Christmas Eve at Victory || Victory Church

Good evening, Victory, come on. If you are excited to be in the place, you better open up your mouth and say so. Ha ha, let's go. Oh, y'all, it is Christmas Eve. Can you believe that? This year has flown by, but man, what a time to be alive. What an evening to be gathered together. My name's Kervin, and my beautiful bride and I have the privilege of being the associate campus pastors here at our Norcross campus at Victory. And you may be wondering, where is my senior pastor? Where's Pastor Johnson? Well, I got a phone call yesterday from Pastor, and he was under the weather. So he is currently overcoming that. But he and Pastor Summer, they reached out and tapped me in. So we have been here. We're gonna have church, but Pastor Johnson, we love you. We're praying for you. Come on, can we just send a little bit of love? Ha, yeah. So tonight, you know, first off, I just really love this story, Tom. It was amazing. And we talked about waiting on a gift. And I know the kids are like, yeah, I've done that. I've been there, I'm waiting. But the reality is that all of us can relate to the wait.

Right, I remember in the late 80s, I was a young, young, young lad, a young whippersnapper. And I grew up in a Christian home with very strong morals and values. And for any of my other church babies out there, listen, there was just some things we could not do, some things we could not watch, and some places we could not go to. Very, very strict home. But I don't know what happened, but my dad had a lapse of judgment one day, and I was sitting beside him on the couch. And we, I remember as a little one, watching this movie called Rambo. Now, if you notice in the bottom left corner, this movie is restricted, but I was a little one, and I watched all the violence and all the shooting, and I loved it. And I remember as a kid that Christmas, all I wanted for Christmas that year was a little machine gun like Rambo. That's all I wanted. So I told my friends about it, I told my parents about it. Every few days I'm going to the Christmas tree and I'm shaking the gifts, you know what I'm saying, seeing if my little machine gun showed up to no avail. And then finally it's Christmas Eve, I'm laying in bed that night, I'm praying to Jesus and I'm talking to Santa.

I'm like, between the two of y'all, y'all gotta work this out. I believe it can happen. We have one more evening, right? So finally it's Christmas morning, I wake up, I go to the tree, and there right on the top was this gift with my name on it. And I knew that they put it there last night because it wasn't there last week when I was looking for it. Y'all, I ripped all of the wrapping paper off and lo and behold, what did I have inside of my box? Throw it up on the screen. Y'all, I had my, ah. And look, what you don't see in this photo because it's cropped out, I'm actually sitting on my little Rambo motorcycle too, y'all. Had the motorcycle, the gun, I had the bandana, y'all, I had the Rambo starter kit. Now I'm still trying to figure out how you gonna be gangster with a machine gun but you got my buddy in your hands. I don't know if y'all remember my buddy, but. But y'all, that moment right there, you couldn't tell me nothing. Why? Because I had been waiting on this gift and finally it had come. And isn't that moment so jubilating?

Whenever you've been waiting and anticipating a gift and it finally shows up and it's in your hands. You see, I'm a firm believer that a gift that is special is worth waiting for. So let me ask you, friend, have you ever waited on a gift? Have you ever had to wait for a gift? And here, I know your gift may be different. Maybe you weren't waiting on the Rambo pre-adolescent violent starter kit. My dad was thinking, but, you know, we're here. You know, maybe the thing that you have waited on in past seasons, maybe it was a promotion at the job or a raise, maybe you waited to be reunited with a distant loved one. Or come on, for all my single folks, maybe you waiting, you're waiting for that man or for that woman. Come on, somebody. Jesus, where my husband at, right? The reality is this, friend. Hear me when I tell you, no matter who you are or where you are or where you've been, we've all experienced in our walking through seasons of waiting, right? And here's the crazy thing that I wanna speak to tonight is that if you have been in a season of waiting, you need to understand you're not alone. Because whenever we look in the word of God, we see time and time again. Many different people in Scripture

