Guaranteed Delivery

Finding the meaning of Christmas at the Nativity

When I was much younger the meaning of Christmas for me was finding out what I’d get under the Christmas tree. I would search the house until I found the gifts and would peak to see what I’d get Christmas morning! For some that’d spoil the surprise for me it was about did I get what I asked for. I wanted to make sure I’d get what I was looking for!

The Christmas of 1968 I recall one especially exciting gift. The Strange Change Machine was a Mattel toy introduced in 1968, in which "shape memory" plastic figures of prehistoric animals & science fiction-like creatures could be reconstituted from compressed "time capsule" form, and re-compressed back into that form. The label on the box declares: "A Strange Change Toy featuring The Lost World," suggesting that perhaps this was the first of a proposed series. The "Lost World" was the only scenario produced with this toy before it was discontinued due to safety concerns.

At 8 years old the meaning of Christmas we making sure I was getting the gift I wanted.

First we will look at the meaning of Christmas from the story of Jesus birth. Second we will personalize it, apply the meaning of the nativity story to our lives.

The Nativity Story teaches the meaning of Christmas

What does the story of Joseph and Mary, The Bethlehem star, baby Jesus, the wise men and shepherds teach?

God keeps His promise

Luke 2:12 says: “This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.” (the promise)

Luke 2:16 says: “So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger.” (the fulfillment)

In Luke’s Gospel the message of the birth of Jesus was given by an Angel of the Lord.

Baker Encyclopedia of the Bible Terminology > Promise

Instead of any one technical term, Hebrew utilizes a variety of rather ordinary words to convey the idea of promise in certain specific contexts. These include “to speak” (Ex 12:25; Dt 6:3; 9:28; Jos 23:15; 2 Sm 7:28); “to say” (Nm 14:40; 2 Kgs 8:19; Ps 77:8); “to swear” (Gn 26:3; 1 Chr 16:15–18; Neh 9:15). When these words occur with God as the subject and God’s people as the ones to whom certain assurances are given, they are properly understood as conveying the idea of promise, and hence the common English translation “promise.”

Have you ever wondered how many promises there are in the Bible? There are no fewer than 3573 to as many as 8810. Regardless of how many promises there are in the Bible the story of Jesus Birth teaches that God keeps His promises!

What’s it like when someone makes a promise to you and keeps it? What if they break their promise? Usually we feel as if we’ve been lied to!

“My Word is my bond”, or a Hand shake, both signs of making a promise.

When another person keeps their promises it makes for a stronger relationship. The opposite is when someone doesn’t keep their promises and we lose faith in them. Well the story of Jesus birth teaches that God is faithful.

God is faithful

Luke 2:20 “The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told.”

God guaranteed delivery

Most delivery companies offer guaranteed delivery services. They all have a motto that hopefully convinces you the customer that they keep their promise.

One such company is FedEx. The primary FedEx color is purple, the FedEx motto is known as the “Purple Promise,” a promise that includes “Do whatever it takes to satisfy our customers” and “Always treat customers in a professional, competent, polite and caring manner.”

What happens when a delivery is lost or late? We lose confidence in their promise.

God, on the other guaranteed delivery at the birth of Jesus. The story of the birth of Jesus teaches important things about God. God keeps his promises, therefore God is faithful, trustworthy and God will deliver.

Let’s make this personal. What does the Nativity Story teach you? What do we learn from the story of Jesus birth?

The Nativity Story teaches you

You can trust in Him

How do we trust a God that we can’t see? You can trust him by trusting his promises!

We learn that by trusting in the promises of God we are trusting in him!

“God said it, I believe it and that settles it!” A song from the 1970’s “At first glance, this expression seems to be about one thing and one thing only: closed-mindedness. But there’s a lot more going on here. The people who use this slogan use it to express their complete confidence in the authority of God’s Word.”

Jeremiah 29:13 “You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.”

Proverbs 8:17 “I love those who love me, and those who seek me find me.”

The story of Jesus birth also teaches you and me to believe God will deliver us from our sin. You and I can count on God! There are times in our lives when he will be the only one we can count on! From the nativity story you learn you can believe God will deliver you from sin.

You can believe God will deliver you from sin

Luke 2:11 “Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord.”

The messiah, or Christ both mean the same thing and both point to God’s promise in John 3:16-17

John 3:16-17 “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.”

In the Nativity story we learn that God guarantees delivery! The Nativity Story reminds you that God guarantees delivery.

You can be reminded that God guarantees delivery

Luke 2:16 “So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger.”

The Shepherds found Mary and Joseph just like the angel said they would.

When you order something online it usually has a tracking number and the company tells you it’s going to be delivered to your home on a certain date. You watch for it and wait for it and when it’s delivered on time just like the company tells you it’s not that big a deal. But if they guarantee delivery for a certain day and it arrives earlier than promised it makes a lasting impression.

I’ve said this before and I don’t recall where I heard it but “God is rarely early but he’s never late.” That’s what you learn from the story of Jesus Birth. God guarantees delivery.

When the Shepherds found Mary and Joseph and baby Jesus, just like God promised they were excited.

Luke 2:17-18 When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them.

In conclusion: Maybe today all you can think about are the many broken promises in your life that prevent you from trusting other people or trusting God? I realize every promise not kept makes it harder to believe someone. It’s difficult to trust people who we can see let alone trust in a God we can’t see. What we can trust in is the Word he has given.

The the story about the birth of Jesus teaches you and me that we can trust in God, it teaches you that you can believe God will deliver you from sin and it teaches you that God can be counted on to do what he promises.