Are You Ready For Christmas?
Sermon
Christmas Is For The Young... Whatever Their Age
16 Christmas Sermon Stories
Object:
As we approach Christmas, the question will be heard on many lips: "Are you ready for Christmas?" A man was hanging his Christmas wreath. His hammer slipped and instead of hitting the nail, he hit his thumb and he let forth an oath. He is still getting ready for Christmas. A man goes to a lot looking for a Christmas tree. He trudges through the snow and cold and finally, seeing the tree he wants, reaches for it only to see that someone else is reaching for it at the same time. An argument ensues and they almost end up in a fight. They, too, are still getting ready for Christmas. You may be familiar with the debate that wages on where the tree goes once it has been purchased. The nuclear arms treaty never had such debate. Which parent's home do you go to in this Christmas season? Is it your mother's or mine? Then, civil war ensues and the battle of Bull Run takes place again, as couples try to decide where they will go. They, too, are still getting ready for Christmas.
You rush from work to go to that special half-price sale. That is where you will get your gift. But you arrive there to see that the line looks at least a half-mile long, and you only have thirty minutes for lunch. What now will you get for Christmas? A notice comes from the bank, two weeks before Christmas, that you have an overdraft. You are still getting ready for Christmas. You receive ten Christmas cards from folks you dropped off your list several years ago, and your Christmas cards are all mailed. You, too, are still getting ready for Christmas. You are ready to walk out of the door to go to the Christmas party when the telephone rings. The babysitter has called to say she can't come. The next day you are driving on the expressway and your trunk is loaded down with Christmas presents. Suddenly, you realize that you have a flat tire and, as you pull over to the side of the expressway, you remember that your jack is broken. You, too, are still getting ready for Christmas.
The World Was Not Ready For Christ
Are you ready for Christmas? Oh, there are a lot of things to be done, right? Only a few days may remain. Presents need to be purchased, decorating has to be done, and cooking has to be planned and accomplished. Trips will have to be planned, calls will have to be made, and cards will have to be sent. With all of that done, however, some of us still will not be ready for Christmas. The deeper, real meaning of Christmas will never have penetrated our hearts.
When Christ came originally, Bethlehem was not ready for him. Oh yes, they were ready to enroll the people. They enrolled them for tax purposes, but they were not ready to celebrate the birth of the Prince of Peace. The innkeeper was not ready. There was no room for the Christ Child there. Herod was not ready. He wanted to kill him. The religious leaders were not ready, and yet they had prophesied about the coming of Christ for many years. "The Messiah was to come," they thought. "How wonderful it would be." But they were not ready. As we look at the New Testament, we discover that there were several responses to the birth of Christ, and you and I have some of these same responses in our lives today. Let me mention several of these to you.
Some Rejected Christ
When Christ came some people responded with rejection. Sometimes that rejection was very hostile. When Herod heard from the wise men that they had come looking for a child who was to be born as a new king, he told them that he would like to worship him, also. He tried to find out from them where the child was to be born. The wise men knew that he would do harm to the child, so they did not tell him. They returned a different way and avoided him. He did not intend to worship the child, but instead wanted to put him to death. Not knowing who or where the child was, he issued a decree that all children under two years old must be put to death. What a horrible act of hostility on the part of a man who was fearful of his own position.
Some Were Hostile
Sometimes hostility continues in other forms in the lives of people. We sometimes see radical religious sects, communism, or other forces try to put an end to religion -- especially the Christian faith. In more subtle ways, even in a Christian country, we sometimes see hostile rejection expressed. On the television program, Hill Street Blues, Sergeant Yablonski used to say to the policemen as they left the squad room, "Let's do it unto others before they do it unto us." Did you catch that line? What a perversion it is of the teaching of Christ! You try to do something to somebody else before they do it to you. Sometimes there is a hostile rejection of Christ.
