1 Merry Christmas, May God bless you, those you love and May God bless the whole world on this Christmas Eve. I absolutely love Christmas and the weeks leading up to it. Even before Advent starts I know Christmas isn t far away when the snow blowers start showing up at Ace Hardware. I love the round the clock Christmas music on KOOL 108. I don t even mind the crowded stores too much if I m not in a rush--- and the decorations and lights oh yeah. I love everything about Christmas. I love it because it draws together people who are at very different chapters of their life AND faith. It draws together the old, the young, the in between, the rich, the poor. It draws together people who consider themselves spiritual but who aren t sure about Jesus and are skeptical of religion, people who are confident in their faith, others for whom Christmas is a nice tradition but can t wait till the preacher quits talking about the Jesus part of it so they can get to their Christmas thing, whatever that is But behind it all, whether it s on this Christmas Eve or at some point in our lives deep down we ask the Christmas question. WHAT S THE BIG DEAL ABOUT THE BABY IN THE MANGER? WHAT DOES THE BIRTH OF JESUS REALLY, I MEAN REALLY HAVE TO DO WITH ME? And it s not just another question, it is THE question of life because if Christmas is just another tradition, then it s a nice one and worth keeping but if
2 there s even a chance that what began on that first Christmas Eve is true, then the implications are astounding and transformational. Christmas shows us we can actually get to know the heart of God. Sure, if God had asked our opinion on how to show us how much he loves us and how we are to be guided through life we probably wouldn t have thought sending the baby Jesus was the best idea. It s pretty subtle and not very strong. But God was not and is not content to be just a big concept, idea or impersonal force of the Universe--God got very personal. It s like when a baby is born. Babies are born every day but when it s our baby it gets very personal very fast and it transforms us. And put that newborn in a room full of people and instantly it becomes the center of attention. Nobodies afraid of a baby so what better way to get intimate and personal with you and me. You see, w don t need to be afraid of God, that s why he came as an infant. And he has walked a mile in your shoes. He endured in some form everything you ve endured and are enduring: puberty, pimples, cranky neighbors, family members who (well you fill in the blank), loneliness and despair and loss of loved ones and death. He became human right down to his little pinky. He knows what it s like to be you. As Max Lucado said, when you talk to him about deadlines, long lines or tough times he s been there he s been here.
3 We don t need to be afraid to set aside whatever is deep inside of us that keeps us from drawing closer to God we can get to know God. So What s the big deal about the Baby in the manger? What does the birth of Jesus really, I mean really have to do with you and me? Everything. Matthew 1:21 tells us the angel said to Joseph she will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins. He came to save us not from politics or enemies, or challenges and difficulties or health issues. Because if that were his primary mission God would have sent us a perfect politician to usher in world peace or a perfect physician with all the answers or the perfect teacher or the perfect job or perfect parent or child. God has left that stuff up to us. Instead he came to save you and me from the thing we can t figure out on our own, the one thing we really do need saving from--our sin by grace. You and I know lots of people and perhaps you re one of them whose bottom line is the Bible and Jesus and doctrine don t really matter. What really matters is that you live a good life. The problem is to say what really matters is that you live a good life IS a doctrine. One that says I don t really need a savior, there s nothing to be saved from.
4 If it all comes down to just living a good life then if you re honest is how do you know if you ve ever lived a good enough life? Sure, you ve live a better life than some, but also not as good as other. If it all comes down to just living a good life then you re left with fear and insecurity because you know you haven t lived good enough or an unhealthy pride because you re pretty sure you re good enough and you don t need grace or some combination of the two. You see Christmas begins what Easter celebrates; the child in the cradle would become the king on the cross-to save us from our sin. Because of the miracle in Bethlehem you have a friend in heaven. Because of the miracle in Bethlehem you have a savior in heaven to guide you. If it s all just a nice story and well then, we re on our own. But if it s true there is such a thing as being saved by grace. That s what Christmas is about. A number of years ago a young man who d just received his pilot s license was excited to show off his new skills and fly to his parents house on Christmas Eve. According to the flight plan he passed the point of no return when an unexpected storm blew in and dropped the visibility to a matter of feet. Putting total trust in the cockpit instruments was a first for him. Naturally the landing worried him the most. Recognizing his life was on the line he was alone with his thoughts. (ever been totally alone with your thoughts and questions, maybe even the Christmas question? WHAT S THE BIG DEAL ABOUT THE BABY IN THE
5 MANGER? WHAT DOES THE BIRTH OF JESUS REALLY, I MEAN REALLY HAVE TO DO WITH ME?) Even though he didn t think it was important at the time he was thankful his instructor made him practically memorize the manuals on flying by instruments. I m going to put you on a holding pattern, the controller radioed. He knew that a safe landing was in the hands of someone he d never known or met personally but who had been there before someone who d guided thousands of planes safely. For the next 45 minutes, the controller gently guided the pilot through altitude and course corrections, around obstacles and away from potential collisions. With the words of the rule book firmly placed in his mind, and with the gentle voice of the controller, he landed safely at last. Because it was a small airport he couldn t wait to personally meet the one who guided him to safety. They met and embraced and he headed off to his family s home. As the family sat down for their Christmas Eve dinner everyone wanted to hear about his first experience of being guided by the air traffic controller when he couldn t see where he was going. He spoke with great confidence about his exploits not wanting to expose a single bit of trepidation and fear.
6 After everyone had gone to bed all of the lights in the house were off except those on the Christmas tree. On top of the tree was a crooked anger that his younger sister had placed and here he was again thinking about his flight and alone with his thoughts, it was quiet, I mean really quiet. As he looked at the tree his thoughts shifted to the Christmas question and as a small tear came from the side of his eye, he slowly mouthed the words Thank you Jesus. Most of the time we think the great obstacles in life are things like finances, health, relationships and so on. And they can be obstacles. But Christ comes because God recognizes the real obstacles in life, our sin and our distance from them and he comes to guide us through them. (SOFT MUSIC BEGINS TO PLAY) All over the world today hundreds of millions if not billions of people in thousands of languages will celebrate, some privately, some publically and others in secret in fear of persecution to worship a Savior who never promised to keep us from sin instead a savior who promised to save us from our sin by grace so we could get to know him and allow our lives to be guided by him. Today we are reminded that God draws near to those who draw away or who have been drawn away, God draws near to those who are pretty sure they don t need God and also those who in their self-righteousness think they have it all
7 together when it comes to God and that God draws near to those that think all that matters is you live a good enough life. We are reminded that we no longer need to negotiate our sin with God because we ve been forgiven. Yes, for unto us, for unto you a savior has been born and he offers the kind of peace that when we lay in bed at night and know that even though things are not good around us in the world and the problems seem insurmountable, or things are not good within us for whatever reason that things can be good between us and God. Not because of what we ve done but because of what he s done on our behalf. This Christmas Eve take that leap of faith and get to know the guide---he s waiting. SO WHAT S THE BIG DEAL ABOUT THE BABY IN THE MANGER? WHAT DOES THE BIRTH OF JESUS REALLY, I MEAN REALLY HAVE TO DO WITH ME? Everything!!