God's Plan for Man

Pastor Corey delivers his Christmas Eve message titled "God's Plan for Man"

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I'm more convinced than ever, and I've been pretty convinced prior to today, but I'm more convinced than ever that all we have that means anything for eternity is Jesus. Now it doesn't mean that the relationships we have and the family members that we have and the loved ones we have aren't important either. They are. And nothing happens in our life by accident, particularly if we're a Christian. But I will say that the Bible says that this world is passing away and everything in it. And the only thing that makes sense, and the only thing that has meaning, and the only thing that brings complete joy is Jesus. And I'll give you an example of what I'm talking about. Now, I'm looking at a family right here sitting on this first row that buried two precious family members this year, immediate family members. Two this year, recently. Yet they're here sitting on the front row for Christmas, and not just here, but they're singing, they're participating, they're loving on each other, they're loving on other people, they're living their life to the best of their ability. And when you go through something like that, like we all have, losing a loved one. I lost a loved one this year, went and participated in his funeral. And you think, how can life get any worse? Well, that's the point that I'm making. That when you look at it all in light of Jesus, because of Jesus, we have hope way beyond this life. And the last that we see of our loved ones who belong to Jesus is not the suffering and the pain, even though that's what we think right now. And might I say it like this, that maybe the last thing that we saw of our loved ones was suffering and pain. But that's not how they are today because of Jesus. And that's not how it's gonna be for all of eternity, because of Jesus. And y'all, I don't know about anybody else, but I need hope in this world. And the only hope that I've found that lasts the test of time and for all of eternity is the truth of God's word in Jesus Christ. He's it. He's it. Everything else will crumble. You know, I used to hear years ago that, you know, one day all the great cities of the world will be torn down. You know, you think about that and you think, man, something massive must have to happen. It's going to have to happen for that to take place. But yet I remember on September 11, 2001, watching two of the greatest buildings in the world come down just like that. And that's just a microcosm of everything that man's built will come crashing down and will turn to dust. So I start this message off not thinking or not so much focusing on the negative as I know this sounds kind of negative, what I'm talking about here, but focusing on the positive. That I'm more convinced than ever that the virgin birth was real. And let me tell you, I was pretty convinced yesterday. If I can't believe in the virgin birth, then I can't believe in the resurrection. And our whole faith lies on those two things. It's miraculous. Why would you want a God that you could explain away, right? Our God does the miraculous. And he does amazing things. And so I want to turn your attention tonight to Luke chapter 1. We started a series a few weeks ago, and unfortunately, I wasn't able to be here this past Sunday. But I'm here tonight, and I want to continue the series, and we've titled the series Miraculous, and I want to spend a few moments tonight talking about God's plan for man. We spent two messages talking about God's involvement in our lives, and how God is not an impersonal God, but he's a very personal God, very active in our lives. But I want to transition to not only is he involved in our lives, but he has a plan for each of our lives. So I'm going to ask you to stand one more time before I let you sit for a little while. Stand with me, Luke chapter 1, verses 26 through 38. And we pick up the story here in Luke 1. It says, in the sixth month of Elizabeth's pregnancy, now Elizabeth is the cousin of Mary, and we learned about the son that God gave her in Zechariah when they were way beyond the age to be able to conceive, and how God was going to use this young baby, this young child called John, John the Baptist, to prepare the way, to soften people's hearts so that when Jesus began his public ministry, that people were ready to receive the truth of the Messiah. So it says here in the sixth month of Elizabeth's pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth. A town in Galilee. Let me ask you this. Just a little bit. Just if I were to say, name the most famous town in Israel, or the most famous city, what would you say first? What would you say? Jerusalem. Jerusalem. In ancient days, Jerusalem. Today some might say Tel Aviv, but that that comes from more of a modern day, but Jerusalem. God didn't choose a young lady from Jerusalem. He chose a young lady from Galilee from the town of Nazareth. It says that this angel came to a virgin, pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin's name was Mary. The angel went to her and said, Greetings, you are highly favored. The Lord is with you. Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. Again, another human coming into contact with some kind of angelic being, an angel. It scares you. Mary was a human being, and it startled her. But the angel said to her, Whenever God always appears to people in this form, he said to her, Do not be afraid, Mary. You have found favor with God. You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus. He will be great, and he will be called the Son of the Most High. But the Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over Jacob's descendants forever. His kingdom will never end. How will this be, Mary? asked the angel, since I am a virgin. The angel answered, The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the Holy One to be born will be called the Son of God. Even Elizabeth, your relative, is going to have a child in her old age. And she who was said to be unable to conceive is in her sixth month. For no word from God will ever fail. I am the Lord's servant, Mary answered. May your word to me be fulfilled. Then the angel left her. Father, as we look at these things that seem to be so far away from us in the miraculous that we might not be able to identify. But Father, help us to see through these miraculous events and through the miracle of salvation, of being saved, how we too experience in the miraculous work of God in our lives. And then help us to see tonight for just a moment what it means to be part of your plan. And I prayed in Christ's name. Amen. And you may be seated for a few moments today. So, God's plan for man. That's what I've titled it. I want you to follow me, follow along with me. I've got six quick things I want to show you. Number one, God chooses people to accomplish his plan. God works in this world and he chooses people. Now, there are moments in time that he has used angels to deliver a special announcement. When is another time that an angel will make a sound and it will be something special that will happen? When's the next time that's going to happen? Anyone know? When Jesus splits the eastern sky and he comes back, the trump of God will sound, right? With the, I think with the voice of an archangel, the Bible says. So angels were given specific responsibilities and duties by God. Let me just say this to you, and I know, and I don't, again, I don't I don't say this with malice. I say this with with with a heart to help you understand. Angels are created beings. Our loved ones don't die and become angels. They don't. They're human beings. As a matter of fact, human beings have a far greater stature than angels because we as human beings know what it means to be redeemed, to be bought and uh purchased by the blood of the Lamb. Angels, they look at us oddly and they don't understand what we know because they have never experienced redemption themselves. They are created beings for a specific purpose. And God uses them to accomplish those things. But for the most part, in order to reach humans, God uses other humans. God chooses people to accomplish his plan. He chose this young lady. Now, some people would put Mary on a pedestal, and some even believe that Mary was sinless. And that's not the case at all. Because later on in what we note to be Mary's songs, she says, I rejoice in God, my Savior. The only people who need a savior are sinners, right? And we're all sinners. Mary was a human being, very flawed, but she was highly favored by God. And God chooses people to accomplish his plan. And let me just say this: God has a plan for every one of our lives. Every one of our lives. And as life happens to you and me, and as the winds beat on our earthly tent, on our house, and the storms come, the storms of life, and we go through so much and so much pain. The Bible tells us clearly that in this life you will have lots of trouble. That's true. And as we go through all of that, we can sometimes get discouraged and wonder, is God finished with me? Does he even care? Let me tell you something, my friend. Not only does he care, but as long as you have breath, God will still use you. Maybe at different points in life he transitions us and he uses us in different ways. But God will always use you. And God has a plan. Just like he had a plan for Mary. He has a plan for you. The Bible tells us in Jeremiah, I know the plans that I have for you, says the Lord. Plans to prosper you. Now, we know that those prophecies were made directly toward Israel, but we know spiritually and scripturally and principally in Scripture that God has plans for us. Every human being has a purpose for being here. So much so that God knows every hair that we have on our head. He knows how many we have. And I'll tell you something else. You know, be careful about saying this. I try not to say this very often. But, you know, we say sometimes, boy, if I know my heart. Well, the Bible says the heart is desperately wicked. No man can know it. Who can know it? But God knows the intents of the heart. So he even knows more about you than you know about yourself. Isn't that amazing? So God chooses people to accomplish his plan. Number two, God