Recovering Christmas

Introduction

For my entire life I have heard the phrase - Put Christ back in Christmas

Usually these words are a push back on what is perceived the takeover of Christmas by the world

Lets be real - we love the same things about Christmas that non Christians do

We love the food - Its always best to avoid the scales around this time

Most of us love the music - There are some here that don’t have a heart

We love the lights and decorations - Maybe not putting them up

We love the movies -

Whether its - “No kid, you’ll shoot your eye out” or “Teacher says Every time a bell rings, an angel gets its wings” or All I have to say is cousin Eddie - and you get it (BTW-Every family has a cousin Eddie)

And oh, how we love the gifts: So much that if there were no Christmas - The US economy would collapse

Illuss.: I knew a man once who blasted everything about Christmas - but still wanted the gifts

The truth is that Christ is absent from many of our Christmas celebrations, but how do we fix that? - how do we Recover the significance of the Biblical Christmas

There have been a couple of different approaches in my generation

Legalistic Approach: Declare the things that I mentioned about Christmas as outlawed

We can say no trees, no music, no lights, no santa

Illuss.: St. Nicholas was one of the coolest dudes ever in the history of the church - He punched a guy one time for denying the deity of Christ

You can’t add something by taking away something else

So we can remove the things of Christmas and still not put Christ in it

Illuss.: If we attempt this we will look like Bugermeister Meisterburger - The guy who took all of the toys from the kids in Santa Claus is Coming to Town

Listen - legalism is destructive -It destroys churches, individuals, and families, and most importantly - the gospel - It is certainly not going to cause us to proclaim Christ during Christmas

Illuss.: Before I was ever a Father - I witnessed a man run his home not by grace, love, and gospel but by legalism - most of his children are now estranged - many in deep sin

It destroys churches, individuals, and families, and most importantly - the gospel

I know this church has a history of legalism - we are going to dismantle that with the gospel, grace, love, and the freedom we have in Christ

Law Enforcement Approach: This is the approach where we try to force the world to acknowledge Christ at Christmas

The most infamous illustration of this is - Happy Holidays verses Merry Christmas

If you have to make a law to put Christ in Christmas - maybe that’s not Christian

The gospel is not advance in a court of law but in the hearts of men

The world does not and cannot love Christ

I propose that the answer to putting Christ in Christmas is actually found in Scripture - Specifically Luke’s account of the Birth of Christ

All included in this passage; Angels, shepherds, Mary and Joseph - will teach us not only how to put Christ in Christmas but how to make sure that Christ is at the center of Christmas

How Do We Recover Christmas?

Recover The Message

The Message of Luke a. The Angel (2:1–21)

For many people, the story of Jesus’s birth is practically all they know of Christianity. For Luke, however, a mere paragraph of seven verses (his Gospel contains well over 1,000!) is enough to deal with the nativity itself.

v8-11 - Exposition

What’s so special about the Christmas message

The message was entrusted to the meek (v8)

This is a God thing - From the mouths of angels to ears of the outcasts

Shepherds were barely a class above lepers

They were excluded from temple worship - considered dirty and outcasts

Here is an amazing thing though - The shepherds in Bethlehem has a specific purpose - To keep the sheep used in the temple sacrifice - The angel came to the ones who kept the lamb but could not go to the temple

The Arrival of Christ is the Arrival of Good News. Why?

The message wasn’t given to the religious elite of Israel - not the proud but the humble

2. Heavenly Message - The Christmas message is a message from God - delivered by angels (v9)

We need to make sure that we and the world understands that the gospel is from God not from us - we are simply the messengers

A message to destroy fear and instill joy (v10)

Illuss.: For last couple years of my mom’s life, I hated to hear the phone ring - anticipation of terrible news

The shepherds were afraid because, they were afraid to die - And sometimes in Scripture when angels show up

And do you know why they feared death - because they were sinners in need of a savior

This message is for everyone - not just the religious but the shepherd too

For white and black, rich and poor, educated and the WVU graduate,

What is this message?

A Savior is Born Who is Christ the Lord

Do you know how we put Christ in Christmas?

Make Sure His message - Salvation is possible - Sin has been defeated because a Savior was born is at the heart of Christmas

Read v12-14

Recover The Mission

v15-18 Exposition

R

There are two things that the Shepherd embark on that I want to call the mission of Christmas

Know Christ More

v15-16

Their reaction must be our reaction

This Christmas - Would you chase after Jesus so that you may know Him more

Maybe you are thinking - I will as soon as I get a sign from heaven like the shepherds - Well, I am not an angel put I am declaring the word - This is your sign

Illuss.: My wife accuses me of man-looking for things. Example - When she is wanting to watch a Hallmark Christmas movie - a man look for the remote. When a game is on that I want to watch - I search diligently

Through His Word

Make Christ Known

v17-18

There is a connection between knowing Jesus and telling others about Jesus

These shepherds had a confidence they had never had before

If we want to truly center Christmas on Christ - We tell others, we invite others, we share with others

Illuss.: Christmas is like a big birthday party. There are alot of people coming to the party that don’t know the man whose birthday we are celebrating. Lets tell them this Christmas season.

Recover The Wonder

There are two ways to recover the Wonder of Christ

The Worship of Mary - Silent Contemplation

v18

One of the biggest problem of our busy, constant entertainment, not stop cultural is that we never just stop and think

Mary pondered all of this in her heart

When is the last time you pondered the birth of Christ, death, burial, resurrection, salvation, return

Illuss.: I love to watch children shake a present and try to figure out what is inside. My mother had a different approach - wait until no one was home and secretly open the packages

The Praise of the Shepherds - Outward Proclamation

v19

We find that the reaction to Christmas is worship - unrestrained

Illuss.: Consider your reaction when you opened a great gift. There is no greater gift than Jesus

Conclusion

I leave you with a challenge - Recover Christmas by truly putting Christ in Christmas

Recover the Biblical Christmas