Goodwill Toward Men

December 22, 2024 · Advent

Series · Advent · Week 4 of 4

Scripture referenced 14 passages

The passage this message was preached from, in full, with every other passage it reached for.

Matthew 2 opening reading about the wise men coming to the house and bowing to worship Jesus

1 Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of King Herod, behold, wise men from the east came to Jerusalem, saying,
2 “Where is he who is born King of the Jews? For we saw his star in the east, and have come to worship him.”
3 When King Herod heard it, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him.
4 Gathering together all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he asked them where the Christ would be born.
5 They said to him, “In Bethlehem of Judea, for this is written through the prophet,
6 ‘You Bethlehem, land of Judah, are in no way least among the princes of Judah: for out of you shall come a governor, who shall shepherd my people, Israel.’”
7 Then Herod secretly called the wise men, and learned from them exactly what time the star appeared.
8 He sent them to Bethlehem, and said, “Go and search diligently for the young child. When you have found him, bring me word, so that I also may come and worship him.”
9 They, having heard the king, went their way; and behold, the star, which they saw in the east, went before them, until it came and stood over where the young child was.
10 When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy.
11 They came into the house and saw the young child with Mary, his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Opening their treasures, they offered to him gifts: gold, frankincense, and myrrh.
12 Being warned in a dream that they shouldn’t return to Herod, they went back to their own country another way.
13 Now when they had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream, saying, “Arise and take the young child and his mother, and flee into Egypt, and stay there until I tell you, for Herod will seek the young child to destroy him.”
14 He arose and took the young child and his mother by night, and departed into Egypt,
15 and was there until the death of Herod; that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying, “Out of Egypt I called my son.”
16 Then Herod, when he saw that he was mocked by the wise men, was exceedingly angry, and sent out, and killed all the male children who were in Bethlehem and in all the surrounding countryside, from two years old and under, according to the exact time which he had learned from the wise men.
17 Then that which was spoken by Jeremiah the prophet was fulfilled, saying,
18 “A voice was heard in Ramah, lamentation, weeping and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children; she wouldn’t be comforted, because they are no more.”
19 But when Herod was dead, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, saying,
20 “Arise and take the young child and his mother, and go into the land of Israel, for those who sought the young child’s life are dead.”
21 He arose and took the young child and his mother, and came into the land of Israel.
22 But when he heard that Archelaus was reigning over Judea in the place of his father, Herod, he was afraid to go there. Being warned in a dream, he withdrew into the region of Galilee,
23 and came and lived in a city called Nazareth; that it might be fulfilled which was spoken through the prophets: “He will be called a Nazarene.”

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Psalm 29

quoted before the offering: 'ascribe to the Lord the glory due his name, and worship the Lord in the splendor of his holiness'

1 Ascribe to Yahweh, you sons of the mighty, ascribe to Yahweh glory and strength.

2 Ascribe to Yahweh the glory due to his name. Worship Yahweh in holy array.

3 Yahweh’s voice is on the waters. The God of glory thunders, even Yahweh on many waters.

4 Yahweh’s voice is powerful. Yahweh’s voice is full of majesty.

5 Yahweh’s voice breaks the cedars. Yes, Yahweh breaks in pieces the cedars of Lebanon.

6 He makes them also to skip like a calf; Lebanon and Sirion like a young, wild ox.

7 Yahweh’s voice strikes with flashes of lightning.

8 Yahweh’s voice shakes the wilderness. Yahweh shakes the wilderness of Kadesh.

9 Yahweh’s voice makes the deer calve, and strips the forests bare. In his temple everything says, “Glory!”

10 Yahweh sat enthroned at the Flood. Yes, Yahweh sits as King forever.

11 Yahweh will give strength to his people. Yahweh will bless his people with peace.

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Luke 2:14

the angels' song, glory to God in the highest and on earth peace, goodwill toward men, central text of the sermon

14 “Glory to God in the highest, on earth peace, good will toward men.”

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Matthew 11

one of nine New Testament uses of eudokia, 'this was well pleasing in the sight of God'

1 When Jesus had finished directing his twelve disciples, he departed from there to teach and preach in their cities.

2 Now when John heard in the prison the works of Christ, he sent two of his disciples

3 and said to him, “Are you he who comes, or should we look for another?”

4 Jesus answered them, “Go and tell John the things which you hear and see:

5 the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, and the poor have good news preached to them.

6 Blessed is he who finds no occasion for stumbling in me.”

7 As these went their way, Jesus began to say to the multitudes concerning John, “What did you go out into the wilderness to see? A reed shaken by the wind?

8 But what did you go out to see? A man in soft clothing? Behold, those who wear soft clothing are in kings’ houses.

9 But why did you go out? To see a prophet? Yes, I tell you, and much more than a prophet.

10 For this is he, of whom it is written, ‘Behold, I send my messenger before your face, who will prepare your way before you.’

11 Most certainly I tell you, among those who are born of women there has not arisen anyone greater than John the Baptizer; yet he who is least in the Kingdom of Heaven is greater than he.

12 From the days of John the Baptizer until now, the Kingdom of Heaven suffers violence, and the violent take it by force.

13 For all the prophets and the law prophesied until John.

14 If you are willing to receive it, this is Elijah, who is to come.

15 He who has ears to hear, let him hear.

16 “But to what shall I compare this generation? It is like children sitting in the marketplaces, who call to their companions

17 and say, ‘We played the flute for you, and you didn’t dance. We mourned for you, and you didn’t lament.’

18 For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, ‘He has a demon.’

19 The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Behold, a gluttonous man and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’ But wisdom is justified by her children.”

20 Then he began to denounce the cities in which most of his mighty works had been done, because they didn’t repent.

21 “Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the mighty works had been done in Tyre and Sidon which were done in you, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes.

22 But I tell you, it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon on the day of judgment than for you.

23 You, Capernaum, who are exalted to heaven, you will go down to Hades. For if the mighty works had been done in Sodom which were done in you, it would have remained until today.

24 But I tell you that it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom, on the day of judgment, than for you.”

25 At that time, Jesus answered, “I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you hid these things from the wise and understanding, and revealed them to infants.

26 Yes, Father, for so it was well-pleasing in your sight.

27 All things have been delivered to me by my Father. No one knows the Son, except the Father; neither does anyone know the Father, except the Son, and he to whom the Son desires to reveal him.

28 “Come to me, all you who labor and are heavily burdened, and I will give you rest.

29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart; and you will find rest for your souls.

