2nd SUNDAY OF ADVENT
“IT’S TIME FOR TINSEL!”
MATTHEW 1:1-16
#NBCCAdvent2016
CHRISTMAS TREE TINSEL STORY (P)
Once upon a time there was a family that decided to decorate for Christmas. The centerpiece of the decorations for their home was the Christmas Tree. The father went out back to the storage shed and lugged the large boxes which held the Christmas decorations. One of the boxes had the Christmas Tree in it. They were not a natural Christmas tree family, but put up a fake tree every year. Nature in the house was a no no. While the dad was getting the boxes out of the shed, the mother gathered her two children, a boy and a girl, and they made preparations. Preparations like getting Christmas music going in the whole house. Preparations like making hot chocolate. Preparations like a few Christmas candies set out.
The dad brought all the decorations inside and began to set up the tree in the living room. The tree was old and had been passed down to them by family members, but it was still a good looking tree. Some of the labels had fallen off over the years, but the dad could still put the tree together from memory. The bottom. Then the middle. Then the top. He then started to put on the lights. The mom quickly put up the volume of the Christmas music as the frustration of the dad became verbal. She tried to drown out the colorful Christmas language he was using as he tried to put the lights on the tree. Tangled lights. Broken lights. Tangled lights. Not enough lights. Out to the store. Back from the store. Out to the store. Back from the store. Finally the tree was plugged in and the lights were glowing beautifully in the living room. Christmas music was playing. Hot chocolate was ready. Christmas candies were set out.
Mom sat on the couch and opened the tins and small boxes filled with various Christmas tree ornaments. Just as she opened the first box, her son grabbed a package of tinsel from the pile and wanted to open it. She said very softly, “It’s not time for tinsel.” The little boy acted like he put the box of tinsel down, but slipped it in his back pocket instead. The mom opened the boxes of ornaments and handed them to the children who put them on the tree. Dad helped them put the ornaments on that went on higher branches.
The first ornament was a reindeer made out of popsicle sticks. It had two glued googly eyes and a little puffy red nose. It was painted brown by expert kindergarten hands some years before. The next ornament handed out was a large silver ball with the words “My first Christmas” scripted on it with a name and a year. The little girl squealed as she put her ornament on the tree. The next ornament was an angel made out of a toilet paper roll from 1st grade. Mom then handed out a whole box of colored balls that went all over the tree. Blue. Red. Green. Silver. Gold. Dad put them up high. Brother put them in the middle. Sister put them down low. After putting the balls on the tree, the son got out the package of tinsel from his back pocket and opened it up. The mom said a little more forcefully and sternly, “It’s not time for tinsel.”
Then it was time for a hot chocolate break. All four of the family at on the couch and sipped their hot chocolate looking at the barely decorated Christmas tree. A few songs came on that they all knew and all of them sang in unison. A few of the lights flickered on and off and then off. Everyone held their breath as dad stared at the lights and brought them back to life by sheer power of his mind. He smiled triumphantly. After all the hot chocolate was drank, it was back to decorating the Christmas tree.
Mom opened up a box of ornaments that had been “passed down from family.” Really that meant someone snatched them from the garage sale pile at grandma’s, but it is nicer to say they were “passed down.” One was a little wooden nutcracker figure with an eye missing. One was a Santa on a sleigh with Santa having a broken hand. They were sentimental. One was a rusty round ornament that said “Joy Joy Joy.” That was Uncle Oscar’s when he was a kid… dad mentioned… as he put it on the tree. Each of the little ornaments went on the tree it its place. Sister was not careful with one of the glass candy canes and it slipped out of her hand onto the floor. Crash! Glass everywhere! Everybody freeze! All the little bare feet obediently stood still while dad swept up the glass from the floor.
While mom and dad were preoccupied with the broken glass, the son sought out the box of tinsel and opened the package all the way. He got a few of the long silvery strands out and they sparkled in the light of the tree. It was plastic or metal or shiny paper or something like that. The strands were firm yet floppy. Whatever tinsel was, it was awesome. He walked towards the tree and his mom cried out in a loud gravelly voice, “It’s not time for tinsel!” He froze in place, eyes wide, and turned around and put the strands and the box on the couch.
Finally all the glass was cleaned up and all the bare feet were safe to walk again. The last of the ornaments went up. The last ones to go up were always mom’s favorite. Her favorite ornaments were seven golden stars with Bible verses etched on them. Each one was placed perfectly on the tree at the places that she directed from her seat. After the seven golden stars were placed, it was time to eat some of the Christmas candies. Each of them were ooey gooey and tasted sooo good. Sticky fingers. Sticky mouths. Brother and sister washed their hands and came back to sit on the couch.
