Christ Is What Christmas Is About First B Jackson 2011-12-11 Automatically transcribed. Where this and the recording disagree, the recording is the record. ---- The youth groups are are meeting at the town square to serve hot chocolate. There's a number of kind of tweaks to the especially to the youth schedule that are mentioned in your bulletin also. So take a close look there, especially if you're involved with the the junior and senior high ministries. On the eighteenth, we have a very special Sunday. There'll be a children's program in the morning on Sunday here. And then in the evening, we've got our, our, buzzard breath chili cook off. And then after that, we'll be going caroling. So after you've had a chance to eat all the onions and the the the chili spices, we'll go out and share that with the neighbors through song. There will be Awana here that evening. So if you want to come enjoy the enjoy the chili and then drop the kids off at Awana, that'll that'll be happening. On Christmas Eve, there's a there's a schedule change here that you need to be aware of. We'll have two candlelight services. The the cantata or the choir is gonna be presenting a cantata, which we're very excited about. But note that the the time has changed. It's now 5PM and 06:30PM. We're doing a little bit earlier. It's on a Saturday. Hopefully, that'll give you time to spend as a family in the evening after you join us here for the candlelight service on Christmas Eve. So this is a great time to reach out to people in our community also that don't typically attend church. A lot of folks are very open to coming in on on Christmas Eve. They'll hear the gospel when they're here. So make a point to invite your friends, neighbors, your coworkers. This is a it's a fantastic time to do that on Christmas Eve. Then on on Christmas day, we'll have one service, for the whole church at 10:00 here. So busy schedule between between now and Christmas, but I want you, and your families to really remember that it's about it's about Christ's birth and his his coming to save us. With that said, this is the third Sunday of Advent. The Swink family is gonna do our our third advent candle and a reading. So, this is Craig and Jenny Swink and their children. Good morning. Good morning. On this third Sunday in Advent, the candle of joy is lit. Jesus came to give us fullness of joy and abundant life. Joy is ours because of Jesus. His presence brings the promise of joy. Luke two eight through 11 says, and there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them and the glory of the Lord showed around them And they were terrified. But the angel said to them, do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David, a savior has been born to you. He is Christ the Lord. For those of you that are new here, I really hope you feel welcome this morning. I wanted to start our morning off with a a scripture. This comes from Luke chapter one. Mary is is praying. She says, my soul glorifies the Lord My spirit rejoices in God, my savior for he has been mindful of the humble state of his servant. I hope as we worship here this morning that we're able to do that with with humble hearts and with putting God first and foremost in our worship. Alright. Please stand with me again. Alright. Why don't you guys take a minute to greet one another now that we filled up? Alright. We'll continue on with some more worship. You guys are great at greeting one another. Well done. Well done. You may be seated. A couple of weeks ago, we had a my small group and I had a opportunity to share in the ministry of the Good Samaritan Mission here in town and we help them with with mealtime. This morning, we have we have Chuck and Carol from the Good Samaritan Mission that are here to share just a little bit. Yeah, I'm Chuck. I'm the Executive Director. I know a lot of you because a lot of you come over and help the Good Samaritan Mission. First Baptist Church is one of our biggest supporters, and we thank you for everything that you do. You might have saw a little blue thing in the newspaper. It was just a plea for support. And that's, I think, where we can go right now. We've had a loss for the last couple of years, and we're projecting another one for the third year. So the help financially is really, really needed right now. And that would be good. One quick story. Right here we've got one of the stories that make the mission what it is. Ruth is with us. Ruth, when she came in, just really rejected, dejected. Came out of the hospital. Came into the mission. Sad and lonely. But you'll see the Spirit of God working in and through her. That's what the Good Samaritan mission's all about. Seeing change lives. People go, Once was lost, but now I'm found. So say hi to Ruth, and that's what it's all about. And I just thank you for making that possible. If we could have the offering team come forward please. Lord, thank you for how abundantly you've blessed us. We pray that we would give with cheerful hearts. We thank you for how you're moving in and through your church here through the various missions that we support. We pray specifically for the Good Samaritan Mission here in town and the Open Door Mission in Denver. We ask that as we give this morning that you would by your Holy Spirit