Good morning. Remember we ended last time with Jesus saying
that the world hated Him before it hated the disciples. Why does the world hate
us? If you were of the world, the world would love its own; but because you are
not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, because of this the world
hates you. This is talking about us too; not just the original disciples. We
are in the world, but not of the world. Remember the word that I said to you, a
slave is not greater than his master; if they persecuted Me, they will also
persecute you; if they kept My word, they will keep yours also. That makes me
feel warm and fuzzy – not. But all these things they will do to you for My
name’s sake, because they do not know the One who sent Me. If I had not come
and spoken to them, they would not have sin, but now they have no excuse for
their sin. He who hates Me hates My Father also. You cannot say that you love
God but hate Jesus. If I had not done among them the works which no one else
did, they would not have sin; but now they have both seen and hated Me and My
Father as well. But they have done this to fulfill the word that is written in
their law, they hated Me without a cause. There are many people in the world
today who hate Jesus without a cause. Sometimes His representatives – us – give
them a reason to hate Him. Father help us to be shining examples to the world
of what Christians should be. Help us to be salt to the world that they may be
thirsty for You.
Merry Christmas!
Good morning, and Merry Christmas! We are going to digress and look at the first Christmas. This was something that had been foretold centuries before; and yet people still did not understand what was going to happen. They were thinking that the Messiah was going to come as an adult and was going to re-establish the nation of Israel above all other nations. They were not expecting Him to come as a baby, supposedly born to a carpenter and placed in a manger. Many things had to happen at precisely the right time. You had to have the right person to be His mother and the right person to be His supposed father. You had to have a reason for them to be in Bethlehem on the night He was born – the census. It had to be when shepherds would be in the field near Bethlehem watching their flocks. And just at the right time – an angel of the Lord suddenly stood before the shepherds, and the glory of the Lord shone around them; and they were terribly frightened. And the angel said to them...
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