Our Attitude Betrays Us
On other occasions, our rejection is reflected more in our attitude. We claim that we have received Christ and yet so much of our living makes it all almost a lie. We claim that Christ has broken down all walls that separate men and women and races from each other. Yet there are voices that still support segregation in our country and many others. We see this in the former apartheid policies in South Africa where blacks and whites were separated. Racism and apartheid are often advocated in the name of religion, the Christian religion in particular. How far afield that is from Christ who said, "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you," and the apostle Paul who wrote, "In Christ there is no male or female, free nor slave, Greek or Jew." In Christ all are one.
Sometimes our materialistic attitude becomes a way of life, and we find that even religious leaders proclaim that materialism and Christianity are cut from the same cloth. They seem to say that the more you flaunt your wealth, the more religious you are. Some religious leaders by their expensive cars, bejeweled appearance, and expensive vacation homes, tell us that they have found the special favor of God. One wonders if they have ever heard the statement of Jesus where he required some "to forsake all and come follow him." Or, if they have discovered the higher way, they seek to use what they have in material blessings for others. Some have turned the revolutionary, radical teachings of Jesus into soft, fireside meditations or quiet bedtime reflections. We fail to see that Christ has come to transform our lives to enable us to use all our material wealth for the betterment of others and not just in self-interest -- what it can do for us.
We Reject Christ By Not Following His Teachings
Too often we see Jesus as gentle, meek, and mild and do not understand his revolutionary call to discipleship and service. To not follow his teachings is to reject him. We may not overtly reject him, but we quietly turn away from him and join ourselves to the world. We identify with the world because secretly we prefer darkness to light.
Sometimes our rejection of Christ takes the form of turning God into a god of convenience. Too often we view God as though he were at our disposal. We ignore him most of the time until there is some special need in our lives, and when that need arises, we rub our special Aladdin's lamp and behold, God is supposed to appear and quickly meet our needs. After all, we live in a world where we flip a switch, press a button, and our toast is done, our microwave ovens cook our meals, our radios, television sets, electric blankets, cars, and airplanes are turned on at the flip of a switch. When God is needed, we will flip a switch, and he is supposed to be there. We ignore him most of the time, except when we have a special need. The god of convenience is not the God we have seen through Christ our Lord.
We Do Not Recognize Christ
At other times, we reject him because we really do not recognize him as he walks among us. When Christ came at first, men and women rejected him because they did not think that God would come into the world as a baby. They looked for a mighty king with political power and armies, not as a baby born in an obscure village. Christ came to his own, but they did not receive him. Following his resurrection, his disciples did not recognize him by the seashore nor as they walked on the road to Emmaus with him. The Old Testament records occasions where people entertained angels unaware.
Would we really know Christ if he walked among us today? Would we really understand him and see his will and way? Would we know him? He walks among us often as one unrecognized and we reject him in the need of that brother across town who wants somebody to meet a need in his life. We reject him because we don't like the color of his skin, or we reject him because we do not like the way he talks or dresses. Christ does not have an opportunity to find lodging within our lives because we reject him.
Many years ago in Moscow, a man came into a publishing office and reached into his ragged coat and pulled out a manuscript and handed it to the publisher and said, "I would like for you to publish this for me, please." The man looked up from his desk at this raggedly dressed individual and said, "Publish that? I have no use for that. I have hundreds of manuscripts here that I can't publish. Even if you could afford to pay for that, I don't think we could publish it, and I can tell by your dress that you can't afford to publish it."
The man took the manuscript and began to stick it back in his coat and he said, "Then I guess I was under a misconception. I thought people liked to read what I wrote." "Liked to read what you wrote?" the publisher remarked. "Who are you?" "Leo Tolstoy," the man responded. Quickly, the publisher was up from his desk apologizing for what he had said and begging to publish the manuscript. But Tolstoy, being rather eccentric, stuck his manuscript back under his coat and without saying a word simply left. The publisher had not recognized the great writer. He didn't look the part. Sometimes Christ walks among us through needs of people, through broken hearts and broken bodies, with hands outstretched to us, and we do not recognize him and we reject him.
