Why Call Him Saviour - Part 2

This podcast is made available by this increasing media as to the generosity of our support is your donation today means great podcast ideas remain available to help people look to God daily presentation at our nation today send out all day. Merry Christmas from one of us a Turning Point and thank you for spending this time with Jeremiah. As you celebrate the birth of our Savior helped Jesus the focus of the celebration.

Just remember the world that captures his loving focus on that word site series why the Nativity is done with the conclusion of his why call him Savior friends some hours ago I wrote a little book called by the Nativity and there are 25 chapters in that book in each little chapter asks a question, we have dealt with many of those questions during the month of December. Why did Jesus become a man why Joseph why Mary why Bethlehem why there was no room in the end, why the shepherds why the gift of the wise men why music and Christmas. Why call him Immanuel in today. Finally, why call him Savior now before we begin this last message, let me say Merry Christmas to all of you from Ghana from all of our family from all of the staff here at Turning Point from all of us who are committed to reaching out to you with the message of the word of God. Merry Christmas and God bless you have a wonderful day studying God's word, the Savior is needed to seek the lost, the Savior is needed to save the lost.

It came to seek and to say if you found this to save us.

We be in the same position we were before. But he came to save us not have to tell you that word has fallen on hard times we use every word that we can come up with from the dictionary except the word say I remember growing up as a boy. It was a common thing that somebody if they been saved.

I remember one little foray into the witness saying I read out when I was a student Dallas seminary. I was taking some courses at North Texas State University some graduate courses and I was going through a period of time that you probably never been through a time like this when I was feeling very guilty that I was so busy about doing the Christian thing that I wasn't witnessing. I probably heard a message on witnessing that it put me under a guilt trip and so I determined this week.

I was been a witness and I went to my class sat next to a friend and I'll never forget this. I asked him are you safe, and he said I'm not interested in being saved from anything except from nuts like you sorta set my witnessing program back a few weeks was very yeah somebody would say to me, well you should him asking that question is a better way to ask it, and perhaps there is what the Bible's term for it is to be saved to be safe.

When we think of being saved. We think of pictures of sailors clinging to the wreckage of the ship helicopters hovering in the night sky shining their beacons on the sea in search of the living who must be saved. A few months ago Donna and I were in a condo and was a very quiet day uneventfully and all of a sudden we heard helicopters, five of them right out in front of where we were staying, going up and down in front of this thing and it went on for hours.

I knew something was going on, and so I walked down to the pier and asked some of the people would gather there what was happening. A surfer had disappeared and they feared he had drowned and ultimately he had, but they couldn't find his body and so they were searching and they never stopped until he found we think of a collapsed mine workers are trapped far beneath the earth where oxygen runs low and men crouch in darkness, wondering if they dare hope for salvation. We think of a little girl at the bottom of the well or even the favorite word picture of a single stray sheep trapped on a parallel slope. The Coast Guard will find those laws, sailors, and no taxpayer will ever complain about the expense the minors will not be abandoned.

The little girl must see the sunshine once more and the one sheep must be rescued from danger. These situations are urgent and when we see them on television. We stop and we pray and we wait. We may not even know any of the people, but instantly we find ourselves identifying with them and praying that somehow they will be rescued there lost and they need to be saved but ladies and gentlemen.

These temporal situations are transcended by the true tragedy of men and women who are lost in their own rubble of sin and darkness and pain and often even without knowing what they are longing for our world's inhabitants are crying out to be rescued. We don't need to be saved from the sins of others.

We need salvation from our own sin until we are willing to acknowledge that no matter what the Savior may have done for us. It will not connect with us at all until we are willing to say it's not there sins that is the problem. It is my sin. It is not my situation. That's the problem it's my sin that's the problem. Until we are willing to stand up before God and all up to the fact that we have failed him. And we are falling short of his glory and the only hope we have is the Savior until them. Whatever the Savior may have done for us. It will not make any difference because he does not force himself upon us. He paid the penalty for our sin, he paid all that needs to be paid, but he waits for us to accept it by faith promise of the Savior and the purpose of the Savior. Notice the provision of the Savior in the same verse. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord.

Please notice the fact of this Savior coming to the surface as a fact of history. It's very interesting that this verse. While it is so very short contains everything we need to know. It says, for unto you is born this day a Savior. Jesus did not just gradually come upon this earth. There was a day when the Lord God was born into humanity. When he came through Mary and on a certain day in a certain place at a certain time. He was born into humanity. The Bible makes it very clear that this is an historic event.

