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December 25, 2003
Christmas Day
Hebrews 1:1-9
Pastor Ben Berger

God Speaks to You Through His Son

Have you ever wondered if you believe in the right religion? I mean, how can you be so sure that you've got it right? There are over 6 billion people on earth, and most of them believe something different than you. Wouldn't it be easier if God himself spoke to you? Then you could know for sure. This morning we take a moment to peek into the stable and to peer into the manger. We see Joseph and Mary and the animals; best of all we see the Christ-child whom the shepherds praised and the angels announced. There, in the form of a little child God speaks to you. God speaks to you today. God speaks to you through his son. Through his son God speaks to you 1) about his power, 2) about his being and 3) about your salvation.

Our text begins, In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways. There is no doubt that at one time God spoke directly to humans. God walked with Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. He punished Cain for murdering Abel. He directed Noah to build an ark. He promised Abraham, Isaac and Jacob the land of Canaan and a Messiah from their descendants. God appeared to Moses in the burning bush and asked him to lead his people. The list goes on and on. Eventually God began speaking through the prophets. He asked these men to carry his message to the people. Daniel, Isaiah, Jeremiah and many more faithfully spoke on God's behalf. But, to be sure, they were not speaking, but God. God spoke to the people through them.

How could the people of that day be sure that God was actually speaking through the prophets? After all, there were false prophets. Many others claimed that God spoke to them. Two things set apart the true prophets. One, their messages came true. Two, God sometimes gave them the ability to do small miracles. Moses brought the plagues and divided the Red Sea. Elijah provided oil and bread, healed and even brought the dead back to life. The truth and power behind their messages showed that God was speaking through the prophets.

Our text continues, but in these last days God has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things and through whom he made the universe. While the prophets told the people what God would do, Jesus did it. The prophets could only relay God's promises; Jesus fulfilled them. Just Jesus' birth alone fulfilled any number of the promises God spoke through the prophets. Moses prophesied that God would raise up one like him. Micah prophesied that the Messiah would be born in Bethlehem. Isaiah prophesied that he would be born in humility and of a virgin. Jeremiah prophesied that he would be born from the line of David. That baby you see lying in the manger is the voice of God. He is the fulfillment of everything God promised.

That baby is also the power of God. In both the psalm that we sung and the Old Testament reading we heard from Isaiah, God said that he would lay bare his holy arm. God said that he would show his power. God has fully shown his power through his Son. John and the author to the Hebrews both testified that it was this baby, the powerful Word of God, who created the world. Jesus was born in just the place, at just the time, by just the people, in just the way that God said it would happen. Throughout Jesus' life he would continue to demonstrate God's power. He would provide food, heal the sick and raise the dead. He would even rise from the dead himself and defeat death. Even as Jesus gave life to the world so he would give life to all.

God still speaks to you today through his son. God still shows you his power. What is your evidence? How do you know? It is faith. Even though you can't explain it, you believe. You believe that the little baby you see lying in the manger is your Savior. You know how he used his power to resist the temptations of Satan and to live a perfect life for you. You know how he used his power to defeat death and sin and to present you with eternal life. You have experienced the fruits of the Spirit in your life as a result of that child. God has given you peace, joy, patience, kindness, gentleness, love and self-control. God has spoken to you through his son about his power.

God also speaks to you through his son about his being. Although God spoke to the prophets, they were still at a disadvantage. They heard his voice. Sometimes they saw something, but they never really saw God. They couldn't; they were sinners. Moses probably came the closest, but he was only allowed to see God's back. God said that anyone who would see his face would die. As a result, all the prophets could do was describe God.

Certainly they passed along his message. Through inspiration the prophets spoke God's words word for word. Thankfully their messages were even recorded for us to read. It appears that some of the prophets even reflected God's attitude. More than once they became angry with God's people. More often than not they seemed depressed over the people's sins and rebellion. And when the people did repent, the prophets rejoiced with God. But still, the prophets were only a dim reflection of God.

On the other hand, the baby born in Bethlehem was God. Verse three says, The Son is the radiance of God's glory and the exact representation of his being. Jesus did not just reflect God; he was the radiance of God's glory. Oh, I know that it didn't look like glory there in the stable. It looked like a poor boy with no clothes, no crib and no clean place to sleep. But God would speak through his son and show his glory. At Jesus' baptism the Holy Spirit appeared out of the skies along with the voice of the Father. On a mountain Jesus transfigured himself and showed his glory to three disciples. Jesus left this earth by ascending in to heaven to take his seat in glory. And, he will return in glory to judge all. That was not the glory Jesus came to show though.

Jesus came to reveal his Father to us. Mary's son is the Son of God. He doesn't just look like his Father; he is the exact representation of his Father's being. Jesus didn't just know what the Father said; he knew it before he said it. Jesus knows his Father's thoughts and his feelings and his attitudes. He knows them because they are also his thoughts, feelings and attitudes. Jesus and his Father are one. The true glory that Jesus wanted to show was the being of his Father. Jesus came to tell you about his Father. He came to tell you that his Father loves you in spite of your sins. He wants you to know that his Father is on your side regardless of how it looks. Jesus was born to show you his Father's love. He was born to live and die for you.

Do you want to be sure of God's presence in your life? It's right there lying in the manger in the form of a son. God speaks to you through his son. He reveals himself to you. The best part? Jesus left you a record of the things he said and did. God is present in your life through the words and life of his son as recorded in the Bible. God is present in your life every time you come to worship and every time you come to Bible study. God is present in your life every time you share his word with someone and every time you serve as a reflection of God in your life.

So far God has spoken to you through his son about his power and his being. Finally, God speaks to you through his son about your salvation.

The last verse of our text and the other verses you heard earlier from this reading declare that Jesus is superior to the angels. Just as Jesus' power and being is superior to the prophets, so also his work is superior to the angels. The angels serve us in two ways. One, they carried very important messages of God - like announcing Jesus' birth to Mary, Joseph and the shepherds. They also protect us as guardian angels. Many powerful angels are watching over us all the time.

Jesus, however, served in a way far superior to the angels. Verse three tells us that [Jesus] provided purification for sins. The best part about the Christmas story is that it is only the beginning of the story. Over the next four or five months we will read the rest of the story as we remember the main events of Jesus' life. And we know how the story ends. Jesus will suffer and die on the cross. Then he will rise from the dead and appear to his disciples. He will have one message for them. The same message that began the story: PEACE! Jesus brings peace by forgiving our sins through his death and assuring eternal life through his resurrection.

Only Jesus could bring such peace. Only Jesus can forgive sins because only God's death would pay for the sins of the world. Only Jesus can offer life because only God could live a perfect life without sin. Only Jesus has a name superior to the angels because only Jesus is the Son.

How can you be sure that you believe the right things? You can be sure because you have God's salvation in your life. You can be sure because you believe in only Jesus. There is no other way to heaven. The baby Jesus would grow up to say, I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me, (John 14:6). There is no other way to hear God speak. God speaks to us through his Son. What else do we need?