1194 - The Purpose of Jesus' Birth#
(JP Text Group - Organized by the Life of the Eagle)
Luke 2:10-12
10 The angel said to them, “Do not be afraid; I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. 11 Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. 12 This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”
Brothers and sisters, peace in the Lord! Our topic of sharing is: The Purpose of Jesus' Birth
In the original text, the meaning of the Gospel is good news. Those of us who accept Jesus today have heard the good news, the angel said to the shepherds: Do not be afraid; I bring you great news. Therefore, everyone hopes to hear great news. For a sick person, hearing about a medicine or a person who can heal them is great news because after hearing it, they know they have hope. At that time, the people of Israel were in darkness, and those in darkness were expecting the light to come; this was their great news. For a hungry person, the prospect of getting food is great news. So the angel said to these shepherds: I bring you great news that will be for all the people. This statement directly tells us that the God of Israel is not only the God of Israel; He is the God of all humanity.
Some people always say that if they were to believe in God, they would not believe in Jesus because Jesus is a foreign religion; He is the God of Israel. If they were to believe, they would believe in a local god. The Bible has clearly told us that this God is for all people; He is not only the God of Israel but also good news for anyone because today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord.
It is mentioned here that the shepherds were watching over their flocks in the fields, so there were always some who were awake. Suddenly, a great light appeared, surrounding them, and at that moment, they were afraid. In the Old Testament, no matter how hard people tried, they could not see God. Because the Bible says that God is light, and His light is brighter than the sunlight; the human eye cannot see this God. Although the people of Israel longed to see this Lord, they never did in the Old Testament.
But the good news is that after Jesus came, people could see the appearance of this Savior, which was something that many prophets had longed for, and today they finally saw it. However, you will find that when the angel brought this good news to people, their reaction was one of fear. Brothers and sisters, do you feel afraid when you come to see Jesus today? Why are you not afraid? Because He is the Savior. Well said. Because Jesus is a loving Lord, He always gives grace and truth to people and is always saving them.
The name Jesus means "Savior"; He will save His people from their sins. Amen! Thank the Lord, for such a Lord, He came in the form of a servant to serve people.
Matthew 20:27-28
Whoever wants to be first must be your servant. Just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.
You will find that in the Bible, those who sincerely seek Jesus have never been rejected by Him. No matter what their status was at the time or what problems or pressures they brought to seek Jesus, He was always willing to accept and serve people.
When Jesus was born, and the angel came to report this good news to them, the shepherds were very afraid. At that moment, the first thing God told them was do not be afraid; this is also the first thing God wants to tell us.
In today's world, there are many things that make us afraid. For example, what does a businessman fear today? After opening a store, he fears that no one will come in and that business will be poor; those at work fear being laid off, etc. Because there are many unknowns in life, but Jesus says, do not be afraid.
After Jesus died, the disciples were very afraid and hid in a room praying. Did their prayers solve their fear? No, even though they prayed, they were still afraid. At that moment, Jesus came and said: Peace! Jesus does not want them to be afraid anymore.
The Gospel is good news. If you are afraid or worried today, come before Jesus Christ. If you have any burdens, worries, or heavy matters, come before Jesus because He can solve your problems. Hallelujah! He is our Gospel; He is our good news.
No matter how the world changes, when you hear Jesus, you will always leave here with His joy. No matter what burdens you have, when you leave here, you will always leave with His rest. If you are bound by something today, you will always leave with freedom because this is our Savior; He wants to save you.
Brothers and sisters, Jesus can not only save us into the Kingdom of Heaven but also save us from death. While you live on earth, you can rely on Him in everything; He is still the Savior. He is the answer to all your problems! He is our strength and help!
The Lord's Prayer says, do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from evil. What does this mean? Because people may inadvertently encounter temptation, may become weak, or may be led by their desires; in short, people still fall into the devil's temptations. When you fall into the snare, what you need is this Savior; call on Him, and He is willing to save you!