On this day Jesus was born, the birth of Jesus is not the beginning of a spiritual force, but the historic record of a person who had an actual birthday effective history, but it is also a fulfillment of prophecy. Once again, in this one little verse here we see it. For unto you is born this day in the city of David, the city of David, as you know is the city of Bethlehem and the Old Testament is filled with prophecies of the coming of Messiah in such a specific way that most Jewish people had a tendency to read right over the prophecies and not even understand them. Micah, for instance, had prophesied that Messiah would be born in Bethlehem. Micah 524. You, Bethlehem, Ephrata, though you are little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of you shall come forth to me the one to be ruler in Israel, whose goings forth are from of old, from everlasting. Well, it's a wonderful verse, but it becomes a miracle verse when you recognize that it was written 700 years war. Jesus was born in Bethlehem, the prophet Daniel in the Old Testament actually gave a timetable for the birth of Jesus. Isaiah said that Messiah would be virgin born Jeremiah said that there would come a time when because of Christ's birth, there would be a slaughter of many children and José of the prophet revealed that at a certain time Mary and Joseph would have to go into Egypt to spare the life of the child. All of these prophecies. Men and women were given 500 to 700 years before the birth of Christ and there were devout Jews who every day would read the Scripture and wonder will these things happen in my lifetime. The birth of Jesus was not only effective history.

It was a fulfillment of prophecy. But notice, it is also a foundation for eternity unto you is born, a Savior, listen carefully, Jesus Christ is our Savior, God came down and entered into humanity so that humanity would be able to enter into eternity. This birth of Jesus.

While it began at a point in time began, something that will never end and can never end because when he was born into humanity.

He opened the door for us to eternity. So don't discount this one simple little verse that records an event that happened when the Savior was born. There are so many people who celebrate Christmas without celebrating Christ. I was get kind of a kick out of that. If the season of the year.

All these people who don't believe in Jesus go into debt to celebrate his birth.

Can you understand that they'll believe it, but they celebrate his birth religiously. Perhaps that is why there are so many who feel depressed on Christmas day. The Christmas blues. It sometimes call be SAB syndrome, seasonal affective disorder.

It's called sad season affective disorder. Whatever it is, if you happen to be down in the dumps during this season. Let me give you some great counsel, stop thinking about Christmas and start thinking about Christ, he is our prophet and our priest and RK. He is the master and the bridegroom and the good Shepherd. He's the holy one of God. He is Emmanuel, God with us and his name is called Jesus.

John introduced him as the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. The Magi recognized him as the King of the Jews, and even the demons called him the holy one of God is this not the carpenter asked the people of Nazareth could this be the Christ asked the woman by the well. Thomas called him my Lord and my God no ladies and gentlemen this time of year is it about Christmas.

It's about Christ. It isn't about presence it's about his presence.

You may not have family nearby, but your father is close at hand.

Your faith is more important than your feelings. And he sets us free from chains we could never remove ourselves because he is our Savior. He is our hope when you get all depressed and discouraged about things that you have no control over in your life. Let me ask you just sort of push those away, and refocus your attention on the one who loves you more than you can ever imagine who came to this earth specifically to be your Savior. I know what a task I have is I approach Christmas each year. How do you break through the veneer that we have created around us season and even around ourselves. How do I tell you about the Savior hood of Jesus I pray that God will give me a story that will help me to do it a metaphor or some parable that will compare what we don't know with what we do know my story today is a story that was told for many years by a great pastor of another generation by the name of RG Lee RG Lee for many years was the pastor of what is today the Bellevue Baptist Church in Memphis Tennessee.

He was at one time the president of the Southern Baptist convention and was known across this land is one of the great orators and Bible preachers whenever he would preach on the Savior hood of Christ, he would often tell the story. The story takes place in the mountains of Virginia in a one room schoolhouse was so tough. No teacher ever lasted there more than a few weeks. It was a school populated with mean-spirited mountain boys who thought their main objective in life was to run off every new teacher dared to enter their classroom. One day a very young teacher applied for the job.

The director of the school actually tried to talk him out of it. He said son. He said you don't know what you're going to go you're going to take on an awful beating because you're so young. He said son even the most experienced teachers in the entire state never lasted more than two months. Well said the young teacher. I want to risk it and he took the job on his first day he walked into the classroom and he noticed that the kids were gathered in the back of the room and so together around this one huge young man who he found out later was a guy named Tom infected called them big old Tom. That's what they called him and he was the bully of the class loud enough so that the new teacher could hear him.

Big old Tom said I'll take care of this one. I'll do it all by myself. I will need anyone's help. He'll be gone by the end of the day when the young teacher got up in front of the class. He said I have come to conduct this class, but I must confess I cannot do it without your help. I think what we need is a few rules I want to ask you to help me make the rules for the class.

What rules do you think we ought to have.

