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Twenty-five. Twenty-five. Twenty-five. Twenty-five. Twenty-five. Twenty-five. Twenty-five. Twenty-five. Twenty-five. Twenty-five. Twenty-five. Twenty-five. Twenty-five. Twenty-five. Twenty-five. Twenty-five. Twenty-five. Twenty-five. Twenty-five. Twenty-five. Twenty-five. Twenty-five. Twenty-five. Twenty-five. Twenty-five. Twenty-five. Twenty-five. Twenty-five. Twenty-five. Twenty-five. Twenty-five. Twenty-five. Twenty-five. Twenty-five. Twenty-five. Twenty-five. Twenty-five. Twenty-five. Twenty-five. Twenty-five. Twenty-five. Twenty-five. Twenty-five. Twenty-five. Twenty-five. Twenty-five. Twenty-five. Twenty-five. Twenty-five. Twenty-five. Twenty-five. Alright, good morning everyone. At this time we'll go through our announcements. Put up your hand nice and high. If you don't have a bulletin, we'll get those passed out to you. On the inside we have our service time. Sunday mornings at ten thirty is our preaching service. Sunday nights at six thirty. Wednesday nights at seven is our Bible study. This week we will be in Luke chapter nineteen. We have the soul winning times listed there below. As well as salvations and baptisms. Now don't forget today if you look across the page there. The cookie bake off is today this afternoon. So that's going to be from four o'clock up until the evening service. So that starts at four pm this afternoon. We're going to have our normal evening service. But at four o'clock will be hot cocoa and the cookie bake off. You don't have to bring anything. Just show up. We're going to provide more than enough cookies and cocoa for everyone to go around. And if you are entering cookies be sure to mind the rules there. And we'll have a fun time judging the cookies this afternoon. And then as far as the soul winning times. Are there any changes to any of the soul winning times today or tomorrow? Any soul winning times changing today or tomorrow? Okay, so we're going to skip the Monday soul winning. Okay, so Monday soul winning with Chad Rich is not happening tomorrow. Are all of the Sunday soul winning times going as planned or is any of them changing? Gilbert's not happening. Anything else changing for today for soul winning? Okay, so no Gilbert today and no soul winning tomorrow evening. Other than that all the soul winning times are going to stay the same through this weekend. There are still plenty for you to choose from. And then across the page there happy 12 year anniversary to our church. Some people may not realize that our church actually started on Christmas Day itself. Sunday fell on December 25th that year 2005. So our first service was literally Christmas morning. Probably the textbook worst day to start a church. Because it's usually a day when a lot of people wouldn't come because they have other things going on on Christmas Day itself. But thank God we had four visitors in the morning service and two visitors at night. Plus my family and the rest is history. So thank God for 12 great years with our church. And we'll be celebrating that more in the evening service tonight. And then at the bottom of the page the Bible memory verse for the week. We're learning the whole chapter of 1 John chapter 5. This is just a review week. So you've got until next Sunday to quote the whole chapter if you want to get your prize on 1 John chapter 5. On the back don't forget that the 2017 church yearbooks are here. They're free of charge. One per household. And we've got them right here by the organ. So if you haven't gotten your yearbook yet after church come on over here to the organ. There's a box with the yearbooks in them. Also we've got the new DVD sets of the post-trib Bible prophecy conference back there on the shelf. Now on these just take one per household simply because we only have a limited supply right now. Everything else on the back shelf you can take as many as you want. Of all the trees of the garden I may as freely eat. Take as many as you want. But just on that particular post-trib conference DVD just take one for now because we only have a limited amount. We'll get more later on but for now we only have a few. And then below that we've got the note about next Sunday we'll have our normal church services. But then we will also have food and fellowship and games after church on Sunday night. So if you want to stick around after church on Sunday night next week you can stay all the way through midnight. There will be activities here to bring in the new year. And then it says also bring a dish for the potluck if you can. So any kind of food, snack, drink, whatever you want to bring for next Sunday night after church. Just to kind of feed the multitudes until midnight next Sunday night after church. Please do so and bring it. Other upcoming events are listed there below. That's about it for announcements. If we have any first-time visitors if we could just get you to stand up we'll just quickly get your name and where you're from. Anybody here for the very first time? Anybody like that? Why don't you introduce her? I have mother-in-law Jamie from Mammoth. All right. Great to have your mother-in-law all the way from Mammoth, Arizona. Yes. All right. Great to have you. God bless you. Anybody else here for the first time? All right. Well, with that, let's go ahead and sing our next song. We're going to sing off the Christmas sheets. I think a lot of people don't have a Christmas sheet. So stick your hand up nice and high until you get one of these Christmas sheets. We'll go ahead and get these things