Pastor John Nixon -- If God Is A Baby

I want to talk to you a little bit on this topic I prepared I came across some notes some old notes from a seminary class and I found a quote one of my old professors had shared with us when I was in school from a German philosopher author Chopin how I had a theory concerning the nature of truth and here is what he said he said all truth passes through three stages first it is ridiculed second it is violently opposed and then finally it is accepted as though it was always self-evident if shopping how is right then truth itself never changes it's only our attitude toward it that changes and if shoppin how is right also this relevant to ministers if he's right then it takes courage to speak the truth in the first place knowing that it'll be ridiculed and opposed but because it is what it is truth must prevail the last word spoken on this planet is going to be the word of truth and to this word we are called then let the truth come and let the chips fall where they may I want to talk to you for a few minutes this morning out of Luke - let's go back there and I'm using this title if God is a baby four to seven to begin so Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea to Bethlehem the town of David because he belonged to the house and line of David he went there to register with Mary who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child while they were there the time came for the baby to be born and she gave birth to her firstborn a son she wrapped him in cloth the margin says strips of cloth and placed him in a manger because there was no room for them in the inn if baby Jesus is like the average newborn he is twenty inches long and weighs seven and a half pounds as he comes into the world his head is slightly elongated from the birth process and measures one-quarter his total body length his eyes are a little puffy his bones are supple and somewhat pliable with too noticeable soft spots of the undeveloped skull anterior and posterior the fontanel's he has all of his muscles but none of his teeth he can see but his depth of perception is limited about 18 inches he can hear smell taste and feel pain he can turn his head raise his chin grasp an object and cry but not much else he cannot walk or crawl or roll over by himself he is as helpless and vulnerable as any baby ever born and yet this is Almighty God contrary to the common conception Jesus is not born with special powers other babies do not have having laid aside his divine prerogatives he is limited to the normal scope of human infant capacity he cannot read minds or see through dense objects he does not possess adult intelligence or even self-awareness and there is no halo about his head he is just as dependent and just as unknowing as any baby ever born yet when Mary kisses the face of her little boy she is kissing the face of God she cradles in her arms the one who formed her in the womb the one without whom nothing was made that has been made who's fake and it was done and commanded and it stood fast the Great Creator who is uncreated enters creation through the birth canal and the implications are staggering beyond human comprehension there were other options open to God for his self revelation some of which even we could think of but this is what divinity chose that God should come as a baby and when we take the time to contemplate what God has done in Jesus Christ we are stunned into silence we don't know what to say we know we are standing on the ground we tiptoe around the manger in stillness and are picking up scraps of meaning here and there as we are able all the while filled with Wonder at so great a love and never dreaming the dream of complete comprehension it is beyond our ability to comprehend this is the science that will be our study throughout the ceaseless ages of eternity and I for one cannot wait to look into it with a better mind than this one under the tutelage of holy angels what precious gems will this study then yield but for now we must do what we can with what we have to understand what all this means for the life of faith beginning with this if God is a baby then the presence of God is hidden in a fallen world the glory of divinity is concealed in the incognito of human nature especially at the Alpha of his human life and at the Omega the manger and the cross Jesus of Nazareth is unrecognizable as God the contrast between what he is in himself and what he became in the flesh is of such infinite magnitude that it is impossible for human reason to penetrate the identity of God is obscured we cannot see him in the baby the maker of the universe is in an animal stall the Lord of all creation is cradled in a feeding trough for cattle Joseph has to clean out scraps of left over corn and hay so the king of glory can get some sleep and as he grows up it is not much better Jesus of Nazareth grows up in a low-rent district of a high crime community completely out of the public eye he never attends college he never travels to exotic locations he never wins a national title he never competes on American Idol there is nothing in his appearance that makes him outstanding Isaiah said he had no form or comeliness that we should even desire him and if this is Emmanuel God with us then a radical reordering of our entire value system is called for we have been valuing the wrong thing it's God is a baby the picture of success that has been drawn by the world is a warped image the American dream of financial independence movie star good looks and public notoriety is unworthy of the time and energy of any disciple of Jesus Christ it is not worth our time it's a false dream the bling-bling is in front of the cameras the light of the world is backstage or on some backstreet or in some hospital ward or on a cellblock Jesus has found in places we do not expect because the presence of God is not obvious it is hidden in a fallen world look at Matthew 25 with me right quick Matthew 25 35 and 36 and look at how Jesus depicts himself in the earth this is his parable of the sheep and the goats his his words at the end he says for I was hungry and you gave me something to eat I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink I was a stranger and you invited me in I needed clothes and you clothed me I was sick and you looked after me I was in prison and you came to visit me where does he say I was in the mansion kicking