Jesus Born Within
An all-creatures Bible Message

Jesus Born Within
 
A Sermon Delivered to
The Compassion Internet Church
 
31 December 2017
 
Frank L. Hoffman, Pastor

Scripture References

Isaiah 61:10-11
Isaiah 62:1-5
Luke 2:21-40

Jesus born within us is our second birth; it is our spiritual rebirth, and it should be the beginning of a new life in the Lord.
 
It is when we not only allow, but welcome the Holy Spirit to dwell within us and make us into the peacemaking children of God that Jesus taught us to become.
 
With Jesus born within us, we just naturally desire to live in the heavenly will of God, and do everything in our power to help free creation from its present corruption.
 
In reality, this makes every day a type of New Year’s resolution, for we are constantly spotting corrupted things that are still within us and the world around us and doing everything we can to repent of these things and restore them to be in the creation intent and heavenly will of God.
 
This is what it truly means to be a Christian, for if we don’t have the heavenly love, compassion, and empathy of the Lord and truly feel the pain and suffering of the whole of creation (all humans, all the other animals, and the environment we all live in), and do something about it to end the pain and suffering and heal it and restore it to peace, we are not the children of God that Christians are supposed to be.
 
We may not be able to do everything ourselves, but we have to do something to make things better.
 
We must be part of the solution, and not a part of the problem; this is having Jesus born within us.
 
With these things in mind, let’s look at Isaiah 61:10-62:5, and see what the prophet tells us about what we should be like with Jesus born within us.

10. I will rejoice greatly in the LORD,
My soul will exult in my God;
For He has clothed me with garments of salvation,
He has wrapped me with a robe of righteousness,
As a bridegroom decks himself with a garland,
And as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.

Isaiah is telling us what it is like to have the Lord or Jesus born within us, and even though Isaiah lived some 700 years before Jesus’ first coming, he spiritually understands what it is like.
 
We could say that this kind of spiritual rebirth is a preview of what the second coming is all about, for Isaiah and we can inwardly feel the peace of God, which unfortunately most of the world has rejected.

11. For as the earth brings forth its sprouts,
And as a garden causes the things sown in it to spring up,
So the Lord GOD will cause righteousness and praise
To spring up before all the nations.

We hope and pray that we all have this spiritual vision with us, for it is the only way we can have true peace on earth.

Isaiah 62:1 For Zion's sake I will not keep silent,
And for Jerusalem's sake I will not keep quiet,
Until her righteousness goes forth like brightness,
And her salvation like a torch that is burning.

With Jesus born within us, we can’t keep silent either; we must take a stand against the forces of evil in this world and speak out against them; we must be a light to the world to chase away the darkness.

2. And the nations will see your righteousness,
And all kings your glory;
And you will be called by a new name,
Which the mouth of the LORD will designate.

Even as individuals, we should be seen and heard by the world around us.

3. You will also be a crown of beauty in the hand of the LORD,
And a royal diadem in the hand of your God.

If everything we do to counter evil in the world is done out of love, compassion and empathy, and not to receive any reward, then the Lord will wear us as a crown.

4. It will no longer be said to you, "Forsaken,"
Nor to your land will it any longer be said, "Desolate";
But you will be called, "My delight is in her,"
And your land, "Married";
For the LORD delights in you,
And to Him your land will be married.

The remnant of righteous people in the world have always been the ones to make big changes in the world; it is not a nation that brings change, but the righteous people within the nation, and we are to be some of them, that is, with Jesus born within us.

5. For as a young man marries a virgin,
So your sons will marry you;
And as the bridegroom rejoices over the bride,
So your God will rejoice over you.
NASB

This is the way we should be seen by the Lord.
 
Let’s now turn our attention to Luke 2:21-40, and see if we can discern what it means to have Jesus born within…

21. And when eight days were completed before His circumcision, His name was then called Jesus, the name given by the angel before He was conceived in the womb.

Circumcision was given to men as a personal symbol that they were a child of the covenant with God.
 
It was personal because it was hidden from view, but also because several times a day it would, or should remind the person that he was to be a child of the covenant with God, for we know that an infant cannot make that decision at that time, but they have that constant reminder of whom they were supposed to be.
 
It was a physical symbol of what was spiritually to be in their heart and soul; however, if we have Jesus born within us, that is the spiritual tie to the Lord that surpasses all the laws and covenants, because the Holy Spirit guides us in the heavenly will of God.

22. And when the days for their purification according to the law of Moses were completed, they brought Him up to Jerusalem to present Him to the Lord
 
23. (as it is written in the Law of the Lord, "Every first-born male that opens the womb shall be called holy to the Lord"),
 
24. and to offer a sacrifice according to what was said in the Law of the Lord, "A pair of turtledoves, or two young pigeons."

We now know, or should know, that God doesn’t want animal sacrifices, instead He wants our obedience and spiritual union, which is what Jesus born within gives us.

25. And behold, there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon; and this man was righteous and devout, looking for the consolation of Israel; and the Holy Spirit was upon him.

We have heard Christian clergy tell their congregations that only born again Christians can have the Holy Spirit, but this case proves that this statement is false; Simeon knew the truth and also had the Holy Spirit.

26. And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord's Christ.
 
27. And he came in the Spirit into the temple; and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to carry out for Him the custom of the Law,
 
28. then he took Him into his arms, and blessed God, and said,
 
29. "Now Lord, Thou dost let Thy bond-servant depart
In peace, according to Thy word;
 
30. For my eyes have seen Thy salvation,
 
31. Which Thou hast prepared in the presence of all peoples,
 
32. A light of revelation to the Gentiles,
And the glory of Thy people Israel."

All of us who have Jesus born within know the truth, just as Simeon did, and this allows us to spiritually connect with the Lord.

33. And His father and mother were amazed at the things which were being said about Him.

We have found that over time the amazement fades into the background, as we more and more think with the mind of Christ, instead of the ways the world thinks; it’s living in the wonderment of God.

34. And Simeon blessed them, and said to Mary His mother, "Behold, this Child is appointed for the fall and rise of many in Israel, and for a sign to be opposed — 
 
35. and a sword will pierce even your own soul —  to the end that thoughts from many hearts may be revealed."

Maybe we don’t want to hear such things, but with Jesus born within we have the indwelling of the Holy Spirit to comfort us.

36. And there was a prophetess, Anna the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was advanced in years, having lived with a husband seven years after her marriage,
 
37. and then as a widow to the age of eighty-four. And she never left the temple, serving night and day with fastings and prayers.

Anna lived this way, because she knew that this was what the Lord desired of her, and not to attract attention to herself, which is why the Lord inspired her to speak out about Jesus.

38. And at that very moment she came up and began giving thanks to God, and continued to speak of Him to all those who were looking for the redemption of Jerusalem.
 
39. And when they had performed everything according to the Law of the Lord, they returned to Galilee, to their own city of Nazareth.
 
40. And the Child continued to grow and become strong, increasing in wisdom; and the grace of God was upon Him.
NASB

When we have Jesus born within, we will also have the grace of God upon us.
 
When we have Jesus born within, we would never desire to eat the flesh of another living being, and we would work to free them from their present exploitation, for this brings God’s heavenly will to earth as it is in heaven.
 
When we have Jesus born within we will only eat the unprocessed plant foods that God created for us to eat.
 
And when we do this, we will also find that we no longer suffer from the chronic diseases that plague this earth, which is part of the grace of God poured out upon us.
 
Amen.

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