passed out. Keep it up nice and high so that we can get the Christmas sheets out to you. We're going to sing angels we have heard on high off the Christmas sheets. Keep your hand up until you get one and we'll sing it out on that first verse. Angels we have heard on high. Angels we have heard on high Singing sweetly o'er the plains In the mountains they reply Echoing their glorious strains In excelsis Deo In excelsis Deo In excelsis Deo Shepherds why this jubilee Why your joyous strains prolong At the gladsome tidings be Which inspire your heavenly song Gloria In excelsis Deo Gloria In excelsis Deo Come to Bethlehem and sing In whose birth the elves all sing Come, adore unto thee Christ the Lord, our newborn King Gloria In excelsis Deo Gloria In excelsis Deo Gloria In excelsis Deo Gloria In excelsis Deo All right, at this time we'll go ahead and pass our offering plates around. As the plates go around, let's turn our Bibles to Romans chapter 8. Romans chapter 8, as we always do, we'll read the entire chapter, beginning in verse number 1. You may follow along silently with brother Jesse as he reads. Romans chapter 8, beginning in verse number 1. Romans chapter number 8. There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death. For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh. That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh, but they that are after the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. Because the carnal mind is enmity against God, for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be. So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God. But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his. And if Christ be in you, the body is dead because of sin, but the Spirit is life because of righteousness. But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you. Therefore, brethren, we are debtors not to the flesh to live after the flesh, for if ye live after the flesh ye shall die. But if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live. For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God. For ye have not received the Spirit of bondage again to fear, but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry Abba, Father. The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit that we are the children of God. And if children, then heirs, heirs of God, and joint heirs with Christ, if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together. For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us. For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God. For the creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of him who has subjected the same in hope. Because the creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation groaneth and traveleth in pain together until now. And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body. For we are saved by hope, but hope that is seen is not hope. For what a man seeth, why doth he yet hope for? But if we hope for that we see not, then do we with patience wait for it. Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities. For we know not what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. And he that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, because he maketh intercession for the saints according to the will of God. And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose. For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate, to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren. Moreover, whom he did predestinate, them he also called, and whom he called, them he also justified, and whom he justified, them he also glorified. What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us? He that spared not his own son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things? Who shall lay anything to the charge of God's elect? It is God that justifieth. Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long. We are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. For I am persuaded that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. Brother Jarrett will you please pray for us? It's going to be probably going to be the first morning of the chapter today, several times a week, four times a week, four times a week, four times a week, four times a week, four times a week, four times a week, four times a week, four times a week, four times a week, four times a week, four times a week, four times a week, four times a week, four times a week, four times a week, four times a week. Men, the part of the chapter that I want to focus on is beginning there in verse number 31 where the Bible reads, What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us? He that spared not his own son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things? Who shall lay anything to the charge of God's elect? It is God that justifies. And the title of my sermon this morning is, He Spared Not His Own Son. He Spared Not His Own Son. When we think about Christmas, obviously today is Christmas Eve, and we think about the birth of Jesus Christ, one thing that we often don't think about or often don't look at is the fact that the Father sent the Son to be the Savior of the world, the Bible tells us. He spared not his own son. How could we doubt the love of God toward us when he actually gave us the greatest gift that he could ever give and the greatest sacrifice that he could ever make by giving his own son, his only begotten son? If you would flip over to 1 John chapter number 4. 