The scripture reading this morning is found in two parts of the gospel. We first read Luke 2, verses 1 through 7, the gospel of the birth of the Lord Jesus. Luke 2, verses 1 through 7. And it came to pass in those days that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be taxed. And this taxing was first made when Cyrenius was governor of Syria. And all went to be taxed, every one into his own city. And Joseph also went up from Galilee out of the city of Nazareth into Judea unto the city of David, which is called Bethlehem. because he was of the house and lineage of David, to be taxed with Mary his espoused wife, being great with child. And so it was that while they were there, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered. And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn. And then we also wish to read from John 3, verses 14 through 21. John 3, starting at verse 14. And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, Even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have eternal life. For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through him might be saved. He that believeth on him is not condemned, but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For everyone that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved. But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God. So far the reading of God's holy word, the text for the sermon on this Christmas day is John 3 verse 16. For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting life. Beloved congregation, the Lord Jesus said that heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away, because the Word of God is the everlasting Word. God's Word will always be fulfilled, and the day will come when the Lord Jesus shall return, and we shall see Him as He is. Because God's words will never fail. He is ultimately faithful and devoted to his own word. So the Lord had spoken to the prophet Micah that the Lord Jesus Christ would be born in Bethlehem. And Joseph and Mary lived in Nazareth. But the Lord is at work ruling everything. In Rome there's an emperor, and he thinks that he is controlling things, but he doesn't realize that he is being controlled and governed by the Lord God. Because a census is made throughout the whole land, but it was all arranged by God to give that into the heart of this Emperor Augustus. And then Joseph and Mary had to return to their ancestral place where their ancestors came from. And that's how Joseph and Mary ended up in Bethlehem. And right at the time that the Lord Jesus had to be born, and dear boys and girls, you know very well what happened. No room for them in the inn. No room. And so they went apparently to a cave or a stable. In a cave they would keep their cattle, the people in those days. And then that's where the Lord Jesus was born. In a stable. In a shed. In a cow shed. There's nothing romantic about that. It must have been a grave disappointment for Joseph and Mary And they see that their son, or her son, the Son of God, is born in a stable, in a filthy shed with vermin. And what else do you have in a stable, in a shed? Well, that's where the Lord Jesus was born. Because we read this morning, and she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger. Because there was no room for them in the inn, and there the miracle took place, that God gave his son. But again, so different than we would have imagined. We would have imagined we'd be born in a palace, or in a nice home, or in whatever, but not in a stable. And what an affliction this must have been for Joseph and Mary, how their faith must have been assaulted, that this is where the Son of God is born. But this was how the Lord had planned it. His ways are higher than our ways. And then later on, the Lord Jesus, He explained His coming to a Jewish rabbi in John 3. And there the Lord Jesus explained what happened there, that God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life. And so this is the miracle that we wish to consider on this Christmas day. We meditate on God's Christmas gift and we see His love, His calling, and His purpose. So where shall we start or where shall we end when we are called to consider the love of God, regardless of what we see in this world, in regards of what we experience and go through, it is still true that God's love is beyond our understanding. It's eternal. It's focused on everlasting life, everlasting bliss and salvation. It's focused on the new heavens and the new earth in which righteousness will dwell. And that supersedes everything that we go through in our life. This love of God revealed in giving His Son so that life everlasting could be ushered in. Mankind had fallen, and yet the Lord did not write them off. Mankind had deserved to perish forever in outer darkness, but the Lord was compassionate, and even more than that, He was love And moved by love, he looks at people. He looks at people with deep compassion, like the Lord Jesus at a certain occasion. He saw the multitudes before him, and he realized they were as sheep without a shepherd, and he was filled with compassion on them. That's the love of God. So the text speaks about love. And what is now specific about love? Love has to be focused on someone else. Love cannot be focused on yourself. You need someone else to love. And that is what the Lord God did. The Lord, the triune God is love. And there you see the Trinity. That the Father loves the Son, and the Son loves the Father, and the Father and the Son love the