Category: Christmas at Westminster

01/03/2021 | “The Great Exchange” | 2 Corinthians 5:11-21

01/03/2021 | “The Great Exchange” | 2 Corinthians 5:11-21

Literature is filled with compelling stories of exchanged lives — The Prince and the Pauper, or A Tale of Two Cities.  But there is no more compelling story than the “Son of God becoming man, so that men could become sons of God.”   This week as we conclude our study of the Westminster Shorter Catechism’s teaching on the Incarnation by considering the costliest exchange in history — the humiliation of Christ.   Join us as we examine 2 Corinthians 5:11-21 as we consider what this exchange meant for Jesus and what it means for us.

“The Great Exchange,” 2 Corinthians 5:14-21

12/27/2020 | “A Great Mystery” | Luke 1:26-38

12/27/2020 | “A Great Mystery” | Luke 1:26-38

In Luke 1:26-38, we have one of the most remarkable stories in scripture.   The angel, Gabriel comes to Mary with a startling announcement — she will be the mother of her Savior.   Unlike the fearful skepticism of Zechariah, Mary asks “how will these things be?”   A question we all wrestle with as we consider the nature of our Savior as fully God and fully man.   But in the answer, scripture points us to one of the most precious truths of our faith.   Because Mary asked this question, we, along with our forefathers can go to scripture and ask,

Q22: How did Christ, being the Son of God, become man? 
A22: Christ, the Son of God, became man, by taking to himself a true body, and a reasonable soul, being conceived by the power of the Holy Ghost, in the womb of the Virgin Mary, and born of her yet without sin. 

Join us as we examine Luke 1:26-38 and consider this question and why it is important.

“The Great Mystery,” Luke 1:26-38

12/20/2020 | “Who Is This?” | John 1:1-5, 9-14

12/20/2020 | “Who Is This?” | John 1:1-5, 9-14

When someone mentions Jesus, what comes to mind?  Religious revolutionary? Social justice warrior?  Ethical teacher?  Failed Zionist leader?  Founder of a yet another world religion? Who is this Jesus?  For many it is a caricature, influenced by pictures you have seen or by clichés which permeate our cultural ideas of “the historical Jesus.” 

Our seasonal displays of a baby Jesus in a lowly cattle stall have led us astray, thinking only of his humanity.   But in the opening chapter of John’s gospel, the beloved disciple pulls back the curtain to reveal “the rest of the story.”     You think you know who Jesus is?  Come and find out as we examine John 1:1-5, 9-14 and consider the “only Redeemer of God’s elect is the Lord Jesus Christ, who, being the eternal Son of God, became man, and so was, and continueth to be, God and man in two distinct natures, and one person, forever.” 

“Who Is This?” John 1:1-14

12/06/2020 | “The Plan” | Ephesians 1:3-10

12/06/2020 | “The Plan” | Ephesians 1:3-10

In Christ, redeemed mankind can boast more blessings than Adam ever had.   That is a remarkable statement.   This is what God planned for us always.   Time and time again we are told in Scripture that God has purposed grace in Christ, “from before the foundation of the world.”   Even in its fallenness, and sin, and sorrow, this world with its promise of redemption, regeneration, and renewal in Christ is the “best of all possible worlds.”   Nothing has gone amiss with God’s plan and purpose.  There is no waste, not “gratuitous evil” in God’s economy.  The world is not “off the rails.”   God’s perfect and gracious plan is unfolding, just as He intended it.  And in this we have hope.   He is the God who does all He pleases, and all He promises.  Join us as we examine Ephesians 1:3-10 and Galatians 4:4-7 and consider God’s eternal, unbreakable, and effective plan to save us from the power of our own sin. 

“The Plan,” Ephesians 1:3-10

11/29/2020 | “Compare and Contrast” | Ephesians 2:1-3

11/29/2020 | “Compare and Contrast” | Ephesians 2:1-3

The first chapter of Ephesians is a literary masterpiece.   In one long breath, Paul extols the amazing beauty and richness of God’s grace to those who are ‘in Christ.’   The Ephesian church faced severe crises internally and externally.   False teaching and persecution were leading many to ‘abandon their first love.’  So, God pulls back the curtain to show them the truth of their situation ‘in Christ.’   And to drive the point home, he reminds them of what life was like outside of Christ.  And in this great contrast we find a clear and concise picture of our lost condition.

Join us this season as we walk through the Westminster Shorter Catechism, Questions 19-23, and consider, ‘why and how Jesus became man in order to save us from ourselves.’  This week we begin in Ephesians 2:1-3, 12 by examining the misery of the condition into which the Fall and our own sin have brought us.  

“Compare and Contrast,” Ephesians 2:1-3