enable us to give cheerfully and joyfully and we pray that you would bless the tithes that we receive that your kingdom would be multiplied. Pray these things in your name. Amen. Thank you Carol and Chuck. Nice job. Alright. Will you guys stand with me one more time? Keeper of the stars, a load of time and space. I will live my life lifting up your Alright. You may be seated. Amen. Wow. Great singing. Good to see you this morning. Wow. You're looking good. Hi. Do you like this cold weather? Yeah. When when I left, Beijing, it was freezing, but it was and freezing in Beijing is only 26. Freezing in Jacklyn Ho is minus 26. So, I mean, it just felt good to get back to good old ice. But glad to see you this morning. We praise God for the great, leadership that our elders showed during the, three weeks that we were gone. So thank you elders for a tremendous job and caring for the heavy leadership load here. And Pastor Carl and, all that was done. We just, thank you so much. And, we appreciate Ron Turpin, sharing the word of God. I got emails in China about this dramatic presentation that, that Ron gave both Sundays that was here. And so that's exciting. When you hear from China what's happening in, Jacklyn Hole, you know God's working. So it's cool. Glad to hear all of that. Well, and thank you very much, Chuck and Carol for being here, and thank you for being here. That's really what it's all about. And and I think that sometimes Christmas gets all caught up in the tinsel of things, doesn't it? We lose the focus. We we think you know what? We think Christmas is about us. We really do. We think it's about the gifts that we're gonna get or that we're gonna but Christmas isn't about us. Never was. It's about Jesus. And so if we can get our focus back to where it belongs, what a wonderful Christmas we can have. What an impact we can have on people's lives. What a joy we can have in our own heart. As we see God doing something new in us, then we're gonna do something new in someone else's life. We're gonna impact somebody. And so we're glad you're here this morning, and we we can see the smile of Jesus in you. And so thank you for being here because that's what we want this to be about and not about anything else. And and thank you for sharing. And and I wanna encourage you. You know, my wife and I, we always do our at the end of year giving, we look at what and ask what would God have us give to. We look at missions projects. We look at our church. We look at other things, and and then we give a lecture, at the end of the year. And so, think about Good Samaritan Mission and and the need that they have and and what God's doing in our own local area, in meeting people and, be great of God, put that on your heart. Well, this morning, before we go to communion, I wanted to have an opportunity to share with you about China because we won't give that opportunity and because we go right into Christmas activities and there's so much going on this year, and then we start the New Year. So I've asked Marlon to say a word and and then Amy. And Matt went Matt and Amy and Marlon went with us to China this particular trip. And Matt, is sick. I got sick when I first came back. For three days, I was gone. I didn't know anything. I didn't know who what life was about till Friday morning. But, now Matt, he went right to work at sub zero weather and he's sick today. But, Amy's here and Marlon, so if you'll start and then Amy and you will see some pictures as we go along and then I'll sum it up as we go into communion. Hi, everybody. It's good to be home and see all my friends again and it's Christmas time, a special time of celebration. I wanted to share with you a couple of things that really impacted me. And here goes. Let's see. I have to have these cheat sheets or I'll go off on a bunny trail and spend an hour talking. Anyway, the Lord taught us lots of things while we were in China. He always does because he is the teacher. But especially for me, One of the main things that he taught me and is continually talking to me about is that he hears. God hears and understands and answers prayer over and over again. This was certainly true the three weeks that we were away. The Lord taught me that the call in people's lives is strong and the young people and the women I spoke with in China want to be prepared. They have a deep desire to be prepared for ministry and to follow that call with great passion. I was reminded of the verse in in second Chronicles 16. It says, the eyes of the Lord range throughout the whole earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him. Throughout the whole earth. I learned that God works in and through personal relationships as many groups met daily and connected and shared with one another a mutual issues and concern. It is definitely a wide open harvest there. This happened every single day that we were there as we were hosted by one Chinese couple, a pastor and his wife and little child who had small groups of friends over from church and the neighborhood three or four times a week. Constant interconnection. English classes, parenting classes, premarital classes, marital counseling on one to one, training servant leaders as the in the marketplace of which we were a part. We're going on every