God’s Almighty Word (BC 5, 10; John 1:1-18)

We wrap up our series on the means of Grace. We hear now that Christ is the action of God. He is not merely the word, but the one who confirms the Lord's word. He is the one who brought in the first creation, and he establishes us as a new creation. This means that word is more basic and prior to the sacraments. The preached word is not divorced from the true word. The sacraments are no divorced from the word. They all call our attention to the one true Christ.

King Redeemer of the Kinsmen Redeemer (Matthew 1:18-2:12)

Joseph considers his legal recourse regarding his pregnant fiancé. He thinks that she loves another man because Joseph knows that she is not carrying his child, and so Joseph desires to quietly break off their relationship by appealing to Deuteronomy 24. An angel appears to him and reveals that Deuteronomy 24 is not going to be used, but rather Deuteronomy 25. Joseph will be the levirate redeemer establishing the legality of Christ's line. Why is it so important that Joseph takes Mary to be his wife?

A Tragedy or Triumph? (Luke 2:1-21)

When the Lord declares that he will be victorious over the serpent there is no doubt that the Lord will be victorious over the serpent. God does not overpromise what he is capable of accomplishing. Our expectation of this victory is that Christ is going to send an action hero, a special forces unit, or have a military strategy that would set this world on end. The Lord is going to conduct his battle according to our values rather than showing his strength through humility.

Luke tells us that the Lord does reveals some of the heavenly army, but the angels only sing praises regarding Christ. The Lord recruits the shepherds, but they lack integrity. They do not come to fight, but only bear witness to the angels in heaven praising God. This seems like a flop, but in reality this is exactly how God intends to manifest his victory. The Lord will be exalted through humiliation.

I have Come to Fulfill (Matthew 5:17-20)

Christ tells us that he has come to fulfill. This means that Christ has come to put the law and the prophets in their place. In our culture putting someone in their place means we put them down or we knock them down a few pegs. This is not at all what Christ means. Christ has entered history, he has taken on the flesh, and he has done enter history as the God/man so that we can have life in him. Redemption is only found in our incarnate savior. As we are found in Christ we live as living sacrifices to Christ. It is very important that we understand Matthew 5:17-20 in its proper context so that we do not strive to keep the rigors of the law in our flesh, but as we walk by faith saying amen to the Lord’s promises.

The Gospel Key (John 20:21-23)

Our Lord took on real flesh and has entered history to live a perfect life, die on the cross, be raised to life, and ascend to heaven.  He gives the sure promise that those who respond to the gospel in faith have life right now and true life in the age to come.  However, those who do not respond in faith do not and will not have life in the age to come.  His assurance and warning is that how one responds to the gospel in this day has ramifications for the life to come.  So, what is essential to the Gospel message to have life?  Do we really need to believe that Christ took on the flesh?

Is Christ's Flesh Good? (Romans 9:5)

The Apostle Paul tells us that living according to the flesh is a bad thing. It means we are either relying on ourselves or we are pursuing sin. So, Paul goes on to say that Christ took on the flesh. If the flesh is bad then how is Christ’s taking on the flesh a good thing? Is Paul contradicting himself or is there another usage of the flesh in Paul’s letters?

Sojourning Under the Sun: Our Sabbath Jesus (Matthew 1)

The name Jesus is a name that we have heard before in this series because it is the same name as Joshua.  Joshua was a great military leader and reformer in the midst of Israel.  He called Israel to look to their God, to serve their God exclusively, and to set the tone for their houses to serve the Lord.  Israel fell pretty far from this as a new people.  Their priests lost sight of their God, and the people lost sight of the priest’s significance.  The priest was supposed to bring them to God rather than being some sort of good luck charms to manipulate the true God.  So, is the Lord able to redeem such a people?  If the Lord can redeem such a people then who has to be the redeemer?

Resurrection and Incarnation (1 Corinthians 15:45; BC 19)

We talked last time about the incarnation of Christ being something that is challenging for us to understand because it is a doctrine that is difficult to grasp.  It does not make sense that the second person of the Trinity would take on flesh like our flesh.  It does not make sense that He would submit to death and then be raised up again.  Why all this drama?  What is the purpose of Christ taking on the flesh and then dying?  How does this have a meaningful impact right now instead of at the end of our 80 years of walking this earth?

The Mysterious Incarnation (1 Timothy 3:16 (BC 18)

The incarnation of Christ is a very difficult doctrine for us to understand.  In fact, I would say that as human beings it is an impossible doctrine to fully understand. This doctrine teaches that Christ, who is from all eternity, took on real human flesh to ratify the promises of God. If this doctrine is so difficult to understand then why do we want to study this doctrine?  What could be beneficial about it regarding our day to day life?

A Necessary Birth ( Luke 1:26-38 ; LD 14)

Why do we speak of a virgin birth?  Is this something that is really so essential for the Christian faith?