God With us

And so I want to talk about Christmas today, and I want to ask you one question. Have you gotten your Christmas shopping done yet? It's not it's not just a mean question. Because we just got past Thanksgiving. We are just starting to think about Christmas. And when I asked you that question, I know that some people you're used to stress over it. I didn't you you think about it. What am I going to get for someone to and then how am I going to get the list and am I going to buy something that somebody else already bought for them? And how is this all going to work out in your mind is already turning and I brought this all up to the surface of your mind just because I don't know why but I anyway I so, you know, you're thinking about that and then you know, there's also you have to clean for the holidays because people might come over and then you have to cook for the holidays and it's not just normal cooking their special cooking involves and traditions that are involved in some of you travel for the holidays until you go to other places at 2 to see family in the nearest personalities involved with Christmas and family isn't there. it says sometimes there's there's some some interesting things that happened around the holidays and stress for some people Christmas is stressful 20% of people say that December is the most stressful month of the year. 30% say that the idea of Hosting for the holidays is completely overwhelming. And so he kind of asked yourself a why is Christmas so stressful. I think it's a lot of it's because we have this perfect picture of Christmas that we're trying to achieve in our in our family is in our lives. We want everything decorated just right we want the meal just right. Everything's got to be perfect for what the people just right. Maybe we'll kick some people out invite new people in so I can get the people just right in our families. We want everything to be just right because Christmas can't just be good. Christmas can't just be great. It can't just be wonderful but our world especially our retailers. Wanted to be magical. They wanted to be magical something. That is so awesome. So great that it's otherworldly that we can't possibly so we put all of this pressure on ourselves. Sometimes to create a magical Christmas when If we're honest with ourselves, there's going to be something that goes wrong during Christmas and some years that's bigger than others is a family who had five kids and they were trying to put together their perfect Christmas and so they had bought the tree that set up the tree in their in their family room, but they didn't have enough time to decorate it. And so they kind of just went to bed will the three oldest Brothers in this family decided they would wake up and put their sisters underwear. And training bra on the tree. She was 12 years old. She wakes up to see the horror that is on the Christmas tree snakes into their rooms and then puts their underwear on the Christmas tree. And then the youngest brother who's just a little one wakes up and see everyone as underwear on the Christmas tree. So he goes back to his room and gets his Ninja Turtle underwear and put that on the Christmas tree. And they had no idea that their Christmas would be sponsored by Fruit of the Loom.

Our Christmases aren't always perfect. What we can create isn't always perfect. So what God does with Christmas is perfect. If we can just remember the Perfection of what he's given us to celebrate on Christmas will have a fantastic Christmas. So here's what my hope for this Christmas season and instead of living through the Christmas season in a hectic mess or in a ball of stress. that this year we would treat Christmas like it's the story of Our Lives because it is that this year rather than getting wrapped up in all of the chaos and all of the details and all of the pressure and all of you know, that the things that go with Christmas that we would put all of those things aside. And as we explore this series that we would treat Christmas like it is the story of our life because it absolutely is Can you imagine what your life would be like without Jesus? being born

Didn't you see that Christmas is the story of our life? But what is Christmas? So if you were in the grocery store and you were just minding your own business and somebody from a different foreign remote country tattoo on the shoulder shoulder and said that it what is Christmas. How would you answer that question? Would you say Christmas, you know, there is a reindeer and there's a sleigh and there's a Christmas tree and there's presents and there's Black Friday. You know, what that what would you say or would you say, you know, it's not about Santa it's it's about Mary and Joseph and it's about the manger and it's about the trip to Bethlehem and it's about the star and the wise man, how would you answer that question? What is Christmas? Cuz if if you're like me or if you see what's happening in the world that we get distracted. By all of the details we missed the very point of what Christmas is to read to you the most Christmassy verse. I think that is in the Bible. I know Christmas is not a word but I just made it once that's okay. And it is this. John 1:14 the word became flesh and made his dwelling Among Us. We know that In this passage the word means Jesus. And so the word became flesh means that Jesus became flesh and made his dwelling among us. This is Christmas. Is it not This is the essence of Christmas that the god of the heavens The God Who lives in the perfect heaven in the throne room of Heaven came from his perfect place all the way down to earth became flesh in the form of a baby. Angry about to show us the perfect life so that he could sacrifice his perfect life on the cross so that we might stand before God perfect. And so we celebrate Christmas and all of that is because God became flesh. So that he could dwell Among Us. I just seem weird. Would you leave the throne room of Heaven to dwell Among Us? may I love you people but if I get an invitation to the throne room of heaven, I'm going but he left it all for us.

