Christmas and the Greater Exodus

One of my favorite moments In The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, is when Father Christmas suddenly arrives.

Narnia has been locked under a curse for a hundred years. Always winter. Never Christmas. Life continues, but it’s cold and joyless. Nothing moves forward. Nothing truly changes for the better.

And then, without warning, Father Christmas appears. He doesn’t defeat the White Witch. or end the war. He simply shows up with gifts.

And everyone in the story immediately understands what his arrival means. The curse is weakening. The Witch’s power is waning. The long winter is finally almost over.

Yes, the battle is still coming. But the turning point has arrived.

From that moment on, everything begins to move in a new direction. Nothing is finished yet, but nothing will be the same again.

That’s exactly the moment Zechariah is singing from in Luke 1. Not the end of the story. But the turning point. God has acted. The curse is breaking. The long silence is over, And Zechariah’s song shows us what it means now that Christmas has come.

Because Christmas has come, we must:

1. Rest
2. Render
3. Rejoice

Because Christmas has come, we must:

Rest in our freedom.

Before Zechariah ever sings, he spends nine months in silence.

Because earlier, when the angel first appeared to him in the temple, Zechariah struggled to believe what God said. He struggled to believe that his elderly wife would miraculously have a child. And because of that unbelief, Zechariah was made unable to speak.

And so for nine months, he watched in silence as God keep His word. He watched Elizabeth’s pregnancy progress. He watched God’s promise come true.

And when the child is finally born, the people ask what his name will be. Elizabeth says: “His name will be John.” And they’re shocked. That name doesn’t belong to anyone in the family. It breaks custom. It makes no sense.

So they turn to Zechariah and ask him: “What will you name the child?” And again, to their great surprise, he writes: “His name is John.” And that name matters. because John means “The Lord is gracious.” The first word Zechariah writes after nine months of silence is a confession of grace.

And in that moment, his mouth is opened. and out flows praise and adoration to the God Who saves.

Because Zechariah has learned something during those silent months. God does not need our certainty to keep His promises. He visits. He redeems. He frees His people. That’s why the song begins where it does.

“Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, for he has visited and redeemed his people

Luke 1:68 ESV

That’s where the song begins. And that’s where life after Christmas begins too.

Now, when Zechariah says that God has visited and redeemed His people, he’s not choosing those words at random. He has a picture in his mind. Do you see it? It’s the Exodus.

See, for Israel, these were loaded words. When the song says God visited His people, it made them think of the Exodus when God visited His people. When the song says God redeemed His people, it meant He had acted with power to bring them out of slavery.

Zechariah is saying: What God once did in the Egypt, He’s doing now again. Only this time, the rescue will be deeper, the freedom will be greater, and the deliverance will reach further than chains and borders.

For Israel, the Exodus was the defining story of who they were. In Egypt, they were in cruel bondage. No dreams, no hope, No better future in sight.

Their first born sons had been drowned in the nile river. Their masters whipped them, beat them, and abused them. It was a cruel and difficult life.

And then, without warning, God visited and redeemed His people. because He had seen their suffering, He had heard their cries, And then acted in love.

And you know the rest of the story: God raised up a deliverer. He confronted Pharaoh. He displayed His power with 10 plagues. And then, in a single night, Egypt let them go.

But when they reached the Red Sea, with no way forward and the enemy behind them, God made a way. He brought them through the waters. And He destroyed their enemies behind them.

And as they stood their on the far shore, They stood in awe at the God Who saved them.

This is the moment Zechariah is pointing us to when he says: “Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, for He has visited and redeemed His people,”

He’s remembering the Exodus. And he’s bringing it up because he’s saying: “What God once did in Egypt, He is now doing again.” Only now, the rescue is not from Pharaoh. The freedom is not from physical chains. And the deliverance will not stop at a border.

Listen to how he continues.

