The Other Gifts of Christmas

When I say Christmas, what do you think? The birth of Christ, Joy to the world, peace on earth and good will to men? Poppycock, when I say Christmas you think: presents, gifts, goodies. For all of the noble and pure motives that we claim we'd be awful disappointed if there wasn't anything under the tree on Christmas morning. And hopefully you had a gift or two under the tree yesterday.

Gift giving has been a part of Christmas for as long as we've had Christmas. Now we all know that it has gotten a little out of hand, gone are the days when a child would be happy with a hand carved toy and a big orange. Although if the truth was known that type of Christmas was well before my time and perhaps well beyond your time as well.

I kind of agree with Eleanor Roosevelt who said, "People say that Christmas is too commercialized. But I have never found it that way. If you spend money to give people joy, you are not being commercial. It is only when you feel obliged to do something about Christmas that the spirit is ruined."

We started this series the first of December with the gang from the Big Bang Theory when Sheldon explains to Penny that the Foundation of gift giving is reciprocity. And whether we want to admit it or not that is true in most of our lives. We give gifts to people whom we receive gifts from. Or as a thank you for some service they have performed for us.

And while we have talked about the gift that was given that first Christmas from God it wasn't the only gift given.

Mary: We all know the story of Mary. Here is a teen girl engaged to be married and into her tidy little life arrives a heavenly messenger with the news that she has been chosen to carry the Messiah, she will be the mother of the Christ. Now I don't know about you but I'm sure that I would have been a little sceptical. And I don't think Mary was any different, as a matter of fact when the angel first appeared I love how Mary's response is described, Luke 1:29 Confused and disturbed, Mary tried to think what the angel could mean.

After all when someone arrives unexpectedly and starts off the conversation with the words Luke 1:28 Gabriel appeared to her and said, "Greetings, favoured woman! The Lord is with you!"

You have to figure that they want something. And she was right, the angel wanted her life. What the angel suggested would change the way that Mary would be seen by her parents, her friends and her fiancé. And even when they accepted that just maybe she was telling the truth they would always look at here wondering: why her?

She would spend the rest of her life thinking about her response on that night. For the next thirty three years whenever she looked at her son she would remember the conversation that she had with the Angel Gabriel.

The angel, laid out the entire proposition to Mary and her response is found in Luke 1:38 Mary responded, "I am the Lord's servant. May everything you have said about me come true." And then the angel left her. The first gift that was given on that first Christmas morning was actually given nine months before and it was the Mary's Gift of Obedience.

Now understand that this was not blind unquestioning obedience. The angel said that Mary would become a mother, Mary wanted to know how. I really don't think that God expects us to check our brains at the door when we become believers, after all if he hadn't of wanted us to use our brains he wouldn't have given us brains to use. Which would explain some of us.

However, here's where the rubber meets the road, sometimes even after we've asked the question we might not have all the answers and yet we still have to be ready to obey. Listen to the conversation Luke 1:34-35 Mary asked the angel, "But how can this happen? I am a virgin." The angel replied, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the baby to be born will be holy, and he will be called the Son of God.

And here's the clincher the angel finishes by stating in Luke 1:37 which by the way is one of my favorite verses in the Bible Luke 1:37 For nothing is impossible with God."

I think that if Mary had of said, "I don't think so." That would have been the end of the story, I don't think that she would not have been forced into doing it. That's not the way God operates.

Can you offer Christ the gift of obedience this Christmas? What is it that God is asking you to do? Maybe it doesn't make sense, at least any more sense than a teenage virgin being the mother of the Son of God. What is he asking us as a church to do as we move into 2011, maybe it isn't all laid out for us but are we willing to say Luke 1:38 Mary responded, "I am the Lord's servant. May everything you have said about me come true." And then the angel left her.

Why don't you covenant to make that your prayer this Christmas?

Mary could conceive that child alone with just the help of the Holy Spirit but in that culture she couldn't raise Jesus without a father, the stigma that he would have carried with him would have been almost insurmountable. Christmas needed a Mary but it also needed a Joseph. Now I personally think that Joseph gets forgotten in all the excitement around Christmas. I have a lot of respect for Joseph, you see Mary had something that Joseph didn't have. They both had visits from angels, but Mary knew without a doubt that she was a virgin. I don't know when people first figured out what it was they did that made babies but they knew 2000 years ago. When Joseph found out that Mary was pregnant he knew exactly how that was supposed to happen and he knew that he didn't have a part in it.

The bible tells us that even though Joseph could have disgraced Mary publicly that he chose to just quietly break off the engagement. Listen to what the Bible tells us in Matthew 1:18-21 This is how Jesus the Messiah was born. His mother, Mary, was engaged to be married to Joseph. But before the marriage took place, while she was still a virgin, she became pregnant through the power of the Holy Spirit. Joseph, her fiancé, was a good man and did not want to disgrace her publicly, so he decided to break the engagement quietly. As he considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream. "Joseph, son of David," the angel said, "do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife. For the child within her was conceived by the Holy Spirit. And she will have a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins."

Now listen to what happened in Matthew 1:24-25 When Joseph woke up, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded and took Mary as his wife. But he did not have sexual relations with her until her son was born. And Joseph named him Jesus.

Now a little aside here, in our tradition we don't believe that Mary remained a virgin forever. I believe that when the bible says that she remained a virgin until her son was born, that it means that after Christ was born that she didn't remain a virgin and that she and Joseph interacted as husband and wife, how was that for a euphemism? And had more children.

And so the gift that Joseph gave that first Christmas was Joseph's Gift of Faith. Even though the New Testament had yet to be written it would seem that Joseph had embraced the reality of Hebrews 11:1 Faith is the confidence that what we hope for will actually happen; it gives us assurance about things we cannot see.

There was absolutely no way that Mary would be able to prove to Joseph's satisfaction that the child she carried was the Holy Spirits. He had to believe, and he did that through faith, it was nothing he could touch see or hold. Faith will never ask less or more then that you believe. Can you believe God for the impossible, can you close your eyes and see things that have never been seen?

When we talk about eventually expanding at Cornerstone and a new worship centre out back that will seat 700 can you reach out in faith and touch it. Can you visualize lives being touched, eternities being impacted and people being changed? All through faith? Some of you can. In 2004 we celebrated Christmas eve at the Lion's Den in Bedford and had 68 people there and the dream of something bigger, two nights ago on Christmas eve we had 635 people worship with us.

We are told that traditionally when a child was born in that time and place that the family would have musicians sent to the home to help the parents celebrate. But what happens when you are a poor family and are far away from home? You don't really believe that God would allow His Son to be born without some form of acknowledgment do you?

And so we have a choir sent, one of the enduring symbols of Christmas are the Angels, they adorn the top of our trees, grace our Christmas cards and are front and centre in the children's Christmas pageants. Now personally I think some people have taken the entire angel thing too far and we have seen an entire angel cult developed where people are literally worshipping angels. And if the angels were going to speak today they would say Stop it! Angels are angels, they are not divine they are created beings and they were created to serve God, they are his messengers.

And so on this particular occasion we see angels appearing in the sky surrounding Bethlehem. Now I don't know if they got overtime for working the Christmas weekend or not but we do know what happened. First One angel appears to the shepherds probably figured that one angel would be less scary then an gazillion angels. But he obviously didn't play it right, listen to what happens, Luke 2:9 Suddenly, an angel of the Lord appeared among them, and the radiance of the Lord's glory surrounded them. They were terrified,

I can hear the angel now, "Darn, I always forget to turn off the radiance of the Lord, you might as well come on out guys I've already scared the poor shepherds half to death." And then we read in Luke 2:13-14 Suddenly, the angel was joined by a vast host of others—the armies of heaven—praising God and saying, "Glory to God in highest heaven, and peace on earth to those with whom God is pleased."

And so the next gift given that day was The Angel's Gift of Praise. Very simply according to Collins English Dictionary praise means to commend the worth of something. As a matter of fact the word praise comes from the Latin pretium which of course is also the root word for premium and it means worth. When you praise someone you are telling them how much they are worth to you, when you praise God you are telling how valuable he is to you. When we sing songs of praise we are exalting God and telling how much he means to us. When we verbalize and give God the glory we are praising him.

It was interesting who the angels sang for on that first Christmas night. Out of all the people who the Angels could have appeared to and told about the birth of Christ they chose shepherds watching their sheep in the field. They could have appeared to King Herod, or to the Roman Governor, they could have shown up and sang for the high priest of the temple or the religious leaders of the country. But no they show up to Shepherds, it's almost like they got lost and arrived at the wrong address.

Couple of interesting things about the shepherds. Because of their job they weren't able to keep all of the requirements of the law and so they were considered to be religiously inferior by the religious leaders. So that's neat, they needed to hear the good news to discover that it wouldn't be a matter of keeping the law anymore that the price would be paid for them.

The second interesting thing here is that tradition tells us that the sheep that were tended in the fields outside of Bethlehem were the lambs that were used in the temple sacrifice. And so to those who took care of the sacrificial lambs came the news of the one who would provide the ultimate sacrifice for each of us, the one who would be known as the Lamb of God.

And so what gift did the Shepherds bring? Listen to Luke 2:17 After seeing him, the shepherds told everyone what had happened and what the angel had said to them about this child.

The Shepherd's Gift of Evangelism.

