(Breath of Life Theme Music)
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Sermon #B699 -
Christmas, What Is It?
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Dr. Byrd: We want to
get into the word of God now
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and so I want to invite you to
take your Bibles and take them
and turn with me to the Book of
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Luke, Luke Chapter 2, and we're
going to go to verse number 8.
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Luke Chapter 2 and we're going
to verse number 8. Luke Chapter
2 today, verse number 8
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and we're going to read these
verses, verses 8 through 14.
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Today, Luke 2:8, the word of God
from the King James version, for
the people of God says,
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"And there were
in the same country,
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shepherds abiding in the field
keeping watch over their flock
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by night. And, lo, the angel of
the Lord came upon them, the
glory of the Lord shone round
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about them: and they were sore
afraid. And the angel said unto
them, Fear not, for behold,
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I bring you good tidings of
great joy, which shall be to all
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people. For unto you is born
this day in the city of David a
savior, which is Christ the
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Lord, and this shall be a sign
unto you. Ye shall find the babe
wrapped in swaddling clothes,
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lying in a manger. And suddenly
there was with the angel a
multitude of the heavenly host
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praising God and saying, Glory
to God in the highest and on
earth, peace goodwill toward
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men." Today, our subject is
entitled simply, Christmas -
What is it? Christmas -
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What is it? Before we talk to
you, let's talk with the Lord.
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God, we thank you today for all
that we've experienced already
in this worship experience.
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But now it's time for us to hear
a word from you. Lord, if we
don't hear from you, what will
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we do? So, speak, Lord, your
servant heareth. Go through the
television airwaves, go through
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the internet and the computer
airwaves, and may your anointing
be seen, be felt, and be heard.
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Hide me behind your cross and we
praise you in advance for what
you're going to do.
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Now, when the appeal time comes,
as you do each week, speak to
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your people, and may your people
hear your voice and may they
follow you. Forgive me of my
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sins. We pray, in
the name of Jesus. Amen.
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Christmas - What is it?
Christmas - What is it? This is
the season that is supposed to
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be jolly. This is supposed to be
the most wonderful time of the
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year. This is the time of year
when the malls are supposed to
be packed, people are giving
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and sharing with others,
drinking eggnog, and singing
Silent Night, Holy Night.
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But instead of Christmas
blessings, in many cases, we're
experiencing Christmas blues.
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We have over 75 million
coronavirus cases worldwide and
we're approaching 1.7 million
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deaths. It's starting to hit
close to home now as many of our
church members have contracted
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the virus and we've even
experienced death in our church
family. Hospitals are at full
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occupancy, medical workers many
are at their breaking points,
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vaccines have begun to be given
with many still skeptical of the
uncertainty of their effects.
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People are out of work and our
elected leaders who at a
minimum, make one hundred
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and seventy-five
thousand dollars per year,
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can't settle on a stimulus
package of six hundred dollars
for the least of these.
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There's a winter storm pounding
the Northeast, a transition of
power in our federal government,
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which some people still can't
acknowledge its in 31 days.
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A runoff election in the state
of Georgia that will determine
the balance of power in the
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senate in 17 days. People are
still contracting cancer. People
are still dying of heart
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disease. Car accidents are still
happening. But yet we're
supposed to be jolly. We're
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supposed to be happy. Christmas
time is supposed to be the most
wonderful time of the year,
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but let's put Christmas in
perspective today. It's not
supposed to be about us anyway.
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The key to making Christmas a
time of blessings and not a time
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of blues, is we've got to get
our minds off ourselves because
Christmas is not about us,
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Christmas is all about him.
I wish somebody knew what I was
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talking about. You see, we have
a tendency of forgetting whose
birthday it actually is.
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We're not celebrating our
birthday, but we're celebrating
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Jesus's birthday. Now, don't get
it twisted because somebody will
try to take my words and twist
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them. Don't do that. I'm not
saying December 25 is Jesus'
birthday, but I am saying Jesus
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was born, and at Christmas time,
we're celebrating his birth.