finds favor in his faithful people. Everything we know about Mary is that Mary was a Jewish young lady who was being faithful to Jehovah God. She was a virgin. She was living her life faithfully. God chose her, she found favor in God's eyes. But Mary's not the only one who finds favor. Now God chose her for something very special. No doubt. But I think Mary, Mary's life reminds us that God has a plan for all of us. And God finds favor with his faithful people. You just keep serving God. God knows your name, He knows where you are, He knows what's going on in your life. You be faithful. You overcome temptation. You stay strong and stay faithful to Him. And I'm telling you, there are rewards of the heart that God will give you, and amazing rewards that you don't even know about. Number three, God's Holy Spirit is where our power comes from. God's Holy Spirit, he says here in verses 34 and 35, you know, Mary said, How can I get pregnant? I don't know a man. I'm a virgin. And in verse 35, the angel answered, The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. With man, things are impossible, but with God, nothing is impossible. The Bible tells us that the Holy Spirit will help us to know what to say when we don't know what to say. He'll give us strength when we don't know where our strength comes from. How many of you have seen people go through horrific things, difficult things, and you've admired them maybe from afar, or maybe even up close, and you've admired them to a point that you're thinking, you know, God, I can never go through what they've gone through and come out like they have. It's amazing to me how strong they've been. But here's the fallacy of that statement. The fallacy is this you don't know what you can go through with God's Holy Spirit. You don't know what you can go through when God empowers you at that moment in time. And Mary's reminded here that what God is getting ready to do through you, Mary, is a God thing. It's a pretty amazing thing. It's the most unique thing in the world. And only God can do it through the power of the Holy Spirit. As you live your life each and every day, remember that the Holy Spirit is working and active in your life, and he's very powerful. Number four, God's word never fails. When God has a plan for you, his word never fails. Look at what it says. I mean, it just stands out to me. This verse just just just screams at me, verse 37. For no word from God will ever fail. God's word will never fail. Listen, you know what keeps me going, the confidence that I have? I look at this world, and I try to have the heart of Jesus as I look at the world, and I say, you know, Lord, forgive them for they know not what they do. The pagans and the unbelievers in the world, they're doing what they do because that's who they are. That's how I lived before I became a Christian and before I began to understand God's plan and word in my life. And I've had people make fun of me. You've had people make fun of you. You're not the only ones. We're not the only ones who've ever gone through it. Every Christian who's taken a stand for Christ and believes this, I've had people tell me, you don't you come on, Corey. After all these years, you're telling me you still believe that. And they don't say junk, they use a different word. Something, you know, we got male cows over here. They're bullshit. And they use a different word. You know what I'm saying? They've said that to me. You don't still believe that. And you know what I say? Not only do I still believe it, I believe it even more now than I have ever believed. Because God's word never fails. And when God says it, he says it. And you can trust this. Listen, when God's word says, For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved, don't let Satan tell you. Because you had a moment of weakness, or you failed, or you you sinned today, that you don't belong to God, and you're not a Christian because you had a you had a moment where you failed God today. Because God's word teaches us totally different. We have an advocate with the Father, the Lord Jesus, and the Bible says that if we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us of our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. And his word also says that whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. And listen, I gave my life to the Lord back in 1984, and I've never lost my salvation because I couldn't save myself and I can't unsave myself. He holds on to me, I don't hold on to him. And he has my salvation in his hands. And the Bible says it's a guarantee. So I could trust his word. God's word never fails. And God's word to Mary was what it was, and it was going to be true until the end. Number five, God wants to fulfill his word to us. Verse 38. Look at what Mary says here. I am the Lord's servant. Mary answered. Notice the difference between Mary and Zechariah. Now, Mary, Mary's question she had from the angel was not out of unbelief. It was just, it was, she was just perplexed. She was more out of, she was just trying to get information. But immediately she fell into a place of obedience. She said, Let your word be