“What’s Christmas All About? Joining the Family”
Matthew 1:18-23
When I first saw the original movie “Home Alone” it brought back some memories for me. In the movie a young boy is accidentally home alone when his family goes on vacation. As the plot develops the boy conquers his fears of aloneness and goes on to single-handedly corral two thieves who have been robbing houses in the neighborhood. It made for a great, fun movie. And while I was never left behind when my parents left for vacation, there were those times when I was alone for a little while. I can still remember vividly feeling tremendous fear on a couple of those occasions.
Have you ever been left alone? Have you ever wondered I God has left you alone, has left you behind to go on to other business or other people? Or perhaps you’ve wondered if God is really with us? After all, it is A RIDICULOUS AND RADICAL CONCEPT. Immanuel – God with us. God with us. God with us. God with us.
What a RIDICULOUS concept. Consider the concept of God. THE OLD TESTAMENT paints a picture of God as distant and separate. God, in fact, states, “I am the high and lofty one who inhabits eternity.” And if God is truly God He must be separate from us. He cannot be God if He is too close to or too much like us. All major faiths agree that a god must be totally ‘other’, far removed from humankind. Yet Matthew claims Jesus is Immanuel – God with us. It’s ridiculous!
When Moses was on Mount Sinai receiving the 10 commandments He could not look at the face of God –the Old Testament is clear that no one could see God’s face and live. God was unapproachable. Mountains quaked, smoke billowed, people died. Yet Matthew claims Jesus is Immanuel – God with us. Somehow, in Jesus, God has come near. It’s like electricity. Before electricity can be of any use in a home or a building it must pass through an electrical transformer. The transformer cuts the power down to whatever is needed for that particular place. Without this reduction everything in that place would burn up. Matthew claims that Jesus is the transformer that alters the God so He can be with us, so we can see Him and know Him. Immanuel – God with us. It’s ridiculous.
Consider THE WORLD in which we live. Is God with us? It’s a world where many starve while others eat until they’re too full, where crooks prosper and hold the rest of us in fear, where rip-off artists abound and greed rules, where the sacred is constantly being trampled and rejected, where violence is part of the fabric of life, where sex which was meant to be holy has been reduced to an appetite to be filled at any cost, and where fear runs the streets so that even churches hire or provide security for their buildings and grounds. Yet Matthew claims Jesus is Immanuel – God with us. It’s ridiculous!
Consider the HEADLINES. Earthquakes, tsunamis, and floods; plane crashes, increasing suicide rates among young people; states with legal assisted suicide; the increase of diseases for which there seems to be no cure; the gut-wrenching truth that some babies are born crippled and handicapped and some are not even given a chance to be born; the heart-stirring pictures of abandoned persons lining the hallways of run-down nursing facilities; or more and more soldiers going off to war. It does appear, as Omar Khayam once put it, “The world rolls round forever like a mill. It grinds out death and life and good and ill. It has no purpose or mind or will.” Yet Matthew claims Jesus is Immanuel – God with us. It’s ridiculous!
Just think about it. In the words of Frederick Buechner, “The One who inhabits eternity comes to dwell in time. The One whom none can look upon and live is delivered in a stable under the soft, indifferent gaze of cattle. The Father of all mercies puts Himself at our mercy.” Yet Matthew claims Jesus is Immanuel – God with us. It’s ridiculous!
The late Dr. Norman Vincent Peale framed it well. In his message “The Wonderful Excitement of Christmas” he wrote “During the Christmas rush two men were standing on Fifth Avenue at 57th Street in New York City, waiting for a red light. One of them was irritated by the traffic. ‘This town is totally disorganized,’ he growled. ‘Look at this traffic! It’s terrible! Something ought to be done about it.’ the other man…thoughtfully countered, ‘You know, it’s astounding, the romance of it. There was a baby born of peasant parents in a little out-of-the-way placed halfway around the world from here. The parents had no money or social standing, yet two thousand years later that little baby creates a traffic jam on Fifth Avenue, one of the most sophisticated, streets n the world. This irritates you. Instead it should fascinate you.”