had to wait for long periods of time for their promise. Look at Abraham, the father of our faith. Do you realize he waited 25 years for his promised son, Isaac? Or look at the life of Joseph. Joseph was favored by his father, had promise spoken all over him, but he spent 13 years in slavery before he rose to power in Egypt. Or hey, why don't you look at the life of David, right? The giant killer who was anointed as a child to be king of Israel, but spent nearly two decades before he actually sat on the throne. And how many of you know, talking about waiting in Scripture, you cannot talk about waiting without speaking to the most anticipated promise, which was the coming Messiah. You see, for many of us, we hear the term Messiah in like action sci-fi movies, right? But let me just define it simply. The word Messiah literally means the anointed one. It means the deliverer. And for 4,000 years from the creation of our human experience all the way up to the end of the Old Testament, the earth was groaning. The earth was crying out for this Messiah. And the truth of the matter is that all the way up to the genesis of our story, we see this unique moment in the garden of Eden

where some amazing things transpired that changed everything. And I know that if I were to jump off the stage and ask everyone, we would all say, well, yeah, the fall of man. That's what happened in the garden, right? Yes. But I find it ironic and odd. Why is it that whenever we talk about the garden, we always think about the great rebellion of man, but we forget about the great redemptive work of God that he declares in that very same moment. Adam and Eve disobeyed God, but look at what the Lord spoke to that serpent right after that moment. He said these words in Genesis 3, 15. He said, to the snake, to the serpent, to the enemy, I will cause hostility between you and the woman and between your offspring and her offspring. He, speaking of the Messiah, will strike your head and you will strike his heel. Now, basically, you need to understand what the Bible is telling us here is that from the very foundation of the earth, right? At the genesis of creation, God already explained and prophesied and spoke to how this whole thing was gonna play out. He told the enemy in that moment, yes, there will come a day where you will bruise the Messiah but baby boy, don't play yourself

because ultimately the Messiah will not only bruise you, he will break and bury you for all eternity. But even with that word from the Lord, still came a season of silence because the Messiah didn't show up right in that moment. No, in fact, as we flip through the Old Testament, we find time and time again where these men known as prophets would be raised up in the earth and they would declare prophetic unctionings reminding the people of the promise God made in the garden pointing to the soon coming Messiah. And one of the most popular prophets in the Old Testament was a man by the name of Isaiah. And I want you to look at these words that Isaiah crafted and curated as he was led by the Spirit of God. He said, therefore, the Lord himself will give you a sign. The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son and will call him, say it with me, Emmanuel. That simply means God with us. For unto us, a child is born. To us, a son is given and the government will rest upon his shoulders and he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, and I love this last one, Prince of Peace. So all throughout the Old Testament, right, there's more men like Isaiah that God would raise up to declare these prophetic words, right?

Men like Jeremiah, men like Moses, Micah, Hosea, Daniel, all of these prophets and others, they would proclaim about this soon coming Messiah and all the way throughout the Old Testament and all the drama and the shenanigans and all the stories and happenings, we get to this moment in history where the last prophet of the Old Testament shows up on the scene, his name is Malachi, he declares the word of the Lord and then all prophecy ceases and there's silence. And I'm not just talking about a few minutes of silence, Paul, I'm not just. talking about a moment of silence, 400 years of silence. 400 years where the people of God had no pages to turn in the Bible. There was no word from the Lord in the earth during those 400 years. In case you were wondering, those 400 years was comprised of a time where the people of God had these promises, but yet hadn't heard a word from the Lord. And can you imagine living and waiting on something for 400 years, passing that anticipation onto your children and onto your grandchildren, generation after generation, waiting in silence? But isn't it amazing now, in hindsight, that we can look back and declare that those 400 years of silence were actually just one prolonged Christmas Eve?