This was a new one on this. Classes have never happened before.

As the teacher went to the blackboard. One kid hollered out. No stealing, and the teacher voted on the board. Nobody can be late eroded on the board by the time he finished the teacher had 10 rules for the classroom. The 10 Commandments of his class. Everybody agreed that as they were agreeing they were all laughing out loud now so the teacher there is no such thing as a good rule without a penalty.

If the rule is broken what should be the penalty if a rule is broken and big old Tom stood up and he said what ever breaks one of these rules gets 10 licks across his bare back. The teacher thought penalty but severe. Obviously the story is dated, but he reluctantly agreed so they went to school the next day, and as you can well imagine the morning had not ended before a rule was broken.

Big Tom showed up at the teachers desk and said somebody stole my lunch, so the teacher held court in said class. One of the roles is no stealing, and somebody stole big Tom's luncheon. I want to know. After everyone had been questioned a little 10-year-old boy stood up and said I stole his lunch. I was so hungry I couldn't help it. I stole the lunch while the teacher said you know what the rule is you know that you get 10 licks across your back without your coat on and the little boy begin to beg teacher, please don't do that and whatever you do don't make me take off my coat, find the teacher knowing he was on trial at this moment made the young boy unbuttoned his coat and underneath, there was no shirt just the suspenders that were holding up his pants. The teacher was thinking how in the world am I going to whip this child. How can I do that but if I don't, I will have forever lost control of this classroom. What shall I do he said to the boy son how is it that you don't have a shirt on. The boy answered. My father died and my mom's real rapport and I only have one shirt and on the day that she washes my shirt. I wear my brothers coat so I don't get cold. I'll have my shirt tomorrow, but I don't have it today.

So the teacher slowly got the paddle as he was hesitating, trying to get the courage to inflict the punishment. Big Tom stood up, jumped over everybody in his way. Walked over to where the teacher was and said if you don't object. I'll take Jim's looking for him. Teacher makes some philosophical statement about there being the right for substitute punishment and off came Tom's coat after five hard strokes. He paused. The teacher did and realized that everyone in the classroom was crying, especially little Jim, who by this time had run to Tom and had him by the neck hanging on for all he was worth and he was saying, Martha, sorry I stole your lunch. I was so hungry I will love you till I die for taking my looking for me and it broke the heart of all those hard-nosed kids and broke the heart of the teacher because on that day, have become his brothers Savior and you and I have broken the rules. Heavenly.

I have broken the rules. One day the Lord Jesus came into my classroom and took off his coat and stretched himself out on a wooden beam and he took the stripes which I deserved in that day, he became my Savior. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior is Christ the Lord.

Do you know him, is he your Savior and who is not enough to believe is the Savior of the world. The Bible says even the demons believe that and they tremble in order for you to receive his salvation.

You have to number one acknowledge that it's not your neighbor sins or somebody else's sins at your own that deserves punishment and then you have to come and say Lord Jesus, thank you for what you did when you died on the cross for me. That's what I deserved and I know it and I accept today. Your punishment for my sin and I receive your forgiveness and I accept you into my heart and into my life to be my Savior. And when you do that, according to the Scripture. You have been saved had he been saved. Have you accepted Christ as your Savior at this Christmas season. The great message of Christmas is the gospel of Jesus Christ and I urge you today. If you have never done it before to let this day be the day when you invite Christ to be your own personal Savior and Lord. Amen. Well, I think it goes without saying that this is been one of the most unusual Christmas seasons we have ever enjoyed in her life and in many respects is been kinda sad to see what has happened to some of the Christmas celebrations but in another way we have been reduced to the most wonderful truth of all the Christmas is not about what we've made of it.

It's about the real truth and meaning of Christ's love for us, his willingness to give up his life for you and for me that we might have salvation. I hope that there has been something about this Christmas that has broken through to your heart that will make it impossible for ever to celebrate Christmas the same way again my friend. Do you know how much God loves you and how important you are to him and how much he was willing to give up so that you could go to heaven for ever and ever, and be forgiven of your sin. He sent his own son, Jesus Christ, and I believe that he sent him for you as if you were the only one for whom he would be sent loves you that much. You have entrusted him as your personal savior. Don't let this Christmas pass before you once again prints Merry Christmas. Have a great day that is message. Thank you from Shadow Mountain Community Church insignia pasta Dr. David Jeremiah would love to hear your story of Turning Point impact on your life. Please write to us Turning Point PO Box 3830 I San Diego, CA 92163 or visit our website at Jeremiah.old/radio Moscow company driver 365 day devotional for 2021 Gulfstream. It's difficult to report each day of the gift of any amount to keep his spirits bright through the holiday season.

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