They didn't take a course or hand out tracks instead they simple told people what had happened to them. You see evangelism simply means telling people about the gospel and gospel originally meant good news. So in its simplest sense evangelism means to tell people the good news. Have you ever made a discovery that you wanted to tell other's about? Maybe a great new restaurant, or perhaps a super sale. I remember a few years ago I discovered a great Boxing Day sale where you could buy a computer for $300.00 I tracked a friend of mine down who was on vacation in NB because I knew they were looking for a computer too and I wanted to tell them the news.

The shepherds were so excited; they had seen the one who had come to save them from their sins. The had personally met the king of the universe and they wanted to tell everybody they met about it. How excited are we about meeting the king of the universe and having our sins forgiven? Excited enough to tell other people about it? Are we really convinced that people need Jesus?

What a great Christmas gift that would be to give this Christmas. It is a gift to Jesus when you tell someone about Him and then it's a gift to that person when you tell them the good news. Two gifts for the price of one.

When we think of gifts on that first Christmas we invariably think of the Wise men: We call them the Three Kings, but we were never told they were kings or that there were three of them. In the original language they are referred to as Magi, and tradition tells us that they probably came from Persia. And in the scriptures we are told that they brought 3 gifts, which is probably why we always think there were three of them. You've probably all heard what would have happened if it had of been three wise women instead right,

Asked directions

Arrived on time

Helped deliver the baby

Cleaned the stable

Made a casserole

Brought practical gifts.

 

And we know what gifts the wise men brought right? Gold, Frankincense and Myrrh. But those aren't the gift I want to focus on this morning.

The account of their visit is given in Matthew 2:1-2 Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the reign of King Herod. About that time some wise men from eastern lands arrived in Jerusalem, asking, "Where is the newborn king of the Jews? We saw his star as it rose, and we have come to worship him."

You see the wise men gave the most valuable gift of all they gave The Magi Gave the Gift of Time. In an era where travel was measured in months not moments these men were willing to give up their time and travel across the deserts of the Middle East in order to worship the Christ child.

Time is still one of the most expensive things we can give to Christ and most of us would rather give our money than our time, after all we can always make more money but when time is gone it's gone forever. I've harped on this before right, you want to show me where your commitments are then show me your cheque book and more importantly show me you calendar, where you spend your time.

We talk about tithing our money but what if we talked about giving God a tenth of our time, that would mean that each day we would need to give him 2.4 hours. That really isn't fair is it? After all 8 of our 24 hours is spent sleeping, so perhaps he only wants 1.6 hours of our day, you know just to spend with Him in prayer and bible study. That's still a bit much isn't it? After all our employer gets 8 hours as well and so we shouldn't have to tithe that time. That means that our tenth is .8 of an hour or 48 minutes a day to spend with the one who gave up so much for us.

But really most Christians are willing to give God one hour a week and then only if it doesn't conflict with the kids sports or a trip to the beach or sleeping in or taking a trip. And I know it's tough to make the time for God, but the reality is you can't make time, you can only find time.

Isn't that the truth, we find the time to do what we want to do.

So what gifts will you put under the tree for Jesus this year?

The Gift Received, Christmas Eve

Well tomorrow is the big day. I guess it's too late to ask if you are ready. Do you have all your gifts bought and wrapped, the tree decorated, the baking done? Hey don't give me dirty looks, I'm just asking. More than at any other time of the year people are thinkin about gifts. Either the gifts that you want for yourself or the gifts that you need to buy for the ones you love. And gifts aren't bad, in the book of Matthew Jesus was talking to the crowds that had gathered to hear him preach and this is what he told them about gifts, Matthew 7:11 So if you sinful people know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give good gifts to those who ask him.

And so in that one thought Jesus confirms that we are a gift giving people and that God is a gift giving God.

Over the past couple of Sundays I've been speaking on "The Gift of Christmas" and we been getting help from the gang from The Big Bang Theory. If you haven't been there then I will bring you up to speed. In week one Penny reveals that she has bought gifts for Sheldon and Leonard. And Sheldon gets a little upset, he tells her, "Don't you know the foundation of gift giving is reciprocity?' And he goes on to say "Penny, you haven't given me a gift you've given me an obligation."

Last week we looked in on the group Sheldon had dragged Raj and Howard to a bath shop looking for the perfect gift for Penny. But not knowing what Penny hasn't gotten him confounds Sheldon until he hits on the perfect solution. He buys a variety of baskets and his plan is to open Penny's gift first and then rush out feigning digestive distress, look up Penny's gift online and select the basket closest to that value give it to her and return the rest for a full refund.

And so let's see how the plan works out. (Video Clip from Big Bang)

If we could look at your Christmas lists what you want and what you want to give we would probably see a wide range of gifts covered, from the practical to the provocative. Most of us know what would make us smile if we found it under the tree on Christmas morning. Some people will be surprised, others haven't taken any chances and they have already taken care of their own gifts. But what about God's gifts to you? The ones that won't be under the tree.

Acts 28:28 So I want you to know that this salvation from God has also been offered to the Gentiles, and they will accept it." The first and most important thing we need to unwrap is 1) The Grace of
God

This is probably the most important gift that you will ever receive. This is the eternal gift. The gift that not only gives you eternal life, but gives you eternal life in the presence of God. Sometimes we get the impression if you are a Christian then you are going to live forever, and if you're not a Christian, then you're just going to die. And yet according to the word of God everybody's going to live forever, the good the bad and the indifferent. The only difference will be the address. You see if the Christian lives forever in the presence of God the non-believer will live forever in the absence of God. In the absence of God and in the absence good, in the absence of light and in the absence love.

And so there are two things that you need to realize today the first is that without Jesus Christ there is no salvation. Jesus said in John 14:6 Jesus told him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me.

Jesus is the way, not a way, but the way. If there were other ways to God other then the sacrifice that Jesus made, then he didn't have to make it. And Jesus reiterated that time and time again John 3:3 Jesus replied, "I tell you the truth, unless you are born again, you cannot see the Kingdom of God."

The second thing we need to realize about the salvation of God is that it's a gift, it can't be earned, it can't be bought, it can only be received as a gift. Romans 6:23 For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord.

And Ephesians 2:8-9 God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can't take credit for this; it is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it.

And so the first gift we receive from God is the gift of Grace. And I'll go out on a limb here and guess that most of you folks have received that gift. And if you haven't then I want to ask you right now, "How come?" Do you not believe? Or are you unwilling to surrender? It has to be one of the other. Now because the rest of the message is for those who have received the gift of grace the rest of you can use this time to mull over the fact that all you have to do is tell God that you are sorry for your sins, and that you want him to forgive you and to help you to live for him. It's that simple that is the gift of God.

Nehemiah 8:10 And Nehemiah continued, . . . "Don't be dejected and sad, for the joy of the LORD is your strength!" The second gift that we receive is 2) The Joy of God

Believers do you remember the day that you surrendered your life to God? Can you remember the burden that was lifted, and the joy you received in knowing that you were right with God? Now I know what you are thinking, "People can't be happy all the time." You're right of course. But there is a difference between happy and joy. Happy is tied to external, you're having a great day, the birds are singing, things are going well, the entire blue bird on your window sill type of day. I love happy days, days when I want to sing, not that that would make others happy. It's tough to find fault with happy. But we can come to the place that our entire life becomes a pursuit of "happy". And we set "happy" up as our God, Alexander Solzhenitsyn said "One should never direct people towards happiness, because happiness too is an idol of the market-place" And so anything we value more then we value our relationship with God is an idol, Jesus said you can't serve God and money, you also can't serve God and happy. Because sometimes the things which you perceive as making you happy are in direct violation to God's will for your life. Unless of course you simplify what happy is. Daniel Boone said "All you need for happiness is a good gun, a good horse, and a good wife." Presumably in that order?

Joy on the other hand runs deeper. Where does it come from Luke 10:21 At that same time Jesus was filled with the joy of the Holy Spirit

In John 17 part of Jesus last prayer was that John 17:13 "Now I am coming to you. I told them many things while I was with them in this world so they would be filled with my joy.

And that joy comes from knowing that we are where we are supposed to be and that we are doing what we are supposed to be doing. It's internal not necessarily external, which means that we can have a no good, horrible day and still feel an inner joy even though we don't feel like smiling. Dr. Melba Colgrove said "Joy is the feeling of grinning on the inside."

When the apostle Paul was writing to the Christians in the early church he made this statement in Philippians 4:4 Always be full of joy in the Lord. I say it again—rejoice!

Now that sounds like a command. And I have discovered that if God requires us to do something then he equips us to do it as well. He's not going to ask us to do the impossible. Part of the responsibility is His, that's the joy of the Lord that the Bible talks about. But the other part of the responsibility is ours. We need to want that joy, and to do our part to obtain it. If you always go through life looking on the dark side then you will sabotage God's effort to give you joy. God gives it we need to accept it. Here's some advice from the great American Philosopher Charlie Brown. "This is my depressed stance. When you're depressed, it makes a lot of difference how you stand. The worst thing you can do is straighten up and hold your head high because then you'll start to feel better. If you're going to get any joy out of being depressed, you've got to stand like this."

So, claim the promise and straighten up.

So God gives us salvation, and he gives us joy, then we have
Philippians 4:6-7 Don't worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God's peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus. 3) Peace of God shortly after Paul tells the Church in Philippi to "rejoice always" he tells them to not worry about anything.

Here is a choice that each one of us has to make, we can choose to worry and fret about everything that can happen to us, or might happen to us or we can give it over to God and accept his peace about it. Most of what we worry about will never ever happen. Winston Churchill said "When I look back on all the worries I remember the story of the old man who said on his deathbed that he had a lot of trouble in his life, most of which never happened."

