Missing Christmas

Happy New Years

well the holidays are over and i pray you were all very blessed by the time with family and the time with the Lord in thankfulness for the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ

The next two weeks are meant to challenge you to look back on 2022

and next week Vision Sunday to look ahead at 2023

How are you going to GLORIFY GOD?

How are you going to GROW in CHRIST?

I thought with all the football and sports that have been on this season

that we should take a look at the season ending back in the beginning of our modern era.

Back to the beginning of AD --- 2022 years ago

he is commonly believed to have been born eight days before the New Year on December 25, 1 B.C.E.

But this is very unlikely.

For one thing, there is no year 0.

The day following December 31, 1 B.C.E. is January 1, 1 C.E.

There is an issue with the Christian faith, nor the Christian Calendar existed for hundreds of years after.

The Roman Calendar and the Jewish calendar were in use

of the Jewish faith it was the Jewish calendar

and for the Romans the Julian Calendar installed in 46 BC

and today marks 5783 in the Jewish calendar. Marking from the beginning of creation.

And it isn't as though this system of accounting can be trusted anyway

First, the calendar system was based around what was traditionally believed at the time to be the birth of Jesus.

The Bible was not written around a calendar.

In other words, if one of the two is inaccurate, look to the calendar system, not the gospels.

The calendar system may be inaccurate because it was based on medieval tradition of when Jesus was born, not a Biblical or historical account of the event.

Secondly, and more importantly, the Bible doesn’t even mention when Jesus was born (in terms of a date).

An inaccuracy can’t exist where there’s nothing written.

No one really knows when Jesus was born.

It could have been 1 AD, 1 BC, 4 BC, 6 BC, 7 BC, and it seems everyone’s got a theory.

But there’s no solid proof of exactly when Jesus was born.

While this is sometimes debated, the majority of New Testament scholars place Jesus’ birth in 4 B.C. or before.

This is because most date the death of King Herod the Great to 4 B.C.

Since Herod played a major role in the narrative of Jesus’ birth (see Matthew 2),

Jesus would have had to be born before Herod died.

Interestingly

In about the 500 AD area a monk from the area today know as Romania calculated the date of Christ’s birth

so with all that great information

we learn that history and the calendar and and the holiday of Christmas are not an exact science

and we celebrate the coming of our Lord and not an event or a date.

With all the confusion on dates it is not a surprise that some missed and some found Christmas way before the internet or the apple watch.

Lets take a quick look at three people that missed the whole thing

Three Who Missed Christmas

Cheri and i have a house devoid of Christmas furnishings or at least we have very few. I think i noticed a few hand towels on the oven handle

and then there are the Christmas Cards that we received standing on the table in our dining area.

to a visitor it may seem that we MISSED Christmas

there is no tree, no lights, no presents, no food prep or even people coming over to our house.

NOW we are not scrooges and in fact we did watch that movie, along with ELF and the Grinch

A house without a Christmas Tree ---- oh the crime

But we had Christmas

We attended service on Christmas Eve with our church family

We went to dinner after service

we spent time with family

we gave blessings and glad tidings

we loved on those around us

we traveled to the East Coast and drove hundreds of miles to see family

and most important we spent time on the important things

And we made sure to focus on Christ and not Christmas

What we didn’t MISS --

 God put on flesh and became the perfect man, Jesus Christ.

 God left heaven and came to earth to restore His relationship with mankind that was

broken by sin.

 Jesus Christ is the prophesied Messiah and fulfills everything the Old Testament

promised.

 Jesus Christ will be born to die in our place and provide forgiveness from all sins to all

who believe in Him.

 If we trust in Him, we not only will experience salvation, but we will also be guaranteed

eternal life and we become Children of God.

BUT i want to give you a view of the first Christmas 3 who missed it and 3 who got it.

The Innkeeper

The first misser --- Pursuits of the world

We find a mention of the possibility of an innkeeper in Luke 2:1–7….

Now I know it does not directly say that their was an INNKEEPER – neither does it

state that it was a man or woman, married, single, kids….

We must amuse that there was

one in the fact that Joseph and Mary did acquire to someone and they were told there was

NO ROOM.

Never the less, this INNKEEPER did offer and provide a spot in their stable – which

was more likely a cave like area behind the home.

He directed Mary and Joseph to that spot

and we don’t hear or see any sight of the INNKEEPER.

Gone from the story – HE MISSED

THE FIRST CHRISTMAS….that took place in his backyard!

Insights on the Innkeeper

 Bethlehem was overrun with visitors because of the ancestorial census that was

being taken.

 There was no guarantee how long this economic boom would last because it was a

“decree” and not an annual event.

 For weeks merchants and business owners who enjoy a financial windfall from this

event.

 Day after day there was demands for lodging as out of town people came to the city.

 Normally an “INN” could accommodate a few guests as they would open up their

residence to strangers.

Are we distracted like the INNKEEPER? how do we do better in 2023

 Health

 Profession

 Hobbies

 Worries and daily concerns

 Finances

 Family; kids and grand kids

 Politics

 Injustices from your past

Any of us can allow all kinds of DISTRACTIONS slip into our lives as we PURSUE things

– even GOOD things – and still totally MISS CHRIST and CHRISTMAS!

The Scribes and Priests

The second missers — the ones with Prejudices

Insights on the Scribes and Priests

 They were custodians of the scriptures.

