Dover Assembly of God
The Christmas story has been around for about 2000 years and nothing new has been added to the book or the story since the first Christmas.
Times and events have changed during those years, but the story has not.
If you have been a Christian for any amount of time, you probably have heard many sermons about Christmas.
In fact, as Ecclesiastes tells us, “there is nothing new under the sun.”
So what I’m going to share today is nothing new. But it’s always good to be reminded...
Matthew 1:18-25 NLT
The birth of Christ is the single biggest event in human history.
Christ’s birth is not really been in dispute even by non-believers. The date may not be as accurate as we would like but it doesn’t diminish the reality of Christ’s birth.
Many have not attributed the significance to the coming of the Messiah as we do, but there is an undeniable truth that goes along with Jesus’ birth.
And that is, how would the world be today if Jesus had NOT been born.
If His birth was no big deal and he was just another baby, or even a good man or a prophet, how would the world be different?
A lot of people think that would end a lot of problems if Christ were not born...no Christianity!..No pesky Christians, no inquisitions, no Christians fed to lions, no manger scenes at courthouses, no pro-lifers at rallies, no people trying to shut down strip bars.
We are celebrating the birth of Jesus.
What would it be like if He had never been born?
~ This church would not be here.
~ People who have been saved or helped by this church would not have been saved or helped.
~ Their families would not have been helped.
~ People who have been married here would not have been married. Why would there be a need to be married?
~ If you weren't saved here, you would not have been saved anywhere because there would not be any churches anywhere.
~ There would be no Salvation Army, No Christmas celebration, no soup kitchens, no city missions. No red cross, no YMCA's.
There would not be any Pennsylvania anyways.
PA was named for a Quaker Preacher named William Penn. If he were not in full time service for the Lord he would not have been given this land to settle and then would not have been able to have it named Pennsylvania. He said "God that has given it to me will I believe, bless it and make it the seed of a nation"
Even if PA made it there would not be laws as we know them today.
Laboring for Jesus Christ, Penn's frame of Government for this new territory was to:
"Make and establish such laws as shall best preserve true Christian liberty and civil liberty in opposition to all unchristian practices"
This was Penn’s desire for PA.
But even before that, America's laws were founded on Christian principles.
In 1892, the Supreme Court in an opinion clearly stated that this is a Christian Nation.
No Christ ...no nation.
The Mayflower compact...known as the Birth Certificate of America written by the first settlers of Plymouth stated that they originally set out "for the glory of God and the advancement of the Christian faith".
If we go a little further back...Columbus discovered America because as his own diaries reveal, he set out with a mission to preach the Gospel to whatever country he came to.
He also believed that the earth was round. Why?? Because in the bible it refers to the Earth being a sphere. The experts said the world was flat. What do "experts" tell us today?
What about education?
Most of the education we see today in Public Schools, colleges, Universities are decidedly NON-Christian but their beginnings were Christian.
In 1642 & 1647 The Puritans were the ones who passed laws requiring and establishing Public education.
While different than what we have today, it mandated that towns hire and pay teachers for their children.
In fact the name of this law is "The Old Deluder Satan Act" meaning that Satan would be able to delude those who could not read and specifically read the bible.
In 1787 The Northwest Ordinance was passed. This stated "Religion, Morality & Knowledge being necessary to good Government....
Harvard, Yale, William & Mary, Brown, Princeton, NY Univ Northwestern all were started by churches.
What about children?
Jesus said let the little children come to me and do not hinder them for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.
Prior to Jesus' coming children were held in low esteem. They were strictly thought of as property. A man could do what he wanted to them because they were like animals.
Jesus gave the children worth and meaning...to God
In ancient civilizations and even today in some areas, abortion & infanticide is practiced. In the Old Testament when God described the "Detestable practices of Molech" He is referring to offering children to the God Molech.
The Canaanites were also child sacrificers. The prophet of Baal & Ashtoreth were the official murderers of children. That's why God ordered their destruction.
With the introduction of the church and the influence of Christ these practices all but ceased in ancient countries. The church called for those unwanted babies to be brought to them and they would care for them because of Jesus' command. They would be the first orphanages.
Jesus brought value to their little lives. Think infanticide does not go on today? You’d be wrong.
