NO. LIVERMORE — The congregation was welcomed December 1 by Pastor Bonnie Higgins at 9:30 a.m. to begin the service.  The Call to Worship, Invocation/Lord’s Prayer were recited. The hymns that were sung were “O Come, All Ye Faithful”, “Come, Thou Long-Expected Jesus” and “This Is My Father’s World”. The service ended with Communion.   Linda Lyman is the organist, Janet Diaz is the pianist, and Lew Lyman leads the music for the congregation each week.

The sermon, “The Need for Christmas” using the scriptures from Genesis 6:5-8. Pastor Bonnie began by saying this week was the beginning of the journey to the manger.  Question is, why did Jesus have to come at all? We know that Jesus was born in a manger to save us from the sins we created for ourselves, but when did it all start?

The Christmas story actually began in Genesis when sin was taking over the people. It got to a point that God even wished He didn’t create us! God was heart broken because the people wanted sin over Him. At that very point is when God put His plan in place for forgiveness once and for all.

Realizing that all people were created by God to love Him and each other, and to serve Him, it broke God’s heart to know that we used the freewill He chose to give us, to use it against Him. God was feeling the grief of loss from the perfect world and people He created. God wanted us to be obedient to Him and only Him, not ourselves, or each other, and especially not to sin.

But here the people were, letting sin rule their lives. Even today, it is still happening to those who do not follow Christ. The world was created to have at its center is God and His love and when that’s not there, things that should work, don’t work; things explode into evil and chaos, and we experience that every day. Just look around and you will see it.

God’s plan was that every person who was given life, through the breath of God was meant to live, live eternally with Him. What was God to do? His perfect world and the perfect people He created, was overrun by sin. God needed a plan.

God brought the great flood and destroyed everyone except eight people, Noah and his family. God began His rescue story. God’s rescue story eventually ends with Jesus dying on a cross and being resurrected three days later to bring back the intent God had for His people. To live with Him forever, forgiven from our sins. To have our sins forgiven, we need to repent and accept who God had sacrificed for us, His Son, Jesus and to live out our lives for Him.

But before He could go to the cross, Jesus needed to be born. The journey to the manger was not an easy one. Many obstacles stood in the way; Satan wasn’t going to make it easy. God prevailed in His plan, the plan that would reconcile His people back to Him.

As we journey to the manger in the coming weeks, we will explore God’s Word the who, what, where, when, and how of God’s Christmas story to save us from the evil of this world.

Announcements: we will be collecting Peanut Butter for the Food Pantry in December. Bible Study – Tuesday at 1:00 p.m.