Holy Spirit, and the Holy Spirit loves God the Father and God the Son. There you see that love is focused on the other, even in the Holy Trinity, from all eternity. And so now we read here that God so loved the world, filled with compassion, upon a sinful, rebelling mankind, people who always focused upon themselves and did not know love. And then God loved. He loved this world. You see, the Lord never forsakes the works of His hands. And He initially had made, created heaven and earth, and He was not going to give that up. He was going to cause heaven and earth to be renewed, to be delivered, to be saved. And He had once made this world so beautiful, with such blessed harmony, with warmth, with abundance, with overflowing life. There was no darkness. There were then no calamities, there was no pain, no sickness, no sin, but man chose to be as God and wanted to be God in his own life. And so man rebelled against God and caused darkness and misery to fall upon him. And although this fall was very great, Yet the Lord God had compassion and love and care for this world. When we think about that word world, what do you think about? When you think about the world, what do we think? We think of wars, of hardships, of disappointments. You think of your own life, of toil, hardships, maybe grief. That's the world. And when the text says that God so loved this world, and we realize that God showed love to something that was not lovable. He showed love to something that was ugly and lost. But the Lord knew that salvation could only come from Him, and that the entire human race was now doomed, and that His whole creation was under the curse, and He was moved with love, moved by Himself. Nothing in us to invoke such love. It was His one-sided love And that came to the fore in the birth of the Lord Jesus Christ. For God so loved this world that He sent His Son. And this world congregation is not only outside of us, but it's in us. Because we have sinned against God. This text is very personal. It's not about this world that's so bad, but it's about you and me. That you and I have rebelled against God. We went our own way. We have not listened to Him. We have turned our backs upon Him. We have forsaken the obedience to God. Deliberately we have gone against God and that's why people like us endure hardships and misery. And that's why there's so much disappointment in this world. This world is full of rebellion. And then in the night of Christmas, God writes a letter to this world. And that's a letter of love. a letter in which he declares that he so loved this world that he gave his son. You know, before this time God had written other letters of love. It already started in broken paradise when Adam and Eve received such a letter of love from God. that the Savior would come. And later on the Lord continued these letters of love to the godly line that lived before the flood, and to Noah, and after that to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. And then He declared His love to the people of Israel, telling them that He was their God, that they could trust Him, And for nearly 2,000 years, God had sent letters of love to Israel. And now finally, the Lord sent His utmost letter of true and real love, because God sent His Son into this world. There in the stable in Bethlehem, God delivers personally his letter to this world. The stable in Bethlehem is a mailbox, and there the Lord deposits his letter of love in giving his son and that child that is God's letter, his letter of love. And in that child you can read how much God loved this world. The Lord could not say this any clearer. He gave his most precious son. Imagine a couple and they have one son. That's all they have. They wish for more children, but this is what the Lord has given them. and they love this son, and they live for this son, they raise him, and they do whatever they can for the well-being of this son. And imagine then, if an accident happens to this son, and that he dies, imagine the grief and the sorrow of such parents. The only son, he's no longer with us. What a sorrow, what a grief! And then God had one Son, His only begotten Son. And He so loved the world that He gave this Son, yes, into hell, into suffering, into misery, that declares God's love, His deep letter of love to us. not only to Joseph and Mary, but to you and me today. This letter of love cannot be written any clearer. God gave His Son. What else could God have done to proclaim His love? He did the utmost. and Joseph and Mary were the only ones who could read this letter, although they didn't understand this letter fully. But they knew, and they realized this is God's love, His personal letter. And nobody else knew. The emperor in Rome didn't know. And the legalistic scribes and Pharisees, they didn't know. And the shepherds in the field, they don't know. Until the angel comes and declares them, great joy, for unto you is born this day a Savior. And so God will make sure that some people will know that God has written his letter of love. And after these wise men came from the east, and they had read this letter, they knew they didn't understand it all either. Neither did the shepherds, neither did Joseph and Mary, and neither do you and I understand the depth of this love, and yet we know it's true. It's his love declared. in this glorious letter. And now this love is proclaimed throughout the world, in every nation. There are those who are reading this letter today with joy that God gave His most precious, most