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Good morning.
My name is Josh Nix.
I'm on staff here at Willow Ridge Church.
For those of you who don't know me, I lead our young adult ministry here at the church,
so 18 to 24-year-olds, and I also oversee our facilities and our grounds here at the church.
So this last spring, much to my surprise, Pastor Bo asked me to preach during our summer series,
right, like commonly misused verses of the Bible.
I think in the moment when he reached out to me, I think my response was something along
the lines of, if you think I should.
And so you, obviously you guys may not realize this, but you know, Bo gets up here every
single Sunday and turns this mic on and makes this look super easy.
And he's never shared this with you before, but I'm going to tell you this, you guys are
kind of intimidating.
Now don't get me wrong, you're very loving, you're very supportive, you're absolutely very
encouraging, but also intimidating.
So imagine my surprise, a couple of months ago, Bo asked me to preach again, to which
I had a similar response.
If you think I should.
So here we are, right?
So you guys are stuck with me this morning, but if you haven't noticed, Pastor Bo is not
here.
He's actually on our mission team that's serving in New York City this weekend.
On Friday, it was like 22 degrees there, so I did tell my wife, I was like, look, it may
have been 22 degrees for you, but it was 45 and rainy on Saturday here, so yeah, beat that.
So, but they're part of the mission team, they're serving coats for the city, so they're handing
out coats to those in need in Queens, New York, and they're working alongside Pastor Walter
in Iglesia Batista Nueva Vida Church there in Queens.
I need you guys to do me a favor next week, okay?
So if you see my wife walking around here next Sunday, I need you to give her a hard time.
This is the second time I've preached, and she has missed them both, right?
So do me a favor.
So this morning we're kicking off our Christmas series, and when it comes to Christmas, specifically
Christmas decorating, I firmly believe that there are two types of people in this world.
There's two different groups of Christmasers, right?
You've got one group over here, not you guys specifically, but let's just pretend like the
group's over here.
You've got one group over here, and they're the ones who decorate like the day after Halloween,
right?
I mean like, last trick-or-treater walks up on the porch, you hand him candy, and before
he's hit the cul-de-sac, Joanne's throwing a wreath on her front door, right?
That kind of decorator.
You've got another group.
Let's say this group's over here, okay?
And I actually happen to fall into this category.
I'm this group.
We're the ones that wait until after Thanksgiving.
Okay?
Yep.
Thank you.
We also might be the ones that, you know, if you guys were possibly walking through Lowe's
in September, you might see us over there kind of unplugging an inflatable Santa Claus because
it's just wrong to have Santa Claus up in September, right?
All jokes aside, the Knicks household has officially decorated for Christmas, right?
So last Friday, only after Thanksgiving, much to the disappointment of my wife and kids, we
decorated for Christmas because they wanted to decorate back in September.
But in my house, we have a few parameters, right?
Like we have a few guidelines that we follow in our home, okay?
So this morning, before we get into the message, I'd love to share some of those parameters
with you.
Not because you asked for them, but just because I think they're funny.
So number one, and I've already kind of alluded to it, but we do not decorate for Christmas
until Thanksgiving is over, okay?
Listen, I need you to hear me out on this one.
Thanksgiving is the perfect holiday.
And here's why.
There's a parade, right?
And then we eat.
There's football.
Then we eat again.
There's more football kind of mixed in with a nap because you really don't care about the
two teams that are playing.
And then you eat again.
And then at the end of the night, you've locked up your house and you've shut off all
the lights, right?
And you put your kids to bed and you're walking through the kitchen on your way to the bedroom
and you look over and you see one last treat on the counter.
And then you eat one more time, right?
Who doesn't love Thanksgiving?
Okay, number two, we do not listen to Christmas music in our home until the day that we decorate.
Okay, look, I'm going to be honest with you.
A couple weeks ago, my oldest, Haley, is driving down the road.
Yes, you heard that right.
She's 15.
She's got her permit.
My prayer life has absolutely improved over the last couple months because of that.
So I'm riding down the road.
She's driving and I won't name the radio station, but then the song Mariah Carey's All I Want
for Christmas plays on the radio.
