This morning sermon text is found in 1st John 3 verses 4 through 10. 1st John 3 4 through 10.

Everyone who practices sin also practices lawlessness and sin is lawlessness.

You know that he appeared in order to take away sins and in him there is no sin. No one who abides in him sins. No one who sins has seen him or knows him.

Little children make sure no one deceives you. The one who practices righteousness is righteous, just as he is righteous.

The one who practices sin is of the devil, for the devil has sinned from the beginning.

The son of God appeared for this purpose to destroy the works of the devil.

No one who is born of God practices sin because his seed abides in him and

he cannot sin because he is born of God. By this the children of God and the children of the devil are obvious.

Anyone who does not practice righteousness is not of God,

nor the one who does not love his brother.

Oh, Father, how very, very needy we are.

There's a famine in the land, not a famine of bread, but a famine of the

word. but a famine of the word and if we are to eat it now you will have to come and feed us now.

And so please come and make me faithful to your truth as it's revealed in the First

Epistle of John, and give an ear and a heart and a mind to your

people to listen.

And for those here who are not your people, who are not yet born of God, and do not have

saving faith, I ask that you would cause them by the agency and the power of your word and

spirit to be born again under the preaching of your word.

In Jesus mighty name, I pray, Amen. I chose this text for two reasons this morning.

One is because it's Christmas Sunday morning and verse 8, the second half of the verse, is one of the

clearest statements in all of the Bible why there's a Christmas. Namely, the

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