day that we were there. I had the opportunity to speak on pride. It's a stronghold, you know, and forgiveness which is the antidote. For over an hour at a church the first week and resulted in several hours of counseling and prayer with three specific individuals. Families in separate times in people's homes. There was spiritual aftercare given and several women healed emotionally and spiritually. The Lord showed me several things while I was in Beijing. That what I believe must go from my heart to from my head to my heart. Ever heard of that before? From your head to your heart. It's all about loving. That my trusting him is necessary in the face of overwhelming and unpredictable circumstances. Whether it be with the family or in the workplace. I have taken this verse of course for this. Psalms three thousand one hundred fourteen and fifteen but as for me, I trust in you, oh Lord, I say, you are my God. My times are in your hands. And that the treasure that we have as believers is knowing him and making him known to others. That is what the Lord showed me. That we have great treasure. And young families, I I I saw this through the young families and working people, meeting and visiting each other a lot with their cellphones, of course, and texting each other, producing a million for sharing God's truth. Many come to Christ easily. I'm sure that you'll hear exactly how that happens. The forest, the harvest is so great. Conversions at every meeting and desire to counsel and pray on one to one. It's really neat to work there. And then to finish up, I just wanted to say a couple things. Let's see. As I was leading leaving for China, I got prepared a little bit and I read the gospel again. In March, in Mark, in Mark 13, it says, and the gospel must first be preached to all the nations. Whatever is given you in that hour, speak that. For it is not you who speaks, but the Holy Spirit. He indeed helped our meeting times and people while we were in Beijing. So he says to me again, gird yourself in prayer and press forward into service these days. Seek you first the kingdom of God and his righteousness and all these things shall be added unto you. The church indeed in Beijing is alive at all levels and the body is one in him. The united body of Christ is indeed a powerful force and I came away thinking again of Colossians three twelve through 17. There was a special person in in my particular life that we were able to help. Her name is Amanda and so during that time, Psalms a hundred and seven nine and thirteen and fourteen came alive once to me as I saw it lived out in the life of Amanda. It says, specifically, as she cried out to the Lord, he delivered and saved her out of her distresses. Huge story behind that particular incident. I came away with a picture of the various groups there. Still processing all that. And was reminded again of let the word of Christ dwell in you. In all wisdom, teaching, and admonishing one another in Psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord and then, today, which was probably three or four days after I got here, I was totally touched by the missions meeting. Second Peter one passage that we read just about an hour or so ago. Make sure your election and calling are sure. Great reminder for the church today. I was so blessed by China and I'm going to let my friend and partner in the missions trip come forward. She'll talk a little bit about what happened there too. Good morning. There's so much as you can see from the pictures. That's like I think Dawn said there were 59 out of hundreds of pictures that we took. And so as we were trying to put together what we wanted to share, it was almost overwhelming because there was so much. Matt and I went and we're only there for twelve days. Everybody, Don and Marlin were there for three weeks. So they were there even longer than we were but our days were so full of everything from going into personal homes and ministering. The very first picture when they started the series again with the pregnant woman, that was Amanda that Marlon was talking about. Special, I mean her husband shared his testimony the first Sunday that we were there and just left you just with your mouth open just what the spirit has been doing in his life as a young Christian, as a new believer. Then his wife asked if Marlon and I would go one day and do some inner healing and some deliverance ministry to her. She came from a very abusive background and was just about to give birth. She was due that week to give birth and wanted to take care of some things spiritually before her baby was born. And so we did. It's been a whole day with her ministering and just praying and loving her. And before we left, we got to go to the hospital and see her baby being born. Not being born, but after it was born we got to go and visit her. We kind of got to see the before and after and just seeing sure most of you have seen it. It's such a tangible, real change in people's lives. It's not something, it's not a pep talk where you just give them a pep talk and then they're in a good mood for a few days and then they're still dealing with it. It's like you go and you pray and you minister. God meets them. The God that holds the universe by his word, reaches down by his spirit