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For many, 2020 has been the
worst but maybe, just maybe,
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God is using this season to
refocus us on the real reason of
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the season. That we really need
to stop worrying about what's
going on all around us in this
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world, and we really need to
stop complaining about what we
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don't have and just start
thanking God for what we do
have. Food on your table,
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that's a blessing you better
thank God. Clothes on your back,
that's a blessing you better
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thank God. Clothed in your right
mind, that's a blessing you
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better thank God. A roof over
your head, that's a blessing you
just ought to thank God.
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A reasonable measure of health,
that's a blessing you ought to
thank God because things just
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might be bad, but you better
trust me, things can be a whole
lot worse than what they are
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right now because all of your
good days still outweigh your
bad days. So stop complaining,
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you better understand
what Christmas is all about.
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Because too many people don't
really know what Christmas is
about, I want to talk about
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Christmas today. What it
is, what it means, and what it's
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about. In the text that we
just read from Luke Chapter 2,
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the Bible declares in verse
number nine again that the angel
of the Lord came upon the
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shepherds and the glory of the
Lord showed all round about
them, and the Bible says that
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they were sore afraid. Now, I
don't know if you just read what
I just read but the Bible said
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that the glory of the Lord came
and they were sore afraid. Isn't
it amazing that they were afraid
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of the glory, I wish I had time.
Some people are afraid of the
glory. When the glory cloud
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comes, some people are afraid.
When the spirit of God gets to
moving, some people are afraid.
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Verse 10 says, "And the angel of
the Lord said unto them, Fear
not, for behold, I bring you
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good tidings of great joy," and
now let's stop right there. In
other words, the angel was
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saying, I'm bringing you
something you've never had
before. That's a message for
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somebody right now. Let me just
say this to somebody who's
watching. Don't be afraid of
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something you've never had
before. Don't be afraid of
something you've never
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experienced before. Don't be
afraid of something you've never
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seen before because you are
about to experience
breakthroughs you've never had
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before. You are about to
experience miracles you've never
seen before. When God brings you
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something-- I wish somebody knew
what I was talking about. That
when God brings you something,
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you don't have to be afraid. You
just keep walking in the
blessings that God has for you.
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I wish I had a
witness in this place.
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We go back to verse number 10.
The Bible says, "And the angel
of the Lord said unto them,
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Fear not, for behold, I bring
you good tidings of great joy,
which shall be to all people,"
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verse number 11, "For unto you
is born this day, in the City of
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David, a savior, which is Christ
the Lord," verse number 12,
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"And this shall be a sign unto
you that ye shall find the babe
wrapped in swaddling clothes
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and lying in a manger." And it's
from these verses that we get
three things of what Christmas
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is all about, from these three
verses. Number one, quickly
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and I'm gonna say these things
that I'm gonna sit down. Number
one we get from the text,
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we get the message of Christmas.
The message of Christmas. But
somebody may be asking, "Pastor
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Byrd, what is the message
of Christmas?" I'm so glad you
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asked. The message of Christmas
is that Jesus came to save us,
hallelujah. That's the message
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of Christmas, that Jesus came to
save us. The very name of Jesus
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means salvation and when Jesus
came into this world as a baby,
he came to save us. The text
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says, "For unto you is born this
day, in the city of David, a
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savior, which is Christ the Lord
and she shall bring forth a son,
and thou shalt call his name
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Jesus, for he shall save his
people from their sins." When
Jesus came to this earth, he
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came to save his people, he came
to save them from sin. He came
to save them from lying. He came
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to save them from cheating. He
came to save them from stealing.
He came to save them from
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adultery. He came to save them
from doubt. He came to save them
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from depression. The Bible says
that he came to seek and to save
that which was lost.
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That's why he came the first
time to save his people and the
Bible teaches that whoever
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believes in the name of the Lord
shall be safe. When God set out
to save, God gave. Let me say
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that one more time. I said when
God set out to save, God gave.
God gave us Jesus and when God
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gave us Jesus, I'm so glad that
he gave us his best. God didn't
send an angel, God didn't send
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Gabriel, God didn't send
cherubims and seraphims but God
gave up His most prized
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possession, He gave up his son
that we could be saved. So don't
you ever doubt God's love for
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us. It doesn't matter how
we feel, it doesn't matter what
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we've done, it doesn't matter
how many mistakes we've made,
God gave us - thank you,
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Jesus, His best when he gave
us his son because God loves us.