1 John chapter 4. We tend to focus a lot on the fact that Jesus Christ sacrificed himself, that he gave his own life. And that's an important doctrine and that's something that the Bible talks a lot about, Jesus Christ laying down his life, offering his own life, and of course that shows Christ's great love toward us. But what we often don't emphasize is the love of the Father that gave his only begotten son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting life. If we were to ask the mothers today in the building if they would rather lay down their own life or their child's life, I think most of them would be willing to lay down their own life before laying down their child's life. Pretty much any mother would sacrifice their own life in order to save the child, right? And I think many of the fathers in the room, the same thing, they'd be willing to lay down their own life, to sacrifice their life in order to save their child's life. They'd be very hesitant to sacrifice their son's life. They'd probably be readier to lay down their own life than they would be ready to lay down their son's life. And so we're missing out on something about the love of God when we don't comprehend the fact that God the Father gave his only begotten son and that he sent his son to die on the cross for us. We're missing out on an aspect of the love of God. And you say, well, that's different because he's God. So the father-son relationship there is different than what we would have between an earthly father and son. Yeah, you're right. I guarantee you that the father's love for the son is greater than an earthly father's love for his earthly son. In fact, the very relationship of father and son that we enjoy on this earth with our own children came after the relationship between the father and the son that existed before man was even created. Because in the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God. God eternally exists as father, son, and Holy Ghost. And so therefore the very relationship of father and son that we have on this earth is patterned after the heavenly relationship that already existed between the father and the son in heaven. So don't downgrade the love of God the Father for the son. The Bible says the father loveth the son and has given all things into his hand. And God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son that whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God sent not his son into the world to condemn the world but that the world through him might be saved. Look if you would at 1 John chapter 4 verse 9. In this was manifested. Now what does the word manifested mean? Manifested means it's openly shown to be the truth. It's exposed. It's on display. The Bible says in this was manifested the love of God toward us because that God sent his only begotten son into the world that we might live through him. Here in his love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved if God so loved us we ought also to love one another. Look at verse 14. And we have seen and do testify that the father sent the son to be the savior of the world. Go to Mark chapter 12. There's a whole lot of scripture on this. Even the most famous verse John 3 16 drives it in. But there are many many other scriptures that talk about the father's love that would sacrifice his own son. He who spared not his own son but delivered him up for us all. How shall he not with him also freely give us all things? Look if you would at Mark chapter 12. This is Jesus Christ speaking in parables. Mark 12 verse 1 the Bible reads. And he began to speak unto them by parables. A certain man planted a vineyard and set a hedge about it and dig the place for the wine vat. And built a tower and let it out to husband men and went into a far country. And at the season he sent to the husband men a servant that he might receive from the husband men of the fruit of the vineyard. And they caught him and beat him and sent him away. And again he sent unto them another servant. And at him they cast stones and wounded him in the head and sent him away shamefully handled. And again he sent other and him they killed and many others beating some and killing some. Now this is a parable that has to do with the Old Testament nation of Israel. The vineyard that was planted was the house of Israel. The servants that were sent to collect the fruit from the vineyard were the prophets. They were the ones who were beaten up, persecuted, put in jail and even killed. But then it says in verse number 6 having yet therefore one son and notice the next words his well beloved. He sent him also last unto them saying they will reverence my son. But those husband men said among themselves this is the heir come let us kill him and the inheritance shall be ours. And they took him and killed him and cast him out of the vineyard. What shall therefore the Lord of the vineyard do? He will come and destroy the husband men and will give the vineyard unto others. And have you not read the scripture the stone which the builders rejected is become the head of the corner. This was the Lord's doing and it is marvelous in our eyes. And they sought to lay hold on him but feared the people. For they knew that he had spoken the parable against them and they left him and went on their way. Flip over if you would to Genesis chapter 22. Genesis 22. So notice in that parable the picture is of a man who goes into a far country and he sends his one son, his well beloved, he sends unto them. Now what does it mean to be well beloved? Well the word beloved if you want to know what it means all you have