Jesus does not just save you for a while, or only when you come to church does He save you; it is when you accept Jesus as God's child, no matter where you are, He can save you as long as you are willing to let Him save you. Amen! He was born and came into this world not to become a lawgiver, nor to condemn people; He came as a Savior, and His work is to save people.
Some may say, isn't that too general? I want to ask brothers and sisters, what is the job of a driver? To drive. What is the job of a chef? To cook. If we reverse it, do we call everyone who drives a driver? Do we call everyone who cooks a chef? But what is unique about Jesus? His name is called Savior, so what is Jesus' work? To save; His work is to save. Once you understand the meaning of Jesus, you will know that the purpose of His birth is to be a Savior; His work is to save people.
When a person who cannot swim accidentally falls into the water, they do not need a swimming manual, nor do they need someone to teach them how to swim; what do they need? Let me give you a few examples:
After I introduce this to you, I hope you can discern what kind of life you are living today or what kind of state you are in.
First, if at that moment they encounter a lawgiver, and this lawgiver stands by the river and says: I think you should confess your sins first before I can save you; otherwise, you are too filthy, and I cannot save you; confess first!
The second type of person, I throw you a swimming manual; you look at it, and then you learn to swim by yourself and come back up!
Can this person be saved? What do they need? What they need now is not a judge or a swimming manual; they need a Savior. Without asking questions, just go down and save them! And Jesus Christ is doing this kind of work.
There is not a single righteous person in the world. When some people come to church, they indeed have many thorns and many problems. We should not say, "Wow! You need to examine yourself well, and then God will save you." Such a statement is like the first person mentioned earlier.
It is precisely because we have problems that we are willing to let Jesus save us and help us. Therefore, you should have a correct understanding of Jesus; He is willing to save you, no matter where you are or for any reason. As long as you call on Him, He is willing to help you.
When Jesus was on earth, His salvation for people was always unconditional; the only condition is that you are willing to let Him save you. Previously, I have mentioned many times that if someone around you asks you to pray for them, you can pray for them, as long as they are willing. As long as a person is willing to receive this salvation, God will grant this salvation to you. God gave Jesus for all humanity; everyone is qualified to receive this salvation. Besides this, God has not set any other conditions for people; the only condition is that you are willing to be saved by Him.
Acts 4:12 Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.
You will not find another Savior in this world; the only Savior is Jesus Christ, so the purpose of His birth is to save us. Amen! But He will never force you to accept Him; but if a person is willing to seek Him, they will surely find Him.
In the Garden of Eden, after God created the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, when Eve was about to reach out to eat, did God know or not? God knew, but why did He not stop her? Because God gave people a free will to choose; people can choose to believe God's word and eat and surely die; but people can also choose not to believe God's word, just as Eve believed the devil's words and ate without necessarily dying.
Today, it is the same; when we tell others, "Come believe in Jesus; Jesus can solve all your problems in life; He can lead you into the Kingdom of Heaven." Everyone has the freedom to decide whether to believe or not.
From Genesis to Revelation, God has always allowed you to choose freely; God will never force you to accept Him. This is why, when you become a Christian, you need to pray to God every day, saying, "Lord, be with me today; give me what I need; grant me wisdom." Why do we pray like this? Actually, when you pray to God, you are acknowledging Him as your God, and He will listen to your prayers and grant you what you need.
Brothers and sisters, our God is like this. When we are willing to pray to God and be loved by Him, then God is willing to fulfill your requests. Hallelujah! Two thousand years ago, Jesus was born for us.
Luke 2:11-12
For today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger; this will be a sign to you.
Why was Jesus born in a manger? In the Gospel of Luke, it is mentioned that that year, Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world. No matter where you were, you had to return to your hometown to register (similar to today's population census). So Joseph took his wife Mary and returned to Bethlehem. As they were nearing Bethlehem, the Bible records that there was no room in the inn, and since Mary was heavy with child, they had no choice but to let her give birth in a manger. Many people today have a misunderstanding of this passage.
