December 7th, 2003, Sunday Morning
(Pearl Harbor Day)

"The Miracle of Salvation"
God's Son given to YOU: the greatest gift exchange of all


OPENING: John 1:9-13


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CHRISTMAS: the favorite time of year to remember the lights; the smells; the fake or real tree; the smell of home after work; grandma's cookies; family; the exchange of gifts; the pageantry of school and church musicals...

• And there are some songs and movies you just can't get tired of: like "Silent Night", Jimmy Stewart's 1946 black & white film, "It's a wonderful life" and Peter Billingsly's "A Christmas Story"
  
  
• Luke 2:1-21: But the greatest Christmas story of all is the TRUE story of the birth of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who is a gift from God not to the world but to you (thus fulfilling [proving true] John 3:16)
  
  
  • We celebrate (observe) Christmas with the symbolic gesture of exchanging new (not used) gifts to each other, which symbolizes the giving of our best--just as God did for us
  
  
• In this growing secular world, especially hostile to Jews and Christians, you'll find people saying Christmas is about "family" and "presents," which has no religious tone ("X-mas" look familiar?)
  
  
  • But what Christmas is really about is the celebration--with family--of the birth of Christ: making official God's present to you and beginning the cycle of events that eventually results in eternal life for man, beyond this world, a reality (being "saved")

DESCRIPTION OF GOD'S "GIFT" OF SALVATION (being saved) TO YOU (and all in the world):

• John 1:13: Jesus--your gift of salvation--was born "not of blood"
  
  
  • "Born not of blood" means He was not born in the human lineage; He's not a descendent from Adam and Eve--He stepped down from Heaven's immorality and perfection to come from the virgin woman, Mary, to us
    
    
  • The Jews belief of salvation (which is still held by many in this world today):
    
    
    • 1. It was inherited from family: if your dad was a priest, Pharisee or religious worker, then you--by inheritance--must qualify for God's gift of salvation
      
      
    • 2. It was earned through strict obedience to laws--particularly Moses' laws handed down from God
    
    
  • Romans 4:13: But Paul said both beliefs are wrong; According to God, the gift of Salvation is received because of God's promise--not because of any work man did or can ever do;
    
    
    • As a parent, you can train your child to know who God is but can't train to love Him: you can make him never miss a Sunday school; morning/evening/Wednesday service; weekend retreat; vacation Bible school; etc. but it means nothing if the child has no genuine love for God--it's wasted work and it won't earn Salvation
      
      
      • 1 Corinthians 3:7: CHRISTIAN ADAGE: Man plants (introduces the Bible) and waters (keeps teaching the Bible) seeds but only God "giveth the increase" (can change the heart)--just like in real life, in the economy of agriculture
        
        
      • You can't force or teach someone to love God (and accept His gift); if your child will not, then simply pray for him/her that God will intervene--there's nothing more you can do and the more you push the more the lost person will resent you and the church for it (Jehovah's witnesses should know)
    
    
  • KEY: Acquiring Salvation is not based on how you go about getting it, it's simply believing and having faith in the Gift (Jesus Christ)--no work involved
    
    
    • We live in a world today where solving problems and achievement is not to pray and have faith in God but to follow man-made techniques (like Dr. Spock book on child-rearing, weight-loss fads and the Catholic's Seven Sacraments program)
      
      
    • John 3:16: All you have to do to accept this non-retractable gift (become saved) is have a change of heart to believe Jesus Christ is the Son of God
  
  
• John 1:13: Jesus--your gift of salvation--was born not "of the will of the flesh"
  
  
  • Romans 7:18 and 1 Peter 4:2: The Bible refers to the "flesh" as the morality of man: weak, susceptible to temptation and eventual death; It's also referred to as the place where "dwelleth no good thing"; Jesus is none of these: He has perfect strength, which can be passed on to us; He has overcome every temptation (Matthew 4:1-11) and He can never die
    
    
  • No matter how badly you want or don't want something: you can cry long and hard; earn the money through blood, sweat and tears to pay; or manipulate the system so you win; but if your heart is not in it, there can be no effective change within you
    
