The Facts of Christmas
A Sermon on 2 Peter 1:12-16
Originally preached Dec. 25, 1956
Scripture
12Wherefore I will not be negligent to put you always in remembrance of these things, though ye know them, and be established in the present truth. 13Yea, I think it meet, as long as I am in this tabernacle, to stir you up by putting you in …
Sermon Description
There is a tendency, perhaps even an insistence upon, turning the Christmas message into an entirely different message than its original meaning. The contemporary Western culture is constantly looking for ways to undermine the truth about Jesus of Nazareth. One way is found in the sophisticated attempt to undermine the supernatural incarnation of Christ. In other words, modern humanity cannot believe in miracles like the virgin birth and God taking on human flesh, so the world encourages the dismissal of this and instead focuses on the Christmas holiday as a great principle to humanity. Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones takes this tendency head-on in this Christmas sermon on 2 Peter 1:12-16. There is much at stake, says Dr. Lloyd-Jones, because it is only in the facts of the incarnation – the literal action of God sending His Son into the world – that humanity begins to see the love of God. Listen to this timely Christmas preaching message on the literal fact that the Son of God came to the world to rescue sinners.
Sermon Breakdown
- The apostle Peter is writing to remind Christians of the facts of Jesus Christ as he nears the end of his life.
- Peter knows that false teachings and philosophies will come to distort the truth about Jesus.
- The latest philosophy is that the facts don't matter, only the ideas and teachings matter. But Christianity is based on historical facts, not fables.
- The facts of Jesus's virgin birth, life, death, and resurrection display God's love for us. If they are just fables, Christianity loses its meaning.
- We must hold onto the facts recorded in the four Gospels by the apostles, who were eyewitnesses to Jesus.
- The facts are substantiated by the apostles' eyewitness testimony and the fulfillment of Old Testament prophecies about the Messiah.
- Jesus came into the world to die for our sins so we can be reconciled to God. This is the meaning of Christmas.
- We must never divorce the facts of the Gospel from the teachings and ideas. We need both facts and interpretation.
Other Sermons
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones (1899-1981) was a Welsh evangelical minister who preached and taught in the Reformed tradition. His principal ministry was at Westminster Chapel, in central London, from 1939-1968, where he delivered multi-year expositions on books of the bible such as Romans, Ephesians and the Gospel of John. In addition to the MLJ Trust’s collection of 1,600 of these sermons in audio format, most of these great sermon series are available in book form (including a 14 volume collection of the Romans sermons), as are other series such as "Spiritual Depression", "Studies in the Sermon on the Mount" and "Great Biblical Doctrines". He is considered by many evangelical leaders today to be an authority on biblical truth and the sufficiency of Scripture.