Put the back scratcher right there. Alright. Well, Christmas Eve, the day of, OK, the day of. So we're hours away, hours away for Christmas Day itself. So since we have the kids here, I need to keep them engaged a little bit, excuse me, as well as the adults. So anytime I come from the platform onto the floor here, everybody wakes up. So they go, oh my word, he's now within striking distance. All right, so let me see. Let me ask here, Sarah, what's going to be your favorite part of Christmas Day? I'm going to be real, don't give me the Sunday School answer now. Don't give me this, oh, to worship the baby Jesus. No, no, no, none of that. Go ahead. Waking up and spending time with your fam. All right. Let me see. Don't worry. You're not with it. We're still within reach over there. What's going to be your favorite part of Christmas Day, buddy? The presents. The presents? See, honest. Honest. Boom. Honest. That's what we like. Oh, reading God's word together. Presents, bro. Presents. Focus. Focus. Let me see. I know what's going to be your favorite part. Hanging with the Acostas, right here. Yeah, yeah. Came all the way from Newark to hang out with the Acostas. All right? Yeah, yeah. All right. Just so you know, we allow people from Jersey here. Right here. OK? Huh? What you got against them? Nothing. I think they're right there with Hialeah. All right? What's going to be your favorite part of Christmas Day? To have a great Christmas. To have a great Christmas. And what does that mean to you? To have a good heart. Have a good heart and spend time with your family. You're going to get presents for sure. Wow, let me see. Bentley, what's going to be yours? Hold on, hold on, bro. I didn't understand that one. One more time? Open up the presents? OK. All right, let me see over here. I'm going to make work my way over there a little bit. Hey, Big Ben, what's going to be your favorite part? Favorite part of Christmas Day? Decorating the Christmas tree. Decorating the Christmas tree? Yes. Okay, that's fine. If you're doing it on Christmas Day, that's cool. That's cool. That's fine. Listen, I'm alright with that. Let me see. Let me walk over here now. Man, I'm getting my cardio in. See. Alright, let me see. Pick on real, real, the young ones around here. Alright, Miss Reba. Alright. What's going to be your favorite part of Christmas Day? That's true. They're happier, even in South Florida. Yeah, that's true. That's true. What's going to be your favorite part, buddy? Presence? Yeah, he's straight up. He's straight up. He's Maritza's kid. He's straight up. Boom. Presence. Presence. OK, bro. What about you? What's your favorite part? Yeah? Are you eating lechon? You need some pig, man? You need some pig or not? OK, he's like, what are you? Who is this guy? Who let this guy in? I mean, OK, that's cool. Either way, let me see. Let me see. Let me see who we got here. Oh, now, he's. I can't tell who's who here with the shirts. I can't tell. I can't tell. What's going to be your favorite? The food. The food? Straight up. That's what I like to hear. OK, listen, if you can look back, we have an elf amongst us. If you can look back here, Sylvia, also known as Road Runner, right here. OK, what's going to be your favorite part? Spending time with family spending time with family. That's fantastic. She's gonna be busy all night. You know all right. That's enough That's listen the reality is we all we all look at Christmas And and we we there's there's things to be to enjoy and there's traditions to have but what we want to make sure This morning is that we highlight the reality that we need to keep before Christmas. So if you have your Bible, please turn to first Timothy 1 15. It is the memory verse of the month. First Timothy 1 15. One verse reminds us, reminds us of the true wonder of Christmas. One verse reminds us the true purpose of Christmas. 1st Timothy chapter 1 verse 15. Listen, if your kids are with you and they're running around and all that, that's okay with me. Don't feel bad. They're kids. Now, if you're 38 and you're doing that, we got a problem. Okay? But if they're kids, like, no problem, listen, hang out, peace, okay? No problem. If they cry out, that's okay. All right? Like I said, we do have Benadryl pops available for you. I read, you follow along, the saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance that Christ Jesus came into this world to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost. Did you catch the nine spectacular words that can revolutionize your Christmas this year? They're on the screen behind me. Nine spectacular words that revolutionize your Christmas. Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners. That's Christmas, believe it or not. You and I, we love the beauty of Christmas. We like the wrapping paper, the trappings, and the externals, the lights, and the food, and family. And listen, it's not that it's bad, it's just not ultimate. It's good, but it's of this world. These 9 words remind us that there's more to Christmas than just the light. In fact, there's a darker side, there's an ugly side. And those 9 words remind us sinners needed a Savior. Therefore, a Savior needed to be provided. God had made a promise of a Savior in years in the Old Testament, and for many years through the prophets, Messiah's coming, a Savior's coming, He kept His promise. Christmas is about that also. But why is it? Because of the ugly side, and that's because sinners needed a Savior. Behind every beautiful scene, behind every Christmas card with, you know, you don't get Christmas cards with Jesus hanging on a cross. Normally you don't I don't remember the last time I got I had one that said Merry Christmas And there's a death of Christ right on the front Yet these nine words remind us that sinners needed a Savior. See, Christmas cheer, you hear about all that, all the Christmas cheer. Real Christmas cheer occurs when Christmas is clear, when you fully understand it. And that's what we want to go beyond the wrapping paper, beyond the gift giving, beyond all this, and explore the deeper meaning of Christmas. So let me bring it to you under three headings. Number one, the purpose of Christmas, it's explained. And that's the birth of a Savior. The incarnation, God becoming flesh, has to do specifically about the birth of a Savior. The true or real beauty of Christmas has to do with our understanding of the ugliness that it cures. Do you understand? You see that? You know why Christmas is so beautiful? Not because you and I gorge like there's no end. Okay? Yeah, but it's a sin I can confess. Okay? Alright? That's not the real beauty of Christmas is through Christmas God takes care of the ugliest thing that happens in our lives. Takes care of the biggest problem you and I have, which is sin. Separation from God and how to be reconciled, how to reestablish a connection with God that's fully broken and cannot be repaired on our side, by us. The reality is because of sin there's wars, because of sin there's pain, there's fighting, there's anxiety, there's fear, there's worry. All these things that affect our existence are the direct result of sin. The Puritans understood this. They weren't perfect, but they understood the ugliness of sin and the beauty of Christ. Here's one quote, it'll be on the screen behind me. One Puritan writer wrote, sin has turned beauty into deformity, and the wicked takes more care to have his sin covered than cured. You may not agree with it, but it's true. Just think about it. You and I are more prone to excuse our sin than to examine it. When you and I mess it up whether it's between here or between God and all sin ultimately is between God you and I are more prone to try to to try to cover it up try to excuse it my upbringing my this my that then to examine it this was wrong because I acted wrongly I acted sinfully I acted selfishly etc whatever you may do You and I are not exempt from that. Christmas has to do with the Savior who came to save sinners. Listen, if there were no sin to be dealt with, there wouldn't be Christmas. Can you figure that? Can you fathom that for a little bit? Maybe you haven't fathomed it that way. No sin, no Christmas. So forget about, listen, no angry drivers on the road. No feeling exhausted like some of us feel today because we stopped running around and left coals at midnight. No need to do el pernil and whatever you're going to cook for tonight or tomorrow. There's no Christmas. Relax. You see, you and I don't think that way. What did they say? Did he say relax? Relax, bro. You're going to come up here pretty soon, dude. Really, really. Okay, no sin, no Christmas. Relax. But the reality is that we know that there's plenty of sin. So there was a need for the incarnation for Christmas to happen. Christ Jesus came into this world to save sinners. Purpose, to save sinners. Why? Because there's a problem. And we're going to park here for a little bit. There's a problem that's identified here in the text in those nine words. He came to save sinners. Sinners has to do with sin. So let me just ask a few questions, we'll answer it, and then we'll be almost out of here. Alright? Number one. What is sin? What is sin? Okay. I'm coming off the platform again. Yep. Missing the mark. Okay. Okay. But I was going to go for a different age group. So hold on a second. Different age group. Okay. Let me see. What do you think sin is, Hayley? Disobedience. Have you ever sinned? Yeah. Okay. At least you're honest. At least you're honest. Alright. What is sin? Disobedience. Missing the mark. Landon, what is sin, bro? Leaving ropa vieja and not eating it? What? Talk to me. You want to guess it? You want me to come back to you? Okay, good deal. Good deal. Alright, let me see. What is sin? Let me see. Who do we have back here? Oh boy. Oh! There's my assistant for the day. What is sin, buddy? Not listening? Okay. Have