Sermon Illustrations for Christmas 2 (2016)
Illustration
Jeremiah 31:7-14
I was a new seminary graduate, and Harold, a 50-year-old semi-retired pastor in a neighboring community, had become my mentor. I relied on his wise counsel and admired his Christian maturity.
One day I learned that his until-that-point manageable cancer had metastasized to his brain. His doctors had given him only a few months to live. I called him to express my prayerful concern. I somehow assumed he would be lamenting his circumstances. However, he seemed not to be discouraged in the least. In fact, he seemed full of good cheer. I asked, “Harold, what is it like to know that death is near?”
After making a joke about his circumstances, he said: “As a person of faith, knowing you are going to die is like being a boy playing baseball with friends in the vacant lot next to your house. Then your mother calls to say that it is time to go to the birthday party of another friend. You don’t mind going to that birthday party. In fact, you are looking forward to it. On the other hand, you want to stay and play baseball as long as you can.”
This passage from Jeremiah speaks of the hope and comfort of God’s presence that came to the people of Judea at a terrible time in their history. Harold captured that same sense of comfort, hope, strength, and joy that came from the grace of God at a difficult time in his journey.
R. Robert C.
Jeremiah 31:7-14
The prophet seeks to console in this lesson with a word of joy. This is a relevant word for the post-Christmas blues many experience. The joy we have is based on God’s love, not on our present feelings. John Calvin well describes these dynamics: “For we know that our condition is in this world, for every hour, nay almost every moment, our joy is turned into sorrow and our laughter into tears” (Calvin’s Commentaries, Vol. X/2, p. 84). “However, we sought, in the main, to regard our joy as perpetual; for whatever evils may happen to us, yet God shines on us by his grace, and thus all things turn out for our good, and are aids to our salvation” (Ibid., p. 85).
These insights accord with the observations of 19th-century French Romantic writer George Sand, who observed that “There is only one happiness is life -- to love and be loved.” Joy is a gift of God, not something you own or can even seek. American author Henry David Thoreau gives sound advice on living with joy: “Happiness is like a butterfly: the more you chase it, the more it will elude you, but if you turn your attention to other things it will come and sit softly on your shoulder.”
Mark E.
Ephesians 1:3-14
It sounds like we are all predestined to God’s heavenly blessings if we put all our faith in him -- faith that he has chosen us. When a Presbyterian was ordained, he or she had to promise to serve the Lord faithfully regardless which way they might be predestined to go.
If I were a betting man, I would want to bet on a winner. I told a man who said that he was an atheist that he might lose his bet. I said that if there were no god and that life ended in the grave then we would both come to the same end -- but if there is a God, and if I decide to believe in him and serve him, then there would be a great reward for me... but for him he would have the same end he thought we would all have (but that end could be far worse). If you are a betting man, don’t be a fool. Bet on the possibility of the greatest reward... you can’t lose!
So if God has chosen us before the world began, then I don’t want to disappoint Him. It sounds as though we are all destined to live in glory, but some can turn down that great reward and promise. It is hard to imagine anyone turning down what God awarded us through the sacrifice of his Son.
It might be compared to a son who is in his father’s will and stands to inherit a great fortune one day. Why would he do anything to hurt his father and take the chance his father might change the will and leave him out? Our names are written in God’s will. We will inherit everything if we don’t turn against him and reject his love for us.
Bob O.
Ephesians 1:3-14
My husband and I were discussing our wills the other day. We talked about a need to update them because we have a new daughter-in-law and two new grandsons since we wrote the originals. Inheritances can be a source of pain and contention. I have heard many stories about families splitting up and never speaking to one another again based on how the inheritances were allocated. I don’t have a lot of worldly assets (although there are enough), but I can’t see my grandsons arguing over great-grandma’s china or her antique books.
How fortunate we are that our inheritance from God is beyond quantifying. God’s love, mercy, forgiveness, and joy in having us as children are immeasurable and infinite. Jesus made it possible for us to learn how to live in faith, how to navigate the world as redeemed children of God. It is through Christ that we encounter God as intimate parent, rather than otherworldly judge. God’s plan for us to be one family is the pledge of our inheritance. God’s will has been written in our hearts. There’s no need for fighting over our inheritance from God. We all have our share.