30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”

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Romans 10

Paul's heart's desire and prayer for his own people to be saved

1 Brothers, my heart’s desire and my prayer to God is for Israel, that they may be saved.

2 For I testify about them that they have a zeal for God, but not according to knowledge.

3 For being ignorant of God’s righteousness, and seeking to establish their own righteousness, they didn’t subject themselves to the righteousness of God.

4 For Christ is the fulfillment of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes.

5 For Moses writes about the righteousness of the law, “The one who does them will live by them.”

6 But the righteousness which is of faith says this, “Don’t say in your heart, ‘Who will ascend into heaven?’ (that is, to bring Christ down);

7 or, ‘Who will descend into the abyss?’ (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead.)”

8 But what does it say? “The word is near you, in your mouth, and in your heart”; that is, the word of faith, which we preach:

9 that if you will confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.

10 For with the heart, one believes unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.

11 For the Scripture says, “Whoever believes in him will not be disappointed.”

12 For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, and is rich to all who call on him.

13 For, “Whoever will call on the name of the Lord will be saved.”

14 How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? How will they believe in him whom they have not heard? How will they hear without a preacher?

15 And how will they preach unless they are sent? As it is written: “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the Good News of peace, who bring glad tidings of good things!”

16 But they didn’t all listen to the glad news. For Isaiah says, “Lord, who has believed our report?”

17 So faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.

18 But I say, didn’t they hear? Yes, most certainly, “Their sound went out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world.”

19 But I ask, didn’t Israel know? First Moses says, “I will provoke you to jealousy with that which is no nation, with a nation void of understanding I will make you angry.”

20 Isaiah is very bold, and says, “I was found by those who didn’t seek me. I was revealed to those who didn’t ask for me.”

21 But as to Israel he says, “All day long I stretched out my hands to a disobedient and contrary people.”

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Philippians 1

some preach Christ out of envy and strife, others by goodwill and love

1 Paul and Timothy, servants of Jesus Christ; To all the saints in Christ Jesus who are at Philippi, with the overseers and servants:

2 Grace to you, and peace from God, our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ.

3 I thank my God whenever I remember you,

4 always in every request of mine on behalf of you all, making my requests with joy,

5 for your partnership in furtherance of the Good News from the first day until now;

6 being confident of this very thing, that he who began a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ.

7 It is even right for me to think this way on behalf of all of you, because I have you in my heart, because, both in my bonds and in the defense and confirmation of the Good News, you all are partakers with me of grace.

8 For God is my witness, how I long after all of you in the tender mercies of Christ Jesus.

9 This I pray, that your love may abound yet more and more in knowledge and all discernment;

10 so that you may approve the things that are excellent; that you may be sincere and without offense to the day of Christ;

11 being filled with the fruits of righteousness, which are through Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.

12 Now I desire to have you know, brothers, that the things which happened to me have turned out rather to the progress of the Good News;

13 so that it became evident to the whole palace guard, and to all the rest, that my bonds are in Christ;

14 and that most of the brothers in the Lord, being confident through my bonds, are more abundantly bold to speak the word of God without fear.

15 Some indeed preach Christ even out of envy and strife, and some also out of good will.

16 The former insincerely preach Christ from selfish ambition, thinking that they add affliction to my chains;

17 but the latter out of love, knowing that I am appointed for the defense of the Good News.

18 What does it matter? Only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is proclaimed. I rejoice in this, yes, and will rejoice.

19 For I know that this will turn out to my salvation, through your prayers and the supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ,

20 according to my earnest expectation and hope, that I will in no way be disappointed, but with all boldness, as always, now also Christ will be magnified in my body, whether by life, or by death.

21 For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.

22 But if I live on in the flesh, this will bring fruit from my work; yet I don’t know what I will choose.

23 But I am in a dilemma between the two, having the desire to depart and be with Christ, which is far better.

24 Yet, to remain in the flesh is more needful for your sake.

25 Having this confidence, I know that I will remain, yes, and remain with you all, for your progress and joy in the faith,

26 that your rejoicing may abound in Christ Jesus in me through my presence with you again.

27 Only let your way of life be worthy of the Good News of Christ, that, whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of your state, that you stand firm in one spirit, with one soul striving for the faith of the Good News;

28 and in nothing frightened by the adversaries, which is for them a proof of destruction, but to you of salvation, and that from God.

29 Because it has been granted to you on behalf of Christ, not only to believe in him, but also to suffer on his behalf,

30 having the same conflict which you saw in me, and now hear is in me.

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Philippians 2:13

it is God who works in you both to desire and to work for his own good pleasure

13 For it is God who works in you both to will and to work, for his good pleasure.

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1 Thessalonians

prayer that God would count them worthy of their calling and fulfill every desire for goodness and work of faith with power

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Galatians 4:4-5

when the fullness of time had come God sent his son so that we might receive adoption as sons

4 But when the fullness of the time came, God sent out his Son, born to a woman, born under the law,

5 that he might redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of children.

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2 Corinthians 8:9

though Christ was rich he became poor so that through his poverty we might become rich

9 For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, that you through his poverty might become rich.

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John 1

to those who believed he gave them the right to be called children of God

1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

2 The same was in the beginning with God.

3 All things were made through him. Without him was not anything made that has been made.

4 In him was life, and the life was the light of men.

5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness hasn’t overcome it.

6 There came a man, sent from God, whose name was John.

7 The same came as a witness, that he might testify about the light, that all might believe through him.

8 He was not the light, but was sent that he might testify about the light.

9 The true light that enlightens everyone was coming into the world.

10 He was in the world, and the world was made through him, and the world didn’t recognize him.

11 He came to his own, and those who were his own didn’t receive him.

12 But as many as received him, to them he gave the right to become God’s children, to those who believe in his name:

13 who were born not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.

14 The Word became flesh, and lived among us. We saw his glory, such glory as of the one and only Son of the Father, full of grace and truth.

15 John testified about him. He cried out, saying, “This was he of whom I said, ‘He who comes after me has surpassed me, for he was before me.’”

16 From his fullness we all received grace upon grace.

17 For the law was given through Moses. Grace and truth were realized through Jesus Christ.

18 No one has seen God at any time. The one and only Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, he has declared him.

19 This is John’s testimony, when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, “Who are you?”

20 He declared, and didn’t deny, but he declared, “I am not the Christ.”

21 They asked him, “What then? Are you Elijah?” He said, “I am not.” “Are you the prophet?” He answered, “No.”

22 They said therefore to him, “Who are you? Give us an answer to take back to those who sent us. What do you say about yourself?”

23 He said, “I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, ‘Make straight the way of the Lord,’ as Isaiah the prophet said.”

