Christmas Change (4 of 4)
Christmas Series
Steve Jones
Luke 2:34-35
Introduction: A young mother, just one month into her pregnancy, went to see her doctor. He examined her, then took out a rubber stamp, dipped it in a blotter of ink, and gently placed a tiny stamp on her stomach. The print was so small she couldn't read it so when she got home her husband fetched the magnifying glass and they looked at the stamp which read, "When you can read this, come see me again." A baby changes everything in a family's life...not just the body of the mother but everything.
Likewise, the birth of Jesus changed everything. It was so momentous that within six hundred years it became the dividing line of history. Now we date all events as happening either B.C. (before Christ) or A.D. which stands for the Latin words "Anno Domini" meaning "Year of the Lord".
This morning I want us to think about the birth of Jesus in a way we may never have thought about it before, and that is as a catalyst for change. His birth not only measures time, it measures the mind. How we think about and react to change.
When Jesus was a little over one month old his parents took him to the temple in Jerusalem to redeem Him with an animal sacrifice as required by the Law of Moses. There was an old man named Simeon at the temple that day. He had been told by the Holy Spirit that before he died his eyes would see the Christ, the Messiah. When Joseph and Mary brought Jesus into the temple, Simeon held the baby and pronounced a prophecy about Him. Luke 2:33-35 "Then Simeon blessed them and said to Mary, His mother: ‘This child is destined to cause the falling and rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be spoken against, so that the thoughts of many hearts will be revealed.'"
The birth of Jesus changed everything. Notice how Simeon predicted the reactions to His coming would vary and contrast. He said that Jesus would cause some to rise and others to fall; Jes ...
Christmas Series
Steve Jones
Luke 2:34-35
Introduction: A young mother, just one month into her pregnancy, went to see her doctor. He examined her, then took out a rubber stamp, dipped it in a blotter of ink, and gently placed a tiny stamp on her stomach. The print was so small she couldn't read it so when she got home her husband fetched the magnifying glass and they looked at the stamp which read, "When you can read this, come see me again." A baby changes everything in a family's life...not just the body of the mother but everything.
Likewise, the birth of Jesus changed everything. It was so momentous that within six hundred years it became the dividing line of history. Now we date all events as happening either B.C. (before Christ) or A.D. which stands for the Latin words "Anno Domini" meaning "Year of the Lord".
This morning I want us to think about the birth of Jesus in a way we may never have thought about it before, and that is as a catalyst for change. His birth not only measures time, it measures the mind. How we think about and react to change.
When Jesus was a little over one month old his parents took him to the temple in Jerusalem to redeem Him with an animal sacrifice as required by the Law of Moses. There was an old man named Simeon at the temple that day. He had been told by the Holy Spirit that before he died his eyes would see the Christ, the Messiah. When Joseph and Mary brought Jesus into the temple, Simeon held the baby and pronounced a prophecy about Him. Luke 2:33-35 "Then Simeon blessed them and said to Mary, His mother: ‘This child is destined to cause the falling and rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be spoken against, so that the thoughts of many hearts will be revealed.'"
The birth of Jesus changed everything. Notice how Simeon predicted the reactions to His coming would vary and contrast. He said that Jesus would cause some to rise and others to fall; Jes ...
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