Tonight’s sermon:
“Nothing is impossible with God.” Luke 1:37
Listen now to Luke 1, verses 26-38, from the New Testament of the Bible:
In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to the Galilean village of Nazareth to a virgin engaged to be married to a man descended from David. His name was Joseph, and the virgin’s name, Mary. Upon entering, Gabriel greeted her: ‘Good morning! You’re beautiful with God’s beauty, beautiful inside and out! God be with you.’
She was thoroughly shaken, wondering what was behind a greeting like that. But the angel assured her, ‘Mary, you have nothing to fear. God has a surprise for you: You will become pregnant and give birth to a son and call his name Jesus. He will be great, be called ‘Son of the Highest.’ The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David; He will rule Jacob’s house forever— no end, ever, to his kingdom.’
Mary said to the angel, ‘But how? I’ve never slept with a man.’
The angel answered, ‘The Holy Spirit will come upon you, the power of the Highest hover over you; Therefore, the child you bring to birth will be called Holy, Son of God. And did you know that your cousin Elizabeth conceived a son, old as she is? Everyone called her barren, and here she is six months pregnant! Nothing, you see, is impossible with God.’
I want you to take a minute now to silently pray about the answers to these questions:
· What does God promise to you and to the world that seems impossible at this time?
· What voices within us and outside us call things impossible?
· What is God’s Spirit saying?
Let’s pray: God of unwavering power, thank you for all that is ours in Christ. We ask forgiveness for the times we forget your promises and doubt your power to fulfill them. Like Mary and Joseph, we believe beyond what we can see, for nothing is impossible with you, Creator, Redeemer, and Sustainer of all that is and will be. Amen.
Tonight we continue our celebration of Advent, a time of longing as we await the Christ child’s birth. A season when God’s Spirit helps us believe in the impossible. “One Incredible Moment,” taken from a book by Max Lucado, is our theme for the next few weeks as we look at what the manger means to me and the silent night of the heart. I hope you’ll make plans to be here every week.
SONG (verse 1 of Come, Thou Long-Expected Jesus)
Tonight let’s allow thoughts on God’s love to be our focus. God’s love has no strings, no expectations, no hidden agendas, no secrets. His love for us is up-front and personal. God sees each child, each one of us, and we are instantly loved. Permanently loved.
We are created in God’s image. God made us to be like God. To laugh. To create. To love. God breathed life into us, starting our life story. The end of our story is yet to be written. But how much safer it would have been if God had just finished the story for us! Had scripted every option instead of adding alternative endings to choose from. It would have been so much simpler and safer! But that’s not love. Love is only love if chosen.
And it was love that gave the world Emmanuel, God with us, Jesus. You see, God entered our life story. The Bible says, “The Word became flesh and blood, and moved into the neighborhood.” God became flesh and blood: a human. He, too, would be born. God, too, would have hands and feet. He, too, would have tears and trials.
And most importantly, God, too, would have a choice. Emmanuel, God with us, Jesus, would stand at the crossroads of life and death and make a choice. And God knows the weight of that decision. He could stop. Even God has a choice.
But how can a Creator not create? How can a Writer not write? And how can Love not love? So God chooses life, with hope that his children will do the same. God chooses love, because that is God’s nature.
But here’s what those of us sitting here today really want to know. We’ve got to ask it because we’ve been wondering. Dear God, how long will your love last? Will you really love us forever? Not just on Sunday when our shoes are polished and our hair is combed? We want to know!
How do you feel about us when we act like jerks? Or what about when we’re animated and upbeat and ready to tackle world hunger? We know how you feel about us then. We even like ourselves then. But how do you feel about us when we snarl at anything that moves, when our thoughts are down in the sewer, when our words are prickly and cut like a knife. How do you feel about us then God? Surely you don’t still love us then God!
Can anything separate us from the love Christ has for us? God answered that question before we even asked it, and so we’d see his answer, upfront and personal, God lit the sky with a star. And so we’d hear it, God filled the night with singers. And so we’d believe it, God did what humankind had never dreamed.
God became flesh and blood and dwelt among us. God moved into our ‘hood. And God reached out God’s hand, placed it on our shoulders and said, “You! You’re extraordinary! You are so special to me.”
SONG: (verse 1 of Joy to the World)
Make room in your hearts because God is moving in. And God’s moving in with you because God loves what he sees. Inundated with passion. Overcome by pride. The maker and creator of heaven and earth turns to us, one by one and says, “You’re my child. I love you very much. Someday you may turn from me and walk away, but I want you to know this. I’ve already provided a way back home.”
God did something unexpected and surprising. God removed his radiant robe and put on skin: pigmented, human skin like the persons God had created. The light of the world went into a dark womb. The one whom angels adore lay in the belly of a poor girl, was born on a cold night, and then slept on rough, scratchy hay. One incredible, hard to believe moment, don’t you think?
