What is Christmas?
TEXT: Matthew 2:1-12
TOPIC: What is Christmas?
Pastor Bobby Earls, First Baptist Church, Center Point, Alabama
Wednesday evening, November 30, 2005
Are you ready to start talking about Christmas? Can you ever hear too much about Christmas? I’m not talking about our modern-day, commercialized version of Christmas. I’m referring to the true story of Christmas. The one the Bible tells us about. I thought we might just take the Wednesdays of December to talk about Christmas.
Let’s begin with the first writer who told his story of Christmas. Open your Bible to Matthew 2.
1Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, 2saying, “Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him.” 3When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him. 4And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born. 5So they said to him, “In Bethlehem of Judea, for thus it is written by the prophet:
6 ‘But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,
Are not the least among the rulers of Judah;
For out of you shall come a Ruler
Who will shepherd My people Israel.’ ”
7Then Herod, when he had secretly called the wise men, determined from them what time the star appeared. 8And he sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and search carefully for the young Child, and when you have found Him, bring back word to me, that I may come and worship Him also.” 9When they heard the king, they departed; and behold, the star which they had seen in the East went before them, till it came and stood over where the young Child was. 10When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy. 11And when they had come into the house, they saw the young Child with Mary His mother, and fell down and worshiped Him. And when they had opened their treasures, they presented gifts to Him: gold, frankincense, and myrrh. 12Then, being divinely warned in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed for their own country another way.
The question tonight is “What is Christmas?”
1. CHRISTMAS IS A TIME FOR REJOICING, Matthew 2:10
When they saw the star, they rejoiced with great joy
Filled with joy
Overwhelmed with joy
The Wise Men had had little in which to rejoice. Their two year journey would have been difficult and dangerous. They had heard of Israel’s Messiah and had diligently searched for the sign of His coming. They saw the star and the Bible says they were suddenly filled with great, overwhelming joy.
Their excitement soon faded to disappointment when upon entering Jerusalem there was no Messiah to be found. Where else do you look for a King than in a Kingly city?
But when they heard of Bethlehem from the words of King Herod’s own prophets they resumed their journey with exceeding great joy. (Greek)
Micah 5:2
2 But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, are only a small village in Judah. Yet a ruler of Israel will come from you, one whose origins are from the distant past.
APP. Christmas is a time of rejoicing for all men. A time to sing songs, and a time to exchange smiles and well wishes of good tidings and Merry Christmas. I don’t have a lot of time or respect for those of our day who would like to take the Christ out of Christmas. It’s no longer acceptable to say “Merry Christmas.” Rather it’s “Season’s Greetings, or Happy Holidays.”
Christmas Tis a Season to be jolly and to dawn gay apparel. (I do mean that with the purest since of the word). Christmas is a season of peace on earth and good will toward men. A time of rejoicing because unto us a child is born and unto us a son is given.
The truth of Christmas, that God became a man, the incarnation, for you and for is still cause for exceeding great joy. In spite of war and terrorism, high gas prices, and a struggling economy, sickness and sorrow have not taken a vacation, yet nevertheless we rejoice in Christmas. The truth of Christmas causes rejoicing. Not only that, but Christmas is….
2. CHRISTMAS IS A TIME FOR FAMILY, Matthew 2:11
When they came into the house they saw the young child with Mary his mother
This to me is a beautiful scene. Perhaps it’s the same scene Michaelangelo saw when he created the sculptor of the Madonna.
The reference to the “house” here indicates a passage of time since the birth of Christ in Bethlehem. Some believe as much as two years could have passed since the birth of Christ before the Wise Men arrived in Bethlehem. According to verse 16 Herod’s terrorist actions indicate he believed the Messiah was perhaps as old as two years old.
But let’s get back to the family. Joseph was a good earthly father, a good provider and a good role model. Mary, an ideal mother, never left her son. She follows Him all the way to the cross. Jesus’ day was a time when mothers were not expected to work outside the home, nor needed to. Mary was at home with her first-born son. Attending to His every need.
APP. Christmas is a time for family. What a great time it is when the family begins to gather together there in their special place each year for their traditional Christmas celebration. In most homes across America, families gather in living rooms, dens, and dining rooms to renew relationships that have been disrupted by time and distance.
Christmas can also be one of the saddest, loneliest and most difficult times of the year for those who are away from or have little family. We should remember to pray for those who are hurting this year. Separated by jobs, sickness, the military, divorce or even death, many struggle to express the same joy they see in those who have family at Christmas. (In fact, let’s pray for them right now)
3. CHRISTMAS IS A TIME FOR WORSHIP, Matthew 2:11
They came to the house where the child was and saw him with his mother, Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. They opened their gifts and gave him treasures of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. (NCV)
The Wise Men worshipped the young child Jesus. They did far more than make “goo-goo” noises at the baby Jesus and funny faces. The Bible says they GK - proskunevw
1) to kiss the hand to (towards) one, in token of reverence
2) among the Orientals, esp. the Persians, to fall upon the knees and touch the ground with the forehead as an expression of profound reverence
3) in the NT by kneeling or prostration to do homage (to one) or make obeisance, whether in order to express respect or to make supplication.
APP. As we approach Christmas 2005, it is a time of worship. Our eyes should not be blinded by the glitter, and glamour of the world’s version of Christmas. Neither should we allow the brightly colored lights and decorations to dim our view of the worthiness of our Lord Jesus Christ. He is real. He is alive and He deserves our worship.
Why? Because this tiny unblemished child of God left the security and safety of Heaven’s glory to enter our world of confusion and spiritual darkness. And what did it get Him? It got Him crucified on a Roman cross.
That’s why He’s worthy of our worship and that’s why Christmas is a day of worship.
One last thing,
4. CHRISTMAS IS A TIME FOR GIVING, Matthew 2:11
They presented their gifts….
We may be surprised to learn who actually began this act of giving on Christmas. Was it the Wise Men, or was it God? Before the gold, frankincense, and myrrh, it was God, through His love for us who gave. He gave His only begotten son so that whosoever….
The Wise men gave gifts that were descriptive of the baby Jesus’ life to come. The gold was symbolic of the purity and royalty of His life. The myrrh was a costly ointment associated with times of bitterness, suffering and hardship, even death. The frankincense was a fragrance used in anointing the dead. They were also very practical gifts in that they could have been sold at a great price which would have provided the funds necessary for the family’s move to Egypt.
APP. Christmas has always been a time for giving. Many of us recognize our giving of gifts to others is a reflection in some small way of God’s gift to each of us. When we give we are most like God, for God is a giver. Someone said, “The greatest gift God ever gave He hung on a tree—a tree called Calvary.”
Conclusion: (Paul Harvey’s Christmas Story, “The Man and the Birds.”)