We want to share with you this afternoon on the topic of the glory of the incarnation. And we have three points we want to share with you. God incarnate, God with us, and God in us. Turn with me in your Bibles to Galatians 4. I'll be reading verses 4 and 5. Galatians 4, 4 and 5. But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption as sons." Well, today we observe Christmas Sunday. And we have a special recognition of our Lord's birth. The doctrine of the incarnation is what the Bible describes it as. Not long ago, a professor of psychology gave his class of 40 students a word association test. He told them to write down the word Christmas on a piece of paper and next to it write the first thought that comes to their minds. When the papers were turned in, the answers associated with Christmas were tree, holly, mistletoe, presents, turkey, holiday, carols, and Santa Claus. Only one student wrote the birthday of Jesus. Now let me quickly add that Jesus was not born on December 25th, but this is the day traditionally throughout church history that we pay special attention and recognition to the birth of Christ. But it's obvious that in our day and age, the world is taking Christmas to a level that the scripture does not recognize nor intend for us to embrace. It's obvious that business marketing and secular advertising has taken its toll on the message of Christmas and smothered the meaning of that message, the true message of Christmas, which is about the birth of Christ, but other things besides the birth of Christ. A.W. Pink says, quote, Christ's birth was based on what he was going to do and suffer in order to take away sin and bring in everlasting righteousness into their lives. But of course, the world, false religion and secular marketing will chain Jesus to the manger forever as a baby and never allow him to grow up as a man and fulfill his mission. which is to suffer a terrible death on the cross as the substitute for sinners and bear the wrath and condemnation of God in their place. Jesus, paying the sinner's penalty and paying their sin debt, removed the curse of the law and silenced the voice of an accusatory and guilty conscience and reconciled sinners to God. providing peace in their hearts. But we can't expect an unbelieving world and its media to complete the message of the gospel, to connect the manger with the cross, because that would bring up the issue of sin, wouldn't it, and the fall of man, and press home the need for repentance and saving faith in Jesus Christ, but that would ruin their holiday cheer and business aspirations. I read in 1 Corinthians 1, For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. For it is written, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise and bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent. Where is the wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the disputer of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of this world? For since in the wisdom of God the world through wisdom did not know God, it pleased God through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe. For the Jews request a sign and the Greeks seek after wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified to the Jews a stumbling block and to the Greeks foolishness. But to those who are called both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God." So yes, the message of the cross and the offense of the cross to the flesh will not bring happy feelings of goodwill toward men. but it will challenge people to consider whether Christ's blood has washed away their sins and brought righteousness to them and caused them to be born of the Spirit. If we really understand the message of Christmas from the Bible's perspective, it should arouse within us concern for the salvation of souls because the manger is inextricably connected to the cross. You cannot teach the manger without bringing in the doctrine of the cross. They go hand in hand. As a matter of fact, upon the message of the incarnation rests all the other doctrines of Christ. After all, that's why the Creator became the creature. This is why Jesus was born in the manger, to go to the cross. Otherwise, why did the Son of God suffer and sacrifice so much? He emptied himself of his majesty. The worship of angels from all eternity he gave up. His infinite condescension from his exalted throne of glory to come into the world, taking on flesh and a human nature. All this for what? to be admired as a cute baby by a world who has no clue as to his true purpose in coming here? I don't think so. No, Christ was born that he might die on a cross to save his people from their sins. And this purpose was planned and predestined from all eternity past. We read in 2 Timothy 1, verses 9 and 10, who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began, but has now been revealed by the appearing of our Savior, Jesus Christ, who abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel. It's incredible. how the purpose of Christ's birth has been lost in the frenzy of the holiday. And I exhort you not to allow that to happen in your lives. We must pause, slow down, and ask ourselves, how do I relate to the Incarnation? Do I connect it to the cross? How do I view the glorious, amazing miracle and gift of the Son of God, and even the way in which he was given to us, born as a little baby, like you and I were born, a helpless little child. What is God saying to us through the specific way in which Christ came into the world? In the minds of many people, though, the holidays should focus on happy things. But in reality, it's a very depressing time of year for many people. Do you know someone who's depressed this time of year? Depression and discouragement seem to reach epidemic levels during the Christmas season for many, but for many it's not the most wonderful time of the year as the song goes. I've spoken with many people through the