AM Sermon preached at Central Christian Church December 2, 2012
Take the Christmas Journey Sermon Series
Message #1 Jesus: He came from infinity and beyond!
Philippians 2:5-8, John 1:1-14
Okay, it may sound kind of weird and out of place for a guy just over fifty to say it, but there are times I wish had the stuffed Snoopy dog I had when I was a kid. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t wish I had him today for the same reasons he became my favorite childhood toy back then. No, when these days I occasionally wish I had that old stuffed dog it’s for entirely different reasons. Back when I was a kid and I had some bedtime fears about monsters living under my bed, ghosts living in my closet or that the shadows on my wall were being cast by the Boogie Man, I rested a lot easier with Snoopy lying next to me---for just as I imagined the monsters were out to get me, I imagined Snoopy would defend me from harm. Even in thunderstorms I found comfort with him by my side. When I went out, Snoopy went with me. Sometimes he was right in the middle of my play, other times he was merely a witness to it acting as my own private cheering section. He sat with me when I watched TV. I told him my secrets, my jokes, my fears. I hugged him, kissed him, dressed him up, sneezed and coughed on him. I loved him to pieces, if you know what I mean.
Now I know some of you can relate. How about we take a quick poll? Raise your hand if you had a childhood toy that you loved on like that. How about a few of you call out the name or the type of toy that meant so much to you... Okay, now let me tell you two reasons why I wish I had that old dog now---I’m not wishing I had him to tell my secrets to or to have him protect me from bedtime monsters---I mean after all I’ve got Lori for that---seriously one reason I wish I had that old dog now is because I think it would act as a physical link to my past memories, memories that I find as I get older have been fading, and yet they are memories I don’t want to forget. Another reason I wish I had that old dog, especially today, is because he would illustrate perfectly a point I had driven home to me as I was preparing for this morning’s message. A point I want to share with you---the point was this---it is the nature of someone’s love for a thing that makes it valuable. You see if I still had that old dog and I brought him up here on the stage with me and I projected a picture of him on the screen---you’d look at him and think that dog’s ready for the trash. You’d see how his once white fur was now a dingy grey brown spotted here and there with unidentifiable stains. You’d see how his stuffings were leaking out of a couple of tears. You might notice how one of his ears was barely attached. You might notice the glue spot on his nose where there had once been a bumblebee. To you he’d appear to have no value. You’d never bid on him at an auction, never pick him up at a yard sale. You wouldn’t give a dime to own him. But never mind that because if it really was my old Snoopy dog, I wouldn’t put in an auction or a yard sale. In fact it would be very hard to get me to even consider selling him, and you can bet if I did agree to sell him, I’d ask a pretty hefty price. I really don’t know what happened to that old Snoopy dog. I’m guessing he eventually went the way of most old worn out toys.
Now friends, what got me on that “I wish I had my old Snoopy dog” to show you bit is a story John Ortberg tells about his sister’s childhood ragdoll named Pandy. John’s sister loved her rag doll the way I loved my Snoopy. But Pandy’s story has a happier ending. When it came time for Pandy to be tossed out, John said his mom couldn’t bring herself to do it. Instead, she wrapped Pandy up in tissue paper and stored her away in a box in the attic. Thirty years later, Pandy was retrieved and taken to a doll hospital where she was restored to her former beauty. Then Pandy was passed on to John’s sister’s little girl named Courtney who wanted a doll.
After telling the story of Pandy the ragdoll, John then went on to write this---Listen closely so you don’t miss the impact of his words--- John wrote: “There are two truths about human beings that matter deeply. We are all of us rag dolls....flawed and wounded, broken and bent....Like a splash of ink in a glass of water this raggedness permeates our whole being. Our words and thoughts are never entirely free of it. We are rag dolls, all right... But we are God’s rag dolls. He knows all about our raggedness, and he loves us anyhow....There is a wonder about you. Raggedness is not your identity. Raggedness is not your destiny, nor is it mine. We may be unlovely, yet we are not unloved.” A few paragraphs later he adds, “There is...a love that creates value in what is loved. There is a love that turns rag dolls into priceless treasures. There is a love that fastens itself onto ragged little creatures, for reasons that no one could quite ever figure out, and makes them precious and valued beyond calculation. This is a love beyond reason. This is the love of God. This is the love with which God loves you and me.”
I agree. And the Christmas season is one of those times of years where that truth really washes over me and recaptures my heart. This morning as I begin a new sermon series I’m calling “Take the Christmas Journey”, I hope you find your heart captured once again by the incredible love God has for us.
I want to share two scripture passages that powerfully portray the journey Jesus made out of love for us. The first is John 1; in verses 1 and 14 of that chapter we find these words... “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God..... The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.”