Are you worrying about things that will never happen?

The gift that God gives then is the peace of knowing that he has everything in control. It bothers me when a tragedy strikes a Christian and some well-meaning Saint offers up Romans 8:28 as words of comfort. You know the scripture it says: Romans 8:28 And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.

I believe that, I truly do, but I think it's something we need to know before the tragedy happens and I'm not sure that it is what we need trotted out when something terrible has just happened. We need to know as believers that whatever happens God is still in control.

You ever sleep in a car on a long trip? I'm a champion car sleeper, when somebody else is driving of course. I'm convinced that I have ADD, and boredom is my enemy. And so when I'm a passenger in the car I'm bored stiff, add to that the fact that if I read in the car I puke in the car and it only leaves me with one thing to do as a passenger, sleep. If I trust the driver I can sleep like a log, but if I'm the least bit concerned about my safety I don't sleep nearly as well.

If God is doing the driving in your life here's a news flash, he can be trusted. The bible has never promised that as a believer that you won't have problems or even tragedy, but here is something it does promise. Peter was writing to the early church at the height of the Roman Persecutions and this is what he told those believers: 1 Peter 4:19 So if you are suffering in a manner that pleases God, keep on doing what is right, and trust your lives to the God who created you, for he will never fail you.

And here is your promise for today, Isaiah 26:4 Trust in the LORD always, for the LORD GOD is the eternal Rock.

So what have we unwrapped so far, Grace, Joy and Peace, the fourth gift we receive is 4) The Direction of God If we go back into the Old Testament we find a period of time that the people of Israel wandered far from God's teachings, they embraced foreign gods and false idols. The way this is described in the Bible is found in the book of Judges where it says in chapter Judges 17:6 In those days Israel had no king; all the people did whatever seemed right in their own eyes.

The people were living in a moral vacuum where the philosophy was, if it feels good, do it. Much like today, as a matter of fact if you were to question ordinary people about morality they would probably echo the words of Ernest Hemingway who said "What is moral is what you feel good after, and what is immoral is what you feel bad after." What a crock. At some point there has to be more than simply feeling good or not feeling good that determines if something is right or wrong. If not where does it stop? If you were to ask Paul Bernardo, or Russell Williams or any other killer whether or not it felt good to take another person's life I wonder what their answer would be?

And if it felt good for them would that make it moral? Of course not.

So how do we determine what is wrong and what isn't wrong. Henry Wadsworth Longfellow said "Morality without religion is only a kind of dead reckoning -- an endeavor to find our place on a cloudy sea by measuring the distance we have run, but without any observation of the heavenly bodies."

The bible tells us in Hebrews 4:12 For the word of God is alive and powerful. It is sharper than the sharpest two-edged sword, cutting between soul and spirit, between joint and marrow. It exposes our innermost thoughts and desires.

This has to be our guide, and yes we have wavered from it both in the world and in the church. And we need to confess that and get back to what is right and what is wrong. God has not set us adrift in this life without direction he has given us the rule book and it's up to us to follow it.

Those are some of the gifts that God offers this Christmas. Grace, joy, peace and direction. Have you received them? If not now is the time.

The Gift of Christmas 2 Preparing the Gift

The quest for the perfect gift. Some of you know what I mean and others, you haven't got a clue. There are some folks who every gift is a challenge, to get not just a gift but to get the right gift. The gift that says just the right thing at just the right price. Those folks are buying gifts all year round and you will hear them say "that would be the perfect gift for Aunt Mabel, that would be my mother's sister's husband's great aunt." They put a lot of thought and love into their gifts, for the rest of us there are always gift cards.

And others are looking for the right gift but for the wrong reason. Do you remember where we left with Big Bang two weeks ago, Penny was going to buy Sheldon and Leonard gifts and Sheldon lectures her on the fact that the foundation of Gift Giving was reciprocity and that she wasn't giving him a gift she was giving him an obligation. Let's pick up the story with that thought. (clip two from Big Bang Christmas Special).

What a clever idea. Hmmmm, I wonder? Nope better not go there and it's probably too late for this year anyway.

Christmas is a celebration of the greatest gift ever given. The gift of God! And it wasn't a gift that was given without thought and planning. As a matter of fact John tells us at the beginning of his Gospel John 1:1-2 In the beginning the Word already existed. The Word was with God, and the Word was God. He existed in the beginning with God.

Here is a gift that has existed before time itself existed. And it was prepared and delivered in a perfect manner, at the perfect time. You ever wonder about the timing of Christmas? Not whether it happened in December or September in AD 5 or 3 BC but why it happened at that particular point in history. We have approximately 5,000 years of recorded history, so why right then. Was it just a good time? Or was it the best time?

Listen to what Paul wrote in Galatians 4:4-5 But when the right time came, God sent his Son, born of a woman, subject to the law. God sent him to buy freedom for us who were slaves to the law, so that he could adopt us as his very own children.

Did you catch that? But when the right time came. Not just any time the right time. I am a big believer in context, the power that is of the right thing happening at the right time. If you are a reader check out Malcolm Gladwell's two books "The Tipping Point" and "The Outliers."

That was free.

God could have chosen any time in the scope of history for his Son to come to earth and for the church to be born, and yet he chose a specific spot on the time line of history. Why? Why at that particular point in time?

 

According to historians there was no better time for the church to flourish than the two hundred year juncture of history known as The Pax Romana. E. J. Goodspeed notes: "This was the pax Romana. The provincial under Roman sway found himself in a position to conduct his business, provide for his family, send his letters, and make his journeys in security, thanks to the strong hand of Rome."

The Roman Peace had spread across the known world, providing one of the few windows of opportunities for the land and sea to be travelled safely without the threat of warring factions. For the first time roadways connected points across the known world. But it went beyond simple transportation and incorporated communication as well. Instead of having to learn a multitude of languages and dialects it was only necessary to know one. Greek was the common language, a reminder of Alexander's conquests, allowing the written word to be sent to encourage and correct the growing churches in diverse cultures.

It was not a coincidence that the Creator chose this point in time to interrupt history William Barclay writes in the Daily Study Bible: "It was no accident that Christianity came when it did. It came in God's own time; all history had been a preparation for it; and the circumstances were such that the way was open for the tide to spread."

But there were certain things that had to be prepared and made ready.

The Preparation of the Gift We touched on this a couple of weeks ago. God didn't choose just anyone to parent his son, he chose Mary and Joseph. We are reminded over and over again of the baggage that people carry with them from their childhood as a result of parents who were abusive, either physically or verbally, parents who were neglectful or just didn't care.

God chose not to simply come as a man but to experience humanity from conception to death. He would grow up as a child, experiencing all there was of childhood, from runny noses to scraped knees from the wonder of a rainbow to the first blush of puppy love. And God needed to have an exceptional pair to guide his son through those times. And so he chose a young girl from a small village called Nazareth and her fiancé.

But the only requirement wasn't simply that they would be good parents. The expectancy of the people of Israel was that the Messiah who had been promised would be a descendant of David the greatest king that Israel ever had. You remember David? He was the shepherd kid who killed the giant Goliath, he was the poet who wrote the psalms and he was the King who led Israel to some of her greatest victories. And he was the ancestor of both Mary and Joseph.

That one wasn't all that tough, the Jews kept genealogical records that would put the Mormons to shame and people were very aware of their lineage, especially when it included David. Kind of like folks to the south who know their kin came over on the Mayflower or Australians who brag about their ancestors arriving with the first fleet.

The second requirement was a little more difficult. Remember the prophecy we looked at two weeks ago from the book of Isaiah? Isaiah 7:14 All right then, the Lord himself will give you the sign. Look! The virgin will conceive a child! She will give birth to a son and will call him Immanuel (which means 'God is with us').

Mary was a special young lady with a special past and what would become a very special future. The Catholics refer to Mary as "Mary the Mother of God." And I think Protestants get a little uncomfortable with that statement but it is what it is. Mary was a virgin and she was being asked to be the mother of God's son, Jesus, who we believe to be God incarnate. A very special birth that would begin with a very special conception, as God stepped outside of the very boundaries he put in place.

As you can well imagine there had to be some advance planning on that one. And that came in the form of a heavenly messenger who appeared to Mary to outline the entire plan. We all know the story; if you don't you can find it in the book of Luke. But it all comes down to three verses at the end of Luke 1.

The Angel has told Mary that she is going to have a son and that she will name him Jesus. Mary responds by saying in Luke 1:34 Mary asked the angel, "But how can this happen? I am a virgin." The angel says "No worries" actually if the Angel had of been an Australian he would have said "no worries" instead what he said was Luke 1:35 & 37 The angel replied, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the baby to be born will be holy, and he will be called the Son of God. For nothing is impossible with God."

And you gotta love Mary's response. Luke 1:38 Mary responded, "I am the Lord's servant. May everything you have said about me come true." And then the angel left her.

But that was only half the story. Remember that Mary was engaged and there was a pretty good possibility that her fiancé would notice that she was pregnant. I'm sure he would be able to put two and two together. Even back then people knew that it took two to tango and he hadn't even been invited to the dance. So he was a little upset, even today in a culture that prides itself on having very few morals nobody would blame someone in Joseph situation if he decided to not go through with the wedding.

It tells us a little bit about Joseph's character that he didn't want to make a big scene and so we are told in Matthew 1:19 Joseph, her fiancé, was a good man and did not want to disgrace her publicly, so he decided to break the engagement quietly. So, again with the angel. The story continues with Matthew 1:20-21 As he (Joseph) considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream. "Joseph, son of David," the angel said, "do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife. For the child within her was conceived by the Holy Spirit. And she will have a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins."