I reach over in a moment of panic and shut off the volume and I do what any responsible,
you know, father would do.
I remove that radio station from our presets, all right?
I will not have that in my car.
Will not.
And last but not least, and number three, this one's important.
So don't miss this.
We do not watch our first Christmas movie of the year until we are in the act of officially
decorating our Christmas tree.
And I'm not saying this one has to be yours, but this is absolutely ours.
If you're wondering, there is only one acceptable first movie of the year.
Okay, calm down.
Miracle on 34th Street, the 1947 edition, okay?
When that postman walks in with a bag full of letters and throws them on the ground right
there in front of the judge, it still tears me up every time.
And then like 40 other postmen come in with like letters and they're like, see, he is saying
it.
Yeah, so now listen, I can already see the look on some of your faces and you're judging
me and that's okay.
I need you to understand my wife's been trying to change me for a long time now.
It's not going to work.
And over the years, though, I'll admit we've had a few bumps in the road when it comes to
these parameters, okay?
No better example than two weeks ago.
It's a normal Tuesday night, the week before Thanksgiving.
My wife, Kim, is cooking dinner.
I'm doing some dishes.
Our sweet seven-year-old Olivia, some of you know her as Via, turns on the TV and I don't
have to look up to know what she's done.
I just heard the intro.
To my surprise, I run over to shut off the TV because she's turned on the movie Home Alone.
Which, listen, in our house, we don't watch that movie probably until a week before Christmas.
It's top of the list, okay?
So then I did what any good dad would do.
I calmly and patiently took her by the hand.
I walked her over to the timeout corner.
And I let her take a few moments and think about her actions.
No, seriously, though, like Olivia's been in our home for seven years now, okay?
We've got rules.
She's got to follow them.
However, I will say I'm not a monster.
I did show her some grace.
I did not report this infraction to Sparkles the Elf.
So we're good.
We're good.
Okay, just so nobody panics, that was absolutely a joke.
I've probably never put Olivia in the timeout corner once in her life because she's got me
wrapped around her finger.
So, but as we enter into this Christmas season, we all have things that we do every year, right?
We have days that we take off from work.
Our kids get out of school early.
We have family traditions that have been handed down from generation to generation.
We watch all of our favorite movies, right?
We put up those decorations.
We cook the same dishes for Christmas Day.
And it's just this joyful season that we've become comfortable and familiar with.
But as we start our Christmas series this morning,
my hope is that we won't settle for something familiar or comfortable.
Sorry.
We won't just turn to a passage that we've read every December and think,
oh, yeah, I know this one.
We won't just sing Christmas songs and check them off the list.
My prayer is that this morning,
as we open up a passage that honestly we've heard countless times,
that we wouldn't just open it and read it in the same way that we always have.
I pray that it wouldn't just be this normal thing.
I pray that it would impact our hearts in a refreshing way,
in a surprising way,
maybe even in an extraordinary way.
So if you have your Bibles with you,
would you turn with me to Matthew chapter 1?
To be honest, we're going to be all over the place,
but Matthew chapter 1 is kind of a good place for us to kind of hang out.
Verse 22, Matthew writes,
All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet.
Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son,
and they shall call his name Emmanuel,
which means God with us.
Would you pray with me?
God, I pray that you would open our hearts and our minds this morning to hear your word,
and I pray that we would be impacted by it.
Lord, I pray just help us respond to what you have for us
as we enter into this Christmas season.
In your name I pray, amen.
So over the last couple of months,
Pastor Bo has been speaking from the book of Daniel, right?
We've learned of Daniel's faith
and how he remained faithful to God
through the trials and through the Babylonians
trying to completely change who he was, right?
We learned that they wanted to change the things that he ate,
the clothes that he wore,
the people that he associated with.
They wanted to change every part of him,
especially the God that he bowed down to.
We also talked through different prophecies and visions
in the book of Daniel.
And as I began preparing for this message,
it got me curious, so I did some research.
It turns out there are approximately 400 Old Testament prophecies
pertaining to Jesus.
And in those 400, we learn things like
Jesus was to be born in Bethlehem.
That's in Micah 5.2.
We learn he'll be from the house of David.