We Are Preoccupied
We notice, in Bethlehem, that there was another response to the birth of Christ. We see it typified in the response of the innkeeper. He had put up a "No Vacancy" sign on his motel that day. His inn was already filled up. He didn't reject Christ deliberately. He was just already filled up. Others had occupied the place first. There was no room for others. Sometimes in our own lives we are so preoccupied with other things, we simply do not have room for Christ. We are so busy. There is so much to do, so many places to go, so many tasks to accomplish. We are simply too occupied. We don't have the time.
A mother was trying to finish her shopping as she pulled her young child down the street by his mittened hand. Suddenly, she realized he was no longer with her. She turned around and saw him peering in a store window. She walked over and took him by the hand and tugged at him a bit. "Mother, mother," he said. "Look, there is the baby Jesus lying in the manger." "Oh, come on, son," the mother responded. "We don't have time for that now."
Oh, we know what she meant. She's busy. She has a lot to do. Christmas is just a few days away. But there are so many of us in the Christmas season that will be preoccupied with all of our material things that we need to accomplish -- shopping, baking, cooking, and decorating. It's not that these things are unimportant, but we forget the center of Christmas -- Christ himself.
The Importance Of Preparation
If we are not going to be preoccupied with the wrong emphasis, it requires preparation. Isaiah talked about preparation for the Messiah who was to come. It is the only place in the Old Testament prophets where they are commanded to comfort the people. "Prepare the way," the prophet cries. Just as ancient slaves went before the king and cleared his pathway, so we need to prepare the way for the King of kings whose birth we celebrate. His spirit comes to us and speaks to us in our wilderness places of life. His presence makes smooth the rough places that have come to us by our grief, hurt, and pain. He makes the crooked places of our sins straight so we can find our way back to God. The hills of pride and prejudice are brought low. Only a person beyond ourselves can supply the strength to guide us in a new path.
Every farmer knows the difference between a prepared field and one that is left idle. A good gardener knows the preparation and care it takes to raise and cultivate roses. How much more important is the preparation which is essential for our spiritual life. If we are to grow spiritually, we have to prepare ourselves. The real celebration of Christmas requires preparation. We attempt to focus four Sundays in Advent on this very need to get us ready to celebrate the birth of Christ. It is a call to help us get our priorities right, to set a new agenda, to recapture lost hope, and to renew our vision. As the cold winds of materialism blow upon us in this Christmas season, don't let them blow out the Christmas candle of hope. Let us not be taken in by easy pleasure and shallow awareness but instead lift high the light for good will, peace, justice, righteousness, and love.
Acceptance And Worship
Finally, in this Christmas season, I suggest that we respond as the shepherds and wise men did, which is the way of acceptance. They accepted Christ and did not reject him. They were not preoccupied with other things. Their basic intent was to find Christ and worship him. You and I need to follow their footsteps and discover the person of Christ and fall down and worship him. They didn't seek just a philosophy, an idea, or a theological system, but they sought a person, a child. This child grew up and challenged men and women to commit themselves to him and his way.
Isn't it amazing that this one who had no armies at his command and no money now has more followers than any other great military leader with millions spent on Christian causes every year? These people have committed their lives to this one person. This one, who was without any formal education, has had people of great learning devote their lives to understanding his teachings and sharing them with others. This man, who never wrote anything but a few words in the sand, has inspired more books and music than any other person who ever lived. This person draws us to him and we find life in him. Christmas is about the person of Christ. It focuses on a person. It does not stop at the babe in a manger. It directs us to consider the life, teachings, death, and resurrection of the one who entered the world at Christmastime. This person has made life radically different.
There is great mystery surrounding this birth. Who can say that he or she totally understands Christ, his birth, life, teachings, and the meaning of his death? Do you understand him completely? I do not. Can you explain the incarnation? We don't explain it. We accept it as God's gift of love to us. I can't understand or fathom it all, but I attempt to struggle with the mystery. But in my moments of questions and doubts, I always remember that there have been minds like Albert Schweitzer, Paul Tillich, Reinhold Niebuhr, John Baillie, Karl Barth, and other great theologians who have wrestled with the Christian faith and who Christ is, and even with all of their great intellect, have bowed their knees before Christ and accepted him as Lord. He is one who has changed their lives and filled them with meaning and purpose. In this Christmas season I bow my knee before Christ and acknowledge him as Lord and accept him as the Incarnate One of God, who has come into the world to transform it. I don't understand it all, but I worship at his altar.
