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Hendersonville Seventh-day Adventist Church, NC

Brian Hindman

God’s Christmas Present

Father in heaven, thank you so much for the gift of the Sabbath, for the gift of life, and the gift of salvation and eternal life, which comes through your son, Jesus Christ.

Lord, I pray today that you would open our minds and our hearts, that we might behold wondrous things out of your word, that we might be transformed by our experience in your word today, and we just ask for the Holy Spirit to guide and enlighten our hearts and minds, and we ask this prayer in Jesus' name, amen.

All right, what do you want for Christmas?

Have you finished your Christmas shopping?

Are there a few items left that you need to purchase?

Well, in case you haven't finished your shopping, I have a few things up here on the screen you might want to consider, possibly.

Up on the upper left-hand corner happens to be the most expensive private jet in the world.

It is a Gulfstream G650, and it sells for $65 million.

You and 11 or 12 of your friends can be carried around wherever you want in the world in this exclusive, one-of-a-kind private jet.

Down below that is 1 of, if not the most expensive car in the world.

Production car, I guess, a car that you can buy and that they actually make and it's street legal.

You can rummage around between the cushions of your couch and find enough change and you can have a Lamborghini and park it in your garage.

Very oddly there in the top middle is supposed to be the world's most expensive house in the world.

There's a man over there, a billionaire, who built himself in 2012 a house that is estimated to be from 800 million to $1 billion.

It's 27 stories tall and it's right in the heart of Mumbai, 1 of the main cities there in India.

I think what amazes me most about this house is not the fact that it has a garage that can hold 168 cars.

Not the fact that it has 9 elevators that are for servants and people and whatever high speed elevators.

But what amazes me the most is that it comes with 600 permanent servants or staff that belong with the house.

600 people to take care of the operations of that house.

Well anyway, all right, if you like animals, I'm an animal person, I love dogs.

The most expensive dog in the world is over here on the top right.

And I guess This 1 right here just sold for $1.6 million.

So it looks kind of like a red lion in a way.

$1.6 million and I didn't want to offend the cat lovers and so some of you are probably cat people And down here on the bottom right is the most expensive cat in the world and it's some breed called an Ashera.

I'm probably not saying that properly, but they can sell for up to only $100, 000.

So I think they're supposed to be hypoallergenic as well, so they can really family friendly.

And then there in the bottom middle is the most expensive watch in the world, and it's some kind of, I'm not gonna be able to remember how to say this.

It's a Patek Philippe Henry Graves Super Complication.

Super complication, super expensive is more like it.

Well, as Christians though, I think you probably know where I'm going with this.

What really is our focus as we live here at the close of 2016?

If you have your Bibles, 2 Corinthians 4, verse 18.

Let's get into the word of God this morning.

The focus of Christians living today, And there's a lot of stuff out there.

The young people might say there's a lot of bling out there but everything that glitters isn't gold and even gold itself isn't what's most precious and most valuable to us, I believe, as Christians.

2 Corinthians chapter 4 verse 18, in fact we'll pick it up with verse 17.

The Bible says, for our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory.

While we look not at the things which are seen, but at what?

The things which are not seen, for the things which are seen are what?

They're temporal, They're only temporary, but the things which are not seen are what?

We keep our eyes fixed and focused on eternal realities that God has revealed to us in his word.

And that is to be the focus of Christians living today.

The eternal life living with Jesus for all eternity.

Well, God is a God of love, and that love is demonstrated by giving.

I don't think you need to look up this next verse, you probably know it, I hope all of you know it, but sometimes it's so common, I think we can overlook its significance and the meaning behind this verse as to what it reveals about God and his character.

John 3, 16, for God so loved the world that he did what?

Love is demonstrated by giving, Not giving with the hope of receiving something else in return, but giving because it is a blessing to those who you're giving it to.

For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son, and don't let that trip you up there in the English, Only begotten does not mean that Jesus came forth in some kind of a way and was born.

If you look at the Greek for begotten, it actually means 1 of a kind.

You can really replace that word there and say God gave his 1 of a kind, Only 1 of a kind, there's no other like Him, to us.

That whosoever believeth in Him might not perish, but have everlasting life.

Now, how long was Jesus given to the human race?

Was it just during the time that He was on Earth, for 33 and a half years?

And then he went back to heaven and went back to being God again.

How long was Jesus given to the human race?

And Pastor Wright quoted this in our call to worship this morning, Isaiah chapter 9, verse 6.

The Bible says, for unto us a child is born, "'unto us a son is, ' what?

"'Given, ' and that given, God is not someone who gives "'and then takes it back.

"'He has given Jesus Christ to the human race "'for all eternity.'" All eternity, Jesus is to be 1 with us, a human being.

That is remarkable, that he was given for all time and for all eternity.

Do we realize the condescension and the love that God has for us in giving to us his son forever?

Now notice what this actually does for us.

There's a statement, volume 1, selected messages, page 299, paragraph 3.

It says there, after Adam and Eve brought death into the world by their disobedience, a costly sacrifice was provided for the human race.

Now this next sentence right here just floored me.

It says, a higher value than that they originally possessed was placed upon them.

A higher value than you and I originally possessed was placed upon us.

By giving Christ His only begotten, or only 1 of a kind Son as a ransom for the world, God did what?

Isn't God unlimited and omnipotent and all powerful and omniscient and all knowing?

How can he be exhausted or reach a limitation into his giving?

Nonetheless, it says God gave all of heaven when he gave Jesus Christ.

And so we determine what gives something value by the cost you pay for it.

If you were to open up your Christmas present for me on Christmas morning and you would see and recognize he went shopping at the Dollar Tree, Would you think that I had put a lot of money into your present?

Not really, you might appreciate the thought more than the present, but the value would not be that great.

When you look at the value that was placed on us as human beings to purchase and redeem us, the very precious blood of Jesus Christ, a greater and higher value than we even originally possessed before Adam and Eve sinned, was given to us, placed upon us.

Well, I wanna look at a gift that God has given through his son today in a story that is found in Matthew chapter 22.

Matthew chapter 22, and so if you have your Bibles, I hope you do, God forbid we would ever come to church and not have our Bibles, Right?

Matthew chapter 22, and we're gonna notice here a story or a parable about a wedding.

A story about a wedding, and this is going to reflect the gift that God has given to us.

Matthew 22, and let's just notice it together beginning in verse 1, and Jesus answered and spake unto them again by parables, and a parable we understand is a story that has a symbolic meaning, and said, verse 2, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a certain king which made a marriage for his son and sent forth his servants to call them that were bidden to the wedding and they would not come.

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God’s Christmas Present

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