Sermon Tone Analysis

Introduction

Christmas traditions.

Whether it’s opening your stockings on Christmas Eve, your children sleeping in late to allow you a restful morning on Christmas day, or even gathering at church for a Christmas Eve service.

We all have our favorite Christmas traditions.

One Christmas tradition my wife and I had when we first got married was we would The Grinch That Stole Christmas.

[Slide - 2] I mean come on, who doesn’t like the story of The Grinch.

He’s a modern Scrooge from Charles Dicken’s famous play The Christmas Care, he’s green and kind of looks like Wally the Boston Red Sox mascot and his grumpy attitude reflects our own attitude at least one time each Christmas season.

Yet, over the years there has been a desire to remove the story of Christ's birth from the celebration of Christmas.

You might not have noticed some of the subtle changes that have taken place over the years - Christmas parties are not Holiday parties, Christmas cards are not holiday cards.

mean come on, who doesn’t like the story of The Grinch.

This year, however, instead of watching the original Dr. Seuss version of the Grinch you and I grew up on or the Jim Carey version, my son David and I went to see the new version of the Grinch in theaters this past Saturday.

[Slide - 3] In this version of the story, much like the original, the Grinch lived outside Whoville up on snowy Mount Crumpit all alone with his dog Max.

We meet the Grinch just about the time he runs out of food.

He has to travel down to Whoville during his most hated time of the year, Christmas, to buy supplies.

As he adventures down into town he meets a group of people that their presence in the movie kind of surprised me.

[Slide - 4] Christmas carolers, the Grinch meets Christmas carolers.

What surprised me more than the Grinch meeting Christmas carolers, was the words they were singing:

Now, these subtle changes to the celebration of Christmas are not big deals in and of themselves if Christmas is simply like any other holiday with the giving of gifts, parties and various types of traditions/celebrations.

But if that's the case, what do we do with the story of Jesus birth?

What role should that story play in our celebration of the holiday?

Those questions can all be answered in the answering of another question,

[Slide - 4] Christmas carolers, the Grinch meets Christmas carolers and they were singing these familiar words:

“God rest ye merry gentlemen let nothing you dismay,

Remember Christ our Savior was born on Christmas Day,

To save us all from Satan's pow'r when we were gone astray

Oh tidings of comfort and joy, comfort and joy,

Oh tidings of comfort and joy.

God rest ye merry gentlemen

Let nothing you dismay

Remember Christ our Savior

Was born on Christmas Day

To save us all from Satan's pow'r

When we were gone astray

Oh tidings of comfort and joy

Comfort and joy

Oh tidings of comfort and joy

W

Forgive me but here was my reaction, What role do Christmas carolers have in the Grinch movie about Christmas?

I mean really, was Jesus a Who?

What role does Jesus play in the Whoville’s Christmas story.

[Slide - 5 - KEEP UP] For that matter...

[Slide - 5]

Question: What role does Jesus play in your Christmas story?

Transition: Like the 50’s style we displayed for you this evening, are not those songs we sing about Jesus simply a holiday tradition of years past?

Is not the truth it sings about, specifically Jesus’, an antiquated, outdated and unfortunate “tradition” of the Christmas season?

That would depend.

It would depend on whether or not Jesus’ story was still applicable, beneficial and necessary for us today, just as necessary for us as it was for the authors of those Christmas carols.

For that reason, join with me tonight as we look at the story of Jesus, the story.

Specifically, I want to focus our attention on the beginning of Jesus’ story.

And as we do, I hope you see that your story is not much different than His,

That would depend on whether or not Jesus’ story was still applicable,

story of Jesus doesn’t start with Jesus’ birth b/c Matthew recognizes that Jesus’ story really

[Slide - 5] That’s because...

I thought it would benefit us to lets take a few moments and the Christmas story, Jesus’ story.

And we are going to start our look at this story by starting at the beginning.

ou ponder that question, I thought it would benefit us to lets take a few moments and the Christmas story, Jesus’ story.

And we are going to start our look at this story by starting at the beginning.

Christmas story, Jesus’ story.

And we are going to start our look at this story by starting at the beginning.

I.

Each Of You Have A Story To Tell

see how Jesus story starts as written by the Apostle Matthew.

Before we begin, realize with me that, though we often think of a person’s story starting at one’s birth Matthew would have to disagree.

He saw Jesus’ story starting long before any manger scene in Bethlehem, long before any Angelic message given from Mary or the Shepherds.

He know that one’s story starts long before one’s birth.

That’s why...

Now, you may think that Jesus’ story and our own story, begins at birth but as we are going to see, Jesus’ story starts long before any manger scene in Bethlehem, long before any Angelic message given from Mary or the Shepherds.

For one’s story starts long before one’s birth.

[Slide - 5] That’s because...

For that reason, to help us answer the question of what role Jesus’ plays in our Christmas story, I would like us to look at

the story of Jesus.

Specifically, I want to focus our attention on the beginning of Jesus’ story.

And as we do, I hope you see that your story is not much different than His, [Slide - 5]...

[TAKE DOWN 5; PUT UP Slide - 6]. for your story begins just like Jesus’ story....

Matthew doesn’t start out with a list of accomplishments or acts of Jesus.

No, he begins by telling us the family tree of Jesus.

To us a genealogy may seem a very tedious way to begin a book and a waste of space.

A genealogy.

To us a genealogy may seem a very tedious way to begin a book and a waste of space.

Matthew doesn’t start out with a list of accomplishments or acts of Jesus.

No, he begins by telling us the family tree of Jesus.

To the Jewish world in which Matthew belonged, a person’s genealogy was a matter of importance

To the Jewish world in which Matthew belonged, it was a matter of importance.

A person’s family history proved one’s identity as a Jew, a participant in the promises God had made for his people.

They could participate in all the aspects of Jewish life and culture

It showed where one was to live and if they could receive an inheritance

Genealogies also emphasized the importance of family units in Jewish culture.

God’s people took seriously their responsibility to continue the line that would bring honor to the family name.

For a person to inherit land in a particular tribal area required evidence that he was descended from that particular tribe.

Matthew chooses to include Jesus’ genealogy to do just that.

To place Him fully in line with the people of Israel and with the ancient stories of old.

Family history was also important due to where one lived.

Each of the Jewish tribes had received a land inheritance in Israel.

For a person to inherit land in a particular tribal area required evidence that he was descended from that particular tribe.

It was a part of Jesus’ story

We learned in school about the Kings of England, the Pharoahs of Egypt and the

This emphasis on genealogy is not a foreign concept to us.

Though, in our culture, there is not an emphasis of who are relatives are,

Jesus’ genealogy was a part of His story.

It tells us a lot about his ancestors and family.