as you say it will be to me in my life. God wants to fulfill his word to us and in us. I think about the many family members over the years that we prayed for in my family who were lost and then came to know Christ. And I think of how God fulfilled his word to us. He's not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance and to faith in Christ. And so God wants to fulfill his word to us just like he did in Mary's life. And in Mary's mindset was, let it be according to your word. Number six. God's plan for man. Here it is. Jesus is the fulfillment. Of God's plan to man. The Bible says here in verse 31, you will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus. He will be great. He will be called the Son of God, the Son of the Most High, the Lord God, will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over Jacob's descendants forever. His kingdom will never end. The Bible tells us in Hebrews that in the last days God has spoken to us through his Son Jesus Christ. People ask me all the time, do you believe God gives special revelation today? No, I don't. I don't. God always speaks to us in accordance with what he's already spoken. It's not something new. And in these last days, in the days in which we live, God spoke to us by giving his son Jesus to us. And Christmas is about that. It's about the fulfillment of God's word, the fulfillment of God's plan to man. And it happened through his son, Jesus Christ. Now we don't have time to do this, but boy, if you were to go, you can Google it, man. It's there. You can Google it to find an easy search on this, do an easy search, or go to Bible Gateway and find this. Look up all of the prophecies in the Old Testament concerning Jesus Christ. It will blow your mind. Not just the prophecies about his birth, but all the prophecies about him. The Old Testament is all about him. And for 400 years, God was silent to his people. And the next time he speaks, after 400 years, he speaks through an angel to say, the time has come, and I'm going to fulfill my plan for mankind through my son Jesus Christ. You know what's sad is that the Bible says that he came to his own and his own did not receive him. As a matter of fact, Peter preaching on the day of Pentecost said, This Jesus, whom you crucified, who's speaking directly to the Jewish leaders. But it's not just the Jewish leaders who crucified him, it's our sin. It's all of us. So Jesus is the fulfillment of God's plan to man. Y'all, Christmas is not some religious tradition that we participate in once a year, that we've kind of Americanized. No. Christmas is the fulfillment of God's love for us. And isn't it like God to use a young lady and then a young couple who had nothing? Who had nothing. Let me just ask you this. I just laugh when I think about this. Have you noticed the cost of everything going up? You know, all of us have taken a pay cut. You realize that, right? It's possible you've gotten a raise this year, but with the inflation and then the higher tax bracket you're in, you probably didn't get a raise at all. In some cases. And I'm not and I'm not making a judgment about them. Don't misunderstand me, because I'm telling you, even to try to buy a decent vehicle today, a slightly used vehicle, it makes your jaw drop what these things cost today. Not only that, but get an older used truck. I'm like, holy guacamole, what in the world? I better hang on to what I got because I don't think I can ever afford another vehicle. But I was talking to a friend the other day, they paid for a brand new vehicle. $95,000. Elizabeth, it's the big one. $95,000. Oh my God. I started thinking about that. And again, I'm not I'm not downing anybody. I mean the cost of things. I remember when you could watch the prices right and you could play one of these numbers games, and the first, you knew it when you saw number four, it was the first number in the price of a car. And we're not talking about 40,000, we're talking about 4,000 something. I'm old enough to remember that. Whoo, man, things have gone through the roof. But you just think about it for a moment. When we look at everything that happens in our life, and sometimes, man, we get frustrated over the craziest things. Look, you want to get me been out of shape? Let one of my electronic things not work right. And I'm calling Justin Law in five seconds. Justin, this won't work. I call him at least once or twice a month to get him to fix something that I can't operate. Sure did. So I could get my sermon on this thing. It wouldn't get on this thing. But you think about how the Son of God came into this world. He didn't come in in a $95,000 vehicle. He didn't come in on the Pulp Mobile. He came low and humbly. And he's the king of the world. And one of the reasons I believe he came that way is so that Jesus can identify with every man and woman. And every boy and girl. And God used that circumstance to bring in his son, the king of the world, to confound the wise. The kings tried to kill him. They said they couldn't do it. Technically, when Jesus died, he gave up his life for us. You know, in the song, there's an old song in it, there's he could have