The angel continues to fill in some details but the bottom line comes in Matthew 1:24 When Joseph woke up, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded and took Mary as his wife.

If you are part of a family that is spread all over you know that getting the gift is usually only the first part of the mission. Now you have to get the gift to those who it is for. When we lived overseas the cheapest way to get parcels from there to here was surface mail and officially, if you asked at the post office it would take 6 to 8 weeks for your package to arrive, in theory. So we had to mail them around the middle of October. Even now we are always trying to figure out how to get my parent's and sister's gifts to Saint John.

The Gift of the Messiah was to arrive in a certain place as well. Earlier I had told you that Mary was from Nazareth, but that isn't where Jesus was born.

So that lead us to The Preparation of the Place Remember there were no accidents that first Christmas. We are told in Matthew 2:1 Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the reign of King Herod. Which if you just want the basics of the story is kind of cool. Kind of Like "Denn was born in Chatham when Diefenbaker was King." But really that doesn't tell you the whole story does it? Why Chatham? Mom and Dad weren't from the Miramachi, they didn't stay there very long and I didn't go back for almost forty years.

Matthew answers the "where" and when rather nicely Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the reign of King Herod. But there are a lot of questions that he leaves unanswered. And some of those questions are answered in Luke's account and other's we have to dig for. The most obvious question is "Why Bethlehem?" If we pull down one of our trusty maps we discover that Nazareth, where Mary and Joseph lived is up here, twenty four kms from the southern tip of the Sea of Galilee and thirty kms inland from the Mediterranean Sea, a small village that was obviously the family home to both Mary and Joseph. And Bethlehem is way down here, about 120 kms away. For us that isn't an insurmountable distance depending on how you drive and what the roads are like it would take you between an hour and two hours to make the trip. When I was in Sierra Leone I made a trip of eighty kms going from Makeni to Kamakwie hospital in four and a half hours but this trip was worse than that.

Mary was not just pregnant Luke tells us about the trip in Luke 2:4-5 And because Joseph was a descendant of King David, he had to go to Bethlehem in Judea, David's ancient home. He traveled there from the village of Nazareth in Galilee. He took with him Mary, his fiancée, who was now obviously pregnant. Obviously pregnant. Hmm, love what it says in the KJV it says she was great with Child. And you know what I mean; there are some women who are obviously pregnant and others who are great with Child.

But why? Why did they have to go to Bethlehem. Well the short answer is that the Roman Government commanded it, a census was going on and People were required to register in the ancestral homes, which for Joseph and his family happened to be Bethlehem. But more than that if we go back into the Old Testament we find that God has spoken through his prophet Micah and said Micah 5:2 But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, are only a small village among all the people of Judah. Yet a ruler of Israel will come from you, one whose origins are from the distant past.

Bethlehem was the Birthplace of King David and it was decreed that it would be the birth place of the Messiah. Again He wasn't just to be born any place but in a special place, even if it would require the might of the Roman Empire to see it happen.

And you have to assume that the census didn't just happen on a whim. Long before the angel appeared to Mary and Joseph plans were being put in place to make sure the baby would be born in Bethlehem.

But while Mary and Joseph and their newborn son were far from home and their immediate family, they weren't alone. It wouldn't have been right for the Son of God, Prince of Peace not to be welcomed to this world.

The Preparation of the Welcome When we stop and think about that first Christmas we envision a stable under a starlit sky with the holy family surrounded by small barnyard animals standing in harmonious awe along with a group of shepherds and Three Wise Men while the little drummer boy played a solo in the back ground.

You know the story; the shepherds were tending their flocks around the town of Bethlehem when suddenly their lives are interrupted by a whole flock of angels. I guess flock isn't the proper word, a whole host of angels. And the angels' message is recorded in
Luke 2:9-12 An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Saviour has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger."

And the shepherds followed the angels' direction and we are told they went to Bethlehem and found the Christ child in the stable and worshipped him.

But the shepherds weren't the only ones who came to visit the new born Matthew 2:1-2 Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the reign of King Herod. About that time some wise men from eastern lands arrived in Jerusalem, asking, "Where is the newborn king of the Jews? We saw his star as it rose, and we have come to worship him."

It doesn't seem like anyone has any problems with the Shepherds, you mention shepherds and everyone nods and smiles. But boy, you mention the wise men and someone inevitably jumps up and informs you "You know the wise men weren't at the stable and probably didn't arrive for two years."

Boy I don't know who started that but they should be slapped. Their rational? They refer to where the Bible says that they went to the house where the baby was, so obviously they couldn't have been at the stable. But does that mean it happened two years later? Maybe a room opened in the inn the day after Jesus was born, maybe the innkeepers wife found out that he made them sleep in the stable and on night two maybe he was in the stable and they were in his room.

Then the revisionists talk about how it would have taken the magi two years to make the trip, although the same trip was made on Camels a few years back in 3 months, check out this website. But regardless of how long it might have taken them to get there, if God could put a star in the sky to guide the wise men he could have put it there so they arrived on time. And finally the proponents of this new tradition point to the fact that Herod ordered the death of all male children under the age of 2. So what? The man was a kook. When he was on his death bed he ordered that some of the most distinguished people in Jerusalem be arrested and killed at the moment of his death so some tears would be shed. I want to know why Mary and Joseph and Jesus would have hung around Bethlehem for two years after the census was finished, inquiring minds want to know.

Not to mention that if we read the account it says Matthew 2:1-2 Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the reign of King Herod. About that time some wise men from eastern lands arrived in Jerusalem, asking, "Where is the newborn king of the Jews? We saw his star as it rose, and we have come to worship him." About that time? About what time? About the time Jesus was born in Bethlehem.

And so those who greeted the Christ child at his birth not only included shepherds from the hills surrounding Bethlehem but also an undeterminable number of magi who had travelled hundreds of miles across the desert to bring gifts that would define who this child would grow up to be.

But through all the preparations there was a common thread that wove them together, a thread that has stretched down 2000 years to continue and link those who are prepared to accept the Christ child. Did you catch it?

Luke 1:38 Mary responded, "I am the Lord's servant. May everything you have said about me come true." And then the angel left her.

Matthew 1:24 When Joseph woke up, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded and took Mary as his wife.

Luke 2:4-5 And because Joseph was a descendant of King David, he had to go to Bethlehem in Judea, David's ancient home. He traveled there from the village of Nazareth in Galilee. He took with him Mary, his fiancée, who was now obviously pregnant.

Luke 2:15 When the angels had returned to heaven, the shepherds said to each other, "Let's go to Bethlehem! Let's see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about."

Matthew 2:1-2 Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the reign of King Herod. About that time some wise men from eastern lands arrived in Jerusalem, asking, "Where is the newborn king of the Jews? We saw his star as it rose, and we have come to worship him."

Did you catch it? They were listening to God but more than that they were obedient to God. And that is still critical today Jesus told his disciples in John 14:15 "If you love me, obey my commandments. And that Jesus reiterates that thought in John 15:10 When you obey my commandments, you remain in my love, just as I obey my Father's commandments and remain in his love.

So where you at today? A gift has been prepared for you, but the question is "Have you are prepared for the gift?"

 

 

 

 

 

The Promise of the Gift

When you think of Christmas what comes to your mind? Before you answer let me tell you a story I heard many years ago. It happened in a grade four Sunday School Class and the teacher was asking the class a question, I don't know what the context was or why she was asking it, but she was. The question was this "What is grey, has a bushy tail, collects nuts and climbs trees." Before anyone else could answer a little boy stuck up and his hand and blurted out "I know the answer is Jesus but it sure sounds like a squirrel to me."

So we will give you this one. When I asked the question "When you think of Christmas what comes to mind?" I know without reservation that the answer that we all thought of immediately was "Jesus" goes without saying and I will in no way question your spirituality or commitment by thinking otherwise. So I will rephrase it. "When you think of Christmas what is the second thing that comes to mind?"

Maybe you are a house decorator and you think about all the decoration that you are going to put up for Christmas, all of the things that say Christmas to you, lights and tinsel, trees and penguins. And don't get my wife started on how dumb penguins are for a Christmas decoration, trust me on that one, you don't want to go down that road.

And some people do a great job, decorating and others, well less than spectacular. Have I mentioned that my sister is insane? Certifiably insane, she starts decorating her house in late October and on Halloween she dresses up like Mrs. Claus, plays Christmas music and hands out candy canes to the kids. I am not making this up. But to prove there is balance in the universe if it was up to me I wouldn't put up a single decoration. Not that I'm opposed to decorations it just that I am motivationally challenged when it comes to things like that, that means I'm lazy.

For others it's about the baking, you have already started baking and before you are finished you will have baked enough food to feed a small third world village. And others are thinking about all those cookies and squares and how good they will be, and how much weight you will gain but it wouldn't be right to hurt the cooks feelings, would it?

For some of you it brings to mind family and this is the time of the year that you all get together for a big dinner, family pictures and time together. And maybe for others there are laws that keep that from happening.

But regardless of what the main thing is that comes to your mind when I say Christmas, the one thing that we are all thinking about, somewhere on the list, besides Jesus that goes without saying, are gifts. Either about the gifts we will receive or the gifts we will give. The talk of the season is about gifts.