back by the pool drinking a daiquiri that's not in here Jesus never measured up to the standard of wealth and fame in his generation nor did he seek to and those who are his followers ought to walk as he walked Jesus is found in places we do not expect because the presence of God is not obvious to us it is hidden in a fallen world but there is another side to the incognito not only is Jesus found in places we would not expect he is also not found in some places we would expect we can never take the presence of God for granted salvation history shows us that God is completely free he will abandon even the institutions of his own making when we buy our sins degree them his own military his own people his own temple he will abandon them yes he is free he is God he said to Israel don't don't look around and say the Temple of the Lord the Temple of the Lord are these you know some we need to read that verse Jeremiah 7 turn turn to Jeremiah 7 you need to read this verse 3 and 4 this is what the Lord Almighty the God of Israel says Jeremiah 7 three and four reform your ways and your actions and I will let you live in this place first for do not trust in deceptive deceptive words and say this is the temple of the Lord the Temple of the Lord the Temple of the Lord 9 will you steal and murder commit adultery and perjury burn incense to bail and follow other gods you have not known and then come and stand before me in this house which bears my name and say we are safe safe to do all these detestable things do we really think that because we gather on the right day and congregate in a place we label house of God that Jesus will be among us no matter how we live what kind of God do we think we're serving do we think God is so simple-minded that he's flattered by our pompous prayers and our empty God talk is God captivated by the songs we sing without even thinking of him or the rituals we observe just going through the motions and all the while we can't even stand each other in the same church what kind of God do we think we're serving the incognito has two sides not only is it possible for faithless eyes to miss Jesus when he is there it is also possible for presumptuous eyes to see him when he is not there if God is a baby then the presence of God is hidden in a fallen world we cannot take him for granted I got to turn back to that text dr. Shan just gave us it's not in my notes but dr. Shan just pointed us 1st Corinthians 16 and any time somebody calls out a verse I turn to it because I want to see what it says for myself and he talked about that Maranatha pod that's how it ends but you know the first part of that verse reads first within 1622 if anyone does not love the Lord a curse be on him that's the bottom line do we love him and if we say yes he's gonna make us prove it if God is a baby and his presence is hidden in a fallen world but not only that if God is a baby then the revelation of God is specific in time and place the mode of entry of Jesus into the human family presents a challenge for faith just because it is particular God doesn't just become man he becomes a particular man not a woman of a particular culture at a particular time in a particular place and immediately the majority of the human family is excluded he was Jesus of Nazareth not Jesus of Europe or Jesus of Africa Jesus of Nazareth he spoke semitic language he wore eastern clothing and followed eastern customs he joined a particular church God became a historical Jew and if worship or discipleship were going to be based on culture the logical choice would be Hebrew culture Jesus was a Jew it's okay to get quiet on this part it's alright I'm not going to stop not till I've said everything now to be sure Jesus was not a typical Jew he did not subscribe to the biases and prejudices of his own people and by the way whatever our culture whatever our nation we are not to be typical citizens down not us Jesus was no typical Jew he never permitted the conventions of his own culture to keep him from reaching those he came to say he crossed all manner of human barriers to reach people for God and nothing could stop his love but notice this people also had to cross barriers to reach him to Samaritans had to accept a Jew as their Savior and Romans and Greeks too and so must we we do not have the right to tell Jesus that he must clothe himself in our culture in order to be relevant as our Lord he's Jesus of Nazareth not Jesus of Europe or Jesus of Africa God is free to choose his own mode of self-revelation and he has done so in Jesus of Nazareth this one man don't look for another look at his word John 4:22 24 sir the woman said 19 sir the woman said I can see you our prophet our fathers worshiped on this mountain but you Jews claim that the place where we must worship is in Jerusalem notice she's the one that raises the cultural issue not Jesus didn't make any difference to him it made a difference to her she brought it up 21 jesus declared believe me woman a time is coming when you will worship the father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem you Samaritans worship what you do not know we worship what we do know because salvation is from the Jews yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the father in spirit and truth for they are the kind of worshipers the father seeks God is spirit and they that worship Him must worship in spirit and in truth Jesus denies completely the culture wars he gives them no validity whatsoever they are no account to him Christianity creates its own culture that embraces every culture and brings all of them under judgment and the judgment is this every nation every culture has failed to serve God all have sinned and come short of the glory of God in Europe in Africa in Asia all have seen God is spirit now we must go and learn what that means our culture can teach us that in the beginning God creates us in His image in the rebellion we create God in our image no no God is spirit and they that worship Him must worship in spirit and in truth if God is a baby then the revelation of God is particular in time and place but not only that if God is a baby then it takes poverty of spirit to worship Him God in the flesh is not a mathematical equation it is not that kind of truth when Mary asked the angel how she would become pregnant having never been with a man the angel did not give her a formulaic answer he simply said the Holy