• Probably the most used word at Christmas is the word gift;
• And for many people what they ‘get’ at Christmas – makes it or breaks it!
Quote:
“December is the only month of the year when everyone forgets about the past, forgets about the future, and focuses on the PRESENT!”
Ill:
• Kids have a hard time waiting for Christmas.
• They are of course excited about all the gifts they are hoping to get;
• i.e. When our kids were younger I remember them going through the Argos catalogue;
• And circling all the gifts they would like!
Ill:
Here are some actual letters that were written by kids to Santa:
(a).
• “Dear Santa Claus,
• When you come to my house there will be cookies for you.
• But if you are real hungry you can use our phone and order a pizza to go.”
(b).
• “Dear Santa, (From a 4-year-old) I
• I’ll take anything because I haven’t been that good.”
(c).
• “Dear Santa,
• If you bring presses with batteries, please bring batteries!”
(c).
• “Dear Santa,
• I’m not going to ask for a lot. Here’s my list:
• The Etch-A-Sketch animator, 2 packs of #2 pencils,
• Crayon fat markers and the big gift...my own colour TV!
• If you want, you could drop the pencils; I don’t want to be really selfish.”
Ill:
• Perfect gift for my wife Penny:
• Youtube clip: http://youtu.be/kZVFw52DGto
• (Just what every woman about town needs - a 4WD that will fold up to handbag size).
• TRANSITION: One gift we all could do with this Christmas is peace;
• But peace is so often missing at Christmas.
Ill:
• If you go into town, well first you have to battle the long traffic jams;
• Then you have to battle with hectic shoppers rushing here and there,
• And then you experience those long queues at the tills.
• For many getting those you love a present is anything but a peaceful experience!
ill
• If you have beaten the madness of shopping by doing all your shopping inline;
• Many homes still experience a stresses out time on Christmas Day;
• The hard work of preparing and serving Christmas dinner;
• Enjoying or enduring a houseful of family or visitors;
• Can take its toll on many people!
• TRANSITION: It often appears that the word peace at Christmas;
• Is only used in in songs, TV programmes and movies,
• But seldom in real life!
Ill:
• There is a story of a man who lived in the state of Arizona in the U.S.A.
• He received some tragic news that his family had been killed in a car accident.
• It was a tragic situation.
• And you can imagine the turmoil going through his mind.
• He was alone for his first Christmas and he was very depressed.
• So he decided he would go out for a hike in the nearby Grand Canyon.
• He was hoping the exercise, the fresh air and the beauty of the Grand Canyon;
• Would take his mind away from the pain and anxiety he was experiencing.
• At one point in his journey the man looked up to heaven;
• And in his frustration and bitterness, he shouted mockingly into the sky:
• “Glory to God in the highest”;
• And the canyon echoed back... “ HIGHEST highest. highest…”
• He shouted a second time; “And on earth, PEACE”
• Again the canyon echoed back… “... Peace...peace...peace…”
• The young man sat down and cried, for him there was no peace,
• His peace was like the echo that began to fade and fade and fade far away;
• Until you could hear it no more.
Note:
• The word “peace” appears over 400 times in the Bible;
• And this “peace” is not reserved for Christmas time,
• It is a quality, a characteristic that God wants all his people to consistently experience.
• But the ‘peace of God’ is very different to the ‘peace of human beings’,
• I guess the 1914-2014 one hundred year anniversary is a good reminder of that!
Ill:
• 65 million men fought in WW1;
• Half of them never came home!
• A few minutes ago we sang an extra verse to the traditional carol silent night;
• It was commissioned to mark the centenary of the 1914 truce.
• But someone else peened a rather different verse;
• I don’t think many folks will be singing this verse this Christmas.
“Silent night, holy night,
a bursting bomb, a flash of light,
a thousand whirring airplanes roar,
dropping their gifts, their gifts of war,
and all is calm and all is bright
and sudden death stalks day and night
Where children dream of daily bread
and go to sleep without a bed.”
Ill:
• The truce of 1914 was not organised. Nobody sat down and negotiated it.
• Instead, it was a spontaneous act,
• An act that was replicated in dozens of places all along the front line.
• In each of them, the truce depended on ordinary soldiers taking a chance,
• Trusting themselves to the enemy.