to do is just take off the first two letters. Beloved is just a fancy way of saying loved. Beloved is just an extended version of that word. Loved. And when God says this is my beloved son in whom I am well pleased. When he had that one son that was well beloved. This is just verse after verse after verse. Speaking of the great love that God the Father has for God the Son. The love that the Father has for Jesus Christ and the reason why it is so important to grasp that is to grasp the sacrifice of sending his son to die on the cross for our sins. Genesis chapter 22 is a scripture that also pictures this because it's a picture of what would come. It's Abraham being asked to sacrifice his son as a picture of the fact that Jesus Christ would be the sacrifice. Look at Genesis 22 verse 1. And it came to pass after these things that God did tempt Abraham. The word tempt there means to test. It's sort of like our word attempt. When you try something you make an attempt. So he's testing him. It says it came to pass after these things that God did tempt Abraham. And said unto him Abraham and he said behold here I am. And he said take now thy son. Thine only son Isaac whom thou lovest. Notice those three words. Whom thou lovest. Why? Because in order to truly picture Jesus Christ being the sacrifice for our sins. We have to remind the reader here. And God reminded Abraham this is your one son that you love more than anyone. And that's a picture of the fact that the father had that unparalleled love for the son Jesus Christ. It says take thy son thine only son Isaac whom thou lovest. And get thee into the land of Moriah. And offer him there for a burnt offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of. And Abraham rose up early in the morning and sat on his ass and took two of his young men with him. And Isaac his son. And clave the wood for the burnt offering. And rose up and went unto the place of which God had told him. Jump down to verse 11. Of course we know that he was ready to sacrifice his son. And God steps in at the last moment. Why? Because he didn't have to sacrifice his son. It was just a picture of what was to come. And it says in verse 11, and the angel of the Lord called on him out of heaven and said, Abraham, Abraham. And he said, here am I. And he said, lay not thine hand upon the lad. Neither do thou anything unto him. For now I know that thou fear'st God. Seeing that thou hast not withheld thy son, thine only son from me. Jump down to verse 16. And said, by myself have I sworn, say it the Lord. For because thou hast done this thing. And hast not withheld thy son, thine only son. That in blessing I will bless thee. And in multiplying I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven. And as the sand which is upon the seashore. And thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies. And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed. Because thou hast obeyed my voice. So again, what was the great test of faith for Abraham? Is that he did not withhold his son. And what's that a picture of? The fact that God, Romans chapter 8 where we started, spared not his own son. But delivered him up for us all. Flip over if you would to John chapter 4. John chapter 4. You see, in order to fully understand the love of God. We could both look at the self-sacrifice of Jesus Christ laying down his life. He said no man taketh my life from me. I offer it up freely. He said I have the power to lay it down. And I have the power to take it up again. So we have Christ's love laying down his own life. But then we also have the love of the father for his son. Being willing to sacrifice his son. Which I would say surpasses even self-sacrifice. Because giving your only beloved son is the greatest thing that you could give. And that's just a whole other level of love. Now there's a stupid doctrine out there that we dealt with earlier this year in our church. This foolish heresy that crept into our church called modalism or Pentecostal oneness doctrine. And it's got to be the most foolish unbiblical garbage ever. And here's what it basically teaches. It teaches that the father and the son are the same person. That basically there is no three persons one God that the Trinity teaches. Which is what we believe and what all of Orthodox Christianity believes. That there are three persons, the father, the son, and the Holy Ghost who collectively make up one God. But they actually believe no, no, no. It's just one spirit, one entity, one God, one person. Just manifesting himself in three different modes or in three different ways. And the illustration that they used was that of a one man band. And they said it's sort of like a guy who, you know, he's playing the guitar. Then he switches over to the drums. He switches over to the trumpet. Or maybe he's playing them all at once, you know, like a one man band. That's the illustration that they used. The heretics who were perverting this doctrine and teaching this in our church who we threw out of the church for teaching these lies and heresy. Look, it's so unbiblical. Because then, you know what you end up with? You end up with God loving himself. God loving himself. God sending himself. That doesn't even make any sense. No, the father sent the son to be the savior of the world. The father loveth the son. And so we have the son obeying the father. We don't just have God sending himself, obeying himself, loving himself. It's foolishness. It's stupidity. It's proved wrong on every page of the New Testament, literally. I mean, people, every