The Decision

Christmas Eve

Luke 2:1-7

"The Decision"

There once was a boy named Tommy. Tommy was like most boys of the age 5, he liked to run and play. He liked to get himself all dirty, especially in mud puddles after a nice rain. Tommy had two little dimples on his cheeks and when he smiled, they made him look just like an angel. But Tommy didn’t smile as much as he could for you see Tommy was lonely. Tommy lived in an orphanage because Tommy’s parents had been killed.

The people in the orphanage like having Tommy around. They liked to see his dark hair flopping in the breeze as Tommy ran around the furniture and all over the house. These people loved Tommy very much, but Tommy knew that it wan’s like having real parents of his very own. Tommy wanted parents that would love only him.

One day while Tommy was playing dodge ball, and Tommy was pretty good at that, he was usually the last one out. In the country house down the street from the orphanage, court was in session. This session of the court was very important to Tommy even though Tommy knew nothing of what was taking place. Judge Johnson was holding court that day. Now Judge Johnson liked to make people happy if he could. He was a jolly man who was always smiling and finding good in people. In today’s court, the Judge was deciding if some people who saw Tommy at the orphanage could adopt him as their very own child. The judge was making a decision that would affect Tommy’s whole like from that moment on, and Tommy didn’t even know what was happening.

Judge Johnson after hearing all the testimony decided that Tommy could have these people, this couple, as his parents. The Judge decided that these people had a lot of love in their hearts and they would share that love with Tommy. He felt they would be good parents.

Can you imagine how excited Tommy will be when these people come to the home and they tell him they are going to be Tommy’s new parents. Tommy will no longer have to be lonely, he will have parents to take care of him, to love him, and to be loved by Tommy. The judge made a decision that would affect Tommy forever

God made a decision that affects our whole lives in the dame kind of way that Judge Johnson made his decision. It is that decision that we celebrate tonight and tomorrow. It is that decision that all the world celebrates during this Christmas season. It is that decision that creates all the excitement, all the joy, all the happiness this time of year.

God made a decision that affects our lives, a decision that was made without our consent, without our knowledge, without our approval. A decision was made that would affect our lives now and for the rest of eternity. That decision was for God to send his son to earth, for God to put skin on, so that we might have the opportunity to have eternal life. God made a decision out of love for us, out of love for the creation. God decided to come to earth, to walk among us, to be like one of us, so that we could see in a very real way how much he loves us.

God made a decision to do this without consulting us, with out asking our permission, without us really having anything to say about the matter. God wanted our salvation to be in his hands, not ours. God decided that sending his son to earth having him walk among us, live with us, then die for our sins and rise on the third day, would be the only way that God the father could be reconciled with the children of his creation. So God decided to do this for us. God decided because he is a God of love, a God of mercy, a God of compassion. God made this kind of decision because he knew that we could not by our own merits, our own works, our own efforts make ourselves worthy in his eyes. God knew we could never live up to the perfection he wants, so he decided he would live up to that perfection himself, then punish himself for our sins, and then tell us that by believing in what he has done for us, we would be made right with him.

There is a story about an elderly woman who was being called on by her pastor. As the pastor sat by her sick bed, the woman said: "Well I’ve had a long life, and a good life. And I’ve tried to do the right thing. I’ve never wanted to hurt anybody. And I’ve tried to keep the 10 Commandments as best as I could."