What Christmas Means...
Luke 2:10-2:11
Just what does Christmas mean?
IF Christmas means
family;
THEN what does Christmas mean to a person who has just lost a loved
one or has no family?
IF Christmas means shopping malls,
Christmas trees and blinking lights;
THEN what does Christmas mean to a family who lives in a remote village in the hills of Ghana, that has no electricity, let alone a shopping mall and has never seen a Christmas tree…
IF Christmas means the giving and receiving gifts;
THEN what does Christmas mean to a single mother of 4 children, working 2 jobs, barely having enough money to pay the mortgage, keep the heat and put food in the refrigerator?
IF Christmas means white snow falling from the ski and covering the ground and bare tree limbs:
THEN what does Christmas mean to a person who lives in the Arizona
desert?
NOW
–
please don’t misunderstand me… family, trees, lights, food, gifts and snow are
all fine and good, and they can be very beneficial - but they are not what
Christmas really means….
Millions of people are going
through all this activity and giving little or no thought whatsoever to the real
reason we are celebrating…
Christmas Means…God
Keeps His Promises
“A
person who doesn’t give a promised gift is like clouds and wind that don’t bring
rain…”
Proverbs 25:14 NLT
DO YOU
– see
that picture?
IMAGINE that you are in desperate need of rain.
AND then all of a sudden dark clouds come rolling in – the wind begins to really kick up.
I mean it looks like a down pour is about to come in any second,
BUT, it never does rain…
“A person who doesn’t give a promised gift is like clouds and wind that don’t bring rain…”
Have you discovered in your life, that people can be just like those clouds and wind:
they make some great promises of what they will do - BUT they never
deliver?
· “I’m going to be there at your next game”
· “I’m so
sorry, I’ll never talk to you like that again”
· “I promise I can really handle this, trust me, that will be the
last drink I ever pick up
· “Listen it is going to be different around here from now on,
I promise I am really going to change”
· “If you can just help us get through this tough spot, a promotion
is sure to come your way”
· “I’ll be there promise, I won’t let you down again”
In a world where so many fail to do what they said they would do…
IT is so awesome to know that Almighty God keeps his promises…
AND
– he has been doing it from the beginning….“As for God, His way is perfect. All the Lord’s promises prove true. He is a shield for all who look to him for protection.” Psalm 18:30 NIV
God always keeps His promises, and when He promises over and over again in the OT that He will send us a Savior, you can take that promise to the bank:
“Therefore
the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will be with child and will
give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel.”
Isaiah 7:14 NIV
“For
a child is born to us, a son is given to us. And the government will rest on his
shoulders. These will be his royal titles: Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. His ever expanding, peaceful government
will never end. He will rule forever with fairness and justice from the throne
of his ancestor David. The passionate commitment of the LORD Almighty will
guarantee this!”
Is 9:6,7 (NLT)
LISTEN – when God makes a promise he is going to keep it…
AND Christmas is a powerful illustration of this…
God promised mankind that one day he would send a Messiah,
that one day His Son would come near and walk this earth in order to make things right.
AND God delivered on that promise…
Christmas means – the God keeps his promise – You can trust his word!!!
Christmas Means…You
Matter To God
Do you feel like you matter? That you are important? That you are worthwhile? That you count?
In our culture, in our society, many people feel like they don’t!
WHY? BECAUSE;
· They don’t have the right job
· They don’t look the right way
· They are not as pretty as some
· They are too tall or too short
· Too big or too thin
· They are not smart, talented or athletic
· They don’t have enough money, live in the right house,
drive the right car or go to the right school
BUT – the god news is this - Christmas means that you matter to God…
“I
matter to God and that’s all that maters to me….”
Let me
remind you of what the angel said on that first Christmas night…
Luke 2:10-11 (NLT)
10 but the angel
reassured them. "Don't be afraid!" he said. "I bring you good news of great joy
for everyone! 11 The Savior—yes, the Messiah, the Lord—has been born tonight in
Bethlehem, the city of David!
I bring you good news of great joy, for who?
EVERYONE!
NOT just for the pretty, smart, strong, wealthy
or talented, BUT for everyone!
