The problem we experience is because of Adam’s sin.  We refer to it quite often, don’t we—our Adamic nature?  Before regeneration, we are under the power of that Adamic nature.  Paul calls that Adamic nature the “old man,” and we’ll see this in Romans as we go on.  The old man that is under the power of sin.  But through regeneration we, then, become a new man, a new creation, Corinthians says, in Jesus Christ.  And Paul goes on and says, the new man is created in righteousness and true holiness; amen?  And Paul says, the old man and the new man will be in perpetual conflict until we are glorified in Jesus Christ.  The flesh lusting against the Spirit—the flesh is synonymous with the old man—the Spirit against the flesh, these two are contrary the one to the other, so that you cannot do the things that you would do.  Paul says it this way in Romans 7, the things that I want to do, I don’t do, and the things that I don’t want to do, I find myself doing (7:19).  Amen?  “O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from of the body of this death?” (Romans 7:24) And then the revelation comes, I thank God through Jesus Christ; amen?  “For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son [Emmanuel—] in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh” (Romans 8:3), hallelujah!  Christmas is about the condemnation of sin, Christmas is about breaking the power of sin in our lives, praise God.

Aren’t you glad it’s not just that little baby?  It is Almighty God.  And we rejoice in that.  It’s not like that, I think the movie was called Talladega Nights—it was a comedy, a spoof on NASCAR racing.  And this one guy who was the feature of the thing, I can’t even remember who played it—it was so funny because they would sit down and explain everything to him, the only thing he knew about Jesus was the little manger scene that he had seen as a kid.  So, he would—when he was in trouble, he was going to pray, he was like: “Oh, Baby Jesus, Baby Jesus”—his car caught on fire one time, and he jumped out of the car on the racetrack, and he’s running around going, “Baby Jesus!  Baby Jesus!  Oprah!  Oprah!  Tom Cruise!”  And tragically, that’s about the limited understanding that people have about Who Jesus is.  And don’t know to separate Him from the religions of Oprah and Tom Cruise.  He stands unique.  Amen?