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The Bible says, "For God so
loved the world that he gave his
only begotten son that whosoever
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believeth in him should not
perish but have everlasting
life." Notice in this scripture
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that we say all the time, John
3:16, that God so loved the
world that the Bible says he
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gave. So we need to understand,
friends of mine, that Jesus is
like wasn't taken from him.
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But Jesus gave his life so that
we might have life and have it
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more abundantly. You don't hear
what I'm saying today. You and I
had a need and that need was a
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savior. God gave us the perfect
gift to meet our biggest need.
If our greatest need had been
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information, God would have sent
an educator. If our greatest
need had been technology,
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God would have sent a scientist.
If our greatest need had been
money, God would have sent an
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economist. If our greatest need
had been pleasure, God would
have sent an entertainer.
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If our greatest need had been to
exercise, God would have sent an
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athlete. But our greatest need
was a savior. Our greatest need
was forgiveness, so God sent a
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savior, for, unto us, a child is
born. Unto us, a savior is given
in the city of David a savior,
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which is Christ the Lord and
that's the message of Christmas
that Jesus came to save us.
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But not only from his text do
we get the message of Christmas.
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But number two, we get the
motive of Christmas. Verse 12
says, "And this shall be a sign
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unto you, ye shall find the babe
wrapped in swaddling clothes,
lying in a manger."
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Now, you need to understand that
the Greek word for sign here is
Simeon which means this is an
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indication that has a meaning or
this is a token that has a
meaning. In other words,
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this is a sign that's pointing
to something. Are you following
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what I'm saying? Luke mentions
two things in this text. First,
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Luke mentions, ye shall find the
babe wrapped in swaddling
clothes and then Luke says,
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lying in a manger. Now, these
signs - wrapped in swaddling
clothes and lying in a manger,
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they point to something, they
indicate something. Let's deal
with swaddling clothes first.
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Now, when Jesus was born, they
did not wrap Jesus in a
beautiful blue blanket like they
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wrap baby boys today. The text
says he wasn't wrapped in a blue
blanket, but the text says he
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was wrapped in swaddling
clothes. I'm going somewhere.
Swaddling clothes were long
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strips or long bands of cloth.
Jesus was wrapped tightly in
long strips of cloth, swaddling
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clothes were tight clothes, but
tight clothes were also what
they wrapped the dead in when
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they were buried, y'all don't
hear what I'm saying. At Jesus's
birth, he was wrapped in tight
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clothes. At Jesus's death,
he was also wrapped in tight
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clothes. Now, remember, Jesus
was born to die. The reason for
Jesus's birth is that he had to
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die because you can't die unless
you've been born. Are you
hearing what I'm saying?
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For our sins to be
forgiven, blood had to be shed
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and the only way blood could be
shed was that Jesus had to die.
But in order for Jesus to die,
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Jesus, first, had to be born.
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The motive of Christmas is that
we serve a savior who was born
to die for us. He died for our
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sins, he died for the sins of
the world. So the very then
clothes Jesus was wrapped in,
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swaddling clothes, gives us the
purpose of his life. He was born
to die. But that's not all. Why
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was he lying in the manger?
Remember now, the birth of a
king should be attended by other
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royalty, other monarchs, other
presidents, other heads of
state, but the birth of King
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Jesus, the birth of baby Jesus
was surrounded by sheep, cattle,
and goats. Think about it,
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Jesus, the King of Kings, could
have been born in a synagogue.
Jesus, the King of Kings,
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could have been born in a
church. Jesus could have been
born in the finest hospital.
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Jesus could have been born in a
mansion. Jesus could have been
born to rich people.
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He could have had maids and
servants, butlers and bakers.
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He could have had ten thousand
angels to take care of him, but
no, Jesus was born without a
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doctor. Jesus was born without a
nurse. Jesus was born without a
midwife. Jesus was born without
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a nanny. Jesus was born without
anything or anybody in an old,
tired, dilapidated manger.
