Love

Love!

Sermon Notes: December 24, 2008

Christmas Eve

Rev. Jim O’Neal, Senior Pastor

Sun Lakes United Methodist Church, 9248 E. Riggs Road, Sun Lakes, Arizona 85248 - (480) 895-8766

Luke 2:1-20 NRSV

¹In those days a decree went out from Emperor Augustus that all the world should be registered. ²This was the first registration and was taken while Quirinius was governor of Syria. ³All went to their own towns to be registered. ⁴Joseph also went from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to the city of David called Bethlehem, because he was descended from the house and family of David. ⁵He went to be registered with Mary, to whom he was engaged and who was expecting a child. ⁶While they were there, the time came for her to deliver her child. ⁷And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in bands of cloth, and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn.

⁸In that region there were shepherds living in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. ⁹Then an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. ¹⁰But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid; for see — I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people: ¹¹to you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is the Messiah, the Lord. ¹²This will be a sign for you: you will find a child wrapped in bands of cloth and lying in a manger.” ¹³And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host, praising God and saying, ¹⁴“Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace among those whom he favors!”

¹⁵When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let us go now to Bethlehem and see this thing that has taken place, which the Lord has made known to us.” ¹⁶So they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the child lying in the manger. ¹⁷When they saw this, they made known what had been told them about this child; ¹⁸and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds told them. ¹⁹But Mary treasured all these words and pondered them in her heart. ²⁰The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them.

John 3:16 NRSV

¹⁶“For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life.”

A. Introduction

1. The Skeptic and the Preacher

a. There was a small rural community with only one Church. In that little community there was a skeptic who liked to hassle the local reverend. A new preacher came to serve that small Church and the folks of that community. During his first week in town he went to get a trim at the barbershop. The skeptic showed up and asked, “Hey parson, what’s the difference between Jesus’ mother and my mother?” The young pastor looked up at his wild eyed and unkempt adversary. The minister said, “Well, to begin with there is a big difference between their sons!”

b. At Christmas time we celebrate a unique birth. We celebrate the birth of God’s Son, Jesus Christ.

Jesus was and is different from all other humans who have walked on this planet. He is the Incarnate Son of God. And He was sent by His Father in Heaven for a special mission to and for all of us.

A. Introduction…. continued

2. Christmas Equals Love!

a. If you were to come up with only one word to explain why God sent Jesus, and what this special birth means to us, it would be LOVE! “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” (John 3:16 NKJV)

b. And if you were to come up with only one word to describe what your response to this blessed event should be, it would, also, be LOVE! “This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. We love because he first loved us.” (I John 4:9-11 & 19 NIV)

c. Christina Rosetti said it well: “Love came down at Christmas, Love all lovely, Love divine; Love was born at Christmas, Stars and angels gave the sign.” (Hymn #242, “Love Came Down at Christmas”) That is the message this evening. Love was born in the manger in Bethlehem. What kind of love? I share three important ones tonight:

B. Christmas call us to have love for one another.

1. Peanuts Comic Strip

a. One year in December in the Peanuts Comic Strip, Lucy approaches Charlie Brown. She says, “Merry Christmas, Charlie Brown. Since it’s this time of the season, I think we ought to bury past differences and try to be kind.” Charlie Brown replies, “Why does it have to be this time of the season? Why can’t it be all year long?” Lucy retorts, “What are you, some kind of fanatic?”

b. Charlie Brown is right. The spirit of Christmas is for all year. Lucy does illustrate a truth. The “magic” of the love of Christmas has a way of touching the hearts of all people, even mean self-centered ones like Lucy. At Christmas time, most of us are moved to be more kind and loving to our fellow human beings.

2. Letter to Santa

a. Remember a few years back to the story of a local Arizona boy named Mark Amador. This Tucson lad wrote a letter to Santa. He told Saint Nick that his momma needed help bad. She was out of work and they were almost out of food. So he said to Santa: “I want food and clothes to last for three months. I hope my mom will have a job by then.” Postal workers were so touched by the story that they came up with clothing, food and toys for Mark, his mom, and two older brothers. Channel 13 aired the story and soon gifts poured in from across the state. Someone arranged for Santa to pay a personal visit to the boy. Mark confessed to Santa that he was tired of being teased about his funny ears that stuck out. The TV station placed a call to a renowned plastic surgeon, and he agreed to do the surgery for free. Someone sent a limousine to pick Mark up and take him to the hospital. The surgery was completed successfully, and the gifts and attention continued to flow in only now from across the nation and even the world!

b. Mark’s mother was amazed by the response to Mark’s letter. Postal workers, reporters, medical professionals, and complete strangers just wanted to help in some way! She said, “Things like this never happen to us!” She had forgotten it was Christmas time. And the “spell” of Christmas was again working a miracle! Hearts were touched to be more loving to one another.

