"making Room For Jesus"

Luke 2:1-20

Making Room for Jesus

There is a story about a group of children who had been practicing for the Big Christmas Play for several weeks.

There was Mary and Joseph and the sheep and shepherds and there was a young boy named Timmy playing the grumpy old Inn Keeper.

Timmy was a nice kid who loved Jesus and other people, and he felt guilty playing the part of the person who tells Jesus’ parents that they can’t stay in the inn.

The pageant director had spent many practices trying to convince Timmy that this is just a play and when he tells Jesus’ parents that they can’t stay at the inn—Timmy is just playing a part.

Besides this, the director tells Timmy that the Bible doesn’t even mention an innkeeper.

It’s just something that has been taken for granted.

If there is an inn that has no room; there must be an innkeeper there to tell them there is no room.

Timmy reluctantly agrees to play his part.

On the night of the play, everything is going as planned until Mary and Joseph knock on the innkeeper’s door.

“Do you have a room we can stay in for the night?” the child playing Joseph asks Timmy the innkeeper.

Timmy replies, “There’s no room in this crummy inn, but you are welcome to come and stay at my house!”

(pause)

How many of you have been listening to Christmas songs for the past couple months?

A week or so ago, I was driving and the song “Joy to the World” came on and I started to sing along.

And when I got to the part where it says, “let every heart prepare Him room,” I started to think.

And what I was thinking about was that I need to prepare more room in my heart for Jesus.

I thought about the times when I squeeze Him out or try and ignore Him.

I thought about the things I leave undone and all the good I could be doing that I don’t seem to get to.

I thought about the things I waste my time on, and the selfish things I allow into my mind, heart and life.

I thought about how I want to learn to love more.

And thought: “Why don’t I give more room in my heart, more room in my life, more of my time to Jesus?”

Can you relate?

Even before He was born, Jesus was pushed out, rejected and turned away.

The words, “No room for you…” followed Him throughout His life.

It’s the same in the lives of so many of us today.

Jesus keeps getting crowded out.

With all the festivities and busy-ness, He is often just an afterthought.

Instead of a place of honor at this time of year, Christ is often shoved into a corner.

The amazing and beautiful thing to me, though, is this: This same child that we so often push away has come to find room for us.

Think about it…

Jesus is the Father in the story of the Prodigal Son, and we are the wayward child He is waiting for.

We are His treasure hidden in a field and the Pearl of Great Price, the lost sheep, the lost coin which, when He finds us, in His joy He throws a great big party!

That is how much God loves you and me.

And because of that love I want to do a better job at loving God back.

I want to love the people God loves and make room for the people God makes room for…people like the folks who are not here this evening, the homeless man and woman shivering in a tent with no presents, no Christmas tree—left on the margins all alone.

I want to make room for the LGBTQ+ person who has been told by other churches: “We have no room for you!”

Or “God doesn’t love you the way you are.”

I want to make room for the lost and lonely teenager, the scared and angry gang member, the addicted person who just can’t seem to shake their disease, the illegal immigrant, the person fighting mental illness—you name it!

Because when I make room in my heart for other people—that is when I am making room for Jesus.

There’s another Christmas song: it’s called “In the Bleak Midwinter.”

The author was a follower of Christ who, for many years, volunteered at a shelter for women who were coming out of a life of prostitution.

Some of them were only 12 years old.

“In the Bleak Midwinter” pictures Jesus Who enters our world of suffering and brokenness with great power and love.

In light of this the author of the song asks: “What can I give him, poor as I am?”