In Matthew chapter one we see another verse that captures Christmas so well. First 23 says the Virgin will conceive and give birth to a son and they will call him Emmanuel. Which means god with us. if you're going to say what is Christmas about you can take God became flesh or you can say God is with us either three word phrase captures that perfectly but the idea is that God is with us. And that idea is mind-blowing. When we talk about God. If we look through the Old Testament will see a lot of different names for God and some of those names like El Shaddai is his God Almighty and he's ancient writers. They wrote about God because of their experience until when they were going to battle. They would talk about El Shaddai, which is God. Almighty, God the Mighty God The God Who is going to be Monday in battle? They knew him as a mighty God. And there's all kinds of different names for God. Jehovah Jireh it means that God will provide. And so people would know God as the providing God and that was special and it was intimate because they needed God's provision. And so they felt that in so they would call to him and using that name instead. There's all kinds of different names for God God the Healer because God brings healing. but perhaps the most compelling name for God doesn't describe his power. but his proximity

perhaps the best name that we have for God doesn't describe the fact that he is Almighty or all-powerful or or omnipresent or you know that all of these things that we used to describe the god perhaps the best name for God is that God is simply with us. And every moment in any any day that we haven't any problem that we have no matter what we're going for. God does not leave us. He does not forsake us. He is with us and it is the very name. That God gave to Jesus. Emmanuel God is with us. This is why is it that sometimes? We don't feel like God is with us. Why is it that sometimes when we're going through difficulty? Return To God In where we say God. Where are you in this moment? Why is it that sometimes when we're we're going through stress within where can we prayed to God for relief for that? And why why is it that we don't feel like he answers that prayer sometimes. Why is it that we have tragedies in our life and we pray to him to God had to help us deal with the grief that we're going through God. Where are you in this moment? Sometimes we don't feel like God is with us. Why is it only pay for an answer and it comes back kind of convoluted and we're not sure what to do or where to go that, you know, sometimes we just don't feel like God is with us and that answer we pray for healing. Why is it that sometimes he doesn't answer that and we feel like we're all alone in the world. Despite the fact the very name for God means that God is with us. Why is that?

I think this is true of our world today is that we want the god of easy. We want the god that will show up and make everything easy you want the guy that will show up and make every path smooth that will solve every problem that will well, you know divide the water is for us to walk to the other side. We want him to heal every every prayer that we pray wanted to answer every prayer that we pray in the way that we want it answers because we want our life easy. But I've looked in the Bible and never does it describe God is the god of easy. It describes God as The God Who is with us? It so here's what happened sometimes. Sometimes we start to look inward we look at our inner life in and we're wondering we're going through difficulties and problems and we start praying to God for God to solve these problems with them and we say God, where are you? I don't see you. You're not answering the prayers that I want you to answer so you're not here.

But God isn't the god to make life easy. It doesn't mean that he's not there. Sometimes we're just looking for a God that doesn't exist.

The god of easy doesn't exist. The God Who is with us dust I want to show this to you. Matthew chapter 1 versus 18 through 23

Bermuda story

of Joseph and Mary Excuse me while I deal with the technical difficulty here.

It says in Matthew 1:18 through 22. This is how the birth of Jesus the Messiah came about. His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph the before they came together. She was found to be pregnant to the holy spirit because Joseph her husband was faithful to the law. And yet did not want to expose her to Public Disgrace. He had in mind to divorce her quietly. But after he had considered this an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said Joseph son of David do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son and you will give him the name Jesus because he will save his people from their sins.

And all of this took place to fulfill with the Lord had said through the prophet the Virgin will conceive and give birth to a son and they will call him Emmanuel. Which means god with us.

If God was going to show up and make something easy for anyone who would it be? Be Jesus, right? It's his son. He sent it to Earth. And so give him the best give him the easiest path. Give him the easiest road to take it. Just clear it all out pave it all out make it may be a great Road for him except for from the very beginning. What do we have? It's a scandal. Mary is found to be pregnant and she's not even married yet. It's a good thing it gets easier after that, right. fixes that right up going to have to travel to Bethlehem. Canady mile Journey with a pregnant wife is if some of you can imagine that without the comfort of your Your 2019 car whatever you're driving it would not be a fun rides to them. What's a good thing you fix? Is it after that? They get there and there's no room for them. It's not an in like sometimes we think of Christmas, but it's it's a family friend or a family member who has a guest room on the only thing is they're not the guest of honor and imagine that Mary and Joseph the mother and father of Jesus. The son of God on Earth do not have the place of honor within this family that they're going to visit. They get was likely a cave. Just sleeping and I'm sitting here and I'm thinking about that to me like God why could you not make something easy on Mary and Joseph? They are after all they're taking care of your son. Just clear the path for them. He doesn't do it after that what happens? Hair it is trying to kill Jesus and they have to flee to Egypt. I can't imagine fleeing with a newborn. Maybe they didn't have as much a year as we have today for these babies. But anyway, they had to leave.

