Our name | Mission | Vision | Leaders Ministries | Schedule | Directions | Contact Home   Gateway Church gathers for worship Sundays at 10:30 a.m. Location: 6425 Jefferson Rd. (Hwy. 129) in Athens, Georgia. For directions, click here. Ministry of the Word: Recent sermons Our quarterly e-magazine Gateway Today For the Gateway family Pastor Jerry's Weekly E-Mail A GATEWAY SERMON SUMMARY AUDIO The glory of Christmas Jerry Varnado, pastor Gateway Church, Athens GA December 17, 2006 Third Sunday in Advent NOTE: This sermon is based on the Gateway choir's Dec. 17 musical presentation, The Glory of Christmas. Long lay the world in sin and error pining. That line in the song, O Holy Night, refers to a time before the night of "our dear savior's birth." But in many ways, it refers to the time we live in now. The world, at least many parts of it, is still best by sin and error. And even though the Savior has come, the whole earth does not rejoice at the breaking of "a new and glorious morn." Many still have not heard the Good News. Many who have heard don't believe this baby born in Bethlehem is indeed the the savior of the world. Nonetheless, what happened at the first Christmas changes everything -- for those who already believe and those who don't as yet. When Jesus appeared, the soul -- the deepest part of every human being -- "felt its worth." It was for us, fallen humanity, that the God who created the universe became a human being. He loved us and came to rescue us. Indeed, God values you and me so highly that He was willing to die to gain our love and friendship. He deems us worthy, even though we are so unworthy. Who was invited to see the Christ, to welcome in the world? Mary and Joseph were average peasant folk. The shepherds were lowest people in the societal pecking order of that culture. The wise men were wise and wealthy and powerful. Do you get the picture? God is reaching out to all -- male and female, strong and weak, rich and poor, young and old, the powerful and powerless. All are welcome. Why was it such "a new and glorious morn"? The answer is found in the baby's name. Jesus -- which means: "The Lord saves." God has reached out to us. Let us fall on our knees and humble ourselves before Him. A savior is born, who is Christ the Lord. Yes, many parts of earth still lay "in sin and error pining" -- but Christmas offers hope to a decaying, desolate world. In Christmas, the Father began to unveil a plan that would give us the power to overcome every adversity that confronts us. And he gave us hope for a glorious future with God. There are a lot of people around in desperate need of Christmas. So let's "go tell on the mountain -- over the hills and everywhere. Jesus Christ is born! He is the Savior -- and He is the Lord! A mp3 audio file of this sermon is here (11 min.). (Download to a PC by right clicking on the link and choosing "Save Target As." Mac users: click, hold, and choose "Download Link to Disk." Depending on your connection speed, the file may take several minutes to download.) An audio tape of the sermon summarized above is available free of charge (U.S. requests only). Request a tape by calling or writing the Gateway Church office. Please specify tape number 061217a: The Glory of Christmas. © 2006 Gerald R. Varnado To the Gateway Church home page How to contact us