Where we will buy them, how we will wrap them, how we will get them delivered, gifts, gifts gifts. And people see gift giving in different ways. Here is an example. (video clip from Big Bang Christmas)

Some people see gift giving like Penny, just as an opportunity to give and express your feelings for others. Others, whether you want to admit it or not, are like Sheldon, and although you may never have expressed your theory of reciprocity quite as eloquently as he did, you feel the same way, you don't receive gifts you receive obligations.

If you are in the least bit familiar with the Christmas story then you know that gifts were an important part of that event. There were tangible gifts, in the form of the gold, frankincense and myrrh that were brought by the wise men as well as the gifts that couldn't be held and shaken or wrapped but were no less real. Like the gift that the wise men had presented of themselves, they had travelled literally hundreds of miles over hostile terrain in order to worship the Christ child, there were the shepherds who left their flocks in the hills in order to come and offer their adoration for the one who was born to be the great shepherd.

We know from the story that there was no room in the inn, but someone had to offer the family space in a stable, presumably they didn't just move in uninvited. If you looked out in your backyard and there was a family living in your shed you'd call the police. The fact that they had a place out of the weather, was a gift.

But the very essence of Christmas isn't about gifts plural; it's about a gift singular. Because that night in Bethlehem 2000 years ago the greatest gift of all was given to the world. The gift of Jesus the Son of God. And before that gift was given it was promised. In the Old Testament it was promised to the people of Israel and in the Christmas story the gift was promised to Mary and then to her fiancé Joseph.

It was the account of the promise to Joseph that was read for us earlier and we are going to look at that promise this morning. Matthew 1:22-23 All of this occurred to fulfill the Lord's message through his prophet: "Look! The virgin will conceive a child! She will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel, which means 'God is with us.'"

And so we begin with Matthew 1:22-23 All of this occurred to fulfill the Lord's message through his prophet: "Look! The virgin will conceive a child! She will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel, which means 'God is with us.'"

1) The Promise of the Gift This scripture is a reference to the Old Testament book of Isaiah. Now if you know your Old Testament history than you know that by this time what had been known as Israel has split into two separate entities after the death of King Solomon. The Northern and Southern Kingdoms, the Northern is called Israel while the Southern is called Judah and they are battling each other as well as outside forces.

Judah has come under siege from all sides and King Ahaz, is waiting for the other shoe to drop and for his country to be attacked by opposing forces and he knows that will result in the destruction and exile of the Southern Kingdom.

And this is the setting for the prophet Isaiah to speak. And from Isaiah's writings we get several texts that we refer to as "Messianic Prophecies" or prophecies about the coming Messiah.

It was Isaiah who wrote Isaiah 9:6 For a child is born to us, a son is given to us. The government will rest on his shoulders. And he will be called: Wonderful Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

But the prophecy that is referenced here comes from Isaiah 7:14 All right then, the Lord himself will give you the sign. Look! The virgin will conceive a child! She will give birth to a son and will call him Immanuel (which means 'God is with us').

And that was a prophecy that was held onto for the next four hundred years, that there would be one who would come and reunite the divided kingdom and bring the united Israel back to her former glory.

But there was a misunderstanding. For the majority of Israel they saw the coming Messiah as a military leader who would rally the people of Israel against their oppressors and lead them in an uprising.

But they were missing the entire point that Isaiah and every other prophet in the Old Testament had been trying to make and that was the reason why the Kingdom was divided and the reason why God allowed them to be oppressed and that was because of their disobedience to God and his commandments.

What needed fixing wasn't the political situation in Israel, it was the hearts of the people of Israel. A people who had been called to follow God but who had turned their backs on him and his ways. Oh they still wanted to be known as a nation of God but that wasn't evident in their worship or their lives, kind of like Canada referring to itself as a Christian nation, but I digress.

And so Isaiah was saying that one would come not to fix the symptoms, that God's blessing was no longer upon his people, but to fix the problem, and that was the sin that had separated God from his people. God hadn't moved away from the people, the people had moved away from God.

And the story continues.

Matthew 1:22-23 All of this occurred to fulfill the Lord's message through his prophet: "Look! The virgin will conceive a child! She will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel, which means 'God is with us.'"

2) The Nature of the Gift: This is the very essence of Christmas; The virgin will conceive a child! It's in our Christmas Carols, on our Christmas Cards, little children who have no idea what virgin means talk about it in Christmas pageants. But I wonder how much of that is lip service and how many actually believe that the Virgin conceived a child? There are some who argue that the Hebrew word that Isaiah used for virgin could have just as well meant "a young woman", perhaps but that wouldn't have been much of a sign would it?

Wouldn't require you to be much of a prophet to make that kind of statement, would it? "And now a sign from God, a young woman will conceive!" And the sun will come up in the morning and go down in the evening. I mean if a young woman conceiving was a sign then Cornerstone would have been full of signs over the past year.

But regardless of what the word may or may not have meant, when the Angel came to Mary and told her that she would become pregnant with a son her response was Luke 1:34 Mary asked the angel, "But how can this happen? I am a virgin." And she wasn't saying that she was a young maiden, the word that Mary used only had one meaning and that was "Virgin".

And there are some folks who still have a problem with the virgin birth because they say that it's impossible, they kind of miss that's the point. Personally I can't figure that out. If you can believe that Jesus was and is the Son of God why can't you believe that he was born of a virgin?

And if the issue isn't whether or not Mary was a virgin but whether or not Jesus was the Son of God than you have bigger issues to deal with. If we believe that Jesus was indeed God then why wouldn't he be born of a virgin?

If the idea was not just for Jesus to come and assume human form but instead was to experience all that we experienced he couldn't just appear as an adult but had to be born. There has to be something in us that begins when the first cell separates and become two cells, I don't know when our consciousness actually begins but that somehow leaves a mark on who we are and who we will become and Jesus experienced that with us.

And if Jesus is truly the Son of God then by definition his father would be God, not Joseph but God.

The how was explained to Joseph, remember Joseph he was engaged to Mary, and he assumed that she was a virgin, and then she drops the bomb shell that she is pregnant, he freaks out decides to break off the engagement and really who could blame him? And an angel appears to Joseph and we are told in Matthew 1:20-21 As he considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream. "Joseph, son of David," the angel said, "do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife. For the child within her was conceived by the Holy Spirit. And she will have a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins."

The first part explains the how. The child will be conceived by the Holy Spirit and the second part is the why and it is echoed in the scripture we have been looking at.

Matthew 1:22-23 All of this occurred to fulfill the Lord's message through his prophet: "Look! The virgin will conceive a child! She will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel, which means 'God is with us.'"

3) The Purpose of the Gift: The prophecy tells us that the virgin will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel, which means "God is with us". As I mentioned earlier the blessing of God had left the people of Israel because the people of Israel had turned their backs on God and his purposes. The reason for Israel's problems was disobedience. It wasn't a political issue it was a "Sin" issue.

And now God was taking the unimaginable step, he was coming to be with his people. People had always known that they could go to heaven, but now heaven was coming to them.

Now understand that Immanuel was not his name it was a description of who he would be. After all there is nowhere in the bible that we see Jesus called anything but Jesus. Immanuel is a description of Jesus' purpose in coming that God would come to earth and offer himself as the ultimate sacrifice God would be with us. But more than that it was a description of the divinity of Jesus.

Mary was a virgin, she had never been with a man and yet she became pregnant, how? The angel told Joseph Matthew 1:20 . . . For the child within her was conceived by the Holy Spirit.

And so the child was the son of God, he became God with us, but why? What would possess God to do that?

We were originally created to be friends with God and yet sin drove a wedge into the relationship. Isaiah 59:2 But there is a problem—your sins have cut you off from God. Because of your sin, he has turned away and will not listen anymore. That is reiterated in the book of Micah 3:4 Then you beg the Lord for help in times of trouble! Do you really expect him to listen? After all the evil you have done, he won't even look at you! Sin has separated us from a Holy God. In the history of Israel God was approached through an intermediary, and that was the High Priest, people didn't have a relationship with God He was a remote and distant figure.

And that doesn't sound like, "God with us"

And into the void came Jesus, the son of God, who lived among us and who died on a cross and spilt his blood for our sins, in order to bring us back into fellowship with God. John the apostle wrote in His first letter in the book of 1 John 2:2 He is the sacrifice for our sins. He takes away not only our sins but the sins of all the world. and in the same letter in 1 John 4:10 This is real love. It is not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins.

Finally Paul tells us in the book of Romans 3:23-25 For all have sinned; all fall short of God's glorious standard. Yet now God in his gracious kindness declares us not guilty. He has done this through Christ Jesus, who has freed us by taking away our sins. For God sent Jesus to take the punishment for our sins and to satisfy God's anger against us. We are made right with God when we believe that Jesus shed his blood, sacrificing his life for us. God was being entirely fair and just when he did not punish those who sinned in former times.

In all three of those verses the word that is translated sacrifice or sacrificing was translated as propitiation back in 1611 when the King James Version was translated. That's a neat word isn't it propitiation, if I was to ask you for a definition I wonder how many would be game to try it? It easy, you see propitiation means the act of propitiating.

Not very helpful am I? Propitiation literally means "To appease the wrath of God, so that his justice and holiness will be satisfied and he can forgive our sins."

And so because of this atoning sacrifice that Christ has made for us, once we have repented of our sins, and that simply means telling God that we are sorry for disobeying him and turning away from those actions, and have accepted the forgiveness that Christ offers us then he becomes Immanuel, God with us.

And here is the great part of that promise that was made to Joseph concerning the gift that his son would be Matthew 1:21 "And she will have a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins."