beloved, only begotten Son. And therefore, at Christmas, we may no longer doubt the love of God. He gave His Son, and His Son is a gift to you and me today. That's His love, not to be understood. God so loved the world, and you and I belong to this world. We belong to those who rebel against God, And yet the Lord comes to us in the midst of our lives, in the midst of our disappointments, in the midst of matters and guidance you do not understand. We may see this message that God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son. And you want to see this love? Look at the manger. Look inside. You see a child. That's the letter of God's love. And this love has no limits. No limits. That's why he can save to the uttermost. Because the Lord Jesus has no limits, has no boundaries. He is the eternal one. He is the depiction of divine, eternal love. It's immeasurable, because the Lord Jesus himself is immeasurable. He came to give life everlasting. He came to cause God's love and light to shine into your life and heart. He has come so that you would no longer be your own, but that you would belong to Him, your faithful Savior, who will fully save. And this child is going to make all things new. He gives a new life. with new hopes and new longings and new perspectives. He gives a new future. He gives life everlasting. And He's going to give you a new body without sickness. You don't see that now yet, but it's coming. And why? Do we know it's coming? Because He has spoken this. His Word will never fail. And that's why He gave His Son, the Lord Jesus. He has come. He's in the manger. And there you see the gift of God's love. And the more you think about this unspeakable gift, you don't understand how this could be. Which mother would give her child away? Which father would sacrifice his son for wretched, abominable people? But God, knowing the exact result of sin, gives his son, for God so loved this world. That's God's love. But then we also see God's calling. Because if we have received a letter, what do you do with that letter? Well, you read, therein God's love. That's true. But there is more. The letter written to you and me today, therein the Lord objectively displays His love. But it's more than that. He comes with a calling to you and me. And that calling is to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ. And it's not just a mental agreement with the coming of the Lord Jesus, but it's faith connected to repentance. It means bowing down. It means surrender to Him. There needs to be a reaction to this letter. The Lord wants an answer from you and me, and the answer that whosoever believeth in Him That's the calling for you and me with Christmas, that we would believe in Him. And we know this very well. We've heard it many a time. We know about the call to faith and repentance, and yet in the life of faith it's something that is repeatedly continued on in life. Repentance is not just one time event, it's daily turning to the Savior, daily realizing what He has done. daily leaning and trusting, not upon your own assessments, or your own understanding, or upon your own calculations, but resting upon Him, what He has said, what He has spoken, that is faith. And that's necessary. That's what the Lord is asking for you and me. and is not only asking us from us, but it's actually another gift that God is giving. Because it's not that we do something and then God will reward that. No, it's all His one-sided work. Where does faith come from? It's a gift of God. Where does repentance come from? As a gift from the exalted Christ in heaven, who is exalted at the right hand of God to give faith and repentance and remission of sins. It's His work. And that's why we are completely debtors to His grace, even the call to faith. It's His gift that He grants. And yet, we are to listen. And we cannot just say it's God's work and I will do nothing. No, we are to look in the manger. We are to realize who the Lord Jesus is, what He has done. It means to let go of yourself and that you bow together with the shepherds and you worship this King who is born. It means that you join in with the angelic hosts. and that you realize that all glory must be given to God. And so you learn to deny yourself and to live with Him. To live with Him. That's not living according to your feelings, but it's living by faith. Although I feel nothing, although I feel not His presence, and I feel not conversion in my life, and I feel not that I am being uncovered to my sins, and that I am broken, and that I am brought to the brink of despair. No, I never experienced that. You don't have to experience that. If faith is needed, faith that denies himself that confesses that he is lost in sins and trespasses, dead, and that looks to this Savior, Lord, save me, deliver me. That is the calling. The calling that God gives for this precious gift. This child in the manger is the gift for your deliverance for your salvation. You know, at times you can receive a precious gift from someone and you feel even a bit embarrassed. Why do I receive such a gift? And when we realize what the Lord has given at Christmas, then you will wonder, why me? Why were you drawn to be under the gospel? Why were you drawn out from the mass of those who do not fear God, and that you are here under this rich gospel invitation that's already God's love? And you wonder, why me? And then if we look around the manger, and you look around in the stable, and you realize what a remarkable mailbox And then this