A few years ago, a couple had a handicapped child that need surgery to live. The parents refused the treatment so the child would die. Hundreds of people called up to adopt the child, but a judge refused their request and allowed the child to die.
The god of expediency. The judge deciding who lives and dies.
The pro-life movement is almost all Christian based. It is definitely all around the ideal of Christ to defend all life.
Even in remote areas where the gospel has not penetrated, infanticide is still practiced.
All studies have shown that whenever the gospel is introduced, that is stopped.
What about women?
To listen to most women’s groups, you'd think Christianity is the worst thing to happen to women since....us guys!
The feminists feel that Christianity is the downfall of women.
But the truth is just the opposite.
In ancient cultures and even in some today, women are little more that what infants were, property of their husbands and fathers.
We see it today in Muslim countries-surgeries on girls.
In fact girl babies are less valuable than boy babies, and that prompted the infanticide of many more girl babies than boy babies.
In the late 1800's two women missionaries went to China to spread the gospel but found that female infanticide was commonplace. These ladies would comb the countryside in search of these babies that were abandoned and take care of them.
Before Christianity came to India, widows used to be burned alive on their husbands graves.
All through out America's history there has been little doubt about our Christian heritage although a lot try to deny it. While it may be gone today, the blessings of God on our country cannot be denied.
Look at our country to any on earth!! ANY what other country has been blessed like ours?
Muslim Countries.....Hindu Countries....Apostate Christian Countries....Atheistic Countries? None of these have experienced the blessings we have.
Muslim countries have nothing but wars. Hindu have extreme poverty and disease.
Apostate countries have social unrest and no more moral restraint.
Atheistic Counties: Soviet Union fell, Hitler fell, China has forced abortions. Any place I may have forgotten?
What about Jesus' impact on science?
Most people say that science and Jesus don't mix. But some of our most famous scientists are Christian.
Louis Pasteur-Bacteriology
Isaac Newton-Calculus-Discovered the law of gravity
Blase Pascal-Mathematics-Pascal computer language
Charles Babbage-Computer science
Joseph Lister-Antiseptic Surgery
From science, we can go to medicine and healing.
"And great multitudes followed him and he healed them"
The example of Jesus was the backdrop for the modern hospital movement.
Early hospitals were actually hospices formed to care for people like Jesus did. Started by churches and Christians.
Look at hospital names even today:
~ St Francis
~ St Margarets
~ Presbyterian
~ Mercy(catholic)
~ Baptist Hospital
~ Holy Cross Hospital
Retirement homes are the same:
~ Presbyterian Sr Care, Methodist Home, Baptist Home
All of them at one time started by a church.
Charles Rosenburg-a professor of History, Sociology and Science at Univ of Penn wrote a book called "The Care of Strangers-The Rise of The American Hospital System"
He wrote that the early hospitals were framed and motivated by the responsibilities of Christian Stewardship.
Florence Nightingale-Founder of modern nursing was a devout women taught by a German Lutheran Pastor.
Henry Dunmant -a Swiss banker and a Christian started the YMCA's.
He later founded the Red Cross. The international symbol being a shortened cross.
Just a coincidence? Non-Christian countries replaced the cross symbol with one of their own because they did not like the Christian symbol currently being used.
To this day, The US sends out many Christian medical missionaries.
Christians are the one who help the hungry children in third world countries.
John 21:25 NLT
This sermon in comparison to the whole of what Jesus Christ has accomplished is very short. There are so many other areas that we could talk about.
1) Christianity's contribution to Civil Liberties
2) Christianity's effect on Economics
3) It's impact on the family: Despite what we see on TV and the movies, the Christian ideal for the family is still what most Americans believe. They will not acknowledge God's plan but they still live by it. They believe that adultery and divorce are wrong. The majority of people still believe the old way.
4) Christianities role on Arts and Music: Most of what we hear today about these two is bad but it was not always that way. God created music and many great composers were believers.
We could go on & on, but probably the most important thing for us to realize is how would our lives be different if not for the Lord?
What does Jesus mean to you? How has Jesus changed your life?
What would you be like if Jesus were not born?
Each of us probably has an idea of where we’d be.
As we celebrate Christmas and the birth of Jesus, I want us to take some time and think about where we’d be today, given how and where we were before we met Jesus, and be thankful that Jesus was actually born again in your heart.