Kenneth Copeland - Unto Us a Savior Is Born
Hello, everybody. I’m Kenneth Copeland, and this is the Believer’s Voice of Victory broadcast, and Merry Christmas. Glory to God. To all of our partners, so faithful all year long, and we appreciate you. And as you know, I preach to my partners, and then the other people can get in on it, because our partners are so faithful.
And Father, we thank You this morning in the name of Jesus, and we praise You and worship You. We thank You. You’re not a baby any longer. You are the Son of the living God that’s taken away the sin of the world, and You’re precious in our sight. In Jesus' name, amen.
So let’s open our Bibles to Matthew chapter 1, and look at the 18th verse. Now, the birth of Jesus Christ, now wait a minute. Jesus Christ, that is Messiah in Greek. So when you find the word «Christ», stop and meditate, and see what it’s there for. «The birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise. When his mother, Mary, was a spouse to Joseph before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Ghost. And Joseph, her husband, being a just man, and not willing to make her a public example…» Now we can see why God chose him. He didn’t want to make a public example out of her. He’s a just man.
«But while he thought on these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a dream, saying, 'Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife. For that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost, and she shall bring forth a son, and you’ll call his name Jesus. For he shall save his people from their sins.' Now all this was done that it might be fulfilled, which was spoken of the Lord by the prophets, saying, Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and they’ll bring forth a son, and call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted, God with us. Then Joseph, being raised from sleep, did as the angel of the Lord had bidden him, and took unto him his wife, and knew her not until she had brought forth her firstborn son, and he called his name Jesus. Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east, saying…»
Now these were the magi. Now Daniel was a magi, and they came. Now there were three gifts, but not three wise men. No. There were many treasures. Now «Bethlehem and the land of Judah are the late among the princes of Judah, for out of these shall come a governor, and he shall rule my people Israel. Then Herod, when he had privately called the wise men, inquired of them diligently what time the star appeared. And he sent them to Bethlehem, and said, Go and search diligently for the young child, not the baby, the young child. And when you have found him, bring me word again that I may come and worship him. When they had heard the king departed, and lo, the star which they saw in the east went before them till it came, and stood over where the young child was. When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceeding great joy. And when they were coming to the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother, and fell down and worshiped him. And when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto him gifts, gold, frankincense, and myrrh».
So they brought an offering, and this had to be the work of the Holy Spirit, because he’s speaking to Joseph in dreams. He’s a just man, and the Lord picked him to raise his Son. Now the little village of Nazareth, this is Rick Renner's Christmas, The Rest of the Story. And at home, this is what we use now. Scripture tells us the angel Gabriel came to Mary living in Galilee in a very obscure town called Nazareth. Although Nazareth is named in the New Testament, very little is known about it from ancient sources. It was such a small agricultural village that archaeological research concludes that Jesus' time, no more than 120 to 150 people lived there. So everybody knew him.
Then in the fourth chapter of the book of Luke, the Spirit of the Lord is upon me, for he has anointed me. We are so used to the word «anointed», they were not. Because what they heard, the Spirit of the Lord is upon me, for he has messiahed me. And we know his family. How could he be Messiah? Who does he think he is? He knew who he was, because he found himself in the book of Isaiah. But everyone that has ever come into a physical body in this earth had to be kin to somebody. That’s amazing to me. But at any rate, I won’t go into that any more than that. Now verse eight, «He sent them to Bethlehem and said, Go and search diligently for the young child. And when they were coming to the house, they saw the young child with Mary, his mother, fell down and worshiped him. And when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto him gifts, gold, didn’t say how much, frankincense, and myrrh».
So traditionally, they just took three wise men bringing three gifts. But we might as well be correct about it. There were many of them. They had to come from the east, and they were very wealthy. And they had to have an entourage to come through enemy territory. So they had to have soldiers to get there and to come and worship this young child in the little city of Nazareth. Now, why all the treasures? We know that the Lord told Joseph, «Get out of here and go to Egypt». Well, he had the money to do it. Praise God. They had what it took to take care of the young child.
Now, tradition tries to tell he was poor. He never was poor a day in his life, but he became poor so that in exchange at the cross, three days and three nights in hell itself, so we don’t have to go. But then God raised him from the dead. Praise God for our liberation. He was made sick with our sicknesses. He bore our sicknesses. He carried our pains, so we don’t have to bear them. And he bore all these things. But it was prophesied in two places, particularly in the book of Isaiah, that he would be born in Bethlehem. So let’s talk about that. It said when they taxed, they don’t tax poor people. When they were taxed, by the time they got there to Bethlehem, there was no room for them in the inn. Well, from Nazareth to Bethlehem on a donkey, pregnant, 90 miles, but it had already been prophesied.