• They had to believe that when they said they wouldn’t shoot,
• They would be true to their word.
• They had to believe that the men who had been trying to kill them yesterday;
• Would not try to kill them today.
• And then they had to do something incredibly bold,
• Something against all their instincts;
• Something that broke all the rules of trench warfare.
• They had to stand up, and put their heads above the parapet.
• If there was going to be peace,
• Then someone was going to have to put their life on the line.
• One by one, in each of those many truces,
• Somebody had to make the first move.
• Sometimes it was a German soldier, sometimes an Englishman.
We know some of their names;
• John Adams, Josef Sewald, Frank Collins, Rudolf Zehmisch.
• They were ordinary men: a postman, a chaplain, a chef.
• They each signalled their intentions as best they could,
• Raising their hands, waving a white handkerchief,
• Or holding out their hat in front of them.
• They brought gifts, a peace offering of cigarettes, beer, or jam;
• Whatever luxuries were to hand.
• They were all different, these peacemakers.
• But they had a few things in common too.
• They all believed in the possibility of peace.
• For each of them, their hope for peace was stronger than their fear of death.
• And yet, just a few hours later;
• These men went back to shooting and killing each other!
• TRANSITION:
• Peace on earth from a human point-of-view is so transient, it is so short-lived!
• We hope and pray for a ceasing of war conflicts;
• We hope and pray that we might know domestic peace in our homes;
• But if we are honest, peace is desperately missing in our world.
Note: By contrast the ‘Peace of God’ is so very different:
• At that first Christmas, angelic beings appeared to some shepherds in a field;
• And they declared that peace is available.
• And just in one single verse from the Bible,
• One single verse from the Christmas story;
• We find out where to find peace that will last!
• The verse is Luke chapter 2 verse 14 and it says,
• "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favour rests".
• Quote: Someone has tweaked that verse and tongue in cheek said;
• The phrase that best sums up the Christmas season;
• “Peace on earth, goodwill to all and batteries not included!”
• But this verse in Luke chapter 2 verse 14;
• "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favour rests".
• Is often read and quoted but rarely experienced!
3 WORDS TO NOTE:
(1). Glory - "Glory to God in the highest…”
• "Glory to God in the highest…”
• Many of you will know the Latin phrase: "Gloria in excelsis Deo"
• You may have sung it in the carol or know it from certain Church traditions;
• It means ‘Honour, praise, renown, distinction’
• They are all words synonymous with glory.
• And when news reached these Shepherds that “a Saviour has been born” (vs 11).
• Their response was for them to join these angelic beings in giving;
• Honour, praise, renown, distinction, glory to God.
Note: A ‘saviour’ is born:
• Note those words carefully!
• Not an example for mankind (though he was);
• Not a prophet (though he was);
• Not a healer (though he was);
• Not a miracle worker (though he was);
• Not a great teacher (though he was);
• Those things were important but they are all secondary to why he came;
• That message was clear “A saviour has been born” – Jesus came to rescue people!
Ill:
• True story from Sky News:
• ‘Mexico: Husband Sacrificed Life To Save Family’ (11/12/14)
• A widow has described how her police officer husband;
• Knowingly went to his death at the hands of one of Mexico's drug cartels.
• He did it in an effort to save the lives of his family.
• Speaking exclusively to Sky News, the woman said her husband;
• Had insisted on attending the meeting,
• That he was summoned to by the criminal gang in Iguala,
• Despite her pleas and those of other relatives.
• And the widow, who asked to be identified only as 'Susane', said:
• "My husband knew that if he didn't attend the meeting immediately
• they would directly attack his family, because they had fully identified us”.
• "We knew it was either him or the family,
• so he somehow warned us that he might not be coming back alive,
• that perhaps this was the last time we would see each other.
• She continued:
• "(He said) that he preferred to give his life in exchange for my family”
• TRANSITION:
• That police officer gave his life in sacrifice;
• In return he deserves Honour, praise, renown, distinction, glory.
• His life saved a few – his family;
• The life of Jesus Christ would save billions!
• That is why he deserves not just glory, but ‘glory in the highest!’
(2). Peace – “…and on earth peace to men…”
• Peace is a feature in the Christmas story;
• It is there in our readings and in so many of our carols.