called 10,000 angels to destroy the world and set himself free, but he didn't. He humbled himself and became a human being. So that he could save us from our sin. That's miraculous to me. That's God's beautiful plan. And never forget that Christmas is always tied to Easter. Because he was born to fulfill God's plan for man. And in fulfilling that plan, he became a sacrifice for us. And so tonight, we're going to participate in what we call the Lord's Supper. And we do it on Christmas and Easter because the Bible says that when you participate and partake of the Lord's Supper, you remember him and you proclaim his coming in the process. And so the Lord's Supper is about everything that Jesus came to do. The bread represents his body, the juice represents his blood. It doesn't become his body, it doesn't become his blood. It's not transubstantiation where it becomes his body and blood. But it represents that. And Jesus said, as often as you do it, whenever you do it, you do it in remembrance of me. And we know that when the early disciples participated in the Lord's Supper, they used it as a time to do personal examination. In essence, it was a time when you came together with God's people at the Lord's table to make sure that you came in a clean way. Now, you might have walked in this building today, and boy, you might be thinking about something that happened this week. Or you might be thinking about something sinful you thought or you did even today, something you said to somebody today. And you might think, oh my gosh, I'm unworthy to participate in the Lord's Supper. That's the proper attitude to have. But that's not the end of the story. What God wants is God wants you tonight to participate in the Lord's Supper. And the way you do it as a Christian is you confess that sin before God and you come and lay it before Him. The Bible says that you don't participate in an unworthy manner, but you come in a worthy manner. And the only way you can come in a worthy manner is to confess it to him and let Jesus wash it and cleanse it. So God's desire is for every born-again Christian today to be able to participate in the Lord's Supper. Now, if you're not a Christian, you, right where you are, can become a Christian tonight. And you can give your heart to Him. As a matter of fact, there is a lady in this building, and I won't embarrass her or point her out, but we had a brief conversation tonight. And tonight she committed her heart to Jesus Christ when she walked in this building. She got saved. Miracles happen, right? And they happen tonight. It's a beautiful thing. It's a glorious thing. And so what we're going to do is I'm going to ask our worship team to make their way to the platform here. Before we participate in the Lord's Supper, we're going to have what we call our invitation. I want to invite you tonight to make sure you make things right with the Lord. The Bible says that if you confess your sins, He is faithful and just to forgive you of your sins and to cleanse you from all unrighteousness. You know what I do when I get in a position like this? I say, God, you know, as far as I know, I think I'm right with you, but is there some sin, something in my life, something that happened this week? Maybe that because I was insensitive to you, I didn't catch it. Maybe you spoke ugly to somebody. Maybe you were impatient to a waiter or a waitress. You say, is that sin? It's sin for me. And God will make that clear to me. You say, well, how do I make that right? Well, Jesus already did it for you. You just confess it. Confess it means to agree with God. And he washes it, he cleanses you. And that's how we stay in a right relationship with Him, or in right fellowship with Him, I should say. We belong to Him and nothing can ever snatch us away from Him. But tonight, I want you to come to the table of God tonight, cleanse so that, listen, tonight on probably one of the most holiest nights of the year, if not the most holy, the night that we await, you know, the birth of the Savior, if you will, in celebration. You can walk away from here just forgiven and cleansed. And then you can participate in the Lord's Supper. And then you can go be with your family tonight. And you can celebrate Jesus by being together, maybe reading the Christmas story, however, God leads you in that way. But you can walk away from here cleansed. Jesus says, I will in no way cast you out. Come to me, all ye who are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. You will find rest for your souls, he says, because my yoke is easy and my burden is light. Don't you want that? And I'll tell you what happens when you come and you get cleansed. You get peace in your heart. It's almost like you want to run outside and go, I'm clean, I'm clean, because of what Jesus did for me. I'm clean. Let that happen in your heart tonight. If you need to get out from the pew, you're in the middle somewhere. Just ask, and folks will let you buy. Maybe let's do this. Let's stand together. All right? Let's just do that. It'd be easier. And you pray. You come to this altar. You do what God leads you to do here tonight. As our team leads us.