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Christmas: A Time for Giving

Jesus always gave himself in service to others. How are you following His example?

December 16, 2023

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1 Now in those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus, that a census be taken of all the inhabited earth.

2 This was the first census taken while Quirinius was governor of Syria.

3 And everyone was on his way to register for the census, each to his own city.

4 Joseph also went up from Galilee, from the city of Nazareth, to Judea, to the city of David which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and family of David,

5 in order to register along with Mary, who was engaged to him, and was with child.

6 While they were there, the days were completed for her to give birth.

7 And she gave birth to her firstborn son; and she wrapped Him in cloths, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.

8 In the same region there were some shepherds staying out in the fields and keeping watch over their flock by night.

9 And an angel of the Lord suddenly stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them; and they were terribly frightened.

10 But the angel said to them, ``Do not be afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of great joy which will be for all the people;

11 for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.

12 ``This will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger."

13 And suddenly there appeared with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying,

14 ``Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace among men with whom He is pleased."

15 When the angels had gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds began saying to one another, ``Let us go straight to Bethlehem then, and see this thing that has happened which the Lord has made known to us."

16 So they came in a hurry and found their way to Mary and Joseph, and the baby as He lay in the manger.

17 When they had seen this, they made known the statement which had been told them about this Child.

18 And all who heard it wondered at the things which were told them by the shepherds.

19 But Mary treasured all these things, pondering them in her heart.

20 The shepherds went back, glorifying and praising God for all that they had heard and seen, just as had been told them.

1 ``I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser.

2 ``Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit, He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit, He prunes it so that it may bear more fruit.

3 ``You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you.

4 ``Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself unless it abides in the vine, so neither can you unless you abide in Me.

5 ``I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing.

6 ``If anyone does not abide in Me, he is thrown away as a branch and dries up; and they gather them, and cast them into the fire and they are burned.

7 ``If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.

8 ``My Father is glorified by this, that you bear much fruit, and so prove to be My disciples.

9 ``Just as the Father has loved Me, I have also loved you; abide in My love.

10 ``If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love; just as I have kept My Father's commandments and abide in His love.

11 ``These things I have spoken to you so that My joy may be in you, and that your joy may be made full.

12 ``This is My commandment, that you love one another, just as I have loved you.

13 ``Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends.

14 ``You are My friends if you do what I command you.

15 ``No longer do I call you slaves, for the slave does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all things that I have heard from My Father I have made known to you.

16 ``You did not choose Me but I chose you, and appointed you that you would go and bear fruit, and that your fruit would remain, so that whatever you ask of the Father in My name He may give to you.

17 ``This I command you, that you love one another.

18 ``If the world hates you, you know that it has hated Me before it hated you.

19 ``If you were of the world, the world would love its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, because of this the world hates you.

20 ``Remember the word that I said to you, `A slave is not greater than his master.' If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you; if they kept My word, they will keep yours also.

21 ``But all these things they will do to you for My name's sake, because they do not know the One who sent Me.

22 ``If I had not come and spoken to them, they would not have sin, but now they have no excuse for their sin.

23 ``He who hates Me hates My Father also.

24 ``If I had not done among them the works which no one else did, they would not have sin; but now they have both seen and hated Me and My Father as well.

25 ``But they have done this to fulfill the word that is written in their Law, `THEY HATED ME WITHOUT A CAUSE.'

26 ``When the Helper comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, that is the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father, He will testify about Me,

27 and you will testify also, because you have been with Me from the beginning.

1 ``These things I have spoken to you so that you may be kept from stumbling.

2 ``They will make you outcasts from the synagogue, but an hour is coming for everyone who kills you to think that he is offering service to God.

3 ``These things they will do because they have not known the Father or Me.

4 ``But these things I have spoken to you, so that when their hour comes, you may remember that I told you of them. These things I did not say to you at the beginning, because I was with you.

5 ``But now I am going to Him who sent Me; and none of you asks Me, `Where are You going?'

6 ``But because I have said these things to you, sorrow has filled your heart.

7 ``But I tell you the truth, it is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I go, I will send Him to you.

8 ``And He, when He comes, will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment;

9 concerning sin, because they do not believe in Me;

10 and concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father and you no longer see Me;

11 and concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world has been judged.

12 ``I have many more things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now.

13 ``But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth; for He will not speak on His own initiative, but whatever He hears, He will speak; and He will disclose to you what is to come.

14 ``He will glorify Me, for He will take of Mine and will disclose it to you.

15 ``All things that the Father has are Mine; therefore I said that He takes of Mine and will disclose it to you.

16 ``A little while, and you will no longer see Me; and again a little while, and you will see Me."

17 Some of His disciples then said to one another, ``What is this thing He is telling us, `A little while, and you will not see Me; and again a little while, and you will see Me'; and, `because I go to the Father'?"

