Mary had a little lamb
A Christmas day message
Once upon a mountaintop, 3 little trees stood and dreamed of what they wanted to become when they grew up.
The first little tree looked up at the stars twinkling like diamonds above him. “I want to hold treasure,” he said. “I want to be covered with gold and filled with precious stones. I will be the most beautiful treasure chest in the world!”
The second little tree looked out at the small stream trickling by on its way to the ocean. “I want to be a strong sailing ship,” he said. “I want to travel mighty waters and carry powerful kings . I will be the strongest ship in the world!”
The third little tree looked down into the valley below where busy men and busy women worked in a busy town. “I don’t want to leave this mountaintop at all,” she said. “I want to grow so tall that when people stop to look at me they will raise their eyes to heaven and think of God. I will be tallest tree in the world.!”
Years passed. The rains came, the sun shone, and the little trees grew tall.
One day three woodcutters climbed the mountain.
The first woodcutter looked at the first tree and said, “This tree is beautiful. It is perfect for me”. With a swoop of his shining axe, the first tree fell.
“Now I shall be made into a beautiful chest,” thought the first tree. “I shall hold wonderful treasure.”
The second woodcutter looked at the second tree and said, “This tree is strong. It is perfect for me.” With a swoop of his shining axe, the second tree fell. “Now I shall sail mighty waters,” thought the second tree. “I shall be a strong ship fit for kings!”
The third tree felt her heart sink when the last woodcutter looked her way. She stood straight and tall and pointed bravely to heaven. But the woodcutter never even looked up. “Any kind of tree will do for me” he muttered. With a swoop of his shining axe, the third tree fell.
The first tree rejoiced when the woodcutter brought him to a carpenter’s shop, but the busy carpenter was not thinking about treasure chests. Instead, his work-worn hands fashioned the tree into a feed box for animals. The once beautiful tree was not covered with gold or filled with treasure. He was coated with sawdust and filled with hay for hungry farm animals.
The second tree smiled when the woodcutter took him to a shipyard, but no mighty sailing ships were being made that day. Instead the once strong tree was hammered and sawed into a simple fishing boat. Too small and too weak to sail an ocean or even a river, he was taken to a little lake. Everyday he brought in loads of dead, smelly fish.
The third tree was confused when the woodcutter cut her into strong beams and left her in the lumberyard. “What happened?” the once tall tree wondered. “All I ever wanted to do was stay on the mountaintop and point to God.”
Many, many days and nights passed. The three trees nearly forgot their dreams. But one night golden starlight poured over the first tree as a young woman placed her newborn baby in the feedbox. “I wish I could make a cradle for him,” her husband whispered. The mother squeezed his hand and smiled as the starlight shone on the smooth and sturdy wood. “This manger is beautiful,” she said. And suddenly the first tree knew he was holding the greatest treasure in the world.
One evening a tired traveler and his friends crowded into the old fishing boat. The traveler fell asleep as the second tree quietly sailed out into the lake. Soon a thrashing storm arose. The little shuddered. He knew he did not have the strength to carry so many passengers safely through the wind and rain.
The tired man awakened. He stood up, stretched out his hand, and said “Peace.” The storm stopped as quickly as it had begun. And suddenly the second tree knew he was carrying the King of heaven and earth.
One Friday morning, the third tree was startled when her beams were yanked from the forgotten woodpile. She flinched as she was carried through an angry jeering crowd. She shuddered when soldiers nailed a man’s hands to her. She felt ugly and harsh and cruel.
But on Sunday morning, when the sun rose and the earthy trembled with joy beneath her, the third tree knew that God’s love had changed everything.
It had made the first tree beautiful.
It had made the second tree strong.
And every time people thought of the third tree, they would think of God.
That was better than being the tallest tree in the world.
