Why I Believe In Jesus

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The Birth Of Christ

• Reading
• LUKE 21-14

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The Birth Of Christ

• What do you think of when you read about the
  birth of Christ?
• Without question the arrival of the Son of God in
  a human form was a great event.
• There is no surprise that men would want to
  celebrate this event.
• But where does God Himself place the emphasis?
  What should we celebrate?

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The Birth Of Christ

• Every aspect of the life of Christ was foretold
  by the prophets. (Luke 2444)

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The Birth Of Christ

• Luke 2444 Then He said to them, These are the
  words which I spoke to you while I was still with
  you, that all things must be fulfilled which were
  written in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and
  the Psalms concerning Me.

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The Uniqueness of the Birth of Christ

• The foretold defeat of Satan. (Genesis 315)

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The Uniqueness of the Birth of Christ

• Genesis 315 And I will put
  enmity Between you and the woman, And between
  your seed and her Seed He shall bruise your
  head, And you shall bruise His heel.

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The Uniqueness of the Birth of Christ

• The fulfillment of the great promises to Abraham.
  (Genesis 121-3)

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The Uniqueness of the Birth of Christ

• Genesis 121-3 Now the LORD had said to Abram
  Get out of your country, From your family And
  from your fathers house, To a land that I will
  show you. I will make you a great nation I will
  bless you And make your name great And you shall
  be a blessing.

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The Uniqueness of the Birth of Christ

• Genesis 123
• I will bless those who bless you, And I will
  curse him who curses you And in you all the
  families of the earth shall be blessed.

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The Uniqueness of the Birth of Christ

• The promise of the future Messiah to David.
  (Psalms 13211)

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The Uniqueness of the Birth of Christ

• Psalm 13211 The
  LORD has sworn in truth to David He will not
  turn from it I will set upon your throne the
  fruit of your body.

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The Detailed Prophecies of his Birth

• The specific place of His birth. (Micah
  52)

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The Detailed Prophecies of his Birth

• Micah 52
• But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, 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.

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The Detailed Prophecies of his Birth

• The specific place of His birth. (Micah
  52)
• The virgin birth in prophecy. (Isaiah
  714)

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The Detailed Prophecies of his Birth

• Isaiah 714Therefore the Lord Himself will give
  you a sign Behold, the virgin shall conceive and
  bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel.

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The Detailed Prophecies of his Birth

• The specific place of His birth. (Micah
  52)
• The virgin birth in prophecy. (Isaiah
  714)
• The time of His birth was shown to be in the
  times of the Roman kingdom. (Daniel 244)

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The Detailed Prophecies of his Birth

• Daniel 244-45 - And in the days of these kings
  the God of heaven will set up a kingdom which
  shall never be destroyed and the kingdom shall
  not be left to other people it shall break in
  pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it
  shall stand forever.

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The Circumstances of his Birth.

• There was the heavenly announcement to the
  shepherds. (Luke 28-15)

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The Circumstances of his Birth.

• There was the heavenly announcement to the
  shepherds. (Luke 28-15)
• There was the incredible fact that God Himself
  became man. (John 11-314)

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The Circumstances of his Birth.

• John 11-3 In the beginning was the Word, and
  the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He
  was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were
  made through Him, and without Him nothing was
  made that was made.

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The Circumstances of his Birth.

• John 114And the Word became flesh and dwelt
  among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as
  of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace
  and truth.

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Three Questions To Consider

• Why did God become man? (Hebrews
  29-15 17-18)

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Three Questions To Consider

• Hebrews 29-15 - But we see Jesus, who was made
  a little lower than the angels, for the suffering
  of death crowned with glory and honor, that He,
  by the grace of God, might taste death for
  everyone. For it was fitting for Him, for whom
  are all things and by whom are all things, in
  bringing many sons to glory, to make the captain
  of their salvation perfect through sufferings.

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Three Questions To Consider

• Hebrews 29-15 Inasmuch then as the children
  have partaken of flesh and blood, He Himself
  likewise shared in the same, that through death
  He might destroy him who had the power of death,
  that is, the devil, and release those who
  through fear of death were all their lifetime
  subject to bondage.

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Three Questions To Consider

• Why did God become man?
• WHEN was Jesus born?