Because at just the right time, the heavens split open, and from the heavenly, good, benevolent Father, he gave a gift to this world. The angels showed up and they proclaimed to the earth, not to the pastors and not to the wealthy and the elite, no, they showed up to the lowest of men, to shepherds and said, unto you this day is born a Savior. Jesus has arrived and nothing will be the same from this moment forth. Hallelujah. For now God has made his home with us. Emmanuel, Jesus is here. My friend, that's good news. Do you realize that? Come on, look at your neighbor, say, that's good news. That's good news. Now, I don't know why your neighbor looked at you like that. I am so sorry. Look at your other neighbor. Excuse them. Look at your, say, other neighbor. Say, that's good news, boo-boo. That's good news. That's good news for us. Even in 2025, that's good news. Here's why. Because Jesus arrived and fulfilled the plan of his Father that was established before the foundations of creation. That tells us that God keeps his promises.

That tells me that I'm not alone in this journey called life. That tells me that you are not forgotten, my friend, that you are not overseen and unseen and overlooked. No, no, no. It tells me that God is a master architect and his arrival was necessary so that he could die. And his death was necessary so he could rise three days later with the keys to death, sin, and the grave in his hands. And watch me, his resurrection was necessary just so that way you could believe that he is who he says he is when he says it and that he is one day returning as a triumphant king. Right? I love this quote from Charles Spurgeon, one of my favorite theologians of old. He said this. He said, those little feet in the manger shall tread on the serpent's neck and crush his head. Watch this. And those little hands in the manger will one day grasp the scepter of his universal empire. Woo! My friend, hear me. The birth of Jesus is proof that waiting on God is never wasted. Right? Because just when it seems like all hope is lost, he will always fulfill his promise at just the right time.

My grandmama used to say it. He may not come when you want him, but he's gonna show up right on time. Oh! Oh! Oh! You better hear me, friend. And when Jesus shows up, he changes everything. He changes everything. Listen, there are moments where it may feel in your life like God is silent, but hear me, God is never still. He's always moving. And this night, these Advent candles, listen, Advent, it's not, it's more than a countdown to Christmas. No, these candles, they represent the collision of anticipation and arrival. And when Jesus shows up, he shows us once and for all that he is the gift that this world so desperately needs. In fact, if I could break it down, I would say it like this. Jesus is the gift that's wrapped in history. Jesus is the gift wrapped in history. You see, there's a common misconception that Jesus came to this earth in response to the sin dilemma that Adam and Eve put us in, right? As if God was surprised when Adam and Eve disobeyed, right? No, no, no, no, no. on this Christmas Eve, we're not celebrating an afterthought plan B emergency plan.

No, we're celebrating the fulfillment of the plan that Father God had in place before the foundations of creation, right? Before God ever said, let there be light, he already had a plan in place to bring redemptive salvation to the world that he knew would fall broken. For the broken people like you and like me, listen to me, he knew what we would do, so he knew what he needed to do. Did you catch that? I hope you did, because I'm not gonna say it again. No, it was all part of the plan. I mean, can you see the puzzle pieces coming together? Because listen, when Jesus showed up on the scene, even though he was despised and rejected by his people, the reality is that it wasn't a surprise that the Messiah showed up. Because remember, like I told you just a few moments ago, all throughout the Old Testament, prophet after prophet declared and prophesied to this soon-coming Messiah. Do you understand tonight that there's over 300 messianic prophecies in the Old Testament that point to Jesus? Do you realize the chances, like of one man fulfilling just 48 of those prophecies? I did the math, here's what it is. It's one in a chance of, it's a lot. In fact, I would say it's near impossible.

But I've come here on this evening to remind someone in this place that the God I serve literally dwells within the tension of impossibility. Because he did just what he said he would do. He showed up in that moment, because it was planned from the beginning. Listen to me, all the prophetic unctionings, born of a virgin, born in a town called Bethlehem, born within the line of King David, a refugee in Egypt for a season of his life, the Messiah would live a sinless, perfect life. He would be betrayed for 30 pieces of silver. Or how about this prophecy? I love this one. Do you realize that King David prophesied that the Messiah would be crucified nearly 1,000 years before the Roman Empire even invented crucifixion as a form of capital punishments? Explain that. And that's just seven out of the 300 plus prophecies speaking to this Messiah. And in his timing, God sent this gift wrapped in history and brought it into the present. I love what Paul said in Galatians 4, verse four. He said, but when the set time had fully come, God sent his son, born of a woman, born under the law to redeem those under the law, that we might receive adoption to sonship. My friend, hear me when I tell you tonight,