The promise isn't just that Jesus will save us from the consequences of our sin, as important as that is, but that he will save us from being the slave of sin. John 8:34-36 Jesus replied, "I tell you the truth, everyone who sins is a slave of sin. A slave is not a permanent member of the family, but a son is part of the family forever. So if the Son sets you free, you are truly free. That is the gift, that you don't have to sin. Not because you have the power to not sin but because Jesus came to set us free, if we choose to be free.

How about it? Has he set you free from sin?


 

John the Baptist, An Almost Familiar Story

It is a familiar story for this time of year. A heavenly messenger, a miraculous birth, a normal childhood a short ministry preaching to people who loved his message and hated his message and then an untimely death at the hands of the authorities he had offended.

Most people could fill in the missing details if they were asked and they would be wrong. They would talk about shepherds and wise men, heavenly choirs and stables and little animals, drummer boys and stars and flying reindeer. But none of those were part of the story. I know that you are thinking, "Well maybe not the drummer boy and the flying reindeer but the rest were." Nope, the problem is that the story is familiar but only because it mirrors another story.

At this time of the year we are all too familiar with the Christmas story and all that goes with it, and most of us can parrot back the details both the details that are biblical and extra biblical. Wrapped up in the Christmas celebrations are facts and legends, poems and songs. And that is why Christians, both committed and nominal will celebrate around the world in less than a month. And even those who would never darken the door of a church 364 days out of the year will take time to at least tip their hats to the birth of Christ.

But the story didn't start when the Angel appeared to Mary, no the story began half a year earlier and 100 kms away.

Before the angel appeared to Mary and Joseph he had already appeared in Jerusalem to a man named Zechariah to announce the birth of a boy who would be named John. Part of the story was read for us earlier and this morning we are going to look at the tale of Jesus' older cousin John, because the story of Jesus would never be complete without the story of John.

Many people feel that there is so much detail in the book of Luke about what happened prior to the birth of Christ that it could only have come from one source and that was Mary, and so the feeling is that what we hearing in Luke's account is a firsthand view of the miraculous.

So let's begin our journey where our Journey should begin, at the beginning. Historically we are at the end of four hundred years of silence in the Story of Israel. The last recorded words from one of God's prophets had been written in the book of Malachi and the people of Israel have been waiting to be delivered from the various occupiers of their country.

Luke 1:5 In the time of Herod king of Judea there was a priest named Zechariah, who belonged to the priestly division of Abijah; his wife Elizabeth was also a descendant of Aaron. The Parents of John: Interestingly enough the Elizabeth who is mentioned here is actually a relative of Mary's. Earlier I called John a cousin because I didn't know what else to call him. And that's what he would have been called in those extended families, when you can't think of anything else to call someone who is kin you call them your cousin. You know if they aren't your brother or sister, niece or nephew then they have to be your cousin.

When Gabriel appeared to Mary at beginning of the Christmas story he reveals this to her, Luke 1:36 What's more, your relative Elizabeth has become pregnant in her old age! People used to say she was barren, but she's now in her sixth month.

In the King James Version it calls Elizabeth Mary's cousin but the word in the original Greek was much broader than that and simply meant someone who was related to you, somehow. And she may have been her cousin, we just don't know. What we do know is that Elizabeth was a descendant of Aaron and we are told that Mary was a descendant of David's so whatever relationship there was on their Mother's side of the family tree.

But we do know a few things about Zechariah and Elizabeth, we know that they were good folk, the Bible tells us in Luke 1:6 And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless. Sounds like good folk to me.

And we know that Zechariah was a priest and that Elizabeth was descended from the priestly line and we know that they were childless. A tragedy for most folks who it happened to but for a priest it was a double tragedy in that there would be no son to carry on his priestly responsibilities.

And we know that they were older, again how old? We don't know, old enough to be mentioned, but perhaps because it was in relation to their child bearing years maybe it was just relative, maybe they were old in their late forties or early fifties. Not sure.

And we know that they were chosen for a very special assignment, to raise John. This wasn't just an oops we are pregnant, what now. From the beginning this was to be a very special birth and a very special child.

Luke 1:11-13 While Zechariah was in the sanctuary, an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing to the right of the incense altar. Zechariah was shaken and overwhelmed with fear when he saw him. But the angel said, "Don't be afraid, Zechariah! God has heard your prayer. Your wife, Elizabeth, will give you a son, and you are to name him John.

The Promise of John's Birth By this time in history there were more priests than there were jobs for priests, so they took turns working in the temple, good work if you can find it. And Zechariah's turn came up and he was chosen to enter into the temple and offer the sacrifices and while he was in there the strangest thing happened.

He's doing the things he supposed to be doing, preparing the sacrifice, getting it ready to be offered, preparing his prayers and the scriptures he will read as part of the ceremony and God interrupts him, with an Angel.

And Zechariah was a little spooked; actually he was a lot spooked. After all he was supposed to be alone in the altar area, there were no windows just lit by flickering torches, maybe he's whistling as he worked. And all of a sudden he's no longer alone. I don't think he was spooked because there was an angel there, I think he was spooked because there was anyone there.

And if we read through the conversation the Angel, who identifies himself as Gabriel, I know don't get me started, tells Zechariah that their prayers are going to be answered that they will be parents and that their son will do great things for God.

And after the angel drops this bombshell, I mean good news on Zechariah he gets this response; "What?" Actually that was a rough translation his actually words were Luke 1:18 Zechariah said to the angel, "How can I be sure this will happen? I'm an old man now, and my wife is also well along in years."

My wife is well along in years, that charitable, love how it is put in the King James Version Luke 1:18 And Zacharias said unto the angel, Whereby shall I know this? for I am an old man, and my wife well stricken in years. Guys just a hint, not sure that "well stricken in years" is the most appropriate way to describe your wife's age.

You got to love this, for years Zechariah and Elizabeth had prayed for a son, They had been praying so long it had become route and I don't think they really expected it would be answered and had never stopped to consider what would happen if it was answered, there would be diapers to buy, a house to be baby proofed and they'd have to get a baby seat for the camel.

Presumably they knew what caused babies and presumably they had been trying that particular technique without success so the assumption would have to be that there would have to be something miraculous about this.

And to be fair, it may not have been disbelief as much as curiosity that caused his reaction, he knew the other way wasn't working so what was going to change?

If you don't know the rest of the story it would appear that Gabriel was a little sensitive about not being believed because he responds by saying in Luke 1:19-20 Then the angel said, "I am Gabriel! I stand in the very presence of God. It was he who sent me to bring you this good news! But now, since you didn't believe what I said, you will be silent and unable to speak until the child is born. For my words will certainly be fulfilled at the proper time."

Boy, do you know where I'd be if folks who don't always believe the promises of God lost their voice? Yeah, preaching to a very quiet church.

And the story continues.

Luke 1:14-17 You will have great joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth, for he will be great in the eyes of the Lord. He must never touch wine or other alcoholic drinks. He will be filled with the Holy Spirit, even before his birth. And he will turn many Israelites to the Lord their God. He will be a man with the spirit and power of Elijah. He will prepare the people for the coming of the Lord. He will turn the hearts of the fathers to their children, and he will cause those who are rebellious to accept the wisdom of the godly."

The Purpose of John's Life I think it's interesting that in that actual promise these words are spoken by the angel Luke 1:15 For he (your son) will be great in the eyes of the Lord. He must never touch wine or other alcoholic drinks. He will be filled with the Holy Spirit, even before his birth.

Without commentary don't you find it interesting how those thoughts are joined? 1) Great in the eyes of the Lord 2) filled with the Holy Spirit 3) must never touch wine or other alcoholic drinks, just saying.

There are some who say that the Angel's words "God has heard your prayer." had nothing to do with Zechariah's prayers for a child and everything to do with Zechariah's prayers for deliverance for his country. Which would explain the shock upon hearing Elizabeth was pregnant. He was praying for God to do something outstanding for his country but I'm not sure he thought he'd be a part of that plan

So here is what Zechariah was promised for his son.

And he will turn many Israelites to the Lord their God.
He will be a man with the spirit and power of Elijah.
He will prepare the people for the coming of the Lord.
He will turn the hearts of the fathers to their children
He will cause those who are rebellious to accept the wisdom of the godly.

That sounds like a pastor's dream come true for his child. Pictures of crusades and mass conversions must have gone through Zechariah's mind. I'm sure that most of us as Christ Followers would want that for our children.

It's interesting though that while Zechariah was told some of the story he was not told all the story. When his son was born Zechariah received his voice back and proclaimed the goodness of God and his belief in what his son would be called to do. I'm not sure if he would have been nearly as excited had he known how that would play out.

Luke 1:80 John grew up and became strong in spirit. And he lived in the wilderness until he began his public ministry to Israel.

The Person that John Became If you were to ask Zechariah to predict the future of his son it would probably of had to do with the priesthood. It was John's lineage, his father was a priest and his mother was the daughter of a priest. And I'm pretty sure that in Zechariah's mind that if his son was going to have an impact for God it would be through the religious establishment that the family was familiar with. After all why wouldn't it be?

But when John had grown up we read that he went into the wilderness and when the time was right he appears preaching repentance, baptising people and telling them that the messiah was soon going to appear. Both Matthew and Mark give us the same description of John. Mark tells us in Mark 1:6 His clothes were woven from coarse camel hair, and he wore a leather belt around his waist. For food he ate locusts and wild honey.

