Tis The Season To Worship Christ Series

INTRO.- Knock Knock

Who’s there ?

Avery

Avery who ?

Avery merry Christmas to you!

ILL.- A man said: In a small southern town there was a "Nativity Scene" that showed great skill and talent had gone into creating it. One small feature bothered me.

The three wise men were wearing fireman’s helmets. Totally unable to come up with a reason or explanation, I left. At a "Quik Stop" on the edge of town, I asked the lady behind the counter about the helmets. She got upset, yelling at me, "You stupid Yankees never do read the Bible!" I assured her that I did, but simply couldn’t recall anything about firemen in the Bible.

She jerked her Bible from behind the counter and thumbed through some pages, and finally jabbed her finger at a passage. Sticking it in my face she said "See, it says right here, ’The three wise man came from afar.’"

The three wise men came from afar (the east), but to do what? They came to worship Christ. And it’s been said that wise men still worship Jesus.

It should be obvious to the whole world that it’s time to worship the Christ! But sadly, not everyone believes in Christ or acknowledges Christ as the Savior of the world.

ILL.- Recently, we heard about what happened in the capital in Washington state. OLYMPIA, Wash. -- An atheist group unveiled an anti-religion placard/sign in the state Capitol, joining a Christian Nativity scene and "holiday tree" on display during December.

The atheists’ sign was installed by Washington members of the Freedom From Religion Foundation, a national group based in Madison, Wis. The placard reads: "At this season of the WINTER SOLSTICE may reason prevail. There are no gods, no devils, no angels, no heaven or hell. There is only our natural world. Religion is but myth and superstition that hardens hearts and enslaves minds."

The foundation’s co-president, Dan Barker, said it was important for atheists to offer their viewpoint. He said, "Our members want equal time." Oh come on now! Get with the program! TIS THE SEASON TO WORSHIP CHRIST! Worship Him now or worship Him later!

ILL.- Elaine and I recently saw the movie, "Four Christmases." It was a comedy but also had some mockery to it. There was one scene where actor Vince Vaughn played the part of Joseph in a church play and Reese Witherspoon played the part of Mary. It was funny and yet it wasn’t funny, because Vaughn, in his idiocy, over-played his part to the point where he got all the glory. All attention was given to him in that church play instead of pointing to the Christ child.

And that’s the way it is in our world. People want to steal the glory of Christ for themselves. They are not the least bit interested in worshiping Him. BUT WE KNOW BETTER AND HOPEFULLY, WE DO BETTER! Wise men and women still worship Christ.

PROP.- Tis the Season to worship Christ and in different ways.

1- Worship Christ secretly

2- Worship Christ sincerely

3- Worship Christ separately

I. TIS THE SEASON TO WORSHIP CHRIST SECRETLY

ILL.- The teacher of the third-grade Sunday School class was planning to take her students on a "field trip" to the church service, so they could get an idea of what morning worship looked like.

Before they left their classroom, she thought it would be a good idea to caution them against being noisey in those surroundings. Attempting to engage their attention, she asked, "And why do we need to be quiet in church?" One bright little boy replied, "Because people are sleeping in there."

Would anyone ever go to sleep in a worship service? Or how about during a prayer meeting or private prayer time? Did you ever fall asleep while praying? Who hasn’t?

I believe it’s the season to worship Christ secretly. Does that make sense? Secretly? Here is the idea.

Matthew 6:5-6 "And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you."

I believe that every person who believes in Christ should have a private or secret prayer time of worship time. It may be in your house but it may be elsewhere, but I think it’s a must for every Christian.

If those wise men from the East came to worship the Christ then what about us? How should we worship? We worship in two basic ways: one; by allowing the Lord to speak to us through His Word. And two; by us speaking words of praise to Him in prayer. And I think it must start privately or secretly.