Finding Jesus in the Midst

I imagine many of you have heard the old joke — or at least some version of it — about the man who’s walking along the street one night and comes across one of the neighborhood children inching along on his hands and knees down on the sidewalk beneath a streetlight. The man asks the boy, “What’s wrong, Jimmy? Did you lose something?”

“Mmf, mmf, yes,” whimpers Jimmy. “I dropped the dollar Mama gave me for ice cream.”

Feeling sorry for the boy, the man gets down on his hands and knees, too, and starts looking. After a few minutes, he says, “I’m sorry, Jimmy, but I don’t see your dollar anywhere. Are you sure this is where you lost it?”

“No,” the boy says. “I dropped it over there by the vacant lot.”

“What?!” the man exclaims. “If you dropped it way over there, why are you looking for it here?”

Jimmy looks at him, then points. “It’s dark over there! I can see a lot better here.”

Little Jimmy was never going to find his dollar if he kept looking in the wrong place, no matter how long or hard he looked or how sincerely he expected to find it there.

For the past few weeks we have ben “Rediscovering Christmas” We have talked about finding hope in our discouragements, joy in our suffering, and peace in our struggles- and next week we will finish with looking at finding love in our differences. But all of these thoughts press us into the central truth that we think about today- Jesus in the midst.

Jesus in the midst is the entire reason that we join together as a Church- not just today, but every Sunday. Sure, the birth of Jesus is more central on this week of the year, but the presence of Jesus should be one of the core parts of our faith that bring us to this house of worship every week.

Not only is Jesus in the midst a core theme for our worship- Jesus in the midst is one of the core themes of the Bible- if not THE core theme.

Think of it, long before Jesus was born in the manger that night, he was in the midst of the world. John 1 tells us that he was in the midst when the world was created; we also see what many believe to be Jesus in the furnace with SMandA; we see Jesus wrestling with Jacob in Genesis; and many think it was Jesus that visited with Abraham before the destruction of SandG.

We continue to see this in Jesus’ life throughout his ministry. Jesus spent his entire ministry in the public arena- from religious leaders, common fisherman, tax collectors, and others- Jesus lived his life constantly revealing himself to those around him.

After all, Jesus in the midst was literally proclaimed over the baby long before his birth. In fact, it was pronounced over Jesus some 700 years earlier by the Prophet Isaiah who wrote in 7:14 “Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.”

Immanuel- GOD WITH US. Or as I might paraphrase, Jesus in the midst. The Gospel begins with this foundational truth- Jesus is present with his people.

Of course, when Jesus enters the story we are presented with a choice. A choice that millions of people have had to make throughout the years- a choice that everyone who hears the Gospel ultimately has to make. When Jesus shows up, how will you respond? Today, as we enter into the story of Jesus’ birth, we can see some people’s responses. Some who responded in the right way, and others who missed it all together!

First, let’s talk about those people that missed it

First, we see the inn keeper. God bless the inn keeper- his response to the presence of Jesus is really one that is oblivious to what or who is happening in his stable. I wonder, if he could have gone back and done things differently would he have? He had the savior of the world being born in his barn, and he made no room.

Some of us might be inn keepers, or you may know an inn keeper. Jesus is working and blessing their lives, but they are just plain oblivious. You, from where you sit, can easily see the hand of God in their lives, but for them they are too busy, to worried, to self absorbed to see it. Today, we pray for the inn keepers among us!

Then we see the religious leaders of the day- notice who wasn’t at the manger that night? No pharisees, no Sadducee, no priests- they are all missing. Why? Because their response was skepticism. That was really the story of their entire experience with Jesus. Never believing that he was who he claimed to be. They responded to Jesus with discontent and never taking hold to his truth.

Maybe you or someone in your life have embodied the reaction of the religious leaders. Never fully believing, never fully accepting the truth of Jesus. Can I level with you today? Skepticism can either push you towards Jesus, or pull you away. If you are skeptical of Jesus today- that’s okay. Come and meet him, come and learn from him. Don’t be like the religious leaders of the day that allowed their skepticism to keep them from the King, allow it to bring you to him.

Lastly, we see King Herod- the man who ruthlessly called for the killing of all the baby boys in the Kingdom. His response is complete animosity. His reaction to the birth of Christ is self-preservation and fear. He issues a degree to kill all of the newborn boys in order to save his own throne and power.

Perhaps you or someone you know have become Herod’s- rejecting Jesus and doing so with complete animosity. It is not enough for them just to reject the presence of Jesus; they then attack it and try to destroy others because of their faith in Christ.