We are not told!
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The Origin of Christmas

• "Christmas was not among the earliest festivals
  of the church and before the 5th century there
  was no general consensus of opinion as to when it
  should come in the calendar, whether on January
  6, March. 25, or December 25...the exact day and
  year of Christ's birth have never been
  satisfactory settled." (Encyclopedia Britannicas
  )

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The Origin of Christmas

• World Book Encyclopedia says that December 25
  was probably chosen "because the feast of the
  sun, or winter solstice was a familiar Roman
  feast celebrating the victory of light over
  darkness.

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The Origin of Christmas

• It seems as if the Christians of the third,
  fourth and fifth centuries were ashamed of their
  religion because it did not have any feasts or
  external pageantry. Therefore in order to rival
  the pagan religions and to win some of their
  followers they instituted their own feasts and
  celebrations in which they adopted many of the
  pagan's customs.(Denison, The History of
  Christmas)

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Three Questions To Consider

• Why did God become man?
• When was Jesus born?
• How are we to celebrate the birth of Christ?

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The Origin of Christmas

• If we want to honor Him then we will do only
  those things that are pleasing to Him.
• Colossians 317And whatever you do in word or
  deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus,
  giving thanks to God the Father through Him.

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The Origin of Christmas

• The word CHRISTMAS comes from the Latin -
  CHRISTES MASSE or the mass of Christ.
• Mass is a repetition of the sacrifice of Christ
  each time mass is said Christ is re-sacrificed.

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The Origin of Christmas

• When the Catholic priest says masss ", he
  reaches up into the heavens and brings Christ
  down from his throne and places him upon our
  alter to be offered up again as the victim for
  the sins of men.

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The Origin of Christmas

• Hebrews 925-26 not that He should offer
  Himself often, as the high priest enters the Most
  Holy Place every year with blood of another He
  then would have had to suffer often since the
  foundation of the world but now, once at the end
  of the ages, He has appeared to put away sin by
  the sacrifice of Himself.

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The Origin of Christmas

• When you honor and celebrate Christmas (the Mass
  of Christ) as a religious holiday, the birth of
  Christ, you are honoring and celebrating the
  tradition of men and of the Catholic church.

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There is a Celebration we are to Keep

• We are commanded to meet on every first day of
  the week. (1 Cor 161-2 Acts 207)

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There is a Celebration we are to Keep

• 1 Corinthians 162 - On the first day of every
  week each one of you is to put aside and save, as
  he may prosper, so that no collections be made
  when I come.
• Acts 207 - Now on the first day of the week,
  when the disciples came together to break bread,
  Paul, ready to depart the next day, spoke to them
  and continued his message until midnight.

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There is a Celebration we are to Keep

• We are commanded to meet on every first day of
  the week. (1 Cor 161-2 Acts 207)
• Why did they meet on this day?
• They were remembering the birth of Christ!
• Not the first birth but the second.
  (Acts 1330-34)

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There is a Celebration we are to Keep

• Acts 1333-34 - God has fulfilled this for us
  their children, in that He has raised up Jesus.
  As it is also written in the second Psalm You
  are My Son, Today I have begotten You. 34 And
  that He raised Him from the dead, no more to
  return to corruption, He has spoken thus I will
  give you the sure mercies of David.

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There is a Celebration we are to Keep

• Jesus is described as the firstborn from the
  dead.
• Colossians 118 And He is the head of the body,
  the church, who is the beginning, the firstborn
  from the dead, that in all things He may have the
  preeminence.

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Contrasting the Two Births

• THE IDENITY OF CHRIST
• In the first He took on flesh and became the Son
  of Man. (Romans 83)

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Contrasting the Two Births

• Romans 83 - For what the law could not do, in
  that it was weak through the flesh, God sending
  his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and
  for sin, condemned sin in the flesh.

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Contrasting the Two Births

• THE IDENITY OF CHRIST
• In the first He took on flesh and became the Son
  of Man. (Romans 83)
• At the second birth He was proclaimed the Son of
  God. (Romans 13-4)

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Contrasting the Two Births

• Romans 13-4 - concerning His Son Jesus Christ
  our Lord, who was born of the seed of David
  according to the flesh, 4 and declared to be
  the Son of God with power according to the Spirit
  of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead.

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Contrasting the Two Births

• IN THE POSITION OF CHRIST
• In the first birth He became weak being in the
  flesh. (2 Corinthians 134)

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Contrasting the Two Births

• 2 Corinthians 134 - For though He was crucified
  in weakness, yet He lives by the power of God.
  For we also are weak in Him, but we shall live
  with Him by the power of God toward you.