The family looked at their decorated glowing tree in their living room. The tree glowed. Dad put the bright red tree skirt around the tree and sat with this family to take in the well ornamented decorated Christmas tree. All of a sudden, mother yells in her loudest of loudest voice, “It is time for tinsel!” and all of them jumped up from the couch and tore open boxes of the tinsel. Tinsel went everywhere. Each of them just threw the tinsel on the tree. Some of it globbed in places. Some of it fell on the floor. They threw tinsel on each other.
The time for tinsel had finally come because all the other pieces were in place. The family sat back on the couch and looked at their decorated glowing tree in their living room. The tree glowed. The tree now sparkled. The son looked on the tree in awe as the tinsel moved slightly and the tree sparkled with some kind of Christmas magic. It was a sight to behold! The time for tinsel had finally come at the perfect time!
GOSPEL OF MATTHEW
When you want to read about the birth of Jesus, you can find it in two places in the Bible. Three if you want to be technical. We find the birth of Jesus in narrative form in the beginning of Matthew and Luke and we find it in a poetic form at the beginning of John.
Matthew 1 starts out in a very interesting manner. Matthew 1 begins the story of Jesus’ birth with His genealogy. These first 16 verses describe for us the family that Jesus the Christ came from. You see by using the word Christ in verse 1 and by using it also in verse 15 (at the beginning and end of the passage), the Apostle Matthew is clueing us in that Jesus of Nazareth was no ordinary person, but is the plan for our salvation and He was the plan for our salvation all along. He also shares with us that Jesus did not come over the generations because in God’s perfect will and timing, He would arrive exactly when He needed to. Jesus came when all the pieces were in place and He was a sight to behold!
Jesus Christ was born as the plan from God to save us.
Jesus Christ was born at the perfect time in God’s perfect will.
READ Matthew 1:1-2
A record of the genealogy of Jesus Christ the son of David, the son of Abraham: 2 Abraham was the father of Isaac, Isaac the father of Jacob, Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers,
WHY DIDN’T JESUS CHRIST COME THEN?
If we look back in the Scriptures, what happened to Judah and his brothers and all their descendants right after their lifetimes? Exodus 1:6-10 tells us plainly that once the generation of Judah and Joseph and their brothers died, that the people of Israel were enslaved. Slavery happened! In fact, they were enslaved for 400 years to the Egyptians! Jesus could have come right before the Israelites went to Egypt and saved all of them from slavery. God did not choose to send Jesus at this time. God did not choose to send Jesus to us before Israel was enslaved. It wasn’t time for Jesus.
Yet, there was the promise of Jesus the Messiah. Genesis 49:10, “The scepter will not depart from Judah, nor the ruler's staff from between his feet, until he comes to whom it belongs and the obedience of the nations is his.”
READ Matthew 1:3-6a
Judah the father of Perez and Zerah, whose mother was Tamar, Perez the father of Hezron, Hezron the father of Ram, 4 Ram the father of Amminadab, Amminadab the father of Nahshon, Nahshon the father of Salmon, 5 Salmon the father of Boaz, whose mother was Rahab, Boaz the father of Obed, whose mother was Ruth, Obed the father of Jesse, 6 and Jesse the father of King David.
WHY DIDN’T JESUS CHRIST COME THEN?
If we look back in the Old Testament to the time before and in the time of King David, so much was happening. Jesus could have come before or during the severe famine mentioned in the Book of Ruth. He did not. It would have been very dramatic and meaningful for the Bread of Life, as Jesus called Himself (John 6:33-51), to come during a famine (Ruth 1). That makes sense! Jesus could have come during the time of Samuel or Saul or David. Israel wanted a king (1 Samuel 8:19). Jesus could have certainly arrived at this time and been Israel’s first and only king! Jesus could have been born from David and then taken over as the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords (Revelation 19:16)! So much could have been avoided in the lives of many people if Jesus had come on the scene during the life of David. The Philistines were constantly attacking Israel. Certainly there was enough sin to be forgiven. David and Bathsheba. Absalom and his rebellion. So much oppression and sin. Jesus could have come and been the Savior then, but he did not come. God did not choose to send Jesus before or during the reign of King David. It wasn’t time for Jesus.
Yet, there was the promise of Jesus the Messiah. 2 Samuel 7:12-13 says, “When your days are over and you rest with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring to succeed you, who will come from your own body, and I will establish his kingdom. 13 He is the one who will build a house for my Name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever.”