and changes hearts, sets them free. And they're different people. And it's amazing. And we saw that over and over again. We spent a lot of time in the classes with Don. And Matt was part of that. And if he was here, one of the things he wanted to share was he was so blessed in getting to spend time with Don. Just seeing him in that element was amazing just to see the gifts that that God has put in him to draw these young men and women who are A lot of them are believers, some of them are not. They're 25 to 45 professional people. Mean, some of them have PhDs, they have their own businesses and whatever, but just drawing out of them who God has made them to be and the joy that's in them. They're an amazing people because they're almost dramatic and funny in their personal lives when you're out with them in the market. They're funny and they're good. But when they get into a classroom situation, they're much more stoic and reserved. And Don is not stoic or reserved in any means. And he was just hilarious in his classes and just drawing them out and encouraging them to step into who God had created them to be. It was awesome. And yes, we did eat scorpions all kinds of Matt loved the street food. We had a lot of experiences with different kinds of food. Some of it very good, a few things I wouldn't eat again. It was awesome just to be a part of the culture and see what the people are like and who they are. It was my first impression of Beijing. We arrived there at 09:00 on a Friday night. Even when we came home, Jackson's a little bitty town and you see the lights from far away. They're bright. This is a city of 20,000,000 people. You can't even comprehend. It's like you drive an hour and you're still in skyscrapers. I mean it's just and there was no lights. We couldn't see the lights when we were landing and I'm like, I didn't know if the airport was out in the middle of nowhere, I didn't understand. And it wasn't until the next morning when we woke up and looked out the window and the smog is so thick that you can't even see. You can see a couple miles maybe, but you can't see the skyline. And there were a couple of days that it kind of cleared off and we had some sunshine, but the smog is just, it's so thick and you just realize what these people are living in day after day in a very urban, very busy place. And yet, every time that we would get in groups with people and sit down and talk to them, they're just like everybody else. They have their family issues, they have their parenting questions, they have their spiritual issues. Many of them, we were around a lot of single young people. The church that we went to with Josh and Sabina is made up mostly of the 25 45 age group. Almost everybody we prayed for asked us to pray for a marriage partner. They're all that's kind of where they are in life. I think Sabina said there had been 13 marriages and seven births in their church in four years. So that's kind of where that group of people really is in that part of life. But they're hungry. And the differences about being there and being here, some of them that really stood out to me were for us to get a passport to go over there, all we had to do was send our money in and our picture. To get a visa, had to fill out the paperwork and send it in. They can't do that. I asked some of them, Can you come see us? And they're like, No, we probably can't. For the most part, the only freedom that they have is the freedom they have in Christ. And it's amazing to see the answer. There are answered prayers that the underground church, you do see it. The church that we went to is above ground and they are worshiping their hearts out for two hours. The music and the teaching and the ministry was amazing for two hours. And they're not quiet about it. The bookstore that you saw a picture at one point. This is Josh in the church that we went to. But the bookstore at one point that was shown on here, I mean that's above ground and that's only been in the last few years that they could have above ground books. It's still censored what they can sell. There are Bibles there. There are some Christian books. There's marriage books and business books and different things. But it is There are You see answers to prayers. But there are also still restrictions. And this April, in 2012, they are getting new leadership in their country. And it's not like we can vote for. They don't have a whole lot of input into who comes up into leadership. And just talking to Sabina, the pastor's wife there. Just talking to her about it and there's it's a concern. It's something that we can join them in prayer for because it could go one of two ways. Right now, they've seen a lot of freedoms that they haven't seen in the past. I mean, people are coming to the Lord like crazy and the service that we that last Sunday we were there. At the end of the service the pastor asked if there were any visitors just wanting to have visitors stand up and introduce themselves. And about six or seven people stood up and every one of them said, with no prompting from anybody, they just each one stood up and said, I'm not a believer but I wanna be. I mean they're just hungry. And so there's a lot of freedoms that they're seeing right now but there are leaders that are coming