We have our birthday wishes, but what would Jesus wish for on His birthday? What do you think He would really want?
• To have a party where there are lots of food? A great time of feasting? A year-end holiday filled with fun and joy? Lots of presents?
• Or do you think He would really want the world to know why He has come.
It was no ordinary birth. Jesus, the Son of God, took on human likeness and was born into our world.
• In fact, He was not merely born, He was sent from heaven with a mission at hand.
• The world needs to know. Jesus wants you and I to know, that there is an important purpose to His coming.
• Luke 19:10 “For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost.”
• John 10:10 “I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.”
• John 3:16-17 “For God so loved the world that He gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life. 17For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him.”
Take that purpose away, and you would have taken all the celebrations away.
• Without Christ, there is no Christmas. Without Him, there is nothing to celebrate. He is the reason for this season.
• Why would we celebrate a Christmas without Christ? You might as well celebrate my birthday, or anyone else’s birthday, and make it a happy time.
A 4-year-old boy, Spencer was at the mall with his mom. He saw many children queuing up to see a dressed-up Santa Claus.
Having been brought up in the church, with the innocence of a child, the boy asked his mom, “Where is the line to see Jesus? If Christmas is Jesus’ birthday, why don’t we see Him more?”
His grandpa was surprised by this question, and was so inspired that he jotted down the words to a song in a few minutes. The song is, “Where is the line to see Jesus?”
[The grandpa Steve Haut plays the piano and his daughter Becky Kelly sang it.]
SONG: Where’s The Line To See Jesus? By Becky Kelley
[1st stanza] Christmas time was approaching; the snow is starting to fall,
Shoppers choosing their presents, people filling the mall,
Children waiting for Santa with excitement and glee.
A little boy tugged my sweater, looked up and asked me,
Chorus: Where’s the line to see Jesus? Is He here at the store?
If Christmas time is His birthday, why don’t we see Him more?
Where’s the line to see Jesus? He was born for me.
Santa Claus brought me presents, but Christ gave His life for me.
[3rd stanza] In the blink of an eye, at the sound of His trump,
We’ll all stand in line at His throne.
Every knee shall bow down, every tongue will confess,
That Jesus Christ is Lord. [repeat chorus]
If Jesus is the star for this season, don’t you think we need to give Him a thought? Not just a little thought, but a serious thought?
• Christmas is special precisely because Christ is special. He is divine.
• He came with a mission, just ONE goal, and that is to pay the penalty for our sin so that we can be reconciled with God.
Without Him, we would still be lost today, in our ignorance and sin.
• But Jesus made the trip back to God and heaven (our eternal home) possible.
• None of us can pay our way home. But we don’t have to today, because Jesus paid the price for us. The debt is settled.
• Simply put, He came to save us!
At Christmas, God gave us the gift of love, hope and life in Jesus Christ.
• Without Jesus, we will still be lost in our ignorance, not knowing God.
• Without Jesus, we will die in our sin, no hope of forgiveness or a new life.
• Without Jesus, we will have to wander aimlessly through life.
In the words of that song I mentioned earlier, Jesus “was born just for me; Santa Claus gave me presents, but Christ gave His life for me.”
If Jesus is here today and sees the way the world celebrates Christmas, I believe His greatest wish would be for people to know the reason for His birth.
• It must go beyond a happy year-end holiday, beyond the lights and sounds and the decorations. It is more than just the buying of gifts and singing of nice songs.
• Jesus was born with you in mind. You are the reason for Christmas.
God wants you to put your trust in Jesus Christ, the Saviour He has sent.
• When you do so, your sin will be forgiven and you will have the hope of eternal life with God.
• The angels proclaimed, “… a Saviour has been born to you: He is Christ the Lord.” (Luke 2:11). Are you willing to trust Him?
It is not easy always for people to understand the significance of a gift, or the sacrifices that went behind it.
Two students shared a room in college. After returning from the Christmas’ winter break, Andrew asked his roommate what presents he has received for Christmas.
Tom, coming from a well-to-do family, was excited and began to tell him about the new clothes, the best-selling books, the popular running shoes and all the other items on the list of precious gifts given me by family and friends. Andrew was somewhat impressed, pleased at his friend had so many gifts.
“So, Andrew, what did you get for Christmas?” Tom asked.
Expecting to hear his wonderful list of presents, Andrew was quiet for a moment and then said softly, holding up but one small item, an alarm clock that probably cost less than $5 at the thrift shop.
“That’s nice,” Tom answered, feeling almost embarrassed to have asked. He wasn’t expecting this, and felt glad that he hand not received such a present, seemingly so small and insignificant.
As roommates often do during late nights of studies, Tom would sometimes tease Andrew by pretending to throw that clock into the air and then catch it right before it hit the ground, and sometimes faking a drop of his precious clock.
But Andrew never thought this game was funny, because his clock meant much more to him than Tom ever understood.
Over the years in college, as Andrew moved from room to room and roommate to roommate, he always had that same inexpensive alarm clock stored closely beside his bed.
You see, back home in West Virginia, Andrew’s family was far from wealthy and the only present his parents could afford to give him for Christmas was that simple, unimpressive clock.
What seemed like garage sale material for some families was a family treasure for Andrew.
After four years, both Tom and Andrew graduated from college.
They happened to meet 13 years later. Tom says he cannot remember a single present he received for Christmas that year in college.
And you know something? He said, “For the rest of my life, I will never forget Andrew’s gift - the simple, inexpensive alarm clock. While the presents I received were more elegant, more expensive and certainly more numerous, that one single present from Andrew’s parents was definitely more precious.”
Some things we receive in life are simply significant and irreplaceable. They are given out of love and great sacrifice. But do you know it?
A woman missionary, who serves as a teacher in the South Pacific Islands, was explaining to a group of tribal children about the love of God at Christmas.
Later that week, on Christmas Day, a young native boy came to the missionary and said, in simple English: “I love you. I want you to have this.”
He pulled from a straw basket the most beautiful shell the missionary had ever seen. As she admired its beauty, she recognized it as a special shell that can only found on the other side of the island, a half day’s walk from the village.
“Wow, this is really lovely,” said the teacher. “But you should not have gone all that way to get a gift for me.”
His eyes brightening, the boy answered, “Long walk, part of gift.”
Do you really know how much God loves you?
Do you really understand the sacrifice He has made for you? I wish you do.
• If you do, then Christmas will truly be a merry one.
Dear friends, God has given us many good gifts in life - freedom, friends, food, fun and the list can go on and on and on.
• All of these are wonderful and they make life more enjoyable.
• But we cannot ignore this ONE and most important gift – Jesus Christ. It is just too important to miss.
• Jesus came and died for our sin, so that you and I can be saved.
What are you living for today? What are you searching for? What is most important to you?
• Ponder the claims of Jesus and consider what God has done for you.
• Cherish that which is most important in life. Accept Jesus as your Saviour today.
Brothers and sisters, Jesus is not just an icon of Christmas.
• He is not just someone we remember and honour at certain seasons.
• He is the Lord of our lives. We worship Him, we love Him and we will serve Him for the rest of our life.
• We honour Him by giving of ourselves; we love Him by loving others as much as He loves us.
• May the effects of Christmas be felt today because of the way we live.
