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“Look! The virgin will conceive a child! She will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel, which means ‘God is with us.’” (Matthew 1:23 NLT) As Christmas approaches, we have the opportunity to carefully consider the wonder of the Incarnation—that mysterious moment when God became a man. Of course, there’s no way for us to fully appreciate the sacrifice involved. But that shouldn’t stop us from trying. Jesus Christ—God the Son—set aside His glory, power, and majesty. He stepped out of eternity and into our temporal world. He submitted Himself to the restrictions, pain, and suffering of physical existence. He took His place on the lowest rungs of the socioeconomic ladder. He was born in a manger. He left the throne of Heaven for a feeding trough. He left the presence of angels to enter a cave filled with animals. He who is larger than the universe became an embryo. He who sustains the world with a word chose to be dependent upon the nourishment of a young virgin. And that’s a key aspect of the Incarnation. Some people have a hard time believing in the Virgin Birth. If you believe the Bible, you need to believe in the Virgin Birth. The Bible teaches that God Almighty was supernaturally conceived in the womb of a virgin. Matthew 1:23 says, “Look! The virgin will conceive a child! She will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel, which means ‘God is with us’” (NLT). This makes sense if you think about it. If God had chosen to, He could have sent Jesus to earth as a fully grown, yet sinless human being. Jesus could have descended from Heaven in a shaft of light. But if He had come to us in that way, He would have been more like an alien visitor than like one of us. How would it be possible for us to relate to Him as a person, as a part of humanity? God also could have had Jesus come into the world through the natural reproductive process of two ordinary human beings—but still given Jesus a divine nature. But then most of us would have doubted His divinity. That’s why the Incarnation makes sense. The Incarnation is the reason for the Christmas season. Christmas is the opportunity to worship God, to bow down and pay homage to Him for humbling Himself and appearing in human form. The apostle Paul wrote of Jesus, “Though he was God, he did not think of equality with God as something to cling to. Instead, he gave up his divine privileges; he took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being. When he appeared in human form, he humbled himself in obedience to God and died a criminal’s death on a cross” (Philippians 2:6–8 NLT). That stands as the true mystery of the Incarnation—and the reason we celebrate Christmas. Reflection question: How does Jesus’ Virgin Birth underscore God’s perfect plan of salvation? Discuss Today's Devo in Harvest Discipleship! — The audio production of the podcast "Greg Laurie: Daily Devotions" utilizes Generative AI technology. This allows us to deliver consistent, high-quality content while preserving Harvest's mission to "know God and make Him known." All devotional content is written and owned by Pastor Greg Laurie. Listen to the Greg Laurie Podcast Become a Harvest PartnerSupport the show: https://harvest.org/supportSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
As broken, sinful people, our greatest need is forgiveness, so God sent a Savior to rescue and redeem us. Have you personally experienced the miracle of salvation? In this message called, THE MIRACLE OF SALVATION, Pastor Jeff Schreve shares three truths concerning the heart of Jesus, and how His gift of salvation is for anyone who will come to Him in repentance and faith. This message is from the series, THE MIRACLES OF CHRISTMAS.
We have looked at our need for a King, the promise of a King and the family of the King. In this message we look at the making of a King. King Jesus is fully God and fully man, born of a virgin. Only in Him can we be saved from our sins. Will you receive this King? This message was preached by Pastor Erick Cobb on December 21, 2025.
Jesus Christ is Immanuel, God with us, and the Savior who has saved His people from their sins.
On today's Christmas episode of the podcast, Pastor Cameron reads several encouraging Christmas passages from the Scriptures. We rejoice that Jesus came to earth in order to be with His people and save us from our sins! Merry Christmas from The 8 Minute Devotion! We will be on a break until the new year, with new episodes coming soon!
This week, we conclude our Advent Series, "Desperate Measures", by turning to God's ongoing story of love made real to the world. How might God be inviting us to be present in incarnational love this week for our communities?