C. Christmas moves us to have love for Jesus.

1. Home Alone

a. In the movie HOME ALONE the family has planned a Christmas vacation to Paris. Everything has been planned. The plane tickets have been bought. The motel rooms arranged. The bags are packed. The shuttle van has been hired to come the next morning. And then they oversleep, because the electricity goes out. The shuttle driver toots the van horn. They rush out, jump into the van, run and get on the plane, and fly to Paris. Then it dawns on them. They have forgotten the baby of the family, Kevin!

b. We can forget the baby, too, if we are not careful. That’s easy to do this time of year. Fortunately in the midst of a secular holiday season, we do see and hear reminders of the real Christmas. A Church has a sign that says, “Keep Christ in Christmas.” A discount store sells lapel pins that say, “He IS the reason for the season!” May we never forget to kneel in adoration before the Christ child.

2. L’Enchant

a. There is a lovely folk tale from France called L’ENCHANT. (Lahn Shahnt) It tells of the four shepherds who came to Bethlehem to see baby Jesus. One of the shepherds brought some hard-boiled eggs. Another brought bread and cheese. A third shepherd brought some wine. The youngest little shepherd brought nothing at all. When they got to the stable, baby Jesus was sleeping. The first three shepherds chatted with Mary and Joseph. They commented on how well Mary looked, and how cozy Joseph had made the stable. The shepherds congratulated the proud parents, presented them with their gifts, and assured them that if they needed anything else, they only had to ask. Finally someone asked, “Where’s the little shepherd?” They looked outside and inside, but did not see him. Then they looked behind the blanket Joseph had hung in front of the manger to protect baby Jesus from the cold air. That is where the little shepherd was. L’Enchant means the enchanted one. The little shepherd was in a state of awe and wonder as he looked into the eyes of the Christ child, and he had spent the entire night there kneeling beside the manger. And over and over in adoration he kept whispering, “Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus……”

b. How do we approach the Christ? To begin with, you and I need to express our love to Him for His willingness to be born upon this earth and be our Savior.

D. Christmas tells us of God’s love for all of us!

1. The Best Christmas Pageant Ever!

a. “The Herdsman’s were absolutely the worst kids in the history of the world. They lied and stole and smoked cigars (even the girls) and talked dirty and hit little kids and cussed their teachers and took the name of the Lord in vain and set fire to Fred Shoemaker’s old broken down tool house.” So begins the book THE BEST CHRISTMAS PAGEANT EVER. And in the book the boys and girls, at a Midwestern Church, discover that God loves even kids like the Herdsman’s. The message of Christmas is that God loves everyone. God loves the good and the bad. Indeed you can’t be too horrible for God not to love you. So tonight hear this clearly: God loves you. Period.

b. Of course the truth is that we all need a Savior. Even the best of us have sinned and fail to deserve a relationship with God, who is holy. Yet God still loves us. And God offers us a way out of this dilemma of sin. God loves us so much that the Almighty offers us forgiveness and new life through the gift of Jesus.

2. Highway Hero (from Reader’s Digest January 2005)

a. Fred Bryant and his family were driving south on Interstate 35 toward their home in Waxahachie, Texas. To their horror they saw a car slam head on into an 18-wheeler. There was a huge BAM! Shards of steel and glass flew everywhere. The big rig erupted into flames. Fifty-eight year old Fred stopped his car and sprinted to the crash scene. It looked as if no one had survived. Then he heard the cry of a baby. In spite of the heat of the flames searing the crumpled car and the danger of an imminent explosion, Fred squeezed through a broken window into the automobile. The flames burned his face as he slid into the back seat. There he found one year old Daniel Oh still tightly strapped into his child seat. It took several minutes to free the baby and escape from the increasingly hot inferno. Both little Daniel and Fred would survive this ordeal. Both will always carry some scars from their burns. Fred Bryant is a hero. He is a man who saved a baby.

b. Jesus was born into this world for a purpose. And the purpose of this special child was to save men, women, children… all people! Jesus came into this world to be our Savior and to thus give us life abundant and life eternal with God. The price would be far more costly than the burns Fred Bryant received. The cost would be the torture of a flogging and the cruel and painful death of a cross. But Jesus willingly did this, just for you. That is how much God loves you.

E. Conclusion: Recap

1. Christmas call us to have love for one another.

2. Christmas moves us to have love for Jesus.