Introduction:
A Sunday School was putting on a Christmas pageant which included the story of Mary and Joseph coming to the inn. One boy wanted so very much to be Joseph, but when the parts were handed out, a boy he didn’t like was given that part, and he was assigned to be the inn-keeper instead. He was pretty upset about this but he didn’t say anything to the director. During all the rehearsals he thought what he might do the night of performance to get even with this rival who got to be Joseph. Finally, the night of the performance, Mary and Joseph came walking across the stage. They knocked on the door of the inn, and the inn-keeper opened the door and asked them gruffly what they wanted. Joseph answered, "We’d like to have a room for the night." Suddenly the inn-keeper threw the door open wide and said, "Great, come on in and I’ll give you the best room in the house!" For a few seconds poor little Joseph didn’t know what to do. Thinking quickly on his feet, he looked inside the door past the inn-keeper then said, "No wife of mine is going to stay in dump like this. Come on, Mary, let’s go to the barn." And once again the play was back on track! (sermoncentral.com)
The name "Immanuel", which is derived from the Hebrew words, "IM", meaning "with"; "ANACHNU" or in short "ANU", meaning "us"; and "EL", meaning "GOD", literally means, "With us is God" is a very meaningful name given to the Messiah. The prophet Isaiah wrote it, and the evangelist Matthew rewrote it with direct reference to the writings of Isaiah. That was a gap of around 600-700 years. Biblical history tells us that there had been around 400 years of prophetic silence before the birth of Jesus in that little town of Bethlehem. But regardless of the time difference, both writers penned that description with precision and accuracy. In the gospel of Matthew, the Greek word, "META" (to translate "with") is used to describe the presence of God – "God with us". "Meta" does not only entail proximity but includes participation and association. It proves that our God is an immanent God – He is personally and practically involved in His entire creation. His presence is embodied in the person of the Lord Jesus Christ, God’s Only-begotten Son, whose birth we celebrate on Christmas Day. It is an awesome presence, indeed!
Proposition:
1. His presence makes us Glad
2. His presence makes us Bold
3. His presence makes us On-Guard
1. His presence makes us Glad
Mat 1:20 But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.
a. Realize what name you have.
One of the sweetest sounds that a person would ever hear is his or her name. Joseph’s name in Hebrew means "addition" or "let him add". When the angel called out his name, he was reminded that his name means, "Prolific one". The announcement of Christmas reminds us that, if you have received Christ as your Lord and Savior, God calls you no longer by your earthly name but how God calls you – a person who is redeemed, forgiven, saved by the grace of God. Our names make us glad.
b. Remember whose name you bear.
Joseph knew so well that his immediate father is not David. His father’s name is Jacob, (Mat. 1:16) but in his father’s line was King David. He bears the royal lineage of Israel’s greatest and most revered king. King David himself understood it plainly, "He guides me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake." Psalms 23:3. The challenge is that in everyday that we live as people of faith, it is not actually our names that are on the line. It is the name of Jesus Christ. During our Christmas celebrations and parties, remember that it is Jesus whom we reflect. Let us conduct ourselves as Jesus would.
Human beings are naturally and symbiotically sociable. They need their fellows in order to cope up with life.
Illustration:
An elderly man who is very sick was moved from a private room into a ward where lies another elderly patient near the only window. They’re both bedridden ill, hardly able to sit upright. Confined in that isolated place, they thought of their past lives. They thought of all the places they’ve been. The one near the window pushed his weak body with his elbows to sit up, turned his face to the window and with his faint voice started to describe the beauty outside – the garden with flowers blooming, birds flying, ducks and swans swimming in the pond, children walking gleefully with their parents on the walkway. The other patient sufficed himself with the beautiful sceneries described by the one near the window. A couple of days past, in the morning, the patient who was far from the window noticed that his ward-mate near the window was motionless. He pushed the button to call in a nurse. The on-duty nurse came in, touched his pulse, checked his eyes and covered his face. Not long after that, hospital attendants came in and took the body out of the ward. The following day, the other patient requested that he be transferred to the bed near the window. His request was granted. The first thing that came to his mind was to see the beautiful scenery that his former ward-mate described. When the nurse left the room, he struggled with his bony arms to push himself to sit up and looked through the window. To his amazement, there was nothing. It’s just an exterior wall. He pushed the button to call in a nurse. A nurse came in, and the patient asked, "My ward mate described to me something beautiful that he saw outside this window". To that, the nurse answered, "Well, sir, he must have been encouraging you, and besides, that patient was blind".
This Christmas, do you feel alone and forsaken? How we love to be with the people that we used to be with every time we celebrate Christmas. But there are times that situations would change, and we found ourselves all by our selves. Remember the name of Jesus Christ – Immanuel, meaning "God with us". The Presence of God in Jesus Christ makes us glad as we come to know our Self and our Savior!
2. His presence makes us Bold
Mat 1:20 But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.
a. To Conquer our Emotion.