[He] has raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David, as he spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets from of old, that we should be saved from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us; to show the mercy promised to our fathers and to remember his holy covenant, the oath that he swore to our father Abraham, to grant us

Luke 1:69-73 ESV

This is covenant language all meant to point out God’s unfailing love and faithfulness. David. The prophets. Abraham. Zechariah is saying: This is not a new idea. This is not a backup plan. This is the same God keeping the same promises He made from long ago, To visit His people, to deliver them from their enemies, and lead us all to a new promised land in the new and better Exodus

And if this doesn’t get you excited, you might need to check your spiritual pulse. Because make no mistakes about it. All of us were in need of deliverance! All of us were in bondage and chains from our greatest enemies: sin, Satan, and death. And at Christmas, Christ came to set us free.

Just breathe that in for a moment… Spiritually, every one of us stood on the shore of the Red Sea, with an army behind us that was hell bent on destroying us, with no strength to save ourselves. And at the last moment, God raised up a horn of salvation for us from the house of David to save us with His mighty hand.

Sadly, for those of us who have been rescued, we often live like we haven’t been. We live just like Israel did. After they were rescued, they still doubted the God who set them free. How? We panic when life gets hard. We keep replaying the tapes of past sin, then compare ourselves to others, and quietly grow discouraged.

We grumble when God doesn’t answer prayer in the way we expect. And instead of living in the joy of our salvation, we begin to look back at the world the way Israel looked at Egypt and tell ourselves, “maybe it was better there.”

Really? Better to be back in chains, shackled to the very things Christ died to free us from?

Egypt never loved Israel. It used them and abused them.

And sin never loved us either. It promised freedom and delivered bondage. It promised life and paid out death. That’s the deception Israel fell for. And it’s the same one we fall for.

And so Zechariah is reminding us what God has done for us. He has shown us the mercy and freedom promised long ago, and now it’s our job to rest in that mercy and freedom as we serve him without fear.

Because Christmas has come, we must:

Render fearless worship.

In verse 73, it tells us why God this: It says “He freed us from our enemies so we might serve him without fear, in holiness and righteousness before him all our days.

God did not rescue us simply to relocate us. He rescued us to reorder our lives. Think about it: When God brought Israel out of Egypt, He didn’t set them free so they could live however they wanted. He freed them so they could belong to Him and live for Him.

Where was Israel’s first stop after the Red Sea? It was Mount Sinai. And what happened at mount Sinai? God gave them His holy law.

And this was a terrifying experience! There was thunder and lightning, a thick cloud, a very loud trumpet blast, and the whole mountain shook violently. As the trumpet grew louder and louder, Moses spoke, and God answered him in thunder.

When the people saw all of this, they trembled in fear and stood far off. They said to Moses, “You speak to us, and we will listen; but do not let God speak to us, lest we die.”

And yet at Christmas, that same God visits us, but this time in a manger… This time He doesn’t come in thunder, lightning and loud terrifying trumpet blasts, but as a baby who invites us to draw near and serve Him with joy and delight.

And as verse 75 says: God announced his coming not with trumpets, but with the birth of John, Who comes preaching salvation and the forgiveness of sins.

That’s why we can draw near. That’s why we can serve God without fear. It’s because our enemies have been defeated, our sins have been paid for, and our salvation is secure.

So I want to ask you here what is your relationship like with God? Are you afraid of Him? Or do you serve Him with fearful joy? Because the difference there is all the difference in the world.

Being afraid of God looks like always feeling far from Him, always feeling like you’re on the verge of upsetting Him and being rejected and cast out by Him… But that’s looking to Sinai not the Manger! That’s looking to law not mercy and grace.

Look at Zechariah’s example. God just disciplined him… and He doesn’t cower away and hide. He burst into song. And that matters. Because Fear silences praise! People who aren’t delighting in the God of their salvation don’t open their lips in praise.

And if you do that, you won’t serve the Lord with joy and gladness.

Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth! Serve the Lord with gladness! Come into his presence with singing!

Psalm 100:1-2 ESV

That’s why Scripture so often connects salvation with song. Moses sang after the Red Sea. Miriam sang. Israel sang on the far shore. And… remarkably, God SINGS OVER US!

The Lord your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing.

