Series: Discover Christ in Christmas
A Spirit to Engage
Matthew 2:3-8, 16
December 10, 2000
Introduction
I. The Story of the Grinch: One of my favorite holiday shows is the cartoon classic, How the Grinch Stole Christmas. The story revolves around an old, crusty, nasty, absolutely rotten character, the Grinch and how he hates Christmas. Specifically he hates the celebrations of the neighboring town of Whoville. So in typical Grinch fashion he devises a scheme to go into Whoville and steal Christmas right from under them. The Grinch then plans to disguise himself as Santa and go down to Whoville to steal all of their trimmings, toys and even their holiday roast beast. The Grinch follows his plan exactly and he goes into Whoville and steals every last trimming, tree, toy and roast beast. The Grinch piles everything on his sleigh and away he goes up to the top of Mount Crumpet to listen to the sound of crying in Whoville. As he listens for the Who’s to cry boo-hoo, he is surprised to hear the sound of their annual Christmas song rise above the hills from Whoville. He grabs his dog Max and says; “It came. Christmas came. It came without boxes. It came without presents or tags.” It is in this moment that the Grinch realizes that there must be something more to Christmas. The Grinch has a change of heart; he then saves the sleigh of stuff and returns to Whoville.
Can we learn something of value from this rotten character of the Grinch? I believe that we can.
II. Christmas comes not from stuff but from spirit
A. America has wrongly linked Christmas with commerce
1. We see Christmas with all the trimmings
a.) We get caught up in all of the gadgets and gizmos that make Christmas more noticeable
b.) There is nothing wrong with decorating and celebrating, as long as, it does not take the place of a true Christmas
2. We often forget that there is something more to Christmas
a.) Christmas is a season with rich traditions and deep meaning. It is one of the two greatest seasons in the life of the church!
b.) Christmas should be a season of spiritual revival. This is the time of year that Christ cannot be ignored!
c.) Christmas is not a time to kick back and relax but rather it is a time to be revived and refreshed by the power of God almighty!
B. America has lost the spirit of Christmas
1. Our society has created an empty Christmas
a.) We have removed Christ from Christmas. Thus, we have removed the hope of the season
b.) Christmas without Christ is nothing at all
1.) There is no reason to celebrate
2.) There is no reason to have hope
2. This opens the door for Christmas Anxiety
a.) We lose focus on our hope and our faith
b.) We enter into a self sufficient state of living
c.) What is Christmas anxiety?
THREE STAGES OF CHRISTMAS ANXIETY
I. The Agitation Stage (Verse 3)
A. Herod becomes agitated
1. Herod becomes disturbed by the Magi and their report
a.) Herod realized that there could be a threat to his power and position
1.) Herod spent his life in a quest for more power
2.) Herod was known for arranged marriages and arranged murders to climb the ladder of power
b.) Herod begins to feel threatened
1.) Herod squashed each and every threat to his power. In one case he had the entire Sanhedrin, the Jewish ruling council, assassinated
2.) Herod even killed one of his wives and two of his sons to retain power
2. Herod exhibits his true character
a.) Herod was willing to do anything it took to gain more power
1.) He plotted, schemed and murdered his way to the top of the chain
2.) Herod was indeed a bloodthirsty and evil ruler
b.) Herod was willing to do everything it took to keep the power he had gained
B. We too become agitated
1. We are not agitated over personal power but rather personal control
a.) It is easy to become agitated during the holidays
1.) Shopping becomes close to war-like
2.) Traffic is always tied up
3.) Life becomes filled with headaches
b.) Nothing seems to go as planned
1.) We seem to live by Murphy’s Law – if anything can go wrong it will
2.) Even the best planned activities are disrupted by something
2. Life is not in your control but rather in God’s hands
a.) The sooner we realize this fact the better off we will be
b.) God cannot lead if you are fighting Him for control
II. The Anxious Stage (Verses 4-8)
A. Herod becomes anxious
1. Herod examines the evidence
a.) Herod calls together the scribes and chief priests
1.) He is looking for an expert opinion on the situation
2.) Herod is sizing up the reality of this threat
b.) Herod does not like what he hears
2. Herod creates a scheme using the Magi
a.) Herod sends the Magi out to search for the Messiah
1.) Herod gains the time that the star appeared
2.) Herod sends the Magi to search Bethlehem
b.) Herod states his reason for the search
1.) His desire to worship the Messiah. Do not be fooled – This is a total lie
2.) Herod’s true motive was to find the Messiah and kill him before he could become a threat
B. We too become anxious
1. The holidays create a mixture of excitement and anxiety
a.) Excitement in looking forward to the holiday season
b.) Anxiety in dreading the holiday season
2. Anxiety sets in with the Christmas season
a.) Anxiety comes from having a wrong focus. We take our focus off of Christ.