up in the ranks that are very much against Christianity and that could be put into leadership over China in April. And so if you think about that, keep them in your prayers that the kingdom of God would continue to grow in that place and that God's will would be done in their hearts individually and as a nation. Let's see. Let me look here and see if there's anything else. I think for me, the scripture, I taught a couple of times, I did some on worship one night for a couple of hours and then I met a couple of nights later and we just did some worship and some ministry. The scripture that the Lord gave me as I was just waiting for him before I went to the meeting was one that he's given to me before. It's in Isaiah 5eight 10. And it just says, If you pour out that with which you sustain your own life for the hungry and satisfy the need of the afflicted, then shall your light rise in darkness. And that's really all I had to give, was what he had given me. The things that he gives me that sustain me every day as I walk are the very things that will sustain anybody because it's him. That's the only answer that we have. And so that was really, that was my heart while I was there was just to pour out the things that he had poured into me. One of the keys of the week was what Marlon said earlier in Mark chapter 13. When you go, you might not know what you're gonna say, but the Holy Spirit will say it. And if there's if there's one word that I would put over that trip, it was the Holy Spirit said it. And when the Holy Spirit says something, he works in people's hearts and brings them to draws them to the king. It was a powerful time to see many come to Jesus. Many healed, transformed. That little gal you saw there with her baby was totally a mess a couple days before she had that baby. The abuse story would make the hair in the back of your head stand up, what she had to go through as a little child all the way up through her life to the point where she could not trust any man. And now she's married and and she doesn't trust her husband and doesn't trust anyone, doesn't trust God, doesn't trust anything. The Holy Spirit came, healed her broken heart, healed those areas of pain that caused her to distrust. And then the power of God came upon her in a powerful way, and you saw the smile, not just the smile of a new mother, but a smile of a free person. And that comes from the heart. So throughout that whole period, it was what the Holy Spirit was doing. That's what the church is about. This morning as we move into communion, it's a beautiful picture of what I see in the church of China. As they gathered together, they would come in one of the time much like we do here. When you commit at 09:00, there's no one here, but at 09:10, everybody's here. Now in China, it's because, they can't get there. They have to go quietly here. It's because you're all outside talking. But but there, the they they would come in one at a time. One at a time. One at time. Because if you come in a large group, the government will shut you down. So they come in one at a time, one at a time, two at a time, three at a time. And 09:00, ones there are handful, 09:30. By a quarter of it's packed. And the worship that goes on over the next hour, an hour and a half. I I said to them last Sunday, wish that I could just pocket that and put it into a DVD and bring it and and let our church feel it and see it. But you can't do that. You you can't grab something like that and bring it. It has to come from the heart. You can't show that. You have to live it. And so as these people were worshiping, crying, and and singing praises to the Lord, it was because of what the Lord was doing in their life. And that's why those six people stood up and said, I'm we're not believers. We came. I came today because I'm searching. I don't know anything about God, but I came today. I was invited and I heard about Jesus and I want him. I want him. When you know Jesus and know about him, you want him. And so this morning as we take communion, let's be reminded of the one who we're taking communion about. What it means to us together. So I'll ask the elders to come, as we move into communion this morning. And if you know Christ's personal savior, you are invited to take communion with us. It's not about being a member of First Baptist Church, it's about being a member of the family of God. If you know Christ as savior, we welcome you this morning to be able to take that with us and, hold the elements until all have been served, We'll and take them together. And let's this morning remember what Jesus has done for us. Remember that. And the impact it is on your own personal life, as we take these elements. The the bread that represents the broken body of Jesus and and the cup represents the blood that was shed to forgive us our sins, to to take care of those sins, wipe it away, cleans us. Let's remember that this morning as we take communion together. Jesus, the night he was betrayed, took the bread and broke it, and he said, this is my body broken for you. And so this morning as we take this communion together, let's remember the broken body. Broken for you. That's very personal. Broken for me. Broken for us, but broken for me. As you take it this morning, remember it was