Let Me In

 

 

Isaiah 9:6 For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.

 

As we read through the Bible it’s evident that God desires to have a relationship with His people.

 

In the first book of the Bible – The book of Genesis, we find God walking in the cool of the day with Adam.

 

• However after sin entered into Eden, we see mankind being expelled from the garden and separated from the friendship of God.

 

Throughout the Old Testament we see God trying to cause the nation of Israel to come to a place in their walk with Him that they could enjoy His fellowship, but over and over again the nation of Israel backslides from the covenants of God and they too are separated from Him due to their sin.

 

For 3,600 years of Mankind’s history, God attempts to have a relationship with them, but over and over again, mankind fails Him.

 

So for the next 400 years, there is silence.

• It appears that God has stopped talking.
• It appears that He is no longer interested in having a relationship with humanity.

 

Except for one verse of the prophecy of Isaiah that we have read.

 

This prophecy promises that a son would be born who would be the mighty God and everlasting Father.

 

This one scripture expresses the desire and promise of God to enter into a place with mankind whereby He could have a relationship with them.

 

2 Corinthians 4:4?In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.

 

Satan is the God of this world.

This is why people are bound by their sins

 

As we read the book of Genesis and the Eden Account, we see that mankind was separated from the presence of God.

 

Mankind would never be able to enter again into a place of communion with God…

 

Satan now owned the souls of Humanity

 

But understand something, God loves people.

• He formed Adam from the dust of the earth.
• He blew the breath of Life into the nostrils of Adam.
• He created Adam and Eve for the purpose of having a relationship.

 

Romans 5:12?Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:

But now because of One Mans Sin,

 

Understand something, Mans sin not only alienated mankind from God, but more importantly, it alienated God from mankind.

 

God created mankind so He could have relationship with Him

 

You and I are here because He desires to have a relationship with us.

 

So for thousands of years, God stands knocking at the door

 

• He tries to enter back in through the Ark.
• He tries to enter back in through Abraham and His seed.
• He tries to enter in with the giving of the Tabernacle in the wilderness.
• He tried to enter into Solomon’s temple

 

But no matter how hard God tried…

• No matter what obstacles he moved for the nations of Israel and Judah, they would not turn back to Him.

 

So He begins formulating a plan whereby He can enter back into relationship with man.

 

But there is only one way in.

• You see Satan is now the god of this world.
• Adam was given dominion over it, but he gave that dominion to Satan when He obeyed Satan’s lie and ate of the forbidden tree of the Garden.

 

So if man can’t get to where God is, than God has to go to where man is.

• So God says to Satan, “Let Me In.”
• But Satan says, there’s only one way in.
• There’s no special allowance because you’re God.

 

So there’s only one way in and it’s through the womb – just like every other human being.

 

Satan you see is crafty.

• He knows that if he can get God to robe Himself in flesh and become a human being, then he can have Him killed.
• And if God is killed, then Satan can be God.

 

But if that’s the only way in, then God decides to take it.

 

Now I’m paraphrasing a whole bunch here…

 

• So hundreds of years before the Birth of Jesus, Isaiah prophecies:

 

Isaiah 9:6 For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.

 

God begins formulating a plan…

 

• The only way God and man is ever going to be reunited is if God becomes Man.

 

• Man tried to be like God in the Garden of Eden, but that trick of Satan failed.
• So now the only way it can work is if God becomes man.

 

 

Isaiah prophecies Is 9:6:

 

Isaiah 9:6 For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.

 

This son

• Some would call him the son of man
• Others would call him the Son of God.

 

• All of them would be right – for 1 Timothy 3:16?said “And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory.”

 

If you want in, God, you have to come through the flesh.

You have to become vulnerable.

 

So the Holy Spirit of God impregnates a young engaged virgin by the name of Mary.

 

And soon a little baby is born.

• Vulnerable
• Frail
• Tiny
• Small
• If it weren’t for his mother and father he might starve.
• If it weren’t for the swaddling clothing, he would freeze.

 

But as frail as he is,

• As vulnerable as He is,
• As tiny as he is, He’s in!
• Through the power of the Holy Spirit and the womb of a young virgin, Jesus Christ is born.

 

 

But as soon as He get’s here, someone’s out to kill him.

 

• Herod enraged with the thought that this prophesied ruler of the Jews may someday take his thrown, kills thousands of children in an attempt to also kill Jesus.
• But warned by an angel in the night, Joseph takes the child to Egypt.