(source: The Tale of the Three Trees, STORIES FOR THE HEART, compiled by Alice Gray, p.251-3)
What are you thinking about this Christmas? Like the 3 little trees, you may wondering what God is doing in your world… You may have some big dreams in life, but now they are nothing but broken dreams. You may feel weakened by the onslaught of stinking work pressures… You may feel like you have been thrown about and forgotten like a piece of lumber in a lumberyard. But let this Christmas day remind you of this… as the Bible says 21 And she will have a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins. Matthew 1:21 (NLT)
God can make you beautiful again, if you have felt ugly, beaten up in life, dirty, unwanted…
God can make you strong again, if you have felt weaken by disease, pressures of this life, by hurts and pains…
God can use you again to point the way to security, love and hope…
Because Jesus will save people like you and me, if we trust Him from their sins…
The Bible says “So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus. 2 For the power of the life-giving Spirit has freed you through Christ Jesus from the power of sin that leads to death. 3 The law of Moses could not save us, because of our sinful nature. But God put into effect a different plan to save us. (Thank You God for this plan!) He sent his own Son in a human body like ours, except that ours are sinful. (Christmas event) God destroyed sin’s control over us by giving his Son as a sacrifice for our sins.” Rom 8:1-4
Let me illustrate this truth with this story told by one preacher: When I was 5 years old, before factory-installed seat belts and automobile air bags, my family was driving home at night on a two-lane country road. I was sitting on my mother’s lap when another car, driven by a drunk driver, swerved into our lane and hit us head-on. I don’t have any memory of the collision. I do recall the fear and confusion I felt as I saw myself literally covered with blood from head to toe. Then I learned that the blood wasn’t mine at all, but my mother’s. In that split second when the two headlights glared into her eyes, she instinctively pulled me closer to her chest and curled her body around mine. It was her body that slammed against the dashboard, her head that shattered the windshield. She took the impact of the collision so that I wouldn’t have to. It took extensive surgery for my mother to recover from her injuries. In a similar, but infinitely more significant way, Jesus Christ took the impact for our sin, and his blood now permanently covers our lives. -- Jeffrey Ebert in Fresh Illustrations for Preaching & Teaching (Baker), from the editors of Leadership.
36 As Jesus walked by, John looked at him and then declared, “Look! There is the Lamb of God!” John 1:36 (NLT)
Because of this if we trust WHAT GOD DID FOR US THROUGHT THIS PLAN… He took the hit for us! He took it all, he went down for the count.. died for us. But He did not stay down, He rose again and came back to life, to tell us death is not the final answer. You will never be voted off heaven by people who think you are not good enuff. You are good enuff if you trust the Lamb of God… Took our place so that we can get a guaranteed reservation in the Lamb’s Book of life! There is reserved for us a place in heaven…
Do you know God’s motivation for Christmas?
16 “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. 17 God did not send his Son into the world to condemn it, but to save it.
3 No longer will anything be cursed. For the throne of God and of the Lamb will be there, and his servants will worship him. 4 And they will see his face, and his name will be written on their the Lord God will shine on foreheads. 5 And there will be no night there—no need for lamps or sun—for them. And they will reign forever and ever. Revelation 22:3-5 (NLT)
On Christmas day, Mary had a little lamb… that lamb; his fleece was as white as snow, for He is the Son of God who came from heaven… but He got dirtied for us, took the blame to get us home free, no condemnation through Him, what a plan, what a different plan! What hope, what joy there is, what elation there is for those who know God loves the world, God loves you, God loves me. It’s all about a very personal relationship… face to face encounter… no more fear, no more night, with shame removed through Christ!
Christmas Day exist for one specific purpose to save you and I from our sins. You know His pure motivation for this is love. So turn from your sins and put your trust in God who can change our lives to serve a better purpose now and to be with Him cleansed, renewed and forgiven and to reign with Him forever. Let’s PRAY!
3 No longer will anything be cursed. For the throne of God and of the Lamb will be there, and his servants will worship him. 4 And they will see his face, and his name will be written on their the Lord God will shine on foreheads. 5 And there will be no night there—no need for lamps or sun—for them. And they will reign forever and ever. Revelation 22:3-5 (NLT)