24 The ones who had been sent were from the Pharisees.

25 They asked him, “Why then do you baptize, if you are not the Christ, nor Elijah, nor the prophet?”

26 John answered them, “I baptize in water, but among you stands one whom you don’t know.

27 He is the one who comes after me, who is preferred before me, whose sandal strap I’m not worthy to loosen.”

28 These things were done in Bethany beyond the Jordan, where John was baptizing.

29 The next day, he saw Jesus coming to him, and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!

30 This is he of whom I said, ‘After me comes a man who is preferred before me, for he was before me.’

31 I didn’t know him, but for this reason I came baptizing in water: that he would be revealed to Israel.”

32 John testified, saying, “I have seen the Spirit descending like a dove out of heaven, and it remained on him.

33 I didn’t recognize him, but he who sent me to baptize in water, he said to me, ‘On whomever you will see the Spirit descending, and remaining on him, the same is he who baptizes in the Holy Spirit.’

34 I have seen, and have testified that this is the Son of God.”

35 Again, the next day, John was standing with two of his disciples,

36 and he looked at Jesus as he walked, and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God!”

37 The two disciples heard him speak, and they followed Jesus.

38 Jesus turned, and saw them following, and said to them, “What are you looking for?” They said to him, “Rabbi” (which is to say, being interpreted, Teacher), “where are you staying?”

39 He said to them, “Come, and see.” They came and saw where he was staying, and they stayed with him that day. It was about the tenth hour.

40 One of the two who heard John, and followed him, was Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother.

41 He first found his own brother, Simon, and said to him, “We have found the Messiah!” (which is, being interpreted, Christ).

42 He brought him to Jesus. Jesus looked at him, and said, “You are Simon the son of Jonah. You shall be called Cephas” (which is by interpretation, Peter).

43 On the next day, he was determined to go out into Galilee, and he found Philip. Jesus said to him, “Follow me.”

44 Now Philip was from Bethsaida, of the city of Andrew and Peter.

45 Philip found Nathanael, and said to him, “We have found him, of whom Moses in the law, and the prophets, wrote: Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.”

46 Nathanael said to him, “Can any good thing come out of Nazareth?” Philip said to him, “Come and see.”

47 Jesus saw Nathanael coming to him, and said about him, “Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom is no deceit!”

48 Nathanael said to him, “How do you know me?” Jesus answered him, “Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you.”

49 Nathanael answered him, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God! You are King of Israel!”

50 Jesus answered him, “Because I told you, ‘I saw you underneath the fig tree,’ do you believe? You will see greater things than these!”

51 He said to him, “Most certainly, I tell you all, hereafter you will see heaven opened, and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man.”

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John 3:16

God loved the world and gave his one and only son so that whoever believes in him might not perish but have eternal life

16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish, but have eternal life.

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2 Peter 3:9

the Lord is not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance

9 The Lord is not slow concerning his promise, as some count slowness; but is patient with us, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.

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1 Thessalonians 5:9-10

benediction: God has not destined us for wrath but to obtain salvation through Christ who died so that we might live fully in him

9 For God didn’t appoint us to wrath, but to the obtaining of salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ,

10 who died for us, that, whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with him.

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Recap

The message in order, in a few minutes of reading.

On the fourth Sunday of Advent, Pastor Joel walked through the Greek word eudokia, the "goodwill" the angels announced at the birth of Jesus, and asked what it actually means that God's goodwill is directed toward people. The sermon worked through a close reading of Luke 2:14 alongside several other New Testament passages to show that God's posture toward humanity is not distant or punishing, but genuinely favorable. The thread tying it together was a grammatical construction called the hina clause, which shows up all over the New Testament and tells us plainly why God did what He did.

What was said

The starting point was a piece of middle-school slang. "Sigma," the eighteenth letter of the Greek alphabet, has found its way into fifth-grade notes home to teachers. That was the door into the actual Greek word at the center of the sermon: eudokia, the word sitting at the end of the angels' announcement in Luke 2:14. The question of whether that word carries a final sigma, and what difference it makes to the grammar, has been debated across ancient manuscripts for a long time. Both readings, Pastor Joel said, are true, and he did not want to erode anyone's confidence in the Bible by making the debate seem more threatening than it is.

Eudokia itself means goodwill, kindly intent, delight, pleasure, desire. It is the word the New Testament uses to describe God's disposition toward people: He is slow to anger, rich in mercy, and favorably inclined. Pastor Joel pushed back directly against the cultural tendency to absorb a picture of God as mean or indifferent. The biblical picture, he said, is the opposite. God is genuinely pleased when people accept what He has planned for them, and there is real desire in His heart to see that happen.

The word shows up nine times in the New Testament, and Pastor Joel moved through several of them. Paul tells the Romans that his heart's desire and prayer for his own people is that they would be saved. He tells the Philippians that some preach Christ out of envy and strife, while others do it by eudokia, out of genuine goodwill motivated by love. He tells the Thessalonians that God wants not only to save people but to fulfill every good purpose through them. The word keeps pointing the same direction: God's pleasure is not just in saving, but in sending.

From there, the sermon turned to the hina clause, the Greek construction that means "so that" or "in order that." Pastor Joel described carrying a roughly thirty-foot scroll of every hina clause in the Bible into services before. The construction matters because it tells us God's stated purpose for what He did. When it is paired with a verb in the subjunctive mood, it signals that a second will is involved. God acted, definitively and in history, but whether that act is received depends on a response from the other side.

Two verses illustrated this. Galatians 4:4-5 says God sent His Son at exactly the right time, born under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons. Second Corinthians 8:9 says Christ became poor so that through His poverty we might become rich. In both cases the structure is the same: God acted in the indicative, no doubt about it, and He did so with a declared purpose expressed in the subjunctive. The subjunctive does not make the offer uncertain. It makes room for a response.

That structure then met the most familiar verse of all. Pastor Joel read his own translation of John 3:16 to make the grammar visible: God loved, He gave, those are indicative facts that happened in time and space. The hina clause follows: so that whoever is putting their trust in Him might not perish but might have eternal life. The "might" does not water down the offer. It names what God's goodwill looks like when two wills are involved. C. S. Lewis was quoted to the same effect: the Son of God became a son of man so that the sons of men might become sons of God.

The sermon closed by holding two things in tension without collapsing either one. God is absolutely sovereign. The person who finds that hard to square with human responsibility is in good company, and Pastor Joel quoted a former seminary president: it is easier to go to a consistent logical extreme than to remain in the center of biblical tension. But the tension is where the Bible actually lives. God is sovereign, and we are responsible for what we do with the message we have heard. Second Peter 3:9 was the last word on God's side of it: He is not willing that anyone should perish, but that all should come to repentance. He has done everything necessary. The question the sermon left on the table was what each person in the room would do with His goodwill.