you ever sinned? I think there's a devotional thought there for you parents, okay? Just saying, just saying, all right? Sin. Listen, again, the Puritans understood it well. One guy wrote this, John Bunyan wrote, it's on the screen behind me, sin is the dare of God's justice. Sin is the rape of God's mercy. It is the jeer of His patience. It is the slight of His power and the contempt of His love. They didn't mince words. They talked about how serious sin is. You and I tend to make it light, and that's why I talk to the kids because, you know, they're so just pure about what they understand and experience. But you and I, you're grown up, we understand this saying here. The Bible puts it this way, 1 John chapter 3 verse 4. Everyone who makes a practice of sinning also practices lawlessness. Sin is lawlessness. Sin is living as if there were no God, no law, no authority, no standard. I don't answer to you, God. I don't answer to you. That's sin. Living a life that says, I don't answer to you. You and I have problems with authority because we're sinners. We don't like people telling us what to do and how to live. And when God comes in and says, this is how I want you to do it, this is how I want you to live, we say no. No. And those who practice it, those who practice it, they practice lawlessness. Sin is a thinking that's unacceptable to God. Sin is a talking that's unacceptable to God. Sin is an actions and a behavior that's unacceptable to God. And you and I know it well. We do. John Piper, I've shared this with you before, he puts it this way and as only he can, it's on the screen there. What is sin? He writes, it is the glory of God not honored, the holiness of God not reverenced, the greatness of God not admired, the power of God not praised, the truth of God not sought, the wisdom of God not esteemed, the beauty of God not treasured, the goodness of God not savored, the faithfulness of God not trusted, the commandments of God not obeyed, the justice of God not respected, the wrath of God not feared, the grace of God not cherished, the presence of God not prized, the person of God not loved, that's sin. And he's right. See, you and I need to lay to rest this idea that sin is something we do. When in reality, sin is who we are. We shared this before with you. You and I are not victims. We live in a very victimized type of society. We like to blame everything and everybody on something. If it's not the man, it's this. And if it's not, it's that. And we love to be victims. We don't say it, but we use it. That's the crutch. And the reality is that we're not victims of darkness. We love darkness. We like to have it and do it our way. That's the reality. We're not victims. We're lovers of darkness. And sin is our heart's hostility toward God. So what is it? What is it? What is sin like? That's the next question. What are the characteristics? Why is it so important that Christ had to come into the world to save sinners? Why was Christmas so necessary? Because of sin's characteristics. This is what sin does to you and me. Number one, it defiles. It defiles. Again, the Puritan wrote, sin is called poison, sinners are serpents. In the Bible, sin is called vomit, sinners are dogs. Sin is called the stench of graves, sinners, rotten sepulchers. Sin is called mire, sinners, pigs. Every aspect of our lives has been defiled by sin. Our thinking, our actions, our affections. You and I make the mistakes and we commit the sins that we do because our will is tied in to our sinful nature. So we choose wrongly. We choose wrongly. We choose sinfully. Every broken marriage, every disrupted home, every shattered friendship, every argument, every disagreement. Listen, you follow all the evil back to its cause and it's sin that defiles. Not only does it defiles, but also it's defiant. Defiant. Sin says, who cares that it says 30 miles an hour? I mean, really? One of those few times that I was reminded that the posted speed limit on Taft Street between Palm Avenue and Douglas is 35. Pembroke Pines Finest, they reminded me. They treated me like no one else. They actually got out onto the street and said, They wanted to talk to me person to person. I don't know if that happens to you, but to me, they were like... They risked their lives by standing in the front and right at me, you know. So as they came over, they explained to me, do you know how fast you were going? I probably lied. So just to remind me that lying is bad, and to remind me that the speed limit is the speed limit, Officer Friendly wrote me a little reminder, signed it, and attached a monetary value to it. Because when you pay, there's pain. OK? Well, here's the thing. I learned my lesson. Between that little stretch, I don't speed. But I remember one of those times I went to school, you know, when you pre-lead no contest and you go to the school and the teacher was there and says, hey, how many of you guys here didn't break the