That's in Jeremiah 23.
We also get insight into his death
and his resurrection in Psalm 22.
And as we read of things to come,
you know, we see evidence of God's love for us
and that he has a plan.
So to be honest, this morning I was planning
to go through all 400 of those prophecies,
but Bo advised me that we probably didn't have enough time,
so I figured we'll get through half of them.
Just kidding.
So the Old Testament is full of a plan by God, right?
Full of evidence of a plan by God.
And as we read through our main passage this morning,
we'll focus on one Old Testament prophecy in particular
in the book of Isaiah.
So in Matthew chapter 1, we'll read our whole passage,
verses 18 through 25.
Now the birth of Jesus Christ took place in this way.
When his mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph,
before they came together,
she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit.
And her husband Joseph, being a just man
and unwilling to put her to shame,
resolved to divorce her quietly.
But as he considered these things,
behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream,
saying, Joseph, son of David,
do not fear to take Mary as your wife,
for that which is conceived in her
is from the Holy Spirit.
She will bear a son,
and you shall call his name Jesus,
for he will save his people from their sins.
All this took place to fulfill
what the Lord had spoken by the prophet.
Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son,
and they shall call his name Emmanuel,
which means God with us.
When Joseph woke from sleep,
he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him.
He took his wife,
but knew her not until she had given birth to a son.
And he called his name Jesus.
So point number one this morning for you note-takers,
God with us tells us that God had a plan.
In Isaiah chapter 7, verse 14,
Isaiah writes,
Therefore, the Lord himself will give you a sign.
Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son,
and shall call his name Emmanuel.
Emmanuel, God with us.
So what's in a name?
It's a famous line from Shakespeare's
Romeo and Juliet, right?
While this question may be fitting for Juliet
to use to suggest that
that Romeo's last name was merely a label,
what we see in Matthew chapter 1,
the name Emmanuel carries more meaning
than any name ever given.
And the prophet Isaiah tells of this
700 years before the angel visited Joseph in a dream.
You see, my name is Joshua Caleb Nix.
That's Caleb, not Kayla.
People get that wrong all the time.
But for the purpose of this exercise,
we're going to start with my last name.
My last name tells you who my parents are, right?
It'll tell you where my father's family's from.
They could tell you where my family originated.
But you see, Joshua and Caleb are given names,
given to me by my parents.
And those given names, I mean,
they could be used in different ways, right?
Those names could be given to carry on someone else's name
that had come before you.
They could be given just because your parents
like the way they sound.
But the meaning of those two names
could also speak to who my parents hoped I would become.
What we see in Isaiah chapter 7
is not a hope that he would be God with us.
What we see in Isaiah chapter 7
is a foretelling that he will be God with us.
In Galatians chapter 4, in verse 4, Paul writes,
but when the set time had fully come,
God sent his son, born of a woman,
born under the law.
Set time.
This means that God didn't just take a glance down at earth
and think, man, it's getting pretty rough down there.
I better do something.
He didn't just look down and think,
oh, man, that's crazy.
This means that God had a plan from the very beginning
and that that plan was good.
So what's in a name?
Well, in this name, we see that God with us
speaks to God having a plan.
And it being foretold tells us
that that plan was not reactionary.
It was not random.
Not by chance.
But we don't just have prophecies to look at
for evidence of God's plan.
We also have history.
All throughout the ages,
God shows a consistent pattern
of desiring relationship with man.
It says he spent time walking
with Adam and Eve in the garden.
We see it in the covenant
that he established with Abraham.
And then when he tabernacles with the Israelites
in the wilderness.
We see God create all things
in Genesis chapter 1.
But in Matthew chapter 1,
we see God with a clear plan
from the beginning of time
to be right related
with that which he made
in his own image.
So that means God planned
to provide coverings
for Adam and Eve
when they felt shame
in their nakedness
after the fall.
That means that long before
he was patient
with Abraham and Sarah's disbelief,
he had a plan.
That means that when he continued
to guide and provide
for the Israelites
after they had showed disobedience
and lack of faith
over and over and over again,
he had a plan.
God shows us that he wanted
to be with that
which he created.