Several years ago, a woman was walking in New York City. She crossed Chestnut Street and ran into a huge crowd of people gathered around a small girl. She could see people trying to reach out to the little girl and take her hand. Even a policeman was standing there trying to interest the young girl in his horse, but she did not respond. She was lost and frightened. The woman knelt down on the sidewalk and opened her arms and extended them to this small girl. Quickly, the young girl ran into the woman's arms and wrapped her arms and legs around her. The woman said she stood up and held the child for a moment that seemed to stretch endlessly on. Not a word was spoken and the crowd became very quiet. She later said she knew she stood there for ten minutes without saying a word, and then suddenly she realized that somebody was behind her. She turned around, saw a woman, and asked, "Does she belong to you?" The woman said, "Yes."
The young girl untwined herself and went over and took her mother's hand and walked off into the crowd. The woman said they didn't say a word to her as they walked away but they didn't have to say a word. "I turned and began walking away and felt a peculiar exaltation and buoyancy I had never experienced before. My chest almost ached with the wonder that swelled within me, for I knew I had been a vehicle for a divine purpose and that miracles do happen."1
God has reached down through eternity to embrace you and me with his presence and to say, "I love you." He has touched our lives with his concern. Having touched us and embraced us, he asks us to reach out and to touch others and to embrace them with the love that we have encountered from him so that others, too, can know love. In this Christmas season, we can become obsessed with all of the material things, as important as they are. No one says presents, cooking, travel, merriment, and decorations are unimportant. But in the midst of all of them, remember the celebration of Christ and his birth. Let your gift giving, cards, merriment, decorations, and all that you do focus supremely upon Christ whose birth we celebrate. Don't let the good features of a merry Christmas push aside the better values of celebrating the birth of Christ the Lord.
Rejoice and be merry, but never forget that you rejoice because of the Word who became flesh and dwelt among us and saved his people from their sins. Set a higher priority. Dream new dreams. See that your Christmas is focused correctly upon Christ whom you claim as Lord of lords and King of kings, then you will be ready for Christmas. But you have got to prepare for it. Take the time to make the preparation. It will be worth the extra effort.
____________
1. Robert Raines, To Kiss The Joy (Waco: Word Books, 1973), p. 78.
You rush from work to go to that special half-price sale. That is where you will get your gift. But you arrive there to see that the line looks at least a half-mile long, and you only have thirty minutes for lunch. What now will you get for Christmas? A notice comes from the bank, two weeks before Christmas, that you have an overdraft. You are still getting ready for Christmas. You receive ten Christmas cards from folks you dropped off your list several years ago, and your Christmas cards are all mailed. You, too, are still getting ready for Christmas. You are ready to walk out of the door to go to the Christmas party when the telephone rings. The babysitter has called to say she can't come. The next day you are driving on the expressway and your trunk is loaded down with Christmas presents. Suddenly, you realize that you have a flat tire and, as you pull over to the side of the expressway, you remember that your jack is broken. You, too, are still getting ready for Christmas.
The World Was Not Ready For Christ
Are you ready for Christmas? Oh, there are a lot of things to be done, right? Only a few days may remain. Presents need to be purchased, decorating has to be done, and cooking has to be planned and accomplished. Trips will have to be planned, calls will have to be made, and cards will have to be sent. With all of that done, however, some of us still will not be ready for Christmas. The deeper, real meaning of Christmas will never have penetrated our hearts.
When Christ came originally, Bethlehem was not ready for him. Oh yes, they were ready to enroll the people. They enrolled them for tax purposes, but they were not ready to celebrate the birth of the Prince of Peace. The innkeeper was not ready. There was no room for the Christ Child there. Herod was not ready. He wanted to kill him. The religious leaders were not ready, and yet they had prophesied about the coming of Christ for many years. "The Messiah was to come," they thought. "How wonderful it would be." But they were not ready. As we look at the New Testament, we discover that there were several responses to the birth of Christ, and you and I have some of these same responses in our lives today. Let me mention several of these to you.