years who've come to me for counseling even during the holidays because their heightened sense of despair seems to grow to a very, very high level during the holidays. And so many of these people become cynical and fed up with Christmas because of its commercialism and materialism. Because of the frenzied shopping. You've heard the term shop until you drop? It's out of control. because of the frazzled whirlwind of holiday activities we're so busy preparing for the family to come over and the eggnog and the dip and this and the meals and everything else we don't pause to remember why we are celebrating this day called Christmas Day. The media has revised and re-messaged Christmas and it causes a lot of people depression. The increased debt and depletion of savings accounts for presents and expenses during Christmas time causes a lot of guilt and anxiety. The straining of nerves and the testing of patience during the holiday, the physically exhausting perspirations, the superficial attitudes and Many family schisms and arguments and strained relationships come from Christmas gatherings. And we wonder why so many people are jaded and depressed during Christmas. I guess the epitome of the secularization of Christmas is expressed by the term X-mas. Talk about taking Christ out of Christmas. They literally took the word Christ out of the term Christmas and put an X in his place. X-mas. That's what the world, that's how the world views this holiday. They want Christ out and they just want good cheer and good feelings and goodwill towards men. So with all these things in mind, I can understand why many, many stumble during the Christmas holidays. So how can we keep Christ in Christmas? How can we keep him? not just during Christmas, but focused upon and in the core of our lives every day of the year. How can we keep him central in our hearts and thoughts without getting caught up in the fanfare and sensationalism of the holidays? The slogans, keeping Christ in Christmas and Jesus is the reason for the season, really can be a reality in our experience of the glory and the purpose of our Savior's birth. Artists know the rule in painting that when you paint a picture, all the parts of the painting should be arranged on the canvas so as to draw the attention to the central figure or feature on the painting. Outside features are only as important as they serve this end. Hayden, in his picture of Christ's triumphal entry into Jerusalem, painted the donkey on which Christ rode more attractive than Christ himself. Theologians and philosophers do the same thing when in their arguments stress the forms and symbols of worship rather than draw attention to Christ himself. is not also Christmas dominated by symbols, ceremonies, and materialism at the exclusion of Christ himself as he is presented in the gospel. So we need to keep Christ the central focus. every day of the year, but particularly this time when people's attention are heightened towards considering the meaning of Christmas. A lot of unsaved people at this time are thinking about why do Christians celebrate this day? And we need to be ready to give a reason of the hope that is in us with meekness and fear. We need to be ready to share the meaning and purpose of the birth of Christ. And that brings me to the first point. Number one, God incarnate. We read in our text, but when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his son born of a woman. Notice the phrase in Galatians 4.4, fullness of time. This refers to all that God did in his eternal wisdom that was necessary to take place before the right time would come for his son to be born and the fulfillment of his promise to send a Redeemer to crush the head of Satan and save his people from their sins. The fullness of time represents the sovereignty of God over every second, every millisecond, every atom, bringing about the events of the world to fulfill his purpose and everything, but particularly in the coming of his son. In the fullness of time, Jesus, the God-man, would take upon himself human flesh and be born of a woman. The only instance where we see God incarnate. God became man. What an amazing miracle. That eternal God would take upon himself flesh and blood. Eternal God, who the heavens of heaven cannot contain Him, would voluntarily encase Himself in a human body for 33 and a half years or so. The precise time of His incarnation was not a random event. It was a planned event from eternity past And it was prophesied to take place in time in the Old Testament scriptures. As we read in Daniel 9, after 62 weeks, Messiah shall be cut off. A precise year, a precise month, a precise moment when the Son of God would be crucified for the sins of his people. Another prophecy, a famous one in Isaiah 7 and verse 14, foretold the virgin birth of Emmanuel. How many of you know what Immanuel means? The word Immanuel. You hear the song, right? Immanuel. Isaiah 714 says, therefore, the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son and shall call his name Immanuel, which means what? God with us. The New Testament interprets the word Immanuel, God with us. Over a year ago, my wife and I were in Miami and we were at our niece's Orthodox Jewish wedding and the day after the wedding I had the opportunity to Present the gospel to about 16 Orthodox Jews at dinner Jewish men five of them were rabbis and so sitting at the dinner table the chief rabbi who Who is the homeowner who had invited us invited us for dinner stood up and said Yosef? So tell us Why did you leave the Jewish faith and become a pastor and a Christian? My wife was there. She heard my answer. So for 20 minutes, I had an opportunity to share the gospel. And one of the verses, and mostly I quoted the Old Testament, because they don't believe in the New Testament, the Jews, especially the Orthodox. And I quoted this verse, Isaiah 714. I said, Rabbis, you know the Hebrew word for virgin