The second scripture passage comes from Philippians 2. Verses 5-11 of that chapter read this way--- “5 In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus:
6 Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; 7 rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. 8 And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death—even death on a cross! 9 Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, 10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”
In the beginning, that is to say before the earth existed and before time was measured, from infinity past, was the Word... the idea being conveyed here is that the Word has always existed, that there has never been a moment when the Word did not exist. Mormans and Jehovah Witnesses don’t teach this, but that is what the words here mean---and I believe you ought to know that that’s what the words mean because knowing it makes the impact of what happened that very first Christmas all the more powerful upon our hearts, minds and lives. You see, it was the Word which has always existed, the Word which John says was with God and the Word John adds which was God---it was that very same Word mentioned in the opening verse of chapter one, that John writes in verse 14 that became flesh and made his dwelling among us. John continues--- We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.” Or in other words, John was saying, Jesus is God. He has always been God and He will always be God. When Jesus walked the earth, He was God in the flesh, God living in a human body.
Now I understand that the reasoning behind those who teach that there was a time when Jesus did not exist, centers around the fact that the Bible calls Jesus the Son of God and Jesus prays to God calling Him, His Father. They claim fathers always exist for a time before their sons exist and since the Bible speaks of Jesus as the Son of God and God as His Father that it only makes sense that there was a time when Jesus did not exist. And I’ll admit, their reasoning sounds logical---in fact if we were only talking about physical father and son relationships their reasoning would be indisputable...but that’s just it, when it comes to the son of God and God the Father, we’re not talking about your normal ordinary physical father-son relationship---we’re talking about something extra-ordinary. We’re talking about something supernatural---a one of a kind event in the history of mankind. We’re talking about God the Word taking on human form.
Everyone here is probably familiar with the words of John 3:16 which says “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.” At the same time most of us are aware that the Bible teaches that Christians are called sons and daughters of God. How can that it be that the Bible refers to Jesus as being God’s one and only Son and us being his sons and daughters too? Is there a conflict here? Not at all friends. The problem’s one of translation. You see, the Greek words which have been translated in John 3:16 as “one and only Son” carry the idea of uniqueness. You and I became members of the family of God the same way, we became children of God when we put our hope and trust in Jesus as our Lord and Savior. But Jesus? He became the Son of God in a very unique way---He became the Son of God when He, God the Word, became a human being.
Let me give you a quick illustration that might help. On July 31st, 1981, I was Darren McCormick. The very next day, August 1st, 1981 I was Darren McCormick. Today, 30 plus years later, I’m still Darren McCormick. But something happened on that 1st day of August in 1981 that brought about a very significant relationship change in my life. That was the day Lori and I were married. I became a husband on that day. A lot of things lead up to that moment of transition to be sure. There was dating and engagement, asking Lori’s parents for her hand in marriage, pre-marriage counseling, getting a minister and a church, filling out legal paperwork and so on, but there was a point in time on that hot August day when I made the transition from Darren McCormick, single guy, to Darren McCormick, married man.
God the Word has always existed. God the Word still exists. And God the Word will always exist. But something happened on that day when Mary agreed to carry Jesus in her womb that brought about a very significant relationship change in the life of God the Word. That was the day Jesus was miraculously conceived. And at that moment God the Word became God the Son. A lot of things lead up to that moment of transition to be sure. There was creation, man’s sinning against God, God choosing a people, prophecies and the whole Story thing we spent the majority of our Sunday morning’s looking at this year, and most importantly there was the humble emptying Himself of His godly power that Jesus went through---but make no mistake about it---there was a point in time on that day when Jesus was conceived that God the Word made the transition from God the Word, the all-knowing and all-powerful, to God the Word, human being.
Above all else that’s what we ought to remember and celebrate most during the Christmas season. That’s what ought to grab our hearts---and fill them with joy and cause them to overflow with worship. God the Word, emptied Himself so we could be filled. The infinite stepped into the finite. God the Word became poor that we might become rich. When you step outside and take in the beauty of this day and you see the trees and grasses and clouds and sun---think about this, Christmas is a celebration of that fact that the one who brought it all into existence entered our world as a helpless, dependent baby. If you get the chance to step outside on a clear night between now and Christmas, look up at the stars and consider that when it comes to the universe what you see with your eyes might be compared to your scooping up a handful of sand at a beach and carefully examining it---and then let it soak into your heart that God the Word who made it all and is greater than it all, lowered Himself, reduced Himself to the point that He became nothing more than a fertilized human egg---and He did it because He loves you. He did it so He could grow up to became a man and die a substitutionary death for us---He did it so He could take the punishment we deserve for our sins upon Himself---so we could be forgiven of our sins, so we could spend our eternity with Him in His heaven. He did it not so we would remain the worn out, sin stained ragdolls that we are, but so that we could be restored to the persons of beauty He created us to be.