The World Turned Upside DownDecember 21, 2025 Worship GatheringsPastor Mark SatterfieldThe Glade ChurchTo support this ministry and help us continue to reach people click here: http://www.thegladechurch.org/give—— Stay Connected Website: http://www.thegladechurch.org/The Glade Church Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheGladeChurchThe Glade Church Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thegladechurch
Sermon Series | Advent: The Arrival of Christ for an Anxious WorldTo give to our M25 Initiative, text m25 to 623.252.5085 or visit redaz.in/m25.To download our Mobile App, search Redemption Church Peoria where you download apps to your device(s).To connect with us, visit this link: http://redaz.in/RPTo invest in our ministry financially, visit this link: https://bit.ly/3roZDAW
Preacher: Aaron MenikoffTitle: The Christmas SermonSeries: The Christmas SermonPassage: Matthew 1:1–17
Program for 12/22/25 Christmas 2025: Matthew 1
Sermon: “No Offense” by Leanne Watkins Scripture Reading: Matthew 1 House of Mercy Church in St. Paul, Minnesota is an intellectually curious, artistically forward, community--called the best church for non-churchgoers by the City Pages. House of Mercy's weekly service includes award-winning sermons, always intriguing guests playing the best in country gospel/Americana music, and regular offerings from the hardest working band in the church band business: The Grand Old Grievous Angel Band. Find us at houseofmercy.org Contact us at info@houseofmercy.org Donate at tinyurl.com/Donate-to-HOM
CURRENT SERIES - Arrival: A Journey Through the Season of Expectation This Advent, we invite you to pause, reflect, and prepare your heart for the coming of Christ through our series Arrival. In a world marked by uncertainty, division, and constant noise, we yearn for signs that God is still breaking through—still showing up in unexpected ways to make good on ancient promises. Arrival explores the profound truth that God doesn't wait for perfect conditions to enter our lives. Hope arrives in seasons of waiting. Peace arrives amid chaos. Joy arrives independent of our circumstances. Love arrives in the most inhospitable places. And Light arrives to dispel every darkness. Over four weeks, we'll journey through the themes of Advent with fresh eyes, discovering that Christ's arrival isn't just a historical event we commemorate—it's an ongoing reality we can experience today.
The Unedited Genealogy of Jesus “This is the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah…” — Matthew 1:1 We are accustomed to telling our stories selectively. We polish the edges, omit the failures, and highlight the moments that make us appear respectable. Scripture itself records that genealogies were often written this way—compressed, edited, and curated. Yet when Matthew opens his Gospel, he does something startling. He edits, yes—but not the way we would expect. He leaves the shame in. The family line of Jesus Christ is not a showcase of uninterrupted virtue. It is a record of sinners, scandals, and severe moral collapse. Judah and Tamar. Rahab the prostitute. Ruth the outsider. David and “the wife of Uriah.” Kings who shed innocent blood and led God's people into darkness. Matthew does not blur these names into obscurity; he underlines them. He insists that we see the Messiah standing at the end of a long, broken line. This is not carelessness—it is purposeful. God is telling us something essential about the heart of redemption. If Jesus were ashamed of broken people, He would have edited them out of His own family tree. But He did not. The people we would hide are the very people God highlights. The people we would disqualify are the people God deliberately includes. From the beginning, the incarnation declares that Jesus did not come from sanitized humanity, but from real humanity—and therefore He has come for it. Here is the first truth we must face: anyone can belong to His family. Not because sin does not matter, but because grace matters more. The genealogy preaches before Jesus ever speaks. It announces that doubt, failure, addiction, and disgrace do not place you beyond reach—they place you precisely within the kind of reach Christ came to extend. The bloodline of Jesus says to the least and the lost, “There is room.” But Matthew presses us further. This family tree also reveals that God redeems what we assume is ruined. David's greatest failure is not erased; it is transformed. From a union marked by adultery and death comes Solomon—and through Solomon, the promises of God move forward. Redemption does not deny the damage of sin, but it refuses to let sin have the final word. God takes what we are most ashamed of and makes it the very place where His life breaks through. What we call disqualifying, He calls redeemable. What we bury, He resurrects. Do not ask whether Jesus can handle your past. Look at His genealogy. Do not wonder if your worst mistake is too far gone. Look at the cross, where the Son of God was hung on a tree, covered in the full weight of human shame, so that shame would no longer own us. The question is not whether He can redeem—it is whether you will hand Him what needs redeeming. Bring it into the light. Invite Him into the place you avoid. He is not embarrassed by your story. He entered history precisely to transform it. Let Him.