Doing a Bible study?

Here is a guide we have prepared for you: the passages in order, questions for the group, and room to write.

Joel Hill described believers becoming 'carriers of peace and grace and love and mercy and forgiveness' in their own communities. Where in your everyday life do you find it hardest to actually carry those things to the people around you?
The sermon walked through many translations of Luke 2:14, ranging from 'goodwill toward men' to 'peace to those on whom his favor rests.' How does it affect the way you think about God to hear that he is described as favorably disposed toward people, taking delight and pleasure in them?

and 3 more questions in the guide

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Speaker 1That's the spirit.

Speaker 2Would you would you stand? Let's... I'd I'd love to sing together on this fourth Sunday in Advent. Can you believe it? Fourth Sunday already.

Good word from Matthew two to lead us into worship and says this about the wise men who sought Jesus that on coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother married, and they bowed down, and they they worshiped him. We say we do the same. Sing we now of Christmas.

Speaker 1Alright. Got a few announcements for you. Let's see what they are. Oh, Angel Tree. This is a thank you right here.

The Angel Tree was pretty awesome. Most of the gifts were distributed yesterday and as one of the people, Tanya and I were here to receive the folks coming in and... Yeah. It's awesome. Thank you.

Thank you. Thank you for for that. For... It's an amazing undertaking to get that to happen, and it's just... It's awesome to see it come to pass.

So anyway, that happened yesterday because of y'all. Thank you very very much for that. No Awana this week, not as... Not a not happening this week. They're out of school.

Middle school class, middle school, high school class is not meeting this morning downstairs during the service. Discovery class is happening today. Normally, it's the third Sunday of the month, but there was so much going on. It's happening today. So that's happening in my office in between...

Oh, good luck with all the Christmas that threw up in there. Yeah. I really thought about that. There will be a discovery class this morning probably in my office. That's happening.

Teton Valley. Teton Valley Fellowship, the second Friday of the month. They're gonna be starting in January. The second Friday of the month, it's gonna be a fellowship time. Emily, do you wanna say any more about that?

Or did I just say it? Valley, Idaho. Teton Valley, Idaho. Thank you very much for being specific. The the peaks, if they lean left, right?

That's the way. Okay. Teton Valley, Idaho, fellowship and starting Friday, the second Friday of the month, starting in January. If you want to, would you stand up, Emily? Just wave.

That's Emily right there. If you're from Teton Valley, Idaho or you wanna be over there on the second Friday of the month, you're welcome to join that. Connect hour today is a potluck. There should be plenty of stuff down at the end of the hall in between services today. And Christmas Eve services, 04:30 and six.

04:30 and six. Typically, usually, the 04:30 is the busier one, the one where more people show up. So if you're thinking, oh, I don't want to be there with more people, want be there with less people, then maybe you want to come to the And if you are somebody who comes all the time and you've been through this, the story's the story. You've heard the story. Right?

Okay. We're not going to change it. We're not going to add any characters. We're not changing anything up. But if you come every year and you are a part of first b and you want to make space for somebody else, during the four thirty, if you want to go down to the fellowship hall and sit in there, that would be a great time.

We're going move the furniture out of the vestibule down that direction, add chairs. There's a no delay simulcast, if you will, just right over there that'll be happening. If you want to join us at 04:30 and you're a steady steady, you might wanna go into that to make space for somebody else. Is there another one up there, Jeff? Okay.

That's all of them. Did I miss anything? Brad? No men's study this week. No men's study this week.

So that's the the men's lunch study that we don't have lunch. That's not happening this week. Okay. Alright. Thank you very much.

Well, I'm gonna invite up our Advent readers. You know who you are. Here we go. The McMullans. Yep.

Yeah. I'm gonna do that after. There you go. It's on. Yep.

Morning. Good morning. Amen. Thank you, McMullets. Now, would you stand with us?

We've got something else afterwards. So we'll just do it after afterwards. Is that fine?

Speaker 2Except the kids won't be up here.

Speaker 1Let's do that right now. Can I get the Oigs to come forward? Yeehaw. There's been a, are you gonna be here, are you not gonna be here? If you haven't heard, the Owings are moving to Laramie.

And it's a big loss for us, but it's a big gain for Laramie. And we love him dearly. Liz has served as children's director for years back, a while back before serving as a teacher out in Kelly, and Glenn has served as an elder. And the kids have served in various capacities throughout all of the years, steady as they go. Do you wanna say anything?

I'll probably cry. Yeah. I'm gonna cry when I pray for you. So as a blessing, I wanna bless them on their way out. But I wanted y'all to see them up here, and so that y'all bless them on the way out too.

Alright? Maybe at the potluck down the hall in between services. But God for Glenn and for Liz and for the kids, Lord, I pray that your blessing would accompany them, that you would... That your blessing would rest on them. In Jesus name, Lord, we pray that they'd be carriers, carriers of peace and grace and love and mercy and forgiveness and Lord that they would be serving as examples in Jesus name.

Lord, would you do your goodwill and your good work through them? Would you do all that you can do, Lord? And I just thank you for using the humility of this whole family. In Jesus name, I thank you for the movement among teenagers that's going on right now, and movement among children that has been going on for some time, and the way that you are steadily progressing. Your church advances when your good gospel advances.

Would you go with these Lord and use them in the community as you have here. In Jesus name, we're so thankful to have known him. Amen. Amen. Would you stand with us now?

We're gonna sing.

Speaker 2Can I pray? God, the the words of this song couldn't be any more true that you have opened heaven's door, and it is through belief in you. Thank you, Lord, for your first coming. We look forward to your second coming. I want thank you that when you came, you came to live, die, rise, and reign.

And, Lord, to reign in our hearts, God, would you that this holiday season that we would fix our eyes on you, the author and perfecter of our faith, Lord, and be filled with you. Thank you. Thank you for your presence with us right now. Thank you, Lord, for the gift of one another in this room, Lord. Would you give us eyes to see one another this morning as well that we could truly see one another in this room and care for one another as you have cared for us.

In Jesus' name. Amen. That is a wordy song. That's like a whole sermon in, like, two minutes, isn't it?

Speaker 1And 75 chord changes.

Speaker 3That you

Speaker 2needed. And this is what he

Speaker 3is. Let's sing.