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Contrasting the Two Births

• IN THE POSITION OF CHRIST
• In the first birth He became weak in the flesh.
• He was raised to power in the second. (Romans
  14 Hebrews 726-28)

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Contrasting the Two Births

• Hebrews 726-28 - For such a High Priest was
  fitting for us, who isholy, harmless, undefiled,
  separate from sinners, and has become higher than
  the heavens.For the law appoints as high
  priests men who have weakness, but the word of
  the oath, which came after the law, appoints the
  Son who has been perfected forever.

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Contrasting the Two Births

• IN THE POWER OF CHRIST
• He was humbled and weak in the first. (Phil
  27-8)

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Contrasting the Two Births

• Philippians 27-8 - but made Himself of no
  reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and
  coming in the likeness of men. 8 And being
  found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself
  and became obedient to the point of death, even
  the death of the cross.

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Contrasting the Two Births

• IN THE POWER OF CHRIST
• He was humbled and weak in the first. (Phil
  27-8)
• He was given all power in the second. (Phil
  29-11 Matt 2818)

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Contrasting the Two Births

• Philippians 29-11 - Therefore God also has
  highly exalted Him and given Him the name which
  is above every name, 10 that at the name of
  Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven,
  and of those on earth, and of those under the
  earth, 11 and that every tongue should confess
  that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God
  the Father.

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Contrasting the Two Births

• Matthew 2818 - And Jesus came and spoke to
  them, saying, All authority has been given to Me
  in heaven and on earth.

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Contrasting the Two Births

• IN THE PURPOSE OF HIS BIRTH
• He was born to die for our sins. (Luke 1910)

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Contrasting the Two Births

• Luke 1910 - for the Son of Man has come to
  seek and to save that which was lost.

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Contrasting the Two Births

• IN THE PURPOSE OF HIS BIRTH
• He was born to die for our sins. (Lk 1910)
• He was raised to die no more as our high priest.
  (Rom 610)

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Contrasting the Two Births

• Romans 610 - For the death that He died, He
  died to sin once for all but the life that He
  lives, He lives to God.

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Contrasting the Two Births

• Hebrews 724-25 - But He, because He continues
  forever, has an unchangeable priesthood.
  Therefore He is also able to save to the
  uttermost those who come to God through Him,
  since He always lives to make intercession for
  them.

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Contrasting the Two Births

• IN THE NATURE OF HIS WORK
• In the first birth He came to bear our sins.
  (Hebrews 926)

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Contrasting the Two Births

• Hebrews 926 - He then would have had to suffer
  often since the foundation of the world but now,
  once at the end of the ages, He has appeared to
  put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself.

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Contrasting the Two Births

• IN THE NATURE OF HIS WORK
• He came to bear our sins. (Heb 926)
• After being raised He will never bear sins in
  this way again. (Hebrews 928)

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Contrasting the Two Births

• Hebrews 928 - so Christ was offered once to
  bear the sins of many. To those who eagerly wait
  for Him He will appear a second time, apart from
  sin, for salvation.

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Contrasting the Two Births

• Which BIRTH Is Most Important?

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Contrasting the Two Births

• Can you not see that the second birth is of far
  greater importance than the first?
• God gave us details about the second birth. We
  know the day!
• The apostles began immediately to observe the
  first day of the week. The events on the day of
  Pentecost occurred on the first day of the week.
  (Acts 242)

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Contrasting the Two Births

• Acts 242 - And they continued steadfastly in
  the apostles doctrine and fellowship, in the
  breaking of bread, and in prayers.
• Acts 207 Now on the first day of the week,
  when the disciples came together to break bread

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Contrasting the Two Births

• This should be observed WEEKLY Not yearly,
  monthly or quarterly
• Is it not sad that men will observe things He
  does not ask but will not observe the things He
  does command us to!

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A New Birth In Christ

• What is your birthday?
• Our conversion is a new birth. (John 35)

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A New Birth In Christ

• John 35 - Jesus answered, Most assuredly, I
  say to you, unless one is born of water and the
  Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.

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A New Birth In Christ

• The same power involved in the raising of Jesus
  raises us. (Col 212-13)

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A New Birth In Christ

• Colossians 212-13 - buried with Him in
  baptism, in which you also were raised with Him
  through faith in the working of God, who raised
  Him from the dead. 13 And you, being dead in
  your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your
  flesh, He has made alive together with Him,
  having forgiven you all trespasses,