I'm thinking to myself. If God isn't going to make it easy and smooth and and just perfect for his son. Is he going to do that for me?

Then why do I expect him to? If he's not going to clear everything out to make my life extra convenience. He's not going to do that for Jesus. Why is why do I expect him to do that for me? And when it doesn't happen the way that I want it to happen. Why do I call to God and say God, where are you?

Why am I asking him to do something that he wouldn't even do for his own son?

He got it isn't the god of easy. Here's what I want us to think about enough to do. We don't want to look for a guy that you want to be real. We don't want to look for God that we wish to be real. We don't want to look for a guy that we have created out of our own imaginations or own desires, but we want to start looking for The God Who is actually with you.

Because the God who is with you does fight for you. He does give you answers. He does solve problems for you. He does work on you though. Which means that is the answer isn't always. Yes.

So don't look for the god of Yeezy and we look throughout the Bible and we look at all the characters of Bible how many of them had it easy?

well find one. And I'll be impressed because we're looking Abraham. Move from your homelands sacrifice yourself Abraham, maybe not a good example. That's find someone else to pick on right? So so what about Joseph? Well, he has brothers sold him into slavery about Jake Vale song this whole battle with Esau and then all of the the getting keys out of his wife. He didn't have it easy either.

What about Esther? Well, she has to go before the king and she might lose her life as she does that. What about somebody even better than that? What about David man? After God's Own Heart. Didn't he have it easy if there's anyone who's going to pursue God's heart wouldn't God make it easy for them and perfect for them and smooth sailing for them.

No. Isn't the god of easy. What is the god that is with us when we look at one of the words that David pins? if I can get this to advance here in Psalm 23

I want to read to you this part of Psalm 23 that we don't like to focus on cuz we like the first part. The Lord is my shepherd. I shall not want right which means God is my shepherd He gives me everything I want and that what that means.

No, it's not what it means. He does take care of us until we have this image of the shepherd. And and then the one that takes care of us in and will lead us behind beside Quiet Waters one who restore are so once that will lead us to Green Pastures. Right and all of that is good things until we get to verse 4 and here's what it says, even though I walk through the darkest Valley. Wait, what? He's the shepherd right? He's the one leading us rights. And so why are we down a dark Valley? What in the world did he lead us down at the keep us a hundred miles from those dark valleys were predators are ready to jump out, but no David doesn't say that. He said even though I walk through the darkest Valley which by the way Shepherd you led me down. I will fear no evil for you are with me you are with me. Your Rod and your staff they comfort me Italy is in the darkest Valley and he looks at all the danger, but he doesn't fear because he looks at the shepherd and says you've got you a rod. You've got your staff and you're going to take care of me. Even though it looks bleak. Let me get this next one this one maybe it is even more interesting you prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. Wait, what? I mean, we just sat through a dinner with our families and that was bad enough.

but a table of our enemies Why would why would God throw a dinner party for your enemies?

He doesn't save us from our enemies always. Sometimes the annoyances in front of our enemies. He blesses us in front of our enemies he gets us through the battles with our enemies he doesn't come in and it doesn't take away all of our problems.

But he comes in and he's going to make sure we get through all of our problems.

