12.03.17 – “God’s Lamb Given!”
John 3:16, "For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that
whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.”
God’s greatest expression of love for us is the giving of His own Son, as a
sacrifice for our sinfulness.
About 2700 years ago, two of God’s prophets wrote about the future birth of a
male child to a virgin, in Bethlehem, in Judea.
Isaiah 7:14, “The Lord Himself will give you a sign: The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel.”
Micah 5:2, "But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for Me One who will be Ruler over Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times. "
About 700 years after these prophecies were made, a young woman, said to be a virgin, gave birth to a male child in Bethlehem, in Judea.
The baby was given the name Jesus and He was called Immanuel [God with us]. This child would be the source of salvation for all mankind, the fullness of God in human flesh, just as God had told the world ahead of time, so people would believe and trust in God’s Son, Jesus, the Christ [Messiah], for salvation.
Some Rabbis, long before the birth of Jesus, wrote,“The Messiah is to have no earthy father. The birth of the Messiah will be like that of no other man.”
In Genesis 2:7, the first man, Adam, was formed out of the dirt of the ground by the hands of God, then life was breathed into him by the mouth of God. God then formed Eve, from some of Adam’s own flesh, and brought her to Adam as a suitable helpmate, perfect for him.
All humans since Adam and Eve have been born of a man and a woman, that is, all but One!
Read Matthew 1:18-21... Notice, Mary was pregnant “before [she and Joseph) came together” (before they had a sexual relationship), i.e., Mary was a virgin when she became pregnant with Jesus, her conception by the Holy Spirit is a great and marvelous mystery.
Joseph was a good man and a devout worshipper of God, he clearly did not want to publicly expose Mary, in what appeared to be a “sinful condition” [being pregnant out of wedlock = adultery = stoning], so Joseph considered how he might “put her away quietly,” i.e., divorce her, and send her away to safety.
While Joseph was struggling with this situation, verse 20 tells us an angel came to him in a dream declaring that Mary’s pregnancy was from God; and in fact, verse 21 tells us that Mary will have a son and Joseph (although he is not the biological father of Jesus) will have the responsibility to give her baby the name God had told them.
The name Jesus [Yeshua] means “Jehovah saves" or "God's salvation,” God’s Son was sent to earth as Savior of the whole world, and Joseph was divinely chosen
to raise Him as his very own son. Interestingly enough, Jesus is never called the son of Joseph (see Matthew 1:16), and Joseph is never called the father of Jesus (see Luke 3:23).
Matthew 1:22-23... The virgin birth was predicted in the OT “All this” (verse 22) refers to the specific facts spoken through Isaiah and Micah; the greatest being that the mother of God’s Son would be a virgin, the Father is God Himself.
When God made Adam He commanded him (Genesis 2:17), “not to eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die.”
We know what happened (Genesis 3:6), Adam and Eve ate fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, bringing sin’s consequences upon them and all of mankind.
In Genesis 3:7-19, Adam blames Eve, she blames the serpent, God (vv. 14-15) curses the serpent, saying He will put enmity [hostility] between the offspring of the serpent and a certain male offspring of the woman’s seed, who will crush the serpent’s head.
God makes it clear throughout the OT, that the Savior of the world, the Messiah, would be born to a woman who was an ancestor of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Judah, and King David.
Isaiah 53:5-8 tells us God’s punishment for sin would be placed upon the Messiah/ Christ, who would be pierced for our sins; He would sovereignly be led like a lamb to the slaughter, being put to death as payment for our sins.
See Luke 1:26–2:19... Mary treasured up all that had happened: the angel’s announcement, Joseph’s response to her pregnancy, Elizabeth’s greeting, the shepherds proclamation of the Savior being born in Bethlehem; quite a bit for a teenage girl to consider, yet there was more.
See Luke 2:25-35... Mary had birthed God’s Son, she would raise Him and love Him, knowing that through Him salvation was made available to the whole world, by His death on a cross at the hands of evil men (pierced, verse 35; cf John 19:26-35).
In John 1:29, seeing Jesus coming toward him, John said, “Look the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.” Philippians 2:5-11 tells us, through Jesus Christ, God put on flesh, that He might go to the cross and die for us.
Hebrews 9:15 tells us that Christ “died as a ransom to set [us] free” from the penalty we deserve for our sin; verse 22 declares “without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness,” and for that reason verse 26 says, “[Christ] has appeared once for all to do away with sin by the sacrifice of Himself,” verse 28 says, “Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many people” (most people will not receive His forgiveness).
Hebrews 10:4 declares, “it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins” [therefore], (verse 10) “We have been made holy through the sacrifice
of the body of Jesus Christ once for all,” (verse 14) “by the one sacrifice [God] has made perfect forever those who are being made holy,” (verse 17), quoting from (Jeremiah 31:34) says, “Their sins and lawless acts I will remember no more”. Romans 4:25, “He (Jesus Christ) was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our justification.”
This child (God’s One and Only Son) was born to die, but He could not be kept in the grave because He is God.
Revelation 1:8, "I am the Alpha and the Omega," says the Lord God, "who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty.” 18, “I am the Living One; I was dead, and behold I am alive for ever and ever! And I hold the keys of death and Hades.”
There is not a more important message for you and I to share with those we love and care about.
Jesus is the Lamb of God, sent to die for our sins, to set us free from the penalty and punishment of an eternal hell; granting us forgiveness and eternal life in Christ. John 3:36, "Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on him.”
This male baby born in Bethlehem, in Judea, over 2000 years ago, was given the name Jesus and called Immanuel; He grew up and was put to death on a cross, only to rise from the grave on the third day; He is God’s Son, Savior of the world, to Whom every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that He is Lord.
Have You done that?
What about those you love and care about? Do they know the Good News?
The Savior has come, and everyone who repents of their sin and believes in Him
will be forgiven and will receive eternal life, ultimately to live in heaven with God.
Pastor Mike >‘(((><