“The Essentials of Christmas ~ Possessing an Honest Heart ~ The Shepherds”
Luke 2:1-20 December 18, 2022
Introduction:
James Cash Penny ~ “Six Principles for Daily Living”
1. I believe that preparation wins.
2. I believe that hard work wins.
3. I believe that honesty wins.
“Not only the kind of honesty that keeps a man’s fingers out of his neighbor’s till, but the finer honesty that will not allow a man to give less than his best, the kind of honesty that makes him count not his hours but his duties and opportunities.”
4. I believe that confidence in men wins.
5. I believe that spirit wins.
6. I believe in a practical application of the golden rule.
Background, v.1-7:
I. Be Honest With Ourselves, v.8-9a.
A. Be who we are, v.8.
B. Possess a heart that is seeking God, v.9a.
C. Application:
II. Be Prepared for God to Work in Us in New Ways, v.9b-15.
A. Be honest with ourselves: When God “interrupts” our lives, it can be frightful, v.9b.
B. Be honest with our convictions: God’s message does not change, v.10-11.
1. If we are not convinced of this, we will not impact others for Christ!
Doctrinal Statement of the Evangelical Free Church of America
The Bible
2. We believe that God has spoken in the Scriptures, both Old and New Testaments, through the words of human authors. As the verbally inspired Word of God, the Bible is without error in the original writings, the complete revelation of His will for salvation, and the ultimate authority by which every realm of human knowledge and endeavor should be judged. Therefore, it is to believed in all that it teaches, obeyed in all that it requires, and trusted in all that it promises.
2 Tim.3:16 All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness …
2. We must be convinced of the truth of God’s Word.
Gen.3:15 “And I will put enmity between you (Satan in the form of a serpent) and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.”
Gen.12:2 “I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. 3 I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.”
Jn.1:11 He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. 12 Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God —
3. We must be convinced that Jesus is the Messiah, the promised One of God.
• Savior
• Messiah
• Lord
C. Be honest with methodology: It can change, v.11-12.
D. Application:
• “Evidence That Demands a Verdict,” Josh and Sean McDowell
• “More Than a Carpenter,” Josh and Sean McDowell
• “The Case for Christ” and “The Case for Faith,” Lee Strobel
• “Mere Christianity,” C.S. Lewis
III. Be Honest With the Truth, v.15-16.
A. We must have faith, v.15.
Rm.10:9 If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved… 13 for, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” 14 How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them?
B. Intellectual assent to the truth is not genuine faith.
C. Genuine faith must be acted upon as it involves the will, v.16a.
D. We must accept the truth, v.16b.
E. Application:
Rm.10:12 For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile —the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him, 13 for, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” … 16 But not all the Israelites accepted the good news …
IV. Be Honest Reflectors of the Truth, v.17-20.
A. Go to others with the truth, v.17-20.
1. Simply tell what we have seen and heard, v.17.
2. Others will be amazed if we are honest with the gospel, v.18.
B. Go to God with praise, v.20.
C. Application:
Rm.10:14 How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? 15 And how can anyone preach unless they are sent? As it is written: “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!”
Conclusion: