Sermon for 12/23/07

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Sermon for 12/23/07
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Advent 4, MATTHEW 1:18-25, (RW2001)
The Reason For The Season? A Surprise Answer!

Grace to you and peace from God our Father, and our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, AMEN

Summary: We say Jesus is the “Reason for the Season”, but actually, Jesus came for a reason - to save us from sin. You and I, (and our sin), are the reason for the season. And Jesus comes to rescue us from that which would keep us from being in the proper relationship with Him - He mercifully and lovingly rescues us from sin. Praise God AMEN.

Gospel Reading Matthew 1:18-25

This is how the birth of Jesus the Messiah came about: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit. Because Joseph her husband was a righteous man and did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly.

But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, "Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins."

All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: "The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel" (which means "God with us").

When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary home as his wife. But he had no union with her until she gave birth to a son. And he gave him the name Jesus.

1) REASON FOR THE SEASON! Ask a Christian today what is the true “Reason for the season?” and most will be quick to say “Jesus!” The rest of the world may talk about family traditions, Santa, lights, parties, and gifts as the reason for the season, but we Christians want people to not to loose sight of the real reason, and so you will see “Jesus is the reason for the season” printed on Christian greeting cards, T-shirts, ornaments and other Xmas nick-nacks. The fact is, I used the term last week in introducing the children’s sermon, trying to make the same point. But something in this week’s text has caused me to re-examine that cliché. Because the Angel is telling Joseph why the baby has come into the world. What does it say in verse 21? “…for He will save His people from theirs sins.” Is it possible that the true reason for the season is His people, you and me, and our sin?

2) GOD SAVE US! I mean, yes… God did empty Himself and come down to us in the form of a child, but why? What was the true reason for His coming? Just to show off that He could do it? Just to see if anyone would “catch on”? No, there was a specific reason for such a personal intimate encounter - and it had to do with the fact that an alienating gap had developed between the Father and His children. They needed to be saved. Hence the name “Jesus”, which means “God saves us!” But in order to be saved or rescued, we must be saved or rescued from something. God save us from what? What’s the crisis? What’s the life-destroying threat that promises to keep us, His children, from experiencing the eternal peace and love He desires us to have? Jesus came to save us from our sin!

3) OH NO! NOT SIN! “Oh, no - pastor…, we’re only a day away from the manger scene, and a little baby, a bright star, shepherds, and angels singing in the quiet night - the “silent night, holy night”. With all these warm fuzzies coming our way - you’re not gonna start talking about sin are you? All year long, our lives have had to deal with a cold reality, with brokeness, and constant negativity. The TV has shown us

political corruption,

aids epidemics,

terrorists,

bombs going off in Iraq,

soldiers dying,

starving children crying,

and image after image of how the world seems to be falling a part. Can’t you just let us escape for a few days, and dream dreams about “peace on earth and good will towards humankind? Please, do we really need to address our sin, the world’s sin, and the human sin that keeps us separated from one another and God?”

4) VACATION OR PERMANENT SOLUTION? Hmmm… the temptation is there to ignore it, believe me, but think about it; is Christmas just a two or three week attempt to escape the brokenness around us? …a vacation from the harshness of reality? Or did this Holy child come to help us in some

real way,

some decisive way,

some hopeful way

of actually dealing with this brokeness that surrounds us daily? Sure we have many disappointments in this world, but did Jesus come to give us a few temporary warm fuzzies? Or did He break in with some awesome and permanent gift that turns the world up on it’s end, and declares that hope exists for all the broken children of God? Is His salvation a two week vacation, or a permanent solution to our problems?

5) THE PROBLEM OF SIN! Do you think Joseph wasn’t aware of the brokeness of this world and the problem of sin? Here’s a poor carpenter who’s doing the best he can, and wham-oh; a “bomb” drops on Him! The girl he is engaged to is pregnant - and he knew he didn’t do it! Talk about disappointment! What would Joseph do? After all, his fiancée’ is talking crazy about “angels” and “messages from God” - but he knows what adultery looks like when he sees it. What other conclusion can he come to? Isn’t it just another case of “unfaithfulness”, the kind that demonstrates the problem of sin; the sin that seems to destroy everything precious! According to Jewish customs, he can legally and publicly charge her and save his reputation. But the possibility of her being “stoned to death” is too horrible a thought, and the shame it would bring to her family… no, it’s best to dismiss her quietly. Of course, we would have come to the same conclusion - for who of us are not only too aware that most of the disappointment, pain, and brokeness we experience is due to the problem of sin. Is there nothing that can save us from it?