Bonnie B.
Ephesians 1:3-14
The family piled out of the minivan and carefully crossed the street to the courthouse. Today was the day -- they’d been waiting a long time for it to come. The husband, wife, and four kids met a few friends on the steps leading to the courthouse. They hugged and walked in. Having located the courtroom they’d been assigned, they hurried down the corridor. Upon entering the courtroom, they took seats in the back and waited for their turn. The judge called the parents forward and told them to bring the child. The husband and wife stood. The mother smiled at the three children to whom she’d given birth and took the hand of the three-year-old that was born not of her womb but in her heart. The three walked to the bench where the judge sat. Their attorney met them there. The judge asked a few questions, quickly completed some paperwork, and then looked back to the couple. “You understand that when I announce this, she is officially, legally, and in every way yours? Is that what you want?” Without hesitation the couple answered, “Yes, your honor.” The judge smiled, cleared his throat, and loudly introduced to those assembled in his courtroom the newest member of the family.
An adoption hearing is a fairly ordinary proceeding, except for those involved in it. One who has very little when he or she enters leaves with so much: love, family, and home. It’s hard to watch an adoption proceeding without being touched. Notice in the passage for today that God has destined us to be adopted through Jesus Christ. We are the lost ones. We are the ones with nothing. We are the ones with no hope, no future, and no love. Through the atoning work of Jesus, we go from outcasts to children. We go from despair to assurance. Tears and sadness melt away in the presence of joy and laughter. Adopted. Child of God. That sounds really nice.
Bill T.
Ephesians 1:3-14
It’s a movie cliché. The lawyer clears his or her throat, shuffles some paper, then begins to read from the will to a motley assembly. Some wonder if they will inherit everything. Some wonder if they will inherit anything! And some will be surprised, shocked, outraged, or delighted by what they receive or don’t receive.
This passage is filled with shock and delight. The apostle is reading the will aloud to all of us across the centuries who are willing to listen. We, who might not have expected to even be in the room where the will is read, are included in God’s inheritance through Jesus Christ. We are heirs of the ruler of the universe. This is the last of Christmas, the verge of Epiphany, and we have one last holiday gift beyond imagining. And it’s something we can spend now!
Frank R.
John 1:(1-9) 10-18
During my final semester of seminary, I took a course on the Gospel of John. It was also that New Testament professor’s final semester before retirement.
He had a longstanding reputation for being sensitive to the fact that he was turning newly minted preachers loose on local congregations. Consequently, he taught all of his classes by helping students see the sermon possibilities in biblical texts. Over the years he had collected more than two dozen sermon outlines on various topics from these first 18 verses of John 1. Perhaps because it was his last chance to do so, he insisted on discussing with our class every single one of those sermon outlines. In fact, he spent so much time luxuriating on John 1:1-18 that he had to race through some of the final chapters of John at semester’s end.
The point is that this is rich sermonic material. It is possible to preach for months on this passage. In fact, many of the students who took his class did so during the first decades of their ministries.
R. Robert C.
John 1:(1-9) 10-18
For several years now, the Chinese government has been removing church steeples. Officials are using zoning ordinances to justify this action. The real reason is to contain Christianity, which is China’s fastest growing religion. The number of adherents to Christianity rivals the 86 million members of the Communist Party.
Application: China cannot allow light to come into darkness.
Ron L.
John 1:(1-9) 10-18
It is so appropriate that Jesus is identified as the Word. Conversation is a good thing. Roman philosopher Seneca put it this way: “Conversation has a kind of charm about it, an insidious something that elicits secrets, just like love or liquor.” French Renaissance author Michael de
Montaigne says much the same thing about the pleasures of conversation. He writes, “In my opinion the most fruitful and natural play of the mind is in conversation. I find it sweeter than any other action in life.” It is not then surprising that God would be a conversationalist, according to Martin Luther. He speaks of the Trinity in terms of an internal conversation in God, with the Father as Speaker, the Son as Word, and the Spirit as Listener (Luther’s Works, Vol. 24, pp. 364-365). Hanging around this talkative God makes life good -- for as University of Arizona psychologist Matthias Mehl showed in a 2009 survey, the happiest people have twice as many substantive conversations as those who are less happy. God is always ready to have us join him in conversation!