law? Okay, how about he who broke the law? One person goes, well, I was going only 31 on a 30. You broke the law. You broke the law. See, sin defies God and says, no, I don't care what you say. I was only going. the speed, I was only doing this. And if you look at that person over there, they're a lot worse than I am. See, that's defiance, that's arrogance. And sin does that. Sin is what strikes a blow in the face of the Savior. Sin is what takes and puts a crown over His head. Sin is what drives the nails into His feet and hands. That's what it does. Psalm 12 says, we will triumph with our tongues, with our own lips. Who is our master? In other words, we speak what we want to speak and we have no accountability. Sin is defiant. Sin would dethrone God and enthrone ourselves on that throne. So it defiles, it's defiant. Number three, it's humanly incurable. Humanly incurable. That's what the Bible would say. In Jeremiah 13, the prophet writes, Can the Ethiopian change his skin or the leopard his spots? Neither can you do good who are accustomed to doing evil. It's the incurable leprosy of the soul. And again, it doesn't mean that everyone here, you know, we're all the devil incarnate. No, no, no, no. It just means that, listen, our demise as sinners, it's outside of us. The cure is outside of us. We're going to see that in just a few moments. Third question is, okay, you know, what is it? What is it like? Number three, what's the extent? I mean, listen, I know, I know, not everyone was born Cuban. Okay? I'm sorry you're going to kill me, but that's the way it goes. That's the way it goes. Okay? Now, having established that great premise, all right, now we do. But the sin, did everybody, was everybody born sinner? I mean, we cannot be born Cuban. Some of us are born from Uruguay, Bahia, okay? However, was everyone born a sinner? Yeah, the Bible is clear. Romans 3.10 on the screen there. There's none righteous, no not one. Why? Romans 3.23. All have sinned and come short of the glory of God. The Bible, I could have put all these verses. Job 14.4, who can bring what is pure from the impure? No one. Psalm 58, even from birth the wicked go astray. From the womb there are wayward and speak lies. No one teaches your little one how to lie. No one teaches your little one. No one taught you how to lie. No one taught me how to lie. No one taught me how to be a, you know, whatever. Whatever sin I choose. It's there. It's there. Psalm 51, surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from my time, my mother conceived me. We drink from the same poison, well, from Adam and Eve. We inherit the same fallen genetics. And if you think that sin is not at work in your life, look in the mirror. No one is forcing you to age. Sin is at work in your life. No one is forcing you to get sick. Sin is at work in your life. That's the reality. Last question, what are the results of sin? If it's so serious, if it's so deadly, what are the results? Number one, it overpowers us. It overpowers us. Listen, that's the thing. You and I are blind to the realities. It affects our mind. It affects our mind. Outside of Christ, it affects... That's why our thinking... Haven't you stopped sometimes and go, wow, where did I get that thought? Where did I get that thought? What was I thinking? It dominates the mind. It dominates the affections. So we choose to like, we choose to go after that which is the forbidden fruit. God says no. God told Adam and Eve, listen, here are your confines. You can eat of everything you want. Just don't touch these trees. What did they go for, the trees? You and I do the same. God says, this is how you live, this is my word, this is what I expect of you. What do you and I do? We run toward the opposite. It overpowers us. Number two, it brings us under the dominance of the prince of this air, Satan himself. You know, we think we're free, but we're not really free. We're always serving one of two masters. Either the Lord Jesus or the enemy of our soul. And because of sin, we serve Him naturally, naturally, willingly. The Bible puts it in Ephesians chapter 2 that you and I, the sinner outside of Christ, our daily conduct, we walk according to the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work and those who are disobedient. Because of sin, you and I are slaves outside of Christ to Satan himself. That's why Satan doesn't worry too much about who goes to the bars. But he does worry the fact that you're here this morning. The bars? He may work there, but he doesn't work as hard as he works even this morning. Because this is declaring war. This is saying my affections belong to a higher purpose, to a higher person. That's what he's after. Number three, sin makes a person the object of God's wrath. We'll talk a little bit more about that in tonight's message. The reality is that because we have sinned, we deserve to get punished. We've asked God to, you know, through sin, because of