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Jesus is King of Kings and Lord
of Lords, but in this Kingdom,
he's a meek, mild, humble,
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and lowly servant who gives his
life for the last, the least,
the lost, the unlucky and the
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left out. God, who stepped out
from behind the curtain of
nowhere on the platform of
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nothing and spoke this world
into existence was born in a
lowly manger which shows us how
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low he would go to save us, that
he believed the celestial courts
of heaven to come to this sin
00:17:18.90\00:17:24.67
infested earth to save you and
me. We couldn't reach him, so he
decided, thank you, Jesus,
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to come where we are.
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The difference
between Christianity
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and every other religion in the
world is that all the other
religions are about a man trying
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to reach up to God. But
Christianity is about God
reaching down to man, that the
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super has come to the natural.
The heavenly has come to the
earthly. Divinity has met
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humanity. Creator has come in
contact with creation. That's
the message of Christmas.
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That's the motive of Christmas.
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But I've got one more point to
make and then I will sit down.
Number three, the meaning of
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Christmas. The meaning of
Christmas. Now, the word
Christmas is a compound word.
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I learned in grade school that a
compound word is just two words
that are put together.
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Are you hearing what I'm saying?
The word of Christmas is a
compound word. Christ is for
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Christ and mass is for mass and
mass means celebration, which
means Christmas is a celebration
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of Christ. Now look at verses 13
and 14, then I'm going to sit
down. Look at verses 13 and 14,
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the Bible says, "And suddenly,
there was with the angel a
multitude of the heavenly host,
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Hallelujah, praising God and
saying, Glory to God in the
highest and on earth peace
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goodwill toward men." Let me
read that one more time, "There
suddenly with the angel,
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a multitude of the heavenly host
praising God," which means they
know how to have church in
00:19:05.91\00:19:10.71
heaven too. I wish I had a
witness in this place. Saying,
Glory to God in the highest and
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on earth, peace
goodwill toward men."
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All right, here we go. The
angels were celebrating. The
angels were rejoicing.
00:19:19.29\00:19:24.86
The angels were praising.
Christmas is a time of
celebration. Christmas is a time
00:19:24.89\00:19:33.07
of praise. That's why we say
Merry Christmas because we're
giving God praise. We're giving
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God glory. We're giving God
adoration. We're celebrating God
and when the praises of God are
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going up, I believe I've got
somebody who knows the blessings
are coming down. If there's one
00:19:45.58\00:19:51.05
era and thing in the Christian
faith that I believe is
underestimated, it's the power
00:19:51.09\00:19:56.89
of praise. Praise means to speak
well of a person. Praise means
to speak well of a personality
00:19:56.93\00:20:02.43
and to speak well and loud
that's where we get the word
Shabak from but for the
00:20:02.46\00:20:07.94
believer, there's so much tied
to praise that some people just
haven't gotten it yet. I have to
00:20:07.97\00:20:13.14
admit it, but when I was growing
up in the church, I used to look
at some people praise God like
00:20:13.17\00:20:18.78
they did and I mean I felt at
that time, it didn't take all
that. But as soon as I got a
00:20:18.81\00:20:25.45
little older and I discovered
that I hadn't been through
anything because you can't have
00:20:25.49\00:20:31.03
a testimony without a test. I
wish I had a witness in this
place. And I was criticizing
00:20:31.06\00:20:34.40
everybody else because I didn't
understand the things that they
were going through.
00:20:34.46\00:20:37.30
I came to understand that I had
judged them unfairly because
when I have gone through some
00:20:37.33\00:20:42.70
things for myself when I had
been dragged down through the
mud, when I have been talked
00:20:42.74\00:20:48.08
about, when I have been
criticized, when I have been
lied to, when I have been abused
00:20:48.11\00:20:52.91
and misused then I came to
understand why people praise God
00:20:52.95\00:20:58.49
like they did because I found
out that if God has ever done
anything for you, you just can't
00:20:58.52\00:21:05.29
help but praise His name. Does
anybody know what I'm talking
00:21:05.33\00:21:06.86
about? You see, whenever you've
been through some things and God
has brought you out,
00:21:06.90\00:21:10.47
you literally stop trying to be
cute, you stop worrying about
what people say about you.