letter, what is it? You see the child wrapped in swaddling clothes, that's God's letter. God's deeds are beyond finding out. We don't understand the depth of this gift. God displays love in a feeding trough of animals. And his son is wrapped in poverty. God displays His love in a manger. And in that manger is a shadow. Do you see it? It's a shadow of a cross. And it's right on top of that manger, the cross of Jesus. And that's how God displays His love. There's an atonement for your sins There's a payment for your mischief. And we are called to believe this. And that means, as I said, not a mental apprehension, but you have to get into action. Because repentance and faith are actions. The prodigal son repented. He got into action. And what's the action for you and me? That's looking away from everything that blocks the sight upon the Lord Jesus. And that's looking to Him. It's bowing down before Him. It's begging Him for mercy. God's gift is a call for you and me for faith. This child doesn't ask you to calculate. or to estimate, or to have all your T's crossed, and all your I's dotted, that you know everything was going to happen, and you have everything sorted out. No, it's letting go of yourself. That's what it is. Letting go of yourself, and falling down before this child, saying, Lord, I need Thee. That is faith. Nothing more is needed. No conditions. No requirements. But just Him, His child in the manger. For the Lord had said, Whosoever believeth in Him. It's resting in Him. Obeying Him. Living by His Word in your marriage. in your family, in your work environment, in the midst of your daily routine, you with your worries, with your concerns, And when you're with your thousand impossibilities that you run up against, it means that you lay all these needs before this precious Savior, faith. It's confessing, I have sinned, O Lord. I'm unworthy of the least of Thy blessings. It's confessing that I need grace. I need this Savior in my life. that He would take over my life, that He would lead me to His honor. That's what faith is. That somehow God may be glorified through this, what I'm going through. It means that your time, for time and eternity, your hope is upon the Lord Jesus Christ. And He will pick up your life, And He will invigorate it. He will renew it. He will lead to life everlasting. And again, when you struggle with faith, and maybe you find it vague, and you wonder, how can I believe? How can I rest in Him? Well, look again at that manger. What's His name? It's Jesus. What does that mean? You know that. He shall save His people from their sins. And so, He is the One who gives you strength to trust in Him, to believe. And your hope will not be put to shame, for He works faith in you by means of His Word, that you read and study His Word. Consider then, this love, this letter, this calling, God pours out His heart to you, and He's looking for salvation to be given to you. How can we not love such a Savior? How would we then continue on in life in stubbornness with our own reasonings? We cannot fathom this with our mental understanding. We are to come and bow in the dust. That's our place. That's where we need to be. Take my life, Lord. Let it be dedicated to Thee. Love is the issue. Thou hast opened Thy heart towards me, and now my stubborn heart has to be opened to Thee. And if you don't want to give your heart If you don't want the Lord to take control of your heart, then you better stay outside of the stable, because then there's no room for you there. And that's because you've never really looked into that manger. Have you looked in that manger? What will you do with your own heart? How can you ensure that your life would not be in vain? We're not our own masters. We are by nature under the dominion of the devil, and he blinds us with unbelief, with indifference and lust. And so he drags us to that dismal place of horror. And therefore, at Christmas, the Lord gives this calling, my son, my daughter, give me thine heart. And then we consider also God's purpose. Because the Lord does not just give a gift like that, but he has a purpose with this gift. And this purpose is also found in our text. That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. Everlasting life. That's what it was all about. And behind that, it was about the glory of God. That's the ultimate aim of God's unspeakable gift, that God will be glorified. But now for the time, for us, it's about life everlasting. That means not perishing, That means not living in vain, but that means living with Him. That's the reason why God gave His Son, so that you would not perish, but have life everlasting. And we are prone to perish. Many people, they walk on the broad way, and they will perish, all of them. Because there's only one name given under heaven whereby we must be saved. And to perish is terrible. And yet it's so easy to perish. We don't have to do anything. You can just carry on with your life. You can keep coming to church. Like there are people who come to church, that's what they should do. And they do that, and for the rest they live their own lives. until they are awakened and shaken to and fro, and then they realize what life is all about, and what the Lord is about. They never paid attention to Him and to His Word, and they are deceiving themselves. They claim that they don't need what we read in the Bible. We know things better than God. They don't listen really to His Word. It has no impact upon them. It has no changing power upon them. And