5) A RESCUER? “Yes”, says God. “Me! My ‘unconditional love’ is the solution. What Adam and Eve destroyed in the Garden of Eden, I shall fix again. You need to be rescued, and I will send you a rescuer! You need to be saved - saved from sin, Satan, and death, and I will send you a Savior.” Hmmm… You’d think we be pleased with the miracle of a Savior, the promise of a rescuer. But too often we have a problem with that solution. Why? Well, not all of us are sure that we need a Savior. In as much as we understand sin to be a problem, it’s usually the sins of others that are the problem and focus - not us! See, …if my wacko in-laws would just leave me alone - I’d be happy! If my incompetent boss would stop picking on me, I’d climb the corporate ladder! If the government would stop taxing us to death, I could get ahead! (Know anyone who sound like this?) Without a doubt, God needs to come down and fix everyone around me - but hey, I’m doing just fine. I don’t need rescuing. Why would you want to send a rescuer, God? I need a lot of things, but not a rescuer!

6) SIN REMOVAL! FORGIVENESS! So… does God agree with our assessment? Apparently not, because He sent us a rescuer anyway! Apparently, whatever we think we need is all wrong - and in 20-20 hindsight, it’s a good thing God didn’t take a survey to find out what we needed. Many would have said what we needed most was for more and better information, and that God should send us a professor extraordinaire. Others might have said our greatest need was for technology, and he should send us a heavenly scientist. Many would suggest we need more pleasure above all things, and God should send an entertainer! Others no doubt, are convinced that we each just need a little more money, and God needs to send an economist. But God looks at His children and says that above all things we need some kind of sin removal; forgiveness! And so he sent us a savior, a redeemer! And Jesus’ number one reason for coming was to free us from our bondage to sin through the gift of forgiveness. No professor, scientist, entertainer, nor an economist could help us with that! Because the “reason for the season” is not information, technology, pleasure, or money. The reason for the season is sin - ours; yours and mine. And the only answer is sin removal: forgiveness brought to us in Christ - a savior.

7) REAL SINNERS! Now, if I have learned anything as a pastor, it’s that many of us in the church have a hard time seeing ourselves as “real sinners”. Sure, we admit we’re not perfect, but when we look in the mirror we just have a hard time calling ourselves real sinners. “I’m not a bad person!” we protest, “I’ve not robbed a bank or murdered someone. I don’t cheat on my taxes or have affairs or sell drugs, or any of those bad things.” And so we tightened our jaw and reserve the word “sinner” for others! Strange as it sounds, it hurts the pride of a lot of church goers to admit we must be counted among the weak, the fallen, the lost. But our prideful denial doesn’t stop us from pointing out the errors and faults of others – you know “real sinners!”

8) COMPLETE ACCESS? What we need during the Advent season, is to be as honest as some of my confirmation students have been over the years. Often I will ask them if they mind the fact that God sees everything they do, and has complete access to every thought they have or ever had. No, they say, because they know He is forgiving and loving. But… when I ask them if they would mind their parents knowing everything they do, and knowing every thought they have, suddenly heads started shaking from left to right and eyes got big at that very petrifying thought! What is it that makes us so afraid to let others know everything about us? Sin. We may deny being “real sinners”, or a “serious sinner”, until we think about others having complete access to our past, and complete access to our thoughts. Would you like your pastor, or wife, or children to wander through your memories or eavesdrop on what ever pops into your mind? Me neither! Are we then, living as God wanted us to live? Hardly. As hard as that is to admit, it is the truth. We are sinners!

9) THE TRUTH! Have you seen the advertising on Television for a new show that is coming soon that has contestants hooked up to “lie detectors”, and they are asked revealing, troublesome questions like, “Would you consider having a one time affair, if you could be assured that your spouse would never know about it?” A car dealer is asked “Have you ever rolled back the odometer on a used car?” Woe! Do you know why people are going to tune in to watch that bizarre kind of entertainment? Because of the fear factor. What fear? The fear that the revealed truth brings! You see, most of us are well aware that the people around us DO NOT know what we are thinking, or have done in our past, and we find great comfort in that knowledge! Even if we DO have ungodly things running through our heads, we can deny the truth and no one can prove we are lying! But this show threatens to strip contestants of the ability to cover up their sin. Those lie detectors are the reason that people will watch this show; because they dare to strip some one of their protective coverings and denial, opens their inner most thoughts to the public, and reveals what happens when the truth is exposed! Just the idea of letting someone into our innermost private thoughts can yank us back to the truth – we ALL fall short of the glory of God! The truth is - We are all sinners!

10) CLICK-CLICK! OK, so “we’re sinners” - so what? Can’t we pay the price for our own sins? Can’t we make up for it? …earn our way back into God’s graces? To answer those questions, maybe we need to get a real sense of our position with God because of our sin? How many of you have credit cards? (Raise hands) Today we run those cards through a quiet slot in a machine, and we painlessly go into debt! But do any of you remember when credit cards had to be run through those noisy machines that would forcibly rub the card across the carbon paper leaving an imprint of the number? When the clerk ran it through it made a distinctive “click-click” sound that would leave a painful expression on your face. That “click-click” sound let everyone around you know you were going into debt. You’d buy gas, “click-click”! You’d purchase some clothes, “click-click”! Pay for dinner - “click-click”. And if the “click-click” sound didn’t bother you, the statement at the end of the month surely would! It’s amazing how many “click-click” sounds can be racked up in 30 days!

11) IN DEBT! Well, in the same way, a lifetime is a long time to rack up some major debt in heaven.

You yell at your kids, “click-click”!

You covet you neighbor’s car, “click-click”!

You envy a neighbor’s success, “click-click”!

You gossip about someone behind their back, “click-click”.

You break a promise,

lose control,

or entertain lustful thoughts, “click-click”, “click-click”, “click-click”!!!

I could go on and on and on, but you get the point, don’t you? You were born into a state of sin. You were hopelessly “in debt” from the start, and all your life you sin, and sin, and sin, …and the more we sin, the deeper in debt we become. What can we do, to dig ourselves out from the mountain of sin piling ever higher upon us? Is there a way we can swim across the ocean of sin that separates us from God, on our own? Can’t we just stop sinning? Is it just a matter of will power? Even as we ponder these questions, self-centered thoughts pop into our heads and the familiar “click-click” of sin reminds us of just how deep in debt we are!

12) SET FREE! God knows we try to make up for it. But it’s futile! It’s like the Hindu man in India, who ran across a merchant selling quail. He had tied a string to the leg of every bird, and the other end was tied to a ring that spun around a central stick stuck in the ground. The quail had been taught to walk around in circles, merry-go-round style. Thinking it cruel, the Hindu man bought all the birds with the intention of setting them free. When released, what do you think they did? They kept marching around the post. When he ran them off, they flew a short distance and then resumed their predictable march. We are a lot like those quail. Even when set free, we still keep on sinning. We need someone who can save us then from the continual power of sin. Someone who can help us learn to stop walking in circles of sin, and instead, empower us to start increasingly walking in the footprints of God. Yes, saved people still sin, but they are set free from the “bondage” and “eternal consequences” that keeps us from knowing, loving, and growing closer to God.

13) BORN TO DIE FOR OUR SIN! In Genesis, and again in Romans, we were told that the consequences of sin is death - total separation from the light of God throughout eternity. Any sin, big or little in our mind, never-the-less separates us from God. A few people may not want to face this fact during Christmas and may be satisfied with a few days of warm fuzzies, angels, family parties, and eggnog. But that small baby we look so fondly upon in the manger was born for a reason - to die… for our sin. …to pay the price. …to cancel the debt. Think about this: Had there been no sin, He would not have had to come! And yet He did come! And the one who

knew no sin,

had no sin,

did no sin -

came to pay a debt you and I could not pay. Those cute little baby hands and feet we “oou and awe” over in the manger, were already designed for the nails He would bear on the cross. His tender skin would be pierced by a crown of thorns, His baby belly would someday be pierced by a spear. He was born for this: to die,

to pay off our sin debts,

to free us from our crimes against God.

He came to pay our penalty. He gave His life for our transgressions, and inequities. He was born to die for our sin!