So the Spirit of God put those words into the earth and by doing so, then we know the details and so we can stand on his Word. Now, then he was taken to the temple on the eighth day to be circumcised. Well, that was only eight miles for the sake of time. Two people, both of them prayers, were there when he was circumcised, Anna and Simeon. And he took the baby in his arms and blessed him. And she had been praying to see him. So the prayers were the only two that really knew who he was. Praise God. «Now, in those days came John Baptist preaching in the wilderness of Judaea saying, repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. For this is that which was spoken of the prophet Isaiah».
And you see how that works? Once the prophet said it and got it into the earth, wasn’t anything the devil could do about it. That was the job of the prophet in the first covenant, was to speak these things even though many centuries go by before they come to pass. But the prophets would prophesied, bring it into the earth. And then once it’s here, then the father can bring it to pass by his Spirit. In the beginning God. No, in the beginning Elohim, plural. Let us, plural, make man in our own image. What’s happening here? Well, the Savior is on his way because all three of them were present that day. Amen.
And it says, and the Spirit of God moved on the face of the deep and God said, so that’s Genesis 1:1. So now, «Then cometh Jesus from Galilee to Jordan to John the baptized of him. John forbad him saying, I have need to be baptized of thee and you come to me. Jesus answering said unto him, Suffer it to be so now for thus it becometh us to fulfill all righteousness. Then he suffered him. And Jesus, when he was baptized, went straight away out of the water and the heavens were opened unto him. And he saw the Spirit of God descending on him like a dove and lighting upon him. And lo a voice from heaven saying, This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased». Well, it’s impossible to please God without faith. So he walked by faith all the days of his life.
Now then, Mark chapter one, «In the beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, as it is written in the prophets, behold, I send my messenger before thy face and shall prepare thy way before thee. For the voice of one crying in the wilderness, prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his path straight». Now listen, «John did baptize in the wilderness and preach the baptism of repentance for the remission of sins. And they went out to him all of the land of Judaea and Jerusalem. They were being baptized of him in the river Jordan, confessing their sin. John was clothed with camel’s hair and a girdle of skin about his loins. And he did eat locusts and wild honey and preaching saying, There comes one mightier than I after me who’s latched of his shoes. I am not worthy to stoop down and unloose. I indeed have baptized you with water, but he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost. And it came to pass in those days that Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized of John in the Jordan. Coming up out of the water, a voice, Thou art my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased. And immediately the Spirit dragged him into the wilderness. And he was in the wilderness 40 days tempted of the devil with the wild beast and angels ministered unto him».
Six weeks with nothing to eat. Now let’s go over to the Luke’s gospel 4:18. But if you back up from that, now remember Luke’s gospel is a documentary. And then he wrote it to Theopolis. Now the tribes, if we may, we don’t have a real clue who Theopolis was, but he called him «excellent Theopolis». «So man shall not live by bread alone, but by every Word of God. The devil took him up into a high mountain» and you know the rest of that. «Get behind me, Satan, for it is written thou shall worship the Lord thy God and him only shall you serve».
Now he stepped off into the Spirit for six weeks. It says, and then he hungered. Well, starvation had set in. And you know, the devil, the first thing he did, «Turn these stones into bread». He could have done it, but he just kept saying it is written. It is said it is written. Now that’s the way you and I should come against the devil. And that’s the reason we need to know what the scripture says and how to get there. It is written. It is written. And you’ve heard me say it before. I have certain scriptures that when I got up this morning and when I start to shave, I have scriptures. Little, many, many ledger pads, you know, those little ones, write them out.
This is a little Scotch tape, stick it to the mirror. Every day. I get up and I said it this morning, «Today’s my receiving day». And when you think about it, your life began when you woke up today. Like the song says, yesterday’s dead and gone and tomorrow’s out of sight. Well, I’m not going to help you make it through the night, but the Lord will. But verse five, «Simon answering said to the Master, we toiled all night and have taken nothing. Nevertheless, it’s your Word. I’ll let down the net». He said nets.
«And when they had this done, they enclosed a great multitude of fishes and the net broke and they beckoned their partners, which were in the other ship and that they should come and help them. And they came and fill both ships so that they began to sink. When Simon saw it, he fell down to Jesus knees» and now he couldn’t get to his… he’s knee deep in fish when you’re not supposed to be in the daytime because the Galilee is so clear and you’d throw the net, the fish run from it. With Jesus in your boat, your treasures run towards you. So what’s happening here? The same thing that happened from the Magi. They went to the market and they had money enough then for him to start his ministry. Need I say more? He did it to prosper his people. Every time the Lord tells you to do something and you know it, you can rest assured he will provide for it. We’ll be right back in just a moment. Praise God.