they don't pray for light upon His Word. Maybe you are one of these people. What are you living for? What's your life all about? I've spoken to people in the congregation who exclaim, that's how I used to live. but God had mercy on me. And if the Lord hadn't guided me, I would have continued on and would not have known who God is, although being in church my life long. What's your life about? We have to consider that, because we by nature are perishing. But there's no need for you to perish. because God writes you a letter and he opens his heart to you so that you would not perish but have everlasting life? Yes, perishing. Do you really think that all the injustice and all the cruelty and all the meanness that happens in this world, do you think that can all just go on? And those people die comfortably in bed, surrounded by loved ones, after perpetrating such misery on other people, and that there will be no retribution that would drive you out of your mind. But there is a retribution, because everyone will have to bear what he has done and give an account of his life. and He will judge righteously. And all those who committed iniquity, they will bear the fruit, the bitter fruit of their life. And that's why Christians who are being harassed and who are being tortured, they even feel sorry for their persecutors, because they know what they will have to face. while these Christians themselves will be strengthened by the Lord and will be delivered. But there is a retribution. Hell is a reality. That's a terrible reality of people perishing. It's outer darkness. It's everlasting pain. And there's no end to it. That's perishing. What happens in their life? Their life here on earth? They're already perishing. Their life is a mess. And it can very well be that their kids are all over the place. That their marriage is on the rocks. It's not always like that. There are also ungodly people who have good marriages. I know that by God's grace. But their life is vanity, vanity, living for nothing. They are already perishing. And you, without the Lord in your life, you're not only going to perish, but you are now perishing already. What's your life about? What are you living for? For some more money? For some more things you can buy? some more toys, and then what then? Then it's all over. Then you get a diagnosis from the doctor that there's something wrong with you, we've seen. And what will you then do with your life? That's why you may not perish, but you must have everlasting life. That's the purpose of the coming of the Lord Jesus into this world. God does not want you to perish. How do you know that? Because you are here this morning. You are under His Word. You are being appointed to the Christmas gift of the Lord God. He has written you a letter. Do you take time to read it? Or are you too busy even to read the letter? Because you have so much celebration going on and other things, read that letter tonight on your knees before the Lord. Because God sent his Son to descend into the terrors of outer darkness so that you could be safe. And the Lord has a beautiful plan. And that's all going to happen. Because this world will finally pass away. And the Lord will usher in a new heaven and a new earth in which righteousness dwells. And then God will dwell with His people. A new Jerusalem will descend as a bride adorned for her husband from heaven. And that way his people will be that innumerable multitude that God's people never see each other for the last time. Because there in heaven they will be together always under the glorious presence of God. That's life everlasting. That's what it's all about here in church. And what can we say about heaven? We better say, what can we not say about heaven? It's altogether lovely. And that's why on Christmas Day we are referred to heaven, to heaven. to everlasting life. And that everlasting life, you know that. It's not just later on, but it's now already in your life. That everlasting life starts to bubble up and that it brings your life to fruition. That is so glorious. That's what the Lord gives. And that's what the Redeemer is all about. And this is what the Gospel of Christmas is about. Amen. O Lord, in heaven we humbly thank Thee for Thy goodness, for the letter of love which Thou hast sent to us. And Lord, we should not focus our attention upon that mailbox, a stable, dismal, dark, cold, and in sheer, stark poverty. And we should look beyond that to whom thou art and what thou hast given. Lord, open our eyes that we may behold the Lord Jesus in His beauty, that we may be led to love Thee and to live for Thee. Will Thou remember us in mercy? For Thou hast remembered mercy in giving Thy Son. Will Thou also remember us further in mercy? And may there be fruit upon Thy Word in our hearts and lives, that we would be a people devoted to Thee, a people who know what it is to deny themselves for Thy honor. Will Thou go with us this day further? Yes, again we pray for a blessing upon the celebration with this Sunday school. Make all things well. We thank Thee that this is possible. The children have been practicing this for weeks on end. O Lord, what a joyful occasion will Thou give that everything may read down to Thy glory. Be with us in our homes where we may be, and maybe it's possible that some of us are alone at home. Will Thou visit them and display them Thy mercy and goodness, that it may be a blessed Christmas day in communion with Thee, the Lord Jesus Christ. Hear us, we pray, for Thy name's sake. Amen.