READ Matthew 1:6b-11
David was the father of Solomon, whose mother had been Uriah's wife, 7 Solomon the father of Rehoboam, Rehoboam the father of Abijah, Abijah the father of Asa, 8 Asa the father of Jehoshaphat, Jehoshaphat the father of Jehoram, Jehoram the father of Uzziah, 9 Uzziah the father of Jotham, Jotham the father of Ahaz, Ahaz the father of Hezekiah, 10 Hezekiah the father of Manasseh, Manasseh the father of Amon, Amon the father of Josiah, 11 and Josiah the father of Jeconiah and his brothers at the time of the exile to Babylon.
WHY DIDN’T JESUS COME THEN?
During the lifetime of the Kings of Judah that are mentioned here, prophet after prophet came to warn the people of God that if they strayed from God that discipline and judgment would come. It did finally come during the life of Jeconiah. Israel was attacked. Jerusalem and the Temple destroyed. God’s people were scattered. Jesus did not come. Jesus did not come as a rebuilder of Jerusalem. Jesus did not come as an answer to the prayers of His people during the exile. Jesus could have come during this time and gathered all the faithful together and saved them and led them triumphantly back to the Promised Land. It wasn’t time for Jesus to come.
Yet, there was the promise of Jesus the Messiah. Daniel 2:44 says, "In the time of those kings, the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that will never be destroyed, nor will it be left to another people. It will crush all those kingdoms and bring them to an end, but it will itself endure forever.”
READ Matthew 1:12-15
12 After the exile to Babylon: Jeconiah was the father of Shealtiel, Shealtiel the father of Zerubbabel, 13 Zerubbabel the father of Abiud, Abiud the father of Eliakim, Eliakim the father of Azor, 14 Azor the father of Zadok, Zadok the father of Akim, Akim the father of Eliud, 15 Eliud the father of Eleazar, Eleazar the father of Matthan, Matthan the father of Jacob, 16 and Jacob the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus, who is called Christ.
In verse 15, after so many years and generations, It was time for Jesus!
WHY DID JESUS COME THEN?
It was time for Jesus! The time after the exile to Babylon was a time that was strange. It was a time of rebuilding of Jerusalem and the wall and the Temple. It was also a time of silence from God. For 400 years, God sent no prophet. For 400 years, God sent no fresh Word. For 400 years, no miracles or leading of His people. Generation after generation lived and died and they waited for God to send the Savior.
Then, in the days of Joseph and Mary (Matthew 1:16), God sent the angel Gabriel and announced to them that the Messiah would be born (Luke 2). The plan that had been predicted in God’s will was taking place.
What made this time perfect?
What made this time better than any other?
What made this time the appointed time for Jesus Christ to come?
I have no idea. Neither does anyone else. Isaiah 55:8-9 reminds us, “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways," declares the LORD. 9 "As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.” I have some guesses as to why God chose this time in history, but in the end none of us knows the timing and will of God for us to adequately explain why Jesus came when He did.
We do know He came exactly when God wanted Him to and not a moment sooner or a moment after for God’s will is perfect. Jesus Christ was born exactly when He was supposed to. In fact, there are prophecies which Jesus fulfilled that encourage us that when “It was time for Jesus!” that it was the perfect time. Jesus came at the perfect time and the perfect place and He was always the plan.
Micah 5:2 says, "But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times." In fact, the Jerusalem Talmud (Mishnah), a collection of teachings by Jewish rabbi’s says clearly reflecting on this verse, “"The King Messiah... from where does he come forth? From the royal city of Bethlehem in Judah." “It was time for Jesus!” and He was born in the perfect place.
Isaiah 7:14 says, “Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel.” God found in Mary a willing servant to be the Mother of the Savior (Luke 1:38). Jesus Christ was born of a virgin and was exactly where He needed to be. “It was time for Jesus!” with the perfect people who would raise Him.
APPLICATION
“It’s time for tinsel!”
“It’s time for Jesus!”
As we reflect on both of these little phrases this morning, I want you to understand that God’s timing and His will and His way are absolutely perfect. God does not make mistakes. God does not do things out of order. God is not chaos. God can be completely trusted. The Sovereign God that we serve has an eternal will that is done perfectly and nothing gets in the way of that. God always moves pieces into place in His timing. God’s will is perfect. The birth of Jesus with all of the prophecies and planning over the centuries is proof of this truth.
Here is the truth for us: Trust in God’s Plan.
THE GOSPEL PLAN
The Plan of God was for Jesus to be born as a human being and God’s Son.
The Plan of God was for Jesus of Nazareth to live a perfect moral life.
The Plan of God was for Jesus to willingly submit to an excruciating death on a cross.
The Plan of God was for Jesus on that cross to take on the sin of the world and pay for it with His death.
The Plan of God was for you to be sitting in that pew today and if you have never accepted Jesus as your Lord and Savior… His plan is that you accept Him in faith today and be baptized into Christ receiving the forgiveness of sins and the gift of the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:38).
CONCLUSION
