"no Room"

"No Room"

Luke 2:1-7

You may not want to know this but there are no more shopping days left until Christmas. None. And for some of us here tonight, that is not exactly good news. I am of the belief that many people, probably most people, actually go right through the entire month of December at full speed, not having a moment to relax and actually enjoy what the season is really all about. Let me try and give you a few words/phrases that may describe how you feel at this time of year. Rushed. Broke. Out of time. Stressed. Hurried. Tired of Turkey sandwiches. Hectic. Overextended. No room for anything else in your schedule.

When Mary and Joseph arrived in Bethlehem after a lengthy trip, they were no doubt tired……exhausted. After all Mary was pregnant; at full term and had just ridden a donkey for 80 long, dusty miles. Likely a 4 day journey. They, like everyone else in that area had been ordered to come to Bethlehem to pay their taxes. They had no choice but to go. Mary couldn’t call in sick; she couldn’t apply for medical leave; there was no way to postpone any of this so she and Joseph made their way to Bethlehem. Because they were convinced that Mary was about to give birth to the Son of God. So they arrived in Bethlehem, tired, weary, registered for the census and were ready to go home. But it was long trip so they needed some rest. So they went to the local inn and guess what they said, NO ROOM. Now maybe we should not be surprised that this was the response of the innkeeper; I mean after all historians tell us that nearly ½ million people were making their journey there. But it still surprises us.

We have not room for you. We have no room for you, Virgin Mary, husband Joseph and the King of Kings. We would think that if anyone had any clout/any pull at all that it would be God and that they would not be forced to stay in a stable. But they were. Because there was simply no room. I would guess that many of us can identify with this statement because we feel the same way at this time of year. We have no room. Our lives are just too full for anything else. And when that occurs there are several things that happen and NONE of them are good.

When we have no room left we can …… (1) Lose our time alone with God. We make not time to talk to Him or read His word. In fact, for some, making time for Jesus is the last thing we have on our mind. And here is what happens.

(2) When our lives become too full, if Jesus is not the first thing in our lives He will usually be the last. There are many things Jesus will tolerate but 2nd place is not one of them. Jesus doesn’t come in 2nd.

(3) When He is no longer first we lose our relationship with Him. It is a fact of life that we make time for the things that matter. We make time for the people that matter. We make time for the things and the people we love. But we somehow have this mistaken idea that God understands. Trust me, He doesn’t. From the beginning of His life Jesus has been told by too many of us that there is no room for Him right now. Think about it.

• The innkeeper told Mary and Joseph there is no room for you in the inn.

• When Jesus told that rich young ruler he needed to sell all he had and give it to the poor, the young man walked away very sad and gave nothing. He basically said, Jesus I don’t have time for this kind of thing.

• When Peter said to Jesus, I don’t even know you, he was saying I don’t have time for you right now.

• When Judas sold Jesus to the highest bidder for 30 pieces of silver, he was saying Jesus you don’t matter to me. Money is more important.

• When they nailed Him to the cross the soldiers were saying we have no time for you. We don’t need you here.

And the truth is we do the same. Now I know what you’re thinking here…Pastor, “I never denied Jesus, I never sold him to the highest bidder; I never crucified Him. That was the Jews, the soldiers….that was Herod.” Whomever we choose to blame it on. This month we have looked at a different Christmas word each week. So far we have looked at Hope, Peace, Joy and Purpose. Well here is the word for tonight. JESUS.