And while he is preaching repentance his mantra continues to be that he is not the chosen one, that he is just the messenger and that there is one coming who will fulfil all the prophecies of the Old Testament and will deliver Israel and then we read in Mark 1:9 One day Jesus came from Nazareth in Galilee, and John baptized him in the Jordan River. That was the short account, you may remember that John protested that he shouldn't be baptising Jesus but that it should be the other way around and Jesus insisted that John baptise him, and then when he came out of the water how the heavens opened and the Holy Spirit descended on Christ and a voice came from the sky saying "This is my Son and he brings me great joy." Talk about affirmation.

We don't know how much contact John and Jesus had with each other through the years, the bible is silent on that relationship, we can speculate but it would simply be speculation. Some cousins are close, others not so much. We don't know if the boys played together or if they even knew they existed. The pastor at Hillside Wesleyan Church is Jay Guptill and people often ask us if we are related, Jay will tell them I'm his father, and they nod and smile often believing it without thought even though he is only a couple of years younger than me.

The truth however is that our fathers are something like third cousins and I didn't even meet Jay until I was twenty years old.

And then we see little snippets of John appear throughout the gospels. He continues to preach and confront people about their behaviour. He preached repentance, he baptised those who repented and he offended people who didn't . In particular he offended the wrong people.

Luke 3:19-20 John also publicly criticized Herod Antipas, the ruler of Galilee, for marrying Herodias, his brother's wife, and for many other wrongs he had done. So Herod put John in prison, adding this sin to his many others.

The Price that John Paid It is an interesting side bar to the Gospel story, Herod of Antipas was the son of Herod the Great who we remember from the Christmas story, Alexander McLaren writes this about Herod. "This Herod was a son of the grim old tiger who slew the infants of Bethlehem. He was a true cub of a bad litter, with his father's ferocity, but without his force. He was sensual, cruel, cunning, and infirm of purpose. Rome allowed him to play at being a king, but kept him well in hand."

Apparently Herod's younger brother, Phillip, had married a woman by the name of Herodias and somehow she ended up married to Herod. The assumption is that she left the younger brother for the older brother. And John began to publically take issue with the morality of the entire situation. I'm not sure that it bothered Herod that much he was probably used to people criticizing him, after all he wasn't the most lovable tyrant. But it was getting to Herodias and we are told that Herod had John imprisoned as a favour to Herodias. Here was John who had spent so much of his adult life in the wide open spaces of the wilderness now confined to a prison cell. Must have been tough but it would get tougher.

But listen to this little snippet in Mark 6:19-20 So Herodias bore a grudge against John and wanted to kill him. But without Herod's approval she was powerless, for Herod respected John; and knowing that he was a good and holy man, he protected him. Herod was greatly disturbed whenever he talked with John, but even so, he liked to listen to him.

Now maybe you know how the story ends for John, you hear people talk about how immoral our society is, how far we've fallen but this account reveals what life was like 2000 years ago in the society that John and Jesus were called to confront.

Herod throws this big party for everybody who was anybody and part of the festivities was a dance performed by his daughter. When the dance was over Herod applauded and told her "that was awesome, I will give you anything you desire, right up to half my Kingdom." Not sure how the Romans would have felt about that, but I would suspect that Herod had been in the bubbly.

So the girl went over to her mother and had a little girl talk and she came back and we pick up the story in Matthew 14:8 At her mother's urging, the girl said, "I want the head of John the Baptist on a tray!"

Now that seems a little extreme, and I'm sure that everyone knew that it was the booze talking but we read in Mark 6:26-28 Then the king deeply regretted what he had said; but because of the vows he had made in front of his guests, he couldn't refuse her. So he immediately sent an executioner to the prison to cut off John's head and bring it to him. The soldier beheaded John in the prison, brought his head on a tray, and gave it to the girl, who took it to her mother.

So that is the story of John the Baptist from start to finish. But if we couldn't find any lessons in the story it would just be another story.

As I was writing this message a number of thoughts came to me, here are a few of them.

The first lesson is "Prayer delayed is not prayer denied." I wonder how many times Zechariah and his bride had questioned whether or not God even heard their prayers. But their son was to be born at just the right time. Which made me realize what a gift it was that John was born in Zechariah and Elizabeth's old age. By the time of his death John was in his early thirties and his parents had probably passed away. And so they weren't around when their son was executed, they were spared that heartache.

Then we discover that John prepared the ground for Jesus. It was his preaching about repentance that opened the people's hearts to hear Jesus. He had tilled the soil for Jesus to sow.

The crowd that John had gathered around him had primed the pump, for Jesus, so to speak. There is very little that we accomplish in life that isn't accomplished with the help of others. If you see a turtle on a fence post you know that he had some help getting there.

And finally doing the right thing sometimes has a price that has to be paid. I get tired of people who preach that as long as we are good and obedient we will be blessed. There will be eternal rewards, that's true but it doesn't always translate into earthly blessings. John did the right things and it cost him his freedom and his life. But we are still charged with doing the right things.

And that's the way it is.

 

 

God Loves Lost People

If you've been around Cornerstone long enough you have probably heard our mission statement or perhaps you've read it on our website. Late in the last century when Angela and I were dreaming about what this church would look like we were told that an important part of that process was to develop a mission statement and so we did. 16 years ago when people asked us what we were about we could tell them with conviction "Cornerstone Wesleyan Church exists to reach pre-Christians through dynamic worship and relevant preaching, bringing them to a life expanding relationship with Jesus Christ and guiding them into a practical holiness as evidenced through the fruit of the Spirit." And sometimes when we would parrot off our mission statement we would have other Christians question it. "Why do you call them Pre-Christians? You're just being mushy, it should be the lost or sinners" or "Why don't you talk about them getting saved? What's with the Life expanding relationship stuff?" "You're just pandering to them with your relevant messages and dynamic worship; we didn't come to entertain the world"

So early on we learned to defend our vision, we refer to folks as pre-Christians because we believe that we are going to reach people who aren't Christ followers now but that they will become Christ followers, thus they are not non-Christians they are simply pre-Christians. We talk about Life Expanding because we believe that when you come into that relationship with Christ it not only gives you the promise of eternal life in heaven when you die but it gives you a better life, an abundant life, a changed life, an expanded life here on earth.

And the relevant preaching and dynamic worship is just part of the plan, if we expect folks to connect with Cornerstone then we are going to have to take the first step. That when they hear the messages they don't leave saying "So what?" Instead the messages will be relevant to where they are in their lives right now and they can apply it to their lives where they are today. And dynamic worship, why not? People ought to enjoy church. Most of us don't listen to 500 year old music played on an organ the other six days of the week so why would we do it on Sunday?

And that dream started during my time in Australia, I read a book by Robert Kriegel called "If It Ain't Broke Break it" it is primarily a business book challenging people to think outside the box. Then I picked up a book by George Barna called "User Friendly Churches" that highlighted a number of new churches that were making a major difference in how they did "Church" And then it all came together in a week long seminar I attended in Brisbane in the winter of 1992, it was actually summer in Brisbane, but that just gets confusing. Bill Hybels and a team from Willow Creek Community Church spent a week presenting a conference entitled "Building a Church for the Unchurched", during the conference he referenced a book written by Lee Storbels called "Inside the mind of Unchurched Harry and Mary" and I was smitten. To have a church that was intentional in their purpose, intriguing.

For the first ten years of my ministry the thought had been "If they are serious about getting saved they'll come to church the way we've always done church." They'll sing our songs, they will learn our language and they will adopt our customs and in the end if they stick with it long enough they will meet our God.

But what if we sang music that at least the style was familiar to those outside the church? What if we made sure that we didn't use words that unchurched people were unfamiliar with? What if we used videos of things they were familiar with? What if we took the time to explain things like communion? And that was the dream that this church was based on, that we would endeavour to reach the pre-churched, the de-churched and the un-churched.

After all we are told in John 3:16 "For God loved the world so much that he gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. And that thought is reiterated in Romans 5:8 But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners. So if God loved pre-Christians enough to give his Son and Jesus loved pre-Christians enough to give his life I would think that we should be willing to give up our traditions and preferences for them if that's what it takes.

And so 16 years later our mission remains the same, although sometimes we shorten it down to say "Cornerstone exists to reach pre-Christians" or most times I will simply say "Cornerstone is here to help depopulate hell." And I believe that, I believe that there are people today in our church and in our community who will go to heaven because of who we are and what we do and that wouldn't have been the case if there had been no Cornerstone.

But sometimes I still have pastors or believers from more traditional churches accuse us of pandering to people, or watering down the gospel and dumbing down the message. Oh well. I am reminded of the story told about D.L. Moody, apparently someone asked Moody how he reached the lost. When he told them they informed him they didn't agree with his methods so Moody asked "How do you do it?" to which they replied "I don't." Moody answered "I like my way better."

Our story begins in Luke 15:1-3 Tax collectors and other notorious sinners often came to listen to Jesus teach. This made the Pharisees and teachers of religious law complain that he was associating with such sinful people—even eating with them! So Jesus told them this story:

Two thousand years ago it was the same as it is today. Religion was sometime seen as a closed club, you came to God on the terms of established religion, you learned the language, you sang their songs and you understood the rules, both the written rules and the unwritten rules. And Jesus began to shake that up, instead of expecting those who needed God to take all the steps Jesus made it easier for them. He taught in fields and market places, in people's homes and with simple stories that people could understand. And the religious establishment got a little cranky because they were feeling threatened.

So Jesus did what Jesus so often did, he told them a story, it wasn't a theological dissertation, it wasn't a sermon filled it religious terms and words, it was just a story. When we lived in Australia, it is a beautiful country filled with wonderful people who are far from God, and I discovered that in most social settings if people asked me what I did for a living and I told them I was a pastor it became a very different conversation, they shut right down. So often when someone asked what I did I would tell them "I'm a story teller" and that would often move them in a direction where we could talk.