Speaker 2He's the comforter, counselor, prince of peace, author and maker of everything, defender, deliverer, king of kings, heals, helper, and healer forevermore. Savior and shelter through every stone. My refuge, redeemer, You can have a seat here for a moment. This is the worship through giving part of the service. I'll invite our ushers to come forward from Psalm 29.

It's ascribe to the Lord, the glory be his name, and worship the Lord in the splendor of his holiness. And before we

Speaker 1sing, Ray, may I ask you to pray? Sure. God, thank you for for this season to remind us of Emmanuel, God with us, that the word was made flesh and dwelt among us. Lord, you had that perfect life lived in submission to the spirit by the will of the father. And it's amazing Lord when we contemplate it that you carried yourself in the power of the spirit throughout life.

Lord, we we we really really struggle with that. We can't do it without you. And so Lord, I'm just thankful that you are still in the business of saving. You're still in the business of sanctifying. You're still in the business of of reaching out into the darkness.

So Lord, may we be a part of it as your church. May we be a part of the advance of your good gospel. Would you go forward here today in this room and Lord from here to the very uttermost parts. We pray that this offering would be multiplied to do your will Lord and your way in Jesus name. Amen.

Amen. Alright. It is time for Children's Church downstairs. There they go. It's a foot race.

I'm gonna invite somebody up. I have not locked eyes with him yet. I hope he's here. There he is. Come on forward, Joel, And I'll let you introduce yourself and your and your family as you see fit.

These folks are serving the Lord on the other side of the planet. And I have been hearing about them from his mama for a long time. And I've been reading newsletters for some time. But there's nothing like sitting down over a meal with somebody and getting to know him a little better. So brother, here is this.

Tell us who you are and what you do.

Speaker 3Yeah. Thank you so much. Is this on?

Speaker 1Catch up on, please.

Speaker 3Alright. Hey, everybody. Good morning. My name is Joel Hill and I'm Den Hill's son for those of you who know me. I was actually born here, but now I live in Thailand.

And my family and I, which my wife... Oh, there she is. Lacey, can you wave? There's my wife. We got three little boys.

They're all born in Thailand. And we founded a ministry eleven years ago called Glad World. And what we're doing is we are equipping indigenous missionaries among unreached people groups. So our heart is to lift up the native believers. Believers from those places, from those nations, from those people groups, and empower them to be effective and fruitful and joyful representatives of Jesus in their own communities.

So, you know, I believe... I wanna see the life of Jesus, the life of Jesus multiplied and manifested over and over and over throughout the world. Through the Holy Spirit, through the gospel, God is doing that. And so it's our great joy to be a part of that, one little part of that. But we're working exclusively in unreached people groups.

So these are people groups that are less than 2% Christian. So where we live is is under 1%. We're based in Thailand, but we're working all over Asia. And just some testimonies of of some of the things that God's doing. You know, we're out there on the the cutting edge of the kingdom advancement in these places.

So earlier this year, there was we're we're working in a a community of slaves in Pakistan, modern day slaves. And, we were with them and and there was a man there who was paralyzed from a stroke and he was mute. So some of the team prayed for him. Again, local people prayed for him and he was able to speak again immediately by the power of the Holy Spirit. That same day, back in Thailand, some of the local Thais that we've been mentoring over the last several years were out for a walk in the park, and they came across a woman who was crippled and unable to walk.

And they just prayed for her in the name of Jesus. She was able to walk again and started dancing right there in the park and was born again and put her faith in Jesus right there on the spot. So same day, two different countries. This is a little glimpse of how the Lord is moving in those places, and it makes me so excited to see it happening through the local people. You know, this is absolutely what what we're giving our lives for, you know.

And we've been we've been given access to the local prison this year and a lot of the inmates have been coming to Jesus. The inmates actually all on their own started a church right there inside the prison. We weren't... We didn't have that goal but they just did it after they came to the Lord. And they've been studying the word, worshiping together, praying for one another, sharing the gospel within the prison.

One of the inmates actually led her family to the Lord who's not in prison while she's in prison. So her whole family came to Jesus through her while she's in prison. Isn't that amazing? So we're we're also engaged as a part of this this thing. We want to empower the local church.

Right? Among the unreached. So as a part of this, there's humanitarian relief as well. We're engaged in Myanmar, where there's been civil war since 2021, the most recent wave of civil war there. Currently, there's over 18,000,000 people in need of humanitarian assistance.

Over 3,000,000 displaced by the armed conflict. And through the local church, we have direct access to the people who are in the war zone. Like, through the local church inside the war zone. These are not refugee camps somewhere else. This is where the bombs are falling.

And we've been able to equip and resource the local church to show up in the time of crisis. So we're feeding 1,500 to 2,000 people each month inside the war zone through the local church. And in this period of crisis, the local church has actually been growing even as they're, you know, having to flee to the jungles and caves. And so this is, you know, this is a bit of our heart. This is a bit of of what we're doing and how God's moving.

And yeah. Thank you so much for letting us share. Yeah.

Speaker 1God, for Joel and for Lacey, for the kids, Lord, and for all of the people that are equipping and encouraging to be on mission every day. In Jesus name, the gospel advances. Lord, would you build your church in Jesus name. Amen. Amen.

Thank you, buddy. Thank you so much. Appreciate it. And so, you can just leave that right there. Perfect.

Somebody's gonna need it in a little while. Where are we? To sigma or not to sigma? Do you all know what this means? Sigma, do you know what it means?

Middle school slang, nobody's up on it. Okay. Sigma, it's the eighteenth letter of the Greek alphabet. Yes. That is the truth.

I heard of somebody that got a note from a kid this week, that at the end of the note, signed off fifth grader said to the teacher, you're so sigma. That's a good thing. Okay? It's a good thing, but it's in Greek, it's the eighteenth letter of the Greek alphabet. It has two forms in lowercase.

One looks like this, one looks like this, and it has one in uppercase. You probably see that on fraternity houses or sorority houses, and that's the only place you ever see it. Unless you're an accountant where it means to sum up. Right? There are lots of meanings with sigma.

In middle school slang though, this is it. It refers to a person who is independent, self reliant, and prefers to operate outside of traditional social hierarchies. They're not terribly concerned with peer pressure. It doesn't seem to get after them or bother them, but they make bold moves and oftentimes, they're leaders that think outside of the box. And it's cool and they inspire other people to be able to do the same thing.

It is definitely a good thing if you hear it. It's definitely a good thing. Can I get an amen from a schooler? So I hate to break the code for you. I thought about doing the whole sermon in middle school slang.

