A James River Christmas 2016

God Comes to Us - It's What Christmas is About

1st - God comes to show us favor

Luke 1:28 NLT
²⁸Gabriel appeared to her and said, “Greetings, favored woman! The Lord is with you!”

2nd - God comes to remove fear

Luke 1:28-30 NLT
²⁸Gabriel appeared to her and said, “Greetings, favored woman! The Lord is with you!” ²⁹Confused and disturbed, Mary tried to think what the angel could mean. ³⁰“Don’t be afraid, Mary,” the angel told her, “for you have found favor with God!

3rd - God comes to do something supernatural in our lives

Luke 1:31 NLT
³¹You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you will name him Jesus.

Luke 1:34-36 NLT
³⁴Mary asked the angel, “But how can this happen? I am a virgin.” ³⁵The angel replied, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the baby to be born will be holy, and he will be called the Son of God. ³⁶What’s more, your relative Elizabeth has become pregnant in her old age! People used to say she was barren, but she has conceived a son and is now in her sixth month.

4th - God comes to make our lives about what matters most

Luke 1:32-33 NLT
³²He will be very great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his ancestor David. ³³And he will reign over Israel forever; his Kingdom will never end!”

5th - God comes so that we will put our faith in Him

Luke 1:34-35 NLT
³⁴Mary asked the angel, “But how can this happen? I am a virgin.” ³⁵The angel replied, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the baby to be born will be holy, and he will be called the Son of God.

Luke 1:38 NLT
³⁸Mary responded, “I am the Lord’s servant. May everything you have said about me come true.” And then the angel left her.

Luke 1:45 NLT
⁴⁵You are blessed because you believed that the Lord would do what he said.”