Jesus was never plan B. Jesus was and always will be the answer, plan A. Plan A. Plan, no mistakes, no mix-ups, no oops. No, Jesus is the gift wrapped in history. And secondly, Jesus is the gift given in grace. See, unlike the exchange that'll happen tomorrow, right, with family and loved ones, you gotta understand God's gift is given in grace. That means you can never earn it. That means you can't pay for it. That means that neither you or myself, neither of us could ever deserve it. No, it's grace. It's a free gift to people who don't deserve the free gift. That's kinda like when your kid is acting a fool and you need to ground him, but instead you take him to Chuck E. Cheese, right? It's getting what you don't deserve. Listen to me, the grace of God is scandalous. That's why religious people have a hard time really wrapping their mind around this concept of grace. Because we, we live our lives in this society, in this hour, being taught since we're children that whatever you receive, you gotta work for it. You gotta earn it, right? You do good at school, you get the gold star. You do good at work, you get the promotion. You work hard, you get this, you get that. But then Jesus shows up and he literally brings

a wrecking ball to this performance driven mentality and says, no, no, no, no, no. There is a gift that I have for you that you cannot earn. You do not deserve. You can never pay for it. And it's my gift. Gift of grace towards you hear me friend when I tell you you don't work for grace You receive grace You receive it and here's how I know because in Romans 6 23 Paul said this he said the wages of sin is death Now notice the wages. So what that means like when I work my 40 plus hours a week I get my wages. I receive my wages for my work, right? The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord Hear me my friend. I've been walking with the Lord now for 20 plus years I'm not a perfect man. I do the best I can but you have to understand even as a pastor Apart from the grace of God my good behavior my good deeds My desire to be a good person on my very best behavior on my very best day You have to understand I still fall short of God's standard and my good deeds are a stench in the nostrils of a holy God Because the Bible is emphatically clear that our hearts are wicked their hearts are beyond cure No man can cure it So I'm gonna tell you again grace is getting what you don't deserve because hear me if we got what we truly deserved It would be judgment It would be death and separation from God forever But because the Lord is rich in mercy and because he is abounding in grace There are people in this room that can testify along with me that whenever I deserve punishment God gave me peace Whenever I deserve rejection God gave me restoration whenever I deserve to be condemned God dealt with me

compassionately my God Listen to me friend because of grace. He gives us salvation when we really deserve separation And you want to know the beautiful thing about it this gift is not because you and I are worthy It's not because you and I deserve it, but it's simply because he loves you that much It's because he loves you that much the Bible says this that while we were still sinners Christ died for the ungodly Come on. I'm talking to my friends This is your first time in church in years hear me You don't have to get cleaned up in order to show up before God Because hear me when you were hanging when he was hanging on that cross I believe I know that I was on his mind you were on his mind and for me personally I would love to think that whenever he was thinking of me that he saw me at my absolute best But he saw me preaching the gospel He saw me being a loving father and a loving husband to my family But can I tell you the reality is this that when he was hanging on that cross? He saw me and he saw you at our most broken busted Degraded state of existence and still he said this child is worth dying for Because I love them because I love them in the broken State that you and I were in He still chose us Full of grace why cuz that's just who he is Jesus is the gift wrapped in history Jesus is the gift given in grace. And lastly Jesus is the gift that saves when we receive the gift Right hear me Jesus is the perfect solution for the problem of sin. Okay, because Jesus was a perfect man He led a sinless life yet. He laid down his life. He took up your cross and gave you his crown So he was the perfect solution for the sin problem But can I tell you today church that not only did Jesus solve the problem of sin? But he has the power to solve the consequences of your sin as well

