Please Don’t Come For Christmas Part 4

Please Don’t Come For Christmas – Part 4

4 reasons why Jesus shouldn’t have come

Celebration Church – December 20, 2009

We’ve come to the end of the series, please don’t come for Christmas and apparently that’s what happened last week, people stayed home. Well some braved the weather and we had a wonderful service. Hey what’s a little ice?

Now our prayer is that not only will Jesus come, but that God will visit us and move in powerful ways helping people to be released from the grip of fear, frustration and failure. It’s our prayer that today you will experience freedom!

Now to recap, we’ve said humanly speaking since Jesus wasn’t really accepted if He were you or me, He should have just stayed in heaven…

Reason #1 - He wasn’t wanted by the ruling authorities

Reason #2 – He wasn’t welcomed by His own

Reason #3 – He wasn’t worshipped by the people

Today we come to the last reason why He shouldn’t have come and it’s the very reason why we needed Him to come!

Reason #4 – We’re not worthy

There’s not a person here or that has ever lived that could stand in heaven before God and say, I’m here because I earned it and I deserve it. No, that’s not going to happen. We don’t deserve heaven, or God’s love for that matter.

Many people today think, I’ll figure this whole eternity thing out on my own. I’ve got a good head on my shoulders. I’m smart, I’m capable. Well the only problem with that is, is that no matter how strong you are, no matter how smart you are, no matter how much you own or have – if you’re falling into a pit, the result is going to be a sudden stop at the bottom of the pit and all your strength, wealth, beauty and resources will not help you during your fall. No matter what you know or who you know will make a difference.

Prov 16:25 (NIV) “There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death.”

The problem we’re faced with is that we judge things by what we see and what we think. Look at how we make judgments…

Humans judge worth by externals:

Appearance - They ask: "How do I look? The better I look, the more I am worth in people’s eyes."

For some it’s all about the look. It’s about how they are perceived. Reality nothing, how do people perceive me and that’s what matters to some.

Yes not only appearance but also…

Achievement - They ask: What have I accomplished? "If I am successful, then others will accept me."

For many their significance is attached to their performance. This is a deadly trap because let’s face it, you may not always be able to perform at the same level. No matter how well you do something, no matter what you are honored with, all the achievements in the world will not address your ability to get into heaven or experience God here and now. That’s not what attracts God.

Still others have a doormat mentality and they throw themselves at everyone in hopes of finding some approval.

Approval - They ask: "How well am I liked? If people like me, I must be okay."

Some people spend their whole lives trying to prove to their parents that they are someone. Listen to me, there are over 6 billion people in the world and if two of them don’t approve of you, it’s OK.

Don’t attach your significance to what others think about you. If you do, your life will be directed by what you think, they think about you.

So not only appearance, achievement and approval, people also judge based on…

Affluence They ask: "Do I have enough toys?

Let’s face most people act differently around those who have a lot of money. Maybe it’s because money is power in this world, or maybe it’s because people hope to get some of their money… I don’t know, but people do act differently. Wouldn’t it be great to just treat everyone the same regardless of what they have?

In our world, it seems the more you have, the more you want and the more others are envious. That seems to be the game.

Now man looks at these outward things and they all seem benign, innocent but what’s behind them are the MOTIVES OF OUR HEARTS. Truly we want to have significance and know that our lives mattered to someone.

Prov 16:2 (NIV) “All a man’s ways seem innocent to him, but motives are weighed by the LORD.”

So while man’s way is to look at the outward, which by the way is always the most obvious and since none of us can truly see the inward it’s all we have. Still God can see past all your pretence all our phoniness and see our hearts which is the true revealer of who and what we are.