On the words of the angel, we can suppose that Joseph was indeed scared, or to make it a little daintier, afraid. It is practically ironic that Joseph had to deal with his fears first before taking Mary to be his wife. If the angel had said, "take Mary as your wife, do not be afraid", that could mean Mary is a woman that is difficult to live with. That’s not the message though. We often have a fear of loosing our self. Fear is a sign of lack of confidence and should not be an option if ever we embark into doing something for the work of God. Dealing with our fears is our human duty. God gives us all the assets and weaponry to be bold but to get rid of our fear lies on our own will.
b. To Commit to our Devotion.
Joseph was betrothed to Mary. In eastern culture to be engaged is as binding as the wedding vow. That was his devotion. But what Joseph remembers was that three months ago Mary told him that she was going to see her cousin Elizabeth somewhere in the hills of Judea. She came back after three months and Joseph had a shocking discovery, "Mary is pregnant!" When he confronted her, she says, "It is by the Holy Spirit of God". Is there any super gentleman in there who would buy that explanation from his fiancé? Will you trust your dreams as justification? Probably not - even me. But in the eastern culture, Israel to be particular, dreams are channels of God’s messages. Joseph believed and committed to fulfill his devotion. He was full of faith and diligence and had no fear of loosing success in his marriage with Mary. He understood clearly that the presence of God makes him bold to face the challenges of life.
Illustration:
An arrogant hunter boasts of his alleged unparalleled boldness and courage. He displays in the patio of his hut lines of animal tails, which he braggingly says he cut from the animals with his Swiss army knife. His fellow hunters are irritated by his egotism. One afternoon, he came down from the mountains waving a lion’s tail still bleeding. He again loudly brags, "I just cut this lion’s tail an hour ago!" His fellow hunters were so irritated by his arrogance. One of the hunters asked him, "If you are really bold and courageous, why did you not cut the head instead?" To that, the prideful hunter sheepishly answered, "Well, my friend, somebody has already cut the lion’s head first, so I satisfied myself to cut the tail".
Every time the month of December approaches, some people are intimidated by the possible constraints and necessities to cope up with the events and activities of the yuletide season. Financial lacks, relational setbacks, professional and personal struggles, all crowds us along with the needs to join in the Christmas throng. Celebration of Christmas has become extremely commercialized that the world sees it as an opportunity to make a living rather than to have an encounter with the Life-Giving Savior. If you seem to feel that way, remember, my friend, the name of Jesus Christ – Immanuel, "God with us". The Presence of God in Jesus Christ makes us Bold – when we Conquer our Feelings and Commit to our Calling!
3. His presence makes us On-Guard
Mat 1:24 When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary home as his wife.
a. Obey the Word of God
Joseph found the safest guidelines for life in the Word of God. He must have started carefully and more diligently studying the writings of the prophets concerning the prophecies related to the baby in the womb of Mary, his wife. For the remaining six months of Mary’s pregnancy, he must have devoted his quality time watching and monitoring the growth of the baby, as Mary’s belly gradually protrudes, knowing that he is not the real father of the baby. To Joseph, it must have been a challenge, rather a struggle, to obey. Are you aware of what God wants you to do this Christmas? Do what the Almighty Father has done on Christmas Day – GIVE! It is the most visible and explicit gesture of love.
b. Offer yourself to the Will of God
Joseph found the safest refuge in the Will of God. From the outset of the Christmas story, he learned to surrender his will and submit to the will of God. When he learned that Mary was pregnant, before the angel spoke to him, he had a gentleman strategy to divorce Mary secretly. Being a man with a young wife, he must have had a fleshly urge to have intimacy with her. But with those resounding words of Jesus, "Not my will, but yours be done", we can assume that Jesus heard those words from his earthly father.
Illustration:
The attack by Japan on Pearl Harbor (December 7, 1941) in the island of Oahu, Hawaii was horrendously devastating. As per record tally, there were 2,402 who died and 1,282 wounded. It sank four US Navy battleships, sank or damaged three cruisers, three destroyers, one minelayer and destroyed 188 aircrafts. Japanese losses were minimal, with 29 aircrafts and five midget submarines lost, and 65 servicemen killed or wounded. One Japanese sailor was captured. The main reason to this infamous massive death: "Surprise Attack". Pearl Harbor was caught OFF-GUARD.
The most reliable guidelines and counsels that we can ever discover for our Christmas celebrations are found only in the Word of God. The safest place of refuge this Christmas season is not in the company of reveling friends. The apostle Paul says it plainly, "So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don’t fall!" 1Cor. 10:12. The apostle Peter warns, "Be self- controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour." 1Pe 5:8. The Presence of God in Jesus Christ makes us On-Guard – when we Obey the Word and Offer our Self to the Will of God!
Conclusion:
We love to be showered with the presence of our loved ones. We delight to gather and party with our colleagues and friends. But bet on this one, only in the presence of God in Jesus Christ, the Christ of Christmas, whose birth we celebrate, can we find real joy, courage and steadfastness. His presence makes us glad, bold and on-guard! Merry Christmas!