And he will never leave us or forsake us. So don't look for a guy that you want to be real. Start looking for The God Who is actually with you because it is The Treasure of Our Lives that we have is my family's is that a year ago? And so you'll recognize that they've grown up since then a little bit. We haven't gotten any older though. So we're just as pictured above and you know, I met my wife 18 years ago if you can believe it and we didn't meet when we were 12 either just for the record. So we met and I had dated some before then I won't say a lot cuz I don't want to get in trouble, but we had dated someone before then. And I had this pattern were 3 months in I would get I would get kind of bored and I know that sounds bad to even say out loud to a room full of people but it's kind of what happened then so, you know, I started dating Alice and I thought to myself, you know, you know, I wonder if this is going to last I wonder if I get to three months and then I'm going to get for it again by the way, don't tell you know, girl that you're dating that you might get bored at 3 months is not a good idea. We got the three months and I wasn't bored. Got the six months and I wasn't forced. In fact, it didn't matter. What we did is we could be studying for 12 hours together and I was perfectly content and happy because she was just with me. We can do anything we could watch chick flicks on the television together and I would still be content because she was just with me. It doesn't matter what we do. Sometimes she'll say I need to go to the store and I say let us all go with you. because I want to be With her, even if it's at the store has nothing to do with the fact that I had two kids that I don't want to watch at home by myself.

I want to be with her. Because being together is the greatest blessing that we have.

being together with God Is the greatest blessing and treasure that we have? And we don't need just for him to solve our problems. We need him to be with us. No matter what we go through. It is The Treasure of Our Lives? I know we're getting towards the end here, but I want to read one more verse. in 2nd Corinthians chapter 4

I'm going to look at verses 6 through 10. Miss first part is a little bit dense. So stay with me here and I'll explain this first verse it says for God who said let light shine out of Darkness made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of God's glory displayed in the face of Christ and told his you stay here. He says the guy who created everything The God Who created light in the world has given us light and heart and that light looks like Jesus Christ. It is the face of Jesus Christ is the glory of Jesus Christ that he has put within us. And then when you get to verse 7, we see something fascinating but we have this treasure referring to Christ in Us in Jars of Clay to show that this all surpassing power is from God and not from us. We are hard pressed on every side but not crushed perplexed but not in despair persecuted, but not abandoned struck down but not destroyed. We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus to the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body. So, what did he say? The Treasure of your life is Jesus Christ It is the lights and the glory and the Hope in the peace and the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross that gave you relief from your sin that you have inside of you and it is the glory of God that exists inside of you. And what is he saying because you have that inside of you. Let me take away all of your problems.

In fact, he promised is the exact opposite of that because God isn't the god of easy. He's the guy who is with us. And so what does he say? He says we're going to be hard pressed on every side expected. There's going to be pressure on every side of you. So it's just a reality for your life. But you're not going to be crust because I live inside of you. Because I am with you. Just give me a moment somewhere perplex where we're confused where we're doubting where we're not sure life is going over which way to turn.

But we're not going to be in despair because God is with us. He will not leave us.

go back to the thank you. We're going to be persecuted. I don't know if you've experienced this before. I have a few times in my life. And it's going to feel off.

But he is not abandoning us in our persecution. We're going to feel struck down. We're going to feel like we're beating on every turn.

But we're also not going to feel destroyed. What we're going to carry around with us? Jesus it's going to be his birth his life his death is resurrection his Hope Of Heaven that we carry around in our body and we reveal to all of those around us. So that they can see the hope that we have.

Now I know. That's some of you are going through things. I know that some of you are going through some really difficult times and you're asking the question God. Where are you? It's not getting any easier.

But don't look to the god of easy. Look to the god that is with you. I know some of you are. Alright just in a spot in your life where you are a pile of down with so much stress and worry. And God is with you. He may not easily. Take it off your shoulders all at once. What is with you in your stress? I know some of you are dealing with grief. You've got a tragedy that happened within your life, and you're you're dealing with grief and you're wrapped in it in your title, and you can't see past it and it's just kind of gripping you.

God is with you in your grief. Is not abandon you he may not be taking it all the way in the way that you want. But he is with you in your grief. Let him sit there with you in it. And see what happens if you have Financial things that are going on. And he doesn't automatically take those things away. But God is with some of you have health things going on in and you're worried and you're stressed about and you're not sure what's going to happen. God is with you.

He's always always with us. So this Christmas? Let's not look for the guy that makes her life easy. Let's look for The God Who is always with us? If this morning you come looking for the god of easy doubting whether he exists know that he it he does. And he is sitting right with you and no matter what the circumstances you are sitting in. He will not abandon you he will not forsake you. And he will lead you to be with him in a life. That is Everlasting. Just a second. We're going to sing a song. And you can come down here in the front and I would love to pray with you and whatever situation you're going through or if it's more comfortable comfortable for you. Can you can go to the prayer room in the back? And if you've never given your life to Christ and you don't have him with you. I come down front and we will do that today with. But no matter what you're going through understand that God is with you as we seeing about a guy that we want to get to know. As well as we can.

Related Media

Related Sermons