Good morning, everyone. Praise the Lord. I am so privileged to be here to bring you God's Word, and I would like to invite you to open your Bibles, please, if you will, to the book of Isaiah, Isaiah chapter 9, and we are going to read the first seven verses. That's Isaiah chapter number nine. And as you open there, let me say this. I'm going to bring you a Christmas message as it is the season, as you know. And yesterday we had a very wonderful message from Sean. And when Sean announced the 10 ways of celebrating Christmas, I was thinking, what else is there to say about Christmas? But anyway, let's read in Isaiah chapter 9, beginning to read at verse 1. But there will be no more groom for her who was in anguish. In earlier times he treated the land of Zeblan and the land of Naphtali with contempt, but later on he shall make it glorious by the way of the sea on the other side of the Jordan, galley of the Gentiles. The people who walk in darkness will see a great light. Those who live in a dark land, the light will shine on them. Thou shalt multiply the nation, thou shalt increase their gladness, they will be glad in thy presence, as with the gladness of harvest, as men rejoice when they divide the spoil, for thou shalt break the yoke of their burden, and the staff on their shoulders. The Lord of the oppressor, as at the battle of Midian, for every boot of the booted warrior in the battle tumbled, and crock-rolled blood will be for burning, fuel for the fire. for a child will be born to us, a son will be given to us, and the government will rest on his shoulders and his name will be called Wonderful Councillor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace. There will be no end to the increase of his government or of peace on the throne of David and over his kingdom to establish it and to uphold it with justice and righteousness from then on and forevermore. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will accomplish this. This is God's word. As we come to hear God's word, let's look to him in prayer. Our Lord and our God, we thank you that you have given us the greatest gift mankind will ever receive. This gift is none other than Your Son and our Savior, Jesus Christ. We are in the season where this gift is celebrated by all and sundry, yet our celebrations are sometimes aimless and thoughtless. Help us, dear Lord, that we may celebrate thoughtfully and meaningfully to the glory and to the praise of Your holy name. Amen. I wonder what you think about, by the way I'll be speaking to you about the theme, The Gospel Times Announced. The Gospel Times Announced. But let me begin by saying this, I wonder what you think about when it comes to celebrating Christmas. So many people in our culture are often thinking about making lots of money, they are thinking about new clothes, They are thinking about housewarming parties, those who have finished their houses. They are thinking about marriages, those who are going to get married this season of Christmas. They are thinking about trips. They are thinking about special and delicious meals. And the list goes on. Now, while those things may not be bad in and of themselves, I think they distract us and make us miss the main point of Christmas. As somebody said, do not miss Christ this Christmas, because that is the main point. So what I would like to do is to give you three things that will guide your thinking, three thoughts that at least you should think about when you think about Christmas this time. I want you to think about, number one, think about our salvation. Because you see, the setting of this passage, which we have just read, comes at the time when the nation of Israel is going to be invaded by Assyria. And it is a time of gloom. It is a time of hardship. In fact, when you read in Isaiah chapter 8 verse 22, we read these words, it says, But then it is at that time when Isaiah is prophesying and he says, but in chapter 9 verse 1, he says, This is to say that Christmas, or this message of Christmas, this message of the coming of the Christ, is announced by Isaiah during that time when people are in trouble. They are about to be invaded by a great empire of the Assyrians, and they are in trouble. They are in a very dangerous situation. And it is at that time when this gospel news, the good news of the gospel of the coming Messiah, the coming Redeemer, is announced by Isaiah. And he says that the people who walk in darkness will see a great light. So God's people who are under his judgment will be saved in a great redemption. They will be rescued and restored. And this salvation will bring about great jubilation and celebration. It will be good news and glad tidings. And so when you think about Christmas, first of all, before you think about the delicious meal, think about salvation. Because that is the setting, that is the context in which Christ comes on the scene in this world. He comes, or at least it is announced, that he will come. to serve a people who are living in darkness. Actually, when Jesus was born, listen to what the Bible says in Luke chapter 2, verses 9 and 11. We read these words, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terribly frightened. And the angel said to them, Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy, which shall be of all people. For today in the city of David there have been born for you a Saviour who is Christ the Lord." In the city of David, a Saviour has been born. So think about salvation. The Bible does not say, in the city of David today, a chef has been born. Because usually we are thinking about food so much, and there are two extremes. Some people will say, no, we are not going to go to church. because we just want to enjoy ourselves, we want to just eat our food. And even those who go to church, they will be telling the pastor, when are you finishing? Because our food is getting cold. But let's think about Let's think about salvation, because this is the main thing. In fact, I want you to enjoy, indeed, I want you to celebrate, because here the Bible says that this salvation will bring great jubilation and celebration, like I already said. God will multiply the nation and increase their gladness. Let me read these verses for you, beginning in verse 2. It says, The people who walk in darkness will see a great light. Those who live in a dark land, the light will shine on them. Thou shalt multiply the nation. Thou shalt increase their gladness. They will be glad in thy presence. Full stop. Let me first pause there. They will be glad in the presence of the Lord. They will be glad in the presence of Yahweh. And I can tell you, everybody wants to celebrate