And that pattern
that we see throughout history
doesn't just apply to them,
it applies to us.
God with us tells us
that he had a plan.
So let's continue on
in Matthew chapter 1,
verse 21.
It says,
She will bear a son
and you shall call
his name Jesus
for he will save
his people
from their sins.
Point number two.
God with us tells us
that God had a purpose.
And to understand
God's purpose,
we must first better
have an understanding
of who he is.
But before we talk
about who he is,
I think we should establish
just how badly
we needed saving.
Since the fall
in the Garden of Eden,
man has rebelled.
man has done evil
in the sight
of the Lord.
In Jeremiah it says,
the heart is deceitful
and wicked.
Paul in Romans chapter 3
I think paints
a pretty alarming
but good picture
of this.
He starts by referencing
Psalms,
but then speaks
to this universal
depravity and guilt
of mankind.
Romans 3.10
he writes,
As it is written,
none is righteous.
No, not one.
No one understands.
No one seeks for God.
All have turned aside.
Together they have
become worthless.
No one does good.
Not even one.
You see,
and as we continue,
if you continue reading
in chapter 3,
Paul literally starts
at the head
of the human body
and works his way
all the way down
to their feet
and he gives
a depressing,
hopeless look
at the human condition
apart from God.
The picture he paints
is of a man
completely incapable
of saving himself.
But it wasn't just enough
that it wasn't enough
just to paint a picture
of man unable
to save himself.
Reality is,
left to our own hearts,
man doesn't seek God.
Left to our own hearts,
man doesn't love God.
Left to our own hearts,
man does not desire God.
It illustrates
that the fall
of mankind
touches every part
of man's being
and corrupts him
and separates him
from a good
and perfect,
holy,
blameless God.
The picture Paul
paints for us
is just how badly
we needed saving.
And you see,
our problem of sin
needed a divine solution.
The corruption
of man's heart
needed God
with us.
To understand
that purpose,
let's talk a little bit
about God.
1 John,
it tells us
God is love.
His very nature,
His love.
His essence is love.
Notice,
it's not just used
as a verb
to depict an action
or something
that He does.
It's who He is.
John wanted so badly
to communicate this to us,
he said it twice
in 1 John chapter 4,
starting in verse 8.
Anyone who does not love
does not know God
because God is love.
In this,
the love of God
was made manifest
among us
that God sent
His only Son
into the world
so that we might
live through Him.
In this is love.
Not that we
have loved God,
but that He loved us
and sent His Son
to be the propitiation
for our sins.
Beloved,
if God so loved us,
then we also ought
to love one another.
So as we move down
to verse 16,
we see John say it again,
but this time
we kind of get a glimpse
of the impact
that God's love
has on the heart
of a believer.
Verse 16,
so we have come
to know
and to believe
the love that God
has for us.
God is love.
And whoever abides
in love
abides in God
and God abides
in him.
So as we're discussing
evidence of a plan
in the spirit
of being consistent,
we should also discuss
evidence of this purpose.
We can establish
two things
from these verses.
Number one,
in God's purpose
we see that He loves us.
Romans 5, 8,
it says,
but God shows
His love for us
and that while
we were still sinners,
Christ died for us.
Second thing
we can establish
from evidence
of God's purpose
is that in God's purpose
we see He wants
relationship with us.
2 Corinthians 5, 21,
for our sake
He made Him
to be sin
who knew no sin
so that in Him
we might become
the righteousness
of God.
You see,
by light of His nature
God is above us
yet He initiates
relationship with us.
By light of His law
God is against us
yet He pursues us.
But by light
of His gospel
God is with us.
God with us
tells us He had a purpose.
This past March
I had the opportunity
to go on a mission trip
to India.
It's actually
my second time
going to India.
So one day
we had the opportunity
to visit
what they call
the Amber Fort.
So it's like
a massive
fortified palace
and to be honest
it was incredible.
I learned a lot
that day.
Also learned
a few things
about myself.
First I learned
that when your
tour guide
says yeah
we can park here
it's just a short
walk up the street.
What he actually
means is
prepare yourself
for a mile long
vertical hike
straight into the clouds.
Because that's
what it was.
About 700 feet
of elevation later
I decided
it might be time
to get in better shape.
Later that day
I also discovered
that Indian food
is not for me.
That's all I'll say
about that.
But as we're
walking up this road
I also learned
something else.
Auto rickshaws
and buses
do not always
stop for people.
You guys have seen
the movie Elf
where you know
Buddy's like
first time
I think he comes out
like the Lincoln Tunnel
or something
and he's running
over the road
he just crosses the street
and gets like
just smacked
by a yellow taxi cab.
Right?
And then like
later
he goes on
later he goes on
and he like
I think he's got
a friend with him
or his brother
or something
and they go
across the street
and he's like
whoa whoa whoa
the yellow ones
don't stop.
I'll tell you this
in India
turns out
yellow ones
don't stop
green ones
don't stop
red ones
don't stop
blue ones
don't really
none of them
stop.
But the palace
itself was
absolutely
breathtaking.
Originally built
in the 9th century
and then expanded
in the 16th
it was
massive.
One of those
places where
as you walk
through
you're kind
of just
blown away
that this
was built
with far
fewer tools
far less
resources
and just
far less
technology
than we
have.
It was
literally
built and
made to
where there's
like a lake
at the bottom
of the mountain
and so the
wind would
blow and
utilize the
water off
that lake
to cool
the place
which was
just
just insane
right.
The year
before
when I
went the
first time
it was
like 117
degrees
there
one day
so they
absolutely
need air
conditioning
in that
place.
But as we
continued on
our tour
of this
palace
they took
us to
an area
this area
of the
palace
called
the
Shish Mahal
probably
saying that
wrong
but that's
okay.
So you
walk in
here and
as our
guide is
talking about
it
it turns
out
that
they're
on the
walls
and the
ceilings
of this
place
there's
like
over
thousands
of
mirrors
right
and it's
set up
so that
the smallest
bit of
light
would shine
in there
and reflect
off those
mirrors
and create
like a
dazzling
display
pretty cool
and as
our guide
continued to
tell us
about it
and talk
about it
he said
that it
was
literally
built
for one
of the
queens
at the
palace
so that
she could
see the
beauty
of the
stars
inside
so guys
no pressure
but
if you're
still shopping
for a
christmas
present
you've
got some
catching
up to
do
so that
guy's
got us
all
beat
inside
the fort
though
there's
this
temple
right
like
it's
dedicated
to
to a
hindu
goddess
where
like
devout
followers
could
come
and
could
come
and
just
worship
and
pay
respects
to
this
hindu
goddess
right
like
this
false
god
in
my
experience
there
it kind
of
reminded
me
of
something
that
I read
in a
book
it's
the
story
that
a
pastor
tells
and
he's
speaking
of
a
time
that
he
had
with
two
other
two
other
religious
leaders
right
in
this
story
he's
sitting
down
they're
kind
of
they're
at
some
temple
but
they're
just
kind
of
sitting
out
in
the
courtyard
of
it
and
they're
having
this
conversation
and it
shifts
to
like
faith
and
beliefs
one of
the
men
made
the
statement
that
you
know
we
may
have
different
views
about
small
issues
but
when
it
comes
to
the
most
important
issues
our
religions
are
the
same
to
which
the
pastor
responded
he
says
it
sounds
as
though
you
both
picture
God
or
whatever
you
may
call
God
at
the
top
of
the
mountain
while
we
are
here
at
the
bottom
and
I
may
take
one
path
up
the
mountain
while
you
may
take
another
just
different
path
up
the
mountain
but
in
the
end
we'll
all
end
up
in
the
same
place
they
excitedly
responded
reacted
they're
like
yeah
exactly
that's
what
we
mean
but
then
he
asked
them
a
question
that
would
set
the
tone
for
a
fundamental
life
changing
answer
he