Ill:
“Silent Night, holy night, all is calm and all is bring, round yon virgin mother and child, holy infant so tender and mild, sleep in heavenly peace, sleep in heavenly peace.”
“It came upon a midnight clear that glorious song of old, when angels bending near the earth, they touched their harps of gold. Peace on earth....”
“Hark the herald angels sing, glory to the newborn King. Peace on earth...”
“I heard the bells on Christmas Day
Their old, familiar carols play,
And wild and sweet
The words repeat
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!”
• In fact that last carol; “Christmas bells”;
• The last line in every verses says; “Of peace on earth, good-will to men!”
Note:
• Lasting peace did not come through the birth of Jesus;
• But through the death of Jesus!
And the peace Jesus gives is twofold:
• FIRST: We have peace WITH God.
• SECOND: We can experience the peace OF God.
FIRST: We have peace WITH God.
• Quote: Colossians chapter 1 verse 20:
• “Making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.”
Ill:
• Missionary Don Richardson who served for many years;
• Among the primitive tribes in Papua New Guinea.
• He wrote a book entitled “The Peace Child.”
• He tells the story of two tribes in Papua New Guinea;
• Who maintained a blood feud between themselves for several generations.
• Each generation fought and nursed their wounds;
• Only to fight again killing and maiming more and more people.
• After years of struggle the two tribes realized that they must stop fighting;
• Or nothing would be left of their peoples.
• But what could they do to end years of warring between the two tribes?
Don Richardson goes on to tell us what they did:
• The chiefs of the two tribes came together and brought with them a child;
• They called it “The Peace Child”
• This child was the son of one of the opposing chiefs;
• And was adopted into the family of the opposing chief.
• As long as that child lived;
• The two chiefs promised to cease their fighting so that all could live.
• TRANSITION: Jesus is our ‘peace child’:
• You and I who are God’s enemies by the things we think, say and do!
• We ought to be judged and condemned by God.
• But instead we can be reconciled because of his ‘peace child’.
• Because Jesus lives we too can experience God’s love & forgiveness for us.
SECOND: We can experience the peace OF God.
• Quote: Philippians chapter 4 verse 7:
• “The peace of God, which transcends all understanding,
• will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”
Ill:
• A competition was held for artists to come up with a painting on the theme of peace,
• Soon paintings arrived from far and wide.
• Finally it was the day to announce the winner.
• The tensions grew.
• Only two pictures remained veiled.
• The painting in second place was a typical English countryside in summer;
• The sun was shining, the sky was blue, sheep ere grazing and children were playing.
• The painting captured a peaceful scene.
• But the picture that topped it and won the prize was very different;
• It showed a tremendous tempest along the coastline,
• The stormy-grey clouds threatened to explode with lightning, wind and rain.
• The crashing of the waves on the rocks produced a wall of white spay,
• It was a perfect picture of power, of turmoil and of chaos;
• But then when you looked a little closer you saw why it won;
• A little seagull had built a nest in the cleft of one of the rocks;
• She was resting on her eggs.
• With her eyes closed and her wings ready to cover her little ones.
• She was content and undisturbed in her stormy surroundings,
• She displayed peace in the middle of life’s storms.
• TRANSITION: When we have peace with God;
• We can know the peace of God;
• Despite the terrible storms life may throw at us.
(3). Favour – “…on whom his favour rests".
Ill:
• There is a scene in the film ‘The Kings Speech’;
• The story is about King George VI and his impromptu ascension to the throne.
• But central to the story is Lionel Logue, an Australian speech and language therapist;
• He becomes friends with the king and helped me overcome his speech affliction.
• One day Mrs Logue returns to the family home;
• And she enters the kitchen she finds the queen of England sitting at the table.
• The queen looks her in the eye and after a brief introduction says;
• “I have heard that your husband calls my husband Bertie,
• And that my husband calls your husband Lionel,
• I trust you will not call me Liz!”
• TRANSITION: The point the queen makes is simple;
• She is not going to condescend and come down to the level of Mrs Logue
• She is the queen and Mrs Logue is just some Australian woman.
• In the film Mrs Low replies; “Your majesty you may call me Mrs Logue”.
• In other words; “Ok, let’s keep this relationship formal”
• And they do.
