MELVIN M. NEWLAND, MINISTER
RIDGE CHAPEL, KANSAS, OK
(REVISED: 2017)
TEXT: Luke 2:8-14
ILL. It's Christmas time, & Lucy comes in where Charlie Brown is standing & says, "Merry Christmas, Charlie Brown. 'Tis the season of peace on earth & good will toward men. Therefore I suggest we forget all our differences & love one another."
Charlie Brown, whose face lights up at this, says, "That's wonderful, Lucy. I'm so glad you said that. But tell me, do we have to love each other only at this season? Why can't we love each other all year long?"
Lucy retorts, "What are you, a fanatic or something?"
A. If we really get serious about Christmas, it seems that we're branded by the world as some kind of fanatic. Yet, Christmas is supposed to be a time of "peace on earth, good will toward men."
Listen as I read some very familiar words in the New King James Version of the Bible, in Luke 2:8-14, "Now there were in the same country shepherds living out in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night.
"And behold, an angel of the Lord stood before them, & the glory of the Lord shone around them, & they were greatly afraid.
"Then the angel said to them, 'Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which will be to all people. For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.
'And this will be the sign to you: You will find a babe wrapped in swaddling cloths, lying in a manger.'
"And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, 'Glory to God in the highest, & on earth peace, good will toward men.'"
APPL. How wonderful our homes could be, how wonderful our lives could be, & how wonderful our world could be, if we really did put into practice the blessing of "peace on earth, good will toward men."
And as Christmas comes, we think once again, "Maybe it's not impossible. Maybe we really could have hearts filled with love. Maybe we really could be kind to each other, & not just once a year, but all year long."
B. I'm sure that most of you are well into your Christmas shopping. There may be a few procrastinators who wait until the last minute, but most of us spend time & thought in choosing just the right gift for that special person in our life. We think about their needs & wants & what might make them happy.
Then we go shopping, & make that purchase, often spending more money than we planned. We gift wrap it, & anxiously await the moment when that loved one will open our special gift. And when he or she opens the present we eagerly anticipate expressions of joy & delight.
But if there are no expressions of joy & delight, we'll be very disappointed. Because in receiving the gift, they're receiving us. Or if they reject it, they're rejecting us. At least, that's the way we feel deep down inside.
And even while we're watching the faces of others to see how they receive our gifts, others will be watching us to see how we receive their gifts. You see, giving & receiving is an important part of the Christmas season.
C. What was God's gift to us at Christmas time? I'm sure that most of you would say, "He gave His only begotten Son." And of course, you're right.
Others might say, "He gave us proof of His love." And of course, that would be right, too.
PROP. But I want to be a bit more precise than that, for in actuality, God gave us several very valuable gifts.
I. OPPORTUNITY FOR THE FORGIVENESS OF OUR SINS
#1, He gave us the opportunity for the forgiveness of our sins. Through Jesus Christ, God offers us the forgiveness of our sins.
You see, we'll never have peace with our fellow man until first we're at peace with ourselves. And we'll never be at peace with ourselves until we're at peace with God. And we'll never be at peace with God until our sins have been forgiven.
ILL. I read something unusual a few years ago. In the Eastern part of the U.S. a cookbook was recalled. Now, I've never heard of a cookbook being recalled before. I've heard of automobiles being recalled, & toasters & baby seats. But I had never before heard of a cookbook being recalled.
This cookbook was recalled because one recipe had left out an important ingredient, & the publishers of the book realized that if someone followed the directions of that recipe & left out that ingredient, that the ingredients they put together could actually blow up in their faces. So because of that hazard, the cookbook was recalled.
APPL. I thought to myself, "That's a pretty good sermon idea." You see, God has given us the recipe for life. He says, "You want peace in your life? Then here is the recipe. Find forgiveness through Jesus Christ, & live according to My rules & principles, the ingredients that make it all possible."
But if you leave out some of His ingredients, or stick in some of the ingredients of the world, then life can blow up in your face. That is why there is so much depression & so much suicide & so much rejection. Because too many are following the wrong recipes for life.
SUM. So God says, "Here's my gift. It is not just the gift of a baby, but it is the offer of forgiveness & salvation."
II. HELP IN OUR PRESENT SITUATION
The 2nd thing that God offers is "Help in our present situation."
A. I think of the shepherds sitting out on the hillsides, watching sheep all night long. They were poor, with not much prospect for improving their lives. Life was hard & harsh for them, without much hope of it ever getting better.
And then one night, angels appeared & made this wonderful announcement, "Unto you is born this day in the City of David, a Savior who is Christ the Lord." Suddenly everything was changed. God had become real to them. God had come to help them, to be their Savior, to bring "peace on earth, good will to men."
At the other end of the social spectrum were the wise men, Magi, people with power & authority & wealth. Yet there was an emptiness in their lives as well. So when they saw the star, they came because they needed something, too.
B. Whether rich or poor, powerful or weak, whoever we are, we need help. And God has promised that when the Christ child enters our hearts & lives then we will receive His help. And when we're helped by the Holy Spirit of God, then we develop a more sympathetic feeling towards one another, too.