18 So they were saying, ``What is this that He says, `A little while'? We do not know what He is talking about."

19 Jesus knew that they wished to question Him, and He said to them, ``Are you deliberating together about this, that I said, `A little while, and you will not see Me, and again a little while, and you will see Me'?

20 ``Truly, truly, I say to you, that you will weep and lament, but the world will rejoice; you will grieve, but your grief will be turned into joy.

21 ``Whenever a woman is in labor she has pain, because her hour has come; but when she gives birth to the child, she no longer remembers the anguish because of the joy that a child has been born into the world.

22 ``Therefore you too have grief now; but I will see you again, and your heart will rejoice, and no one will take your joy away from you.

23 ``In that day you will not question Me about anything. Truly, truly, I say to you, if you ask the Father for anything in My name, He will give it to you.

24 ``Until now you have asked for nothing in My name; ask and you will receive, so that your joy may be made full.

25 ``These things I have spoken to you in figurative language; an hour is coming when I will no longer speak to you in figurative language, but will tell you plainly of the Father.

26 ``In that day you will ask in My name, and I do not say to you that I will request of the Father on your behalf;

27 for the Father Himself loves you, because you have loved Me and have believed that I came forth from the Father.

28 ``I came forth from the Father and have come into the world; I am leaving the world again and going to the Father."

29 His disciples said, ``Lo, now You are speaking plainly and are not using a figure of speech.

30 ``Now we know that You know all things, and have no need for anyone to question You; by this we believe that You came from God."

31 Jesus answered them, ``Do you now believe?

32 ``Behold, an hour is coming, and has already come, for you to be scattered, each to his own home, and to leave Me alone; and yet I am not alone, because the Father is with Me.

33 ``These things I have spoken to you, so that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world."

1 Jesus spoke these things; and lifting up His eyes to heaven, He said, ``Father, the hour has come; glorify Your Son, that the Son may glorify You,

2 even as You gave Him authority over all flesh, that to all whom You have given Him, He may give eternal life.

3 ``This is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.

4 ``I glorified You on the earth, having accomplished the work which You have given Me to do.

5 ``Now, Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world was.

6 ``I have manifested Your name to the men whom You gave Me out of the world; they were Yours and You gave them to Me, and they have kept Your word.

7 ``Now they have come to know that everything You have given Me is from You;

8 for the words which You gave Me I have given to them; and they received them and truly understood that I came forth from You, and they believed that You sent Me.

9 ``I ask on their behalf; I do not ask on behalf of the world, but of those whom You have given Me; for they are Yours;

10 and all things that are Mine are Yours, and Yours are Mine; and I have been glorified in them.

11 ``I am no longer in the world; and yet they themselves are in the world, and I come to You. Holy Father, keep them in Your name, the name which You have given Me, that they may be one even as We are.

12 ``While I was with them, I was keeping them in Your name which You have given Me; and I guarded them and not one of them perished but the son of perdition, so that the Scripture would be fulfilled.

13 ``But now I come to You; and these things I speak in the world so that they may have My joy made full in themselves.

14 ``I have given them Your word; and the world has hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.

15 ``I do not ask You to take them out of the world, but to keep them from the evil one.

16 ``They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.

17 ``Sanctify them in the truth; Your word is truth.

18 ``As You sent Me into the world, I also have sent them into the world.

19 ``For their sakes I sanctify Myself, that they themselves also may be sanctified in truth.

20 ``I do not ask on behalf of these alone, but for those also who believe in Me through their word;

21 that they may all be one; even as You, Father, are in Me and I in You, that they also may be in Us, so that the world may believe that You sent Me.

22 ``The glory which You have given Me I have given to them, that they may be one, just as We are one;

23 I in them and You in Me, that they may be perfected in unity, so that the world may know that You sent Me, and loved them, even as You have loved Me.

24 ``Father, I desire that they also, whom You have given Me, be with Me where I am, so that they may see My glory which You have given Me, for You loved Me before the foundation of the world.

25 ``O righteous Father, although the world has not known You, yet I have known You; and these have known that You sent Me;

Dr. Stanley reminds us that Jesus was the greatest giver of all, and we celebrate his birth by being givers as well. As you think about the gifts you would like to give this year, consider what you can give to the Lord. Whatever you give Him, He will reward you in awesome ways.

Sermon Outline

CHRISTMAS: A TIME FOR GIVING

KEY PASSAGE: Luke 2:1-20

SUMMARY

Due to loss or other painful circumstances, Christmas is sometimes accompanied by sadness, but for the most part, it’s characterized by happiness.