Mary didn’t know whether to give Jesus milk or give him praise, but she gave him both since he was, as near as she could figure, both a hungry infant as well as divine. Joseph didn’t know whether to call him his earthly Son or his heavenly Father. In the end he called him Jesus, since that’s what the angel had said and since he didn’t have the faintest idea what to name a God he could actually hold in his arms.
Just imagine Mary and Joseph looking at each other and both praying in their minds, “What in the world are you doing, God?” Or maybe even, “God, what are you doing in the world?”
God says to you, “Can anything make me stop loving you? Watch me speak your language, sleep on your ground, and feel your pain. Take a look at the maker of sight and sound as I sneeze, cough, and blow my nose, just like you.
You wonder if I understand how you feel? Look into the dancing eyes of the kid I was in Nazareth: that’s me walking to school! Ponder the toddler at Mary’s, my mother’s table: that’s me spilling my milk.”
“Do you still wonder how long my love will last?” God asks. “Maybe you will find your answer on a splintered cross on a craggy hill. You see that’s me, too, that you see up there. Your creator. Your God. Nail-stabbed and bleeding. That’s your death I’m dying. That’s your resurrection I’m living. Love is a choice, and I choose you. That’s how much I love you.”
How great is God’s love? How can the maker of the world be bothered about the bumps and the curves on the ride which is called your life? Just think about this: if God is able to place the stars, and the sky, and everything else in the universe exactly where it should go, don’t you think it’s remotely possible that God is able to guide your life?
Think about it: if God is powerful enough to set fire to the sun, could it be that he is powerful enough to light your way? If God cares enough about the planet Saturn to give it rings or about Venus to make it shine, do you think there’s an outside chance that God cares enough about you to meet your needs? Do you think?
Jesus says, “Look at the birds, free and unfettered, not tied down to a job description, careless in the care of God. And you count far more to him than birds.”
“Has anyone by fussing in front of the mirror ever gotten taller by so much as an inch? All this time and money wasted on fashion—do you think it makes that much difference? Instead of looking at the fashions, walk out into the fields and look at the wildflowers. They never primp or shop, but have you ever seen color and design quite like it? The ten best-dressed men and women in the country look shabby alongside them.”
“If God gives such attention to the appearance of wildflowers—most of which are never even seen—don’t you think he’ll attend to you, take pride in you, do his best for you? What I’m trying to do here is to get you to relax,….” Matthew 6: 26-30
Why did God do it? Did God have to give the birds a song and the mountains a peak? Was God required to put stripes on the zebra and the hump on the camel? Would we have known the difference had he made the sunsets gray instead of orange?
Why do stars have twinkles and the waves snowy crests? Why cover the cardinal in red and wrap the beluga whale in white? Why drape creation in such splendor and magnificence? Why go to such trouble to give such gifts?
Well, why do YOU do it? You do the exact same thing. Admit it. Think about when you’re searching for just the right gift. Don’t deny it! You’re stalking the malls and walking the aisles and I’m not talking about the obligatory gifts, either. I’m not talking about buying the last-minute drugstore body spray on for your kid’s teacher. I’m not thinking about the Wal-Mart specials and discount store acquisitions.
No, I’m talking about that extra-special person and that extra-special gift. I’m talking about how you put away a few dollars a month so you can buy him some lizard-skin boots. I’m talking about staring at a thousand rings to find her the best diamond. I’m talking about staying up all night Christmas Eve putting together the new bike with the instructions, “some assembly required.”
Why do you do it? Admit it! You do it so the eyes will pop. You do it so the heart will either stop or start beating harder. You do it so the jaw will drop. You do it to hear those words of disbelief, “You did this for me?” That’s why you do it, and that’s why God did it. Next time a sunrise steals your breath away or a field of flowers leaves you amazed, stay that way. Say nothing and just listen as God softly speaks, “Do you like it? I did it just for you.”
God did it all for you and God’s waiting for you to see and realize that his gift is waiting for you. Such love is sometimes hard to believe because we’ve never experienced anything like it before. But just because we can’t imagine God giving us sunsets doesn’t mean that God didn’t do it. Every so often, out of God’s great wisdom, our heavenly parent gives us a piece of heaven here on earth just to show us how much he really cares. How much God really loves us.
SONG: (verse 1 of Hark! The Herald Angels Sing)
The racket and the activity began earlier than usual in the community. As night gave way to sunrise, people were already on the roads. Vendors were placing themselves on the corners of the most heavily traveled streets. Store owners were unlocking the doors to their shops. Children were awaken by the agitated barking of dogs and the moans of donkeys pulling carts.