 Their job demanded them to be knowledgeable, precise and accurate.

 They knew the Old Testament well and especially the Messianic prophesies.

 They were not to be beholding anyone, even the religious leaders,

but to be committed to speak the truth.

These Scribes and Priest KNEW WELL THE TRUTH …..

 Micah 5:2

[2] But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are too little to be among the clans of

Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel,

whose coming forth is from of old, from ancient days. (ESV)

 Isaiah 7:14

[14] Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive

and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel. (ESV)

 Isaiah 9:6–7

[6] For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon

his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,

Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. [7] Of the increase of his government and of

peace there will be no end, on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish

it and to uphold it with justice and with righteousness from this time forth and

forevermore. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will do this.

The SCRIBES and PRIESTS missed Christmas because of their RELIGIOUS PREJUDICE

and the failure to acknowledge the truths about Messiah.

How are we like the religious leaders?

 Failure to believe the truth of God’s Word

 We hold up our past experiences and traditions over the truth

 We create our own ideas of who God is, what He expects and How to relate to Him

 We are afraid to accept the truth because it may offend or disappoint others

 We know the truth but hold back believing it to avoid conflict or persecution

G. All of us have the ability to allow our past ideas and beliefs cloud the truth.

Especially

when it is contradicting the Word of God and the true GOSPEL.

Herod

The final misser — due to Power

Insights on Herod

 Herod the Great. Known as a ruler, builder and administrator; in other ways great in

politics and cruelty.

 He was wealthy, intensely loyal and clever enough to remain in the good graces of

successive Roman emperors.

 He loved power, inflicted incredibly heavy taxes on the people, and resented the fact

that many Jews considered him a usurper.

 He wanted to be accepted by the Jews but was not a Jew at all but an Edomite yet

recognized as a vassal king over Judea.

 The Jews tempered their hatred of him with admiration for his building projects, such

as the magnificent improvements made to the second temple.

 Barclay reminds us of his violent rule and obsession with power: “He had no sooner

come to the throne than he began by annihilating the Sanhedrin…he slaughtered

three hundred court officers…he murdered his wife Mariamne, and her mother

Alexandra, his eldest son Antipater, and two other sons, Alexander and Aristobulus.”

HEROD missed Christmas because he desired to keep his POWER at all costs and was

unwilling to surrender CONTROL to God.

WHO MISSED CHRISTMAS?

The Innkeeper – PURSUITS….

The Scribes –PREJUDICES…

Herod - POWER

but there were those who found it.......

Three who Found Christmas

AIM: To consider the three Christmas characters who found the central message of

Christmas – Christ the baby is the Savior and what choices they made to find him!

What WE found on Christmas...

 God put on flesh and became the perfect man, Jesus Christ.

 God left heaven and came to earth to restore His relationship with mankind that was

broken by sin.

 Jesus Christ is the prophesied Messiah and fulfills everything the Old Testament

promised.

 Jesus Christ will be born to die in our place and provide forgiveness from all sins to all

who believe in Him.

 If we trust in Him, we not only will experience salvation, but we will also be guaranteed

eternal life and we become Children of God.

Joseph

Choose righteous over rights

Put yourself in JOSEPH’S place.

Living out a normal Jewish upbring means that you live in

the same town with the same people around you.

You learn you father’s trade, which in this

case was carpentry or really stone masonry.

You attend synagogue faithfully and

obediently live out the laws of Moses and Talmud. And oh yeah, you have an arranged marriage.

Joseph could have:

walked away because of the pregnancy

Shamed Mary for adultery

He could have keep got married and yet been known as a fornicator that could not control himself prior to marriage

Joseph could have walked away and missed Christmas

BUT Joseph did the RIGHT THING and choose to not assert his “rights”

We are faced with these choices every day and we should follow the example of Joseph

Mary

Mary CHOOSE HIS Word over HER Will

We don’t know why God chose Mary

Likely because He know HER

God knew her obedience and love

God knew Mary and Mary know THE WORD

Mary knew the community price of the Pregnancy

Mary knew the blessing of God for obedience

Mary Chose HIS WORD over HER Will

Mary experienced Christmas — there was NO MISS

Shepherds

Choose a Savior over Sin

Our final people who found Christmas probably is the most notable.

There are the rough and uneducated and unsophisticated herdsmen who we are grazing the sheep at night in a

field just outside the city limits of Bethlehem.

They choose to seek out the Savior

over sin. They would find the one who would take away all of their failures, transgressions

and offences against a holy God and restore them back with God.

They went looking for a

Savior to deal with their sin!

And that is how and why you will find the Christ of Christ.

Not

just choosing RIGHTEOUSNESS over RIGHTS….and the WORD over your WILL….but

when you say enough with sin and its eternal impact on me

– I CHOOSE TO FIND MY

SAVIOR!

The Shepherds’ lives were eternally changed when they found Christmas and so

will yours!

Conclusion - How did you do this year?

God is the Lord of ALL

All times

All things

All knowledge

But we have seen today that things such as Power, Prejudice, and Pursuits

We have seen that some experienced Christmas for the rest of their lifes because of Obedience to God

We have seen the model for us in 2023

Chose Righteousness

Chose the WORD over our WILL

and to chose our Savior over our SIN

Jesus loves you, the Holy Spirit will guide you as you live in Christ Daily.

I am so glad you didn’t miss Christmas

Lets Pray.