week since that happened, people bring up to me different proofs that I didn't even think of. And they even told me, they're like, pastor, now that you've talked about this and now that we made a big deal out of it with this heresy of the oneness doctrine. He said, now, no matter what I'm reading in the Bible, it's like it's on every page. I can't even, I'm not even thinking about the trinity. It's just on every page. You know, like Revelation 1, 1. The revelation of Jesus Christ which God gave unto him. But according to that, well, he just gave it to himself. Right? And this is not, he prayed to himself. He prayed to himself, obeyed himself, gave himself, gave revelations to himself. It's stupid. It's false. Over and over again, the Bible describes this relationship between father and son. And look, of course we believe in the deity of Jesus Christ. We believe that Jesus Christ is God because God is the trinity. God is made up of father, son, and holy ghost. And let me tell you something, God has always been father, son, and holy ghost. This is known as the eternal sonship of Christ. I believe in it. You know why? Because Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. If Jesus Christ is the son of God now, he's always been the son of God and he always will be the son of God. That's why he's called the son even in the Old Testament. What is his name? What is his son's name if thou canst tell? Proverbs 30 verse 4. And not only that, Jesus Christ is human. Jesus Christ is man. He didn't become man. He's always been man. That's why even in the Old Testament he appears as a man in Genesis 18, Genesis 14, many other places. Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. And Jesus Christ has always existed. He's not a created being. He is God himself. He has always existed. He was in the beginning with God and he was God. Both. Why? Because of the Trinity. That's why. Because God in the Bible can either refer to the entire Godhead of Father, Son, and Holy Ghost or the word God many times in the New Testament is only referring to God the Father. Like where the Bible says that the head of the woman is the man and the head of the man is Christ and the head of Christ is God. That's not saying he's his own head. It's saying that the Father is the head of the Son. Why? That's authority right there. Just as the wife should obey her husband, the man should obey Christ. Christ obeyed the Father. He said I always do those things which please him. Let's look at some scriptures on this from the book of John. Look at John chapter 4 verse 34. The Bible says, Jesus saith unto them, my meat is to do the will of him that sent me and to finish his work. Oh, just kidding. I sent myself. See, he says right there that he was sent. He was sent by the Father into the world. Look at John chapter 5 verse 30. John chapter 5 verse 30. It's important to note the word self in the Bible. What does the word self mean? Because these modalist heretics, these oneness preachers will say, oh, he prayed to himself. He sent himself. He loved himself. Yet whenever you see the word self coming up in the Bible in relation to Jesus, it's distinguishing him from the Father. Look at the Bible in John chapter 5 verse 30. I can of mine own self do nothing as I hear I judge and my judgment is just because I seek not my own will but the will of the Father which hath sent me. He clearly did not send himself because he said I can of mine own self do nothing is the Father that sent me. Look if you would at verse 36 of the same chapter. But I have greater witness than that of John. For the works which the Father hath given me to finish, the same works that I do, bear witness of me that the Father hath sent me. Flip over to John chapter 6 verse 29. Get ready to turn pages fast. We're just going to crank through some scriptures in John on the fact that the Father sent the Son to be the Savior of the world. He sent Jesus to be our Savior. It says in verse 29 of chapter 6, Jesus answered and said unto them, this is the work of God that you believe on him whom he hath sent. Look at verse 38, for I came down from heaven. So that right there proves that Jesus existed before Bethlehem's manger. Jesus is not a created being. He already existed in the beginning with God and he was God. Why? Because God, one God made up of three persons, Father, Son and Holy Ghost. He says that I came down from heaven. Meaning Jesus was up in heaven before he was born, before he was conceived and then what did he do? He came down from heaven, didn't he? I came down from heaven not to do my own will but the will of him that sent me. And this is the Father's will which hath sent me. How many times is he going to say it? That of all which he hath given me I should lose nothing but should raise it up again at the last day. And this is the will of him that hath sent me that everyone which seeth the Son and believeth on him may have everlasting life and I will raise him up at the last day. Notice it doesn't say, hey, this is the will of him that sent me that everybody who goes to church will have everlasting life. Is that what it says? This is his will that everybody who gets baptized will have everlasting life. Is that what it says? This is my will that everybody who repents of all their sins will have everlasting life. Is that what it says? This is the will of the Father that everybody who lives a really good life. No, no, no, what does it say? The will of the Father is that everyone which seeth the Son and believeth on him may have everlasting life. It's