Many people say that Joseph was too poor and had no money to stay at an inn. When he arrived at the inn, the owner said: "Full house; look at you two poor folks; how can you afford a room? I have a stable; you two can stay there!" And many people think that the place where Jesus was born was in the inn's manger, which is actually incorrect; it was not like that at all.
In that era, a manger was very important; it was a place for supplying food, a place where livestock could eat fodder. Jesus Christ lying in a stone manger is very similar to a grave in Israel. When Jesus Christ entered this manger, or this grave, He was foreshadowing His death, and His death could bring us resurrected life. This is the first reason for Jesus Christ being born in a manger.
Moreover, this sign tells us that when the angel said to these shepherds, "You will see a baby lying in a manger; this will be a sign to you," later the shepherds found this baby. How did they find him? Think about it; at that time in Bethlehem, almost every household had a manger. With so many mangers, why could the shepherds find this child? What was the reason?
Today we will use this to share with brothers and sisters why the shepherds knew where that manger was because the Bible had already prophesied it.
Micah 5:2, But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times.
Here it mentions Bethlehem, Ephrathah. Bethlehem is a place, and Ephrathah is a suburb of Bethlehem. The place Ephrathah is mentioned in the Bible in another place as well.
In Micah 4:8, it mentions, "As for you, watchtower of the flock, stronghold of Daughter Zion, the former dominion will be restored to you; kingship will come to Daughter Jerusalem."
"Watchtower of the flock" and "Ephrathah" actually refer to one place. Brothers and sisters, what is Ephrathah? In the wilderness, there was a place called Ephrathah, which almost all shepherds knew; it was the place where lambs were born, called Ephrathah, also known as the watchtower of the flock. This means it was definitely not an ordinary manger; it was a place that could shelter from wind and rain.
Let’s talk about Joseph and Mary. When they went to the inn, it was not because they had no money; it was because when they arrived at the inn, it was already full because everyone had to return to their hometown to register, and all the inns had no vacancies. Therefore, they had no choice but to leave the inn and go to the suburb of Bethlehem, which is also called the watchtower of the flock. When they arrived at this place, Mary was about to give birth, so they had no choice but to enter this place where lambs were born, which is the watchtower of the flock. It was definitely not in the inn's manger.
So many people always say, think about it, how dirty the place where Jesus was, the inn's manger was full of animals eating.
I once heard a joke where a pastor said, "Do you know why Jesus was born in a manger?" The people below said, "I don't know." He said, "Because humanity is too evil, so when Jesus opened His eyes, He preferred to see animals first rather than humans."
Is that so, brothers and sisters? If that were the case, would Jesus have come into this world for animals? The Bible clearly states that He came into this world for our sake; how could He not want to see us? Isn't that just nonsense?
It must be according to the Bible that it was because her pregnancy was heavy, and there might have been no way to find another inn, so they had to come to Ephrathah, the watchtower of the flock, and when they entered, the child was born.
Continuing from the previous discussion, But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times.
In the past, the rabbis read this, but they did not understand what it meant. In fact, this tells us that the birth of Jesus Christ is not an ordinary baby; He Himself is God. Amen! What is the connection between the birth of this child and the manger we just talked about? Because Ephrathah, the watchtower of the flock, is a very special place; it is a place specifically for delivering qualified sacrificial animals (lambs) to Jerusalem.
In Jerusalem, there are three major worship events each year where many lambs are killed for sacrifice. Where do these lambs come from? They come from here, from Bethlehem Ephrathah. The nearby shepherds know that the lambs are about to give birth, and they can come to the watchtower of the flock, where someone is specifically there to assist in the lamb's birth. After the lamb is born, as long as it is checked to be without blemish or defect, it is wrapped in cloth and placed in the manger, and when the lamb grows to one year old, it is taken to Jerusalem to be prepared for sacrifice. Therefore, those shepherds knew this place, and they easily found this Savior. Amen!