here. It's the word ha'alma. It means virgin. not young woman. And I said, when in the history of the world have you ever heard of a virgin conceiving? Young women conceive every day, but not virgins. I said, this is a miracle. And this points us to the fact that the Messiah, when he comes, will come in humility. It will be a miracle. He will not have a sinful nature because he will be immaculately, impeccably conceived without sin. And he will therefore not have a sinful nature passed on to him from our first parents, Adam and Eve. And he will be called God. And I said, what do you think? And they had no answer for me. Well, that's what you believe. We don't believe that. Both Matthew and Luke carefully emphasize that Jesus was born of a virgin, which would prevent the transmission of original sin to Christ's human nature. This is a critical aspect of our Lord's qualification to be the substitutionary bearer of our sins. Do you believe that? That's the heart of the gospel. Jesus could not have received a sinful nature. He had to be immaculately without sin, as we read in 2 Corinthians 5.21, for He made him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him. Praise God that He became sin for us. But if we just stay on the topic of the manger and we don't bring it forward to talk about the fact that our Lord was born in this way without sin passed on to Him. lived a perfect life. He grew up in an imperfect, sinful environment. He obeyed the Father perfectly, without exception. In thought, word, and deed, He was always obedient to every jot and tittle of the law. Why? Because that we might become the righteousness of God in Him. Isaiah, Isaiah, the Gospel of Isaiah 53 says, because he had done no violence, nor was any deceit in his mouth. If you're not converted today, the Lord Jesus Christ is a worthy Savior. He's qualified to be my Redeemer and yours because he never sinned. He fulfilled the law and he voluntarily presented himself to be the sacrifice for our sins. For such a High Priest was fitting for us, who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and has become higher than the heavens. Oh, let us bow down and adore Him. Oh, come let us adore Him. We have a Savior who stayed pure and never interrupted His ministry, His thoughts, His life with a commission. of one sin. He stayed true to his own nature as deity by never sinning because the scripture says there is no sin in God. Yes, Jesus is pure from sin, impeccable, and immaculate. Mary was not immaculately conceived, nor was she immaculate in her nature, but Jesus is, was, and always will be. Very God of very God, infinitely separate from sin and from sinners. He is holy and perfect in all His ways. That's why we call Him Emmanuel. He is God with us, and let us worship Him as God. As God incarnate, He is both fully God and fully man. Listen, two natures in one person. And this is validated in two texts in the Old Testament, besides many in the New Testament. The first is the one I read in Isaiah 7, 14, where it says, a virgin shall conceive and bear a son. That points to his humanity. He will be born as a child, the son of Mary and Joseph. But then it also says they will call his name Emmanuel, which points to his deity. He is man and God. And then two chapters later, In Isaiah 9, 6, we read, for unto us a child is born. That points to his humanity. And then it says later, he is the mighty God. He is the God-man, the God who became flesh. What a great miracle this is. The Lord Jesus Christ, God incarnate, He came down. And secondly, our text says in Galatians 4 and verse 5a, continuing the exposition, topically or textually, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, but born under the law. He kept the law. But we read in verse 5, to redeem those who were under the law. This speaks to Him being God with us. First God incarnate, now God with us. He came into this world. He came down here with us. He lived. He lived alongside of our forefathers in the faith. alongside fellow human beings. Our text says, our text answers the question, how can man be redeemed? It says here to redeem those who were under the law. Man needs redemption because the law has condemned us. Sin caused a man to become slaves of sin. From birth, we go astray, speaking lies. In sin did our mothers conceive us. This desire to sin with reckless abandon is inbred and innate in our very nature. No one has to sit us down in kindergarten and teach us, Jane, the teacher, how to sin. It's inherent in our nature. And we can't get it out. We can't get it out of our DNA. Physically, mentally, it's there, always present. And the guilt of sin, the condemnatory accusations of it follow us around every day. Even as Christians, we even have more of a sensitive conscience to sin than before our conversion. But thank God for us as believers, the blood of Jesus Christ cleanses us from all sin, past, present, and future. Every word, thought, and deed of sin is forgiven. And the Bible says that the blood of Jesus Christ continues as we repent and trust in the Lord Jesus Christ for fresh peace and fresh cleansing. That blood speaks mercy to us. who were redeemed, not by the blood of bulls and goats, but by the precious blood of Jesus Christ. And therefore, year after year, unlike the Old Testament Jews, we don't need to be re-cleansed. We don't have to go through our own Christian Yom Kippur and have an annual day of atonement. No, Christ died on the cross once for all, and his precious blood provides permanent forgiveness. It also provides ongoing cleansing and the outpouring of peace of heart and purity of conscience through the application of the blood of Christ by faith in Jesus, our Redeemer, our Redeemer. And so he did this, that he might redeem us from every lawless deed, that the law would not be nipping at our heels and our tormentor and our condemner all the time. Because the precious blood of Jesus Christ The