believing on Christ that gets us everlasting life, not our works or our deeds that we do. And I will raise him up at the last day. Look at John chapter 7. John chapter 7 verse 16. Jesus answered them and said, my doctrine is not mine. Well, just kidding, it is mine because I'm just God the Father in another mode. Right? Jesus answered them and said, my doctrine is not mine but his that sent me. Same person? Different person. Pretty clear, isn't it? Verse 39. And this is the Father's will. Oh, no, I'm sorry, are we in chapter 7? Sorry about that. Verse 28. Then cried Jesus in the temple as he taught, saying. And by the way, the reason I raise my voice when I preach is because Jesus cried when he preached. And this isn't saying wept. Crying out means to lift up your voice, to raise your voice, to shout. Then cried Jesus in the temple as he taught, saying. Ye both know me and ye know whence I am. Whence means from where. He's saying you know where I'm from. And I am not come of myself. But he that sent me is true whom ye know not. Verse 33. Then said Jesus unto them. Yet a little while am I with you. And then I go unto him that sent me. Look at chapter 8. John chapter 8. This is not an obscure doctrine. Say, well, the Trinity is only mentioned in a couple of verses. Really? Maybe the Trinity itself is only described in a couple of verses. But we certainly have a multitude of verses explaining to us that there's the Father and there's the Son. And it's not himself in a different form. It's a different person. God, the Father, is distinct from God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. The three together make up one God. You know, somebody said to me, I was preaching in a community college and the subject of the Trinity came up. And one of the students raised his hand and he said, is this like Voltron? He just wanted to understand the Trinity. Who knows what I'm talking about with Voltron? All right, only the older guys, right? This is the older generation. And you know what I told them? I said, yeah, it's like Voltron. I said, as long as we're talking about the lions, not the cars, all right? But anyway, you know, but the point is that, you know, in Voltron, basically, you know, it was individual persons that came together to form Voltron. Voltron is a cartoon, folks, from like 30 years ago or so. Maybe even more than 30 years ago, I don't know. But, you know, he was, you know, he's just trying to understand. Obviously, that's not necessarily the best illustration of the Trinity. I haven't seen the show in about 30 years, so I might be a little off on that. But to me, I pretty much told him, yeah, it's like Voltron. You know, because it's not one God appearing in three different modes. It's one God made up of three persons, three personalities many preachers have even described it as. Why? Because of the fact that they are distinct one from the other. And look, it's not God loving himself. That's a downgrading of the love of God. And in fact, when you go all the way into this modalist doctrine, you have another God and another Jesus. There I said it. It's a different God and a different Jesus. And people say, oh, what's the big deal about this doctrine? First of all, if somebody can read the New Testament and not see this on every page and walk away believing that there's the Father and there's the Son and they're not the same exact person just talking to himself or praying. You know, it just makes me think that person's not even saved because the natural man received not the things of the Spirit of God. They're foolishness unto him, neither can he know them because they're spiritually discerned. So, especially if after you've had this doctrine taught to you, to then walk away and say, no, I still think, I still think that Jesus is God the Father in a different form. It's nonsense. Number one. But number two, it's a different God, it's a different Jesus, it's a dangerous doctrine. You say, what's the danger? I'll tell you the danger because what about the verse that says, my God, my God, why has thou forsaken me? Now, if we take it from a biblical standpoint of believing in the Trinity, what do we see there when Jesus said, my God, my God, why has thou forsaken me? What do we see? We see Jesus saying to the Father, why have you forsaken me? And that makes sense, doesn't it? Because there's a separation that occurred there between the Father and the Son where it pleased the Lord to bruise him. Right? Where the Father punishes Jesus for our sins there on the cross. Okay. So, he says, my God, my God, why has thou... Now, some people say, oh, he's just quoting scripture. That scripture was quoting Jesus, buddy. You got it backwards. He wasn't quoting scripture. That scripture was predicting what he would say on the cross. You got the cart before the horse, friend, because Jesus is the lamb that was slain before the foundation of the world. The whole reason why Psalm 22 was even penned in the first place was to predict Christ's coming, Christ's death on the cross. And so, Jesus said, my God, my God, did you forsake me? No, that's not what he said. He said, why did you forsake me? And listen, Jesus never spoke something that wasn't true. Jesus never got anything wrong. Everything Jesus said is the truth. And so, if he said, my God, my God, why has thou forsaken me? You know what that means? He was forsaken of the Father. He was forsaken. Why? Because he who knew no sin became sin for us. That we might be made the righteousness of God in him. And so, God's wrath was poured out even