and enjoy and be glad. The only thing they don't want, most people, is that they want to enjoy, they want to be glad, but without God. Let us enjoy, but don't tell us about God. Here it says they will be glad, and they will be glad in the presence of God. They will be glad in your presence. My friends, let me tell you, Any celebration where God is not, is no celebration at all. I know what happens in my country. People celebrate, in fact, if you want to know this, you just wait when Christmas is finished and you read the papers. You'll find people who slept in the bar, people who slept on the roadway because they celebrated too much. That celebration, to me, is darkness itself. So think about the celebration where God is at the center, because here it says, they will be glad in thy presence. So, in fact, even Jesus himself, when he He came, he read from Isaiah, and do you know what he read in Isaiah? He said, the Spirit of the Lord is upon me because the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the afflicted. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted. to proclaim the liberty of captives and freedom of prisoners, to proclaim the favourable year of the Lord and the day of vengeance of our God, and to comfort all who mourn, to grant those who mourn in Zion, giving them a garland instead of ashes, the oil of gladness, there it is, instead of mourning, the mount of praise, instead of fainting, So, they will be called Oaks of Righteousness, the planting of the Lord that he may be glorified. So, you see, even Jesus knows when he comes, he comes in that context whereby he is going to release the captives. In other words, he comes in the context of salvation. But one of my favorite biblical characters is a man called Simeon, because Simeon understood Christmas very well. We read of him in Luke chapter 2, and we read these words. Listen. Behold, there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon. This man was righteous and devout, looking for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him. And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord's Christ. And he came in the Spirit into the temple. And when the parents brought in the child Jesus to carry out for him the custom of the law, Listen. Then he took him into his arms and blessed God and said, Now, Lord, thou dost let thy born servant depart in peace according to thy word. Why? For mine eyes have seen your salvation. Alleluia. Simeon said when he took the baby Jesus into his hands, he said, now I can live, I can depart in peace because my eyes have seen your salvation. So for him, the coming of Jesus meant salvation. For the rest of us, it means doing other things except thinking about this idea of salvation. So I want you to think this Christmas, think about, even as you eat, as you are on table with your friends, with your family, think about this glorious message of salvation. Yes, think about your food, eat it, but think about, first of all, about salvation. But next, second, I want you to think about the incarnation, the incarnation. Jesus, the Bible here tells us that he is born as a baby. He is born, and the Bible says, therefore, in verse 6, for a child will be born to us, a son will be given. And he's given to us. This is the gift of God to men, not an offering of men to God. Jesus is a divine visitation. This is Emmanuel. This is God with us. Christ is the grandest gift ever given to man and is a gift And this gift displays the grace and the generosity of God. And he is given to us as a baby, which speaks of his incarnation. And in the Christian thought and reflection, There is a man called Anselm of Canterbury. He died in 1109. He asked this very important question. He said, why did God become man? Why did God become man? And the answer is, he says, God became man in Christ because only one who was both God and man could achieve our salvation. only one who was God and man could achieve our salvation. I think this echoes what Paul writes for us in 1 Timothy 2 verse 5. He says, for there is only one God and one mediator between God and man, the man Jesus Christ. Notice again, he comes not as an adult man, but he comes as a baby. And his life his life's journey, he would be despised, he would be rejected, he would be crucified, and he would be associated with the criminals. But he's the one who understands us, because he has come and put on the flesh like we are, he has become like one of us, yet, be careful, he's more than us, he is God himself, as we are going to see. Early on, A man called John Chrysostom, who was known for his good preaching and was called Chrysostom, which means golden mouth, had this to say about the incarnation of Jesus. Quote, he says, I do not think of Christ as God alone or man alone, but both together. For I know he was hungry, and I know that I know with five loaves fed 5,000. I know he was thirsty, and I know that he turned water into wine. I know he was carried in a ship, and I know he walked on the sea. I know that he died, and I know that he raised the dead. I know that he was set before Pilate, and I know that he sits with the Father on his throne. I know that he was washed by angels, and I know that he was stoned by the Jews. And through some of these, I ascribe to the human and others the divine nature. For by this reason, he is said to have been both God and man. And so think about the incarnation. The incarnation first of all reveals the value set by God upon human life. It indicates that God has not abandoned us. but loves us and values us even in our foreign state. But also the incarnation also shows that God is able to sympathize with us. And we read in Hebrews chapter 4, verses 15 and 16, these powerful words. For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who has been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore draw near with confidence to the throne of grace that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in time of need. Even to pray, you pray because you know Jesus has become incarnate. He has become like we are, tempted in every way yet without sin, so he's able to understand your situation. And so, think of the incarnation. Yet, I want to say, the incarnation cannot be enjoyed in isolation from that for which it happened. Yes, Jesus was born, as it says in our text, in verse 6, for a child will be born to us, a son will be given. What we often forget is that this child who was born, this Jesus who was born, was born to live for a while and then to die. Jesus was born, in order to die. Again, when we read the words of Simeon in Luke chapter 2 verses 34-35, And Simeon blessed them and said to Mary