I am not that choogy. I just can't do that. So this is Greek. This is Greek to me. This is Greek to y'all.

These are the sigmas in this sentence, right, they're highlighted, and it's an interesting one. I mentioned it last week because we talked about the message that the angels brought. The message that the angels were bringing, glory to God in the highest. This literally says, glory in the highest to God, and upon the earth, peace in anthropois. Two men are towards people, peace, and then, Eudochaea.

Or is it Eudochaeus? And this is something that has been an ongoing debate for a long, long time. There are ancient manuscripts where the stigma was erased. There are others where it never appeared in the first place. Anyway, I don't want to erode your confidence in the Bible.

I think both of them are great and both of them are true and I don't want to erode anybody's faith. The Texas Receptus, King James, New King James, that variety tends to have one, and the newer traditions tend to have the other. Both of them are true. I don't want to erode anything for you, but this is an interesting point. Okay?

So Utokia, this is all capital letters by the way, And there's another little sigma that's called a lunar sigma, where this is normally the form that'd be in the middle of the word, but it's at the end of the word, but it's just little bitty and up high. Utopias. Which one is it? To sigma or not to sigma, that is the question. What does eutochia mean?

And if it has an s on it, or doesn't have an s on it, a sigma on it, or doesn't have a sigma on it, it doesn't change the overall meaning of the word. It just... I'll show you in a minute. It changes just the grammatical form and kind of what the sentence means. So Utopia means will, goodwill, right?

That's the goodwill. Will or choice, in particular goodwill, kindly intent, benevolence, it's prompted by goodwill, it's out of a full heart. If you hear the way that God described himself in the Old Testament, he says that he's slow to anger, and he's rich in mercy, and he is favorably disposed toward people. Okay? So that...

God is there. Delight or pleasure or satisfaction with the genitive blah blah blah grammar stuff of the thing that pleases. God's good pleasure comes up a lot. In certain circles, it comes up more. But his delight in people, his pleasure or his satisfaction with people.

Desire. For if something, it's delight in any absent thing easily begets a longing for it. That's a weird sentence. But if you would delight in something that just is not here, there's a desire to see that happen. And so, Udokia, God has goodwill for people.

He takes delight and pleasure when people accept the plan that he has for them, the goodwill, the good plan he has for them. And there is a desire in God's heart and in the hearts of his people to see others come to know him. Does that make sense? Could you hear desire in Joel's heart that the whole of the Western... Eastern world would come to know Jesus?

Yeah. There's desire primarily. It conveys a sense of goodwill or favorite pleasure. It's often used to describe God's benevolent intention, his delight towards humanity. And I think, if we listen to the world and we listen to him rail about the problem of evil and lots of other stuff, we start to pick up from our surroundings that God must be mean or God must be either not all powerful or not all good, but that's not true.

That's not the biblical picture of God at all. Okay? He is favorably disposed towards us. His intention and his delight towards humanity. In the New Testament, it reflects the divine favor and the gracious will of God.

Grace is unmerited favor and God is full of grace, as well as the pleasure or desire of individuals in alignment with God's purposes. When you come to know him, you want for other people to know him. It is all consuming. Okay. So there you go.

It's used nine times in the New Testament. If you want to know where they are, Matthew 11. This way was well pleasing in the sight of God. It's God's plan. It was well pleasing.

Luke parallel passage. Yes, father, for doing so, revealing things to the simple and not to the learned was well pleasing in your sight. You didn't want to make it so hard. You just wanted to be taken by faith like a child, that's God's plan. Brothers and sisters, Paul says to the Romans, had never met.

My heart's desire, my good pleasure is and my prayer is for God, for my own people to be saved. That's what he's saying. Good pleasure in Romans one here twice. Philippians. Oh, I love this passage.

So this is great for when you just get aggravated with other churches. Okay? When you get aggravated with other people and you see this, Paul in Philippians one is so positive and so great. He says, some you ought to be sure they're preaching Christ out of envy and strife and they're aggravating to deal with and they're doing it for the wrong reasons, but there are some who do it by eudokia, goodwill. Good goodwill, an earnest desire to have people come to know God.

The latter do it out of love, that's great. Good will is motivated by love. Yes, God is love, that's wonderful. Utopia. Knowing that, I'm appointed for the defense of the gospel.

He goes on to say, either way the gospel is being preached. Right? If the content is there, God can use it. Here we go. It's again in Philippians, it is God who works in you both to desire and to work for his own good pleasure.

He knows what he's doing. Thessalonians. To this end also, Paul says, we're praying for you that our God will call you worthy of your calling and fulfill every one of his good pleasures, his desire for goodness and for the work of faith with power. God wants to not just save you, but he wants to use you to save others. Okay.

So here it is. Back to the back to the Eudokia at the end of this sentence. Eudokia right there is nominative right here. It's genitive for you to grammar nerd, you're like, yes, finally. For everybody else, who cares?

Nominative, genitive. These are the translations. So I like the King James translation on this verse a lot because I love the Christmas songs that sing this translation. Right? Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace, goodwill towards directional.

It is saying God has goodwill and he's pushing it towards mankind. New King James, exactly the same verse. Oh, the King James purple edition, where the names of God are in purple. Why? I don't know, but that's it.

Goodwill toward men. Here's one, the Young's Living translation. If you ever get confused, you say, I don't know what that literally means. Young's Living is an old old translation, but it is literal. If you want to know, you know, where it says heart and it really says gut, you know, use Young Living.

Young's Living translation. Glory in the highest to God and upon earth peace. Among men, and he chooses not to enter into the debate really, goodwill. Okay. Goodwill towards men.

Among men, there's goodwill from God. Okay. Goodwill among men, New Testament of our Lord Jesus, savior, Jesus Christ by the American Bible Union 1865. Weird translation. But the parallelism here is that glory to God in heaven and on earth towards people, peace.

It's transmitted. God has the peace that passes understanding and he can share it, and that's what he's trying to do. The genitive, and we sing a song in this service a lot. We sung it a couple of times recently, and it's hard to get all the words in there because it's longer. This translation, glory to God in the highest in heaven and on earth, peace to those on whom his favor rests.

Okay. That feels like it's not nearly as universal a thing. Right? It's not as spread out as towards all men. It is peace belongs to those on whom God's favor rests and that's true.

That is true and it's good. Let's keep going. New Living translation. Glory to God in the highest heaven, peace on earth to those with whom God is pleased. Did you hear the Udokia in there?

Pleasure, goodwill, favor. Glory to God in the highest among those with whom he is pleased. Glory to God in the highest on earth, peace among men upon whom his favor, on whom his favor rests. Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace among men with whom he is pleased. Glory to God in the highest heaven and peace on earth to people he favors.