People matter to God… AND - not just tribes and nations,
BUT individual people.
LISTEN – if God had a wallet, your picture would be in it.
IF he had a refrigerator, your stuff would be plastered all over it.
You matter to God….
When God sent His Son to this earth, over 2,000 years ago, he was thinking of you…
He did it for
you… “he
did it for me”
Christmas Means..
That You matter to Almighty God!
Christmas Means…Your
Past Can Be Forgiven
“For
all have sinned; all fall short of God’s glorious standard. Yet now God in his
gracious kindness declares us not guilty. He has done this through Christ Jesus,
who has freed us by taking away our sins.”
Romans 3:23,24 NIV
That’s
good news.
We need good news BECAUSE the fact is none of us are perfect.
HEY - we don’t even measure up to our own standards, much
less God’s.
I love reading letters to Santa Claus that kids write.
One little kid wrote, "Dear Santa, There are three little boys who live at our house. There’s Jeffrey. He is two. There’s David. He is four. There’s Norman. He is seven. Jeffrey is good some of the time. David is good some of the time. Norman is good all of the time. I’m Norman."
The problem is, none of us are Norman’s.
None of us are good all of the time.
There’s only one solution to guilt.
Forgiveness.
And the good news is, God wants to forgive you.
Yes, He wants to clear your conscious, take away your guilt and clean your slate….
And when
God forgives you, there’s several things about it that you need to know.
It’s instant. He doesn’t make you wait.
It’s undeserved. You’ll never earn it.
It’s complete.
CHECKOUT this passage…
And I will forgive their
wrongdoings, and I will never again remember their sins. Hebrews 8:12
Got a past? WELL
– that’s okay, BECAUSE God’s got forgiveness…
Have you ever been halfway through painting a room and wish you could start
over?
Have you ever been halfway through a meal and wish you could start over?
Halfway through some project?
Halfway
through life and wish you could begin
again?
When we accept Christ we become a new person.
We are not the same anymore, for the old life is gone.
A new life has begun!
God wants you to not just turn over a new leaf, God wants to give you a new life.
It’s like; getting a 2nd chance, starting again, being born all over.
Jesus said, I didn’t come to rub it in, I came to rub it out.
If there is anything that’s good news it’s that God says our past can be forgiven.
Regardless of who you are or what you’ve done or what you think you’ve done,
you matter to God and He cares about you.
He wants to forgive you.
Christmas Means…your past can be forgiven….
Christmas Means…Your
Future Can Be Guaranteed
What
does your future hold?
YOU KNOW NOT MUCH today is really guaranteed, is it?
· You may have a job
today but there is no guarantee that you will have one tomorrow.
· Your health may
be fine today – but tomorrow your doctor could give you a bad report.
· Your investments s may look secure right now but next month
the market can bottom out and stay there.
· Your relationship
may seen wonderful at the moment but the violin music could soon turn
sour
A lot of things that people put there hope in, just don’t hold up.
BUT that’s what is so awesome about Christmas - Christmas means that our future is secure.
Romans 8:15-17 (MSG) 16 God's Spirit touches our spirits and confirms who we really are. We know who he is, and we know who we are: Father and children. 17 And we know we are going to get what's coming to us—an unbelievable inheritance!...
Revelation 21:1-7 (NLT) 1
Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the old heaven and the old earth
had disappeared. And the sea was also gone. 2 And I saw the holy city, the new
Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven like a beautiful bride prepared
for her husband. 3 I heard a loud shout from the throne, saying, "Look, the home
of God is now among his people! He will live with them, and they will be his
people. God himself will be with them. 4 He will remove all of their sorrows,
and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain. For the old world
and its evils are gone forever." 5 And the one sitting on the throne said,
"Look, I am making all things new!" And then he said to me, "Write this down,
for what I tell you is trustworthy and true." 6 And he also said, "It is
finished! I am the Alpha and the Omega—the Beginning and the End. To all who are
thirsty I will give the springs of the water of life without charge! 7 All who
are victorious will inherit all these blessings, and I will be their God, and
they will be my children.
