Christmas According to Christ

 By Alistair Begg

When Christ came into the world, he said, “Sacrifices and offerings you have not desired, but a body have you prepared for me; in burnt offerings and sin offerings you have taken no pleasure.”

Hebrews 10:5-6

The Gospels of Matthew and Luke introduce us to a whole cast of Christmas characters with whom we’ve grown quite familiar: Joseph, Mary, the shepherds, the wise men, and so on. Sometimes we even consider those who are less known, such as Zechariah, Elizabeth, Anna, and Simeon. With each passing Christmas season, we have probably been treated to sermons and studies from the perspective of just about every cast member. Yet there is one notable exception: surprisingly few of us have pondered Christmas from Jesus’ vantage point. In this verse, the author of the letter to the Hebrews tells us that when Jesus stepped onto the stage of history, He took the words of Psalm 40 upon His lips. Just as Cinderella’s glass slipper fit only her foot, these words fit nobody but Jesus. God was preparing for the first Christmas throughout the centuries of the Old Testament, for all the Old Testament sacrifices were mere shadows of the reality to which they pointed. Those sacrifices involved the death of animals that had to be prodded to the altar. They had no choice in the matter; they were simply pressed into service. But before He even experienced humanity, Jesus knew His role—His sacrifice—would be different. He willingly consented. In the humblest of forms and in an unexpected setting, God the Son took on a body that was prepared for Him—prepared “as a ransom for many” (Matthew 20:28). He looked at this broken world and its sinful people, and He said to His Father, Yes, I will go there. I will become one of them, and I will die for them. Peter grasps the weight of Christ’s death when he writes, “He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed” (1 Peter 2:24). Jesus, being fully God and fully man, entered this world to do in His body what no animal sacrifice could do: He has borne our punishment, cleansed our consciences, and held out divine mercy. He perfectly accomplished all that is necessary for sinful men and women to enter into fellowship with God. This is very different from the promise of mere religion, in which rules and effort become futile mechanisms for trying to climb into heaven. In contrast, the manger’s message is one of liberating mercy. God has wonderfully taken the initiative and come to rescue us through Jesus. We don’t need to make a long journey to find God, because Christ, the newborn King, knew His role. What is the right response? Simply to bow before Him humbly, praise Him wholeheartedly, and wait for Him expectantly all of our days.

What do Christians Celebrate at Christmas?

 By Alistair Begg.

Many of us are familiar with Christmas carols. Every year, we hear them on our radios, on our smart speakers, on our TVs, or while we’re out shopping. Perhaps we even grew up singing them with family and could speak to some of the story those songs tell. But familiarity with Christmas is a far cry from understanding its significance. It’s one thing to sing about Christmas; it’s quite another to consider where each of us stands in relation to the event it celebrates.

Truth be told, Jesus’ birth has always evoked different responses, both in His day and our own. As it was with Herod (Matt. 2:1–4), the prospect of another king arriving on the scene is unsettling to some. Others, like the shepherds, feel a sense of awe and amazement when they consider Christ’s nativity (Luke 2:8–20). Still others, following the wise men’s course, have determined to offer their most precious gifts as an offering to the Savior (Matt. 2:10–12). And then there are those who, frankly, just don’t know what to make of these events at all.

If we wish to make sense of Christmas, we must answer two questions. First: Who is the child born in Bethlehem? And second: Why has He appeared? Matthew 1:18–25 gives the Son of God two names that, when properly understood, provide the answers to both pressing questions.

Who Is the Baby in the Manger?

The identity of Jesus, the Son of God, is revealed in the name Emmanuel, which means “God with us” (Matt. 1:23). Understanding this name requires a bit of Old Testament background knowledge. That is, the appearing of the Son of God was in fulfillment of prophecies of old. As early as Genesis—the very first book of the Bible’s Old Testament—the promise of God being with His people is present in seed form. Immediately after the account of man’s fall into sin, we read this precious promise: “He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel” (Gen. 3:15). Of whom does this verse speak? Who is involved in it? None other than the Son of God Himself—the one who would crush the head of the serpent, Satan. Like the conclusion of a good mystery novel, where the apparently disparate notes and themes come together to solve the case, so the clues and details in our Old Testaments reach their climax in the arrival of God’s Son.

It’s one thing to sing about Christmas; it’s quite another to consider where each of us stands in relation to the event it celebrates.