• TRANSITION: And yet God says to those who trust him,
• To those who want to know him and not just know about him;
• They (and they alone) will experience a relationship and therefore his peace!
Ill:
• Can you remember the new story from the 5th Sep 2014;
• When President Barack Obama who was here for a Nato summit;
• But before going home he with a made a surprise sight-seeing visit to Stonehenge.
• While there he also chatted briefly to the Raffle family and posed for photos with them.
• Janice Raffle, who lives near Stonehenge,
• Had come down to the monument with her husband and three sons,
• After hearing Mr Obama was there.
Quote: She said:
"We had a brief tete a tete across the barbed wire.”
"He was really a sweetie. He asked all our names and he was commenting on the fresh air and the beautiful countryside”.
• TRANSITION: It was national news that an ordinary woman (a commoner);
• Met and chatted with the president of the U.S.A.
• And yet, there is no friendship there;
• There was no exchange of phone numbers or emails;
• They will not be sending each other Christmas cards.
• TRANSITION: Because the president did not come down to befriend Mrs Ruffle;
• He was glad of a photo opportunity but he did not want friendship.
• TRANSITION: And yet almighty God says to those who will trust him,
• To those who want to know him and not just know about him;
• They (and they alone) will experience a friendship and therefore his peace!
Note:
• Unlike the queen or the president;
• Jesus is Emmanuel – ‘God with us’
• He really does meets us where we are!
Ill:
Monologue: ‘He is the one’ by J. John.
• He was the bread of life, so that baker's can understand.
• The water of life, so that plumbers can understand.
• The light of the world, so that electrician's can understand.
• The cornerstone, so that architects can understand.
• The son of righteousness, so that astronomers can understand.
• The hidden treasure, so that bankers can understand.
• The life, so that biologists can understand.
• The door, so that carpenters can understand.
• The great physician, so that nurses and doctors can understand.
• The good teacher, so that educators can understand.
• The lily of the valley, so that florists can understand.
• The rock of ages, so that geologists can understand.
• The true vine, so that horticulturists can understand.
• The righteous one, so that judges can understand.
• The pearl of great price, so that jewellers can understand.
• He is wisdom, that philosophers can understand.
• He is the word so that actors can understand.
• He is a good shepherd, so that farmers can understand.
• He is the alpha and the omega, so that scientists can understand.
• He is the way, so the traffic warden's can understand.
• He is the truth, so that politicians can understand.
• Jesus is the one, he is the one, he is the one.
Note: One of the many titles for Jesus is ‘The prince of peace’:
• 'The Prince of peace'.
• He is the 'peaceful prince'.
• The word 'prince' is elsewhere translated as 'commander';
• One who has the authority & power to execute his will.
Ill:
• I might have the desire to stop speeding motorists zooming down my road.
• But I do not have the power. I can never enforce my desires.
• If I was a policeman, the story would be different,
• I can enforce my will on the offender, by the power of my calling.
• But the 'prince of peace' or the 'commander';
• Is one who has the authority & power to execute his will.
The world in which we live defines peace as an absence of conflict or war.
• The Bible defines it differently;
• The Hebrew word for peace is ‘Shalom’;
• And means: ‘Harmony, wholeness, well-being and success.’
• Qualities that Jesus Christ promised to give those who were committed to him!
Ill:
• Harmony – ‘We have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ’.
• Wholeness – ‘Happy are those whose sins forgiven.’
• Well-being – Contentment ‘Godliness & contentment are great gain’.
• Success – ill: wise & foolish builders.
• ‘Shalom’ - ‘Harmony, wholeness, well-being and success.’
• Are qualities that Jesus Christ promised to give those who were committed to him!
• TRANSITION:
• Christmas is not what brings peace;
• But Christmas is a promise of peace!
• A promise that Jesus will bring peace to all who believe and trust in him;
• A promise that one day when he sets up his kingdom;
• Peace will come to the whole world.
Quote: Isiah chapter 9 verse 6:
"For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace."
Audio Download link:
https://surf.pxwave.com/wl/?id=Xh97aK5rqMVaqiKaDzIBJFvBbDBPc1xU&forceSave=Peace_-_Carol_Service_2014_-_sermon_by_Gordon_Curley.mp3