That’s a picture of the future that Christmas brings…
And that future is guaranteed by the Holy Spirit, the power of God and the words of Jesus…
“When
everything is ready, I will come back and get you… So that you will always be
with me where I am…”
Christmas Means…Your
Present Can Be Full
Christmas
not only means that your past can be forgiven, and your future can be guaranteed…
It also means that your life here and now can be full…
If you were to take a poll of people in America age 12 and up and asked them –
if they felt fulfilled in life, if they were content… what do you think most people would say…?
Which % do you think would be greater, those who said yes or those
who said no?
NOW – we all know that people are not unfulfilled for a lack of trying…
In fact people today are in a mad pursuit trying all kinds of things to bring them contentment;
houses, cars, pleasures, relationships, good times, recreation, therapy, careers, you name it
But
they are still pretty empty inside.
People are still empty – they have dug one well after another and they keep coming up dry.
And this time of year is a powerful example of it….
When you consider all the time (days, weeks, hours),
all the energy and all the money that goes into this holiday season…
Most people don’t get a very good return on
their investment…
The food is gone
The family went back home
The decorations are in the attic
The tree is at the curb
AND deep down inside where no one sees but God and then
they are still empty..
But
Christmas (God sending His son) can change all that…
...“I
have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be
in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of
being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether
living in plenty or in want. I can do everything through him who gives me
strength.
Philippians
4:11-13 NIV
If you want; fullness of life/contentment/ - there is only one answer Jesus
Christ…!
Christmas Means…God
Loves You
I’m
just going to read some Scripture about God’s love for you…
I’m not going to say anything about it…
Just
close your eyes and let his word refresh your spirit…
“Surely
your goodness and unfailing love will pursue me all the days of my life, and I
will live in the house of the LORD forever.”
Psalms 23:6 NLT
“Through
each day the LORD pours his unfailing love upon me, and through each night I
sing his songs, praying to God who gives me life.”
Ps 42:8 NIV
Can anything ever separate us
from Christ’s
love? Does it mean he no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity, or are
persecuted, or are hungry or cold or in danger or threatened with death?…No,
despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved
us. And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from his love. Death
can’t, and life can’t. The angels can’t, and the demons can’t. Our fears for
today, our worries about tomorrow, and even the powers of hell can’t keep God’s
love away. Whether we are high above the sky or in the deepest ocean, nothing in
all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is
revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Romans 8:35-39 NIV
1 John
3:1-2 (NLT) See
how very much our heavenly Father loves us, for he allows us to be called his
children, and we really are! But the people who belong to this world don't know
God, so they don't understand that we are his children. 2 Yes, dear friends, we
are already God's children, and we can't even imagine what we will be like when
Christ returns. But we do know that when he comes we will be like him, for we
will see him as he really is.
Twas the
day after Christmas and all through the town
The ones who weren’t Christians were feeling let down
The stockings weren’t hung by the chimney anymore,
And boxes and wrapping covered the floor.
The kitchen was covered from floor to ceiling
With enough dirty dishes to set Mother reeling
The children were whining over what they didn’t get
And rather than sharing, they were throwing a fit!
The malls were bustling with post Christmas shoppers
Searching for bargains on racks and in hoppers.
The salesmen looked haggard, the shoppers looked worse
As credit cards flew out of wallet and purse.
There were no joyful sounds of carolers singing,
And the only bells heard, were registers ringing.
The scene was altogether too grim,
For all the people who didn’t know Him.
If only this unhappy crowd could know
That the Spirit of Christmas isn’t tied with a bow
And stacked in piles underneath the tree,
He lives forever in you and in me.
He didn’t start in presents piled up in a sleigh,
He started with Christ being born in the hay.
The perfect gift from our Father above
Sent to us sinners to show us His love.
He came without wrapping or boxes or strings,
No glitter or glamour or other vain things.
He came with a promise of hope for all men,
That even in death, we’d have life again.
The next face you encounter covered with strife,
Introduce them to Jesus and change their whole life.
Teach them that Christmas is a daily thing,
That comes from intimately knowing the King.
QUESTION – do you know the King?