Brothers and sisters, this is a great mystery in the Bible. In the Old Testament, to remove sin, a sin offering was used. This offering was a lamb. Let me demonstrate this for you. In the Old Testament, if a person sinned, they would lead a lamb to the priest and say, "Priest, I have sinned." At this moment, the priest does not look at the person; he looks at the lamb you brought. He must carefully check whether this lamb is without defect and without blemish. If it is a qualified lamb, this person will lay their hands on the head of the lamb and say, 'All my sins are transferred to this lamb.' This is the transfer of sin.
Then, when he lays his hands on this lamb, all his sins are transferred to this lamb, and he must kill this lamb, and the blood is collected in a basin and given to the priest. This lamb must be burned, and the blood must be presented before God, and then the priest will say, "You may go back, for your sins are forgiven."
This is what has been done in the Old Testament. Even in the temple in Jerusalem, they also did this to atone for the sins of the people. Every year, thousands of lambs were transported from Ephrathah to the altar, and the sins of the people were forgiven. Amen!
But today, what is the great news? The true Lamb has been born; God's word has been fulfilled. Originally, Jesus was born in the place where sacrificial lambs were born because there was no room in the inn.
After Mary gave birth to this child, He was also wrapped in cloth and placed in the manger, and when this child grew up, He was taken to Jerusalem to become the sacrifice for the people. Can brothers and sisters understand this? Jesus Christ is your sacrifice; His birth is just like the previous sacrificial lambs, except that Jesus is the final sacrifice, so Jesus was killed in Jerusalem. He became the sin offering for all humanity!
As long as you are willing to accept Him and believe that all your sins have been placed upon Him, then He died, and from then on, your sins are forgiven. This is the true meaning of God sending His Son to be born in a manger.
Bethlehem means "house of bread," which you can understand as a granary, and Ephrathah means "fruitful." Although He is a very small child, He is filled with God's abundant life. When this child is born, He will become the supply for all. Therefore, Jesus Christ becomes the bread of life for all of us.
When you read Hebrews 10 again, you will understand that Jesus Christ offered Himself for our sins; He became our sin offering, which perfectly fulfills this passage. Hallelujah! This is the salvation that God prepared for us long before the foundation of the world.
Micah 4:8 says, "As for you, watchtower of the flock, stronghold of Daughter Zion, the former dominion will be restored to you; kingship will come to Daughter Jerusalem."
How are we brought under the name of Jesus? It is through this offering. Although in the past, the sin offering of a lamb was for a year, Jesus Christ's sin offering for us is for eternity. Therefore, we must understand that all the shadows in the Old Testament are ultimately fulfilled in Jesus!
Today, do you know why God no longer gets angry with you? You should think about the example we just gave. When a sinner leads a lamb to the priest, the priest does not look at the person from head to toe; he looks at the lamb. As long as this lamb is qualified, this person can be forgiven because all their sins are transferred to this lamb. Now I want to ask brothers and sisters, is Jesus Christ a qualified offering in God's eyes? Is He without blemish? Is He sinless? Yes, He is also whole; He is not disabled, fulfilling the scripture that says not a bone of Him shall be broken. Even when He was on the cross, when the soldier pierced Him with a spear, he did not break His bones; He remained a perfect offering before God.
It is because of such a perfect offering that we always say that God no longer remembers your sins because you have a perfect offering before God, which is Jesus Christ. You know that in the Old Testament, when a person offered this perfect offering, they could be blessed by God; they could receive God's abundant blessings. Therefore, today you can also receive God's blessings entirely because of the perfect offering of Jesus Christ. Hallelujah! Thank the Lord! The Bible tells us that God loves the world so much that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.
This is a very important sign of God's love for us. God's love for us is definitely not just words; He has a concrete action, Amen! It is when He truly sent His Son into this world that His love was revealed to us. Now let’s think, when God sent His only beloved Son into this world, what were we doing? We were still living in sin! Yet God still poured His love upon us; this is God's love.