sin, God, listen, can you imagine that when you mock sin, you mock the wrath of God, you say to God, no, no, as a dad, I know I've talked big and delivered small. I don't know if you know what that means. All my kids are here. And I've said, if you do this, my oldest bears witness. When she came into this world, she had to ask for permission to breathe. Because we were new parents, and we're like, OK. So she, OK. By the time Adrian came into this world, no, Andy just turned our world upside down. Yeah, yeah. OK. He's here with us, but love you, kid. All right? So you see, I lost my train of thought. I started thinking. I started thinking. By the time Adrian comes in, he's getting a cell phone in middle school. Julie's like, I didn't get a cell phone until 10th grade. 11th? 10th? OK. 10th, all right? So it's like that. And if we had seven, like Doug and Kelly are planning to have, who knows what's going to happen? All right, look at Doug. He's like, I don't know what's red, or his shirt, or his face at this point. But that's what happens. See, God is not like that. God is not like, I talk big and I deliver small. I talk big, I hate one thing in life, I condemn one thing, and one thing I damn to hell forever. Sin. That's a very narrow category. A sinner. He doesn't disapprove, he doesn't cast out, he doesn't keep away from heaven because of your gender, because of your age, because of where you were born, because you're rich, because you're poor, because you're educated or not. That doesn't keep you out of heaven. Sin keeps you out of heaven. Disbelief, unbelief, saying to God, I don't believe you. And when you say that, God has every right to have a sacred, a righteous wrath against it. That's part of who He is. Number four, sin subjects a person to the miseries of life. The miseries of life. The most wise man in the Bible, the richest man in the Bible said, all is vanity, all is meaningless. I have seen all things, Ecclesiastes chapter 1. I have seen all things that are done under the sun. All of them are meaningless, a chasing after the wind. And lastly, sin damns people to hell. You look at the last book of the Bible, Revelation 20, it talks about a great white throne judgment. And it is there that the Lord gathers all the unbelieving and casts them into the lake of fire. The Bible clearly teaches the doctrine of hell. And Christmas reminds us that sin is a reality because we needed a savior. The great preacher Spurgeon said the following on the screen behind me. Man is hanging over the mouth of hell by a solitary plank and the plank is rotten. So there's a purpose to Christmas. Christ came into this world to save sinners. There's a problem because He came into... What? The sin. Sin's a problem. What is the solution? What's provided there? Again, this is a trustworthy saying. Deserving the full acceptance that Christ came into this world to save sinners. The beauty of Christmas is that Christ comes to deal with sin. That's the beauty of it all. Understand that Christianity is the only religion on the planet for bad people. If you're perfect here this morning, this is not for you. They're not for you. Christianity is the only religion on the planet that's for bad people. Every other religion will tell you, do, do, do, so you can achieve God's approval. Do this, do that. Hopefully, your good deeds will outweigh the bad deeds, and God will let you in. That's not Christianity. Christianity is not about what you do to reach God. It's about what God has done to reach you. That's Christmas. That's Christmas. To children, Christmas is full of wonders. Here I go again. Listen, they may look and they go, how do, wonders, how do reindeers really fly? They're wonders, right? How does Santa Claus do it all in one night? Don't spoil it for the kids, grownups. Okay, you have the answer? He has Rudolph, with his red nose. What, what do you got to say, buddy? Yeah. Right. Of course. One whole night? You should see his eyes. I don't know if he has boosters. In a movie that I saw, he had boosters, okay, on Central Park and stuff. So, listen, the wonder, look at him, the wonder, how does Santa Claus, this big old man, all right, get through these skinny little chimneys, all right? How does this man, hopefully, we know he's not gluten-free, because my boy spends all night eating cookies. Drinking milk so you know he's not gluten-free cuz not everybody's dropping that gluten-free cookie on him all right wonders How does he do this? How does he get all around the world with Rudolph and man? It's amazing the wonders and some of these mysteries We will never solve but the one true wonder of Christmas. We have solved this morning See the wonder of Christmas is rooted in a beautiful fact Christ Jesus came into this world and The Incarnation. God did for us what we could not do for ourselves. It's a wonderful, it's a wonderful fact. Please note, the Living God, the Eternal Lord of the Universe, clothed Himself