on his own son because he became sin for us. He took upon him the sins of the world. And he looked up to the Father and said, my God, my God, why has thou forsaken me? How can that be if you're a modalist? I'll tell you. Here's what they say. Well, that was the humanity. That was the man Christ Jesus speaking to God that God had forsaken him. So, here's what they end up teaching. That basically the Jesus who died on the cross for you wasn't God. That's what they teach. Because what are they saying? God forsook him. So now, what are you left with when God forsakes? What are you left with? To them, you're just left with just a man. If you believe in this oneness God, once he departs, what are you left with? The man. So, they have a Christ dying on the cross for them that's not even God. What we believe, though, is that Jesus always was God and always will be God because he is that second person of the Godhead. He is the son of God before, during, and after his life. And that when he died on the cross, he was divine. When he was dead, he was divine. When he rose again from the dead, he was divine. And then the next step down this dark, evil path of modalism and oneness doctrine. The next step is where they say, well, he didn't even become God until his baptism. Because that's when the Holy Spirit descended like a dove and lighted upon him. So, the man Jesus becomes God at his baptism and stops being God right before he dies. That is blasphemy. That is heresy. That is wicked. Don't tell me this doctrine doesn't matter. It's a dark path and that's where it leads. It's exactly where it leads you. It's of the devil himself. And let me tell you something. Jesus Christ, when he cried out on the cross, my God, my God, why has thou forsaken me? He's talking to the father who did forsake the son. Because the word God in the New Testament is often referring to the father, not just to God in general. Sometimes it's referring to God in general. You have to look at the context. When it says in the beginning was the word and the word was with God, who are we talking about there? The father. And then in the next breath it says the word was God. We're talking about God in general. Right? Because Jesus was God because God is made up of father, son, holy ghost. You say you're belaboring this point because it's so important. That's why. It's so important. We need more teaching on this, not less. Where did I leave off in the Bible here in John? Chapter 8, verse... Oh, we didn't even look at a verse yet. Okay, look at verse 16. And yet if I judge, my judgment is true. For I am not alone, but I am the father that sent me. Notice the emphasis on the father sending him. We've seen verse after verse saying, he sent me, he sent me, he sent me. I'm doing his will. I'm doing what he sent me to do. I'm doing what he told me to do. Verse 17, it is also written in your law that the testimony of two men is true. I'm one that bear witness of myself and the father that sent me beareth witness of me. That's not oneness, that's two-ness. That's two right there, right? And of course we have the holy ghost making up the third in many other scriptures. Look at verse 28, then said Jesus unto them, when you've lifted up the son of man, then shall ye know that I am he, and that I do nothing of myself. I do nothing of myself, but as my father hath taught me, I speak these things. And he that sent me is with me. The father hath not left me alone, for I do always those things that please him. Look at verse 42. Jesus said unto them, if God were your father, you would love me. For I proceeded forth and came from God, neither came I of myself, but he sent me. You say, you're too repetitive Pastor Anderson. You keep saying the same thing over and over again. You keep preaching the same stuff over and over again. No, that's not me, that's the Bible. That's not me being repetitive, that's John being repetitive. That's not me being repetitive, that's Christ being repetitive. Look, if Christ felt like this is something that he wanted to say several times in chapter 5, 6, 7, 8, if Jesus said it over and over and over and over again, I'm going to say it over and over again too. I'm going to emphasize what he emphasized. Look at John chapter 17. If God's going to repeat this over and over again in the Bible, if Jesus Christ is going to repeat it, it must be important and it's something that is not being emphasized today hardly at all. Hardly at all when we talk about Christmas or when we talk about the birth of Christ or when we talk about the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ. Hardly at all do we stop and ponder the Father's role in this. We talk so much about Christ sacrificing himself, which is important, amen. It's like we hardly even touch on the fact that just as Abraham was willing to sacrifice his son, whom he loved, that God the Father sacrificed his son, whom he loved, and gave him for us. Look at John 17, verse 11, And now I am no more in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to thee. Holy Father, keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given me, that they may be one as we are. Look at verse 21, That they all may be one, as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee. That they also may be one in us, that the world may believe, what? That thou hast sent me. You say, well, it says right there that the Father and Son are one. Yeah, it says that we're all supposed to be one. It says in the same way that we're one, the Father and the Son, I want them to be one in the same way. Does