Now, that one bothers people. It feels like there are no favorites with God. James tells us that that's true. There shouldn't be any favoritism with us. Right?

But does the favor of God rest on a people? Yes. The ones who have received him, his favor resides with them. Now, does that mean it's gonna be happy happy happy joy joy prosperity till you die? No.

But you can be a martyr that's experiencing the favor of God because you believe him. Glory to God in the highest heaven, peace on earth to those he favors. Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace among men with whom he is well pleased. Wow. He is well pleased with people.

He is well pleased with people. At Jesus' baptism, yeah, makes sense that Jesus. But he is well pleased whenever anybody takes him at his word. ERV, ISR, the Institute for Scripture Research. Esteem to Elohim in the highest, and on earth peace among men with whom he is pleased.

Glory to God in the highest heaven and on earth among those whom he favors. That one catches me a little bit. It feels like it's exclusive. Well, the gospel is exclusive. It is the way.

There are some who have accepted it and do experience, and actually the last one says, glory to God in the highest and peace on earth to people who enjoy his favor. Isn't that great? That's a place of peace. When you recognize the gift of God and you accept, oh my goodness, it's Christmas. What better example is that?

There are plenty of gifts. Plenty of gifts came in for the angel tree. Plenty of gifts are coming probably in the next few days, you know. But a staff love gift. Praise God.

Amazing. Thank you. Wonderful. But if you don't receive it, this... It doesn't mean anything to you, to people who enjoy his favor.

So parallelism in this would be glory to God in the highest, and peace on earth to the ones that God's favor rests upon or the one whom God favors. So this one seems more open and more universal, and then this one seems more kind of smaller group. Right? Not all will accept him. That's the truth.

If you let your brain get locked up with, wow, it's a universal call, but not all will take him. Okay. You're going to come to this, and it always comes to this. We were part of a Bible study before we moved to the mission field, and we didn't know the terms, Calvinism and Arminianism. We didn't know all those terms, hadn't hadn't run into those, but we could.

There was one faction kinda among us. We loved each other, we kept on pulling through it, but there was one faction that talked about the plan. It's the plan. It's God's plan. It's gonna come out just like he said, the plan.

And the other one was like, no. No. God's plan is that we would receive them and we can. We really do have a choice. And so that's Calvinism in Armenia.

It's the sovereignty of God and the responsibility of man. And those things are held in the Bible in tension. They both are absolutely true. How can that be? I don't know.

It's a mind blow. It just is. This was one of the... He's one of the presidents at seminary I went to, but a good friend. He has now passed.

His name is Robertson McCookin. He said, it's easier to go to a consistent logical extreme than to remain in the center of biblical tension. Amen. Amen. And we tend to spend time.

Some of y'all, I know you're leaning towards one side and some of y'all, I know, are leaning towards the other. I say get to be friends with one another. Get to be friends with one another and serve other people. And you won't be heading outward, you'll be heading inward to the center of biblical tension. So there we are.

Now that, I open up and I'm going to hopefully illustrate some of this. I think that this helps to resolve this. It helps us to get this because if you lock it up and say, wow, if God... If the whole elect and predestination, I can't quite get it, it feels like God has made some people just to burn. That is heartbreaking, and it is really really hard to deal with.

There are some who will not accept his gift, and they will suffer for it. Galatians four four and five is a great Christmas verse. We're gonna get there in a second. Second Corinthians eight nine is also, and there's one more familiar verse. So this is something that I help...

I think helps resolve the plan versus the choice. And it's this, a henna clause. You all remember I have carried a scroll out here a couple of times. It's about 30 feet long and I just... Those are all the times in the Bible where there's a henna clause where it says, so that.

And it gives us, me as the pastor, preacher, proclaimer, it gives me the place where I can say, this is why God did it. Because he says, this is why I did it. So here it is. The henna clause plus a subjunctive mood. A lot of stuff for grammar, nerds, and middle schoolers today.

It generally shows purpose for an action or the result of an action. So so that can be the purpose intended or it can be the result. Does that make sense? If a henna clause, if I start off a clause with, oh, I did that so that you would blah blah blah. Or I did that in order that the police would not come after me.

Right? Whatever it is. I did something definite so that I have a purpose and then what comes after that? So here we go. Galatians four four and five.

One of my favorite Christmas verses is this, but when the fullness of time had come at exactly the right time, God who is outside of time introduced himself into the mix, the incarnate son of God, God with us. God sent forth his son, born of a woman, born under the law to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons. That's a great great Christmas verse. Now, the henna is right there. So that, this is telling what God's good pleasure is.

This is what telling what God's goodwill is. It's telling what God's desire is. He did this at exactly the right time so that what? We might receive adoption as son. Second person plural subjunctive.

That we might receive. He did this so that we had the opportunity to take it, to accept it, to believe it, to receive it, and to receive adoption as son. Sorry ladies, but at this time, adoption as a son was was a greater thing than being adopted as a daughter. It just was. So what this communicates to people that would have understood it, is it it offers all of the same privileges as being a child.

Or as John one would say, to those who believed he gave them the right to be called children of God. Second Corinthians, next verse. For you know the grace, the unmerited favor of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, think about this, he was in heaven. Second person of the Godhead, in heaven, he was rich. Yet, for your sake, he became poor.

If we were to go to Philippians, it says he came and he was in every way just as we are frail, human, weakened. He emptied himself of his divine rights. For your sake, he became poor so that you, through his poverty might become rich. The so that is right there, the henna clause is right there. So that through his poverty, you might become rich.

So that's second Corinthians eight nine. Now, that so that you might become rich is the henna, so that plus a subjunctive, so that you might become rich in him. So so that you might be enriched. So note the similar structure, the two verses, it has that God acted. That's an indicative mood.

It is an absolute thing that happened in time and space. God acted and he did so with a purpose. The first part is indicative. God did something so that purpose. And I have to say this, So if if...

I don't use football analogies very much, but if a coach trains and trains and trains and trains somebody so that they'll be able to kick a field goal when they need to. Right? He might not kick that field goal when he needs to, but the coach is acting so that he can. Right? He's trying to make that possible.

God acted so that what? A verb in the subjunctive mood. In the first one, God acted so that you might receive adoption adoption as sons. God acted so that you might be enriched in the second example. So that's subjunctive mood.

So here we go. So that you might receive, so that you might be enriched, so you might receive a specific gift since it's Christmas. God acted so that you would receive something. So the hentaclause tells the purpose in his act, and I've already made that abundantly clear. He wants this.