Can it be that God is with us? Could this ridiculous concept really be true? If so it is also RADICAL. The truth is, throughout the centuries GOD WAS WITH HIS PEOPLE. Moses was to deliver Israel from Egypt – and through the plagues, the parting of the Sea and the manna in the desert God was with him. Joshua was to conquer the Promised Land – and through the damming up of the Jordan River and the tumbling of the walls of Jericho God was with him. Daniel’s three friends marched into the fiery furnace only to find that God was with them. Then Matthew claims Jesus is Immanuel – God with us. It’s radical!
It’s no wonder John began his Gospel with “The WORD BECAME FLESH and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth.” No longer unseeable or unapproachable, God can be touched, felt, seen, and experienced. Roy Lessin stated it, “God knew we could never buy our way to Him – the cost was too great; we could never earn our way to Him – the task was too great; we could never will our way to Him – the commitment was too great. God knew we could never come to Him…so He came to us!” So Matthew claims Jesus is Immanuel – God with us.
Consider THE HISTORY OF THE WORLD. Paul wrote (Gal. 4) that when the time was right – when it had fully come – God sent His Son. It’s a matter of record that it happened when Quirinius was governor. It is an event that changed the course of human history. Think about ice. Ice splits star-wise. Hit a block of ice with the tip of the pick at just the right point and fissures shoot out in all directions. The once solid block falls in two at the star. So God put the pick of history into the world when the time was right and history fell in two at the star of Bethlehem. Whether people choose to believe it or not, we date our checks and letters based upon it. We look at life in terms of BC and AD. So Matthew claims Jesus is Immanuel – God with us.
So we are not home alone. God is with us. God is with us. God is with us. It’s not only ridiculous and radical, IT’S REAL. And once we accept that fact, OUR PERSPECTIVE CHANGES. We begin to understand that THINGS ARE AS THEY ARE IN OUR WORLD BECAUSE OF US, NOT BECAUSE OF GOD. Genesis 1:26 teaches us that humankind was given dominion over the earth; it was placed under our responsibility; God entrusted it to us. In doing so our Holy God took a terrible risk – he gave us freedom to exercise that dominion. He gave us the freedom to say ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ to Him, to eat from the wrong trees and serve false gods. God gave us love and life, purpose and power. So we are the ones who make earth a heaven or a hell. It reminds me of the sinking of the Titanic. When that mighty ship sank with a loss of over 1500 passengers, it was referred to as an act of God. Yet the reality is that the Titanic was allowed to sail with only 16 lifeboats – enough for only the ship’s crew - instead of the minimum 48 that had been recommended. If there had been 48 lifeboats there would have been no need to blame God!
So it is that we make the poor, we provoke war, we unleash hunger and death. Yet THROUGH IT ALL GOD LOVES US WITH THE DIGNITY OF CHOICE. He knows that to compel love is not really to be loved, to compel worship is not really to be worshiped, to compel adoration is not really to be adored. They are but empty rituals of obedience. And God wants our obedience to rise from our love. So Matthew claims Jesus is Immanuel – God with us.
Once we accept that fact OUR LIVES ALSO CHANGE. We begin to recognize all the times GOD HAS REACHED OUT, GRASPED OUR HANDS, WALKED WITH US, AND MADE US HIS INSTRUMENTS. It was, after all, through a sinful Jacob that God said he would bless the world. It was through adulterous David that God supplied his major king and shepherd for His people. It was to surly, impetuous, denying Peter that He gave the keys of the Kingdom. It was through hateful, murderous Paul that He set the world aflame for Jesus Christ. Jeremiah said it well (18:1-4): “This is the word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD: "Go down to the potter’s house, and there I will give you my message." So I went down to the potter’s house, and I saw him working at the wheel. But the pot he was shaping from the clay was marred in his hands; so the potter formed it into another pot, shaping it as seemed best to him.”
