointments people have faced that fill Christmas with sad memories, beyond the loss of loved ones and the empty feelings we share with family and friends, there is a joy that fills the air and it is available to everyone who will embrace it.

 

I noticed it here in our Church Friday night as hundreds of families gathered for our annual Christmas Fest. More than the free food, games, toys and candy, it was the smiles on the faces of the children and the joy in the hearts of the parents. You could feel that feeling of being in the Christmas spirit. It was wonderful.

 

Something powerful, something magnificent, something splendid awaits us on Christmas. It’s like standing on your tiptoes to see out of the window, hoping to catch the first glimpse of snow, safe and warm yet feeling the cold wind just on the other side of the frost-covered glass.

 

Christmas is exciting … well - Christmas is as exciting as you will allow it to be. It’s meant to be exciting. God sent His son – Christmas – the Birth of Jesus. In fact, nothing is more exciting than the Christmas Miracle. Are you expecting a Christmas miracle this year? Perhaps you should be.

 

As I said earlier: Without regard to what a person believes, everyone realizes that there is a definite spirit of the Christmas season. This Christmas spirit stirs in the hearts and minds of men and women, boys and girls, believers and non-believers alike. Christmas is for everyone, but not everyone enjoys it as God intends.

 

Faith cannot be separated from expectancy. Faith is simply expecting a miracle. What qualifies as a miracle? A miracle is anything God does. The Christmas miracle is God doing something for you. Once again: Are you expecting a Christmas miracle this year?

 

The Bible account of the first Christmas begins with an angel of God visiting a young girl named Mary who lived in the town of Nazareth. The angel’s name was Gabriel. It was about this time of year when Mary was surprised to find out that she had been chosen to be the mother of Jesus.

 

However, before she could receive the blessings God had planned for her, Mary had to come into agreement with God and with His plan for her life. Even though she did not know how, she nonetheless believed the angel Gabriel when he told her:

 

Luke 1:37  “For with God nothing will be impossible.”

 

Mary voiced her agreement with God in the next verse:

 

Luke 1:38 Then Mary said, “Behold the maidservant of the Lord! Let it be to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her.

 

The passage I want us to focus on today comes a few verses down, from what Mary said some days later in the story. Let’s turn in our Bibles to the Gospel of Luke, chapter 1, verses 46 thru 49. (I encourage you to read the entire first chapter of Luke to confirm all the details.)

 

Luke 1 NKJV

46  And Mary said: “My soul magnifies the Lord,

47  And my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior.

48  For He has regarded the lowly state of His maidservant; For behold, henceforth all generations will call me blessed.

49  For He who is mighty has done great things for me, And holy is His name.”

 

Mary was chosen to be the mother of the Son of God. Right up until the angel’s message, Mary never expected herself to be special. After she came into agreement with God and with His plan for her life, she never expected anything less, nor should we. Mary believed in her Christmas miracle, and her faith gave a Christmas miracle to us all. 

 

Listen to her exclamation:

 

Luke 1:49 For He who is mighty has done great things for me.

• Mighty 

o Gk: Dunatos

o Powerful

o Able

o Excelling in Strength

• Has done

o Made

o Created

o Performed

• Great things

o Gk: Megaleios

o Magnificent; Excellent; Splendid; Wonderful

• For me

o Me = Gk: Moi

o Personal, nonproper expression of me.(French surprise …?)

 

Can you believe it? God almighty, who can do anything, has created a magnificent, splendid, wonderful miracle, for me – Moi!

 

Mary took it personal that she had been included in the plan of God. Just as miraculous is the fact that God’s plan also includes you. 

 

Three Take-Aways from The Christmas Miracle

1. Enjoying Christmas is up to you.

a. If you are going to enjoy Christmas, you’ll need to get yourself in agreement with God and with His plan for your life.

b. His plan will include you making the effort to embrace the Christmas Spirit (Love, Joy, Peace, Hope, Faith, Goodness).

c. We cannot separate faith from expectancy.

d. Are you expecting Jesus for Christmas this year?

2. What you choose to do will affect what others experience.

a. You make a difference … 

b. Don’t be a scrooge or a Pharisee. 

3. With God, nothing shall be impossible.

a. There is a reason for the season … 

b. God wants you to experience a Christmas Miracle too!