His goodwill is towards you. So Luke two fourteen is saying goodwill towards men. It's out there. Now, what are you going to do with it? That's the specific gift right there.

So does the mic bother you? I mean, we speak English, we don't speak this other stuff, and a lot of us don't use the subjunctive at all, middle schoolers. No, just kidding. We don't use it much in English anymore. It's dying.

If you're studying another language, probably the hardest thing to learn in Spanish is the subjunctive mood. So let me get into that. Quick note on the subjunctive mood. Is there an English teacher in here who would love to tell this story? No.

The subjunctive mood, in English it would be like, would that it were so. That's contrary to reality. Would that it were so that everybody who's ever been a part of this church in the time that I've been here still was here, but they move away. It's not true. It's not, but would that it were so?

I can longingly say that, but the truth of the matter is, it's contrary to reality. Now, that's one of the rules for subjunctive. They're like 30. For the purposes of this sermon, I want to talk about the main thing that the subjunctive is used for is when more than one will is involved. If you're husband and wife, you might illustrate this during the Christmas season.

One of you might think that that's enough Christmas lights. The other one might think that's not enough Christmas lights. Right? Never enough Christmas lights. The two wills involved, like, I did that so that, but that doesn't mean you're going to do like I said.

Right? If there are two wills involved, there's a sort of a contingency there that both of them have to agree in order for it to come to pass. Right? So the subjunctive mood, it would be presumptuous for me to to believe that I said it and so you do it. Right?

I mean, even as a preacher, even as a pastor, this is one of the dangers I think of preaching and pastoring is that is that God has said and I am attempting to say exactly what God has said, and then you ought to do it. But that doesn't mean you're going to do it. Right? So for me, every week, all the time, if if I'm trying to process through what I'm going to deliver to you, I have to make sure that I've received whatever it is from God's word, open my heart to confess my shortfall, frailty, and sin, and everything else, and ask God with a humble heart to show me what that means, and then let me align up with his will before I ever get up here and lay it out in your lap. Right?

That's that's what I hope to do. I hope to do. But the subjunctive mood for this sermon is basically when there are two wills involved. If you train up your kids so that they'll be able to be good people when they're adults and making their own decisions. You can do everything you can in indicative mood, absolutely, But it's up to them whether they're going to put that into effect or not.

Does that make sense? Okay. So that's the note. So this is a familiar verse. I actually translated it myself to just confuse you a little bit.

It's not exactly like you've heard it before, but indeed, indeed, God loved the world. Can I get an amen? He loved it in such a way as this, God loved, he acted in a very specific way, indicative, no doubt about it. He did this. He acted, he loved in such a way as this that he gave.

He gave his one and only son. He acted. He acted in the context that we understand in, in time and space. He was born of a woman, born at exactly the right time under the law to redeem those that were under the law. The introduction of God into our sphere just as we are.

He loved, so he gave and those are in the indicative mood. God acted and he acted for a reason, so that. It's a big deal. The henna clause tells us exactly why God did what he did. He acted so that whoever's putting their trust in him might not perish, but might have eternal life.

Now, the might still in English is a little bit, oh, I might. Oh, gracious and Jackson, really. Like, you wanna go skiing tomorrow? Oh, I might. Are you going skiing with that person tomorrow?

Probably not. But in this case, the might only introduces the possibility, so that we might. He tells what his goodwill is, He tells what his good pleasure is. He tells what his desire is. All you have to do is accept it, receive it, believe it as this verse says.

So that all who are putting their trust in him are believing in him. So c s Lewis says it this way, that the son of God, Christ Jesus, became a son of man in order that or so that the sons of men might become the sons of God. To all who have believed, he's given them the right to be called children of God. That's amazing. That is a great gift.

It's really really amazing. And since God is absolutely sovereign, you can spend all your time thinking about that, but consider that we are absolutely responsible too. And what are we responsible for? We're responsible for the message that we have heard. Now, I'm going share one verse from second Peter.

Second Peter three nine says that the Lord is not slack concerning his promise or his desire. He's not slack as some men count slackness. They look at him and say, well, God. The Lord is not slack concerning his promise as some count slackness, but he is as he described himself, long suffering towards us. He's patient towards us in the same way.

Right? That his goodwill is coming towards us and he is not willing that anyone should perish, but that all should come to repentance, and it's not on him if we don't accept it. He's done everything necessary so that we might receive it. So my job is to proclaim the message as faithfully as I can. God's sovereign goodness and grace are available in Jesus Christ to whoever will receive him.

That's as close as I can get the gospel truth. God's sovereign goodness and grace are available in Jesus Christ to whoever will believe him. The whosoever's in there, right? It's in there, and that really means it. It's a very real offer.

So I just have to ask what your response will be. God is absolutely sovereign. Yep. Don't get locked up about it, and you're absolutely responsible for what you do with this message. You're absolutely responsible for what you do with his goodwill and I can say it extends beyond salvation because his goodwill is that you would keep on carrying that message forward, that you'd keep on helping people.

So what we do with the message of peace on earth and goodwill towards us makes all of the difference. I'm just going to ask you if you will allow. Come on up, band. Come on back up. Will you allow God's favor to rest upon you?

He's doing all he can. He's doing all he can. He's done all he needed to do. Lord God Almighty, would you allow for humble hearts, for a softness of heart? Would you allow for deep deep introspection?

Would you allow us to see ourselves as we are? So that we may come into seeing us the way that you see us? Useful, helpful, light bearers, grace carriers, those who carry peace that passes understanding. In Jesus name, that's what we ask for Lord. In all of the hubbub and anxiety of the season, we pray that we come to a place of absolute peace and rest.

In Jesus name, amen. The altar is open, but the song is peppy. I'm here all week. Would you stand? We're gonna sing to go tell it on the mountain.

Amen. And one more example, the benediction slide that's coming up here is is in exactly the same format. They're all over the Bible. It's all over the Bible. God acted so that you might do something.

You would even do something. He wants you to. For God has not destined us for wrath, but he has destined us to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us, he acted. So that whether we are awake or asleep, we might live fully in him. In Jesus name, may we go forward.

If there's somebody in the building today that just today has decided, Lord, I pray that you wouldn't let them go, that you would keep on pursuing them until they just accept it, and just begin to live it out, and to see what peace is like. In Jesus name, amen. Hey everybody. The discovery class is supposed to happen in my office and there's food down the hall.

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Advent Goodwill Toward Men Peace On Earth Receiving God'S Gift Sovereignty Vs Free Will

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