God gave us His only beloved Son, Jesus, and let Him be born in a manger; all of this is simply because God loves you. Therefore, every time Christmas comes, you should think about Jesus Christ. The main character of Christmas is definitely not Santa Claus; the main character of Christmas is Jesus Christ. You should know that the birth of Jesus is a heavenly sign that marks you as loved by people; this sign indicates that every feeling of yours, every pain, every disappointment, and every tear you shed is known by God, and He will solve your problems. He cares deeply about you. Amen! Brothers and sisters, do you know what the purpose of God sending His Son down was? It was because we lost the glory of God.
John 10:10 says,
The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.
The second purpose of Jesus Christ coming into the world is that He wants to give us abundant life.
He not only wants to let us enter the Kingdom of Heaven, but He also does not want us to live by ourselves on earth. God sent His Son into this world to give you His abundant life. Do you know who the "thief" refers to? The devil, so you should know that sickness, disaster, and suffering do not come from God because these things did not exist in the Garden of Eden. Amen!
There was no sickness, no death, and no suffering in the Garden of Eden; these things came after Adam and Eve sinned, and the earth was cursed because they believed the devil's words, and thorns and thistles appeared on the earth. The ruler of this world became the devil. Originally, the wind was good, but when it reaches a certain level, what happens to the city? Families are destroyed. Originally, rain is good, but when it becomes a torrential downpour, what happens to the city? Families are destroyed. Everything created in this world was perfect; God initially gave the authority to manage the world to Adam, but Adam handed this authority over to the devil. Once the devil obtained this authority, he began to create many strange things on this earth.
A person who does not accept Jesus thinks about these strange things all day long in this world. Think about it; what have people used their wisdom for? To create so many advanced weapons to kill whom? Isn't it people? Is it to kill those animals? No, people have used all their wisdom to destroy themselves, thinking they are great and wise.
Because when the devil took power, he made this world a mess, so disasters, diseases, hurricanes, and many strange problems appeared in this world. In fact, these are not sent by God! Our God is a loving God!
Deuteronomy 28 tells us that at that time, God said to the people of Israel, if you do not follow my decrees and commands, the following disasters will overtake you; this disease will pursue you until you are destroyed.
The purpose of disease is only one: to bring death. He will not bring these disasters upon you; you have already offered that perfect sacrifice before God, so God cannot punish you anymore because Jesus has died for your sins and paid the price for your sins. Hallelujah!
You need to understand that it is the devil who has stolen many things from you; he has stolen people's health, stolen good relationships, and stolen peace from people's hearts. But at this moment, relying on yourself, you cannot take these things back from the devil. God does not want people to live in sickness, to live in suffering, and to walk towards death. Therefore, He sent His Son into the world to solve these problems for people.
Jesus came to give people life and to give it more abundantly. Although today your finances may have problems, your family may have debts, and you may have illnesses in your body, you should know that Jesus Christ has come; He wants to double what you have lost and give it to you. As long as you believe that He can give it to you and look to Him, letting Him bless you, He can bless you. Thank the Lord!
The Bible says that by His stripes we are healed. Do you believe this word? If you believe this word, you should keep meditating on it, and you will receive God's healing. It is not that I serve God hard, and then God heals me; it is not that I work hard, and then God heals me; it is simply because God loves you that people receive this healing. It is not difficult at all; the difficulty lies in people not believing that God would easily give to them.
Just like some people used to say, "Do you really think entering the Kingdom of Heaven is that easy? That is a narrow door; few people know about it; that is a small path; how did you find that path? How can you be sure you will enter the Kingdom of Heaven? Look at your current behavior; with your behavior, what will the Kingdom of Heaven become? Can someone like you be worthy to enter?" Some people say, "Yes, I am still sinning today; my behavior has not changed; what others say is right; I probably cannot enter."
These are human words; what you should believe is God's word. The Bible says very clearly that 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; besides this, nothing else is added. God only wants a willing heart to believe in Him; when God gives to you, are you willing to receive it? Amen!
It's like now we are giving out calendars for free; some people have already paid for them. When we give them to people, if someone says, "I dare not take it; you must have some ulterior motive," that person walks away. Whose loss is that? It is that person's loss.