Ghost will come upon you and the power of the most high will overshadow you so that that holy thing to be born to you will be called son of God he did not scientifically explain the Incarnation and neither can we it is not that kind of truth we do not deduce God by our cognitive powers the incognito is a minister as a mystery penetrated in only one way by the gift of faith it is a confession not a deduction so the priests of Jerusalem who had the Oracles of God with them would not travel six miles to Bethlehem to worship the new king but the Magi traveled hundreds of miles to see him and they weren't even Jews they came across a prophecy 1,400 years old from an ancient discredited prophet it said a star shall come out of Jacob and a scepter shall rise out of Israel so they began to watch the sky or astral phenomena one day they see this unusual light it doesn't behave like a normal star and they pack up their things everything they have they bring their servants and they bring gifts and they seek out they go out and they follow this star not knowing where it will lead them stay with me now I said it takes poverty of spirit to worship a baby stay with me they reach the holy city of which they have read this is the place they think well they'll know about this king but they find that nobody is preparing to meet the new king nobody is celebrating his birth they tell the story of the miraculous star that they have followed for hundreds of miles but the priests of Jerusalem act as though they know nothing about it but is not the lack of knowledge that causes this reaction it is bigotry they discredit the Magi because they are heathens and infidels and they refuse to believe that God would pass them by and reveal himself to the heathen so they reject them they pay them no attention and the servant of God says that God holds the Magi in higher esteem than his own professed followers because their hearts were sincere God is no respecter of persons he's looking for sincere hearts what did they have that the priests did not have they had poverty of spirit a deep sense of humility and of their need for God great men don't worship a baby you have to have poverty of spirit it is the first beatitude of Jesus Christ in the Sermon on the Mount blessed are the poor in spirit for theirs is the kingdom of heaven the natural inclination is to build up the self the further we go in this life but the incognito teaches us that it is a blessing and not a curse to know oneself to be wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked it is this self image that commends itself to God God is looking for sincere hearts it takes faith to worship a baby if God is a baby then the presence of God is hidden in a fallen world if God is a baby then his revelation the earth is particular as to time and place and if God is a baby it takes poverty of spirit to worship Him great men don't worship babies who would have thought we could learn so much from a baby yet this is God's Way in the earth his light does not come to great men it comes to the humble the contract the poor in spirit and we should thank God and the servant of God says this she says in the kingdom of God there are no great men there are no great men we got one great man in this church and his name is Jesus she said in the kingdom of God she said the only greatness is the greatness of humility we don't learn that from our culture we got to go to Jesus to learn what that means and God is looking for such to worship Him who believes God's Word you believe today let me close you know I like cereal in the morning sometimes but I cannot drink milk so I sought out other beverages something to complement my cereal I tried soy milk again didn't make me sick but I just wasn't my thing I didn't like it I tried silk - I tried silk my wife is drinking silk I put some on yeah when quite right finally I found something just right for my cereal just right you know what it was rice dream I started putting a rice dream on my cereal do you know why I like rice dream because it has no flavor so it takes on the flavor of whatever it is combined with that's why I'm coming home now put rice stream on your bran flakes and it tastes like bran flakes put rice cream on your Cheerios it tastes like Cheerios put some rice dream on your granola and it tastes like granola it takes on the flavor of whatever it is added to you know the kingdom of God needs some more rice dream for God's kingdom and we are so busy trying to show our black faith flavor or our white flavor or our American flavor that Jesus cannot express his flavor in us kingdom of God needs some rice dream to take on his flavor in the world God looked all around to find a vessel through which he could send his son into the world and he picked this girl marry some of the commentators say she was a teenager some say she might have been in youngest 13 or 14 years old God looked all around for somebody to believe vehicle for his son to come into the world and he picked this young girl do you know what qualified her two things number one she was devoted to God and number two she had never been with a man so God could use her as the vessel for his unique son and ever since that day God has been looking for vessels for his son he wants Jesus to be born in every one of us but we're so busy trying to be how big bad cells that God can't get a crack to let his light shine we all devoted to God but it takes poverty of spirit to be devoted to God and nobody else God and nobody else that's what God's looking for may he find it in us we've all been blessed heavenly brain as always with them passed the Nixon I've known him most of his life and we've always appreciated his his messages I had planned to sing one song but after here in this sermon tonight I think the song that I'm going to attempt to sing is fitting and proper were it not for grace if were not for grace path all right time measured out my days life carrying me along in my soul I earn to follow God I never be so strong I look hard at this world to learn how heaven can be gay just to in where I began where human effort is all in me were it not for grace I can tell you where I'd won renown some pointless road to nowhere when my salvation to me and I know how that would go the battles I would face forever honey butter losing the race wear it not for grace so here is all my fries express with all my heart offer to a