Knowing > Feelings - Luke 2:1-20

Teacher: Rusty Kennedy
​Series: Holidays

Rusty's Notes

-Today, in this room, we have many situations, many feelings and emotions and much truth.
- I pray that God will give you faith enough to hear His message for you today.
CHRISTMAS STORY
LUKE 2:1-20
1 At that time a decree was issued by Augustus Caesar: a census was to be taken of the whole world. 2(This was the first census, before the one when Quirinius was governor of Syria.) 3So everyone set off to be registered, each to their own town. 4Joseph too, who belonged to the house and family of David, went from the city of Nazareth in Galilee to Bethlehem in Judaea, David’s city, 5to be registered with his fiancée Mary, who was pregnant.
6So that’s where they were when the time came for her to give birth; 7and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son.

• Think about this… who is the only person in the whole world that absolutely knows that Mary was a virgin… Mary.
• Sounds like a great story… but come on…
• Mary was a teenager… was she questioning there was another way to become pregnant? Drinking the water… just time together… ha… even the power sin probably messed with Mary.
• But she knew! She knew Jesus was special.
• Mark 3:20-21 - Jesus entered a house, and the crowd gathered again so that they were not even able to eat. 21 When his family heard this, they set out to restrain him, because they said, “He’s out of his mind.”[1]

She wrapped him up and put him to rest in a feeding-trough, because there was no room for them in the normal living quarters.
8There were shepherds in that region, out in the open, keeping a night watch around their flock. 9An angel of the Lord stood in front of them. The glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified.
10‘Don’t be afraid,’ the angel said to them.

• Fear: is projecting into the future something negative that has not occurred yet.
• Fear (the idea of fear) is a real thing.
• Fear is a feeling/emotion.
• Feelings and emotions aren’t always true.
• Think about past fears:
• Cold War – Nuclear Bombs – Bomb Shelters
• UFO’s & Aliens
• NASA’s Space Station crashing to earth
• Killer bees – Murder Hornets
• Y2K – Computers
• 911 – TSA Changes – More paperwork - Time
• Think about McDonald’s commercials in the past few years… Where is Ronald? Clowns – The great clown purge
• Drone Armies
• Phobias - A phobia is an irrational fear of something that’s unlikely to cause harm. The word itself comes from the Greek word phobos, which means fear or horror.
• Some phobias…
• Alektorophobia, fear of chickens
• Onomatophobia, fear of names
• Pogonophobia, fear of beards
• Nephophobia, fear of clouds
• Cryophobia, fear of ice or cold
• Octophobia, fear of the figure 8
• Ephebiphobia, fear of teenagers
• Panaphobia? Fear of pandemics
  
  
• There was no fear in creation
• Fear immediately occurred in Genesis 3
• It was never intended here on earth
• Bible verses about fear:
• Isaiah 41:10 – Do not fear, for I am with you;

do not be afraid, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you; I will help you;
I will hold on to you with my righteous right hand.[2]+

• Matthew 14:25-27 -  Jesus came toward them walking on the sea very early in the morning. 26 When the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were terrified. “It’s a ghost!” they said, and they cried out in fear.
• Immediately Jesus spoke to them. “Have courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.”[3]
• Mark 5:36 – When Jesus overheard what was said, he told the synagogue leader, “Don’t be afraid. Only believe.”[4]
• Luke 12:6-7 - Aren’t five sparrows sold for two pennies? Yet not one of them is forgotten in God’s sight. 7 Indeed, the hairs of your head are all counted. Don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows. [5]
• John 14:27-29 - “Peace I leave with you. My peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Don’t let your heart be troubled or fearful. 28 You have heard me tell you, ‘I am going away and I am coming to you.’ If you loved me, you would rejoice that I am going to the Father, because the Father is greater than I. 29 I have told you now before it happens so that when it does happen you may believe.[6]
• Romans 8:37-39 – No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38 For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, 39 nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.[7]
• Fear is not going away
• How do you deal with fear?
• If fear is not going away, how do you deal with it?
• This is the real Christmas gift.

‘Look: I’ve got good news for you, news which will make everybody very happy. 11Today a saviour has been born for you—the Messiah, the Lord!—in David’s town. 12This will be the sign for you: you’ll find the baby wrapped up, and lying in a feeding-trough.’
13Suddenly, with the angel, there was a crowd of the heavenly armies. They were praising God, saying,
14‘Glory to God in the highest,
and peace upon earth among those in his favour.’
15So when the angels had gone away again into heaven, the shepherds said to each other, ‘Well then; let’s go to Bethlehem and see what it’s all about, all this that the Lord has told us.’
16So they hurried off, and found Mary and Joseph, and the child lying in the feeding-trough. 17When they saw it, they told them what had been said to them about this child. 18And all the people who heard it were amazed at the things the shepherds said to them. 19But Mary treasured all these things and mused over them in her heart.
20The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told to them.[8]

• 17When they saw it, they told them what had been said to them about this child.
• Think about the transition of emotions at this point.
• The angel said “do not fear” – yah… right
• The whole journey there was full of fear and doubt.
• But that moment… the shepherds laid on eyes on baby Jesus, the Savior of the World… all fear was gone.
• Their emotions immediately changed from fear to complete joy.
• How do you deal with fear… if it is not going away?
• Fear is met head on in the head.
• Set your feelings to the side and trust what you know.
• Let your knowledge impact your feelings.
• Don’t let your feelings impact your knowledge.
• Knowing > Feelings
• Think about it this week… I am not asking you to dismiss your feelings… because you can’t.
• But think about it this week when you catch yourself saying, “I feel like…”
• Can you actually say, “I know…”

 
Believe

• We teach our kids from an early age to believe in a man that can fly through the sky with 8 tiny reindeer and packages enough for all the kids in the world.
• Then this man makes it to every home all over the world in one night, shimming down chimneys and eating cookies and milk at every stop.

 

• What if we teach them to believe in a man who came to save the whole world but he was born outside in a feeding trough.
• This same man walked on water, healed the sick, turned water into wine and raised people from the dead.
• This same man became a sacrifice for all of our sins so that we might have an abundant life in world of chaos.
• The same man who died and rose again so the Spirit could come here and reside within our mortal bodies.

 
 Residence

• On Facebook, I share about this building… how it has basically been given to us for the last 12.5 years.
• God provided a place for us to gather… free of charge.
• That night in Bethlehem, God provided a feeding trough for the Savior of the World to be born… His very own Son… assuming it was free of charge.
• Today, God has provided a place for His Spirit to dwell. It didn’t cost you a dime… but it cost Him His only Son.
• You my friend, have become the dwelling place for the Spirit of God here on earth.
• There is no greater gift this Christmas.

 

• Today we celebrate Christmas and Easter as we do every day.

 
Lord’s Supper
Jesus said something like this, “When you gather… remember what I did for you.”

[1] Christian Standard Bible. (2020). (Mk 3:20–21). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.
[2] Christian Standard Bible. (2020). (Is 41:10). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.
[3] Christian Standard Bible. (2020). (Mt 14:24–27). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.
[4] Christian Standard Bible. (2020). (Mk 5:36). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.
[5] Christian Standard Bible. (2020). (Lk 12:5–7). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.
[6] Christian Standard Bible. (2020). (Jn 14:27–29). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.
[7] Christian Standard Bible. (2020). (Ro 8:37–39). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.
[8] Goldingay, J., & Wright, T. (2018). The Bible for Everyone: A New Translation (Lk 2:1–20). London: SPCK.