Mark E.
I was a new seminary graduate, and Harold, a 50-year-old semi-retired pastor in a neighboring community, had become my mentor. I relied on his wise counsel and admired his Christian maturity.
One day I learned that his until-that-point manageable cancer had metastasized to his brain. His doctors had given him only a few months to live. I called him to express my prayerful concern. I somehow assumed he would be lamenting his circumstances. However, he seemed not to be discouraged in the least. In fact, he seemed full of good cheer. I asked, “Harold, what is it like to know that death is near?”
After making a joke about his circumstances, he said: “As a person of faith, knowing you are going to die is like being a boy playing baseball with friends in the vacant lot next to your house. Then your mother calls to say that it is time to go to the birthday party of another friend. You don’t mind going to that birthday party. In fact, you are looking forward to it. On the other hand, you want to stay and play baseball as long as you can.”
This passage from Jeremiah speaks of the hope and comfort of God’s presence that came to the people of Judea at a terrible time in their history. Harold captured that same sense of comfort, hope, strength, and joy that came from the grace of God at a difficult time in his journey.
R. Robert C.
Jeremiah 31:7-14
The prophet seeks to console in this lesson with a word of joy. This is a relevant word for the post-Christmas blues many experience. The joy we have is based on God’s love, not on our present feelings. John Calvin well describes these dynamics: “For we know that our condition is in this world, for every hour, nay almost every moment, our joy is turned into sorrow and our laughter into tears” (Calvin’s Commentaries, Vol. X/2, p. 84). “However, we sought, in the main, to regard our joy as perpetual; for whatever evils may happen to us, yet God shines on us by his grace, and thus all things turn out for our good, and are aids to our salvation” (Ibid., p. 85).
These insights accord with the observations of 19th-century French Romantic writer George Sand, who observed that “There is only one happiness is life -- to love and be loved.” Joy is a gift of God, not something you own or can even seek. American author Henry David Thoreau gives sound advice on living with joy: “Happiness is like a butterfly: the more you chase it, the more it will elude you, but if you turn your attention to other things it will come and sit softly on your shoulder.”
Mark E.
Ephesians 1:3-14
It sounds like we are all predestined to God’s heavenly blessings if we put all our faith in him -- faith that he has chosen us. When a Presbyterian was ordained, he or she had to promise to serve the Lord faithfully regardless which way they might be predestined to go.
If I were a betting man, I would want to bet on a winner. I told a man who said that he was an atheist that he might lose his bet. I said that if there were no god and that life ended in the grave then we would both come to the same end -- but if there is a God, and if I decide to believe in him and serve him, then there would be a great reward for me... but for him he would have the same end he thought we would all have (but that end could be far worse). If you are a betting man, don’t be a fool. Bet on the possibility of the greatest reward... you can’t lose!
So if God has chosen us before the world began, then I don’t want to disappoint Him. It sounds as though we are all destined to live in glory, but some can turn down that great reward and promise. It is hard to imagine anyone turning down what God awarded us through the sacrifice of his Son.
It might be compared to a son who is in his father’s will and stands to inherit a great fortune one day. Why would he do anything to hurt his father and take the chance his father might change the will and leave him out? Our names are written in God’s will. We will inherit everything if we don’t turn against him and reject his love for us.
Bob O.
Ephesians 1:3-14
My husband and I were discussing our wills the other day. We talked about a need to update them because we have a new daughter-in-law and two new grandsons since we wrote the originals. Inheritances can be a source of pain and contention. I have heard many stories about families splitting up and never speaking to one another again based on how the inheritances were allocated. I don’t have a lot of worldly assets (although there are enough), but I can’t see my grandsons arguing over great-grandma’s china or her antique books.
How fortunate we are that our inheritance from God is beyond quantifying. God’s love, mercy, forgiveness, and joy in having us as children are immeasurable and infinite. Jesus made it possible for us to learn how to live in faith, how to navigate the world as redeemed children of God. It is through Christ that we encounter God as intimate parent, rather than otherworldly judge. God’s plan for us to be one family is the pledge of our inheritance. God’s will has been written in our hearts. There’s no need for fighting over our inheritance from God. We all have our share.
Bonnie B.
