Born to Die So That You Might Live

Scottsdale Bible ChurchVideo2016

Dec 11

Tom Shrader unpacks the incarnation using Luke 2:11, John 1, and Philippians 2, defining what it means that the eternal Word became flesh while remaining fully God. He anchors Christmas to Easter, arguing that the birth of Jesus cannot be understood apart from His atoning death and resurrection. The teaching closes with five practical implications: God understands and loves humanity, Jesus is the Christian's hope and role model, and believers are called to carry His light into the world.

“Jesus was born to die so that you might live.”
— Tom Shrader

Series: Scottsdale Bible Church

Recorded: 2016 at Scottsdale Bible Church

Duration: 40 min

Themes: christmas, incarnation, hope, salvation, light, love, resurrection, new life, searching for hope, new believer, questioning faith, young adult, feeling unloved, seeker, parent, struggling with doubt

Scripture: Luke 2:11, John 1:1-3, John 1:14, John 10:10, Matthew 1:18-21, Philippians 2:3, Philippians 2:5-8, Romans 1, Romans 5:6, Romans 5:8, Romans 5:10, Romans 8:31, Romans 8:35, Romans 8:39, 1 John 4:10, John 3:16, Matthew 5:14

Theological Themes: incarnation, hypostatic union, fully god fully man, atonement, kenosis, logos, redemption, christology

Full Transcript

Introduction: Jesus Was Born

Jesus was born. That is the main fact, and it is not exactly stop-the-presses stuff. Even the biggest skeptic and cynic would acknowledge it. But He was born with a purpose, and His purpose was to die. His death and resurrection provides the end result — the opportunity for you to live. That is the main point: Jesus was born to die so that you might live.

Our theme verse for this series is Luke 2:11 — "For today in the city of David, there is born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord." That verse conjures up the whole Christmas story: angels, Mary, Joseph, the virgin birth, the stable, the shepherds, and the wise men. But what this series sets out to do is pull out four specific words from that verse. Last week Jamie focused on the word "today." This week the emphasis is on the word "born" — Jesus was born.

As we work through this, I want you to sit there critically and ask four questions: What did He say? Is it true? So what? And now what — what do you want me to do with this? Those four questions are the framework for how we approach this together.

Defining the Incarnation

Jamie asked me to explain the incarnation, and here is what I realized: I really cannot explain it. I can only define it. It is, at its core, a mystery. If you approach it in a straightforward, reasonable way, here is what you are dealing with: there is one God who exists in three persons, and one of those persons, who existed for all eternity, becomes a human being, remains God, and dies. When He dies, He rises from the dead, and by Him dying, you and I have eternal life. It is almost science-fiction material. I cannot explain it, but I can define it for you.

The incarnation means that God sent His Son to save us. John 1:14 puts it this way: "The Word became flesh and dwelt among us. We have seen His glory, the glory of the one and only who came from the Father, full of grace and truth." That word "Word" refers to the Logos — it is speaking of Jesus. Eugene Peterson, in his paraphrase The Message, renders that same verse this way: "The Word became flesh and blood and moved into the neighborhood." Jesus came and moved in with us.

When we talk about the incarnation, we are talking about God becoming man while remaining God. Dr. Grudem, in his systematic theology, describes it this way: to complete the biblical teaching about Jesus, we must affirm not only that He was fully human, but also fully divine. Although the word does not explicitly occur in Scripture — much like the word "Trinity" — the church uses the term "incarnation" to refer to the fact that Jesus was God in human flesh. The incarnation was the act of God the Son whereby He took to Himself a human nature. The scriptural proof of the deity of Christ is extensive throughout the New Testament.

The Incarnation: Central to Historic Christianity

The incarnation is a theme we see all throughout the New Testament. As J. I. Packer says, it is a mysterious miracle at the heart of historic Christianity, and it is central to the New Testament witness. I want to drive this point home, because I am afraid we can get hung up on the Christmas story and think it is this cute little thing that we dramatize. No — if we are going to talk about historic Christianity, using Packer's words, the incarnation is central to the New Testament.

R. C. Sproul ups the ante a bit. He writes that faith in the deity of Christ is — and this is a strong word — necessary. It is necessary to being a Christian. It is an essential part of the New Testament gospel. The confession of the deity of Christ is drawn from the manifold witness of the New Testament.