14) REASON FOR THE SEASON IS YOU AND CHRIST’S LOVE! If all you see this season is a cute little baby in a manger you will miss the immense love your creator has for you. If all you see is shepherds and angels, you will experience a few warm fuzzies that will fade in a day or two. But if you look at what that child will do, and has done for you, you will recognize the gift of an unconditional love that sets you free… forever! For as much as we are about to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ, we must not forget the “reason for the season”, for His coming. “You”, says the angel in today’s text,

“you are the reason He came to give up His life.

You are the reason He suffered and died.

It was to you, that He gave all He could give.

It was for you He came, so that at the end of your life, your account reads, “Paid in full”. You… and Christ’s love for you are the reason for the season.” Praise God, AMEN

Confessional Prayer:

Dear Heavenly Father, we confess that we too often forget why you came. We get too wrapped up in packages, trees, parties, and lights, and forget that it was because of our sin that you had to come and suffer for us. We confess we don’t like facing our sin, our self-centeredness. We tend to blame others for our shortcomings, or live in denial. Or we try to fix the problem ourselves. Forgive us for our independent and rebellious spirits. Help us to honestly face the reality of our sin and to humbly and eagerly accept your sacrifice of love that frees us and returns us to your embrace.

Lord, we confess that we too often treat Christmas like a 2 week vacation that comes and goes and has no permanent affect on our lives. We join the busyness of the world in celebrating and partying, but forget that the child in the manger was born to die - for us! We forget it was our sin that brought Him into this world and sent Him to suffer and die on the cross. Too often, we deny needing a savior, but we do Lord! Rescue us, free us from our bondages to sin that we may live a joy filled life, loving and serving You and one another.

And now, although you know us better than we know ourselves, listen as we share in a moment of silence, those other parts of our lives that need to be forgiven, washed clean, and made anew.

(Silence)

Lord, had we not failed you, had we not sinned, you would not have had to come and suffer and die for us. We give thanks that you loved us enough to become the sacrificial lamb… and for doing what we could not do for ourselves. Thank you for paying our debts and setting us free. Help us to love you and follow you in our freedom. AMEN

Assurance of Forgiveness:

Friends, listen to the good news: the Lord who was born to die for your sins, has heard your confession and lovingly forgives you all your sins. Go, prepare your hearts for the child who comes to pay for your debts, to set you free. Celebrate Him, Love Him, Serve Him - your Savior comes! AMEN

Opening Prayer: Advent 4,

Dear Lord, we come here this morning, most of us excited about the season of Christmas. But in the busyness and noise of the Holidays we can loose our focus, we can forget the reason for the season. Help us in this next hour to find the quiet time we need to reflect upon what really counts. Help us zero in on what our greatest gift is: your love for us. Help us to see past the presents and lights to see the divine grace that sets us free from the bondage to sin, Satan, and death. Help us to see the baby in the manger as the answer to all our needs. Remove from us the stumbling blocks that keep us from seeing, knowing, and growing closer to you. Wash away any sin that keeps us from loving you more and more each day. Heal our wounds, mend our broken hearts. Refresh us through your Holy Spirit, and fill us with a desire to grow in our discipleship. Keep moving us towards wholeness, and help us trust in your love and power more and more each day. Receive our praise and thanksgiving, and help us to experience the miracle of Christmas all over again. AMEN

Children’s sermon:

1558-1829 Roman Catholics in England were not able to practice their faith openly so they had to pass on their beliefs in other ways. The song “The 12 days of Christmas” were one way they did this. It was a code…

12th

day of Xmas = 12 drummers drumming = 12 points of the Apostles Creed

11th 11 pipers piping 11 faithful disciples

10th 10 Lords a leaping 10 Commandments

9th 9 Ladies dancing 9 fruits of the Spirit (Galatians)

(Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self control)

8th 8 Maids a milking 8 Beatitudes

(Jesus talked the poor and meek being blessed by God)

7th 7 swans a swimming 7 gifts of the Holy Spirit (Romans 12:6-8)

(prophecy, ministry, teaching, giving, etc..)

6th 6 geese a laying 6 days of creation

5th 5 Golden rings 5 books of the OT (Pentateuch - Moses)

4th 4 calling birds 4 Gospels

3rd 3 French hens 3 gifts of HS - faith hope and love

2nd 2 Turtle doves 2 The OT and NT

1st Partridge in a pear tree 1 Christ who died on the cross.

Things are not always what they seem: same with Jesus. Just a little baby? No the savior of the world!!!

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