said
what
if
God
doesn't
wait
for us
to
find
our
way
to
him
but
instead
comes
to
us
you
see
that's
the
beauty
in
Emmanuel
God
with
us
when
the
prophet
Isaiah
wrote
of
Emmanuel
and
the
angel
of
the
Lord
told
Joseph
his
name
will
be
Jesus
it
was
a
declaration
of
a
beautiful
plan
and
purpose
that
God
not
as
a
distant
deity
separated
from
us
and
all
of
our
hurts
and
our
heart
aches
but
not
God
on
the
top
of
this
mountain
waiting
for
us
to
overcome
our
challenges
and
somehow
overcome
the
sin
in
our
life
but
Emmanuel
God
with
us
love
coming
down
to
be
with
us
to
meet
us
where
we
are
and
to
make
a way
for
us
to
have
life
with
him
I
read
in a
commentary
earlier
this
week
says
this
astounding
truth
of
Christianity
the
reality
that
God
became
flesh
may
be
incomprehensible
to
many
but
to
those
who
believe
it
is
irresistible
there's
an
infinitely
great
God
mighty
in
power
who
out
of
his
love
for
us
has
not
simply
sent
a
messenger
to
tell
us
about
his
love
even
better
he
has
come
himself
and
what
he
came
to
do
is
the
greatest
news
in
the
whole
world
we've
been
given
a
gift
like
the
best
gift
like
the
kind
of
gift
that
makes
all
the
other
gifts
just
kind
of
seem
like
they're
just
not
very
good
gifts
one of
my
favorite
traditions
that
our
family
has
was
actually
passed
down
from
my
wife's
family
each
year
we
have
a
family
ornament
and
our
kids
get
like
an
individual
ornament
so
like
family
ornament
will
be
like
you know
there's
like
five
black
bears
and
you know
you put
your name
on them
and then
one year
was like
you know
hot chocolate
cups
or something
I don't
know
each year
is a
different
thing
we're
kind of
running out
of ideas
at this
point
but our
kids
get like
an
individual
ornament
right
and typically
that ornament
would
give some
insight
into what's
going on
that year
in their
life
so
as we
turn on
Miracle
on
34th
street
and we
begin
to take
these
ornaments
out of
their
container
that's
my job
pretty
good
at it
we
unwrap
them
and as
I
unwrap
them
and kind
of
organize
them
my
wife
and my
kids
they
come
up
and they
just
start
to look
for
their
ornaments
and we
just
take
this
walk
down
memory
lane
together
right
just
long
walk
down
memory
lane
2007
an
ornament
with a
guy
and a
girl
fancy
clothes
reads
Merry
Christmas
Newlyweds
2010
it's like
a little
baby
with a
pacifier
says
Haley's
first
Christmas
2017
this
little
girl
with
pigtails
and a
backpack
and
doesn't
say
attitude
but a
little
bit
of
attitude
and it
says
Samantha's
first
day
of
school
2023
is like
a
dinosaur
but
like
listen
not like
Jurassic
Park
you know
velociraptor
like
like a
little
cute
one
with
like
the
rounded
teeth
reads
Olivia
because
she was
just
obsessed
with
anything
to do
with
dinosaurs
that
year
as
great
as
those
memories
are
and
as
much
as
they
do
a
fantastic
job
of
putting
us
into
the
Christmas
spirit
that's
not
the
gift
and
underneath
this
tree
with
all
of
our
memories
on
it
there
are
presents
there's
like
the
kind
of
presents
that
you
look
down
there
and
you
see
your
name
on
it
and
you
look
at
the
shape
of
the
box
and
when
nobody
is
in
there
you
might
shake
it
a
little
bit
and
you
think
is
this
the
red
rider
BB
gun
I've
been
asking
for
there's
another
type
it's
the
kind
that
makes
you
smile
because
you
look
at
it
because
you
know
the
shape
of
the
box
because
you're
the
one
that
wrapped
it
and
you're
the
one
that
put
something
inside
of
it
you
know
who
it's
for
and
you
can't
wait
that's
not
the
gift
either
verse
24
when
Joseph
woke
up
he
did
what
the
angel
of
the
Lord
had
commanded
him
he
took
Mary
home
as
his
wife
but
he
did
not
consummate
their
marriage
until
she
gave
birth
to
a
son
and
he
gave
him
the
name
Jesus
you
see
God
with
us
tells