00:21:10.50\00:21:14.67
You stop worrying about what
people are going to think about
you, you just start praising
00:21:14.70\00:21:19.21
God. As a matter of fact, God
has been so faithful. I feel my
00:21:19.24\00:21:23.11
help coming. By now, you don't
even have to wait till you come
out of a situation. Don't wait
00:21:23.14\00:21:28.12
till the battle's over, you can
shout now. But you've learned
how to praise God in the midst
00:21:28.15\00:21:33.09
of your situation, oh, my help
is coming. I praise God because
when I think of the birth of
00:21:33.12\00:21:38.46
Jesus, no other birth was like
the birth of Jesus. No other
birth caused a virgin to
00:21:38.49\00:21:44.33
conceive. No other birth caused
wise men to come from the east.
No other birth call stars to
00:21:44.37\00:21:51.21
skip in the sky. No other birth
caused angels to get on an
elevator and come down to the
00:21:51.24\00:21:56.88
shepherd's fields and say, "I
bring you good tidings of great
joy." No other birth called
00:21:56.91\00:22:01.05
and caused angels to assemble
their choir stands in midair
00:22:01.08\00:22:05.09
and caused Gabriel to direct
while Mercy was on the piano,
00:22:05.12\00:22:09.22
while Justice was on the organ
and they started singing, Glory
to God in the highest and on
00:22:09.26\00:22:15.13
earth, peace goodwill toward
men. There's no birth like
Jesus' birth because there's
00:22:15.16\00:22:21.64
nobody like Jesus. Why do I
praise him? I praise him because
nobody can speak like Jesus,
00:22:21.67\00:22:29.64
when Jesus spoke, trees
withered. When Jesus spoke, seas
laid down. When Jesus spoke,
00:22:29.68\00:22:36.79
fires lost their heat. When
Jesus spoke, the lame walk. When
Jesus spoke, the dumb talk. When
00:22:36.82\00:22:43.39
Jesus spoke, the blind saw. When
Jesus spoke, graves gave up the
00:22:43.43\00:22:45.79
dead. He took
sodium and chloride
00:22:45.83\00:22:48.33
and made salts. He took hydrogen
and oxygen and made water. He
put vitamins in vegetables,
00:22:48.36\00:22:54.30
sugar in fruit, protein in
beans, calcium in milk. He took
two fish, five loaves of bread,
00:22:54.34\00:23:01.88
and fed 5,000 and I believe I've
got a witness in this place that
knows he's still bread on my
00:23:01.91\00:23:07.88
table. Nobody can feed like
Jesus. Why do I praise Jesus?
One day, nobody can heal like
00:23:07.92\00:23:16.73
Jesus. One day, he spoke and he
said, "Pick up your bed and
walk," and a man started
00:23:16.76\00:23:23.13
walking. One day, he didn't feel
like preaching or reaching, he
00:23:23.16\00:23:26.57
just stopped and let a woman
touch the hem of his garment and
she was made whole. One day, he
00:23:26.60\00:23:33.21
spat on the ground, made mud,
and put it on a man's eyes and
the blind man was able to see.
00:23:33.24\00:23:37.65
One day, he was four days late
to Lazarus' grave, but somebody
knows he's an on-time God.
00:23:37.68\00:23:43.32
Yes, he is. And when he got
there to Bethany, at Mary and
Martha's house, he told him,
00:23:43.35\00:23:48.76
"Why are you weeping? Do you
know who I am? I am the
resurrection and the life.
00:23:48.79\00:23:57.87
Lazarus, come forth," because
nobody can heal like Jesus.
00:23:57.90\00:24:01.47
Why do I praise him? Well,
finally nobody can see like
Jesus. Men can slip around the
00:24:01.50\00:24:09.14
corner, but Jesus can see around
the corner. Men can see what it
is, but men can't see what it's
00:24:09.18\00:24:16.18
going to be. Men can see the
smile on your face, but men
can't see the attitude of your
00:24:16.22\00:24:21.12
heart, but Jesus can look at
you. Jesus can look in you.
Jesus can see what's bothering
00:24:21.16\00:24:27.76
you. And since nobody can see
like Jesus, that's why I praise
00:24:27.76\00:24:33.80
him like I do, that's why I
magnify him like I do, that's
why I adore him like I do,
00:24:33.84\00:24:39.27
that's why I celebrate him like
I do. Nobody was born like him.
Nobody spoke like him.
