For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son,... (John 3:16) Then Jesus spoke to them again, saying, “I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life.” (John 8:12) Therefore if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed. (John 8:36) ...that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. (John 3:16)
We love GOD because He first loved us. (I John 4:19) But why wasn't love enough? Why did God send His Only Begotten Son into the world, knowing that He would have to die? We just studied that God's love for us would not allow Him to let us stay in our sinful condition. The word of the Lord came..., saying,... "The soul who sins shall die." (Ezekiel 18:1, 20) For the wages of sin is death,... (Romans 3:23) The problem mankind has is that we don't realize how sinful we are.
From the time Adam and Eve believed the lies of the devil, and fell into transgression, up to the time of Noah, the Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And the Lord was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart. (Genesis 6:5-6) However, after God destroyed all life from the earth during the flood, except for Noah and his family and the animals with them on the ark, God promised, “I will never again curse the ground for man’s sake, although the imagination of man’s heart is evil from his youth; nor will I again destroy every living thing as I have done." (Genesis 8:21)
Even though God's punishment for sin is death, He desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. (I Timothy 2:4) He won't again destroy every living thing as He had done, but when the Day of the Lord finally comes, we all will give an account to Him who is ready to judge the living and the dead. (I Peter 4:5) But God is so gracious and merciful, that He wouldn't judge us without first giving us the opportunity to hear and believe the Truth, For this reason the gospel was preached also to those who are dead, that they might be judged according to men in the flesh, but live according to God in the spirit. (I Peter 4:5-6) "And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come." (Matthew 24:14) This leads us to the other reasons God sent His Only Begotten Son, His Beloved Son into the world.
LIGHT: Christ Jesus had to come so that the gospel would be preached and we could see the Truth. Then Jesus cried out and said, “He who believes in Me, believes not in Me but in Him who sent Me. And he who sees Me sees Him who sent Me. I have come as a light into the world, that whoever believes in Me should not abide in darkness. And if anyone hears My words and does not believe, I do not judge him; for I did not come to judge the world but to save the world. He who rejects Me, and does not receive My words, has that which judges him—the word that I have spoken will judge him in the last day." (John 12:44-48)
Sin keeps us in darkness, but Christ Jesus came to bring us into the light. This is the message which we have heard from Him and declare to you, that God is light and in Him is no darkness at all. If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin. If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. (I John 1:5-9)
LIBERTY: Christ Jesus had to come so that after hearing the gospel and believing in Him, we would be free from the penalty of sin. He was handed the book of the prophet Isaiah. And when He had opened the book, He found the place where it was written: “The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because He has anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed; To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord.” [Isaiah 61:1-2] Then He closed the book, and gave it back to the attendant and sat down. And the eyes of all who were in the synagogue were fixed on Him. And He began to say to them, “Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.” (Luke 4:17-21)
Sin keeps us in bondage, but Christ Jesus came to set us free from sin and the penalty of sin. There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death. For what the law could not do in that it was weak through the flesh, God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, on account of sin: He condemned sin in the flesh, that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. (Romans 8:1-4)
LIFE: Christ Jesus had to come so that we could have life, not just eternal existence apart from God, but eternal life, with Him and God forever. So, when he had gone out, Jesus said, “Now the Son of Man is glorified, and God is glorified in Him. If God is glorified in Him, God will also glorify Him in Himself, and glorify Him immediately. Little children, I shall be with you a little while longer." ... “Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. In My Father’s house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also. And where I go you know, and the way you know.” Thomas said to Him, “Lord, we do not know where You are going, and how can we know the way?” Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me." (John 13:31-33, 14:1-6)
Sin keeps us separated from God, but Christ Jesus has covered our sins, and through faith in Him as our Savior and Lord, we will have eternal life. For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection, knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin. For he who has died has been freed from sin. Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him, knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, dies no more. Death no longer has dominion over Him. For the death that He died, He died to sin once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God. Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 6:5-11)
But now having been set free from sin, and having become slaves of God, you have your fruit to holiness, and the end, everlasting life. For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 6:22-23) And if Christ is in you, the body is dead because of sin, but the Spirit is life because of righteousness. But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you. (Romans 8:10-11) Then Jesus answered and said to them,... “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who hears My word and believes in Him who sent Me has everlasting life, and shall not come into judgment, but has passed from death into life. Most assuredly, I say to you, the hour is coming, and now is, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God; and those who hear will live. For as the Father has life in Himself, so He has granted the Son to have life in Himself, (John 5:19, 24-26)
This Christmas, let us not just remember a baby named Jesus, but let us thank God for giving us love, light, liberty and life. For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given; and the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. (Isaiah 9:6) But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement for our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed. (Isaiah 53:5) AMEN!
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