"No Room"

“No Room”

Luke 2:1-7

You may not want to know that there are only two weeks left until Christmas. Hopefully you have been getting ready, you have made your list and checked it twice and you will even have some time to slow down and enjoy the season. I am of the belief that may people, probably most people, actually go right through the entire month of December at full speed, not having a moment to unwind, to relax and actually enjoy what the season is really all about.

Let me try and give you a few words/phrases that may describe how you feel at this time of year. Rushed. Broke. Out of time. Stressed. Hurried. Tired of Turkey sandwiches. Tired of leftovers. Crowded. Overextended. If Christmas is about anything I believe it is about Making Room for Jesus in our busy, hectic lives.

When Mary and Joseph arrived in Bethlehem after a lengthy trip, they were no doubt tired……exhausted. After all Mary was pregnant; at full term and had just ridden a donkey for 80 long, dusty miles. Likely a 4 day journey. They, like everyone else in that area had been ordered to come to Bethlehem to pay their taxes. They had no choice but to go. Mary couldn’t call in sick; she couldn’t apply for medical leave; there was no way to postpone any of this so she and Joseph made their way to Bethlehem. The angels had spoken to her; she was fully convinced and was very much aware by now that she was about to give birth to the Son of God. Joseph was aware also and he trusted Mary and he trusted His Lord that Mary was a virgin and this was all a part of God’s big plan for their lives. So they arrived in Bethlehem, very much in need of rest, wanted to take care of their taxes and return to their home. So the last thing they wanted to hear when they arrived were these words….”we have no room in the inn.” Now maybe we should not be surprised that this was the response of the innkeeper; I mean after all thousands of people were making their journey there, no way of going to GOOGLE and making an early reservation. But it still surprises us when we hear the words the innkeeper spoke…we have no room for you. We have no room for you, Virgin Mary, husband Joseph and the King of Kings. We would think that if anyone had any clout/any pull at all that it would be God and that they would not be forced to stay in a stable. But they were. Because there was simply no room.

I would guess that many of us can identify with this statement because we feel the same way at this time of year. We have no room. There are several things that begin to happen when we get to this point. None of them are good. When our lives become too full, we can (1) Lose our time alone with God. Making time for Him is the last thing we have on our mind. In a season that is set aside to honor Jesus, He is often the last thing on our minds. And there is a reason for that.

(2) When our lives become too full if Christ is not the first thing in our lives He will usually be the last. He doesn’t come in 2nd. He doesn’t want to be 2nd by the way. He wants to be first. But because of our schedules and all of our endless activities He ends up in last place. He takes last place in our giving, in our commitments and in our priorities.

(3) When our lives become too full and we lose our time with God, we can also lose our relationship with God. It is a fact of life that we make time for the things that matter. We make time for the people that matter. We make time for the things and the people we love. But we somehow have this mistaken idea that God understands. Trust me, He doesn’t. From the beginning of His life Jesus has been told by too many of us that there is no room for Him right now. Think about it.

• The innkeeper told Mary and Joseph flat out there is no room for you in the inn.

• When Jesus told that rich young ruler he needed to sell all he had and give it to the poor, the young man walked away very sad and gave nothing. He basically said, Jesus I don’t have time for this kind of thing.

• When Peter said to Jesus, I don’t even know you, he was saying I don’t have time for you right now.