Come on can I talk can I just can I bring the gospel right to where we're at for a moment? Because I'm gonna tell you I would be satisfied just knowing that my heart is made pure before God I'm satisfied just knowing that I've been forgiven that I have another day to wake up and Live a life that honors him. I'm thankful for just that but the Lord is so rich in kindness that he doesn't only save your soul The power of God the love of God is able to save your marriage Because once you experience true forgiveness you now know how to extend it The love of God is powerful enough to save your purpose Because now you have something to live for beyond just another paycheck The power of God can save your future. Why? Because you're now no longer bound to the failures and the hurts of your past. The Lord is able to save your emotions, because the moment the Prince of Peace steps into the room, all fear is dethroned. All shame is broken off of you. Come on. You can stand up confident, knowing, I'm a child of God. I'm loved by God. I don't got it all figured out. I'm on this journey day by day. God knows I need his leadership and his guidance every day, but I can say this, that I am a child of God. I am known by God, so therefore nothing the enemy can speak against me will ever rob me of that truth. Come on, that's the gift that God wants to give you. It'll change your life. He'll change your life, friend. In John chapter 1 verse 11, look at what the Bible says. It says that Jesus came to those which was his own, but his own did not receive him. Yet to all who did receive him, to those who did believe in his name, he gave the right to become children of God. Children born not of natural descent, not of human decision or of a husband's will, but born of God. My friend, I've come to tell you tonight that I got good news for you and your mama. Listen, I don't know where you come from. I don't know what you're facing or battling in real time, but if you showed up tonight and if you're waiting for hope for a future that's brighter than your past, can I tell you hope has come? If you showed up this night needing peace in your soul facing the storm you're facing, can I tell you peace has arrived? If you showed up and if you're in need of joy unspeakable that the world can't even understand, I'm telling you joy has arrived. If you're tired of looking for love in all the wrong places, I'm telling you a love has arrived that has the power to change your life. Hope has come. Peace is here. And we have it. We have the hope. We have the peace.

We have the joy and we have the love all because of Christ. That's it. So as I light this last candle of Advent tonight, let it be a reminder that all of these blessings that I just talked about, it's only possible because of one name. It's only possible because of one person. Listen to me, friend. Hope has a name. Peace has a name. Joy has a name. Love has a name. Can I tell you it's the name that's wrapped in history, given in grace. And if you receive it, there's the power to change your life. Come on. It's the name that's above every other kingdom. It's the name that's above every disease. It's the name that's above a bad doctor's report. Who am I talking to? It's the name that's higher than the divorce papers. It's the name that's higher than every kingdom, every jurisdiction, every king, every governor. It's higher than the White House. There's a name that your grandmama told you about when you were a baby. It's the same name that the prophets declared and pointed to in the Old Testament. The name is Jesus, the Christ, the Messiah, Emmanuel, God with us. So here's the million-dollar question. Do you know this Messiah as your Lord and as your Savior? Are you tired of just living your life in frustration? Because can I tell you that's not what God desires for you, my friend. No, Jesus came so you could stop waiting in frustration and begin walking in freedom. And the Bible gives us the instruction on just how to do that, right? In the book of Romans 10, 9, it says, if you declare with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and if you believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved. As scripture says, anyone, come on, somebody say, everyone, and anyone who believes in him will never be put to shame. Friend, I know many of you are visiting, you don't know me from Adam, but for what it's worth, I can stand on this platform and I can testify that after walking with the Lord for a few seasons, it hasn't been easy. I've had mountaintop moments. John, I'm telling you, I've had moments where I've had to fight the violence in the valley, brother. But one thing I can tell you is through the highs and the lows, Jesus has never failed me one single time. He's never failed me. He's never failed me. Not one time. And I assure you, my friend, if you would be so crazy tonight to trust Jesus and to receive his gift,