As the Logos incarnate, Christ is revealed as being not only preexistent to creation but eternal. Before creation, Jesus was. He is said to be in the beginning with God and also that He is God, John 1:1–3. That He is with God demands a personal distinction within the Godhead. That He is God demands inclusion in the Godhead. It is heavy material, but you see it coming at you again and again throughout Scripture, and it is an essential point.

Max Lucado has written a new book for Christmas, and I picked it up about a month ago and went through it in a night. He has great phrase after great phrase. Regarding everything we are talking about, Lucado says it this way: Jesus entered our world not like a human but as a human. He remains fully God and fully man.

Seven Things John 1 Tells Us About Jesus

When we talk about passages relating to the incarnation, the two that come to mind are John 1 and Philippians 2. John writes this: "In the beginning was the Word" — and he is speaking of Jesus — "and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being. In Him was life, and the life was the light of men." And then John 1:14: "And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us."

There are seven things we see in these verses that tell us about Jesus. First, "In the beginning was the Word" — Jesus is eternal. He is God. Second, "The Word was with God" — there is personality there. He was God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Third, "The Word was with Him" — this speaks to His deity. Fourth, "All things were made through Him" — Jesus creates all of this world. We are told in Romans 1 that we can look around at creation and it points us to God, and the God it points us to is the Godhead, with Jesus doing the creating.

Fifth, "In Him was life." You want to have life? You cannot have real life apart from Jesus. That is what Jesus says Himself in John 10:10 — to have life and have it abundantly. Sixth, He was the light of men. My hero Larry Wright used to always say that light has at least three purposes: it is a measuring device, it energizes and gives life, and it reveals. Jesus comes along and reveals life. You can see life as it really is, because in Jesus you can see who you are, you can see the world around you, and you can see how they fit together.

I remember my first Christmas as a Christian, in 1980. The carols were different. The decorations were different. The colors were different. The purpose was different. I set aside all the competition with consumerism, and all of a sudden I was overwhelmed. I will never forget sitting in church on Christmas Eve 1980, the first time as a Christian, with tears pouring down my cheeks as I realized He really did come to earth, He really did become a man, and somehow — I cannot fully explain it, I can only define it — He remained God. He set aside not His deity but His glory, and became a child in a stable.

When I was in college at St. Ambrose, we would sit together as eighteen-year-olds and ask, "What is reality?" We never had an answer. Bob Dylan had something to say about it, and John Lennon told us to just imagine. But Jesus comes along and reveals life as it truly is. That is the sixth thing these verses show us. Seventh and finally, the Word became flesh — with a purpose.

The Birth Narrative: Matthew and Luke

If you are interested in the Christmas story — not just the doctrine of the incarnation but the actual narrative — you inevitably end up in the Gospels of Luke and Matthew. Taking a passage from Matthew, chapter 1 verse 18: "Now the birth of Jesus was as follows: when His mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together, she was found to be with child by the Holy Spirit." That is the virgin birth.

Now, the text refers to Joseph as her husband even though they were only betrothed. In that day and age, they signed a contract at the time of engagement. It was not like today, where an engagement might have no ring, no date, and no formal commitment. In that culture, a betrothed couple would sign contracts and be considered a couple in every way except living together.

Born to Die

Being her husband, a righteous man, not wanting to disgrace her, planned to send her away secretly. But when he considered this, an angel appeared to him and said, "Joseph, son of David, don't be afraid to take Mary as your wife, for the child who has been conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit." Think of the faith required there. Joseph finds out Mary is pregnant and has to wrestle with that reality — and the answer he receives is that it is the Holy Spirit. That is a hard one to accept.

Verse 21 continues: "She will bear a son, and you shall call him Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins." We cannot separate Christmas from Easter. Tony Campolo did a classic sermon with the title, "It's Friday, But Sunday's Coming." It's Friday. He's on the cross. It's dark. But Sunday's coming. To paraphrase that: it's Christmas, but Easter's coming.