us
that
God
had
a
plan
and
God
with
us
tells
us
that
plan
had
a
purpose
and
our
final
point
this
morning
point
number
three
God
with
us
tells
us
that
we
must
respond
you
see
we
know
little
about
Joseph
we
know
he's
from
the
house
of
David
we
know
that
Mary
is
to
be
his
wife
we
know
of
his
character
because
in
verse
19
it
says
he
was
a
just
man
but
Joseph
knew
that
God
had
a
plan
and
while
that
plan
included
it
absolutely
deviated
from
the
one
that
Joseph
had
for
himself
and
what
unfolds
in
verses
24
and
25
is
a
picture
of
obedience
to
God's
plan
it
Joseph
letting
go
of
his
expectations
and
when
Joseph
did
as
the
Lord
commanded
and
gave
him
the
name
Jesus
we
then
see
the
greatest
gift
of
all
that
God
the
one
who
made
heaven
and
earth
the
sun
and
the
moon
and
the
stars
and
the
plants
of
the
field
and
the
birds
of
the
air
the
one
who
made
you
and
me
he
came
down
to be
with
us
and
he
did
it
just
as
he
planned
it
because
he
loves
us
and
he
wants
a
relationship
with
us
but
here's
the
truth
about
the
gift
it
must
be
received
it
must
be
accepted
revelations
3
20
it
says
behold
I
stand
at
the
door
and
knock
if
anyone
hears
my
voice
and
opens
the
door
I
will
come
in
to
him
and
eat
with
him
and
he
with
me
so
in
closing
this
morning
kind
of
as
our
worship
team
comes
back
up
I've
just
got
a
couple
of
questions
that
I
want
you
guys
to
just
think
on
as
we
enter
into
this
time
of
response
first
question
have
you
received
the
gift
of
salvation
if
you
have
not
received
this
gift
I
beg
you
to
have
a
conversation
with
someone
this
morning
you'll
notice
we'll
have
prayer
encouragers
on
either
side
of
the
stage
over
there
by
those
doors
I'll
be
back
in
the
back
of
the
connections
table
with
Dave
find
someone
here
this
morning
and
have
that
conversation
because
the
guy
that
made
you
wants
to
be
with
you
second
question
it's
really
more
of a
statement
and then
I'll
get to
the
question
I'm
sorry
the
guy
that
made
you
came
to
be
with
you
and
he
came
to
have
real
meaningful
relationship
with
you
would
you
describe
your
relationship
with
him
as
meaningful
would
you
describe
it
as
the
most
meaningful
relationship
in
your
life
you
see
in
revelations
chapter
three
Jesus
is
offering
this
invitation
to
a
lukewarm
church
right
it's
this
idea
of him
standing
at the
door
and
knocking
and
sometimes
we
kind
of
get
mixed
up
and
we
think
that
all
right
well
he's
standing
at
the
door
knocking
at
somebody
that
that's
lost
and
needs
saving
and
that's
absolutely
true
the context
of this
verse
and what
it's
speaking
to
is
he's
standing
at the
door
and he's
knocking
at the
hearts
of lukewarm
believers
too
he's
saying
he wants
to dine
with you
will you
let him
in
will you
let him
come sit
at your
table
so
here's
the
question
what's
holding
you
back
from
the
meaningful
impactful
relationship
that
God
intends
to
have
with
you
would
you
pray
with
me
father
god
i
thank
you
for
this
morning
lord
i
thank
you
for
this
christmas
season
i
thank
you
for
the
lights
the
decorations
and
the
presents
i
thank
you
for
time
with
family
thank
you
for
all
the
good
but
god
this
morning
i
pray
that
our
hearts
would
be
centered
on
the
best
news
of
all
and
that's
that
the
god
that
created
and
made
us
wants
to
be
with
us
god
this
morning
open
our
hearts
and
our
eyes
and
our
minds
to
respond
let's
not
leave
this
place
if
we
don't
have
a
meaningful
relationship
with
you
your
name
i
pray
amen
that's
it
for
this
week's
message
be sure
to check
back
next week
for a
new
episode
and in
the
meantime
you can
visit us
online at
willowridgechurch.org
or by searching
for willowridgechurch
on facebook
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and youtube
thanks again
for listening