The owner of the hotel had awakened earlier than most in the city. After all, the hotel was full, all the beds taken. Every available mat or blanket had been put to use. Soon all the customers would be rousing from their sleep and there would be a lot of work to do.
Try to imagine the conversation between the owner of the hotel and his family at the breakfast table that morning. Did they talk about the appearance of the young couple the night before? Did any of them ask about their safety? Did they comment on the pregnancy of the teenager on the donkey?
Maybe. Maybe somebody raised the issue. But at best it was raised and not talked about. After all, there was nothing that unique about them. They were maybe 1 of several families turned away that night. Besides, who had time to talk about them when there was so much excitement in the air? Augustus did the economy of Bethlehem a favor when he decreed that a census should be taken. Who could remember when so many business opportunities had arrived in town?
No, it was doubtful that anyone talked about the couple’s coming to town or considered the condition of the pregnant teen. They were too busy. The new day was upon them. The day’s bread had to be made. The morning’s chores had to be done. There was way too much to do to imagine that the impossible had taken place in the night. That God had entered the world as a baby.
SONG: (verse 1 of Once in Royal David’s City)
Max Lucado tells a story of God’s love by relating it to his relationship with his kids. He writes, “My daughters are too old for this now, but when they were young—crib-size and diaper-laden—I would come home, shout their names, and watch them run to me with extended arms and squealing voices. For the next few moments we would speak the language of love. We’d roll on the floor, gobble bellies, and tickle tummies and laugh and play.”
Max said, “We delighted in each other’s presence. They made no requests to me, with the exception of ‘Let’s play, Daddy.’ And I made no demands of them, except, ‘Don’t hit Daddy with the hammer.’ My kids let me love them. But suppose my daughters had approached me as we often approach God. ‘Hey, Dad, glad you’re home. Here is what I want. More toys. More candy. And can we go to Disneyland this summer?’”
“’Whoa,’ I would have wanted to say. ‘I’m not a waiter, and this isn’t a restaurant. I’m your father, and this is our house. Why don’t you just climb up on Daddy’s lap and let me tell you how much I love you?’”
Ever thought God might want to do that same with you? Oh, God wouldn’t say that to me you might say. Oh really? Then to whom was he speaking when God said, “I’ve never quit loving you and never will. Expect love, love, and more love!” Jeremiah 31: 3 Was the Bible just teasing when it says, “Absolutely nothing can get between us and God’s love because of the way that Jesus our Master has embraced us.” Romans 8: 39
Or what about this hidden deep in the Old Testament book of Zephaniah: “Your God is present among you, a strong Warrior there to save you. Happy to have you back, he’ll calm you with his love and delight you with his songs.” Zephaniah 3: 17 Don’t ever tell me our God is only loving in the New Testament and not the Old. It’s right there. I’ve just given you 2 examples from the Old Hebrew Bible.
And just look at the verbs! Who is active and who is passive? Who’s doing the singing and who is calmly resting? Who is rejoicing over his loved one, and who is being celebrated? We usually imagine that we’re the singers and that is often the case. But it sounds as if there are times when God wants us to just kick back, be still, and let God sing over us. You are precious to God. So precious that he became like you so that you would come to him.
Some of us struggle to think of that, to hear these words, me included. If you’re like me, you don’t feel worthy of such love and attention. But God reminds us that neither was Judas who betrayed him, but Jesus still washed his feet. Neither was Peter who denied even knowing him, but Jesus still fixed him breakfast later. Neither were the followers of Jesus on the way to the town of Emmaus, but Jesus took the time to sit at their table and eat with them, and their eyes were opened. It was the dawn of a new day in their lives.
Who are we to say who’s worthy and who’s not? That’s not up to us. Our job is simply to be still long enough to let God cover us and enfold us. To let God love us. And oh, how he loves us.
SONG (How He Loves Us http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TWgeUrD4MHI)
Let’s pray: Our hearts beat faster and our adrenaline flows more heavily at this time of the year, oh God. We respond to the lights and decorations, to the glad sounds of music, to the prospects of gifts, and brightly decked out houses, and parties and friends and relatives coming to visit. But help us not to forget, gracious God, that the origin of all joy is in your love and self-giving, which were made known most completely in the child born at Bethlehem. Teach us to be still and to touch the joy. Let it flow through us like some eternal medicine, healing our hurts and wounds and illnesses. Let it ring through our minds like heavenly bells, tolling happiness and friendship and a peace we have never really known.
And when we have felt it, let it move out from us to everyone we meet and know. Let the true spirit of Christmas begin in us and gradually take over the world, converting hate to love, greed to generosity, and unawareness to illumination. Let the song of the angels be our song as we are drawn together in the name of him who was born and died and rose from the dead, to save the world from its sin. It’s in Jesus’ name we pray, Amen.
