Mariners Church Weekend Messages

Episode: December 22 – "The Promised King"

Speaker: Senior Pastor Eric Geiger
Release Date: December 25, 2024

Overview

In this Christmas message, Pastor Eric Geiger explores the profound significance of Jesus’ arrival, focusing on the notion of Christ as the “Promised King.” Through the lens of the angel Gabriel’s annunciation to Mary and the genealogy of Jesus, Geiger unveils the beauty of Christmas as God’s rescue mission for imperfect people. The episode is both inviting and challenging, encouraging listeners to reconsider what truly belongs at the center—the “king of the hill”—in their lives.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. The Announcement of Christmas: God’s Perfect Plan

• Birth Announcements & Human Fails: Eric humorously contrasts the often flawed and comical attempts at modern gender reveal parties with the flawless announcement of Jesus’ birth.
  • “We cannot flawlessly pull off all the plans that we have. We can't even pull off an announcement sometimes correctly. But God perfectly pulled off the announcement of Christmas...” (05:17)
• Gabriel’s Message to Mary: Reads and reflects on Luke 1:26-33.
  • Jesus’ name means “salvation” or “Savior.”
    • “His name is not only his name, his name is also what he's come here to do. He is salvation. He is the Savior.” (09:22)
  • Jesus is the Son of the Most High, born of a virgin—different from everyone else.
  • The promise: “His kingdom will have no end.”
    • Boldly connects Jesus to the Old Testament promise to David and context of Roman occupation.

2. Jesus, the Forever King

• The King of the Hill Analogy
  • Childhood game as a metaphor for human history—kings and rulers rise and fall, but none remain forever.
  • “History is one long game of king of the hill. Kings come and kings go, Emperors rise and...none stay as king of the hill. Either death or defeat, they are removed from the top of the hill. And yet here's an announcement that Jesus is going to be king of the hill forever.” (15:17)
• Historical Context:
  • At Jesus’ birth, Caesar Augustus, the most powerful emperor of Rome, claimed to be the “son of God.” Jesus’ kingship was proclaimed in total obscurity by comparison, yet, as Eric points out:
    • “Here we are, 2,000 years later, and nobody this weekend is gathered around the birth of Caesar Augustus. And here we are gathered around the birth of King Jesus, whose kingdom never ends, whose kingdom lasts forever…” (18:48)

3. The Personal Kingdom: What Rules Your Life?

• We each place various “kings” at the center of our lives—career, relationships, achievements—but none satisfy or can “carry the weight of the crown.”
• “The longer you've lived, the more you realize that your career is unable to carry the weight of the crown. It can't sustain you. It can't deliver for you what you thought it would deliver...” (21:35)

4. The Genealogy of Jesus: Who He Comes From Tells Us Who He Comes For

• Contrast to Roman “Propaganda Genealogies”:
  • Roman emperors, particularly Caesar Augustus, constructed perfect genealogies to claim divinity and legitimacy.
• Jesus’ Imperfect Lineage:
  • Walks through key names: Abraham (liar), Jacob (deceiver), Judah (betrayer), David (adulterer and murderer), Solomon (idolater).
  • “Who Jesus comes from helps you understand who he comes for. And unlike the Roman genealogies...Jesus comes from a long line of imperfect people, to show you that he's pulling imperfect people into his perfect kingdom...” (25:42)
• Inclusivity and Redemption:
  • Highlights the inclusion of women and non-Israelites (Tamar, Rahab, Ruth, Bathsheba) in Jesus’ genealogy.
    • “Jesus elevates women. Women were viewed as second class citizens. But Jesus insists that in his genealogy he includes people who are often viewed as outsiders in that culture.” (27:47)
  • Message: “Jesus specializes in pulling broken, jacked up, messed up people into his forever kingdom.”

5. The Descent of the King

• Unlike earthly kings who climb to the top, Jesus, the eternal King, descended from heaven “down the hill” to enter our broken world.
  • “Jesus did not have to ascend to the top of the hill. Jesus is God, the Son, the forever King. What he did that is different is he descended from the hill. He removed his royal crown, he removed his royal robe, stepped into this broken world...and he took on human skin, was born into our culture, descended the hill to enter this world only so he could ascend another hill, so that he could ascend Calvary, the place where he would be crucified...” (31:06)
• Jesus is not just a gift under the tree, but the gift on the tree (cross).
  • “Jesus is the king of the hill who descended here to ascend another hill, to place Himself on the cross to remove your sin and your shame, to make you his forever...” (32:35)

6. Who Gets In? God’s Grace for the Imperfect

• The only requirement to enter Jesus’ kingdom is to recognize your need for Him.
  • “Jesus is not looking for perfect people to enter his perfect kingdom. He's looking for people who realize they're imperfect, who will receive the perfect forgiveness that Jesus our Savior brings…” (34:56)
• Application: Christmas is not a message demanding our effort to get to God, but an announcement that God has come all the way to us, longing to rescue us.
  • “Christmas is not him up in heaven yelling at you to fix yourself up for him...Christmas is the glorious announcement that he descended from the hill to place himself on top of another hill where all of your sin and shame would be placed on him. He is the gift you need...” (36:42)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Jesus’ Birth Announcement:
  • “God perfectly pulled off the announcement of Christmas and the announcement of the arrival of God the Son into this world.” (05:08)
• On Jesus’ Kingdom:
  • “He will never have his crown removed from him. That no one will unseat him. That he will never forfeit the throne. That he is free forever. The king.” (12:40)
• On Jesus’ Genealogy:
  • “Who Jesus comes from helps you understand who he comes for.” (25:40)
• On Who Jesus Welcomes:
  • “Jesus specializes in pulling broken, jacked up, messed up people into his forever kingdom. In fact, the only people who get in are those of us who realize we're messed up.” (36:30)
• On the Purpose of Christmas:
  • "Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, and I am the worst of them.” (First Timothy 1:15, Congregational Reading, 38:43)

Key Timestamps

• 01:03 – Introduction; Christmas as announcement of Christ
• 05:08 – Modern birth announcements vs. God’s perfect announcement
• 09:22 – The meaning of the name “Jesus”
• 12:40 – The declaration of Christ’s everlasting kingdom
• 15:17 – “King of the Hill” metaphor for power and history
• 18:48 – Jesus vs. Caesar Augustus: Who remains remembered?
• 21:35 – The “king of the hill” in our own lives
• 25:42 – Jesus’ genealogy and inclusivity
• 27:47 – Radical inclusion of women and outsiders
• 31:06 – The descent of Jesus from glory to the cross
• 34:56 – Grace for imperfect people
• 36:42 – Christmas as God coming to us
• 38:43 – Congregational reading: 1 Timothy 1:15

Conclusion

Eric Geiger’s Christmas message is an invitation to recognize Jesus not merely as a historical figure or religious leader, but as the eternal King who seeks out imperfect people to be part of his unending kingdom. Through relatable stories, scriptural insights, and personal reflection, Geiger articulates the centrality of grace and the profound hope that the arrival of Jesus offers—all in a warm, encouraging, and accessible tone.

For further connection and exploration, visit marinerschurch.org