Twenty-five years ago, when I did my first Christmas service, I read a quote from John MacArthur. My daughter loved it — she had to be about ten at the time — and I had it printed up, framed, and put on her bookshelf. MacArthur writes this:

> *Here's a side of the Christmas story that isn't often told. Those soft little hands, fashioned by the Holy Spirit in Mary's womb, were made so that nails may be driven through them. Those baby's feet, pink and unable to walk, would one day walk up a dusty hill to be nailed to a cross. That sweet infant's head, with sparkling eyes and an eager mouth, was formed so that someday men may force a crown of thorns on it. That tender body, warm and soft, wrapped in swaddling clothes, would one day be ripped open by a spear. Jesus was born to die.*

This theme runs all through the New Testament. James Denny points out that in the New Testament there is nothing of the incarnation apart from the atonement. The incarnation and the crucifixion go together.

The Heart of the Human Problem

Max Lucado, in his book *Because of Bethlehem*, writes this: "Because of Bethlehem, I have a Savior in heaven. Christmas begins what Easter celebrates. The child in the cradle became the King on the cross."

Now we are at the crux of the human condition. What is wrong with man? Lucado says it all in one simple sentence: the heart of the human problem is the problem of the human heart. That is what is wrong with man.

We have an annual tradition — the Christmas carol. We see it every year. I saw it this year; I couldn't hear it, but I knew every line. Years ago — five or six years ago — I was in Coronado, and there is a store there called Bay Books. She carries the most interesting books. She had a book called *The Man Who Invented Christmas*, which is about Charles Dickens and the whole history of Christmas. I never finished it. This is the year 2017, and I declare it before you today: this is the year I am going to become a finisher. I am a little skeptical, because I have been saying this for many Christmases now. But to prove it, after six years, I finally finished that book.

In the last paragraph, the author writes this: "Eliminate ignorance — Dickens dreamed in his Carol. Eliminate want. A tall order then, and a tall order now. But one does not need to be a social scientist to know that he identified the true source of misery in the world." The true source of misery in the world is not ignorance. It is not want. The fundamental problem with man is not economic — if it were, I could solve it with economics. It is not education — if it were, I could solve it with teaching. The fundamental problem with man is his heart. By nature, I am a sinner. That is why Christmas was necessary. There needed to be a sacrifice — and a perfect sacrifice.

What the Birth of Jesus Means for Us Today

Last week Jamie used this framing: the "today of back then" is the "today of now." Jesus was born then. What does it mean now? I have several things to work through — we will know how many when we get to the end.

**Number one: God understands you.** Jamie made reference to this last week. God gets you. He knows you. There is something powerful about a connection when somebody says, as you pour your heart out, "I understand — I have been there." Lucado writes that God is always near us and always for us. God did not just make us. God did not just think of us. He is not simply God above us. He is God with us. God knows you and loves you.

Sandy and I have been married four and a half years, and what has become very clear to me — scary at first, but comforting if I can trust her — is that more than any person I have ever been around, she understands me. By understands, I mean she knows what makes me tick. It is not just that she can predict what I am going to say or do; she can tell me why. And oftentimes the motives are dark, selfish motives. That can be very scary, because what is someone going to do with vital information like that? God understands you. God is not like the wizard in *The Wizard of Oz* — fire and smoke, sitting in heaven looking for anyone having fun and trying to destroy them. God understands you.

God Loves You

**Number two: God loves you.** Christmas and Easter are all about love. When I was in high school in Davenport, Iowa, one year there were little buttons — white buttons with red letters — that said, "I am loved." I thought it was a Davenport thing, but it turns out it was a national campaign by some jewelry store. These buttons were all over town. "I am loved. I am loved. I am loved." That is what you want. Forget everything else — to have somebody who loves you. But it is not just somebody. It is God.

John 3:16: "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son." God so loved the world that He made Christmas. In the New Living Translation, it is about action: "This is how God loved the world." You want to know how? He gave His Son, "so that everyone who believes in Him won't perish but have everlasting life." Eugene Peterson captures the full scope of it: "This is how much God loved you." At Christmas,

Jesus Is Your Love

I think about my girls, who are now 34 and 35 and each have four kids. It may seem weird, but I think of them as little kids. When I think about love, I would say, "Honey, I love you." And they'd say, "How much do you love me? Do you love me this much?" I'd say, "I love you so much I can't even get my arms out that far — that's how much I love you."

And Jesus says, "You want to know how much I love you? I came and died for you." Now, really important here: not because you were lovable. He came and died in spite of you. Romans 5:6 — "While we were still helpless, Christ died for us." Romans 5:8 — "God demonstrated His love in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." Romans 5:10 — "While we were enemies, Christ reconciled us to God."