00:24:39.31\00:24:45.75
Nobody feeds like him. Nobody
heals like him. Nobody can see
like him. Herod couldn't kill
00:24:45.78\00:24:53.52
him. Governments couldn't
silence him. Money couldn't buy
him. Satan couldn't seduce him.
00:24:53.56\00:24:58.53
Death couldn't destroy him. Hell
couldn't handle him and the
grave couldn't hold him
00:24:58.56\00:25:03.87
and that's the meaning of
Christmas. It's time to
celebrate the message of
00:25:03.90\00:25:10.04
Christmas, the motive of
Christmas, the meaning of
Christmas. I said the message of
00:25:10.07\00:25:15.48
Christmas, the motive of
Christmas, the meaning of
Christmas. I said the message of
00:25:15.51\00:25:21.82
Christmas, the motive of
Christmas, the meaning of
Christmas. Jesus came to save
00:25:21.85\00:25:27.52
us, Jesus was born to die for
us, and Christmas is a
celebration of Christ.
00:25:27.56\00:25:34.66
Isaiah said, he's a wonderful
counselor, mighty God,
everlasting father.
00:25:34.73\00:25:41.97
He's the prince of peace and
that's the message of Christmas.
That's the motive of Christmas.
00:25:42.00\00:25:50.68
That's the meaning of Christmas.
So, Merry Christmas, Feliz
Navidad. Lift up your heads,
00:25:50.71\00:26:01.12
O, ye gates lift up your heads,
O ye gates. I said lift up your
00:26:01.16\00:26:10.00
heads, O ye gates and be ye
lifted up ye everlasting doors
and the king of glory shall come
00:26:10.03\00:26:18.34
in. Somebody said who is
the king of the glory? The Lord,
00:26:18.37\00:26:23.71
strong and mighty. Who is the
king of glory? The Lord, mighty
in battle. That's the message of
00:26:23.75\00:26:30.72
Christmas. That's the motive of
Christmas. That's the meaning of
Christmas. What is Christmas?
00:26:30.75\00:26:36.49
The message, the motive, and the
meaning - Jesus came to save us,
Jesus was born to die for us,
00:26:36.52\00:26:45.80
and Christmas is a celebration
of Jesus. So bring out the
balloons, bring out the party
00:26:45.83\00:26:52.84
favors because Jesus was born,
Jesus lived, Jesus died, and
Jesus is coming back,
00:26:52.87\00:27:02.05
Hallelujah. Christmas - What is
it? What is it? It's a message.
There was a motive and it has
00:27:02.08\00:27:17.53
meaning. The message, he came to
save us. The motive, he had to
be born to die for us to save
00:27:17.57\00:27:29.91
us. And then finally, the
meaning of it all means we have
to celebrate, Christmas, a
00:27:29.94\00:27:39.65
celebration of Christ. Thank you
very much for tuning in to this
week's Breath of Life broadcast.
00:27:39.69\00:27:43.93
We hope and pray that you've
been blessed by Dr. Byrd's
inspirational message.
00:27:43.96\00:27:48.63
If you would like to hear
this sermon in its entirety,
00:27:48.66\00:27:50.90
please feel free to visit
us at www.breathoflife.tv.
00:27:50.93\00:27:57.11
Or, call us at (256) 929-6460.
00:27:57.14\00:28:09.92
Dr. Byrd: Pain, loss, trama,
00:28:09.95\00:28:19.39
in life we
experience these things.
00:28:19.43\00:28:22.53
My wife and I have a story,
00:28:22.56\00:28:25.43
we have a
testimony of how we lost
00:28:25.47\00:28:29.70
our first born daughter
in a horrific car accident.
00:28:29.74\00:28:36.68
We have this new sharing
book, its en-titled “Gone.”
00:28:36.71\00:28:41.58
And, in it I
want to share with you
00:28:41.62\00:28:45.25
how God has helped me,
00:28:45.29\00:28:47.89
how God has helped my
wife, how God has helped us,
00:28:47.92\00:28:52.69
as we had to endure the fact
that our first born daughter is
00:28:52.73\00:29:01.24
gone. www.breathoflife.tv
00:29:01.27\00:29:07.71
[END]
00:29:07.74\00:29:22.76