Christmas is a time of celebration.
Even those who do not believe in the birth of Jesus still take the time to enjoy themselves at Christmas.
I was born into a Jewish family, yet we always celebrated Christmas. We had a Christmas Tree, we had Christmas Decorations, we sent and received Christmas Cards, we ate Christmas Dinner and we got Christmas Gifts.
But my parents never mentioned the real reason for Christmas. Growing up, as far as I was concerned, Jesus was no more than a picture of a baby on a Christmas Card. Christmas was a celebration of Santa Claus not the birth of Christ. I was a Jew, I was waiting for the Messiah to come, no one thought to tell me He had already come. No one told me that the Saviour of the World had been born and that Christmas was a celebration of His birth, His birthday. Although Christmas was full of celebration it was empty of any association with Christ Jesus.
Sadly, that is a fact for so many in the world today, they experience a Christmas without Christ. They may have a very happy Christmas by the worlds standards but do not understand the real reason for the season.
I have three brief points for us to consider this evening:
The Reality of Christmas, The Hope of Christmas and The Miracle of Christmas
The Reality of Christmas
The Reality of Christmas is that Christ has come, the Messiah has been born. Stepping out of eternity and into the form of a human baby, God has come. As Charles Wesley put it in his Hymn Let earth and Heaven combine: The incarnate Deity,Our God contracted to a span, Incomprehensibly made Man.
Christ has come. At the right time Christ came.
Church tradition says we remember the birth of Christ on the 25th of December. The reality is Jesus was probably born in March or April - neither shepherds or their sheep would have been out in the fields in the deep mid-winter. The actual specific day and date of the birth of Jesus are not important, what is important is that we believe His birth really happened.
On an actual day and date lost to history The Reality of Christmas actually took place. Whether it was in the bleak mid-winter or in spring or during the heat of summer or during autumn, Christ was born. We know it was in the evening, we know it was in Bethlehem, and we know it happened in the stable where the animals were kept. That is where the Son of God was born.
The Reality of Christmas happened, not in a palace or a hospital or where anyone writing a story would have used for a suitable venue.
The Reality of Christmas took place in a dirty, smelly stable. You know there is an important message in this, no place is too common for Jesus, no circumstance beneath Him.
The Hope of Christmas
Maybe the first Christmas was very different from what Mary had hoped for.
The journey from Nazareth to Bethlehem was not an easy one, even for a person in peek physical fitness it could take its toll. For a woman who was nine months pregnant that journey would have been a nightmare.
Maybe Mary had hoped Joseph would have been able to find them somewhere nice for them to stay when they reached Bethlehem.
Maybe she had hoped there would be someone to assist in the birth.
Maybe she had hoped for a comfortable bed rather than a bed of straw.
Whatever Mary had hoped for I’m sure the moment Jesus was born, Mary knew Jesus was worth everything she had endured.
Listen to the opening words of the Christmas carol by Philip Brooks:
O little town of Bethlehem, how still we see thee lie!
Above thy deep and dreamless sleep the silent stars go by.
Yet in thy dark streets shineth the everlasting Light;
The hopes and fears of all the years are met in thee tonight.
The hopes and fears of all the years are met in thee tonight - those words could have been the prayer and praise in Mary’s heart that night.
The Hope of Christmas shows us that we can place our hope and faith and trust in God. Do you need to be reminded of this tonight?
Remember Romans 8:28 tells us, God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to His purpose for them.
When Christ was born, so was our hope. Because Christ came, God is always near us. He is always for us and always in us.
Jesus understands what you feel and He knows what you face.
We have a hope that’s steadfast and certain, God can use times of difficulty and struggles in our lives to accomplish His will and purpose.
The certain hope of Christmas is that God has sent His only Son, Jesus, to bear our burdens and save us from your sins.
The Miracle of Christmas
The Miracle of Christmas is that Jesus was born to save us from our sins.
Romans 3:22-24 says: We are made right with God by placing our faith in Jesus Christ. And this is true for everyone who believes, no matter who we are. For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard. Yet God, in his grace, freely makes us right in his sight. He did this through Christ Jesus when he freed us from the penalty for our sins.
The Miracle of Christmas means we have a Saviour.
The Miracle of Christmas is the free gift of Salvation to all who accept Jesus as Lord and Saviour.
The Miracle of Christmas is Jesus entered the world to save you from your sins.
The Reality of Christmas is the Saviour has come.
The Certain Hope of Christmas is the Saviour has come.
The Miracle of Christmas is the Saviour has come.
Father God has shown His love for you by sending his only Son Jesus to take away your sins.
All who trust in Jesus have been saved from the guilt of our sin, we have been saved from the punishment for sin.
1 John 4:10 reminds us: This is real love—not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins.
The baby Jesus grew to be the man who became the atoning sacrifice for our sins. Jesus took the punishment for our sin. In His death on the cross, He endured what we should have endured, He paid the ultimate price to save us.
Romans 5:6 says: When we were utterly helpless, Christ came at just the right time and died for us sinners.
1 Peter 3:18 says: Christ suffered for our sins once for all time. He never sinned, but He died for sinners to bring you safely home to God. He suffered physical death, but He was raised to life in the Spirit.
The Message of Christmas is our Saviour has come.
We have a Saviour, whose body was broken and His blood was shed for the forgiveness of our sins.
Jesus was born to die in your place, in my place. Jesus paid the penalty so that our sins could be forgiven.
Jesus conquered death, He rose from the grave, and in Him and Him alone we have the promise of eternal life and peace with God.
Tonight as we come to the Communion Table let us thank God together that the Saviour, our Saviour has come.
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