Taught by Grace

One of the most precious truths of the Christmas season is that God is now with us. As it is Christmas Eve, I thought it’d be fitting to look into the truth of God being with us as we come near to Christmas.

When Gabriel visited Joseph about the birth of Jesus, he made known that this was the fulfillment of Isaiah 7:14 and that this baby was God with us. The name Emmanuel is one of the most precious names of Jesus as it declares “God with us”

Jesus did not come to be God above us, around us, or against, but God with us. He came to be with us so that we might be with Him. Jesus came to lift us out of our sinful poverty into His glorious riches by being with us.

In Luke 1:46-56, we have a beautiful reminder of what the Christmas message should produce in our lives, worship. Worship and praise are woven throughout the narrative of the Christmas story. This is no less true than with Mary herself. The one to whom Gabriel came with the stunning announcement that she would be the mother of the Word made flesh worshipped.

Worship permeates the story of Christmas. This worship is not limited to a specific age, gender, or monetary status. John the Baptist worshipped from the womb, while Simeon and Anna both worshipped nearing the end of their lives. Mary and Elizabeth worshipped and the Shepherds, Simeon, and the wise men worshipped. The lowly shepherds worshipped, the rich wise men worshipped, and the majestic angels worshipped.

Christmas worship is for both the rich and the poor, young and the old, and the glorious and lowly. What is the requirement then to worship? You must know, love, and believe this message. It doesn’t matter who you are, if that is the case. Every one of us ought to worship the Lord Jesus over the Christmas story because His redemptive work is for all people of every nation, tribe, and tongue.

However, we rejoice with more knowledge today, for He did not remain the babe in the manger. He’s no longer laying in the feeding troth, neither is He working in Joseph’s carpentry shop, neither is He on the cross or in the tomb. We do not worship Him now because He has come to bring salvation, we worship Him now because He has brought salvation! Oh my friend, may we join in with Mary, John, Elizabeth, the shepherds, Simeon, Anna, and the wise men to worship Him!

No human being can fulfill the law, however, for redemption to happen, one had to be under the same rule to redeem those bound under that rule. Enter Jesus Christ. For Jews, the written law of God revealed their sinfulness and for the Gentiles, the law of God in their hearts revealed their depravity. All men are under the law and the law declares “Guilty!”

It sets a standard for us that we are incapable of meeting because of our proclivity towards sin. We need salvation and redemption, but for this to happen, one had to be born under that same law. This is what Galatians 4:4-5 reminds us of. One had to be born under the law to fulfill the law to redeem those under the law. He could not be above the law or apart from the law, but He had to have the same standard over Him that you and I have.

Here’s the key difference. He lived under that standard and met it. Instead of missing the mark, He nailed the bullseye with perfect accuracy. He was placed under the law in the incarnation and perfectly fulfilled the law. Without any sin. He never lusted, He never desired sin, He never sinned. He lived the impeccably sinless life that you and I could never live to this end. To redeem them that are under the law.

The message of the Savior of the world did not come to a King, Priest, or Prophet, but to a virgin woman in the lowly town of Nazareth. He always comes to those whom society views as insignificant to declare His glorious power.

This passage is a beautiful reminder of the way God works. The Messiah’s lineage was royal, but it was a seemingly forgotten line. He did not come to the rich, but the poor. He did not come to the strong, but the weak. Instead of sending the Messiah through the line of the most powerful monarch of the day, He chose a virgin woman in the lowly town of Nazareth.

Through an impossible situation, the Savior would come into the world to redeem men from their sin. Through the weak, the powerful redeemer would come to save sinners. Through the low, the Son of the Highest came. He did not do this because He had to, but He chose to. He always chooses to use the weak, insignificant, and poor instead of the strong, significant, and rich because through those vessels, His glory is best displayed.

How could this be any more true than in the birth of the Lord Jesus Christ? Grace, hope, and love wrapped up in a person came through the weak and lowly to declare His power and glory.