God is always reaching down and reaching out to grasp our hands and make us His instruments. I know it’s real. He took me – a starry-eyed musician and wile-eyed dreamer of broadcasting – and made me a preacher of the greatest news the world has ever heard. Consider also this letter found on a dead American Soldier in Italy during one of the great wars: “Look God, I have never spoken to you; but now I want to say ‘How do you do’, You see, God, they told me you didn’t exist, and like a fool I believed all of this; Last night, from a shell hole, I saw your sky; I figured right then and there they had told a lie; Had I taken time to see the things you made, I’d know they weren’t calling a spade a spade; I wonder, God, is you’d shake my hand; somehow I feel you will understand. Funny I had to come to this hellish place; before I had time to see your face. Well, I guess there isn’t much more to say; but I’m sure glad, God, I met you today; I guess the zero hour will soon be here; but I’m not afraid since I know you are near. The signal! Well, God, I’ll have to go; I like you lots – this I want you to know. Look, now, this will be a horrible fight; who knows, I may come to your house tonight. Though I wasn’t friendly with you before – L wonder, God, if you’d wait at the door; Look, I’m crying! Me shedding tears! I wish I’d known you these many years; Well, I’ll have to go now, God, goodbye; strange, since I met you I’m not afraid to die.” Immanuel – God with us.
JESUS, GOD WITH US, IS WITH US TO SHARE OUR LOAD. Though we might abandon Him He will never abandon us. Though we might forget Him He will not forget us. Though we might break His heart, He still loves us. As the prophet Isaiah spoke. “Surely he took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows, yet we considered him stricken by God, smitten by him, and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed.” So when our heart breaks, God’s heart breaks; when we are bent low, God stoops even lower to raise us up. As Hebrews 2:17-18 states, “For this reason he had to be made like his brothers in every way, in order that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in service to God, and that he might make atonement for the sins of the people. Because he himself suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted.” Immanuel – God with us.
And GOD CONTINUES TO OFFER HIMSELF TO US. But He will never compel us to take His hand. He simply keeps asking, “My child. I am here with you. Would you like to take My hand?” Isn’t this what Christmas is all about? We may fantasize about Santa, but we are overwhelmed by and drawn to Jesus. Someone has put it aptly this way:
Santa lives at the North Pole...but Jesus is Everywhere!
Santa rides in a sleigh...but Jesus rides on the wind and walks on the water.
Santa comes once a year...but Jesus is an ever present help.
Santa fills your stockings with goodies...but Jesus supplies all your needs.
Santa comes down your chimney uninvited...Jesus stands at your heart’s door, knocking, and is ready to enter when you let Him in.
You have to wait in line to see Santa...but Jesus is as close as the mention of His name.
Santa lets you sit in his lap...but Jesus holds you in His arms.
Santa has a belly like a bowl full of jelly...but Jesus has a heart full of love.
Santa may make you chuckle...but Jesus gives you joy that is your strength.
Santa can offer a “Ho, Ho, Ho,”...but Jesus offers health, help, and hope.
Santa says “You better not cry”...but Jesus says, “Cast all your cares on Me, for I care for you!”
Santa makes toys...but Jesus makes new life, mends wounded hearts, repairs broken homes and builds mansions.
Santa doesn’t know your name without asking...but Jesus knew you before you were born; He knows your history, your future, how many hairs you have on your head, and loves you as you are, even if you have been naughty!
Santa puts gifts under your tree...but Jesus became your gift when He died on a tree!
Immanuel – God with us. We are never home alone!
I invite you this morning to reach out your hand join the family; take hold of Jesus’ hand. Be thankful that your passage through this life is not dependent on your grip of Him but on His grip of you – for no one and nothing can snatch you out of His hands. Jesus is Immanuel – God with us. God with us. God with us. God with us. It’s ridiculous. It’s radical. But it’s real. Take His hand. Trust Him.