The story line of the Bible is not one of man seeking for God but of God seeking for man. Contrary to the notion that history is a kind of haphazard sequence of events, bearing no ultimate significance from ancient times to today, the Bible views history as the unfolding of God’s plan. History is God’s story. We must reckon with the fact that if it were left to us to try and discover God or make sense of history, we never could. There is no intellectual road to God, strictly speaking. The only way that a person can ever know God and make sense of the world and our place in it is for God to put Himself in the realm whereby we might meet Him. And God in fact did this by sending His Son—Emmanuel, “God with us.”

Why Has He Come?

The reason God’s Son came is given in His other name: “You shall call his name Jesus,” the angel instructed Joseph, “for he will save his people from their sins” (Matt. 1:21). The name Jesus is equivalent to the Hebrew name Yeshua (or Joshua), which means “Yahweh is salvation.” The child’s destiny is expressed in His name: He came to save sinners.

Throughout the Old Testament, God’s people searched earnestly for a deliverer. When the boy in Bethlehem was born, He was born a Savior into a world in crisis and to a people in despair. And while it’s been a long time since Jesus’ birth in Bethlehem, little has changed. Like the people of old, we, too, live in a world marked by crisis and calamity. Our world is in a horrible mess. After all this time and despite all our advances, we still cannot live at peace with one another. We can communicate with someone on the other side of the planet instantaneously, yet husbands and wives cannot communicate with each other across the breakfast table. Children are at war with their parents; relationships are strained. Why? Scripture gets to the heart of the matter: at the bottom of every crisis and calamity is ultimately the reality that our sins have separated us from God. Whatever man may appear to be is not what God has intended him to be.

Jesus was born a Savior into a world in crisis and to a people in despair.

In a word, what’s wrong with the world today is sin—not just sins, but sin. There is a difference! When we think in terms of sins, plural, we’re often tempted to think of the things we have done or have left undone. But the Bible speaks also in terms of sin, singular. We sin because we are sinful by nature—and because we are sinful, we need a Savior. We cannot save ourselves. Our condition demands that someone come from outside and take on our predicament, dying in our place.

Have you found any other contenders out there? Have you found another savior? There is salvation in no one else. The only name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved is Jesus (Acts 4:12).

The Heart of the Matter

Christ’s birth as Emmanuel and Savior is a historical matter—but it’s also a matter of faith. This faith is not a commodity, nor is it something that anyone, aside from God Himself, can give you. Faith, or believing God’s Word, involves the mind, heart, and will. There’s clearly an intellectual component—even though some suggest that there is a kind of wall between reason and faith. But nowhere in the Bible are we encouraged to disengage our thought processes so that we might have faith. The Bible deals in the realms of history and fact. Faith is basically intellectual, in perfect harmony with reason.

Yet faith also has an emotional dimension. Believing involves trusting God’s promises, agreeing with what He has said, and admitting our need before Him. Finally, faith includes a volitional element. In other words, there must be the move from intellectual assent to actual commitment. It is one thing to think true thoughts about God or enjoy the idea of God. But true faith leads to action, stepping out in trust that God is who He says He is and will do what He says He will do.

Here is the heart of the matter: faith is not simply knowing that there was a Jesus or even believing that Jesus is the person that He claimed to be; it is knowing and experiencing His presence and His power in our lives. And the only way we will know that is when we plunge ourselves into the immensity of His love, grace, and forgiveness.

True faith leads to action, stepping out in trust that God is who He says He is and will do what He says He will do.

Have you committed yourself to the Lord? Have you ever plunged into the sea of God’s forgiveness through faith? As the apostle Paul, writing all those centuries ago, declared, “Behold, now is the favorable time; behold, now is the day of salvation” (2 Cor. 6:2). So if you’ve never trusted in Christ as your Lord and Savior, perhaps you would make the words of this simple prayer your own:

Lord Jesus Christ, I admit that I am weaker and more sinful than I ever before believed, but through You I am more loved and accepted than I ever dared hope. I thank You for paying my debt, bearing my punishment, and offering me forgiveness. I turn now from my sin and receive You as my Savior. Your Word says that whoever comes to God through You He will never turn away. Hear my prayer, Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

Future Glory

 By Alistair Begg

By faith Joseph, at the end of his life, made mention of the exodus of the Israelites and gave directions concerning his bones.