Today we might think that such a thing is simply ridiculous. But many times, we are doing such things. When God says He loves you, so He gave His only Son to you, He has already died on the cross for your sins, and all the price of sin has been paid. As long as a person believes, they can become a child of God.
Brothers and sisters, today God's word has clearly told us that the birth of Jesus Christ is to give us abundant life. Grace is unmerited, undeserved, and unearned; God freely gives it to you. You only need to do one thing: accept Him. Hallelujah! This is our God! This is how our God loves us.
Because of Adam, sin entered the world, but God loves the world. How did God solve this problem? Because God is absolutely just; He cannot treat the innocent as guilty or the guilty as innocent, so He let His Son take our place and become sin. Amen! So that you can be justified, Hallelujah! Thank the Lord! You need to know that all your sins, past, present, and future, have been placed upon Jesus Christ, so God is completely pleased with you.
Today, as earthly parents, when we have children, what do you hope for your child? First, you hope they are healthy; second, you hope they are prosperous; third, you hope they live long. No parent says, "I just hope you can live for three days." Or, "I hope you are sick after birth so that I can feel comfortable looking at you." No parent thinks like that.
But do you know? God sent His Son into this world to repay us and give us abundant life. We have lost so much, and God wants to give us all this abundant life, and to give this abundant life, there must be a price to pay. You know that what you receive for free today is not without a cost; it is because Jesus has already paid the price. Thank the Lord!
Now let’s talk about healing because many people have been asking lately: "What exactly do I need to do for God to heal me?" Actually, this question is wrong. You know, no matter what you do, you do not deserve God's healing. You only need to believe that Jesus has already taken the stripes for you, so you receive His healing.
Because during this time, I had to do many things, and sitting in front of the computer for a long time in one position caused some issues with my neck. Coincidentally, on Friday night, I woke up with a stiff neck, and the two issues combined. The next morning when I got up, my neck was almost immovable. I thought it was okay; I would just sleep another night and it would be fine. But the next day, I found it was even worse. It was intermittent pain that lasted for two whole days.
Last night, I was praying. Of course, I would not pray like a lawgiver, saying, "Lord, I have been working for you; why are you treating me like this?" At that moment, I prayed one thing: I said, "Lord, because Christmas is coming soon, I know that Jesus came into this world for my sake; He died on the cross for me. By His stripes, I am healed, so I believe I have been healed by God." I kept praying and praying, and before I knew it, I fell asleep. Now I think it was probably one or two o'clock when I fell asleep. The next morning, I woke up completely healed.
Even though the devil has stolen your health, you must now receive by faith that I have been healed by God; I am completely healthy. It is entirely because God has already done everything; we now believe and receive it; it is that simple. Amen!
So the purpose of Jesus coming down is to tell you that I have accomplished everything. When Jesus Christ died on the cross, when He said "It is finished," the meaning of "it is finished" is that all your troubles have been accomplished for you; all the blessings, wisdom, power, and supply you need have been prepared for you.
Jesus was born in a manger, and the manger is a place for supplying food; He wants to supply you with the bread of life, and He wants to supply you with everything you need in life. As long as you believe and simply receive, it is enough. Hallelujah!
At the end of this year, you must believe that we are celebrating Christmas, and the Lord of Christmas is our Jesus Christ. He came into this world to save you; He came into this world for you to receive His abundant life. Seek Him; He is willing to supply you; He is willing to help you. As long as you believe and do not doubt, you will see miracles.
Let us pray together:
Loving Heavenly Father, thank You for giving Your only Son to me. Thank You, Jesus, for coming into the world and dying on the cross for our sins. You have reconciled my relationship with the Father. I believe Jesus is my supply, my help. I am a person of hope; no matter where I go, You will be with me. On this special day, we remember what You have done for us; thank You, Jesus, for supplying us with this abundant blessing. Hallelujah! All glory be to You. In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, I pray, Amen!