In one of the commentaries I looked at this week the contrast between what got Satan brought Satan down and what lifted Jesus up was well illustrated through scripture references. In Isaiah 14:13-14 we learn the thoughts that entered Satan’s mind when he rebelled against God. Satan said to himself, “I will ascend to heaven; I will raise my throne above the stars of God; I will sit enthroned on the mount of assembly, on the utmost heights of the sacred mountain. I will ascend above the tops of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High.” Satan in his arrogance boasted that he would go up. But the words that follow speak of his actual destiny: “but you are brought down to the grave, to the depth of the pit.” Those words we read from Philippians 2:5-11 show how the attitude of Jesus was just the opposite of Satan. At Satan’s words, “I will go up...up...up” God said, “no you will go down to the pits of hell.” Jesus said, “I will go down to earth. I will humbly take on human form and as a human I will die on a cross to pay the price for the sins of others.” And the Father responded by announcing that Jesus would be given “the name that is above every other name.”
What we must not fail to see this Christmas is that Jesus wasn’t born just so we’d get some kind of warm fuzzy Christmasy feeling. And the Word didn’t become flesh, just so we’d get caught up in the decorating and gift-giving and the consumerism mentality that surrounds the Christmas holiday. Yes, friends, Jesus came to pay the price of our sins and make heaven a future possibility, and in that way we can say He came down so He could lift us up---but let’s not forget He also came to set an example for us. He wants us to respond to the love He has shown us by doing two things---loving Him in return and loving all the other people He created. Jesus said when you boil it all down and you get to the real heart of the matter what I want for you to do is this---I want you to love the Lord your God with all of your heart, soul, mind and strength---and I want you to love your neighbor as yourself.” As one preacher put it, “The primary form that loving God takes in the Bible is loving the people who mean so much to him.”
More than anything else, I believe God wants to use this Christmas season that we’ve just entered into and its celebration of Jesus’ birth to call us into action---I believe God is calling us this holiday season to empty ourselves of ourselves and not make Christmas all about us but to instead make it about loving Him and about loving others. God’s calling us this Christmas season to show Him we love Him, not only in the time we spend in prayer and in study, and in the way we sing during our worship service and in the amount of money we drop in the offering tray but also, without question, God is calling us to show our love for Him by loving others and by humbling serving them in ways that encourage them to become more like the people God intended them to be.
Jesus said, “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.” The truth? The truth is we can’t always show our love for others by doing the exact same things Jesus did---I mean, after all, we can’t leave the beauty of a heaven we’ve not yet entered to come to earth and we can’t empty ourselves of godly powers we don’t have---those things are impossible for us to do. And I wouldn’t advise you the next time you have the guys over to watch a ballgame and throw down some food that before the kickoff or tipoff without telling them what you’re about to do, you start taking off their shoes and socks. We can’t always show our love for others by doing exactly what Jesus did. The Apostle Paul knew that. That’s why he didn’t write “Always do the exact same things Jesus did.” Instead, what he wrote was “have the attitude of Christ.” In other words, take on the same loving mindset and the same willingness to make sacrifices for others that Jesus had.” God may never call upon us to show love by washing the dirty feet of a bunch of guys. And He’ll never ask us to die on a cross to pay the price for someone else’s sins so they can be forgiven. But He may call upon us to sacrifice some time to help someone in a nursing home to not feel so lonely. He may ask us to journey across the street or down the road to give a neighbor a helping hand. He may challenge us to give less this Christmas to those who have so much already and give more to those who have little. One thing’s for sure, the more we make Christmas about others and the less we make it about ourselves, the more we act like Jesus. And for the record, the same can be said of our lives---the more we make living our lives about others and the less we make them about ourselves, the more we act like Jesus.
Let’s stand for this morning’s invitation. As we do each Sunday we want to offer the opportunities for baptism, membership and prayer. Please come forward as we sing if you’d like to be baptized, place membership or have us pray for you...
==================================================
NOTE TO THOSE WHO READ AND OR CHOOSE TO MAKE USE OF ANY OR ALL OF THIS SERMON: I am sharing this sermon with the hopes it will be an encouragement to others. I apologize for any blatant typing errors! If you find any I’d appreciate hearing from you so I can correct them. I try to give credit where credit is due, noting writers and or sources to the best of my ability. I have for years been drawing from a wealth of sources including this website. I recognize that my mind and writing processes are fallible. I may occasionally fail to properly identify a source. Please do not take offense if you see anything of this nature. I never intend to plagiarize. Having said that I want you to feel free to draw from my message. When appropriate I hope you will give credit as I do. But most of all I hope Christ will be lifted up and God will receive the glory in all things.