friend took my place and read of course I did not start but when he look and saw just how much is love would call yes he went the final mile between me and heaven I could not be long were it not for great I can tell you we're wandering down some heartless road to nowhere with my salvation and I know how that the battles I would say hard ever-ready party losing that race we're not hungry whatever running but losing the race we're it not for great in God's house today who wants to make a commitment to cross a barrier in order to worship Jesus more fully to cross a barrier nobody nobody gets to Jesus without crossing barriers the way is not that clear you got to take a step you got to risk something and some of us have been holding out on him because we don't want to let go of what makes us feel secure I want to make a call I want to pray for somebody who wants to cross a barrier for Jesus let me just say something just came to my mind I wasn't planning to say no god help me yeah Messiah when we when we left to go to a you see some of our black friends said they leave in black people to go be with white people when we left agency to go to Capitol Hill some of my white friends said they had enough of white people they going back to be with black people again when we left Oakwood to go to college Dale some of our friends said you're gonna fall flat on your face we've been pastor in 30 years we've been in six conferences three regional conferences three state conference we paid no attention to the barriers drawn by the church in North America we cross them with complete freedom as we feel lay by God's fear we cross them right back and forth completely free we're with God's people we don't care what their race or culture but you know what I found we don't trust God enough to do that we want to stay where we feel safe and secure where we can control everything don't talk about my church out there in college Dale those people took a step they decided to risk something we didn't ask to go they asked us to come and they asked twice let me tell you something the first time we turned him down if all they wanted to do was make a show they were off the hook we let him off talked they said we asked him and he wouldn't come they could have moved on and I just found out last week somebody on the church board told me they said it was good and beats the president of the University who stood up in board meeting and he said I just feel impressed let's call John Nixon again let's try to get Mesa and the church said yeah let's call them and when we went to meet with them Javon and I we talked the night before we said we're not going to try to impress them we're not going to say what we think they want to hear we're going to be our real selves if they don't want us let's find out right now we didn't put on airs we didn't pretend to be other than who we were we went in and we raised the tough questions and answered them and they said we want you to come and be our spiritual leader they took a step they took us what about us one step I want to pray for somebody today who wants to take a step cross a barrier to give God a chance I want to pray for somebody like that come and join me want to pray for somebody just like that father we want to thank you for your son and for the great distance he traveled and for all the lines he crossed to come down here and to be with us and to give himself to us not only in his death but in his life he gave everything he held nothing back servant of God says in story of redemption that when the Angels first heard of the plan of redemption and what it would cost to save mankind they could not rejoice they did not want to give up the darling of heaven then a son of God sat them down and had a talk with them he explained to them what he would be able to accomplish if he came and when they understood it better even the angels were able to rejoice thank you here you've come so far and given up so much to be with us unto safer and we cling to our puny little things down here and don't want to give them up for you we're ashamed of ourselves and we apologize so lord we've come to the altar today because we want to do a new thing we're ready to take a chance for you now chance we didn't have the courage to take before and we ready now you've touched our hearts we're ready to make ourselves vulnerable for your kingdom the way you made yourself vulnerable for us father you knew while you are forming us in the dust what it would cost to bring us into existence you could have stopped right then and say no I changed my mind I'm not gonna make this race of people you knew while you were forming Adams hand in the dust that that would be the very hand that would place the crown of thorns on your head you know it then you made the great sacrifice for us and we're shamed of ourselves that we've held out on you no more of that Lord we're ready now to make the great sacrifice for you so challenge us Lord give us a chance remind us of our commitment when the moment comes and help us to step out on faith make ourselves vulnerable and risk something for your kingdom we need your grace to do it help us Lord do a new thing and that the glory be unto God and not bless your people in awkward and at college down they say oh lord help me now we want to print a truth they say that Oakwood is the stronghold for black Adventism and southern is the stronghold for white Adventism what does that have to do with the kingdom of God any of we're ashamed of us we want to do a new thing we want Oakwood and southern to be the bastion of God's kingdom God's Universal Kingdom all over the world a new thing you're big enough you're big enough you're great enough and we trust you Lord forgive us cleanse us change us give us another chance help us to do your thing and let it be for your glory your glory alone that we may see your face in peace lift up our heads lo this is our God we have waited for him and he will save us and we're all going home together all of us thank you thank you make it so by your grace in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord and see that we love him with all our hearts in his name we pray and we all say together amen never

Channel: Healthy Lifestyle Choices

Views: 15,281

Rating: 4.7410073 out of 5

Keywords: God as a baby, john nixon, Oakwood college

Id: PCwhZl8niFw

Length: 49min 14sec (2954 seconds)

Published: Sat Feb 23 2013