 

We don’t hear much about Him now until he is about 12 years old.

 

One of the first things we hear about him is his mother and father are franticly looking for him one day.  They fear him lost or killed, but they find him teaching the Jewish leaders and people in the temple.

 

Luke 2:42

42 And when he was twelve years old, they went up to Jerusalem after the custom of the feast.

43 And when they had fulfilled the days, as they returned, the child Jesus tarried behind in Jerusalem; and Joseph and his mother knew not of it.

44 But they, supposing him to have been in the company, went a day’s journey; and they sought him among their kinsfolk and acquaintance.

45 And when they found him not, they turned back again to Jerusalem, seeking him.

46 And it came to pass, that after three days they found him in the temple, sitting in the midst of the doctors, both hearing them, and asking them questions.

47 And all that heard him were astonished at his understanding and answers.

 

The Jewish people had for centuries so grieved the Holy Spirit that He had stopped speaking to them, but now in the midst of these men, God shows up and says, “Hey, can I come in?”  Can I teach you today?

• Can I explain a few things about myself that you may not understand?

 

Did they receive His teachings?

• No in fact from that day on the religious rulers were out to kill Him.

 

But God was at their church that day saying, “Let Me In.”

• Let Me Into your worship.
• Let Me Into your prayers.
• Let Me Into your shallow understanding of the One True Living God.
• Let Me In…

 

But they didn’t want Him there, so He went to the only people who would listen.  He went looking for some sinners.

 

• He went looking for some old cussing fishermen.
• He went looking for old thieving tax collectors.
• He went looking for some much hated publicans
• He went looking for sinners.

 

They didn’t want Him in Bethlehem – the city of David.

• They didn’t want Him in the church house…
• So now He’s going to some old sinner Jews.

 

People say all the time, “I Found Religion”.  “I found God”, you need to understand something today, you didn’t find anything, It found you.

• And He’s standing here today saying to you today, “Let Me In”.

 

 

Don’t think for one moment that you really had anything to do with all this…

• All you did was receive his precious gift.
• All you did was yield.
• All you did was repent.

 

So now it appears that a few people are listening to Him.

• He teaches them on the Hillsides
• He teaches them from a small ship while they stand on the beach
• He even says to a sinner tax collector named Zacchaeus, “Let me into your home.”  And Zacchaeus does exactly that.

 

But there was one place he was never expected to go.

• There was one place no God fearing Jew would ever consider going.
• In fact they would walk completely around Samaria if they had to travel somewhere.
• The Samaritans were ½ Jews.
• They were the race that gave up their birthright.
• They were the ones who became confused as to who or what they worshipped.
• So the Jews avoided them like the plague.
• But Jesus wants inside Samaria.

 

You see, God was not only wanting to restore His relationship with the promised Jewish nation, but He wanted to restore His relationship with all the nations, and that couldn’t happen until the bloodline of Abraham had been restored.  And the Samaritan people were part of that bloodline.

 

So the only way into Samaria is a 5-time divorcee.

• The only way to get the leaders of that city to listen to him is to fill the head and the heart of a woman who had no hope with a hope beyond her belief.
• He tells her everything He knows about her that she never told anybody.
• Why?
• Because He’s God and you can’t hide anything from God, no matter how much you try.

 

The whole time He’s sitting there talking to Her, He’s saying to Samaria, “Let Me In”

 

I know you’ve been alienated from the nation of Israel, but “Let Me In”

I know you’ve lost your birthright, but “Let Me In”.

But He’s not finished,

 

For you see, God was not going to be satisfied with being worshiped in the temple.

• He was not going to be satisfied being worshipped in Samaria.

 

He told this woman at the well that day that, “True worshippers would worship Him in Spirit and in Truth.

 

• What does it mean to worship Him in Spirit?
• What does it mean to worship Him in Truth?

 

There’s only one place that the Sprit worships from.

• There’s only one place that truth comes from.
• It’s the heart of man.
• You see, God wants to dwell in the hearts of men,

 

John 14:17?Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth (Talking about Jesus) with you, and shall be in you.

 

I hear the Spirit of God today saying to someone, “Let Me In”

 

• Isn’t it time to open the door of your heart to Him today?
• Isn’t it time to say to Him, Come on in?

 

 

• When I see the little baby, I see God saying let me in.
• When I see the boy in the temple, I see God saying Let Me In.
• When I see Him Hanging on the cross for our sins, I hear Him saying, Let Me In.