Our joy in Christ--the main reason for our happiness--is accentuated by giving, which plays such a large role in our celebrations. Commercialism has corrupted this tradition to some degree, but that alone is no reason to abandon the practice of giving gifts. From the very beginning, Christmas has been a time of giving. In fact, Christ’s birth, life, and ministry all exemplified giving.

SERMON POINTS

Jesus’ birth was characterized by giving.

Everyone involved in the Christmas story gave something.

Mary gave her body and reputation. She willingly surrendered her body to bear the Son of God (Luke 1:38). Furthermore, because she was not married, she gave her reputation. Her engagement to Joseph was as binding as marriage, but to be found pregnant before the actual ceremony was proof of adultery in the eyes of people in her community and provided just cause for stoning.
Caesar Augustus gave a decree. He called for a census to register people for taxation (vv. 2:1-5). Although the Roman emperor thought it was his idea, God was at work to sovereignly orchestrate His divine purpose. According to prophecy, the Messiah would be born in Bethlehem, but Mary and Joseph were in Nazareth. Caesar’s proclamation simply brought them to Bethlehem at just the right time for Christ’s birth.
The innkeeper gave a stable. When Mary and Joseph arrived in Bethlehem, the city was so crowded that there was no place for them to stay (vv. 2:8-14). Although the inn was full, the innkeeper gave what he had—a stable, which became Jesus’ birthplace.
The angel of the Lord gave the proclamation of Jesus’ birth. The first report of the Messiah’s birth was delivered by a glorious angel to a group of lowly shepherds (Luke 2:8-14).
The shepherds gave a testimony. Upon hearing the announcement and location of the birth, they quickly hurried off to find the baby, who was lying in a manger. They couldn’t keep the news to themselves and told everyone what they had heard and seen (vv. 2:15-18).
The wise men gave gifts and worship. These men may have been astronomers or scholars influenced by the prophet Daniel’s godly teachings. Upon seeing a brilliant star, they set off on a journey to find the newborn King of the Jews. When they found Him in Bethlehem, they worshipped Him and offered gifts fit for a king—gold, frankincense, and myrrh (Matt. 2:1-11).
God gave His only begotten Son. The greatest gift of all came from God the Father, who gave His Son to die as a sacrifice for our sins (John 3:16). Through faith in Jesus Christ, we are given forgiveness of sins, the right to become children of God, the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit, and the gift of eternal life.

Christ’s life and ministry were characterized by giving. He gave Himself to:

Learning. Jesus began growing in knowledge and wisdom at the young age of 12. He sat in the temple with the Pharisees and elders, asking and answering questions.
Baptism. When John was baptizing people for repentance of sin, Jesus came to him for baptism. He Himself had no sin but was baptized to identify with those He came to save.
Fasting and prayer. For 40 days He prepared Himself before beginning ministry.
The call of the Father. Jesus began His ministry by going from town to town, teaching in the synagogues.
Criticism and persecution. At first, the people flocked to hear Jesus. But when the message was not what they wanted to hear, they persecuted Him.
Prayer. Jesus got up early to spend time alone with His heavenly Father.
Public and private teaching. He instructed large crowds but also had time for individuals like the woman at the well, the rich young ruler, and Nicodemus.
Healing the sick. Everywhere He went, Jesus healed people. He took time to stop and meet their needs.
Training His 12 disciples. Although Jesus taught and ministered to the crowds, He gave personal instruction and correction to the 12 men called to be His disciples.
Others in friendship. Jesus was always pouring Himself into the lives of others. When He came to the home of Mary, Martha, and Lazarus for rest, He continued to give of Himself as Mary sat at His feet listening to His words.
Being a ransom for many (Matt. 20:28). He was arrested, tried, and crucified even though He’d committed no sin. But on the cross, He bore in His body our sins and received the punishment we deserved (1 Pet. 2:24).

Christ’s entire life was spent giving to those He came to save. Even after the resurrection, He kept ministering to His disciples, strengthening their faith and giving them encouragement, instruction, and direction.

Our lives should be characterized by giving.

A true follower of Jesus walks as He walked. Generosity should be our natural response to God’s blessings and provisions. Jesus said it’s more blessed to give than to receive, and mature believers know this is true (Acts 20:35). They delight in being generous. Their happiness is not dependent on others giving to them.

The One who has given us the most is our God and Savior. We can never repay Him, but we can show our appreciation and love by giving back to Him. There’s nothing He needs, but we can yield our entire lives and give Him the praise and worship He deserves.

RESPONSE

What is your attitude toward gift giving at Christmas? Have you let the world’s materialism and commercialism steal your joy and generosity?
Why do you give gifts at Christmas? Is it because you want to express genuine love or gratitude, or is it out of obligation? Or do you give because you want to be like your Savior?
What can you give to the Lord this Christmas? Is there anything you are withholding from Him—an attitude, obedience, genuine worship, prayer, or confession and repentance from a persistent sin?

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