But back to the message, this chapter is one of the most loved chapters in the Bible; it contains the story of the lost sheep, the lost coin and the lost son. Or as he is often referred to "The Prodigal Son." There are times that people will talk about these as three separate parables but the reality is that there is only one parable, there are simply three parts to that parable. It is like a montage, three pictures in a single frame, brought together by a single overriding theme, it would appear that Jesus was defining three types of lost.

So let's start at the beginning, Jesus looks at the religious leaders, don't know if he was sad, frustrated or angry that they didn't get it but he begins his parable by telling them. Luke 15:4 "If a man has a hundred sheep and one of them gets lost, what will he do? Won't he leave the ninety-nine others in the wilderness and go to search for the one that is lost until he finds it?

In the first instance The Sheep Was Lost Through Its Own Carelessness The story would be familiar to anyone who had ever tended sheep because they really weren't the brightest of animals. Most of what I read this week about sheep would imply that they aren't the sharpest knife in the animal drawer. If I wasn't so sensitive and careful with my words I'd probably say that The Sheep was lost through its own stupidity. But I won't go there.

A sheep is driven by its appetites and the immediate, it has no long term plans or desires, its main concern is simply to find food for right now. And so with its head down the wayward sheep eats and wanders and wanders and eats until it has wandered far from the safety of the flock.

Its wandering is not a conscious act, it doesn't begin the day by saying "I think I will wander off and get eaten by a wolf today." Instead it is simply satisfying its base needs, oblivious to the bigger picture.

And there are folks like that today, perhaps some right here in this service. They are not far from God because that was their plan; they just didn't have a plan. Their world is consumed with the immediate, earning a living, feeding their appetites, simply making it through life.

And some of those appetites and desires move them further and further from God, but it is carelessness and a lack of knowledge. That's where I was when I was 19. Jason and I were talking one day and the question came up about making church relevant to people who are far from God. And I commented that the relevancy of the church never crossed my mind before I chose to follow Christ. I didn't deliberately not go to church, it was just something that never crossed my mind to do.

I didn't go to church, I didn't attend meetings at the Lions Club and I wasn't a Shriner simply because they weren't a part of my life. I never stopped to think about the eternal, or about creation or about God. I was lost and like the sheep who had wandered away wasn't even aware that I was lost. But that didn't make me any less lost. And it wasn't until a friend confronted me about my lostness that I even gave it any thought.

And I would venture that the vast majority of the folks in our community who don't attend church just don't think about it. And so for them we need to present both the church and the kingdom in such a way that they actually stop and consider what we have to offer. And in most cases that will happen when people who already follow Christ talk to their pre-Christian friends and family members about the difference that Jesus and Cornerstone has made in their lives. It's really that simple no big plan just an acknowledgement that there is something else out there.

The second picture that Jesus draws is in Luke 15:8 "Or suppose a woman has ten silver coins and loses one. Won't she light a lamp and sweep the entire house and search carefully until she finds it? If the sheep was lost through its own carelessness The Coin Was Lost Through Its Someone Else's Carelessness. Culturally there is a lot going on in this story. With the sheep the shepherd had lost one in a hundred, but here the woman loses one of the ten silver coins that she has, not one percent of the total but 10 percent of the total. And the commentators say that the coins may have represented a couple of different things to the woman.

For some it was her household savings, her rainy day fund, money set aside for a specific purpose and that makes sense. Maybe she was counting it wondering how much longer it would take her to have what she needed or maybe she had what she needed and now was taking it out to spend it on whatever it was that she had saved it for.

At least one commentator offers a more romantic spin and claims in that time and culture the mark of a married woman was a head-dress made of ten silver coins linked together by a silver chain. And if that was the case and that it was one of these coins that was lost, she would have searched for it like you would search for your lost wedding band.

But it was not the coins fault that it had been lost, it hadn't jumped out of the woman's hand, she dropped it or she misplaced it but it was her fault not the coin's. But the coin had certain characteristics that allowed it to be pre-disposed to being lost. It was heavy and so it fell, it was round so it rolled and it was inanimate so it just lay there hidden.

And there are people in our community today who are far from God because of the actions of other people. Parents who had no use for the church, I hear that from time to time, adults who from the time there were children heard nothing but criticism of the church and God, they were shaped from childhood to be lost.

Or maybe it was an incident where they were hurt or disappointed by a church or a believer; I've heard those stories as well. Or maybe today it is a result of the constant negative press the church seems to get in the national media. A few years ago we did the window wash thing at the Esso across the street. One Saturday in February we washed peoples windows and topped up their windshield washer fluids and gave them a magnet with information about the church on them. And this one guy when he found out I was from church started yelling about priests and little boys and televangelists and churches stealing people's money. And then he jumped in truck and drove away. Wow.

And for those people we need to prove ourselves, and we do that through our actions and through our authenticity. We not only say we care and can be trusted we prove it through our actions and the actions of those who call themselves Christ Followers. But remember even those that are lost because of the carelessness of others, are still lost and they still need to be found.

And that brings us to the third picture in the frame and probably the most familiar one, everyone knows the term the Prodigal Son, even people who have never set foot inside a church. Little side lesson here, often we think that Prodigal is a description of someone who knew God and wandered away. Prodigal was actually a description of the life style that he was living and had nothing to do with his past life style or his future life style.

And so Jesus continues with his lesson Luke 15:11-13 To illustrate the point further, Jesus told them this story: "A man had two sons. The younger son told his father, 'I want my share of your estate now before you die.' So his father agreed to divide his wealth between his sons. "A few days later this younger son packed all his belongings and moved to a distant land, and there he wasted all his money in wild living." The Son Was Lost Through His Deliberate Actions This is what sets this story apart from the other two, it wasn't carelessness that resulted in his being lost, it was a conscious thought and action, he deliberately walked away from his father and his father's home. Have you seen the progression? One sheep out of a hundred, one coin out of ten, but here it is one son out of two. We've gone from a loss of 1% to 10% to 50%. From a relatively insignificant loss to one of incredible significance, the loss of a son.

It wasn't his carelessness that led the boy into his wilderness, he knew exactly what he was doing. And it wasn't someone else's fault, as far as we can tell the boy had a good home and a loving family. And he decided to walk away from his home and his family. This was a conscious decision that he made, nobody else made it for him.

And there are people out there today who have consciously decided to not follow Jesus or they were part of the family and decided that they didn't want to be part of the family any more.

But regardless of why the son was lost the reality is that he was lost. He no longer had any of the privileges of being part of that family, he no longer slept under their roof no longer shared their meals.

I think it is interesting that the shepherd went looking for the sheep, and the woman swept her house in order to find the coin but the father simply waited for his son to return. Because there wasn't anything else he could do. Once the boy had decided to go there were only two options that remained 1) Let him go 2) Take away his free will. And as effective as shackles and a small room in the barn would have been it was outside the scope of the father's love. As much as the father loved his child he wasn't about to take away his free will. Sound familiar?

In January I will have been in pastoral ministry for 30 years, and I have owned cats for 42 years and I have discovered that pastoring people is like owning cats. If they get out you can't run and catch them. You ever try to catch a cat? Not going to happen not until it wants to be caught. Oh you do the right things you call for the cat, and you rattle the treat bag but they come home when they want to come home. All you can do is be prepared when they come back to let them back in.

And I have discovered that when someone decides to leave the church or worse turn their back on their faith there's not a lot you or me or God can do to prevent that from happening, shy of locking them in a small room in chains and that goes back to the free will issue again.

And so we call them and rattle the treat bag but we need to be prepared when they come home. In the story we read this Luke 15:20 "So he (the lost son) returned home to his father. And while he was still a long way off, his father saw him coming. Filled with love and compassion, he ran to his son, embraced him, and kissed him."

Sometimes we are better at tracking down lost sheep and lost coins then we are at welcoming back lost sons. Just saying.

But all three stories ended the same way listen again to the words of Jesus.

Luke 15:6 When he arrives, he will call together his friends and neighbours, saying, 'Rejoice with me because I have found my lost sheep.'

Luke 15:9 And when she finds it, she will call in her friends and neighbours and say, 'Rejoice with me because I have found my lost coin.'

Luke 15:22-24 "But his father said to the servants, 'Quick! Bring the finest robe in the house and put it on him. Get a ring for his finger and sandals for his feet. And kill the calf we have been fattening. We must celebrate with a feast, for this son of mine was dead and has now returned to life. He was lost, but now he is found.' So the party began.

And then Jesus ties it all together with a bow when he said Luke 15:10 "In the same way, there is joy in the presence of God's angels when even one sinner repents."

Are we serious about our mission, about God's mission? About reaching pre-Christians? It cost God his son, it cost Jesus his life and be assured it will cost you something.

There are those in this group today because others were willing to pay that something, the cost of this building, stepping outside their comfort zone to talk to you about God and Cornerstone or in giving up their preferences in order to have a church that you would feel comfortable in.

What will it cost you? Being a part of the 9 a.m. service or eventually moving to another service? As more people come home to Cornerstone there will be need for more volunteers to provide for more ministries and you might be thinking but I don't want to miss Sunday morning worship. Do you think our other volunteers want to miss the service? Plus we have the great opportunity to work in one service and worship in the other one. And ultimately there will be a need for more finances and eventually for a bigger facility.

The only question that remains is: Do we love lost people enough to pay the price?