his mother, Behold, this child is appointed for the fall and rise of men in Israel. and for a sign to be opposed, and the sword will pierce even your own soul, to the end that thoughts from many hearts may be revealed." So Jesus was born, yes, we give thanks to God, but he was born to die. Now let me say this, let us not celebrate Christmas and Easter as isolated events. These things are connected each to another. And so, So in other words, let me say this, we should look beyond Bethlehem when we celebrate and see Calvary. We must realize as we celebrate Christmas that the cradle at Bethlehem was intended to point us to the cross of Calvary. In fact, it is safe to say that you cannot celebrate Christmas properly if you are not also thinking about Good Friday and Easter Sunday. Why? Because all these things, these events, are inseparably connected, and they all culminate to one grand story of our redemption in Christ Jesus. Amen? So think about salvation, but think about also the incarnation. But next, think about Christ's coronation. He was crowned king. Notice what it says in verses. First of all, in verse 6, for a child will be born to us, a son will be given to us, and the government will rest on his shoulders. So he's going to be king because the government then will rest on his shoulders. But I want to quickly speak of these things. First of all, who is this person that is going to be crowned king? And we can understand him by the names given to him. And one of the names is that he shall be called Wonderful Counsellor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, and Prince of Peace. And this is not to say that Jesus was given these names that his mother or his father would say, Oh, Wonderful Counsellor, where are you? No, this is to say that this would describe his character, who he is. So he is Wonderful Counsellor, This is the embodiment of all divine wisdom, that in Christ we have all the divine wisdom. And he's also called mighty God, all-powerful, omnipotent God. And so here I want to make this point very quickly, that Christ combines these two important traits, the trait of wisdom and of power. I think you know of many earthly kings who might be very wise, but they lack power, or they have power, but they lack wisdom. Jesus combines both, that he's all wise and all powerful. Hallelujah. Praise the Lord. And so, He is, in these names we see the King, and he's also called Eternal Father. And in this name we see the uniqueness of Christ's fatherhood. He is an eternal father that we can always depend on and look to. Our earthly fathers live for a time, and they die. But we have a father who never dies, who is eternal, whom you can depend on, whom you can look to. And he comes. to us also in Christ at the Incarnation. So we also, I want you also to learn of the intimate way in which we relate with our God. We call Him our Father. So He is eternal Father. First of all, He is eternal, that we can depend on Him forever, but also that intimacy, we call Him our Father. So think about those ideas. Then he's called the Prince of Peace. Christ is the embodiment of all types of peace. If you think of political peace, social peace, and spiritual peace, think about Christ. Because if a politician, if he should do his politics on the principles of Jesus, that his political government will be peaceful. If socially, if you are thinking of Christ and Christ is at the center, then you will know that there will be peace. Let me say this. If, for instance, those who are married, if Christ is the center of the marriage, then there's going to be peace in that marriage because Christ embodies all that peace. And for spiritual matters, we need Jesus to give us that spiritual peace and to be at peace and at home and comfortable knowing that we are served in Him. And so, again, he's also, he's king. He sits on the throne of his father, David. His kingdom, again, is also an eternal and peaceful kingdom. His kingdom is characterized by justice and righteousness. His kingdom is powered by Yahweh. That word, it is often used in Uganda here by by companies, they can say, for instance, if MTN is sponsoring an organizational program, they're going to say, powered by MTN. My friend, the kingdom of Christ is powered by Yahweh. It is God himself at the back of this kingdom. So it is an eternal kingdom, it is a peaceful kingdom, and it is characterized by justice and righteousness. And so think about this Christmas, about salvation, about the incarnation, and about the coronation of Jesus. But you say, I can hear you, you are protesting right now, but today you are too theological. Who in the world is thinking about those terms of yours, salvation, incarnation, coronation? Who is that in the church? Probably you protest and you are saying you are sounding more like a textbook rather than a pastor. Well, I can hear you. Let me tone down my language. Think about these three things as we bring this to a close. Think about this. In Christ, we have a sufficient Savior. Number two, in Christ, we have a singular mediator. He is the only mediator between God and man. And number three, think of this, in Christ we have a sovereign king. And so we sang this morning saying, let's crown him. Let me read for you the words, some of the words we sang in our hymn today. It says in stanza five, it says, let every kindred, every tribe on this terrestrial board on this terrestrial ball to him as all majesty ascribe because my friends he is king and this king is the one we are supposed to celebrate on christmas it is coming and i want to encourage you celebrate christ and worship him, bow down at his feet, because he is the eternal king, he is our saviour, he is our mediator, and he is our king. He is the one we are to celebrate on Christmas, he is the one we are to focus on, and if we do that, we shall find that our Christmas is a blessed one. And I don't want to hear you next time I ask you, how was your Christmas? And you tell me it was wonderful, and all you did was only to eat chicken and chips, but you never worshipped God, you never shared the gospel. And as I conclude, in case you say you have nothing to give on Christmas, you can give someone the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen? Let us pray. Our Father in heaven, we give thanks to you. We give praise to your holy name. Thank you for the word of God. Thank you for Jesus Christ, the greatest gift that you have given to us. May we receive this gift this season, and may we be able to share it to others, so that your name may be glorified and praised from this time forth and forevermore. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.