Don't Miss The Point

Did you hear about the farmer that decided to buy a chain saw? A logging foreman sold him one that he guaranteed would cut down 15 trees in a single day. A week later, a very unhappy farmer came back to report that the power saw must be faulty - it averaged only 3 trees a day. The foreman grabbed the saw, pulled the cord, and the saw promptly went “Bzzzzzzzz.”

“Hey” demanded the startled farmer, “what’s that noise?”

(Contributed to sermon central by Andrew Chan) Obviously, the farmer missed the point. He did not make the connection that the saw must be cranked.

We are in the midst of celebrating the greatest event in the history of mankind. I hope you will not miss the reason for the season. I am convinced there are many people who miss the reason for the season.

That was a threat in the life of Mary, the mother of Jesus. She was faced with the possibility of missing the point of Jesus birth. We are faced with the same challenge. We have the knowledge of Jesus. We have the good news. What do we do about it? Do we understand the significance of his birth. Do our lives reflect that we understand the significance of His birth. Mary teaches us some valuable lessons about understanding the significance of Jesus birth. If our lives reflect the significance of Jesus birth there are certain actions we should display. What are they? Notice three steps Mary took that we should also take.

I. If we understand the reason for the season we should give Jesus our trust. After being presented with the news about Jesus, Mary trusted God with the facts and the story. She said "Behold the maidservant of the Lord! Let it be to me according to your word.’’ (vs. 38 NKJV)

A. Trust is not easy. Put yourself in Mary’s place. She was an unmarried virgin who was asked to give birth to the Son of God. That was not an easy task. However, she trusted God with the news.

People of faith have always been asked to make challenging commitments. Look at a section from the life of the Old Testament figure, Abraham. We find this recorded in Hebrews 11:8 “By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going.” Imagine the dialogue that might have taken place. “Abraham, this is God speaking. I want you to leave everything and go to the land I will show you.” “Where’s that?” “If I told you, you wouldn’t believe me.” “Try me.” “It’s 1500 miles from here in a place called Canaan.” “Never heard of it.” “I know, and guess what else?” “What?” “I’m going to make you the father of a great nation.” “That’s impossible. I don’t have any children.” “Don’t worry.” “What do you mean, don’t worry?” “Just trust me.” “Let me see if I’ve got this straight. You want me to leave everything, travel across the desert to someplace I’ve never heard of, and become the father of a great nation.” “Right.” “Is this some kind of joke?” “No.” “What am I supposed to tell my wife?” “That’s your problem.”

(Contributed to Sermon Central by Ray Pritchard)

B. What is trust? In studying Luke 1 you can identify the aspects of trust.

(1) Trust involves revelation. God revealed the truth about Jesus through the visit of an angel. In your life God reveals Himself to you. God will always take the initiative to reveal Himself and His son to you. (Read verse 28)

Illustration- You might be thinking to yourself, God has never revealed himself to me. The story is told of a devout priest was caught in a flood one day, and he climbed onto the roof of his Vicarage and as the water started lapping up over the roof he prayed “Lord, deliver me from this flood”.

The water continued to rise and a policeman in a rowing boat passed: “Can I help you Vicar?” “No thanks, the Lord will deliver me!”

A little while later, the water is even higher, and the Vicar is up to his waist, even standing on his roof. A lifeboat cruises past, and the deck hand shouts out “Can I help you, Vicar?” “No Thanks” was his reply “The Lord will deliver me – I’ve prayed for it”

After another few minutes, the water has risen so much that only the Vicar’s head is peeping out from above the water and a helicopter flies over. The pilot leans out and calls “Can I help you Vicar?” “No thanks, the Lord will deliver me!”

At which point, the water rises over the Vicar’s head and he drowns.