The whole Christmas story — it has birth, and it has all of that — it is all about love incarnate. The same John who writes the Gospel also writes in 1 John: "This is love — not that we love God, but that He loves us." The most natural thing in the world ought to be for us to love God; He is the perfect creator. But you and I are not.

Sandy and I were here last night for the Christmas show and sat right back here. In front of us was a lady with a baby — the cutest baby. The baby just looked and smiled, and Kim was holding it for a while, and I was looking at it. I was thinking, maybe Sandy and I should have a baby. It was a weak moment. And God is good, because right then the baby cried and I said, "I remember why I had two, and that was enough." These babies are so cute, but they suck you in, and they are going to rip your heart out, because they are little sinners. It is not that we love God — that is not what is special. It is that He loved us.

Jesus Is Your Hope

Jesus is your hope. We had a presidential election in 2008, and the whole theme was hope and change. Then we just had one with the theme of making America great again. The implication in both cases is: we need change, we need newness.

As I was studying for this, I came across a long historical account of what was going on in Jerusalem at the time, and what a mess it was. The people were looking for a Messiah and a Redeemer — not Jesus, but an economic Messiah and a political Messiah. I was telling the guys the other day, the hottest selling item in all of Jerusalem was a hat that said "Make Jerusalem Great Again." They were just waiting for that to come.

Our hope is in Jesus. "O little town of Bethlehem, how still we see thee lie. Above the deep and dreamless sleep the stars go by. Yet in thy dark streets shineth the everlasting light." Get this next line, because you sing it all the time but may not think about it: "The hopes and fears of all the years are met in thee tonight." All the years leading up to this, all the years since — if you want to personalize it, the hopes and fears of all your years are met in Christ.

Our hope is rooted in the character of God, the promises of God, the faithfulness of God, and God's sovereign, relentless plan. Hundreds of prophecies, orchestrated over thousands of years, were brought together and fulfilled perfectly the night Jesus was born. That means He has control in your life.

Romans 8:31 — "What then shall we say of these things? If God is for you, who is against you?" Romans 8:35 asks, "Who can separate us from the love of Christ?" and lists all sorts of things, but Paul's conclusion is that "in all these things we overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us." Then in verses 38 and 39, Paul is convinced that nothing — and if he missed anything, he adds "any other created thing" — will be able to "separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus." His love for you is not based on your love for Him. It is based on His unshakable love for you.

Jesus Is Your Role Model

Jesus is your role model. I hesitate to say it, because we go out of our way to say He is not just a great teacher, not just a philosopher — but Jesus being born does become a role model for us. When I think of the Incarnation, two passages come to mind: John 1 and Philippians 2.

Paul writes in Philippians 2:5 — "Have the attitude in you that is also in Christ Jesus, who, though He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, took the form of a bondservant, was made in the likeness of man, and being found in the appearance of man, He humbled Himself to become obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross." That is a pretty good summary of everything we have been talking about.

Here is what Eugene Peterson says, and I want to drive to my point: think of yourselves the way Jesus thought of Himself. He was God. He set aside — and here is the key — not His deity, but His glory. He left heaven, came to earth, became a man, served, and died the most disgraceful and agonizing of deaths, motivated by His love for you. And Paul says: you go and think the same way.

Think of the power you have in every relationship when you approach it saying, "Not me, but you." Right before this, in Philippians 2:3, Paul says, "Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit." Do you want a great marriage? A great family? A great work environment? The key to that is you — you being Jesus in the middle of it, approaching every situation and saying, "It is not about me, it is about you."

One of the things about Christmas that gets to me a little is the giving of gifts to kids. I remember when my girls were young — one year, the big gift was a Cabbage Patch doll.

Jesus Uses You to Light the World

Jesus said in Matthew 5:14, "You are the light of the world. Let your light shine before men they see it." At the Christmas Eve service last year, Sandy and I were here for the last one, around 8:30. It was our Christmas lighting, and all the house went dark. There were just two candles and a song playing, and the objective was to light the candles around you. Pretty soon the room was lit with all these candles, and it really moved me. I thought, that's what we can be and do — that's the light of the world. That's you.

When Jesus was here, He said, "I am the light of the world." Now He says you are, and your good deeds should light this world.