Advent 2025 Love Draws Near Matthew 1:18-25 Christ Church Kingwood December 21, 2025 Preacher: Patrick Wimberly
FPC Knoxville's 12/21/25 Sunday Sermon - “God-With-Us” - Rev. Mark Curtis (Isaiah 7:10-14/Matthew 1:18-25)Hymn of Response - "What Child is This" performed by Scott Scheetz and our adult choir.Prayers of the People and The Lord's Prayer by Rev. Dr. Meredith Loftis
• Pastor Stanton's message for: Sun, Dec. 21 2025• Isaiah 41:5-10, Matthew 1:18-25 (The angel visits Joseph in a dream)• Narrative Lectionary: Year 4• From First Lutheran Church in Onalaska, WI• Support this ministry at 1stlu.org/give• Join us! 1stlu.org/worship
----- Worship Times Sunday – 8:00 & 10:45 a.m. Monday – 6:30 p.m. https://trinitysheboygan.org https://facebook.com/trinitysheboygan We are a congregation of the Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod. Join us as we proclaim Christ crucified and risen for the forgiveness of sins. --- Trinity Lutheran Church, School and Child Care have been "Making Known the Love of Christ" in Sheboygan, Wisconsin and throughout the world since 1853 as a congregation gathering around God's Word and Sacraments to receive forgiveness and life everlasting. Trinity is located in downtown Sheboygan, only one block from the Mead Public Library and the Weill Center for the Performing Arts. We invite you to visit us in person! Trinity Lutheran Sheboygan is a proud member of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod. Visit their website: https://www.lcms.org/ Music for this production was obtained through a licensing agreement with One License, LLC. The copyright permission to reprint, podcast, and record hymns and songs is acquired through ID Number: 730195-A #LCMS #Lutheran #DivineService
----- Worship Times Sunday – 8:00 & 10:45 a.m. Monday – 6:30 p.m. https://trinitysheboygan.org https://facebook.com/trinitysheboygan We are a congregation of the Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod. Join us as we proclaim Christ crucified and risen for the forgiveness of sins. --- Trinity Lutheran Church, School and Child Care have been "Making Known the Love of Christ" in Sheboygan, Wisconsin and throughout the world since 1853 as a congregation gathering around God's Word and Sacraments to receive forgiveness and life everlasting. Trinity is located in downtown Sheboygan, only one block from the Mead Public Library and the Weill Center for the Performing Arts. We invite you to visit us in person! Trinity Lutheran Sheboygan is a proud member of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod. Visit their website: https://www.lcms.org/ Music for this production was obtained through a licensing agreement with One License, LLC. The copyright permission to reprint, podcast, and record hymns and songs is acquired through ID Number: 730195-A #LCMS #Lutheran #DivineService
Pastor Mac provides a topical teaching of Matthew CH 1:18-25 regarding the events that surrounded the amazing birth of the Messiah. This teaching will expound on these verses and examine the heart of Joseph and lessons that can be learned from his response, as well as review some details as it pertains to the house of David and why only Jesus can claim rights to the throne. In addition, we will look at some specific prophecies captured in Isaiah as we give glory to the Savior knowing that God is indeed with us. Social MediaProphecy Website: http://JDFarag.orgMobile & TV Apps: https://subsplash.com/calvarychapelkaneohe/appChurch Website: http://www.calvarychapelkaneohe.comX: https://x.com/JDFaragFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/JDFaragInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/JDFarag
This is Wade's sermon at Resurrection Lutheran Church in Milwaukee, WI for the second Advent Vespers. The text is Matthew 1:18-25. We'd love to have you join us at Resurrection for a Sunday service sometime at 9am. As always, if you are enjoying the show, please subscribe, rate, and review us on iTunes, Stitcher, Google Play, Spotify, or TuneIn Radio. You can also like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter. And, of course, share us with a friend or two! If you'd like to contact us we can be reached at podcast@LetTheBirdFly.com, or visit our website at www.LetTheBirdFly.com. Thanks for listening!
Lead Pastor Kris McDaniel preaches from Matthew.Learn more at atltrinity.org.
This week, Jeremy Daniel concluded our Christmas Grace series with a message from Matthew 1-2. In the incarnation, Christ stepped down to bring hope, push back darkness, and establish His eternal kingdom. Because of who Jesus is and what He has done, we are invited to enter in, stand firm, push back in faith, and bow down in worship before our incomparable King.