Bible says, speaks and cries mercy to the Father. We have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. And so, We read in Ephesians 2 that He Himself is our peace, who made both one, that is, Jews and Gentiles, believers, one. He's made us one and has broken down the middle wall of separation, having abolished in His flesh the enmity that is the law of commandments contained in ordinances, so as to create in Himself one new man from the two, thus making peace. So our Lord Jesus Christ came down into this world not just to be born, as a baby, but to live a perfect life and keep the Ten Commandments and all the law, not only to qualify Him as our sacrifice for sin, but also to represent us before the bar and the court of God. He also came to bear the penalty for our broken commandments in His own body on the cross. He is our representative, our substitute. And when you put your trust in Him as Lord and Savior, He bears that curse, the curse of the law, in his own flesh. And he shed his blood to wash away that curse and silence the voice of accusation, both from your own conscience and from the devil himself, who accuses the brethren day and night before the throne of God. Praise God that we have a Savior who came down into this world. God with us, who always lives to make intercession for us. He took His sin upon Himself. He understands because He is fully man, not only fully God, but fully man. And the weaknesses in the flesh that we have, though He never sinned, He understands what it means to be tired and hungry, to be weak physically, emotionally. He suffered. once for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God. He was wounded for our transgressions. He was bruised for our iniquities, the chastisement for our peace was upon him and by his stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray. We have turned everyone to his own way and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all. Oh, the God-man came down to live among us, born of a woman, identifying with us, infinitely condescending from heaven, his holy dwelling place where he had been worshipped for eternity past. He gave up his majesty, his throne, his infinite place of existence and lived within a human body and he still lives within a body his glorified body and he will do so forever what amazing identification and love that he will forever be in a glorified body and identify with us he is with us he loves us as his children man is his special creation men and women made in the image of God, but especially children of God, who on the last day when we leave this earthly tabernacle, this tent, this body, and put off mortality and put on immortality, we will be like Him. For we shall see Him like He is. We, our mortal bodies will be transformed and changed to be like unto His glorious body. We will have a glorified body like Christ's glorified body. And we will think God's thoughts after Him. Can you imagine? For all eternity future. Thinking every thought like God thinks. Having every thought conform to the obedience of the captivity of Christ. Having every thought be holy and pure and righteous and God glorifying without the interruption of sin and selfishness and egotism. and wickedness and vain imaginations. Every thought in heaven will glorify God and praise Him, will be pure and undefiled and holy. Our bodies, our thoughts and our speech, our speech will only utter forth praise and glory to Christ and edifying and God-glorifying things to others. Wow. Now I understand a little bit more when the Bible says we shall be like him and we will follow him wherever he goes. And we will not be God, but we will be like God in our thoughts, in our speech and in our appearance. And then lastly, God in us. The God-man, God with us, and then God in us. We read in Galatians 4, 5b that we might receive the adoption as sons. This is why Jesus was born. Everything he did, including his birth, his ministry, his miracles, his holy life, points us to the cross. Anyone that wants to follow Christ, however lost they may be, whatever much they lack in directions on the narrow road that leads to eternal life, all they need to do is follow the road that leads to the cross. That's where the manger starts us out, on that road that leads us to the cross. Because when someone puts his or her trust in the Lord Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, they receive the adoption as sons. And then after we are adopted sons and daughters, we become those who are vessels of the Holy Spirit, where God lives inside of us. And we have a tremendous stewardship to nurture and be caretakers of the presence of the Holy Spirit in us. And when we violate His presence, that's why we are grieved. We can grieve the Holy Spirit. And so it's a very important, awesome, unspeakable, incomprehensible privilege that God is inside his people, God in us. Christmas is important because it leads us to the truth that once a person becomes an adopted child of God, because Jesus is the only one who is a natural son, the rest of us are adopted, that we are recipients. We become vessels of the very presence of God himself. This is the greatest privilege of being a child of God, even more than our salvation, even more than the forgiveness of sins, that God comes to live inside of us. God doesn't live in angels. He doesn't live in animals. Whatever other creature He may have created, fish, birds, He doesn't live in anything but His people. And if we bear His image now, while we are yet in these mortal bodies, when we are recreated in His perfect image, Those in heaven who are not children of God, cherubim, angels, will look on us and they will see an overwhelming, distinct feature of God in us. They will see the mark of God, the likeness of God upon us! What an awesome destiny for the child of God! Therefore, when we talk about Christmas and we describe and articulate the story of the manger and the