Unwrapping Christmas Presents (Pagbukas sang Mga Regalo sining Paskwa) Texts: Isiah 9:6 & Luke 2: 10-12 INTRO: Short Video About Preparing for Christmas Gifts Finding the perfect gift for someone in your life takes time, energy, and creativity. It can be stressful (Share simo experience) A recent survey found that 37 percent of people say shopping for the right gift is the most stressful part of the holiday season. MOTIVATION: Share story about how disappointing your Christmas Party Experience a. School Christmas Party- iban na teacher wala mag attend b. Classroom Christmas Party- Fb post about the content of 20s na ginpanghatag HERE’S THE TRUTH: As most of us are Superficial, this isn’t just a thing young kids do. As recipients of the greatest Christmas gift of all, we often find ourselves focusing on all the flash of the packaging (SHARE PICTURE OF GIFT FILLED WITH CELEBRATION) instead of the gift within the Christmas season (REVEAL GIFT WITH JESUS IN A MANGER) (RETURN TO PICTURE ABOUT BIRTH OF JESUS PACKED IN VARIOUS CELEBRATION) The birth of Jesus gets packaged up in traditions, parties, gadgets, trimmed in lights and busyness, and gets a big bow of delicious food laid on top. There is so much going on in this season that it’s easy to miss it. And frankly, I enjoy a lot of the packaging. Christmas is one of my favorite times of the year. It’s fun and flashy, and it’s okay to enjoy it. But don’t miss the real gift in the midst of it all. Joyfully engage in all the stuff that comes along with Christmas, but let it only serve to enhance your focus on the most important gift of all. JESUS Unlike that wandering strategy of gift selection, God planned out the gift of our redemption from since the beginning of Creation. - It wasn’t a spur of the moment, last minute decision. The gift had been planned and announced throughout more than three hundred Old Testament prophecies. God lovingly prepared and willingly gave the gift of eternal life in the baby of Bethlehem, Jesus Christ. -The divine birth announcement was recorded hundreds of years prior to the birth. - For unto us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders and he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Isaiah 9:6 Four descriptive names were given to the promised One. Let’s unwrap these gifts. First Gift: WONDERFUL COUNSELOR -In opening the first of the name gifts, we receive him as Wonderful Counselor. “Wonder” translates “supernatural, something uncommon or out of the ordinary.” Jesus is wonder-full, being both God and man. He is more than ordinary, though he came as a baby. His birth leads us to wonder of His greatness and worship Him. - “Counselor” refers to a king giving counsel and direction to his people during times of trouble. Have you ever needed a counselor? Through seeking the Lord in prayer, we gain his wisdom. - If anyone lacks wisdom, let him ask God.” James 1:5 The counsel of the Lord brings joy in spite of a hostile world and peace in the midst of storms. - Second Gift: next gift of the name is Mighty God. - It is hard to comprehend how a tiny baby can be mighty. The phrase states that Jesus has divine power as a mighty warrior. When we are frightened by Satan’s tactics, we can turn to the Lord as our defender. He protects us when we come to Him. If you say, “The Lord is my refuge,” and you make the Most High your dwelling, no harm will overtake you, no disaster will come near your tent. Psalm 91:9-10 - - We can praise Him be being the Mighty God, a warrior fighting on our behalf, our champion over sin and death. - Third Gift: Unwrapping the next name, we find He is Everlasting Father. He is eternal and will always be there with the qualities of compassion, protection and provision. He is like a caring, earthly father who desires relationship with us. - As a father has compassion on his children, so the Lord has compassion on those who fear him. Psalm 103:13 Jesus stated defined his relationship to God the Father in several New Testament passages. - - “I and the Father are one.” John 10:30 “Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father.” John 14:9 We can praise him for being Everlasting Father, who will not leave. us. - Fourth Gift: As we unwrap the fourth of the gifts, we discover he is the Prince of Peace. - At his birth, the angels proclaimed peace. The word spoken by Jesus in a postresurrection appearance was peace. Because Jesus is the Prince of Peace, we are reconciled to God through his grace. Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we boast in the hope of the glory of God. Romans 5:1-2 - We can cast our cares upon him in prayer, exchanging anxiety for his peace. Last Gift: (From Luke 2:10-12) The True Joy of Christmas Story: A family during the great depression was unable to afford anything but the bare necessities. One day the news came that a circus was coming to town. Tickets cost one dollar. The little boy came running home excited and eager to get the money from his dad. The father regretfully told his boy that he could not provide him with that much money, but if he went out and worked on odd jobs, he might make enough to purchase a ticket on his own. The dad promised to match what the boy could earn. The boy worked feverishly and, just a few days before the circus came to town, he found that he had just enough, including his dad’s contribution. He took the money and ran off to town to buy his circus ticket. The day the circus came to town, he grabbed his ticket and rushed to the main street, where he stood on the curb as the circus parade went by. He was thrilled to watch the clowns, elephants, and all of the performers. A clown came dancing over to him and the boy put his ticket in the clown’s hand. He eagerly watched as the rest of the parade went by. After the parade, the boy rushed home and told his father that he had been to the circus and how much fun it was. The father, surprised that the boy was home already, asked him to describe the circus. The boy told of the parade that went down the main street and of giving his ticket to the clown. The father sadly took his son in his arms and said, “Son, you didn’t see the circus; all you saw was the parade.” That boy reminds me of many people at Christmas time. They get caught up with the carols, trees, lights, and gifts. They think that they are experiencing what Christmas is all about. But really, all they’re doing is seeing the parade and missing the main event, the true joy of Christmas. I want each of you to know the real joy of Christmas. The angel announced the source of that joy to the shepherds on that first Christmas night: “Do not be afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of a great joy which shall be for all the people; for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord” (Luke 2:10-11). The great joy of Christmas comes through receiving God’s gift of the Savior, Christ the Lord. Even if you haven’t received Christ as your Savior, you may have some good feelings at this season. It is a wonderful time of the year. It’s always good to be with family and friends, to enjoy good food, and to exchange gifts. But I’m talking about something different, something deeper. The true joy of Christmas lasts all year long. It is the abiding joy of knowing for certain that things are right between you and God. It is the contentment that comes from knowing that you have a hope that holds constant beyond the uncertainties of this life. That kind of lasting joy comes only to the one who has personally received God’s gift of the Savior. CONCLUSION - Unwrapping the gifts of the names in Isaiah 9:6 leads us to worship God for His provision and love and in Luke 2:10-12 lets you experience the truest Joy and Satisfaction. Because of the birth of Jesus, we are brought into relationship with God. There is no greater Christmas gift than Jesus – Immanuel, God with us – who put on human flesh, lived a sinless life, and died on the cross to reconcile to himself all things. Don’t miss it. This is the meaning of everything we celebrate at Christmas. All the flash and fun are meant to highlight and enhance the beauty of the real gift of Christmas—that by faith in Jesus, he has made peace by the blood of his cross. - God, the giver of this precious, perfect gift, is honored when we receive and worship Jesus at Christmas. It brings him glory when all the fun traditions, parties, gadgets, lights, busyness, and food that come with this season serve to point in celebration to him, and what truly lights up the eyes of his children is the relationship that we have with Christ Jesus our Savior. CHALLENGE: -As you unwrap gifts this Christmas, may you also unwrap the precious gift of redemption through Jesus Christ. Reflective Questions: 1. Ano ang matuod-tuod nga kahulugan sang Paskwa para sa Imo? 2. Nagakabatyag ka man bala sang kahisa, disappointment kung maka experience ikaw sang indi mayo nga selebrasyon o makabaton sang indi mayo nga regalo sa Paskwa o wala gd mabaton nga regalo? Ano ang luyag ihambal sang Ginoo sa imo sa tion nga maexperiyensya mo ang mga butang nga ini? 3. Paano mo ma selebrar ang Paskwa nga Masinadyahon apisar sang mga indi manami nga Experiyensiya? 4. Paano mo ma share ang kaluwasan, ang mensahe sang pagkatawo ni Jesus sa imo Panimalay, Kapitbahay, Kasimanwa, or Indi Kakilala?