Hebrews 11:22

The book of Genesis ends with Joseph’s death, but that was nowhere near the end of the story. It marks just the beginning of the story of God’s provision and deliverance, which carries on throughout the rest of the Bible and into our lives today. Joseph took great care over what was to happen to his remains after his death, not because of some morbid interest but to offer a symbol of God’s provision in the past and the promise of a future deliverance. Joseph’s bones pointed future generations of Israel forward to promises that were then yet to be fulfilled. Despite all the extraordinary trials and experiences that defined Joseph’s life—being betrayed by his brothers, wrongfully accused by Potiphar’s wife, favored by Pharaoh, positioned within the Egyptian royal court, reunited with his family, and so on—the author of Hebrews chose to highlight none of those things but rather Joseph’s faith for what was to come. Why? Because it was so phenomenally significant. Joseph did not want his family to settle their roots too deeply in Egypt. He knew the promised land was coming. Instead of an elaborate funeral, then, he only asked for his body to be embalmed, placed in a coffin, and left in Egypt (Genesis 50:22-26). Why? He didn’t want his bones to be buried. He wanted his body to be ready to be moved when it was time to travel to the promised land. He recognized that the coffin itself would be a memorial of the fact that the hope of the promised land was as certain as any promise God had ever made. When difficult days would come for the future generations of this growing refugee family, as he surely imagined they would, he wanted them to be able to look to the promise. They could look at his coffin, standing at the ready, and say, Joseph was sure we would leave. If he hadn’t been sure, he wouldn’t have us carting his bones around like this. Today, you do not have Joseph’s coffin full of bones to look to. Instead, you have an empty tomb to remind you of God’s provision in the past and your promised hope for the future. Christ is “our help in ages past, our hope for years to come.” He is “our eternal home.”[1] Because of Him, you can live through difficult days, and die on your final day, secure in your hope of heaven, our great promised land.

Four Privileges

 By Charles Spurgeon

I am the door. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture. John 10:9

Jesus, the great I AM, is the entrance into the true Church and the way of access to God Himself. He gives to the one who comes to God by Him four choice privileges. 1. He will be saved. The fugitive entered the gate of the city of refuge and was safe. Noah entered the door of the ark and was secure. None can be lost who take Jesus as the door of faith to their souls. Entrance through Jesus into peace is the guarantee of entrance by the same door into heaven. Jesus is the only door, an open door, a wide door, a safe door; and blessed is he who rests all his hope of admission to glory upon the crucified Redeemer. 2. He will go in. He will be privileged to go in among the divine family, sharing the children's food and participating in all their honors and enjoyments. He will go into the rooms of communion, to the banquets of love, to the treasures of the covenant, to the storehouses of the promises. He will go in to the King of kings in the power of the Holy Spirit, and the secret of the Lord will be with him. 3. He will go out. This blessing is much forgotten. We go out into the world to work and suffer, but what a mercy to go in the name and power of Jesus! We are called to bear witness to the truth, to cheer the disconsolate, to warn the careless, to win souls, and to glorify God. And as the angel said to Gideon, "Go in this might of yours,"1 even so the Lord would have us proceed as His messengers in His name and strength. 4. He will find pasture. He who knows Jesus will never lack. Going in or out will be equally helpful to him: In fellowship with God he will grow, and in watering others he will be watered. Having made Jesus his all, he will find all in Jesus. His soul will be like a watered garden and like a well of water that never runs dry.

Necessary Trials

 By Alistair Begg

We rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance.

Romans 5:3

Whatever the realm of experience, perspective is always crucial. In art, it helps the artist create an image so that a cup appears ready to be filled or a chair seems firmly planted on the ground rather than suspended in the air. Similarly, in life’s trials the right perspective is required if we wish to make the right response. Unless we think correctly about them, we cannot respond properly. Trials are the means by which our trust in Jesus as our only hope is tested. They help determine whether the faith we profess is genuine or false. When everything is going smoothly, it’s fairly easy to feel confident. But when the wheels fall off—when family life begins to disintegrate, when body or mind fails, when our hopes for this life are dashed—we begin to discover whether our faith is sincere. And when it is proved by testing to be genuine, there is joy, for that kind of faith is “more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire” (1 Peter 1:7). Difficulties also help us measure the growth of our faith—whether we are stagnant or flourishing. Disappointments and tears often bring more progress and growth in our faith as we put God’s word into practice in ways we hadn’t before and learn Christ’s all-surpassing value in ways we hadn’t appreciated before. As one writer puts it, “The wind of tribulation blows away the chaff of error, hypocrisy, and doubt, leaving that which survives the test … the genuine element of character.” Testing develops staying power. The Christian life is not a few hundred-yard sprints; it’s a cross-country run that lasts throughout our lives. Marathon runners go through miles that feel difficult and exhausting, but they keep on going. They are not surprised that it hurts. They expect it to. But they know that beyond the hardships lies the finish. The trials we face along our way similarly call for and produce the endurance we need to run our spiritual race well. Look at the life of any Christian who has soft eyes and a tender heart and you will almost certainly find that they came to that kindness through the experience of trials. It’s easy to want results without effort. Yet this is not how it works. God usually grows our faith in the soil of affliction. The question to ask yourself is, “Do I believe this?” If you do, it will dramatically change your perspective and your response to life’s difficulties. Trials may still fill you with pain, fear, and uncertainty—but you will at the same time be able to consider them with joy, knowing that your spiritual endurance is being developed and therefore your ability to reach the finish line is being enhanced.