Some Rejected Christ
When Christ came some people responded with rejection. Sometimes that rejection was very hostile. When Herod heard from the wise men that they had come looking for a child who was to be born as a new king, he told them that he would like to worship him, also. He tried to find out from them where the child was to be born. The wise men knew that he would do harm to the child, so they did not tell him. They returned a different way and avoided him. He did not intend to worship the child, but instead wanted to put him to death. Not knowing who or where the child was, he issued a decree that all children under two years old must be put to death. What a horrible act of hostility on the part of a man who was fearful of his own position.
Some Were Hostile
Sometimes hostility continues in other forms in the lives of people. We sometimes see radical religious sects, communism, or other forces try to put an end to religion -- especially the Christian faith. In more subtle ways, even in a Christian country, we sometimes see hostile rejection expressed. On the television program, Hill Street Blues, Sergeant Yablonski used to say to the policemen as they left the squad room, "Let's do it unto others before they do it unto us." Did you catch that line? What a perversion it is of the teaching of Christ! You try to do something to somebody else before they do it to you. Sometimes there is a hostile rejection of Christ.
Our Attitude Betrays Us
On other occasions, our rejection is reflected more in our attitude. We claim that we have received Christ and yet so much of our living makes it all almost a lie. We claim that Christ has broken down all walls that separate men and women and races from each other. Yet there are voices that still support segregation in our country and many others. We see this in the former apartheid policies in South Africa where blacks and whites were separated. Racism and apartheid are often advocated in the name of religion, the Christian religion in particular. How far afield that is from Christ who said, "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you," and the apostle Paul who wrote, "In Christ there is no male or female, free nor slave, Greek or Jew." In Christ all are one.
Sometimes our materialistic attitude becomes a way of life, and we find that even religious leaders proclaim that materialism and Christianity are cut from the same cloth. They seem to say that the more you flaunt your wealth, the more religious you are. Some religious leaders by their expensive cars, bejeweled appearance, and expensive vacation homes, tell us that they have found the special favor of God. One wonders if they have ever heard the statement of Jesus where he required some "to forsake all and come follow him." Or, if they have discovered the higher way, they seek to use what they have in material blessings for others. Some have turned the revolutionary, radical teachings of Jesus into soft, fireside meditations or quiet bedtime reflections. We fail to see that Christ has come to transform our lives to enable us to use all our material wealth for the betterment of others and not just in self-interest -- what it can do for us.
We Reject Christ By Not Following His Teachings
Too often we see Jesus as gentle, meek, and mild and do not understand his revolutionary call to discipleship and service. To not follow his teachings is to reject him. We may not overtly reject him, but we quietly turn away from him and join ourselves to the world. We identify with the world because secretly we prefer darkness to light.
Sometimes our rejection of Christ takes the form of turning God into a god of convenience. Too often we view God as though he were at our disposal. We ignore him most of the time until there is some special need in our lives, and when that need arises, we rub our special Aladdin's lamp and behold, God is supposed to appear and quickly meet our needs. After all, we live in a world where we flip a switch, press a button, and our toast is done, our microwave ovens cook our meals, our radios, television sets, electric blankets, cars, and airplanes are turned on at the flip of a switch. When God is needed, we will flip a switch, and he is supposed to be there. We ignore him most of the time, except when we have a special need. The god of convenience is not the God we have seen through Christ our Lord.
We Do Not Recognize Christ
At other times, we reject him because we really do not recognize him as he walks among us. When Christ came at first, men and women rejected him because they did not think that God would come into the world as a baby. They looked for a mighty king with political power and armies, not as a baby born in an obscure village. Christ came to his own, but they did not receive him. Following his resurrection, his disciples did not recognize him by the seashore nor as they walked on the road to Emmaus with him. The Old Testament records occasions where people entertained angels unaware.