    
    • A gift is implied as being free; therefore, what work or deeds are you required to do? None. It's not about working toward the Prize--it's about simply believing
      
      
    • Isaiah 64:6: And all the work/sacrifice you ever do will not EARN you eternal life, anyway, as we are descendents of an imperfect man--Adam
  
  
• John 1:13: Jesus--your gift of salvation--was born not "of the will of man"
  
  
  • People can be very determined in this world: one San Antonio 26-mile marathoner, who finished the entire race, had a bloodied shirt from the raw rubbing of the material to his body and his toenails had come off, but it was his mind at work--not his heart
    
    
    • Which is synonymous to those "pseudo-martyrs" who observe Easter, Christ's crucifixion, by afflicting themselves by emulating being nailed to the cross or cutting themselves to "relate to Jesus' pain"--but they're not using their hearts, which is all God wants from you
    
    
  • John 6:44: You cannot have eternal Salvation unless God draws you near to Him--it's through His grace and work and not of man's that makes accepting this gift a reality
    
    
    • Perhaps one Sunday church morning, you found the pastor's sermon to be so much better or easy to understand than last week; did the pastor do better or did you accept God's gift and now understand the pastor's words?
      
      
      • 1 Corinthians 14:2: How can you instantaneously begin to understand sermons after accept the gift? The Bible is like another language (another "tongue") so trying to explain it to a lost person will make no sense to him. He may nod like he understands but he really won't until God works his heart to accept the gift to become saved; now saved, you've been given the power by God to understand this "new tongue"--the language of the Bible

THE IMPACT OF RECEIVING THIS FREE GIFT

• You become saved: you have eternal life beyond this world, which can never be lost, afterward
  
  
• John 1:12 and Galatians 3:26: God officially labels you a "living saint" and His newest son or daughter, adopted into the Church family of God (where "Church" is not a building on earth but the encompassing of all saved souls in this world)
  
  
• 2 Corinthians 5:17: Your record of every wrong you've ever done has just been erased by God because you're now a new person, called to lead a more wholesome and serving life to God
  
  
• Becoming saved will divide families--not necessarily strengthen them
  
  
  • Matthew 10:34-37: While the world is of a self-conceived mentality that Jesus will return to bring peace, He says he will come back to bring division
    
    
  • This means that strife will intensify in families where there are both saved and lost members; just think about it--if you're saved, you're now charged to spread the Gospel and the first lost souls to talk to may be your own parents or a relative who may be a member of a street gang? A very difficult task--you can't love your family more than Jesus
    
    
    • Micah 7:6-7: Micah fulfills (confirms) this and says that with the prospect of being rejected or exiled from your family and/or neighbors, don't put your trust or confidence in people--even family members--just in God
    
    
  • This isolation may consequently spread to your job or social friends, too; consider: how many co-workers or friends partying on the weekend are going to embrace your telling them of your salvation? Today, people normally shy away and conversations of this sort
  
  
• John 15:18: REMEMBER: Because you're a new person now (per 2 Corinthians 5:17), you're no longer "of this world"--you simply live in it and are "passing through"--and for that the world will not accept you; but take comfort knowing Jesus is in your new boat--the world hated Him first

CLOSER

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Parents: continue to secretly pray for your children and family members' salvation--only God can change the heart--not man-made instruction manuals

Children: even if you resent all the religion you believe is being forced upon you, be grateful for Godly parents who care and love you enough to want to see you join them in Heaven

God's gift of Salvation is not inherited and cannot be earned or worked for--it requires you believe, trust and have faith--with your heart, not just mouth--in God and His Son Jesus Christ

Effectual change is brought about in people through only two events:

• 1. Prayer
• 2. Preaching the Gospel to all the lost of the world
  
  EXAMPLE: John Newton wrote the words for the hymn, "Amazing Grace," and this hymn has helped to save many lost souls who have sung this from the heart

2 Corinthians 6:2 and John 3:3 and Romans 10:13: So have you accepted the one Christmas gift that literally matters more than anything in the world? Don't wait for Christmas day--accept God's gift of salvation today and be "Born Again"