I promise you, you will never be put to shame. The Lord will do great things in you and through you for a broken world around you to the glory of a good God who's crazy in love with you. Amen. Amen. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. As you could, just in this moment, every head bowed, just in this moment, every head bowed, every eye closed, we're about to wrap up in just a moment. But the million-dollar question right now is this. The second million-dollar question is this. Do you believe these words? And if you do, are you ready to say yes to salvation? Are you ready to say yes to Jesus? It's that simple, friend, because listen to me. Like I said earlier, I don't know your story. I don't. I don't know what got you here in this building. I know that God orchestrated that moment. I know that. Maybe you're here because someone invited you. Shoot. Maybe someone drug you here. Maybe the moment you pulled up, you was ready to go, right? I don't know. But here's what I do know. I do know that it's not an accident or happenstance. No, in fact, in the same way that the prophets foretold the coming of Jesus, the same way that the whole situation was God's plan from the beginning, can I tell you, even this moment right here, the Lord has been waiting on this moment for a long time. Because He wants you to know that He loves you. And He's not mad at you. He's not frustrated with you. He's not disappointed in you. He's just glad you're here. So my friend, you have to respond to that tonight. It's not a question of whether or not you will or won't respond. No. Tonight, you will make a decision. You will either say yes to His salvation and yes to His mercy, yes to a new life, yes to joy, peace, love, and all these benefits, or you're going to say, no, I'm good. So the choice is up to you. I'm going to count to three, though. And when I hit three, if that's you, if you're here and you realize maybe for the first time, I desperately need a Savior. I'm tired of doing it on my own. If that's you tonight, when I count to three, you're going to lift your hand and I want to lead you in a prayer. Here it is. One, it doesn't matter who came with you. Again, friend, it's not about that person. It's not about anyone else in this room except for you and the God who formed in fashion. Two. Come on, the Bible tells us that no man goes to the Father but by Jesus. He's ordained and orchestrated this moment. Don't let another moment pass. Listen to me, friend. The Lord loves you. He has a plan for your life, but it starts with your yes. Here it is. Their hand's already going up. One, two, three. If that's you, just lift that hand up high, high, high. Come on, lift it up high so I can see it. God bless you. God bless you. Their hand's up

all over this room. Hands were already going up. Thank you, Holy Spirit. I see that hand. I see the hand, man of God. I see that hand. You put them down now. Thank you. Praise God. Now, friend, we're going to lead you in a prayer and everyone here in this room and in our open overflow spaces, I see you. We're gonna pray this prayer along with you because we want you to know that you're not alone. Here it is. Come on, can we pray these words together? Say, God, I confess that I've lived my life for me. I've trusted my way and not yours. And I need forgiveness. I need healing. I need a new life. So I turn from my old ways and I place my trust in you. Jesus, I believe that you are the gift, the son of God. You were born for me and you die and you rose from the grave so I could be close to the Father. So tonight, like a child opening a gift, I receive you. I receive your sacrifice, your grace, your love, your mercy, your joy, your peace. I receive the greatest gift ever given. I receive you, Jesus Christ, and I will live the rest of my days living for you. In the mighty name of Jesus, we pray. Come on, I wish someone in this place would say amen and shout to the Lord. Come on. Hallelujah, God.

Thank you, Lord. Ah, man. Praise God. So what I wanna do before we wrap up, I need you guys to give me a little bit of grace. Bear with me here. I wanna ask you to do something crazy. I want everyone to grab your phone. Grab your phone, go ahead. Dig in your pocket, dig in your purse, in your jacket. Get your phone out. And I would love everyone, even in the overflow, if you don't mind, please, in the overflow. I can see you, see me, see you. Grab that phone. Grab your phone, and I want you to scan this QR code. And let me explain to you what this is. Whenever you scan this code, it's gonna take you to a form. We call it the My Journey form. And whenever you go to this form, it's gonna ask you three questions. That's it, three questions. It's gonna ask you what campus you're attending tonight. For those of you who don't know, you are in Norcross, Georgia. So you're at the Norcross campus. The second question, it's gonna dig a little deep. It's gonna ask you where you are in your journey with Jesus, right?