Animosity, Skepticism, and being oblivious- what do all of these things have in common? They missed the presence of Jesus in their midst. If we read John 1:9-11 we hear what John says about these people

“9 The true light, which gives light to everyone, was coming into the world. 10 He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world did not know him. 11 He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him

Jesus came to save the world that he created, and they missed it- they did not receive him.

But there is another option in this story of Jesus’ birth, and in our lives. We see this in the wise men and the shepherds.

2 very groups of people coming from 2 very different circumstances. The shepherds were common folk, coming from outside the city, looking for a baby they just heard about. The wisemen were high class, coming from a long distance, following a sign to a child they had looked for across the years.

Two different groups, but their actions were the same. They heard, they recieved the announcement, they responded with faith, and they worshipped.

Both of the groups recieved the announcement. For the shepherds it was a choir of angles, and for the wisemen it was the star in the sky. They were greeted with an opportunity to find Jesus and they both responded with positivism.

But there was a next step, they stepped out in faith and responded. It took some faith to follow that star, and they choose faith. Those chose the risk to step out and follow what God was revealing to them.

But that was not the end either, for both groups worshipped. They found their way to Jesus and they bowed in worship. They allowed their lives to embody the posture of worship for the newborn King, and their lives were never the same.

Some of us, hopefully all of us, in this place today are wisemen and shepherds. You have heard the invitation to walk with Jesus, you have responded with faith, and here you are today to worship.

You are invited through the Christmas story to find Jesus in the midst of your story, in the midst of your life. Listen to Paul’s words in Philippians 3:9-10

Philippians 3:9–10 ESV

and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith— that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death,

Paul wants us to be found IN Christ- the emphasis being ALONG SIDE OF or CONNECTED TO carrying the understanding of being in the midst of Jesus and having Jesus in your midst- an intimate fellowship. Today, you were given a small box as you entered the sanctuary- grab that box in your hand. Our hope as a church this year is that all of our friends and church family will remember that Jesus is in our midst- in our homes, in our lives, and in our church. Even though this Christmas may be different as many homes will not be as full as other years; the gathering around our tables and trees may not be as big, but Jesus is still there.

So, today the church wanted to give each of our families a gift, a small reminder of the presence of Jesus in the midst of your home and your holiday.

Remember the verses we read in John 1? Listen to the 2 verses that follow- 12-13:

John 1:12–13 ESV

But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.

Christmas is not just about the birth of Christ, friends. Christmas is about your rebirth in Jesus as well. This is one of the things that separates Christians from the rest of the world.

For the past few years there has been a major controversy in this country surrounding the use of “Merry Christmas” in the wider world- let’s just be frank folks, there is nothing offensive about Christmas....the problem is Christ. The problem is the perceived audacity that we Christians have to believe that Jesus is the only way to salvation and that outside of Jesus there is no hope. Let’s really get honest, most people do not even find it offensive that we celebrate the birth of Jesus- that has never really been the problem. The baby Jesus is hardly offensive- what IS offensive is the savior Jesus, the one who claims to be the WAY the TRUTH and the LIFE.

Nate Pickawicz boldly declared that “Christmas is not about a baby in a manger; it’s about God coming on a rescue mission to save his people from their sins”

So, if you came to worship today for the baby Jesus, that is a start, but that is not the whole story. At some point your faith will ask you what you do with the Savior Jesus, that is ultimately the question that the people gathered around the baby Jesus had to ask themselves.

The question becomes not is Jesus in the manger, but is Jesus born in your heart?

"Tomorrow morning I'll open up your heart" the surgeon said to the 8 year-old-boy.

"You'll find Jesus there," the boy said.

The surgeon continued, "I'll open your heart and check the damage."

"You'll find Jesus there," the boy said.

"When I see the damage, I will suture you back up and then think about the next step," said the surgeon.

"You will find Jesus in my heart because my Sunday school teacher told me so. She said it says so in the Bible. Besides that, our Sunday school songs say He lives there," said the boy.

The surgery took place the next day. After the surgery the surgeon began to make notes of what he found. In his mind there was no hope and no cure. The little boy would die within a matter of months.

The thought began to get to the doctor and all of a sudden the doctor shouted to God, "Why did you do this to the boy? Why can't he live a normal life?"

God spoke to the surgeon's heart and said, "The boy is a part of my flock and will always be a part of my flock. When he is with me there will be no more suffering and pain. He will have comfort and peace. One day his parents as well as you will join him and my flock will continue to grow."

The next day the surgeon went to the boy's room and sat down with the parents beside the bed.

In a moment or two, the boy opened his eyes and asked very quietly, "What did you find in my heart?"

With tears flowing down his cheeks, the surgeon said, "I found Jesus there."