Every Chrsitian has a certain perspective of God, so then, every Christian must develop a Biblical, well-rounded, and robust view of God. This is why we must endeavor into this study.

However, we must acknowledge a potential pitfall of studying the person and work of God. Oftentimes, theological endeavors lead to an intellectual elitism. It is possible to look into the depths and heights of the incomparable God and think thoughts along these lines:

“Look at me, I know more about God than all of these other people!”

“These other Christians are so ignorant, they don’t know what the hypostatic union is.”

“I have so much more knowledge than my fellow-believers.”

It can produce theological pride when there are truths about God that you recognize that maybe others haven’t yet. If your study of theology inflates your head with pride instead of bringing you to your knees in humility, it is a worthless pursuit.

That is what our study of theology must not produce. It cannot and must not produce pride and a sense of “being better than others” because you understand more. No, our study of theology should produce humility, worship, and adoration because it ultimately directs our attention to God and God alone.

Last week, we examined the first proclamation of the Christmas message. That is, it comes to those who have made a mess of everything. The message of a Savior is marvelous because we need a Savior. Genesis 3:15 was the first proclamation of this message, but it was not the last.

The entire Old Testament prepares for the first coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. There is a Christ-centered lens through which the Old Testament ought to be interpreted. Jesus did not come into the world until His birth, however, His birth was not the beginning of the story of redemption.

The Old Testament is rich with narratives, poetry, and prophecies, but it ultimately points to Jesus Christ. It is important to not lose sight of the Old Testament while considering Christmas. Ultimately, all that happened in the Old Testament is a reminder that God is unrelenting in redeeming fallen sinners which are fulfilled in Jesus Christ.

What is theology? Fundamentally, theology is the study of God. So then, every Christian should be a theologian, and even deeper, they should be robust theologians.

You may never pick up a systematic theology book or take a class in seminary and still have a robust, well-rounded view of God. That really is what systematic theology is and does. It takes what the Bible says about God in certain areas and brings it together so that you can have a well-rounded view of who God is, what He has done, and what He will do.

Every Christian can be a theologian because every Christian can study God’s Word for himself/herself. You don’t have to pick up a theology book. You don’t have to know every jot and title regarding soteriology. You can be a Christian who just studies God’s Word for yourself and learns about who God is.

To be a theologian is really to develop a well-rounded, robust view of who God is because of what He has revealed about Himself in His Word.

When was the first Christmas message proclaimed? Not in Nazareth, or even Bethlehem, but in the Garden of Eden. God delivered the promise of a coming redeemer and savior to those who had just made a mess of everything. The first Christmas message brought hope into despair, joy into sorrow, and life into death. This message remains true today. The message of Christ is not for those who have it all together, but for those who certainly do not.

Who should study theology? The pastor? The seminarian? The Bible college student? I believe that every Christian ought to be a student of theology because every Christian has a certain view of God that impacts his life. If we have a certain view of God regardless of our studiousness, it is important then that we develop a view of God that is manifestly and robustly Biblical. 

That is why the podcast is expanding to include a new segment called Everyday Theology because I believe every Christian should develop a robust, well-rounded view of God that transforms our knowledge of God, worship to God, and lifestyle for God.

I believe we have developed a narrow view of theology. We see it as the academic Christians debating over whether or not babies should be baptized, if the return of Christ pre or post-millennial, or His atonement was for an elected few or everyone. Yes, theology engages the mind, but the fundamental purpose of theology and doctrine is to transform our lifestyles.

How should the Christian respond to the evil done to him? He must respond by not giving evil back and instead displaying kindness because he trusts in God to bring vengeance. It is not popular or easy, but this is the Biblical response to evildoers. We do not persecute, we bless. We do not take away, we give. We do not starve, we feed. We display the grace and kindness of Jesus by doing good to those who consciously and willingly do us wrong.