with some humanity and came. Historical fact. Think about it. The All-Knowing One, the Omniscient One, crying, cooing and unable to talk have you stopped to wonder that to ponder it if in fact the baby born in Bethlehem is God he is God the one who knows it all unable to talk the one who is omnipresent everywhere everywhere he's lying in a manger in one place the creator of all food depending on his mother for nourishment The omnipotent one, the all-powerful one, needing a diaper changed. The wonder of the Incarnation. God becoming flesh. It's rooted in a fact. God stepped into time. And we call that Christmas. Number two. No wonder if Christmas is seen in the divine purpose. We saw it anyway. We've already seen it. I mean, the beautiful thing is that Jesus, not that Jesus came into this world, okay, to save sinners, that He did it anyway, knowing what was ahead of Him. Before He left planet Earth, He knew that there was a cross before Him. And He chose to do it anyway. He came to save sinners. And the last wonder of Christmas is received through a confession. You see, of which I am the foremost. You truly do not enjoy Christmas until it becomes personal. Until it becomes personal. And sometimes our personal celebration of Christmas is governed by external circumstances. I have no money. In fact, I have no gifts. There's no Christmas. It's been a tough, tough year. I'm not home. I have no family. I got no Christmas. For others it's been a year of loss. I have not this person. I cannot celebrate with this person. There's no Christmas. I'm not making light of that or trivial of any of those. But the reality is the only person you need in Christmas to celebrate Christmas is Christ himself. And to recognize that you're the sinner that Jesus came to save. During this time we tend to hear that Jesus is the reason The text says, Christ Jesus entered this world to save sinners of whom I am the foremost. Maybe we can revert that a little bit and say, it's not so much that Jesus is the reason for the season, it's that sinners like you and me are the reason that Christmas had to come. Maybe we're the reason for that season. We just don't think about it that way. Christmas is meaningless unless you make it personal. So will you do that this morning? Will you do that this morning? Will you make it personal? Perhaps you're here and you weren't even planning on being here, but you are. Well, that's God's gift to you. If you haven't surrendered to Jesus Christ, if that baby that was born in Bethlehem has not grown up in your mind and in your life and didn't live that perfect life and die that perfect death and you haven't made it yours, you need to do that this morning. Because if you don't, then what you choose is to distance yourself from God and say, no God, I'd rather take your wrath and not your grace. And we're here this morning to let you know that God extends a hand and says, come to me. My brother and sister in the Lord, what are you doing with God's Christmas gift? Are you living life because of what he has done for you? It's time to slow down a little bit. We'll be back at 6 p.m. and then tomorrow's Christmas Day. But will you slow down? Will you create a tradition in your family? Will you honor a tradition in your family of recognizing that Christmas is about Jesus Christ? Close your eyes and bow your heads for just a moment. And I ask you to do that so you can just think through, perhaps. So you wouldn't be, well listen, if you're a parent and your child is here, don't do this please, okay? We need you to keep your eyes on the little one. But if you can, would you do that? Just a few moments, we're gonna sing a song and a few moments from now we'll be leaving. But we want to give you an opportunity to respond. Perhaps to the prompting of God's spirit in your life and saying, get right with me. Get right with me. Christmas is about a Savior. Get right with me. Child of God, perhaps the Spirit of God is telling you, hey, how are you living? Are you displaying the Christ of Christmas in your relationships? In the different areas of life? Are you taking Him for granted? Father, do the work that only you can. Thanking you for your word. Father, thank you for just being so good and so kind. Help us now to enable the response so that we would turn our eyes away from ourselves and place them on you. That we would just turn away from the delusion of self-rule that we have it all under control. The idol worship called us, our lives, and we would turn to You. And wherever You would lead, we would go. Father, do the work that only You can do. In Jesus' name. And God's people said, let's stand. We sing for just a few moments. The lyrics will be on the screen behind me. Wherever He leads, I'll go. And while we sing, if you need to get things right with the Lord, you need someone to pray with, come see me. If not, take care of business right there, right where you're at. While we sing, you respond.