broken for you. Let's do that. Jesus, thank you. Thank you that you loved us so much that you gave your body to go through such pain that we could not even imagine. We cry when we stub our toe, when we prick our finger, when we hit our head on something. Lord Jesus, you were beaten to the point of hardly being recognized. It's impossible for us to be a fathom what you went through. Your body was broken for us, every bone, every tissue ripped apart because you loved us. Lord Lord, we don't understand that really. We desperately need to understand it because it would change how we love others. But we ask you this morning as we remember what you did for us that we receive that in a powerful way in our life this morning. That as we seek communion change so many people's lives around the world, may it do the same to us here in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. And we thank you for your love in Jesus' name. Amen. IT took the cup and he said this is a new beginning. That that really ought to put a smile on our face. You know, sometimes we we go through communion and it and it it's sad, and it is because we realize what Jesus did for us. And the broken body and the pain is beyond our conception. But to know that we get a second chance, to know that he did it because he loved you and I so much ought to put a smile on our face. That's why we celebrate communion. We don't mourn communion. We we celebrate it. We celebrate it because of the change it makes in our life when we understand what Jesus did for us. That's celebration. The picture see the picture again of that dear lady holding her baby and seeing the smile on her face. That's celebration. That's victory. That's cleansing. That's getting rid of the junk. That's a new life. It's not the same as it was before. That that's celebration. See, we're we're way down. We're we're feeling kinda bummed when we stay in the same pit that we've always been in. But there's victory and celebration when we're out of that. When our life is different, when the things that we say and do and where we go and how we act are totally different because of who's inside of us. That that's to celebrate. That's not to mourn. So let's celebrate this morning as we take this cup realizing that it's because he gave us a second chance that we can celebrate. That he gave us an opportunity to receive forgiveness that we can celebrate. That he gave us an opportunity to to receive new life, we can celebrate. That he gave us an opportunity to get out of the pit in the mess, we can celebrate. Let's do that together as we take this cup. Lord Jesus, thank you. Our hearts are blessed this morning. As we realize how powerful you are and and how wonderful and awesome you are and how loving and caring you are and what this celebration means to all of us. We celebrate your love for us today and we recommit our love for you and we ask Lord Jesus that as we remember this morning, as we see what you're doing around the world, we see what you're doing at church in China. And Lord, as we are here now this morning already, it's Sunday evening there in in China. And they've already had their service. They've already had the joy today of seeing people come to you today. Oh, God, we thank you. Today, may you give us the joy of seeing people come to you. May you give us a joy of seeing people be reunited and renewed in their faith and trusting you and being able to love on them. And we thank you for that in Jesus' holy name. Amen. And all God's people said, Amen. I said all God's people said? Amen. Alright. Alright. Be happy today, will you? Celebrate today on what goodness of God is doing for you. Let's stand together. Christ is risen from the dead, trampling over death by death. Come awake, come awake, come and rise up from the grave. Christ is risen from the dead, we are one with the dead. We are one with him again. Come awake. Come awake. Come and rise up from the grave Amen. Amen. What a joy to worship together. I want you to know that, the kids are gonna come in in a few minutes and and practice here. We have the fellowship hall that's got, donuts and coffee. Please continue to celebrate, over in fellowship down there. If you celebrate in fellowship here, can get run over by a bunch of kids. One last thing, there's we're doing church directory. It's probably been going around here. Make sure that your name and address and all your kids and everything are updated in there and that they have the correct information. Keep an eye out for that. And finally, our brothers and sisters in Christ in China, in South Africa, in Kenya, all over the world celebrate Christmas not because they have a long cultural tradition of Christmas trees and putting lights on their house and giving presents to each other. They celebrate because Christ has come to the world because we need a savior. We can all celebrate that. Let me pray. Father God, thank you that you sent your son because we need a savior. Thank you that thank you that you didn't stay a little baby but he grew to be a man. That he died on the cross and that he rose again. And Lord for that we say thank you. And we just we praise you from the bottom of our hearts. We pray that would be first and foremost in our mind throughout Christmas season. Amen.