This is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about.When his mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph,but before they lived together,she was found with child through the Holy Spirit.Joseph her husband, since he was a righteous man,yet unwilling to expose her to shame,decided to divorce her quietly.Such was his intention when, behold,the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said,"Joseph, son of David,do not be afraid to take Mary your wife into your home.For it is through the Holy Spiritthat this child has been conceived in her.She will bear a son and you are to name him Jesus,because he will save his people from their sins."All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet:Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son,and they shall name him Emmanuel,which means "God is with us."When Joseph awoke,he did as the angel of the Lord had commanded himand took his wife into his home.
Pastor Boyd Bettis preaches on the Advent of Love using Matthew 1:18-23.
Matthew's Christmas story teaches us something essential about decision-making. When one person chooses to trust God in uncertain and challenging circumstances, they are likely to discover they are not alone—and that God is quietly at work in many hearts at the same time, bringing about awe-inspiring and unexpected good.
After Adam and Eve's since caused separation, God's presence was permanently restored in the person of Jesus.
God – with – us. Today we reflect on the meaning of these three powerful words describing the name given to Jesus at His birth – “Immanuel.” We'll reflect on the gift of Jesus' presence with us in the good times, bad times, and everywhere in between. Through worship, selected readings, testimony, and prayer … encounter Jesus, Immanuel this Sunday at PFC!
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Your Story in the Christmas Story: Lessons from the Genealogy of Jesus-Matthew 1:1-17 by Chaplain Braswell
Main Idea: Because Jesus was conceived by the Spirit and born of Mary, He alone is the God-man who can save you. 1. The Virgin Conception Explained (18-23) 2. The Virgin Birth Confirmed (24-25)
In this Christmas message, Pastor Josh walks through the overlooked story of Joseph and the quiet space between confusion and obedience. Before the angel appeared, before clarity came, Joseph sat in the gap—wrestling with disappointment, fear, and silence. And it's there that we discover a powerful truth: God is at work even when He feels absent.This message explores the meaning of Emmanuel—God with us, reminding us that hope is not an idea or a feeling. Hope has arrived. Jesus came not just for us, but to us—and He remains with us in the waiting, the uncertainty, and the ordinary moments of life.This message culminates in a clear invitation to salvation for anyone who is tired, searching, or ready to come home.Support the show
Through the ESV New Testament in 90 Days with David Cochran Heath
❖ Follow along with today's reading: www.esv.org/Matthew1-2 ❖ The English Standard Version (ESV) is an 'essentially literal' translation of the Bible in contemporary English. Created by a team of more than 100 leading evangelical scholars and pastors, the ESV Bible emphasizes 'word-for-word' accuracy, literary excellence, and depth of meaning. ❖ To learn more about the ESV and other audio resources, please visit www.ESV.org
Title: A Better Family TreeScripture Reading: Matthew 1:1-2, 16-17Series: A Better StoryIn this episode of A Better Story, co-host Katie Hartline joins the discussion to unpack the surprisingly messy family tree of Jesus found in Matthew 1. We explore why God chose to include outsiders, deceivers, and even a king who practiced human sacrifice in the lineage of the Messiah. Discover how this "unsanitized" genealogy proves that God doesn't just fix the past—He redeems it, offering hope to every broken family and individual today.
The sermon in this episode is a presentation narrated by a youth member of Lutheran Memorial Church, Charlie Hull. It is the story of the Christmas truce between young American and German soldiers during World War I. The Gospel reading is from Pastor Jeff Sorenson.
12/21/2025 Morning Service – “God With Us” by Jon Kile. Matthew 1:18-25
Join as Pastor John challenges with the Christmas Story "He Shall Save."
Readings: Isaiah 7:10-16 | Romans 1:1-7 | Matthew 1:18-25 | Psalm 80:1-7, 16-18. Preached for the Fourth Sunday of Advent (2025-12-21).
Readings: Isaiah 7:10-16 | Romans 1:1-7 | Matthew 1:18-25 | Psalm 80:1-7, 16-18. Preached for the Fourth Sunday of Advent (2025-12-21).
Support the showRedeemer Church Murfreesboro PCA is 'together trusting the real God to redeem real people"