wise men and the inn and all of the features of the birth of Christ, we need to quickly move from there and go to the cross as soon as we can. Because it's only at the cross that One can experience faith in Jesus Christ when we understand that Christ died for the ungodly. And if you will put your trust in Him as your Lord and Savior, if you will invite Him into your heart to save you, if you will repent of your sin, condemn your sin, loathe your sin, and turn to Christ, confessing that you have no good deeds that He will accept, that you can do nothing good that could earn your salvation or provide merit that God would accept. Everything you are and everything that you can do, everything that describes you as a human being is acceptable and putrid and rejected by God. It is only by the interposition, by putting Christ between you and God as the mediator, the reconciler, and putting your trust in Jesus Christ to save you, that will bring about your salvation and lead to your adoption and your ultimate your ultimate glorification whereby you will you will be made in his likeness. We read in the Bible, but as many as received him to them, he gave the right to become children of God to those who believe in his name. Do you want to know the joy and the glory of having God come inside you and live within you? That was God's ultimate design. I hear some flippant, frivolous preacher say, oh, God was lonely and he created the human race to keep him company. No, God was not lonely, but he did create mankind and he did save sinners because he wanted, for whatever reason, because of his love, of course his love, he wanted to put himself inside of them. He wanted to live inside his people and enjoy the closest fellowship and communion he could possibly have and we could possibly have with God himself. That's a concept and a mystery that defies the imagination and challenges us to a very core. And we often forget this sacred stewardship we have to not only nurture the Spirit of God within us, but to grow in the grace and knowledge of Christ that we might come to deeper levels of the knowledge of God in us. For we did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the spirit of adoption, whereby we cry out, Abba Father, behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called the children of God. We forget the glory of this privilege. And the Spirit bears witness with our spirit that we are the children of God. Christmas is not only relevant because the manger leads to the cross, but because it points us to the ultimate purpose of our salvation, to know the Lord Himself. Christ in you, the hope of glory. He said, I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you. Jesus prayed this. And this is not a lie. This is the truth. In John 17. Father. I in them and you in me. The family likeness is that they are in each other. Christ is in the father. The father is in him and they are in us. And he says it. And I don't understand this part. And somehow I am in him. It's called oneness with God. Oneness. That's the ultimate goal and purpose of God with his people. Oneness. And yes, in this life, we fall short. This treasure is in earthen vessels. But we can receive much encouragement and much excitement by thinking that this is the process that God is involved with. in transforming us and conforming us into his image that we would know more and more of that oneness. And so as I close, I make this application. In spite of all the discouragements, can you look past them for a minute? All of the false elements of this holiday time that that take our attention off of Jesus Christ and his ultimate purpose of going to the cross to die for sinners and save our souls and to bring us into this oneness relationship with Christ in spite of all these distractions. Can you look past them and focus all your attention on God incarnate Jesus Christ and worship him thanking him for bringing you into the faith and thanking God for bringing him into the world because unless Jesus came into this world was born lived a perfect life died on the cross rose again ascended to heaven you and I would be without hope. And so what is Christmas time do it point it reminds us of the hope that we have the hope and the glory of God as that that is observed in the incarnation. So over the next couple of days, let's slow down, take some time off from our time off. Just have some quiet time and worship the Lord and thank him for giving us his son. Let's pray. We thank you and praise you, Lord Jesus. Oh, the great God-man, the God who saved us, gave us a new heart, a new mind, a new spirit. Thank you for coming down from heaven, that infinite place of so far away from us, coming into this world, being born, going through gestation for approximately nine months, living as a baby dependent upon the hands of your earthly mother, Mary, to feed you, to clothe you, and to raise you, Mary and Joseph, voluntarily doing this, submitting yourself to them, humbling yourself, and then living in obscurity for 30 years, and then even in your glorious ministry of three years plus, not seeking the attention of the world, seeking to get away from the worldly attention, showing the meekness and humility of your nature, your character, which again, points to your glory, and then dying such an amazing death on the cross in the place of your people to purchase their salvation, and then being raised from the dead, having the Father accept your perfect sacrifice as a substitutionary payment to pay our sin debt, to release us from prison and from hell and from the lake of fire. How can we ever forget this? How can we ever treat it with indifference? Oh, stir up within our hearts fresh zeal, fresh joy, fresh excitement about our salvation and about the forgiveness of our sins and about the awesome, eternal, everlasting privilege we shall have to be one with you. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.