Would we really know Christ if he walked among us today? Would we really understand him and see his will and way? Would we know him? He walks among us often as one unrecognized and we reject him in the need of that brother across town who wants somebody to meet a need in his life. We reject him because we don't like the color of his skin, or we reject him because we do not like the way he talks or dresses. Christ does not have an opportunity to find lodging within our lives because we reject him.
Many years ago in Moscow, a man came into a publishing office and reached into his ragged coat and pulled out a manuscript and handed it to the publisher and said, "I would like for you to publish this for me, please." The man looked up from his desk at this raggedly dressed individual and said, "Publish that? I have no use for that. I have hundreds of manuscripts here that I can't publish. Even if you could afford to pay for that, I don't think we could publish it, and I can tell by your dress that you can't afford to publish it."
The man took the manuscript and began to stick it back in his coat and he said, "Then I guess I was under a misconception. I thought people liked to read what I wrote." "Liked to read what you wrote?" the publisher remarked. "Who are you?" "Leo Tolstoy," the man responded. Quickly, the publisher was up from his desk apologizing for what he had said and begging to publish the manuscript. But Tolstoy, being rather eccentric, stuck his manuscript back under his coat and without saying a word simply left. The publisher had not recognized the great writer. He didn't look the part. Sometimes Christ walks among us through needs of people, through broken hearts and broken bodies, with hands outstretched to us, and we do not recognize him and we reject him.
We Are Preoccupied
We notice, in Bethlehem, that there was another response to the birth of Christ. We see it typified in the response of the innkeeper. He had put up a "No Vacancy" sign on his motel that day. His inn was already filled up. He didn't reject Christ deliberately. He was just already filled up. Others had occupied the place first. There was no room for others. Sometimes in our own lives we are so preoccupied with other things, we simply do not have room for Christ. We are so busy. There is so much to do, so many places to go, so many tasks to accomplish. We are simply too occupied. We don't have the time.
A mother was trying to finish her shopping as she pulled her young child down the street by his mittened hand. Suddenly, she realized he was no longer with her. She turned around and saw him peering in a store window. She walked over and took him by the hand and tugged at him a bit. "Mother, mother," he said. "Look, there is the baby Jesus lying in the manger." "Oh, come on, son," the mother responded. "We don't have time for that now."
Oh, we know what she meant. She's busy. She has a lot to do. Christmas is just a few days away. But there are so many of us in the Christmas season that will be preoccupied with all of our material things that we need to accomplish -- shopping, baking, cooking, and decorating. It's not that these things are unimportant, but we forget the center of Christmas -- Christ himself.
The Importance Of Preparation
If we are not going to be preoccupied with the wrong emphasis, it requires preparation. Isaiah talked about preparation for the Messiah who was to come. It is the only place in the Old Testament prophets where they are commanded to comfort the people. "Prepare the way," the prophet cries. Just as ancient slaves went before the king and cleared his pathway, so we need to prepare the way for the King of kings whose birth we celebrate. His spirit comes to us and speaks to us in our wilderness places of life. His presence makes smooth the rough places that have come to us by our grief, hurt, and pain. He makes the crooked places of our sins straight so we can find our way back to God. The hills of pride and prejudice are brought low. Only a person beyond ourselves can supply the strength to guide us in a new path.
Every farmer knows the difference between a prepared field and one that is left idle. A good gardener knows the preparation and care it takes to raise and cultivate roses. How much more important is the preparation which is essential for our spiritual life. If we are to grow spiritually, we have to prepare ourselves. The real celebration of Christmas requires preparation. We attempt to focus four Sundays in Advent on this very need to get us ready to celebrate the birth of Christ. It is a call to help us get our priorities right, to set a new agenda, to recapture lost hope, and to renew our vision. As the cold winds of materialism blow upon us in this Christmas season, don't let them blow out the Christmas candle of hope. Let us not be taken in by easy pleasure and shallow awareness but instead lift high the light for good will, peace, justice, righteousness, and love.