Zephaniah 3:17 ESV

Do you see what this verse is saying? We sing a song of love towards God because He sings one over us! Can you imagine this? Because of Christmas, the God of the heavens delights in us so much he burst into song! And it’s no quiet song It’s LOUD & JOYFUL

So think of that the next time we gather to worship. Think of that glorious the truth the next song we sing… As we sing, we are returning the song He’s already sang over us!

All this is true because of Christmas… So even when you’re feeling low after the season’s high, Let these remarkable truths energize your soul to serve Him in holiness and righteousness. Sing to Him Praise His Holy name! And rejoice in the God of our salvation who is leading us home in the new and better Exodus!

Because Christmas has come, we must:

Rejoice in the guiding light

After Israel left Egypt, God did not simply free them and leave wander in the wildness forever. The Bible tell us that God led them by a cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night… And with that imagery in mind, listen again to how Zechariah ends his song.

because of the tender mercy of our God, whereby the sunrise shall visit us from on high to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace.”

Luke 1:78-79 ESV

Zechariah reaches for Exodus language one last time. Only now, the pillar is no longer fire in the sky. It is a Person who has come near. He calls Him the sunrise from on high, who gives light to those in darkness who live under the shadow of death, in order to guide our feet to the way of peace.

Church, Israel learned that in the wilderness. And we must learn it too. God did not bring His people out of Egypt so they could wander through the dark. He brought them out so He could lead them home. And that’s precisely what He’s doing for us. Christ does not merely forgive sins. He does not merely remove fear. He guides our feet.

He doesn’t give give us a map and say: “Find your way home.” Instead, God sent us His Son who has promises to bring us home. To bring us to the new and better Canaan! This is why we in one our new songs we sing:

Guide me, O my great Redeemer, pilgrim through this barren land When I'm desperate and needy, Jesus, lead me by Your hand Let Your Spirit, ever with me, be the compass on my way I will trust You through the darkness; You will not lead me astray

Like the fire and cloudy pillar, be my vision day and night Like the manna in the morning, I will see Your love provide Quench my thirst when I am fainting, Living Water, Fount of life Rock of ages, on this journey only You can satisfy

Lead me onward into Zion to the home I've yet to see Bring me to that better country, where I'll fi-nally be free When I near the shores of Jordan, bid my anxious fears subside For I know Your hand will keep me till safe on Canaan's side

Christ before me, Christ behind me, Christ within me every day Be my path and prize forever, Jesus, guide me all the way

And He will guide us all the way, and Zechariah’s song shows us this. Because of Christmas, Christ is with us and HE WILL BRING US HOME to the NEW and BETTER CANAAN. And all because of the tender mercy of God.

Christmas is truly a wonderful time of the year. And next to Easter, it’s my favorite time of the year. Because it allows us to reflect on the glorious truths of in unique and focused way. So I hope that this Christmas season was as special for you as it was for me. Because by God’s grace, I’ve come to see His grace that is given in Jesus clearer than ever before.

And that’s a part of his guiding. And Zechariah proves it… Because he wasn’t just some ordinary man, Zechariah was a priest… And yet, as godly as he was he still had more to learn. And so do we!

And so by God’s grace we must continue to learn how to rest in our freedom. learn how to worship without fear. and learn how to better trust our guiding light when the path feels long.

When Father Christmas appears in Narnia, he doesn’t stay. He announces that the curse is breaking, but the battle still lies ahead. But Christ does more than announce the turning point. He promises to be with us all the way to the end.

That is why, at the end of Matthew’s Gospel, Jesus says,

And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

Matthew 28:20 ESV

Tomorrow, the world will tell you that the magic is over. That it’s time to return to the shadows. But Zechariah tells us the light has come and it is here to stay. And so we do not follow a feeling or a season. we follow a Savior who knows the way home.

And when you hear that promise, it should sound familiar. This is not a new promise. Because long before Bethlehem, God had already promised to lead His people home.

The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

Psalm 23 ESV

Because Christmas has come, we rest in the freedom Christ has secured, we serve God without fear, and we follow the Sunrise from on high, trusting Him to guide our feet all the way home.

By God’s Grace may we trust in Jesus, the light of the world, and follow Him all the way home.

This is the manuscript the sermon was preached from, so the recording may differ in places.