Mercy There Was Great

 By Alistair Begg

For we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy, hated by others and hating one another. But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy.

Titus 3:3-5

You don’t need a fire brigade to come to your house if your house isn’t on fire; neither would you want a doctor administering an IV drip when you’re perfectly healthy. It’s pointless! Similarly, until we are truly aware of our need for forgiveness, God’s story of grace and mercy doesn’t really mean much to us. We will think it irrelevant. From time to time, we are all guilty of looking around and recognizing that others are dreadfully in need of forgiveness while turning a blind eye to our own need. “Thankfully,” we say to ourselves (though we don’t like to admit this), “I’m not like them.” By God’s grace, though, we soon realize that we too have been unkind, have said and done things we shouldn’t have, or have failed to do what we should have. In such moments of conviction, we are aware of our need for forgiveness, and we are grateful when it’s extended by those we’ve offended. We can’t have all the upside of forgiveness, in other words, without the downside of recognizing our sin. First, we need to see ourselves rightly: by nature as lost sheep, rebels against God, empty vessels needing to be filled. We need to accept that however long we go on in the Christian life and however much the Spirit changes us in this life, we never outgrow our need for grace because we never outrun our own sinfulness. We need to realize what we deserve for our sins before we will bow down in wonder at the realization that a perfect Savior died in our place and paid all that we owe so that we might receive God’s forgiveness. Our great need is to continue to turn to Christ in faith and repentance. Every one of us, no matter where we are in our walk with Christ, needs to pray that God would show us the truth both about ourselves and about our Savior. Then, as we grow in our understanding of all that we deserve, we will adore that very Savior more and more each day. We will stand in awe of God’s love and all that Jesus has done for us. Pause now, therefore. Ask God, “Show me myself,” and reflect on your own sin. Then ask Him, “Show me my Savior,” and bask in the reality and joy of His mercy. Then His kindness and mercy in saving you will consume your affections so that you joyfully join the chorus: Mercy there was great, and grace was free;  Pardon there was multiplied to me;  There my burdened soul found liberty at Calvary.

God's Ways are Everlasting

 By Alistair Begg

They have dealt faithlessly with the Lord. Hosea 5:7

Believer, here is a sad truth! You are the beloved of the Lord, redeemed by blood, called by grace, preserved in Christ Jesus, accepted in the Beloved, on your way to heaven, and yet you "have dealt faithlessly" with God, your best friend; faithlessly with Jesus, to whom you belong; faithlessly with the Holy Spirit, by whom you have been born again to life eternal! How faithless you have been in the matter of vows and promises. Do you remember your love in the early days, that happy time, the springtime of your spiritual life? How closely you held to your Master then, saying, "He will never charge me with indifference; my feet will never grow slow in the way of His service; I will not allow my heart to wander after other loves; in Him is blessing I could ever enjoy. I give up everything for my Lord Jesus' sake." Has it been so? Sadly if conscience speaks, it will say, "He who promised so much has performed so little. Prayer has frequently been slurred—it has been short but not sweet, brief but not fervent. Communion with Christ has been forgotten. Instead of a heavenly mind, there have been earthly preoccupations, foolish vanities, and evil thoughts. Instead of service, there has been disobedience, instead of fervency lukewarmness, instead of patience petulance, instead of faith self-reliance; and as a soldier of the cross there has been cowardice, disobedience, and desertion, to a very shameful degree." "They have dealt faithlessly." Faithless to Jesus! What words shall be used in denouncing this? Words are cheap: Let our penitent thoughts condemn the sin that is so surely in us. Faithless to Your sacrifice, O Jesus! Forgive us, and let us not sin again! How shameful to be faithless to Him who never forgets us, but who to this day stands with our names engraven on His breastplate before the eternal throne.