ILL. A friend of mine, wearing a suit & tie, was on his way to his office during Christmas week when he stopped to get some gasoline. As he unscrewed the gas cap, he dropped it & it rolled under the car, right into a puddle of dirty water.
He bent down & looked at it for a moment, wondering what to do. Finally, he decided to finish filling his gas tank, move the car forward, & then pick up the cap.
But just then, a man in construction clothes saw the dilemma, got down on his knees, reached underneath the car, got the gas cap & handed it to him. My friend stood there amazed, & then thanked him. The man responded with a smile & a "Merry Christmas,” & then went on his way.
C. At Christmas time we seem to be more sensitive to each other. So we go around picking up gas caps, or reaching into our wallets & purses to help some one, or delivering food to someone who is hungry, because Christmas reminds us that God has reached down to help us. And now we want to help each other.
Maybe there is more good in us than we realize. Maybe we spend too much time beating ourselves up, telling ourselves how bad we are.
ILL. Do you remember how shocked we all were a few years ago by a shooting at a high school in Paducah, KY? A group of students had come to school early & were praying together quietly. Then just as they finished, another student began shooting at them, killing 3, & wounding 5 more.
It was a terrible event, & reported widely on TV news & in the newspapers. But most of the news reporters never got around to telling about what one set of parents did as a result of their daughter's death.
Moved by love & compassion, they gave permission for the doctors to remove vital organs from their daughter, & to use them to help save 3 others who desperately needed those organs.
Two days later they shed tears again, tears of both sadness & joy, when they learned that their daughter's lungs had been successfully transplanted into a young man whose family had been told that he had only a few more days to live.
CONCL. But if we are moved by news of their sorrow & joy, how much more moved should we be to realize that the King of Kings & the Lord of Lords came to our world to cry with us, to rejoice with us, & to help us over the hurts & bumps of life itself.
When you realize that, then "peace on earth, & good will toward men" becomes easier, & more realistic.
III. HOPE FOR THE FUTURE
A. One final thing that God gave us at Christmas time when He gave Jesus is hope for the future.
You know what kept the shepherds going? It was hope. God had made a promise to their people. He would one day send a Messiah, the Anointed One. And when the Messiah came everything would be all right again. And that hope burned in the hearts & lives of the people of Israel.
You know what kept the wise men going? It was hope. Every night they would go out & search the heavens, looking for that star of promise. And they knew when they saw it they must follow wherever it led them, because it was a sign from God, & it proclaimed the birth of a king. So hope kept them going.
B. And God gives hope to us at Christmas, too. Maybe it seems an impossible dream ? "Peace on earth, good will toward men." Maybe there will always be wars & rumor of wars. Maybe the poor will always be hungry. And maybe we will always have to deal with the terror & crime & violence we see every day.
But there is one thing that keeps us going - & it is hope. One day heaven is going to open, & God will come back, & the dream of peace & good will for all will be fulfilled.
ILL. One of my favorite Christmas stories is about a 7th?grade boy by the name of William Spurling. William Spurling was big for his age, & a little slow mentally.
But he was a good boy & all the kids liked him. In fact, they wanted him for a friend because he was big enough to take their part if they needed him.
When it came time for the Christmas program to be presented, William Spurling wanted to be a shepherd, but the teacher decided that he would make a better inn keeper than a shepherd since he was so big. So she gave him the task of being a rough, mean inn keeper.
In the program, when Mary & Joseph came to the inn & knocked on the door, William Spurling opened it. And when they asked for a place to stay, he said harshly, "There is no place for you to stay. There is no room in the inn."
Joseph said, "But my wife is tired & she is expecting a baby. Isn't there just a small room where we could rest?"
Once again, William Spurling said, with roughness in his voice, "You'll have to find a room somewhere else. There is no room in the inn."
Once more Joseph pleaded just for some place for them to stay the night. Then there was a long pause, one of those pauses that is as embarrassing for the audience as it is for the cast. William Spurling had forgotten his next line.
Back behind the props you could hear the prompter saying, "No, begone! No, begone!" That was William's next speech. Finally, in almost a whisper he said, "No, begone."
Mary & Joseph sadly turned to leave. But as they did, William suddenly regained his voice & said, "Wait a minute! You can stay in my room, & I'll sleep in the shed."
In the stunned silence that followed, the teacher thought the play was ruined, until she thought again of the words of a 7th?grade boy, who may have communi-cated the real truth of Christmas better than anyone else. "No, you can stay in my room, & I'll sleep in the shed."
CONCL. Isn't that what Jesus did? "No, you don't have to die for your sins. I'll take your place on the cross." "No, you can enter the heavenly home. I'm preparing a place for you there."
Christmas made the difference. God wrapped up a gift & gave it. Now He stands back & waits to see what we will do. Will we receive it with joy? Or will we treat it with indifference & rejection?
God waits to see, because what we do with the gift is also what we do with Him. If we accept the gift, then we receive Him & His forgiveness & His help & His hope. But if we reject it, then we also reject Him.
God offers that gift again this morning, & He waits to see what you will do. I pray that you will receive Him with open arms of love as we extend His invitation & we stand & sing.