b.) Certain problems begin to weigh on us
1.) Too much to do with too little time to do it
2.) Did we get the right gift for the right person?
3.) Last minute we realize that we forgot to buy someone a gift
III. The Anger Stage (Verse 16)
A. Herod becomes angry
1. Herod completely loses control
a.) Herod is totally fooled by the Magi
1.) The entire caravan of the Magi simply disappears without a trace
2.) They did not return to Herod with his much needed information about this new messiah
b.) Herod is absolutely furious
1.) Can you picture it? Herod realizes he has been out smarted by the Magi, they don’t call them wise men for nothing, and he explodes with anger
2.) Herod is now fully out of control and someone has to pay
2. Herod commits mass murder
a.) Herod makes a last ditch effort to destroy the Messiah
1.) He decides to kill the Messiah without the help of the Magi
2.) Herod uses the timing of the star to pinpoint the time of birth
b.) Herod murders hundreds, if not thousands, of babies
1.) Herod finally moves in such a brutal fashion and orders his men to kill every male child two years old and under
2.) Hundreds of babies are slaughtered that day
3.) Herod still missed his target because his ability and power were limited where God is not
B. We too become angry
1. We are not going to kill someone but we do feel extremely angry at times in life
a.) We lose “control” of life
b.) Things do not go as they should and we explode
2. Anger makes us act in unusual ways
a.) We treat people in ways that are just wrong
1.) Many times the pressure and rush of the season takes a toll on us. We tend to snap.
2.) The way we treat people reveals our Christian character
b.) We react to people without thinking
1.) The hustle and bustle gets to our brains and we do not take time to think
2.) We say things that should be left unsaid
Conclusion
Let’s go back to the Grinch for a moment. The true lesson that we learn from the Grinch is that Christmas is not a matter of things but rather is a matter of heart. The same is true of our lives. Christmas is indeed a matter of heart!
Question: How do we engage the true spirit Christmas once again?
Focus on who Jesus is
A. It is time to trade the warm fuzzy for deep spirituality. An early church tradition
1. The symbol of the fish – The sign of Christianity
2. Acrostic of faith
a.) The Greek word for fish is Ichthus
b.) Each letter stood for a word in their statement of faith (EX: JOY – Jesus, Others, Yourself)
c.) The early church used Ichthus to stand for their statement of faith. Jesus Christ God’s son the savior
B. Jesus is a living reality you cannot ignore
1. Jesus is the Christ
a.) He is the promised Anointed One of Israel. Jesus is the Messiah
b.) Jesus is the fulfillment of the Old Testament prophecy and the hope of the world
2. Jesus is the Son of God
a.) Christianity holds the nature of Jesus as being both fully human and fully divine
b.) Jesus is called Immanuel, which means God with us. Jesus is God in flesh.
3. Jesus is the Savior
a.) Jesus came to earth with a purpose
1.) He came to seek and save that which was lost
2.) He came to heal the spiritual sickness of sin
b.) Jesus took your place of death
1.) We all deserve to die for our rebellion against God
2.) Jesus died in your place so that you would not have to die
