Sunday, December 12, 2004 • Rev. Jose Gomez Sr. • Blessing
Don't allow the fast pace of the holidays and the unbiblical views of others influence you or detract you from being able to celebrate and assemble a Real Christmas for you and your family this year.
Your Sermon
Merry Christmas, assembly required?
Luke 2:8-2:20
A Merry Christmas, assembly required? *Luke 2:8-20 "And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. {9} and, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid. {10} and the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. {11} for unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord. {12} and this shall be a sign unto you; ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. {13} And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, {14} Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men. {15} And it came to pass, as the angels were gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds said one to another, Let us now go even unto Bethlehem, and see this thing which is come to pass, which the Lord hath made known unto us. {16} And they came with haste, and found Mary, and Joseph, and the babe lying in a manger. {17} And when they had seen it, they made known abroad the saying which was told them concerning this child. {18} And all they that heard it wondered at those things which were told them by the shepherds. {19} But Mary kept all these things, and pondered them in her heart. {20} And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen, as it was told unto them.
Christmas Survey What do people believe about the birth of Christ? A few days ago Newsweek Magazine conducted a poll asking some questions about Christ and His birth.* Here are some of the results:
67% - believe that the entire story of Christmas is historically accurate 24% - believe the story of Christmas is a theological invention
If Jesus had never born, people believed there would be: 63% - less charity 61% - less kindness 59% - less personal happiness 58% - less tolerance 47% - more war (16% say less, 26% say the same)
Introduction: Sometimes the things that should be natural to us are the ones that we struggle with the most. Celebrating Christmas should not be something that we have to work at like the rest of the world if it's something that we do all year long. Celebrating the birth of our Lord and Savior should come natural to us.
How do we assemble a Merry Christmas? I. Have you ever had to assemble something that you bought at the store? If you want it to work the way it's supposed to the first thing you must do; follow the instructions and be attentive to the main part. (Luke 2:15-16) And it came to pass, as the angels were gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds said one to another, Let us now go even unto Bethlehem, and see this thing which is come to pass, which the Lord hath made known unto us. {16} and they came with haste, and found Mary, and Joseph, and the babe lying in a manger. 1. They followed the instructions given to them; "Let us now go to Bethlehem, and see this thing which is come to pass, which the Lord hath made known unto us." 2. They investigated the facts; - Many don't know what Christmas is really about because they have not taken the time to investigate. - They go with what others say about Christmas or what they see on television. 3. They hurried to find Jesus in the most unlikely place; "Laying in a manger" - A Merry Christmas cannot be found at the mall. - Cannot be found at the bar. - It can only be found where Jesus is present - You don't need to have a lot of money to have a merry Christmas.(NOTICE THEY FOUND HIM WITH WRAPPED IN SWADDLING CLOTHES). Not real expensive paper, no ribbons, no bow. -If you found Jesus. That is all that you need to have a Merry Christmas. *(Luke 2:11) For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord. The main part of the Christmas celebration is Jesus. Not the Christmas lights, not the tree, not even the nice gifts. But if you share Jesus with someone you have given the best gift of all.
II. Second, encourage others to celebrate with you *(Luke 2:17) And when they had seen it, they made known abroad the saying which was told them concerning this child. 1. Notice that the shepherds increased their joy by telling others about the birth of the Messiah. 2 Don't keep it to yourself but share the joy with others. Your friends, co-workers, neighbors. 3. If you keep Christmas to yourself, you will loose out on the joy and satisfaction that comes from winning others to Christ.
III. Third, take time to think about what God has done in your life *(Luke 2:18) And all they that heard it wondered at those things which were told them by the shepherds. 1. What if you didn't have Jesus? Would all the gifts in the world really make a difference in your life? 2. Sometimes the true meaning of Christmas gets lost in all the commercializing of the holidays. 3. The message was clear by those shepherds and it stuck wonder in the hearts of those that heard the story of Christmas for the first time. 4. Taking time to read the story of the first Christmas and listening to the Word of God will remind us to maintain the right perspective. -One of our best Christmas as a family was when Jose and Eric both got a study Bible for Christmas. (WE SPEND CHRISTMAS DAY GOING THROUGH THAT BIBLE)
IV. Fourth,.Don't throw anything out or put anything away. 1. We must not put anything away as we do with all the ornaments every year after the Holidays. But but keep them in your heart. (Luke 2:19) But Mary kept all these things, and pondered them in her heart. 1. Kept means that she didn't forget but remembered constantly the birth of Jesus. It was that special to her. 2. She constantly thought about them. Every detail that surrounds the real story of Christmas is important and must not be forgotten or substituted for a cheap imitation. 3. Kept also means to observe as in a tradition. It's a good to observe traditions such as Christmas that remind us of God's blessings.
V. Fifth, don't stop until the job is done. (Luke 2:20) And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen, as it was told unto them. Christmas is something that we should celebrate all year long. Not only in December It gave them great joy} and the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen, as it was told unto them.
Conclusion: Don't allow the fast pace of the holidays and the unbiblical views of others influence you or detract you from being able to celebrate and assemble a Real Christmas for you and your family this year.
Thursday, January 2, 2003 • Rev. Jose Gomez Sr. • Blessing
The end of the year has come and it's a great time to reflect and decide that whatever mistakes have been made are behind us. God has given us His warnings so that we will not make the same mistakes again.