that mean we're all going to be the same person? Or when it says that we would all be one, it would say that we'd be united. That's what it says. Look at John chapter 18, verse 10. John chapter 18, verse 10, Then Simon Peter, having a sword, drew it, and smote the high priest's servant, and cut off his right ear. The servant's name was Malchus. Then said Jesus unto Peter, Put up thy sword into thy sheath. The cup which my Father hath given me, shall I not drink it? Who gave him that drink to drink? Who's the one who gave him the mission? Who's the one who sent him to be the Savior of the world? He said, you know what, the Father has given me that cup to drink, and I'm going to drink it. The Father sent the Son to be the Savior of the world. What's the title of the sermon? The title of the sermon is, He Spared Not His Own Son. He spared not his own son. Romans 8, 31, What shall we say to these things of God before us? Who can be against us? He that spared not his own son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things? How could we ever doubt that God would give us what we need? How could we ever doubt that he loves us? How could we ever doubt that if we prayed and asked anything according to his will, he would hear us and give us the petitions that we desired him? How could we ever doubt his love, his generosity? How could we doubt that he cares about us, that he wants what's best for us, when he spared not his own son? Don't downgrade that. Don't try to minimize that. That's the ultimate sacrifice. That's the emphasis. That's what comes up over and over again, how the Father sent his Son. You know, it would be a pretty big sacrifice for you to send your son to a certain death for someone else. That's a major sacrifice. You know, certain death. For sure death. Well, but, you know, when the Father sent the Son, you know, he knows he's going to get him back, you know, three days later. Okay, well, what about this? If you sent your son to a certain death right now to die for someone and you're saved and he's saved, you know you're going to get him back, too. Does that mean that you want to do it? Does that mean that you want to make that sacrifice, though? So don't try to minimize this or downplay this, okay? He sent his only begotten son to a certain death. And he sent him and was separated from him, in a sense, for a time. And he sent him to certain death. Okay, now you say, well, you know, I think I can see myself making that sacrifice. But I'll bet you this, if someone only had one son, they'd even be less likely to want to make that sacrifice. Because at least if they had other sons, they could comfort themselves, right, in their other child. And look, a loss of a child is always a tragedy. But I'll tell you this right now. I'd rather have other children and then lose a child. The worst thing would be only having one child and losing that one child. That would be worse. Because at least you could take comfort in your other children while you're waiting to see the one who's passed on again, you know, at the coming of Christ or at our physical death, right? We could go to heaven and be with them. But that's why God is making such a big deal as the only begotten son, his only son, his well-beloved. You know, just to give us a picture of the love of God. Oh, the love that drew salvation's plan. Oh, the grace that brought it down to man. Oh, the mighty gulf that God did span at Calvary, as the song goes. And so as we celebrate Christmas and we think about the birth of Christ, just think about the fact that the reason that that baby Jesus showed up in that manger was because the Father sent the Son to be the Savior of the world. And that's a good memory verse for you. You should in fact memorize that verse. And we have seen and do testify that the Father sent the Son to be the Savior of the world. 1 John chapter 4 verse 14. Let those words sink down into your ears this Christmas season. That the Father sent the Son to be the Savior of the world. God so loved the world. He so loved the world. How much that he gave his only begotten son. That whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting life. Let's bow our heads and have a word of prayer. Father, we thank you so much, Lord, for your love for us and for making the ultimate sacrifice. Sending your Son to be the Savior of the world, Lord. And we thank you that we have salvation in the Lord Jesus Christ this morning. And not in our works, not in a church, not in baptism, not in any kind of religion or practice that we follow. But that it's through only faith in your Son, not in our own works, Lord. And we thank you for the fact that we can come together as a church and be with like-minded believers and friends and family that we can fellowship. And enjoy this special day today, Lord. And we just pray that everything that we say and do today would honor and glorify you. And it's in Jesus' name that we pray. Amen. Alright, let's sing one more song before we go. Let's sing Within a Crib My Savior Lay. It's on the back of your Christmas sheets there. Within a Crib My Savior Lay. Within a Crib My Savior Lay. Within a Crib My Savior Lay. A wooden manger built with hay. Come down for love on Christmas Day. All glory be to Jesus. Upon the cross my Savior died. Two ransomed sinners crucified. His loving arms still open wide. All glory be to Jesus. A victor's crown my Savior won. His work of love and mercy done. The Father's highest ended Son. All glory be to Jesus. Alright, we're dismissed. Thanks for being here this morning. .