Acceptance And Worship
Finally, in this Christmas season, I suggest that we respond as the shepherds and wise men did, which is the way of acceptance. They accepted Christ and did not reject him. They were not preoccupied with other things. Their basic intent was to find Christ and worship him. You and I need to follow their footsteps and discover the person of Christ and fall down and worship him. They didn't seek just a philosophy, an idea, or a theological system, but they sought a person, a child. This child grew up and challenged men and women to commit themselves to him and his way.
Isn't it amazing that this one who had no armies at his command and no money now has more followers than any other great military leader with millions spent on Christian causes every year? These people have committed their lives to this one person. This one, who was without any formal education, has had people of great learning devote their lives to understanding his teachings and sharing them with others. This man, who never wrote anything but a few words in the sand, has inspired more books and music than any other person who ever lived. This person draws us to him and we find life in him. Christmas is about the person of Christ. It focuses on a person. It does not stop at the babe in a manger. It directs us to consider the life, teachings, death, and resurrection of the one who entered the world at Christmastime. This person has made life radically different.
There is great mystery surrounding this birth. Who can say that he or she totally understands Christ, his birth, life, teachings, and the meaning of his death? Do you understand him completely? I do not. Can you explain the incarnation? We don't explain it. We accept it as God's gift of love to us. I can't understand or fathom it all, but I attempt to struggle with the mystery. But in my moments of questions and doubts, I always remember that there have been minds like Albert Schweitzer, Paul Tillich, Reinhold Niebuhr, John Baillie, Karl Barth, and other great theologians who have wrestled with the Christian faith and who Christ is, and even with all of their great intellect, have bowed their knees before Christ and accepted him as Lord. He is one who has changed their lives and filled them with meaning and purpose. In this Christmas season I bow my knee before Christ and acknowledge him as Lord and accept him as the Incarnate One of God, who has come into the world to transform it. I don't understand it all, but I worship at his altar.
Several years ago, a woman was walking in New York City. She crossed Chestnut Street and ran into a huge crowd of people gathered around a small girl. She could see people trying to reach out to the little girl and take her hand. Even a policeman was standing there trying to interest the young girl in his horse, but she did not respond. She was lost and frightened. The woman knelt down on the sidewalk and opened her arms and extended them to this small girl. Quickly, the young girl ran into the woman's arms and wrapped her arms and legs around her. The woman said she stood up and held the child for a moment that seemed to stretch endlessly on. Not a word was spoken and the crowd became very quiet. She later said she knew she stood there for ten minutes without saying a word, and then suddenly she realized that somebody was behind her. She turned around, saw a woman, and asked, "Does she belong to you?" The woman said, "Yes."
The young girl untwined herself and went over and took her mother's hand and walked off into the crowd. The woman said they didn't say a word to her as they walked away but they didn't have to say a word. "I turned and began walking away and felt a peculiar exaltation and buoyancy I had never experienced before. My chest almost ached with the wonder that swelled within me, for I knew I had been a vehicle for a divine purpose and that miracles do happen."1
God has reached down through eternity to embrace you and me with his presence and to say, "I love you." He has touched our lives with his concern. Having touched us and embraced us, he asks us to reach out and to touch others and to embrace them with the love that we have encountered from him so that others, too, can know love. In this Christmas season, we can become obsessed with all of the material things, as important as they are. No one says presents, cooking, travel, merriment, and decorations are unimportant. But in the midst of all of them, remember the celebration of Christ and his birth. Let your gift giving, cards, merriment, decorations, and all that you do focus supremely upon Christ whose birth we celebrate. Don't let the good features of a merry Christmas push aside the better values of celebrating the birth of Christ the Lord.
Rejoice and be merry, but never forget that you rejoice because of the Word who became flesh and dwelt among us and saved his people from their sins. Set a higher priority. Dream new dreams. See that your Christmas is focused correctly upon Christ whom you claim as Lord of lords and King of kings, then you will be ready for Christmas. But you have got to prepare for it. Take the time to make the preparation. It will be worth the extra effort.
____________
1. Robert Raines, To Kiss The Joy (Waco: Word Books, 1973), p. 78.