So for the sake of time, I won't belabor them, but you can tell us if you've been walking with the Lord for a long time, or maybe you just gave your life to the Lord just a moment ago, and if you did, praise God for you, I'm excited. But then there's also the option at the very bottom where you can just say like, hey, I'm just not ready at this time. And I just wanna just say to you, if that's you, if you feel like, hey, I'm just not ready, I hear it, I hear it. My friend, there's no judgment at all. Listen to me, look at me. I'm just thankful that you're in the room tonight. And I'm thankful that I had the privilege of depositing just a little seed of hope in your heart, and I'm good with that. I'll let the Holy Spirit do the rest. And then lastly, let us know if you need some more resources or if you'd like to learn more, we'll send some information to you. We're not gonna blow up your inbox, I promise, all right? I promise that. But once you fill that out, hit submit, and we're gonna be praying over every single submission that comes in in the next few weeks, amen? Amen. Well, hey, last thing. I know when you guys came in, you were all given a candle. So I wanna ask you, go ahead and grab that candle,

get it in your hand. And in just a moment, we're gonna do one of my favorite things. Here at the Christmas season, we're gonna have our candle lighting moment. And as you're pulling those candles out, let me just say two quick things about this moment that we're about to experience together. It's so much more than just a feel-good warm moment, right? It's not that. Because what's gonna happen is as your candle is lit, you're gonna pass that flame to the person beside you and to the next person beside you. And this is a reminder to us today that the life of Jesus is meant to be shared. Come on, somebody say, share it. Share it. Right, it's meant to be shared with the world around us. Secondly, not only is the light meant to be shared, but watch me, the light is also meant to do what light is meant to do, which is shine. Somebody say shine, baby. Right, the light is meant to shine. And we live in a dark world, right? But the reality is that whenever you bring light into a dark situation, the darkness has to flee. No matter how small the light is, in that space, the light, it removes the darkness. So as we light our candles, there's gonna come a moment in the song

where our prayer team, worship team, they're gonna lift their candle into the sky. We'll all join with them. And in that moment, I want you to pause and I want you to look around this room and I want you to just acknowledge How much of a difference is made whenever the light shines in the darkness And I believe if each and every Christ follower would let the light of Jesus shine through them I believe we could see the darkness in this world lit up to the glory of God. Amen But it starts with us. So with that being said if you're able I would invite you to stand and Let's continue worshiping God in these next few moments Oh ♪ The Lord at thy birth ♪ You may now blow out your candles. There's a container at the end of the aisle. If you'll pass that down, you can place your candle in there. Let's all sing this together. ♪ Joy to the world, the Lord is come ♪ ♪ The Lord is come, let earth receive her King ♪ ♪ Let every heart prepare Him room ♪ ♪ And heaven and nature sing, and heaven and nature sing ♪ ♪ And heaven and nature sing, and heaven and nature sing ♪ ♪ He rules the world with truth and grace ♪ ♪ And makes the nations proud ♪ ♪ The glories of His righteousness ♪ ♪ And wonders of His love, and wonders of His love ♪ ♪ And wonders of His love, and wonders, wonders of His love ♪ ♪ Joy to the world, the Lord is come, let earth receive her King ♪ ♪ Let every heart prepare Him room, and heaven and nature sing, and heaven and nature sing ♪ ♪ Let every heart prepare Him room, and heaven and nature sing, and heaven and nature sing ♪

♪ And heaven and heaven and nature sing, and heaven and heaven and nature sing ♪ SHARE AND SUBSCRIBE Thanks for being a part of Victory Church on the Pando app. We hope this content was a blessing to you. We want you to know that you're not done yet. We want to hear from you. So, send us a letter and tell us things like what God is doing in your life, how we can pray for you or even content that you would like to see us create in the future. We just want you to know that we see you. You're important to us and we'd love to continue to create some things in the future that will bless you. So, send us a letter and we hope to hear from you soon.