Ephesians 1:3-14
The family piled out of the minivan and carefully crossed the street to the courthouse. Today was the day -- they’d been waiting a long time for it to come. The husband, wife, and four kids met a few friends on the steps leading to the courthouse. They hugged and walked in. Having located the courtroom they’d been assigned, they hurried down the corridor. Upon entering the courtroom, they took seats in the back and waited for their turn. The judge called the parents forward and told them to bring the child. The husband and wife stood. The mother smiled at the three children to whom she’d given birth and took the hand of the three-year-old that was born not of her womb but in her heart. The three walked to the bench where the judge sat. Their attorney met them there. The judge asked a few questions, quickly completed some paperwork, and then looked back to the couple. “You understand that when I announce this, she is officially, legally, and in every way yours? Is that what you want?” Without hesitation the couple answered, “Yes, your honor.” The judge smiled, cleared his throat, and loudly introduced to those assembled in his courtroom the newest member of the family.
An adoption hearing is a fairly ordinary proceeding, except for those involved in it. One who has very little when he or she enters leaves with so much: love, family, and home. It’s hard to watch an adoption proceeding without being touched. Notice in the passage for today that God has destined us to be adopted through Jesus Christ. We are the lost ones. We are the ones with nothing. We are the ones with no hope, no future, and no love. Through the atoning work of Jesus, we go from outcasts to children. We go from despair to assurance. Tears and sadness melt away in the presence of joy and laughter. Adopted. Child of God. That sounds really nice.
Bill T.
Ephesians 1:3-14
It’s a movie cliché. The lawyer clears his or her throat, shuffles some paper, then begins to read from the will to a motley assembly. Some wonder if they will inherit everything. Some wonder if they will inherit anything! And some will be surprised, shocked, outraged, or delighted by what they receive or don’t receive.
This passage is filled with shock and delight. The apostle is reading the will aloud to all of us across the centuries who are willing to listen. We, who might not have expected to even be in the room where the will is read, are included in God’s inheritance through Jesus Christ. We are heirs of the ruler of the universe. This is the last of Christmas, the verge of Epiphany, and we have one last holiday gift beyond imagining. And it’s something we can spend now!
Frank R.
John 1:(1-9) 10-18
During my final semester of seminary, I took a course on the Gospel of John. It was also that New Testament professor’s final semester before retirement.
He had a longstanding reputation for being sensitive to the fact that he was turning newly minted preachers loose on local congregations. Consequently, he taught all of his classes by helping students see the sermon possibilities in biblical texts. Over the years he had collected more than two dozen sermon outlines on various topics from these first 18 verses of John 1. Perhaps because it was his last chance to do so, he insisted on discussing with our class every single one of those sermon outlines. In fact, he spent so much time luxuriating on John 1:1-18 that he had to race through some of the final chapters of John at semester’s end.
The point is that this is rich sermonic material. It is possible to preach for months on this passage. In fact, many of the students who took his class did so during the first decades of their ministries.
R. Robert C.
John 1:(1-9) 10-18
For several years now, the Chinese government has been removing church steeples. Officials are using zoning ordinances to justify this action. The real reason is to contain Christianity, which is China’s fastest growing religion. The number of adherents to Christianity rivals the 86 million members of the Communist Party.
Application: China cannot allow light to come into darkness.
Ron L.
John 1:(1-9) 10-18
It is so appropriate that Jesus is identified as the Word. Conversation is a good thing. Roman philosopher Seneca put it this way: “Conversation has a kind of charm about it, an insidious something that elicits secrets, just like love or liquor.” French Renaissance author Michael de
Montaigne says much the same thing about the pleasures of conversation. He writes, “In my opinion the most fruitful and natural play of the mind is in conversation. I find it sweeter than any other action in life.” It is not then surprising that God would be a conversationalist, according to Martin Luther. He speaks of the Trinity in terms of an internal conversation in God, with the Father as Speaker, the Son as Word, and the Spirit as Listener (Luther’s Works, Vol. 24, pp. 364-365). Hanging around this talkative God makes life good -- for as University of Arizona psychologist Matthias Mehl showed in a 2009 survey, the happiest people have twice as many substantive conversations as those who are less happy. God is always ready to have us join him in conversation!
Mark E.
